Monday Motivation

It all starts with you. If you don't like yourself, chances are no one else will either. So be someone that YOU are proud of first. The rest will follow.

Happy Monday!

Stitch Fix Review: My First Box

Have you ever wanted to shop but after walking through your local malls and stores come out empty-handed? That's been happening more and more often with me lately. Either I find something I like that's overpriced for the quality or I feel like everything I see is too common. So after a lot of thought and review reading, I decided to sign up for Stitch Fix. Here's how it works: you fill out a style survey, set your price range, decide how often you want to get a delivery, and then a stylist hand-picks five items to send you. You have three days to decide what to keep and what to send back. You pay $20 up front, which is then deducted from your final total. If you decide to keep all five pieces, you get 25% off.

I liked everything that came in my first box, but ended up only keeping two. The quality was superb and the prices were pretty comparable to other places I shop (when I pay full price which is rare). I sent back a necklace because I already own something similar, a shirt because it was too form-fitting, and a skirt because I only had one shirt in my closet to wear with it. I kept a grey cold-shoulder dress and red bell sleeve shirt with cut-out detailing around the bottom. I can't link to these exact pieces, but I did link to some similar options at the bottom of this post.

P.S. My jeans, which have been on repeat for the past month, are on major sale!

DETAILS:
Dress - Stitch Fix (similar, similar)
Black Slides - ShoeDazzle (exact)
Shirt - Stitch Fix (similar, similar)
Jeans - Old Navy (exact)

Monthly Reading Inventory: June

June was a bit of a blur. I finished reading the final book in The Glassblower Trilogy the first weekend, and then didn't want to commit myself to starting something new. I was filling in for people on vacation and planning four live shows so I didn't want to start something and then not finish it. Instead, I reread two of my most recent favorite series finds, back-to-back-to-back.

We'll start with The Paradise of Glass by Petra Durst-Benning, the final book in The Glassblower Trilogy. This book picks up right where the second book leaves off. It focuses mainly on Wanda, who ironically begins down the very same path her mother walked in the first book, but she figures out Peter isn't her soul mate before they get married. Wanda has decided to stay in Lauscha to take care of Marie's baby; she moves in with her father and helps reinvigorate the Heimer workshop. She also convinces the villagers of Lauscha to go in together to buy the foundry, which is what the book centers around. The villain from the first book re-enters the story, and he's been holding a grudge against the Steinman family all these years.

The third installment of this series brings everything full circle. It does move a little slower than the first two books, and I definitely missed Marie's presence (she was my favorite character). Overall, I would recommend this entire trilogy.

I am so glad I found The Paper Magician series by Charlie N. Holmberg last year. I read the first book, The Paper Magician, and fell in love with the main characters - Ceony and Emory, so much so that I practically gobbled up the other two books, The Glass Magician and The Master Magician. These are some of the most unique romance novels I have ever read. If you're a fan of Harry Potter, read this series.

I started Chanda Hahn's An Unfortunate Fairy Tale series by taking a chance on a free book. Once I read Unenchanted, I was hooked. Hahn has created such a unique story using the brothers Grimm as a starting point. Mina Grimm is a descendant of the brothers and carries on the family tradition of fighting fairy tales set by the Story. This series has given me a book hangover each time I've read it (this last time was number three). All five books are quick reads, although I must warn you that if you read it on a Kindle or Nook, the editing gets worse as the books progress. It's not so bad that the books are unreadable, but I would advise Hahn to spend a little more money on that process in the future.

I haven't settled on what to read yet this month. Leave me a comment with what you're reading!

Monday Motivation

Sometimes, knowing what you don't want is more important than being absolutely sure of what you do. In other words, don't settle for something you know without a doubt you do not want just because you don't know exactly what you're looking for at the moment. Getting stuck in a job, relationship or place that you hate isn't going to get you where you want to be...even if you don't know where that is. Move forwards, not backwards.

Happy Monday!

Newsroom Fashion: Vintage Vibes

I've always thought wrap dresses are gorgeous, but this is the first one I've found that actually worked for me. It's fully lined and has a snap button to keep the top from gaping open. And of course who could resist this wonderfully vintage print?

Details:

Dress: Charlotte Russe

Daith Piercings

If you follow me on Instagram, you've already seen this picture, posted the day I got both of my daiths pierced, but I've gotten so many questions about them that I wanted to write about the experience after about a month had passed. In this post I'll talk about my reasons for getting the piercings, the piercing itself, after care, and my results.

The Reason

I've had migraines for as long as I can remember, and when you suffer from these debilitating headaches you quickly learn what your triggers are and how to avoid them. Mine are cigarette smoke, certain perfumes, most cleaners, wine, and impending storms. But even knowing all that, I was taking migraine medicine a few times a week as a preventative measure.

Something had to give. So I started looking into alternative treatments. After doing some research and reading a lot of reviews, I decided daith piercings were worth a shot.

The Process

This isn't a piercing you want to get from just anywhere. You want someone who specializes in not just body piercing but specifically daiths. That's why I went to Good Luck Piercing Parlour. One Wednesday I called to check the price - $50 for both including cost of the rings - and spent about 15 minutes of my lunch break that very same day getting them done. Seriously. Fifteen minutes tops.

She used a titanium earring and a needle and talked her way through the process. This piercing is basically like permanent acupuncture. The piercing goes through a nerve. I'm not going to lie: It hurt like hell, and I've been through labor. So if you decide to do this, be warned.

Aftercare

Aftercare is actually pretty simple. For four to six weeks, I cleaned each piercing twice a day. For the first few days I took extra strength Tylenol to help with swelling (there will be swelling). I've had two minor infections, one for each piercing. A salt water solution (1/4 tbsp. + shot glass of hot water) and Neosporin handled those. You'll want to use q-tips for cleaning; anything else will be too big. Warning: cleaning is uncomfortable, especially in the first week when the swelling is still bad. Also, try not to sleep on your side for the first couple of weeks, not that you'll want to the first few days.

My Results

It's been more than six weeks since I got both of my daiths pierced. During that time I haven't had a migraine. In fact, I had the beginnings of a migraine the day I got the piercings done and left the shop with no headache. Although that could have just been pain transference. I've taken migraine medicine twice, but once was because my toddler head-butted me in the temple and it was the strongest pain medicine I had.

I've also noticed less tension in my neck, which is amazing considering my job is sitting at a computer all day. And this may be TMI, but my last two periods weren't as bad, especially the PMS.

The one thing these piercings don't have any effect over is sinus headaches. However, so far I've only experienced sinus pressure, and it hasn't developed into anything debilitating.

I've gone from popping migraine pills almost daily to stave off an attack to virtually headache free. Maybe it's all in my head, but this was the best $50 I've spent in a long time ... and I got two pretty badass looking piercings as a bonus.

It is important to note that daith piercings are not a guarantee that I won't have another migraine ever again. However, when I do have one it shouldn't be as intense or last as long.