Blue Palm Leaf

I'm definitely in swimsuit mode lately. I've been searching the teen markets for petite-friendly sizes and low cost. I'm loving these "blue" palm prints, something different than the popular green ones... 

        

     

Balmy palmy cover-up

I've been on a roll in the men's department lately, discovering that men's t-shirts tend to be more sturdy and sometimes less expensive than women's. Since I prefer wearing loose fitting shirts in the summertime (no sweating here), men's tees are the perfect thing! I love the blog-popular leaf print on this one. The long length is also great for tucking in or wearing like a tunic/mini dress. If you're crafty with the sewing machine, this tee (in the larger sizes) can turn into wonderful feminine pieces (ie. Extra Petite's old diy shift dress, or this oversize tee turned dolman top from Trash to Couture...so cool!).

The tee would make a great cover-up with the recent swimwear collection from H&M too!

My past palm print ideas here....

Peaked by palm print decor from The Zhush: pillows (on instagram), wallpaper (from Martinique)
Atlantic-Pacific totally obsessed with the palms: bomber jacket, shift dress, Indochine wallpaper, skirt
And bounced off of I am Khatu's leafy outfits: romper, diy dress (also seen on Jean recently)

Lovin in the men's section

Forever 21 has been killing it in the men's department lately. Er, at least I want to shop in men's!

   

...and this cute little green shark coin purse is not from F21 (from Fossil), but I'm lovin it here:

When on vacation mode

1. Palm trees: sometimes I forget there are palm trees where I live. I was at my ophthalmologist's office the other day (to check on my first noticeable eye-floater...I'm getting old), and thought these palm trees outside the building were striking with the vivid blue sky and a light breeze. 

3. Pretty desserts: there's a bakery less than 10 minutes away from where I work that has homemade macarons. Their macarons are expensive, so I don't often eat there. But eh, when on vacation mood, you splurge right? Pictured are lemon and pumpkin spice flavors. I'm always attracted to pumpkin flavors!

The only thing I'm missing here is a cool architecture picture. For that stuff, I'll just spend time reading other people's travel adventures. My favorites so far are from Feather Factor. I feel like I'm there when I read her travel posts :) 

What travel blogs do you read? Do share! 

Going Brazilian

Since I'm wearing sandals all the time right now, my poor feet gets pretty dry. For years, I've been using my favorite Alba Botanica Hawaiian Body Cream in Coconut Milk to moisturize my driest extremities, but it's getting harder to find that particular one at my local retail stores. Sadly, the price keeps hiking up every time I need to restock (almost at $14 for 6.5 oz the last time I checked). So I've been on a lookout for other brands to try.

My criteria are:
1. Moisturizing for rough skin areas.
2. Not greasy.
3. Smells pleasant (I like sweet scents), but not too overpowering.
4. No parabens or artificial colors.
5. Affordable or worth the amount, and easy to find.

Shopping at Walmart today, the price tag on this body cream caught my eye...only $4.48! That either means it sucks or is a really good deal. Curious, I opened a few jars to get a whiff of their scents...the Coconut Lime smelled too intense for me, the Almond & Honey smelled like medicine, and then...the Brazillian Nut, woah, it smells like Starbucks! I could not stop inhaling this yummy rich caramel and cocoa scent! Thus, I bought it home to try....

Tree Hut Brazillian Nut Shea Body Butter

Going down my criteria list...

1. The Tree Hut cream consistency is thicker than my Alba Botanica one, which feels great on my rough feet. Definitely moisturizing. 

2. Not greasy. I like that it doesn't leave a sheen on the skin. 

3. I'm attracted to this caramel/cocoa scent, but I can see it being too overwhelming, especially if I applied this to my entire body (instead of just my feet). The scent does linger around longer than my Alba Botanica coconut. 

4. No parabens and artificial colors. 

5. At $4.48 for a 7 oz jar at my nearby Walmart, that's a great deal! 

Tree Hut Brazilian Nut vs. Alba Botanica Coconut Milk

Ingredients-wise, my Alba Botanica beats the Tree Hut for being 100% vegetarian. I also like the neutral coconut scent of my Alba better. Even though the Tree Hut scent is definitely yummy, it might make strangers think I live at Starbucks. But Tree Hut is a better deal for the money and I think is actually more moisturizing than my Alba Botanica. 

Overall, I would recommend the Tree Hut Brazilian Nut Shea Body Butter if you love sweet caramel/cocoa scents! Since the cream is thick, it might be harder to apply on large surface areas, thus I would use this more as a foot cream or for elbows and hands. 

Here's the ingredients label for those interested....I don't know about you...but I love reading ingredient lists for some reason....

Still on the Brazilian-theme, I'm crazy over this print on the Lenny Niemeyer Ruched Bikini from Anthropologie....

Darn it, $256 bucks!  Too expensive, and I'm not even going on any vacations this summer.

Would look amazing on someone with a more tanned skin like this girl :) 

Are you loving the palm/tropical-forest prints lately?

Palm Palazzo trend

I've been seeing wide-leg or palazzo pants all over Anthropologie lately, and I think I like them more than the harem or peg pants trend (my previous H&M peg pants experience didn't suit me). However, I'm not too sure if palazzo pants would suit my short legs either....but I enjoy seeing them on others. I really dig this palm print from Forever 21 because it's camouflage-y!

Palm Print Wide Leg Pants $19.80

Ooh, with matching top...

Peplum Palm Tree Shirt $17.80

Although I'm not too keen on the silky blue collar....I would cut them off (something I learned from the guys here).