Summer Wardrobe Essentials

So I know not everyone everywhere has been experiencing the glorious weather I have been.  80 degrees and sunshine, could life get any better?  But when I can wear flip flops outside, it reminds me of summer, and knowing summer is close (and yet so far) excites me.  I loathe winter, partially because I can’t handle the cold but also because of the clothes I am forced to wear.  A giant overcoat that practically swallows me, no thanks!  Layers upon layers of shirts that I eventually have to shed because of the heat indoors, ugh!  Clunky Ugg boots that make my feet sweat, ew!  Summer is calling me, and I’m ready with my wardrobe.  Hope you are too, and if not, I’ve got you covered:

 

1.  Dress Up Your Feet!  I wear anklets year round just because they remind me of summer.  But summer is the only time your feet can be fashionable with anklets and toe rings and painted nails.  So let your feet know flip flop season is almost here.

media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com

 

2.  Black short shorts.  These bad boys go with anything and everything.  Plus, you can either pair them with a T-shirt for a casual look, wear a blouse to dress ’em up, and you can even wear stockings under them in case it’s not warm enough to expose your bare skin.  

thisnext.com

 

3.  White is in.  And because white goes with anything…why not own a pair of white pants?!  White’s a blank canvas, so your own unique style can shine through.

mangomustache.files.wordpress.com

 

4.  Strapless dresses!  There’s nothing like exposing them shoulders, and you certainly cannot do that in winter without getting frostbite.  Summer’s about showing skin, so go get a cute dress!

aliimg.com

 

5.  Sun’s out guns out, baby!  The classic tank top is an essential summer staple.  You can throw a cardigan over it, layer them, or just rock one by itself.  And they come in a plethora of colors.  I’m pretty sure I own the color spectrum.

overhalfsale.com/

 

6.  Toms, Toms and more Toms.  But, go for crazy patterns and bold colors because white is in and white goes with anything, and your black shorts, will as well.  Make your Toms loud and proud.

desmondandbeatrice.com/

 

7.  Graphic Tees never go out of style.  And especially band tees because we all know summer is the time for concerts galore.  Warped Tour is only 118 days away.

imgur.com

 

Cheers to sun, sand, and summer!

 

 

 

 

Winter’s Not Summer…But…

Winter is my least favorite season for many reasons.  I absolutely loathe the cold weather, I am not a fan of snow, I don’t like that the sun sets so early, and let’s be honest, the holidays are hectic.  I’m a summer baby, and a lover of summer: sunshine, trips to the beach, short shorts, flip flops, etc.  However, to get me through this season I’ve made a list of some things I do enjoy during Winter because it can’t be all bad.  So maybe you’ll agree with me on some!

 

1.  The cold weather practically insists hot cocoa becomes one’s drink of choice.  When done right, the chocolatey beverage tastes like irresistable melted chocolate.  And I love adding little marshmallows or candy canes or Hershey’s kisses to the sweet drink.

ivstatic.com

 

2.  As much as I despise the cold, I don’t mind certain winter garb, such as, scarves and hats and sweatshirts. I love the excuse to walk outside in leggings, my Uggs, and an oversized hoodie, plus a skull cap on my head. Nothing beats comfy clothing.

skreened.com I’d so wear this.

 

3.  The holiday season of course brings families together and that’s why Christmas and Thanksgiving are up there on my list for favorite holidays (Halloween is pretty sweet..no pun intended).  I’m glad to be home for the holidays and I can’t get enough of my family.  Our conversations are hysterical, serious, and fun and then we always joke with each other and when we finally play board games after eating, the laughter next ceases.  Plus this time of year is extra special because my uncle who resides in California usually comes to visit for a week, and I only get to see him this time of year.  I just love when everyone is together.

 

4.  The cold weather keeps me inside.  I like to run in the mornings but with the temperature nearing zero, I just can’t leave the house.  I have to stay inside and work out, but the cold air and blustery winds and snow are the perfect excuse to stay inside and watch movies.  This is the perfect time of year to watch films like Elf, The Polar Express, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and chick flicks galore.

indulgy.net

 

5.  Speaking of movies, ABC Family shows their 25 Days of Christmas, and religiously I watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas.  I don’t know what it is about the animated movie: the message, the rhyming, the colors, but I adore this movie and I love watching it.

magazine.uc.edu

 

6.  I’m really not a fan of snow but when you get that hefty first snowfall and you get inches, maybe even close to a foot, the winter wonderland that your town becomes is simply breathtaking.  All draped in white, no footprints interrupting the crisp new fallen snow; it’s such a sight, and I haven’t seen it in a while.  I hear we’ll be having a white Christmas, though.

nordiclandscapes.com

 

7.  Rudolph the Red Nosed reindeer is played on repeat in my house.  My brother and I sing along to this song in obnoxious voices, in our best attempts at opera, and extremely loud, and in this way we bond during the holidays.  I have memories of he and I decorating the Christmas tree and we’re just singing our hearts out to this song.  I can’t wait to hear it.

 

8.  Gifts and cards.  My favorite thing is when you find the “perfect” gift for someone and you watch he or she unwrap it.  I just love making holiday cards for friends and families, making homemade gifts for people, and buying gifts for the people I love.  This is the time for giving, and I go all out.  I already know what I’m getting one of my friends.

blogs.scientificamerican.com

 

9.  I know I already said that I don’t like snow.  I don’t like that I can’t drive in it and once people step in it, it becomes discolored and gross.  I don’t like putting on layers to fight through the snow if I must leave the house.  BUT, I don’t mind shoveling.  I know this sounds crazy because no one enjoys shoveling snow, but I actually enjoy the workout.  I feel so buff as I haul snow over my shoulder, and to top top it off my driveway is huge, so it’s not an easy job.  Plus, I’m not as cold shoveling snow because I’m breaking a sweat.  It’s the best winter workout!

 

10.  Lastly I like the Christmas lights that people place outside their houses.  At night the neighborhood looks amazing, decked out in reds, greens, blues, whites, reindeers, icicles, trees galore.  It’s such a pretty sight, and I enjoy driving by the houses that choose to decorate.

mediaty.com

 

Happy holidays everyone, and enjoy this winter!

 

 

Summer Songs

polyvore.com

 

 

Ever since I went to the beach yesterday, I’ve been on cloud nine just thinking about summer.  I was so excited that I made myself a playlist of summer, beach-y, poppy, upbeat tunes that I could blare in my car or while I am relaxing by my pool.  So, crank that iPod and get ready for the best season of them all.

 

1.  “I will always remember/making out ’til the sun went down/counting stars from the hood of a car/catching my friends as they were falling down.” – Every Avenue’s Days of the Old.  It’s a shout out to summer.

2.  “Lets just kick it in the summer heat/Meet me at the boardwalk in pacific beach.” – Fight Fair’s Brain-Freeze!  The song’s chorus is all about being young and having fun, exactly what summer encourages.

3.  “Then you lost your shoes as it started to rain/And your jeans soaked through/But you smiled anyway.” – The Summer Set’s Lightning In a Bottle.  When it’s summer everyone is a little more carefree, and that is what this song is about, just living in the moment and enjoying life.

4.  “What do you say we leave for California/If we drive all night, we can make it by the morning.” – Metro Station’s California.  Summer day trips and summer vacations.  This incredible pop song describes just packing and going to California.

5.  “Baby you light up my world like nobody else/The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed.” – One Direction’s What Makes You Beautiful.  Now I’m not a fan of this boy band; however, this song is just so optimistic and happy and it always puts me in a great mood, and summer does too, so they go hand in hand for me.  Plus, I have memories of me and my best friend blaring this song as we drive down the road.

 

http://data.whicdn.com

 

6.  “The sun set too soon in this town/We’re pushing statues to the ground/I know you are the reckless kind/The crashing is the sweetest sound.” – Avalanche City’s Sunset.  This song begins with whistling and the cute, bubbly melody just leaves a smile on your face.

7.  “And we’ll stay out all night/’Cause rest is for the dead.” – Hit the Lights’ Stay Out.  During summer teens stay out until the wee hours of the morning, and sleep in until mid afternoon, so this song is quite fitting.

8.  “I spill my heart from coast to coast/Fall in love with everyone I know/Sometimes it isn’t where you’re going/It’s who you’re with.” – Mayday Parade’s Get Up.  Off their sophomore album, this song is about experiencing love and heart break in different parts of the States.  And with summer comes flings and loves and flirts.

9.  “Hey windows down, chillin’ with the radio on.” – Hot Chelle Rae’s I Like It Like That.  This upbeat song is all about partying, having a good time, and just letting loose.

10.  “There’s a place off ocean avenue/Where I used to sit and talk with you/We were both 16 and it felt so right,/Sleepin all day, stayin up all… night.” – Yellowcard’s Ocean Avenue.  Need I say more, this song is the epitome of summer.

 

http://sphotos-a.xx.fbcdn.net

 

It’s Finally Summer

I was not made for winter.  Anything under 80 degrees is cold to me.  I have never purchased a long sleeve shirt because I prefer tank tops and short sleeved T’s.  I’d much rather wear flip flops than boots.  And though I think snow is beautiful and I don’t mind shoveling it because it is a good workout; I’d much rather be at the beach or swim in a pool.  And unfortunately, despite my strong dislike for winter, the season stubbornly stayed and persisted to wreak it’s coldness for days and days.

It wasn’t until today that I truly felt like summer has officially arrived, and I could not be happier.  I feel like it isn’t summer until very early in the morning it’s hot.  I do not count the days in which it begins at 50 degrees and then slowly reaches 75 degrees by the heat of the day; that is not summer.  Summer is when you are up at 6 in the morning, and you already feel the humidity and the sun is beating down on you and the heat is obvious; that is a true summer day.  And this morning when I awoke, the weather was definitely hot.

Today is a quintessential summer day not simply because of the heat, though.  I could smell clean cut grass, and everywhere I looked people were decked out in shorts.  Plus, I am going to the beach today with some friends.  My ankle is decorated in my typical summer jewelry, an anklet, and if I had my toe rings with me at college, I’d be sporting one of them.  And I have to break out the sunscreen for today.  To celebrate the arrival of summer, I played a favorite, bouncy, pop song by All Time Low: ‘The Beach.’  And, sunglasses are indispensable today (and sunglasses are my favorite accessory).

Summer is special to me for numerous reasons.  I am a summer baby and in 48 days I’ll be nineteen.  Both my parents’ birthdays are also in summer, so even more birthday celebrations.  My dad usually takes off work in the summer, and since I’ve been away at college, it’ll be nice to spend time with him.  With summer comes the opening of our family’s pool, which means I am constantly inviting friends over to come swimming with me.  My best friend has a beach house, and she and I and a few other friends swear we are going to take advantage of it.  During summer I get to write as much as I want because I have more time, and I get to read books I’ve been dying to read all school year.  With all my friends home from college, I’ll get to reconnect with beloved pals.  Also, with the warm weather, I can spend so much more time outside.  And, I like to draw with chalk during the summer time.  Also, during the summer I see my close family, uncles and grandparents, more often because we’ll hang out on a random weekend and my dad will grill burgers and dogs.  My mom makes her famous potato salad, and my family visits Rita’s Water Ice to indulge in a special summery treat.  And, with summer, I open my car’s sun roof and blare poppy upbeat music because during summer, I am always in a great mood.  20 more days of college, and then I’ll be home free to soak up the summer sun.

So, blare some Beach Boys, treat yourself to a popsicle and wear a pair of flip flops today because, yes, it is finally summer.