Making The Most Of The End Of Summer

I cannot believe it, but the summer is sadly winding down. I recently invited a few friends of mine over and we had a whole day of what summer is really about: sunshine, being outside (of course in a pool) and making memories!

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In 10 days I head back to my second home, Kent State, for the next four months, which is why I have decided to make the most of my time while still at home.

Most of my plans for the rest of the summer consist of spending a lot of time in my pool, but I also have plans to see as many of my friends from home as possible because I don’t get to see them often.

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I am also planning on going up to Baltimore this weekend with one of my best friends, Jake, my sister, Payton and my mom to a peach festival! I do not really know what this peach festival entails… but I am hoping there will be some awesome peach cobblers and homemade ice cream!

It is so important for college students to have some relaxation time during the summer because we know as soon as we get back to school, it is time to hit the books again. I cannot even begin to think about the group projects that are ahead me this semester!

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Annapolis, Baltimore and D.C. have so much to offer in the sweet summer time. I live so close to Annapolis, and go everyday, so I have decided in my final week at home, there is one thing in D.C. I want to do and one thing in Baltimore I want to do before I head back to Kent.

In D.C. I want to head down to Georgetown to shop and then grab dinner in Dupont Circle at my favorite restaurant called  Mission. And in Baltimore I want to go with my mom to this awesome place my mom showed me on Instagram, Graffiti Alley.

Although I definitely enjoyed the  majority of my summer in NYC , I could not ask for more for the end of my summer in Annapolis.

Now I am going to go jump into the pool in this heat wave!

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Thrifty Thursday: Getting Ready for Vacation!

I cannot believe I have not done a Thrifty Thursday in over two months! To be honest, I had to take a break because at school my closet was overflowing with the awesome deals I was finding! This week I decided I would head over to my favorite consignment store, Oh My Darling in Annapolis, Md. to see what deals they had going on.

They recently posted on Instagram a photo of a few pairs of pineapple earrings and I knew that I had to have these for the summer!

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Amy, the owner of Oh My Darling also posted today about a sale she had today if you mentioned you saw it on her Instagram.

Even though I originally went to the store for just the earrings, I knew I would not only be leaving with just one thing… I also found the perfect dress for a trip I have coming up this weekend to the Bahamas!

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The dress is made by Just Be… I tried to find how much the dress was sold for originally, but I was unable to find it. I can tell the dress is made with a quality cotton though, so I am guessing it was definitely sold for more than I bought it. I purchased this dress for $16!

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The lightweight cotton will be perfect for the hot weather in the Bahamas!

Out of the two things I purchased today, I would definitely say the earrings would be my favorite. I am in love with the pineapples. I am currently obsessing over anything pineapple related!

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I also love the earrings because they were made by a local jewelry designer! Here is her information if you are interested in purchasing this pair of earrings or looking to see if she sells something similar:

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I left the store today only spending a total of $45!

For all of my Annapolis area readers, Oh My Darling is having their biggest shopping event yet that you will not want to miss! Coming up on June 20, they are hosting an event called The Longest Day, which is raising money for Alzheimer’s awareness.

Leading up to the event, they will be having their #30DaysofDresses fundraiser. For every dress sold from May 21-June 20, Oh My Darling will donate 10 percent of the sale to their Longest Day team. If you go into the store and try on a dress and use the hashtags #30DaysofDresses and #THELONGESTDAY, they will donate $1 to their team.

 

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If this didn’t sound intriguing enough for you… on June 20 if you make a $5 or $10 donation to their team, you will receive an empty Oh My Darling shopping bag, which you can fill with anything you can fit into the bag and receive 10 percent or 20 percent off of the items in the bag!

For more information about the event you can contact Oh My Darling’s owner, Amy Darling at amy@shopohmydarling.com!

It felt so great to thrift again! I am glad that I broke my thrifting drought at Oh My Darling!

XODanieSparkle

 

 

My Guilty Pleasure… Getting my hair washed and blow dried each week

Want to know my guilty pleasure?

It’s most definitely getting my hair washed and blow dried once a week. I really hate washing my own hair for it just look awful after I attempt to blow dry it and then straighten it.

Before you think I am a diva (well TOO much of a diva), it is not as costly as you might be thinking it is! I have found Rush salon in Kent, Ohio that is honestly just PERFECT.

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I used to go and get my hair washed and blow dried before a big event, but this school year I started doing this on the first day of the school year. I called two weeks before school started and told them I needed their first appointment that day because I didn’t want to stress about my hair the first day of school, plus I wanted to look great after coming back from the summer!

HOW DO THEY MAKE MY HAIR FEEL SO SOFT AND LUSCIOUS? 

So now you may be asking yourself…”Does Danie only wash her hair once a week?” and to answer this question, yes I do only wash it once a week unless there is a reason that I MUST wash it. I have truly “trained” my hair to not get oily.

I started only washing it once a week when I had red in my hair because each time I would wash it, the red dye would come out and I was getting more annoyed each time I washed my hair. After researching what I would do to slow down the red washing out of my hair, I found out how awful washing your hair too often is actually for you. So even before getting it washed, I only washed it once a week. If learning how to get down to washing your hair once-twice a week, check out my previous post: here.

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But to get back to my guilty pleasure… I know it sounds ridiculous, but I honestly crave that hour on Tuesdays (the day I get my hair done!). That time I take for myself and I don’t check my phone or think about anything else that I have going on during that time. I focus on myself, which I do not do a lot. It is a stress reliever for me.

I get a lot of criticism from people who do not agree with my choices about me getting my hair done once a week- and what I want to say to those people is: How I spend my money is my choice, and I appreciate you looking out for my budget, but I will continue to get my hair washed each week.

Trust me…if I could make my hair the way that my favorite stylists, Skye and Allison, make it look, I would do it myself! 

To maintain my hair looking good the rest of the week, I wear a shower cap while I shower and I do not put any extra products in my hair the rest of the week.
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The only time I really touch my hair is when I straighten a few pieces that may have gotten curly throughout the week and when I pull my hair in my favorite hairstyle, the half up half down style!

 

I know all of you divas out there will feel my pain out there! I know that not everyone’s budget each week can fit $18 for you to get your hair washed, but definitely think about cutting down on how many times a week you wash your hair!

Let me know what you think of this idea!

XODanieSparkle

 

 

 

Not resolutions, but promises to Myself

HAPPY 2016 DEFINING DANIE READERS! 

Thank you so much for making 2015 one of the best years for me! I cannot thank everyone enough for taking the time out of your day to read my posts!

I try not to make resolutions because I am one to feel guilt when I do not follow through with the resolutions that I do not keep.

For 2016, I have REAL promises that I am going to keep for myself. I know that a promise can be related to these resolutions, but in my book they are different!

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What are my promises? 

I will start with something that I struggle with often…

Promise #1 

I do not need others around all the time to make me happy. I am personally so extroverted that I crave being around people 24/7. I really want to start learning how to hangout in my house all day and RELAX. I am not one for relaxing, but my mental health needs it so bad.

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Promise #2 

In the spirit of taking care of myself, I am promising myself that I will stay on track with exercising. When I was a senior in high school, I was a workout ADDICT. I was looking back at my social media from when I was working out constantly and I truly think I was a happier person then. Not because I weighed less, but because I know I truly FELT better. I know it is true that exercising releases endorphins and with a stressful semester coming up, I need all of the endorphins possible!


Promise #3 

To just start taking care of myself overall. I have put my health aside for far too long now. 2016 will be the year of “Danie’s Health Journey.” I am promising myself that this year I will not only be more conscience of what I am eating, but make sure to take the medicines that I am prescribed. I HATE medicine, but my health is coming to a point of needing it more than ever.

I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year’s Eve! This year, I stayed in with my sister, Payton and one of my best friends, Amanda! We watched the ball drop!  I cannot wait to see what 2016 brings for me.

XODanieSparkle

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ready for some bloopers from this fun photoshoot done by friend, Amanda?

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I think this will definitely capture my 2016.

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We have captured this one as “moving on to 2016,” HAHA! Do not worry, we did not go out and rent the moving van, her mom had to move some stuff in!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thrifty Thursday Fall Fashion!

Fall is more than football games, pumpkin spice lattes and leaves changing. Although I love all three of those things, just like most, my favorite thing about fall is the fashion. I love vests, knee high boots and feeling a little chilly.

On Sunday, I went to Value Discount Outlet in Akron, Ohio and they were having the best deals! Just like Goodwill, Value Discount Outlet has various color tags attached to the clothing, which lets the store’s staff know when the clothing came into the store. …This also allows for fun things like having certain color tags be a certain price that day!

For example, this Sunday was any green-tagged item was only $1, yellow-tagged items were 50% off and I also received 20% off because I had my student ID! It was a really good thrifting day.

Lets see what I bought!

Right as I walked into Value Discount Outlet (VDO), this yellow vest popped out at me from the 1000s of racks of clothing! My absolute favorite color is yellow.

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The vest had a small patch that was sewn on it, but I knew it wouldn’t be an issue to remove it with a seam ripper! This vest is honestly perfect for Kent State football games. I paired the vest with one of my favorite Kent State shirts!

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I then found this gorgeous pink shirt! This shirt can totally be work with jeans, as pictured or I can definitely wear this to my sorority’s chapter meetings, where we have to dress up. I love to thrift things that can work in my wardrobe for many occasions.

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I was a little worried that this shirt was a little too much of a summer color, but then I just said “ehh, I’ll make up my own rules!” and bought it anyways. 🙂 This shirt only cost me $8, and it was brand new with tags on it! It was originally around $35!

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This next outfit features two purchases! I bought both of these times for only $1!

ttleafsweater1The dress shirt was being sold because it had a small stain on it, but I washed it as soon as I got home and it came right out! I pared it with this sweater that has leaves all over it. The sweater is a yellow-green!

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I can definitely see this sweater becoming a staple in my wardrobe! I cannot wait to wear it with my black vest and pearls, which will make for a super fall outfit!

I love fall so much! I cannot wait for later October when it comes time for Halloween outfit shopping. Keep your eyes out for upcoming Halloween thrifting adventures! Happy fall!

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P.S.: My amazing friend, Mara did an awesome job taking these photos for me this week! Thanks you so much!

Thrifty Thursday: Summer to Fall Bag!

So, Defining Danie reader’s, it’s been a while. I’ve missed you all! School has been more than hectic, which is why I haven’t blogged in what feels like a lifetime.

Look at this amazing purchase that I found. The bag was originally $45 and at Goodwill it was being sold for $17, and then I got the student discount and ended up getting the bag for $15!

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This week’s Thrifty Thursday is based on a bag I found a few weeks ago that was originally from Target. Orange can go for either summer or fall, but adding this scarf definitely adds more a fall-feel. The bag was brand new and I bought it from Goodwill in Kent, Ohio. Goodwill and Target have a partnership where the Goodwill sells the clothing/accessories not sold during the time that they were being sold in Target so they have another chance to be sold again. The clothing/accessories are sold for a cheaper price than they would be sold in Target.

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Although the oranges are not the same, the scarf and bag still complement one-another. The bag has more of a coral undertone and the scarf has a darker orange, magenta, yellow and various colors of taupe! I love the scarf, which I got for only $1.00!

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Take a look inside this bag! It even has the perfect compartment for pencils and lipstick. 😉 And the polka dots are a lovely touch.

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Incorporating thrifted items into your daily outfits is not hard at all! It was a coincidence that I was actually wearing was thrifted over the summer.

I hope everyone is having a lovely start to fall!

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Favorite Day of the Year!

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Yes, you read that correct It is National Thrift Store Day! To any of thrifting queens and kings out there, you understand my excitement. This day can beat any of the major holidays for me. I have never told anyone why I love thrifting so much so I am going to do my Top 5 Reasons Why I LOVE Thrifting and you can also check out my top favorite thrifting finds of the year below!

TOP 5: 

1) The amazing deals that you can get. As all of you know, I am a college student and as a college student, I do not have a lot of money to spend on clothes! There are great clothes that people just giveaway…hoping that you will buy them! Go when they have 50% off certain color tags, meaning that it will be 50% off of the already low prices!

2) The hunt is FUN. This is something that I have mastered. A lot of people do not like the “hunting” part of thirsting, which is why Goodwill’s across the nation have created Goodwill Boutiques, which are also near and dear to my heart! But… I love it when I am searching around the store and I can’t seem find anything worth buying that day and then all of the sudden that one piece of clothing just POPS out to you! It is seriously magical.

3) I know when I shop at a thrift store, that I am doing good for the community. An example is by shopping at Goodwill, you are helping them succeed at their mission, which is to provide work for people who may not be able to find it somewhere else!

4) You never know what you will find. There are so many odd pieces that you will find in a thrift/consignment store! There will be things in there that you did not even know existed but that is what makes it so fun! I think you can also learn a lot about history. Walking into an older thrift/consignment store and it is like walking into the past! Go in and see what you can find/learn.

5) Great for DIY. Whether you want to revamp your house or you’re moving into a new apartment, there are great deals you can find on furniture, kitchen supplies (plates and even kitchen tables/chairs!) and bedroom furniture. There is nothing a little TLC and some paint cannot fix! I always see great dining room furniture that just makes me so excited to have my first apartment!

Top Thrifting Finds: 

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I would love to hear everyones reasons why YOU love thrifting! Also, I never noticed I always pose the same way in all of my photos, haha!

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Who doesn’t love a Nordstrom Giveaway?

Hi ladies and gents!

I have teamed up with some fellow bloggers/shops for one lucky person to win a $700 GIFT CARD TO NORDSTROM (aka my favorite place in this entire world)!

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To enter to win the gift card check out my Instagram at 8 p.m. EST. for the rules! The giveaway will run for 4 days (August 13th-August 16th at 8 p.m. EST.) The winner will be announced within 48 hours of the giveaway closing time.

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I am so excited to be one of the bloggers hosting this giveaway! I decided to be apart of this giveaway because I truly love every single one of my followers! I cannot wait to see who the winner will be. GOOD LUCK!

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Traveling made easy to NYC!

So as many of you know that follow me on social media (if you don’t follow your girl @danieminor13!), this past weekend I went to Her Conference!

Traveling is one of my favorite hobbies; going to events is another favorite of mine. This past weekend, I took an Amtrak Train to NYC where the conference was being held. Amtrak allowed me to combine my two favorite things! 

Her Conference is a conference put together by the staff at Her Campus. Her Campus is an online magazine for “collegiette” women! Along with being an online magazine, they also have a blogger network, which I’m apart of.

So, when they announced the dates for the conference, which is held in NYC, I immediately purchased a two-day ticket. At the time it didn’t matter to me how I got to NYC, where I was staying or if anyone I knew was also going to the conference that I knew;I knew I was going! 

A month before the conference I had the place to stay, but still hadn’t locked down how I was getting to NYC… then Amtrak popped into the equation!  Continue reading

Thrifty Thursday- 4th of July!

If you’re in a time crunch for a cute festive 4th of July outfit, make sure you go check out your local thrift stores! Be creative with your outfits, because you never know what you can put together!

I am so excited that my first Thirfty Thursday in a while is my 4th of July look! While thrifting at the Goodwill in Crofton, Md. I was looking for simple pieces that would look spectacular together, and here is the outfit that I put together!
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