July 2020 Favorites + Happenings

Face, Fashion, and "Finding Myself"

Holy cow how is August tomorrow?! I swear I blinked and summer flew by! I’ve got two weeks left until move-in day and I am so not ready. Both literally and emotionally; I know I’ve been home for months on end now but the thought of leaving the comfort and familiarity of my own home is making me uneasy.

I know this school year is bound to be an interesting one and am trying so hard to go in with an open mind. Time to start getting my stuff together and start saying goodbyes. 🙁 On a happier note, today I’m recapping the month of July. I’ve got so much to talk about today—from favorites to goals to feelings. Let’s hop right in!

Fashion

: love a good LBD

: travel outfit!

: a cute little dress

: lace up details

: scorching hot day outfit

July was a scorching hot month here so I spent most of my days in a fun sundress or shorts + a tank. I also rekindled my love for lace-up sandals. If you’ve been around for a while you’d know I went through a major phase during my sophomore year of high school and I’ve fallen in love all over again. The two pairs I wore the most this month are this black pair from SheIn and my metallic gold ones from Express. They elongate the legs so much and are so easy to dress up or down.

I’ve had so many clothes coming through my closet recently that it’s hard to narrow down my favorite styled shoots from the month! I’ve had the chance to work with some awesome brands this month which I am so grateful for. I picked up some gorgeous bodysuits from Princess Polly which I can’t wait to style at school, some fun dresses from Chicwish, and this gorgeous green romper you all seemed to love; it’s from SheIn!

Overall, it was a fantastic month of shooting content and I am so upset at the thought of leaving my twin sister (and photographer) Madison in just a couple of weeks. She has been my saving grace this summer and is truly the glue behind Styled by McKenz!

Accessories

: love these earrings!

: loving this mask!

: the cutest earring combo

: loving my new shades

At the beginning of the month, Romwe sent over 20+ pairs of earrings and so my accessory game has been killing it recently. You guys know my love for statement earrings and I’ve been having a blast styling them in my daily outfit of the days this month.

I also have been a sucker for black oversized sunglasses; I’ve added a handful of new pairs to my closet this season and I can’t seem to get enough of them. They make me feel so cool. Oh, and I’ve also started experimenting with styling my masks in fun ways! Since they aren’t going anywhere anytime soon I figured I might as well start getting creative with them. This cow print one is def my favorite!

Beauty

I’ll be honest, I don’t really have anything new and exciting to talk about in the beauty category this month. I’ve been using the same products over and over again and have been keeping my makeup routine pretty minimal. You can check out this blog post here to read up on all of my everyday products + I’ll leave a handful of them linked below.

Entertainment

I have been so go go go this month that the only tv I’ve been watching is my Thursday night movie with Connor. I made him watch The Lucky One since it’s one of my favorite movies and he rated it the highest of anything we’ve watched this summer. We watched The Kissing Booth 2 last week and it was so chaotic, lol. Although, I will give it props for being one of the better Netflix originals.

Looking Back On July

For July, I was aiming to hit 18K on YouTube and 12K on Instagram. I also was aiming for consistent blog views for the second month straight. I could not be more excited to report back today with 22.5K YouTube subscribers, 13.3K on Instagram, and a whopping 61K blog views in just thirty-one days.

Blown away is an understatement and yet I know that it’s my hard work and dedication that has allowed me to see such tremendous growth throughout quarantine! I also landed some huge brand deals for the coming months that I cannot wait to share with you soon.

Looking Back On August

I’m not going to lie, growth is absolutely addicting. Once you get a taste of it, it’s hard to not come crawling back for more. I’ve also seen that I am capable of such lofty goals and know that I can achieve whatever I set my mind to.

And at the same time, I know I have a huge season of change on the horizon, and going back to school means no longer being able to work 40+ hour weeks. No matter how badly I want to keep up with it all, I know deep down that something will have to give when I go back to school and so I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself. As of right now I’ve got lots of pre-shot and filmed content for those first few weeks I’m at school but I know that I have some adjusting ahead of me. And just like last August, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about that—especially after riding such a high these last few weeks.

With that being said, this month I’m hoping to hit 14K on Instagram and 25K on YouTube by move-in day! The only other goal I’m going to set for myself is not to spread myself too thin! That may sound silly to some but it’s something that I really need to work on this school year.

My Month At A Glance

As I’ve sad a gazillion times, it’s been a really busy month. Between work, grabbing things for my apartment, and soaking up these last weeks at home it feels like every second has been consumed. Last week I went to Charleston, South Carolina to visit one of my oldest blog friends Molly. I stayed with her family and explored the city while shooting content and it was an absolute blast! This was my first traveling since Covid-19 and it felt so good to get out into the real world again.

: my girls

: hi sunshine <3

: golf day with chase

My family and I are leaving for the beach tomorrow and I’m looking forward to my annual week in the Outer Banks. Not only does my body physically need a week to relax but I feel as though I really truly deserve this time “off”. I can’t wait to get some sun and will hopefully be sharing photos with you on Instagram throughout the week.

Once we return from the beach I’ve only got a handful of days before moving back to campus to start my sophomore year of college. Which is honestly so hard to believe; I can’t believe a whole year has passed since leaving for the first time! I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous for the year. With all the uncertainty in the world and the constant changing of plans I’ve found myself more anxious than I’ve been in months. And yet I know that I’m not alone in that feeling and that so many others are having their worlds flipped upside down too. Hang in there, y’all; we’re in this one together!

With love, McKenz