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This Week's Top 10 {Favorite Things}

Omg! The last day of July!!! This week I am switching up the format of the top 10! Instead of 10 random links to things, I'm going to share my 10 favorite things I loved... Let me know if you prefer this format or the usual! Maybe I'll start switching off? This one was fun but also feels a little self-centered and not as well-rounded... so we'll see!

H&M Try On Haul


You guys... yesterday was my first shopping experience since Covid, and not only did I feel completely safe wearing my mask and social distancing in-store, but I found some fabulous things at H&M! Confession: I have the worst success rate when it comes to online shopping. I was heading into the store to return four of the five things I'd ordered online and was pleasantly surprised that my H&M had been recently renovated, looking fabulous, feeling really clean, and was full of amazing stuff. So excited to share them with you!


Current Staples



I posted this outfit on IG yesterday and I wanted to share the details on here! I realized that many of these pieces have become a part of my summer uniform just because they are so versatile, cute, and comfortable!

In My Cart Under $100


I feel like I haven't shopped in forever. I bought a few things for my trip (Rhode Island recap here + Hamptons recap here), but (somehow!) that was already over a month ago. Even though I'm at home not doing much, I have been getting drinks outside with friends, which obviously, that calls for a cute outfit! I also hate not having something cute to wear for Instagram photos, as dumb as that sounds. It's August next week, so what better excuse than my birthday month for sprucing up my wardrobe?! 

Below I've rounded up some cute things I'm loving right now, most under $100, everything under $150!

Recent Wellness Obsessions


I am currently going through a bit of an unintentional wellness phase where I feel a really strong urge to take extra care of my mind and body. I haven't been doing anything crazy, but I've just been incorporating a few extra things into my day-to-day that make me feel less stressed, and more "well." Although I'm not doing much this summer (besides blogging), I think it's understandable that many of us are more on edge/stressed out than we otherwise would be, given the state of our world. So, today I'm sharing a few things I've been loving lately related to wellness to hopefully inspire your own self-care habits!

This Week's Top 10


1. I officially moved out of my apartment yesterday, and despite being a lot of work (we lived on the fourth floor of a walkup!) it wasn't too bad because my mom is a genius and got a U-Haul to make everything easier *praise emoji* In case you missed the details on my IG story, I'm living at home for the foreseeable future until it's safe for me to move to NYC for my job (which I am so grateful is still on the table and starting mid-September as planned). you can see my senior year room tour in this post

2. Taylor Swift's new album Folklore came out at midnight! Have you listened yet? I am listening right now and already love it.

3. I just discovered the Starfish Project, which is a jewelry company with an incredible mission. From their website: "100% of your purchase is invested in our social mission to help trafficked and exploited women experience freedom, establish independence, and develop careers." I love this necklace and this cute bracelet. I will definitely order soon to support the girls and this inspiring company!

Current Fave Foods/Snacks


I go through phases where I get really excited about the things I'm eating, and then phases where I don't really care. I think because I'm coming back from three weeks of lobster rolls, dinners out, and delicious meals from breakfast to dessert, I'm in a phase where I really want to eat delicious things. In a way, I guess I'm just trying to keep the streak alive while being a bit healthier and eating at home again. Today I'm sharing the foods, drinks, and snacks I've been obsessed with lately!

Cute (Non-Medical) Face Masks

this is part of the two-pack I ordered! many more color pairs available, too

Wow-- I don't think I've ever gotten as many DM's from an Insta story as I did this weekend when I was posting about cute/stylish face masks! We all have to (or at least should) wear a mask these days, so why not make it cute and fun?! I ordered this two-pack of masks and it's kind of crazy how much more excited I am to wear a mask now. I found a ton of stylish (non-medical) masks when shopping for mine that I wanted to share. I can't believe it took me so long to finally pick out a fun reusable mask!

This Week's Top 10


1. To say I'm freaking out (in a bad way) would be an understatement. This week, Wisconsin was added to NY's list of states on the travel advisory, which means my trip to NYC in three weeks to look for an apartment has to be canceled. Unsure at the moment what this means in terms of my timeline for moving to the city...

2. That said, being safe and healthy as a country is far more important than my individual inconvenience, so I understand that this has to be done and there's nothing I can do. I'm sure everything will work out, and of course, I'd much rather stay home and avoid the risk of infecting others than frivolously travel during this time! 

3. On that note: I'm continuing to wear my mask everywhere I go, but I think it's time I finally commit to a reusable, fun mask. Here are 5 Black-Owned shops with the cutest face masks! Do you have a cute mask?? If so, where from?

My Senior Year of College Room Tour



Ah, leave it to me to wait until I'm moving out of my apartment to finally share some photos of my room! I can't believe college is actually over and my next move is to NYC into a "real" adult apartment. Better late than never, though, right? I'm excited to share my full senior year of college room tour with you guys today!

My Clean, Green, Light Pesto Recipe


About a month ago I made homemade pesto for the first time and really haven't stopped thinking about it since. The other day my boyfriend and I made homemade pizza and used storebought pesto, and I immediately regretted not having remade my homemade pesto. I mean, there's just nothing better. This recipe is simple, a little lighter than "regular" pesto, and made with purely clean ingredients! It is loosely based off of Kenzie Burke's pesto recipe.

Hamptons Photos, What we did + What we ate



Hi! I'm back today with part two of my recap of my recent trip out East with my family. If you missed yesterday's post where I shared my Rhode Island/week one recap, you can find it here! This edition of the recap is going to be a little less structured... we spent about 10 days at our family house in the Hamptons, and the majority of time was just spent hanging by the pool. That said, the days kind of blurred together and I don't feel it makes sense to describe the day-by-day like I did in yesterday's post. However, I'm excited to share lots of photos and general highlights of our time!

Rhode Island Recap


I've been trying to think about how I want to recap my trip on here... some of my favorite blog posts to write are travel recaps where I share the photos I took and the things I did while traveling, but that doesn't feel very appropriate right now. As I mentioned in this personal blog post a couple of weeks ago, this wasn't really a "vacation" just for fun. There was a lot of intention that went into it, and everything we did was really about spending quality time together as a family. However, I did take some cute photos along the way, and I feel like there is nothing wrong with sharing those along with the highlights of how we filled our days.

This Week's Top 10

photo via pinterest

1. I am back from my trip and looking forward to recapping it on here in the coming days, along with posting regularly again. I am the worst about planning out content in advance, so I apologize there hasn't been much going on around here in the last few weeks! Hopefully, you enjoyed the daily IG posts from the trip in lieu of blog posts!

2. I popped into Target yesterday and was blown away by how many great things they have right now... 
I picked up these shorts (super flattering) +
I picked up this candle (so inexpensive and smells so clean!) +
they had so many cute, inexpensive straw hats!

3. I tried to link as many of my outfits on my trip as I could with liketoKnow.it! If something isn't linked, let me know and I'll be happy to add it!!

A New Way to Shop


This post is sponsored by Added Influence and contains affiliate links, which means if you use them to make a purchase, I will make a small commission.

When it comes to beach/pool cover-ups, I always have a hard time finding things that both suit my style and are functional for what I need them! Like, why are coverup dresses so hard to find? I often stick to an oversized men's button-down, but sometimes I want to switch it up. I was so excited when I found these fun beach pants on Added Influence. (They have since sold out but you can find similar ones here, here, and a coverup dress here!)

This Week's Top 10


1. Happy Fourth of July weekend! I am so grateful to be in the Hamptons with my family and really looking forward to a relaxing weekend by the pool (crossing my fingers that it stops raining for the next few days!)

2. Just because normal content has resumed doesn't mean that the BLM movement is any less important! I found this article on sustaining allyship so informative and educational.

3. These Fourth of July cocktails look amazing.... red, white, and buzzed am I right? Lol

June Favorites


Wow... I can't believe it's July. In fact, it didn't even really register in my mind until last night when I looked at my phone and was like... wait what? it's July 1? So, here's everything I loved last month...

My Everyday Jewelry (First IGTV!)


Hi! I just posted my first ever IGTV, and I'm very excited about finally having all of my everyday jewelry deets in one spot! I've been wearing the same everyday jewelry pieces for quite some time, but never discussed them in full and shared all of the details. So, today is finally the day!