Life.

I have not been posting for a while and I will not continue to post for a few days. I've worked five shifts, I will be having two surgeries and I am moving. Talk about stress inducing. So I apologize for the delay and will continue once life settles down again. :)

Love, Mika.

Day 19.

I love this outfit so much. I never get to wear it because I am always working. The skirt is made of suede so it is dry clean only.... meaning it doesn't get worn at work. If I can't throw it in the wash, it doesn't go to work/get bought. My mom found me this skirt at DI one day for $3. At first I laughed so hard at it. Then I actually looked at it and my reaction changed to, "Hold the phone. Where is the check out line because I am never parting with this." The entire tag is in some Asian language that I can not decipher. My dad confirms that it is not Japanese. His best guess was Korean. Either way, no idea what company made it, how to take care of it or even if it is real suede! This skirt is extremely impractical for every day wear but would be great for photos. It has absolutely no stretch whatsoever so sitting is pretty much out of the question. And don't even get me started on stairs! I need a running start. :P 

Love, Mika.

Elementary Face Care.

I do not usually participate in "Throwback Thursday" but today is a special exception. I saw something on Pinterest that made me stop and consider if it actually worked. Remember how back in the days of elementary, you would smear your hand with Elmer's glue and then peel it when it dried? First off, how did our teachers not get mad at us and take away the glue?? It was a major distraction and it got every where. Secondly, it made your hands smooth. So when I saw the pin about using Elmer's glue as a face mask, I thought it was so brilliant that I swear I heard angels singing.

I did just that. I applied a thick layer to my nose and chin and let it dry. I used my hair dryer to speed up the process because I was eager to see my results. It dried and I peeled it slowly off. I must admit, I was not expecting much. With this being said, I was not disappointed by how it turned out. It  worked!! What?! Yes. It did not clear as many as I would have hoped but it did clear out quite a few blackheads. No matter what I do, my blackheads never seem to go away. I've had them for as long as I remember so I am pretty happy with a bunch gone! 

THANK YOU genius who pinned that wonderful idea. I think I will let it air dry next time. Maybe that will make it grip better?? *shakes head* I am going to definitely keep up on this! Try it. 

Love, Mika.

Day 18?

Not sure what day I am on. I skipped a couple days due to doctor appointments in Provo. But today I got dressed up again and was back at work.Today's look features a ton of brown. I got this dress from my neighbor for freeeeee! Everyone needs one of these dresses. The silhouette is amazing for every shape. 

Pear: Balances out the bottom half of you by flowing away from you. Not to mention, this jacket brings the eye up.

Straight: Cinch the waist=have a waist.

Apple:Same for you guys! Your waist will visually be smaller. :)

Inverted Triangle: Brings balance by having a flowy skirt.

Hourglass:Work this. Everything about this just goes in your favor. 

The shoes have a retro vibe. They are a thicker heel which also brings balance to the skirt. Just a side note: Today at work, we went over the dress code due to summer bringing the world less clothing. My boss said that some of the parents had told her that they were not comfortable with what they were wearing. I asked Shandra after the meeting if they had said that about me. She told me that a lot of parents ask if I had just come back from a wedding. SCORE. I would take that as a compliment any day. It's better to be over dressed than under dressed. 

Love, Mika.

No Heat Headband Curls.

Sorry I have not written in a while. I have been out of town with doctor's appointments and no one wants to see what I look like on those days. Last night, I youtubed different ways to curl hair without heat. One way that came up was the headband method and I thought I would take a stab at it.

The following video (at the end of my post) is an ad for a product that curls your hair. However, if you are poor like I am, a simple elastic headband works just fine. :) This certain product is quite ingenious though. You microwave it and the low heat helps set the curls faster. I just slept on my headband though! 

Steps to remember while doing this: 

1. Brush out hair. Duh.

2. You want damp hair. (Anything too wet or too dry will not hold.) I sprayed the hair closer to the roots with water and the ends with leave in conditioner. You might want a little gel or hairspray as well just to keep it all together.

3. Wrap hair around the head band. If you are sleeping in it, have a soft one.

Quite frankly, I think it is cute when its just wrapped around the band. With the right styling/headband, I'd wear that out of the house. And then wear curls the next day! Mwahahaha! Its brilliant. Below is how mine was when I wrapped it.

The results were not as I anticipated. Probably because my hair isn't all that long. The back was flippy and the front curled very nicely. I will keep trying though to see if the curls improve and I will let you all know! 

Love, Mika.

The Chop.

Before I made the cut.So a couple years ago, the above picture ^^^ is what my hair looked like before I cut it. It was so long! It was about 6 inches past my shoulders. So why did I cut all my long and pretty hair?? Well, it is a long and sad story involving a controlling ex boyfriend and a need for change. Not to mention, it was a touch damaged. Ok, maybe it was a lot damaged so I decided to chop it. My inspiration was Emma Watson! (Go figure.) Isn't she just so wonderful?

Audrey was the one who talked me into this actually. She has always wanted to pixie cut her hair but decided against it and lived through me. Which is totally fine because I like being dressed up. Human Barbie here and totally have embraced it. Shortly after I realized that I wanted to cut my hair, My friend (who happen to be my ex boyfriend too) told me he was going to Evan Hair School and he agreed to chop it for me! This is how it turned out:

I really love my long hair AND my short hair. You are totally allowed to vote if you want. I am growing my hair back out for my reception (and Kyle likes it.) But I think I will be back and forth with my short hair throughout my life. 

Do you guys have any drastic hair transformations for me?

Love, Mika.

Glitter Flats.

GLITTER!!! I love glitter. I have a very minor fascination by it. And by 'minor' I mean 'a very serious' and by 'fascination' I mean 'unhealthy obsession.' So I made these! I had really boring brown flats (that kind of looked like Cinderella's shoes in Disney's version) and I covered them in Modge Podge and a mixture of blue and green glitter. So easy and so awesome. 

Go forth and make your own pair. Or pay me to do it. Seriously. 

Love, Mika.

Calm Before the Storm.

Monsoon season is upon us. Its my favorite part of the year! I love the rain. :) Zachary and I often play soccer in it if it rains heavy enough. But careful, he cheats. (And by he, I mean we.) So all this thunder and lightning inspired to post one of my regular 'go to' looks. I do this makeup at least once a week. Its really nice when you are in a rush and you need to do your makeup in 30 seconds or less. Its like a day time/casual smokey eye so its great for work or shopping or whatever your activity may consist of.

You are going to need:
-black eye liner
-silver/gray shadow

-black mascara

- your regular makeup and tools

Do your normal beauty routine (foundation and whatever else you do) Rim the water lines of your eyes. Then apply the gray or silver shadow from your lash line to your crease. Also place it under your bottom lashes. Blend outward towards the ends of your brows to give a more winged look. Apply mascara and curl your eyelashes! Separate them with a sharp object and clean up any mascara that stuck to your lids. Apply another coat of mascara. Viola! You are done.

Do be careful that your shadow isn't too light. Otherwise, it may come off a touch trashy. To take it to a nighttime look, simply add a darker gray or black shadow to the crease and blend. Do you like this look? Thoughts on storms?? I love gloomy days. :) What do you do on rainy days?

Love, Mika.

Featured: Aubrey Killpack.

Aubrey Killpack and her giant schnauzer Major Roger Healey

Aubrey and I have known each other for a little over two years (I think) and I love her dearly! She really is one of the nicest and cutest girls I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. She sent me her pic today and the caption read, "I was looking at your blog and decided to send you my outfit :) long hemline no heels, I broke the rules :P love you!" Tsk tsk Aubrey. Long hemlines = tall heels! However, that being said, I quite like this look! Very vintage and classic. My favorite part of this outfit is the shoes. I hate flats but these are irresistible! Who doesn't love panda covered stuff?? 

Aubrey's style is very... random. Just like her! Which is AWESOME. She doesn't follow the 'rules' which makes her fearless in what she chooses to wear. She loves reading, Star Wars and spiders. Yes, spiders. I am not a fan of these eight legged creatures but she loves them enough for the both of us. :) Back to the outfit, Aubrey is mixing prints which is fabulous. If you haven't tried it, please do. It is so fun! And to top off her look, she has her hair in a top knot and a long string of pearls.

What can we learn from Aubrey? Be true to yourself! And take risks in what you are wearing and don't care what anyone thinks because in the end, the important thing is to be happy. Love you Aubs :)

 Love, Mika.

Day 16.

Day 16. Excuse my face. This is my "I'm frustrated and so tired after working" face.

I can't believe I have been doing this for over two weeks. AND I HAVE BLOGGED MOST OF THOSE DAYS. What?? Big time fashion bloggers would be proud. To be completely honest, I was not completely sold on today's outfit. I was just a little unsure about proportion. On one hand, it made my profile look like a nice "S" shape. On the other hand, I think I would have liked it more with black tights. Note the black pencil skirt! Get one ladies. It goes with everything. Both my top and my skirt are from the thrift store DI. Shoes were bought for a wedding but then I had to get a different pair that were more white. 

Also, I don't know if it is the light or for real but I look way tan in this. :) That is all. 

Love, Mika.

Day 15 and Some Advice on Jeans.

Day 15

Jeans! The above are my favorite pair of jeans. My outfit consists of an argyle cardi, a stretchy v neck and sweet heels. I always get insane blisters when wearing these shoes but I traded them for cookies and they are so stinkin' cute so I wear them anyway and accessorize them with hidden bandaids. Worth it.

As I was typing this article, I started thinking that I should write about jeans because they are amazing and everyone and their dog wears them. (Look at that cute face!) So without further ado, here is my infinite wisdom on jeans.

Everyone needs at least two pairs of jeans that fit. They make your legs and butt look amazing or they can make you look awful. Here are some tips for getting kick a** jeans: 

1. Get some with some stretch. But not too much stretch! Just enough to suck you in a little and smooth things out while giving you shape.
2. Have some with a darker wash. Dark is classic and slimming.
3. Don't have a lot of embellishment on the butt. It makes it look bigger and you pay like $50 more than you would have for a plain pair. Plus, you look like a high schooler when its all blinged out. Not a good look for anyone (even if you are in high school.)
4. Colored denim is fabulous. So get some that work for you. If you are worried about looking big, then you can get some in purple or some other dark color.
5. Same goes with floral printed jeans! Those are so in right now and I am obsessed with everything with flowers on it. If you want to look smaller, wear a smaller print! Just go for it. Nothing says spring like florals. 
6. Look for a mid rise waist band. Don't do the super-triple-extreme low rise kind. Not flattering in anyway. Do that and you can say hello to massive muffin top and more crack than an old sidewalk. Mid rise is excellent for hiding a stomach and it is very classy (and not to mention comfortable.)
7. High waisted jeans are so cute, especially when you are going for a retro look. But if you are going to do them, have ones that are very fitted. Ill fitting ones are mom jeans. Don't wear mom jeans.

Love, Mika.

Days 13 and 14.

Day 13

I am holding up my maxi skirt so you can see my shoes! I got my maxi from a maxi dress party actually for like $30. If you have never been to one, you should. They are quite fun and the selection is fantastic! They have all sorts of sizes and fabrics and patterns. AND they have little girl skirts. I picked this particular skirt because I feel like a mermaid in it. Also, the shoes just complete the look. A pop of unexpected color is fantastic in every season! They really brighten up the dark top. 

Day 14

I often get told that I look like I should be working in an office as a secretary. To be honest, I would be totally thrilled to be a secretary. I quite like routine tasks and I am expert in paperwork! I do at least 20 lbs of it a day at work. Literally. Classic outfit today. Blazer: check. Form fitting pencil skirt: check. Feminine bow top: check. Heels: check. I love these heels. So simple, so comfortable and they make my legs look fabulous. LADIES: invest in some plain black heels. I prefer stilettos (of course) but you can get a shorter pair. Oh and get a black blazer while you are at it. :) 

Love,
Mika.

On the 12th Day of Blogging.

I made Guster take a picture with me because I didn't want to be alone due to my boring outfit. White heels (which are awesome for summer time) and a stretchy teal v neck. The only thing I don't like is that this shirt is AWFUL for riding up.

Day 11.

I love skirts with volume. I also love shoes with straps. And stretchy v necks. So I love this outfit I guess! AND this skirt has pockets. Best part of this outfit! And on a side note, polka dots. Everyone loves polka dots.

And on a side, side note, it is taking me a whole hour to type this article. I am watching Friends With Kids and I keep getting distracted. And if you were wondering, it is pretty excellent. Adam Scott is definitely one of my favorite actors. Not sure why. He isn't anything extra excellent on the eyes but there is  something kind of charming about his nerdy vibe.

I'm going to call this a day! I can't focus. If you have any cute outfits you want to share, email me at mikafredrick@yahoo.com !

Love, Mika.