April Favorites

April 30, 2016

Hi babes! I hope you had a fabulous April. I sure did! It's been an action packed month so I'm looking into having a more relaxed May. Hope you all enjoy the rest of your weekend and check out some of my favorites for the month.  I'd love to hear what your favorites are, share them below!


1. Revlon Colorstay Gel Envy in Lovestruck - I just bought this little guy and the color is STUNNING. I purchased it at Walgreens a few days ago and I think it is from their new collection so I haven't been able to find a link yet. Try looking for it at Walgreens, Walmart or Target :)

2. Bauble Bar Priyanka Drop Earrings - I am loving statement earrings and Bauble Bar has an excellent selection. This exotic pair definitely made a statement and you can see them in this post!

3. Bauble Bar Acrylic Monogram Curb Bracelet - I've never owned anything monogrammed or anything with my name on it. I actually thought it was a little weird but I fell in love with Bauble Bar's personalized section. While I'm still hesitant to purchaser a name necklace this monogram bracelet was a happy medium for me. You can choose your color and font and make it totally yours!

4. Milani Baked Blush in Luminoso - This baked blush is one of my favorites blushes of all time! The coral/bronze shade is perfect for a sunkissed glow all year round.

5. Marc Jacobs Daisy Dream Fragrance - One of my go-to scents! I'm a sucker for floral, fresh scents and this one is definitely up my alley. 

6. The Estee Edit Barest Lip Color in So Bare - I was a fan of nude brown lipsticks since the beginning of time, they are my shade of nude. Then all of a sudden they became super popular - go figure ;) Once I saw The Estee Edit's Barest Lip Color collection I was sold on all of them. I've picked up So Bare and Nude Scene. I'd def recommend them, they are super creamy!

Happy Saturday, babes!

Xo,
Maia

Home Sweet Home

April 28, 2016

Forever 21 Off the Shoulder Top, GAP Stretched 1969 Distressed True Skinny Ankle Jean (also love these!), Steve Madden Vendetaa Cutout Bootie, Bauble Bar Acrylic Monogram Curb Bracelet, Bauble Bar Priyanka Drops Earrings, Sephora Rouge Balm - Gentle Coral

I've officially been a Brooklyn resident for 4 months now. Yay! And it definitely feels like home. I'm familiar with all the restaurants, coffee shops and the park around the corner. I'm used to my commute to work and I'm loving how much later I can sleep in because that same commute. Even though I'm absolutely loving Brooklyn, there's something about going home home. Your hometown. Like some, I grew up in a small town, it's literally considered a village because it's so small but I grew up knowing the mailman by name, selling lemonade on the corner without it being a safety issue and riding my bike with all the kids on the block. I loved it. That was my childhood.

Waking up early for summer swim team practice at the town pool, catching fireflies as then sun set, and spending hours at the town library -- that was my childhood. Many years have passed since I've done any of those things. I traded a bicycle for a car, the library for the mall, and my bedroom for my dorm room and eventually a new apartment in a new state. Even though times have changed those memories will last a lifetime and it always feels good to go home.

I remember listening to Carrie Underwood's song titled "Thank God for Hometowns" and it resonated with me so much that I had it on repeat for a week. I might not have grown up in Oklahoma like she did but I understood wholeheartedly what she meant.

So many things change in our lifetimes but sometimes you need to go back home to remember who you are, and where you've come from to remind yourself to be thankful for how far you've come.

Xo,
Maia

What's in my bag

April 25, 2016


I'll be the first one to admit that handbags can often be bottomless pits that we carry around with us everywhere. At any given moment you can find 6 different receipts, headphones, gum, 10 lipsticks and a bunch of other junk in my bag but sometimes I like to keep it minimal. Lately I've trying to keep my bag clean and fill it with the things that I really need want

1. Fiorelli backpack - easy, convenient and super cute! Also available in tan.

2. Cat eye sunnies - I bought mine from a street vendor, but No Weekends is selling a similar pair.

3. Fashionary Sketchbook - This is my favorite item in my bag. It's a sketchbook filled with templates, fashion resources and even a fashion dictionary. My boyfriend surprised me with it for my birthday and it's the sweetest gift I've received. A few readers know but I've been taking night classes at fashion school and this sketchbook has definitely come in handy!

4. Kate Spade Pencil Pouch Set - This super cute set also comes with a super cute pencil pouch and ruler (not pictured).

5. Capelli New York Bracelet - I couldn't find it online - still trying though. Here are some other cute options, herehere and here

6. Colourpop Ultra Matte Lip - These are some of my favorite matte liquid lipsticks and they are only $6! You cannot beat the price. Some of my favorite colors are Are & Be, Tulle and Creeper. 

What's in your bag? Share in the comment section below!

Xo,
Maia


Puerto Rico: Where to stay & where to go!

April 23, 2016

This year I took the time to visit my beautiful second home again but with some very special visitors. My roomie, her boo and mine :) This was my first couples trip and it was better than I could've imagined. Like I like to do, we planned ahead -- about 2-3 months ahead. We figured out which month would be best and most affordable to travel, we researched where to stay and ended up deciding on trying an Airbnb. After hearing all the horror stories, I personally was skeptical but she stayed at an Airbnb in Hawaii and loved the service. We gave it a shot and couldn't have been more pleased!

We rented a sweet apartment with an adorably decorated patio from a lovely couple. The couple, artists, had the most colorful and decorated apartment I have ever seen. It's true you can tell so much about people by their home!

Day One:
After a late night bar hopping on Ashford Avenue in the Condado neighborhood of San Juan, the 4 of us spent the day at the beach. We couldn't have asked for better weather, seriously the weather gods were on our side. We grabbed some local munchies and headed off to visit some of my family. 

Day Two:
My boyfriend and I took an hour and a half hour drive to the center of the island to go zip-lining. Tom nor I had ever gone zip-lining before and were ecstatic to try it in the mountains of Puerto Rico! We went to Toro Verde, a zip-lining park in Orocovis, PR. We rode The Beast line and soared through the sky. It was the most exhilarating experience of the life. I literally felt like I was flying through the mountains until I got stuck because I wasn't heavy enough - haha, it would only happen to me! 

Later that day the 4 of us went hiking through El Yunque, an enormous rainforest about 45 minutes outside of San Juan. I'd recommend bug spray, and comfy sneakers for the hike and your bathing suit for the gorgeous waterfall that you'll find at the end. It's a delicious treat at the end of a killer hike.
Day Three:
There are a few islands of the coast of Puerto Rico, one of them being Culebra. I had always heard it was stunning but it was even more amazing than I could've imagined. We booked a snorkeling excursion with East Island Excursions and took a catamaran about 45 minutes out to Culebra and snorkeled in the sunshine.

Literally paradise. 

Puerto Rico is heaven on earth, and you don't even need a passport to travel there ;)

Xo,
Maia
  




Puerto Rico: My home away from home

April 21, 2016

Dress: Chicwish, Earrings: Bauble Bar, Wedges: Steve Madden, Clutch: old

Puerto Rico has always been my home away from home. My mom was born and raised on the island and I was lucky enough to spend every summer of my childhood there. We would leave New York the day after the last day of school and return the day right before school started in September. Those summers were simply the best. I'd spend my days picking mangoes off the trees in my abuela's backyard, sinking my toes in the sand at the beach and playing with my dolls under the palm trees. It was these same summers that allowed me to share precious time with my abuela. She'd share her secret recipes, showed me how to sew since she was a seamstress and would tell me endless stories about growing up in Puerto Rico.

I wish I could live those summers over and over again.

One of my favorite memories that I shared with her was when she told me she was going to make me a traje tipico of Puerto Rico. She was going to make me a dress that was a replica of the dresses typically worn by folkloric dancers of Puerto Rico. I was thrilled! I was absolutely over the moon. The next day she took me to the fabric store, I picked out this light blue gingham fabric and within a few days I was twirling around in my new favorite dress.

Baby Fashionista!

20 years later, I'm wearing a very similar off the shoulder dress, twirling around in the streets of Old San Juan and reminiscing about the days I used to spend with my abuela.


Xo,
Maia

Photos by Pedro Angel Morales

Traveling: What has worked for me

April 18, 2016

Hi baes! As some of you have noticed in my snaps and Instagram, I've been traveling a bit. It was a resolution of mine. In addition to that, I've been dating someone long distance so that also means lots of traveling! :)
There's so much that I love about traveling, I mean who doesn't love to travel. Your twenties are all about discovering yourself, and they are your selfish years so why not spending them exploring the world? I've decided to do at least one big trip a year. When I say big, I mean at least 5 days away in a place that requires me to use my passport. I am making it a point to not repeat places (as much as I love London, wahhh) but I'm making it a goal to visit as many countries as possible before I turn 30. 

I blame my parents for this outrageous travel bug. They used took my brother and I somewhere new every summer. For one week of the summer they'd pack us in the car or an airplane and we'd go to a new state or country. Thanks to them, I've always loved to travel. As I've gotten older and my traveling desires more extravagant, I've really learned how expensive traveling can be. 

This time last year I began planning my first big trip with one of my best friends,Cynthia. We both had been itching to travel and Europe was a dream of ours. We started planning about 6-7 months out. Sounds crazy but it worked for us. We checked what month would be best to take off from work, how long we wanted to go for, which cities we wanted to visit and how much we were willing to spend. As our Eurotrip plan started to come together, I learned how complicated and exciting this trip would be.
Home Away from Home
Because Cynthia and I were on a tight budget, we compared prices between staying in hotels and hostels. Since it was only the two of us we decided to research the top hostels through HostelWorld.com. It was super easy to navigate and narrow down the top-rated hostels. Hostels provide a very welcoming environment for younger travelers especially those traveling alone or in small groups. We knew we'd only be sleeping in our hostels and that we'd be out and about all day so we were fine with dorm style living. In our hostels in London and Paris, we shared a bedroom but shared the bathroom with the floor and in Barcelona we had our own bathroom. Hostels offer lots of options. When traveling I would recommend do lots of research when it comes to deciding on where to stay. You want make sure you are comfortable - it will be your home away from home! We loved where we stayed especially in Barcelona! You can read more here. Since then I've traveled to Puerto Rico and stayed at my first Airbnb which was lovely and I'll share more about it in my next post :)
Excursions
While in Europe, I was determined to see and do as much as possible in a short period of time. I did research on Trip Advisor and through a few travel blogs to loosely plan what we would do every day. They recommended the top actitivities in each city and provided affordable prices for lots of tours and excursions!
Me Time
Even though traveling requires lots of energy and time, remember to take some moments for yourself. Sounds a bit weird since we usually take trips to get away from our daily life but often traveling can be a bit overwhelming. After taking long flights, traveling through different times zones and stay in places that aren't your own -- who wouldn't be overwhelmed, and exhausted? Lots of times I feel like I need a vacation after a vacation so I try my hardest to take some time for myself. To take it all in. I like to have some moments throughout my trip where I can write in my journal, reflect on my trip, why I took the trip and what it means to me. Maybe even just taking a small walk, one not tour related and just soak in all the world around you. I kept a journal when I went to Europe and it's so great to look back and read over the moments we experienced while we were there. 


I hope you find these tips helpful and I'd love to hear what are your favorite tricks and tips in the comment section below.

Xo,
Maia

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