iPhone Life

1//Mega green smoothie with bananas, mango, spinach and coconut water- it was heaven! 2//A chakara charm my mom got me at our favorite yoga studio- i have been wanting this for months and i almost cried when she gave it to me. I can't wait to hang it above my bed. 3//Felt sporty with this beanie. 4//Breakyy-Oats, covered with strawberries, blueberries, almonds and heaps of cinnamon

5//My candy-mango. 6//Wearing my fuzzy pink sweater for the last time with my favorite heart necklace. 7//Killed a workout! 8//Love this nude- Revlon color burst matte balm in the shade 'complex'

Maddie

What I Want: Workout Gear

I have no idea why but all of the sudden I've been obsessing over workout clothes. It's never been something that I really wanted or needed for that matter, but as I'm getting really into fitness, it's been bothering me that I have no cute clothes to wear while I workout! I recently got some cute athletic hoodies to exercise in, and it gave me such an added burst of energy and motivation to work out and push myself harder haha! You feel so much better when you know you look cute in a good pair of leggings or a sports bra-and not only that it helps you perform better too. My personal favorites that I've been eyeing up are Nike and the Victoria's Secret PINK workout gear. 

Do any of you have a personal favorite? I would love to know recommendations! :)

Happy Monday xx

Maddie

Past Memories

During my study hall at school, i had brought one of my old journals from home to look through, because i like to do that every once and a while. It's fun to see what I was up to in past years. Anyway, holy cow was I in a time warp. It was soooo weird to see what kind of thoughts I was thinking, and how I was perceiving the future. I was writing about what kinds of things I wanted to achieve with starting Youtube, getting my first camera, and things like that. Even a year ago I was still thinking some of the same thoughts I am today, like where the heck am I going to be in a year?? It freaks me out and I wish I could control that emotion more, but I can't. Life is going to keep moving forward no matter what.

The other night my mom had left to go to a class, so it was just me and my dad at home. Normally, after dinner he goes into the living room and works/watches tv and I clean up the kitchen and go do whatever I do. But this night, he stayed in the kitchen with me and talked to me. We had such a deep conversation, and it lasted 2 HOURS. I haven't had a conversation like that with my dad in I don't even know how long. It felt so good to get some things off of my chest, like talking about my eating disorder with him, how I'm trying to gain weight, what I think about school and how I'm doing with "future plans", he even asked me about my hobbies and I told him how I wanted to start modeling, which is something I've always been afraid of admitting! But I did and he said he is on my side no matter what. He gave me his insights about everything and I listened, and we even got a bit emotional. Honestly I loved every minute of it. We ended up hugging for a long time at the end and in that moment I felt so secure, like everything is going to end up okay. Sometimes I wish I could have more talks like that. It just gives me a sense of knowing that I'm in really good hands and that life is going to be okay during these confusing times. Anyway, I thought I would share that because it was a really special moment with my dad and I want to remember it forever.

Maddie

Simply Smile

Thats all it takes. Look in the mirror and for that one moment of catching your eyes, your reflection, just forget everything thats happening and picture happiness. If you're feeling sad, angry, confused, fearful, take a moment to travel to a different space. Close your eyes and think of a place that truly calms you and brings you a sense of comfort and joy. For me, thats imagining myself laying underneath the warmth of the sun next to the ocean. Nothing is better than the sound of crashing waves and feeling the grainy sand against my skin. It's bliss, and thats what I've been thinking about in times of panic. If you're feeling that mid-week oh my god when's friday slump, imagine yourself in your special place. Even take some time to yourself in your bedroom, close the door, light a candle and just lay and listen to nothing. Hear your thoughts and imagine your goals that you want to reach. 

I've started doing this for the past week and I don't know how but my life has done a total turn around. I'm waking up so giddy and grateful, and I've been interacting with more kids at school and making more friends…I mean is this a coincidence or am I just lucky?! I don't know, but I thought I would share with you guys something thats been helping me, just so it can help you too :)

I hope everyone is having a good week, its almost friday!!

Maddie

Some Sunday Inspiration

Ever since this little break I'm taking on my body, I feel like so many thoughts and ideas are coming to my head. I've been doing yoga in the morning when I wake up instead of my crazy workouts, and I swear it's helping to calm my mind and open my creativity. Today as I was sitting here reading through some artsy blogs, I realized that this is really what I'm meant to do, create and express myself through art.

I feel like over the past year or so I've just been lost. I've tried to adapt to certain styles and convince myself to like certain things just because they were popular, and it's hitting me now that doing that to myself is such a waste of time. Why do I want to be anybody but myself?? Everyday I pray and wish that I will "find myself" and my calling and discover my passion, when really it's been in front of me the whole time, I've just been going through a lot of shit and it's been blocking me from realizing it. 

I really am getting the urge to change everything, once again haha. I want to change my blog layout to something more me, because it's not me anymore. I've held off on getting my bedroom furniture and I don't know why, but now it's all making sense because I guess I just wasn't ready to commit to another big change. It's so funny how everything always ends up happening for a reason..I've also been wondering about getting a job and when that will happen, but I've been thinking of so many different things like interning, and even modeling, that I'm okay with not having a job yet because I know the right one will come soon.

I know it seems silly to talk about exercise the way I do, but ever since I'm taking a break I feel free. I feel like I'm finally relaxing and enjoying the present moment. I'm not worried about how many calories I burned or what kind of crazy insane workout I will do tomorrow. It's not worth that mental stress and I'm finally starting to realize that. I want to be able to look back on this journey and see what kind of progress I made through this hard time. 

After seeing some really cool artsy posts, I'm feeling realllyyy inspired and right now I just want to grab some paints and create an awesome collage or abstract painting, so I think I'm gonna do that :-) I guess this was just a quick little stop to check in :) I hope everyone is having a beautiful weekend! The rainy weather I'm experiencing is also perfect for that cozy warm artsy feeling haha!

Maddie

Daydreamin'

Lately I've been so focused and uptight about this upcoming summer, that I think it's staring to consume me a little too much. I know I shouldn't be as worried as I am about what is coming after I graduate, but when will I start to figure it out, you know? I feel like I've over thought so many things that some of what I've thought doesn't even make sense anymore, if that makes sense haha. I want so badly to get a job, blog like a real blogger, and have everything in my life just fall into place. And I know that's a lot to ask for when I'm not even 18 yet. And I guess that's social media to thank. Making it look like those perfect bloggers have their perfect lives, living out their day dream everyday. It stinks that everything takes time and patience, but then again that's the whole point of life, isn't it? To create those memories and relationships between the hard times and the journeys. 

I'm really trying hard to visualize what I want and to write down my goals, because when I used to do that when I was younger, it would always happen oddly enough. I don't know why I ever stopped that in the first place. Do any of you write down what you want to achieve, and do you find that it helps you to accomplish that goal?? 

Just daydreaming….

Maddie

Reflective Thoughts

As I sit here and eat my delicious banana oatmeal, all of the sudden I got the urge to write everything thats coming to me. I feel so good and grateful and happy and I just want everything to happen.

By that I mean all of my goals. Today I plan on creating and putting together my 2015 dream board, filled with everything I want to accomplish this year. I know I've been a bit quiet here on the blog, and thats because I've been confused. I want to make this a place where I LOVE to be, grow, share and create, and right now it's just not what I want it to be. 

All day everyday I've been thinking about the content I want to create, where I want to go with my life, different hobbies I want to pursue, and I've kind of felt like a jumbled mess! But right now in this moment, it came to me that it's okay to feel this way because thats what humans go through. It's hard to accept these annoying feelings sometimes, because it seems like everyone is always living the perfect moment, happy 24/7, and it's just not how it is. That's also another subject I really want to conquer this year: comparison. I've noticed that I've started to follow a lot more blogs and it's been kind of bringing me down. I keep thinking: "well I do it because she did it." And i've got to stop that. Ive been thinking about taking another social media break, because when I did that in September I felt better than ever, and when I came back it didn't feel so bad.

Anyway this is kind of ramble-y but that's whats going through my head. I hope everyone understands! I just want this to be the best place it can be :) I want this blog to grow with me as I do and be a place where I can look back on my life and just be grateful that I took on this path. I am feeling super motivated and energetic today to thats why it's kind of a deep one! ;)

Happy Sunday <3

Maddie

Bordeaux

This beauty of a lip gloss I picked up at Sephora a few days ago with a gift card I got for Christmas, and after walking around the store second guessing myself if I should get it, I am sooooo glad I did. It's a lip cream from Bite Beauty called "Bordeaux" and it is the most gorgeous shade of plum and burgundy. I've been looking for deep purples like this to wear on my lips because I've been feeling a little vampy lately for winter haha, so this is the perfect color. It doesn't smudge at ALL. I wore this on New Years Eve from 10 in the morning until midnight and after eating and drinking it was still purely there. I was surprised, but then again the formula is so thick and pigmented its not gonna budge. 

I also loved wearing this because its all natural, and you can basically eat it, hence the name of the brand ;) which I thought was clever! It also smells like fruit, not too overpowering, but a nice scent. 

Would you try this dark color?

Maddie

Hello 2015

Here's to new beginnings!!! Gosh I can't believe its a new year, a fresh start. I'm so glad I get to start everything over sort of haha, 2014 was a crazy year for me. It was filled with so many different emotions; confusion, loneliness, joy…but in the end its all worth it. I started public school again and even though I was considering going back to online, I stuck through it and now I love it. I've met some really good friends, I've discovered things about myself, and I've learned so so much this past year. So much about well being and happiness and the universe…its crazy.

I just want to take a second to thank everyone reading this. This is my little part of the internet, my own separate world, and I get to share whatever I want to. Not enough, and not well enough either. This year, I want my blog to grow enormously. I want to post frequently and post things that truly mean something to me. I want to broaden my comfort zone and try new things with writing and creating. Im going to push myself to do whatever I can to become a better blogger, writer, creator, photographer, you name it. 

I went through a lot this year but its all in the past now. I have a feeling like 2015 is going to be absolutely amazing, mostly because I'm graduating high school and frankly I don't even know whats coming up yet. So its scary, but so fricken exciting at the same time :)

So this is the look I wore on NYE, I felt like going all out haha! I went for a very sparkly dramatic eye, and very very dark purple lips. All of the colors on my eyes were from the Naked 2 Palette, I used Verve on my lid, YDK on my outer lid and blackout in my crease. I also smudged it under my eye and blended it with my L'oreal eyeliner kajal, which I put in both my tight line and waterline. Then for my winged liner I used my Maybelline Master Precise liquid liner, which I love and use almost everyday for my wings. And my favorite part of the look, the lips :D I went to Sephora and picked up the Bite Beauty Cashemere Lip Creme in "Bordeaux" (review coming soon). So far its absolutely gorgeous and looks so dramatic and deep haha. 

How was everyone's New Year's (Eve)? Tell me all about it!! I hope you have such a great start to the new year, and I wish you best of luck for everything, and good, positive vibes :) I love you guys!!

Happy New Year!

Maddie

New Room Decor

I finally got around to changing my room decor!! I am SO SO happy. I finally put on my new comforter, and today with my mom I bought all those pillows which I fell in love with. I especially love the big white furry ones, they caught my eye immediately. Everything in my "new" room is going to be kind of simple and white, with accents of gold, grey, and eclectic looking things. For Christmas my parents said they would buy all of the ikea furniture I was wanting, so I am so thrilled and thankful. I can't wait to get it and have everything in my room come together. I also got a cute white christmas tree and adorable teal buddha head too. I think the white fairy lights just add that feeling of coziness and warmness to the room :) Oh! How could I forget the new shaggy white rug haha! Its SOOO soft and fuzzy, but it looks really nice and fresh. 

How do you guys like it so far? I'll get better pictures of my whole room once I have my new furniture assembled and looking the way I want it to.

SO EXCITED. And there's only 4 DAYS TIL CHRISTMAS. WHAT.

Maddie

Catch Up and Room Design

Very sorry I haven't had anything new posted here, these past few days have been absolutely crazy! I haven't even been home very much at all, and I was at family's house for Thanksgiving too, but now all the hype is over and I feel like I can finally think straight again.

I wanted to share these pictures of bedroom ideas I have because I went to IKEA for the first time yesterday with my mom and I was a bit overwhelmed! I told my parents I would rather redecorate my room than get Christmas presents because to tell you guys the truth I really don't want anything for Christmas..I mean maybe a makeup palate or two and some lipstick but thats really it :/ Anyway, seeing some of the showroom ideas they had there made me want to totally empty out my room and start over, which is basically what I'm doing. 

So here's what I'm thinking: I think I want a loft bed (bunk bed). In the show room it looks absolutely ADORABLE with a sleek white couch and table underneath, with fairy lights and pictures. Oh my god I loved it, and I can't believe I have never thought about it before! It would give me like an extra 7 feet of space in my bedroom 0_0

Then I want to get one of the plain table top desks, and put the Alex 6 drawer unit on one side of it, with either shelves on top or a mirror. And as for other storage in my room, currently I have one dresser and one hutch. So instead of the dresser I have I'll get a 6 drawer one, and then for the hutch I might want one of those cool cube units to display everything I have…I still need to figure it out because there was so much to look at! Then I want to add some simple shelves on the walls, some fairy lights, and i really don't even know my brain is in a jumble haha.

This post got lengthy real fast but please let me know your thoughts on this! I neeeeeeeed help.

Happy Sunday! :)

Maddie

Setting Goals

I came across a blog earlier and the post I was reading was about setting weekly goals. Of course I've heard of this but it's the part of me that never actually did it. After reading the post, I sat staring at my computer like "why haven't I done this yet?" I had an ah-ha moment that when you write down goals for yourself to accomplish, you'll be more motivated and willing to check it off the list and have that satisfaction of completing something for yourself. 

So I think I'm going to start making this a weekly thing. I want to write and share my goals with you, and try my best to accomplish what I can during the week. And they don't have to be outrageously scary goals either, it can be something as simple as cleaning your room or going through clothes to get rid of. BUT it is important to make bigger goals too, because I do like the ones that make me feel a little bit scared :) Like, finally having the guts to apply for the job I want, or take a leap with my blog, dye my hair-haha! 

Hope this gave you a bit of inspiration on this fine day! :) Feel free to leave any of your goals down in the comments, I love hearing from you xx

Maddie

15 Things to do in the Fall

1// PUMPKIN everything

2// Tea every night before bed, with a good read

3// Dark lips

4// Dark eyes

5// Cat Eyes ;)

6// Cold, crisp walks

7// Extra holiday baking

8// Squash, sweet potatoes, roasted veggies, all that good stuff

9// Leaves. Look at them, smell them, jump in them

10// Carve pumpkins!!

11// Switch up your decor. Add some rusty colors and spicy scents to totally transform a room

12// Layers. Oh yea, scarves, jackets, coats, hats. Then socks, boots and gloves. Oh how I missed layering

13// More cozy movie nights, with hot chocolate!

14// Wear braids in your hair

15// Go outside and take pictures. Then edit those pictures and make a collage :-)

What are your favorite activities to do in the fall?

Maddie

Monday Mantra

I came across this quote on Pinterest and it couldn't be more on point. We only have so many days in our lifetime. If we experience a crappy day, which we all will more than enough times, then we experience a crappy day. But the thing is, when the day is over, it's over. And it's time to start over when the sun comes up the next day. No more living in the past, and no living in the future either. Life is all about enjoying the moment you are in RIGHT NOW. Right now. You have every right to start the day feeling happy, grateful,  and overjoyed. There is no reason to ruin a perfectly bright day with emotions and feelings from the day before. Our feelings are like the ocean. As humans, we are going to feel waves of excitement, waves of sadness, anger, whatever emotion. We need to accept how we feel and let those feelings pass. So no matter what, everyday should be a new day. Start now! Even as I'm typing this, it's giving me motivation to let go of feelings I've stacked up from a couple days and release them and start over. Believe me, it feels SO good to let everything go and be in the moment. 

Just take a really deep breath in, think about everything that's bothering you or weighing you down, and exhale it alllllll out. Then smile, blast some of your favorite music, and live in the moment and BE HAPPY :) Happy Monday! 

Maddie

I'm Thankful for...

I have to be honest, I've been going through a rough patch with coming up with blog ideas. Ever since school started, it has been a bit hard to manage this blog, school work, and other activities I have going on. It makes me appreciate all of the bloggers out there who work their butts off to create such amazing content. It blows my mind how they are able to do so much at a time and still put their all into their blogs. Some days I'll have a bunch of ideas I'll be able to do something with, and other days I'm staring aimlessly at my computer screen just waiting for something to spark. 

After sitting on my bed for a little while I grabbed an old journal of mine where I started to collect my future goals and blog/youtube ideas, and after reading through a couple of pages I just smiled and felt SO much better. Looking through those pages made me realize that I really do have a passion for this, I just needed some reminding. I think like a lot of other people, life gets in the way and sometimes when we start to compare ourselves to others we just want to stop everything and curl up in a ball in our beds haha! 

Anyway, it just got me thinking I am SO thankful for where I am today. Mentally, physically. I am so thankful for the school I'm attending, the yoga classes I'm taking (which by the way are completely life changing), the pure healthy food I eat, my soft cozy bed and sheets. Im thankful for my outstanding parents who always go out of their way to help me with whatever I need...I could go on and on. I'm thankful for the beautiful weather I walk in after dinner, the amazing hot pink and purple sunset I get to witness every night. I'm thankful for my amazing camera I was able to purchase for my birthday, all of my wonderful makeup i'm addicted to! ;) Hahaha 

So overall I think I just needed a little reminder of why I started this blog in the first place. I love to write, I have a passion for a bunch of different things, and I like to speak about my thoughts towards them. I love getting to know people online, and I love social media and branding too. When I first discovered 'blogging' and 'graphic design' a couple years ago, I was SO fascinated, and now years later I still am and I hope to have a job that involves all of the details I just listed :)

I'm so thankful for YOU reading this! :)

Maddie

Weekend Vibes

// Out of this world Persian food //

 

// Major rainstorms ending with rainbows//

// Going on a long long morning walk in the beautiful fresh rain air//

// Hurting my brain thinking about my blog design (really I've been struggling lol)//

// Lighting my pumpkin candle and doing yoga when I wake up (ah bliss)//

// Snuggling in bed with my tea catching up on youtube/blogs/magazines//

// Pinning and pinning and pinning s'more (it's a bad addiction)//

// Thinking too much about the future//

How was your weekend?

Maddie

Inspirational Work Space

I've really been wanting to spruce up my desk area in my room. Well, I guess I could say I never finished it because since I started school I kind of pushed decorating my room to the side. I have had the vision of hanging a metal board or a cork board up so i could create my own inspiration boards/mood boards. I love the idea of hanging photos up because it gets my creativity flowing, and it looks aesthetically pleasing to me haha :) Personally, I like the simple lines of shelves and lines, but I also like to add pops of color, like in the photos above. All of these pictures are from my Pinterest board, which i am dangerously addicted to! I also love to have stacks of magazines either on my desk or creating a tower on the ground, it gives off such a cool vibe to me. 

What kind of work spaces do you like to work in?

Maddie

The Moodboard Tag

This mood board is kind of all over the place, but I've been obsessing over black and white...and lately I've been really loving my body and myself, which i guess is a good thing haha! I've just enjoyed looking at myself in my mirror and admiring the body I was blessed with. Sounds a little cheesy but after reading a lot about people who don't have body parts or get sick and can't do something, it really makes me love what I have. This past week I've had so much energy and I've loved sweating and exercising, because it just releases stress and makes me feel amazing. So that's what I wanted to show in this board. Odd I know but that's just me haha! ;)

Thanks for tagging me Victoria! I tag Katie, Ashley, and Rachel :)

Maddie

Pastel Moodboard♡

I found myself wandering the realms of pinterest for over 2 hours today and felt the urge to create a moodboard on what I've been obsessing over. I created a few new boards on my pinterest and these collages kind of sum up what they're about haha! The pretty soft pastels with the white are absolutely stunning, but i also love the bright neon chalky colors too. So many decisions ;) I think after looking at so many pictures, I want my room to stem from one of these palates. Probably the one on the top, because I love the way it looks with gold and those colors could pretty much go with anything. 

Oh, and I ended up not going to school yesterday (tuesday) or monday because my city had a terrible rain storm that flooded everywhere, including some major streets and schools, so my school closed! I was taken by surprise, but having an extra two days off after the weekend felt extremely satisfying. 

I hope everyone is having a fantastic week! :) Two more days until the weekend ♡

Maddie

Sin-A-Mon

Ohhh yes. The color of the year haha! Maybelline's "Sin-A-Mon" is THE Kylie Jenner lip everyone is freaking out about, and yes I am too. I absolutely love this color and it's totally giving me 90's vibes. For this look I went with the mauve lip, and i wanted my eyes to kind of match it too. I used my Naked 2 palette, putting "tease" all over the lid and "busted" in the crease. I really love these purply mauve colors because they just create that sultry "I'm not trying that hard but still look good" look haha! Then I used the L'Oreal Miss Manga mascara and badaboom! ;)

Naked 2         "Sin-A-Mon"       L'Oreal Miss Manga 

I can't wait to wear this look into the Fall season. There are so many ways to change this look too, you could always add more bronzer, or blush, or even do some thick liner. The possibilities are ennnnndless! ;)

Maddie