the sweater edit

 

Ahh yes, noting quite like fall in South Florida. Between the spectacle of the leaves changing *well, more like the rogue palm frowns falling down and almost denting your car* to running up your electric bill so just so you can throw on your new favorite sweater and get into the spirt of what it means to be in the season of "fall." Hope that pumpkin spice whatever will suffice in this little gleaming fantasy us Floridians all share during this time of year!

Wether you are being dramatic af like the rest of us down here (or maybe just me, could very well be just me) I thought it would be appropriate that I rounded up a few of my absolute faaaavorite sweaters for this fall season! To shop your favorites, simply click on the highlighted links down below, it's legit as easy as that! Happy shopping!!

one // two // three // four // five // six // seven // eight

novemeber 2020 moodboard

And another month gone in just a blink of an eye! October was A LOT... well in the best way possible! Between spending some time up in Boston with a few of my closest pals to catching up with my family in Virginia, this past month was at a constant "go go go" pace! Thankfully I have gotten back into my normal routine where I can find some time to keep my sanity and carve out some time for myself and others in my life!

Over the past month I decided to devote more of my time to be present more ever day life and ween myself off social media. It's pretty typical for me to go through these phases.. which is extremely ironic because I do enjoy blogging, I guess it's just my Achilles heel. I have such a love/hate relationship it's only healthy that I take a step back every one in a while! 

I'm so excited because i'm starting back up with my bachelor recaps this week and I can't wait to share my not always popular commentary about the show with you all haha. For this upcoming month I want to be extremely intentional with finishing strong for this fall semester, despite all the chaos that is going on! I know that it's hard work but It can be done,  I know it can! I wish you all the best for this new month a head and can't wait to chat soon!! xoxo!

october 2020 moodboard

 

goooodmoring everyone and happy #spookyszn!! I'm back again with another monthly mood-board as anticipated. I like this installment that I have going on with creating these, it's fun to tap into some creativity once in a while even if it's just piecing together something like this! I have always been a huge fan of this time of year, i'm so happy it's finally here. (I couldn't help but read that last statement in the "we have been waiting for you all year, we are so happy your finally here." meme ahah.)

This upcoming month is already making my head spin with all that I have going on for the month of October, all good things don't get me wrong, but for once my calendar is beginning to fill back up. This week i'll be setting off to go visit my friends in Boston and I can't hold my excitement any longer for it, can't wait to share with you all a recap of that trip.... I know it would be memorable to say the least! And in the next two weeks i'll be spending time with my family to go visit my sister In Virginia. Can't wait till we are all back together in such a beautiful state!

I feel like I have to share with you all how school & life is going so stay tuned for a new post this week or next of me trying to gather my thoughts while navigating this new change in all of our lives. Hope you are all killing it this week and for the month to come. You deserve to, stay happy and make yourselves proud!

productivity "hack" that's getting me through the new normal

 

It’s been a minute since I’ve sat down just to to chat with you all, I miss doing this! Obviously, given the current state of how life is operating right now, things have been pretty hectic to say the least. One thing that I have learned about myself over the last handful of months is the importance of having a routine. So before I dive any deeper into this, do me a favor &  pour yourself a cup of coffee *or too*, it’s time for us to catch up!

Growing up, I never thought I would be one to thrive off of such a ridged schedule, but it does make sense that I do now looking back. We’d all wake up early, go to school for several hours, come home, snack, go to practice, activities, do homework, eat dinner, go to bed only to repeat this same cycle for the next four days of the school week. Even though I’ve always been a bit of a morning person, I distinctly remember myself a year ago wondering “how did high school us manage to do it all in one day, when college hits and you attend your only two classes do the day, take a nap, and kinda see where the night goes.” I guess that’s the allure of colleges to most people my age, the freedom and the ability to

just kinda see where the day takes you. 

As soon as I went through my first week of my “new normal” for school this year, I quickly began to realize that I’m not going to have the luxury to fit all my classes, homework, and everything else in between into one or too days a week, I had to figure out another way. Well, with working a bunch of hours over the week, I realized I have no other option but to wake up at 5:45.

Yes 5:45 am, you heard me! This ungodly hour seems just as scary to you as it did to me before I got into the habit of waking up at this time, but I soon discovered the benefits of doing so it’s not as daunting. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still 21 years old and like to enjoy that aspect & happen to let time slip away here and there, but call me crazy but I weirdly love this new routine. I’m now somehow managing to wake up, go for a run, watch a few lectures, go to work for 8 hours, come back and finish other things I was working on and still manage to be a grandma for the most part and be in bed my 9:30 latest. 

Maybe this will be the encouragement you needed to take the extra step to start getting up earlier and start showing up for yourself by carving out more time for doing what you need to do! Or maybe this is simply me ranting on about seeing as though I’m productive ahhh.. (is this what my life has come too!?) anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this little “catch up over coffee.” 

I’m honestly interested in making a ~vlog~ of a week in my life but the sound of hearing my own voice in video over a miniute can make me hold back, we shall see! 

september 2020 moodboard

Since we are already well into a week of September already, it's about time I post my mood-board of the month! It's obvious as a Floridian that I do not get to experience the beauty of the leaves change, instead I get to experience heat, rain, and potentially hurricane season... but I digress. Pretty soon I will be getting my fall fix when I head back up to the north east next month, I can hardly wait! I drew my inspiration for this months mood-board off of some fall trends that I've been swooning over recently. Something about the change in weather that really amplifies anyones wardrobe ahah.

 I don't know if it's because of this new season of "fall" that we are entering into or what that i'm just excited for whats to come, despite all that is going on around me haha. I don't have any major plans for this new month, but my only goal is to finally become set with my new life schedule. Playing the balancing act between work, school, blog, sleep, and still maintaining to have a bit of a social life is, well, a lot to say the least. Over the I've been waking up at 6am to try to manage to squeeze in all my daily responsibilities.... ahh the reality of adulthood! Lets see how long I can keep this up for ahah! 

Hope you all are having a new and refreshing perspective for this new month and season ahead of us, enjoy!!

summer 2020 recap

I believe that is important to reflect a season of your life when it is racing to the finish line, especially when you have tons of time to do so. The end of a semester, a relationship, or even the ending to the newest show you’ve been binging, it's healthy for your own personal growth to go back and put into perspective all the possible take aways from that stage in your life. This summer was unconventional to say the least, clearly not at all what I was anticipating on. I don’t think the phrase “man plans; God laughed” has even been used this much BEFORE 2020, because God was hysterically laughing at all the meticulous little plans i had created for this time of my life BIG TIME. Obviously i'm not the only one who had things change this summer due to COVID, the world has been going through it. 

Summer 2020 plans pre Covid:
To give you all a bit of a brief back story of my plans for this summer, this was the summer that I would have spent in Manhattan interning and pretending as if i'm the female version of Donald Draper (well, the good qualities of his impressive work ethic & king of advertising that is haha). It would’ve been fabulous to say the least, even if it was having to be the coffee runner for the office. Ever since I started college I always planned on interning the summer right before my last year of school. Once COVID shut everything down I spent a huge chuck of time back at my parents home living a majority of my days exactly like the previous during the q. 

On the bright side...
Dispute the fact that i was living in groundhog Day, I was thankful for the time period forced to give a good and hard look upon my life to reflect on the past few months and year to give myself more of a foundation of how I want to be better transitions out of this season. A better friend, a better sister, student, to be kinder, more of a listener, you name it. Not to mention, I started adding way more value to the normal, mundane aspects of my life. Sounds lame, but I missed getting all dressed up even if it’s just to go out to dinner and drinks with some friends. This has always been a source of creativity within my life and without having that or even putting in any effort just kinda made me feel dull and bleh. 

Travel
With getting tested a few times to make sure I didn’t have rona or anyone within my little circle, I did find myself traveling WITH GOOD CAUTION, this summer. For years me and my friends always have these huge dreams of us going out of town for the summer, but with all of our different prior commitments, things always get pushed off to the side. For the first time in well... years we put our money where our mouth is. #couplesretreat in sunny sanibel hahah and then celebrated Mary’s 21st birthday extravaganza at the SLS Miami Beach (which we lived WAY above our means that weekend... it was worth it.) 

One of the biggest highlights from this summer was my trip up north with my family, off the grid in Maine. It was beautiful, don’t get me wrong, days leading up to it I was absolutely apprehensive about being in the middle of such a desolate location for over a week. Once we got there and all of our family started arriving, I now long for those days. It’s funny how within only a few hours, my life in south Florida feels like a. completely different world.  Nights filled with lobster, laughter and memories that I wouldn’t trade for anything. 


To wrap things up..
I know how this post can possibly sound like a litany of my complaints, but if it wasn't for this global pandemic, I hate to say it, but I wouldn't have valued and appreciated these different facets in my life that have always been such a strong constant within my life. I have always held such a weight of importance with my family, friends and self, but getting this chunk of time to take a leap back and put things into perspective was, dare I say, a blessing in disguise??

Hope this last stretch of 2020 can cut us some slack lol!!


Alsoooooo to shop my fit from my instagram post click the links below!!

Dress // sunglasses // sneakers // purse

new apartment wishlist

 

Goooooodmorning everyone! Well, it's been exactly  a week since I decided it would be a fabulous idea to move into my new place during a hurricane....NOT! In my defense as a true native Floridian, I had no clue that a storm was making it's way to the sunshine state until the day of it's expected landfall. Luckily, the storm was hardly anything compared to some of the devastation we've seen in the past so that's a huge praise. My days of sleeping on an air mattress, (well scratch that, more like sleeping on the tile floor due to the huge whole in it that deflated in the wee hours of the night), are all put aside because I finally moved the last bits of my furniture out of storage yesterday.

My room is finally looking more like, well, a room and I couldn't be more excited to see it finally coming along. Since i'm living with two of my friends this year, it alleviates the need to do a complete apartment renovation all by myself, all I have to worry about is my bedroom. I want a clean slate to start completely fresh. My vision for my new bedroom is simply: Simple. Chic. Girly. Pops of gold, light pink, black, I think you get the picture. 

I created a wishlist as seem above for the pieces I want to style my room with! Can't wait to keep you guys updated along during this process so stay tuned!

Oh almost forgot, you can shop each item down below. Just click on the corresponding number for each product that is linked! Happy shopping!

One // Two // Three // Four // Five // Six // Seven 

august mood board

Happy August Everyone!! It's crazy to think in just a few weeks I'll be starting to get ready to go back to school.... well, virtually that is. Obviously, this year is gonna be unlike any other, my university is choosing to have our entire fall semester fully online. It's funny to think back to the beginning of quarantine and thinking that things will be all better by the start of the school year.. .haha.  I can only cross my fingers and hope for the best for this upcoming fall semester due to all of its uncertainty.

 I know I mentioned in my previous post about how time seems almost... intangible these considering how quickly each day post "q" are passing right along. August has always been a weird month though, the dog days of summer, the bridge between holding on to the fun of it all while having to mentally prepare to go back to school haha.

Even though I always dread this month to the enth degree, tons of my family members and friends are all celebrating their birthdays in August, after all it is #leoszn. With the start of a new month always brings with it a sense of a  rebirth and celebration of new beginnings as well as a chance to start fresh and have a clean slate moving forward.

In May, I shared with you all my "moodboard" for that month, I had so much fun with creating it that I think I should install this little segment for every month on my blog! I hope you all enjoy my August mood board, hey even make it your wallpaper if you feel the need to!

I hope this month brings a new perspective as well as promises to all of you! See ya!

what to pack: a weekend getaway

Hey everyone, hope everyone is feeling fabulous today! For some brief chit chat, I can't believe that July is coming to a wrap. I'm not sure if time is flying by faster now a days considering the days of quarantine would seem to last foreeeeeever and now that things are someone back to normal, time is slipping away?! I don't now, just a thought I've been having! Over the past week, i've spent some well needed r&r with my family in Maine, a full recap will be posted on the blog later this week about our trip and my experience living off the grid *well, sort of*. Anyways, after recapping my trip to Sanibel, I thought it would be a good idea to link what I wore on my little island trip! Since I don't have the connivence of the swipe up feature on my insta stories *Instagram, take note* I thought it would be easier for you all just to visit each item, in a one stop shop! Like always, to shop, click the highlighted links down below! Happy Shopping!

One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six / Seven / Eight / 

sanibel recap!

I think we can all agree that one of the worst feelings EVER is having to snap back to reality after going away for the weekend. Returning to normal life after a weekend full of sun, sand, and fantastic cocktails is always a bit brutal haha. Just to keep you all in the loop; this I had the chance to get out of town for a bit and head over to the west coast with some of my closest friends. Given this current climate that the world is in with COVID and all, I think that it's important that I mention the precautions that my friends and I continuously make when it comes to stopping the spread of the dreaded virus. 

I don't wanna post this without making that statement & seeming just like another "influencer" *yuck.. hate that word* who's just galavanting from one destination to the next exposing themselves and others to the potential risk.... because in all honesty, our lives are far from that haha. But clearly on the internet its easy jus to make accusations by just seeing things as they usually are, one sided. 

Now that all the pitchforks are put away *kidding*, this weekend was one for the books. Like i've mentioned on here in the past, Sanibel Island holds such a special place in my heart. Growing up, I've made so many memories with my family and friends on the island, I've wanting more than anything to have some of my best friends experience my little slice of heaven!

Some of the best vacations in my opinion are the ones where you make it up as you go along, and that's exactly what we did. After all, after this garbage fire of a year, we needed a few days of just living on island time. Our docket was filled with activities such as: watching the sunset down in Captiva, eating ice cream for dinner, screaming to Nicki Minaj songs in the car, spending all day lounging on the beach while guzzling High Noons (might I just say... HIGH NOONS ARE THE SUPERIOR CHOICE FOR HARD SELTZERS, NONE OTHER COMPARE, SORRY!) I can keep going on about how wonderful this little weekend trip was but i'll wrap it up now. This weekend was a collection of those moments that while living in them, you know that you wanna cherish every moment of it!! Hope you enjoy the photo dump down below!!

  

summer soundtrack!

I'm that nut job that takes serious pride and joy into each and every one of my Spotify playlists. Allow me to be dramatic for a second and say I love that thing as though it was one of my own haha. I think i've share on here before how it's been like my "audio diary" ever since my sophomore year of high school. It's fascinating to look back at a moment in the past and become completely transported to my mood as of that time. Soooo, I thought I'd share with you all the soundtrack of my summer thus far, after-all i'll constantly be updating it during this season! Perfect for catching a vibe down by the
beach, or blasting this playlist one summer night drive with your friends. Enjoyyy!

 

june favorites

Tried and true by... well yours truly of course, I thought I'd share with you all a few of my favorite things i've been loving this month! To find out the details about each odd and end continue reading and click on the link to find out more about each product!

Sunglasses: Just like the coveted Celine sunglass dupe that i'm sure you all have seen while scrolling through the 'gram recently, these are very similar to that exact pair of Amazon dupes. I love that this pair gives off a little bit drama more with the ombre lens. I instantly feel so fabulous with these on, a must if you are even on the fence in buying a pair this size!

Gold hoops: I've read from countless blogs as well as reviews online about how this pair of $20 gold hoops from Madewell are the only gold hoops you could ever want! I can attest, not to big, not to small or chunky, the perfect fit. Don't be like me and waste your money trying out another pair and just go head and order these. Don't take my word? Maybe the 5 star review will convince you!

Tank: I bought this blush one but i'm already tempted to order one in every color! For a gorgeous price of only $13, I might as well! I love the look of this tank with a denim skirt and these retro sneakers and a pair of my favorite sunnies.

Purse: To be completely transparent, I didn't purchase this beautiful bag because it was gifted to be from the lovely ladies over at wknd wyfr, regardless i'm in love with it. Not only does this purse match my vibe, but it's perfect for summer and it's such a great size too!

Book: It's been a goal of mine to become more intentional when it comes to reading, thanks to being in quarantine I had absolutely no excuses to put this little goal of mine off for any longer. Not only was Get Out of Your Head such an enjoyable book read, I learned so many valuable lessons along the way!

Notebook: I feel as though I always have so many ideas and thoughts constantly running around In my mind that I would rather have documented on an actual notebook opposed to the random notes I jot down in my phone that I never end up following up with. Kinda random, but so cute. After all, who isn't a sucker for cute stationary stuff like me?!

my favorite healthy banana pancake recipe!

I would totally, undoubtedly, wholeheartedly vote to notion eating breakfast for every meal of the day day. What more could you ever want, some avocado toast, oatmeal, pancakes... it would be a DREAM I TELL YOU! Until that weird election day ever comes to reality, I'll stay scouting out new recipes to spice up (my favorite) and  most important meal of the day. Already over quarantine i've whipped up these deliciously fluffy and irresistible pancakes, and let me tell ya, this is already my new favorite recipe by far! Watch out Martha Stewart, by the end of quarantine I might just be coming for your job title with all this cooking and baking under my belt haha!

Oh, how could I forget to mention the best part of these delicious little breakfast treats, they are gluten and dairy free! Yes, you heard me! Go ahead, grab seconds, thirds, without all of the guilt! This recipe is perfect for you to be able have your cake, and eat it too without feeling gross with anything overly processed and unhealthy entering your body! To try some of this yummy goodness for yourself follow the instructions down below!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

*2 1/4 rolled oats

*1 cup of unsweetened almond milk

*2 large ripe bananas

*1 tablespoon of pure maple syrup

*1 large egg

*1/4 teaspoon of sea salt

*1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

*1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

*1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

INSTRUCTIONS:

*Place all of the ingredients into a blender and blend until everything is in a smooth, pancake batter form

*Heat a griddle or large pan on medium low heat and spray with nonstick spray. Once the pan or griddle is hot, pour 1/4 of the batter onto the pan, cook for 2-3 minuets. Top it all off with anything your heart desires! I like to add more cinnamon, pure maple syrup, bananas and strawberries!

21 things i've learned before 21

Even though it's been a few months since my 21st birthday, I've been sitting on this post for some time now because I wanted to get it right, it required more thought on my end to put into words the most valuable life tidbits that I have learned up until this stage of my life. Obviously, by no means do I have life completely figured out, it's typically evident that I'm not even remotely close to having it all together haha, anyways I comprised a list  of little life advice that hones into one of the most impactful life lessons that I have learned and made me to who I am today! Enjoy!!

21 things I’ve learned before 21

If you aren’t happy in your current story, you have every right to change the narrative!

Doors & chapters of our Ives close for a reason, don’t revisit. The past is the past for a reason after all 

Don’t be stupid & save all your high school graduation money (or at least just don’t blow through it all)!!! 

Stay inquisitive about the world and everything around you. 

Shut off the negative vices in your head, they are only holding you back!

Keep yourself healthy: spiritually, emotionally and physically 

Don’t drive yourself crazy trying to understand why certain things happen or don’t happen, life has a way of unraveling itself 

Even though it may be hard to do so, become more of a listener

Develop some sort of routine to keep you structured & feeling accomplished at the end of every day

Slow down, you don’t have to have everything figured out just yet. You are still so young with so much growth to be made!!

Act your age

Start romanticizing every aspect of your life. Not just the good, but during the ugly and all else in between 

Go out of your way to do something nice to strangers, doesn't have to be a huge production, just something to leave them feeling loved

There is more to life than just high school 

Recognize your worth and constantly fight for it, don’t settle !! 

It’s ok to feel emotions, cry!! be a hot mess! 

Don’t be afraid to speak up and ask for help

Don’t feel ashamed of who you are, the right people will find attraction to your uniqueness.

Comparison will kill ya, embrace your authenticity! 

The smallest gesture, even a smile can brighten someone’s day, be that light! 

We all know the age old rhetoric that “communication is key.” It may be easier said than done, but ultimately so many issues will be resolved while just speaking what’s on your mind!

school recap

It’s almost hard to believe that this exact time last year I was so gung ho on transfer schools and preparing to kiss my current university goodbye, once and for all. With all this talk and hype I kept enforcing upon myself of starting over in a new city three hours away that I couldn’t totally picture myself in, starting a new school, changing my major, seemed like what was necessary for me to get a fresh start on life. If you’ve been following along with my life on here for some time, than you know by that that it’s  no secret that my college experience and I have had a “on-and-off again” relationship up until this year, which may I say, despite the corona virus cutting my spring semester to a close, has been the best year yet?! With wanting to almost prove to myself and others i was capable of “starting fresh”, I was determined to take the matter I to my hands and make the rest of my college experience something that I actually loved and will remember for the rest of my life. 

I don’t know if I’ve shared this previously on here, but I’ll never forget the day that I admitted not only to myself, but to my family that transferring schools wasn’t the best option for me. After touring, sending my transcripts and all that follows with transferring schools, something deep down inside of me wasn’t as thrilled as I wanted to be above the move. No, it wasn’t fear of the unknown or moving further away, but it was the fear that I was ultimately going to choose to be somewhere that I didn’t even picture myself being at.

 I recall my sister and my friends always bringing up the fact that I don’t seem 1000% enthusiastic about this “big move” I was about to embark on, dare I say they were right all along. They were able to pinpoint the truth inside of me that I was too worried t admit to myself because I didn’t wanna let myself self down, and more importantly let others down as well. After all, the past six months all I could talk about was how ready I was to leave my current school and get outta here, fast! 

Flash forward to today, as I sit here back at my parents home reflecting upon all the wonderful memories I’ve made throughout this year at the same school I wanted to put in my past and never look back. Moving into my very own apartment right behind the heart of campus and rushing to be in a sorority had made a tremendous impact of the way I feel towards the place once couldn’t stand. All the friendships I’ve made, independence I’ve gain from living on my own, as well as a promising direction thanks to changing my major to marketing, something I’m actually passionate about, has made all the difference within myself. 

I guess to sum up this year in a few statements would be to listen to your gut. Yes, I know you’ve heard this a thousand times before but it’s so important to do so! Like, I always laugh about the what if’s. “What if I decided to transfer, even when I knew deep down it wasn’t want I wanted for myself!?” Not to day things wouldn’t be good, but how different life would be! Sure it’s taken me some time to finally get things right, but I would take back the days prior to this year because everything along the route had taught me more and more of discovering myself! 

may mood board

With the fresh new beginning of each month (well, for this case a fresh four days into the month buy hey who's counting under quarantine haha), comes along new memories, expectations, as well as bits and pieces of inspiration to help remind us of all of the better days ahead. Sure, this may kinda seem like a "photo dump",  but I thought It would be fun to gather up some little things that have been giving me joy during this stage of life, I have found this to be a fun activity during the strange times we are living in. I tend to do this through my Instagram stories, but I thought this would be more enjoyable as a blogpost! Hope you all enjoy the outfits i'm drawing inspiration from, places i'd love to visit, visuals i'm admiring and everything else in between!

mothers day gift guide 2020

With April coming to a rapid close, which is pretty weird during these slow quarantine times, mothers day is right around the corner! Clearly, it's not that simple anymore to just pop into a store last minute to pick up something for your mom on mothers day, so I thought i'd help you all out and put together a few items that your mom is guaranteed to love this Mothers Day! To shop click the links down below!

One / Two / Three / Four / Five / Six / Seven / Eight / Nine

what's kept me sane during quarantine

Maybe Elle Woods was right after all when she infamously states "exercise gives you endorphines, endorphins make you happy..." well you know the rest (If you don't i'm a bit disappointed haha.) Midway through high school I decided to take up running as a way to keep me active considering I was starting to slow down with dance and I was far from playing on any D1 sports team. For hating the thought of even having to even jog my whole life, I thought I was nuts but kept pressing on to at least run for 15 minutes, one mile, etc. until I built up the stamina, and dare I say it now brings me enjoyment?!

Over the years i've learned that by stepping out for my daily run has not only kept me in shape, but has allowed me to indulge in some "me time" which. Carving an hour of my day to shut off the world around me, no matter what may be going on in my personal life or within the world around me is something that I look forward too. Just me, some good music, and all that is around me. The little time spent of escapism through running has been extremely important throughout the years, not to mention it's been very beneficial in my overall mental health.

Now listen, I'm not suggesting that everyone should take up running, but find some activity that you enjoy, it could be biking, yoga, walking, dancing ,I don't know anything you name it!! My hobby of running has kept my sane during this madness and uncertain times we are all living in. So especially in these quarantine times, take pride in those little activities that make you happy and try to work on them more and more each day, trust me it'll be worth it!

my best kept secret!

Never in a million YEARS would I have imagined myself as the effortless "girl next door" kinda individual. You know what i'm talking about, that cool, L.A vibe girl who just shows up in jeans and a tee to go grab an IPA brew with the boys yet still manages to look so effortlessly chic in jeans and a simple tee shirt. That was until I came upon the worlds best jeans, and you will never believe where they are from! I've always had such a hatred towards those denim pants. Every pair i've owned up  until now have been stiff, uncomfortable, to tight, or just downright farty looking on me. I thought in order to go for the look I wanted to achieve I'd have to shell up over hundreds of dollars in order to find the right pair.

Alright, alright, I guess it's time for me to "spill the beans" on my favorite pair of jeans... sorry I just had too! Drum roll please....my go-to pair of jeans are from Ann Taylor LOFT, yes you heard me, LOFT! I'm sure we have all been dragged into that store by our mothers for them to try on work appropriate outfits, next time that happens to you go and try a pair of their jeans on, you wouldn't regret it! They are as soft as butter and their sizes fit incredibly. They feel expensive! I am on the more petite, shorter side and I didn't even have to get them altered, or even have to wear a belt to keep them from falling!


Another bonus is that they always have amazing deals! Loft is currently running a 70% off promotional on your first purchase than 50% off everything else! How could you pass up such an offer! With this new discovery of mine, do I dare say that I have become that "girl next door?" Still gotta stay true to myself and stick my drink of choice, a vodka soda (with extra lime) any day before an IPA though! Down below I linked a few of my favorite styles they currently have in stock! Hope you all will be just as transformed as I am!

updated makeup routine!

After some time, I finally buckled down to film my updated makeup routine! Like I mention in the video, I am clearly not a makeup artist or pro by any means, this is just what works for me and the products that I love that I hope you all will love just as much as I do! I linked the products I used in the description of the video, hope you all are hanging in there.

quaretine playlist

During this weird, strange time we are currently living in, one of the ways I've found a way to lift my spirits is through the power of music. No surprise here, considering I create playlists for legit every month of my life since 2015 or so (which you can check out through my spotify!) So I thought I'd make one for this time in all of our lives! My "corona-cation" playlist has a little sprinkle of everything. Nothing too crazy, or too mellow you could fall asleep too. (Obviously, if you wanna take a nap to this, by all means go right ahead.) I hope you all enjoy my curated a playlist of vibey, chill, easy listens to help make this unsettling time feel a bit better, enjoy!


   

my "new" routine

This has really taught me, as well as many of you, that we all are just creature of habit and routine. Even during the school semester, I love relying on having a packed schedule and sticking to constant routine to keep me feeling fulfilled. That may be the extrovert in me talking but hey. Now having to adapt to our "new normal" of staying home and being prohibited from going anywhere for valid and obvious reasons.... I started to drive myself stir crazy with absolutely no foundations of a structure.

Over the past few days since I've started packing up my apartment to move back home for my "six month summer," I've developed some what of a routine, a very small, not that exciting one to keep my cool throughout this unprecedented time we are living in. Although nothing major is going on that I need to schedule in, I do feel as though it's been very beneficial to just stick to somewhat of a structure and schedule some activities in along the way! Soooo without further ado, here's what I've been up to during all of this craziness!

Quarantine Routine:

9:45-10:00 am: Wakeup. To me, this is sleeping in at it's finest. I usually like to get up around 7:30-8am but why should I know considering I don't have to be up for anything specifically haha.

10:00-10:45 am: Read my morning devotion. Then I roll out of bed, head over to the bathroom for my morning skincare routine, then waltz on over to my kitchen to make some breakfast and typically watch and episode of Shark Tank while I finish my coffee.

10:45-11:45 am: Get dressed to go for a run, stretch, and get outside.

12:00 - 2:00 pm: Hop in the pool to cool down post run. Catch some sun outside, read for a few, work on any homework assignments I have to complete in the meantime. Try to make/ eat some lunch!

2:00-2:30pm: Rinse off. 

2:30-4:00pm: Bum around, find something to keep me entertained. Started to ride my longboard that was tucked away in our attic. I also made tie dye that I can't wait to share with you all! Read some more, play some sudoko, watch the office haha.

5pm: Feed the dogs, take them for a walk with my parents.

6ish pm: Time to feast! 

7:00pm: Post dinner, watch T.V with the fam, or maybe even a movie.

9:00 pm Evening Bath followed by my nigh time skincare routine, getting ready for bed, all of that good stuff.

9:45 pm: Sweet Dreams!

Obviously I don't follow this rigidly, and will clearly be changing it up to keep it interesting but until then, hope you all enjoyed it!

keep it quaran-cozy!

It's no surprise that i'm ever so quickly losing my mind due to  being in complete social isolation. If you've been keeping up with my instagram stories, i'm sure you are more than familiar by now that i'm at the brink of losing my mind. An extroverts worse nightmare ahah. I guess I can find comfort in the fact that the whole world is feeling more or less the same manic feelings that I am experiences.

Jokes aside It is extremely important to stay in and be mindful of those around you so we can quickly flatten this curb once and for all and jump right back into our regularly scheduled programming. Until then, veg out, work out, whatever you need to do to keep your sanity during these quarantine times. I have noticed even in times of my life when I feel down, the slightest bit of effort in my look or even doing my hair or makeup dramatically changes my mood for the better.

I'm not a huge proponent for getting all dolled up just to stay in though, but I am a huge fan of loungeware. Yes, you heard me, not pajamas, loungewear. (Ok, i'm aware it's all the same thing but loungeware just has this certain... je n'ais ce quoi to it.) You don't have to compromise feeling cute about yourself just to completely bum around in the same oversized tee you've worn to bed the past 4 years, now more than ever we all need some major self love. In efforts to guide you all in the right cozy direction, I pulled a few of my favorite, most cozy loungewear items that will have you looking cute and feeling "quaran-cozy" during this strange time!

life update 3.12.2020

Wow... it’s been a hot minute but hope everyone is doing well *well, at least trying* to do so in the midst of all this madness!! 

It’s no surprise that the world around us doesn’t slow down for anyone or anything. Life’s been pretty insane these past few months, ok more specifically ever since this semester began. It’s hard not to feel like you’ve been run over by a semi truck while constantly being bombarded with news thats no easy pill to swallow.

In lighthearted news, I recently turned 21, two weeks ago while in Charleston and ... dare I be that girl and say, it’s been a lot of fun hehe. In this moment in time I am currently on my spring break, which now has taken the whole #springbreakforever to a literal meaning considering the fact my university has decided to switch over to all online classes for the next few weeks u til things start to settle down, hopefully?

 Not sure if anyone’s picked up on it, but I tend to thrive on structure. A set time to wake up, daily routine, set dinner time, are the things I livvvve for. I just seem to focus more and feel accomplished knowing my day is strategically planned. Now stripping back all of that just do class on my own will be a big adjustment I’d just have to get used to, and hey it can’t be that terrible considering it’s only temporary.

As far as my big plans to spend my summer in NYC working as an intern is still up in the air. I kinda came to terms with reality this week (typically me the pieces living in a fantasy land ahah) and figured I should keep my options more broad instead of putting all my eggs into one basked and being solely hell bent on just some sensation. As the tried but true dating remains the same, “man plans and God laughs” I just have to be remained in the midst of all this chaos, things happen for the best possible outcome, even if they are extremely fuzzy while in it!