Happy Friday y’all! You know what Friday means: another lattes with lauren q&a series! Martha and I thought this would be a fun series to do throughout the summer, but…curious to hear your thoughts for Fall (like starting in September!). Is this a series you want to keep seeing? Or, sort of just a fun summer thing? LMK in the comments!
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1. My question is how to create a theme for your picture filters. I thought it was just using the same levels for everything but there’s no way. Some pictures just need something that another doesn’t! My Instagram is all over the place and I haven’t even thought about incorporating this into my blog because I have no clue where to start.
First of all let me say I think this is something EVERY blogger/instagrammer struggles with! I think the most important thing is figuring out your color story / theme. For my instagram and blog photos, I don’t like pictures to look really saturated, and I like the whites to be very white (so, a lot of highlights). Once you have your color/highlights nailed down, you can make those tweaks to any photos (this applies to instagram as well as high res photos for the blog).
My friend Kami does a really good job at this. She likes a lot of blues in her pics and tries to incorporate water or sky (blue things haha) whenever she can! She also uses a filter that is blue-heavy. So, overall my advice would be…decide if you like saturated colors, or not. Do you like the more faded/vintage look, or crisp? And then whatever ‘theme’ you come up with, stick to that in editing!
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2. I’m looking to make the switch to more natural beauty products, such as a natural deodorant and body lotions. What are your favorite natural beauty products or do you have any suggestions?
I LOVE Kiehl’s products. They have everything from deodorant and hair products, to anti-aging skin care, and the most amazing body lotions/washes. Their products are made with naturally derived ingredients like lavender, squalane, calendula, and beech treat extract. So, they smell and feel amazing, but are also super effective at the same time. Some of my favorite Kiehl’s products:
3. If there has been one (probably not the case as there are multiple) Bible study that has made the most impact on your life…what would it be?
This is such a hard question because there really are countless books and studies that have impacted my life significantly. As far as daily devotionals though, I would say the three (sorry I couldn’t pick one! haha) that have made the biggest impact on my life are Jesus Calling, New Morning Mercies, and My Utmost for His Highest. All 3 of these are daily devotionals that really help you get in the Word and connect with God. None of them are extremely time consuming, but they are powerful and the wisdom in each one of those books will change your life.
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4. How do you edit your instagram pictures?
I use VSCO Cam to edit my instagram pics – that’s it! I know alot of people that edit in like 3 different apps before posting but…ain’t nobody got time for that haha. I love VSCO Cam because I think it’s super user friendly and easy to figure out, and has just the right amount of features.
Depending on the photo, I usually adjust the exposure and contrast (I like a lot of contrast), and add sharpness. Then I rotate between like 3 different filters that I’ve purchased in VSCO Cam. This might sound so dumb, but I actually don’t like to tell people which filters I use haha. It’s not that I own the filter or anything but I think my instagram very much represents me and ‘my brand’, so I’d rather not have people editing photos exactly like I do, and then having an instagram feed that looks super similar to mine. What’s important is that you figure out what represents you, what filters/colors you really like, and stick with that!
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5. Can you talk more about your hair color. I love it and have actually taken your picture into my hairdresser and it never seems to come out right. Any specific suggestions on what to tell them to achieve your same color and highlights?
So Charleigh at FORM Salon in Dallas does my color and she is a total color MAGICIAN. I actually only get my hair colored maybe 3 times a year, because it’s so low maintenance (and this is pretty much my natural color). In between those 3 color treatments, she just puts a toner on it to cut out any brass or warmth (but, more on that in a second).
So Charleigh does balayage highlights on me, which is a form of ‘hair painting’ highlights. Make sure you ask your hair stylist if they know how to do that technique. If they aren’t familiar with it, then it’d be hard to achieve this same look haha. My hair is naturally a dark/medium brown, so Charleigh just does subtle caramel/blonde highlights around my face and then in other ‘natural’ places where the sun would hit my hair. She also does more highlights towards the end of my hair so that it looks more natural + less maintenance.
My hair definitely pulls warm though with highlights and I reallyyyy do not like warmth or brass in my hair – I’m like a freak about it haha. So she does balayage highlights on me and then always uses a toner afterwards. I also go in about every 2-3 months for her to put a toner on it (which takes like 10 minute) to cut out any brass, and make it more ashy! I LOVE ash!
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outfit details: denim bell sleeve top | black jeans here and here | sole society clutch | booties | earrings | sunnies
On an unrelated note…I have been LOVING this denim bell sleeve top lately! It’s the perfect top to transition into fall with, and you can make it casual or dress it up! It’s such a classic and versatile piece to have in your wardrobe.
If y’all have any questions you’d like for me to answer next week (remember, they can be about anything!) leave a question in the comments below! Thanks to everyone who has left comments so far! I love reading y’alls questions.
My parents are in town this weekend and I can’t even express how excited I am to see them, and show them around Boulder. Hope you guys have a wonderful weekend!
xo Lauren
