Wednesday Wonderfuls, Adventures Edition 2

Hey!! So last week it seemed like the adventures theme was well liked and I have plenty of adventures I would love to go on so I'm going to do 10 adventures I want to do sometime in my life again. This time I am using a different book. The adventures in this book are a little bit more extreme than the ones from the book last week but still love them!

This book is A Year of Adventures and is put out by Lonely Planet. I got this particular book last year for Christmas and I absolutely love looking at it. They go through each month and tell you things to do during that month and where to do them. Most of them I would never do, such as skydiving of Mt. Everest, CRAZY!! But there are a few that I would love doing! These will go in the order of the months (minus 2 because I only ned 10) and some of the adventures may be the same of similar as last week but who care! All of the titles come straight from the book.






1. Whale Watching at Baja California! I would love doing this so much! It is on my bucket list to see a whale in the wild and this seems pretty safe. My mom has seen a whale in the wild but hers but purely by accident. I want to see one up close and see the massive size of the whales. From the book they say that this should be done in Mexico in January. From what I know that is one of the prime mating seasons for the grey whales that are seen in this area.

2. Dive Glover's Reef! Last week I said I wanted to scuba dive of Belize's Barrier Reef and this is one that is the same. But this one actually has a real name to go with it. This is best to be done in February because it is during the dry season in Belize. As said from the book, and sounds amazing, "The reef sits atop a submerged mountian ridge on the edge of the continental shelf, surrounded by enormous drop-offs with world-class dive sites." It sounds like it would be so pretty but there is still no way that I would ever dive down one of the drop offs! I would be way to freaked out and would probably panic too bad.

3. View the Aurora Borealis! It's other name is the Northern Lights. This is a huge dream of mine to see this beautiful natural phenomena. They look so amazing and breathtaking. Also on my bucket list too! This is best to be seen in March because, as the book says, "viewing of the Northern Lights is best around the spring equinox." These can be seen in Greenland, Scandinavia, Russia, USA and Canada. From what I know the further north you are during this time the better you will be able to see them. Somebody take me to see this please!

4. Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary! This is also in Belize is should be done in March because of the still dry season. I have always wanted to see big cats up close (to an extent) in their natural habitat. Just as long as I don't get attacked. This sanctuary has many different walking trails that range from short to days long. Because of the dry season this bring the Jaguars to small areas to try and find water which mean that they are more likely to be seen during this time. I LOVE any type of cat!! This is also a Jaguar Reserve as well.

5. Shark Dive at Gansbaai! I know I had shark diving on my last weeks adventures but I REALLY want to do this!! I know I may be crazy for wanting to do this and its totally out of my element but it really just seems so thrilling and amazing. I am terrified of sharks but I am hoping that a cage will keep me protected. Lets hope for the best! This should be done in South Africa during the month of July because this is when the sharks are active in their eating patterns so they would be more likely to come to the bait that the groups put out to get the divers to see them better. Gotta do this and be brave!! So excited to do this one day!

6. See Angel Falls! Ahh this would be so amazing to see in person! I have seen Niagara Falls and all the power of the water there but I want to see how large this waterfall is and how beautiful it is. It is 16 times the height of Niagara Falls!! I would love to be able to see this at a time when there is a rainbow on it. How unreal would that be?! This should be done during the month of September in Venezuela because August and September are the wettest months so the falls would have plenty of water.

7. River Run the Grand Canyon! Crazy white-water rafting! I am a little scared to do this but I have to sometime. I want to experience the thrill of white-water rafting and just at least try it one time. Hopefully I am just lucky enough to not fall off the raft... If that even happens. This should be done during September because if you travel outside of the peak travel season you have a better chance of getting a spot on one of the trips. I have a feeling going during this time may be just a little cold in the water. Not sure though! Still would love to do this!

8. Snorkel with Manatees! I want to do this so bad!! This seems like it would be nice and peaceful since manatees are so gentle. I have seen them in Florida but I would love to get up close with one and see how cute they are! I know I am lame! I love a quote from the book that says, "You can swim alongside them to ponder how on earth these huge grey aquatic mammals were ever mistaken for mermaids." They look nothing like mermaids. Crazy people! This should be done during the month of November because of good numbers of manatees and it "beats all the snowbirds".

9. Sail the British Virgin Islands! Which I will totally do since I will either have a yacht or a sailboat or both one day and I would love to do this. That area of the Caribbean is so beautiful and the water is so clear. And I am obsessed with everything about sailing! I am jealous that my mom knows how! This should be done during the month of November because its the dry season so you aren't going to hit bad storm with the boat. The book says its usually about a week that people sail but I would love to do it for longer and visit some of the islands.

10. Canopy Tours at Santa Elena! Zip lining!!!! Want to do this so bad! I have done it once at Girl Scout camp when I was younger but I was so scared and didn't have fun at all. In fact I sat up on the platform long enough to where the instructor ended up having to push me off. Needless to say I was not a happy camper. But I would love to do this now and go through the rainforest. Its on my bucket list to visit a rainforest and this would be the most fun way to see it! This should be done in Costa Rica during the month of December because it is the driest time of the year for Costa Rica. This is a must for me!

There we go! There's 10 more adventures that I would love to go on one day! I hope you enjoyed and I really hope all of you have places and adventures dreams like I have so you can experience the world to its fullest. Where would you just love to go one day and why? Sometime to think about today! Thanks for reading!!
-Ashley

Future Home Decor?

Hey hey!! Well yesterday talked a little bit about the nautical look that is coming back into fashion so I thought I would continue that theme today. But not with clothes! This past like year and a half I have been obsessed with the beach and nautical look for home decorating. Home Goods has been an amazing place to get my imagination going. Sadly I have no place to decorate with all the cute stuff I have seen...YET! Once I have a really big pocket of money (hopefully) I will have a place to decorate with all the nautical and beach stuff that I love. So here are some of the pictures that I have found and are my inspiration for me future home!

Picture from Pottery Barn

 

Picture from C-designs



Picture from Etsy



Picture from The Lennoxx



Picture from Pinterest



Picture from Coastal Living



Picture from Coastal Living



Picture from Coastal Living



Picture from Coastal Living



Picture by Southern Living



Picture from Southern Living



Picture from Pottery Barn



I could put so much more on here but I don't want to get too carried about with my dream decor just yet! Love it all and want it all. What will you decorate your future home with?

-Ashley

Sperry Top-siders!

Hey all! So short post that I am just interested in. At work (New York & Company) our new collection is all about nautical looks and from what I have seen there are lots of other stores that have the same theme. What goes better with nautical looks than boat shoes like Sperry's?! I love Sperry's and there are so many to choose from and so much to wear them with. Sperry Top-siders were first made in 1935 and have gone in and out of style since then. What I love is that my uncle still wears the same ones he has had for YEARS! To him they never went out of style and I guess you could say that he was ahead of style for when these came back to being popular. Another thing I love about Sperry's are that they have shoes for all different season for men, women and children! So here are a few of my favorites from http://www.sperrytopsider.com/.

Women's Bluefish 2-Eye Boat Shoe
Linen / Red Plaid Shearling
$98.00





Women's Cloud Logo Authentic Original 2-Eye Boat Shoe
Sea Blue Seersucker
$75.00


















Women's Bluefish 2-Eye Boat Shoe
Linen Oat (Classic!!)
$85.00

 

Women's Bahama
Navy Seersucker Plaid
$60.00



Women's Santa Rosa
Navy / White Seersucker
$59.99



Women's Pelican Tall Boot Lug
Black (Love mine!!)
$68.00



Those are some of my favorite but I really love almost all of them. They are so comfy and so cute! To everybody that wear them, whats your favorite? Thanks!

-Ashley

Helping the world with clothing

Hey all! I had been looking on the Internet today and noticed that there are quite a few non-profit organizations that make clothing or accessories to buy and the money goes to help people in different parts of the world. I love the clothes and the accessories that these companies make and sell so today I am going to make an outfit (minus jeans) out of all non-profit clothing!! Lets have at it!!

The jeans are not part of a non-profit company. I just really like these ones. They are from Lucky Brand which obviously is one of my new favorite brands!

With these jeans I wouldn't wearing those shoes for this outfit but I love the color and look of these. They are the Lola Skinny Jeans Rinse and come in short, regular and long which is great for me since it's hard for me to find pants that fit me since I am short. They are mid-rise with a curvy fit which is also great for me since I have curvy hips. They are $99.








This shirt is from Common Threadz and while looking through their just plain t-shirts it says under the shirt what buying this will help with. There are shirts that if you buy them a school will get a uniform. This one I liked the best and it was that by purchasing this shirt an orphan will be able to be fed for one month.

This shirt is part of the "Hand to Heart" collection and was designed by a  4 year old in Africa named Nkosikhana. Once the shirt is purchased you can even have your name put on a wall of thanks to kind of explain it or you can even put somebody else's name on there. I have always been one that would love to help Africa in any way possible from here since I have yet to be able to go over there and help in person. This shirt is $38 and like I said feeds a child for 1 month. Great buy for a cause!







The shoes are one of my favorite brands of all time! Toms! I would hope that most of you know about Toms and what a wonderful group it is. Their mission is what they call "One For One". When a person  buys a pair of shoes from them they give a pair of shoes to a child that does not or has never even had shoes. That is hard to think about not having shoes. I have one pair that is the sparkly black ones and I love them so much. They are so comfy and so cute!!

 These will be my next Toms purchase and they are the Natural Burlap Women's Classics and cost $54. I love how neutral these are and can be worn with so much! And its great knowing that because I bought these shoes that a child that needs shoes now has them.






The hat is from Krochet Kids. It's just within this past year that I have heard of this organization and I love it. The men that founded this went to Africa first and taught women how to crochet. They then started this where the women make the different accessories, like this hat, and all the money that is made from people purchasing goes back to them women that made the hat to help them with their lives. Their mission, as said on their website, is to "empower people to rise above poverty." (www.krochetkids.org)

This is the Betty Hat in the cream color and is $25.95. I am a HUGE hat person and I love hats like this style! These are handmade by women in Uganda and is versatile in the different season (besides summer!) This will be a must for me!








Finally the bracelet is from Beaded Hope. I found this website while just doing a google search and it looks amazing. This organization strives to help fight HIV/AIDS in South Africa. Their mission, as said from their website is, "to fight HIV/AIDS one person at a time by providing South Africans with the opportunity to earn an income, support their families and nurture their creativity while preserving age-old African beadwork traditions." (www.beadedhope.org)

This one may look simple but it goes with the colors that I have going on in this outfit. This bracelet is the Bangle Bracelet in Warm Cream and is $24. I love how simple this is and how versatile is it also. So cute and can be worn with a lot and while wearing it you know you are helping somebody just by buying it.










So there we go! There is a cute, wonderful and simple outfit that is all helping the world just by buying the pieces. I love all the pieces and will probably buy them at some point. Its really a great feeling knowing you are helping a person on the other side of the world just by buying something as small as a bracelet. Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed and will look into the non-profit groups that make these items!
-Ashley

Wednesday Wonderfuls, Adventure Edition

Hey hey it's Wednesday!! For the Wednesday Wonderfuls today it's all about adventures! I seem to have what my mom calls the "travel lust" so I have a lot of places I want to go and a lot of things I want to do. According to my mom my Grandma also have the travel lust as well so I must have got it from her. She has been to many more places than me but I have plenty of time to do everything I want to do. I absolutely loved having her with us on our trip around Europe and it was amazing that she was able to out walk all of the other people in the group and she was the oldest in our group! I am sure she will love this post! Maybe not all the places and things I would like to do though...

This all comes from a book that I got for Christmas this year which is put out by National Geographic, which is one of my personal favorite when learning about places to travel to. The book is Journey's of a Lifetime 500 of the World's Greatest Trips. It is so informative and interesting and it even puts the trips into categories such as trips to take on foot or by road. I LOVE it!!! So let's talk about the top 10 adventures I want to go on one day from this book! And as usual they are not in any particular order. And all the titles come straight from the book.






1. Eastern Caribbean Cruise! "A cruise through the breathtaking waters of the Caribbean offers luxury, shopping, and outdoor fun." I have been on a cruise to the northern islands of the Caribbean but going on this one would be wonderful!! You get to cruise through all the Virgin Islands  and the Leeward Islands where the water is just so amazing and clear! My parents once went to St. Thomas when I was younger and they left me behind. I would love to go see that island now. Booking a cruise at the last minute is likely to save you money and most of the cruises are about a week. Can we say FABULOUS?!? The picture below is St. Thomas.


2. Waterways of the Tsars! "Experience the grandeur of Imperial Russia as you cruise along the waterways of St. Petersburg." I never though I would want to ever go to Russia until reading about this trip and looking at the architecture of St. Petersburg. It looks so different from anything that we see here or that is over in Europe. I would also love to learn more about the history behind Russia. This cruise is only a few hours long but I would love to walk around and just sight see around the city!


3. The Romantic Road of Bavaria! "With castle-crowned mountains and glorious churches and palaces, this route explores the heartland of German fairy tales, music, and art." This is my ideal driving trip in Europe! I have seen parts of Germany from the Rhine River but I would love to just be driving through the country sides and seeing all the castles up on the the hills. Since I was little I have wanted to live in a castle like a princess. For me I would totally pick out which one I would live in if I got to live in it. This goes from about mid Germany down to the border of Austria and would take about a week which would be totally fine with me!


4. The Bolshoi Express! "Ride Russia in style on the Grand Express between St. Petersburg and Moscow." This one I would do at the same time as the cruise around St. Petersburg. I love seeing the countryside's of different countries and this would take me right through the country between the two biggest cities in Russia. And I have always wanted to experience sleeping overnight on a train for whatever reason and with this I would be able to do that because the train ride allows one night on board but I would stay more time in each city so that I could see the cultures and historical places!

5. Wildlife Safari! "Experience dramatic landscape and a chance to see the "big five" when you take a luxury train safari in traditional style." Although I am still going to go see a safari in an old jeep like I have researched about I would love doing this too! I have a thing about trains even though I have never really been on ones like these ones but I would just be amazing if I was sitting on the train and looked out and saw a lion!! That would be the best thing ever!! This trip lasts 3 days and 2 nights so I would be able to sleep on the train, like I said before, is what I would love to do. And the train ride offers all-you-can-eat-and-drink!!! Yay food!!

6. The Inca Trail! "A hike along an ancient Inca way takes you above the clouds into a magical realm where the remains of an astonishing civilization cling to the sides of soaring mountains." I am not so much a hiking girl but seeing Machu Picchu is on my bucket list so I would totally hike the long hike to see this! They have shown multiple things on the Travel Channel for Machu Picchu and it looks amazing!! I have to go here sometime and experience the culture of this ancient land!

7. Napa Valley Wine! "Combine California sunshine and a year-round pageant of color with visits to wineries and fine restaurants." Although I still have about a year until I turn 21 I plan to go here after then. Maybe not directly after but I would love to just tour the wineries around Napa Valley and enjoy the views. This would also be a very romantic adventure to go on with somebody special! And mix the wine with fabulous food...What would be better?!

8. Cheeses of Normandy! "To the French, bread, cheese, and wine are known as the holy trinity of the table-- where better to enjoy them than Normandy!" Oh cheeses... My favorite!! Europe had some of the best cheeses I have ever had and to have a tour of all the places in Northern France that have the best cheeses would just be wonderful!! And since I would already been in the area I would love to go see the beaches where the troops came to land in World War II. Powerful place.

9. The Belize Barrier Reef! "Enter a colorful underwater in this diver's paradise in the western Caribbean." I have never gone diving and I know it will be hard for me to get certified. I am sure I will freak out but I am going to do it because this looks so beautiful! I am thinking this would be a nice start for me to work up to the Great Barrier Reef that is on my bucket list to see and dive in. Also since its the Caribbean its just beautiful anyways so it would be amazing to go to Belize! I would want to be there at least a week so that I  could experience everything!

10. Diving with Sharks! "This is the closet you'll get to one of the deadliest killers on the blue planet. Enter the ocean if you dare." And I dare!!!!!! This is one of my biggest dreams to do this. Of course I would like to do it with a cage so that at least I would be a little bit safer. The best place for this would be South Africa which is where I plan to do my dive at. And this last half a day! Can you imagine how amazing it would be to be out with sharks for half a day! Ahhh!

So there we go everybody! There is the adventure filled Wednesday Wonderfuls!! Gotta love seeing the world and experiencing new things and I hope all of you have a place or places that you absolutely want to travel to!! Hope you enjoyed and thanks for reading!

-Ashley

A Love of Purses

Hey all! It's a boring, windy and cold day in Missouri so obviously its a perfect time to think about purses!! Or maybe I am just obsessed and always think about purses. Whatever it may be I love purses and love how the perfect purse can make your outfit perfect all around. Sadly all of the purses that I love are, lets say, a little out of my price range... Some I have gotten by working my butt off to save up the money but some I can only dream about!! Ok most of them I can only dream about.

My personal favorite is Coach purses. Even though it's a designer name they still have some purses that are affordable but then they also have their crazy expensive ones! For me, I love the outlet stores! My family always goes down to the Lake of the Ozarks in the summers and at the outlet mall there they have one of the best stores ever! A coach outlet!! And when you walk into the store I have always had one of the workers give me a coupon for an extra 15-20% off which makes it more realistic to buy the purses. At my work I always compliment the Coach purses whenever I see them and most of the time the women say that they got it from an outlet store which seems to be a better option for the people that want to enjoy to Coach name but not pay the prices at the  upscale malls. Coach has been around since 1941 and they are still producing some of the best purses (in my mind at least). Also the leather is amazing and always seems to look good no matter how old the purse is. Here are some of my personal favorites from Coach and way out of my price range! Like I said yesterday, a girl can dream. These are all from http://www.coach.com/.

This is the Madison Leather Sophia Satchel. The purple is my favorite color but it also comes in more neutral colors such as black or tan. Also comes in colors like red and mahogany. I like this purse because its large enough to carry a lot but its not too large for people that don't like the larger bags. I may not look like it holds much but it really does! This purse is $358.

I love crossbody purses!! These are great for traveling when they zip across the top. Makes it harder to get pickpocketed. And this coach one is cute but simple. This purse is the Julia Leather Swingback and is $148.

This last purse from Coach is so amazing. This is a huge purse and hold EVERYTHING! It is way to expensive for me to buy for myself but I would love it as a gift!! I also love how this is Poppy which is usually a little more flashy than the other purses but this one is more subtle in the Poppy collection. This is the Poppy Leather Pushlock Tote and is $398.

So the next brand that I really love is Fossil. Fossil was started in 1984 and I remember when I was younger Fossil was really big, which was in the early 1990's, then just kind of went away but now its back and better than ever! I love the leather and how it smells fabulous. They are also expensive but if you hit Macy's at the right times the purses can be up to 70% off. I got lucky the day I got my little crossbody at 70% off!! Here are some of my favorite Fossil purses! These ones can be found of http://www.fossil.com/.

I love this purse so much!! Its huge and will hold everything from a weekend of clothes to a laptop and school books which is just what I need. I tried this purse of at Macy's and it was so cute! Sadly it is more wide than tall and me being as short as I am, it may sound weird but, this purse made me look shorter than I already am. Still love it and may check back when it goes to 70% off at Macy's.This purse is the Vintage Re-Issue Weekender and is $228.

This Fossil purse is an example of their so cute crossbody style. This is in the Camel color but it also comes in chestnut, sea foam green, dark blue and light pink. Personally I would stick with the normal leather colors like this one or the chestnut. The crossbody that I have is in the chestnut color and I am able to wear it with almost everything! And its smaller than most of my other purses so it is nice when I don't want to carry all the stuff that I usually carry with me. This purse is the Maddox Organizer Flap and is $198.

The last brand of purse that I am really into right now is Lucky Brand. They also make great jeans (expensive) and clothing and also cute jewelry but I really like their purses. It is similar to Fossil but such different styles! Lucky Brand made their first pair of jeans in 1990 and branched so far out from there. This purse can be found on http://www.macys.com/.

This Lucky Brand purse would also be great for traveling because it zips on the top and it folds over which would make it really hard for anybody to get into it if you kept it zipped up. And it's larger so you are able to carry whatever you would like to carry in there. This purse also comes in a raspberry color which I really love even though I am not usually a red color person but its so cute!! This is the Sunset Junction Foldover Convertible Tote and is $199.

Well you have seen some of my favorite purses! There are so many more that I love but they are crazy expensive designer names like Chanel and Jimmy Choo and those ones I can only dream about. One great thing about Fossil and Lucky Brand is that occasionally they have these purses at TJ Maxx and Marshall's for an amazing discounted price! And those are two of my favorite stores so I am always there checking to see what kind of Fossil and Lucky Brand purses they have. Hope you enjoyed and hope this makes the windy day in Missouri for fun!

-Ashley

Blue and Gray!

Hey everybody! I can't believe its a new year already!! New year means new styles and colors that are in this season, so for the outfit I am making today the color scheme is gray and blue. I was at work yesterday putting out all of our new jewelry which the new colors are gray and pale yellow and gray and pale blue. The theme for our new collection at work is nautical which I absolutely love but today I am just going for the colors and see what I can find that would look great together! And just to let everybody know I spell gray with an A. I dont spell it grey but companies do so that will be the different when talking about the stores.

Jeans are from Tommy Hilfiger and are the Skinny Ankle Jean with Zipper and are $78.00. I personally love the skinny jeans that have the zipper on the bottom because you know that if your wearing boots with them that they will be very tight around you ankles so you dont have to worry about the bulk of the pants coming out of the top of your boots. I hate that!!

I am keeping it simple with the top. I love simple one colored shirts because with a plain color there is so much you can do with it from jewelry to scarves or other accessories. This top is from American Eagle Outfitters and is that AE Favorite V-Neck T and is $15.50.

Since it is still cold here and I am all about North Face jackets I would personally put this Graphite Grey jacket with it. I like how this is darker than the shirt but will still keep the color scheme that we have going on.

I know I have put these boots in here before but for this outfit I am going with the light gray version of the boots to go with the outfit. And I just love these boots. So cute and very comfy. Found these fro DSW (my favorite shoe store of all time!) and they are the Diba Combat Boot in Grey and are $69.95. And if you shop at DSW enough you get coupons like $10 off a purchase. I love the coupons!!!

I am a huge fan of bangles and I love these ones with the outfit. It has the different color blues and the white to accent the whole outfit! Love Love Love!! These are from http://www.tillys.com/ and are $9.99. They are called FULL TILT 9 Piece Colorblock Bangles. I may just have to buy these soon!

Not the same color blue as the bracelets but I think it works. It sets off the light blue color of this necklace while also setting off the colors in the bracelets. Also wouldnt need to wear all the bracelets if you didnt want to. This is a Lucky Brand Pendent with a Blue Stone. I found it on http://www.macys.com/ and is $35. I love this necklace so much!!!

In my mind an outfit is not complete without and handbag! And although I couldnt afford this one I LOVE it. For the people that know me, I have an unhealthy obsession with Coach purses and its sad how much I love them. This is the Coach Pinnacle Leather Louisa and is a crazy $698! A girl can dream can't she? And this purse literally makes the whole blue and gray outfit!! This purse can be found on http://www.macys.com/ or http://www.coach.com/.









There is the outfit for the day and now I want to go out and buy it all!! Even the purse if I had the money for it. Maybe one day right? Hope you all enjoyed and thanks for reading!!
-Ashley