Neck Candy

Ultimate hair flip. 

Outfit details: Necklace-Kute N' Klever  c/o // Shoes-Target Clearance (Similar online...love these...I think I need them in black) // Bag-Coach (Love this with a red detail or this one)// Pants-H&M // Sunglasses-Ray Ban // Chambray-Target // Lip Color-Mac Rebel // Watch-Fossil

Something that Kelsey and I have truly built Polished around, is the idea that not every outfit has to be rich looking, or dressed up, or fancy, or expensive, or PERFECT. We choose things we love, and we Polish them with things we love even more. In reality, an outfit is an outward expression of a personality, of a mood, of a feeling. So if you want to pair a sparkling necklace with a chambray shirt and jeans, then you go girllll! What I really love about clothing and accessories is that there really are no rules. I love the part in Grease when they say "rules are, there ain't no rules."Clearly, the writers of Grease were also talking about style and fashion! :)

Anyhow (I couldn't resist the Grease tangent), the "not a rule" that I am loving breaking lately is mixing a casual outfit with total, in your face, blinged out, look at me, hi I'm here, statement jewelry. I wasn't going to get dressed up to visit the National Harbor with my sister, but in typical Courtney fashion (pun totally intended), I had to add a little somethin' somethin'. 

THIS NECKLACE. Talk about an in your face, blinged out, look at me, hi I'm here, piece of jewelry! Kute N' Klever has really outdone themselves here. This piece has so many positive qualities. It's large, great quality, multi-colored, sparkly, and can be worn so many different ways. In this case, my very casual outfit got the perfect finishing touch.

Or, as I put it, my outfit is wearing a tiara. 

Since moving to Maryland, the National Harbor waterfront has become my favorite place to be!

I was so thankful to share this day with my sister. So much love here.

XOXO-Courtney

For more style and trend posts, check us out on Instagram at @Courtney_m_b & @KelseyMKipp

<3

Like sister, like sister.

How about her studded sweater with a jean vest...so cute!

Is Your Nail Polish Working Hard Enough?

Mine is doing two jobs! While taking my weekly stroll through Target (don't even act like you don't do this, too, Target is the best, and we all know it), I was wandering around the nail polish looking for a Bordeaux red color. This seems to be my favorite beauty color trend of the winter, so of course I needed to find the perfect nail polish. This tiny little bottle with the cute little cap caught my eye a (I am drawn to unique packaging). Wouldn't you know, the color is called Bordeaux. FATE. Wouldn't you also know that Target had a Cartwheel coupon for this brand of nail polish? DOUBLE FATE. 

It gets better. While reading InStyle, I discovered that Revlon's Parfumerie nail polishes are scented. Yes, scented. So, this adorable, little, perfectly colored nail polish ALSO smells like flowers! This is why I love beauty products. 

Side note, did any of you see American Hustle? My girl Jennifer Lawrence's character went on and on about the smell of her nail polish. I mean, her character was a tad...well...we will say eccentric, but you get the point. She was onto something, and so was Revlon.

I love this product! It looks great on, dries quickly and it really does smell lovely. It also comes at a great price. I am not one to spend much money on nail polish. I truly get frustrated applying it and even more frustrated once I notice a chip (which is usually in the form of a smudge within the first five seconds after I put it on). This incites a whole other level of feelings, that I am sure you have all felt before. Because of my terrible patience and overall nail polish application skills, I usually have my nails done by someone with way more patience and skills. But hey, times get tough sometimes, and nails are always my first luxury to get cut. Now that I found this new polish/perfume, maybe I won't even need a nail salon (for a little while, at least).

How cute is the packaging?

Fits right in with this amazing artwork in The Style Strategy!

Exactly why I love fashion, I mean scented nail polish... outrageous and amazing.

I love how this color compliments my lipstick, also called Bordeaux, by Rimmel.

Like I said, applying nail polish is a headache for some people, including myself. I have collected a few tips from my friends over the years. I hope they help you like they do me!

-Buff nails before applying, a smooth surface looks nicer under the polish.

-If you don't have a base coat, just use a clear polish. Don't skip this step, it makes the finished look smoother and more Polished.

-Try not to apply more than two coats of color, it smudges easier and takes 12284920 years to dry, and who has that kind of time?

-Use a top coat...ALWAYS.

-Dont touch anything for 10 minutes. Even if you think your nails are dry, they aren't. Unless you want to feel a tidal wave of frustration for smudging your nails because you couldn't wait to touch something, just sit still.

-Use a Q-tip or a paintbrush to clean edges once nails are dry.

Nail Polish-Revlon // Lipstick-Rimmel // Ring-The Limited (Similar here) // Watch-The Limited (Similar here)  // Crystal Bracelet-J Crew Factory // Cuff-Straw market in the Bahamas (Similar here)

Thank you for reading, my Polished ladies (and gentlemen)! 

What nail tips do you have up your sleeves? Please share in the comments!

-Courtney

For more product reviews and tips, check out our Instagram pages, Courtney_m_b & Kelseymkipp