Guest Post // Tips for Travel (On A Budget)

Happy Friday, friends! I have today off, and I'm pretty darn happy about it. Taylor and I started the day off right with coffee at our favorite new cafe, and I have plans to spend the rest of the going through my stuff for our upcoming garage sale (if you live in the Portland area, contact me and I can give you the details! It's gonna be a good one).

Anyway, I'm just stopping in to tell you all that I wrote a guest post for Jess of Foreign Room and you should go check it out! Jess is in Japan right now (jealous), so she asked me to write a travel related post...I decided to throw together some tips and tricks I've learned throughout my travels. You can read my post here. Happy weekend! xx

Short Hair, Long Dress // One Piece, Two Ways

Happy Saturday, friends! I'm attempting to make up for my recent radio-silence with a double whammy outfit post today ;) I recently got this dress for super cheap at H&M and I'm kind of in love with it. It's super comfy and easy to style...So today I'm showing you two ways I style it: one for day, and one for night!

For the casual day look I threw on a skinny belt, a jacket, and simple jewelry. I was stumped at first about what kinds of shoes to wear with a maxi dress other than sandals or heels, but after searching for some inspiration online and trying a few different things I realized you can definitely make booties work. Especially when their colors compliment your dress perfectly :)

For a fancier night look I put a shirt over the dress and tied it up to create a waistline. This is one of my favorite ways to wear maxis - day or night. In addition to changing up my accessories I also put on some darker lipstick, smudged a little black liner on my top lash, and braided back a piece of my hair. Easy peasy transition to a night look! 

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! Is anyone celebrating record store day today? I wanna get my hands on one of those Sam Cooke albums! Oh, and happy Easter! :)

Outfit Details: Dress//H&M, Jean Jacket//American Eagle, Circle Necklace//Tilde, Boots//Steve Madden, Belt//Aldo, Statement Necklace//J. Crew, Shirt//Urban Outfitters, Wedges//DSW

want // need // wear // read

"something you want, something you need, something to wear, something to read"

want: all the hats, now that that sun is out // need: longer weekends to explore and soak in the sun // wear: spring weather calls for flowers in your hair // read: currently reading "May We Be Forgiven" - it's a little depressing, but entertaining!

post inspired by james of bleubird blog, picture sources: one // two // three // four

If You Didn't Like Radishes Before, You Will Like Them Now.

When my dad was visiting a couple of weeks ago we went to a restaurant called Sauvage in SE Portland and I ordered this appetizer. My dad and Taylor were skeptical - radishes, herb butter, parsley? Sounds boring - but I went ahead and got it because I've recently developed a small obsession with radishes. And guess what? This super simple dish ended up being one of the best of the night. So of course, the following weekend I went to the farmers market, got some radishes and whipped up the dish myself. This is so good guys! If you don't like radishes, you should still give this little snack a try. Butter and salt make everything better.

Here's what you will need to do...

Start by making your herb butter. I took the easy route and whipped some butter in a bowl with dried herbs, but you can use fresh herbs if you're fancy/motivated like that. I sprinkled in dried thyme, sage, and rosemary until I felt like the butter to herb ratio seemed right.

Now, slice up the radishes and cut some pieces of bread (extra points if it's fresh). Spread a thick layer of herb butter on each piece of bread (seriously, get crazy), and pile on some radishes. Now drizzle a little bit of olive oil over each piece, sprinkle with course sea salt, and garnish with some parsley. That's it! Best snack ever.

Hope you all had a great weekend!

Springtime is Magic // A Mix

I had grand plans to share a (super yummy) recipe with you all today, but then I got home, put on some music, and got completely absorbed in finding new music and putting together a mix. So instead you get this mix for spring! The first song is one that Taylor discovered recently that I've had on repeat for the past couple of weeks - it is such an incredibly beautiful song. (Also, how catchy is "Girls Chase Boys?" And I love the sentiment behind it. You can see Ingrid's explanation of it right here).

I was just thinking about how these will be the songs that remind me of our last few months in Portland (for now). I found out on Tuesday that I got into the MSW Program at Hunter College, which is where I was really hoping to go, so Taylor and I have both officially decided to go to school in NYC together in the Fall! - it's all feeling realer than ever...and very bittersweet. I'm trying to soak in the Portland Spring weather and recharge for all of the big changes that are to come in the next few months...The other day I even started looking into renting moving vans. Ahh!

PS Did anyone else watch the How I Met Your Mother finale? I'm always a little embarrassed to admit that I like a sitcom, but man do I love that show. Taylor and I have spent many nights cuddled in bed binge watching episode after episode. What did you think of the ending? So many people have said they didn't like it, but I was completely ok with it. Perfect ending, in my opinion :)

Also, have you read this article about why HIMYM connected so deeply with the younger generation? Exactly what I've been trying to explain to my parents! They still don't get it ;)

Giveaway on The Charming Blog!

Hello, friends! I have a little something for you all today to cure your Monday blues. Amy of The Charming is hosting a giveaway on her blog, and was sweet enough to include me! There are a bunch of different ways to enter to win some fun prizes - including one of my tassel necklaces! You can take a look at the details, read about the other sponsors, and enter the giveaway below.

The introductions paragraphs below are clickable so feel free to hop on over to their blogs and social media to say hello! Then scroll down to the bottom to enter the giveaway!

Now, enter the giveaway below. The giveaway ends midnight next Monday, April 7, 2014. Winner will be announced on the Rafflecopter as well as via email and social media. a Rafflecopter giveaway

Healthy Eats // Guilty Pleasures

Well, it’s only the second round of these “healthy eats” posts and I’m already on to guilty pleasure foods…really, Ella? Oh well, baby steps, right? This week I thought I’d find some healthier alternatives to some guilty pleasure foods (though, if we’re being completely honest I’m not sure that sweet potato fries are any better for you than regular fries. But they just look so good!). This way on those days when you really just want pizza or mac and cheese, you have an option that won’t completely ruin all the healthy eating you did before ;) 

Here are some alternatives to pizza, fries, potato chips, burgers, frozen yogurt, and mac and cheese that I've come across recently. I'm most excited about trying the cauliflower crust pizza. I really hope it tastes as good as it looks.

1: Cauliflower Pizza Crust // 2: Vegan Pumpkin Mac + Cheese // 3: Crispy Cornmeal Sweet Potato Fries // 4: Wild Mushroom Lentil Burgers // 5: Berry Froyo // 6: Fancy Beet Chips // 7: Caramelized Fennel + Goat Cheese Flatbread