3 Easy and Delicious Recipes!

I always get extremely busy in the summertime, so I find myself eating out a lot. Lately, I've been trying to cook more and I thought I would share 3 easy and delicious recipes that I've made recently!

1. Chicken and Cabbage Salad

This is a quick and easy thing to make for lunch! I used leftover chicken that my boyfriend and I had made for dinner the night before, so it didn't take me long to throw it together!

Ingredients:
Chicken breasts (I marinated them in soy sauce, lime juice, garlic, and honey and then we grilled them)
Shredded cabbage mix
Shredded cheese
Soy sauce & lime juice for the dressing

Directions:
Grill or reheat grilled chicken, then cut into pieces.
Add chicken to shredded cabbage.
Top with shredded cheese.
Add soy sauce and lime juice for "dressing".

2. BBQ Brisket Nachos

This recipe is delicious! My family found this awesome BBQ place in Seaside, FL this summer and I had BBQ Brisket Nachos that were to die for! My boyfriend and I attempted to recreate them when we got back from vacation, and I have to say we were pretty successful!!

Ingredients:
BBQ Brisket (We just bought pre-made brisket from the grocery store)
BBQ Baked Beans
Chopped onions
Corn tortilla chips
Nacho cheese sauce
Sour cream

Directions:
Cook brisket as directed.
Cook beans as directed
Lay chips out on a plate and top with all ingredients!

3. Thai Peanut Chicken in the Crock Pot

This isn't a recipe that I came up with, but it was so delicious that I wanted to share! I bought a super cute crock pot (yes, I said my crock pot was cute, just look at it!) at Target over the weekend, so I was looking for good crock pot recipes to test it out!

Click here to view the Thai Peanut Chicken recipe! The only difference was that I put mine over rice instead of noodles and used gluten free soy sauce! I also added peanuts on top for that extra crunch!

All of these recipes are gluten free if you use the right ingredients too!

Hope you enjoy these easy and delicious recipes as much as I do!

Happy Cooking!
xoxo- Aly

Outfit Inspiration: Pop of Purple

I love the color purple! It's feminine without being overly girly like pink can be sometimes!

Love this neon purple nailpolish! Can be bought here.

How cute is this pop of purple on the leopard print flats?

LOVE the purple door! Picture found here.

This is my favorite type of necklace right now! Beautiful! Found here.

Pop of Purple in the the Painting! (That's a lot of P's)

All of this pretty purple inspired me to add a Pop of Purple in my outfit! Check out this awesome neon purple sheer blouse I found at Forever 21!

Where did I find my outfit?
Blouse: Forever 21
Tank: Marshalls
Jeans: Old Navy
Shoes: Shoe Carnival
Necklace: Dillards

Where do you like to add your Pops of Purple?

Happy Purple!
xoxo- Aly

I Love Loafers!

You may already know, but loafers have become wildly popular! When I used to hear the word "loafer" I always thought of those ugly slip on shoes that old people would wear. It's amazing what a cute pattern or a little bling can do to make a once ugly shoe, stylish!

But not only are they stylish now, they also can be incredibly pricey! I thought I would share with you my four favorite pairs of loafers that I own, the price and where I got them, and compare them to the pairs that are more on the pricey side!

Here are the expensive loafers:

Top row:
-Charles Philip patterned loafers found here are on sale right now for $77.50, originally $155.
-Madison Los Angeles leopard loafers found here cost $150.

Bottom row:
-Betsey Johnson zebra loafers found here cost $80.
-Giacomorelli studded loafers found here are on sale right now for $453, originally $501.

As you can see, each of these loafers cost over $75 each! Now, I'd like to share with you, the loafers that I own that are each similar to these four pairs.

Top row:
-Rampage printed loafers found at Marshalls for $12.99! That's $64.51 less!
-Leopard loafers found at Ross Dress For Less for $12.50! That's $137.50 less!

Bottom row:
-Madden Girl zebra loafers found at Marshalls for $20! That's $60 less!
-TopShop studded loafers found at Top Shop for $56! That's $397 less!

I got each of my pairs of loafers for under $60! (Really all for $20 or less except for the studded ones!)

Happy Bargain Loafer Shopping!
xoxo-Aly

DIY Braided Chain Bracelet

I was inspired to try to make my own braided chain bracelet since seeing similar ones on Pinterest. I wanted to share with you how I made my DIY braided chain bracelet because it was easy!

All you need for this crafty project is a chain bracelet and two different colors of embroidery thread. I found all of these materials at Michaels craft store. The chain bracelet is actually a necklace top that is the {styled} brand by Tori Spelling. For the embroidery thread, I chose mint green and peach! (I'm loving mint green right now >> check out my mint green post here!)

To make the bracelet, just follow these simple steps:
1. Measure out how much embroidery thread you want to use. I measured out enough so that my chunk of thread was about the same width of the chain. I made it a little longer than the chain though so I had room to tie the thread off. When I made this bracelet, I undid the chain to make it one long chain instead of two.
2. Tie one end of each of the embroidery threads to the top loop of the chain bracelet before the clasp.
3. Once all three are tied together, I taped the end to the table so it would stay still while I braided. This totally reminded me of how I made friendship bracelets when I was little!
4. Now braid just like you are braiding your hair!
5. Once you have finished braiding, then you tie the other end off on the chain. Don't forget to cut off the extra string!
6 . Since I undid my chain to make one long bracelet to braid it, I put it back in two rows of chains and connected it together by the smaller chain and clasped it back together.

And here is the finished project!

It looks cute paired with other bracelets too! I paired mine with some bangles I got at Forever 21.

I think it matches my outfit today perfectly! :)

And that's how I made a simple braided chain bracelet!

Happy Crafting!
xoxo- Aly

Vegas: Instagram Style

I'm back from our trip to Vegas! We had a wonderful time and I'm sad it's over! Thought I'd share some pics!

View of the mountains from the balcony.

Flamingos at the Flamingo

Hello Kitty on my FroYo

Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens

Bellagio again...it was so pretty!

Delicious lunch at Max Brenner...the Hazelnut milkshake was yum!

Paris Casino - looks like a postcard!

What trip to Vegas is complete without a stripper?

In front of the Mirage

It's always good when this happens while playing slots!

Ralph Lauren Olympics collection! See my post here!

Uh oh...I found Kate Spade!

I found a camel colored bag at Kate Spade! See my post here!

I can't wait to go back!

xoxo- Aly

Summer Drink: Sparkling Tea

I recently fell in love with the sparkling teas at Caribou Coffee and decided that I needed to figure out how to make my own! And guess, what? I figured it out and it only takes two ingredients!!

My favorite sparkling tea is the peach black tea one, so that was the first type that I decided to try out! All I bought was Perrier sparkling water and Crystal Light peach iced tea packets! Mix those two together and TA-DA! Easy sparkling tea! And cheaper I might add because a four pack of Perrier was $4 and one box of Crystal Light was $2. That's $6 for four glasses of sparkling tea and it costs $3.80 per glass at Caribou Coffee! I saved myself $9.20!

If you don't like peach tea, you can try mixing other Crystal Light flavors in too! I also tried raspberry lemonade and it tasted amazing! My recommendation though is to not use the whole packet of Crystal Light if you buy the 11.15 fl oz size of Perrier because then the flavor is too overwhelming. Crystal Light packets are made to fill a 16.9 fl oz size bottle, so pour in your desired amount!

I hope you enjoy this delicious and refreshing glass of sparkling tea! It's definitely my favorite drink of the summer!

Happy Sparkling!
xoxo- Aly

Camel Colored Bags

I'm on a hunt for a cute camel colored bag, so I thought I would share some of them that I like! I found three great bags at three different price points showing that you can find your perfect camel colored bag at what ever price you can afford!

1. Less than $50: I found this bag at Forever 21 online. I love that it is a cross body bag because they are the easiest to carry around with you. And it's only $24.80!
2. Less than $250: I found this bag at Nordstrom online. It's called the Perlina 'Jade' Shoulder Bag. I like this bag because it's simple, has multiple pocket sections, and bonus: has leopard print lining. This bag is $248.00.
3. Less than $500: Oh, Michael Kors, you have done it again! I am in love with Michael Kors and all he makes and this camel colored satchel is to die for! It's $498.00, but I definitely think it's worth saving my money for! This beauty can be found here.

Now, which one should I pick?? Hmmm...LOL.

Do you have a camel colored bag?

xoxo- Aly

DIY-ish Spice Rack

Happy Saturday! Since I moved back in January I have been looking high and low for a spice rack. All of my spices have been tucked away in a cabinet, which was working fine. But, I'd forget what I have, buy doubles, loose things, etc. It just wasn't working for me. I found adorable spick racks here, here, and here. But none of them were exactly what I wanted.

This probably isn't a true DIY project, I didn't make the spice rack myself but more found different items and put them together to work for me. But, I am still going to call it DYI.

So at last, my spice rack:

It isn't perfect, but it works great for my kitchen. I needed something that would hand on the wall, because in a small apartment you don't have ample kitchen counter space. I found the wire rack at World Market for $9.99. The glass, teal jars are also from Would Market and were $.99 each. They had jars in all different colors. I liked the pop of teal. They jars have a rubber seal on the bottom of th lid to keep them shut tight, and your spices fresh. The only down fall is there is no shaker so you need to be careful when pouring. Each jar fit nearly all of the product in a normal size spice container. There was a small amount of product left over which I put in labeled zip-lock bags for easier storage.

For the labels, I used the sticky part of a post-it note. I happened to have teal laying around my apartment which matches the top perfectly. This lasted for about 2 hours before they started to peel. So, I covered each label with a pieces of clear tape.

The total for this rack at $20. I put 5 jars on each row, but they could fit 6. This rack holds all of more "savory" spices. I have some sweeter spices that did not fit...so I am thinking about getting another one to put below.

By the way, these racks...also great for nail polish storage but that is another post for another time.

Now, my spices are on the wall. I have extra counter space. And, my kitchen looks a little more homey!

Happy Weekend!

Xo,
Tori

Favorite Color: Mint Green

My favorite color right now is mint green! It's such a pretty color and all of the clothes and accessories I find in that color are always really light and summery! It's also a pretty color to have in your house either painted on the front door like the picture above, or in a bathroom or kitchen! And don't forget about nail polish! Mint green nails are really cute! And mint green is also pretty paired with other colors...my favorite is with peach or light pink!

xoxo- Aly

Sheer shirt / Leather loafer shoes / Chloé tote handbag / Chloé patent clutch, $740 / Yellow gold jewelry / Wrap bracelet / Heart jewelry / Kendra Scott jewelry / Plastic sunglasses

Airport Style

I'm leaving for Las Vegas TOMORROW and I'm really excited! I slowly started getting ready to go last night, but have some major packing to do tonight! I always wait until the last minute...oops! Something I always love getting together is my outfit to wear to the airport and all of my things to put in my carry on! I know that sounds silly, but "airport style" is actually a thing! Look it up! It was in Vogue! Here are some pictures of some of my favorite "airport styles"!

 Jessica Alba and Eva Longoria's styles are two of my favorites in general. I love that they can be comfortable, yet still chic while traveling. And their carry on is just a simple satchel bag.

 Anne Hathaway and Sarah Michelle Geller both are doing something that I always do when I travel by plane and that is wearing an oversized scarf! What is so smart about that is that the scarf can double as a blanket when it's cold on the plane! Last time I went to Vegas...I pretty much wore Sarah Michelle's exact outfit!

Eva Mendes and Rachel Bilson both look like they just rolled out of bed, but they still pull of a stylish look! I love Eva's patterned scarf! I also love Rachel's leggings and oversized sweater...that is definitely my go-to outfit!

Besides style, I always am curious to know what they have in their carry ons, so I decided to share my must-have carry on items!
1. Oversized Purse: I always use an oversized purse as my carry on bag. I don't like the hassle of having both a purse and a carry on, so I just put it all in one bigger bag and pack a smaller cross body purse in my suitcase.
2. Kindle Fire: I love my Kindle Fire! My sweet boyfriend gave it to me for Valentine's Day and I have enjoyed it so much! It's great to travel with because it's smaller than a laptop, but you still can use it for the internet! I've been reading so much more since getting it and right now I am reading The Magician King by Lev Grossman. The Magician King is a sequel to The Magicians which I absolutely loved. It's an addicting story about a young man named Quentin who feels like there should be something out there that is better and more amazing than the world he lives in. He soon learns that magic is real and is swept away to a magical school where he learns how to use magic, finds romance and friendships, and finds that there are other worlds that can be wonderful and evil. I immediately want to compare it to Harry Potter because it's about a magical school, but they are very different types of books. I highly recommend it and I'm so excited to read The Magician King!

3. Snacks: Buying snacks at the airport is always so expensive. I usually try to keep a few snacks in my carry on so I have something if I get hungry. I recently found out that I am gluten intolerant, so finding snacks that are gluten free at an airport is really hard. Usually I keep some type of crackers or trail mix in my purse. I make my own trail mix with peanuts, cashews, almonds, dark chocolate chips, marshmallows, and Craisins. I also like fruit snacks or gluten free bars like Lara Bars.
4. iPod and headphones: When I need a break from reading or there is a screaming baby on the plane, I turn to music. My headphones block out most of the outside noise, so it's really relaxing to just lay back, close my eyes, and listen to some tunes! I listen to "the oldies", but some music I really like right now are Maroon 5's new album and the Smash soundtrack.

5. Oversized Scarf: I know I mentioned this above, but I wanted to mention it again. An oversized scarf is perfect to bring with you when you are flying because it's always cold in the airport or on the plane and it's much easier to keep a scarf with you then a little jacket. And an oversized scarf can be easily folded out to use as a blanket on the plane or bunched up to use as a pillow. I have an oversized leopard print scarf that I always bring with me! Need an idea of where to find an oversized scarf? Check out Etsy!

And that's what I have in my carry on! What do you guys recommend you have in your carry on?

xoxo- Aly

Olympics: Ralph Lauren U.S. Collection

The Olympics start on July 27th and I'm really excited for two reasons! The first reason is that I love the summer Olympics! Swimming and gymnastics are my two favorite Olympic sports to watch! The second reason is because Ralph Lauren designed the U.S. Olympic team's uniforms! My family are big Ralph Lauren fans, so we were all really excited when this announcement was made! Check out Ralph's sketches of the U.S. Olympic team's outfits:

SO cute and SO R.L.!

Ralph Lauren also designed a U.S. Olympic team line for anyone to buy! The collection is great and I've picked my favorites to post:

 Don't you just love that you can personalize the zip up? Awesome!

You can see the entire collection here!

Go Team U.S.A.!
xoxo- Aly

DIY Studded TOMS

My little sister inspired me to buy pyramid studs and get crafty! She posted a picture on Instagram of her DIY studded denim button up, which inspired me to stud something of my own - TOMS! I have too many pairs of TOMS, so I thought it would be fun to do something different to one of my pairs. I took my gray denim TOMS and bought pyramid studs at Walmart and went to work!

Now, I'm not going to lie...trying to find studs took me on an adventure! I tried Hobby Lobby and Michael's first, but they were sold out! I ended up buying "studded ribbon" at Walmart and just took the studs off and stuck them on my TOMS! About 100 pyramid studs and an hour and a half later, I completed my DIY studded TOMS project! Definitely think they are cute!

Happy Studding!
xoxo- Aly

Let's Mix It Up!

 I have always loved the look of outfits that mix patterns, but was always hesitant to try it because I thought it might look dumb, but it's actually really fun to do! My style motto is: You can pull off your outfit if you believe you can pull it off! I get teased about this from my friends, but it's true! If you try to wear something, but tell yourself you feel silly wearing it, you don't have the confidence in yourself and in your outfit to "make it work"! (That was Tim Gunn saying that.) Just be confident and ROCK your outfit!

 It seems to work best when you mix one pattern that is big or busy with one pattern that is small or simple. Here, I mixed flowers (big/busy) with polka dots (small/simple) and I think it definitely works and pulls off a cute, girly outfit! I even added a lace cardigan which has a pattern too! My boyfriend even chimed in his thoughts and said that mixing patterns in a girl's outfit is similar to when a guy picks out a tie to wear. He said you can wear a tie with a pattern if the pattern on the shirt is small and the pattern on the tie is big...or vice versa. That's exactly my point! :)

I'm kind of a goofy girl, so I'm sure you'll see that throughout my outfit posts! And by the way, the summer has been SO hot! Today was horrible because it was sunny and hot, then rained, which made it humid! Hello wavy hair! Can you tell from the semi-foggy pictures I posted? Hurry up fall! :)

Happy Mixing!
xoxo- Aly

Where did I buy my outfit?
Flowered Skirt - JC Penny (old) P.S. This skirt cost me $2!
Polka Dot Blouse - Old Navy (old)
Lace Cardigan - Forever 21
Wedges - Shoe Carnival (old)
Bracelets - Forever 21 (old)
Earrings - Charming Charlie
Sunglasses - Frock Candy

Top 10 Summer Beauty Products

Products: Aveeno Face Sunblock, SPF 70, Ralph by Ralph Lauren Perfume, Aussie 3 Minute Miracle, Cover Girl Lashblast, Lush Sweet Lips, Lip Scrub, Nars Orgasm Blush, Fizz Ease Finishing Cream, Origins Vita Zing, Essie Mojito Madness 

 

You will slowly learn that I am a beauty product junkie. Make up, hair, nails, lotions, body scrubs…I like it all, and I love to try new products.

Summer is in full swing, and if you have ever been to Washington, D.C. in the summer time you know that means it is hot & humid…all the time.

During the summer months, I find that I reach for very different products than during winter. I take public transit to work every day, so I am outside (and sweating) more than if I were to drive to work and have to walk in from the car. Therefore, I look for lightweight, long lasting products. Products that contain SPF, keep my skin healthy and vibrant, and protect my hair against the sun, and chlorine are important!

I’ve compiled a list of my Top 10 Beauty Products during the summer. I was inspired by this list of the top beauty products purchased during the summer on Amazon.

-Tori

Love: Metallic Nail Polish

I've been a nail biter for most of my life. I recently decided to kick the habit, and I've done...alright. When I am not stressed out at work, my nails look great :) One of my recent obsessions have been metallic nail polish. I love that a lot of metallic polishes are neutral colors, they look nice on my skin tone and I think they look great on shorter nails.

I went through my collection and picked my top 5.

 

(left to right: Revlon Copper Penny, Sally Hansen Guilty Pleasure, Orly Rage, Revlon Catty, and Sonia Kashuk Smoke and Mirrors)

Rage by Orly is by far my favorite (and my favorite brand for metallic polish), and probably my most used nail polish. Rage is a beautiful rose gold color. It is opaque after 2 coats and didn't chip easy. Make sure to put down a base coat, it is not easy to get off! Copper Penny comes in a close second, it has a gorgeous rich color and you could probably get away with just one coat, if you are feeling a little lazy!

I think metallic polish can be worn anytime of year, but is quite lovely during the holidays! :)

Happy Painting!

Victoria

Silver & Gold

 "Silver and gold, silver and gold
Everyone wishes for silver and gold
How do you measure its worth?
Just by the pleasure it gives here on earth." -Burl Ives

Christmas is just around the corner (47 days, 9 hours and some minutes to be exact!) and it just so happens to be my favorite holiday! One of my favorite things about Christmas is Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (the claymation one, thank you) and I love the song Sam Snowman (Burl Ives) sings - Silver and Gold.

And speaking of silver and gold, I LOVE mixing silver and gold jewelry together. I used to think that you could only wear silver jewelry or only wear gold jewelry, but why not mix it up and wear them at the same time?

Check out the silver & gold jewelry I wore today:

 I bought all of my silver & gold jewelry at Forever 21!
Necklace and Pyramid bracelet can still be found online! If you can't find jewelry that have both silver and gold in them, buy separate silver and gold pieces and mix them up! Also, what's so great about Forever 21 jewelry is that it is inexpensive! I got all of the jewelry seen in the above photo collage for under $15! Forever 21 puts a lot of their bangles on clearance and that's a great way to find inexpensive bangle sets! Mine was $3 and came with 17 bangles! Now that's a bargain! :)

Happy Silver & Gold!

xoxo, AL