THE F WORDS | THE QUARANTINE KITCHEN

Listen, I've always been a fan of cooking. I've been obsessed with getting cookbooks and Bon Appétit test kitchen videos and trying everything I see. There's something about cooking that is just the right amount of stressful pressure to get it right, combined with the satisfaction when it's done that really gets me going. A stupid way to put it? Probably. Do I care? No.

Anyway! With the quarantine going on right now, I am trying to find the best in everything. This is the perfect time to take out every single cooking tool I have an start making things I've been thinking about making for so long. I am going to call this series The Quarantine Kitchen and I hope you'll follow along! I am hoping to write these maybe once or twice per month with an update on new things I will be trying. Maybe it will turn into something weekly, that would be great.

If you try anything I put here, please share photos with me and use the hashtag #TheQuarantineKitchen! I would love to see how everyone is making these recipes their own.

NEON AMERICA

I always like to start my Sundays watching a Mr.Kate video. If you don't know who she is, I don't know what you're doing with your life. She's unapologetically herself and I can so beyond appreciate that. I also love that sometimes she makes things that I don't love, but she has taught me to appreciate why and be able to explain it. She is a huge inspiration to me and today she put out a video with David Bromstad about decorating around a self-made art piece. 

I decided to somewhat take on the challenge of creating something somewhat zany, but creative myself. You know, Sunday fun day. Anyway! I have been calling this "Neon America" all day long. I just love the idea of being able to relax on a Sunday and make something. Not to mention that I was able to sit outside on my front porch, listen to music and just leisurely so whatever the hell I wanted.

So! With all of that said, check out the process through gifs and photos. Enjoy!

Spring is here! #SubwaySeries

I'm slightly annoyed that I haven't had a chance to post lately but there are so many reasons why.  I decided that I would spare you the details though and get on with the next Subway Series!  There are a couple shots in here that come with stories and I am so excited to tell them.

Terrarium Time!

As you all know, there's no shortage of love in my body for succulents and terrariums.  I had been planning to make another one for some time now but time just hasn't allowed.  I finally had the chance to go shopping for all of the materials to make one and the first place I went might actually surprise you.  

Marshalls is actually one of the best places to get a container when you plan to make a terrarium.  They have a ton of different options at outrageously great prices.  I have a friend who also likes to make terrariums and she normally goes for a nontraditional look with hers and she found a skull container and other assorted shapes and sizes.  You would be shocked to see what you can find so definitely check it out!

Right now Lowes has an absolutely amazing selection of succulents and cacti.  I couldn't have been happier when I walked into the greenhouse and saw so many selections.  When you're looking at the options, don't forget to pick up some soil that is specifically for cacti, it should be right next to where you'll see all of your options for succulents and cacti.  They will try to entice you with sand and pebbles and stones and all this other stuff but do not fall victim! 

I have to admit this is probably the terrarium that I have made that I most proud of because it is absolutely stunning.  I didn't even realize that when I was selecting some of the plants to include, they were matching!  I had just been picking out some of the ones that I loved the most but I didn't realize that they all had a purple motif.  So, if matching is something that you enjoy, try and design your terrarium that way!

First I put a layer of soil in the bottom of the open bowl.  After that, I decided to plant the largest plant and then situate some of the rocks on the side.  I don't know why, but when I was planning to build this terrarium, I had in mind to include some rocks.  I specifically wanted to have them included in the design.  So if you're not sure what you want to include or you don't know where to start with your terrarium, planning it out a little bit beforehand is a great place to start.

After the largest plant was included, I started placing everything else around it and designing everything as I went along.  If you're not a planner or a control freak when it comes to DIYs, this is the best way to go.  I really think it comes out best when you just go with the flow.  Here is the final photo!

I hope that you absolutely love this as much as I do! Let me know your process on how you decorate your terrariums.  Have you ever made one before?  Send me a tweet and let me know where you get your succulents from as well!  Thanks for reading as always.  -Brit.

Simple Floral Spring Decor

I've become re-obsessed with Plain T from Eataly and I haven't been able to get enough lately.  Whenever I can get a chance to stop in there and pick one up, I always do.  I couldn't help but think about what I can do with the bottles because to me they are just so pretty.  I know the tea is bottled in the Hamptons so this summer I'm hoping to maybe go see where they bottle it.  

So I came up with this adorable little craft idea in the meantime until I can do something even better.  It's really simple to do and very inexpensive because all you need to do is purchase the flowers that you want for the bottle turned vase.  I got these springy flowers because they just made me so happy and made me think of warmer weather (which thank god we are seeing more of these days).

First you're going to make sure you clean out the bottles really well.  Once you've done that, you're going to also want to make sure you add enough water and the plant food in BEFORE you place the flowers in.  I made this mistake so I wanted to make sure I shared it with you.

These are the flowers that I chose.  They are so simple and beautiful and just scream spring to me.

I also ended up using all but one of the dozen flowers that I got for ONE tea bottle, so if you want to make sure you have enough for one bottle, get two dozen flowers.  I think they came out so simply adorable.  This is perfect decor for spring without being too Eastery or overboard. 

What do you think?  How do you decorate for spring?  Send me some tweets and let me know! -Brit.

Current Candle Crave: SPRING.

I know it's still only January but basically as soon as my birthday passes when January rolls around, I always just wish that we could skip to May.  Because that cannot happen, I decide to make it seem like it does by surrounding myself with colorful, spring/beachy smelling candles.  Recently I popped into Target for some things and I decided to take a visit to the candle aisle and I picked up a few.

I have definitely written about this candle on my blog before because this is the second one that I have purchased.  I was so happy to see this one on super sale when I walked down the aisle.  This is probably one of the candles that actually smells most true to coconut.  When I first saw it I was drawn in by the design of the packaging, it's gorgeous and my favorite color!  Check out your local Target and see if you can still pick one up.  I'm hoping they'll still be on shelves and that they weren't putting them on sale because they're discontinued.  

I really don't think I have to say much about this scent.  I think these are new this year at Target as I haven't seen them before.  I know they come out with their own scents and change the packaging but I definitely haven't seen this one before and it measures up to the 'Coconut Grove' scent that they had I think about two years ago.  I cannot wait to burn these when I'm done with my current 'Lavender Lemon'

Sorry to be annoying about comparing things to Bath and Body Works candles but this one reminds me of 'Spring' from last season and I just LOVE everything about it!  It makes me so excited for the warmer weather.  On the label you can see that I guess it's supposed to be reminiscent of elements in a green smoothie?  I don't know about that.  I just love this and if you love a fresh, herb-y scent you will probably enjoy it as well.

Which candles have you been burning lately?  I cannot wait to burn these and just tell myself that it actually IS spring even though it isn't yet.  Send me a tweet and let me know what you're loving.  Thank you for reading as always.  -Brit.

Light Spring Lunch with Avocado!

Along with my wishful thinking that spring weather would actually come back and the rain would stop, I decided to eat something light/springy today for lunch.  I can't lie, I was a little apprehensive about the bread being too heavy, but it was so delicious the way all of the flavors mixed together.  This was actually the second day that I had this for lunch and I thought it was a great mix.  Yesterday I had it with a hard broiled egg on it but I have no more of them, must get hard boiling!  

I want to say that I HAVE spoken about my undying love for avocados here before.  I think I posted another sandwich very similar to this one (but with an english muffin) last year.  As you can see, I have decided to go with 7-Grain bread, avocado, American cheese and tomato.  What you can't see is the light (very light) layer of some honey dijon.  

All of these flavors just mix so well together.  Yesterday when I had the egg on the sandwich as well, I tasted a tweet bit and there was no honey dijon so I think the bread has a slight sweetness.  

Who doesn't love a nice bowl of fruit with their sandwich?  Not only was this delicious, but it's a healthy alternative.  Having something crisp and delicious is also something that reminds me of the spring.  I'm over the apple pie, bring on the watermelon!  For now until watermelon starts appearing in stores around me, I have opted for a pear and some strawberries.  Strawberries always remind me of the start of spring and into summer so inherently it just makes me happier!

What do you guys normally snack on/have for lunch in the spring?  Do you change up your eating habits drastically to calm your mood?  I mean, isn't that the point of 'comfort food?'  I love being able to make whatever I want, whenever I want it so this is really good to me.  April showers will hopefully be bringing May flowers and some warmer weather and this meal has certainly made me believe it a little bit more.  Send me a tweet and let me know what you're thinking!  Thanks for reading.  -Brit.   

Jade Is The New Black!

It has been raining a lot lately.  I guess the last couple of days of April are really taking advantage of the 'April showers bring May flowers' rule.  I'm not okay with this.  I really just wish summer temperatures would come and stay.  To make up for feeling the blues, I decided to paint my nails and toes green.  Whats the point in waiting for everything to turn green when you can just paint everything green, right?  Needless to say I took to my nail polish rack and chose Jade Is The New Black by OPI.  

I've written about OPI polishes on here before.  As you know, I always like to do about two coats of polish no matter what.  I think here I did three because sometimes I just prefer.  This particular color is pretty opaque so you don't have to worry about sitting there forever and getting it to come out the color it looks like it is in the bottle (like some other polishes I know you do).  This color just makes me really happy and brings a little color to these otherwise mundane days.  Here are a few photos:

        

        

I actually started with this color on my toes.  After I had the polish on my feet for about two weeks I said to myself, 'maybe I should just put that on my nails.'  Haha.  Please ignore the bandaid, I stepped on a piece of glass while volunteering with my dad a couple of weeks ago.  We were doing a stream clean-up and the glass went right through my boot and into my foot.  This did not make me happy as I am sure you could imagine.  I got that darling little ankle bracelet from a local boutique called Sunshine Daydream here in Point Pleasant.  I know its easy to make myself but I like it!  I got another piece from them as well that I will share with you soon.  Thanks for reading!  Make sure you send me a tweet & let me know what you've got on your nails/toes lately.  Talk to you soon!  -Brit.

My Stunning New Cobalt Obsession!

All hail queen of all the flat shoes.  I can't handle how much I love these.  I can't lie I wasn't sure how they were going to sit on my feet as far as the design goes, but I loved the design, color, shoe and basically everything about it so I just thought it was too good to pass up.  I almost feel as if, sense they are a bright cobalt blue color, they're like waves running over my foot.  I'm probably starting to sound a little ridiculous but these are most definitely the definition of shoe magic and I am not afraid to say it.

These are the Civitate style in Blue Misc. (I like to call it a gorgeous Cobalt instead, because it's just much better that way).  As you can see, they are just so radiant.  I wish I had take a picture of the outfit I was wearing this day but it was so basic so I didn't worry about it.  That's what's great about these shoes though, you can spice up such a casual outfit and make it look perfect without being too done up.
Another thing I love about the style is that they are SO comfortable.  I wasn't sure how it was going to be with the straps criss-crossed over the shoe like that but I ended up being completely fine.  Ankle straps are continuing to impress and are huge right now and I hope they don't go anywhere quick.  I know I wont personally let them haha.

Have you guys purchased a life changing pair of shoes lately?  I can't get enough of these, they're perfect for spring and summer so I will definitely be wearing them all over the place and I couldn't be more excited about it.  Let me know in the comments below or send me a tweet and let me know what you have been loving!  Thanks so much for reading and I will talk to you all soon!  -Brit.   

My Day in Photos: Cronuts, an OOTD, the Eye Doctor, Statement Necklaces and Pretty Sunsets!

So today felt like a day to show you 'My Day in Pictures.'  To be completely honest with you, I had a great day at work, a couple of pretty cool things happened and I had productive meetings.  Not only did I have awesome meetings and get a lot of things done, but we celebrated the March birthdays we have in the office by ordering DoCo Donuts and Cronuts.  They were pretty good I can't lie.  I mean do you see the one below with bacon on it?  I didn't try that one but someone else in my department did and she was all about it.  I tried a cookie dough cronut and it was SO SWEET.  OMG!

     

I snapped this gorgeous pic on the way home from work.  Very dangerous, I know, but how could you miss an opportunity to take a picture of a gorgeous sky like this?  I don't think you could.  

So this next picture comes with a story.  I am making a really weird face because I was waiting in my car to go into the eye doctors office.  I don't know if you can tell from the photo or not, but my eyes are extremely irritated and its very frustrating because I just recently got new contacts (yesterday) and all of a sudden something was flaring up on my skin under/on the side of my eyes again!  I couldn't believe it, so I immediately called my doctor and tried to get an appointment and here I was.  Also, I know my hair looks extremely ratch here and I don't want to talk about it.

I thought my necklace was looking pretty fly here just hanging from my rearview mirror so I snapped a quick picture of it with the sky looking so pretty in the background.  Things like this make me happy.

Finally, my outfit for the day. 

I am obsessed with this shirt.  The arms are a gray polka dot pattern on top of a black background which is grounds enough for me to buy it, but the rest of the shirt is what definitely sold it.  As you can see in the next picture, the shirt expands into a floral pattern that is also gray/black&white.  The patterns are so contrasting but they are perfect together because they are in the same color family.  This is the best way to mix patterns if you are scared to do so.  I of course am wearing my MK 5605, my trusty winter watch.  

You can see my pants color here the best, they are an emerald green and perfect to wear for the winter because not only does the color match the season, but also perfectly with this shirt.  You can also kind of catch my shoes here.  I don't know if you can tell but the shoes are black booties from Aldo and they are SO comfortable.  I love the suede texture of the front part of the bootie but in the black there is this weird snake/fir texture.  I am going to write a full post about booties coming soon, so look for a better explanation there!

Here is another shot of the shoes and my pants in which you can't even tell what color anything is.  The reason for this photo though, is because I was watching Pretty Little Liars and I wanted to share that with you guys.  I mean, what else is this post worth if it didn't include Pretty Little Liars?  Btw, Spencer looks like she's going cray in next weeks episode.  What do you think?

Well everyone, you've spent your day with me and now it's time for me to get to bed.  I am going to snuggle into covers and get warm, watch some YouTube and get sleeping!  I can't believe tomorrow is hump day already, these weeks are passing so quickly for some reason.  ITS MARCH!  Ahhh, so insane.  Leave a comment below or send me a tweet and let me know how your day was.  Also, let me know what you are thinking about Pretty Little Liars lately.  #SpencerIsCray.  

Revlon Parfumerie: Fresh Linen.

As you sadly know, we are in for it.  By this, I mean we are in for another storm that is set to come our way at the end of today, right into tomorrow morning.  This is going to be bad for many reasons but the worst reason is because of the morning commute.  Granted, if the weather is bad enough, my office will close but it's just extremely annoying to have to worry about how bad the snow will be because granted, trusting the forecast is never a good thing (it changes every five seconds).  

For today's lazy Sunday, I woke up with really only a couple of things that I had to do.  I must do laundry, pickup my room a little bit and I just really wanted to re-paint my nails.  So, with that said, my dad put on a pot of coffee, made us breakfast sandwiches and here we are chillin'.  My dad isn't painting his nails though, he's working on the snow blower a little bit (lol).  

So above are the two integral parts of my day.  On the right you will see my adorable coffee-stained mug that is making me very happy.  Quick tip for people, try drinking your coffee black.  I don't know, I have tasted coffee like one time with sugar and creamer and I just don't like it.  Ever since I started drinking coffee, I have been drinking it black.  Every single day, it just tastes so much better and stronger.  On the left you will see my nail polish of choice for today (and probably tomorrow), Revlon's Parfumerie in Fresh Linen. 

With this color, you need more than two coats, on my nails currently is three coats.  It may seem like a bit of a no brainer that a white polish would need more than two coats, but this one has a pearly finish so you might be fooled.  The color is beautiful but even with three coats you can still see right through it in the photo to the bottom of my nails.  I didn't use a base coat or top coat with this, but I didn't want to because when I test a polish, I always want to do it without base/top coats to see how well they are on their own.  

I'm pretty sure I have never talked about these polishes on my blog before but I have a couple of them as you will see down below and I do enjoy them.  Other than the scent of the polishes, my favorite thing about them is the bottle shape.  They are so darling and look like a tiny little perfume bottle and it makes me so happy.

As you can see, I have six of the polishes in this line.  I have: Fresh Linen, Pink Pineapple, Beachy, Wintermint, Autumn Spice and Apricot Nectar.  My favorite out of these is most definitely beach (scent wise).  These all smell exactly like they are labeled and that makes me happy.  I say this because Revlon came out with another line of scented polishes that didn't smell that great and I was so upset.  I bought a beachy-scented one and it smelled so bad and nothing like the beach.  These polishes are great and they only smell like a normal nail polish upon first opening up the bottle, right after that they smell like the scent they are labeled.  I couldn't believe it.  Also, the scent lasts longer than just the first day.  I would probably say about three days later, the scent was still there but starting to wear off, definitely pretty cool!

Thank you for reading once again.  I felt inspired by the snow (um, ew) to paint my nails this angelic white color and I am happy with the decision.  Who knows how long I will feel this inspired but I hope this snow comes and goes because I looked further into Accuweather and it says that we are going to be getting temperatures in the 50's and 60's so I cant wait.  What polishes are you loving right now?  Mine are always so dependent on my mood as you know from last couple of color choices.  Let me know in the comments below or send me a tweet.  Thanks for reading!  xoxo

Braziliant!

Okay guys.  As I had previously said, the weather has finally been looking up but I knew for sure that it was too good to be true (being that it's only February).  Granted, tomorrow is the last day of the month and I could not be more excited.  For some reason I just cannot stand February because it always kind of meant 'dead of winter' to me and I hate winter (no surprise).  

Being that you know I hate winter, I bring you a nice little pop of color for the time being.  While we wait for the weather to be on a steady incline rather than just popping up in random places when it feels like it, March IS actually coming so that means it's time to starting bringing out the pastels and the brights.  Nothing makes me happier.

Come May I'm sure I'll do Manicure May but for now you have to take a look at this color!  I remember when the color came out with the Braziliant collection and I was so excited.

This is the collection titled color Braziliant.  I love the bright pop of color because it's HOT orange and it just makes me happy.  I can use this as a crutch to get me through the rest of this gross winter weather.  

As you can see, the polish has amazing duo-chrome.  The subtle hints of purple are just enough to make it look like 'not your average orange' polish.  I like the application of this polish,  I have two coats on here and that's really all you need.  Normally Essie polishes are great this way, pretty opaque.  

I feel like I also must add that I have Lush 'Dream Cream;' on my hands at the time of these photos so thats why they look a little oily.  I couldn't wait to take the pictures because I wanted to show you the color.  I am going to definitely be sharing my favorites for dry skin coming up soon, so make sure you don't miss it.  I have eczema and not everything works for me  (barely anything), so I have a lot to say about Dream Cream and another line of amazing products.  

What are you doing to get through these last couple of cold months?  Thank you so much for reading and make sure you check in for my dry skin (eczema friendly) post coming really soon!  Also, more outfit of the days coming up as well.  Send me a tweet or comment!  

Jeffrey Campbell Day Dreams.

Coming from a place of SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder), I can't help but just long for summer every single second of every single day.  I know I have talked about it before but the struggle is real here as I wait very impatiently for the warmer temperatures to come.  I say all of this with the temptation of this past weekend where it was 61 degrees on both days.  Yes I am serious.  Here at the good old Jersey Shore, we had a beautiful weekend but now it's almost hump day and I am left only with reminiscing thoughts on the warmer temperatures of the weekend and hoping that they'll come again soon.  

On this glorious Wednesday eve, I want to talk to you about a certain Jeffrey Campbell lookbook called "DAY DREAMS."  I don't know why I haven't seen it until now, but I am in love with almost everything in the lookbook, I want it all.  There has to be something special about a shoe for me to love it.  Granted, there are some basics that I'm sure are loved by everyone, but for me to be obsessed with a shoe, it has to be next level.  Do you feel the same way?

There's something about the pastel colors here that make me swoon.  Being that I do want the desirable temperatures so bad, maybe the colors just make me feel like they are already here.  Whatever it is, I just love the vibe.  I love the blue hair, the whimsical feel and everything else.  Check it out and let me know for yourself.  Do you have SAD?  I certainly do.  Check out the lookbook here and send me a tweet to let me know your thoughts.