Top 10 Summer Must Haves- Plus 1!!

I noticed a tag going around the YouTube beauty community: Top 10 Summer Must Haves! So I decided to put mine in a blog.. hopefully this will help you stay cool & looking good this summer! *These are in no particular order*

1. Face Sprays: when the heat gets to be overbearing reach for one of these to spritz on your face & instantly you're refreshed! They're also cooling & hydrating!!

2. Tinted moisturizer: this is a great way to cover blemishes & even out skin without having to wear foundation. It's great for summer!

3. Summer dresses: I love these! You can dress them up with heels & chic accessories or go casual with flip flops & a hat. If you see me I'll probably be wearing a summer dress :o)

4. Cream blushes: this summer is all about having a clean & fresh face. Cream blushes are great for that pop of color on your cheeks & doesn't make your face feel heavy with a ton of makeup.

5. Fragrances: I love smell goods & the summertime is the right time to pull out your sheer spray mists or even your eau de toilette's. Enjoy fun, flirty & fruity scents!

6. Nail polishes: reach for your favorite color (yellow, coral & blue are in this summer) & get to paintin' them fingers n tootsies!!

7. Moisturizers w/SPF: okay so we all know that protecting our skin from the sun's harmful UV rays is muy importanté, right? Nuff said ;o)

8. Body washes: when it's hot I don't like taking too much time to get ready. So I tend to grab for body washes that have moisturizers & shimmers in them. It leaves my skin soft to touch & gives it a nice subtle glow.. perfect for summer!!

9. Sunglasses: They're cool to wear & they protect your eyes from getting cataracts.

10. WATER: It keeps you hydrated, is good for your skin, hair, nails & it also flushes toxins out of your body. Water is a must have!!!

Plus 1- Deep conditioner for hair: with this heat & humidity hair can be dry, brittle & prone to split ends, which means protecting our hair is imperative. Using a deep, moisturizing conditioner can help hair stay healthy & manageable this summer.

Well there you have it... until next time stay beautiful!!

~Jeanine Alex

I call it... SweetLove

I always wanted to be a stylist but I've only had limited opportunities with it. So I found out about & visited Polyvore.com... I love it!!! LOL I immediately came up with an outfit idea & well here it is...


I'm a sucka for love! I imagined someone young & flirty wearing this in L.A. or NYC to lunch with the girls or out on a date with someone she's really into. It may be a little matchy-matchy, but fun nontheless!

Expect to see more of these! hehe

~Jeanine Alex

Fashion Tips: Know Your Shape

Lately I’ve been seeing many women wearing clothes that are totally unflattering. Why is that? It’s because they don’t know their shape! You can’t be a fashionista if you don’t know what looks good on you & what doesn’t. So I’ve decided to provide some help with this common issue. I found some really great information at www.igigi.com. I truly hope that this will put an end to unflattering styles.. Check it out!

Triangle
What's the secret behind your amazing goddess-inspired frame? Strutting your well-defined waistline!
Your face, shoulders, arms, bust, and ribcage are relatively smaller in proportion when compared to your shapely bottom half. Often, your derriere is full and round but there are some instances when it can be flat. Your greatest asset is your waistline and it is accented from your pronounced hips and thighs. Your lower legs could be a concern because they can appear to be proportionately heavier compared to your upper half.

Inverted Triangle
You are truly a beautiful and a one-of-a-kind shape! Your body figure starts broader on top and narrows as it gets down to your feet. This is great to know because you can clearly see what styles work best for you. Starting from top to bottom, you consider yourself to be top-heavy with broad shoulders, wide upper back, and full breasts. These features can be quite an asset and most clothing looks great on you. To achieve a perfectly balanced silhouette your proportionally narrow hips can be the focal point of attraction. You can really have fun with the colors and shapes of the bottoms. From brightly colored to the adventurously cut the sky is the limit.

Diamond
You have a fabulous frame! Your face, neck, and bust are proportionate to each other and your balanced thighs, shapely legs, and amazing arms accent your voluptuous assets. The greatest concern you have is your midsection and the challenges you face are extra weight around the mid-section area, which sometimes include the "love handles". Often, this means you don't have a defined waistline. Another challenge is finding a balance between your broad hips and generous thighs while enhancing the flatness of your bottom and elongating your slender lower legs.

Oval
You are voluptuous and ample! You have an adorable face with cheeks that are full and squeezable. The length of your neck appears short but you have beautiful ample breasts. Your shoulders could be prominent or average-sized, and they have a tendency to be slightly sloped. Your arms could look proportionate when compared to your upper torso. So, it balances out nicely. Some dressing challenges you may face are your front midsection "tummy" and your undefined waistline. However, your greatest asset is the bottom portion of your body. You have hips that look narrower relative to your entire body, thighs that are balanced, and legs that are amazingly shapely.

Rectangle
You have something all other body shapes don't have, an envious overall proportion! You have great hips, balanced thighs, shapely legs, amazing arms, and a body frame that's perfectly in line with all the body parts. A challenge you may encounter is creating curves with your feminine shape. Your neck is short with fullness at the nape, your bust size is moderate in comparison to your whole body and, because your rib cage is more pronounced, forming a defined waistline may prove to be more difficult feat for you. Also, your derriere is pretty average (and that's alright!) so your body proportions are paralleled nicely with your moderate thighs and slender legs.

Figure Eight
Outshining your hourglass shaped sister? Your body silhouette is amazingly curvaceous and not only do you share similar qualities as the hourglass, you also have the diamond, triangle, rectangle, oval, and inverted triangle infused into your unique shape. Your shoulders line up nicely with your overall silhouette and your voluptuous cleavage is one of your great assets. The definition in your waist is visible; however, you may have issues with your "love handles" and front bulge of your tummy area. Like the oval shape, the fullness is evenly distributed throughout your body. Also, the upper parts of your arms tend to be fuller while the lower parts of your arms are slender. Overall, you have great proportion to your body!

Hourglass
Your voluminous curves are so striking that others wished they could have your shape! Like your triangle counterpart, your waistline is your greatest asset. It is clearly defined, which helps tremendously because clothes naturally look good on you. Some problems that you may come across are fullness on your upper arms and tummy area. But because you have a harmonious silhouette, your shoulders and bust come in line nicely with the shape of your hips and buttocks. With your femininely defined waist, shapely thighs, and proportionately slender legs, you'll definitely stir up the right attention.

Okay so now that you know your shape, get to shopping!! *smile*

Next up… Fashion Tips: Essential pieces every girl should have in her closet.

~Jeanine Alex

I know, I know...

I haven't been a good blogger but I've been busy! Summer is officially here and I couldn't be happier :oD I have so much to look forward to but don't worry I promise to include you!! As I mentioned in an earlier blog I have some fashion & skin care tips that I'm going to share and of course my weight loss journey. So please forgive me but stay tuned... it's going to be fun!!

~Jeanine Alex

"F.ocus A.nd T.ry"

As I was watching videos on YouTube I came across one that was an eye opener. Reason being...I haven't worked out in 3 days and found every excuse not to, but after watching this video it encouraged me to Focus And Try. I DO NOT want to stay where I am physically so I must continue the fight to lose weight and get healthy. I am going to workout...but please watch this video in its entirety and try not to take offense to it.

"APB"


~Jeanine Alex

Weight Loss Journey: Opinions & Judgements

Okay so it's been a week almost since my last post and I am in good spirits about my WLJ! I have been walking everyday and doing my absolute best to eat healthier. Although my body is sore I keep persevering. I am excited about my future and I know I will get to my goal.

I wanted to address my introduction. I let my mom read what I had posted and her concern was that people might look down on me due to my weight. She got me thinking only because I know that obesity is something that many people don't like to deal with. In fact you have those who judge people simply because they're overweight. However, no matter what others may think or even say about me this is my reality and I have to live with it. That is why I am doing something about it now. I don't like the reality that I am overweight. I don't like the fact that I can't wear the clothes I'd like to (oh yea I'm not one of those big girls who wears items that they really shouldn't...even though it may be in my size.). I don't like the fact that the simplest exercises are so challenging for me. I don't like the fact that I've allowed myself to be over 300 pounds. I don't like the fact that I've put my health in danger. Even though I may not like all of these things I WILL NOT beat myself up because of these things. I WILL however love myself all the way through this journey.

So you see I don't need to worry about other peoples opinions of me because I have my own. I am not going to hide the fact that I am overweight and considered obese. It is an issue that I along with other people who are overweight need to address, and we need not do it later. I want to shine light on this matter so that others can be inspired to 1) lose weight and get healthy and 2) not allow being overweight/obesity to be their issue anymore.

Judge me if you want to but let me say this, me being overweight is a flaw that you can obviously see. What is the 1 flaw that cannot be seen that you need to be paying attention to?

Lastly I'll leave you with this scripture:
"Be honest in your judgment and do not decide at a glance (superficially and by appearances); but judge fairly and righteously." John 7:24 Amplified Bible

~Jeanine Alex

Weight Loss Journey Introduction

This blog will probably be the hardest one to post. Why? Because I am going to be 100% honest! Alright so let's get it started (uh huh...lol). Oh & it may not be in the proper form either, but just go with it.

I am OVERWEIGHT!!! I'm not talking 20 or even 50 pounds overweight, but more like *pause*.......*even longer pause* I am 145 pounds overweight!!! Oh Goodness I'll never get a man now! hahaha

Seriously, if I lose 145 pounds I'll be 200 pounds (you do the math). Now some of you may be saying, "d*mn she fat as hell!" You're right, which is why I need to lose this weight. I am not one to make many excuses for my downfalls because in my opinion, an excuse is just a fancy way of lying.

I said last year I wanted to lose 100 pounds by my 30th birthday, and for a while there I was on the right path. I was losing weight, my mom was even able to see a difference. I mean I was doing so well that I was almost out of the 300s, which is now my ultimate goal for this year. ugh! Then I got off (not fell off) the bandwagon and started gaining weight...again.

I have to admit, I feel bad for allowing myself to get to this point. Like I sit and ask myself, 'what brought me to this?' I have no clear answer though. I will say that like many overweight people, I am an emotional eater. I eat when I'm sad, mad, happy, etc. I also have developed the 'I don't care' eating habit and will go to town, then feel awful afterwards. Even when I'm bored and not so much hungry I find myself eating, and when I do I often ask myself again, 'why am I eating this?' So as you can see I am aware of some of my issues

I've been lucky that I haven't had high blood pressure or diabetes, that is until now. I recently had a physical and my blood pressure reading was high :o/ I also have been experiencing some weird skin conditions, and believe they precede diabetes. Umm yea... I am now more scared than I was before. So instead of just twirling my thumbs I AM going to once and for all do something about my weight. If I don't do this now then I might as well consider myself a dead woman walking.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I WILL not let obesity, hypertension, diabetes or any other related issue take me out of here. I have purpose and my destiny has not been attained yet. So here's to a better me and to my future, which is shining ever so bright!!!

"You must begin to think of yourself as becoming the person you want to be." ~David Viscott

Since this is my introduction I decided to include my stats:
Height: 5' 7"
Weight- 5/25/10: 345 (oh my goodness, oh my goodness)

~Jeanine Alex