Stitch Fix Review

I've been wanting to do a Stitch Fix review for a while now and I am so excited to share my opinions with you! I just received my 5th Fix and I love love love the program!

How it works: You complete a style profile with all your sizes (bust, pants, dress, shoes, etc) and fill out a style quiz of your favorites fashion styles. Then you make a Pinterest board and pin your favorite clothes, jewelry, purses, and shoes. You can also leave a comment for each fix requesting specific pieces. Your stylist will look through your comments, style quiz, and Pinterest board and will curate a box of 5 pieces for you. The box is sent straight to your door and you keep the things you like and send back the things you don't (free shipping both ways!). There is a $20 "styling fee" only if you don't like any of the items, but if you buy even 1, then the "style fee" is deducted from what you pay (aka no "styling fee"!!)! For reference, I've never had a fix where I didn't love/keep at least one piece and I am THE PICKIEST MOST PARTICULAR person ever!!

Why should I do it? I LOVE Stitch Fix and I would HIGHLY recommend it! It's definitely targeted towards especially busy ladies who don't have time to shop, or for ladies who don't live near tons of shops and boutiques! If you're looking for really ridiculously good sales and deals, this is not for you as you pay a little extra for the convenience of not having to search for the best price. The clothes are really nice and good quality and the stylists so a really good job of sending you pieces that you would like.

Pro Tip: If you're really picky or apprehensive about having someone else pick out your clothes, be really specific in your comments box and pin things you would actually buy so that your stylist can pick things that you will for sure love! For example, I've been eyeing this leopard print clutch for ages but wasn't sure about the price, so I asked my stylist and voila a beautiful leopard clutch (under $50 I might add!) was in my next fix!!!

Some of my favorite pieces:

How cute is this leopard print clutch?! The tassels though! See more pictures here!

The necklace from this post!

This beautiful dress plus the necklace!

How gorgeous is this dress? I can't wait to wear it to all the fancy events!

The polka-dot sweater from this post!

My favorite new top! The lace is gorgeous and I get so many compliments when I wear it!

I didn't end up keeping this dress but loved the pattern and cut!

What do you think?! Those are just a few of my favorites but it doesn't include a gorgeous infinity scarf, a chunky grey sweater, a purple work dress, and tons more! If you're interested, sign up here!!

Thanks for reading!

5 Minute Hummus Recipe

The other day I was entertaining some friends when we started talking about hummus. I didn't have any hummus on hand but had all the ingredients, so I decided to whip up a batch. It was super easy to make and extra delicious. It's great on crackers, bread, carrots, cut up zucchini, and even as a topping on sandwiches! The sriracha is definitely the game-changer, so make sure you add that!! (Side note: has anyone seen the Sriracha documentary? I really want to see it!) Also, it makes a lot more than pictured but I forgot to take a picture the day of, so this is the leftovers I had as my snack the next day!

Total Time: 5 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:
1 can of garbanzo beans
1/4 cup of water
2 tbsp of extra olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice or lemon concentrate
1 1/2 tsp garlic
1 tsp Trader Joe's 21 seasoning salute
1 tsp sriracha (AKA all the flavor!!!)
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp salt
1 dash of paprika

Directions:
1. Blend all the ingredients together. I used my smoothie maker and it worked just fine!
2. Serve!

Thanks for reading!

Inspiration Station: A Note on Resilience

In the last year I've learned a lot about resilience. I've learned that life is not about what happens but how you react to the situation. Two people can be put in the exact same demolarizing situation but one will succumb and the other will surmount. The person who succumbs will feel like a failure and that they're not good enough. These doubting emotions take over and paralyze you from following your dreams or doing what you need to do. On the other hand, the person who surmounts will recognize this as a challenge and will do everything in their power to overcome the obstacle because they know they are worthy, intelligent, and hard working. These two people can have the EXACT SAME IQ AND WORK ETHIC but negative thoughts poison the person who succumbed. 

Moral of the story: 

"You must always have faith in yourself." - Elle Woods

"If you can't change your fate, change your attitude." -Amy Tan

No matter what situation you are in, be it a terrible family dynamic, a difficult financial situation, a debilitating illness, a career where your self confidence is continuously tested (read: the military and health care -- mad respect for people in both of those professions), your attitude can change what happens. It DOES NOT matter how smart you are, or how hard you work. Those are both important factor but you absolutely need to have faith in yourself and believe that you will succeed to do so. 

That's nice and all but how exactly do you "have faith in yourself"? 

1. Close your eyes and imagine yourself reaching your goals and how happy you will be. How excited and proud and thankful will you feel? Take that feeling and put it in your pocket and remind yourself of it whenever you are feeling sad or lacking self confidence. 

2. Put words of affirmation everywhere-- on your mirror, all over your desk, on your agenda, as your phone and computer wallpaper-- use these to continuously remind yourself that you can do it! 

3. Watch motivational videos or Ted Talks (there are 382 Ted Talks under the "inspirational" category!!)

4. Make a list of all of your previous accomplishments. You have achieving tons of goals in your life and certainly have touched many people's lives. Make a list of those to help you remember that you're a boss lady (or boss man!) and read the list whenever you're feeling discouraged.  

5. Surround yourself with people who believe in you and who will always remind you how much you can and will succeed.

Whatever you do, always have faith in yourself!

Thanks for reading!

P.S. Quote in the picture is from this article, which is a super interesting read about resilience!

Pink and Leopard Print

I'm so excited that the weather is finally starting to warm up but during this weird transition of sometimes-cold-sometimes-hot days, it's hard to find the right outfit. You don't want to keep wearing your dark wintery colors, but at the same time it's not warm enough to bust out the summer dresses and shorts. I put together a fun springy outfit that's still weather-appropriate for the cooler days!

 

Pink J. Crew sweater (similar here, here, and here)
Pink stripped Gap tunic (old, super similar here, on sale here and short sleeve version here)
White jeans (similar here, here, and save here)
Pink scarf (similar here, here, here, here, and here)
Leopard clutch (from Stitch Fix but splurge here, and save here and here)
French Connection Brown leather sandals (similar here, here, and here)

Thanks for reading!

Lentil Stew Recipe

This soup recipe is AMAZE. It is super healthy because it has tons of veggies but it is also filling because of the lentils. The only thing I changed was using chicken broth instead of water, to add more flavor. The recipe is enough to have tons of left overs, which is a huge bonus in my book. Whip up a grilled cheese and you have a healthy, delicious meal on your hands! If you want more recipes by Simple Vegan Blog check out my post on their rainbow veggies or their blog!

 

 Thanks for reading!