July 30, 2014

Smoothie Recipe :: Strawberry Banana

Yesterday while shopping at Bed Bath and Beyond for all my dorm necessities I stumbled am upon the magic bullet. I've seen this on infomercials before and was always intrigued by the device. I'm a huge lover of smoothies but hate cleaning the blender. With the magic bullet the blender is the cup. So instead of having to clean a cup and a blender you only need to clean one thing. I also came to the conclusion that this mini blender would be perfect to bring to college. 

I have to say from the two times I've used the blender, I absolutely love it! It makes blending so easy! So today I thought I'd share the recipe to my favorite smoothie! 

Ingredients (serves 1): 
  • 1 banana 
  • 3 large strawberries
  • 7 ice cubes 
  • 1/2 cup of tropicana fruit punch 
  • Spinach (optional) 



1. Cut up banana and strawberries and add to cup 
2. Next add ice cubes and fill the cup half way with the fruit punch 
3. Screw on cross blade and blend until smooth 

Voila!! So simple yet so good! 



July 28, 2014

Dorm DIY #1: Lilly Pulitzer decor




Yesterday I decided to take a trip to Michael's to pick up some supplies to do some crafts for my dorm.  I've seen Lilly Pulitzer Mod Podge DIY letters all over the place so I figured I'd give it a try, so I purchased wooden letters for each of my initials.  I had not only saved my Lilly agenda from this past school year but from the one before that as well, so I had a lot of prints to work with.   I also picked up a wooden picture frame and small box.  I have to say I am completely thrilled with how everything turned out.  My projects will definitely help brighten up my dorm room and make it feel more homey.

While it's pretty easy to figure out, I decided that I'd share step-by-step instructions on how to create these projects for yourself!

What you'll need:

  • Lilly Pulitzer agenda (If you don't have an old agenda print out prints you like online on to normal printer paper, or if you don't love Lilly Pulitzer print out other designs).
  • Wooden Letters (or any other wooden object you would like to use)
  • Sissors
  • Mod Podge (I used the glossy finish)
  • Paint Brush
  • Newspaper (for protection)
  • White Paint (for box only)



Letters:

  1. Start by ripping out pages of the agenda that have the most pattern (these tend to be the first page for each month. 
  2. Cut the patterns into squares that could be used to cover your letter.  
  3. Once you've cut your agenda in to pieces you can work with start thinking about which patterns you'd like to go where.  Once I decided that I wanted a specific pattern in a spot I would flip the paper over and trace the letter so I could have an exact fit.  Then I used the trace to cut the paper down to size.   After I had my shape I numbered the area of the wood it went in as well as the back of the paper so I could keep track of where each piece was going.  
  4. I continued to repeat step 3 until the entire letter was accounted for.  
  5. To glue each piece on to the wood I applied the Mod Podge to the wood as well as the back of the paper.  
  6. Once all the paper was glued on I took the Mod Podge and went over the entire letter to seal everything in and give it a glossy finish.  

Picture Frame:(4x6)
  1. (see letters step 1)
  2. (see letters step 2)
  3. For the frame I used 8 different patterns.  4 corners and 4 middle pieces.  For the corners I cut out an "L" shape but made sure to leave from to wrap around the edges of the frame.  The middle pieces were just rectangles. 
  4. This project is slightly messier than the last. To glue the pieces on I again painted on a layer of the Mod Podge to the wood as well as to the back of the paper.  I had to use my hands to really mold the paper onto the frame.  
  5. Once all the pieces are glued on run a layer of Mod Podge over the entire frame to seal.  


Box:

  1. (see letters step 1)
  2. (see letters step 2) 
  3. For this project I used 4 patterns.  Using the squares I had cut out I lined the paper up over each side making sure to cover some of the bottom.  To cover the inside of the box I cut out little flaps that would fit.  I then repeated this step 3 other times for the other sides.  
  4. Gluing this piece was also messy because the paper had to where to four sides (bottom, side, top, inside).  I ended up using my hands to smooth over most of it. 
  5. Apply a layer of Mod Podge for a glossy finish.  
  6. Once the Mod Podge drys paint a few layers of white paint on the bottom. 

Enjoy!

July 16, 2014

Beau Beau Designs


Beau Beau Designs focuses on creating beachy summer jewelry in the form of necklaces, rings, bracelets, and earrings.  Mother daughter duo, Kate and Ginger make all of the jewelry themselves and their designs are really stunning.  Everything is so simple and can be easily layered or worn alone.


One of the pieces I picked up is this starfish necklace.  I love how simple it is and it also doubles as a wrap bracelet (pictured below).  



The earrings they make are absolutely perfect because they are so light.  I normally wear my peal studs everyday and when I swapped those out for these I thought I would've have noticed them more, but they felt just as light! The coolest thing you can do with these is alter the shape! As you can see on the right the earring is shaped in a circle whereas the left is a teardrop!

The freshwater pearl necklace is really stunning and looks incredible layered with the starfish necklace. This necklace is quint essentially beachy and I just can't get enough of it.  I love how Ginger and Kate pointed out that some of the stacked beads look like lighthouses! 
My favorite thing that I picked up may be their rings.  They are so adorable and incredibly comfortable, I haven't taken them off since I've gotten them! I love how these three look together and look great on tanned skin.

You can view more pictures of the Beau Beau Designs jewelry on their Instagram page.  If you're interested in purchasing one of their pieces or would like more information about the company please contact Ginger at gingergithens@aol.com.  The company does not have an online website set up just yet so you'll have to contact ginger directly to place an order.  





July 1, 2014

What's in My Beach Bag


Recently I've been going to the beach or pool any chance I get.  Today one of my good friends and I went to the beach for the day and had the greatest time laying out and shopping in the beach town stores.  Since I've been lugging my beach tote around with me more than any other bag these days I figured I should share what exactly I carry inside.  

The tote I've been using for the past few years is the Lilly Pulitzer shoreline tote.  It's the perfect beach bag because it can fit everything I need right inside including my towel and a change of clothes.  If you look inside my bag you would probably find this beach towel from J.Crew.  Recently I've been obsessed with fun towels, and I have absolutely no idea why.  For the longest time I've used a lime green towel from one of my dad's work conferences that is so boring.  I think fun towels make the beach experience all the more enjoyable! 

I hardly go anywhere without a pair of sunglasses close by.  Today I brought along my Ray Ban aviators.  I also took along my favorite whale hat, beats ear phones, and a favorite swim suit!

I hope you're all enjoying your summer!



 

site design by kiki and co.