Speed Up Your Morning Routine: Getting Dressed

Speed Up Your Morning Routine: Getting Dressed 

• Organize your closet. Save time by knowing where everything is. Separate items by type (dresses,  pants, jackets, etc) and color so if you have an idea in your head you can quickly scan your closet to find the pieces to put it together.
• Keep accessories readily accessible. Organize your accessories and keep them close to where you get dressed. I used to store my jewelry in a second bedroom that  was close to my front door, BUT I hardly ever had to go into the room (other than for the jewelry) so it was easy for me to walk right past the room and forget my earrings. To fix this, I added a hanging jewelry organizer to my Christmas List last year.  Here's one that's similar to mine (link). Now I have most of my favorite jewelry items in my organizer and keep it hanging up in my closet so I can quickly make my selection in the morning.
• Plan ahead.  Prepare outfits weekly or the night before. This gives you time to iron, remove lint, and play dress up to come up with the perfect outfit when you are not in a rush!

Missed any tips in the Speed Up Your Morning Routine series? Click here to see the rest of the series. 

Act Like A Ladi...Dress Like A Diva: Light Bright

For the past few weeks the weather has been crazy. Fluctuating from snow days, to 70 degree weather, to rainy days, I've been teased with the idea of Spring weather (and Spring clothing!) only to have to bundle up the very next day.  This past week it has been sunny, but a little windy, so I chose to layer a long-sleeved blouse with a sweater to keep warm, but channeled Spring with bright, bold colors: 

Speed Up Your Morning Routine: Hair

Speed Up Your Morning Routine: Hair

I believe that in order to have great looking hair requiring minimal morning styling time,  you need to make sure you have a solid night-time routine.  Here are some tips on how to prep a number of common hairstyles at night and shorten your A.M. styling time:

• When preparing your hair for braid or twist-outs, be sure to braid/twist your hair in the direction you want it to lay, and place your part where you plan for it to be. In the morning, all you have to do is take the braids/twists apart  and your style is set.  If you take a look at this post, you can see how I positioned my twists for a twist-out that framed my face and maintained the same side part from the night before in my final style.   
• To maintain straight hair, be sure to wrap your hair, or set it on rollers as shown here.  Be sure to cover with a satin or silk scarf/bonnet!
• If wearing buns or twists (like this protective style here) style your hair at night and cover with a bonnet or scarf and all you have to do in the morning is to smooth any stray hairs.
• If wearing wet styles like a wash-n-go, forego the blowdryer and let your hair airdry (weather permitting) on the way to work with the window down, or wrap your hair in a scarf during the morning commute to soak up excess water.
• To salvage a 2nd or 3rd day style, pineapple your hair at night (placing your hair in loose buns or ponytails at the top of your head) to maintain the look while you sleep and minimize the styling required in the A.M.

Missed any tips in the Speed Up Your Morning Routine series? Click here to see the rest of the series. 

2012 Goals: February Update

Develop healthier eating habits 

I tracked calories everyday this month using the My Fitness Pal app on my iPhone.  My daily calorie limit was 1320 net calories (I got extra calories on the days I exercised). I had a  few missteps with this goal...on Valentine's Day I overindulged on sweets, I ordered a dessert with dinner and had one too many of those Valentine's Day chocolates. Also, my parents took my fiance out to dinner and I had a few too many boneless chicken wings and went over my calorie count, but I tried to compensate for that by eating under 1300 calories the day before and the day after. I made a habit of buying fruit and eating it at least every other day. 

Limit restaurant meals to 4x/month or less 
I went out to a restaurant once every weekend this month (except on the week of Valentine's Day when I went out during the week), but  I still tried to research healthy menu items beforehand to make sure I didn't go over my calorie limit.

Work out 3x/wk

I did a total of 16 workouts in 29 days!  I'm really proud of myself, because usually I quit after about 2-3 weeks lol. I had a couple that were only 20-25min sessions, but for the most part I tried to 30 to 45 min workouts.

Develop my health/wellness “glam squad” (family dr, dentist, poss dermatologist and masseuse)
Haven't made any progress with this one.

Retain hair growth (4+ inches).

I stuck with protective styles this month, and maybe 1 day a week I wore my hair out in a twist-out. I tried a wash-n-go puff once and let me tell ya, it will be a looong time before I do another one.  I had forgotten how tangled my hair could get after a wash-n-go...I'm sticking with the protective styles and twist-outs for now.

Limit use of pain medicine to 4x/mo

I did take an Advil only 2 times this month for cramps. 

My New Addiction...Pinterest

Facebook and Twitter are cool, but I have officially fallen in love with Pinterest. I'm not too good at crafting witty, interesting 140-character or less statements, or pouring out my soul in a status update, but I CAN spend hours searching online for things I like and posting them for the world to see.  For me it feels a lot like online shopping, but instead of hitting "Checkout," I'm selecting "Pin It" button.  Through Pinterest, I have found some of the most amazing ideas like this Apple Pie Baked inside the actual apple...

...and things that are too cute for words, like this Hipster Kitty:

Here is a peek at some of my pin boards:

Do you use Pinterest? Follow Me @ Pinterest.com/Carmesha