Heeey summer.

{Bright arm candy- bracelets from Target}

{Farmer's market- already had way over my share of watermelons this summer}

{Florals and white cutoffs- this never goes wrong}

{The famous raunchy beach read- Fifty Shades of Grey}

{Perfect all white suit- bandeau top & crochet bottoms from Victoria's Secret}


It's my last lazy&carefree summer before starting a busy year ahead. I might just drive myself crazy by trying to savoring every moment of sweet freedom. It'll be bittersweet leaving home to a new city all alone. At the same time, I'm excited to have my own space for the first time in my life. Apartment interior design ideas are piled high and I think I need to start Pintrest to organize.
xx, A.

Laidback summer hair

I was inspired by this hair tutorial and tweeked it a bit to make this my quick fix to unwashed hair or a bad hair day. Instead of having my hair in a bun, I left my hair out and added some extra curls with a flat iron and pinned it all to the side opposite the braid. The combo of beachy waves and braids are too cute and perfect for summer. It is surprisingly easy to do. No awkward twists or turns of the arm and no soreness for holding onto the braids for a massive periods time. Of course, the lovely and beautiful Bethany did it 10x better than I, so check it out and hope you'll try it too!

It has been extremely hot this past week, almost reaching up to 100 degrees F. I've been a lazy bear and done nothing but lounge around pools and beaches. Ahh, sweet summer sun. I must confess that I started reading 50 Shades of Grey out of curiosity, and guilty pleasure much? Its shocking to read, but I can't seem to turn away. I'm a little more than half-way through it and am deciding if I shall continue on to books 2 and 3. It'll be the first trilogy I will read. Any one else read the whole trilogy? Love or hate?

Painting 101

I tried to paint you a picture,
The colors were all wrong,
Black and white didn't fit you...

*Cues song One Republic- All We Are*

I originally planned to get some acrylics, brushes, canvas, a nice frame, and do a 'modern, anything can be art' kind of artwork to decorate my room with. But even those required something more skilled, more eye pleasing. When I walked pass the craft section, I decided maybe I should get a warmup start. Then I saw Paint by Numbers, I instantly felt like a kid again. For ages 8+, this can't really go wrong. And I'm glad to say I developed the patience, detailed handiwork, and mixing-colors ability that I needed (probably more than an 8 year old). Not to mention it's a fun pass time (time goes by super fast doing this!) and satisfies your artsier side, even though its painting by the numbers! Who knew? You might just get a little craftier after doing this and do a real art piece before me!

{Made easy with labeled numbers}
{The first finished painting}
{Being a professional and mixing colors on plastic wrap}
{Second one in progress}

Photolog: weekend fun

{colorful kites catching the breeze}
The last weekend of May a bunch of us went to Ocean City, MD to celebrate the long weekend. It was crazy, fun, and tiring. I came back with sand in my beach bag reminiscent of the first sign of summer, laying hours in the sun chatting and eating, dining with amazing seafood (tons of crablegs!), having our stay literally a footstep away from the beach/pool/ swim-up bar/hammocks, dancing to music on the beach at 3am in front of the ocean waves and underneath the night sky full of stars, and staying up to watch my first sunrise on the beach ever. I didn't bring my dslr, but luckily we have an amazing friend and photographer to capture everything!
{Met Hellokitty on her world tour after our ferris wheel ride}
{Our easy access to the beach}
{View of the end of the pier from the ferris wheel }
{Famous local spot with delicious food}
{Extremely detailed sand art }
Photos by Nick Feliciano

Caudalie and new skincare

I'm probably late on this Caudalie's Beauty Elixir bandwagon. But I just had to know what this refreshing smell and feel was like for myself. It is pepperminty, a much more pleasing/calming version of Tiger Balm, and a bit like heaven for the senses in a bottle, I'll leave you all to pick one up and smell for yourself. I use it as a toner and a refresher throughout the day- the 1oz bottle I picked up makes it travel friendly. I can already imagine this to be my lifesaver for those long, crazy nights and my cure for unfortunate hangovers.
Yes, this is definitely a luxury to have, but you only get one face so why not treat every now and then?

My new skincare frenzy haul all started because I ran out of cleanser to use with my Clarisonic Mia. I've been using Origins Checks and Balances and couldn't wait to be done with it forever. It burns/stings my eyes, dries my skin out terribly and leaves the undesirable tight feeling after using it. Boscia Clear Complexion cleanser with botanical blast is a gel cleanser that foams and lathers up. I love using it with the Mia because the gel gives the bristles a good 'slip' to work with, and the whole cleanse goes smoothly. The pump dispenser and natural ingredients of this cleanser sold me. It's gentle enough for my sensitive skin (and doesn't sting my eyes!), yet removes dirt and makeup extremely well. So far, this is a winner.

Summer is coming and I needed something with sun protection. Origin's Vitazing SPF 15 gives me an overall healthy color, in addition to moisturizing and protecting. Who doesn't love multi-purpose products? By itself, it's nothing too special. But it makes putting on concealer or foundation much more effortlessly. In fact, less makeup is even needed when this is on- major score for the summer. Only thing was... I wasn't fully satisfied with the SPF 15 protection. So I armed myself with Eucerin's Everyday Protection Face Lotion SPF 30 with UVA and UVB for sensitive skin. It is light, doesn't have a strong sunscreen scent, and doesn't leave a white cast after blending in.

Finally, need I say anything about Bioderma Crealine? Hands down the best makeup remover/ cleanser. It is everything I expected and beyond. Because of that, this is going by really quick. Unfortunate that it's quite pricey.

I'm still on the hunt for a night time moisturizer. Preferably rich and not in a pot/ tub packaging. I am having a hard time finding one because of the latter. It bothers me insanely how unsanitary that type of packaging is, but it seems like most moisturizers come in that form. Any recommendations?