I think it’s safe to say we’ve both out grown this space.

However, recently, I’ve been feeling restless and lacking a creative outlet and decided to give blogging another try. I (Amy) can now be found here.

Thanks for all your support!

Everlane international shipping! 11/16-11/22

Just a quick heads up! For seven days only! Check the details here.

The list of countries that are included: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Vietnam

Top Three #3

Time for another top three!

1. Brand New [music]

I finally got to see my favorite band live for the first time. Truly a surreal experience. Throughout the whole concert, I was oddly calm but it keeps hitting me in waves that I got to experience them live. Judging from Youtube videos, they can be hit or miss depending on whether they’re feeling it, but they were fantastic last night. I wish I could say the say about the crowd. The crowd/atmosphere was a bit disappointing (venue was on a college campus so a lot of undergrads/younguns) but I think I managed to stand in a pretty good spot/enough of hardcore fans around me to get me excited too. At concerts/large gatherings, I’m that fan in the crowd with his/her arms crossed because I honestly don’t know how else to behave/express myself but other fans’ energies get me to loosen up a bit.

But holy crap. Such a fantastic night. Major thanks to my two friends I convinced to go with me (story of my life haha). I have yet to find my music soulmate-friend.

2. Speakers [things]

When I initially moved to Michigan, I ran out of room for my nice (aka heavy) three piece speaker set and only had room for my $10 pair that my dad bought for me at Fry’s like five years ago. I’ve been using the $10 pair for most of my first year but last time I was home (May), I was determined to fit my nice speakers into my luggage. Once back at school, I immediately pulled them out and oh man, music/TV/movies have not sounded better since. (And seeing how the $10 pair are still in perfect working condition, I brought them into lab since I don’t mind them getting all grody with science).

3. Kayaking [life]

I’ve caught the kayaking bug. Being on the water seems like a big part of summer life here in Michigan, whether it’s tubing, kayaking, canoeing, etc. A few weekends ago, I went kayaking for the first time in years with a group of friends who were similarly unexperienced. And I went canoeing the following week with a friend who just moved to the area.

The first and last time I went kayaking was probably in middle school and it was kayaking in the Baylands (so like… no current). I was in the back seat of like a three person kayak where the front two people were two dudes. So you have this petite Asian girl, kayaking for the first time, trying to steer a whole kayak through narrow passages where the dudes barely paddled because they thought it’d be funny. I ended up ramming us into a bank by accident and then they realized I physically was not able to move the thing by myself and started helping. But I really love being on the water.

Anyway, today, I went kayaking for the first time since then and it was amazing. I went with three others and was in a kayak with one of the ones who had never kayaked before. One of the best days I’ve had in so long. It’s so much fun and it doesn’t feel like exercise but man, got an arm work out in since my friend was paddling for the first time.

panoramic creeper shot of my friend 🙂

It’s definitely a wet and messy experience but it’s totally worth it. Would highly recommend and my graduate program has a kayaking/tubing/canoeing trip planned for later this month. Got to get my tan on before the sun disappears.

Bespoke Post reviews: Roam and Vibes

All boxes reviewed were bought with my own money. However, this post contain a coupon and referral link at the end.

Hi everyone! I just want to do a review about the two Bespoke Post boxes I got these past two months. If you’ve never heard of Bespoke Post before, it’s sort of like Birchbox Man where the box is more lifestyle geared. Bespoke Post offers themed boxes and releases new boxes every month and you’re able to get past month’s boxes as long as they’re still in stock. While Bespoke Post is aimed towards men, I find it the boxes/items to be gender neutral and always well curated (sleek and minimal are the words that come to mind). This review is mostly for the Vibes box, but I’ll talk a little bit about the Roam one too.

Top Three #2

This post contains affiliate links.

Time for another top three!

1. Wildlife by La Dispute [music]

I’ve mentioned this band so many times on this blog but these guys are just so amazing. I’ve been listening exclusively to their earlier two full lengths and they get better each time.

2. Textured Cross-Back Pullover from Banana Republic [fashion/shopping]

This sweater was on sale last week and with an extra 50% off (ended up being $25!), I couldn’t help but pick it up. I usually don’t understand/like many trends but this crossback design caught my eye and I feel like I can still wear it after it’s no longer trendy (I see similar designs everywhere so I’m assuming it’s a trend…). I love the color (I got the light blue one), the feel of the fabric (weighted and textured but cool), the different ways (sleeveless or long sleeve collared button up underneath, tank underneath, paired with a jacket/scarf) I can wear it, the way it looks on me and how I don’t have anything like it. So much win.

3. Peaches/nectarines [food]

Summer is possibly my least favorite month of the year (yeah, I know). I hate the heat/sun, sweating, the clothing and especially here in Michigan, the humidity. However, the one saving grace of summer are the fruit. I love peaches and nectarines. I buy maybe 5-10 a week to keep up with my cravings. I’ve only been able to find good yellow peaches and nectarines so far but I’m hoping the white ones (I could probably only eat white peaches and nectarines for the rest of my life) will be available soon! So so yummy. Thank you nature!

Those are my (maybe trivial) top three things at the moment. I’m going to try and write up Everlane reviews later today (I think I have like 5+ items). But I did a huge Gap/Old Navy/Banana Republic haul that I just took all the pics for… So there’s that coming up. 😁

-amy

Top Three #1

In an effort to try and blog more regularly, I’m going to attempt to post my top three things that I’ve been digging over the week (or two weeks). So without further ado:

1. Gilmore Girls / Gossip Girl [TV]

I finished yet another Gilmore Girls rewatch (I’ve lost count) this week (aka today) and was about to rewatch the series yet again when I decided I wanted to watch something new (to me) and ended up watching Gossip Girl. Back when it first came out, I watched a few episodes here and there during the earlier seasons but by the time season 3 premiered, I had no idea what was going on. Since it’s the show that all my friends were obsessed with and watched during high school and college, I decided to give it a go. Better late than never, right? But man, the music and fashion is so nostalgic. But I’m totally addicted… I forgot that there was a time where Blair and Chuck weren’t together.

2. Baking [life]

Recently, I find myself baking something pretty much every week. It’s mostly because I love eating baked goods and I live in a part of town where there’s no where close by that sells baked goods. But within the past two weeks, I’ve made lemon blueberry bread, banana bread, shortbread cookies and a no-bake Oreo cheesecake. I’ve pretty much perfected my banana bread and shortbread cookies recipes at this point. The lemon blueberry bread was just okay. I think I’ll try just a plain blueberry bread/muffin next. But holy cow, the no-bake Oreo cheesecake was amazing.

 

yum yum in my tum

 
3. Taylor Swift’s 1989 [music]

I haven’t really listened to Taylor Swift since high school when I had to write a review of various albums for my school’s newspaper, but after hearing a lot of her recent singles, I decided to give her latest album a go. I’m not in love with many of the songs on the album (I think most are just average), but I’m in love with Blank Space and Style. Like I have not been able to stop listening to these two songs for the past two weeks (and I’ve just been letting the album play on). So catchy and the whole album reminds me of 90s pop.

That’s it for this week. Hope everyone had a lovely Independence (or Canada) Day!

-amy

Kickstarter: Amorstil review

Hey guys! Long time no write. I’ve always had a problem with following through with things when they weren’t mandatory. But I just downloaded the WordPress app to see if I’ll be better about blogging now that I can write blog posts on my phone (which I’m always on).

Today’s post is about Amorstil, the first Kickstarter project I backed (again, I paid for the watch with my own money and this isn’t a sponsored post). I’ve been wanting a basic menswear-styled watch for a while and have been seeing Daniel Wellington watches all over the blogosphere but at $100+ each, that was too expensive of a commitment for me to make. So when I spotted this watch on Kickstarter, for $35 (early bird special), I couldn’t resist.

I got the watch a few weeks ago and have worn it twice so far. I’m taking it slow since I haven’t worn a watch since maybe second grade and I’m making sure I’m wearing it on wet lab-light days because I study the colon and therefore poop 😉

It came in a beautiful box (backers could have received the box in black or white). I selected the black leather/white face option (which wasn’t one of the original three watch color combinations). I was worried the watch would be too big for my wrists but it’s actually the perfect size (some might disagree, but I love the oversized watch face). The watch can fit on even thinner wrists (I use the third to last hole for a looser fit and the second to last hole for a tighter fit). It’s also quiet enough where the ticking does not to bother me (ticking noises normally drive me insane).

 

trying to science

I love it so much I’m thinking about getting another one…

I’m also making this post in case anyone is interested in getting one too and I was browsing Instagram and saw they posted July 4th promotion code. The watches are such great quality for the price (retail $50) but use code JULY15 to get 15% off your order (promotion end date not mentioned) over at amorstil.com.

I just went on a huge shopping spree (darn you sales at Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic eep) otherwise I’d pick up another watch but I really don’t need another watch at the moment (I do have my eye on the brown/cognac leather with white face watch though…)

Just wanted to put the promo out there for anyone who’s looking for a classic and affordable watch.

Also, happy July 4th!

-amy

PS I have Everlane pictures and measurements ready but I just need to sit down and type reviews up. I also just moved apartments so I’ll be doing a closet clean out and might post the link on the blog later 🙂

New York: the shopping

I took a much needed break during “spring break,” a term which technically applies to the undergrads but since we’re first years, our schedules are still “school-esque,” to go to New York!

This was the third time I went to New York for fun and first time I traveled with this particular friend. We had similar priorities… shop and eat, eat and shop. And maybe a museum.

And we did a lot of shopping… but even more eating. 😉 I thought I’d break up the trip into a shopping post and an eating post starting with the shopping post.

We were in New York from Monday night to Thursday noon and we allotted the entirety of Tuesday for shopping, in and around SoHo.

The two stores we wanted to hit up were & Other Stories and COS, both of which are owned by the H&M Group but only recently came to the US, with physical stores found only in New York. We spent about half of our shopping day in & Other Stories and COS. Amazing. Simply amazing.

part of the shoe section at & other stories

Quick update

Again with another quick update. As usual, being super busy with class work + lab + own time management and motivation issues. But after this Wednesday, I should finally be able to come up for air a little bit and either finish or type up some posts that I’ve been wanting to finish/type up for months… including several Everlane reviews (I’ll admit a few items are now no longer available, but pop backs do occur and I’ll talk about how to find these. Reviews will include silk, sweatshirts, long tee, sweaters and as of a few minutes ago, pants ;)), my recent trip to NY (recap of all the shopping and eating that occurred), catching up on my budget posts (I’m probably almost 6 months behind eek) and more, so stay tuned!

I just wanted to again thank anyone and everyone who has clicked on my Everlane link and made a purchase; it means a lot and hopefully the reviews have been helpful! Thanks to you, I was able to get a pair of the new wool pants that I’ve been dying to try ever since they were posted on the “coming soon” page, and I’ll definitely be putting up a review of those (there’s so much for the fit to go wrong on me from my hips to my height haha) for those who are curious as soon as I can. Also, once I have time, I’ll be editing my old Everlane posts to correctly reflect the $25 credit (used to be $15) I receive when someone makes their first purchase using my referral link.

-amy

p.s. the temperature is finally above twenty and the sun is finally out!!! i’ve been wearing a t-shirt, hoodie, cropped jeans and slip-on vans all weekend. it’s funny how much my temperature gauge is warped, seeing how for the last four months, i had to wear a puffer to be able to even walk around outside (when temperatures were often below zero). i’m so pale.

Jumping on the Kickstarter bandwagon

This post contains affiliate links (Nordstrom). All Kickstarter pledges are with my own money 🙂 .

I’m constantly discovering new ways of procrastinating. My latest discovery is Kickstarter.

Obviously Kickstarted has become a really big thing over the past couple of years but I never ventured over there because 1) I really didn’t need to spend more money and 2) Why should I hand over money to strangers? I’m clearly not a very trusting person. However, what I didn’t know was that you aren’t charged for the amount you pledge unless the project meets its minimum funding. I’m not sure why I thought you would still be charged even if the project was a bust. It seems like such a stupid/naive thought now but I thought people were crazy for putting so much faith along with their money behind the ideas of others.

But this past weekend, I found myself browsing the website to see what the fuss was about. For one, I have a few friends who have pledged to certain projects/products and received awesome items (e.g. tech, watches, etc.). I’ve also heard about projects that were such successes that they were able to start a legit company/production of said item (e.g. U-turn audio– how amazing do those turntables look? My friend bought one recently and it’s gorgeous… I may or may not be saving up for one 😉 )

Here are two projects I’ve backed in the last two days lol: