life lately

Life has been busy lately! Second semester always seems to be the most craziest. No complaints though, being busy is better than being bored out of your mind. These past week I was able to meet up with a friend for coffee, and it was much needed! Being with friends always seem to cheer me up. Deep conversations over coffee are my favorites, and the timing was perfect.

Watching: American Idol. Ah this season has been so good, I absolutely love it. All the judges have been so nice and so much better than last year. For a while I was so over Idol, and into The Voice. But this year that has switched! I just love listening to everyone's voices, and everyone this year has so much talent! I have a feeling this season is going to be amazing.

Listening to: I have found a new artist I absolutely love, Josh Krajcik. His voice is absolutely beautiful. His music is very soft and relaxing. His album was classified as rock, but I really think its more pop/classic. A few years back he was on the X Factor, and he came in second to winning. Just the other day when I was online I saw his name pop up on the screen and I was so excited! My favorite song from his new album is Close Your Eyes.

Proud of: My accomplishments in school! I'm taking a few AP classes, and they have been really challenging this year. But I was able to complete my first semester with straight A's. It seems I never have a break when it comes to my homework and big projects, but thankfully I'm enjoying my classes this year. I'm just so glad that school hasn't been such a nightmare this year!

1. Emily and I hanging out / 2. my valentine nails / 3. valentine gifts from my mom / 4. cuddling with my lily / 5. V-day party with my girls / 6. shopping with my grandma / 7. cupcake date / 8. showed with love from my girls / 9. coffee date with Alex.


Excited about: My birthday! This March I'll turn 17. Kind of crazy to think about. Its just too close to 18! The older I get, the faster time seems to go by. I'm excited about turning 17, but a little scared with all that comes with turning a year older. I guess all the responsibilities and new challenges, but I am looking forward to all the new life changes with being 17!

Fearing: Driving! Ah, it scares me so much. It's actually really sad because I need to start driving soon. It scares me to think that if anything were to happen, I could be responsible for any crashes, or accidents. Knowing that by some stupid mistake I make, could harm another persons life! Plus the freeways here in Southern California is just awful. It's so busy and chaotic, you literally can't take your eyes off the road. I really want to start driving because I won't have to rely on anyone to take me places, and so I can have my own schedule but then apart of me just isn't ready! I'm giving myself some time to ease on into it, but I might have to speed up this process because I have a feeling it might take forever! But then again, I can just wait until I'm 18.

p.s. don't forget to enter in the giveaway if you haven't already!

Giveaway: 5 Months of Free Ad Space

I am so excited to announce this giveaway! Us five gals, are giving away five free months of advertising, on our blogs! In honor of my birthday which is March 5th, I thought what better way to celebrate, but to host a giveaway for my readers! The gals I've partnered up with are amazing and so are their blogs, so be sure to check them out and follow (below). Also be sure to read the instructions on how to win this giveaway!!

 

                     Meet us girls!
 Jenna from A Beautiful Heart
 Jordyn from Pretty Lovely
 Carly from A Walk in the Park
 Jessi from Haircut and General Attitude
 Jessica and Meagan from Jeans and a Teacup

There will be one winner, and I will announce the winner on March 7th! Please make sure you have an image/banner promoting your blog for this ad space. If you do not have a blog button/banner, please do not enter in this giveaway because we are not going to provide one for you, by creating one. Each blogger will advertise your banner for one month, and then it will rotate to all the other bloggers. Please be sure to comment below why you would like to win this giveaway and how this will help your blog.

Now all you have to do is enter the Rafflecopter. Thanks again for all the girls who came along side me. You gals made this giveaway possible, I couldn't have done it without you!! Good luck.

 

 

   a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Heart Of It | Kindness

This year of 2014 I have a few new year resolutions but they are more like goals that I want to accomplish. So I am going to choose one word to live by for this year. I want this word to come to mind through everything I am going through and set the tone for every new day. The word is kindness. Being kind to friends, family, and even strangers I may meet or pass by. When I think of kindness I think of putting others before yourself. Kindness is something you can never have enough of. Its something everyone enjoys receiving, and it can brighten someone's day, just like that!

It can be small or big acts. It can be simple or complex. But I want my kindness to be meaningful, and not fake. Sometimes I get tired of putting on the smile and happy face, because that's not how I always feel. I become tired of acting like I care, or like I'm listening. Sometimes the early morning classes and the busy schedule, becomes tired of repeating day in and day out, and it throws me off track. I become so focused on the things I need to get done, and don't stop to actually take time for conversation or get together with others.

And of course there are those moments when you run into people you haven't seen in a while, or people you don't particularly like or get along with. There are those times when you just wish you could back up and re-trace your steps and run away. To be honest this is what we do most of the time - turn around and walk away.

For me, kindness is not stepping back and walking away, or putting on that happy face when you feel the opposite. Kindness is being genuine. It's being honest and real. It's acknowledging others. It's saying hello to the people you pass by. Saying thank you, with a smile. Walking up to someone and giving them a hug, when you know they need one. It can be as simple as spending time with someone to let them know you care. Being friendly, to all you meet. There are never any acts of kindness, that are wasted.

This is not easy, but its simple. The days I really show my kindness to others, are the times when I feel the most happy, and full of energy. It makes me feel confident, and helps me climb out of my comfort zone. Being kind, puts my into a whole new mood and makes my day so much brighter. And that is exactly how I want to feel from now on. I will leave you with this quote that I read the other day by Mark Twain..."Kindness is a language that the deaf can hear, and the blind can see."

Valentine's Day Pink Hearts Manicure

Happy Valentine's Day! This year I have seen so many cool DIY's for Valentines, it just makes me want to pull out all my craft items, and make little cute things. So here's a cute DIY manicure you can wear to celebrate this special day! This manicure has been on my "blog calendar," for quiet some time and I've been counting down the days until I could post it, and paint my nails this way!

  

What You'll Need

♥ light pink nail polish; I used Essie
♥ darker shade of pink; I used Sinful Colors
♥ silver or gold sparkle; I used Sinful Colors in silver


The Steps...


Apply three coats of a light pink nail polish.


Then apply some red nail polish on the end of your tips to make the hearts. Your basically making an X but very close together. Try to make your first stroke a little bit shorter than your second to give your heart some depth.








And on my ring finger I applied some glitter nail polish to give it a little more style.

Be Mine

 I am so excited to share this outfit post with you guys! My schedule has been too jam packed to be able to squeeze in a photo shoot lately. Luckily this week hasn't been too hectic and slightly more relaxed. Once in a blue moon I'll post a fashion outfit, so when I do its literally the highlight of my week! Valentine's is just two days away, so I hope this outfit inspires you in some little way. This outfit tends to be on the urban casual side, but I think it's still perfect to wear if going out with friends or going to see a movie. I love dressing up, and go all out with my jewelry but lately comfy and simple seem to be the two words I look for when pairing my outfits together. I've never really been like this, I guess maybe it's because school has got me running around like a loony! I really don't mind it all that much, mostly because I enjoy school and sitting in on "boring" lectures, so I would much rather be busy, than bored out of my mind all day long!

 

 I just got back from spending about two days in Camarillo while visiting my grandma. I had such a good time, and it was great being able to see her. Because of the two and a half hour drive between us, I don't have the opportunity to be with her as much as I'd like. One afternoon we spent our time at a picnic bench by the park and just played scrabble, and talked. It felt so nice to be able to relax and re-group from everything! It was definitely time well needed!

 

     

Outfit Details:
Shirt / Target
Shoes / Converse
Boyfriends Jeans / American Eagle
Stone Necklace / Pac Sun
Tiny Necklace / Charming Charlie's
Sunglasses / Charming Charlie's
Bracelet / American Eagle
Bow Ring / Forever 21

Valentine's Day Red Velvet Cupcakes

Valentine's day is definitely one of my favorite holidays! It's a special day to show someone how much you love them. Red roses, chocolate, and a good chick-flick movie, is the best way to celebrate this day! Last weekend I had a V-Day Party with some of my girlfriends, and these cupcakes were a big hit! There are so many treats you can make for this holiday, but you can never go wrong with cupcakes and they tend to be the easiest to make, when you have a larger crowd. To add a special touch to the cupcakes I just added these cute sprinkles to make it look real cute. These are so easy to make and so much fun for the occasion!

Ingredients:
cake/
a cake box mix
1/4 cup of oil
2/3 cup of water
2 eggs
frosting/
one box of powered sugar
1tsp of vanilla extract
1 stick of butter
1/3 cup of milk

Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and fill your cupcake pan with cupcake liners. When you make the cake, follow the instructions on the back of the box, basically you just put in all those ingredients into a big bowl and mix it all up, so about 50 stokes with a whisk. Now for the frosting your going to place everything in a bowl and mix it up with an electric mixer on medium for about 2-4 minutes until it has the right consistency.

Finding Your Style // Methods of Gathering Inspiration

Okay so now once you have looked at all the different styles, and you've selected one that fits you best...your probably wondering "now what?" You might be lost or don't know what to do next to finding your personal style, so here are a few tips on keeping your style "you" and to gather inspiration for your particular style when shopping.

♥ Use Pinterest. This site gives me so many ideas and helps me find exactly what I love. It keeps you up to date with all the styles, and it gives you ideas on how to put together some outfits. I love looking up fashion tips, and its helped me a lot with my overall style. What I'll do is create a board of everything I love and know I can buy at my favorite store, so when I'm out shopping I can pull it up on my phone, so I know exactly what I want to buy.

♥ Buy some fashion magazines. If your not one for Pinterest, buy some magazines to look for your certain style. Cut out every outfit or piece of clothing you love, keep them, and use them when your out shopping. I love this method because you can keep it forever. I love creating a binder full of images that I love, and make it more like a scrapbook. Of course if you don't have time for that (I rarely do) than you can just save the magazine and mark the pages you like.

♥ Shop online at your favorite stores. Pinterest can be frustrating since not all photos are linked to clothing stores, so therefore finding that same exact clothing item can be extremely difficult. But when looking online your able to see what items you can pick up at your local stores, and see what price range your certain look is.

♥ Select a favorite celebrity and copy their style. I do this all the time. I love Jennifer Anniston's style its very clean and classy. Taylor Swift also has some adorable casual dresses and tops that I just love! So once you have your celebrity girl, really study her style and examine how she wears certain pieces. Sometimes seeing pieces of clothing on never ending racks in stores and be overwhelming and not very helpful, therefore i love seeing what how stars put together their outfits. Of course you can do this with your favorite bloggers as well!

Finding Your Style // What Works for your Body Type

When finding your style you may find that you like and even wear many styles. You probably don't just have one style, but a few. But if your like me, there are going to be styles that you just can't pull off. Whether it's because of your body type, or simply it just doesn't look good on you. Believe me, there are many reasons why certain styles don't work. Here are a few tips when shopping and knowing how to pick out certain outfits for your own personal style that fits your body type.

♥ Choose flattering patterns. For some people strips are their favorite but some stripped patterns are easier to pull off than others. So when searching for strips see which work better, vertical or horizontal strips. The same goes for polka dots. I love polka dots but the bigger the spots the more horrible it looks on me. So I always pick up tops that have tiny little polka dots all over.

♥ Wear solid colors. Sometimes depending on the style of the shirt, solid colors tend to slim the body, compared to busy patterns all over the shirt. Plus when wearing solid colors it makes it so much easier to arrange certain outfits.

♥ Don't buy tight clothing. Okay so we have all done it, bought a shirt even though we knew it was too tight but got it anyway because we loved it too much! Well I encourage you not to do that. Wait for the right clothing that fits perfectly. Depending on the type of clothing I will buy a bigger size (especially my pajamas) that way I can always wear it, and never have to get rid of it.

♥ Pick out fitting jeans/shorts. This can be so important. I know everyone loves skinny jeans but sometimes you have to buy what looks good, instead of what's so popular. I love skinny jeans but they don't always look the best. So I buy lots of boyfriend jeans, capri's, and boot cut jeans. They fit the best and they are really in style right now. Remember be classy not trendy, because trendy styles fade much faster!

Finding Your Style // How to Organize Your Wardrobe

Organizing makes a world of difference! Having a clean closet helps you see all that you have and doesn't make you feel overwhelmed with all you have. Even though I have tons of clothes hanging in my closet it seems like every morning I still stand there and just stare at my overflowing closet but still feeling like I have nothing to wear. Maybe it's because I feel overwhelmed by everything I have and don't know where to start, or just that I have my favorites and tend to wear them everyday but then complain that I have no clothes! So I figured out that organizing really helps in the morning when choosing that perfect outfit.



 Get rid of everything you don't wear. Donate it, sell it, or throw it away. Do whatever you can to get rid of it, so you can have more space for new items. When I go threw this process I ask myself these questions; does this still fit me? will I really wear this? okay how old is this? is this really me? These questions help me eliminate so many clothes!



 Keep everything where you can see it. Don't hide your shoes in the very back of your closet, or place your favorite outfits at the bottom of the drawer. Display your most favorite and cutest outfits in your closet nicely, or place your most worn boots on a rack. This helps speed up the process in the morning when getting ready so your able to see all you have. This way your able to clearly see what pieces you can use to put together a cute outfit. When you keep everything in clear vision, your able to prevent lost items, or forgetting that you even own it. I also love to display my most worn jewelry. It reminds me all that I have and that way I'm able to wear things I don't normally pick out.

 Change our your closet seasonally. When winter comes its time to break out those sweaters and scarves! And in the summer I will switch out my drawers and put my shorts in my top drawer and put my jeans in the bottom, where I normally don't open. I'll break out my shoes for those certain seasons. This helps to change your mindset on what you can wear in those seasons. You don't have to switch out everything, but just the clothes you know are so impractical for that season. For example I don't put away all my tank tops in the winter because I love wearing my jacket over them.

 

 Figure out what you need to complete a cute outfit. Once you have organized your clothes your able to see what new pieces you'll need or even want. When you get rid of old shoes and clothing pieces your able to see what you would like to replace.