SOCIAL MEDIA

Friday, April 10, 2015

Weekend Links

Yay it's the weekend! 
This weekend for me is filled with plenty of work including prepping for an ACT I'm taking next Saturday, lots of projects, and upcoming tests/quizzes. I'm happy to be able to get some sleep this weekend, but still get plenty of work done. It's crunch time for school right now and I need to power through with less than two months left! Any free time I've had recently has been spent exploring different websites (my favorite thing) and I've stumbled upon a few different things I wanted to share. 

+I was on YouTube the other day when I rediscovered this video of Carly from The College Prepster. She's too cute in this video! And she's actually a perfect human & I just want to be her.

+Did you hear about the boy in New York and girl in Minnesota that both got into all eight Ivy League schools? Life goals right there!

+Have you been reading The Undeniable Report? There's so many fabulous posts that you should check out!

+This DIY frosted vase for spring is adorable! Seriously the cutest thing ever!

+Eye opening article about "the third piece" to help you always look flawless!

What are you loving this week?

Have a fab weekend!

Xo
Thursday, April 9, 2015

Spring Trends

I probably couldn't be more excited for spring. It's April now so spring is totally among us! It hasn't completely warmed up in Chicago, but it hasn't been below freezing in a while so that's a good sign! I've done a bit of spring shopping so far and I can't help but notice some spring trends. I'm totally loving them right now. Here are a few of my faves!
pom poms // I've been obsessed with this trend ever since I first saw it. My friends will tell you that whenever I went shopping last summer all I wanted to buy was something with pom poms on it! They're seriously so cute! I was ecstatic when I saw pom pom shorts in the Lilly Pulitzer X Target collection! I'm super glad this trend hasn't faded away yet because I'm ready for a summer filled with fun pom poms!
tassels // Similar to pom poms, I was easily obsessed with tassels. I've seen them around on jewelry in past seasons and this year they've made a comeback. I've seen them on everything from jewelry, shoes, clutches and even clothes! I'm totally loving the fun touch they add. 
metallics // Metallics always seemed like a winter thing to me, but I've been seeing them all over the place this season. Particularly gold, which is fab for me because it's probably my favorite color! I've seen plenty of metallic shoes (like sandals and slip ons) and lots of tees with metallic accents.
gingham // Gingham has truly been everywhere on the runway this spring! I purchased a gingham shirt in the fall and I've been wearing it a ton already! In the fall it was super easy to wear under a vest and I'm looking forward to wearing it in the spring with some white jeans!

What spring trends have you been loving?

Xo
Wednesday, April 8, 2015

California Recap

If you've been following me on Instagram you know I've been exploring California this past week! California is my absolute favorite place on earth and I can't wait to move out there in a few years. This visit was to see some potential colleges! It was super exciting to see some places that I could possibly be attending school in a year and a half.

By the way, of all things to forget...I forgot my camera! We were halfway to the airport when I realized that I had left my camera at home. I was super bummed, but I just used my iPhone to take some photos.

After I hopped off the plane at LAX (with a dream and my cardigan--lol) we headed straight for Newport Beach! We rented a car (an absolute must in California) and drove south to Newport Beach. We explored Balboa Island and it was seriously the cutest thing ever! I sported a super comfy striped tee that I picked up in NYC last summer and it was the perfect thing to wear.
After checking in at our hotel we went out for a dinner on the water in Laguna. It was so nice to eat outside in the warm weather and sip a virgin margarita!

The next day we drove into Orange, CA to visit Chapman. Chapman is a bit of a smaller school, but I still really liked the overall feel of it! It's only a few miles from Anaheim so we headed to downtown Disney for lunch.
We then drove about an hour north back into Los Angeles. Moments checking into our final hotel destination there was a knock on our door. My mom is an event planner so she has a few connections when it comes to hotels. They sent up the cutest macaroons and chocolate USC sign. It was so adorable and delicious!
After exploring the hotel a bit my sister and I decided to take a little walk around Beverly Hills. My favorite thing about California, besides the palm trees, has to be that there is shopping everywhere. I was so excited to run into one of my favorite YouTubers, Tati (aka GlamLifeGuru) on the street in Beverly Hills. It was so great to chat with her for a minute and see her in real life after seeing her on screen for so long!
The next day we headed to see Loyola Marymount University and the campus was absolutely stunning. The school honestly wasn't for me, but the grounds were just beautiful. It reminded me a lot of Pepperdine University (where they filmed Zoey 101!). After our tour we were starving and decided to grab lunch at the famous In-N-Out Burger. I have to say, it was a bit disappointing. I was expecting it to be super amazing, but it was just okay. I was glad to finally eat there, but I wouldn't necessarily go back.
On our final day in California we decided to make the trek to Santa Barbara. I'm so glad we did because I absolutely fell in love! The campus was beyond beautiful and beachy! And it only helped seeing cute surfer boys everywhere! We headed into downtown Santa Barbara to do a bit of shopping and dinner and we were back on the road to LA.
Before we left for the airport we had to stop for an early lunch at Lemonade. I had been dying to try it for some time now and Caroline via citrus & style had highly recommended it. It was seriously so good and the guava limeade was seriously to die for!
I absolutely loved my trip to Los Angeles and I can't wait to move out there in a few years for college hopefully. Sorry this post was super long, but we covered a ton of ground in Cali!

 I hope your spring break was fabulous too! What did you do?

Xo
Tuesday, April 7, 2015

Easter Brunch

Easter has to be my favorite holiday of the year (well maybe it's tied with Christmas). I mean it's basically just national brunch day! And who doesn't love brunch? This Easter I was so glad not to be traveling so we could be together as a family. The weather was also so beautiful (for Chicago at least) and it was nice enough to be outside! My aunt seriously put together the cutest brunch ever this year! She's super crafty and did so many cute little things around the house to make it look super festive. 


 My cousin Carly and I (my official photographer) happened to be color coordinating!
 How cute is the Happy Easter banner my aunt made? She used paint samples!
I posted this photo on twitter of these adorable drinks my aunt made! She froze strawberries, apples, and lemons and use them as "ice" for sangria. And the striped straws were such a tasteful touch! Btw, I'm wearing a dress from Vineyard Vines and Tory Burch earrings. 

How was your Easter?

Xo

PS I'm recapping my California trip tomorrow so stay tuned!
Monday, April 6, 2015

Lilly for Target Picks

I posted about Lilly Pulitzer for Target a while back and the collection is seriously too cute! And it launches April 19th!!! I'm way to excited! Experience the party here and explore the collection. I've rounded up my most treasured pieces from the collection to snag before they sell out!


Lilly X Target

My favorite thing about the new Lilly Pulitzer collection from Target has to be the variety of items available. There was a lot of controversy over the new collection, mainly because Lilly is a higher-end brand and launching a collection at Target could sacrifice quality and originality. Personally, I love the many different styles of items that are featured in this collection!

The fun, bright patterns are so fun! Those pom pom shorts are absolutely #1 on my list! I can't wait to wear them when I go to Hawaii this summer! That halter top is next on my list. I love the shell pattern!

What are you guys loving from this collection?

Xo