Lifestyle

Rosewood & Patchouli Soy Candle

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I’m sure I’m not alone when I say I LOVE a good candle. Truth be told, I’ve not always been that way. When I was a child, my mother accidentally left lit candles overnight in our guest bathroom and shut the door when cleaning up the house before bed. We woke up to a smoke filled bathroom and quite the story for the fire fighters! It took years for me to feel comfortable actually lighting my candles, rather than using them as decor. As I’m sure you can imagine, candles are far more enjoyable when you can actually burn them. This PaddyWax candle is no different!

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My eye was drawn to this candle in particular because of it’s pink and gold design – it’s a perfect match for my Kate Spade desk accessories! Packaging has always been important to me, especially when it comes to candles. I’ve noticed that candles light up the room very differently depending on their structure, and I love the subtle glow this candle provides. I’ve had several candles in clear glass containers before, and switched to opaque packaging only after I realized that glass containers tend to leave the burn marks visible!

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Another thing I love about this candle is its three wick design. Triple the wicks means triple the glow! Additionally, having multiples wicks that are spread out helps the candle to burn more evenly, rather than leaving you with a big melted dip in the middle of your candle.

It might seem funny to have such a strong reaction to something as simple as a candle, but all in all I can say this candle got top marks! Do you have a favorite candle you’d recommend? Let me know in the comments below so I can add it to my growing collection!

 

 

Glam Up Your Workspace With The Kate Spade Strike Gold Collection

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To me, there’s nothing worse than an uninspired work space. Sitting down at a desk that has zero personality makes it impossible for me to get creative. Lucky for me, more and more luxury brands have been coming out with desk accessory collections, and a personal favorite of mine is Kate Spade strike gold. I thought I’d give you a peek at how I’ve accessorized my desk with these adorable pieces!

I love the way Kate Spade describes the strike gold collection:

glamorous desk accessories are a necessary luxury. the pieces in our strike gold collection–which mix clear acrylic with gold accents and a clever turn of phrase–will inspire your personal best, every hour of the workday.

I’ve always been a lover of soft colors, clean lines, and metallic accents, so this collection was pretty much made for me. Let’s talk about the strike gold pen set first. I mean, how cute are these?

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I absolutely love the way these pens write, and how vibrant an accent they are against my white desk. They’re practical and adorable—what more could a girl ask for?

I’ve collected some desk accessories over the years that I don’t think I’ll ever part with, so I decided not to go crazy and get everything in the strike gold collection (even though I really really wanted to). That being said, I couldn’t pass up the tape dispenser and stapler.

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It’s a bit hard to read in the pictures, but there’s actually an inscription on both the tape dispenser and the stapler. The tape dispenser says “make it stick,” and the stapler says “keep it together.” I love this little clever detail, and think it adds something really special to these already beautiful desk accessories.

Overall, I love how these pieces complement my works pace, and I think I may need to add this magazine holder next!

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DIY Peppermint Foot Soak

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I’ll be the first to say, I love wintertime. I love the snow and getting to wear boots and cozy sweaters daily. That being said, winter is always really tough on my skin, so I make sure to take extra great care of it during the colder months of the year.

I think our feet are one of those things we forget about often, opting to focus more on our face or hands, but in my opinion during the winter there’s absolutely nothing better than a rejuvenating foot soak.

I’m sharing one of my favorites today, and it’s incredibly easy to make.

Here’s what you’ll need:

  • 1/2 cup powdered milk
  • 1/2 cup epsom salt
  • 2 TBSP loose peppermint tea
  • 10 drops peppermint essential oil (optional)
  • jar or container

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For the loose tea I simply opened up a few peppermint teabags, which works perfectly! Once you’ve collected all the ingredients just mix them all together in a bowl and voila!

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I like to store the powdered mix in small mason jars, and I think of them like single servings. When I want a soak, I just pull one out and mix it with hot water. The peppermint smell is so relaxing, it makes for the perfect pre-bedtime ritual.

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These also make great gifts—just look how cute they are all packaged up!

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Clip Lens Review

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Over the holidays I participated in a white elephant gift exchange with some friends, and part of the gift I picked was this 3-in-1 clip lens. Now, let me just preface this post by saying that this is probably the cheapest phone lens set you can buy. These are not high quality lenses by any means,  but I figured I’d test them out and let you know my findings anyways. If you’re interested in high quality phone lenses, check out Moment.

So here goes. The set comes with three lenses: macro, wide, and fish eye. Also included are lens caps and a carrying pouch.

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The lenses are easy to attach and using the clip on is super straightforward. You simply screw on whichever lens you want to use, and clip the lens over the camera on your phone.

Now for the fun part! Here’s a normal photo with no lens (left) versus one with the wide lens (right):

I was actually pretty pleasantly surprised at how this came out, and how little quality loss/distortion there was with the wide lens.

Here’s a normal photo with no lens (left) versus one with the fish eye lens (right):

As you can see the fish eye lens is true to its name, and like all fish eye lenses there’s lots of distortion, but again minimal quality loss.

Here’s a normal photo with no lens (top) versus one with the macro lens (bottom):

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I was actually most surprised by the quality of this lens. It allowed me to get in very close and get a good image with lots of detail.

Overall, for less than $6, this product is actually better than you would expect. For the occasional picture taker who wants a few fun lenses, it’s not a bad buy. It could even be a great gift for a tween or teen who’s just getting into photography and wants to play around before investing in more expensive equipment.

As for me though, I’ll be sticking with my big-girl camera 😉

 

 

 

 

I Own Over 100 Pairs Of Shoes But All I Wear Are…

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If you read my Tieks review from several months ago, you already know how much I adore my Metallic Pewter pair. What you may not know, however, is how I feel about my Tieks in comparison to all the other shoes in my (slightly extravagant) collection.

It’s probably been 5 years since I actually counted how many shoes I own, and my collection has definitely expanded since then. Before I sat down to write this post though, that’s exactly what I did. The final tally? 104.

I know what you’re thinking—104 pairs of shoes is too many for any human being, right? I’ll admit I have a bit of a shoe addiction, but in my defense I’ve accumulated my collection over many years, and I’ve always been good at rotating what shoes I wear so (almost) all of them get good use. That being said, after getting my first pair of Tieks, I feel like I’ve been neglecting all my other shoes. Really though, in the last three weeks or so, I think the only time I’ve worn something other than my Tieks was at the gym. Even on NYE I wore heels but stashed my Tieks in my purse for the inevitable shoe change once my feet started killing me. I’ve been going for my Tieks every single day because they’re just THAT comfortable and THAT versatile. Not to be dramatic, but Tieks are sort of…life changing.

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Believe it or not, over half the shoes in my collection are ballet flats. You name the brand I probably own a pair currently or have tried them in the past. NONE have come close to the comfort of my Tieks. I’ve put my feet through the ringer with my love of flats. I’m talking countless blisters, cuts, and a whole lot of foot pain over the years. Before my Tieks I’d pretty much come to accept that ballets flats were inherently uncomfortable for long periods of time. You’d think that would stop me from buying more, but alas, my addiction is real.

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Fast forward to the first time I put on my Tieks. I could tell they were different from other flats I’ve tried. Softer, cushier, more flexible. For me, they felt perfect right out of the box, and they’ve only gotten more comfortable since. The best way I can describe them is a second skin—the leather has molded to the shape of my feet to the point that I sometimes forget I’m even wearing shoes.

The best thing about Tieks though, isn’t that they’re luxuriously comfortable or effortlessly chic, it’s that they’re both! I can’t even describe what a relief it is to have finally found a brand of flats that doesn’t require me to sacrifice comfort for style. Tieks always look sleek and sophisticated, so you can dress them up or down with ease. In the short time I’ve owned my Tieks I’ve worn them to work, happy hour, brunch, a wedding, to go shopping, run errands, and literally everywhere in between. They have quickly become my anywhere, anytime, everyday (and night) shoe. Not to mention, they are amazing for travel! When I took a trip to the East Coast to visit family over the holidays, my Tieks were a lifesaver. Their split-sole allowed them to fold up really compact so they took up almost no room in my carry-on, and easily slipped on and off so I could zip through security. Needless to say, I’ll never travel without my Tieks again.

Anyways, I fell so in love with my Metallic Pewter pair that I ended up treating myself to two more pairs before the end of 2016! Rose Gold Glam came first, in October. I’m a sucker for sparkle, and this pair was just calling my name! I love them every bit as much as my Pewter pair. Then, in December, I bought California Navy. I was on the Tieks website buying pairs as Christmas gifts and just couldn’t help myself!

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So you might be wondering, what’s next for my shoe collection now that I’ve found one brand that puts the rest to shame? Well…I can’t believe I’m saying this, let alone writing it down, but…I’m beginning a shoe purge. First to go will be all the flats I’ll never wear again, which means every pair except my Tieks!

I tend to get emotionally attached to my clothing, so no doubt my shoe purge will be a process. In the end though it will all be worth it, because it means I can start building up my Tieks collection! Did I mention Tieks has over 50 styles to choose from?!! Literally my idea of heaven. If you haven’t checked out their Boutiek yet, I highly recommend doing that now. You and your feet can thank me later 😉