I have been loving the triangle look on all things decor. I think triangles are such interesting shapes because they can be warm and edgy simultaneously. I dream of the time when I can finally do whatever I wish to my living space, but in the meantime these are my fave triangle decor favorites! And if you're looking for equally killer triangle clothes, these cut out jeans are pretty bomb (see here).

one // two // three // four // five

Thoughtful Delight || Living [is] easy

source

Living is easy. So easy. It's so easy to mess up, to get lazy, to be tired and bored. It's so easy to be disinterested, unmotivated, unforgiving. It's so easy to forget, to never respond, to never choose, to linger endlessly and endlessly and endlessly. Living is easy and not how we like to think. We like to define living as one entrenched with passion, with moments strung together like constellations, with everything meaning something, with midnights filled with moonlit conversations contemplating what could be next. We like to think living is exciting. To think it is defined by risks that changed who we are, who we know, and what we do for the better; to think it is defined by the amount of smiles we give and receive, the hours spent wiping tears from laughter, the numbers of friends willingly standing by our sides. This may very well be part of living. But it's not all of it. It's not hard yet. It's hard to embrace the fact that living is not defined by sparks but by dullness. It is not defined by the single momentous day but by the meshing of hundreds and hundreds of uneventful days. It is not the sole red balloon drifting upwards in the sky but rather the vast, blue air that encompasses it -- the air that has been there all along.   

DIY Project || #16 || Multi-Purpose Butter Balm

I have seen the Altoids can being used for similar storage purposes within the DIY world so I didn't hesitate to try it out as a container for my quick butter balm. I recently travelled on my spring break vacation and only used a small carry-on for my luggage. Thus, everything had to be 'bite-sized', if you will, and I needed to bring along some type of all-purpose butter especially for my face after swimming in chlorine, salt water, and who knows what else. As a very curly-haired gal, I also love to use just a tad of the balm for my curls. It makes them so soft, bouncy, and much less frizzy. Overall, this little hand-dandy butter balm is super quick to make (took me less than five!) and super convenient to carry around. I also love that it is really creamy and smells great, making it so much more fun to spread!

A lot of the ingredients can be found in healthy food stores, especially Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. You can also find them at The Vitamin Shop and GNC, other vitamin/fitness food retailers. The Shea Butter can easily be found on Amazon, and a little goes a really long way. I purchased a big jar (a bit bigger than your standard peanut butter jar size) from a fellow peer who is from Ghana and the butter is fair trade and made in the country. So far, I have used less than 1/10th of the entire thing and it cost me $7! I know Coconut Oil and other essential oils (such as peppermint) can run on the more expensive side of things, so if anything I'd highly recommend just buying a jar of 100% Shea Butter. It will be your answer for all things in life...pretty much. Let me know what you think!

FRIDAY FAVES || #13 || SPRING CLEANING IN COLOR

I was so happy last week when I could roll up my sleeves and get to cleaning. When you're living in a cramped dorm room with midterm books all over your desk, pencils hidden in unsuspecting corners, and Starbucks cups overflowing the recycling bin, there's nothing more refreshing (I think) than wiping away the previous months of stress and hard work. Unfortunately, there is no Staples 'easy button', but I love spring cleaning because of all the color you get to infuse into your space throughout the process. Here are some of the first ways you can tackle your spring cleaning that are sure to brighten and color away winter blues. Good luck!

1 // Image Source

2 // Image Source

3 // DIY Natural Room Scents

4 // Striped Weekly Planner

5 // Hot Stuff Skirt

6 // DIY Marker Caddy

Update || On Vacation!

I know some of you must be wondering when the new posts are coming. I'm currently soaking up sunshine on my spring break vacation and, hence, have been taking a brief hiatus from the blogging world. However, I promise there's lots of wonderful stuff coming soon! All will resume back to normal this weekend :)

DIY Project || #15 || Neon Duct Tape Ipad Case

This project is all inspired by NEON! I tend to be quite wary of neon colors. Little zests of it are somehow manageable for me, but I could never rock a neon tee or sneakers despite how much I wish I could. This project, which was previously featured for I Like Fall, otherwise satisfies my zest for neon in a unique way. The iPad case has become one of many Apple products that is perfect for any crafter. We all love making cases, especially after you spent so much money buying the piece of technology itself, why spend more when you can make it yourself! One reason why I love my case is, yes, it is economical, but mostly because I love these duct tape sheets I found while randomly wandering around Michael's. They were only about $1.99 each, so for less than $10 you can make this spunky baby and strut the streets (or the library for me) with a colorful companion in your hands. Hope you guys like it!

Friday Faves || #12 || Inspiring Women in Fashion

As you may or may not know, today is International Women's Day! As a woman myself, this day is important as a means to bring up discussion concerning inequalities between men and women, blatant and obscured, in societies all across the world. More so, it is a day of celebrating the individuals who inspire us to drive forward, to balance work, life, and kids because it's human and doable, to be the first ones in line, to raise our hands first to opportunities, to fight for what we love-- be it politics or fashion--and to never question our capability. In honor of this day, today's friday fashion faves are dedicated to the women who I have found personally inspiring as true leaders in the field who held tight to their core values and beliefs amidst whatever challenges they faced. Thank you all for your dedication!

kate spade capri pants | nasty gal denim backpack | jewel by lisa collections | the body shop's white musk perfume oil | bon bon vie graphic tee

Diy Project || #14 || Removable Floral Wallpaper

I am so happy for the winter to get booted out and spring to be ushered in! As a true bred Californian, I feed off the sunshine, lazy afternoons, and color. For the past 4-5 months I have all but none of these things, so I may be a little starved of all things wonderful at the moment. This DIY removable spring floral wallpaper is great for those with non-permanent housing (i.e. renters or college students) and yet it adds so much color and originality to a room! I may have gone a bit overboard by adding the 'fairy' like white flowers over the window but, hey, it's my space! Overall, try to pick more mute colors for a base (i.e. various tones of green leaves/flowers) and then add that subtle punch with a few really bright flowers (for example, the occasional orange, purple, and yellow petaled ones in the picture). I bought a few large bouquets of fake flowers at Joann's when they were on sale for $0.99 each and just broke them apart to turn them into many small flowers. Lining the flowers in vertical rows also helps create a "wallpaper effect" and to organize the colorful, natural burst that has exploded on your wall. Feel free to experiment with colors and designs, though -- just be (colorfully) inspired!

MATERIALS YOU'LL NEED:

colorful plastic flowers

duct tape 

(the thinner the better!)

FRIDAY FAVES || #11 || MY MAKEUP STAPLES

After wearing more than usual makeup this past week for my dance performance in Ghungroo -- a large Southeast Asian cultural dance show at Harvard (more on that to come later!) -- I had numerous people come up to me and ask about the makeup I use. As someone who strongly prefers a more natural look, I am quite picky when it comes to  how much and what kind of makeup I use. So here's a little sneak peek into my ultimate staples I've kept around for at least the past year -- once I find something I like, I stick with it! Also, this post felt incredibly strange to write! I ended up feeling like I am so into makeup, but I'm quite far from that but I hope it will still be helpful to some of y'all...

1. Foundation - Make Up Forever Professional High Definition (HD) Foundation - $40:

My foundation is by far the most expensive piece in my staples list, yet no fear! There is more to this small bottle than meets the eye, I promise! I discovered it a bit over a year ago to my surprise because I used to be a powder only type of gal. Not only is there a variety of tones represented in the line, a struggle generally for darker skinned ladies such as myself, but there is also variations within each tone based on 'underlying skin colors', such as peach, beige, yellow, or olive. The best part about this foundation is that a little goes a really long way. Literally. On regular days when I decide to wear a lil' somethin' to hide the minimal sleep I've been getting, about half a small pump is plenty enough. Given that I have had the same bottles for more than one year now and use it on average 2-3x per week, this is definitely a bargain despite the upfront costs. Since I tend to pale a decent amount in this Boston weather but glow quite a bit over the summer, I got two bottles that fit my tone when it's lighter and when it's darker (I suggest having a makeup technician help you with that!). Nowadays, I like to blend the two together and I get a much more natural feel. (Isn't weird that we say make up makes you appear 'natural'? Sorry, that's my philosophical critique coming in...I diverge).

2. Blush - bareMinerals Blush - $19:

I used to be a HUGE bareMinerals fan. I usually bought their $60 starter set and called it a day. The blush that I still have from maybe two (?) years ago was bought in addition to that set. I generally tend to use it only on more important days, like for interviews/events/performances/etc. A little also goes a long way with this. Generally 2-3 strokes with a dab of powder for each cheek does the trick! Given that I've had this for over 2 years and there's still about 1/3 left -- did somebody say amen??

3. Primer - Laura Mercier Foundation Primer, Radiance - $18 or $32:

Okay, I am actually not too into this primer. To be honest, I got it as a free sample when I purchased something online from Sephora last year. Nonetheless, it does work great as a primer for my foundation when I want my make up to go on smoother and stick a little longer. Again, I generally reserve this for more important days. I haven't had many experiences with other primers to say where this is actually all that amazing or not, but I generally suggest using a primer if you are seeking a smoother, less 'cake-y' look or if you struggle with makeup fading throughout the day.

4. Mascara - Make Up For Ever Professional Smoky Lash, Rich Black - $22:

If I had to choose only one thing to keep from my makeup bag, this would be it. Hands down. I have been a steadfast fan of this mascara after trying beyond numerous others -- from CVS to department store to 'designer' mascaras -- and this wins every time. It is incredible at both elongating your lashes and curling them at the same time. Even though it is thick, it does not clump easily unless you try hard enough. I always get the non-waterproof kind because I don't want to struggle even more with taking off makeup, but there's the option for those who want it waterproof or in other colors I can never pull off (or just maybe won't even be visible? Has someone actually successfully worn green mascara?). Anyways, I end up buying this only twice a year so it's a check-plus for me!

5. Eye Liner - Smashbox Limitless Liquid Liner Pen - $22:

I actually don't own this specific eyeliner. The one I have has the label completely work down so I can't even read which brand it is, but I've heard positive reviews about this Smashbox liner and may have to try it out when my current one runs out (especially since I don't even know what it is!). I bought it just right before departing for Brazil and found that I love eyeliner pens. It takes out all the fuss and hassle and sloppyness and TIME. Nowadays, it takes maybe one minute or less to do both eyes without looking like some hybrid between a clown and showgirl in the rain. Definitely try out eyeliner pens if you haven't yet! 

That's all folks! In general, the best advice I can give (which sounds weird since I don't think I would come close to ever calling myself an expert in this realm) is to always play it on the safer side. Less really is more -- not just in terms of how you look cosmetically or the style in which you want to present yourself, but also in terms of keeping your skin healthy after you've covered it all up. That's why I limit how much makeup I use in general, partly because it's not always the best thing for your skin and partly because I don't mind my (for real) natural look! Hope it helps, and sorry again for the delay with posting this Friday's Faves -- what a week it's been!