Chicisms - Part 5

5 Tips to Organize Your Life

Hit refresh by organizing and cutting out the clutter. Here are five simple tips to help you organize your life:

1. Find your perfect planner. Organize everything by writing it down in a planner or your Google Calendar (or both). Set alerts, write to-do lists and plan your day ahead of time to make sure you get things done. Color code important events/tasks like class, work, exams and errands to help organize your planner further and keep it looking pretty.

I purchased a 17-month agenda from Ban.do and I was really excited to start using it once August 1st came around. This agenda comes with fun stickers, color-coded month tabs with fun illustrations and quotes for every month and fun to-do’s for every weekend (like “Clean your house in roller skates” and “Throw some confetti”). Check out Ban.do’s blog post on where you can find their fun agenda.

2. Make schedules and deadlines for yourself. Clean the house before tomorrow. Do laundry at 12 pm on Wednesday. Finish writing that paper by Thursday at 3 pm. Work on the design for two hours on Friday.

Prioritize your tasks and create schedules and deadlines for each of them to make sure you devote time to each and complete them.

3. Do things one at a time.

Trying to get three things done at once is, most likely, not going to benefit you. Focus on one project at a time to simplify and do things more efficiently.

4. Declutter.

Someone once told me that a cluttered desk meant a cluttered mind. It’s true. Split up areas of your home and/or workspace and take time to declutter each area one by one to keep your head clear and organized.

5. Take a break. Everyone needs one.

You can’t stay organized while stressed. Remember to take a break and enjoy time with others and by yourself. Take a hike, see a concert, read a book or do yoga.

California Mid State Fair - Train Concert

Train at the California Mid-State Fair

Do you have any tips for organization? Share them in the comments below!

xo, Leila

Leila2018-02-16T20:26:08-08:00August 4th, 2014|Categories: Lifestyle|Tags: organization, tips|1 Comment

Recipe File: Apple Bread Pudding

If you’re in need of comfort food that is slightly sweet and completely delicious, this apple bread pudding recipe is calling your name.

What you need (for one 8 inch square pan):

6 slices day-old bread (I used Sprouted Multigrain & Seed bread from Whole Foods)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 box (or 1 oz) raisins
3 eggs, beaten
2 cups milk
3/4 white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sliced apples

For the Vanilla Sauce:

1/6 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 – 1/3 cup water
1.5 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Slice the bread into cubes.
In a large mixing bowl, mix together the milk, eggs, sugar, butter, cinnamon and vanilla.
Add the sliced bread cubes, sliced apples and raisins into the egg mixture. Slightly toss so that the bread cubes are coated.
Pour the bread and egg mixture into a well-greased 8-inch square pan. With a fork, slightly push down on the bread and apples so that they are somewhat covered by the egg mixture.
Bake in preheated oven for 40 minutes.
While the bread pudding is baking, combine the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a saucepan.
Stir in the water until the mixture is smooth.
Bring to a slight boil over medium heat and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
Remove from heat. Stir in the butter, vanilla and nutmeg. Serve with warm bread pudding.

Happy eating! :)

Leila2022-01-06T19:39:55-08:00July 2nd, 2014|Categories: Recipes|Tags: apple bread pudding, desserts, recipe, recipe file|1 Comment

Santa Barbara Public Market – A Place Filled With Treasures

If you happen to find yourself on the Central Coast of California, be sure to stop by the Santa Barbara Public Market.

Walking into the Santa Barbara Public Market, you’re greeted with a bright and beautiful interior. The Market is bustling with people trying samples of Chocolate Orange Bread at Crazy Good Bread Co. and enjoying lunch at Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar. Organic produce and drinks line one wall while the rest of the Market is filled with individual businesses offering something unique.

As you take a lap around the Public Market, you will find everything from delicious cupcakes, an indoor wine and beer bar, and fresh seafood (the oysters caught my attention). And that’s not even half of it.

The LEED certified market opened on April 16 of this year in downtown Santa Barbara, just blocks away from great shopping. On their website, Santa Barbara Public Market states that “with an ardent focus on local farms and artisanal ingredients, the Public Market will present Santa Barbara residents and nomads alike with a very well-stocked pantry for their daily foraging.” And that they do.

In addition to organic produce (in a location that they wonderfully call “Foragers Pantry”), the Santa Barbara Public Market features a collection of unique “purveyors” who each bring something different to the Market. Empty Bowl Gourmet Noodle Bar features authentic noodle bowls inspired from Thai and Taiwanese cuisine. Pair cheese and salumi from The Culture Counter Co. with handcrafted loaves of bread at Crazy Good Bread Co., then take it to the Wine + Beer Bar. Sustainable and humanely-raised meats can be found at Belcampo Meat Co., freshly made pasta at The Pasta Shoppe and fresh seafood at Santa Monica Seafood. Try olive oils and vinegars from il Fustino.

For non-alcoholic drinks, Green Star Coffee offers coffee from 100% organic fair-trade coffee beans roasted locally. JuiceWell also offers fresh pressed vegetable and fruit juices.

For dessert, make sure to grab unique and delightful cupcakes from Enjoy Cupcakes and/or organic ice cream from Rori’s Artisanal Creamery.

Santa Barbara Public Market has something to offer everyone, whether you are just looking for organic and fresh produce or are looking for a bite to eat.

The Public Market is located at the corner of West Victoria and Chapala streets and opens at 7 a.m. daily, though hours may differ for each shop.

The cupcake flight of the week from Enjoy Cupcakes. This week’s flight was (from left to right, back row first): Strawberry Orange Creamsicle, Chocolate Blackberry Syrah, Salted Caramel Bailey’s Cream, Maple Cookies and Cream, Ginger Peach Chardonnay, and S’mores.

I absolutely loved each and every one of these cupcakes. They were light, not too sweet, and tasted so great. It’s too difficult to pick just one favorite so my top three are Ginger Peach Chardonnay, S’mores and Chocolate Blackberry Syrah.

Enjoy Cupcakes also offers cakes, mousse cups and cake puddings. Yum!

Culture Counter Co. offers a curated selection of cheese and salumi from the U.S. and a mix of cheeses from around the world. What’s neat is that they offer “Culture Cones” which are cones of either meats or cheeses. Talk about a great snack to have as you wander through the Market!

Leila2018-02-16T20:28:49-08:00May 19th, 2014|Categories: Travel|Tags: Food, santa barbara, santa barbara public market, Travel|0 Comments

J.Crew Says ‘J.Crew Mercantile’ is Just a Name They Own

‘J.Crew Mercantile’ might be nothing more than a name after all.

On May 2, people “familiar with the situation” told the Wall Street Journal that J.Crew owns the name J.Crew Mercantile and is developing a more budget-friendly line. According to the people, the new line will feature merchandise and prices closer to what shoppers would find at J.Crew’s outlet stores, J.Crew Factory.

However, on May 7, J.Crew CEO Mickey Drexler told WWD that the company bought the license to the name ‘Mercantile’ simply because he liked the name.

“Mercantile is a name we own. There’s not much beyond that,” said Drexler. “It’s a name that was available and we liked. The way we run the company, we are always thinking creatively, innovating , and managing our assets. We have secured names and trademarks with either loose ideas or intentions, or with our imaginations. Sometimes things come of it, or they don’t.”

So will a lower-priced line called J.Crew Mercantile actually happen? We’ll have to wait and see.

Leila2018-02-16T20:28:55-08:00May 10th, 2014|Categories: Fashion|Tags: fashion news, j.crew, j.crew mercantile|0 Comments

Recipe File: Strawberry Kiwi Smoothie

Smoothies are quick to make, healthy and taste oh-so-good. Make yourself a refreshing kiwi strawberry smoothie for those hot spring/summer days.

Ingredients (for 1 serving):

2 kiwis (cut into chunks)
1/2 cup strawberries
1/4 cup tangerine (or orange) juice
2 spoonfuls plain Greek yogurt
1 teaspoon coconut oil

Put all the ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth!

Leila2017-04-17T15:28:18-07:00April 30th, 2014|Categories: Recipes|Tags: recipe, smoothie, strawberry kiwi smoothie|0 Comments