Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days:
-The DIY "messy French twist." I've had this pin sitting on my (so-totally-aspirational-and-unrealistic) hairstyle Pinterest board for months, and finally attempted it this morning with day-old hair, a lot of Dove volumizing dry shampoo (it's lifechanging I tell you!), a little patience and a lot of I-don't-give-a-damn. It only took six bobby pins and it held up all day...which may or may not be due to the insane amount of care I took to NOT touch my head every 30 seconds and marvel at my amazing hair skillzzz.
The original/my attempt. I have clothes on, so clearly I didn't replicate exaaaactly...
-Twin Cities girls: who's heard of the Garden of Eden? Not the sweet real estate in Genesis, the precious little shop on Grand Avenue in St. Paul. It sits right across from the J.Crew, which naturally means I...just pass through...the neighborhood way more than necessary. They sell a ton of great bath and body products from really reputable brands, but I have a particular love for the custom scent-blending bar they have. There are dozens of different essential oils to choose from, and a customer can pick one or pair several to create a custom fragrance. One of my all-time favorite combos: grapefruit and pink jasmine, which I just switched over to in hopes of speeding along spring. It's lovely and really affordable! Check it out!
-Target's patio furniture is out and making my heart go pitter-patter all over the place. As if that store wasn't tempting or dangerous enough on a regular basis, Jon and I have this great, giant and semi-private patio at our apartment that's just begging to be turned into a fabulous outdoor entertaining space. I'm scoping out this set in a neutral color, and dreaming of jazzing up the space with some fun throw pillows, oversized lanterns, a couple potted plants, and a to-die-for ottoman (for real, this is the cutest thing ever). Spring, come quick!
-Another Pinterest find: this whole smoothie thing is all the rage but I have some kind of a mental block that keeps me from finding any of the green smoothies swallow-able, let alone appetizing. With a tender and sore ankle holding me back a bit (a lot) at the gym, I'm trying to focus on eating extra-mindfully, and a smoothie sounds light and refreshing. This "pink" smoothie is a nice change-up from the green ones and looks super-easy...I have everything but the almond milk in my fridge already.
-I love internet quizzes. Who doesn't? With Buzzfeed blowing up my Facebook every day, I've found myself spending a lot of time finding out what 90's boy band member is my soulmate, what sandwich embodies my personality, and which Full House character I should be. For those craving something a little more cerebral, though, I stumbled on this Positivity Ratio quiz. Sounds like it's meant to accompany a book, but I've been taking it toward the end of every day for a couple days now and I think it's really interesting...if not quite as fun as "Which Rapper Are You!"