Scalloped/ Scoop Back Dress in Lake Geneva

Happy Wednesday! 

Before I start this post, you guys have to watch the most hilarious YouTube video ever. My friend Leah sent it to Mike and me, and we laughed our butts off. Mike is seriously the most patient man ever for taking all my millions of pics. Love you, Instagram husband! haha!!!

Husbands of Instagram

Now, on to the look of the day! 

This Camilyn Beth dress is a dream. I wore it in my engagement photos 3 years ago, to my Geneva wedding shower, and a bunch of times in between. It is an investment dress that you will wear a TON. 

^^ where Mike and I met!! 

All engagement pics by the amazing Meagan Hudak of Blossom Lane Photography.  She is incredibly talented!! 

This is a great view of the Historic Maxwell Mansion in Lake Geneva, WI, where we stayed over the weekend! This the view from our balcony. 

^^ The Maxwell Mansion was the first ever mansion built in Lake Geneva, WI. It was built in 1856! Cool, right? 

My book clutch is from our wedding! As are my shoes! I love to re-wear both a lot. Now that you mention it, my bracelet is also from our wedding. LOL!

Book clutch.

Similar shoes (mine were on clearance for $90 at J.Crew 3 years ago- lol!). These are identical and $59-- but in silver glitter! 

More scalloped-hem dresses in various price points and colors: 

^^ Maxwell Mansion was definitely horsey/stable themed. I kept sending pics to my girl, Jenny, because she loves horses! 

Gold tassel earrings: 

Thanks to Annalisa at Beautiful You salon in St. Charles for my fresh cut and curls! 

My second favorite Camilyn Beth dress! 

^^The grounds of the hotel were just remarkable. SO many beautiful flowers!

^^Okay, one of the coolest parts. The Apothecary bar! 

^^ The bartenders even had lab coats because they were "pharmacists". A little step back into time!

^^ Champagne for days 

Nuts in beakers! So darn cute.

How handsome did Mike look in his seersucker pants? Love those. Everyone loved his flamingo bow tie, too!  

Our bartenders were amazing. SO friendly, and they were super knowledgeable about the hotel and Lake Geneva. 

More Camilyn Beth picks:

1. Pure class for a wedding guest dress; that royal blue and ruffle neckline are to die for!

2. Love, love, love the nautical-ness of this one and those bell sleeves!  

3. Wedding shower/rehearsal dinner dress for the bride. 

The "great room" was stunning. 

How beautiful is that?!

I 110% recommend staying at the Maxwell Mansion in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin! We had such a fantastic experience! If you missed my last post, check it out here to see the inside of the rooms! There is also a pool, bocce court, and tons of gardens around the grounds of the hotel. The speakeasy in the basement of the hotel was made to resemble a real prohibition era speakeasy, and you had to enter with a password! SO COOL!!!  I felt like I was in The Great Gatsby. 

Have you ever been to Lake Geneva? Where'd you stay?

xxoo

Mary

Eyelet Loft Tee + $14 Scalloped Shorts!!

We are back from our anniversary weekend!  Our 2nd wedding anniversary (PS: here is my first ever blog post on our wedding!!) is actually tomorrow (7-11), but we went to Lake Geneva, WI, this past weekend.  I have to share the easiest/comfiest but still cutest travel outfit I wore on our drive and during our first walks around LG! This is especially exciting because these shorts are $14!!!!!! Hellooooooo!  Use code: heatwave for 40% off the $24! (Heck, even without the discount the price is right!). 

^^ we stayed really close to The Cove, which is where my bachelorette party was held 2 years ago! Haha! All I could think about was our unforgettable boat ride with Igor. LOL. All my gfs who could make it surely remember that adventure. SO much fun. Had to snap a pic out front! 

My bag is old Kate Spade, but the size/crossbody nature of it is just right. 

Here is a similar one I am digging (I like all three colors!).

This shirt! I got it 50% off a week and a half ago-- so wait patiently for a sale. 

Sign up for the Loft emails to get the alerts on the deals. I never, ever, ever pay full price for anything at Loft! Sizing note: it did run big! I have an XS on. In J. Crew, Lilly, Banana, etc., I typically wear a small! 

I love this striped version of the shirt: 

This is another perfect-sized cross body.

I always have a million things in my bag, so a small bag just doesn't work for me! 

Plus. this is under $80!

These black scalloped shorts are my all-time favorite. 

They're TTS, and I am in a size 6.

Right now, they are 40% off! They're down to $14! #nobrainer

There are a few different colors, too! I love the black because you can dress them up or down so easily.

Love this bag for under $60:

More eyelet-hem tees:

^^Happy almost 2 year anniversary, my love! 

Some pics of the inside of our hotel, The Maxwell Mansion! Isn't the ceiling gorgeous!?

Hot tub in room! All the decor/details were made to resemble the history of the mansion. I will have much more to come on where we stayed, but it was incredible. It was the first mansion ever in Lake Geneva, built in 1856! There was even a speakeasy in the basement, and it was luckily open on Friday.  You needed a password to get in, just like in the prohibition era. 

My current favorite eyelet dresses from Loft: 

- These are the cutest scalloped/eyelet shorts! 

- Love the eyelet on the sleeves of this top! The yellow is my fave!

Have you ever been to Lake Geneva, WI?

xxoo
Mary

Spotlight on Olivia's Amazing Eyelashes! The only mascara routine you'll ever need!

If you know Olivia Margolis, you know that she has the best eyelashes on the planet. Like, no joke! Every gal at Pure Barre Geneva (where she is an instructor) totally fan-girls over how to get our eyelashes like Olivia's! I remember when I met her for the first time, I was like, "that girl can do amazing splits, and her eyelashes are out of this world!" Fast forward a few months, and now we are friends, and she kindly agreed to give us the rundown on her regimen!  The amazing splits/flexibility side of Olivia comes from the fact that she was a ballet major at the University of Oklahoma. Seriously, you guys, when she demos moves at Pure Barre, we all die! #goals 

^^ Daniel and Olivia, talk about pretty couple! 

Olivia told me the craziest story about her lashes from her time working and dancing in Las Vegas. She had gotten eyelash extensions and had a horrible reaction! She was allergic, it turned out, and she said her eyes swelled up like  GOLDFISH!!! (She was laughing telling the story, so we can laugh now). When they went in to do emergency removal, they basically had to cut down her actual lashes to stop the allergic reaction! Major upset to any woman! 

^^ She used the same routine for her lashes for her wedding day. Gorg, right?!

Her lashes have since grown back, but she started this routine after the reaction to make them look fuller/grow back quicker. 

And now I can share her secrets with you all! Prepare to want Olivia lashes! All the PBG gals do!! 

^^ Bahaha. Me testing the lighting in our bathroom. Shout out to my bff Cait for the Cabi top! Obsessed!!! 

Okay, so here is the rundown. I will link every product, too! 

First comes Revitalash.  Get this from Amazon or Nordoes. I will explain what you do with this serum below.  It will be a $55-80 investment, depending on the size you get, but Olivia says it lasts a year! Totally worth it. 

Then comes Makeup Forever mascara.

The color is called Smoky Extravagant. This is from Sephora. 

Finally is Benefit Roller Lash. 

Here's Olivia pre-anything on her eyes. She is obviously beautiful as is, but wait until you see how big her lashes get. Oh, side note!! Olivia is also a Pilates instructor. She has a beautiful studio, and here is her site. Seriously, you guys, her energy and talent as a Pure Barre teacher, dancer and Pilates instructor are so contagious and motivating. You need to experience this!! All the Pure Barre Geneva girls literally sweat and shake through her classes. We always laugh because she is killing us, and we are shaking and burning, and she will pop over and say how cute our leggings are. That's just the sweetness of Olivia. And the other day, we were bent over with are heads resting on our arms on the barre, and she popped underneath us to say, "just kick your leg over Lauren to be like a Rockette!" and of course had us cracking up.  

Olivia uses an eyelash curler by Covergirl before the process, too! 

First thing's first: 

Revitalash is dabbed on the base of your lashes every night after you wash your face before you go to bed. Dab it across your lash line: this is the miracle worker! Revitalash is a little pricey, but it LASTS!!! And it brought Olivia's half lashes back to life after the allergic reaction of doom in Vegas #RIPLashes

Olivia uses the .03 oz container for $55. 

Next up: Makeup Forever by Sephora in Smoky Extravagant. 

This is your first mascara layer. 1 coat is all you need! Jiggle the brush horizontally for your bottom lashes. This will last you about 3-5 months!

Her right (our left) eye is done in the Smoky Extravagant. Other eye isn't yet. 

Second mascara step is the Benefit Roller Lash (in black). She only does the top lashes with this after applying the Smoky Extravagant (for daily use), or both top and bottom if she's being "fancy". Pro tip from Olivia: don't let the Sephora mascara dry before applying the Benefit. 

^^Again, our left, her right, has both the mascaras on. 

Now... Voila!! Both eyes have both mascaras on! 

Isn't that awesome how much it opens your eyes?!

I am a convert!

My guest bathroom shower curtain (pink ombre ruffles) was my first "adult" purchase from Anthro in 2012. Here are some similar ruffle shower curtains!

SO many thanks to Olivia for allowing us to know her mascara brilliance! Remember the order:

1. Revitalash every night on the lash line before bed (after makeup removed and face washed).

2. Curl lashes with your favorite eyelash curler. Then, Sephora's Makeup Forever mascara in Smoky Extravagant is layer 1 on top and horizontal wiggle on the bottom.

3. Benefit's Roller Lash finishes out the process. Just on top for every day (but on top and bottom to be fancy)! Remember to apply it right after the Sephora, just so it doesn't dry. Get it in the black. 

Okay, so who is ready for the best lashes ever?! I am ordering my "Olivia Routine" as we speak!

xxoo

Mary

Kate Spade Sunnies!

So, I finally caved. I bought prescription sunnies!  I can actually see in the sunlight when I am driving! (jk, Dad and Mom, I swear I could *pretty much* see before!). You guys, I have an unnatural fear of eyeballs. Like, absurd. I went to an appointment a few months ago at Third Street Eye Care to get contacts. I was all set up to do it! I'd watched the YouTube videos about putting them in and taking them out, and I was PUMPED. I had even practiced and pretended to put them in! I was ready! I would finally get contacts and not have to wear my glasses all day! 

The appointment came, and my friend and eye-glasses extraordinaire, Amy, bless her heart, sat with me at the store for what seemed like hours, calmly dealing with my incompetency of putting the contacts in my eyes. AH! I got them in... but then getting them out was an entirely different evil. 

I gave up. I was so mad at myself! Eyeballs should not be so scary!!!! But honestly, I just couldn't do it. Amy was amazing, and so patient, but even her expertise could not sway me from the big baby I am when it has anything to do with eyes. Alas, I went back home with  a 6 day trial pack of contacts and no confidence in myself to actually being able to put them in.

Flash forward a few months, and I got my second wind/newfound bravery. I was going to do this! I was going to wear contacts! We had just moved into the new house: new house, new contacts, new me?! LOL. Well, shockingly, I failed again. Still terrified of eyeballs.

All that to say, here we are. I needed Rx sunglasses BADLY. My last sunglasses were also Kate Spade, thanks to my hubs (seen here and here, and here and here, and basically everywhere since our wedding date when he gave me them, lol). 

^^I promise Bella and Bentley like me, though it may not appear that way in the above pic. LOL

My sunglasses also come in BLUSH!!!! 

Jacks:

Poor Bella had blood drawn at the vet, but they dressed it up with a sparkly band aid. 

These sunnies are the best, you guys! They're a vintage-y throw back, and the little bling on the side is such a fun addition. 

Mirrored monogram necklace by Moon and Lola:

More Kate Spade sunnies to explore:

What are you doing to celebrate the 4th of July tomorrow? We are heading to New Buffalo, Michigan to see Mike's whole family! We can't wait to reunite with all our nieces, nephews, cuzzies, and family!

xxoo

Mary