Countdown to Washington #1

1 Month 2 Days 

Till I'm at the beach house!

Cool in Mint

1. Mint pants-Top Shop,  2. Spike bracelet-Diva.net,  3. Snake print clutch-Windsor Store,  

4. Jersey snood-Top Shop,  5. Mint candy apple polish-Essie.com,  6. Art deco earrings-Fredflare.com, 

7. Eos lip balm in mint-Target

What's In My Bag?

Time to see what's in my bag!  Now that I have this new purse there is so much more room for everything I need.  Everyone loves bags with oodles of pockets, right?

1.  My keys.  I don't have many keys, just my house key and of course the key to my sweet ride, my 2005 Ford Escape.  I also have all my rewards cards like Autozone, Panera Bread, Blockbuster, Alberstons, and my Borders card that I have yet to take off since they have gone out of business.

2.  My make-up touch up emergency kit. I probably need a new bag, I've had this one for years, I don't even remember where I got it. Inside you will find...

• An old MAC studio fix compact.  This one is in in NW20, although my color does vary a bit from summer to winter.  
• My Burt's Bees lip balm with passion fruit.  A LOVE Burt's Bees it's a god send.  I got this one at Borders before it closed :(
• L'oreal Voluminous Full Definition mascara in black.  I used this mascara for a while and it does definitely give you fuller, darker lashes.  However, a little goes a LONG way, you have to wipe off the tip a bit before application so that it does not clump.  I have gone back to using Covergirl Lash Blast but I keep this one in my purse just in case.
• Avon glimmerstick eyeliner in Saturn Grey.  I usually use black Covergirl eyeliner but again, this is just for touch ups if I need it.
• Mark "Totally Balmed" SPF 15 tinted lip balm, a little protection and color for my lips.
• And lastly, Kiss maximum speed nail glue.

Back to what's in my bag...

4.  Iphone and ipod charger.  Always important to have on hand.

5.  My Ray Ban Wayfarer sunglasses in tortoise shell.  These were my dad's in the 80's and I kind of inherited them.  I alternate between wearing these, my cat-eye Ray Bans and my knock-off Aviators.

3.  My wallet, that goes without saying, everyone has one. It's full of boring things like my license, debit card, insurance card and zero cash.  I got it for about $12 at Forever21 and it holds quite a bit, I've been happy with it so far.

6.  This was an old wallet that my mom got me for Christmas a few years and because it is a clasp wallet it does not hold all of my stuff but I've just been using it as a check book holder until I find one I like.  It's actually ripped on the other side but at least it's pretty!

7.  More beauty supplies! I have tweezers just in case and three lip products that I use regularly.  First is my favorite MAC lip gloss in "Just Superb."  Second is my Carmex, could NOT live without this stuff I would definitely recommend it for dry, chapped lips.  Third is my Rimmel London lipstick in 006 "Pink Blush."  I got it at target for a few dollars, it's a great matte pink if any of you are searching for something a little cheaper than MAC.

8.  Aveeno Active Naturals Daily Moisturizing Lotion.  I really haven't used this much it just came as a small sample for free with my Aveeno face wash so I stuck it in my purse.  

9.  Purell hand sanitizer, a must have in everyone's purse.  Having clean hands is never a bad thing.

10.  Victoria's Secret's Pink body lotion, I use it on legs and arms if they get dry while I'm out and about.  This lotion came with perfume that I got for Christmas last year.

11.  Mini Suave deodorant, again self explanatory and always a good idea to keep in your purse just incase.    

12.  Neutrogena sunblock in SPF 55 because I when I burn, I BURN.  Although my dad is hispanic I got my mother's Russian, lilly white skin so I take sun protection very seriously.  I cannot tell you how many times I have forgotten sunblock and gotten a terrible burn just from walking around in the sun for a couple hours.  I don't know why it took me almost 22 years to learn to just stick a tube of sunblock in my purse.

13.  Small compact mirror from Forever21.  Again, always a good idea to keep a mirror in your purse.

14.  My 80GB ipod classic.  I've had this one for years, I got it for my 17th birthday and I have no interest in getting a new one a long as it keeps working.

15.  Lastly, my most prized possession, my iphone 4s.  I'm sure you can tell that my phone is not in there it's just the case, sneaky, right?  I took these pictures with my iphone so I obviously couldn't have it in the picture.  Yay for cheap blogging!  I'm saving up for a camera but I currently do not have one that works.  My iphone case is from Kate Spade and it is unfortunately breaking.  I have a couple cheap, rubber cases but I'm currently lusting after some phone cases on Etsy.  Also under my phone is it's sleeping bag!  My mom crocheted it for me and I keep my phone in it while it is in my purse to protect it.

Hope you enjoyed learning what's in my bag!  My best friend is coming over today to make pistachio cupcakes so look out for that blog coming soon :)

Etsy Lust

Even though the bank-of-Kris is currently tapped out it hasn't stopped me from lusting over things on Etsy.  Here are some things currently on my Etsy wishlist.

Sparrow checkbook cover-faithonearth

iphone cover-MargauxBonnie

Turquoise wrap bracelet-SandintheSky

Wooden bath storage box-RegalosRusticos

Vanity tray-VintageChichibean

Laptop sleeve-sandrastju

Thrift Finds

Today my mom and I went to Hobby Lobby and a couple of thrift stores for more house stuff.  I spent under $40 for all of this!

I got these knobs for 50% off at Hobby Lobby.  I plan to do a DIY project with them so stay tuned for that!

Mason jar for 99 cents.  I think I'm going to use it to hold some makeup brushes. I am in desperate need of new makeup holders.

This was probably my best find of the day, except I didn't find it, my mom did.  She was going to get it for herself but when she didn't want it I got it.  It's a Giani Bernini handbag which is usually about $100 at a department store and I got it for $14! SCORE! It's a little warn on the bottom but overall it's not in bad shape. I have been looking for a new purse but I really having been able to afford anything so this was perfect.

I got this coffee container for $1.  I had been looking for something to hold coffee grounds and I love the old, vintage look of this.

This is my second jar and I got it for $1.  I am absolutely obsessed with jars lately, I have no idea why and I still don't know exactly what I'll use this for but I love it.  It had an ugly popcorn sticker on it but I just soaked it in some soap and water and it came right off.

I got two of these bowls which are actually originally front Pier One but I got them at the thrift store for $1.50 each.  Perfect for pasta!

These two yellow plates were $1 each and I got two of them.  I am still in search of more plates, I don't have many so these were perfect.

I got this bowl for $1 as well and I think i'll use it for rings or other jewelry instead of food because it's so small.

This bowl was $1 as well. A little smaller than the pasta bowls but good for snacks or ice cream.

Stay tuned for more thrift finds soon!

Easy Homemade Cinnamon Rolls

Let me start off this post by saying it did take me a few tries to get these cinnamon rolls right.  I had been wanting to learn how to make homemade cinnamon rolls for a while now.  During the holiday season I was at a family party and a friend of mine had made these amazing cinnamon rolls, I had to try and make them.  I asked her for the recipe but both of us got distracted with school and she just gave me her recipe about a month ago.  The recipe she gave me instructed you to make your own dough but she told me she usually just used pizza dough to make things easier.

A few days later I tried making the recipe with Pillsbury pizza dough and it was a major fail.  The dough did not rise at all and barely cooked even though I kept them in the oven for almost double the time suggested.  I then tried the same recipe using Bridgford Bread Ready-Dough.  This worked a little bit better but they still did not rise as much as I wanted and the filling just didn't taste as good as I remembered.

After some research I decided to try again. Third time's the charm right?  Sure enough, it was!
So here's what you'll need for this easier homemade cinnamon roll recipe:

• Bridgford Bread Ready-Dough, Frozen White 
• 1/4 Cup Butter
• 1/4 Cup Sugar
• 1 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• Cinnamon (the recipe recommends 2 tablespoons but I just had as much as I want.)

For the frosting I usually just eye-ball it.  But you would need about:

• 3 Cups Powdered Sugar
• 3 Table Spoons Milk
• 1/2 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract

The first thing I did was spray and flour a cookie sheet then I placed the frozen block of bread on the cookie sheet.  I covered it with a towel and left it on the kitchen table to defrost.  Be sure and place your dough in a warm place with on draft.  I live in Southern California and it was about 90 degrees in my house today so defrosting was not a problem.  Just try and pick the warmest place in your house.  I let the dough defrost for about 2-3 hours, just until it is soft enough to roll out.

After the dough was defrosted I rolled it out into as much of a rectangle I could.  Put more flour on the cookie sheet and the dough if necessary so it does not stick.  Rolling the dough may take a while, mine kept wanting to go back to its original shape but I just kept working it.  It may not turn out as a perfect rectangle but that's okay, you're just going to cut it up anyway.  Just make sure the dough is not spread too thin, you do not want it to rip.

Once the dough is rolled out spread the 1/4 cup butter over the entire dough.  The first two times I melted the butter and brushed it over with a pastry brush, however, this time I found it better to just slightly soften the butter and spread it over the dough.  Then, you will need to put the sugar and brown sugar on.  The first two times I just sprinkled the toppings on the dough but I found it better the third time to mix together the sugar and brown sugar in a mixing bowl first.  I also added a bit of the cinnamon to the mixture then sprinkled evenly over the dough.  I then added as much cinnamon as I desired evenly over the top.

After you have added your cinnamon, roll the dough up from the sides so it becomes a log.  If you would like you roll to be a bit longer, gently pull on the ends to lengthen it.  Be sure not to tear it.

Then cut the roll into about 1 to 1 1/2 inch sections with a knife and put into a sprayed pan.

Then, again set you rolls aside in a warm, draft-free place so they can rise.  Be sure and cover them just like before.  I left my rolls to rise for about 2-3 hours again.  See, they get slightly fluffy already...

I then preheated the oven to 350 and cooked for about 18-20 minutes or until fluffy and slightly brown on top like so...

For the frosting, like I said I usually eye-ball it.  Alternate adding powdered sugar and milk and mix together with a mixer until the desired consistency is reached.  Lastly, mix in your vanilla extract.

Finally, ice your cinnamon rolls...

Enjoy with a big glass of milk!

Let's Catch Up: Roasting S'mores

Every summer my sister and I roast s'mores in our fire pit in the backyard.  I have been dying for s'mores since summer started but we having been missing Hershey bars, however, thanks to Walgreens's sale on s'more fixings we now have everything!  Roasting s'mores with my sister and my doggies just screams summer bliss.

Thrift Store Finds

Yesterday my mom and I went thrifting at Goodwill and a local antique and thrift store.  I bought a few things for my house and I found all this stuff for around $10!

I bought this mug, there were a ton of them there so probably nothing too special but I plan on using it to hold pens or pencils. I like the eclectic look of using different cups and mugs for office supplies.

 
I was hoping to get a few tea cups to hold jewelry and knick knacks but I only found one that I liked.  Hopefully text time they have more!

I got this box for $3! I walked buy it about six time before I noticed it. Not quite sure what I'm going to do with it yet but I'm sure I'll figure something out.

Probably my best find were these three mixing bowls, $5 for all three! There are 1, 1 1/2, and 2 1/2 quart bowls so I'm sure there is a 2 quart floating around there in the world somewhere but oh well.  I am going to use these as small mixing bowls while baking, I needed some and these are perfect!

Top Ten: Target

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