Springstagram in Review

Hihi Lushies,

As my birthday is nearly upon us (can you believe it's been a year?!), I think that Spring is offically over and Summer is movin' on in. This late winter/spring has been a rough one for me, so I can't say I'm sad to see it go. Looking back through my instagrams though, I had some good times, even when I was laid up. 

I spent lots of time on the couch watching TV/movies my Mom sent me. My friend Shannon and I mutually dyed one-another's hair, I did some indoor gardening, and the boyf sent me a beautiful tree (that I've since killed) to cheer me. Now that I've gotten better, I've been spending lots of time with him and the ol' chuffmuffin, Rosie-dog. I'm glad that summer is here and my parents are even coming to visit next weekend. Things are looking up for sure. 

You don't use money, you don't pay rent,

Cait

March Coveting

1. Always Flock Together Flat

2. Fancy Cutout Scalloped Back Dress

3. By The Sea Glass Necklace

4. Super Soft Flamingo Scarf

5. Tatami Woven Classic in Peridot

6. Housewarming Your Home Top

It's all I can do to keep from falling in love with you,

Cait

Friday's Awesome Five

In just a short few days I'll be beach-bummin on my first ever jaunt to Hawaii, so pardon me if this five is a bit sun-soaked. PARDON ME, Lush Scouts!!

1. Courtney Barnett is a girl who surely knows a thing or two about sunshine--she's a new singer-songwriter from down undah! A recent discovery for me, this aussie's new single 'Avant Gardener' is guaranteed to get you chilling on your front lawn. She reminds me of Ty Segall or Kurt Vile in a way, with her psychedelic almost country sound.

1. The neon-coral Scallop Crop Vest (is that British for tank top?) is going to look so so good with my favorite pair of high-waist skinnies! It's leaving me yearning for that first day of spring where you can whip off your jacket and dance in the streets--but for now this bright and sunny top will have to do. From Topshop

3. I found this tasty sounding Candied Grapefruit Cocktail on pinterest this week, and it's kinda hard to tell if it's a cocktail or a cooking project... For people like us, that's a good thing! From Tablespoon

4. Every time that I forget and re-remember that indoor citrus trees are possible, my day is brightened! That happened today, and I spent a good amount of time learning more about how easy it is to keep a lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, or whatever tree thriving in your favorite sunny window. I have only dim windows (apartment livin'... sigh), so I'll keep this on my list for my next move!

5. Another Topshop item I want need! Summer is the best time for big purses, so that you can have everything from your current book, a bathing suit, a jar of wine, a frisbee, to an emergency cardigan (should night unexpectedly fall). From Topshop

We'll get there fast and then we'll take it slow,

-gu

Friday's Awesome Five

1. It's spring time which means it is almost summer time which means all I can think about are fruity cocktails. Forever and ever. Next on my to-do list is this Blueberry Passion Mojito.

2. Speaking of alcohol, the recenet purchase of Elysian Superfuzz was an excellent choice. Fruity but still with all the excellent qualities a good pale, we enjoyed a couple of these with a fancy ass pizza we made the other night. And seriously, who could resist the packaging?

3. Ya girl has been online shopping! I just dropped some dough at Lulus.com (among other places... sorry bout it), they've got lots of super girly and cute stuff. Maybe too much. Either way, I picked up this frilly little skirt, and Cait was very surprised! I guess spring is putting the girly girl back in Gu!

4. I'm getting a haircut today! I am so so excited! I have no clue what I'm gonna do, but I have never gotten a bad 'do from the sistas at Supernova. Whenever I get the final "so what do you think?!" there's only ever one thing to say:

5. This weekend is the Daffodil Festival in Tacoma! You wouldn't believe the gritty city would still be into this kind of thing, but the festival revolves around a group of "Daffodil Princesses" and is a debutante type of thing. They do some volunteering, throw a parade, and daffodils get painted on main intersections around town, so I'm not complaining! Check out their Facebook page for event info, I'll see ya there pre-gaming Second Saturdayz!

Brought to you by a splash of gu and a dash of Cait. 

Get Lush | Whiskey-Pink Lemonade Popsicles

As if you weren't already the life of the party, my beloved Lush Scouts! Here is a treat that will have you waking up every morning thinking of reasons to have people over that evening, just so that you can open up your freezer and watch everyone's face light up as you exclaim, "Oh hey! Who wants a popsicle with booze in it?!"

Two things are clear: Everyone wants one, and they are super-duper easy to whip up! Cait and I happen to have found the ice pop maker you see here at IKEA, but I see no shame in a tray full of paper cups with popsicle sticks stuck in the middle! Everything else is sort of up to you. If you don't want to start with a plan or a clever name in advance, any combination of what-we-had-for-girls-night-last-week can make for a great popsicle! Though come to think of it, that's a pretty clever sounding name.

Since a plain-pink pop isn't really anything to write home about, I decided to pizzazz them up with some grenadine. Now that we're all sitting at the grown-ups table at Thanksgiving (I wish!), grenadine isn't just for Shirley Temples anymore! The bottle might look like a big commitment compared to how much you actually use in any given drink, but aside from looking beautiful on the shelf, it can jazz up any drink! If you're super worried about it, just buy some orange juice make tequila sunrises--the best way I can think of to get your daily doses of vitamin C and vitamin T at the same time. Plus, I guarantee that your instagram followers are gonna FREAK about all the cute drinks you'll be drinking.

The Recipe:

1 can frozen pink lemonade

2 oz whiskey, approx.

3 tsp grenadine

Prepare the lemonade per the instructions on the can, duh. The rest of the process is a lot more art than science. The closest thing to science involved is putting in enough booze so that upon trying a pop, everyone's first reaction is "woo hoo hoooo! These things are a party!" but not enough that it runs down their arms after their first lick. Alcohol doesn't freeze. SCIENCE. I put about 1/4 shot of whiskey in each, then about 1/2 teaspoon grenadine, and filled the rest of the way with pink lemonade. Put 'em in the freezer for a day or so, and party on. Even by yourself on a rainy Wednesday morning:

Take it sleazy,

gu

Friday's Awesome Five

1. Devendra Banhart--well-known for being my spirit animal, the former hubby of Natalie Portman, and an amazing psychadelic folk star--put out a new album this week! I had no idea it was coming, so what if I don't keep up on music that well?! Mala came out on Tuesday, and definitely does not disappoint. I think that this AV Club article hits the nail on the head, this time Devendra gave us a nice combination of his humorous lyrics and beautiful dreamy songs. My personal favorite is "Your Fine Petting Duck," a teasingly sweet-yet-sour duet that even ends with a sexy little electronic riff that I definitely didn't see coming. You can listen to the whole album on NPR's First Listen, or just loop it constantly at work via spotify (guilty!). And last but not least, you can swoon over Devendra holding a dog here:

2. Homemade brown sugar is a thing?! A customer I spoke to at work today casually mentioned that she makes her own and she blew my mind! This is going on my to-do list for sure. Bakergirl has a super do-able looking recipe for it, if two ingredients even count as a recipe, and I am very excited to give it a try. Guess I'll just have to bake a ton to get rid of all the sugar I have now... Oh well! ;)
How to Make Homemade Brown Sugar

3. Maybe partying will help. Makes sense to me, lush scouts, maaaakes sense to me. From my fav streetwear site PLNDR.com. Is it summer yet?

4. GOT MY TAX RETURN!!!

5. More new music?! That's right, the next single from She & Him just dropped, from their upcoming Volume III. Not sure where they get off never coming up with new album names, but its really really hard to stay mad at them.

Love you're a strange fella,

gu