Unpopular Opinions

 via Andrea Janes Photography (the natural light is s-t-u-n-n-i-n-g)

There are so many things that are "trendy" or "in" right now that are so not me...I can guarantee this is the only time you'll see the things listed below on What Kate Likes. I definitely fall into the unpopular camp for all of these things...

-Beyonce: I really don't get the obsession. Yeah, she's got some catchy tunes. Yeah, she has a pretty enviable lifestyle. But I don't really get why people are so obsessed with her?

-Statement Jewelry: It's pretty rare that I wear jewelry other than a simple necklace or pair of studs, but I'm so tired of statement jewelry. Far too overdone.

-"Arm Parties": My wrists are legitimately child-sized, so wearing one bracelet is a struggle for me. An armful of them is my biggest nightmare. And the phrases "arm party" or "stack"? Just no.

-Jennifer Lawrence: I know, I'm not a fan of the Internet's biggest darling, who am I? I think she seems nice enough, but also very crass...not my thing.

-Print Mixing: I just cannot even. It's gotten out of control.

-Topknots: The only time you'll find my hair in a legitimate top knot is when I'm getting in bed. Crafting the perfect top knot for the day? Ain't nobody got time for that. Buns, on the other hand, are my jam....

-Macarons: I love basically every other dessert on the planet, but I just cannot get into the macaron obsession. They don't really have a taste? Plus, I'd much rather have a full size cookie or a brownie or something that's big enough to justify spending $3+.

-Jack Rogers sandals: A preppy staple, but one that I think looks like it came out of your grandmother's closet. Sorry.

-Bar Carts: What's wrong with a liquor cabinet?

-Bows: If you're under the age of 10, sure. If you're in your mid-20s...no.

I'm sure there's a lot more...what are yours??? I'm dying to know, especially since some of mine are fairly controversial!

*If you're a fan of any of the things I listed, I promise I'm not making fun of you or anything like that...they're just not my favorite things or I don't get the hype. You're entitled to your opinion, I'm entitled to mine :)*

Classy.

via

I read this article the other night around 2am, and it's really stuck with me. I find that "classy" is SO overused in today's culture that it's pretty much lost its actual meaning. Call me a snob, but every time someone tells me that whatever I'm doing/wearing/reading/eating/whatevering is classy, I cringe and immediately dislike/stop whatever it is. Maybe it's because I truly do use the word classy in an ironic way, maybe it's because I'm just snobby, but I don't think "being classy" is a compliment.

I really only use the word classy when I mean it's really, really not. A drunk girl throwing herself at a guy in a relationship? Classy. Skirt so short you can see cheek? Classy.

I would much rather be described as sophisticated, elegant, refined, cultured, in good taste, classic, edited, curated, put-together...

As the article states, there are so many better adjectives you can use to describe things that you really like and that you consider high-class...let's use them :)

DIY Try: Coconut Oil Hair Mask

 via

I've been reading about the "magic" of coconut oil for basically everything for a while now and over the weekend my boredom curiosity finally got the better of me and I picked up some coconut oil to try out.

Since I really need a haircut and have yet to find a salon in Atlanta that's both good and reasonably priced, my ends are very dry and not very pretty at all. And really, all of my hair was looking a little shabby and sad. A coconut oil mask was exactly what I needed.

Hey

Hey there, peeps! Long time, no see. I wish I had a better reason than "life is super busy" to explain my blogging absence, but I don't.

Life is super busy. Here's a quick look into a typical day...
7am-9:45ish: wake up, feed Oscarboy, shower, get ready for the day
10am-3pm: intern
3:30-4:30pm: eat quick dinner/snack, feed Oscar if he doesn't have food leftover from breakfast, change for work
5-10pm: work
10pm: eat dinner, play with Oscar to lessen my guilt of leaving him alone all day, do any household chores that need to be done
midnight-2am: relax and attempt to fall asleep to get a few hours of good sleep in before I wake up and do it all over again!

So there isn't a whole lot of free time in my schedule. I really miss blogging though, so I'm going to try and make it a bit more of a priority.

However, you can find me guest-posting on my friend Whitney's blog Sometimes Always Never today! Whitney is in Africa right now doing great things, and she was sweet enough to ask me if I'd guest-post for her one day while she's gone. Click over and read about my struggle trusting my gut :)

Have a good Monday y'all!

Feeling Fall

It's allergy season in Atlanta, I'm totally feeling it, and what's worse is that I'm totally looking it too. I've spent the past week in Benadryl-fueled sleep when not doing anything important (i.e. work, interning or shopping at Target) and my blogging inspiration is approximately zero.

So here's a few little pretty pictures from Pinterest to get you excited for fall...

Ready for colder weather yet? Mentally I am, but I need to get my fall wardrobe in gear!

1//2//3//4//5

Pumpkin Season

via

Rabbit, rabbit y'all! I cannot believe it's October already. October is one of my favorite months--it brings my birthday and Halloween (and all the associated candies), it's typically starting to get crisp and cool--to me, October is officially fall. It's a little weird to wear sweaters and boots and eat fall goodies like pumpkin bread in September, but October 1 officially kicks off Pumpkin Everything season in my mind.

I've never cared for Pumpkin Spice Lattes, but I am SO ready for my first piece of pumpkin bread or pumpkin spice cake!!!!! #nomnomnom

To add even more excitement to this October, October 16 is the first birthday of What Kate Likes! So many things to look forward to! Happy October 1!

Five Things

Here's a few things that I've been loving lately...enjoy!

1. This Gap tee is the perfect mix of fitted and drapey. I bought the white one on a whim one day, and I think I wore it three days in a row. I want one in every color and multiple white ones because it's SO good and I have a feeling Gap won't make it again. Size tip: buy your normal Gap size or a size smaller!

2. This Clinique eyeliner is seriously awesome. I used it a while back, but when I ran out I decided to save some money and went with a cheaper pencil that smudged in about 5 seconds and would routinely give me raccoon eyes. Not cute. I bought the Clinique eyeliner a week or so ago, used it yesterday and not only took a nap but forgot to take it off before I went to sleep and it still looked fresh both times with no smudging. Thumbs up.

3. Talenti's Double Dark Chocolate Pops: Seriously one of the most decadent grocery store splurges I've ever made. These babies are a chocoholic's dream...I am thinking about stockpiling just in case. I found mine at Publix, but you can use the store locator to find some near you! They don't look like much, but they taste amazing.

4. These Tory Burch boots. Drooling over how amazingly perfect these are. They're very similar to my current, well-loved riding boots, but are so sleek and chic. Even the black is beautiful...and I think black boots are nearly impossible hard to get exactly right. If these happened to show up as a birthday present next week, I wouldn't hate it... :) ps: these boots are amaze too!

5. The Westside Provisions District is easily one of my favorite parts of Atlanta. So many great stores, but the food scene over there is seriously the best. I dream (literally) about Star Provisions' brownies and baked goods and can never get enough Taqueria del Sol in my life. My friend Patrick lives within walking distance, so we've been soaking up the beautiful weather and enjoying Westside whenever I'm over at his place.

What have you been loving lately?? Anything good I need to know about?

NEW Look!!!

I am so excited to debut the new look of What Kate Likes!!! I worked with Alison from Long Distance Loving on the design and she did SUCH a good job!! I didn't know exactly what I wanted, but I knew what I didn't want, and she was able to sort through my multiple and probably overwhelming sources of inspiration and boil it all down to a design that is so perfectly me, I can't even stand it.

If you're on Bloglovin or your phone, I'd love it if you clicked over to the full site to get the full impact!

A few notes on the new design:
-I now have social media icons, so it's even easier to follow me on all platforms that you want! Just click the icon to take you to my profile/page/site and then you'll be able to follow me!
-everything else has stayed the same, only it's all over to the right side!

Alison did such a great job! I highly recommend her if you ever need any blog-related design done. I was totally just expecting her to slap some social media icons on my blog and change up the header a tiny bit, but she did so much more and is the sweetest person to work with! Not to mention, her prices are extremely reasonable. I'm definitely not the easiest person to work with when it comes to design, but she handled all my slightly ridiculous requests so capably. I'm so happy with the new look of What Kate Likes, and I hope you are too!

:)

Worst Blogger Ever?? Probably.

via

I have been SERIOUSLY slacking on the blog front the past few weeks (almost a month...yikes!). I have about 30 half-finished posts in my drafts folder, but I just haven't had the motivation to sit down and finish anything!

Life outside the Internetz has gotten busy which is good, but I miss having all the time in the world to blog...it's sort of a Catch-22, right? When I have tons of free time, it's easy to find time to blog but hard to find inspiration, but when I have no free time, I have tons of post inspiration and no time to crank anything out. I have tons of respect for the bigger bloggers out there who balance full-time jobs with running successful "big" blogs...no idea how they do it.

However, as light as posting may be around here, I have some exciting things up my sleeve--mainly a new look for What Kate Likes! I am so excited for it to launch, it's been a long time coming and I can't wait to reveal it! It also occurred to me the other day that the 1st birthday/anniversary of What Kate Likes is in a few weeks...what? Crazy.

I'll try to finish off some drafts for some new things to read around here :)

Queen Eliz and The Royal Baby

Can we just talk about a few things for a second?

 Namely, how absolutely adorable Queen Elizabeth is in the picture above (so colorful! so happy!)?

Also this article where a schoolgirl asked her about Will and Kate's bebe, and she said she'd like the baby to hurry up and be born before she goes on holiday...I just can't. Just like any great-grandma who wants her grandbabies to have kids! The Queen...she's just like us.

The last quote in the article: "The Queen was said to be thrilled when presented with a bottle of damson gin saying she would be 'keeping that for herself'"...she is a delight.

Baby Cambridge, where are you? And QEII, can we be besties? I'll totally play with your corgis and drink tea with you every day.

Lately...

 how cute is this little French illustration showing you how to draw a lobster?

j'adore

Hiiiii! So July has seriously been a busy month already! I've been working a ton, and a lot of interesting things have opened up on the job front (fingers majorly crossed!) and I've just neglected this little bloggie and all of YOU.

How were your 4ths? Lots of festive colors, foods, sparklers/fireworks and fun? I hope so!

I'm definitely going to make blogging more of a priority for myself, mostly because I love having a little outlet to share all my thoughts, wants, wishlists, etc. It's very cathartic for me to write everything out and get it out of my head, even if I never end up posting what I wrote. This means I need to be more intentional in using my editorial calendar...which I'm trying to do!

Anyway, I still have lots of ideas and plans for What Kate Likes, including a knockoff of Mackenzie's 101 in 1001 list, so keep checking in! And you can always send me an email if you're wondering where I am, what I've been up to, or what's going on!

July 1

Can you believe it's already July?!? 2013 is speeding by. It's both terrifying and a good thing. I keep feeling like everything has been sneaking up on me this year (like 4th of July...) and I'm really just ready to end the year already.

In other news, it's been scorchingly hot here and all I want to do for the Fourth is lay on a beach somewhere that's not 100+ degrees. I know I was complaining about being cold back in the winter, but I'd definitely take some of that weather right now!

ALSO, if you weren't aware, Google Reader is now gone, so be sure to follow my blog on Bloglovin or any other reader site you prefer! The Bloglovin link is to the right :)

Stay cool, y'all!

image

Back in Business!

 via

So! Little computer is finally back from the repair shop and I'm back to blogging! It's so weird, when I was without a computer, I had all of these great ideas for posts and now that I have my computer back, I can't think of a single thing to post!!

However, I did break down and order a new MayBook solely dedicated to planning out my blog posts, so now I need to buckle down and start brainstorming post ideas, finish up the multiple drafts in my drafts folder, and schedule when/how everything will go live. I love organization, but I'm also hesitant that being so rigid might actually halt my creativity/inspiration...we will see!

What did I do on my "blogging vacation"? I worked a few days, did a lot of random errandy stuff, and started a new Pilates class! Nothing too exciting. I actually had my first Pilates class this morning and while I'm not exactly stiff or sore, I feel a little off...Pilates peeps, is this normal? Is it just part of getting used to all the intentional movements and way of breathing?

What have you been up to recently? I feel so out of the loop!!

Almost Friday...But Not Quite

flamingo feathers

HOW is it almost June already???? 2013 is flyingggg by us! I was thinking about September/October the other day, and it seems so far off, but it's really not. YIKES. I'm already dreading winter haha.

Anyway. I've been really overwhelmed this week with life (parents are out of town so I'm having to do all the "adult" things like remember what day is trash day, go grocery shopping, etc; working and adjusting to working; my computer's not working quite right (RIP touchpad/charging light), lotsss of short deadlines for random things) so I don't really have anything to say. I just wanted to pop in and say HI! Have a happy Thursday!! It's almost Friday and almost the weekend again!

Keeping It Real

 via

I know the whole blog world has a rep for only showing the picture-perfect parts of day-to-day life, which is fine, but I prefer to be more realistic. My life is not all sunshine and macarons, I don't wake up with fabulous hair or dress in designer clothing every day, I rarely Instagram my meals (unless it's a dessert)...I'm a normal person who has problems, bad hair days, lazy outfit days, everything that you have. I don't want to focus on the "bad things" in life, but sometimes it's good to get a reality check from a blogger and remind yourself that they're just like you.

How I'm keeping it real:
-I sunburned my legs last weekend (or a few weeks ago, I really don't know), and now not only are they extremely dry but they're also peeling. So sexy.
-I ate graham crackers for lunch yesterday. Just graham crackers.
-I've been letting my hair air dry for a few months now, but I blow dried and straightened it the other day and I barely recognized myself. Add in the makeup I was wearing and it's like I was looking at a whole new face. Such a strange feeling.
-I stayed up until 4 am the other night watching this BBC miniseries called North & South because I couldn't go to sleep until I knew how it ended.
-I still cannot figure out how to do a sock bun. I've watched so many tutorials and looked at so many pictures and I just can't understand.

How are you keeping it real?

Life...

So. I had a whole post written, scheduled and ready to go for today because I had planned on leaving for Auburn/Charleston this morning...until I got in a car accident last night on my way home from work. I'm fine, but my car isn't, so I've canceled my trip which meant scrapping the cute little road trip post I had all done.

Lately things have been all over the place and insane. Short summary: planned this apartment-hunting trip to Charleston last weekend, had three interviews last week, ended up getting one part-time job last week and started today, got in the accident, canceled my trip, and am still waiting to hear back about the results of the other two interviews I had.

So that's what's going on with me! Lots of possibilities, nothing totally definite and concrete. I'm getting to the point where I'm just tired of waiting around for things to happen and I might just need to be totally bold and take huge risks to get where I want to be...which is so scary for a planner/calculater/not-risk-taker like me!

1//2//3

A Comment Question

the best part of Lucky Charms

I've been responding to comments that y'all write on posts via email, but I'm not 100% sure that they always get to you! I love interacting with readers and I really enjoy and appreciate your comments, so I want to make sure that you're able to read my responses.

If you've commented on a recent post and gotten a response from me by email, would you do me a favor and comment again on this post saying so?

Conversely, if you've commented and haven't gotten a response from me, let me know as well so I can figure out why and what's the best way to solve the problem.

I know it's frustrating to comment on posts and then never have the blogger respond or follow up or anything, so I'm trying to do my very best to avoid that and I think that this will help me see if there's a problem or not.

Thanks guys!

Friday Inspiration

 Keeping this verse in my heart/mind today and for the next few days.

this too.

ha.

it totally does.

pretty much.

Here's a little inspiration to get you through Friday. Have a lovely spring weekend!

Chocolate Chip Cookies Solve Everything?

delicious cookie photo and recipe from here

I'm tired. I'm physically tired, mentally tired, tired of worrying about what's next, what I should be doing with my life and/or this blog, tired of not feeling successful...there's a lot going on. Lots of potential big decisions are floating around and it's exhausting trying to weigh the pros and cons of each.

As a way of feeling successful about something in my life, I made this cookie-in-a-mug recipe yesterday afternoon. I was skeptical because I've heard lots about mug desserts that were terrible, but I was pleasantly surprised that the cookie was so good! The next time I make it (which will probably be today, let's be honest), I'll probably add a bit more vanilla and make it in a little ramekin instead of a mug. Quick and easy and so chocolatey...it's a keeper. I'm also looking forward to trying this brownie-in-a-mug recipe.

What you should take away from all of this rambling: make the cookies, because they're yummy.

TGIF.

via Suri's Burn Book...always a great read

The picture above has nothing to do with anything, but I think it's one of the best things I've seen in a while. And it ties in to the fact that I had a dream about Will and Kate the other night and I was solving mysteries with them, Nancy Drew-style. Plus Kate's dress is adorable.

This week has been long and exhausting so TGIF. Have a good weekend y'all!