Week in Review

Monday: Perfect weather to unofficially end summer. Labor day drive down the lakefront.

Tuesday: Game night!

Wednesday:  Can't beat a free concert with Childish Gambino and Santigold.

Thursday: BBQs great for meeting new people.

Friday: I'm a sucker for free things, but a 24 ounce smoothie is no joke.

Saturday: Pears are in season. Time to bust out the pear recipes!

Sunday: Woooorrrkk. 

My Life Lately: Scrapbook

I'm back in the city, I'm back in school, and I am starting to get back into the swing of things. It's taken me a little bit to get used to having this much commitment but I think it's a good thing. It's a great chance to figure  out what's really important to me right now and where I should place my time. The beginning of the school year is always my favorite because there are new faces, free events, free food, and the weather is still nice. With that said, I have just been enjoying myself not working too hard. Here are some pictures of what I have been up to lately.

All used up: August

I just wanted to do a really really quick August empties post. I don't really have much because I have been back and forth between the city and home so it takes me about twice as long to finish up products. Regardless, I thought I would do a post so I am not hoarding empty bottles.

1. Clinique Rinse off Foaming Cleanser: I think that I finish up around one of these trial size tubes each month so I won't bore you with details again. In short, it's a really good no nonsense cleanser.

2. Clinique Deep Comfort Body Butter: This is also a trial sized version from Clinique that I tended to use on my feet, elbows, and knees. It hydrates well, but there is no scent and leaves an oily residue. In my opinion it  is not worth actually purchasing.

3. Maybelline Falsies Volume Express Waterproof Mascara: It's definitely one of my favorite mascaras. I love that it holds my curl and stays put all day long. When I first started using this I got a ton of compliments on my lashes so it is something that I continually repurchase.

4. Covergirl Naturally Luminous Bronzer in 440: I have had this for forever and abused it so much that the top cracked and fell off. I recently repotted it into a different container. I used to really like this, and then I stopped using it mainly because I was using it wrong. My sister still love it so I thought I would give it another try. It turns out, if I use it on the apples of my cheeks it leaves a really nice healthy glow to my skin. I plan on buying another container which I hope lasts me just as long as this one did.  

5. Banana Boat Sport Performance Sunscreen: My family used this on vacation. It's hard to tell how well it worked. I do know that it was convenient but applied very splotchy.

6. Lush 9 to 5 Cleanser: I received this sample when I made a purchase at Lush. It is a really milky cleanser which is different from their solid cleansers which I have used in the past.  To me it smells like milk and honey which I like a lot. As a cleanser it was messy and I didn't feel like it was as effective as the others.

rhinestone bracelet diy

I know that stackable bracelets are kind of a summer thing, but I honestly believe that with the right colors, they'll look really nice in the fall as well. I made this bracelet to pass the time while traveling. It's relatively easy to do and low cost so it's definitely worth the try.

I used two colors here but you can use one if you would like. I think that a burgundy would look really nice because I have been obsessed with that color lately. All you need is embroidery floss, a safety pin, and a strip of rhinestones which can all be found at Walmart or a craft store like Micheals.

I am  really bad teacher so I'll leave you with these pictures and This link to a tutorial that teaches you how to create a bracelet like this. The only difference is that I used the rhinestone strip in the center.

Good luck!

my thoughts: jillian micheals cleanse

Not too long ago I saw a pin on pinterest for jillian michael's recipe to lose 5 pounds of bloat in 7 days. I was skeptical at first but I decided to give it a try because it seemed relatively low risk and who's not down to beat the bloat? 

Here is the link to the recipe

I could't find just dandelion root tea at Walmart so I used a combination detox bag from yogi. My initial reactions were that the flavors were bizarre together. It's not something that I can pinpoint but it just tasted weird to me. It did get better throughout the week, though, and it definitely tastes better really really cold. 

I had been stuck on a certain weight for many months and within the first two days of this cleanse I managed to drop three pounds. My stomach looked flatter and I felt more confident without changing much else than drinking this throughout the day. Unfortunately, that was the extent of the effect. I gained my weight back at the end of the cleanse and I was back to my original weight in no time.

I understand that this is a temporary diuretic and for that use only, I think that it worked well. It's definitely not something that I would recommend long term but if you are looking for a quick fix for an event then try it out. I don't think that I would do it again because I can't get over the taste, and the peeing every hour is quite inconvenient.

On the plus side, my tea bags had a few really good quotes so I'll leave you with some of those:

• Strength does not lie in what you have. It lies in what you can give.
• You will feel fulfilled when you do the impossible for someone else.
• We are here to love each other, serve each other, and uplift each other

Thrift Tips

Last weekend was a 50% off everything day at the discount family outlet which means one thing...marathon thrifting with my mother! And I mean marathon, that lady can shop for hours and I sometimes have to bring snacks to hold me over. I love it but it can be overwhelming for some so I wanted to share some of my top tips for thrifting:

1. Allow yourself some time. It takes a lot of time and patience to sift through everything in the store, but I recommend that you do, for the most part. There's only one of each item so it can be hard to see so you might miss out on something great if you don't.

2. Stuff anything in your cart that looks like something you may use. You can go ahead and sift through it later. I just find this easiest for me, especially if certain colored tags are on sale because I tend to forget which colors are on sale. Also, some things look differently on the hanger so it's good to try things on and see what works and what doesn't. Which brings me to my next point...

3. Try things on. Some places have fitting rooms, some don't. For those that don't there are usually mirrors which you can look in to help you use your best judgement. 

4. Don't be afraid to get creative. Not everything is going to fit exactly how you want or be exactly what you want. I like to use this as a time to be creative. You can find items for cheap that may look better with studs or maybe pants look better as shorts. Also, adding a belt to something can help it fit better. I tend to do a lot of cutting and sewing with my thrifted items and I don't feel bad because I didn't spend too much money on them. Plus, it's fun to do.

5. Experiment with textures, styles, and patterns. I think that the thrift store is the best place to do this because you aren't spending a fortune on a style that you may not like later or only wear a few times. It is a great place to find unique pieces so you should definitel take advantage of that.

Happy Thrifting!

Brown Flats, Head Scarf, Coach Bag, and JCrew Shorts all found at various thrift stores

Clearwater, Florida

While my parents were helping Amy move into her new apartment, Jeff and I Spent the day at Clearwater Beach. It is definitely more of a touristy place than the other beaches we had been to, which has its ups and downs. The beach is more crowded, but there were a ton of shops and things to do.

We went around a time when they were featuring dolphin statues which were each painted differently by local artists. You can tell that some really spent a lot of time and effort working on theirs and, collectively, it is something worth checking out.

Probably the highlight of my day was taking a spontaneous dolphin watching tour. I had never seen wild dolphins up until then and it was amazing. Dolphins had always been my favorite animals growing up so I was extremely excited to see them. We found a pod and, even though they were sleeping, they were absolutely beautiful to watch float in and out of the water. The tour also takes you to see some of the million dollar homes in the area owned by various celebrities who almost always belonged to the church of Scientology and did a pretty good job of pointing out other points of interest as well.

Every day around sunset at the pier they have a festival with vendors and street performers. It's a great environment to walk around in, the vendors are all so talented, and the sunset was gorgeous. Definitely a way to end the day.