Hey Sexy Girlfriend! JayLynn Cooke.

So this beautiful woman is my friend and Assistant Manager over me at the bank. I can not even begin to tell you how amazing she is. She is so strong and a wonderful friend. Plus, her obsession with shoes may exceed my own so we get along beautifully.

 

I got a text from JayLynn on my day off. The gist of the text was basically, "Hey I look hot. You need to come see my outfit!" And I replied with, "Obviously." Because let's face it, she is so cute all the freaking time! I went in to the bank and almost fell over. She said she looked hot but holy hot mama Batman. I immediately told her I had to have a picture to blog about. The outfit is adorable and so versatile! You can wear this EVERYWHERE. Store, work, date night, church, family pictures, your living room... possibilities are endless.

 

First off, she is mixing prints and rocking it. The skirt is obviously striped. It is in black and white which makes mixing waaay easier. You can't really tell but the shoes are a blue and black leopard print. They are also 6 inches but shockingly comfortable and easy to walk in. Leopard and stripes are both considered "neutrals" in the fashion world so work them together! The skirt is amazing. It is tight enough to show off curves and flatter but loose enough to be lady like. It also hits below the knee so you can totally wear sky high heels with it and still be appropriate and classy and hot and feminine all at the same time.

 

This shirt is... incredible! I want one!  You can wear it multiple ways which is a nice way to get more bang for your buck. (Wait... is that phrase in reference to prostitutes?? Who came up with that saying?? Let's pretend it is about fireworks! .......) Back to JayLynn! The detail on her shirt dresses up the entire outfit and creates a great focal point. And it gives great shape!

 

And let's address her hair. This is some of the most kick a hair ever. Seriously! She is rocking the short hair. This is grown out a bit from a Mohawk and doing it very gracefully. It makes me want to chop all my hair off every time I see it. She has texture up in there to add a bit of spice and to change it up enough so she doesn't get bored.

 

Conclusion: Jaylynn is fabulous and I am very grateful for her in my life. I absolutely love her and I am so happy to be getting her to know her better. And spoiler! We are going to be going into business together! More on that to come shortly!

 

Love, Mika.

 

 

 

Winged Shadow.

This is my finished product! It is a great date look. I wore this to work but if you aren't that brave, save it for night time. :)

 

So today I tried a new makeup technique. I have known about it for a while but I haven't really tried it. It is winged eye shadow! Whoop whoop. And guess what I discovered? It is AMAZING. And it takes 1/100th of the skill that winged liner takes. Score. So let me tell you the steps to the perfect winged shadow!

 

1. Apply black (or a dark color, I am wearing a matte black color in these photos) all over your lid. I made mine a little lighter in the middle and darker toward the crease.

 

2. Apply more black in the crease of your eye. Extend the black by dragging the outside half of the shadow from the crease up to the end of your eyebrow. Blend.

 

3. Now take a baby or facial wipe and make a diagonal swipe from the corner of your eye to the end of the eyebrow. I like to use my fingernail to make the wipe have a sharper edge. See the sharp edge?

 

***Note: Another method is to use tape to make the sharp winged edge. Tape off the edge with Scotch or masking tape and apply shadow. You can also hold a business card or piece of paper up while you apply your eye shadow for a neat edge.   

 

4. I then rimmed my waterlines with a black pencil. I then used a purple pencil on the bottom underneath my waterline/ lower lashes and smudged it. I would encourage you to use a bright color on bottom because it definitely steps up the fun factor.

 

5. Pile on mascara! Because mascara rocks and every girl should utilize this amazing beauty tool. :) And I usually don't wear mascara on the bottom lashes, but I did today and I am in love! My eyes looked so big.  

Ta Da! Done. My camera is terrible so you can't see the purple very nicely but I promise its there! 

 

Try this look and tell me how it goes! I want to hear. Also, if you don't use baby wipes, you need to. NEED. They are magic! They are super cheap and super effective. Plus, it is a lazy girl trick. Throw some on/in your night stand and you don't even need to get out of bed to take off your makeup. Because lets face it, ain't no body got time or energy to go to the sink.

Love, Mika.



It's A Boy!

Today, I will address men's fashion. Dun dun dun! The handsome young man to the left is my husband Kyle. And he is looking pretty darn snazzy in his getup if I do say so myself. :) Kyle's inner Doctor Who definitely came out on this one and he worked it.

 

Kyle's outfit works on many levels. Church, teaching, any event where should be a little dressed up, presentations, ect. (He wore this to church.) He is mixing brown and grey which is looked down upon by most people but it is totally working here. Neutrals are being mixed and he added a pop of color with his dark denim colored/navy/royal blue shirt. And for a dash of cool, a bowtie. Bowties are cool.

The key to looking put together is fit. If your clothes don't fit, you will not look good (that applies to both women and men's fashion.)

 

Love, Mika.

 

Wash Your Face Sonny.

So when I was working at the Tavelodge, I would watch a lot of TV because, well, we had TV and lots of time. I would see a Proactiv commercial literally every three commercials. It was ridiculous. Then I finally broke down and ordered some out of sheer boredom and irritation. So these are my results!

I really love it. I saw results in one week! I feel like my skin is softer and smoother and the coloring on my face is becoming more even and less patchy and red. I also got the Blackhead Dissolver Gel. I can't see a major difference with it but I am hoping after a while that it will start working a little better. All in all, I highly recommend this product. I only use it once a day or every other day but I still see results.

 

What do you do for your facial routine? I wanna know!

 

Love,

 

Mika.

Dear Mothers and Future Mothers.

Dear Mothers and Future Mothers,

This letter is to all past, present or future moms or anyone who interacts with children on a regular basis. As many of you know, kids are extremely impressionable. They pick up on EVERYTHING. That swear word you just said? Heard it and repeated. The candy bar you snuck in before dinner? Saw it and tried it the next night (and probably got in trouble.) Now, these are all very obvious things. But what is not so obvious is what you say without thinking. I'm talking about body image comments.

 

We all do it. We all say things like, "I wish I was taller!" or "I used to have a nice figure like hers when I was young. Now I'm just gross and fat." Kids pick up on these! How are we supposed to teach them good body image when we say derogatory towards ourselves? It doesn't matter if you say it half jokingly either because children can't usually tell between sarcasm and what is a legitimate sentence. For example, when you say you are fat, your little girl is going to grow up thinking that your body is the standard for being "fat." Chances are, she will have your body type and then think, "Well, if mom is fat, I must be too." And if you are thinking that you are safe because you have all boys, think again. They are going to grow up and they may think that their girlfriends/significant other is fat/unattractive or whatever. This is not ok. Kids are programmed to love how their mother looks. They KNOW from a young age that they have the most beautiful mother on the planet. Don't change that outlook.

 

Ladies, we need to stop saying mean things about ourselves. Your little girls look up to you. Media only plays a miniscule part on molding their perception of beauty compared to you. You are their role models. Let me rephrase that so you all understand completely. YOU ARE THEIR ROLE MODELS. You. Must. Stop. If you have a hard time stopping, make a goal that you won't say it in front of the kids. Baby steps! Once you have mastered that, stop completely. Changing the way we all perceive ourselves starts with us.  None of us want our children to grow up thinking that they aren't enough. It is not fair to them. Please, please, please think about it.

 

Plus, the less mean you are to yourself, the happier you will be and the better mom, wife, friend, sister, ect you will become. And while I am on the subject, moms: Please take care of yourselves. I watch What Not to Wear every chance I get. I love both the physical and the mental transformations that happen. Don't let yourselves go. I always feel a million times better on my bad/sad/gross days if I get ready, even if it is just a little mascara and a clean outfit. I promise you will have more energy and feel like you are the most awesome person alive (which, let's face it, you are! Work it.) You are amazing creatures and you do so much for your family and friends so start treating yourselves like you deserve. You wouldn't send your kids out looking like a hot mess so you shouldn't either!      

I'm just saying. I really do know what I am talking about and I don't mean to sound like I am lecturing but I just want you all to be the best you can be because you are incredible and I am grateful to you.

So the challenge this month is:
- Stop belittling yourselves.
- Take a few minutes for yourselves each day.

I swear to you that this will enrich and improve your lives greatly.

Tons of love,

Mika.

Fantasy Meets Reality.

I would have chose eternal slumber over this. Of course, eternal slumber sounds amazing compared to four hours of sleep every night!

 

I was scrolling through good ol' Facebook when I came across an article. The article was about princesses who are stuck in reality. What? I wasn't too sure on what it meant so I clicked on it, read the article and looked through the pictures. I was flabbergasted. I love it! You must take a peek by clicking HERE. Let me know what you think! I would love to reenact this in a shoot. I think this would be so fun!

 

Also remember to like us on Facebook! Or you can comment on here. :)

 

Love, Mika

Ouch.

Life has been... hectic. I quit the center so I have been job hunting like mad. Kyle and I landed managing a hotel and surprise! We hate it. So we put in our two weeks notice and I have been freaking out trying to find a job! Unemployment is not a good look on me. I get stir crazy and spend money I don't have to feel better. Bad Mika! But this hotel business is not a good look on me either. Kyle and I wait up until all hours of the night waiting for people to check in and then get up at 6:30 to put out breakfast. Talk about stressful. Either way, I was still applying everywhere and hoping. SUU called me for an interview and then called me twice to tell me that I didn't get it. Thanks SUU. Just reject me twice! Not like I had feelings. :P

 

And just when I thought there was no hope, I got a call from State Bank and I am now a part time teller! I am so excited! I get to sit down, not wake up at 6:30 and I get to dress up every day! No more tank top/cardigan/jeans/dirty socks combo. So keep an eye out for new outfits to come! I probably wont post every day but I will be doing more posts than once a month. Again, I apologize for that! But when I am not checking people in, I am taking a nap or cleaning. Please send me outfits that you have put together! I have a new email mikafredrick@yahoo.com :)

 

Love, Mika.