Hello, hello & happy end of July! August is here, and summer is still under way. I am SO excited for August; I can’t hold it back any longer. With Outside Lands music festival, Vans Warped Tour, and a trip to Maui around the corner, there are so many things I am looking forward to. This past month went by pretty slowly for me, but it has been a great past few weeks because I have been enjoying ample time with my fam! I got to see my sister this month, which is my favorite thing in the entire world, and it’s always so nice to catch up!

During the month of July, I definitely found some new (and incredible) finds. From chic shoes to a stunning eyeshadow palette, I have rounded up some of my must-haves this past month. Without further ado, here are my July faves:

one. suede slip-ons (under $100) / two. nude mules (under $100) / three. fedora hat (under $100) / four. embroidered shift dress (sold out on the nSale, still available full-price here) / five. busted jeans (under $100 + true to size) / six. white culotte pants (under $100) / seven. cardigan / eight. velvet sweater (under $40) / nine. cropped denim jacket / ten. luna night oil / eleven. coconut pear chapstick / twelve. too faced peach palette / thirteen. brow mascara

• • •I had three favorite accessories this month – two of them being shoes! It is now secret that I am an avid shoe collector. I rarely purchase new bags or jewelry pieces; instead, I can’t keep myself away from shoes. My two favorites pairs this month were these blush pink slide sneakers and these nude mules. I have been wearing both of them nonstop – especially to the office. I like that they can both be dressed up or dressed down, and they are such soft, feminine hues. They are understated shades that still pack a bit of punch. Now for the hat. I chatted about this hat in my ‘Sunflower Hour’ post, and I still adore this chic piece. I am SO excited to bring it on my upcoming vacay, and it has a way of making any outfit look just a little more put together (even when you haven’t washed your hair in six days… not like I do that or anything 😉 ).

• • •I am sure a lot of you are looking at my clothing picks like ??!!??????? (translation: girl, it’s July! Why are you wearing sweaters, jackets, and jeans?! Are you okay??). San Francisco has the coldest summer out of any city in the US. Not kidding. It is seriously chilly. In the mornings, it tends to be in the 50’s, so my summer style has been a little fall-ish these past few months. I think there’s a pretty high probability that I will actually melt next time I go home to Texas to visit; I have been getting so spoiled with this Cali weather.

The Nordstrom this year was fire. I purchased several things from the sale that I have been just loving (ps. – I shared my Nordstrom Sale 2017 picks here). My favorite pick was probably this white embroidered dress. I purchased both the black and the white that went on sale! It’s the perfect little shift for work, brunch with the girls, date night, and anything in between. It’s so comfy too! Speaking of comfy, this sweater is seriously the softest thing in my entire wardrobe. I am wearing it right now, and it is the closest thing you can get to a wearable blanket. I would highly recommend snagging it for fall before the nSale ends in a few days (+ it’s also very affordable too, I may add)! I am planning on picking it up in the other color as well. Two of my other fashion faves this month were also outwear pieces. I have been loving my chunky-knit cardi and cropped denim jacket for work. They are perfect jackets to just throw on over any outfit, especially in the mornings when it’s chilly! They will be perfect for the fall months ahead. Last, but not least, my favorite busted jeans and white culotte pants made my July favorites. If you check my daily OOTD page (on my tumblr), you’ll see that I wear these two gems on a pretty much weekly basis. They are so versatile and match just about any top in my closet!

• • •This past weekend, my dad actually mentioned that he has noticed a major transformation with my makeup routine over the past year. Before my senior year of college, I was a full-coverage, all-out-glam kinda gal (which there is absolutely nothing wrong with!). It was rare to find me without glitter and false lashes, even in the day time. Moving out to Silicon Valley last summer really changed my perspective on beauty and altered my makeup routine. I think I used makeup as a mask for a long time. When I had a huge pimple, I just pumped up the eye makeup to distract from it. When I felt like I was having a bad hair day, I layered on the lipstick. As I get older every year, I feel more comfortable in my own skin; I become more comfortable with the woman that I am – flaws and all. I currently feel the most confident when I embrace my natural freckles and focus on healthy, natural skin (even when I the more-than-occasional breakout pops up). My makeup routine could absolutely change in the future, but I think it’s always important to reflect on where you are at and do whatever makes you feel the most comfortable and confident.

Though I don’t wear as much makeup as I use to, I still spend just as much $ at Sephora. When it comes to shopping for beauty, I now focus the majority of my budget on skincare products. I am a big believer that taking care of your skin is probably more important than what you put on top of it. I definitely plan on creating an updated skin care/makeup routine sometime in the next few weeks, but I wanted to share a few of my recent faves on today’s post! I have been loving this Luna night oil. I only have a small, sample size bottle, but a little goes a long way. I feel like it’s deeply treating my skin, and it smells incredible. I will definitely be splurging on the full size when my little bottle runs out. The ABH Modern Renaissance palette has been one of my favorite makeup products for months now,  but I have a new favorite eyeshadow palette: the Too Faced Sweet Peach palette. If you ask my sister, she will tell you I debated about purchasing this palette for the longest time. Every time I went into Sephora, I swatched it and sniffed it, but never felt committed to purchasing it. I have a few favorite beauty gurus on YouTube, and I trust their beauty opinions and advice. They all hated this palette, and I was very hesitant on spending my money on it. A few months ago, I decided to finally give in and pick it up. I absolutely LOVE this palette, and I am beyond happy that I decided to purchase it for myself. I love the beautiful peachy tones, and I think they are so flattering on blue eyes (but would be gorgeous on any eye color). They are unique, but not too crazy or unwearable. I find myself reaching for this palette on a daily basis. It’s beautiful in the day time with a tinted moisturizer and cream blush. But for night, the deep, smokey shades like ‘peach pit’, ‘talk derby to me’, and ‘charmed, I’m sure’ are stunning in all the right ways. If you have been on the fence about this one, I would highly, highly recommend it. For my July faves, I always wanted to throw in my two favorite drugstore must-haves this past month: the Burt’s Bees ‘Coconut Pear’ chapstick and the NYX brow mascara in ‘blonde’. I have been using this chapstick on a daily basis, and it has the strangest, but best, flavor. Not to get super nostalgic, but it reminds me of blue coconut snow-cones from my childhood. I’m a fan. A few of you guys were asking me about my brows pretty recently, so I thought I would share my secret weapon – the NYX brow mascara. I love this product for several reasons: it’s affordable, it keeps my brows in place/locks down my brow pencil product, tints my naturally dark eyebrows, and is so quick & easy on the go. I naturally have very thin, sparse brows. I love creating the illusion of fuller, more natural brows by drawing on tiny fake hairs on with my eyebrow pencil and then using this brow mascara to brush the hairs upwards. It blends/locks the pencil in and coats my eyebrows in a very natural blonde color. On occasion, I do use it on its own if I am in a hurry and don’t have time to pencil in my sparse brows. It adds a great tint that enhances my natural brows. I would highly recommend this product, and I am now on my third bottle!

I hope that you guys enjoyed this chatty monthly favorites post. Let me know if you enjoy this style of monthly faves & share know the products/pieces you loved this past month!

xoxo,

Mackenzie

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