As Of Lately

Hello beautiful readers

Since I spend most of my time working, I haven't been putting together a lot of outfits lately. When I work at night this is pretty much how my day goes: Wake up [early, trying to stay in this habit], go work out, come home and make some lunch, lay out [I want to be a bronzed goddess], shower, and go to work.

It might sound pathetic to some of you, but I honestly really enjoy it.

While I lay out I've been reading Delirium on my new Kindle! Wee!

I'm so happy I finally bought one. And I'm really enjoying the book so far. Elle Fowler did a review of it, which is what made me buy it. Watch the review here.

On a side note, today marks the 12th anniversary of when I was diagnosed with Diabetes. It's crazy how long it's been. But back to fashion.

There is the occasional day where I put real people clothes on.

Here's a couple snapshots of some outfits I have worn recently

Scarf: Target. Top: Forever 21. Shorts: A&F DIY. Shoes: Converse. 

Dress: H&M. Belt: Windsor. Sandals. Steve Madden. Bag: Fossil.

Top: Francesca's. Pants: H&M. Sandals: Michael Kors. Bag: Coach.

Jacket: IZOD. Pants: Target. Wedges: Franco Sarto. Bag: Coach.

ALSO, POLL TIME.

I'm going to a wedding on Saturday, and I have no idea how to do my hair!! I'd love to hear your opinion.

Up or down?

Curly or straight?

Extensions or no extensions?

Leave your answer either in the comments or on my Facebook Page!

Thanks for reading!

XO Kara

Tag Time!

Hello dolls-

You all know my love for tags. I think they're a fun way to get to know more about bloggers. I was really excited to see that Sal tagged me :)

Here it goes!

Rules:
1. Each person must post 11 things about themselves on the blog.
2. Answer the questions the tagger has set for you , as well as, creating your own eleven for the people you will tag.
3. Choose eleven people and link them in your blog.
4. Go to their page and tell them.
5. No tags back.
6. You legitimately have to tag.

11 Random Facts:

1. I naturally have dark blonde hair

2. I was a tom boy when I was little

3. I've lived in the same town my whole life

4. I would really like to open a bakery at some point in my life

5. I wanted braces and glasses when I was little

6. I'm slightly claustrophobic

7. I love wrapping and giving presents

8. One Direction is my guilty pleasure [Whoops, Backstreet Boys days all over again]

9. I love theatre and the arts

10. I could watch YouTube videos for hours

11. Sometimes I dream in Spanish  

Sal's questions & my answers:

1. What's your favorite food?

I'm a sucker for a really great sandwich

2. Who do you find the most inspiring person?

My dear friend Chelsea who just moved. She has shown me that you can do anything you put your mind to. She constantly inspires me.

3. If there's something in your life that you can change, what would it be?

How impatient I am.

4. How's your relation with your siblings, if you have any?

I have an older brother. We used to hate each other, then when he went to college we stopped fighting, but weren't friends. Now we get along well and I'm really happy with how things have changed.

5. What's your favourite piece of clothing and why?

If I had some great designer piece like a Chanel Jumbo Flap or an Hermes bangle, maybe I'd say that, but alas I do not. It's probably my black Target pants you guys have seen a thousand times. They make any outfit feel more put together and I think they fit really well. They just make me feel great.

6. Name three things that you must have done before you die.

1. Meet Ellen Degeneres. 2. Visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. 3. Own a Chanel bag.

7. What are you most passionate about?

Making every little moment count. I want everything in life to be meaningful, which is why I don't mind my little OCD things I do. I don't want to just do things to get by, I try to give everything a purpose.

8. How often do you have 'no makeup-days'?

Not very often actually. I'll go for like half the day without makeup, say if I wake up and work out and then shower and get ready. But it's rare for me to go a whole day with zero makeup.

9. What's your addiction?

My dog.

10. Which celebrity do you find most annoying?

Heidi Montag. She is famous for no reason.

11. Which series do you watch?

I don't watch a ton of random TV, but I do watch these shows faithfully: 
Dexter, Glee, So You Think You Can Dance and The 

Office.

My Questions:

1. Where were you born?

2. What are your three favorite beauty products?

3. What made you start blogging?

4. Flats or heels?

5. Do you have any tattoos?

6. Who is your favorite celebrity?

7. What inspires you?

8. How do you like your coffee?

9. Would you ever dye your hair a crazy color?

10. What could you eat every day?

11. Three things on your bucket list?

The Bloggers I Tag:

Lexi
Jasmine
Sarah
Zvezda
Stephanie
Romy
Rachel
Alina
Bree
Yuli
Khushbu

Thanks for stopping by! I hope you enjoyed learning a bit more about me :) Talk to you soon
XO Kara

Baking Time

Hey guys!

How have you been?

I really just love baking. Super random. But whenever I don't have something to do, I bake. 

I feel too guilty to make a super unhealthy recipe, as delicious as it might sound, I usually try to find a healthier alternative.

This week I made the Peanut Butter Banana Oatmeal Bars

Here it goes!

Ingredients--

-1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats

-1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

-1 tsp baking powder

-1/2 tsp kosher salt

-1 tsp ground cinnamon

-1 tsp vanilla extract

-1/2 cup milk

-1 large egg, lightly beaten

-1/4 creamy peanut butter

-1 large banana [I used 2 medium]

The How To--

Mix together the oats, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a medium size mixing bowl.

Add in the vanilla, milk and egg and mix it all together.

Next, mash up the bananas and add them to the mixture along with the peanut butter. 

Stir to combine.

Pour into a greased 8x8 pan, and bake at 350º for 20 minutes.

Let cool, and cut into squares.

My OCD side took over and I chose to individually wrap them in wax paper.

I store them in the fridge and then microwave them for 10 seconds before eating. 

They're really good.

I calculated the calories from the ingredients I used, and it came out to 140 calories. Not too shabby!

Let me know if you give this recipe a try!!

P.S. I just got tagged to do a post, so keep your eye out for that coming soon :)

Thanks for reading loves

XO Kara

Four Ways

Hello loves!
I had such a crazy weekend. The busiest night of summer at my work, going away party for one of my best friends who is moving to California, and of course working a bit more. 
Did you do anything exciting?

I have received so many compliments on the red/pink pants I wore in my last OOTD, so now I'd like to show you some other ways to style them.

For being so bright, I find them very versatile, just what I like.

And I would also like to apologize for the terrible photo quality. I almost cringe when I have to look at them. I promise they won't stay this bad for much longer!!

The first look-- Boho
Flowy material, leather and gold accents paired with these bright pants give a laid back casual vibe
Perfect for lunch with friends

Details-- Tank: Free People. Pants: H&M. Sandals: Steve Madden [old]. Necklace: H&M. Watch: Fossil.

Outfit Two-- Retro

High waisted detail, tied chambray shirt, and a pop of leopard loafers takes these pants back to the 50's

Perfect for a day of shopping

Details-- Shirt: Old Navy. Loafers: MIA.

Outfit Three-- Fierce

Classic pairing of black and red to kick this outfit up a notch

Perfect for a concert

Details-- Top: Marshall's. Belt: Forever 21. Wedges: Vera Wang

Outfit Four-- Business Chic

Tailored blazer balancing the tucked in tank paired with neutral heels

Perfect to brighten up those Monday mornings

Details-- Blazer: Evan Picone. Tank: American Eagle: Belt: Forever 21. Heels: Kohl's.

Thanks so much for reading!!

XO Kara

The Versatile Blogger

Hi dolls!

Hope all is going well.

Again, I've been working like crazy.

But I also just worked on a DIY project, so expect to see a post about it soon :)

I'll try and get my closet tour up soon, but my room tour will take a bit longer.

I need to find a chair for my vanity, and I am obsessed with the Louis Ghost Chair. However, I don't have an extra $400 to drop on one.

They have a replica on Amazon for a much more modest $150. But that's still too much right now. Once I put the finishing touches on my room, expect to see a post!!

NOW onto the exciting stuff.

A huge thank you to Lexi for giving me The Versatile Blogger Award! She was one of my first followers, and I'm so honored to receive this.

Rules of the award

1 - Nominate 15 fellow bloggers who are relatively new to blogging

2 - Let them know you have nominated them

3 - Share 7 randoms facts about yourself

4 - Thank the bloggers who have nominated you

5 - Add the Versatile Blogger Picture to your blog

Here we go!

1. I'm a perfectionist

2. I'm a huge Harry Potter fan

3. I could eat breakfast food for any meal

4. I'm a Type 1 Diabetic

5. I seriously considered going to culinary school

6. Dance was the majority of my life from ages 4-18

7. I had an emo phase in middle school

I've been following some of these blogs for a while, and some more recently. But they're all special and unique and deserve this award.

I'm giving this award to:

Cassandra

Sara

Aya

Emily

Jillian

Lauren

Sarah

Stephanie

Romy

Zoe

Shauna

NuD'acol

Khushbu

Melody

Camilla

Congratulations and I hope you all keep this award going!

Thanks for reading and thanks again to Lexi!

XO Kara

Catch Up

Hello loves!!

First I'd like to just say how thankful I am for my mother. She is such a wonderful person and I'm so happy I have such a good relationship with my parents--love you mom. Don't forget to take time today to tell your moms how much they mean to you!

I'm sorry it has been so long since my last post.

Everything has been insane since moving back home for summer.

I worked doubles the two days after I moved back, and the past two days I've been working or re-arranging and organizing my room and closet. It's been quite the project but I'm so happy with how it turned out.

I'll be doing a tour soon, I just need to finish a few more things :)

My dear friend Chelsea is moving to California in less than two weeks, so I'm trying to spend as much time as possible with her.

I'm beyond excited for her, but I'm also sad to see her go.

This just means I'll have to make a trip out to California sometime, right?

Anyway, we went out for sushi tonight and it was SO GOOD.

We couldn't stop talking about how delicious it was.

Here's what I wore--

Remember my Faux Pixie Pants post? I went to H&M and tried on the pants and FELL IN LOVE. I adore them. I bought these red pair, and also the khaki, but I plan on going back for the black and the teal. They aren't what I imagined, they aren't very stretchy at all, but I love them.  

Details-- Top: H&M. Pants: H&M. Necklace: H&M. Watch: D&G. Sandals: Michael Kors. Bag: Coach. 

Our delicious dinner--

I hope you guys enjoyed! I've missed blogging so much. Hopefully I can keep my posts consistent this summer. I'm really trying to keep structure while I'm not in school.

Anyway, thanks for reading and talk to you soon!

XO Kara

Moments & Memories

Well it's finally here...

MY FIRST DAY OF SUMMER

I finished my finals yesterday, but I decided it would be better to wait until today to move out.

I have way more stuff than any one person needs. Seriously not okay. I'm going to go through like everything I own and really re-organize. Start the summer off right.

My summer will consist mainly of working. Hopefully my posts don't get too boring.

I just want to reflect back on my year a little bit. This has been one of the best years of my life. I had the privilege to live with two of my best friends. I learned so much about myself and how to be completely comfortable with other people. While Megan is traveling to Spain with me, I'm still going to miss them so much this summer. We don't live very close, but we're going to try to meet up. I'm sure I'll do a post about it if we do.

Anyway-- here's a look back at this year

Oktoberfest with my bestie Lexi

Using inanimate objects as phones

Family dinner Sundays 

Spending obscene amounts of time at coffee shops 

Seeing the Rotary Lights

Planking instead of studying

 Representing our school 

Megan playing us beautiful music on her recorder

Meeting and developing a great friendship with our wonderful bible study leader, Kate. I adore her.

Hiking the bluffs [more photos to come]

We just took this photo tonight-- reppin' our La Crosse tanks. I'm so sentimental, this photo means so much to me. I love these girls more than they know.

And finally, today is Megan's 20th birthday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MEGAN!!!!

Thank you for reading my sentimental post :P

Talk to you soon!

XO Kara

Faux Pixie Pants

Hello dears
I have my last finals today, and my stuff is almost all packed up.
My dad is coming to help move me out tomorrow and I just can't believe another year is already gone.
But I'll wait until tomorrow to be sentimental.


In my attempts at studying, I found myself browsing around online quite a bit. Ya know just looking at things I want to add to my wardrobe, things I can't afford, things I don't need. Yeah that stuff.

I really need to save a lot of money this summer, so I won't be going on many unplanned shopping trips, so sad :(

But instead, I'm really planning out a few things I want to buy.

I have heard SO many great things about the pixie pants from J.Crew

I was planning on buying a pair because I think they'll be really great for traveling in. They're basically a really thick legging, so it's acceptable to wear them as pants, 
but you get the same comfort.

BUT! I just came across what I think might be a good dupe from H&M.

I can't wait to try these on in store to see how they compare.

I mean the price difference is outrageous, I figure it's worth a shot.

I'll probably still end up buying the Pixie pants at some point, but I was excited to find these!


I've mentioned how much I love my Chanel Chance perfume, but I feel like a need a little bit of change for summer. I really like the Chloe Eau de Parfum-- I got it as a sample a while ago. But I'd like to hear what your guys' favorite spring/summer perfumes are! 
Leave me a suggestion in the comments :)

Thanks for reading my random post, 
and I'll talk to you guys soon!
[Don't forget to "Like" my blog of Facebook]
XO Kara

Summer Sunset :: A Tutorial

Happy Friday!

Since I have early morning classes, I don't usually do much with my makeup.

I pretty much put enough on so I don't look like I'm dead haha

Some days I like to be creative and do a full face.

Here is my take on a smokey eye with summer colors.

Hope you enjoy :)

Oh, and please don't mind my bathrobe. 

I took these photos while I was actually getting ready for the day.

 After doing my foundation, I applied Mac's Paintpot in Painterly all over my lids, into my inner corner and a bit below my eye.

Next I just used a Maybelline eyeshadow in Vanilla and applied that to my inner corner and up onto the inner fourth of my lid with a Bare Minerals brush [it's actually a concealer brush, but I like how it applies shadow]

Next, I packed a medium gold color on the outer 3/4 of my lid with the same brush. This is from a random pallet I picked up at Ulta.

I used a deep cranberry color from the same pallet and applied it to my crease with an angled eyeshadow brush [this one is from elf]. I just start with a small amount of color and use windshield wiper motions to build up the color and to blend it. I also brought it down beneath my lower lash line.

Now add any black pencil liner to the waterline, and I also chose to add a bit to my upper lashline. Just on the outer corner and wing it out a bit. 

Last part for the eyes- Curl your lashes and apply several coats of mascara to the upper and lower lashes. I just used Covergirl Lashblast Mascara in Black. 

I like using a blush that isn't too bright since there is a lot going on with the eyes. I used my NYX Cream Blush in Cupid. I just used a small amount and really blended it. 

Lastly, I think a nudish pink works best for this look. I used my Chanel Lipstick in Charme.

I hope you guys liked this look! Let me know what you think in the comments.

I think I'm FINALLY going to buy the Naked 2 Pallet.

Wouldn't it be even better to win it though?

Check out Sequins & Stilettos to see how you could win one :)

Don't forget to "Like" Vi Ricordate on Facebook!

Talk to you soon

XO Kara