April Favorites

I can not believe April is over already! Spring has sprung and I have officially broken up with my winter wardrobe until at least late September! That being said I don't I don’t have a ton to share with you this month. For the most part I have been sticking with my favorite staples, however necessity did force me to try a few new products.

1. OZ Natural 2.5% Retinol

Retinol is a must have for my acne prone 30ish year old skin. My Usual over the counter retinol cream was discontinued and I swear I almost cried. I went out on  limb and bought this one from Amazon. Let me tell you this stuff is amazing! My new staple for sure!

2. Bare Minerals Bare Skin

I previously tried this foundation and I was not a fan! I decided to give it a second try because I was looking for a lighter weight everyday foundation now that the weather is warming up. The secret to making this foundation work was wearing it with a primer. I like the easy, mess free application. It doesn't have the flawless finish that my usual foundation has however I like the natural look for everyday. And the built in SPF is an added bonus.

3. Kinky Curly Curling Custard

Finding a curl defining gel has been an ongoing struggle since I did my big chop over a year ago. Everything I have tried has been to drying or too crunchy or causes too much shrinkage. But this baby is worth its weight in gold. Leaves my wash and go moisturized and defined! Its a little pricey at $16 but I love it!

4. Perry Street Leah Necklace

I got this in my second Rocks Box this month and if you follow me on Instagram (If you don’t, you should) you seen that I wore it all the time! I had to buy this beauty!

5. Gianni Bini Jazzey Jewel Perforated Smoking Slippers

These are so comfy, probably my most worn pair of shoes this month!

What were your favorites in April? I need to know!!

Diary of A Single Girl: Great Expectations

Jeans-Old Navy | Top- Forever 21| Purse- Just Fab| Shoes- Dillards|

Warning this post is about to crush a lot of hopes and dreams.

Remember when you were in college and you made that list of qualities that you wanted in your future husband?

Take a minute, think about it, you did it. You know how I know you did it? Because I did it and my roommates did and my friends did it. Were all guilt!

Search me oh God

How true is this for you? Are you looking inward? When was the last time you took out quite time to reflect on your actions or intentions?

I encourage you to spend some time in prayer ask God to reveal your heart. I guarantee if you ask he will show you. We as people spend too much time blaming external forces, we give the enemy way too much credit! When in reality so much of what we are going through are the result of our own doing.

"Search me oh God and know my heart. Try me and know my thoughts and see if there are any wicked or harmful ways in me and lead me in the way everlasting" -Psalms 139:23-24

David asked God to search for sin and point it out, from a medical standpoint it was exploratory surgery for sin! I challenge you to make this your prayer and see if we don't get better results. If you ask the Lord to search your heart and reveal any areas of shortcoming you will be continuing to walks on your path to "everlasting life".

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TGI Casual Friday

|Jeans-Sears | T Shirt H&M | Sandals -Target (Similar) | Sweater- Forever 21| 

Great jeans are so very hard for me to find. My favorite all time jeans was a pair of curvy fit straight leg jeans I purchased a million years ago from Old Navy. I loved the fit of those jeans and they were super soft and comfortable. To my dismay Old Navy discontinued the fit. I wore that pair of jeans until they practically fell apart. And I have been on the hunt for the perfect pair since then.

I found these jeans at Sears of all places. I have never been one to shop at Sears. It conjures up images of little old ladies buying little old lady stuff (whatever that is). I just never imagined it as a place where I could find cute trendy stuff, but I have been sleeping on Sears big time. I found some really great stuff and they were having a good sale! They will defiantly be going on my list of "Go to Stores".

Diary of a Single Girl: What I learned About Being Single on Tax Day

Yesterday was tax day (well by the time I post this it probably was a few days ago). And well that got me to thinking, so I hit up good ol’ Google which solves a lot of the worlds problems and I typed in “difference in tax rates among married and single people.”

Well talk about salt on a wound, basically what I learned was single people pay more. And the government is set up this way intentionally to encourage marriage. which I want to say to the government “Get off my back, I am trying.”

What's In My Purse

I must confess, I am a bit of a youtube junkie, and one of my favorite videos to watch is the infamous “what’s in my purse” tags. I’m fascinated by what women carry in their handbags, and lets face it what a woman carries in her bag says a lot about her. And since my blog is still in infancy I figured what better way to get to know me than to take a glimpse into my purse.

My current everyday bag is a faux leather tote I picked up from JustFab. Its quite large and perfect for work. This girl can easily fit  my laptop and extra pair of shoes!

So here it is...What’s in my purse!

1. I almost always have a book, my current read “Lady in Waiting”
2. Planner
3. Blog Notebook for jotting down ideas
4. Phone
5. Ear Buds
6. Pen
7. Wallet
8. Hand Sanitizer
9. Lip balm, lipstick, lip gloss, lip liner
10. Burts Bees Cuticle Cream
11. Berry Greens on the Go
12. Hand Cream
13. Extra Phone Charger

Truth be told, I’m a bit of a hoarder so typically you're also going to find spare change, a bunch of receipts, and a few random things like a bottle of water. And there you have it! Now I want to know-what must haves do you carry in your purse?

Fashion Find: Black, White, Chevron Oh My

 Chevron Stripe Poplin Dress

I’m so excited about this weeks fashion find! I have been on the hunt for a black and white a-line skirt for what seems like forever! Well my search has come to an end…

Okay, its not exactly a skirt, it’s a dress but I love it! I found this gorgeous Chevron fit and flare dress at eshakti.com. Its available in sizes 0-28 and the best part is you can make custom adjustment for a small additional fee. I added a cap sleeve and had inches added to the hip since I’m  bottom heavy.

The retail price was a little higher than this frugal fashionista normally would pay but I really loved this dress and I think I will get a lot of wear from this beauty. Plus eshakti had a promotion for first time customers, so I saved $40 off the price of the dress and free adjustments (who doesn't love free). It also comes in a maxi length that I loved as well.

Instructions Necessary

I've invented a new gadget, something super cool, one of a kind nothing, there is nothing else like it on the market! And because I think you're super cool, I've given it to you, a gift to use as it was intended! The only catch is I didn't give you instructions.

So you spend countless hours, days, weeks trying to operate this super cool invention, and trying to figure it out. Along the way your lack of understanding may have caused you to have even broken a few pieces here and there. And through many hours of trial and error you manage to figure out a few features of my super cool invention, and you're using those features but you know that you're not using this invention to its full capabilities. As a result you find yourself frustrated…after a while it dawns on you to go back to the inventor and ask for help, instructions.

The solution seems so simple yet so many of walk around doing this very same thing with our own lives. We have no idea what our purpose is, and instead of going to our creator we look to the world to figure it out.

“He has identified us as his own by placing the Holy Spirit in our hearts.” (2 Corinthians 1:22)

Your faith will grow stronger as you focus on your identity in Christ (Galatians 2).

This requires that you abandon any image of yourself that is not from God. You stop accepting what others have said about you, how others have labeled you, and how others have defined you. We must return to the one who created you and start believing what God says about you, that he is pleased with how he created you, and that God defines you.

For so long, I allowed the world to identify me, the opinions of other, my circumstance, my failures, my education, my career. My identity, my purpose was wrapped up in those things. There was a whole in my heart and I was looking for the world to fill it. The truth is God created that whole and only he can fill it.  

I went through a season in my life where Christ stripped away everything I had depended on to form my identity. I had lost m y job, my home everything! During that dry season I had nothing but Jesus. I was forced to not only depend on him but to to really get to know him and his thoughts toward me. It was during that season that all distractions were stripped away and I began spending daily time in the word (instruction manual) and  I began to truly understand my creators original plan for my life.

It is my prayer that you come to understand that you are  not defined by the opinions of others or by your circumstances. You’re not defined by your successes or failures. You’re not defined by the car you drive, the money you make, or the house you say you own when the bank really does.

You are defined by God and God alone. He identifies you as his own (2 Corinthians 1:22).

Rocks Box Review- If you Give a Girl Bling

I admit I have a bit of a thing for subscription boxes. I love the anticipation of getting that little box of goodies in the mail every month. I first saw Rocksbox in my Instagram feed, I did a little digging and the online reviews were pretty good. Plus, I was able to get my first month free, and you can too by using the code "Saprinabff"

Rocks Box is a little different than your standard subscription box in that the items are on loan, its like Nexflix for jewelry. When you first sign up you are asked to complete a short a style profile. You tell them what you like, you can choose gold, silver or a mix of both. You also will build a wishlist of pieces you love and would like to receive.

The monthly fee is $19 and you receive three items at a time. You can keep and wear them as long as you want or return them in the pre-paid envelope anytime to receive three new pieces.  Fall in love with a piece and want to keep it? No problem you can buy it for the “member only” price.

I do have to mention that this is not the Charming Charlies or Forever 21 jewelry that I usually buy – it’s designer, higher quality jewelry. With the higher prices to match. But I love that I can test the pieces out to decide if I really want to make that investment. Or I can wear designer jewelry for a low monthly price and then just send it back for more!!

And now-Here’s what I got

Perry Street Layla Necklace-$44

I made a note to my stylish that I really love to wear statement necklaces. Even though this is on the small size, I would put it in that necklace category. I personally did not like this necklace simply because I prefer to wear big, bold necklaces with lots of color.

Perry Street Aria Earrings- $30

I love the earrings if I was going to a formal event, but for church or the office they are a little overkill! I probably won’t be wearing these before they go back.

Lotus Jewelry Studio Petal Necklace in Sterling Silver-$44

This is a pretty dainty piece that I will probably wear in a layered look. Of all the three this is the piece I probably will get the most wear out of.

I do want to mention that processing was slow, it took almost ten days from the time I signed up until the time my first box shipped. However once it shipped I received it the next day which was a pleasant surprise.

What do you think? Would you keep any of the pieces??

**I was not paid for this review, but I did receive a free trial. If you sign up using my referral link, I do get a credit towards future boxes. All opinions are my own!**

Make it Werk: Tribal Pants

|Pants-Sears | T Shirt-H&M | Flats-Dillards | Blazer-Sears |

Purse-JustFab | Jewelry-Charming Charles's |

Tribal pants seem to be everywhere, and I must confess it’s a trend that at first sight I hated! And not just at first sight but at  third, fourth and fifth, I just really disliked the look, until I found these. I absolutely love these pants, and they were on sale!

The moment I tried them on I instantly realized what about high waisted tribal pants I disliked...they make your butt look HUGE, and not in a good way!  After playing around and trying them with different things in my closet I think pairing them with a  long blazer  covered my behind and made the wearable! And the color and fabric made them office appropriate. I added a pop of color with this long, electric yellow sweater blazer. Next time I might try the with a long tunic off the shoulder top for a casual night out!

Trusting God

“Just Trust Me.” Those are the words we hear in movies just before something bad is about to happen. And yet we are told to trust God. In a culture were we’re taught to take control of our lives, trusting God has become a religious platitude rather than a life changing attitude. We say that we trust God, but what dose that really look like.

Fashion Find

Fashion to Figure

Forget the Boston Tea Party. The most fascinating thing to happen to the herbal brew in ages is the tea-length skirt, otherwise known as a midi. Its fun flirty and absolutely lady like. But a plus size circle midi can come with a moderate price tag. This frugal fashionista will never spend $60 on a trendy non staple piece. So began my hunt for an affordable plus size circle midi...

I found this fantastic texture midi from FashiontoFigure.com and with a $28.50 price tag and a 30% off coupon code ("Dazzle" Expires 4/7/15), its absolutely affordable! It can be worn with a cami and blazer for work or church and because its high wasted I may try it with a crop top on a Saturday for girls night.  It only comes in black and right now  its available in all sizes. I have never purchased from them before but I ordered a size 1. I did have to pay for shipping which I hate to do but since I had the 30% off code I figured it wasn't that big a deal.  Click here to purchase Fashion to Figure.

Until next time,  be blessed.