Ya learn something new everyday

Hey there. Today's a new day (thank gosh), and I want you to meet Melissa! One of the coolest bloggers in all the land. She's a canadian lady (which is where I'll be friday!!!!...except about 15 hours away!), but can instantly make you giggle. Check 'er out!

-Why did you start blogging?

I started blogging as a way to get my thoughts down and to force myself to write every day. I really love to write but was really bad at putting aside time to do it and this was a way to keep me on track. I wanted to share my life and my experiences and hope that maybe someone else out there felt the way I did. I wrote about this in my first post. 

-What is a funny story your friends would tell about you if we met them?

 What story wouldn't they tell? (jk but not really) They would probably tell you how stupid I can be sometimes. We were out for drinks one night, a good ol girls night, and planning to go back to my best friend's apartment for some wine and a movie. Someone said we should get face masks and I got all excited and legit said "You think there will be a lion one? Omg we definitely need to take pictures!" Nobody understood me. We went to the dollar store to buy these said face masks when I realized they meant masks for facials... not for stupid pictures. So I go running up to them with a cat mask and they were super confused and then I realized what was happening and they've never let me live it down. Guys I just wanted to take silly pictures in animal masks!

-If you could go back in time a year or two, would you have changed anything? Why or why not?

100% no. I would change nothing. Everything that happened in the past two years has led me to this place right now and I wouldn't change it for the world. I'm a stronger, happier person who finally has her ish together (somewhat). 

-Whats your favorite part about blogging?/Do you have any tips?

My absolute favorite part about blogging is meeting so many interesting people! It's honestly like its own little family. A tight knit community of love and support. It's amazing. My biggest tip would be to reply to your readers. You never know what friendships might bloom. 

-Favorite TV show

I cannot pick just one! But I would have to say my top 3 are The Walking Dead, American Horror Story, and Criminal Minds. 

-Favorite lyric/song

It always changes. Music makes me feel so good and I'm always finding new songs and artists I can relate to. At this point right now the lyrics that resonate most with me are from John Mayer's "Perfectly Lonely".

       "Nothing to do

Nowhere to be

A simple little kind of free

Nothing to do

No one but me

And that's all I need"

FYI: I'm happily single and really enjoying my life for the first time in years!

Amen to that, sista friend. #Preach

Want to learn more about this hilarious lady? Blog & Twitter

Friday Makeup lovin

Hey, there, beautiful people! My name is Hayley and I normally hang out over at A Beautiful Exchange. If you come and join me for long enough, you will see that I absolutely love exploring makeup and finding new budget-friendly products on the market. My favorite products change on the regular, but I love finding the little gems of the makeup industry. My makeup style is typically very "earthy" and natural, but I love to mix things up as well! I thought I would share a few of my favorite products right now and would love to hear what you guys have been over the moon about recently!

1. Jordana Best Lash Volumizing Mascara: Ok, so this isn't exactly a "summer" product, but is my current all time favorite mascara. I have tried all kinds of drug store mascara, as well as a few high end products, and have found nothing like it. It's super cheap ($10+shipping for 3 tubes on eBay), doesn't clump, and lasts all day!

2. Starlooks Bronzer: Amazing. The end. As you can probably tell, I have extremely pale skin and actually use fake tanner throughout the summer months since I can't spend hours lying by the pool (yay, mom life!). I have used this bronzer for the past month in my contouring routine and it is fabulous. It is long lasting and gives you a perfect, glowy look!

3. Milani Blush: This is perfect for summer, especially if you have tanner skin! It contains a little shimmer, so probably wouldn't be something you would want to wear throughout the summer months, but is perfect combined with a little bronzer. If you are a BB cream user, this would look beautiful and natural--great for cookouts and other outdoor events!

4. Starlooks Palette in St. Tropez: Beautiful. The gold color would look great on any eye color and the darker colors can make a really simple transition from day to night makeup. The price is a little steep, but Starlooks is definitely headed in the right direction with this color palette.

5. Revlon Colorstay foundation: I use high end foundation throughout the year, but wanted something cheap and light that could match my darker color when I use my self tanner. This foundation is amazing. It doesn't last the 24 hours as advertised, but is so light on your skin and doesn't sweat out. This is definitely one of the best drugstore foundations out there and is oil free. Plus, it has SPF 15, which is crucial for summertime makeup!

Finding new makeup is always so much fun, so make sure you share some of your favorites in a comment below!
 I would also love to have you stop by my blog, follow me on Twitter, or send me a little email introducing yourself! I love "meeting" new people, so don't be shy!

Hey y'all! I'm Tiffany Khyla, and I blog at d'Asti at Tiffany's, which is a lifestyle blog documenting my transition from college life to corporate life. I mostly write about love, books, traveling, and randomness. Every once in awhile, I throw in a DIY or a recipe. I'm so excited to be guest posting on Sunshine and Sinatra today. Rachel and I were Cara Box partners, and now I feel like we're for real friends. I stalk her life via all all social media outlets (insta, twitta, etc.), but I promise I'm not a creeper. People are always telling me that I look young then when I complain about it, they're like "You'll be thankful one day," (ME TOO TIFF, ME TOO!) but this isn't one day, people! 

I actually see both sides of the spectrum sometimes. I've gone to restaurants with my sister where people ask us "Who's older?" We've also gone to grocery stores where people ask if I'm her mother, so that's not cool. Do I really look like the teen mom type?! Anyway, some days, I just like embracing my inner child (but really this is my every day life). How do I do that, you ask? I watch cartoons. Not so much newer cartoons. (Honestly, I tried to think of a cartoon that is airing now, and I can't think of a single one. I even did a Google search, and hadn't heard of any of them. Maybe I am old...) I'm talking reruns of Scooby Doo (aka the best cartoon that was ever created).

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I love Barbie. I don't play with (or collect) the dolls or anything like that. I used to when I was younger. Now though, I still want a Barbie Jeep. I never got one. I'm pretty sure they're cooler now, so I still one. I can still fit in it, can't I? Plus I want to go see Barbie's Dream House in Florida. I mean, a part of my childhood come to life!

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I watch Mary-Kate and Ashley movies. Some may think it's pathetic how much I've mentioned MKA on my blog considered I'm in my early 20's, but I love them and all their movies. My childhood idols that I just can't seem to shake. Every once in awhile, I'll break out the MKA party vids and sing along or watch one of their full-length movies (Winning London and Passport to Paris for some travel inspiration).

 

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I read young adult books. I'm pretty sure every book I've written about on my blog has been a YA book, and I'm not ashamed about it. I'm currently writing a book, and it's a YA novel. I guess I'm still in that mindset even though I'm supposed to be an adult and stuff.

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I wear a tutu at every available opportunity. I own two tutus, and I just wore one last week at the Run or Dye 5k I did, just because I felt like it. I love tutus. I was never a ballerina or in dance or anything like that, so I never got to wear them, and now I can, so I will, and people will continue to think I'm 12.

 

Need trendy dorm decorating tips? (guest post)

Hello everyone! My name's Carrie and I blog over at Lego House. I'm so happy to be doing this guest post for Rachel! She did a guest post for me a few weeks ago when I was out of town and I definitely owed her one (:

Since both me and Rachel, and I'm pretty sure some of her readers are too, getting ready for the fall semester to start, I thought I'd do a little post on some different decoration ideas for dorm rooms! I think we can all agree that getting to decorate your dorm room is always the most exciting thing about heading back to school!

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 // 9

1. Postcards A few weeks ago when I was in Maine, me and my friends stopped at a thrift store and found so many unique post cards. So we all bought a few to put up on our walls. For each post card only being $0.75, it's an easy and cheap decoration!

2. Vintage Posters I'm a huge fan of vintage posters and last year I had some posters of vintage Vogue covers on my wall and they looked amazing! You can never go wrong with vintage!

3. Watercolors I found these amazing water colors of ballerinas on Etsy the other day (seriously, the website has the greatest finds), and being a dancer, I'm absolutely went crazy for them! I think water colors are also a really easy thing to make (that is if you're artsier than I am) but are also really classy.

4. Flags/Banners I lived in Thailand for six years so I have a huge Thai flag that I put up in my dorm room. If you have a favorite country you've ever been to or from where you're from, I totally recommend getting a flag to put up! And I also know people who put up banners from specially events in their rooms (i.e. a few of my sorority sisters have hung up banners we've made for Greek Week).

5. Typography You can find plenty of different typography pieces on Etsy, but they're also really fun to make on your own! You just get to play around in Photoshop with different fonts and colors and come out with really neat things! I've made a few of my own with a few of my favorite quotes to hang up in my room this year.

6. Wall Mural I've never had a wall mural in my room, but after finding this tutorial, I really want to! Sadly, I don't think I'll have enough room in my dorm this year to hang one up but hey, I've got two years left at college!

7. Washi Tape Shelves Putting Washi Tape on the side of your book shelves is a really easy way to brighten up your room. My dorm room last year had all way walls and shelves so lining the edge of shelves with Washi Tape was a nice pop of color!

8. Mason Jars I think Mason Jars are perfect just for overall tidy-ness. You can put your pens and pencils in them at your desk or you can also store little knickknacks in them to help tidy up your space. 

9. Paint Swatch Art I found this tutorial last summer before I moved into my dorm and I fell in love! I went and got some paint swatches from the store that match the colors of my bed set and arranged them in a frame for some nice modern art for my room (:

My final tip for decorating your dorm is to go with the old wedding cliche of "something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue". Have something old to decorate your room with to remind you of home. Have something new just for the excuse to go shopping and to also have thing that YOU picked out for your room. Have something borrowed, I have a few things from friends and my sisters, so you don't get too home sick. And for having something "blue", I mean that you should have something that isn't the color of everything else in your room just so your room doesn't get too dull and there's something exciting for the eye!

You know I don't sing....right? But I think my voice is sometimes funny

If you know anything about me, you'd realize I love blog friends! 

Today, I am letting Erica over at EricaAshley take over! 

Being busy with school lately, I've had some of my great friends help me out...hope ya don't mind! Enjoy!

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I am SO excited to guest post of my favorite BBF (Blogging Buddy Forever)! 

She told me I can write about anything I wanted. Which left me in a tough situation because there is so much I could write about! I could tell you about how me and this lovely lady became such good blogging friends, or how we have never even met in person but I am completely obsessed with reading her posts and hearing about her life, or how finding blogging friends is one of the coolest things about blogging, which is SO true!

Instead I want to tell you all about the journey of finding my blogging voice and why its so important to do! 

Your blogging voice is the thing that reals the readers in. It is the voice in which you write your blog. The way in which you tell your story. The voice is how you present your blog to others and the different things you write about.

Some people blog about fashion (go you! You would laugh at my fashion advice). Some blog about becoming a mom or married (once again can't help ya there, I am neither of those things). Others will use their blog to promote things! And some just blog about their daily lives. 

Whatever one or multiple voices you choose to have the number one rule is BE YOU! Seriously, write this bad boy as if you were speaking to the reader you are writing to! It took me awhile to realize what it meant to have a voice in the blog world. It took me time to understand how to write my blog. But when you read this sucker you are basically having a conversation with me listening to me speak! 

I don't have the best grammar, or spelling, and I like to use LOTS of ! (I get excited about everything). I capitalize my words in all the wrong places, and I like to think I am hilarious and people laugh when reading my blog. Sometimes I get super serious about posts, but I like to add humor in there for some relief. But whatever you choose and however you choose to write, make sure its you! 

Also, people are gonna hate. Thats just life. Think of this blog as the real world, do you LOVE every single person you approach and want to become best friends? No way! Thats how blogging works. You will find some bloggers you love, some not so much. And the same goes for your blog. Some will LOVE reading your blog daily, others not so much. But that doesn't mean stop what your doing! 

Remember what I said, BE YOU! If people like ya, great! You have some new friends! (and I can promise there will be people you like ya) If others are not a fan, who cares! You can't make everyone in the world happy! But don't get discouraged! Keep doin you! 

Another thing about your voice is don't change it! Sometimes I read people's blogs and I am like "You are so FUNNY!" or "Oh my gosh you are so cool!" "I have to write just like you!" Don't. They are them and you are you. Sure you may share a liking for !! or you may both be hil-ar-ious! But remember the number 1 rule BE YOU! Don't copy someone else's voice, instead befriend that voice stealing blogger so you two can become best buddies! Just don't copy her and her everyday posts! 

Lastly have fun! Have fun writing posts, have fun doing random post such as 10 things I can't live with out, or Perks of Being a Woman . It's okay to not write about serious and life changing events daily! In fact, some of the best posts come from those days! 

Have fun finding your voice while blogging, get out there and do your thing! And remember BE YOU! 

Real life friends do real life things

Baby bloggers unite! Also real life friends who blog unite! I am so excited to share with you guys my girl Jenny. Jenny from the block, obvi. We are real life friends! We went to camp together one year and have had maaaany mutual friends and stayed in touch!

Look this is us even:

Bad picture but ya get it.

Now go read her fun posts on DIY and check out her blog, too!

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Hi I'm Jenny from Sprinkles & Sundresses and I am so happy to be guest posting for Rachel! She has been like my blog big sister since I'm very new at this and she's teaching me the ropes! She also gave my design a fancy new makeover- basically she rocks.

Rachel and I both love DIY crafts and we're both starting our sophomore years of college so I thought I would show you some decorations I made for my dorm room!

1. Initial Collage

This one is super easy. I purchased the wooden letter at A.C. Moore as well as some Mod Podge (which if you aren't familiar with, its basically magic collage glue). First, I cut out pretty patterns, words, and symbols from magazines I had lying around. I glued them down with a glue stick and then coated it with Mod Podge. It dries clear and keeps the edges down- like I said, magic. And it comes out super cute!

2. Design-Your-Own Poster

This one is only sort-of DIY. I saw the quote on pinterest and I loved it. It's super fitting for me right now since I'm transferring to a new school and while it's very exciting it can also be nerve-wracking. I used the website Zazzle to put that quote on my own poster! I used a picture that I took myself in St. Thomas. It's a great website and I definitely recommend it! I also got it laminated once it arrived in the mail. It will make it last longer and protect it while I move in and out of dorm rooms over the years. I also make collages with my pictures of family and friends and get those laminated as well. It's relatively inexpensive and it creates really long-lasting decorations. 

3. Brightly Colored Bulletin Board

This project was way easier than I thought it would be! You can buy cork squares at any office supply store and I picked up some pretty colored fabric at my local craft store. Then I stapled around the sides like this:

Repeat with your remaining squares and voila! You have beautiful bulletin boards in all of your favorite colors that you can arrange however you want!

Want to see how all of my crafts look in my actual dorm room? Check out my blog to hear about my transfer experience and see pics of my dorm! 

And if you would like to see more from me feel free to check me out on pinterest or twitter or bloglovin! I would LOVE to hear from you. 

I can't believe

Because I miss Robin's awesome weekly wednesday I can't believe, I'm doing one on my own.

 For the hell of it, of course. 

Let's start off with I CANT BELIEVE that I'm meeting Lauren in a freakin' week! Six days actually. PARTAY. We are having a double date blate with our beaus who 95% think were loons for wanting to meet up with an online friend. Not getting catfished though. I hope that doesn't exist in the blog world. That would be 50 shades of messed up. Any who, we are going to start planning what we can do for our 24 hour+ date. Did I mention we are staying at the same hotel?! I'm honestly mostly excited for SUPER cute pictures and to walk around the monuments at night. I did that before (in january) and it was such an awesome experience.

My summer camp friend, Scott

I really like this picture of myself but its an awkward picture where I really can't crop him out. Erg.

Obvi reppin the dirty jerz.

I can't believe my birthday is in a little over a week. What are you buying me for my birthday? 

Kidding, but a shout out would be fun!

I can't believe I need to start back to school shopping. And by B-2-S I mean dorm shop! Here's to another year! And new not ugly bed spreads! And sitting on pinterest for cute room ideas. Is it possible for me to take my bedroom with me? Because I like them helluva lot better than dorm rooms. Ick. Bet you miss those days....right?!?!

I can't believe I'm actually really excited to transfer schools. Hopefully I'll be able to blog throughout the year! Totally didn't think about that until now.

I can't believe I cut my nails short again. Trust me, I'm really upset about it. No french mani for me!

I can't believe I've literally been at the beach almost nonstop this summer. I shouldn't complain!

Check out my guest post from Lauren's blog on whats in my beach bag!