Maternity Shoot: Part 2

Hi loves,
Here it is; Part 2 of the Maternity Shoot! Majority of it is the family portion. It's usually really hard to convince my fiancè and my son to do photoshoots with me considering they're a lot more camera shy than I am, but this was a special kind of shoot that just had to be done. We'll definitely treasure these photos forever!

Maternity Photoshoot: Part 1

Hi loves,
Well, as I neared my due date, I had one of my crazy talented friends come over to shoot our maternity/family pictures. It took me a while to edit them as I had sooo many beautiful choices to choose from, and when you're pregnant, if you're like me, your indecisiveness can increase dramatically.
This is only part one, but I absolutely love it and if my friend hadn't convinced me to work up the confidence to do this bit of the shoot, I'm 100% sure I would have regretted it.
I never took photos when I was pregnant with Ethan, so I wanted to make sure this time around, I had some keepsake of what my body looked like with child.
So enjoy, and I hope you love it as much as I do!

Outfit with a Side of Update

Hi loves,
So I've been a bit of a mess lately. Life's been a tad bit crazy and fashion hasn't been much of a priority for me lately. Being sassy and stylish has gone out the window, while being cool and comfy has crept in through the doorway. There are some people out there who can pull off the latest trends; I, for one, am not one of them. All I can do is dress in what I like and be myself. Don't get me wrong, I love to try out trends every once in a while, but at the end of the day, my simple and "boring" outfits are what I feel best in. I guess you could say that I just haven't been fashion inspired as of late.
Well, since it's been a while since I've done any outfit shoots, I thought I'd post this shoot from last year that I never got around to posting up since life got too busy. I'm becoming a broken record since I feel like that's all I ever say to you guys, but I am deeply sorry. I'm finding my groove. I don't know whether I should keep this blog or move to YouTube, or if I should just be solely an "Instagram blog." Social media and the blogging community changes every day, so finding my place within all that is going to take some time. I'm quite an indecisive person, so this may take longer than expected. Please be patient with me.
In the meantime, enjoy this look! I had fun styling and shooting it! x

My High Tea Baby Shower

Hi loves,
So here we are, in the final home stretch: the third trimester! Last weekend, I had my baby shower for our baby girl and it was the shower of my dreams seeing as it was a high tea theme. Leading up to it, I was so worried about the weather being horrible with it being the middle of Winter, but the sun decided to come out and make my day absolutely wonderful.

I had so many of my family and close friends come and just shower me with so much love, support and the most thoughtful gifts. I couldn't feel more lucky than I do these days to have all of these women around me supporting me through this incredible moment in my life. So to everyone who came (and even to those who couldn't make it, your love was felt from afar), thank you so much for absolutely everything!

With how picture perfect the entire event was (thanks to my beautiful best friend who planned and hosted it with me!), I wanted to come on here to share a few snaps from the magical day.
Hope you love!

Gender Reveal: It's A... Girl!

Hi loves,
As you know we are expecting baby number two in August, and we are so happy to finally announce that we are expecting a baby girl! We feel so blessed to have been given a beautiful baby boy almost 8 years ago, so for us to be expecting a sweet little girl this Winter brings us so much happiness as it'll feel like our family is complete.

Thank you to everyone for sharing your love for us on my social media accounts! We have so much love and appreciation for all of you.

With the excitement of these news, I just wanted to share a few snaps from our gender reveal party from a few weeks ago. Hope you love!

Colourpop Cosmetics x Hello Kitty Swatches + Review

Hi loves,

I'd originally planned on posting this so much earlier, but life got in the way. Unfortunately this was a limited edition collection which has now been discontinued, but I asked you guys on my Instagram if you'd still like for me to make this post and I got a positive response directing towards a solid 'yes!'

Announcing Our Pregnancy: We're Pregnant.. Again!

Hi loves,
Well, if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, you would know by now that my fiancé and I are expecting to welcome our second baby by the end of Winter 2017! We are so thrilled for this next chapter in our lives. To finally watch our only son Ethan become an awesome big brother is definitely one of my happiest moments in life.

When we had our first baby, we were young teenagers still on the verge of growing up, and now that we're older and more settled in our lives together, it feels so much better to announce a pregnancy, which is why we wanted to announce it to our family and friends in different and special ways.

So today, that's what I'm doing; sharing the special ways we announced our pregnancy, so let's get right on into it.

TELLING MY FIANCÈ

Of course the first announcement was to my incredible fiancé. I didn't do anything special because when it comes to sharing things with my partner, it takes a lot for me to keep something a secret from him, even if it is a wonderful surprise, since we quite literally share everything with each other.
Basically, I already had a bit of a hunch that I was pregnant seeing as my monthlies are the only constant regulars in my day-to-day norm, and for once I was abnormally late. I'd decided to take a pregnancy test, but it was about 8pm at night and usually that's when your hormones are at their lowest, so it didn't register properly. However, I saw a very very very faint second pink line, but I couldn't depend on it. So the next morning, I took a test with my very first urine of the day (according to the internet, that's your best bet on getting an accurate reading), and after 2 minutes, there it was - two very visible pink lines.
I was so shocked and excited, I rushed out of the bathroom and accidentally shoved the pee-infested stick in front of my partner's face. It was really early though so he was sort of half-asleep and replied blankly with an "oh, wow.." but my excitement was through the roof, it covered enough emotions for the both of us. When he came to, he was a little skeptical about it, so we went out and bought more tests and every one of them came back positive. He still didn't really believe it, not until we finally went to the doctors and had it confirmed through numerous tests.

October Favourites

Hi loves,
If I could describe what I've been up to lately in one word, I would say it's been very "busy." I feel like every time I talk to you guys, I'm raving on about how busy I've gotten, but it's a natural part of life and growing up. Time slips away but the list of things that need to be done just grows and grows; practically never-ending.
So because I don't want to ramble on about how busy I've been (and I'm sure you'll just roll your eyes the entire way through), let's just jump into this month's favourites.

*BEAUTY*

September Favourites

Hi loves,
September was a spectacular month for me. Realising what I want out of my career, and heading towards the right direction in my life, I felt unstoppable. I felt happy again. I lost my job of over two years in July and was on an instant downward spiral of uncertainty and sadness. I didn't know what I wanted, what I was doing and where I was going. But now, I feel so much more optimistic about my future and I can tell that the positivity is shining within what I'm doing everyday.
To top off a great month, my boyfriend of ten years and father of my only son finally proposed to me, asking me to marry him. Everyday I literally feel like I'm on a cloud because of how happy I am these days. I finally realised that happiness is a feeling, not a destination, and I'm okay with that. As Julian Baker in One Tree Hill said to Brooke Davis, "Happiness is not a destination. It is a mood, it is not permanent. It comes and goes and if people thought that way then maybe people would find happiness more often." And I can positively say I have found happiness so much more lately. In big things, in little things, in every aspect of my life.

So without further ado, here are a few things that made me happy throughout September.
I hope you all find inner peace and happiness someday.

*FASHION*

Heart Style Grace

Hi loves,
Long time no outfits. It feels so incredibly great to be back with styling outfits, shooting them and then editing. Although I did notice that I'm also back to being super awkward in front of the camera, and that's something I need to work towards again, but I'm just glad to be back to doing something I actually really enjoy.

Not only is it fun to play around in my closet and style outfits, but my love for photography comes peeking through as I go through every photo. In a way, I instantly feel so much better about myself. Personally, I think it's so important to stay connected to the things you love. They're the things that keep you motivated and inspired.

I mean, every woman goes through a period in their lives where their confidence and self esteem can sink down to their lowest. I have to be honest, my low points were at their peak most recently and it took a lot of self motivation and, in the wise words of Kylie Jenner, realising things and figuring things out to get me where I am today. Nobody's perfect, so I'm not admitting that I've totally got everything down and perfected, but I'm in the process of getting there, and it feels amazing to be happy with and within myself.

Styling outfits and photographing them always gave a little boost to my self confidence, so I'm really glad I'm re-connecting with my love for fashion. It's been a long time since the last time I appreciated styling this much. Hoping for so many more consistent outfit posts.

How-To: Tell What Your Breakouts Mean

Hi loves,

After reading profoundly on breakouts and how to determine what kind of inner disruption is causing its outbreak, I found it really fascinating how the location of each zit has a particular cause behind it, and the idea occurred to me that it might help some of you out there figure out the frustrating mystery of the p i m p l e !

August Favourites

I'm the type of girl to rarely try anything new because she's so content with her all-time favourites. So you can imagine my surprise that I've lasted this long with finding new things to love every month. I've found myself finding the beauty in the smallest things, and I personally think that's the great thing in these types of posts. Not only do we share what we adore throughout the month, but you get a sense on why they've deserved a spot in our list of keepers.
Well, without further ado, let's stop the rambling and get into what I fancied this month..

Revlon Ultra HD Matte Lip Colour Swatches + Review

Hi loves,
This product has been living in my beauty collection for a few weeks now. I really wanted to make sure my review was as accurate as possible, and in order to do that, I had to get a few wears out of it. Now this liquid lipstick has an oddly satisfying look for packaging. Because of its distinct packaging difference, the product itself will draw you in and intent your curiosity. As you can tell, I was four times as curious as anyone.
So if you're interested in knowing how these went, read on!

Too Faced Melted Matte in Cool Girl: Swatch + Review

Hi loves,
My deepest apologies for the ultimately delayed upbringing of this post. I'm aware that the release on meccamaxima.com.au is happening at 8.30am tomorrow, which is why even though I'm still recovering from a painful case of tonsillitis and a mild flu, I wanted to make sure I tried my best to get this review up before tomorrow so you guys had an idea on what the product was like before blowing your bucks on them! They will retail at Mecca Maxima (online and in store starting from tomorrow, August 23rd) for $31 a shade.
So if you're still with me, let's get right into the review..

July Favourites

So much has happened in the month of July, I almost completely forgot to create a Favourites post. But to be honest, creating these Monthly Favourites posts are what keeps me inspired when it comes to blogging. Thinking of different ways I can shoot items that I've coveted in the last month keeps my creative juices flowing and fresh.
Well, with that said, let's take a look into my favourites for the month.

My Everyday Makeup Routine

Hi loves,
I've never actually done a post like this before, so I'm pretty excited to talk a little about my everyday makeup routine tonight. After testing out numerous products, I've found these work best for me, so I want to share it with you all. Now I'm sure this post would be easier in video form, but I'm still not so confident in front of the camera, so yes, I did try filming this, but it was TERRIBLE.

My Little Darling

Hi loves,
I've put fashion on the back burner a bit lately just because I've been getting myself into all of this beauty. Learning and experimenting with makeup has just been so much fun, and I feel like the beauty community is so much more uplifting than the fashion community.
I realised I hadn't posted this outfit, and I went back and forth on deciding whether I should upload it because so much about me has changed since this was shot. In the end, I decided it was best to upload this considering I really do love this outfit, and thought it still represents my current style.

Also, partly because I've cleaned out my closet and half of the items pictured below have been removed from said closet.

BYS Velvet Lips: Swatches + Review

Hi loves,
During an errand run, before I could quickly zoom past Gloss like I normally do, I actually stopped, took a little peek in, and spotted these new girls. My heart has a soft spot for pink and lipsticks. Now whilst these look good and are respectively inexpensive, I hadn't heard anyone talking about these, so I thought I would start the conversation.

June Favourites

I've got to be honest, June was the month I kind of got lost into my TV shows. I began and finished Awkward, I caught up on Suits, and I re-watched Teen Mom OG. There was just something about digesting my everything into these fictional characters and their stories. Well, whilst I was getting lost in a world that only exists in online fan-fictions, I still managed the time to curate a list of this month's favourites of various sorts.
Enough small talk, let's get right into it!

NYX Lip Lingerie: Review + Swatches

Hi loves,
By now, you would have heard that NYX Cosmetics is finally releasing their Lip Lingerie matte liquid lipsticks down under, and the excitement for this is so huge; everyone wants to get their hands on this entire collection.
No, this isn't a sponsored post, but I've got a wonderful aunt who lives in America and she so kindly let me order these and have them mailed to her house, where she then had them forwarded to me; all because I couldn't wait until July 16th, and I'm so glad I didn't wait.
For my review and swatches, read on...