Striped Halter Dress Outfit // Affordable Fashion Post

Hey beauties! I hope everyone is having a great week so far...it's almost the weekend so yay! Currently, I am [trying] to bury my head in the books and study for my state board exam for nursing (NCLEX) which is coming up in the next week. If you know anyone who has taken the exam (or you have taken it yourself) you probably know just have nerve wracking and hard it is to even prepare for it. It is sooo overwhelming! I needed a little break from it all, so here I am with an outfit post! Recently, I discovered the wonderful world of the outlet malls-probably a 25 minute drive from my apartment, but totally worth it. Pretty much anything I could want fashion-wise can be found at the outlets, including the dress in this post! The dress was only about $14...what?! Suchhh good prices and so many stores to choose from! I am definitely glad I started going outlet shopping instead of just "normal" shopping. You can save so much money! Enough with my epiphany though, on to the post!
Dress: Charlotte Russe Outlet (similar here and here)
Bracelet: Alter'd State
Sandals: Forever 21 (cute semi-similar option here) // Sunglasses: New York & Company

 I have recently become super obsessed with type of neckline-I am always in search of dresses and tanks with this style! I feel like it is so flattering on me and also is a bit more conservative, yet fun. What do you think?

Have you ventured into the wonderful world of outlet shopping? Do you have any other affordable shopping recommendations?  

Thank you for reading!
XO, Kelsey

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Makeup Talk // Review of Cowgirl Dirt Makeup

Hey beauties! Today I am bringing you a review of Cowgirl Dirt Makeup, a natural and organic brand based out of Texas. According to their website, the brand stands for "the best of Western Tradition". If you check out their website, you'll learn a bit more about the brand and see the fun western-inspired makeup names. When it comes to reviewing the products, I always test them out for 2-3 weeks at least before giving my opinion-I hope this review can be found helpful for anyone curious about a great natural and organic brand!
 Wearing most of the products I was sent! The blush, bronzer, 3 eyeshadows, highlighting concealer, and foundation. 

From L to R: Under Eye Highlight Concealer, Eye Firming Cream, Mineral Powder Foundation in shade "Grullo 4", Wild West Blush in the shade "Rawhide", Mineral Powder Foundation in shade "Grullo 5", and the Dusty Bronzer in shade "Arena". 
Top picture: natural lighting. Bottom picture: with flash. From L to R: Under Eye Highlight Concealer, Mineral Powder Foundation in shade "Grullo 4" and then "Grullo 5", Dusty Bronzer in shade "Arena" and the Wild West Blush in shade "Rawhide" heavily swatched and then lightly swatched. 
The first product I used was the Eye Firming Cream, which is said to firm and tone the under eye area. I do not think I have had enough time nor sample to really confirm the benefits, but so far I do know that it leaves my eye area feeling soft and moisturized.

Next, I used the Under Eye Highlight Concealer. This is a peachy toned cream concealer that helps to brighten the under eye area. For a girl like me (with hereditary dark circles, products like these are a must.
As you can see, the right under eye is a ton brighter than the left after using this product. I believe I tapped on a bit of the product, let it set for about 30 seconds, and then tapped on a bit more to get more of a brightening effect. If you are someone with only minor dark circles, I think this product could be a huge help to your beauty routine! Since mine drive me so nuts, I add a bit of concealer on top of this to really get the coverage I want.

After priming my face with my usual moisturizer and primer, I applied the Mineral Powder Foundation in shade "Grullo 5" to half my face. I find that this powder foundation gives a sheer to medium coverage (buildable) and leaves a natural finish. This foundation wears amazingingly (not a word but oh well). I have worn it to work-sweating and running around-and it still holds up. The same goes for the Pressed Powder Foundation, which wears just as well, with more of a medium to semi-full coverage (buildable). Something I love about both these foundations are their ability to photograph well. Not only do they look great in person, but they also look awesome with flash photography, which is hard to come by when you have mineral makeup products.If you look at the picture below, you can see how airbrushed the makeup looks-I didn't edit my skin at all. The shade "Grullo 4" is a tad too light for the summer months for me, but it would probably be a go-to for the winter! As for my skin type, I have combination-oily skin and I was impressed with how the foundations did not cause any extra oil, and it was helpful in keeping excess oil from breaking through.































As you can see, the pressed foundation gives a bit more coverage. I think the pressed foundation is a tad bit darker than the loose foundation (even though they are the same shades), but maybe that has to do with the coverage they offer. 

Matte/Semi-Matte Eyeshadows in shades "Mud", "Arena Sand" and "Rodeo Rose".
 Swatches of the same shades with flash photography (top) and natural lighting (bottom). 
 A light application of all 3 shades.

 The last items I used/received are the Matte (and semi-matte) Eyeshadows. The colors are pretty and definitely pigmented, and were easy to blend. I didn't have any issues with fallout or the product smudging throughout the day, but I also tend to use concealer as a base on my eyelids, which acts as a primer. 

  Another shot with all the products! This is a picture with natural lighting-you can see how smooth the foundation still looks. It is almost like a "your skin but better" finish!

Well, if you made it through this super detailed post, thank you! I always try to be as detailed as possible, in the the hopes that my opinions could be helpful for someone trying to decide if they should try a product or not. I honestly have nothing bad to say about any of the products; I have spoken up before about products I was not happy with, but that is not the case here! All in all, I would 100% recommend and back up in product that I have spoke about on this post. I actually am interested in a few more of Cowgirl Dirt's products (such as the cream foundation, organic facial serum, and lipsticks) because I was so impressed with the products I already have. I could definitely see myself buying Cowgirl Dirt products and using them for a majority of my makeup needs-they are amazing! Give them a try if you are on the fence, I dont think you will regret it!

Thank you for reading!
XO, Kelsey

 
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**These products were sent to me free of charge. As always, nothing has influenced my opinion other than the products performance itself.