Advent Calendar // Christmas 2014

Every year we basically use our Advent Calendar as our Christmas Bucket List, each day is different activity we wish to do over the Holiday Season. Some are simple like getting Starbucks hot chocolate or driving around to see christmas lights while others are more time involved like sledding in Park City.

Inspired by Oh Happy Days simply advent calendar I created this with treat bags, washi tape, string, and number tags from Ikea. I used watercolor paper to write down all of our Christmas Bucket List activities and then sealed each bag shut with more washi tape. It probably took me about 30 minutes to put together and then another 20 to get it all hung up.

Here are some activities we have awaiting for us this Christmas;

• Visit Temple Square to see the Lights. 
• Perform a random act of service. 
• Decorate a mini tree for Rivers room. 
• Write a gratitude letter to Jesus.
• Make Grandmas Sugar Cookies
• Craft a Christmas star and talk about first star. 
• Meet Dad downtown for a fancy dinner. 

Mini Donuts// A last minute act of gratitude

 Here is a last minute treat to show your gratitude for a friend, loved one, or neighbor. A small act of service before the Thanksgiving holiday is officially over. And what could be better than saying thanks with mini donuts? Nothing. Nothing is better than mini donuts. Unless of course you I bought the container and bags at Zurchers and I have a free download for the little tags. These would even make a great little favor if you're hosting thanksgiving, or a sweet treat for the hostess who's home you're attending.

Free Download for tags here. 

Recipe from Baker Bettie 
For the donuts

• 5 TBSP unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 egg
• ½ cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tsp baking powder
• pinch salt
• 1½ cups all-purpose flour

for the topping

• ¼ cup butter, melted
• ¼ cup sugar
• ½ tsp cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Lightly oil mini donut pan and set aside (alternatively you can use mini muffin pans)
2. In a medium bowl with a hand mixer or in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Add the egg, milk, and vanilla and mix until just combined (mixture will look curdled).
3. Add in the baking powder and the salt and mix until just incorporated. Mix in the flour just until combined. You don't want to overmix this batter.
4. If using mini donut pan, transfer mixture into a piping bag fitted with a large round tip or into a ziplock baggie with the tip cut off. Pipe into the pan only filling ½ of the way fill. If using the mini muffin pan, fill each well ½ full
5. Bake at 325ºF for 8-10 minutes. *If using a mini donut maker, bake for 4-5 minutes. Allow to cool just slightly before dipping in topping.
6. Melt the butter for the topping and combine the cinnamon and sugar. Dip each donut lightly in butter then roll in cinnamon and sugar.

Building a Wardrobe // Part I

For over a year I have been fascinated with the idea of building a wardrobe and setting a specific style for myself. I realized that even though I had a lot of clothes none of them really worked with each other, every item was it's own thing and there were multiple different styles living in my closet.

When I went out to shop I had a hard time knowing what to buy. But with a wardrobe wouldn't I already know what my closet was lacking? Items coming into my closet would fulfill a need and they would work with the group. Every outfit would essentially have the same vibe, the same feel.

To some this may sound boring but to me it's fascinating, to me it's what a style should be.

I want my style to be more defined I want to really know my style, what are the key words and phrases that define my style. What are the colors and energy of my style. How nice would it would to have a closet filled with beautiful thought out pieces instead of a crammed closet full of pieces you don't really want and none of them really go together.

I don't really have answers as to how to go about all this. This isn't a post of step by step guidelines but more just starting the discussion of it. I think it would be more beneficial to go through it together as I am learning for myself instead of coming at you with a ton of information and discoveries.

I know this is not a project I will finish over the course of a few months, rather I feel like it will take me years. I need the time to do trial and errors on my style, I need time to purge the old and buy the new. To start over if it goes bad...

A few months back I took the first step by purging my closet so next week I will be sharing what I did and how it went. I can't wait to really start this and to share it with you all.

Family Pictures 2014

As usually I tried really hard to narrow it down to just a few shots because I really could have posted them all. This shoot was put together super last minute we threw together outfits we already had and I was literally painting over my purple nails as we pulled up to the park. But oh my you would never have never known that be looking at these pictures!

Guys Stephanie is a dream to work with!! We did a mini session at Salt Lakes Liberty Park and I cannot believe how many good shots she got in such a short amount of time. She really knows her stuff especially with the posing! She wastes no time messing around and throws you right into making you look your best. Her energy is addictive and her passion for what she does spills out of her! If you haven't called this girl you need to!!

Go Check out her site! http://stephaniehitchins.squarespace.com

3 Easy Tricks for Flawless Lipstick

Since my last video was all about my favorite drugstore lipsticks I thought I would share my simple tips for applying lipstick. I also have a bonus video coming later for those of you with bigger lips and feel weird about putting so much color on your face, also a good tip for making a glossy lipstick look matte. Thanks for watching and all the support so far it really means a lot!

5 Drugstore Lipsticks for Fall

We've all been there! Spending hours in the Target beauty section trying to sneak on a coat or two of a lipstick we are hoping will look good, peeling back the stickers and attempting to remove the plastic wrapping that screams DON'T TRY ME ON! Then theres always the other girl the one who keeps getting in your way trying to do the same kind of trickery making the both of you look very obvious! Ughh!

Needless to say buying drugstore makeup can be overwhelming and extremely frustrating! With so many different brands to choose from and so many different types of lipstick with in one brand I usually leave Target with my head spinning and with a product I have no idea if I'm going to love!

So I've narrowed it down for you, I always find it helpful to see what others have bought and liked taking the guessing out of it. After a few years of playing the drugstore game I have found 5 different shades of lipstick for Fall. The best part is half of these shades I wear in the summer as well! I hope this helps make your drugstore lipstick hunt a little easier!

Get Ready With Me // Date Night

A couple weeks ago we had a random date night set up for a Tuesday night, it was a total surprise to me I didn't know where we were going until that morning. I thought it would be fun to take you guys along with me through getting ready and the date. We don't get to go out a lot just the two of us so when we do we like to switch it up and try new things especially places that aren't so baby friendly and Bodega, the restaurant we went to, was the perfect place for just that. 

I posted about our date night on instagram the next morning and if you follow me there you know a little bit about the resturant we went to already. When you walk into Bodega it looks just like a regular restaurant. Small bar in the corner a few tables and chairs, street tacos and small appetizers to eat. What you don't realize is that there is a door behind the bar that takes you downstairs into a full blown restaurant. I don't want to ruin it for anyone in case you haven't gone because it's such a neat experience not knowing what to expect and seeing it for the first time.

The restaurant downstairs is actually called "The Rest" and was designed after the speakeasies from back in the day and guys it does not disappoint, the energy is awesome and you feel like apart of this secret club and the food is amazing as well.

In order to eat at "The Rest" you have to make a reservation in advance I took a small amount of footage in the "libary" and bathroom but other than that I left it a big secret because it's so much more fun that way! Enjoy the video! If you end up going please come back and let me know what you thought! 

Lush Haul

 I discovered Lush shortly after getting pregnant and their bath bombs became my biggest pregnancy indulgence and post pregnancy life safer! After a long exhausting day of being a mama a Lush Bath Bomb is my favorite way to relax and unwind. I took a trip to Lush last month to check out their Holiday limited edition items and walked out with a few more things than I bargained for.

Here is a little bit more detail on the items I got it for this Haul:

1. So White Bath Bomb:
Getting right to it I would not buy this bomb again. If you're going to try only a few holiday bombs this year this would not be the one. While it was relaxing and peaceful and the smell was lovely I didn't feel like the smell was as strong as I would have hoped. Since I hadn't actually used the bath bomb when I filmed this video I didn't realize that the center was pink and there is a cream and tartar in the bomb giving your bath a little bit of bubbles. So that was a nice surprise.If you've used it let me know what you thought a lot of people love it and I guess it's a fan favorite so maybe it was just me.

2. Breath of Fresh Air:
I've been using this for awhile and I am in love, it's so refreshing to spritz yourself with a "breath of fresh air" right after you've cleansed your face in the morning or right before bed. I mostly bought this to assist the the moisturizer but I would suggest buying it on it's own if you wanted. Lush suggest putting in the fridge for an even fresher feel or using it while flying or at work.

3. Cleansers:
Lush is awesome with their samples, I walked out with 3 large samples of some of their cleansers.
Angels on bareskin is by far my favorite I feel like it cleanses my skin while still leaving it mosturized. Let the good times roll was too oily feeling for me but was a great exfoliator and I wasen't the biggest fan of Buche De Noel I feel like they wanted a special holiday cleanser so they put this out but it's nothing fancy and not worth the trouble, I feel like angels on bareskin is very similar and you would be much happier with that.

 4. Celestial moisturizer:
I originally bought this because I felt like my old moisturizer was making my skin break and I needed something new with less chemicals. For those main reasons this moisturizer is doing a great job I feel like it's healing my skin and I love that it's a natural product. I feel like this is a totally personal preference because there isn't anything particularly "bad" about this moisturizer I just don't love it. The great thing about Lush is that if you don't like something you can return it no matter how you've used.

So there you have it my first YouTube haul and first lush haul! Let me know if there is a holiday item you are wanting to try I am planning on doing another Lush Haul closer to Christmas all about their holiday items! 

Welcome Back

Hello! Welcome back to A Fancy Day! I’ve swept off the cobwebs, got a new look and am excited to finally be sharing with you what I’ve been working on the past couple months.

As I've expressed before I had a really hard time after my baby boy was born. It felt like a part of me was gone and I didn’t know where it was or if I wanted it back. Almost 18 months after having my baby I feel like I can look back and see that it was all just postpartum hormones and a little depression blocking my way.

I had to make an over night transition from being a student and holding a job to being a full time stay at home mom. While some do this with such grace and ease it was a real struggle for me. It was hard to find a balance between being  myself and being a new mom.

One day I feel like I woke up from the fog and doing my hair and makeup became fun again. I knew I was starting to feel like myself because I was taking the time to get ready. But it was different than before, I needed quick and easy ways to wear  my makeup, and I needed a “mom wardrobe” but all of this still needed to feel like Courtney. Through one of the hardest transitions of my life, I've learned that life is lived in the small day to day moments that add up to the big moments that shape our lives.

Here I am... a year and half later,  I'm feeling inspired to continue on with the blog. I thought about shutting it down because I didn't feel like this blog represented who I was. A Fancy Day has always been close to my heart and just because I've changed and different things are demanded of me doesn't mean I still can't continue being me.

So I'm blogging again along with a new YouTube channel, where I will share basic beauty videos that anyone can benefit from not just moms. I've allowed myself more creative freedom with the blog and I am so excited about the new things I have planned. Go check out the new YouTube channel and I will see you back on Wednesday!