When & Wear: March 2017

I'm one of those people who is almost always within two feet of my phone, even at night when it's under my pillow. While it isn't necessarily healthy to be so connected all the time (technology breaks like my eight days in Cuba are often needed!), we live in a mobile world and it and these days my phone holds my entire life.

All of this being said, there's a lot of clutter on my phone (old games, editing apps I never use, etc) so when my phone broke last week and Apple had to reset everything it felt good to have a clean slate. In the days after getting my phone wiped I realized what apps really are my must-haves and which ones were just taking up space (a hot commodity on any blogger's iPhone). Besides the obvious - Instagram, Gmail, Spotify, Uber, etc - there were 5 apps that I could not wait to have back, so I thought I would share!

1) Infatuation
If you don't already use The Infatuation then you NEED to check out their site. They put together the best restaurant guides on everything from happy hours to cheap brunches, and I constantly find new spots to try thanks to their reviews. Most importantly though, the Infatuation app allows your to save spots to your running hit list so that you never forget the spots you want to try out!

2) LiketoKnow.it
LiketoKnow.it has made Instagram shoppable for years, but now with the new app you can easily see all the posts you want to shop in one place! The discover page on the app is my go-to whenever I need a little outfit inspiration. I love that it's only two steps between seeing a product on Instagram I want to buy and getting to the product page.

3) Google Photos
I've definitely learned my lesson when it comes to backing up photos on my phone. Yes, I lost ALL my photos when my phone broke last week - and that's where Google Photos comes in. Log in with your Google account and you'll get unlimited storage space for iPhone quality photos. All you have to do is open up the app every once in a while to make sure your photos are backing up. I'm now setting a reminder to back up all my photos each week!

4) Clue
This one is for all the girls out there. I'm the worst at keeping track of my period and Clue makes it so easy to put in info on your cycle. Over time the app learns more about you and can accurately predict things like PMS, when you'll get your period, fertile windows, etc. It makes my life so much easier to just open up an app and have all that info at my fingertips.

5) Photoshop Express
I edit about 80% of my photos on the go and Photoshop Express changes the game for both iPhone and DSLR photos. It takes photos to a level that Snapseed and Afterlight couldn't dream of and is the perfect way to edit any photo before putting it into VSCO for filters. The app is free, but if you subscribe to Adobe Cloud you'll also be able to access extra features!

Do you guys have any apps you can't live without? Let me know in the comments!

lifestyle

5 Apps You Didn't Know You Needed

I'm one of those people who is almost always within two feet of my phone, even at night when it's under my pillow. While it isn...

Monday, March 27, 2017

I can't even begin to describe how incredible this last week has been. You may have noticed I dropped off the face of the (digital) planet, and it was because I spent eight days in Cuba during which I entirely unplugged.

I traveled with about 20 other students and stayed in a villa outside Havana that was absolutely incredible during my first four days in the country. The first two mornings a group of us got up early to go in and explore the city, which felt like time traveling back to the 50s everywhere you turned. You think people are exaggerating when they say it feels like a different world, but it is entirely true. Almost every car is an old convertible and the buildings are all in some state of decay. It's clear that the recent embargo lifts have already changed the city drastically, but the magic definitely hasn't gone away. The people of Cuba are incredible and even with my limited Spanish speaking it was amazing having the chance to get to know some of them. Otherwise, I'll let the photos speak for themselves :)

If you're thinking of traveling to Cuba my biggest piece of advice is ask for recommendations from everyone who has gone before. All of the restaurant recommendations we got from others were the best meals I had in the city (see some listed below!). At the same time though, make sure you have time to wander and explore. One of my favorite moments was accidentally wandering into a Mexican Art Museum in the most beautiful building (it's the pink walls below!).

SHOP THE POST

Must-Do Activities

Havana Vieja - This it a bit general, but Havana Vieja is the old part of the city that is absolutely beautiful. Spend time just getting lost along the streets and discovering art galleries and restaurants

Car Tour Around the City - This one is super touristy, but so worth it. You'll get the best perspective of how the city is laid out

Mojito Hopping - From famous spots like Bodequita del Medio to random restaurants, spent an afternoon trying all the different delicious mojitos the city has to offer

The Malecon - The Malecon is the long highway along the water and talking a walk along it either at sunset or after a night out is a must

Havana Restaurants

Paladar Dona Eutimia - Delicious lunch or dinner spot with frozen mojitos shown below

Palader Los Mercaderes - A more expensive dinner spot with the best ropa vieja (classic Cuban dish)

La Algaribia - A non-touristy sandwich spot with the best fruit 'smoothies' (they're more like milkshakes) I've ever had

travel

Havana Photo Diary

Wednesday, March 22, 2017

Spring is SO close I can feel it... or maybe it's just the fact that I'll be in Cuba's 80 degree weather in less than a week, but either way I'm ready to embrace a few of my favorite spring trends. I've already posted about bell sleeves which have to be my favorite transitional trend, but I wanted to share a few more with you today.

I partnered with LOFT this weekend to take over their Instagram Story and share my favorite new arrivals. Unfortunately, the story has since expired, but you can see their Instagram post here. It was honestly the most fun I've had shopping in a long time and I loved discovering easy ways to wear some of my favorite trends. A couple of my favorites were...

1) Neck Scarf - This is one of those trends that I've always loved but when way too intimidated to try until yesterday. There are so many fun silk scarves at LOFT so I had to pick one up to try and this pink and blue scarf ended up being the perfect one, but I also love this one and this one. All you have to do to tie it is fold the scarf corner to corner, roll from the point in, wrap two times around your neck and tie a knot!

2) Off The Shoulder - Ok ok I know that off the shoulder is nothing new, but it's still super 'in' this season. The best part of the off the shoulder trend becoming more of a classic rather than a real trend is that it no longer has to be the main statement of your outfit. This season let your off the shoulder top or dress take the backseat and pair it with a fun neck scarf (duh), bold necklace, or even find a top that is both off the shoulder and has crazy bell sleeves (like this one or this one).

3) Frayed Denim - There's a lot of fun denim trends out there right now, but hands down the easiest option is switching up your basic skinny jeans for a pair of frayed ones. I'd never bought jeans from LOFT before, but I've got to say these ones are actually ah-mazing! The length was perfect on me and I'm only 5'5" so that never happens! If you're 5'6"-5'8" they'll still fit great as more of an ankle length :)

SHOP MY OUTFIT & FAVE LOFT NEW ARRIVALS