A's April Favorites

How does time fly so quickly?! Crazy. So much to share with you this month!

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I've been using this yummy smelling conditioner all month and I love it!! So refreshing and my hair has been smoother and shinier! 

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I am legitimately obsessed with Humans of New York. Its basically a page of photographs of people in New York taken by a photographer who goes around the city taking pictures. The moments he catches are amazing. Check out if there's a 'Humans of (insert your city here)'. I promise it won't be easy to pry yourself away from this site!

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Every morning and every night (and sometimes even during the middle of the day). I've been loving my new love for tea. 

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Vera Bradley headbands. Cute, fun, and easy. Sometimes I even find myself planning my outfits around these headbands. 

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I go through phases where I really use Pandora and ones where I don't really. I definitely made use of Pandora this month. Whether I'm doing homework, working out, or just laying around, I've been loving just turning to Pandora and listening to music for whatever mood I'm in. My favorites are the 'John Mayer' Station and the 'Dave Matthews Band' Station. 

xoxo, 

A

C's April Favorites

Wow, I cannot even believe that it's the end of April!! It's time again for for our monthly favorites!

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This Bobbi Brown neon pink lip gloss has been a total favorite this month. I've been wearing it pretty sheer this month, but come summer, I know I'll wear it brighter. It's so fun and so happy!

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Oh my gosh, I'm going back to grade school years. These were honestly my favorite things ever. I got them a few weeks ago just because, and honestly they are soo good. I cannot even keep them near me.

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Ok, I know I got this shirt in December, but I haven't been wearing it all that much. Come April, I think  I've worn this shirt more than I care to admit. It's so fantastic!!

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The lululemon athletica skinny satin pirouette head band is more of a rediscovery for me. I let them sink to the bottom of my headbands, and they have now resurged and I love them. They don't come off and they are so cute!

Hair by Lady GaGa. So I haven't heard this song until now (or listened to it fully, I guess!) Even though I've had this song forever, it's a current fave!

What are your April faves? Watch for A's tomorrow!

xoxo,

C

Is It Memorial Day Yet?!

For most of us, its a bit too early to be thinking about bathing suit purchases. Memorial Day: The long awaited day when most Country Clubs or Pool Clubs open their pools and the swim season officially begins. We may or may not have about a month (on the dot) until Memorial Day...but when has that stopped us from doing some (online) window shopping? We know you're going to 'Ooh and Aah' over these too. 

We love us some seersucker. 

via J. Crew (only available online)

Polka dots and ruffles? Yes, please.

via Splendid

Pin-up chic. 

via Marc by Marc Jacobs

Loving this stripe color combo.

via Ella Moss

The anchors always get us. 

via Shoshanna

You know we couldn't leave Lilly out!

via Lilly Pulitzer

Love, 

A+C

Today's Balance Is: 86,400

Pretty powerful analogy if you ask us. Enough said. Make the most out of today and every day. Happy Friday, lovelies!

xoxo, 

A+C

Dry Bar

Dry Bars...if you're like me, you haven't heard of one (C). They are no where near me! Check this out! via The Dry Bar

Basically, they only do blowouts. No cut or color. It's $35, and a great confidence booster. Because no one really can do their hair as nicely as professionals! It's great for a random night out, interviews, travel, you name it. Both via the website linked above.

It looks like they are mostly in California, Texas, Georgia, Arizona and New York. Have you tried this before? Would you?


xoxo,
A+C

Disposable Pearls

Well, you're probably slightly puzzled by the title of this post. Fear not, it's totally logical and helpful. 

You can find these here at Girl Props for a whopping $2.99. For 15 pairs! (This is totally unsolicited, we're not receiving any money or compensation, just an idea we find clever and useful.)


The logic: Not to replace your good pearls, but to have on hand. Think: you can leave them in your purse, backpack, car, cosmetic bag and many other places. If you're going out and worried about wearing nice jewelry, these are great. You could lend them out and not worry about losing them. If you lose a pearl you can put them back in. A solid $2.99 investment if you ask me. They've saved me a handful of times!

Will you pick some up? Do you do anything else similar to this?
xoxo,
A+C


So

One Piece, Three Ways: The Bold and Bright Trench

Let's face it. It's time for something bold and bright. This post is inspired by this stunning Burberry bright yellow trench. 

Look #1: This is the casual running to class in the rain but I don't want to look like a mess kind of look. Or the it's pouring but I have to go get coffee look. It's easy and casual. Hunters can be worn in any color, but we love the bright on bright!

Look #2: This is the I'm going to lunch with my friends look or the I have an appointment look. Fun and sweet. The yellow speaks for the look.

Look #3: This is a wildcard. It's for a brunch or a benefit fashion show. The colors have a gorgeous contrast.

How would you rock this piece?

xoxo,

A+C

The Quiet Place

Monday's are stressful for us (to say the least). Take a second to visit "The Quiet Place"and start your week off right. You won't regret it. 

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Click HERE to visit The Quiet Place!

Thoughts?

xoxo, 

A+C

Creme Brulee French Toast

Creme Brulee French Toast is honestly one of my favorite breakfasts ever. It's something I only have a few times a year, but it is to die for! Here is the recipe from All Recipes

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter

• 1 cup packed brown sugar

• 2 tablespoons corn syrup

• 6 French bread

• 5 eggs

• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream

• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

• 1 teaspoon brandy-based orange liqueur (such as Grand Marnier®)

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

1. Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Mix in brown sugar and corn syrup, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Pour into a 9x13 inch baking dish.

1. Remove crusts from bread, and arrange in the baking dish in a single layer. In a small bowl, whisk together eggs, half and half, vanilla extract, orange brandy, and salt. Pour over the bread. Cover, and chill at least 8 hours, or overnight.

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Remove the dish from the refrigerator, and bring to room temperature.

1. Bake uncovered 35 to 40 minutes in the preheated oven, until puffed and lightly browned.

YUM! Happy Sunday!

xoxo,

A+C

Nail Drying

So, it's no secret that we (A+C) love love love nail polish. We love having our nails painted at all times. So, I (C) found this on RealSimple. This is the tip from RealSimple...putting your nails in ice water. Below is what Real Simple said:

Dunk your hands in a bowl of ice-cold water. "The cold water freeze-dries polish, sealing and hardening it quickly," says Belinda Rivera, a nail specialist in Austin, Texas. Allow nails to air-dry for two minutes, then submerge in ice-cold water for three minutes, which is enough time for the polish to harden completely.

Is this something you do or will try? Let us know! It's saved me a ton of time! Happy Saturday!

Love,

A+C

COVER THE NIGHT

For those of you who don't know, although I'm sure all of you do, KONY 2012 is an awareness campaign brought about by Invisible Children. IC is primarily an advocacy organization that spreads awareness through movie making and word of mouth. Here is IC's most recent video:

Although IC has gotten some slack as a result of this campaign, their techniques of advocacy, and the most recent news regarding the organization in the future, we are spreading the word about tonight's 'Cover the Night' event taking place in towns and cities across the world in the most neutral and unbiased way possible.

Cover the Night requires no monetary donations or any gains towards the organization of Invisible Children. This is strictly an awareness campaign to draw attention to Joseph Kony, the #1 most wanted man on the International Criminal Court's 'Most Wanted' list. He's been committing mass murders and mass attacks for over 25 years. Regardless of how you feel about Invisible Children, I think we can all agree that what this man has been doing (and continues to do) is absolutely and positively heinous.

The only thing you will be donating is: your time. Whether its 20 minutes, an hour, or even 3 hours of your night, take some time to volunteer by hanging out signs anywhere and everywhere in your town or city. If your school does not have a formalized event, look on Facebook for events in neighboring cities/towns. You can even be as bold enough to start one in your very own town with your friends! Every little bit helps. 


Here's what you can do:

• Print out the posters below OR even make your own. 
• Grab a group of friends. 
• Hang the posters up around your town/city. 
• Get people talking. 
• Spread the word. 

Remember: this campaign is not to celebrate Joseph Kony, but to raise support for his arrest and support a precedent for international justice. In this case, notoriety translates to public support against him and the atrocities that he has committed (and continues to commit). 

Will you be participating?

Love, 

A+C

Bonjour, Hello!

Last week, I (A) went to Montreal, Canada for Spring Break with friends. The city was a ton of fun! Although NYC will always have my heart, I was so impressed by Montreal! The city was clean, the subway system was very easy to follow, the nightlife was a ton of fun, and the restaurants were awesome! 

• My friends and I stayed at Le Centre Sheraton in the center of the city! We were within walking distance of shopping, plenty of metro stops, and lots of great restaurants. 

There it is on the left!

• I cannot stress enough how easy the metro was to use! Coming from NYC, Montreal's subway system was a piece of cake! Everything was no more than five or six stops away from each other (at most). 

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• I loved how diverse the city was. There were parts that felt just like New York, and other parts that felt like Europe! Old Montreal was by far my favorite part of the city to go to during the day. The cobblestone streets and the old world architecture was absolutely beautiful. It was absolutely wonderful to just walk around and enjoy the European feel of the city. 

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• My favorite site to see in Old Montreal was most definitely the Notre Dame Cathedral. The lights, the gold, the elaborate statues...everything was breath taking! We even got a chance to enjoy a "light show" in the Cathedral where they put on a show of lights and told the story of the church's history. It was one of my favorite moments of the trip!

Photos courtesy of my beloved blackberry!

• After a few lunches at little French cafes and comfy creperies, we took a trip to a market in the "Little Italy" section of Montreal! There were fresh fruits, veggies, breads, and flowers sold everywhere. We ended up buying fresh baguettes, cheeses, tomatoes, and olives and making our own sandwiches. SO yummy! 

Definitely blurred out my friend's face and her college sweatshirt, lol! 

Fresh gerber daisies! So pretty. 

• The food. I cannot say enough good things about the meals I had in Montreal. Let's just say that by the end of the week, our hotel concierge knew us all by name. He helped us out sooo much to find the best restaurants in the city. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures of the food...we didn't want to seem too touristy! But take my word for it :) 
• The nightlife. Another amazing thing about the city. Being that all my friends are of age in Canada (18 years old), we took full advantage of that and went out dancing basically every night! So fun. One recommendation I have: don't go to the touristy clubs/bars (i.e. Crescent Street). The native favorites are the places to go- plus, there are way more cute french speaking guys at the native hang outs! 
• All in all, I was amazed at how quickly I picked up French and how incredibly bilingual the people in the city were. Every time we would enter a restaurant or a store, the workers would say "Bonjour, Hello!" (hence the name of this post...) and it was amazing to me how easily they could turn one language or the other off in the blink of a second. So awesome. It was a great learning experience for me...next stop- France! 

Hope you all enjoyed my Montreal recap! If anyone has any questions about the city or any interest in visiting in the future, don't hesitate to ask! I'd love to help :) 

xoxo, 

A

Go To Hell

Go To Hell pants are so big this season! Patterns, florals, bright colors are all the rage. They're just as easy as throwing on a pair of pants, just way more chic. Here are some of our favorites! 

J. Crew- $118

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Erdem- $990 (These are a bit of a splurge!)

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MSGM- $279

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Lauren Conrad- $32.40 (What a steal?!)

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J. Crew- $199.99

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Harvey Faircloth- $335

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How do you feel about this trend?

xoxo, 

A+C

Background Tuesday!

Did you read our post Sunday? Well, you read saw the lyrics to "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" By Baz Luhrmann. This was my favorite quote from the song, and a great reminder to see as we work hard to get through the year.

See the background below, and right click it!

“ Don’t waste your life on jealousy. Sometimes you’re ahead, sometimes you’re behind. The race is long, and in the end it’s only you with yourself ”

Love,

A+C

MYMM: Babysitting

Babysitting. It's something many of us do frequently. It's a great and fun way to earn money! We all focus on keeping the kids safe and happy, but many times we forget about doing little things that are polite, and will make the parents happy!

1. Text/Call/Email to confirm. It's super easy and fast. This serves two purposes: Reminding the parents and letting them know that you didn't forget.

2. Ask the parents if there is anything that needs to be done. Does Johnny need help with his math homework? Does Jane need to clean her room? Parents will appreciate your asking!

3. Don't do anything without permission. Sure little Andy says that his mom and dad lets him order movies on demand all the time. But it's rude to spend the parents' money unless they have already told you it's ok.

4. Be sure to ask the parents how they are. It's polite and will let the parents know that you care about the family and not just making money.

5. Clean up. This doesn't mean you need to do their laundry or dust the living room. Simply put away toys and clean up the kitchen. My rule of thumb: The house should never be messier than it was when you arrived.

Keep Minding Your Manners!

Love,

A+C

Song on Sunday

This is a slightly random post. However, this song has been on my (C) mind for a while now. I heard "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen" by Baz Luhrmann in a presentation and it stuck with me. There is some great advice, as odd as this sounds. I'm posting a YouTub link and the lyrics!

Lyrics via Sing 365
Personal favorites are bolded and underlined.


Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '99. Wear sunscreen.
If I could offer you one tip for the future, sunscreen
would be it. The
long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by
scientists whereas the
rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my
own meandering
experience... I will dispense this advice now

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth; oh,
nevermind, you will not
understand the power and beauty of your youth until
they've faded. But trust
me, in 20 years you'll look back at photos of yourself
and recall in a way
you can't grasp now, how much possibility lay before
you and how fabulous
you really looked. You are NOT as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future; or worry, but know that
worrying is as
effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by
chewing bubblegum. The
real troubles in life are apt to be things that never
crossed your worried
mind; the kind that blindside you at 4pm on some idle
Tuesday

Do one thing everyday that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts. Don't
put up with people who
are reckless with yours. 
Floss.

Don't waste your time on jealousy; sometimes you're
ahead, sometimes you're
behind. The race is long, and in the end, it's only with
yourself.   Fave line!)

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the
insults. If you succeed in doing
this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank
statements.

Stretch.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do
with your life. 
The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22
what they wanted to do
with their lives; some of the most interesting 40 year
olds I know still
don't.

Get plenty of calcium.

Be kind to your knees, you'll miss them when they're
gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll
have children, maybe you
won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40. Maybe you'll dance
the funky chicken on
your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do,
don't congratulate
yourself too much or berate yourself either - your
choices are half chance,
so are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body, use it every way you can... don't be
afraid of it, or what
other people think of it... it's the greatest instrument
you'll ever own.

Dance... even if you have nowhere to do it but in
your own living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do NOT read beauty magazines they will only make
you feel UGLY.

CHORUS
Brother and sister together we'll make it through.
Someday your spirit will take you and guide you there.
I know you've been hurting, but I've been waiting to be there for you.
And I'll be there just helping you out whenever I can.

Get to know your parents, you never know when they
might be gone for good.
Be nice to your siblings; they're your best link to your
past and the
people most likely to stick with you in the future

Understand that friends come and go, but for the
precious few you should
hold on. Work hard to bridge the gaps in geography
and lifestyle because the
older you get, the more you need the people you knew
when you were young. 
Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes
you hard. Live in
Northern California once, but leave before it makes
you soft.

Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths. Prices will rise,
Politicians will
philander, you too will get old. And when you do, you'll
fantasize that when
you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians
were noble, and children
respected their elders.

Respect your elders.

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe
you have a trust fund,
maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse; but you never
know when either one might
run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair, or by the time you're
40, it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but, be patient with
those who supply it.
Advice is a form of nostalgia; dispensing it is a way of
fishing the past
from the disposal, wiping it off, painting over the ugly
parts, and
recycling it for more than it's worth.

But trust me on the sunscreen.

CHORUS

Everybody's free. Everybody's free. 

So lovely readers, take some advice from this! Have a great Sunday!
Love,
A+C

How To: Market Yourself For Summer "Work"

So, summer is drawing near for many of us. Those of us who don't already have a job and are not preoccupied with other activities might be wondering how we can make money without an "official" job. Here are some ways to market yourself!

Via

• Make flyers to distribute. Are you a pro house sitter? pet sitter? babysitter? birdsitter? (I did have a friend who was asked to watch over some birds...) Make a flyer or two! No, these don't have to be posted all over town, but you can have some on hand to give to neighbors, family friends, or others. A great way to advertise is through your church!
• Calling Cards! Say you coincidentally run into a family at your neighborhood Starbucks. You get to talking, and she happens to ask if you babysit. It's good to be prepared. No need to be fancy! Just make them yourself and print them on cardstock.
• Word of mouth. Your family can easily pass along your contact info to neighbors. Definitely explain your responsibility, patience, love for dogs etc.
• Email! You know that your neighbors spend two weeks in California every July? Drop them an email soon, and tell them how much you would love to help!

Market yourself well ladies!! Check back tomorrow for a continuation of this topic!
Love,
A+C

Ideas To Earn The Money

Well, now that you know how to market yourself, here are some ideas of what you can do!

We might be a little too old to this...

Via

• The standard: Babysitting!
• Petsitting, housesitting 

Onto more "Creative" Ideas

• Crafting. Are you an expert at something? Spend a lot of time on Pinterest? Find some cute things that you could spread the word about and make them! Fun and practical.
• Craft Camp. I remember going to one with college aged girls as "counselors" It's easy, and you can do a few different weeks. Keep browsing Pinterest etc! This is pretty good money actually. 
• Local Camp. A family friend does this for a few weeks every summer. She basically takes a group of kids around to local attractions. From museums to parks to landmarks. They also try different places for lunch and snacks. Also pretty good money, and fun for yourself!
• Party Help. You know your neighbors have a handful of summer pool parties. Shoot the breeze! Offer to help serve, clean up, or bartend (if you're of age.)
• Plant Watering. We don't mean hardcore mulching or anything, just simple watering or planting. If you've got a green thumb and elderly neighbors, this can be great.
• Pool Maintenance. This is for pool aficionados. Neighbors would love someone to help them out while they travel or if they are older. Also, you can offer to lifeguard (if you're certified, of course.) for pool parties with younger kids.
• Baking. If you're great at it, offer to help your family friends by baking for a brunch!

Via

Hopefully these sparked an idea for you lovelies!

Love,

A+C

PS-Welcome home to A!!

Things We Love: Pandora

Are you ever in need of some good studying music but just too lazy to make a playlist of your own? Are you getting ready for a party with friends and just don't know what music to put on your "Getting Ready" playlist? Yeah, that's basically the story of our lives. We've tried using the "shuffle" tool on our iPods and websites like Youtube, but nothing compares to Pandora. Pandora is awesome. There is literally a playlist or "station" for any sort of mood you could be in on Pandora. Literally.

Some of our favorite stations include...

Studying Stations

• John Mayer radio
• Third Eye Blind radio
• Dave Matthews Band radio
• Ingrid Michaelson radio

Easy going/ Wind down Stations

• Vampire Weekend radio
• The Raconteurs radio
• OAR radio
• Taylor Swift radio

Work out/Pump up Stations

• Avicii radio
• Kid Cudi radio
• Ke$ha radio
• Drake radio

The great thing about this website is that you can "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" any song to narrow down the type of music you want on any station that you chose. 

What are your favorite Pandora stations?

xoxo, 

A+C

Chocolate Covered Strawberries

So, this past weekend there was much reason to celebrate. Easter and A's first seder called for some special dessert. Naturally, I made chocolate covered strawberries. Easy, fun, yummy, and not too heavy. Compared to the other desserts at the Seder and at Easter dinner, the chocolate covered strawberries were actually more of a palate cleansing treat! 


Ingredients/ Supplies:
A pound or two of fresh strawberries (depending on how many you want to make)
A bag of Ghirardelli milk chocolate chips
Mini cupcake liners
Microwaveable cup with wide opening (sounds weird but you'll understand why later)
Big spoon
Spatula
Big plate lined with wax paper

Directions:


1. CLEAN THE STRAWBERRIES!! This is so important because of all of the yucky pesticides that are used on them. Place them into a filter and under cool water for about 30 seconds. Make sure you clean every inch of those babies.
2. Place them on a piece of paper towel so they can dry completely.
3. Pour some of the chocolate chips into the cup to fill about a quarter of the cup
4. Place the cup in the microwave for 40 seconds. Once you take it out, you'll see that some of the chips have still maintained their shape but don't fret- they are in fact soft. Take your spoon and stir it around.
5. The perfectly molded cup of yours should allow for you to dip each strawberry in (while allocating the best fit amount of chocolate per strawberry of course).
6. After dipping, let them dry for about 30 seconds as you hold from the stem. After 30 seconds, place them onto the wax paper.
7. Repeat steps 5 and 6 while continuing to stir your chocolate in an effort to prevent it from hardening.
8. As you repeat steps 5 and 6, you may need to repeat steps 3 and 4 if you are in need of more dipping material.
9. When you are done, place your plate covered in chocolate covered strawberries into the refrigerator. To be safe, wait anywhere from 30 to 40 minutes for the chocolate to harden completely.
10. When it is time for the dessert to be served, scrape them off of the wax paper with the spatula and place each into a mini cupcake liner. I promise it looks pretty and delicate and everyone will appreciate it.
11. Place the mini cupcake liners filled with chocolate covered strawberries onto a pretty plate and you are done!

Enjoy!!

xoxo, 

A+C

Mid Week Motivation

Chances are, you're reading this on a study or work break. Or you're reading to put off something else. Here is a little motivation for those of us who are having a rough week. (the best way to spend less than a minute!)

Little Jessica is a doll!! We can all take some advice!

Via

Almost there!!

Love,

A+C

One Piece, Three Ways: The Little White Dress

White Dresses scream summer. This Lilly Pulitzer one is no exception. Here are three different looks to help justify getting this darling dress.

(Aside: A is traveling until Sunday, so we hope A has a fun and safe trip!)

Look 1: Nighttime party (poolside? outside?). The nude pumps and the pearls dress up the dress, and the cork clutch adds some texture and a summery touch.

Look 2: Lunch or brunch. The Jacks make it casual. The fun earrings and bag give the white a pop of color.

Look 3: Running around. You can easily swap out your summer canvas tote for an evening bag and wear it out!

Do you where the LWD? Let us know!

Love,

A+C