Friday Roundup: Love Yourself

Coupled-up, single, it doesn't matter.
Today, unlike most companies insist on telling us (Hallmark, I'm looking at you!) shouldn't be about whether we are in a relationship or not. I am all for celebrating love, but not this kind of exclusive "Only couples celebrate today" love. I believe, today more than any other day, that loving oneself is a far more important journey. Not an easy one, I'll tell you that. Forgiving yourself and accepting your flaws sometimes proves a million times more difficult than forgiving someone else for their shortcomings. Living happily is directly related to how much we love and value our lives, regardless of our relationship status.

In honor of that, today's Friday Roundup is all about quotes that have stuck with me and remind me to love myself first:


1. "To love yourself is the beginning of a lifelong romance."
- Oscar Wilde

2. "I have an everyday religion that works for me. Love yourself first, and everything else falls into line."
- Lucille Ball

3. "If you want to soar in life, you must first learn to F.L.Y.  (First Love Yourself)"
- Mark Sterling

4. "People often say that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I say that the most liberating thing about beauty is realizing that you are the beholder."
- Salma Hayek

5. "Let today be the day you love yourself enough to no longer just dream of a better life; let it be the day you act upon it."
- Steve Maraboli

Yes, it's supposed to be "You're" but still a lovely sentiment!
Source

6. "Love yourself. You are the person you have to live with for the rest of your life."
- Unknown (to me)

7. "It's not selfish to love yourself, take care of yourself, and to make your happiness a priority. It is necessary."
- Mandy Hale

8. "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched  - they must be felt with the heart."
- Ellen Keller

9. "Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship."
- Buddha

10.  "How I feel about myself is more important than how I look. Feeling confident, being comfortable in your skin - that's what really makes you beautiful."
- Bobbi Brown

Big Friday Roundup: Valentine's Day Edition

Hi everyone.
My husband and I aren't big Valentine's day celebrators. However, we do love to get all lovey-dovey every once in a while... (fiiiiine I love to get all lovey-dovey) which is why V-day gives me the perfect excuse to present you with this romantic roundup.


DATE IDEAS

1. A massive list of 55 date ideas, brought to you by Sunglass Warehouse

2. Sequins And Scissors also has a bunch of fun ideas for bonding with your significant other!

3. I am loving Shannon Brown's sweet "date planner" so much! Major props for creativity.

4. These 12 date ideas by Babble are amazing, because they will get you out of the routine by doing something unique and different!

5. Is budget an issue? Then creativity is your best ally... and this list from Mama's Coffee Shop!



GIFT GUIDES

Still haven't found that perfect gift? Maybe these can help:

1. Valentine's Day Gift Guide For Him And Her, by thecluelessgirl.com

2. Valentine's Day Gift Ideas For Everyone, by LaurenConrad.com

3. Gifts For The Special Guy In Your Life, by iVillage

4. Another Gift Guide: Boyfriend Edition, by The Trendblazer


MUSIC
No good date would be complete without a proper playlist, right? Here is my selection for those nights when you are 100% sure you are the only two people on the planet:

1. How Long Will I Love You - Ellie Goulding
Her voice alone is enough to spice up any date, but couple it with the incredibly nostalgic piano and lyrics and even take-out at home in your sweatpants would seem romantic. (This is actually the song I have on repeat All. The. Time. at the moment!):

"How long will I love you? As long as stars are above you. And longer if I may..."

2. Baby Can I Hold You - Tracy Chapman
Actions speak louder than words, as this song conveys oh-so-beautifully. And Tracy Chapman... if there ever was a more seductive singer!

"Words don't come easily... but you can say baby, baby can I hold you tonight?"

3. Make It To Me - Sam Smith
Oh my... oh my... I just don't even have words for how sexy, romantic, sensual, EVERYTHING this song is:

"... you're the one designed for me..."

4. The Story - Brandi Carlile
Part of "The Lucky One" soundtrack. Enough said. (I couldn't even choose just one favorite line from the song:)

"It's True... I was made for you"
"Even when I was flat broke, you made me feel like a million bucks"
"These stories don't mean anything, when you've got no one to tell them to."
"I broke all the rules... but baby, I broke them all for you."

5. XO - Beyonce
Granted, everything Beyonce does is sexy as hell, so of course she had to be included in this list with her beautiful and heartfelt song "XO".

"In the darkest night hour, I'll search through the crowd, your face is all that I see."

FOOD

1. Conversation Heart Chocolate Cake  by Passionforbaking.com  (Scroll down for English)

2. Cherry Chip Sponge Cake by Sprinklebakes.com

3. No-Bake Oreo Cakesters by Plain Chicken

4. Chocolate Cupcakes With Sprinkles by Passionforbaking.com  (scroll down for English)

5. Baking not your forte? Valentine's Popcorn, by She Wears Many Hats, will save you! Even I could make them!

FASHION AND BEAUTY

1. Outfit Idea For The Classic Girl:

Source

2. Outfit Idea For The Urban, Easygoing Girl:

Source by Stylish Eve on Polyvore

3. Outfit Idea For The Girly Girl:

Source

4. Outfit Idea For The Trendy Girl:

Source

5. MissGlamorazzi's easy yet flirtatious hairstyles for a romantic date:

6. A smoky makeup how-to for a glamorous date, by Tanya Burr:

7. Urban Decay's new Naked 3 Palette is their most romantic and flirty to date, with a dreamy collection of rose golds, mauves, and purply pink hues:

8. Want even more fashion inspiration? Check out LaurenConrad.com's 4 Valentine Day's Outfit Ideas

Friday Roundup: Mind-Blowing Art

Another week, another Friday roundup. If you don't know what that is, three Fridays ago I started a series where at the end of each week I will pick a theme and then post a selection of Internet finds related to that theme. Pat yourself on the back for making it through the whole week, relax and enjoy this week's roundup.

Today's theme is mind-blowing art. The level of creativity and skill of some artists is oftentimes nothing short of astounding. I don't even consider myself an art-lover, but this is something else. See what I'm talking about:

1. This super inspirational artist from New Orleans creates art just by using one piece of charcoal and gliding and stretching her body on a huge canvas. You can see the whole story here.

2. Daniel Dancer creates large scale art on the ground, to be seen from the sky. He created an exhibition called "Art Of The Sky", where he displays incredible pieces that are many yards long, but look incredibly natural seen from above, such as these two:

3. Using the body as a canvas is nothing new. However, Chadwick Gray and Laura Spector have completely taken it to the next level: they recreate famous paintings on Chadwick's body. Jaw-dropping is an understatement in this case:

4. This next artist creates skylines out of wood. Don't let that fool you though, they are not nearly as simple as they sound:

5. Ron Mueck creates these gigantic human sculptures. The realism is totally mind-blowing (aaaand that's why this features on this round-up. Bet you wouldn't have figured that one out!)

No, this is NOT my grandpa...

I hope you enjoyed this week's roundup. This is enough proof that there are really no limits to what the human race can do. Why not make an effort today to let go of some of the limits and barriers we create upon ourselves? Discover your potential and use it to create your own version of mind-blowing!

Friday Roundup: Funny YouTube Videos

Continuing with the trend we started last week, every Friday I will pick a theme and compile a list of useful, funny or interesting Internet finds. Today's turn is for the videos that have made me laugh the loudest lately (No, no funny cats in here!):


1. Sean can tell you just how obsessed I am with Ellen. So, naturally, she comes first with this gem:

2. Even "Mr.-I'm-so-serious" Sean was laughing out loud with this one:

3.  The funniest (saddest?) part about this next video is that this could totally happen to me:

4. I mean, if you are going to commit a crime, at least be smart about it!

5. And to think my husband was so lame to propose to me on one knee!!  I'm claiming my money back!!

This is great, because whenever I am feeling a little down I can always come back to this and it will instantly lift my mood. I mean, who doesn't feel instantly better knowing that as bad as things may seem, they at least haven't burned their hair off?

Top 5: Brownie Recipes

Once upon a time, when people were going to throw a party, cook a recipe, plan a wedding, or just wanted some inspiration, they had to go to google, search several different websites until they finally found what they were looking for amongst all the information available. Then Pinterest came, and everything changed. All of a sudden, we had this world full of ideas, pictures and everything imaginable to draw inspiration from in one single place, and with the ability to keep it all nice and tidy in your own boards, so you can come back to them when you need them.

I remember when I was younger I had a cork board in my room, filled with photos, magazine pictures, and the odd quote. Now I have 24 boards on Pinterest that provide me with inspiration when I am not feeling very creative; some of the ideas we are going to use for our wedding, for example, are taken from there (with our own twist, you know, to make it "original").

One of the categories I like to browse the most is the food. I cannot cook to save myself, but I love eating, specially if it's something I am not supposed to (naughty Veronica!). Staying true to that, I am choosing here five brownie recipes that are in my opinion, the most scrumptious, decadent ones I have found on Pinterest so far:


1. Red Velvet Brownie Pie, from Crazy For Crust
For all of us fans of red velvet cupcakes, this red velvet brownie pie is nothing short of perfect. Full of chocolate chips and deliciousness, you can even add some whipped cream on top if you are feeling particularly naughty. For our American and Canadian friends, who are celebrating Thanksgiving pretty soon, this pie would be absolutely fitting. And for those of us who don't have Thanksgiving, we can still take a second and give thanks that there is something so delicious in the world for us to taste, because really, who isn't thankful for chocolate?

2. Rocky Road Brownies, by Martha Stewart
My Kiwi fiancé is absolutely nuts for Rocky Road (pun intended). I do like it, but nuts and marshmallows aren't really my favorite thing. However, these brownies look so good that it might just be what it takes for me to be a Rocky-Road convert. Oh, and let's not forget that it's Martha Stewart who is providing this recipe!

3. Strawberry Brownie Crumble, from It Bakes Me Happy
This has naughty deliciousness written all over it. I'm pretty sure I would have absolutely no problem eating this whole dish in one go, it looks that good. I think I would also add some bananas to it, to make it even yummier.

4. Brownie Chocolate Chip Cookies, from Gourmandiseries
This recipe is originally in French, but you can also read it in English here. One of the things I like most about this recipe is how easy and simple it is. If you aren't gifted with the talent of cooking/baking, like me, you will most likely still be able to make these and they will actually taste good! amazing, in fact! This will probably be the one I start with, as it looks easy enough for me and I just can't wait to try those chewy cookies!

5. Chewy Nutella Brownies, from Finding Silver Linings
I was saving the best for last: Nutella! Nutella and I have a very close relationship. It comes with me wherever I go: it has accompanied me in the cold months in Germany, in the lonely months in Medellin, in the stressful months in New Zealand... I can always count on it. Oh, Nutella... you sweet sweet guilty pleasure!... okay, weird praise over. But seriously, if I could only make one of these recipes it would definitely be this one. Just look how chewy these brownies look!

Do you love brownies and chocolate and naughty food just as much?  (what a silly question, of course you do!). Do you have any more amazing brownie recipes I have to try?

F is for Friday's Frozen Yogurt!

My friday is going by way too slowly... I am stuck in the office, and while I do enjoy my job most of the time, today is just a blah day with not many people coming in and me feeling really crappy due to an unwelcome cold. I was definitely having a case of the "friday-blues" (I know that's not a thing, but hey, who says I can't start my own "thing"). For me the friday blues happen when I really really really need a weekend break, but the hours until it comes are going by extra-slowly... or does that only happen to me?

Pretty much since I woke up today, I was dreaming of finishing work and going to get my favorite frozen yogurt (one of my biggest weaknesses). Alas, I did not succeed in waiting until work was over, and had to have a 15 minute break to go and get it. And it felt like the BEST. FROZEN. YOGURT. EVER! It was such a foodgasm moment for me, that I had to take my iPhone out and capture it, so here it is:

There is absolutely no better combination in this world for me than that of chocolate and strawberries. I really try sometimes to make it a little bit healthier and change the chocolate chips for fruits, such as bananas or mangoes, but today was not one of those days. I enjoyed every single bite of it and returned to work only to find that I still had two hours left of work to do... but hey, those two hours are so much easier to handle after a quick chocolate pick-me-up, right?

The world is now invaded by fro-yo of every kind, with every imaginable flavor and toppings, so most people have a particular preference, or certain toppings they get every single time. My fiancé, for example, loves his with cherries and chocolate sauce, which I don't really care for, but each to their own. So how do you prefer your frozen yogurt? And please tell me, what are your tips and tricks to tolerate those long, torturous hours before the weekend?