What I Wore to Work: April 2020.

     April 2020: both the slowest and fastest month that's ever happened. Anyone else feel me? Each hour seemed to go by with the speed of a turtle... but at the same time it was one big blur and I can't believe it's April 30th! 

     I feel very lucky to still be employed at the end of this month. It's broken my heart to hear about so many people, both locally to me and around the country that have been furloughed or laid off. 😥 Please know if that's you that I'm thinking of you and praying for you each day! Anyways, I am still going into work instead of doing the morning show from home. (About half of our staff is still coming in.) Fortunately I spend 90% of my workday in a studio, so aside from being with Marc for several hours a day, social distancing at work hasn't been hard. 

     I have still been dressing up as usual for work, it definitely helps me to feel some sense of normalcy! As always, details about everything I wore to work can be found on my LIKEtoKnow.it page. Here are my April outfits:

Midweek Ramblings.

{I finally got to walk the campus of Darden, UVA's business school, last week! It's so beautiful. Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

Renting vs. Buying as a Single Woman.

     Today's blog post is a fun one, and hopefully it will be an informative one as well! One of my best friends, Ciera, is joining me to co-write this today. Every now and then on the blog I enjoy having friends help me write posts on a subject that they know a lot about, and Ciera was the perfect pick for this subject.

    I met Ciera during freshman orientation at the college that I went to freshman year, which was now almost eight (!!) years ago. Even though I transferred colleges sophomore year, we remained good friends for the rest of undergrad. Ciera moved to Charlotte after she got her first job, and we lived together as roommates for our first year post-grad. Upon the end of our year-long apartment lease, I moved to Vermont in April 2017 for my first radio job and began a lease on a one bedroom apartment. Ciera meanwhile stayed in Charlotte and bought her first HOUSE at the ripe age of 22! I was so excited that she closed on it just before I moved, so I was able to see it with her before I left for Vermont. 

     Since we parted ways as roommates three years ago, I've gone on to live in two more apartments here in Virginia, and have remained content as a renter during my 20s. Ciera ended up successfully selling her first home in Charlotte, and bought a new one in Texas when her job transferred here there in 2018. Renting has 100% been the right choice for my lifestyle since college, and buying has been 100% right for Ciera and her lifestyle. What we have in common is both of us are 25, four-ish years out of college, and single (Ciera has a boyfriend but I mean single in terms of not being married). Yet our living situations are very different.

    I'm going to share what I think are a few of the pros and cons for renting as a single 20-something, and then Ciera will share some pros and cons that she's experienced with home ownership. It can be tough as a single woman to have to figure out decisions for your housing and future on your own- we both know that firsthand! When you're married or in a serious live-in relationship, making a choice on housing is completely different as you most likely have two full-time incomes, with two people to take on the responsibility of whatever type of home you choose. It's very different when you're a single adult, which is why I wanted to write this blog post.

2020 Southern Belle in Training Reader Survey.

    Can you believe it's already that time of the year again? Time to share my annual reader survey for the blog + Instagram!

ImPRESS Nail Review - The Best Press-On Nails!

     Last October, my life was forever changed thanks to a beauty discovery! Okay- maybe saying "forever changed" is a slight exaggeration. 😉But hey, it's been over six months now since I first tried ImPRESS nails and I'm still obsessed with them. I finally shared an IGTV tutorial for how I apply them this week, so I wanted to include some extra info to go along with that on the blog as well!

Midweek Ramblings.

{Hanging with Delilah yesterday afternoon! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

Spring 2020 Try-On: Quarantine Shopping Purchases.

    I normally have very good self control with online shopping. However, my normal self control was definitely not showing up during the first few weeks of staying home for COVID-19. 😬The sales that my favorite retailers have been offering online have just been too good! Like, better than Black Friday prices. 

    A disclaimer before sharing all of these things: I know that things are very tough financially right now for a lot of folks between the mass layoffs, furloughs, and other employment hardships right now. I have been extremely lucky to still be employed. If I wasn't, I would 100% not be making these purchases right now. Please do not feel any pressure to buy more things during this time if this is your current situation. I'm sure this all goes without saying, but I wanted to give that disclaimer anyways!

    Everything that I've purchased in the last few weeks was all marked down under $50 at the time I purchased, with many things being under $25 as well! All of these items are things I expect to wear all the time this spring and summer. For me personally, I can justify making impulse purchases if they're 1) 50% off or more and 2) something that I will wear and use all the time, which I am excited to do with all of these. So excited to share with you everything that I've gotten! My sizing info is also listed on everything (and I wear a size 9 in women's shoes- all the pairs I got are true to size). 

TRAVEL GUIDE: Ultimate Guide to Kennebunk & Kennebunkport Maine.

    Welcome to my hometown region in Southern Maine! I'm excited to finally bring you this Travel Guide, which is quite honestly many years overdue. The Kennebunks is a charming region of Maine to plan a visit to, and I'm excited to share a local's perspective with you. I was born and raised in Kennebunk, and I lived there until moving away for college. Although I've never moved back home as an adult, my parents are still there so I do enjoy visits home a few times a year. Even though I know Kennebunk as my hometown, it could be a perfect summer vacation spot for you!

     (Originally written in 2020, updated in 2023)

Midweek Ramblings.

{Delilah had her hand at modeling on my Instagram for a pet product collaboration earlier this week! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}

10 of My Unpopular Opinions.

     My blogger friends Nicole from What Nicole Wore and Cara from Caralina Style both shared blog post versions of the 10 Unpopular Things tag that started on Facebook a few weeks ago. I really enjoyed reading both their posts to see which of their list items I agreed and disagreed with. I thought thought it would be fun to make this a post on my blog too- I can't wait to see which of my list y'all agree and disagree with! 

5 Sales To Check Out This Weekend!

     How have I been getting through this time of social distancing while staying sane? Two words: online shopping. A lot of my usual monthly expenses are completely paused (gas, eating out, etc), so I've had some extra cash over the past few weeks. I am putting some of it away in savings, but it's also been fun to treat myself a little more than usual. And a lot of the online sales that have been happening have been really good! It is a little overwhelming on how many retailers are offering big discounts right now- so for today I just want to share five sales that are on my personal radar for this week. If there's any you've been shopping that I don't list- please share in the comments! 😊

                                                     

Midweek Ramblings.

{The Easter bunny cake I made last weekend! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk} 

Checking In...

     Hey Friends- happy Monday! Yes- I did say happy. 😊As stressful as these times are, I'm still trying to make it a good start to the week.

      I've been continuing doing my Wednesday Midweek Ramblings blog posts, where I share little weekly updates about how things have been going. But for today's blog post I wanted to get a little more in-depth then that- with how I'm really feeling and doing with everything going on. My radio co-host Marc also had a health scare last week where he thought he might be positive for COVID-19, and honestly I'm still processing all of the emotions with that, too! 

Four Easy DIY Lilly Pulitzer Craft Ideas!

     Calling all my Lilly lovers today! Lilly Pulitzer is a lot more than just a clothing brand to me- being a Lilly lover is honestly a lifestyle. 😉I love incorporating touches of Lilly colors and prints into other aspects of my life aside from my closet. I have two Lilly Pulitzer keychains, a variety of Lilly cups, mugs and wine glasses, Lilly Pulitzer travel accessories... you get my point!

     Since we are all spending more time at home right now, I wanted to round up four easy DIY projects that I've made, inspired by Lilly Pulitzer! Three out of the four are creative ways to repurpose Lilly catalogs or mailers, and the final one is a painting project which is a bit more time consuming than the other three, but still easy to do overall. 

Midweek Ramblings.

{Scenes from a socially distanced weekend outside at home! Follow me on Instagram @miss_alk}