Favorite Art

      Happy Saturday! Art is one of my favorite things, and although I'm terrible at creating my own artwork, I thoroughly enjoy looking at it! Here are some of my favorite pieces of artwork (see more on my Pinterest):

1. Claude Monet, The Bridge Over the Water-Lily Pond

 

2. Jan Vermeer, The Girl With the Pearl Earring

                                                              

3. Yangyang Pan, Lucky Me

4. Edgar Degas, Blue Dancers

5. Michelangelo, The Pietà

This is just a taste of my favorites; these are just five that I love! Let me know if you know of any artists you think I should check out!

Keep it classy,
Brooke

      

Obsession: Kate Spade

      Happy Monday! So I've been obsessed with Kate Spade for a long time now, and I still feel myself falling in love whenever I look at the website. Kate Spade is classy and sophisticated yet young and girly. It's absolutely perfect. Here are some of my most intense obsessions:

1. Grove Court Stripe Cora, $198

 

2. Nance Heel, $345

3. Bungalow Bouquet Short Statement Necklace, $228

4. Leora Dress, $288

 

5. Ariella Skirt, $348

      Aren't they all so cute?! I strongly encourage everyone to look at all of their new arrivals! Of course, I can't afford anything on this list, but a girl can dream, right?

Keep it classy,

Brooke

Summer Days

      Happy Sunday! This weekend has been so much fun; I went to Worlds of Fun (an amusement park) yesterday, and today I had lunch, saw a movie, and went to the pool with friends. And the best part? I don't have to worry about homework or tests! It's taken about a month, but the feeling has finally sunken in: it's summer. I love not having to wake up at 6 every morning to go to school. I love being able to sit in a lawn chair at the pool and just let the Vitamin D soak in. I love getting to watch movies every night. I love reading the books that I want to read. I love having enough time to go on runs, watch Gossip Girl, paint my nails, go shopping, and host parties. It just shows me how little time I have during the school year to work on my most important project: myself. Hooray for summer days!

Keep it classy,
Brooke

Favorite Bowties

      Happy Wednesday! Today was pretty uneventful: I had a doctor's appointment, I went to work (and ended up working much later than I expected), then went for a run. Nothing special. I've really been struggling to come up with blog post ideas, so if anyone has any ideas for me, I would really appreciate it! Also, before I forget, I have another blog (mostly just a diary...) called My Life as a Wallflower. Okay, I'm going to share my favorite bowties with you; enjoy!

1. Vineyard Vines, $45

 

2. Southern Tide, $59.50

3. Lilly Pulitzer, $84

 4. Kiel James Patrick, $65

5. Ralph Lauren, $59.99

 

Keep it classy,

Brooke

Downton Abbey Dinner Party!

      Happy Sunday! Last night I achieved one of my goals: host a formal dinner party! A few weeks ago I was shopping at Joann's and I saw an unofficial Downton Abbey Cookbook. I'm obsessed with Downton Abbey, so I knew I had to have it. I took the initiative and asked my friend to host it with me, and after a ton of planning, organizing, decorating, and cooking (plus $100 spent on food), I'm able to say that my dinner party was a huge success. Everyone had a great time and the food was amazing! Here are some pictures I took from last night:

The pre-dinner.

While waiting for everyone to arrive, we had tea, chocolate covered strawberries, and cucumber sandwiches.

First course: salad, bread, and fruit salad.

Dessert: chocolate truffles and gelato.

      Not pictured, for our main course we had chicken and fancy potatoes. Everything was delicious, and I'm rather proud of myself. :)

Carpe Diem,
Brooke

Birchbox

      Happy Thursday! I'm so ready for this week to be over; on Saturday my friend and I are hosting a "Downton Abbey" themed dinner party, and I'm so excited. Party planning is my favorite thing ever. Work was extremely long, but my day significantly improved when I got home because I got my third Birchbox! For those of you who don't know what a Birchbox is, it's this adorable little box that arrives on your step once a month, and it's packed full with beauty products. I got the three-month subscription for my birthday, but I'm thinking I'm going to have to get a full subscription. I've never been disappointed by what's in the box; it always goes above my expectations. It's great for me because I don't really like to go out and buy beauty products because they're usually pretty pricey and I don't want to spend a bunch of money on something that irritates my sensitive skin. Here's what I got in today's Birchbox:

The adorable little box.

This month's theme: Wanderlust

Everything in the box!

This month's box came with the cutest postcards!

In the box:

1. Antica Farmacista: body moisturizer in grapefruit from Italy

2. Birchbox + Color Club: Neon pastel nail polish. Mine is called "Pardon My French"

3. Mirinesse: Glossy Kiss Lipstick

5. suki: Exfoliate Foaming Cleanser

6. Glee Gum

      I can't wait to try everything!

Keep it classy,

Brooke

A Day in the Life

      Happy Wednesday! I hope you all have had a fabulous week so far! I definitely like my work schedule for this week better than last week; this week I'm doing 7:15 to 12:45, which is super early but I like having pretty much to whole day to myself!
      Maybe I'm really nosy, but I always love reading posts about "a day in the life" of the blogger; it's like a glimpse into how someone else lives, and you can compare it to your own life. Similarly, I like "what's in my bag" posts and "my home/apartment" posts. I thought I'd give you a little glimpse into my life during the summer, even though it's not nearly as interesting as most. This is just an example for today, because obviously each day is different during the summer (which is what I like most about it!).

6:00 a.m. Wake up, take out my retainer, wash my face

6:15 a.m. Eat breakfast (usually cereal and yogurt with green tea)

6:30 a.m. Do hair/make up (very minimal during the summer)

6:45 Get dressed

6:50 Leave for work

7:15 Arrive at work

12:45 Go home

1:15 Eat lunch (today was an egg salad sandwich and a yogurt)

1:30 Watch Friends (BEST. SHOW. EVER.)

3:00 Go to the pool -- today didn't involve a work out; instead I worked on my tan :)

5:30 Babysit

9:30 Blog post!

10:15 Sleep

      What do you think about today's schedule? What's your average day like? Let me know!

Keep it classy,
Brooke

OOTD: Sunday Funday

      Happy Sunday! I really don't want this weekend to end because tomorrow I have to wake up at 6 in order to be at work at 7:15. So I'm not really looking forward to that. This weekend has been full of family fun; yesterday we went to Topeka for my cousin's surprise birthday party then we had family pictures done with my dad's side of the family. Today my mom and I went to another cousin's birthday party and we found out my aunt is expecting another daughter!
      I'm the kind of girl who loves routine, and sometimes that applies to my attire. Sometimes I like to have a "uniform" for particular events. For the weekend, I've found that the formula for the best summer weekend outfit goes like this: button down, chinos, belt, sunnies, and flip flops. It's so simple yet so perfect. Here's an example of the uniform, which I'm wearing today:

Okay so it's definitely not the most flattering picture of me...

sunnies: francesca's

oxford: old navy

belt: vineyard vines (it was on sale!)

chinos: j. crew (also on sale)

flip-flops: rainbows

Do you have a weekend "uniform"? Have a great week!

Keep it classy,

Brooke

Bowties and Ballet Flats Playlist #1

       Happy Thursday! I've had a pretty rough week due to work, family stuff, and trying to study for the ACT. Whenever I get stressed, I like to retreat into music because it temporarily takes me out of reality. I seem to be stressed most of the time, so I listen to music a lot. I don't think this playlist really has a theme, but I do think it's good to listen to if you're bumming out or stressing out. My music taste is definitely very different from your typical "preppy girl" preferences, so you may not like all of the songs. But I definitely encourage you to listen to the whole playlist to see if you like it!

1. "Sail" - AWOLNATION

2. "Homewrecker" - Marina and the Diamonds

3. "100$ Bill" - Jay-Z

4. "Back to Black" - Beyonce ft. Andre 3000

5. "The Age of Worry" - John Mayer

6. "How to Be a Heartbreaker" - Marina and the Diamonds

7. "Another Day" - Paul McCartney

8. "Youth" - Daughter

9. "Afraid" - The Neighbourhood

10. "Ring of Fire" - Johnny Cash

11. "Asleep" - The Smiths

12. "Eet" - Regina Spektor

13. "Starring Role" - Marina and the Diamonds

14. "Guaranteed" - Eddie Vedder

15. "Trouble" - Coldplay

16. "Hearts a Mess" - Gotye

17. "Time to Pretend" - MGMT

18. "Man Who Sold the World" - Nirvana

19. "Swisha" - Ratatat

20. "Look At Me"

They don't all go together, but they definitely help me and I hope they help you too!

Keep it classy,
Brooke

My Dream Home

      Happy Tuesday! Recently I've been thinking a lot about my future, and hopefully a house is involved. I've always loved looking through home magazines; I think your home says a lot about who you are. A house is more than just where you live, you make memories and live your life in your house. If I could live anywhere (in the U.S.) after college, I think it would be somewhere in the Carolinas. I've heard South Carolina has better beaches, so maybe I'd prefer to live there. I've never actually been to either of these states, but they seem very charming and Southern. Also, I would love to live by the ocean after spending my entire life in land-locked Kansas!

All of these pictures and more can be found on my Pinterest board.
Here are  my favorites! 

So bright and cheerful!

I love the combination of traditional furniture with modern art.

Pink and gold walls

Plaid.

So Scottish

Brick kitchens are so beautiful.

And finally...(drumroll, please)...my dream home! Perfection.

Flower Power

      Happy Sunday! Recently, I've been seeing a lot of one of my favorite things: flowers. People are taking pictures of them and posting them on Instagram, they're in full bloom everywhere I go, and they're in some of the new Lilly prints! I've never been much of a gardener, but these beautiful blossoms have inspired me to maybe try growing some in my front yard! I hope it's not too late in the year to plant flowers! We have some pretty roses and honeysuckle growing on our fence and they smell heavenly. I took some pictures of them:

Aren't they so lovely? I think flowers are some of nature's simple beauties. The roses and honeysuckle are gorgeous, but I think my absolute favorite flowers have to be peonies and hydrangeas.

Pink Peonies

White Hydrangeas

I don't know if I'd be able to grow these kinds of flowers, though. Maybe I ought to just stick with the basic petunias? What are your favorite flowers?

Keep it classy,
Brooke