God’s Timing

Oh!

They (Christians) say that ‘Oh’ is the most commonly used word in Heaven.

What I mean by that, is one day, we will look back on circumstances in our lives that we didn’t understand, and be able to say with a grin, “Oh! So THAT’S why that happened.” (That’s why that relationship failed, that’s why I called off a wedding, that’s why he broke my heart, that’s why I lost my job, etc.)

Before I continue, I should have done a post on my faith already, but y’all, I love Jesus. So. Much. Some days, I just can’t stop smiling because of how good HE is. Contrarily, on the bad days, I am still able to smile because of how good HE is, always. 

This year, I’ve had a lot of OH moments. Sometimes, God spoke to me in small whispers, but I had a lot of moments this year where God’s message was more like a slap in the face and a punch in the gut, which left me saying “Okay, God! I’m listening. I’m all yours.” 

I could write a novel on my life events and how they coincided with God’s timing, but I won’t bore you with 365 days of material. Instead, I just want to leave you with an uplifting reminder:

He’s got you. You are His. And when you feel like your heart is completely crushed and you’ll never be able to get out of the bed without that physical pain in your heart — He. Has. You. Think back on the last four years — heck – -think back on the last year of your life. What if God had given you everything you thought that you needed? Your life would be VERY different than it is right now, and probably not in a good way. There are so many things that he takes away from us, that we so desperately want, for a purpose. There are so many things he gives us, that we consider heartache and burdens, that work for our good. We can’t see it, and sometimes we can’t feel it, but he always has us — right where he wants us. God will never leave you empty. He will replace everything you lost. If he asks you to put something down, it’s because he wants you to pick up something greater. Whenever your pretty little head starts thinking you know better and he knocks you on your butt, tell Him thank you. Lord, thank you for giving me exactly what I need through every situation, and taking from me the things that you did not intend for me to have. Just when I think I’m steering the sail, thank you for making me realize I’m fully dependent on you. Trust me y’all, it is SO much easier to get through the day when you know that God’s got you, and His plan is so much better than anything we could ever dream of. 

I was knocked down (hard) my fair share of times in 2015. When I FINALLY realized that this isn’t the KB show, but instead it’s God’s plan for my life, everything fell into place. 

And guess what? I stepped back, smiled, and said ‘Oh.’

Oh, my Lord. You are so, so good.

Psalm 27:14
When I wait, you strengthen my heart.

Xx,

 

The ‘Essential’ Gift Giving Guide

Shout out to all my girls who instantly need a glass of wine when they think about picking out a gift for someone special.

Don’t get me wrong, I love gift giving, but making sure I have purchased the most perfect gift stresses me out beyond belief (like I break out in a cold sweat just thinking about it). The last year or so, I’ve come to realize that the physical gift is not nearly as important as the thought that is put into the gift.

Giving the perfect gift to someone is all about thoughtfulness and love, and I promise, if your gift has both of those ingredients, it will be a surefire success. Sure — a Tory Burch purse or a Kate Spade watch will always make a great gift, but there are SO many other things (that are less costly and more sincere) that your special someone will cherish much more!

Your BFF

Our BFF’s are perhaps the most stressful people on our lists to buy for. Why is that? Because we know our parents/grandparents will appreciate anything we get them, but our best friends…they usually set the bar pretty high for gift giving, so it’s hard to purchase the perfect gift, PLUS they already have EVERYTHING! 

One of my personal favorite ideas:

This Fujifilm Instax Mini retails for around $60-70, which may be a little over budget for a Christmas present, but this is the most perfect birthday gift. I have one in white, and it is so easy to tote around in a purse, and it’s the perfect way to keep memories of all the fun times with your friends. Even better, it comes in about 10 color options! I brought mine along for the NYE celebrations last January, and all my girls were fighting (playfully, of course) over who got to take home the Polaroids!

Your Mom 

If your mom is anything like mine, she already has everything she needs, and if she doesn’t, she can just go out and purchase it. When it comes to gifts for mom, material items are overrated. Whether it’s Christmas, Mother’s Day, or her birthday, do something thoughtful, like a ‘Mother-Daugther’ date day (this is also the perfect idea for mother-in-laws)! 

Start the day at a Blow Dry bar or a nail salon, if you’re a Charlotte local, I recommend Blo Blow Dry Bar Blow Dry Bar and/or Polished Nail Bar. Every woman loves being pampered.

Once you’re both glammed up, catch a matinee ballet or play or take her shopping to her favorite local boutique. Both purchase something fabulous to wear out to a nice dinner. If you’re clever enough to plan ahead, arrange for her best friends or some of your family to surprise her at dinner! This will definitely be a birthday worth remembering for Mom.

Your Boyfriend

Oh that sugar sweet! Can we all agree that guys are impossible to buy for? Decent gifts for guys are either something small for $30 or a tech gift that’s $800. There’s truly no in between. So — what in the heck are we supposed to get our sweetheart that he will actually LIKE. As much fun as it is to dress your boyfriend by buying him nothing but shirts you like as gifts, he probably would prefer something else from time to time.

Get out of the house, and go do something with him!

My favorite ideas? (These ideas are mostly for city dwellers or for those who live in proximity to a bigger city). 

-Check out your local comedy club or the Comedy Zone in Charlotte, NC. There’s literally a different comedian every night. It will be a great new memory for the two of you and leave you in good spirits the rest of the evening.

-Surprise him with tickets to a sporting event. If you live near a bigger city, there’s bound to be some sporting event within a month or two. Get him tickets and wrap them with a tshirt with the team logo. There’s nothing he’ll like more than seeing his girl in a sporty tshirt with a beer in hand! It makes for a great gift and an even better date night — a dual gift!

While the lists could continue, I hope this gets you thinking of thoughtful gifts that don’t come with a name brand or designer logo!

Xx,

{Gingerbread} Home for the Holidays

Why isn’t Christmas year round??

Isn’t Christmas the best time of year? It should definitely be year ’round. (Who do we contact about making that happen?). 

This Friday night, I decided it would be a great night to stay in and do some ‘standard’ Christmas things.

So naturally, the first thing that came to mind was wine (lots of it), a gingerbread house, Christmas movies (The Santa Claus to be specific), and Golden Retrievers.

Because that’s what everyone thinks of when they think of Christmas, right?

Through many years of gingerbread house making trial-and-error, I’ve almost mastered the art (but between you and I, I’ll be using a glue gun instead of icing next year). While the prepackaged kits are convenient, they don’t provide you with nearly enough candy for decorating. So before me and my friend, Regan, got started, we went to CVS and stocked up on extra icing and candy.

Half the fun of making a gingerbread house is eating the candy while making it and watching Christmas movies.

Although if we’re being completely honest, maybe I just wanted a really cute picture to post on Instagram.

It was such a great night in, and helped me get into the Christmas spirit! The final product wasn’t too bad either 🙂

Have a Merry Christmas!

Xx,

5 Girl Crushes You Should Have Right Now

I’ve got a girl crush. I hate to admit it.

So in today’s society, it’s become really cool to judge people and talk poorly about other women. Can we not? Nowadays it’s hard enough to get through the day without judgement and jealousy. I think complimenting another woman is the most attractive thing a girl can do.

Needless to say, I am not afraid to throw a compliment another woman’s way. If I see another beautiful woman, famous or not, I’m the first to compliment them.

My first girl crush started in high school. I still regularly stalk her on social media, and I still think she has the most perfect life (and wardrobe).

Now, there are multiple women, who I think we all should be crushing on, because they are awesome women who use their platform of fame in the most positive light.

Here are the 5 girl crushes you should have right now: 

Natasha Oakley

I could go on all day, about why Tash Oakley is my #1 girl crush, but to sum it up, she’s an Australian fitness guru who dwells in a bikini 24/7. She’s absolutely down to earth, has the most amazing curves, and is also an entrepreneur…and did I already mention how amazing  she looks in a bikini? *jaw drops*

The funniest part about this girl crush is, my little brother (who is 7 years younger) introduced me to this wonderful woman. So me and my brother share this girl crush (probably for slightly different reasons). If you haven’t seen this woman in a bikini, you’re missing out. Follow her on Instagram @TashOakley.

Ellen DeGeneres
Need I even explain? Ellen is literally everything. Aside from her being the funniest person in this past decade, she has the most wonderful heart and is a dedicated humanitarian and an activist for many different causes. Oh — and coming out on national television in ’97? Tell me that doesn’t take guts! She truly proves that giving to others is so much better than receiving.

Taylor Swift

That red-lip, classic, thing that you like. Taylor Swift is the ultimate #goal. When I really think about Taylor Swift as a person, not just a pop icon, I’m truly amazed by her. She is my age, and she basically runs the world. Believe it or not, I used to loathe Taylor…not her as a person, but her cheesy country music and dance moves (they were SO bad, as in she probably had whiplash with her little guitar and sparkly boots). After she transitioned to pop, I saw her in a whole new light — Her 1989 album also saved me through a break up.

She is so great to her fans, is an incredibly talented artist, (she writes ALL of her own music, and plays two instruments…seriously, YOU GO GIRL) and is the ultimate proof that it’s cool to have girl crushes – she’s got the most amazing squad (Gigi, Karlie, Cara, Lily, Selena). Taylor wins, in all ways.

Amy Schumer

“I was born weighing 150 lbs. I came out swinging saying Mom, WHERE’S THE LINGUINE??” 
What a woman. Amy is one of my more recent girl crushes. Although completely unplanned, I’m watching Amy Schumer Live at the Apollo on HBO as I’m writing this post (and I’ve literally been laughing out loud the entire time).
I think Amy Schumer has had more of an impact on the female society than we even realize. She’s such a great spokesperson for loving yourself and loving your body, and she truly shows that there is SO much more to a woman than being a size 0. (By the way, Amy is a size 6…completely normal and actually below average, so why anyone may think she’s big is beyond me). I’d be in this bad bitch’s squad any day.

Anna Kendrick

I know what you’re thinking — We’re all still very confused as to why Anna wasn’t the lead actress in the Twilight series. Not that I’m bitter or anything. Anna Kendrick is awesome. Period. She’s come out hot on the acting scene in the last 5 years and also proven to be an amazing singer too.

She’s super down to earth and makes awkward and quirky the new kind of cool. Kate Spade agrees. She’s also been chosen as the Kate Spade spokesperson, and she reps the brand incredibly. You have to check out her new Kate Spade campaign for Christmas.

Let’s girl crush a little more and stop being so judgmental and harsh on one another.

Xx,

 

DIY Tinsel Cocktail Stirrers

This girl loves a good party.

This girl also loves some champagne.

(There’s Andre champagne in those glasses, but shhh don’t tell anyone #cheap). 

Now that I’m 25, I’m to a point in my life where I’m living on my own, living in a new city, and can almost always find a good excuse to entertain (feeding your girlfriends wine, champagne, and chocolate is technically ‘entertaining,’ right?). 

The only downside is, entertaining costs money. Ew. 

In my limited entertaining experience, I’ve come to realize that it’s all about the details. People, whether they realize it or not, appreciate all the small details that go into entertaining, which is why this year at my first annual White Elephant Ornament Exchange, I made a DIY tinsel cocktail stirrer.

When I began party planning, I was APPALLED to find that 10 stirrers on Etsy were selling for $20+. No thank you. So lets get crafty and DIY! 

These precious stirrers are SO easy to make — seriously. I will be making these any time I’m entertaining from here on out.

Here’s what you need:

• 1 pack of tinsel (any color). I got a multi color pack from Hobby Lobby.
• Bamboo skewers
• A hot glue gun and 3-4 glue sticks
• Scissors

Step 1.

Plug in your hot glue gun, so it is completely heated up by the time you are ready to use it. Make sure you put a glue stick in it while it heats.

Step 2.

Take your tinsel out of the packaging, and cut the tinsel in 2 1/2″ – 3″ pieces. (It probably goes without saying, but cut 1 piece per each stirrer you’ll need). 

Step 3.

Count out the number of skewers you are making. (This step isn’t necessary, but it will make it easier while you’re working). 

Step 4.

Pick up one skewer. On the pointy side of the skewer, place one 1/2 inch line of hot glue until it reaches the tip of the skewer. Immediately place on free end of the tinsel on the hot glue and press down the end of the tinsel gently.

Step 5.

You should have one free end of tinsel that is not yet attached to the skewer. Wrap the free end of tinsel around the skewer in a circular motion. When you run out of slack, place a line of glue on the wrapped tinsel, and place the free end of the tinsel in the glue to secure the loose end.

Step 6.

This step can get hot, so BE CAREFUL! Gently press down the most recent glued end of tinsel towards the skewer for about 10 seconds. The hot glue will set quickly, so you want to make sure the tinsel is placed in the correct spot and stuck in the glue.

Step 7.

Let the glue stick cool as you finish the remaining stirrers. Pull off any stray hot glue strings. If you notice any loose tinsel ends, apply another portion of hot glue to reinforce the tinsel.

Now you are ready to entertain! Dress up your drink. These look precious placed in champagne glasses, martini glasses, and highball glasses! For an added touch of detail, add fresh cranberries or any other fresh fruit onto the skewer. 

Enjoy, safely!

Xx,

Finding the Perfect Hair Color

SOS, y’all.

Raise your hand if you’ve been in search of the perfect hair color for the last 2 years *raises hand*.

Recently, I’ve been a cheater, and I feel so guilty. Sometime within the last 3 months, I cheated on my hairdresser. If you’ve never been through this, you are #blessed. Trust me on this. Cheating on your hairdresser is a SERIOUS thing. I should have done the right thing. I should have let her down easily, but I lied, and I cheated, but oh my goodness…it had to happen. (So L***o, if you’re reading this, you must already know I’m seeing someone new –haha).

In this blog, I hope to be honest. I want to talk about the real struggles every girl goes through. So here you have it. The good, bad, and ugly.

Warning: what you are about to view below is for mature audiences only. Content is disturbing due to how much my hair color has changed in 12 months. 

So, the above pictures pain me. Pictures 1-7 are from my old hair dresser that I cheated on. I’ve got to give myself credit, my hair actually looks really pretty in some of those pictures, but if you could see it with my skin color –Tragedy with a capital T. Somewhere between pictures 5 and 7, my hair turned into a white color (I matched my english cream golden retriever) then an orange-yellow (like the crayon color, but uglier). W.T.F. Within 3 weeks, I colored my hair twice in an attempt to get it back to a natural blonde. Then this happened:

My face says it all. Tragedy. I actually cried. I went from super blonde, to white, to orange-blonde, to zebra stripes. The above picture actually pains me — but this is me being honest. At this point, I knew I had to cheat on my hair dresser.(I reached an all time low…as in chugged a bottle of wine and almost bought box hair color). 

Let me just say, I worship the ground that Tonya at Vogue Salon and Spa walks on. She saved my hair (and my happiness, lol). **And P.S. this isn’t a paid plug for my hair dresser, I just honestly love her that much. Go see her — she rocks. 

Before (with zebra stripes or a Neapolitan ice cream missing the strawberry & After (a pretty natural color without stripes #praise).

Bye bye zebra stripes, hello pretty golden brown. And because I’m never satisfied, I recently decided to go back to a dark brown, and while I really like it, I’m still searching for a better hair color.

In the last year, I’ve definitely improved my hair color, going back more towards a natural look, but I’m still on the search for the perfect hair color. I’ll let you know when I find it 😉

Xx,

Hello there…

While you may have already taken time to read my ‘About’ section, I feel like I should further introduce myself and explain the purpose of Blaire Essentials.

If you’re only here for the entertaining and witty stuff, skip the next few paragraphs. 

Before I go any further, this will be my 5th blog attempt. Blogs 1-4 *may they RIP* were less than successful. In fact, most of those blogs never saw a single post (judging by my level of maturity back then, it’s probably a blessing that those potential blog posts never saw the light of day). The thing about blogging is — it’s a great hobby when you have an interesting life or back to back fun weekends planned, but come on, y’all, who honestly has a picturesque life every day? Not me. I’m lucky if I have clean socks and a non-chipped manicure. Nevertheless, blog #5 begins.

For the first time in my life, I feel like I finally have enough “matters of substance” to talk about. I’ve tried a fashion blog or two, and I’ve tried a blog where I only talked about my feelings and typed a lot of song lyrics — lol (think Michelle Branch circa 2003–emotions; yikes).

Blaire Essentials is not a fashion blog. I do not own enough amazing outfits to get me through a month’s worth of blog posts. Also, I do not feel like buying and returning enough amazing outfits just to get through a months worth of staged blog posts. Nor can I compete with the current fashion blog world, where each blogger averages 300k followers. *Anxiety*

Blaire Essentials truly cannot be categorized, namely because I’m too scatterbrained to keep this blog in one sole category. For now, we will call this a ‘lifestyle blog.’

By definition, ‘lifestyle’ is the way in which one chooses to live their life, ergo, the term ‘lifestyle blog’ seems to be fitting for the Blaire Essentials blog.

Welcome to my chaotic, fun, messy, sitcom-of-a-life world. I hope you all enjoy.

Xx,