This past week I was honored with the opportunity to collaborate with one of my favorite local brands, Trophy Cupcakes! 

Those who know me on a personal level may be surprised by this collaboration, as I am pretty vocal about my dislike for cake. However, Trophy is an exception to this rule! I've typically found cake to be dry, with not enough frosting (which is the part of the dessert I'm always willing to eat) but at Trophy this is definitely not a problem. The cake is always moist and the buttercream frosting on top is thick and super delicious. I first discovered my love for Trophy when living in the U District, since every year they provide free UW cupcakes on campus during Homecoming weekend. The shop was also next to Kids Club which meant I would occasionally stop in after a long shift. Treat yourself, am I right? 

Previously I had been a repeat offender when it came to which cupcake I would order, always going for the chocolate peanut butter. I was definitely excited to get out of my cupcake-comfort-zone and try some wilder flavors and this bag of featured sweets did not disappoint! I was given Yumfetti and the  Ava , which is inspired by the popular mermaid aesthetic. Out of the two, the Ava was for sure my fave. Not only was the Valrhona chocolate cake super delicious, but the toppings were cute and yummy as well. I am starting a petition to make all cupcakes include edible glitter!

Since I am usually hesitant about whether or not I'll like cake, I was pumped to see that they included some of their other new items as well. Macarons are in my top 5 fave desserts, which is not an easy list to make. Again, the edible glitter was an awesome touch, but I would have to say that the Circus Animal themed macaron was the best of the 3 I tried. 

As for the homemade marshmallows, I recommend you don't try to eat these after taste testing everything else unless you want to enter a food coma. Talk about sugar overload! The combination of gooey marshmallow center, rainbow sprinkles, and animal cookie topping was super duper sweet. There's no doubt that kid's will love these however, and one marshmallow will definitely be enough for their dessert!

Now I just have to figure out how to keep myself from stopping in for more everytime I'm near the shop. Wish me luck! It's hard to control this sweet tooth.

Thank you to Trophy Cupcakes for collaborating on this post! These treats were provided at no cost, however all opinions expressed are my own.

There is no better excuse to get together with friends for a BBQ than the 4th of July, which is exactly what I got to do this year. When we get lucky with weather like we did on Tuesday, some of my best friends gather at Spencer's to watch fireworks and cool off in the water. With the gorgeous view of Mt Rainier, the lake has been one of my favorite places since we were sophomores in high school. I have so many wonderful memories of our days at Spencer's house, like the fact that a lawn chair gets broken almost everytime, or that something always goes wrong when we use the paddle boat. 

This year was no exception to either rule, since Brandon leaned too far back in his chair after placing it on an incline, and I once again let Spencer convince me that watching the fireworks from the boat was a good idea. Our trip to the middle of the lake was cut short when he accidentally dropped a lit smoke bomb, staining the back of my dress a bright orange and leaving some unfortunate scorch marks on me and my seat. Luckily I was fine, but it's safe to say I won't be getting into any boats with him any time soon. 

Before the Great Paddle Boat Fiasco of 2017, we had a nearly perfect day of board games and good food. Forever terrible at making decisions especially about what to eat, we ended up with hotdogs, hamburgers, and 2 different types of fish in addition to a ton of snacks. I also "made" a cheesecake for dessert, which in this case means I purchased a cheesecake from the store and put strawberries on top. Despite my lack of baking-from-scratch skills the cheesecake was a hit and didn't last long into our game of Risk. 

Once the sun started to go down we brought out the sparklers (I'm glad I got a few pics before the smoke bomb incident) and started the campfire for s'mores. Sitting around the fire and bringing back old inside jokes always makes me so happy, and in moments like those there is no place I would rather be. I'm grateful for my lifelong friends, for our traditions, and all of the shenanigans we accidentally let ourselves get into. While I'm going to pass on the smoke bombs next year, I'lll never turn down a chance to spend a night exactly the way I spent this 4th. 

Dress: Forever 21 (sold out, but a similar romper available here)
Shoes: Steve Madden 

I have to start by saying that things have been hectic the past few weeks (hence my slight absence from my blog and Instagram), so I figured I should give a general life update. Luckily all of the things that have made life so busy were good things, and I've been genuinely very happy with how things are going. 

After trapping myself in the library for a few nights to finish my last ever research paper, I completed the coursework for my Art History Minor. Then, despite a pretty nasty cold, I helped make the UW Design senior show a reality while all 60 of us printed, cropped, and displayed the pieces we were most proud of from the past four years. The show was a juried exhibition, and I was lucky enough to have two of my favorite designs featured, my Pure Heroine lyric booklet and my senior capstone. My capstone was a book that I wrote, designed, and illustrated as an exploration of my interest in watercolor painting. I had only ever painted for fun and relaxation in the past, so having the chance to see what I could do with it was super fun and a great way to end my last quarter in the program. I was so glad to see tons of friends and family at the show opening, and even sold a few prints of my paintings!

Saturday I walked in two graduations, one for the School of Art, and then the full UW commencement at Husky Stadium. It was a long day that brought a very long week (and 4 years) to a satisfying close. After all the festivities I hopped into bed early and slept for 13 hours.

Since graduation I have switched from an intern at my company to a full time designer, and have been working from home several days per week. This is when I test the wifi and matcha lattes at the local cafes, and drag Tyler along for company. After work I relish in the lack of homework while I watch Netflix, knit, and update the never-ending-moodboard that is my Tumblr. 

I've also spent a lot of time browsing Pinterest and Ikea for ideas, since Tyler and I get the keys to our first apartment on Saturday! I will be photographing a wedding all day, so unfortunately for him he will have to move in my several bins of clothing... But Sunday we are taking the day to pick out furniture to make our first place feel like home. After arguing with his roommates about not leaving 6-month-old moldy lunch meat in the fridge, we are pretty relieved to have our little apartment all to ourselves. Plus we will be living in one of my favorite neighborhoods of Seattle, with some of the best restaurants and shops just down the street!

Top: Forever 21
Shorts: American Eagle
Shoes: Forever 21 (bought second-hand at Buffalo Exchange)
Purse: Madewell
Sunglasses: Forever 21
Rings: H&M
Watch: Gucci

When the weather feels like summer but finals start in a week, sometimes you just have to avoid reality and pretend like your pile of homework isn't caving in on you. That's exactly what me and Brittany decided to do earlier this month, when we made our way downtown with her mom Susan for a nice break. I haven't been able to blog about it, thanks to said pile of homework, but now that I am done with my last week of college I figured it was a good time to catch up. 

Ever since we skipped the line into a concert at the ShowBox Market in favor of a ginger beer float at Rachel's Ginger Beer earlier this year, Brittany and I have been talking about making a return trip. Our schedules are both crazy busy so we don't get to meet up often, but since it was a long weekend we decided to procrastinate a bit. Susan and Brittany met me at Nordstrom to start the day shopping the semi-annual sale, where I got some new shoes and the perfect dress for graduation. Then Susan treated us to a delicious seafood lunch and dessert before we headed to the market. After walking around a bit we made our way to RGB for floats, and both got the white peach flavor. I usually stick to the original ginger beer but the sample they gave me convinced me to venture out, and I may have a new favorite. 

Now graduation is tomorrow, and in a few months Brittany will be moving to California to get her Phd. Hopefully we can make time for ginger beer before then, but I have no doubt that we will be able to find a new go-to spot in LA. 

Last Saturday was the start of the annual Folk Life festival at Seattle Center, a 3 day event that takes place every memorial day weekend. For those who haven't been before, it's like a weird middle ground between Hemp Fest and Bite of Seattle (two of the city's other major festivals). I definitely prefer the Bite of Seattle side of things, since food trucks are my main motivator for attending these events. Lucky for me I was still able to get my piroshki, as well as some roasted corn, curly fries and ice cream from Ben & Jerry's. Definitely not a day for people on a diet. 

After walking around and grabbing some snacks we decided to lounge around in the shade to cool off and relax. Besides eating and resting between food trucks we didn't stay long. This year was the most packed I have seen the festival, probably because it was nice out. Before we left we did stop at a couple booths, and Sarah and I both bought some crystals. I already have more than I know what to do with, but I couldn't resist the rose quartz once I saw it.

Since the weather was really hot, I didn't want to wear anything bulky because the festival is completely outdoors. These pants that I picked up from TJ Maxx were perfect for the weather, the setting, and for sitting in the grass to eat all the food I bought. They are so comfortable, and the tassel tie on the waist elevates them from feeling too much like pajamas. As the weather heats up I am definitely going to have them on repeat (in fact I'm wearing this exact outfit right now, since tonight calls for a comfy night in, doing homework - or putting off homework). 

Top: Forever 21
Bottoms: TJ Maxx
Shoes: Birkenstock