Style - July 25, 2016

Checking In + Recently on Instagram

Leith Racerback Shift Dress // Baublebar ‘Marble Ra’ Bib Necklace // Tory Burch Lexington Wedge // Karen Walker Super Duper Sunglasses // Tory Burch Hobo Bag

I’ve Been Taking Some “ME” Time

Hi there! As I’m sure you’ve probably noticed (or possibly not), I’ve taken a lot of time to myself these past few days. And although I didn’t really deliberately plan to do so, it has been SO nice.

I’ll admit, it hasn’t been easy. I mean, yes, it’s easy to take a break from working. But it’s difficult to do so in peace and wholeheartedly – if you know what I mean? But I think that comes with the territory of working for yourself. There’s just something about being your own boss that makes it 100x harder to actually “walk away” and be totally okay with it. I’d be willing to argue that most people struggle with this – even if you don’t work for yourself.

I had a little help keeping my mind off work this weekend because one of my best friends came in town (from Baton Rouge) and it was SUCH a sweet treat. I totally unplugged from everything for the most part – aside from 2 or 3 instagram posts (see/shop them via my “insta page” here) that I posted without really investing my energy or mind. In other words, I just posted because I need to (since it’s my job) and I didn’t get too invested or worried about WHAT I was going to post or put too much stock in how “perfect” the photo was or how well it performed.

I haven’t quite decided whether or not I’m going to take any additional days off, but it’s definitely possible. I’m about to go have a long, sweet quiet time and pray about whether I need to take more time away and then I’ll plan my week accordingly. Most likely, I’ll fill you in on what I decide to do (either here or on snapchat). I’ll let you know what you can expect this week on the blog, but for now, I’ve got a round up of recent instagram posts for you (below all the words…haha).

My Thoughts & Struggles with the #Nsale

I’ve really enjoyed putting together shopping guides for y’all for the big Nordstrom Anniversary Sale going on, but I’ll admit that I’ve lost my momentum lately. And the reason is because it’s just so darn frustrating how fast things sell out! I’ll spend hours (even days) working on a post only to realize that once I actually publish it (and am so excited and proud to finally do so!), the items I’m featuring are already GONE entirely. Which I KNOW is NO fun for YOU and thus it’s no fun for me either. Make sense?

Maybe you don’t notice those sorts of things as a reader/follower but from my standpoint, it can totally put a damper on my motivation. It’s difficult to keep the positive energy and dedication (and willingness to put 100%) into creating quality (and thus time-consuming) content that will be (practically) worthless upon completion. Okay that was a little harsh/dramatic, but hopefully you get my drift! I don’t mean to complain or be negative here (although that’s totally what I’m doing lol), I’m just explaining how I feel and why I have sort of taken a step back the past few days.

Things in The Works

Lately, it’s been hard for me to finish things as I’ve just had too many projects going on. Although I wish I were the kind of person that could confidently and consistently stand behind the notion that “done is better than perfect”, I’m simply not. And that’s okay!

Once I decide to do something, it’s virtually impossible for me not to do the best I know I can do. So this leads to lots of unfinished projects and overcommitting to too many ideas (and getting excited about them), but not being able to follow through (because it would be impossible!). I’ll also be spending some time prioritizing the projects I’ve got going on and figuring out how to go about planning to complete them.

But I want to be transparent with you and let you know what I’ve got in the works so you can have an idea of what to expect (if you were wondering about something I’ve mentioned I would do). Here’s a rough list:

Side braid tutorial – gosh, y’all I’m sorry this has been taking me so long! There are a few things that have gotten in the way of me finishing this (I filmed it before I left for Italy on June 1st!). But it’s virtually finished except I need to record the voice over and write the text that will accompany the video. I am going to complete it this week and hopefully post by Friday but most likely next week.
Hair volume tips – I get a lot of questions about how I get so much volume in my hair so I decided to commit to writing a post about it. The post is already written, I just need to take photos to illustrate my “tips” slash the “tutorial”.
Banff Blog Posts – As you might recall, I was in Banff, Canada for the 4th of July. I’ve got a city guide I want to finish for Banff in general and then 2 outfits from the trip I’d like to get up on the blog eventually. I’ll admit, this isn’t a high priority but it is something that is about 40% of the way complete. If this is something you’d like to see sooner, please comment below and I’ll add it up higher to my priority list.
Dallas Drinks city guide – this is a project I’m working on this week and have scheduled to go live on Thursday. I’ve been wanting to do this for FOREVER. Sort of like my “where to grab a glass of wine in Positano” blog post, I hope to do something similar for Dallas, outlining a few of my favorite spots to grab a drink here.
Additional #NSALE Posts – Initially, I had BIG plans for the sale. And although I still do, I’d really like to know which topics you guys are MOST interested in seeing. Take a look at my #NSALE Page and look at the post topics I’ve got listed that I haven’t gotten too (the ones without a link). Are there any that you are especially interested in seeing? Please let me know as this would be extremely helpful. In the meantime, checkout the posts that I’ve already done (the ones in that list that are linked). I plan on going shopping today to get NEW things that I can hopefully feature before they sell out (always the struggle, as I mentioned!)
Snapchat Bible Study – not gonna lie, I still have no idea what I’m going to do here but I have a TINY bit of an idea of what it’s going to “look” like – just not the content of it just yet. I plan on having some sort of way you can follow along on the blog so that there’s something a little more concrete and that doesn’t disappear after 24 hours (like stories do on snapchat). But if I can’t figure it out technologically, it might JUST be on snapchat. I’m thinking it will be something no longer than 60 seconds that I post each weekday morning.
Hair Extensions – As you might have read in my last BTD Weekly post, I got hair extensions about 2 weeks ago and I plan on putting together a blog post telling you all about them. In the meantime, read that post to get the quick details.
The best (and most needed) UNDERwear (bras, camisoles etc.) – A reader suggested this on snapchat to me and I think it’s a brilliant idea. This is most certainly on my list but I’m not what my timeline for completion is. I’ll for sure keep you updated.
Is there anything I’m missing? let me know and I’ll let you know the status of it! Remember that I write this blog for Y’ALL so you should ALWAYS feel welcome to comment, give feedback or make suggestions.

Do you like the updates or is it TMI? I hope you feel comfortable to comment and let me know either way! Seriously, it’s a lot of help! And snapchat has been so great because I think a few of y’all feel more comfortable reaching out there! Either way, I LOVE to hear from you and value your opinion – whether good or bad!

Recently on Instagram

And now for recent Instagram posts, which I hope you know you can ALWAYS find on my “instas & ootd” blog section as well. But until I figure out exactly what I want that “Section” to look like, I’ll continue to do the BTD weekly where I ALSO include the round up :)