Guilty Pleasures

While making my way through my Bloglovin' feed this morning, I read Christa's post and was inspired to make a Guilty Pleasures list of my own!

1. "Girly" TV

Sometimes also referred to as "Trash TV". It's hard to watch when Aaron's around because he hates it so much, but when I have the house to myself I indulge in whatever I can find on Bravo or E!...Real Housewives, Total Divas, Marriage Bootcamp Reality Stars, Eric and Jessie: Game On (love them BTW!), etc etc. And if there isn't anything relatively new on, good old classic SATC will work just fine!

2. British Chocolate

I'm sorry - it's just better. I don't like Hershey's and the like...but Cadbury's...I'll eat that shiz any day. Basically any candy item they make is fair game.

 3. Online Shopping

Duh. No explanation needed ;)

  
4. PJ Pants

You can never have enough pairs of super soft & stretchy PJ pants. I am a sucker for them, even if I already have 10 pairs in my dresser at home. Bonus points if they hold up their super softness after a dozen runs through the wash :)

5. Instagram

Hands down my favorite app and social media outlet. I never got into Twitter or Pinterest, but I can get lost for ages looking at pictures on Instagram. (Find me - @emiliestorey)

6. Laid Back Beach Radio

My favorite Pandora station...soo relaxing and just happy. I play it all day at work and it makes me realize I was meant to live in Hawaii, or somewhere of the like...a la Blue Crush ;)


Well, that's all I can think of right now without diving deeper into the Food Category ;)
What are your guilty pleasures?? 

 

Friday Favorites ~ 5.2.14

So excited to link up today with one of my favorite bloggers... Amanda from 'Meet Me at the Barre' ...for Friday Favorites!

  

Favorite Finds:

Some of my recent purchases :) 

Got the VS sweatsuit off ebay for a super discount compared to buying it on their website.

Win.

Snatched up these UO sunglasses for $15 ...I've been looking for a "cost-friendly" version of the colored Ray Bans...but every time I find a pair that works, they sell out in less than 24 hours! I happened to me like 3 times...well I learned my lesson! When I stumbled upon these, I wasn't hesitating this time! 

Love these two effortless maxi dresses from F21 - striped one was $12 and coral one was $8.80 -- steal! And I could checkout without adding the little ceramic bunnies to my cart once seeing them ;)  

 Favorite Links:
Abby's husband showed me this slowed down version of Dolly Parton singing "Jolene'. I love Dolly Parton, and I love that song...and it even sounds fabulous this way too! 

Tried this quiz, thinking I was going to rock it...I was so wrong - it's hard!

 
Favorite Songs:
Heard this on Pandora the other day, and instantly bookmarked...

 

Favorite Recipe:

Love the look and sound of these delicious "Wontons" that Julie posted about! Can't go wrong with Bob Evans sausage :) They look perfect for party finger-food! Head over to her fabulous blog to check out the recipe!

 

Favorite Funnies:

Now that the weather is warming up...

How I feel about soccer (and basketball)...but give me baseball or football any day!!

Two little gems from Instagram (follow me @emiliestorey ;)

And the two that always make me laugh, no matter what...

Join the link up here!

April Favorites

1) Post It Tabs - A life saver when it comes to organizing all my school work... we have so many power points, articles, etc to print out each week and I have come to love these little tabs that help me keep everything labeled!

2) Dream Angles Heavenly - I used to wear this all the time, and haven't had it in a couple years...but Aaron got me a fragrance sampler from VS for Christmas, and this was one of the scents. I put it on the other day and fell in love all over again! When the sample runs out, I will definitely be purchasing a full size bottle - don't know why I stray from what works? Guess I got tired of it before, but I'm so glad I have rediscovered it!

3) VS Sports Bras - There's no getting around it, working out can be difficult when you are well-endowed in the chest department, especially if you don't have the right support. I spent years in dance trying to tame the ladies with double sports bras and constricting tank tops...but I'm so happy that VS is finally carrying athletic wear! A good sports bra is definitely worth the $50 price tag to me...especially since I am spending 5-6 days a week at the gym since starting my new workout program (will share in a post soon!)

4) Bridal Hanger - I can't stress enough how much I love Etsy :) I've been able to find such cute, unique, and personal gifts for so many occasions...and I was so excited to find these personalized bridal hangers to get my best friend for her wedding day! I think it will make for a beautiful photograph with her dress hanging on it!

5) Brown Gel Eyeliner - I think I have finally come to terms with the fact that I am getting a bit older and jet black eyeliner just doesn't work on me all the time (still ok for evening though ;) I am going to pick up some dark brown gel liner to use during the day - I think it will look a lot better with my light skin and a lot less harsh compared to the black I've been using for years. 

6) DIY Canvas with Quote - I just LOVE Elise's shop on Etsy...and she inspired me to make a really personalized gift for one of my bff's upcoming baby showers! I'll post pictures soon, but I ended up using her nursery colors (lavender and silver) and a quote in French since her nursery theme is Parisian. Check out Elise's gorgeous custom canvases at Cheers Ya'll Shop!!

And by sure to head over to Emily and Ally's blogs to link up with your April Favorites!! xo

Five on Friday ~ 3.14.14

Happy Friday ladies!! This week flew by for me and I'm exhausted (what's new??)

Linking up with a lot of lovely ladies for Five on Friday!

{1}

This heartwarming quote I found on Instagram the other day...warm fuzzies...and exactly how I feel about a certain someone ;)  

{2}

Hallelujah!! For I have discovered the "sock bun" scrunchie that is big enough to hold all of my hair!

The roll down ones just weren't cutting it - but this one that snaps works perfectly! Win.

You can find it at H&M for $5

{3}

Finally getting around to wearing this fabulous sweater that Aaron got me for Xmas - I love it!

And it was warm enough this week to wear it without bulking a big winter jacket onto of it :)

{4}

Found a cargo jacket!

I mentioned a few posts back that I was searching for one - and I found one from Forever 21 that is perfect.

{5}

I am almost out of my all-time favorite highlighter (MAC's Silver Dusk) and I almost had a heart attack when I went on the website and couldn't find it! But it was just hiding ;) I'll be re-ordering this very shortly as it is amazing and I have no need to even try any other highlighters. Plus it lasts me a million years because it is so shimmery, you only need a tiny bit each application.

{Bonus}

Just gonna sneak a quick picture of the Deeds in here, because why not?

She was super excited to get outside in the sunshine and go on some walks this week!

Have a great weekend!! xx

Friday's Fancies

Hey ladies!

Just a quick post of some things I'm loving lately - or have had my eye for for a long time ;)

H&M Viscose tank and grey v-neck tee
(25% off one item code 0747 on the H&M website right now!)
Colin Stuart Platform Slouch Boots (love the tan color)
Evil Eye silver and CZ bracelet
Adorable Bip and Bop "Sweethearts Necklace" from etsy 

Diptyque Candles - can't choose a scent, love them all!

Michael Kors Grayson Satchel - my next major handbag purchase!

Lucy Love racerback navy maxi dress

(will most likely be purchasing this week as I can't resist any longer, haha!)

Have a great weekend!! xxx

victoria's secret - swimwear

Last Christmas, I got a Victoria's Secret gift card from my parents and I have been hording it until this past week. It is one of my favorite gifts, as I LOVE everything from VS...but, as I was joking with my friend Abby (who is also an avid VS shopper)...I feel like I have to wait for all the stars to align in order to use it ;)

The other day it was not only the Semi-Annual Sale, but there was a free shipping code and an extra 20% off code...I knew it would never get better than that so I had to jump on it and finally use the gift card!

I did get a bra, but the majority of the card was used on bikinis <3
I recently got rid of most of my bathsuit collection as I have lost weight this past year and most of my suits were a couple years old and looking kind of ratty. The only one I kept was my VS Daisy bikini in black.

I bought a grand total of 3 bikinis...2 matching sets and the third I made myself with mix-and-match pieces!

The first matching set is the Gorgeous bikini in Amalfi Blue, which I have had my eye on for a year...blue is definitely not the first color I go to when choosing clothing items, but I just loved the way this looked with the bright green accent!

The second matching set is just a simple triangle top with side-tie bottom...both in Neon Hot Pink which I loveee (only the top is pictured in Neon Hot Pink).

Finally, I made my own set with a couple different pieces. When we went to OBX with our friends last summer, Abby had the most adorable bikini bottoms and I had to have them! They are side-tie in a neon coral-pink-orange color with ruffles and ruching in the back (believe the style is called "Cheeky").

I paired them with a white bandeau top and I plan on getting a little pink starfish brooch to pin in the middle to bring the whole suit together ;)

Haven't even gotten to the pool yet this summer because we are so busy every weekend!! I think we are going to try and go this Saturday though, so maybe I'll get to wear one of these new suits :))

Hope you all have a lovely Friday!

xx em

express overload

Aaron and I finally closed on our house this past week! It has been such a long process, but we are estatic that it is finally officially ours <3
I will post pictures soon, I need to get some nice shots of the inside.

Since all of our time and energy (and $$) has gone into the house the past few months, I haven't really been shopping or bought myself anything in what feels like ages! So, this weekend I was on a mission to check out a warehouse I had heard about through a friend. She told me about it ages ago... it sounded too good to be true... I have been meaning to go, and finally got the chance.

Now, this may not be everyones cup of tea, but I absolutely LOVE places like this. It is a giant "warehouse", kind of in the middle of nowhere, that is very basic/bare-bones inside...clothing racks for days, and makeshift changing rooms in the back. It reminds me of sample sale shopping :)

Basically, it houses all the overstock and "damaged" items from the Limited Corporation (ie Express, Victorias Secret, Limited, etc).

I love bargain shopping, so this place was a home run for me! There was so much, that it was almost overwhelming! They had tops, bras, swimwear, sleepwear, work attire, sweaters, purses, jewelry, shoes, dresses...

I even went back on Sunday, taking Aaron this time, since they had Express Men's items too. He ended up with two pairs of jeans.

Here are some shots of the items I ended up with...

Couple of mint colored sweaters - one slouchy/off-the-shoulder and one more fitted.

Two chiffon dress shirts for work - bright coral and royal blue. I need some bright colors in my work wardrobe for summer! Plus these are super lightweight which is great for the warm weather.

One-shoulder chiffon dress is coral pink and a long, light weight cardigan in the same color. Can you tell I love this color for summer? ;)

**Not pictured - VS bra, white Express button up dress shirt, 2 pairs Express men's jeans, and 3 pairs of Express Editor work pants. I also got the slouchy sweater (mint- first picture) in beige too!

For the 14 items we bought, we walked away under $200 - which is pretty amazing considering the items were originally tagged to total over $650!
I can't wait to go back in a couple weeks and check out what they have!

Holliter scent - Malalia
Gilly Hicks scent - Point Piper

We also spent some time with our close friends on Thursday, who were so sweet to give me a couple Hollister/Gilly Hicks roller ball perfumes. I haven't been to Hollister in years (I used to shop there in my high school years) but I have to say, the perfume is really nice and fresh! It's perfect to throw in my purse for summer :)

xx em

givenchy.

Well, it was supposed to be on my Christmas list this year...but I ended up just getting it myself after receiving an online coupon from Sephora and finding two unused gift cards hiding in my wallet. So it ended up being free, with free shipping! Can't get better than that.

I am so happy with this fragrance. It is unlike anything I have, which is exactly what I was looking for (I was getting tired of my signature scents). 

Sephora describes it as...

"Fresh, luminous, and fruity floral with a "jasmine tea" theme. Notes of Cranberry, Green Tea, White Peony, Sambac Jasmine, Blond Woods, White Musks.

I definitely agree with the description of fruity and floral...what I love about it is an almost "grapefruit" scent! It is very fresh and feminine.

My current collection:

Viktor and Rolf --- Flowerbomb

Givenchy --- Ange Ou Demon

Dolce and Gabbana --- Light Blue

Chanel --- Chance Eau Fraiche

Victoria's Secret --- Very Sexy Now Beauty of Brazil

em xx