School Bags

Top: Marc By Marc. Mod Cloth. Long Champ
Bottom: Chapters-Indigo. Cambridge Satchel. Urban Outfitters. 


If you're anything like me then your school bag goes basically everywhere with you during the school year and on the off chance you go somewhere without it you feel naked. On days when I don't have to lug around as many textbooks and my laptop I like to use my LongChamp bag. During midterms and finals however, I find I need an actual backpack.

What is your favourite bag for school?

Jaclyn

Baking Adventures: French Macaroons

I (like I think most others) was terrified of making Macaroons for the first time. Would they grow feet? Would they crack? Would it just be a complete and total failure? I have read a ton of different bloggers posts on making macaroons - the successes and the failures. I read tips and tricks. I read all the different trouble shooting. In theory I could make the perfect macaroon I just had to work up the courage to try. 

Then one day on Facebook of all places I saw my friend had posted a photo of the earl grey macaroons that she had made. They looked perfect. I thought to myself "I know her! She made them! They worked out! If she can do it, I can do it!" So I messaged her for her recipe. 

She directed me to this youtube video. I watched it twice and checked out the blog that it links to with the reciepe before I started. I was thrilled that it gave the measurements in cups and not grams. I don't have a food scale yet (future investment for sure) and it seemed simple enough. So I set off to make my own. Which as you all have probably guessed from my photos they turned out! I would encourage everyone to try and make these delicious treats. The video is great at explaining things step by step and so far everyone I know who has tried this recipe has had great results. 

What is your Macaroon experience? Do you have a favourite recipe you would be willing to share? 

Jaclyn

Pink School Supplies

All items from Chapter-Indigo

Being a total nerd I cannot wait to go back to school shopping. I can spend hours trying to pick out the perfect pen or highlighter. Rather then bore you with a typical list of binders and sticky notes, I thought I would mix it up with some fun pink accessories. I love all the cute new accessories that Chapters has for back to school. I can get sucked into looking at all the fun novelty items that they carry for hours. Their new Poppin Collection makes it easy to mix and match colours and coordinate your desk and accessories.

What is on your back to school list?

Also check out my full dorm packing list and The Good, The Bad and the Ugly of University.

Jaclyn


Please note this is NOT a sponsored post. 

Packing

Throwing together some outfits for a trip to NYC

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Have tea... will travel

It is no secret that I am a huge tea lover. I constantly have a cup of tea in my hand and I drink a variety of teas throughout the day.  On my way to work or school I usually leave the house with more then one cup of tea (one hot to drink then and one iced for later). Plus I also usually have some extra tea stashed in my purse, just in case.  Drinking loose leaf tea on the go isn't always the easiest thing but having the right accessories helps.

Travel Mugs - For hot teas it is important that you have a well insulated and leak proof mug. It is never pleasant spilling hot tea on yourself in the mornings. The next mug on my wish list is this one from David's Tea. I have heard nothing but good things about the smaller version but always thought it was too small for me, finally they made one in a bigger size!  For iced teas I like these tumblers with a straw, if I am not going to be throwing it in my bag. They come in cute patterns depending on where you buy them from. When I want something spill proof I usually just use a reusable water bottle. 

Filters - Filters are a great way to bring tea with you on the go. I even use them to bring teas when I am going somewhere for a weekend. I fill the fillers up with enough loose leaf for one cup and bring them in a ziplock bag in my purse. All you have to do is add hot water and you're good to go. 

Travel Tea Tins - David's had these travel tea tins (I believe they are on sale now in stores) and they came with 5 single serve filters of the loose leaf tea. The actual tin is great because it is small enough to fit in your purse and keeps the tea fresh.  Once I ran out of the tea that it came with I reused the tin to carry my own pre-made filters rather then using a ziplock bag.

                

Style Crush: Lucy Hale

I love Lucy Hale's style. Its casual and laid back while still looking put together and polished. From boots to scarves to coloured jeans to hats and summer dresses many outfits she wears inspire my own daily choices.

I love how she pairs boots with skinny jeans in so many of her outfits. Its simple, put together and practical.  These suede boots of hers are some of my favourite. 

I love the floral print on this dress and the simple sandals that it is paired with. Perfect for a hot summer day.

Over the past couple of years I have started to wear more hats. I love my straw fedora and wear it every chance I get in the summer. 

Coloured pants are a staple in my wardrobe. I love how Lucy dresses them up in these looks.  

Who is your Style Crush?

Jaclyn

9 to 5

Today is the last day of my summer internship. It is going to be weird not going to work on Monday and I am really going to miss all of my new friends at the office. The internship was a lot of fun and I learned a lot. But I am ready to go back to school in a couple of short weeks (get ready for some back to school posts in the near future.) What I now feel like I understand from working 9-5:

- The feeling you get when your inbox hits 0

- Weekends. As a student I never felt like I truly owned my weekends. I usually have to study or  if I am really lucky I have an exam.  I also didn't have class everyday so some weekdays felt more like weekends then weekends did. 

- Commuting sucks. Seriously. Being stuck in a car or on the subway for hours everyday is not fun.

I learnt a lot this summer during my internship but I couldn't resist posting this silly list that I felt a lot of people could relate too. I am excited to see what company I end up with next summer for an internship. They are not only great learning opportunities but they also help determine if you actually really do like what you think you want to do for a career.

What is your internship experience?

Jaclyn

Pink Scooter

 The BFs mom got a new pink Vespa and I was super excited to check it out (really I just wanted to take photos with it! Lol). How cute is though? I think it makes the perfect accessory, even if I don't exactly know how to drive it.

 Pants: 7 for All Man Kind. Shirt: Garage (On Sale!). Shoes: TOMS. Headband: Claires. Sunglasses:F21

I seriously cannot get over how cute it is! Do any of you own a Vespa?

Jaclyn

Weekend Snapshots

 Picture Perfect Day in the country.

 Mini Golf before it started to pour!

 An attempt at outfit photos. Then the rain started. Oops.

 A perfect day at the beach. 

 Rib Fest.

Pink nails to match my ice-cream

Honey, Honey

I love honey. I didn't always like it, but it defiantly grew on me and now I always buy local honey when possible (I think it tastes best). So I was super excited to learn that my work had an urban bee farm on its roof. I remember watching TV when I was younger and seeing people all dressed up in bee suits harvesting honey and I wondered what it would be like to have hundreds of bees swarming around you, unable to sting you. Well I got to experience it first hand and learn more about bees and the honey making process. 

I felt like an astronaut in my bee suit. Since we weren't harvesting any honey and just checking on the bees making sure they were okay and the queen was still alive they were pretty docile and didn't seem to mind having us there. There was no bee swarm like I had imagined. 

It was amazing to see all the bees working and seeing the honey comb at different stages. A lot of work sure goes into producing honey. Each hive was like its own little world. It was really cool to see and I cannot wait to one day try the honey that these bees produce. 

I of course went home and had some honey in my tea that night. Here are a few of my favourite recipes with honey. 

Honey Butter Cream on these Strawberry Lemon-aid Cupcakes

A generous drizzle of honey on some raspberry scones

What is your favourite way to enjoy honey? 

Jaclyn