Life Lately Vol. 4

This weekend has been such a good weekend, and every day leading up to it has been just as good! Although finals are a little bit stressful and nerve-wracking, I've been too focused on the good to worry about the bad. Summer is coming quickly, and I have so many exciting plans, but I've been doing some really fun things to prepare for summer too!

Finals // I'm going to go ahead and get the worst part out of the way... finals. I've been working really hard on my study guides and final presentations for all of my classes, and I'm really anxious to fast forward to next Friday when all of my finals will be over with. During this time of year, my Lilly Pulitzer agenda is a complete life saver, and I obviously need my computer since most of my study guides are digital. I also like to snack while I work, so of course I have food! Wish me luck in finals this week!

Farmer's Market & Shopping // Since it's Memorial Day weekend, I had a four-day weekend with school off on Friday and Monday. On almost any day I don't have school, it's a safe bet that I'll be shopping, and this weekend has been no exception! On Friday I went to Francesca's and picked up a few things - probably not the best decision since my entire wardrobe consists of their clothing - and yesterday, I went to our local Farmer's Market! Going to the Farmer's Market is one of my favorite things to do during summer, and I was so glad to get to go for the first time this year! We got watermelon and peaches, and went to a few local boutiques before finishing everything off with shaved ice and popsicles. I also went to Lilly Pulitzer on Friday in hopes of getting a gift with purchase. I was unsuccessful, but hey, there's always today and tomorrow!

(P.S. I may have gone a little Snapchat crazy yesterday, so if you want to see future adventures, make sure you add me on Snapchat at livethepreplife!)

Summer Bucket List // As I mentioned earlier, I have tons of exciting plans for summer, and many of these are included on my summer bucket list. Every year, I make a summer bucket list (see my very embarrassing post on last summer's bucket list here) and this year is absolutely no exception. There are so many things I want to do this summer, and I am determined to make this summer the best one yet!

Here's to my longest volume of Life Lately yet! Now that I'm finally finished writing this, if you need me, I'll be at the pool for the next 48 hours, swimming, eating, and procrastinating on studying. Enjoy your holiday on Monday, too!

What have you been up to lately? What are your plans for your day off tomorrow?

6 Ideas For Preppy Room Decor

I've been wanting to do this post for so long, and now is the perfect time to do it since I finally finished redecorating my room! I got a desk for Christmas, and a lot of redecorating ensued, such as new art prints, the removal of my old bookcase, and other small things here and there! My room was supposed to be finished a long time ago, but the shelf I ordered from Wayfair was on backorder for the longest time! It finally came and we got it hanging, so I'm really excited to share my room with y'all!

First, here is the aforementioned shelf from Wayfair! I use it to display some of my paintings, since I've been painting a lot lately. I hope to paint a lot more paintings this summer - leave a comment if you want me to do a painting tutorial for a Lilly print or Vineyard Vines whale!

Awhile back, I won this gorgeous pillow in a giveaway from My Pink And Green Garden. The Sky Blue Heaven print goes perfectly with the turquoise scheme of my room (does anyone else think it looks fairly similar to the Coconut Jungle print?) and of course, you can never go wrong with monograms! I've had my bedding from PBTeen for quite a few years now, but I still love it!

I featured this board awhile back in my post on where to put preppy stickers, but since then, I've added tons of more stickers, so I had to share it again! I also have a couple Polaroids of my friends and me, and a few Lilly Pulitzer tags on it now. I feel like a bulletin board with stickers is a very basic preppy decor piece, but my room wouldn't be complete without it!

Here is my desk! Above it, I hung a monogram from Wayfair that I painted to match the color of my room, so now everyone knows that my wall is mine and no one else's. I also placed some crafts that I've done on my desk (which I just shared in one of my previous volumes of Life Lately) as well as a couple bowls and this desk lamp from PBTeen.

Above my bed, I have a mini gallery wall. I got this anchor from Hobby Lobby and painted it the same color as the monogram. I got the big black canvas for Christmas about four years ago, and I love all of the inspirational messages on it! To finish everything off, I added two free prints that I found online. I can't find the beYOUtiful one, but the Essie one is from Chicfetti.

Lastly, I have my dresser! I have a little tray that came from Dillards, and I just put some koozies and makeup goodies such as EOS lip balm, Essie nail polish, and Bath & Body Works perfume on it. I also have a candle and my pearls here. Beside my dresser, I have a cross and vase that I painted. I also have my jewelry box, and my Vineyard Vines whale hat sits behind that. On the other side, I have a photo of my friend and I, a jewelry tray with a monogram necklace and Lokai bracelet on it, and a music box.

What does your room look like? What are your favorite pieces of room decor?

Link Love Vol. 3

I couldn't be more ready for summer. I'm so sick of school and rain and everything that's happened lately. I've been having a hard time deciding which classes to take next year, I have five reviews to complete for finals next week (see 4 helpful study tips here), and it was 60 degrees for two days this week. Summer, can you please hurry up and get here?

I feel like I've been slacking off on everything, too, and my head hasn't really been focused. Hopefully, with summer coming up, I can blog more and be more involved! I have a couple collabs coming up, and I've already planned the majority of my summer posts - I'm hoping to be able to write three posts every week. Here's to summer, which is just around the corner, and here's to blog posts, because I have quite a few for y'all to read!

1 // 16 perfect pool floats for summer

2 // Collaborating with other bloggers can be hard, but here are 5 helpful tips!

3 // Also on the subject of blogging tips - here are 5 ways to gain more readers!

4 // The secrets behind my Instagram posts

5 // I'm currently working on my summer bucket list, and these things would be great to add to it.

6 // I feel like I always share Katie's recipes... but these chocolate chip peanut butter bars are too good to pass up!

7 // Daria shares some important life lessons that everyone should read

8 // Here are some great pick-me-ups for bad days!

9 // I am now a rep for Happy Earth Apparel, and if you use my code BrookeSavesTheWorld you can get 15% off! 

10 // How cute is Sydney's dress for pre-graduation?!

11 // Why it's good to be active in the morning

12 // I hate wearing my hair up, so I loved this article about what happened when a woman who hates updos wore her hair up every day for a week.

13 // Caitlin is in PARIS and I may be the tiniest bit jealous (okay, maybe I'm really jealous)

14 // Dorothy shares her workout essentials, and she has the cutest leggings and S'well bottle.

What have you been up to this week?

5 Tips For Working With Other Bloggers

Collaborating with other bloggers can sometimes be very intimidating, but it's an awesome part of the blog world, and today, Ashlee from Sparkles by Ashlee has five big tips for you on how you can get the right opportunities to collaborate with other bloggers.

1. Make a list of the blogs that inspire you. Chances are there is that one blog that inspired you to start yours, or you have a blog that is your favorite. There are also quite a few blogs that are similar to yours. Make a list of these. Chances are, you're probably already following them!

2. Then you need to reach out and introduce yourself. Maybe get to know them a little better before you jump in with collaborating. Comment on their posts that resonated with you. Send them a note to tell them how much they've inspired you. Form a friendship! Even if you can't collaborate, you could still make a great friend.

Related: Why I Took A Week Off Of Blogging

3. Know what you want to collaborate on and do your homework in the sense that you know what types of posts this blogger writes, what posts their audience writes, and even what their audience is like. The come up with an idea to present to them. This is a mistake I made a lot.

I used to email a blogger and only state the topic our post could be in (like "dreams," and while that tells you something, you don't really know what I have in mind). Instead, state what type of post it would be and your ideas for it. Don't wait for them to suggest ideas because they might not. If you email someone and tell them specifically what you want to collaborate on, then they might love your idea versus if you only told them a little bit.

4. Engage with their readers. If you write a post for a blogger, and one of their readers leaves a nice comment or question, respond and engage! This is how you meet NEW people and gain NEW readers that will support you, and you can support them!

Related: How To Stay Safe As A Blogger

5. Don't put too much pressure on yourself with collaborating. Don't worry about what people think. Some bloggers will say no. That's okay. Try not to take it personally - rejection is a part of life. It's probably for the better because that means they weren't the right blog for you, or you can try again with a different idea. Don't make collaborating feel like a chore or something you HAVE to do. It should be fun, and it should be about community, not just getting your name out there.

How about you? Do you collaborate with other bloggers? If so, how do you do it? Did these tips help?

Ashlee Mae is a blogger at Sparkles By Ashlee where she shares her faith and big dreams in writing and helping others pursue their dreams. She is obsessed with the color pink and just wants to keep it real and look for the good in this life.

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Life Lately Vol. 3

Y'all. May is going by so fast. Seriously. I blinked and it went from May 1st to May 15th. What is this madness? I can't believe it's already time for another volume of Life Lately - it feels like I just went to Lilly Pulitzer and had my solo competition yesterday!

Mother's Day // Last weekend, for Mother's Day, my family went to see The Jungle Book and we went to get frozen yogurt! We were going to take pictures at the botanical gardens, but it rained, so we had to improvise (but we're going to take pictures very soon, and y'all will probably see that at some point). It was so fun celebrating my mom, and if you haven't seen the new Jungle Book, I highly recommend it!

Swimming // It's finally warm enough to swim! I went swimming for the first time last week, and I'm going to the pool with some of my friends tonight. I've been searching everywhere for new swimsuits for summer, and I'm having the hardest time finding anything, but I got this one at Target yesterday and I have my eye on this one and this one. One of our pool floats just popped, too, so I've been looking at ideas for a new one, and I am in love with this donut and this flamingo!

Museums // On Monday, my school went to our local museum for a field trip! It was really fun, and when we visited they had a special exhibit going on at that particular time. It featured different collectors and their collections. The above picture shows a lady's collection of PEZ dispencers. Isn't it cool?!

In other exciting news, I have a giveaway going on right now! Go check out my Instagram to see how to enter. If you follow me, you'll also be the first to see other giveaways I have, because I have quite a few coming up in the near future!

I hope you have a great Sunday, and a great week! Hang in there - summer is just around the corner!

For with God, nothing shall be impossible. - Luke 1:37

Behind The Gram Part 2

Sometimes, you see a perfect picture on Instagram, but there's no way of knowing what the story is behind the picture: how the picture was taken, small secrets within the picture, that kind of thing. Many people don't realize what crazy lengths people will go to in order to achieve the perfect picture, but 2016 has been the year of being real about Instagram and the "perfection" behind it. Today, I'm sharing a sequel to one of my most popular posts, #behindthegram, so I hope you enjoy hearing some more stories behind my Instagram posts!

It's always a safe bet to assume that if there's a picture where I'm holding something up and you can see my thumb, my thumbnail will be freshly painted but it is the only nail painted. This picture is no exception - I painted this nail just for the picture and was too lazy to go back and paint the rest. I also changed shirts so my sleeve would match my tumbler. And there were also stains from brownie batter that had gotten on the tumbler when I was baking earlier that day. They dried and I was in a hurry to take the picture, so I didn't wipe them off and merely held the cup at an angle where you couldn't see the brownie batter. (But don't worry, the batter has been wiped off since then.)

This picture was taken at a time when I could not, for the life of me, get any storage space on my iPhone. Typically, I take about 100 or so pictures of the same thing so I can choose from the best one, but I could only take about five because of the lack of storage. The five I took weren't great, but I had to work with them, so I did - but the shadow on the left side of the picture is driving me crazy.

This is actually my sister in the picture. I wanted her to take a picture of me, but she just couldn't get the angles and lighting right, so I took one of her instead. We took this on a Sunday morning right before we left for church, and my mom got really mad that we ended up being late, especially since we were teaching that week. But, you know, #doitforthegram. (Just kidding. God comes before everything.) I actually only posted it because I was hoping that Lauren James would repost it, but that didn't happen... so yay me.

This was taken when my family and I went to Colorado for Spring Break (read my recap here!) and I dragged my sister out into the freezing cold - it was literally freezing - and made her take pictures of me. She ended up taking one, and I hate the way the light hit my face, but sometimes you just have to roll with it.

I spent a good twenty minutes arranging these stickers to get them the way I wanted them. I didn't want any white showing, but I wanted every sticker to be visible. And of course, I only displayed the stickers that were bright colors with a pretty logo so it would go along with the Instagram theme that I am currently attempting - but failing - to implement. I also had to post this because I am a rep for a few companies tagged in the picture, and I felt really bad about not posting any promotional pictures for them in a long time - since I am supposed to be promoting their brand, after all.

Related: How To Get Free Preppy Stickers

This was actually a really fun photoshoot. For once, my sister was agreeable to taking pictures, and I actually had storage on my phone. I had been wanting to take pictures of this dress for a while since it was so twirly and fun, and I really love how these pictures turned out because they reflect a side of me that I don't normally show in my pictures. Since I was moving around a lot, the majority of the pictures turned out blurry, but my sister still captured a few great ones. Expect to see a few more pictures in this dress soon!

As you can tell from this post, taking pictures for Instagram involves a ton of improvisation, at least for me. I never know when a picture is going to turn out beautifully when I don't think it will be good, or vice versa. I've learned, however, that not every picture will be perfect and sometimes I just have to go with the best one. I've also learned that in most cases, the best pictures have the best stories behind them!

Make sure to follow me on Instagram for more preppy pictures!

What are your Instagram secrets and stories? How do you deal with flawed pictures?

Be not afraid, only believe. - Mark 5:36

Link Love Vol. 2

Three cheers for the weekend, and only 17 days of school until summer! I'm so ready for summer... but right now, I'm just glad it's the weekend. I am a little sad that the end of school is going by so fast, soccer is almost over, and finals are nearing, but right now I'm just going to focus on the positives that the weekend brings. These pros include sleeping in, shopping, taking pictures, not doing homework, and of course, Mother's Day! Don't forget to go thank your mom/grandma/aunt/motherly neighbor, because moms are seriously the best! Now let's get into the links!

1 // Taylor has a great post on growing up that really leaves you thinking - does anyone truly grow up?

2 // Along with the subject of growing up, Isabella shares her reflections on junior year

3 // Calling all photographers: these cheat sheets will be your new best friend

4 // I have a whole list of pool floats picked out for this summer... how cute are these that Ashley picked out?

5 // Creamy, healthy lemon bars... need I say, YUM?!

6 // The perfect reminder: you are enough.

7 // Love, love, love Lucy's post about things she's learned from blogging

8 // I love how Carly styled this seersucker dress... and this gingham ensemble... can we all just agree that Carly is perfect?

9 // Mikayla's post about how God has a plan for us is perfect, as usual.

10 // Lucky Day turned three yesterday! Congrats, Shelby!

11 // This week I shared some fun tasseled pieces!

Thanks for reading, and I hope y'all have a great weekend and an amazing Mother's Day!

The Lord will fight for you; you need only be still. - Exodus 14:14

The Tassel Trend

Tank | Necklace | Purse (sold out) | Keychain | Sandals | Bag | Coverup | Dress | Earrings | Scarf | Blue Sandals | Bracelet

I think tassels are so cute for summer! Ever since they became popular, I have been absolutely loving them, and they would have to be my favorite trend for summer (although they're rivaled by scallops). Since summer is approaching quickly, and I really want to get in the mood for it, I thought today I'd share a few of my favorite tasseled pieces.

Shopbob has lots of cute tassel pieces (and they're having a sale right now!), but as you can see, places like Kate Spade, Tory Burch, and Lilly Pulitzer have really great options too. A lot of the items are quite pricey, so I don't currently own anything with tassels on it, but after seeing this post on Preppy By The Sea I'm eyeing this tank (it's less than $20!) I know for sure that before summer officially hits, I will definitely be buying something with tassels on it. Who's with me?

What are your thoughts on tassels? Do you own anything with tassels on it?

For God so loved the world that He gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. - John 3:16

Life Lately Vol. 2

Hey, y'all! Today I'm back with another edition of Life Lately to celebrate the fact that it's the beginning of May and we only have one month to go before summer's here! This year is always such a busy time, but it's always lots of fun and I wouldn't have it any other way!

Lilly Pulitzer GWP // I was really excited when I got a notification in the mail a few days ago that Lilly was having gifts with every purchase (one of my many tips on how to save money on Lilly Pulitzer) so yesterday I went and bought a few gifts for people! I didn't buy anything because I just got a scarf at their last promotion, but I did try on a few things. I can't decide if I like this dress or not - what do y'all think?

Solo Competition // If you didn't already know, I play clarinet for my school's band, and this weekend we had our annual solo competition. I was really nervous, and I messed up a few times, but overall I did well and it was fun to perform and rehearse.

DIYS // I've had a lot of fun doing DIYS with my friends lately. I covered this cardboard letter with washi tape, and I decorated this chalkboard mason jar with some paint pens! Both are perfect for my desk and I really enjoyed making them with my friends. I've also had these sticker covered mason jars for a while (they were featured in my post on where to put preppy stickers) but I think they're really cute so I had to share them again!

What have you been up to lately? How was your weekend?

She is clothed in strength and dignity and laughs without fear of the future. - Proverbs 31:25