Starting Cosmetology School Today!

Tags

Beauty School, Cosmetology, Costmetology School, Education, Hair, Love, Make up, Natural Hair

As I write this, my stomach trembles with glee! I start cosmetology school this evening! I am so elated, and I have never been happier about going to school. I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Business Administration but neither got the emotional reaction from me that starting this journey has gotten. There is something truly amazing about operating in your purpose! I love hair, I love people, I love service, and that is what being a cosmetologist is all about. I have always heard the quote ” Do something you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life”, it’s so cliché but it is beginning to become true and real to me. Will it be a cake walk? I’m sure it won’t, but I am willing and determined and that is half the battle already won.

Hair comes naturally to me, and I love a stylist that has skills because it’s not always easy dealing with the people or heads of hair that sit your chair! A good stylist is also hard to find, it took me seven years to find one who could give me a good wash, blowout and press. I am excited to get the theory, license and education behind the natural ability.

My first investment in my dream is a new pair of comfy shoes to stand in all night at school, my Dansko Clogs. They come highly recommended by nurses who spend all day on their feet. At first, I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to invest $100 in these “not cute” shoes, but I just can’t have aching feet or back pain.  “It’s a small price to pay to avoid varicose veins, foot and back pain” says my husband. We shall see!

I can’t wait to get my kit and scrubs. What naturalista doesn’t love new hair goodies?! I am so excited to share my journey with you all and I am committed to picking back up with my posts to share my knowledge and love for hair! Follow me on instagram @natural_iam !

Peace!

Lina

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My Wedding Day

Tags

Bride, Natural Hair, Natural Hair Bride, Wedding

Hello, Hello, Hello!!

It feels so great to be blogging again. I’m two days out from having been married two months and I’ve decided it is high time that I come out of the newlywed love cave to post about the wedding, my hair and other musings.

I will start with the wedding planning. I was totally OCD when it came to planning the wedding which isn’t very far from how I am in everyday life. I am a planner and I will lose sleep over the smallest detail. I emailed my coordinator all the time with photos, diagrams and lists. She loved it and it made for smooth sailing the day of.  The venue was a historic home with a natural beauty all its own with its stained glass windows, hardwood floors and sky-high doors. I pretty much DIY’d the whole things because simply put, I am cheap BUT also very crafty and I truly believe I can do anything or at least try. Somethings I DIY’d or semi-DIY’d include save the dates, invitations, escort cards, bouquets, bouts, centerpieces, aisle decor, the guest book..I could go on and on.

I went back and forth as to how I would wear my hair on the big day. At first, I thought I would get it blown out, pressed and then curl wand it the night before preserving the style by pin curling it. The style is gorgeous but the con is that I didn’t know it if would last throughout the night. I believe it would have fallen flat before the reception. The week of the wedding I cancelled my appointment and just jumped out there and decided to do it myself. I was sure I wanted a natural style (and so was my now husband) but I had no plan. On friday night I took a 2 day old twist out and made something so gorgeous and simple and I am so happy I did. I parted  a section off-center toward the right side of my head down to my ear and sectioned it off. The rest of the hair in the back was spritzed with water gelled at the edges and nape of my neck and very carefully smoothed down and tucked/rolled to the right side of my head securing it with about 100 Bobbie pins (seriously, that things was going nowhere). I took the tail end of the roll and made a pin curl above my ear. I then took the top section and did two strand twists add a perm rod to the end of each one. I tied my hair down with a silk scarf and covered it with a bonnet. The day of the wedding, I removed the perm rods, carefully unraveled the twists and fluffed them. I used some closed Bobbie pins to maintain the volume at the top. I added 3 floral pins to the back. Oh and you know I had to have a need a little baby hair! LOL!

All photography by Reggie Dandy Photography

http://www.reggiedandy.com

My MUA “Doll Face the BeatFace Queen”  putting the finishing touches on my hair and makeup. She was such a joy to work with and fierce and preggers too! Follow her on instagram @dollfacebfqmua and Youtube @dejour83

A close up of the details of my dress, ring and lavender nails. My dress is Blu by Mori Lee 4807

My beautiful mother. I love her locs!

 

Me getting my groove on. The day was so much fun!

One of my besties and bridesmaids with her daughter who is also my God daughter and Flower girl. Loved her finger coils.

This photo is one of my favorites.

This one too.

I love the sassiness of this pic..even though that “clear” deodorant under my arm wouldn’t let me live!

Relaxing and waiting for the ceremony to start.

We had our ceremony in the brickyard of the home.

  

Cheers!

Good Day People!

Lina

Happy 1 Year Blogaversary to CurlPlease!!! It’s Giveaway Time!!!

Tags

1, Blog, Blogaversary, CurlPlease, Curls, Happy Anniversary, Love, Make up, Products

I can’t believe it’s been a year already! I’m so happy to have shared my musings about natural hair with all of you and I hope that I’ve helped and inspired someone on their natural hair journey. I am so thankful for my readers, subscribers and everyone who reblogs my posts and spread the word. I will continue to blog and post about all things girlie, fierce and natural! Happy Blogaversary!

To commemorate this lovely occasion, I’ll be giving away some beauty products that I love over the next couple of weeks! Starting with My favorite lip pencil by Nars called Dragon Girl! To enter the giveaway, comment on this post and a winner will be selected randomly after the cut off date. Each commenter will be entered into the drawing once. The contest will close on 12 am Saturday, March 2nd, 2013.

My lipstick is a Dragon Girl by NARS and my liner is a cheapie Wine color from the beauty Supply store. I also have on Ambering Rose Blush by MAC

 I LOVE this lip pencil and you will too! Comment below for the chance to win!!

Thanks for reading!!

Lina

My Red Lip – NARS Dragon Girl

Tags

beauty, bozo the clown, dragon girl, Make up, Products, Style

Hey everyone, I decided to do a post on my red lip. For so long I had been skeptical about if I could pull off a red lippy. I had not so good experiences before trying color on my lips and would stick to nude and blush colors. One day last year while wandering around Bridgestreet with my friends Brittany and Whitney we stopped in Sephora and tried on some lip colors. I found a red lip liner that I love called Dragon Girl by Nars. It is matte, velvety and goes on very smooth. Instead of using it as a lip liner, I cover my entire lip with it. Here’s how I apply my red lip…

You’ll need: Chapstick, A cheap Jumbo lip liner from a beauty supply store in a Burgundy/Plum/Wine, You can buy them for $1 or $2, and Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dragon Girl.

First, I prepare my lip by applying a coat of chapstick to help the liners go on smoothly, then i take the cheap lip liner and line my lips lightly with the cheap liner. I have big lips and this step helps slim them and prevents the bozo the clown look. LOL.

Afterwards I apply the Nars lip liner top of the cheap one and all over the lips. It is my go to look for special occasions and a showstopper on nights out!

Have a Good one!

A Few of my Favorite Things…

Tags

CurlPlease, Curls, Eco Styler, Ecostyler olive oil gel, Fashion, favorites, Love, Lush, Make up, mascara, Michael Kors, MK, Natural Hair, New, Products, Style, Sultana of soaps

My Michael Kors Flex pump in black… these shoes are one of the first expensive investments I made in my big girl wadrobe…When I tell you these shoes are super comfortable, go with everything and are very soft, please take my word for it! I also have them in “dark sand python”.

Million Lash mascara…This stuff gets the job D-O-N-E! It looks like falsies and even if I have zero make-up on, I can’t pass on this mascara! I don’t wear, buy or try anything else! LOL

Ecostyler Olive Oil Gel!!! Yes I have the 5 POUND tub pictured below! If the house was burning down, I’m grabbing this gel and my purse! LOL! Enough said!

Lush Sultana of Soap…Let me just take a moment tell you how much I love this soap…EVERYTIME I go out-of-town or even out of the country I buy more of this soap…Paris, France, Chicago, IL, Memphis, TN, Valencia, CA just to name a few. Too bad they don’t have a store in Huntsville because I’d be a regular. My last purchase was $50 worth of soap! LOL! Yes it’s that divine!

Those are a few of my favorite things!

Lina

10 Step 10 Minute Work Make-Up

Tags

10 minute, Blush, CurlPlease, easy, Eyeshadow, lip gloss, Love, Make up, mascara, morning, New, Pictures, Products, Tips

One of my last morning rituals before I leave out of the front door is to put on my make up. I honestly don’t miss a day, this face must be BEAT before I leave for work. 🙂 LOL. That may sound a little shallow, but I have tested and proven theory that if you look good, you feel good, and if you feel good, you’ll work good. Yeah, yeah I know the English majors are going to have a hissy fit over the grammar etc. but I don’t care. You know what I mean. As a woman it is so easy to get run down and occupied with everything and everyone and neglect yourself. What I’m trying to say is, ALWAYS KEEP YOURSELF UP SO LIFE CAN’T GET YOU DOWN!

Here is my morning make up routine…

1. I start with a freshly washed face using Clean & Clear foaming facial cleanser.

2. I moisturize my face with Clean & Clear Dual Action skin moisturizer.

3. I apply Mary Kay Eye Primer from lid to eyebrow on both eyes.

4. Using a beauty sponge I apply MAC Matchmaster SPF15 foundation in color 7.5 to my entire face except my eyelids.

5. I apply Mary Kay eye color in Sienna to my lid and crease.

6. I use Revlon PhotoReady Concealer in deep to highlight my brow bone and blend it with a foundation brush.

7. I apply L’Oreal Voluminous Million Lashes to my eyelashes.

8. I apply NYC jet black pencil eyeliner to my water line.

9. I brush MAC Ambering Rose Blush onto my cheek bones.

10. Finally, I apply a coat of chapstick and Revlon Coral Reef lip gloss on my lips.

Here’s the final product!

 

Work it ladies! Have a good day!

Lina

 

Make-Up Short-Cut

Tags

Concealer, CurlPlease, easy, Eyebrow, Eyeshadow, Love, Make up, New, Tips, Tricks

If I had to pick one of my favorite make-up short cuts or should I say tricks, it would be putting stick concealer under my brow for highlighting instead of a highlighting eyeshadow, I use Revlon PhotoReady Concealer in Deep.

I love using stick concealer instead of shadow for a plethora of reasons, 3 of the main reasons being:

1. It stays longer.

2. The pigment is way better than eyeshadow, you can layer it and make it as light or dark as you want.

3. It’s super easy to apply.

To apply it, I just swipe a small amount on right underneath the eyebrow and blend it in with a foundation brush, I use and elf foundation brush ( ONLY $1!!! Oh yeah! 🙂 ). Check it out…

Hope this helps!

Lina

Welcome to CurlPlease!

Tags

Alabama, Big Chop, Blog, Cooking, CurlPlease, Engineer, Food, Graduate School, Hair, Love, Make up, Natural Hair, New, Products, Shopping, Style

 

Welcome to my new blog! I am a twenty something engineer and graduate student living in Huntsville, Alabama. I am starting this blog because I want to share a piece of my life. I love to cook, shop, and do make-up, but most of all I love Jesus. I am especially passionate about my Natural Hair, hence the blog name CurlPlease. I transitioned Summer 2007, and big chopped in August 2007. Grew a full head of lucious hair over 3 years, but damaged it badly due to too much heat styling. I big chopped again in September 2010. My hair has since flourished as well as my style. I am an admitted shopaholic and foodie. I am not a beautician, stylist or make-up artist, but I love all of these things and I’m happy to share with you all. All products used have been purchased by me.