Fall Semester Is Ending!

The fall semester of my senior year in college is coming to an end... quickly. Wow - I never thought I would say that statement. Considering I had never planned on attending college until my senior year of high school, I am extremely proud of myself. I accomplished a whole lot this semester... although I will admit I took on way more than I could appropriately handle. I have big dreams, and a lot of ambition - but I have to remember that I'm not superhuman, and if I spread myself too thin then I will not be able to produce my best work.

That being said, here are a few things that I designed this past semester:






In addition to working at my computer, I worked for The Sampler as an intern. I learned how to contact artists' management in search of things such as media passes, and had the opportunity to watch a little music blog really blossom over the course of a semester.

I had a little bit of additional income through my Etsy Shop. I design a variety of typographic prints and sell them for a small profit.


Passion Typographic Print by dontpanicdeanna
I also did some marketing for Spotify and Adobe Creative Cloud. Follow the links to try a free trial of Spotify and Creative Cloud, respectively. With a part-time job at Old Navy on top of all that! Oh, wait - I own a direct sales business as well over at Chloe + Isabel by Deanna.

I can't really say that I'll miss this semester! Though I accomplished a lot, I also wish I could have focused on classes more. Next semester I have a really great schedule with a great set of classes and teachers. It'll be much more conductive to learning, and I'll be sure to not take on too much!

Thanks, Thursday v.1

Okay.. sometimes I feel like I don't always appreciate all the things around me as much as I should. So, I'm going to start a little segment on my blog and dub it, "Thanks, Thursday!" Every week I'll try and write a little blog about something or a few things that I'm thankful for.

This week, I'm thankful for my mom! (I know, I know... it's cliche for a first post.) But, my mom has honestly been helping me out a lot lately - and I don't think she realizes how much it means to me. Even though I tell her each and every time!


If you didn't know, I go to school 900 miles away from home. It's hard on mom, obviously! But just this week, she mailed me enough groceries to last the zombie apocalypse. (And then asked if she sent enough...) Today I picked up two twenty pound boxes from the mail room - filled with food - and I swear I can barely fit it all in my cabinets.


Now, she didn't have to go out of her way to grocery shop for an extra two people, package it all up, haul it to UPS, and send it 900 miles. Nope. It would have been so much easier to just send cash. But this week (and basically every day) my mom goes the extra mile for me. And she has no idea how much I love her for it!

Love you, moms!


(Okay, so there's only 1 picture of her in that collage, but I'm in it too - and she raised me... and I was precious. Justified.)

Mémoires de Paris Preview

Hey everybody! I'm really excited to share some of my favorite pieces from the fall launch with those readers interested in jewelry and fashion! The Mémoires de Paris collection is near & dear to my heart. In high school, I went through 4 years of French language and became almost fluent. Today, I have almost no use for my French, and have lost most of what I have learned.

I have forever since been influenced by French language and culture, and love each of these pieces in their own way. If you have any questions about a piece that is not tagged, feel free to ask in the comments!


a. Le Rococo Statement Ring - $42
b. Le Rococo Link Bracelet - $78
c. Le Rococo Stackable Rings - $42
d. Sunset on the Seine Leather Bracelet (Doubles as headband!) - $48
e. Sunset on the Seine Cluster Ring - $48
f. Le Rococo Statement Collar Necklace - $148
g. Sunset on the Seine Collar Necklace - $78
h. Tresors Charm Necklace Set - $24-$48


i. Deco Cascade Adjustable Brass Cuff - $78
j. Jardins du Trocadero Statement Bracelet - $68
k. Jardins du Trocadero Pave Wrap Bracelet - $58
l. Le Rococo Post Drop Earrings - $48
m. Jardins du Trocadero Post Drop Earrings - $58
n. La Belle Rose Collage Bracelet - $58
o. La Belle Rose "Elyse" Bracelet - $58


These are the Round Emerald Stud Earrings. I'm giving away a pair to one lucky customer who places their order before 11:59pm on August 31st. Keep them for yourself or give them to a friend, either way they're a gorgeous piece!

Want to keep connected with chloe + isabel by Deanna and keep informed of future giveaways, contests, and sales?

Shop the Boutique | "Like" on Facebook | Sign up for the Email
Always be sure to sign up as my customer in my boutique and add your favorites to your shopping cart. You never know when I'll be doing a random giveaway!

Senior Year Begins

"Hi everybody, my name is Deanna and I'm a senior in creative marketing and design."

Is this honestly how I have to introduce myself in all my classes? A senior? Already!? I feel like I was just a freshman... College so far as been a crazy, chaotic, emotional experience on so many levels and I'm not quite ready for it to come to an end!

I have so many things going on this semester, I hope that I'll have a second to revel in my seniority...

I'm taking 6 (technically 7!) classes... I have a couple of core classes that I'm behind on... College Algebra, Intro to Pre-Health Sciences I, and World Civilizations through the 1500s. But I do have a lot of classes related to my major that I'm looking forward to! Social Media Marketing (obviously!), Pre-Omega, and Art & Craft Design (!!!).
I have an internship! I'm officially interning with The Sampler! The Sampler is an incredible LA-based music blog that offers an eclectic mix of music recommendations right on the first page. No more searching through hundreds of genre-based music blogs looking for new music.
I'm still working for Chloe + Isabel! We just launched our fall collection and I'm so excited to share it in the next blog post. I'm giving away a pair of the round emerald stud earrings to a lucky customer who makes a purchase between now and August 31st at 11:59pm! Be sure to sign up as my customer so that you can be considered for any future contests!
And I'm still selling on Etsy! I haven't been adding too many new pieces, but there are still a bunch of favorites available. Shop here!

I'm so excited to track the good (and the bad) moments through my senior year, and I hope you'll stick around to experience it with me!

Chloe + Isabel Giveaway

Hey everybody! I know my posts have been sparse, but I'm trying to get back into the habit of posting semi-regularly. I wanted to pop in today to let you know about a raffle I'm holding for my Chloe + Isabel boutique!

Until tonight at 11:59pm ONLY! for every $10 you spend, you'll be entered to win over $100 worth of jewelry from the upcoming fall collection, "Mémories de Paris!" We have only had a very small sneak peek at what will be available for the fall collection, so it's a surprise as to what will be included in the bag, but I promise it'll definitely be worth it! The new collection launches mid-August, and this is the perfect way to earn a few pieces from the new collection!



Good luck! And remember, only orders that are placed before 11:59pm EST tonight will make the deadline!

PS: If you'd like to share this with any of your friends, I sure would appreciate it :)

Get Busy Living Or Get Busy Dying

Sorry I've disappeared. A lot of things have been happening this summer and I feel like I can't move on with my little blog until I talk about them on here. So here I sit at 5:30 a.m. ready to tell the first story. I rarely talk about this subject at length, honestly because I know that there are too many people ready to fight my opinion, or tell me my opinion is wrong.

Fall Out Boy is and has been my favorite band in the entire world. On May 26, I had the opportunity to see them again after 4 years of hiatus. The last time I saw them back in 2009, I was standing there during their set, I was confused. Halfway through their set, I walked out of the arena. I remember saying to myself, "I don't even know who those guys are anymore. I don't even know who Fall Out Boy is anymore." And I guess they felt the same way, because they went on hiatus shortly after.

When they announced that hiatus, I don't think my heart could have ever broken into more pieces than it did. My favorite band is on hiatus. Possibly never to reunite. And I just walked out in the middle of their set, possibly the last time I could ever see them play.

I wasn't sure what to expect out of the Boston show on the 26th. The last time I had seen them I was 17. A lot of the fans were my age, and a lot of the fans were younger than me. And it's not like they were rapidly gaining new fans during the hiatus. To my surprise and also to my delight, almost everybody at the venue was my age. The tickets sold out in under an hour, so nearly anybody with anything to do at 10am on a Friday was out of luck.

At 10am exactly I remember refreshing the ticket page, picking out my floor tickets, and submitting the request. I was presented with tickets to the 2nd floor mezzanine, and figured it was a mistake and went back to make sure I clicked on floor tickets. Once I had lost my original tickets... the site crashed. And since I didn't have cell phone service in my dorm room, I was that girl sitting outside in the snow, crying, calling Ticketmaster, while trying to refresh the page on my ipad, and 2 different laptops. I honestly thought I had missed my only opportunity to get any tickets at all. Eventually I got through on the phone and was able to get tickets to the 3rd floor mezzanine.

Although I was delighted to even be there after the ticket fiasco, I was still disappointed that I was so far away from the floor. I wanted that sense of camaraderie, I wanted to feel involved in that moment when they walked out on stage and time just stopped. At the same time, I wanted to be the only person there. I know I can't be the only one in that room that felt like this. When you care about the members of a band just as much as you care about the music, you feel protective. I almost felt like nobody in that room had benefitted from their music like I had. I felt like nobody understood them like I did. I felt like nobody was more upset about the hiatus than me. It's hard to share something that is so, so personal.

But when those four boys came out on that stage for the first time since the last time, time really did stop. And there wasn't a single person in that venue that didn't hold their breath for a half a second. And not a single person stood still. And everybody had the biggest smile on their faces. And we all had the most important thing in common. Every... single... person. Every single one... felt the exact same emotions in that moment.

Life Lately

Has been crazy and hectic and overwhelming and I couldn't even begin to explain. So I'm just going to leave you with a quote that I'm giving into,

"When life reaches out at a moment like this it's a sin if you don't reach back, I'm telling you its a sin if you don't reach back! It'll haunt you the rest of your days like a curse. You're facing a big challenge in your life right now at this very moment, right here."
- Pat Senior, Silver Linings Playbook

I hope everybody has the loveliest of weekends.

New Additions to the Etsy Shop!

Hey guys! I got a lot of great traffic to my Etsy shop the other day after posting pictures of the prints I put up. So, I wanted to again share because I posted 3 new ones today! I also lowered the price, because this series of prints is really basic and $15 seemed a little pricey to me.


Passion 11x8.5 Typographic Print | $10


Dreams into Plans 11x8.5 Typographic Print | $10


Obey the Rules 8.5x11 Typographic Print | $10

A Quick Post To Celebrate....

The return of my Etsy shop! I haven't really been inspired to create anything with my hands, but I've been designing typography pieces for my room like crazy. I've had a lot of interest in them. Unfortunately, all my favorites I of course made with fonts I was unable to use commercially. I'll be sure to at least show them on here soon though!

So over the next few weeks I'll be experimenting with trying to sell my typographic prints here and there. I'd be more than happy to do custom pieces, especially for my loyal blog readers!


Might As Well Be Happy 11x8.5 Print | $10


Keep Smiling 8.5x11 Print | $10

Boston Calling

It was finally the weekend I've been (im)patiently waiting for all semester! Saturday I had the amazing opportunity to attend the first annual Boston Calling Music Festival! Despite the Memorial Day weather being rather unseasonable - in the 30's and freezing rain! - I managed to have a great day. I thought to myself, "self, you spent a good chunk of money on this ticket... and self, you need to seize this opportunity and enjoy every last minute of it." So I did just that. (I'm just thankful I dressed for the weather versus for fashion... none of the girls in shorts and flip flops looked to be enjoying themselves.)

We got there right on time and caught Bad Rabbits with the opening set. Time went by quickly with two different stages, so you weren't standing around waiting for bands all day. The shows were more or less seamless. We caught the end of St. Lucia and decided to stay at the City Hall Stage until MS MR came on. Even from across the venue, we could hear Cults decently while they performed. We left halfway through MS MR to get a good spot for Matt & Kim. Joke was on us, because by the time we got there, there were no good spots for Matt & Kim. We decided to settle for the next best thing - to find a dance party. Which, was also wildly unsuccessful. Eventually, we resorted to making our own dance party to the major dislike of those around us. But like... it's Matt & Kim. How can you not dance?

After Matt & Kim sadly ended, we decided to take a food break! We heard some of Portugal. The Man's set, and then got back to the main stage just in time for The Shins. Now I love The Shins... but I wasn't too impressed by their live set. I think a lot of it may have to do with the fact that their songs were lulling me... and after standing in the cold rain for 5 hours, I needed something to amp me up. Thankfully, immediately after we got to catch Marina and the Diamonds set! It was super, super packed. I don't think the venue was anticipating having such a big turnout for Marina or else they probably would have reconsidered putting her on the main stage. Marina was amazing. She is such a diva! And say what you want, but I think she's such a positive role model. Let's hope she stays that way!

At this point I thought I was going to die of exhaustion, so I was thankful that we had agreed to leave early at 9:30. I got to hear all the fun. songs that I wanted to hear, so I wasn't all that disappointed to leave in the middle of their set.

Overall, I had a great experience - and I think the festival ran so, so smoothly considering it was the first year and the weather was nothing like anticipated. It went so well, apparently, that a fall Boston Calling lineup has already been announced! (Un)luckily? It is the day after a Fall Out Boy show I was already considering flying home for. Why Fall Out Boy and Boston Calling continue to be so close to each other, I have no idea. But it's starting to feel like a really good sign.

I can't wait to tell you guys all about the Fall Out Boy show I got to see last night! Be forewarned - it will likely be sappy and overemotional and you may find that you're asking yourself if I'm 21 or 15.

Check out the schedule for the fall Boston Calling! What do you think? Did you do anything fun this weekend? Keep me posted!

Let Summer Live!

I'm finally home for the summer! I haven't had 2 moments to sit down and type out a coherent blog post... but let's catch up on what's been happening.

I've been working on launching my chloe + isabel line. I still haven't sold a single piece or booked a pop-up shop - but I'm working hard at it. Without school work I'll definitely have time to sit down and really work at it! It's a little discouraging though. If you're interested in hosting an online pop-up shop I would most definitely appreciate it!

I made the 14-hour drive home from North Carolina to Massachusetts. You'd think afterwards I'd want to sleep... but instead I painted my entire apartment in 2 days! I'll have to share pictures of my little space soon. After I rested up at home for 4 days I flew on down to Tampa, FL where I've been spending the last week. I just arrived home last night and I'm so thrilled to be spending the next few days settling in for summer.

Whew, I've been on vacation for so long that this post is starting to feel like work. Ah! Gotta fix that.

What are you most looking forward to this summer?

That's a Wrap!

I feel like this semester has flown by! It's already time to take some finals, pack up, and head home to Massachusetts for the summer. I'm trying to decide why exactly this semester has gone by so quickly and I've finally come to the conclusion that it definitely might be because I've been so busy!

Here's a quick re-cap, in case you missed it!

I started this little blog!
I got tickets to some amazing shows!
I got to go on vacation!
I got accepted to work at Bonnaroo!
I got busy with school-work...
I turned 21!
I became a Spotify Campus Influencer!
I became a Merchandiser for chloe + isabel!

This blog has been such a source of joy for me! (Although it would be great to earn an income from here...) that's not why I blog! It gives me great pride and joy to be able to go back through my posts and see all of the great things I have been able to accomplish in just a few short months.

I have only begun to show my true potential, and I'm really starting to grow as an individual. I really hope you'll stick around for the ride, because I feel like I have some really great things coming my way - and they all mean nothing if I have no one to share it with!

Friday Favorites: chloe + isabel

Happy Friday! I know all my posts lately just seem to be me sharing good news, and I'm sorry! But I am just overwhelmed with all the good fortune that has come my way recently, and I love having the opportunity to share it all here. As of yesterday, I am now a merchandiser for chloe + isabel! Not only will this give me an opportunity to earn some extra income, I'll also be able to use my degree in marketing and really put my theories to the test!

This week, I wanted to share some of my favorite chloe + isabel pieces. Even better? All of them are less than $25! I sense a shopping spree coming on over here.



All of the above pieces can be found over in my boutique under the 24 under $25 section. Also be sure to check out my picks for Mother's Day, as well as my personal favorites!

Ooh, one more thing! chloe + isabel is hosting a friends + family sale right now! Until Monday, April 29th at 11:59PM EST, you can receive 25% off your order of $50 or more! All you have to do is enter BFF25 at the checkout. What could be simpler?



Please, let me know if you have any questions - or if you're interested in hosting a pop-up shop with chloe + isabel. I'd be more than happy to accomodate you.

What's your favorite piece of jewelry on the chloe + isabel website?!

Win a FREE Month of Spotify Premium!

If you read my last post, you'll know that I'm the newest Campus Influencer for Spotify! This fantastic job title has a few perks, one of them being the fact that sometimes I get one-month premium codes to give out to my friends! I hope you'll enter, especially if you're on the fence with Spotify. I promise that if you give it a chance, you will fall in love!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The raffle runs until May 8th, so you have plenty of time to share! Please let me know if you have any questions. Be sure to track your entries by leaving it in the comments!

I hope you win!

Revolutionize Your Listening

Hey everybody! I have some rather exciting news, actually. I was recently selected to be a campus representative for my absolute favorite listening program - Spotify! I've been a Spotify Premium subscriber for over a year now and I think paying $9.99 a month is worth every penny.

I've been getting a lot of feedback from students on my campus as to why they don't use Spotify yet. A lot of the answers I receive tell me that they haven't hard of it, they don't understand it, or they are content using whatever method they have been using. But I truly believe that if people knew what Spotify had to offer, it would be their first choice every time.

If you haven't heard of Spotify, listen up! Spotify is a better way to listen to music. There is no need to buy or download songs. Just hit play. Spotify works on your laptop, tablet, phone, and TV; so wherever you find yourself, the perfect music is always there for you. With over 15 million songs in the Spotify library, how could you resist?

If you're content using your iTunes, this one's for you! Do you enjoy paying $9.99 for one album on iTunes? Sure, the music is then yours to own - but what happens if you get a new computer? You have to go through and transfer all that music, and I find that it never works out easily. Or what about all that space it takes up? That space could be put to a lot better use.

Are you still using Pandora? If so, you really need to come over to the future of music! I left Pandora before I was sick of hearing the same 20 songs over and over for hours. Did you know the Pandora music library only has 900,000 songs? When you are using the Spotify radio function you have access to over 15 million songs. And you know what else? Wait for it. Unlimited skips!

There are 3 levels of Spotify. The FREE version works on your computer - made possible by ads. The UNLIMITED version is also available on your computer. It is ad-free for $4.99 a month. And the best option, the PREMIUM version. The Premium version allows you to listen anywhere - your computer, your TV, your phone - all unlimited & ad-free. The sound quality is superior and you can make playlists available for offline listening.

I want to spread the Spotify love! Join the listening revolution! Make your very own Spotify playlist and come back and share it in the comments. Come and follow me on Spotify! Why do you listen? Here's mine to share with you!

Because there's nothing wrong with sharing new music. #ForMusic

Twenty-One

Well, as far as I'm concerned, today marked my last birthday of aging... ever! I will now officially be turning 21 every year from here on out.

Since this is my first official 21st birthday, feel free to leave me your favorite drink suggestions!

Cheers!

Friday Favorites: One Hit Wonders

Happy Friday! While browsing the internet earlier, I stumbled across this list of VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders. Reading over the list brought back some rather hilarious memories. It seemed like the perfect topic for this weeks Friday Favorites post!



6. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) by The Proclaimers (1988)
5. Tainted Love by Softcell (1981)
4. I Know What Boys Like by The Waitresses (1982)
3. 99 Luftballons by Nena (1983)
2. Take On Me by a-ha (1985)
1. Come On Eileen by Dexy's Midnight Runners (1982)

Did you read over the list; what are some of your favorites? What do you think will become some one hit wonders of today?

A Couple of Type Projects

I said I would share a couple projects I've been working on for school. They're just a couple of simple typography projects. Any suggestions or feedback are always welcomed!



Our assignment here was to create an animal using letters all from the same typeface. I used everyone's favorite basic serif font, Times New Roman. I made this bird pretty quickly, I was thinking of doing a small series of animals instead of one complex piece.



The assignment for this one was very open-ended. We were allowed to choose two letters from the same typeface and make any sort of design or pattern. The assignment called for 9 art boards all with different typefaces and letters. After I came up with this one I thought I would do a "nature" theme throughout the whole assignment. I did another one that is a wave; but they took so long I drove myself crazy and am now taking a break from this project!



For this one we had to pick 2 letters (I picked my first and middle initial!) from the same typeface and angle and crop them 3 different ways. For each way we cropped it, we had to showcase it in black and white and in color. I believe this one is Times New Roman, too! Guess I need to mix up my type choices!



This was my first project of the semester! We had to do a piece based off the meaning of our name. I chose my first and middle initial to go inside the wave, and then the wave acts as my last initial, a C! My name means a combination of "girl from the valley" (hence the tree - yay nature!) and "bitter sea."

What do you guys think? What are some of your favorite design resources when you're searching for inspiration? I personally love looking up color palates. I'm addicted to Kuler by Adobe!

April Goals

Whoops! I completely forgot to do my goals for April. Well, it's still early in the month, right? Before we go into the April goals let's recap my goals from last month.

1. Attend all my classes! [FAILED] I went to all of my classes, came back from spring break and was completely washed out. I felt weirdly sick the whole week after, and missed a lot of classes. Then the week after that we had a whole other week off due to snow! So I guess it isn't all my fault, but still!
2. Don't overspend on vacation! [PASSED] I made Alicia in charge of the money because I can't bear to say no when she wants something. So I gave her $200 and said "fine, you deal with it." (To my complete surprise) we stayed completely on budget! We came home with zero money left, but that was to be expected.
3. Work on developing the blog! [FAILED] I don't think I did an awful job at this, but I definitely could have done better.
4. Design, design, design! [PASSED] I have been doing a whole lot of personal projects and that's definitely enough to keep me happy!

And now onto the...

1. Attend all my classes! Since I failed it last month, this one will be right up here, again!
2. Work on developing the blog! Okay, okay, last week I had a little too much vacation so I slipped up on this one. I'll do better this month!
3. Stick to my workout! Alicia so graciously put together a workout plan for me, so I need to stick to it. And, work real hard as to not yell at her every time I get mad because I'm tired. You're supposed to be tired, self. It's not supposed to be easy! Besides, if I don't build up some sort of stamina now those zumba & yoga classes you promised to do with Emily all summer are going to be real tough!
4. ENJOY MY BIRTHDAY! I have this awful tendency to try and be a perfectionist (and sometimes a control freak) when things aren't going my way. I have an AMAZING SET OF FRIENDS working super hard to make this birthday great. I trust them completely and I just need to step aside and enjoy my birthday instead of stressing about whether everyone else is having fun or not.

Well, here's to hoping these goals are easier to stick to!

I've Gone Missing

Sorry for the lack of updates, everybody! I've been feeling extremely under the weather the past couple of days and honestly haven't had anything exciting enough to blog about.

I have a couple of design projects in the works right now that I'm super excited to share. The semester only has about 4 weeks left so it's really crunch time.

Does any body have suggestions for low-cost to promote blogs? I had such a great experience advertising with Kaelah over at Little Chief Honeybee last month, but unfortunately will be on a really tight budget this month with travelling expenses.

I'll be around with some new stuff very soon!

Thinking Back

When I first started high school, I really had an awful time. There were so many new people, I had a hard time making friends, and I didn't know how to handle it. Every day for the first month I would work myself up so badly. I couldn't eat, I barely slept, and I was throwing up almost every single day. I had no idea how to handle what was going on. So I didn't handle it at all.

Freshman year of high school, I developed an awful habit of skipping school. I realized that if I had a note from a doctor or if I went to the nurse and told her what was going on, I could get out of it. Every single time, I felt guilty for not going to school. Don't be fooled, I wasn't an under achiever by any means. I kept up with all of my school work, I had A's in all of my classes all throughout high school. I just couldn't stand being there. Freshman year I looked into virtual school, and even dropping out; but thankfully neither of those two things ever happened. I just kept going to school, and I just kept skipping school.

Every year when school started the same thing would happen. I would be sick, anxiety would kick in, I didn't want to go. But my tricks never failed me. I kept going to the doctor and going to the nurse, and I would have my days off. I think every single year I racked up over 20 absences. But I was still getting A's. I was still on the honor roll.

When I came to college, I noticed that my anxiety wasn't as bad. I wasn't getting sick at all. There was nobody telling me that I had to go to class. It was my turn to decide: did I want to remain on the path I was on, or make a new one for myself?

I'm a junior in college now. Hardly even a year of classes left and I'll be graduated. My financial aid and I pay a great deal of money for this degree that I'll be awarded. Somebody, all of us, are paying for my education. When I'm walking across that stage and graduating with honors, I'll have myself to thank. I did this for myself. I made these changes.

So today I realized that if I'm going to leave this college with tens of thousands of debt, you know damn right that I'm going to give it my very best shot. And if you're here to try and hold me back from that, I'll kindly show you the way out.

Birthday Wishlist // Year 21

The rumors are true, I'm an Aries baby (April 11th!); and 21 is just around the corner! I wanted to put together a cute little graphic of a handful of things I'm hoping for this year (other than money to pay off my credit card debt, ouch!).



1. Keurig K-Cup Home Brewer $115 (free shipping!) from Amazon
2. Sanuk Yoga Sling $36 (free shipping!) from Zappos
3. Ravenclaw Charm Bracelet $16 from Etsy
4. Prismacolor Mixed Media Set $58 from Amazon
5. Fossil Morgan Traveler in Black $168 (free shipping!) from Zappos
6. Tribal Backpack $32 from FredFlare
7. Fujifilm Instax Mini $59 from WalMart
8. Crosley Cruiser in Green $80 from Target
9. Harry Potter 8-film Collection $57 from Amazon
10. Adobe Creative Suite 6 Design & Web Premium for Mac $599 Student Edition

Also feel free to browse my Etsy favorites, Pinterest boards, and Wanelo saves for inspiration!

What do you want most for your birthday this year!?

I'm Going to Bonnaroo!

My acceptance letter came on Friday, guys! For some crazy reason I'm actually looking forward to working in Tennessee June weather, camping with tens of thousands of strangers. I feel like I haven't done anything this weekend besides look up all sorts of survival guides and packing lists.

It's still two months away, but I just want to be prepared! I have already begun making lists and getting clothes together. I bought a new pair of shoes, a skirt, some shorts, and a shirt. I realize that there are a million moe important things I need to buy, but shopping for clothes is more fun than camping gear.



For anyone interested I'll be working during-show (merp) as part of the partner activities team. "Assists festival partners and sponsors with their activations on site from helping set up to running fan interaction with the different activities." It wasn't my first choice, but I'm happy to just be a part of the team, honestly. (And the free ticket is cool, too!) Anyone interested in volunteering can APPLY HERE! Why not!? It'll be fun!

Have any of you gone to Bonnaroo before? What do you wish someone had told you before you went?

Friday Favorites: Books

Another week, another Friday Favorites post! I've always been a huge bookworm. I've always enjoyed reading but always find myself wishing I could find more time for it. Here are just a couple of my favorite books, you can guarantee that there will be more posts like this in the future!



1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower I first read this book probably freshman year of high school. I found it to be extremely relatable. The characters were real to me and I imagined myself as many of them. I find myself rereading this book again and again. I've gone through at least 3 copies of it, underlining and highlighting my heart away.

2. This I Believe This I Believe is a book of essays about what people deeply believe in. Many are about a higher power, but many of them have seemingly silly beliefs such as, "always tip the pizza delivery guy." Each essay is really eye-opening and gives great perspective on life. I even used the "This I Believe..." formant to write my college essay!

3. The Hunger Games Trilogy I remember when I was first introduced to the Hunger Games. "I don't want to read that - it's a ripoff of Battle Royale!" I can't remember how long it took me to finally come around and give it a shot; but I'm so thankful I did. Battle Royale and the Hunger Games are both bold political statements, but the Hunger Games is so much more than that! I read this series over and over and feel the same roller coaster of emotions again and again.

Sorry the list is so short this week - my mind has been frazzled all week long.

What are some of your favorite books?

Vacation Round-Up

Do you ever come back from vacation feeling like you need another vacation to recover?! That's just about how I'm feeling this Tuesday morning. Luckily, my classes have been easy so far so I can slowly get back into the groove of things.

This vacation, Alicia and I spent every morning for a couple of hours taking care of 10 mastiff puppies! Aren't they so cute? They're only a week old and they're already such a handful. I can't imagine what kind of chaos they'll be causing once they start to walk.

I didn't take a whole lot of pictures over vacation (I know, boo!) but I'll share a couple that I had posted up on my Instagram.



I finally purchased tickets to Boston Calling! Karley, Em, and I are planning to go together and I think it's going to be an epic weekend for music in general!



Alicia's parents brought home this adorable 8-week old mastiff puppy just a week before their litter was due. His name is Hercules and he's a total brat!



Saturday night, Alicia and I went to a club in Ybor, Florida called the Honey Pot. Even better, Dani Campbell from A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila was the guest of honor! I almost passed out I was so starstruck. I remember being so upset when Tila didn't pick her during the show!



I'M AN AUNT! My older sister had her first baby last week! His name is Calem Edward and he's super-cute.

Was anyone else on vacation last week? How was it? Don't forget to leave me the links to your blogs!

Friday Favorites: TV Shows

So last week I covered some of my favorite movies, and I feel like favorite TV shows go right alongside that! I don't get a whole lot of opportunities to watch TV. Whenever I do, it's either old episodes on Netflix, or if I'm lucky... new episodes on Hulu. But I never have time in my schedule to watch TV shows as soon as they air on the actual TV. Regardless, here's a few of my favorites.



1. New Girl: I love Zooey Deschanel, I love Jess Day, I love the roommate chemistry, the loft, and True American. This show is real to me - I know that these personality types are all mashed up in a loft in California somewhere and I love it. This show provides endless laughs with amazing characters.

2. One Tree Hill: I know, it's old! But ironically I just started watching it. Actually, I did see an episode when it aired ONCE, but only because Pete Wentz and Fall Out Boy were in it. I had no idea what was going on in the show, but I knew my favorite band was there! I've developed such an emotional bond with these characters (I don't think that's healthy). I'm on season 6 now, and I'm scared because there are so few seasons left!

3. 2 Broke Girls: Kat Dennings, yes. If you read my last Friday Favorites post, you'll know that Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist is one of my favorite movies. That's where my love affair with Kat Dennings began. She's awesomely sassy, just like me! Her role as Max Black in 2 Broke Girls is perfect.

4. Storage Wars: Everybody has a favorite show similar to this! I love watching these people bid crazy amounts of money on a locker they can hardly see inside, and then somehow making a few thousand dollars in profit. Some of the things they find are just so awesome!

What are some of your favorite shows? Anything I should check out?

Update from Florida!

Sleeping until noon is where it's at, y'all. I almost never get to sleep in at school between classes and work, but having absolutely nothing to do means I can sleep until whenever! I'll regret it when I get back to school though! I slept nearly 12 hours and I'm STILL tired? The weather was really nice this weekend, but now it seems to be cloudy and rainy.

Alicia's parents' mastiff had her puppies yesterday, 10 of them! So our task this week is pretty much to take care of puppies. I wish they were a little bit older so they would at least play. It brings back some memories of when my parents' saint bernard had puppies, it was a crazy time in my little life.

I'll try and have a real update soon, I wish I had time and / or the internet access to do so.

So much spring break, so little time!

Au revoir!

Memory Lane

I've seen a lot of concerts. Really, a lot. So many in fact, that I wanted to just come in here and post a list of all of them. It'd be a shame to forget something like that, I think. So here it goes!

2005
08/15 - Vans Warped Tour
11/22 - Nintendo Fusion Tour: Fall Out Boy, Motion City Soundtrack, The Starting Line, Boys Night Out, Panic! At The Disco

2006
02/07 - The Truckstops and State Lines Tour: Acceptance, Hellogoodbye, Panic! At The Disco, The Academy Is...
03/17 - The Black Clouds & Underdogs Tour: October Fall, Hawthorne Heights, From First to Last, the All-American Rejects, Fall Out Boy
06/25 - Angels & Airwaves, Taking Back Sunday
07/02 - The Hush Sound, Panic! At The Disco
07/04 - The Hush Sound, The Dresden Dolls, Panic! At The Disco
08/02 - Vans Warped Tour

2007
05/31 - The Honda Civic Tour: +44, Paul Wall, Cobra Starship, The Academy Is..., Fall Out Boy
07/12 - Acadia Landing, The Plain White T's, The Academy Is...
12/29 - The Dresden Dolls

2008
05/09 - Death Cab for Cutie, Amanda Palmer
05/11 - The Honda Civic Tour: Phantom Planet, The Hush Sound, Motion City Soundtrack, Panic! At The Disco
09/27 - Person L, Hit The Lights, Chiodos, Motion City Soundtrack

2009
04/28 - Believers Never Die Tour Part Deux: Hey Monday, Metro Station, All Time Low, Cobra Starship, Fall Out Boy
04/29 - The Bamboozle Road Show: Forever the Sickest Kids, The Cab, We The Kings, Mercy Mercedes, Never Shout Never
07/21 - Vans Warped Tour
09/19 - Mercy Mercedes
12/18 - Never Shout Never, Ace Enders, The Bigger Lights

2010
04/29 - Alternative Press Tour: Every Avenue, The Summer Set, Hey Monday, the Cab, Never Shout Never
07/13 - Vans Warped Tour
08/26 - mtvU VMA Tour: The Ready Set, Never Shout Never

2011
05/22 - FUN., Foxy Shazam, Panic! At The Disco
10/29 - FUN., Foxy Shazam, Panic! At The Disco
11/25 - The Cab, Simple Plan, Forever the Sickest Kids, Marinas Trench

2012
08/02 - Amanda Palmer & The Grand Theft Orchestra, Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys, Tristan Allen, Jaggery
08/03 - Katelyn Tarver, Parachute, The Cab

2013
01/25 - Tegan & Sara (Didn't make it all the way to the show)
01/30 - Walk the Moon, Blind Pilots (Cancelled - Flooding)
05/25 - Boston Calling Music Festival: FUN., The Shins, Marina and the Diamonds, Matt & Kim, Portugal the Man, CULTS, MS MR, St. Lucia, Bad Rabbits
05/26 - Fall Out Boy
08/01 - Panic! At The Disco
09/29 - Magic Man, Walk the Moon
12/08 - A Whole New World, Tegan & Sara

2014
02/07 - Panic! At The Disco
02/25 - William Beckett
05/25 - Boston Calling Music Festival:
05/26 - Boston Calling Music Festival: Tegan and Sara
06/23 - Tegan and Sara
07/11 - Magic Man
08/03 - Panic! At The Disco, WALK THE MOON, Magic Man

2015
01/15 - Cherub
03/23 - Milky Chance
07/17 - Joywave
07/30 - Milky Chance
11/22 - LIGHTS, The Mowgli's
12/13 - The Academy Is...

2016
03/18 - Various at SXSW Austin, TX
03/21 - Fall Out Boy, PVRIS
04/12 - Magic Man, The Griswolds, Panama Wedding
04/16 - Magic Man, The Griswolds, Panama Wedding

What are some of the best live performances you've ever seen? Bring stories! I know I definitely have some stories from some of these!

Friday Favorites: Movies

I've never really been a huge movie person. Somewhere, halfway through, I get bored and never make it to the ending. Or, I fall asleep. Most times, they just play repeatedly in the background (for days at a time mind you). I think favorite movies have a lot to say about a person. This week, I'm going to share 5 of my favorites! Probably also a couple of honorable mentions, too. As I'm typing I keep thinking of more and more movies I should have added!



1. Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist: When I first saw this movie, I was at a really rough place. I had recently endured a breakup with someone I had been with for years! Seeing this movie absolutely instilled hope within me. I remember being probably a sophomore in high school and going home and making all these posts about how excited I was to fall in love again. Ever since then, it's one of those feel-good anytime movies that just makes you wish you could be a part of it.
2. The Sitter: I love comedies, but normally they're just a watch it once and never again kind of thing for me. Once I saw the Sitter, I was instantly hooked. I literally watched it every single night for at least a week straight. (You can even ask Karley!) I still watch it whenever I just need to laugh, it's such a ridiculous movie!
3. UP: I feel like everybody is obligated to have at least one Disney movie in their favorites. This movie is so important to me. Not only are the characters whole and hilarious, but it's such a poignant picture of what this man will do in the name of love.
4. Harry Potter: If you know me in real life you know I'm a huge nerd! (I have two Harry Potter-related tattoos!) As a child I was always completely enveloped in these stories. I love the movie adaptations because it just makes it that much more real. I actually fear the day they begin to remake these. I feel like that will be the sign to know I'm getting old.
5. Crazy Stupid Love: I LOVE EMMA STONE, okay? Really. The House Bunny, Easy A, anything Emma, give it here. I'm not one of those to see the ending coming in movies, so when everything tied together at the end, I about died! Love, love, love.

Honorable Mentions:
6. Silver Linings Playbook (JENNIFER LAWRENCE!)
7. The Breakfast Club (Obviously)
8. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Heartbreaking!)

Ahh after adding in those honorable mentions I'm dying to talk about my love affair with those movies and more! I'll save it for another Friday.

What are your favorite movies?

Quick Update!

I feel like I never stop working! My job has kept me super busy these past few days, I've been looking forward to a big update but things just keep coming up.

My spring break starts this weekend, and I'm headed to sunny Florida! The forecast says it'll be nearly 80 degrees this weekend. Such a different environment from the snow and rain I've been getting on the mountain. Dresses everyday! I've packed 5 (and I wish I would pack more) but I am really sick of over-packing. There a few things I'm looking most forward to this upcoming week,

1. Dunkin Donuts! I know, I know. I don't have one at school. I'm not even a huge coffee drinker. But at home, there are literally 7 in my town. So not having the option to go to one really gets to me. Ahhh coffee!
2. Shopping! I really don't have money for shopping, but it'll be nice to even window shop. (Although I'm almost REQUIRED to buy something from Ross!) There are no great stores within an hour of school, yay headed to civilization!
3. The pool! I used to have a pool at home to enjoy in the summer time, but don't anymore. I cannot wait to lay by the pool on a daily basis. I could use the vitamin D!

Do you have a break coming up? What are you most looking forward to?!

Bands to Watch v.2 // MS MR

Good morning, blog world! I come to you this Saturday with yet another band to watch! This week's band to watch is MS MR. For Boston Calling, I made a playlist of all the bands I'd be seeing, hoping to find some new favorites. MS MR has this eerie sound about them, and I absolutely love it! I hope you enjoy it as much as I do. I can't wait to see what else they come up with. Don't forget, you can check out my recommended songs by using the embedded Spotify widget. Scroll to the bottom for the newest additions!

Friday Favorites: ModCloth

I wasn't planning on doing a second Friday post, but I was browsing the ModCloth site (who doesn't?!) and couldn't resist to share a few of my favorites that I came across.



1. BB Dakota: When the Night Comes dress in Petal. ($99.99) I don't know if I would actually be so daring to wear such a light pink color because I'm already so pale. But the lace is just too cute to resist. Maybe a dark cardigan could help from washing me out.

2. Sapphire for Hire Dress. ($49.99) This dress has been sitting in my favorites forever. I get a little weary with the defined waistline dresses because I find them to be uncomfortable when I wear them for too long; but the color and detail on the front? Love, love, love.

3. Nice to Meet Cute Top. ($42.99) Let's face it: the necktie totally makes this shirt come together. I want 3 shirts and neckties in 50 different colors and permission to wear this shirt everyday, please.

4. Musee Rodin Skirt. ($34.99) This is another one of those pieces that I would look for an excuse to wear daily. I find this style skirt to be super flattering! With so many colors and a price like that, I wouldn't think twice about ordering a few.

5. Black Currant Scones Heel. ($49.99) I'm not a heel person! I'll drool over them all day on the internet, but when it comes to actually wearing them, I cringe. I do too many weird dance moves and fall far too many times throughout the day to wear them on a regular basis. But this cute pair might make me change my ways.

6. Full Course Load Bag. ($84.99) I have a bad problem with bags. I have so many, and never want to give any up. The result is so many bags in a tote under my bed... I can't possibly wear all of them, but can't give them up. This one would be perfect for school - those days when I feel too dressed up to carry my go-to backpack.

7. Green of the Jungle Bag. ($59.99) I wouldn't normally go for a bag with animal print, but this green and leopard combo is way subtle and super dreamy. Too bad it's out of stock :(

March Goals

Happy March! Am I the only one who feels like February slipped by in a crazy dream-like whirlwind? Between school snow-days and getting lost for days at a time in my internet land, I guess it just passed along without me. Anyway, the goal forecast for March is looking good, and I hope to accomplish some great things this month.



1. Attend all my classes! Due to vacations and my birthday celebrations, I'll have to miss a couple of classes. But it's really important that I don't skip any more classes on top of that. Life of a college student, right?
2. Don't overspend on vacation! I have a strict budget for the entire month, and overspending on vacation can throw the whole month out of whack. This one is definitely going to be difficult.
3. Work on developing the blog! So far, I love this little blog. I can't seem to get enough of it. I want to make sure that I keep up with it and work on it each day to make it better, and be able to find readers I can connect with.
4. Design, design, design! I've been good at this one so far; designing has brought me such a challenge but also a great deal of happiness these past few weeks. Spending more time on my designs will make me a better artist and also happier overall with a sense of accomplishment.

What are some of your goals for the upcoming month?