Fifteen Favorites

Yo yo yo, TUESDAY. Anyone else think Tuesday’s are harder than Monday’s??? Especially when it’s snowing outside, and it’s warm inside, and there’s Netflix and comfy clothes and ARHLKHGLHWEGLJH. All I’m sayin’ is I should’ve been waaaaay more appreciative of snow days as a kid. 😉

Bringin’ back Fifteen Favorites – woo! This is a fun lil’ “personal” series to just share a whole buncha (specifically, 15) favorite current trends with y’all from time to time. Before diving right into that tho…anyone else watching The Bachelor this season??? I mentioned this on Instastories last night, but can I just say that I CANNOT with Arie and these girls?!? I’m soooo not feelin’ it. I’m not a fan of him, and I’m not feelin’ the girls…I just wish they had chosen Eric from Rachel’s season of The Bachelorette and had HIM be The Bachelor. He would’ve been so good omg. OK, stepping off reality TV soapbox for the good stuff… 😉

Sequin top (Only $18, similar sequins sweatshirts/sweaters , , and here!) // Jeans (HIGHLY recommend these jeans – they’re under $40, suuuuper comfy + flattering, slightly high-waisted – the works!) // White booties (On clearance for $32.28 – SUCH a fun statement piece!) // Gucci bag // Sunnies (less than $10 lookalikes for Celine sunglasses!) // (shade: “Evan-gelical” – currently BOGO 50%!)

15 FAVORITES:

Favorite Thing to get at Trader Joe’s – WOWZA. Is “everything” an acceptable answer here? Dark chocolate peanut butter cups, cheeses + dips, sourdough bread…ICYMI, there’s a whole post here with my Trader Joe’s shopping list.
Favorite Brand of Workout Wear – I’ve never been one to be totally brand-loyal in any product category. Heck, I was always the girl just getting whatever she could scavenge from this or that clearance rack, so I couldn’t afford to be picky or brand loyal really! Now I have a *few* favorite workout wear brands, depending on what kinda workout I’m doing. I’ve mentioned before (here + here) about favorite workout pants slash leggings in general, so those are still pretty consistent. My go-to brands are , , , + for more splurge-worthy pieces that I know I’ll have forever for high-intensity workouts with no problemo. For other “athleisure” pieces, I hit up Burlington on the reg – they’ve got Nike, Adidas, Puma, etc AND other lesser-known brands that are also suuuuuper affordable, especially for a quick gym run or running errands and *looking* like you did a gym run. 😉 Marshall’s is also a great place to check regularly for workout wear, too!
Favorite Actress – Rachel McAdams, Emma Stone, Blake Lively, Jennifer Lawrence.
Favorite Healthy Snack – Blueberries, carrots + cucumbers with lowfat ranch dressing, apple slices with peanut butter, pita chips with hummus, BoomChickaPop popcorn (my addiction), OREO Thins (they’re thin, they count. 😉 )
Favorite Buy this Week – MY GUCCI BAG. Yo…like, what? ICYMI, I set 3 reaaaaaally big goals for myself and associate each with a Gucci bag. Hit the goal, get the Gucci. This is my first true designer purchase for myself, and Lord knows I was NEVER gonna get myself a Gucci if I just had to up and buy one. Namely cos they’re Expensive AF, and ain’t nobody got that kinda money around here. HA. 😉 But this girl reaaaaaally wanted the Gucci. SO. I associated each bag I have my eye on with a very specific, tangible, big goal of mine. Each goal has been a goal for literally years. (Sidenote: Should I do a whole post on this Gucci goal-setting process?? Would that be interesting/helpful to any of ya with big goals + big rewards in mind? Let me know in a comment below!) So at the end of 2017, I hit the first one – and girlfriend got herself a Gucci. If you’re at New York Fashion Week in February and spot a girl eating a baguette outta her Gucci bag, that would be moi. #ClassAndCarbs
Favorite Flower – I lovelovelove roses, but they’re actually not my favorite! 😉 Peonies all the way.
Favorite Thing to do when I’m Stressed – Do my makeup and watch YouTube beauty guru videos. There’s something so relaxing about playing with makeup! It’s a very fun, artistic process for me, so it helps me unplug + unwind. Also YouTube just feels like whole other world most of the time, so it’s like escapism at its finest. 😉 ALSO, playing piano. Any sort of musical break is the bombdotcom whenever I’m stressed. It instantly takes me to another place where I literally CAN’T think of whatever is stressing me out, so it works wonders!
Favorite Restaurant – …the Olive Garden. Soup/Salad/Breadsticks all day, babay! Fun fact: J was a server at the Olive Garden for years when he was in college. And he KILLED IT. His personality is the *ultimate* server personality, so he always got the best tips. I mean, I’d def tip him well. 😉
Favorite Holiday – CHRISTMAS. With Thanksgiving in a verrrrrry close second. The entire Christmas season just can’t be beat. J used to be *very* staunch about not starting any Christmas festivities until Thanksgiving was officially over, in order to not “detract” from that holiday. But this past year I convinced him – it just ADDS to the holiday spirit! So now, right after Halloween, expect the ho-ho-holiday cheer at the Gwynn house. Actually, expect it on Halloween night. Neither one of us is a Halloween person, so we’re cool with Hallmark Christmas classic over Halloween 3 anyday.
Favorite Disney Princess – Tie between Ariel and Belle.
Favorite Dinner in a Pinch – Pierogies!!!!! Or Trader Joe’s potstickers or Chicken fried rice if we’re up for Asian. Or freezer pizza. Or takeout. So many options!
Favorite Way to Spend a Saturday – Waking up around 8 am to be quasi-productive (I lovelovelove cleaning on Saturday’s!) with a facemask on (#multitask). Once J is awake, we’re big fans of catching up on our shows, running errands together, watching a movie or playing a game together, and just relaaaaaaaxing. But being productive in there, too, always feels SO stinkin’ good to end/start the week right!
Favorite Board Game – So *technically* it’s not a board game, but my brother always brings to family gatherings, and it’s a BLAST. The gist – every player is assigned a “role” in the game with each hand. Some are on the “good” team – townspeople, or other helpful roles – while others are the “bad” guys – werewolves, their minions, etc. Everyone closes their eyes, and the corresponding phone app audio walks players through each move over the course of this one night. Different players roles take different actions, but since everyone’s eyes are closed through this (except when it’s your own turn to take action accordingly), you don’t know who is who. Once each player’s role has occurred, everyone opens their eyes and the timer starts – you have 5 minutes to figure out who the group collectively thinks are werewolves, and you choose one person to “kill.” It’s SO much fun since everyone is trying to create a good case for why they aren’t who people think they are! Definitely an AWESOME party game, or great with a big group of friends.
Favorite MAC lipsticks – for the best true red (+ it’s got blue undertones, which make your teeth look whiter!), for a gorgeous nude, for a bit of a brighter red with more orangey tones, for the prettiest plum (it’s one of my faves around this time of year!).
Favorite Things to Buy at Target – #AllTheThings. But really, I’m actually not the biggest dollar section diva around. I lovelovelove hitting all of the clearance endcaps; the key is knowing their discount cycle! If the last number ends in 6 or 8 (ie: $12.48, $17.36, etc), it’s typically on Markdown #1 – usually just 15%. Final markdown typically ends in 4 (or $0.04), so use that to know whether or not it’ll get another markdown before being removed from the shelf!