That first time I actually went in.

I'm not a makeup kinda gal. I don't know how to put on eyeliner. I don't know how to pick a good shade of red lipstick-not that I would wear it if I did. I don't curl my eyelashes or fill in my brows. I have maybe four solid ways of fixing my hair. I've just never been that girl. I did decide, on a whim last weekend, to just go for it. 

Sephora has always been one of those stores for me. The kind of stores where you linger in the doorway or you do nothing but take one lap around the outside aisle of the store and then you leave, head down, hoping nobody noticed you. Because, oh my goodness, overwhelming is an understatement! I had quite the proverbial come to Jesus meeting that day. You see, 31 was hovering in the shadows. I decided to just pull it in to the light and pull up my big girl panties. I was going into Sephora and I was going to seek out help and a makeover. 

The people? They were nice! These people with this pretty faces who looked straight out of a magazine were friendly and didn't look at me like I had three heads. I was assigned to a Sephora magician named Kristin. I told her my woes and my "I hate make-up but I don't want to hate it and I've never walked to the center of this store" story. She was kind. She talked me through the process and explained as she went. She let me do some of my face and showed me every step of the process. I told her up front I didn't want to look like a I took a frosting tool and caked makeup on my face. I also told her I didn't want my face to take more than five minutes. She was good with that on one condition; that my "date night" look was allowed to take at least fifteen. I was okay with that. 

Of course, I took before and after. I think it's hilarious that the after picture just screams deer in headlights, but that is kind of how I felt because I had no idea who this person was staring back at me. 

Before. 

Getting the gunk off. This was equally cool and gross.

Super clean face!

Day look. Basic is my favorite. 

Date night prep. 

Deer in headlights. Date night look. 

The magic.

So, I am no longer scared of Sephora. I'm actually likely to shop there more often. The people I came in contact with were friendly and knowledgable. I came away with the BB cream by Boscia and the concealer by NARS. I did end up with two lip pencils by NARS for my birthday, so that was pretty awesome too! 

My wish list includes the Peter Thomas Roth exfoliant which price wise wasn't terrible and this awesome face cream by Algenist which was super pricey. 

If you're like me and "beauty stores" scare the britches off of you I suggest just going for it. Go for it with a friend and tag team. The staff in those stores are there to actually help you, contrary to what most people think. I just went in on a whim and came out a happy girl. Step out of your make-up, or lack thereof, rut and just go for it! 

*this post is my opinion. I have not been compensated in anyway. I just wanted to share a good experience.*

Upside down.

Isn't it funny how real the struggle is? How one minute you feel on top of the world and then the next minute you feel completely upside down? Depression is one of those things that people don't like to talk about. Or when they talk about it they down play it. Depression is a struggle that is real. For some it is only a moment in time. For others it's a lifelong companion. My relationship falls in the latter category. I have my good days and bad. Sometimes my life feels upside down for no reason at all. Not talking about it isn't going to help. Pretending like I'm awesome all the time isn't going to help. It's not going to help me and it's not going to help you. Depression gets worse when we let the silence of it become deafening. So, let's talk about it. Open the lines of communication. Don't suffer in silence. Reach out. 

One thing I've been doing for myself lately is yoga. I'm able to focus my mind on things that are true, like Gospel true. I'm able to focus on Bible verses that my heart needs to hear and my head needs to put on repeat.  I'm able to focus at how strong my body is and is becoming. I'm able to calm my mind. I'm able to test my physical limits. I'm able to belly breathe and feel it to my toes. I'm able to pause in positions that make my body feel good and breathe deeper into positions that cause me some difficulty. Yoga is slowly becoming a physical metaphor for my life and the roller coaster that is depression. Good days and bad. I'm blessed and thankful and prayerful that even on those bad days I don't forget it.