6 Things You Should Know About Me

So I decided to do a quick little impromptu extra post today because the lovely Catalyn of Confessions of a Northern Belle tagged me to participate in her super fun post!

1. What is the story behind your blog name?

I knew I wanted to write about beauty, fashion, baking/cooking, & crafting, & I wanted the name to convey that.  Also I thought an alliteration would be fun to use in the name, after endless combinations I was happiest with Crumbs and Curls.

2. What is the best piece of advice you have ever received?

I'm always thinking about the next thing & the big picture, which makes me miss things & really stresses me out, my mom always tells me to take life one day at a time & to tackle one task at a time, which is such a great way to look at life.

3. What is your favorite song & why?

It would have to be "Crazy" by Britney Spears.  I am a HUGE Britney Spears fan & love anything by her, there's no special story behind it just that I've loved this song for as long as I can remember.

4. Why do you blog?

I've always wanted to blog, I thought it would be fun to share all the different things I have going on in my brain, especially pertaining to my favorite topics, & get them out there as an outlet. 

5. What is one thing you love about yourself?

I always feel awkward answering questions like this, but I would have to say I love that I am driven, & that I work so hard & put 110% into everything I do no matter what it is.

6. Do you like winter or summer better? Why?

I'm going to throw in a wildcard here & say fall because it's the best season ever!  It's always the perfect temperature & there are so many great things you get to do--wearing sweaters & boots, baking, pumpkin picking, changing leaves, & so much more.

I am going to tag...

Kristen

Erin

Patricia

Areeba

Noor

Pick 6 to answer for yourself.

1. If money were no question, I'd purchase...

2. What's your drink of choice when out with your girls?

3. What is the story behind your blog name?

4. What is your guilty pleasure?

5. What is your biggest pet peeve?

6. What is your favorite item of clothing or accessory? Why?

7. Why do you blog?

8. Name something you've learned about yourself that surprises you.

9. What is the best piece of advice you've ever received?

Baking Soda Beauty #5: Teeth Whitening

With the Baking Soda Beauty Series I've been able to show just how versatile baking soda is when it comes to beauty & cosmetic purposes, & today I'm going to tell you how it can be used to whiten your teeth.

I found this great homemade tooth whitening recipe on Pinterest.  This mixture is a much cheaper alternative to pricey strips, trays, paints, & other products used for whitening.  It also only has a few ingredients as opposed to store brought products.

Ingredients:

1 tsp. toothpaste

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. hydrogen peroxide

1/2 tsp. water

Instructions: 

-Thoroughly mix all ingredients.

-Apply to tooth brush & brush teeth for 2 minutes.

-Do once a week until desired whitening is reached.

-Once teeth reach desired color do not use mixture more then once or twice a month for touch ups.

I usually whiten my teeth about once a year with Crest Whitening Strips, but am replacing them this year with the homemade stuff.

What do you think of this mixture?  What whitening products do you usually use?

Other posts in this series:

Baking Soda Beauty: #1 Shampoo Alternative

Baking Soda Beauty #2: Face Masks

Baking Soda Beauty #3: Dry Shampoo

Baking Soda Beauty #4: Spot Treatment

Friendship Bracelets

So remember those colorful string friendship bracelets you used to spend hours making with your friends when you were younger?  Well those bracelets have gotten a major makeover.  A few weeks ago my sister started wearing these awesome bracelets on her wrists, when I asked her about them she said the kids she babysits for made them for her, & when I took a closer look they were made out of rubber bands & I knew I had to learn how to make them!  In the meantime was my sister's graduation party, it was my first time meeting the kids that she babysits for & there parents, she had told the kids that I wanted to learn how to make the bracelets, & they invited me to come over one day to learn.  So last week when she went to babysit the kids I went with her for my tutorial.  The kids were so sweet & excited, & they were really good teachers!  The bracelets are made from mini colored rubber bands that you put together using a loom & crochet hook.  You can buy a starter kit that comes with the loom, hook, & a bag of assorted colored rubber bands, you can then buy individual colors of the rubber bands in packs of 600 bands, all of these are made by Rainbow Loom.  I loved making them so much we went to the store so I could get a kit for myself.

The kids' intense rubber band box that can be found with all the rubber bands & the starter kit on Amazon!

There are so many bracelets you can make, just by arranging the rubber bands in different orders on the loom & hooking them to one another.  On Rainbow Loom's website they have 24 different videos to make all sorts of bracelets.

The kids taught me how to make 4 different styles of bracelets (pictured on the left), I watched one of the tutorials, & myself how to make another one (pictured on the right).  In addition to the tutorials there are 'pattern maps' for how to arrange the rubber bands on the loom, they are pictured below:

The most basic bracelet is the first one that you will need to learn.  It is called the single pattern bracelet:

Below are some of the other bracelets I know how to make:

The kids taught me how to make a fishtail bracelet that there isn't a video tutorial of.

Here are the directions for how to make it:

This bracelet can be made with 2 or 3 colors.  

1. Twist a rubber band into a 'figure 8' & place on 2 pegs on the outer edge of the loom.

2. Place 2 rubber bands above the first one. (For 2 colors: X Y X / For 3 colors: X Y Z)

3. Using the hook pull one side of the bottom rubber band over the top rubber band.

4. This is how it should look.

5. Then pull the other side of the bottom rubber band over the top rubber band, it will look like this.

6. After steps 3 & 4 add another rubber band over the remaining 2 (there should be 3 on the pegs at all times until the end), pull each side of the bottom rubber band over the top rubber band.

7. Continue pulling each side of the bottom band over the top one, adding rubber bands for each one you pull over until it reaches a desired length.  You want the bracelet to be smaller then your wrist as it will stretch, if it is the same size as your wrist it will be too big.

8. When it gets to the desired length do not add anymore rubber bands, you will have only 2 on the pegs.  Pull one side of the bottom rubber band over the top one.
9. Pull the other side of the bottom rubber band over the top one.
10. You will be left with one rubber band on the 2 pegs, it will look like this.

11. Take the remaining rubber band off of the peg with the hook .
12. Put it on the peg like this.

13. This is a 'C' clip & is what you will use to secure the bracelet.
14. Put both sides of the rubber band into the 'C' clip, then bring the other side of the bracelet & secure each side of the last rubber band on that side onto the 'C' clip too.

The finished bracelet will look like this.  To me this is the tightest & best looking bracelet out of all the ones you can make, it's also super easy!

Colorful friendship bracelets have popped up on different runways from time to time.  They are something that never seems to go out of style & the best part is that you can make them in whatever colors or style you want.  Even celebrities get in on the trend!  With the Rainbow Loom & these patterns you can upgrade a basic homemade bracelet into something really cool.

Bonus: These bracelets make for a fun craft to do with kids -- your own or the ones you babysit/nanny!

What are your thoughts on this new take on friendship bracelets?

Liebster

Amanda at Cats, Cuddling, & Carrot Cake was so sweet & nominated me for a Liebster Award.  In her post Amanda explained that a Liebster award is given to up and coming bloggers with under 200 followers and it allows participants to discover new blogs and learn more about the bloggers."  Here are the rules: 

1. Answer questions from the blogger who nominated you.  

2. Choose 11 bloggers to nominate (they have to have less then 200 followers).

3. Come up with 11 questions for these bloggers.

4. Comment on a post & tell them that they've been nominated!

#1

1. What's your favorite color? Pink

2. What's your favorite blog post you've written so far? I think it is 10 Things About Coco Chanel because it is the about my little dog. 

3. Are you a cat person or a dog person? Dog.

4. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? I honestly have no clue other then seeing myself as a college graduate.

5. What food allergy would you not be able to handle? I am allergic to so, so many foods so this is a funny question for me, I am fructose intolerant, lactose intolerant, wheat intolerant, highly allergic to tree nuts, & have to avoid things with seeds (I have Crohn's) & things high in fat (I have no gallbladder).  I developed all of these allergies & restrictions as a teenager so I'm pretty good with dealing with not being able to eat most things.  With all of that said my list of foods I can eat is shorter then what I can't eat & so taking anything away would be sad, but if you take peanut butter (peanuts aren't a tree nut) away from me I'm pretty sure I would go crazy.

6. If you could make out with any famous person who would it be? Zac Efron was the first Hollywood hottie that came to mind.

7. What are your goals/aspirations for your blog? To build a place that people look to for beauty & fashion advice, recipes, crafts, & funny stories.

8. If you had to get rid of all of your technology except one item, what would you keep? (i.e. cellphone, computer, e-reader, etc.) My iPhone!  I can do almost anything with that baby.

9. What is your go-to clothing item in your closet? Leggings, they are comfy, but can look super chic when styled right.

10. Why did you start blogging? I've always wanted to start a blog just to put my ideas out there & I finally got around to doing it this summer.

11. Describe your dream date:

I'm sorry I just couldn't resist!  Ok, but my real perfect date would just be dinner or doing something fun & to have great conversation & a connection with a nice guy.

#2

I nominate: Meghan at Chasing Elephants, Laura at On a Lark, Rachel at Sunshine and Sinatra, Megan at Little Miss Average, Mer in America, Rachel at Five Twenty Eight, Kay at The Best of Intentions, Ellie & Fatima at Serendipitous Whimsicality, Alex at Bows, Pearls, & Sorority Girls, Gabbi at Southbound Belle, Blonde Southern Lovin' for Leibster Awards.

#3

1. What is your guilty pleasure?
2. What is the last thing you brought?
3. What pin board do you pin to the most? 
4. If you could get on a plane tomorrow & go anywhere, where would you go?  
5. If you could eat one thing for the rest of you life what would it be?  
6. What is your favorite item of clothing or accessory?  
7. What's the story behind your blog name?  
8. What's your favorite book? 
9. If you won the lottery tomorrow what would your first purchase be?
10. What is your biggest pet peeve?

#4

I'll see all you lovely ladies on your blogs!

Thank you so much Amanda!

Sweet Sunday

I had such a fun day in New York City yesterday, it is seriously one of my favorite places in the entire world.  My sister & I got to the city at 8:30, she drove in for the first time ever & I am so proud of her, she did great!  Here is the rundown of our amazing day:

Outfit

Top: Nordstrom* / Shorts: Forever 21 / Shoes: Lucky Brand

Handbag: Just Fab / Sunglasses: Vera Bradley / Earrings & Necklace: Mariana

*The top has a really pretty criss cross back that I of course forgot to get a picture of.

Rockefeller Plaza

When we go into New York, we parked the car & walked to Rockefeller Plaza.  My sister & I walked around enjoying the gorgeous day & all the pretty shops, they weren't open, but it was just fun to window shop.  Above is a picture of the LEGO store window, it had a mini Rockefller Plaza including Radio City made out of LEGOs, which was so cool!  We also got some Jamba Juice smoothies & drank them while sitting on a bench in the plaza.  At 10:00 my BFF met us here, I hadn't seen him since school got out so it was great to see each other.

Tour

At 10:30 we took a tour of NBC Studios, which was so cool.  We got to tour 2 different news studios, but the highlight of the tour was seeing the "Saturday Night Live" studio & makeup room.  It was awesome to be in a place & see a stage that so many iconic celebrities have graced.  On the tour we learned a ton of backstage information & all about the camera tricks that are used during filming, it was crazy how small the studios they use actually are because they look so much bigger thanks to all the cool tricks.  If anyone's in NYC looking for something to do this was a really interesting tour & very reasonably priced--only $24 a person. 

Lunch

We ate at this place called Serafina, they have 7 locations in Manhattan, but we ate at their Broadway one.  They can make any pasta dish with gluten free pasta, which is why we went there.  The great thing about NYC restaurants is there are so many different ones that are allergy & gluten free friendly so we try to try a different one each time we're there.  I got gluten free fusilli in tomato sauce with fresh mozzarella & grated parmesan.  It was so yummy!  I was so hungry that I started eating before I remembered to take a picture, the presentation was much nicer then the half eaten picture above.  I would highly recommend going here, the food was delicious, the atmosphere was nice, & the all of the staff were so friendly.

Sister & BFF at lunch.

Walk

When the three of us are in the city together we always love to go to a candy store, we walked up Broadway & on the way there stopped in front of the Time Warner Center to take a picture with the globe in front of it.

Candy Store

We went to this really fun candy store called IT'SUGAR.  This was a candy store that was a little bit grown up, there were life size Ted dolls that said phrases from the movie, candy with inappropriate sayings, & really fun flasks.  We spent like 45 minutes in here because it was so much fun.  We loved checking out all the cool things & picking out candy.  This was a really awesome place.

Central Park

After going to IT'SUGAR we took a walk through Central Park.  Oh my gosh it was just so gorgeous out yesterday, so sunny & not to hot, just a perfect day.  We took a walk across the park, it was much more fun then walking around it!  It was packed yesterday with bike riders, walkers, sunbathers, & little kids, & the best part was there were puppies everywhere!  Last summer when the 3 of us went to New York we went to the Central Park Zoo, which was super fun, but it was so nice just to take a leisurely walk through the park this time. 

Sprinkles

We took our walk through the park to get to one of our favorite places in the whole world Sprinkles Cupcakes.  Sprinkles makes the most delicious cupcakes ever, & the best part is that they make gluten free red velvet cupcakes!  These are hands down the best gluten free cupcakes I have ever had, if you are gluten free & have a sprinkles location near you, you need to go there.  Another great thing is that they are super careful about avoiding cross contamination, they keep the gluten free cupcakes in the back instead of in the case with the regular cupcakes, also they put a 'G' sprinkle on the gluten free cupcakes to distinguish them.  Sprinkles has a great product & a fun little shop that I visit every time I'm in New York City.

Starbucks

Starbucks was our last stop, my sister & BFF wanted to get their caffeine fix before we all headed home.  After walking about 6 miles throughout the day, they were just so happy to get their coffee! 

Home

We got home at about 5:30.  When we were at Sprinkles we had grabbed a dozen of the gluten free cupcakes to bring home because they are that good.  When we unpacked them from the bag, there was that cute set of 'How Do I Care for My Sprinkles Cupcakes?' instructions.  I also had picked up a dog cupcake from Sprinkles for Coco, I get one of these for her every time I go & she loves them.  She does this really funny thing where she plays with all of her bones & treats before chewing or eating them & she had a blast with the cupcake, which was fun to watch!  After dinner & some chill time I headed to bed early because I was so exhausted from my jam packed day.

Well that was my sweet Sunday in the Big Apple, what did you do this weekend?

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Friday Jumble

So I've noticed that by the end of the week I have this complete random jumble of things to share, so that is what I am going to do today.  Buckle your seat belts & get ready for the ride of random.

#1

So yesterday my mom & I went to Philadelphia for the day.  My mom & I are super close, & I was so happy to get to spend some alone time with her.  We hung out in Center City for most of the time, & stopped at our favorite Lush to pick up some bath goodies.  After that we went for lunch at Max Brenner Chocolate by the Bald Man, which is what made our day super amazing. 

If you've never been to a Max Brenner you are seriously missing out, & you need to go like now.  Yes its that good.  (They have locations all around the world, 5 of which are in America.)  I've been to both the New York City & Philadelphia locations a million times & they are always perfection.  Max Brenner is a restaurant centered around chocolate.  Need I say anymore?  Well, I'm going to anyway because you need to fully understand this amazingness.  

So at the restaurant they serve breakfast, lunch, & dinner, & they have normal food (not just chocolate).  For lunch my mom had Asian Chicken & Soba Noodle Salad that she loved.  I on the other hand only eat dessert when I go there, I mean someone once said "Life is short, eat dessert first".  So naturally I just have to do that at a restaurant centered around an amazing dessert ingredient.  For my 'lunch' I ordered something that's not on the menu, but they always make for me because they are so great there, it's two waffles with one scoop of vanilla ice cream on one waffle & once scoop of chocolate ice cream on the other, & then is drizzled with their homemade chocolate, & little mini chocolate covered crunch balls on the side [insert big yum here].  This concoction is one of my favorite things to eat like ever.

So if that's not enough yumminess for you I have to order actual dessert too.  I seriously get in all thae delicious chocolate I can while I'm there!  For dessert my mom & I split the Crystal Sugar Churros Fondue.  Now this I have never had before & let me tell you oh my gosh this is amazing deliciousness perfection.

We choose milk chocolate fondue & it came with muddled raspberries.  I love churros & I love chocolate & I never thought to combine them, but man am I glad Max Brenner did, that guy is a chocolate genius!

#2

What's up with this new overall trend?  I can't decide my feelings on them, initially I hated that they were coming back, but then I saw a segment on E!News last night about them & they were styled super cute, which then started to make me feel very confused about the whole topic.  So I would love to hear your opinions on them, are overalls hot or not?

I mean here the only ones I think that are even close to cute are the ones on Ashley Madekwe (second from right).

#3

Friday's Celebrity Outfit of the Week

I have to be honest I was a little disappointed in celebrity outfits this week, but the one I picked was definitely ahead of the class.

Amanda Seyfried in Gucci at the "Lovelace" premier in Hollywood.

Gucci always does the best sparkly dresses, & Amanda looks amazing in this.   The shape, color, & everything looks great on her.  I really love the heels, the simple straps is one of my favorite styles at the moment.  Pulling her hair back was a very good choice because it puts all the emphasis on the dress, & the colors of her makeup compliment the dress very nicely.  All of this leaves Seyfried to take the cake for "Outfit of the Week".

Side note I totally want to see "Lovelace" she's supposedly is great in it!

#4
I got my hair cut yesterday & I'm really loving it so I wanted to share!

#5

Forewarning this is super random

Is Taylor Swift really dating the guy from "Criminal Minds"?  I saw this on "Chelsea Lately" last night & was thrown off by this combination.  While I do like Taylor & her music, she seems to date everyone...

They also mentioned that this has been going on (if it really is?) for a while now, which basically informed me that I live under a rock when it comes to Taylor Swift's dating life (but I'm not so sure that's a bad thing).

#6

Weekend jam is "Blurred Lines" by Robin Thicke, Pharell, & TI.  My mom & I got stuck in really bad traffic yesterday & we hear this song 3 times because we were in the car so long, & I still love it even after that so it's my song for this weekend.

And finally #7 Sunday is my New York City trip with my sister & BFF & I am so freaking excited.  I will be reporting all the fun stuff on Monday!!
What are you up to this weekend?