Update: State your Pride

Since announcing the state print winners back in April 2012, Lilly Pulitzer has released the print designs for Maryland & Georgia. But as of now, only Georgia is available for purchase on the official Lilly website. 

Lilly Pulitzer Georgia Print:

Lilly Pulitzer Maryland Print:

I love both these prints & am so excited for the other four to be released! The Murfee scarf is 49% cashmere & 51% silk so its perfect for year-round wear. I will continue to keep y'all updated with any state print news!

Stay Tuned!

Fashions for the Forth

Happy 4th of July!! Celebrating America's birthday wouldn't be complete with a great outfit to showcase at your 4th of July festivities. Here are a few of my favorite holiday looks, courtesy of Pinterest.

I'll start out with a casual outfit, great for a family cookout. I am a huge fan of the sheer blouse and colored shorts. I probably would have paired them with a neutral nude or tan wedge instead of the red shoes. I also would have added in an oversized gold watch. I do love the white earrings and Tory bag though!

For my second outfit, I picked this red, white & blue navy dress. Not as casual as outfit #1, but still comfortable. I think the dress is amazing but I'm not too big on the shoes. I'll take an espadrille wedges over cork any day. I do love the gold jewelry they accessorized with though. The petite starfish necklace is a great summer staple. 

This last dress would be for a more formal event. I love the elegant back and side cutouts of the dress. I would pair it with a red or blue heel for a pop of color. A very sophisticated, yet patriotic, statement. 

Hope everyone has a fun & safe 4th of July!

A Very Berry Summer

Theres no better way to celebrate the official start of summer than with some fabulous desserts. Yesterday I made a mixed berry pie (my first time making a homemade pie I might add) and I am so proud of it! I found the original recipe on allrecipes.com but made a couple changes. It was actually much easier than I expected! 

Heres my recipe:

For the double crust:

2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

2/3 butter (in place of shortening)

5 teaspoons ice cold water 

The berry filling:

1 cup halved strawberries

1 cup blueberries

1 cup blackberries

1 cup raspberries

1/2 cup white sugar

3 teaspoons flour

Combine the flour and salt. Using a pastry blender, cut in the shortening until the pieces are the size of small peas. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of the water over part of the mixture, then gently toss with a fork. Push moistened portion to the side of the bowl. Repeat, using 1 tablespoon of water at a time, until all is moistened. Divide the dough in half. Form each half into a balls. 

Transfer one piece of dough to a lightly floured surface. Roll the dough from the center to the edges to the size of your pie dish. Wrap the crust around the rolling pin. Unroll it onto a 9-inch pie plate. Ease the crust into the pie plate, being careful not to stretch it. Trim the bottom crust evenly with the rim of the pie plate.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together the sugar and 3 teaspoons flour. Add in the berries gently toss until berries are coated. Allow fruit mixture to stand for about 15 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Roll out the remaining pastry for the top crust. Stir the berry mixture and pour the filling into the pastry-lined pie plate. You can either Place the top crust over the pie and trim the edges, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Fold the top crust under the bottom crust, pressing lightly to seal. Crimp the edges of the crust and cut vents in the top to allow steam to escape. To prevent over-browning, cover the edge of the pie with foil.

* * feel free to be creative with this step, I cut my top crust into strips and woven them. I've also seen people use cookie cutter to make cute designs in their top crust.* *

Bake in the preheated oven on the baking tray for 25 minutes. Remove the foil.

Bake for an additional 20 to 30 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and the crust is golden. Cool on a wire rack.

Healthy Head

One of my new favorite skin and hair care lines is Alba Botanica. I first came across this line while I was shopping for new shampoo in Target. This shampoo and conditioner duo are part of the new Hawaiian Hair Care line and do not contain sulfates. Sulfates not only strip your hair of its natural oils but can also dry out your scalp and cause dandruff. But what really sold me on this product is the amazing smell! Its so hard to find a natural shampoo that still smells good. Now this product is not certified organic but it is 100% vegetarian. 

Some of the other Hawaiian Hair Care scents are mango, coconut, cocoa butter, honeydew and gardenia. 

Creations by Kate

Click on the picture for MakingItLovely instructions

One of the things I've been meaning to do, and can now check off my Summer 2012 bucket-list, is jewelry making. I love the look of statement necklaces but can never justify spending so much money on them . . . Solution? Make my own! I first came across this look on makingitlovely.com but made some adjustments to make this necklace my own. The necklace was so easy to make and only took me about 30 minutes. Below is my finished necklace 

(I used the same beads as MakingItLovely -- sorry for the weird coloring)

I have many more jewelry ideas for this Summer and will continue to post pictures of my creations! 

Bring Back My Bar

I've blogged before about my love for Scentsy wickless candles but I have some exciting news that makes me love this product even more. For the entire month of July, Scentsy is doing a "Bring Back my Bar" special. Twenty retired, top-rated scents are being brought back for one last time. I have never smelt any of these scents before but I'm so excited to try them! Cashmere and Watermelon Patch are top on my list. But the best part of this deal is these bars are only $5! So this is a great time to start your Scentsy addiction. Here is a list of the available scents 

(click on the picture to zoom)

If you are interested in trying Scentsy, check out Afton's website. You can see everything Scentsy has to offer and order directly from her website. She is a top seller and offers the best customer service! 

(Keep in mind Scentsy makes the perfect gift for just about anyone!)

Green Machine

My motto for Summer 2012 is "get healthy inside and out". I'm back to my gym grind consisting of yoga, sculpt and spin classes but I'm also really trying to focus on my diet. I've added this lovely veggie drink to my daily routine! 

Now if veggies aren't your thing I swear it doesn't taste as bad as it looks. It actually has a sweet taste because I add apple to tone down the veggie taste. I drink 1 cup of this veggie juice for breakfast every morning. 

Here's the recipe my family uses (we all drink it)

4 organic celery stocks

1 organic cucumber

1 handfull of organic spinach leaves

1/4 cup of organic kale

1-2 organic apples for sweetness (granny smith and pink lady work well)

Put all ingredients in juicer and chill. Makes 2.5-3 cups.

Some things to keep in mind:

Make sure to drink within 24 hours of making (we make ours the night before).

Use the entire vegetable! You're only drinking the juice. 

Make sure the clean your juicer immediately after making.  

You don't have to stick to this recipe, you can experiment with your favorite fruits and veggies.

Enjoy!