Festive Room Decor

"It's the most wonderful time of the year"

Hello everybody! I've been in the festive mood lately, decorating my apartment and I wanted to share with you all of the bits and pieces. Not going to lie, this was super fun and made me even more excited for the holiday season! It's not much, but I'll be able to pick up more things throughout the years to come.

Christmas lights & new bed sheets/pillow cases.

My first very own Christmas tree! Went for a neutral cream color theme, with a couple matte black baubles and tiny red bells to add a bit of contrast/depth.

Little spread on the table: Advent calendar, candles, salt & pepper shakers, and a count down to Christmas chalk board!

"Merry Christmas" banner : an essential piece of decor.

Fairy garden filled with acorns, candles, and little fairy lights!

I am super pleased with how my Christmas tree turned out, however I'm super bummed that pictures just don't do it justice. Trust me and take my word when I say that it looks absolutely beautiful in real life. I wouldn't mind being a professional Christmas tree decorator!

Besides the tree, I'd have to say that my bedding is my second favorite bit; It was my first time buying bed sheets EVER, and they just had to be festive! I also adore the mix match pillow cases! And of course, I had to top off my bedding with my fuzzy gray throw. 

I also love my tiny display that I have on my table. Advent calendars are a must and the count down to Christmas is a nice addition and brings out the inner child inside of me. Don't even get me started with the salt & pepper shakers, because I am OBSESSED; They are so cute! Lastly, you can never have enough festive candles to burn throughout your home.. In fact, I went a bit overboard and bought a decent amount of candles and I even made a blog post to tell you about them, which if you'd like to check out here is the link to that post: Christmas Candle Overload.

Anyways, I hope this post brings you a bit of Christmas spirit and holiday cheer!

On a side note, I'd like to add that over on my youtube channel I'm thinking about doing Vlogmas, but it will only be the 12 days leading up to Christmas, with day #12 actually being Christmas Day. So if you'd like to watch what I do throughout the day's leading up until Christmas, subscribe to my youtube channel which you can do so by clicking here. 

Much Love! Xx

Christmas Candle Overload

Lately, I've been in this mood for loving candles and burning them every chance I get. I soon came to realize that my candle inventory is slimming down quite fast, and I found that I don't really own any festive holiday scented ones. It was absolute perfect timing to hear that Bath and Body Works had a sale exclusively in-stores and today only on candles (well now it was a couple days ago, but I hope you get the point). The 3-wick candles are usually $22.50, but today they were $8.50 ... a MASSIVE sale. That's like getting two candles for the price of one, plus an additional 20% off.  I was so excited to get these deals that, well, let's just say I went a bit overboard, and I wanted to share with you what I purchased; incase any of you are candle lovers like myself.

The first one I grabbed was "Mahogany Teakwood". I actually already have this one in a smaller size, but I have this fear of burning candles that smell out of this world; just in case they are limited edition and won't be coming back. I guess you could call me a candle hoarder? Does anybody else do this? Please tell me I'm not the only one.. Anyways, this scent is ah-maz-ing. Basically, take the most mouth watering, panty dropping men's cologne you know of and ta-da, that is this candle. However, they describe this scent as "The luxurious scents of fine woods - mahogany, cedarwood and oak - are enlightened by delicate lavender and geranium notes".  I think my description is much better to be honest.. 

The next one I went for was "JOY". This is a very lovely scent if I do say so myself. I wanted a candle that smelled of peppermint, but everything was very overpowering; until I found this one. This candle actually makes my mouth water; it of course smells like peppermint, but also a nice warm vanilla marshmallow and a hint of spices. It's almost as if you walked into a candy shop at the North Pole. I love how they described the scent of this candle: "Indulge in the fragrance of fluffy vanilla marshmallows, which are full of holiday sweetness and peppermint joy". Isn't that cute?! 

I then found a candle called "PEACE". This candle may be my favorite of them all. It's a very relaxing scent in my opinion. If any of you are familiar with the kiosk "The Almond Tree", this candle reminds me of that stand. If you're not familiar with it, it's basically a stand that sells various types of roasted nuts; from pecans to almonds, and cashews. They are always warm and just melts in your mouth. This candle has a subtitle that says "Iced Vanilla Woods", which also basically sums up this scent. It reminds me of snowshoeing through the woods, or walking through a field of pine trees. It has that nice Christmas tree smell that's not overpowering, and is toned down by a warm vanilla fragrance. On the bottom it says "Enjoy a peaceful holiday with this soothing blend of sweet vanilla, smoldering woods, and iced lavender".

Next, I picked out "Spiced Apple Toddy". It's basically a classic go-to fragrance. If you enjoy the standard apple and cinnamon scents, this is the candle for you. It's a lovely baking kind of smell that tickles your nose. They describe it as "A sweet mixture of winter fruits, apple brandy, and spiced plum will warm up all your winter celebrations". 

I picked out another baking themed type of candle called "Salted Caramel". The name says it all; a nice warm salted caramel scent. I feel like this candle needs no other description since it's pretty straight forward. At first I was kind of skeptical, but after smelling it a couple 3 or 4 times, I knew I had to grab it. I feel like if you are a coffee lover like myself, you'll enjoy this one a lot. On the bottom of the candle it says "Indulge on a chilly winter day with this blend of buttery soft caramel, flaky sea salt and a hint of roasted chestnuts".

"Snowflakes & Spruce" is the next candle that I grabbed. It's a nice tree scent but isn't overpowering. I feel like this and the "peace" candle are similar, but this one leans more to a strong tree fragrance instead of a subtle tree smell. It is calmed down a bit with vanilla, but the vanilla isn't as pungent as it is in the "peace" candle. I feel like this scent is kind of like the artificial tree sprays you can get to make your fake trees smell real, but this is better quality.  On the bottom, it says "kick off the holiday party season with an outdoorsy blend inspired by snowcapped spruce, and sweetened by a touch of creamy vanilla".

The Next candle is "Fresh Balsam". Very similar to the last candle, but is quite overpowering. This candle smells like you are at a Christmas tree farm cutting down your own tree. It's that freshly cut tree scent that strikes your nostrils. To compare this candle and "snowflakes & spruce", I'd say that this is freshly cut tree scent that will knock you over, while "snowflakes & spruce" is maybe a couple days old, sitting in your living room all decorated. If you like strong scents, I'd say this is the candle for you. [It's a straight-out-of-the-woods candle].. I only picked it up because I have a fake tree in my apartment and I am missing out on the real Christmas tree smell; therefore, I am hoping this candle will make it seem a bit more real and festive.

The last candle I picked out was "Winter Candy Apple". This candle is SO nice. It's basically a candied apple with a hint of citrus fragrance. Similar to "Spiced Apple Toddy", but without the spice. If you are looking for an apple based candle but aren't too keen on the cinnamon and spice mix, then this candle is amazing, and in all honesty, I think you could get away with burning it all year 'round. They describe it as "A sweet, yuletide blend of candied apples and spiced orange zest, with a touch of winter musk".   

And that is all of the candles I purchased; I'd say I am all set for the holiday season, and will probably still be burning these through July. Otherwise, I can always give them as gifts or I can save them for next year, but there was no way I was going to pass up such a great sale! 

I feel like Christmas candles fall in two categories, baking kind of scents (including food/drink smells), and then tree scents. It's kind of like a teeter-totter, where they meet in the middle and form candles that smell like the "peace" candle I purchased. With that being said, what is your favorite holiday scent? Is it a baking type, or a tree type?

Much Love! Xx

Autumn Pinspiration

If you haven't noticed yet, Autumn is my absolute favorite season! Everything just seems to slow down and gives you time to reflect on the year you've had. With this being my first year living on my own and on a tight budget due to being a student, I can only dream of my apartment being decorated accordingly and smelling like delicious baked goods. I'll get there one day, but for now I'll leave you with this post. I wanted to to share with you how I think of fall & what I love about this time of year. Hopefully, these images will make you just as enthusiastic as I am!

I got this fun idea from A Rosie Outlook who did this on her blog, which if you'd like to check out her post you can click here.

Basically, I am taking images from my Pinterest boards and merging them into one to give you some Fall 'Inspiration', hence, the title "Autumn Pinspiration". 

All of these pictures represent the beauty and warmth Autumn brings, despite the chilly weather and gloomy/rainy days. Aside from Halloween, I think these pictures best represent what I enjoy about fall. Of course I couldn't fit everything in this post, but I managed to get a good handful of what brings me joy and happiness this time of year. I always enjoy having a good cup of steaming hot cocoa on those chilly mornings, while reading a book, and snuggling up in a blanket. Candles are an essential item during this time of year, however, I can never find one that I enjoy that still screams"AUTUMN"... If any of you have suggestions, please let me know! 

Living in the midwest has it's ups and downs during fall. First the weather is bipolar; one week you can wear skirts and t-shirts, and the next you're bringing out the long johns and mittens. But I think I enjoy those November days where it's a bit dreary and lightly raining, the best. Call me crazy, but it's those kinds of days that calms me and reminds me of my childhood. With chilly weather comes heavy and warmer clothing. My favorite fall clothing pieces are long socks and scarves. Both are an absolute must-have if I'm going for a walk in the park, or just out and about. 

 Another thing that is amazing about the midwest is the amount of farm land and rolling hills. Driving through the countryside during this time of year is full of bliss. The temperature isn't too hot or too cold, so you can roll down the windows and breathe in the crisp air, upon viewing miles and miles of colorful trees, and the occasional cow pasture or bundles of hay. Although, at this point most of the leaves are being raked up and thrown away; It's still nice to let your inner child come out and run through the leaves or jump into a pile of them.

Growing up, my family would always gather at my grandparents house during November, not only to celebrate Thanksgiving, but to mark the beginning of deer hunting season. This was always my favorite, even though I don't hunt and my parent's don't hunt, I always enjoyed getting together,  spending the afternoon baking with my grandma while the men went out into the woods.  

Even though I miss those traditions, the memories will never fade. And who knows, maybe I'll start making my own traditions.

I hope this post gets you into the Autumnal mood! And quite honestly, I'm already looking ahead for winter 'pinspiration'! 

For now, however, what is your favorite thing about Autumn?

Much Love! Xx

Halloween Snacks & Decorations

Halloween is one of my top favorite holidays. Everything about it excites me, from the spooky and eerie atmosphere to the decorations and scary movies. I unfortunately have to work all afternoon on Halloween so I won't be able to do much baking or binge watching scary movies. Which is quite upsetting but I do get to dress up for work. I'm always bad at deciding what I want to be and now that I am a college student on a tight budget I don't have extra cash to spend on an extravagant costume. However, I do have some ideas of what I could be based on what I can pull from my wardrobe.

 What are you guys going to be for Halloween? And are you doing anything fun for the evening? 

Since my day is filled with work I decided to celebrate a couple days early. I spent the afternoon and evening decorating my table and filling it with snacks. 

Most of the decorations I picked up at the Dollar Tree to save some cash and I did grab a couple of items from Target which were a bit pricey but I can use them next year as well, and as I mentioned early I'm obsessed with Halloween so they will definitely be put to use! (: 

From the dollar tree I grabbed a bag of black webbing without the spiders to act as a table cloth. If you have a bigger table you'll probably need 2 or 3 bags, but I just have a small table so I could get away with 1 and stretching it. I also grabbed the glowing skull, plastic cups, a glowing tapered candle, and a pack of glowing tea-lights. I went earlier in the month to pick up some decorations for at work and found these really cool plastic skull goblets, but when I went back to grab stuff for at my apartment they were all sold out. I was super bummed but then found a black tinted wine glass that I could use instead. The last thing I picked up at the dollar tree was a plastic punch bowl to hold my beverage. 

At Target I picked up assorted baking essentials and treats for the caramel apples and a fun halloween themed cupcake holder (pictured below), but in my opinion you could probably get away with using it all year round. 

For the food I made 3 simple treats inspired from Pinterest, and a Punch that consists of Hawaiian fruit punch and a can of Minute Maid Lemonade.

 First I made these fun pudding cups that I colored depending on which cups I would be pouring the pudding into. I did green for the monster from Frankenstein, orange for my fun jack-o-lantern faces, and left some plain vanilla pudding for the ghost. 

FUN FACT: The monster isn't actually named Frankenstein, it was actually the scientist whose named Frankenstein but so many people think that Frankenstein is the creature that was brought to life. . . The more you know. (: 

I found these pudding cups super fun to make because you can draw anything you'd like on the plastic cups and make each one unique. I do recommend having these guys chill out over some ice to keep them cold. 

Next I made "vampire teeth" which consists of three ingredients: Apples, peanut butter, and mini marshmallows. I put quotation marks around 'vampire teeth' because I didn't actually include fangs, but you could easily squeeze a piece of candy corn between two marshmallows on either side. I frequently enjoy grabbing an apple and a jar of peanut butter as a quick snack so I think this was my favorite halloween treat that I made. All you do is slice up an apple, spread some peanut butter on one side of two slices and stick marshmallows around the edge to act as teeth. TA-DA! Quick, easy, AND delicious! 

Last but certainly not least, I had to incorporate the classic caramel apple! It's an iconic snack for Halloween, or fall in general. I decided to amp it up a bit by cutting the apple into chunks for bite size treats, and then laid out different choices for toppings. I decided to go for candy corns, mini marshmallows, white chocolate chips and mini chocolate chips, crushed up M&M candies, multigrain cheerios, and of course chopped up peanuts for all you classic caramel apple lovers. I found this super fun because you can mix and match any toppings you'd like! I bet there will be no two caramel apples alike at your party - unless you're plain Jane and stick to the classics, but hey that's okay too! (: 

I did make a video of how I made these fun treats and posted it on my youtube channel so if you want to check it out you can click here or click on the youtube logo in the side bar.  

I hope you enjoyed this post & I hope you have a happy and safe Halloween!

I'd like to know what kind of treats you must have on Halloween.. Let me know in the comments! (: 

Much love! Xx