Warby Parker Field Series

My love for Warby Parker started a couple years ago when I got my very first pair for Christmas. Since that pair, I've been secretly eyeing each of their new collections, plotting out which pair I'll snag next. 

I was thinking I would get another pair of eyeglasses but their latest collection, the Field Series, has me rethinking my choice.

The Field Series has just been released by Warby Parker, featuring options for both men and women. This collection includes six brand new sunnies that all seem to boast a chic futuristic vibe. 

These one-of-a-kind frames are sure to make a statement this summer. They are not only unique in shape and style, but all six frames are ultra versatile, allowing them to be styled a hundred different ways. 

It is nearly impossible to pick a favorite, don't you think? I love the Bonnie tortoise shell pattern, but I'm also always a sucker for a light grayish blue frame like Grady...

This is by far my favorite thing about Warby Parker; their commitment to donate their glasses to people in need. 

"For every pair of glasses and sunglasses sold, a pair is distributed to someone in need."

I always try to buy from companies like this, who give back in some way. I have been a fan of Warby Parkers for years and I won't be stopping my obsession anytime soon!
Go check out this incredible company and their uber chic new Series!
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We Will Not Let Hate Break Us

We've all heard about the terrorist attacks that happened in Paris and Boston and Brussels. It's heartbreaking that the list just seems to grow as the months go by. For each of these heart shattering attacks I remember turning on the news, and seeing these catastrophic events fold out on the TV before me. It is of course heartbreaking to hear about the tragedies, and to see it be played out on national television. 

But it's a very different and utterly eery feeling that comes over you when the same sort incident takes place in your own city. 

It's still surreal to me, and to so many others in Central Florida I'm sure, that this disgusting attack really took place less than 48 hours ago. You never think something bad is going to happen to you, or to your city, until sadly, it does. The truth is, this sort of incident could have happened anywhere. It's terrible that our world has gotten to such a dark place where, like I previously mentioned, major attacks keep occurring one after another.  

But let it be know that our city has not let it defeat us.

Amazingly, instead of crumbling in defeat, Orlando as a city - and as a family - has united as one. There is so much love being spread throughout Central Florida.

The response from the city and the country following the shooting has been incredibly powerful. 

We will not let hate overcome us, we will stand strong with one another, and lean on each other, to heal our beloved city. 

As my dear friend Lane wrote in her outstanding article earlier today, "people tried to make [the attack] political immediately after it happened. I'm writing to beg you to stop. Give the families time to mourn. Give the city time to grow stronger and more unified before ripping it apart with a political agenda." Our city needs just that, time to heal, time to mourn those who lost their lives. Miraculously, Orlando is doing just that. Coming together with love and lending a hand wherever it is needed. 

Just yesterday over 1,500 units of blood were donated in Central Florida to heal the victims.  On the day of the shooting, a local Chik-Fil-A cooked hundreds of chicken sandwiches and made gallons of sweet tea for the heroic people waiting in line for over 6 hours to donate blood.  Even the company I work for, Rifle Paper Co., created an art print where all of the proceeds will go to helping the victims and their families.  These are only a few examples of how the city has taken action to help and heal.
In a time filled with such sorrow and heartbreak; I am in awe over the way Orlando is uniting, loving, and caring for each other. Although more than anything I wish this attack would have never happened.  It is beautiful to see the city beautiful come together in this desperate time of need.  We will not let hate break us. #OrlandoStrong

Freshman Year? Check!

Wow, let me start by saying that I cannot believe that I'm done with my first, not semester, but YEAR of college. Honestly, I'm sad that the first year is over, I want the next 3 years to crawl by. It's all going by too fast! But I will say that it's been the best 8 months of my life and I'm the happiest I have ever been. My college BFFs and I fit in SO much during our first year of college and that's something I am so grateful for. One of the best pieces of advice I got before heading to school was from my fabulous Aunt Lynn who told me to just say YES to new experiences and opportunities (within reason of course). So when people would invite me to do things such as attend events, or to join new clubs, or to even just go for a walk, I just went for it without hesitation! This is a piece of advice I have begun to live by. By following this advice it opened the doors to so many opportunities. Such as St. Augustine Fashion Week, which then led to an internship! It's incredible what can happen when you step out of your comfort zone and just say yes. 

These are only a handful of the many photos I took this past year at school. It was an incredible first year filled with so many great new memories such as St. Augustine Fashion Week, an internship, being featured in the St. Augustine Old City Life magazine, a mini trip to Palm Coast, a weekend away at Seaworld, meeting a clown, camping at Anna Maria Island, lots & lots of beach days, two trips to Charleston (one of my new fav places!), attending the Little Big Town Concert, jumping in fountains, worshiping the Lord at Sub30, lots of dancing (duh), and so much more that I couldn't even fit into this one post. 

Words cannot describe how thankful I am for Flagler and for the unforgettable people I've met throughout this past year. 

A special shoutout to the best friends I made over the past year Avery, Lane, Chloe, and Stephanie. Y'all mean the world to me!

And a shoutout to my parents for everything they have done and continually do to help and support me to chase my dreams at Flagler. I love you guys.

I for one am counting down the days until my sophomore year begins this fall! 

Here's to the many new memories to come.

xo

Farfetch Red Carpet Looks

You all know what time of year it is, it's awards season! If you're like me, you have every show already penciled into your planner - and don't forget the red carpet before each show as well! That's honestly the best part of all, am I right? In honor of the awards season I've collaborated with Farfetch to create a few looks for all different styles. Farfetch is an incredible company that reached out to me to join in on this neat opportunity. Farfetch is a website that encompasses 400 boutiques located around the globe, and you're able to shop from all of them with this one convienent website. How could it get any better? Check out the red carpet looks I created below, all using beautiful items from the Farfetch website.

LOOK ONE: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 // 10 // 11

LOOK TWO: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 

LOOK THREE: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9

LOOK FOUR: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 // 10

LOOK FIVE: 1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9 

I hope you enjoyed these red carpet looks! Now it's time to set the DVR for the Grammy's airing tomorrow night at 5 pm! Farfetch, thank you for reaching out to me! It was so fun collaborating with such an incredible company.  xoxo

2016 Tone It Up Challenge

My history with fitness has been somewhat miniscule. When I was younger I tried out a few sports, like soccer and tennis, but never really stuck with either for one reason or another. I had never been the sporty kid, it just wasn't me. I had never really put much thought into health or fitness, and the incredible ways it can transform your life, until a couple of years ago when my good friend Kasey started sharing some facts about food with me. When we had this talk, she had previously completely transformed her way of eating. She began watching documentaries, reading nutrition books, and becoming knowledgeable about what exactly she was eating. This hugely impacted and inspired me to start thinking about what I was putting into my mouth and to think twice about the foods I was using to power my body. I began looking at food labels, not at the calories, but at the ingredients. If I couldn't pronounce an ingredient, I tried to steer clear of that food. I'll be honest, I haven't stuck to that rule for two years now, but it's a good guide line to follow. It's so critical for us to be mindful of what is in the foods we are eating everyday, and more importantly learning how those foods help to fuel our bodies.  About 9 months ago I was scrolling through Instagram and just happened to come across one of my favorite bloggers who had posted a photo of herself following a workout video.  I had been wanting to find an alternative to paying for a gym membership so I clicked the link on the picture and it lead me to trainers Karena & Katrina and there company Tone It Up. I immediately fell in love with the website and TIU community consisting of inspiring, like-minded, real women who were joining the Tone It Up program to transform their health, body, and mind. I stumbled upon the Tone It Up YouTube channel where Karena & Katrina post free workout videos weekly. I tried a few videos out and almost immediately saw a difference in my body. Before all of my traveling this past summer, I had actual bicep muscles! It was seriously all thanks to this TIU video that I did every other day for a couple of weeks. Even after a couple of years of going to the gym regularly, I had never seen results until I started completing the TIU videos. I probably sound like a paid sponsor for this program but I'm not, I just love the program and believe in these  girls that much.  After months of doing the TIU videos here and there I've finally taken the plunge and committed to a set workout & nutrition routine for the next 8 weeks. I've signed up for the Tone It Up 2016 Challenge which started this past Sunday Jan. 3rd! I'm only three days into it and feeling more sore than I ever have in my life, but it's all worth it! I'm so excited to see what the next 8 weeks brings. I've got a few friends doing the challenge with me (shoutout to Steph, Lane, and Avery!xo) which I could not be happier about. If you would like to do the challenge with me sign up here or if you just want to cheer me on by leaving a comment below, it would make my day! 


You can follow along with my fitness journey by following me on the blog, snapchat, and my other social media sites (click the media icons in my sidebar).

My First Semester of College

Wow! It seems like it's been forever since I sat down in front of my computer and wrote a blog post. I didn't go into my first semester planning on not being able to keep up with my blog. In fact, multiple people had asked me prior to Flagler if I was going to continue to blog in college. I told all of them that I totally would. Whoops! Sorry if you were one of those people. I promise I did mean to keep up with it more. But as many of you can imagine, once I got settled in at Flagler, I found myself having little free time. In fact, these past four months have been some of the busiest of my life. But also four of the very best months. To say I like college would be a huge understatement. Turns out, it's a thousand times better than High School. I always knew there was something better for me just waiting to be discovered after High School. I'm so glad I was right.   I can't even begin to express how blessed and honored I am to have the opportunity to attend Flagler. I'm so thankful for my parents and all they did to help me get to where I am today. The school is everything I hoped it would be and so much more. It was my dream for three years, and it surpassed every one of my expectations. I expected to love the school, but didn't expect that it would feel like home so soon, I didn't expect to meet such incredible life-long friends, and I didn't expect to have such an incredible first semester. I absolutely love my life at Flagler and cannot wait for the next 3 1/2 years. 

Looks I Love

Above are a few looks I am loving right now! I'm really into the idea of adding a print and fun pop of color to really spice up an outfit. That Daniel Wellington watch is calling my name. I'm also eyeing this stunning one. See that picture in the top left hand corner? I thought the blue and white thing was a kimono, but I was wrong. It's an oversized scarf, game changer! How cute and relaxed does it look draped liked that? I'll definitely be trying out that look this fall.

Which look is your favorite?

California Trip 2015

Once we flew home from England and Paris, I was home for 10 days and then I was off to my next adventure! This time, I was headed to sunny Coronado, California. We take a trip every year to southern California to visit my moms side of the family. It's one of my favorite things to look forward to every year. Not only is it so great to see my Grandad and Aunt Beth, but I also view Coronado as a second home. I've grown up going to Coronado every year, it's impossible not to fall in love with this charming island. 

My family and I ended up staying for a whole month this summer, so instead of writing about our trip in several different posts, I thought I'd compile it all into one.

We made so many great memories on this trip! We went on a walking tour of Embarcadero (the harbor area in downtown San Diego), we sort of hiked in Torrey Pines, we ate at In-N-Out burger (!!), I got to dog-sit (the cutest) little one for our neighbor, we visited Old Town, I met the coolest Japanese exchange students, I got to have lunch at the Hotel Del, we went to Admiral Baker (our favorite brunch spot), we walked around Seaport Village, we went over to Pacific Beach, we went to the Little Italy farmers market, we walked down Orange Ave and went shopping., I biked to the Coronado beach, I got to see the "Kiss Me Kate" play at the Old Globe theater, we explored Oceanside, my brother and Grandad went to a Padres baseball game, we went to a few concert in the parks, and we all spent loads of times with friends and family!

The dream team!! I was so lucky to be able to work with these two incredible ladies, Vicki and Ashley, while I was in town. For the second year in a row I got to be an intern at L'Attitude Design! I ended up working with them for a whole month, and throughout that time, I got to experience at first hand the ins and outs of running a business. I so enjoyed my time with L'Attitude and hope I'll be able to work with them again in the future!

Here is some of their finished projects I got to see in person! Every one of their remodel, staging, and owner occupancy jobs always end up looking INCREDIBLE. What Vicki and Ashley create in these spaces is truly an art. They're both extremely talented. When I buy my first home, I'm planning on flying them out to the East Coast to design the interiors for me!

Ludlow, England

After we spent those incredible few days in Paris, we headed back to Burnham, spent a few more days with the British family, and then headed off to our next adventure destination, Ludlow, England! Every time we are in the UK we always try to stop by Ludlow so that we can visit two of our great friends, Dave and Jo. They live in the cutest cottage (It's named the Little Shortgrove cottage!), which is basically in the middle of nowhere. You have to drive down many bumpy, twisting, turning, dirt roads to reach their house. 

The remote countryside was such a nice change after being in such a busy city. Their house sits in the middle of several huge fields, most of which are filled with (the cutest) sheep. 

This is the Little Shortgrove cottage! Isn't it just about the cutest place you've ever seen?! I think I took about 30 pictures of this place alone. It has so much character inside and out, and its almost 600 years old!!

These two were even cuter than the cottage. Meet Hayward the horse and Bramble (aka Donk) the donkey! Did you notice Donk's smile? I think she rather fancied us by the end of our stay, at least I'd like to think so.

It was so great to see Dave and Jo during our Europe trip! My Dad and Dave have been best friends for over 40 years, how cute is that. They met in primary school (aka elementary school) and have been friends ever since. 

Peek-a-boo :-)

This looks more like typical English weather. When we got home from dinner, all of the clouds had rolled in.

Fun fact: It didn't get dark until 10 pm.

Donk was so sweet and gentle, especially with Connor, who had no fear whatsoever going up and scratching Donk on the nose. I fell in love with her, I want a donkey now (and a horse too, of course!). They really are one of the quirkiest and sassiest animals you'll ever come across. Donkeys have so much personality; you never really know what to expect from them. 

Connor was a little hesitant at first, but he successfully fed both Hayward and Donk. :)

How stunning is Dave and Jo's property! Hayward and Donk are livin' the life.

I couldn't get enough of this cutie patootie. 

Dave tries to act like he doesn't care for the donkey much, but this picture tells a different story...

While my dad was photographing Dave and Jo's cottage, Donk was up to no good. She went to investigate what he was up to, gave him a little nibble, and then got what she came for: a little scratch on the head. ;)

We had dinner over looking this gorgeous stream.

The town of Ludlow was the view from our table! Talk about picturesque.

Walking around the town of Ludlow with Dave and the family, was seriously a huge highlight of the trip! I absolutely LOVE Ludlow. It's so quaint, but rustic at the same time. All the streets look like they're straight from a movie.

Little tight, there?

Hmmm, maybe I should forget Flagler and transfer to here instead. ;)

After touring the streets of Ludlow, we headed to the Ludlow Castle. It was actually way cooler than I thought it would be. In fact, I probably enjoyed it more than Connor did! You actually get to walk into the different rooms of the castle, and climb up the old staircases. It was fun to imagine what the different parts of the castle were used for hundreds of years ago. 

Dave was the best tour guide! We couldn't of found our way around without him.

After our fun trip to the little village of Ludlow, it was time for us to leave. :(

We gave Donk & Hayward some final hugs and kisses and then we set off on our way home.

On our way back to Burnham we drove through the Cotswolds! The Cotswolds is an area in central England that consists of many villages lined with cobbelstone streets, and filled with the cutest cottages (like the one pictured above). 

I feel like the Cotswolds would be the perfect place to retire one day. A girl can dream, right?

Before we jumped back into the car to continue on our way, we stopped at a great pub in the Cotswolds. I can't remember the name of it, but you can't go wrong with the pubs in the UK (at least in my experience!)

Thanks for having us Dave, Jo, Hayward, and Donk! We loved seeing you all!!