Almay's Newest Ambassador

*This is a sponsored post.  All words and opinions are 100% mine.

What do I think of when I think of Almay?  Almay conjures up images of sugarplums and dewdrops, of course!  I used their green eyeshadow as a bon bon (and then soldier, family scene girl, etc.) in “The Nutcracker.”  All of us 6-year-old girls would gather around all the moms backstage and line up, assembly line style, to get touch ups on our makeup. 

As an adult, I still use their products (love their oil-free makeup remover!).  So when they contacted me to ask me to share their newest ambassador/spokesperson, Carrie Underwood, I was happy to do so.   In the video below, Carrie (yes, we are on a first name basis now) talks about why she chose Almay:

I appreciate her message that, even though she feels better wearing makeup, no woman has to wear makeup to be beautiful.  And when you do wear makeup, you don’t have to go overboard. 

The tag line to Almay’s current campaign is “So simple, so me.”  I have always had a simplistic approach to my every day makeup - perhaps because I cake so much on when performing.  But I definitely think that is a message I would like to instill in my daughter: whatever makes you feel best is right.  Women don’t need makeup to be pretty, but sometimes it’s nice to enhance your natural beauty.  And if you feel good, you will emanate beauty no matter what.

What do you think of Carrie Underwood as Almay’s ambassador?

30x30 Week 4

Omg – it’s week four of this thing already.  Are you getting sick of seeing what I wear?  I know that I am tired of taking pictures of myself every day.  This week was insanely busy, and I sincerely apologize for the quality of my selfie iphone pics.  Aaron was working late almost every day this week, so I had no one else to take pictures.

Also, be sure to read to the end of this post for a fun giveaway. 

Day 19

Today I wore my blue shirt and khaki pants, along with a long, gray, drapey sweater.  This sweater is actually a maternity sweater, but I loved it so much that I kept it in my closet after putting away all the maternity clothes.

Day 20

Here’s a new item – a black & white striped dress.  I bought this at the same time that I bought my white dress I wore last week.  I figured it was the perfect replacement for the pink dress that I figured out does not work for nursing/pumping.  This striped dress works perfectly for nursing/pumping!  I love this dress so much – expect to see it again next week!

Day 21

Black slacks, floral print blouse & black sweater.  This is a pairing that I probably never would have thought of were it not for this challenge, but I think it came off well enough that I will repeat even after this challenge is over.

Day 22

I was definitely feeling “over” the challenge today, hence the half-assed attempt at an outfit and picture.  This is a white t-shirt blouse and my banana republic jeans.  My hair was still wet in the picture, hence the “drowned mouse” look.

Day 23

I am actually really sad that I don’t have a better picture of this outfit.  I loved it!  This is my pink Old Navy blouse and my gray/pink plaid pants. 

Day 24

Ok, I cheated today.  But it was my birthday!  We went hiking to celebrate my birthday, and I fully intended to change into something cute after the hike . . . but I didn’t.  I’m entitled to cheat on my birthday, right?  In any case here’s a picture of my little family out in the wilderness (I’ll post more about my bday weekend in my next post)

And now the piece de resistance – the other girls participating in this challenge and I have gotten together to offer a little giveaway.  We’re offering a $60 gift card to one of our lucky readers!  Special thanks to Jacqueline for organizing giveaway and Kim for designing the graphic . . . and of course, to Kelly for hosting the challenge.

Just enter using the rafflecopter below.

This giveaway is open from 5/27/2013 - 6/2/2013 and the winner will be announced on 6/3/2013.  Entries will be validated.  Winner will be emailed and has 48 hours to respond before a new winner is selected.

a Rafflecopter giveaway Good luck!

As always, be sure to check out all the other lovely ladies participating in this challenge.

30x30 Week 2

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Wow!  This is harder than I thought.  It’s not the finding outfits that’s really that hard (so far).  It’s the documenting them.  I’ve been taking cell phone pics of myself in the morning “for safety” and then having my husband take pictures when I get home from work.  I just now looked at all the pics and so many are blurry . . . so my apologies in advance for the not so great pictures.

Day 7

Black & white polka dot blouse w/black slacks.  I was meeting with outside counsel today, so I figured I should look “professional.”

Day 8

Black sweater, pink butterfly t-shirt w/ gray & pink capri slacks.  I can’t tell you how happy I am to fit back into these pants again!  These were stored away in the “don’t fit yet” bin until this challenge when I decided to try them on for the first time in 6 months.  They used to be one of my favorite pairs of pants and I am so happy to bring them back into rotation.

Day 9

Brown sweater (Old Navy), blue paisley blouse (Old Navy) & Felicia Day jeans.

I bought this sweater and blouse as part of my “back to work” shopping “spree” (I put “spree” in quotation marks because I only spent $60 and got a couple pairs of pants and shirts, but I don’t shop for myself very much, so it felt kind of like a spree to me).

Day 10

I’m sorry, but today’s pic was so bad I’m not even posting it.  I was home alone with Guinevere all day and attempted to fake a tripod by setting my camera on my mantel and setting it to auto.  When I looked at the screen after the pic had been taken, it looked ok, but then I downloaded it to my computer and it was so blurry you couldn’t even see my face.  That’s ok.  I’ll just tell you what I wore.  It was my khaki shorts, a Target nursing tank and my denim jacket.

Day 11

I found out the hard way that one of the two dresses I selected does not work for nursing.  So I had to change at the last minute into this outfit: khaki shorts & blue blouse.  

Day 12

Old Navy pink blouse & black slacks.

This ensemble was also part of my “back to work” shopping spree.  Though I’m going to need to get a belt for those slacks pretty soon.  It feels like they get bigger with each time I wear them.

Also, since I did something fun with my hair, I decided to take pics of my hair too.  :)

There you have it!  Please check out the other lovely ladies doing this crazy challenge with me.

30x30 Week 1

Ok, here we go.  Now you all get to see what I wore for the past week.  I definitely learned a couple things this week:

1.        The only full-length mirror in this house that I am willing to take pictures in front of is in Guinevere’s bedroom. (We have mirrored closet doors in our bedroom, but I’m not about to essentially show the world our bedroom and all its stacks of laundry.)

2.              I really need to clean G’s fingerprints off the mirror in her room.

3.              I’m need to learn poses that work for me and my new post-baby body.

4.              Maybe I should put a decent camera on my birthday wishlist . . .

Day 1

Grey wrap dress + flats from Payless

This is another one where I have no idea what brand it is.  It’s on “long term loan” from a dancer friend of mine.  I borrowed it from her to wear as a costume when we did a show together a couple years ago.  (Claire – if you are reading this and want your dress back, please let me know.)  I paired it with a black cami and some leggings for modesty bc I wore it to work today.  I also wore my flats from Payless.  I LOVE these shoes so much!  I’ve had flats before and could never get them to stay on my feet, but these ones have a bit of elastic in them so they actually stay on my feet all day without giving me blisters.

Day 2

Felicia Day Jeans & Turquoise tank shirt

I had actually planned on wearing my khaki shorts, but a squirmy little miss G decided to kick my hands as I was changing her diaper, thus spilling coconut oil everywhere – including all over my shorts.  So I had to change. And I realize now that the only other bottoms that really go with this turquoise shirt are these jeans. I call these jeans myFelicia Day Jeans bc one of my really good friends has worked with Felicia for a long time now and I guess Felicia was cleaning out her closet and gave my friend a bunch of clothes she didn’t want anymore.  The jeans didn’t quite fit my friend, but they fit me perfectly!  I have NO idea what brand they are.  All I know is that I love these jeans and will wear them until they are full of holes.

Day 3

Banana Republic Jeans & Black & White tank blouse

I was going to a Cinco de Mayo party at Adam Carolla’s house, so I knew I wanted something stylish, but not “trying to hard.”  Originally I had planned to wear my pink Old Navy sundress, which seemed like the perfect thing to wear to an afternoon party in Malibu.  Unfortunately, the weather decided not to cooperate with my fashion plans.  So I had to find something with pants that could work (this may screw me over for the rest of the week, actually).  But I got several compliments on my outfit, and think I looked appropriate for rubbing elbows with the likes of Ron Jeremy and Howie Mandel (random assortment of people, I know!).

Day 4

Navy blue Bermuda shorts, white cotton knit top, black sweater

I have a really good friend who used to go shopping ALL the time.  When she got bored with her clothes, she would give them to me, since we were the same size.  I had no problem being on the receiving end of this relationship.  J  Both these shorts and the shirt were hand me downs from my friend.  What I love about these shorts (and that you can’t see in the pic – next time I wear them, I’ll try to get a close up of the shorts) is that they button where the pockets are instead of in the usual fly area.  I always feel like I should be going on a boat in these shorts or something, but they are also totally appropriate for my casual work environment.

Day 5

Argyle sweater & khaki pants

I woke up this morning and it was pouring rain!  Who would have anticipated rain in May in Southern California?!  Glad I thought to include at least one warm-ish thing!  I bought this sweater at Target while looking for a sweater to wear to an “ugly sweater” party at work.  I couldn’t help myself, the sweater was super cute!

The khaki pants are from Old Navy and were purchased right before I returned to work from maternity leave.  They are a little big now that I’ve lost all my baby weight, but they’re relatively comfortable, so I’m keeping them in my rotation.

Day 6

Banana Republic Jeans & Vera Wang blouse

I had to go to a concert at the Roxy with work this evening, so I needed something that would transition relatively well from day to evening.  I think this Vera Wang (seriously, probably the only designer thing in my closet) blouse did the trick well.  The blouse was a gift from my mother in law and I love it!  Every time I wear it, I get compliments.

There you have it, my 6 outfits!  Please check out the outfits the other lovely ladies put together – I’m sure their pictures are a much higher quality than mine.  )