The 6-Letter 'B' Word That Cuts Like A Knife

Two hearts, one budget!
Via smartgroom.com

Oh yes, we're going there. You know what word we're talking about. 

Budgets.

I love/loathe Pinterest. It's complicated, but I'm going to try to unpack why.  Here's my love list:

*Amazing collection of all things. Literally, all the things. Green goddess smoothies, coconut oil benefits, housecleaning hacks - you name it, you search it, and Pinterest will deliver it!

*User-friendly way to keep visual and comprehensive boards of ideas for anything from one-pot recipes, DIY manicures, decorating hacks all the way to party themes and colour swatches

*Easy way to find/pinpoint what you like, and be able to express to others what you've got in mind with carefully curated images

The loathe list:

*So. Many. Ideas.  A veritable rabbit-hole, where looking for 'Alice In Wonderland' wedding ideas can lead you down, down, down... Further away from what you want, and find a thousand other ideas you didn't know you needed. 

*Picture-perfection images that, in some cases, are rooted deeply in fantasy (aka Photoshop) or Baller Status (what I like to call 'Keeping Up With The Wests' -the Kanye and Kim Effect)

And here's where the B-word comes into play.  Pinterest can sometimes blind us to the age-old dilemma of Prime Rib Dreams/Hamburger Reality! We're inundated with pictures and magazine spreads of celebrity parties, galas, and weddings; we follow them on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat and are given front-row seats to the best of the best in everything THEY have access to - haute couture fashion, innovative interior design, no-holds-barred styling, surreal make-up and top-drawer event planning. When we try to pull star inspiration into real-life events, fantasy and reality collide head-on. So half of our Pins end up being good from far, but far from good (financially). Budgets and Pinterest sometimes are in stark opposition, so I saved this article published earlier this year that gives a little insight into some of the ways wedding budget spends become post-event regrets:

*~The Hads and Had-Nots: Brides Dish On Some Of Their Wedding Day Regrets~*

Budgets apply to people outside of the couple getting married; being invited to be a part of the big day is a huge honour - and an even bigger responsibility financially. Here's how life in the wedding party can unfold:

*~It Takes A Village... To Make A Wedding Happen: How Much Does It Cost Your Wedding Party?~*

Sigh... What to do, what to do? Which ideas are workable, doable, attainable, and ideas are best left to the the A-list and their unlimited funds? It's a tough call, especially 'in the heat of the moment' (aka mid-meeting with a decorator) so the best thing you can do is have the hard, clinical discussions about all-things-money and what your non-negotiables are beforehand, so that at the very least you are walking in to the planning process on the same page and with the same endgame in mind. Best case scenario? You have a clear vision that's drawn up by you and your partner, not by the special celebrity wedding issue of InStyle magazine!

Wishing you a day as limitless as you are~
Lisa and April

Wednesday Win: Makeup for the ladies you love!

Photo via vampyvarnish.com

You know those days when you feel like a little pick-me-up, a cheap and cheerful treat that hits the spot? Normally for me, the ticket is something edible and dangerously laden with sugar, cream, butter and all the most delicious things in life that make my waistline a little more... Well. Just more of a waist, I guess! So, imagine how happy I was to find a calorie-free way to shake things up and smile from ear-to-ear. Now..... imagine if you could spread the love (and buzz and style) to the ladies in your life and your partners in wedding madness? Well, sweet (cosmetic) dreams are made of this:

*~Where lips, eyes and cheeks find their soulmates!~*

I'd been seeing Colourpop cosmetics coming up in Buzzfeed style posts (yes, another Buzzfeed shout-out... Seriously, what CAN'T you read about there? When you're done reading this post, I dare you to go to the site and NOT find posts that you pass on!)  When I saw references to 'great wear length' and 'MAC dupe' or 'just like NARS _______ lip colour!' I had to check it out and after disappearing down the rabbit hole chasing a grillion colour swatch pictures, online reviews, and YouTube product testing videos, I emerged in a state of Nude Lip Lust (an actual thing, I have been dying to find a My Lip But Better shade for ages and have been notoriously let down!) and placed an order. I got a small army of lippie stix (their name for lipsticks, these babies come in roughly a million shades, in matte - gulp, my Achilles heel! - sheer, glossy, hyper-glossy, creme and pearlized finishes) as well as a pair of eye shadows because they got constant raves for being crazy-pigmented, and a lip liner.

*~More reasons to let the sunshine in!~*

Guys.... They did NOT disappoint. I am seriously planning my next order, as well as gifts for a certain amazing sister who is the real make-up maven, and a certain daughter who is finally embracing the power of a pretty lip and a cat eye! I now have two MLBB lippies and the eyeshadow, swapped on my UNPRIMED naked eyelid that was so gorgeous, my Too Faced Sexy palette cried! I had to pass along this company because the price points are not to be missed - when you factor in the exchange from U.S to Canadian dollars, the lippies and eye shadows come in at under $7 - SEVEN DOLLARS, WHAT? - for some seriously gooooooooood quality product. If you're looking for a a loooong-lasting lip colour, they also have the Ultra Matte Lip that will be about $8.

 If having all these lip colours is wrong, then I don't want to be right. Ever.

Photo via tiffanydmua.com

Pretty..... So so pretty! From romantic to natural, to dramatic, to poptastic!

They also have bronzes and highlighters for all your contouring and strobing needs?  If you sign up for their updates, you can score  deals like discounts on total purchases or in specific items (currently they are offering $5 off their pallets and lip collections) heads-up on new products and last goodbyes for colours that are retiring so you can stick up if a fave is headed off into the sunset. There is nothing in it for me, no free swag or anything like that, but there could be eternal love and devotion from some lucky recipients should you decide to knock some socks off and stock up some purses!

Wishing you a day as limitless (and as colourful!) as you are~

Lisa and April