2015 | Dearest Lou

Menswear Style: Refyne Wear





Blue & Gold Sock Tie c/o Refyne Wear

How cool is this sock tie from Refyne Wear? Refyne Wear is a new fashion company located in Salt Lake City, Utah. I have been wanting to get Daryl more skinny ties for church and formal events and was more than happy to collaborate with Refyne Wear and take a few photos of Daryl is his new tie(s). I was very impressed with the ties, they are very well made and come in awesome designs. I'm hoping we can take the tripod out and get a few updated family shots sometime this week. I have coordinated outfits around Daryl's other tie. Can you guess which other one we picked out?

I will be giving away not one but THREE sock ties later this week. There will be three lucky winners so I highly suggest heading over to Refyne Wear to start shopping around and bookmarking/pinning your favorites (;

New Years Eve Makeup || Neutrogena at Walmart

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are mine alone. #FaceTheHoliday #CollectiveBias


New Years Eve is just around the corner and I wanted to create a simple and fun New Years Eve Makeup tutorial for you guys. For this look I really want to bring out my eyes! This look can be accomplished with a few of my favorite products from NEUTROGENA.




Products you will need:

All of the NEUTROGENA products used were found in the cosmetics section at my local Walmart!



New Years Eve Makeup Tutorial



Step 1: NEUTROGENA Nourishing Long Wear Foundation
Apply foundation all over face. I personally love this foundation since it has SPF and stays on all day. I lightly apply it so my natural blemishes and freckles aren't completely covered up. This foundation is perfect for all day events since it will stay on in rain or shine.



Step 2NEUTROGENA HEALTHY SKIN Blends
This was my first time using NEUTROGENA HEALTHY SKIN Blends ( A sheer, mosaic powder featuring multiple shades that blend together to enhance many skin tones) and I was very surprised! I love that it added a subtle sun kissed look to my overall look. I contoured my cheeks a bit to give them more definition and a bit of much needed color.


Step 3NEUTROGENA Nourishing Long Wear Eyeshadow + Built-in Primer
This eyeshadow is no joke guys! It stayed on the entire day (12 hours + no retouching necessary)! I love that the back of the palette had a guide to where each color is suggested. I simply followed the back of the palette and LOVE the subtle smokey eye effect.



Step 4Liquid Eyeliner of Choice + NEUTROGENA Healthy Volume Mascara
Simply line your upper eyelid with liquid mascara. I always do a "cat eye" but simply lining the eyeshadow will really make your eyes pop!

I'm really picky when it comes to mascara and NEUTROGENA Healthy Volume Mascara has become a favorite since I first reviewed it last year! This mascara penetrates to moisturize and protect eyelashes with ingredients such as olive, meadowfoam seed, and sweet almond oils.



Step 5NEUTROGENA Shine Control Powder
Go over your T-Zone with this shine control powder to avoid the extra oils that naturally occur in that area! Formulated with an exclusive Rice Protein Complex, the Shine Control Powder is clinically proven to instantly absorb oil, providing eight hour shine control, without over drying skin. 



Step 6NEUTROGENA MoistureSmooth Color Stick + glitter
My lips are exceptionally dry in the winter and sometimes wearing just plain old lipstick isn't enough to keep my lips moisturized. With ingredients such as mango and shea butter, NEUTROGENA MoistureSmooth Color Sticks can help keep your lips smoother and softer in as little as 3 days! I also love that it adds a little bit of color and shine while helping my lips. I chose this particular color since my husband isn't a fan of kissing me with my wild bright lipsticks and this color is kiss approved (;

Complete your look with adding glitter to the corners of your eyes! I added a bit of gold sparkle mascara.




Do you have any fun plans for New Years Eve? 

Sentimental Gifts from Shutterfly


A belated holiday post but better now than never. When it comes to shopping for parents or family members it's sometimes tricky to find the perfect gift. Parents can usually buy anything they would like and I love gifting sentimental gifts that are either homemade or created by me. I love photography and as you can imagine I have quite the collection of photos that accumulate over the year.

This year I wanted to create personalize photo books for both mine and Daryl's parent's. I knew that Shutterfly had my back and would be the best destination for bringing my photo book vision to life. What's great about photo books is that they would make a great gift all year round and not just during the holidays. I think these would make great birthday gifts, mother/father's day gifts, graduation gifts, etc. The possibilities are endless.

I also decided that every year from this year forward I will create a photo book of Zaden (& our future children) for our parents. This will be a great way to make use of some of my favorite photos and make for an awesome gift.

I made a photo book for Daryl's Christmas/Anniversary gift last year so I was very familiar with their site and how to make a custom book. For those of you who might be trying Shutterfly for the first time or aren't very tech-savvy rest assured that their site is very user friendly and their live chat is available 7 days a week to answer any questions you may have.

Finding the perfect box to fit your customized book can be tricky and for a little extra Shutterfly can add a pretty box to your order for a little extra. I personally love their classic silver box! I added a personal touch to it by adding a red ribbon and a gold glittery tag.

Here's a little peak of this years books:




I also made a personalized calendar for Grandma Harvard. We don't get to see her all that often and the few times I have been over to her place I noticed she has all of our cards we have sent her over the years hung up around her place. So I wanted to create a special little calendar with my favorite photos of Z for her.

This was my first time ordering a calendar from Shutterfly and it was so easy! This would make a great gift for the new year for friends and family! I'm definitely going to order one for our home this upcoming week.


Star Wars Family Style


I'm wearing:
Star Wars Shoes c/o Skechers || Star Wars Shirt

Daryl's wearing:
Star Wars Shoes c/o Skechers || Star Wars Shirt

Z's wearing:
Darth Vader High Tops c/o Skechers || Star Wars Sweater


Who else is excited for Star Wars tomorrow night?! We are so excited and I wanted to get a photo of our family in our Star Wars premiere getup (; This is what we will be wearing tomorrow night.

Skechers sent us these awesome shoes. I know you have already seen Zaden's high tops in this post last month but I wanted to get a photo of all of us. Skechers also sent Z another pair of high tops that will be featured here later this week and they are sending my husband a little something next month so stay tuned for those posts!

Snow Day & Some New Favorites









I'm wearing:
Ebony & Gold Frankie c/o JORD || Pants c/o Evy's Tree || Hat || Boots || Bracelets || Cardigan || Shirt

Z's wearing:
Hat (vintage) || Sweater || Pants || Vest || Boots

This week has been off to a great start because of all of the lovely snow we have been having. I absolutely love the snow. These pictures were taken yesterday shortly after Zaden and I woke up for the day. Also how cute is his "power" move?! I seriously can't.. this kid is TOO adorable. I just had to throw in those little portraits of him too ♥

I have a couple things to talk about! My new watch, these amazing pants, and this versatile cardigan.

My new Frankie watch from JORD.

Isn't it absolutely classy and stunning? I love it and have worn it everyday since receiving it. It's definitely my favorite watch at the moment. You can't go wrong with a simple, yet classy ebony wooden watch with gold details. This watch would make an amazing holiday gift this season and I have a special offer for my readers!

JORD has given me a few JORD $25 gift cards to give out to YOU! That's right, you can take $25 off any watch and JORD can guarantee delivery on all orders placed before Sunday (12/20). In order to redeem your $25 credit simply head on over here and fill out your name, email address, and favorite watch! Shortly after JORD will send you an email with your unique $25 e-giftcard, woohoo!

Evy's Tree new pants.

Evy's Tree a company you have definitely heard of if you are a weekly reader over here (wink, wink) has just released pants! Now these pants are a hybrid between and jean and a legging. They are super thick, high waisted, and OH-SO comfortable. These run very true to size and have become my new go-to pant. I highly recommend them!

My new everyday cardigan.

I recently purchased this cardigan and it's the best $14 I've ever spent. This cardigan is so versatile and it's my favorite clothing color.. black. I have worn it for the last three days with a variety of different looks just to show you how versatile it really is. I seriously love it and am contemplating getting another one in black and also purchasing the gray and tan versions, ha!