Grad Tips for my GRAD GIRLS!
Hello my loves! For today’s blog post I will be talking to all my grad girls!! If you’re like me and graduating in just a couple months, you may be beginning to get stressed out. It’s coming so soon! Congratulations to all of you who have made it this far and are on the way to the next beautiful chapter of their life!
This is an “All you need to know” for GRAD post!
First I’d like to point out that everyone is beyond beautiful and should not feel the NEED to do any of these things! But that being said it is YOUR special day and everyone want to feel as amazing as they can possibly be! This is no a list of must do’s just a list of everything that someone may want on their special day, so feel free to omit whatever doesn’t suit you personally.
Most schools (at least where I live) have their grads at the end of May or sometime through out June. So in the nice hot summer sun! Yuck!
So that being said, by this point most girls have their dress or have ordered it online and are waiting for it to arrive. Most dresses need alterations because we are all shapes very differently and we all what the dress to fit perfect! So if you haven’t gotten your dress yet that should be your first step before you think about anything else because with the dress comes finding the right shoes, purse or clutch, jewelry, etc.
The next thing many girls stress about as they are preparing for grad night is the hair and the make up.
Makeup: Personally I do not like having my makeup done by professionals, and many girls from last years grad party agreed, there were many “horror stories” in last years grad class of girls having to run home and fix their makeup due to the professional either not understanding what they wanted or that they went way over board and ended up making several girl like very drag queen-ish, yikes! Now I’m not saying all professionals are like this by all mean! But make sure you do a test round with them so you are not disappointed or stressed for timing on your big day because you have to go home and fix your makeup! I would suggest if you are good at your own makeup then do it yourself at home, buy a couple higher end face products if you can afford it, it will be very warm and you want your face to stay in just the way you would like it! (I would highly recommend the smashbox water primer and setting spray!) If you are not so blessed with makeup talent, ask a friend of yours or a family member, etc to do your makeup. (I find that many girls who are minimalistic lean towards doing this because it is safer than risking a professional going overboard because they do not know who you are personally).
Here is the link to the smashbox primer:
https://m.sephora.com/product/photo-finish-primer-water-mini-P422470?country_switch=ca&skuId=1689421&om_mmc=ppc-GG_606219295_28172598965_pla-78275600910_1689421_102193870205_9001504_m&country_switch=ca&lang=en&gclid=CjwKCAiAxJPVBRB4EiwAsCA4aVRpMnig_BdsHpDjGv9o6qR4uNkxhaeUxUE71FuLI1Cxc4sicp3S8hoCZG0QAvD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds
Hair: This is a big struggle for many girls, if you’re like me: you could care less about your hair day to day so you don’t have a ton of practice on making you’re hair look fancy. This is one of the only thing in this “all you need to know” post that I would highly recommend getting done at a salon!
Due to the fact that a professional will know exactly where to stick your bobby pin and hairspray to keep it in place all night, they will be able to see exactly what’s going on behind your head, etc. This will leave you feeling confident with your hair! That’s being said if your grad day is on a budget I would recommend getting someone you trust to do your hair or at least help out with it, it is very hard to make sure everything is perfect when you cannot see the back of your head!
The next couple are totally optional but I would highly recommend(:
Eyelashes: Personally, I would 100% recommend spending the little bit of extra money on getting a set of fake lashes! They are so so so easy when it comes grad day! Glue on lashes can begin to slide or pull off in the summer time heat which would cause me great stress wondering if my lashes are on properly!
Nails: This is very optional, but I am totally insecure about my nails. They don’t grow very nicely and are just not that pretty looking to be honest. So I prefer to get fake acrylic nails done when I am going to a fancy event rather than just paining them, I would also suggest a pedi because many girl opt for one toe shoes due to the fact that it is summer!!
Tan: This is a big issue for me, I am naturally very very pale! This drives me crazy when I look back in photos and all my friends are super tanned, and then well there is me. Many girls would like a tan of some sort for grad night, which is totally fine and acceptable! Some girls go for the tanning salon, some do spray tan, which are both totally fine. I on the other hand choose to go for a self tanner, I have two go to’s that work great. One is by .... and there is a seven day and a three day and the other one can be done with a tree hour express or a day or so before. I will leave the link below! I find that these self tanners don’t turn my skin orange at all like some spray tans do. My skin feels soft and natural after and I don’t have to worry about it coming off on my clothes!
Here are the links to both tanning products:
http://www.jergens.com/products/natural-glow/3-days-to-glow.aspx https://int.lovingtan.com/collections/mousses/products/deluxe-bronzing-mousse-medium
Extras that are very helpful on grad night:
Most girls only bring a clutch which can make it challenging to bring anything with you, I would recommend bringing these few small things or brining another small bag that you can quietly leave under your table.
Oil blotting sheets, it will be warm! Make sure that you are prepared, these will dab off the oil without removing your makeup! (https://www.cleanandclear.com/blotting-papers/clean-clear-oil-absorbing-sheets)
Extra lipstick or lip gloss. Whatever you are wearing on your lips will fade over the night and will smudge when you eat so make sure you bring extra.
Deodorant, this is not mandatory it I find it helpful to have a little mini travel one with me when it is a hot summer day. I want to feel comfortable in my outfit and skin and if I’m worrying about sweat that is hard to do.
Eyelash glue, if you opted for glue on lashes this will be a life saver when it’s hot and your eyelashes start sliding!
Photos: If you feel it’s been a long time coming to get to this point, like me, oh my goodness! Then you probably want to document the moment with some photos. If you are looking for a photographer on a budget I would suggest looking on instagram actually! There are many amazing aspiring photographers that would love to do your grad photos for a bit so ridiculous price. Also ask your grads from previous years, they may have some great suggestions for you!
Other helpful tips:
Make sure you book all your appointments far in advance even if you have no clue what you want to do! Spaces fill up very fast around grad season!
On the special day make sure you wake up early than you think that you have to because something always goes wrong when you are on a time limit, so be prepared!
I would recommend showering, shaving, hair washing, etc. the night before, you will be very busy in the morning! Not to mention that slightly dirty hair is much easier to work with than freshly shampooed hair. It will stay longer!
If you have issues with your skin and acne like I do I would highly recommend finding yourself a routine far in advance to ensure you have a clear face for grad night. For example I have started mine already to make sure that is clear for the end of May! I find face masks VERY helpful. If you are finding that your skin just isn’t clearing up have s visit with your doctor or a dermatologist to discuss medication or medicated creams.
