Your Questions Answered (Part 1)

Happy Easter Week, everyone! We are all still a little on the sick side over here, our colds are totally overstaying their welcome.

(Thanks for the cute H&M dress, Uncle Zach!)

I wanted to take the time (while working from my sick-couch-bed watching it SNOW) to answer some questions that I have gotten via email or comments.

What do I do for a living?
I work from home as a marketing strategist for a digital marketing agency based out of FL. When we lived there, I worked in the office every day, but when we relocated to GA, I ended up keeping my same job/position but work remotely. I travel once a month or every other month for a few days to the office or to client meetings. It was such a blessing once Harper came along, it is amazing getting to be home with her during the day, but as you can imagine, it's also a complete shitshow half the time. I've gotten a lot of emails about tips for working from home with your kids, my best advice would be to wake up extra early, don't even count how many cups of coffee you end up drinking & stay as organized as possible. (This is also the reason that I am years behind on emails, so if you have sent me one & I haven't replied, PLEASE FORGIVE ME.)

Where do I buy most of Harper's headbands & how do I organize them?
 I buy most of Harper's headbands & bows on Etsy. I usually seek shops that have something similar to what I am looking for & then request for them to make custom items for me to match whatever outfit I have in mind. Other times I just come across ones that are already awesome & then I have to hunt for an outfit to match :) Up until recently her headbands were scattered all over the house (and the diaper bag) but I have finally organized them into these awesome glass canisters! Much easier to find what I'm looking for & oh, so cute.

Keep an eye out on Instagram (@jlgarvin) for a seriously awesome headband giveaway that is in the works.

What is my everyday style & skincare/makeup routine?
Well, this is embarrassing. I work from home, which means on a normal day it consists of a sweatshirt, leggings & chapstick. But in the event that we will venture out in public, that doesn't always fly.

Shopping for myself really breaks down to the cost-per-use. Don't laugh, it's totally the way to go. While I would occasionally splurge on an expensive dress or pair of jeans (and by occasionally, I mean once a year, if that) I am much more likely splurge(ish) on comfy clothes. I live in Victoria's Secret sweatshirts, Target long & lean tanks and my favorite Pure Body crews. This is me on a normal weekday, rocking my old cotton capri's from a hundred years ago.

Victoria's Secret Sweatshirts are a little pricey, they are so soft & fit so well! I wear them almost every day, therefore the cost per use is minimal! 

Also, you'll never be the same after you rock a pair of Pure Body dance pants. I originally bought them to wear home from the hospital after having Harper. I felt them (and their forgiving waist band) in the store & was in love. I recommend them to EVERYONE. Whenever my husband mentions a zombie apocalypse, I just respond with "well I hope I'm at least wearing dance pants." (shout out to my Walking Dead fans!). I save all the fun clothes for the weekends, maxi skirts & colorful v-necks are my fav! And of course, warmer weather means lots of dresses! :)

Makeup & skincare. I've really struggled to find the perfect skincare regimen, although I might almost be there with my recent purchases of some awesome Philosophy products. I realized one day that every.single.product that I've ever bought from Philosophy has blown my mind & always ends up being my favorite. I've recently bought some of the skincare products (moisturizer, cleanser, etc.) so we'll see how they stack up! :)

My go-to makeup item is easily the Philosophy Supernatural Airbrush (in bronze). If I could only have one thing (other than chapstick) I would pick this. I was introduced to it probably 8 years ago & have never looked back. It's a little pricey, but lasts 3-5 months. I can honestly say that almost every single one of my friends that has seen/tried/heard me rave about mine, has bought it & fallen in love with it. I also use Benefit Porefessional Primer, Laura Mercier Concealer & Nars Bronzer in Casino. I use a random assortment of eyeshadows, blushes & highlighters on occasion. I love love love the eyeliner & mascara that I use, I've tried tons & am positive these are the best. I use L'Oreal Lineur Intense, Buxom Lash Mascara & L'Oreal Voluminous Mascara. I know makeup is totally one of those things where certain products work better for different skin types, but I will rarely try a new product unless I got a great recommendation from someone. (Happy to elaborate more on all of this in another post!)

What is the secret to drawing on my chalkboard & when will I do a tutorial?
I swear there really isn't a secret. I use dry crayola chalk & clean the board with a wet hand towel in between drawings. I have been drawing & taking art classes since I was little, but really it just takes lots of practice & patience. Sometimes I walk away from my board & come back the next day if I feel like it is getting sloppy or if I am struggling. 
 

I still plan to do a tutorial, but things are so crazy with work, Etsy & the kiddo that I just haven't had the time yet. But it's coming! :) Hopefully in the future I will also be able to offer custom prints, but that is still up in the air for the time being.

What are some of the workouts that I do?
If you remember, I hate hate double hate working out. I go for workouts that are QUICK & that I can do at home. I still do the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, but for the most part, I do Crossfit workouts. (You can find more about working out/losing baby weight in this post).
My go-to workout when I don't have much time & the weather is uncooperative, is what I call the Dirty Thirty.

 It's easy, but it sucks. I sometimes switch out squats for lunges or jump squats if I'm feeling ballsy. You'll be surprised how quick this goes & how much you'll feel it the next day! :) You can find some other quick Crossfit-inspired workouts here & here.

How do I make picture/product collages? 
I don't use a website to do this, although I think you can make styleboards similar on Polyvore. I search for items that I want & save the images of each item as .PNG files (to keep the background transparent) and then I arrange them & add text using Adobe Illustrator.

This covers a lot of the questions that I had, if you have anything additional, please ask in the comments section of this post & I will do part 2 this week! Hopefully everyone will be back up & running over here soon, we have big plans for Easter & hope to be healthy in time! :)