Friday Favorites

Whoops. Another month went by and I haven't posted. But I have more excuses! I just started classes at Temple so I've been trying to manage a social life, work, and school work. But today I decided to just list a few of my favorite things I've been loving recently!

For music, definitely check out Tame Impala's newest album Currents. I've been listening to it on repeat since it came out.

Clothing wise, I've been up a few new pieces that I may style on an outfit post  in here. I snagged this denim jacket at Abercrombie (yes, Abercrombie), for $40 after seeing a similar one at Topshop for double the price. I also splurged on these booties for fall because I really needed another pair of black boots.

I've also been addicted to pumpkin iced coffee lately, but instead of spending money at Dunkin' every day (which is incredibly tempting), I've been making my own at home with pumpkin spice creamer and it tastes just as good (and is way cheaper).

For books/movies/tv shows, I definitely recommend Aziz Anzari's book Modern Romance. It totally opened my eyes to how I view online dating. Also I just finished up watching Bachelor in Paradise, which hey isn't high quality education television, but extremely entertaining and addicting. Unfortunately I haven't had much time for movies lately, but since it's almost Halloween I might be having a few movie marathons.

Top of the Tower

Two weeks ago, I was able to attend an "Instameetup" with some Philadelphia area photographers at Top of the Tower (1717 Arch Street). It was hosted on a Wednesday during Center City Sips, but we had the perk of being able to stay an hour after it had closed to take photos. I loved the view of there and if you can endure loud music, I recommend making it up there for happy hour just for the view alone.

Bohdi Coffee

I've been waiting to make this post for a while. A few days ago I finally made the trip to Bohdi Coffee with one of my friends Riley (@rileyybrownnn on Instagram) because we both have a mutual love for coffee shops.

Overall I am in love with the space and could definitely see myself coming back here once I start classes to do schoolwork. They offer brightly lit indoor seating, as well as some tables outside. I also loved all the plants inside.

I decided to go with an iced coffee since the weather has been brutal, but once it's the fall I can't wait to try their lattes as well.

Bohdi now has two locations. The one we went to was on 2nd and Pine right off of South Street, but they also have one as 10th and Washington as well if you're closer to center city (which I am planning on visiting as well). I highly recommend this place if you're looking for a new coffee shop to try.

A Look Inside My Room

Now that it's been a month since I've moved out, I can finally say my room has come together nicely. I thought it would be fun to share what I have and what I did with the space. I will say I am very lucky and have a very large room to work with. Before I start, all the furniture is from IKEA unless otherwise noted.

Starting with my dresser, I'm someone where if I don't have things out, they'll never get used. This is why personally, I opted to keep all my jewelry laid out. This way I see it every morning and pieces get worn more than they would if they were kept in a box. This is also why I keep my shoes out as well on this shoe rack (which I got for $10 at Target). The only ones I'll keep in my closet are my "nicer" shoes.

Moving along to my side table, here I just keep my record player and a few candles. Nothing major. I also have a full length mirror off to the side until I can figure out how to hang it up myself (so it'll probably be there for a while). On the other side of my bed I have my nightstand (which tends to be used as my junk drawer). I tend to keep the top of this pretty empty and just have things I use every day on it like hand sanitizer and my glasses case (and of course coffee).

This bookshelf was one of the last additions to my room. I knew I wanted something in this space and I'm very happy with the outcome. I definitely want to keep it very minimal and not overcrowd it, but I still have plenty of room for more books.

Lastly we have my desk/vanity area. I'm still not sure if I want to use this table as a desk or keep it as my vanity. For ow I'm happy with how it looks and I love that all my makeup is out so I can see everything and force myself to use different products more often. I also use that tray normally for when I eat in my room so I don't make a mess.

Overall I'm very happy with the color scheme and layout of my room. Eventually I think I'll get some artwork for the walls, but for right now I'm very pleased with the atmosphere.

Coffee Market

So I've officially moved into my new place and am finally settled in which means more time for exploring and blogging.

Last week I took some time after work to walk around and explore the area I live in and stumbled upon Coffee Market (45th and Pine). The main thing I love about the location is it feels like one of those places only locals know about because it's in the middle of a residential street. 

The interior is quirky and unique. I loved the hanging tea pots. The staff was a super friendly and the barista even let me taste a sample of their cold brew before I decided if I wanted that or the regular iced coffee (it might have also been because it wasn't very crowded at the time either).

I opted for a plain iced coffee (my usual) and was pleasantly suprised with the price as well. It was about 30 cents cheaper that most places I've gone to in the city which was nice as well.

Lastly there's an adorable outdoor seating area which would be nice to read at or get work done (if you don't need wifi which they sadly don't provide).

Overall if you're around 45th and are looking for a place to grab a cup of coffee then I highly recommend Coffee Market. I anticipate myself going there often because of how close it is to my place. 

Bear with Me...

Alright so I know I'm slacking. This past month has been extremely hectic with traveling and finding a place to live (which is move out Friday!). I feel like I just have had no time to blog, which I miss. I'm hoping once next week passes I'll be able to post more but this place definitely has been on the back burner for a while but I'm hoping to post some moving/decor/cooking related posts soon! I just wanted to let everyone know I'm still alive over here!

Happy Bones NYC

If you guys aren't aware by now, I have an addiction to coffee and coffee shops. Over Memorial Day weekend I was able to spend the day in Soho and, of course, had to pick one out. After seeing various tumblr posts, and instagrams, I decided to settle with Happy Bones.

One thing I will say it is it very small and can get very crowded. We went around 3pm so there were people at all the tables but there weren't too many people inside. Another thing I will say are the prices are a bit high, but it's New York. I decided on an iced coffee ($4) and my friend had gotten an iced tea ($3.50). Both tasted absolutely delicious.

 

Given the size, the interior is gorgeous. I love all white, which tends to create a more relaxing environment as well. If you're able to get there early enough and snag a table, you could easily get "in the zone" and get work done (though it's in such a touristy area that still might be hard).

   

Overall, I'd say Happy Bones is a cool place to check out if you're really into coffee shops and in the Soho area of NYC and you don't mind paying a bit more for the atmosphere.

The 33rd Floor

For the past few months, I've discovered a passion for Philadelphia Photography. I thought it would be fun to share some great photo spots around the city with you guys! First up, The 33rd Floor.

The 33rd floor of the Loews hotel (located on 12th and Market) is home to one of the most breathtaking views of the city. Pictures don't do it justice. You really have to see it in person for the full effect.

I made two trips here because after seeing it in the morning I had to stop by after work to see it at night and it's just as beautiful. (I had to add some sunset shots in there as well).

Some tips I have are definitely going on a week day afternoon if you want a day time view, and then after 7 at night for a night time view. There happened to be a breakfast event going on at the time I went on Saturday morning (luckily no one said anything). When I went back on Saturday night after 7 there was no one up there. If you're ever in the Center City area, I highly recommend stopping by.

(Side Note: There's a side entrance on 12th street so you can avoid the awkward "I'm not staying in this hotel" lobby walkthrough).

My Trip to California

If any of you guys follow me on my social media, you'd know I went out to California for the first time last week to visit friends! It was one of the best trips of my life and I had a blast. Since I was there for about a week I decided to just do one collective post featuring some pictures of my favorite parts of the trip. I can't wait to go back again (hopefully permanently).

Los Angeles

 Sunset Boulevard                                         Mulholland Drive

 Urth Cafe                                              Amoeba Records

Horror House                                     Pann's for Brunch

Disneyland!

Downtown Fullerton

 Rialto Cafe                                            American Vintage

 oh, hello friend!                                    Night Owl Cafe

RARE by Goodwill                                     Hapas Cupcakes

On a side note, I'm so sorry for not blogging at all last month! With my trip and figuring out grad school classes, I was so preoccupied I forgot to blog, but I have a lot of great things coming up for posts that I can't wait to share with you all (including instagram meetups, which are now a thing).

On Being 23

When I was younger, I always thought by now I'd be set. I'd have a great apartment, a well paying job, maybe even married? In reality, I'm currently living at home, working an okay job, and marriage, well I'm not even looking at that right now. I think we all thought when we were younger your life plan should be set when you're in your 20s. You should know where your life is headed and what your next step is. But what I've learned this year is that it's okay to not know. It's okay to still be planning.

This year I spent a lot of time figuring out what I wanted to do with my life and where I wanted to end up. I had a career goal in mind, but I wasn't sure how to get there. I always thought at 23 I would be on the path there, but I won't be starting that until the fall.

You don't need to have your life planned out at 20. Or 25. Or 30. It's okay to take your time. That's what I've learned this past year. No one has their life together. Everyone's still working towards something. I think our generation is "growing up" a lot later than our parents did. My mom got married and had kids at 23. I don't even see that in my life until my 30s.

I spent two years after college figuring out what I wanted to do with my life, and I want to tell everyone that it's okay. Seeing people I went to high school with already there would usually frustrate me, but I realized there's no rush to figuring out what is going to make you happy. I'm not saying go travel around the world and ignore your responsibilities, but hey if you need to wait tables for a year before you figure out your career path, do it.

In the end, it's important to take time for yourself. Everything will work out in the end if you take the time to plan it out. Your happiness comes first.

Dallas Day 3

Our last day in Dallas was spent mainly at the art museum (which was probably my favorite part of the whole trip). Before we went though, we wanted to go to the Sky Lobby, which gives you a view of Dallas, but that ended up not working out so well.

The art museum definitely helped our day though. It had a great blend on modern with more classic pieces. Here are some pictures I took there.

I also picked up some postcards they had on sale which I think I might do a DIY post with in the future!

Overall I had a great time in Dallas and it was nice to have a vacation/spring break. I definitely recommend going, but in the warmer months where there are more people around, though it was nice not having anything crowded.