Mayflower Challenge: One week in

Charm is deceptive, and beauty does not last; but a woman who fears the LORD will be greatly praised  ~ Proverbs 31:30


So! The first (and probably hardest) week of not wearing any makeup has passed!!! If you're doing this with me, pat yourself on the back!! :) Way to go!! You're one step closer to being content with yourself!! 

 DISCLAIMER! I am not at all against makeup.... I actually love it! BUT I do think it is wrong when you try to ALTER yourself with make up, to make you look completely different or more "sculpted". I am all for ENHANCING the way you look with complementary colors, evening out your skin tone, and figuring out what looks best on you. But altering is just wrong in my opinion!
 Side note, did you know that most makeup artists, hairstylists and companies believe that the Oval face shape is the perfect face shape? And most of them try to give you the illusion or try to alter your face to make the "perfect" oval. Terrible, right? If you have a oval face shape, great! Embrace it! But for those of us who do not, we need to accept our face shape and work with what we have, instead of striving to match a standard that we could never reach without surgery.


Today is my 7th day! I had to skip a day because on Saturday I wore makeup for a wedding that I was styling the hair for, so that took a day off. And honestly, I couldve gone without it! Sure, I felt prettier, but my face felt greasy and caked on.....not a good feeling. :P 

 This past week was definitely the hardest for me personally! I went to church, went out with friends, took the girl I nanny out to town, and went town with the Hubby. All places that I would plaster on the makeup so I could look a certain way. So at first I felt very self-conscious; looking down and kind of wallowing in the lie that I wasn't good enough. I found myself hiding behind my glasses, and avoiding mirrors, hoping that people wouldn't see that I didn't have makeup on. BUT after a while that faded, I would forget that I didn't have makeup on, bounced back to myself and was able to look in the mirror without cringing! YAY! :)

What Ive learned so far:
1) I really don't NEED it to feel better about myself!
2) People really didn't notice!
3) People (even strangers) didn't treat me any different then they would before.
4) My skin feels better (even though its adjusting and acting weird)
5) It feels awesome to rub your eyes without smudging anything....Give it a try! Seriously try it! Doesn't it feel nice? :)
6) I'm focusing more on the quality and precision of the way makeup is done. (through tutorials and photos)



 Last week, to help me get over my fear of letting people see me without make up, I jumped right in and posted selfies (yes, I hate that word,too) of me and my bare naked face on facebook and instagram.... so people of the world, here's my face:  (they're from my phone, so quality is ehhh)

                                           That's my baby Marvel ^^ So cute, right?

None of these are edited in any way!  Showing my face was honestly the best thing I did! People saw me without my makeup, so I felt like I didn't have to hide it anymore! I wasn't fishing for compliments when I did this, but I got a lot of positive feedback!

So? What was the hardest thing for you this week? Let me know!! Dare to show me your pictures? Hashtag #itookthemayflowerchallenge on instagram and I will for sure look at them! 
 
I am going to continue not wearing makeup for this month, but I think I might add another thing this week! (like I said, I love challenges!)  hahaha
 



 

May Flower Challenge: The Explination

Hey guys!! So, I havent posted in a whileeeee because things have been super busy in Keen land. But, with the start of a new month Ive decided to take on a new challenge. (because i cant resist a challenge ;)) What is it?? Well read on my friends :)

 Anyone who wears make up religiously has done this (and dont deny it, I know things ;)): You're in a rush.... got up late, got home late, whatever. Your going out and you dont have makeup on, you  look in the mirror and you see:

(Jabba the Hutt for you non-geeks out there)
 And instead of shaking that image out of your head, your thoughts get worse....Im so ugly, what will people say, Uggggggggggggg.

 So with that you either a) Run to your makeup bag and spend those precious minutes making sure you look "perfect" causing you to be late b) Try your hand at driving and being a makeup artist at the same time (DONT TRY THIS! Trust me) or c) go throughout the day thinking that everyone is staring and thinking how horrible you look without makeup! Which honestly, I doubt anyone will notice or *Gasp* care.
And I am JUST as guilty!! Ive always struggled with self-esteem issues and because of that, I seem to hide behind my makeup! Phew, I actually admitted that!

Ive been wearing makeup since I was 13 (just eyeshadow and then everything else at 16) and I can only think of a couple of days that Ive gone without it completely since then!! (But the whole time thinking c).
 I do have my days that that I wear hardly any makeup at all, but eyeliner (black liquid) is a MUST! I just dont feel myself/pretty without it!
 My husband it great though, he's ALWAYS said that I dont neeeeed makeup! He actually prefers me without it! Since we've been married, Ive finally been able to not wear it around the house. He never understands why I love it so much or *cough cough*  use it as a crutch if I was honest with myself.

 And Ive heard it all before "why do you need it?" " God loves you just the way you are" which He does ,but thats not the point "Well I think you're pretty without it" But, honestly, if you say those things to someone with low self-esteem, and a poor image of themselves it doesnt go to far before their negative thoughts squash it like a bug! 

 My body image HAS gotten better over the past year or so, but there is still some things that I hold on to, and hide behind because "thats what make me beautiful, not just being me". Ex. Clothes, hair, and especially makeup.. Trying new things, styles, or pretty much anything to alter the way I look.

Well this month Im going to tackle those issues and using you guys as an accountability group (lucky you;)), tell about my struggles before and now and how I got (or am getting) over them
 This month Im going to fight the need for things to make me feel good about myself and start seeing myself as the woman God created me!!

 Being a cosmetologist, I will give you beauty tips that I learned. Being a christian, Ill tell you what the Bible says about beauty, and being opinionated, Ill share my 2 cents. ;)

So to start off, the only time I will wear makeup is to 2 special events that are going on this month (just to look professional). And I will work more to appreciate the skin that I am in, and better ways to care for it!

If you want to join me, let me know!! I would love to know that Im not alone in this! Lets blossom this May and show the world that we ARE beautiful, because we think so, not just when they tell us that we are. :)

Come on, hair!

   

So, today marks the 7th day of my (kind of) ridiculous experiment....


 I was scrolling through Pinterest (like always), and found a way to FINALLY grow out this pixie cut! Sort of....


 -Here is the Pinterest Link and This is one of the many websites that I found, claiming that my hair can grow 3-4 in in ONE week.-


  I am a research junkie, meaning I find as many facts as I can, as many websites as I can, and as many tips as I can. Especially when it comes to hair. But some things I just have to test out for myself :)
 Basically, here are the steps: warm olive oil, put all over your head, put your head upside down for 4 minutes, leave in for 2 HOURS! and wash it out...
 It could work, right?? ;)

 These were my thoughts when I was contemplating trying this crazy experiment:
- Olive oil is GREAT for your hair, so even if it dosent work, my hair will feel amazing
- 2 FREAKING hours.....wow, that seems excessive
- If it works, I will do this every day of my life, and finally have long hair again lol
- Circulation to the head will actually stimulate hair growth, so theres a truth in this
- This is so gross
- My husband is going to think this is so weird (and he did) lol
- THIS IS SO WEIRD
- Your hair grows 1/2in in a month at max, so no way will this work...

But, I tried it anyways, because you never know, right? :)


So here's what I did every morning:
~ Took 4 tbs of olive oil and put it in the microwave for 30 seconds (just enough to get warm).
~ Put it all over my hair (succeeding in getting it all over the bathroom sink/mirror...oh, and me too).
~ Looked like a complete weirdo hanging my head upside-down off the bed for 4 minutes or more (thankfully my hunny was at work the whole time).
~ Cleaned the house and did laundry (avoiding windows) for 2 whole hours, wiping olive oil off my neck every 30 seconds :P (until I started wrapping my hair in a towel I didnt care if oil got on it...SO much easier).
~ Wash my hair at least 2-3 times to try and get it out.
~ Feel how amazingingly soft my hair felt :)

So, I did it for 7 days and the results are.....duh duh duh duhhhhh......

It grew!!

 Not a whole 3-4 in though!! Only, MAYBE, 1/2in - 1in. My hair feels amazing, though, super soft and shiny....but no flowing locks :( Was it worth it? Honestly....no. I got extremely annoyed with it by the 3rd day!! I looked weird, felt gross, got it everywhere, and was constantly worried that someone was going to come to the door and see me! lol


I think this would be a GREAT mask for someone that has damaged ends, extremely dry hair, curly/frizzy hair, or just wants to treat their hair and feel amazing!

 Would I try this again? Maybe for a day. (I loved how my hair felt after) But DEFINITELY not for a whole week again, or for the whole 2 hours. 

 So try it out if you want, but know you'll only get maybe 1in of growth.

Did any of you guys try this? What were your results? I want to know! :)

Anything youd like to see me test out?

Love, Brittany

P.S I think Im going to try No-'Poo, and tell you all about it! :) Any thoughts, or experiences you want to share? :)

Photo from Pinterest

Helloooo 2014!

Hey everyone!! Happy 2014!! Who knows what will happen and what path God will put us on this year!
 Im super excited to start blogging again! My last blog was Perfectly Polished, and that was almost 2 years ago!! Well Im going to talk about a lot more then nails in this blog! This past year has changed me SO much, and Im excited to show you! :)

 Here are some of the highlights of my 2013!

I totaled my Dads jeep in January, on my way to work in a snowstorm. (the only time I called out of work) Causing a broken street sign and a slight concussion.

I graduated cosmetology school in October, doing 1500 hours, in 12 1/2 months! Finally after working full time and being a student full time!

 I got married to the best guy ever in October! <3

                                                              (Just some of my favorites) ;)


I turned 20 in November. (no pictures because, well, I didnt have any lol)

   We had a terrible ice storm In December!!

 Thats Vince, our baby ;)


And of course had our first Christmas and NYE together as a married couple!

So tell me, what were your highlights of 2013?

Love, Brittany