Imaginary outfit: Summer wedding

I love this outfit for a summer wedding, and I realized after I put it together that it's kind of a fancier version of the sightseeing outfit I posted a week ago—they both feature similar feminine-but-muted colors, the exact same shoes and sunglasses, you get the drift. But seriously, isn't that dress perfect for warm summer nights? It looks like it would move beautifully. And flat sandals may not be appropriate for every wedding, but for the one I'm going to, they totally are. Add a gorgeous clutch (perfect for holding that pretty lipgloss and the sunglasses when the sun goes down) and a splash of my new favorite perfume and you're all set. I'd wear this in a heartbeat. (Click the image for all the shopping credits.) 

Hooray for summer. 

(Un)baked!: Banana bites.

I haven't been posting too many indulgent sweet treats lately because I've been trying to make healthier choices (and it's been working! Between a strict exercise regimen and, you know, not shoveling candy bars in my mouth, I've lost 11 pounds and my clothes are fitting like I want them to again and I feel really good, so yay for that).

But that being said, sometimes a girl needs something sweet. Particularly after dinner. Enter: Banana bites.

These are the easiest things in the world to make, and I am not joking. All you do is slice up a banana or two, spread some peanut butter on half the slices, and then make little peanut-butter-banana "sandwiches" with the other half. Put them on a parchment-lined baking sheet and stick it in the freezer for an hour, until they bananas are super firm. Meanwhile, melt some chocolate chips—I nuked half a bag for 30-second intervals until the chips were almost completely melted, then stirred them until totally smooth (you avoid burning the chocolate this way)—and then, when your banana sandwiches are chilled, roll them in the melted chocolate and put them back in the freezer until they're firm again (another 1-2 hours). The coolest part of the process is that, if you use chocolate chips like I did (Ghirardelli 60 percent forever!), whatever emulsifier is in the chocolate chips creates a sort of pseudo-Magic Shell when the warm chocolate hits the cold bananas. It's pretty cool. And pretty delicious. Let me know if you make them.

P.S. You can see the complete archive of Baked! posts right here.

Photo by Joy the Baker, because everyone seems to be discovering the power of chocolate covered bananas, and also her photograph is so much better than mine it's not even funny. Those suckers are tasty, but hard to take a good picture of.

Signature scent: An update.

A few months ago, I wrote about my quest to find a "signature scent"—a perfume I loved so much that I could wear it every day. I also mentioned that I'd been wearing Dior's J'Adore in the meantime, since I'd been gifted a full-size bottle of it at a charity event and it functioned as a perfectly suitable signature scent stand-in. (And yes, using fancy free perfume while searching for a signature scent is definitely a first world problem.) And because I know you're on the edges of your seats wondering whether my perfume dilemma has been solved, I'll tell you right now that no, it hasn't. (Cue sad trombone.)

I've always been attracted to scents that remind me of Florida—orange blossom, for example, or gardenia. I've been dying to get my hands on a sample of this Coqui Coqui orange blossom perfume ever since I read about it on The Littlest Blog awhile back, but I've also been hesitant to take the plunge and spend money on it because I don't know if I'll like it, or that it won't fade or smell weird on my skin or give me a headache (which has been known to happen).

So I'd kind of resigned myself to the idea of using the J'Adore and that being the end of it, until I happened to spritz on some of Estee Lauder's Tuberose Gardenia the other day while out shopping with my friend Kate. You guys, I sprayed it on, rubbed my wrists together, and then proceeded to sniff myself every 15 minutes or so for the rest of the night. The gardenia scent is so true, and best of all, it lingered for a good long while. The lovely woman at the perfume counter was nice enough to gave me a sample to take home, so I can use it for the next few days before deciding if I want to buy it, but trust me, it's really great. Signature scent found? Finally, finally, the answer may be yes.

Any scents you're loving lately? Please share—I'd love to hear!

Photo: My own. 

What are you doing this weekend?

Happy Friday, friends! Did you have a good week? What are your plans for the weekend?

Since I'm traveling next week, I'm going to use the next few days to get my stuff in order—make a packing list, straighten up the house, pick up extra supplies for the kitties, do laundry, etc. So it'll be quiet, but productive (hopefully).

Oh, and in the meantime, here are three fun links:

Ashley's amazing—and amazingly detailed—Paris travelogue (part I, part II) is only fueling my desire to get to that city someday soon. Also, the photographs are stunning (I mean, the light). Yeah, totally not helping the wanderlust...

I like this song and its message a lot.

Martha Stewart doesn't give a damn.

And in case you missed anything here this week: A happy list, an imaginary outfit for sightseeing in San Diego, the easiest no-cook summer salad with burrata (!) and the Year of Lettering project.

Have an excellent weekend, friends! See you here Monday. xoxo

Photo via Hither and Thither

The year of lettering.

Have you heard of Kelly Cummings' "year of lettering" project? It's really lovely: She started it to practice her lettering skills and posts her progress often, featuring fun/funny/inspirational quotes. I am not any good at calligraphy, but at some point I was exposed to it at school (I had a legitimate calligraphy pen for awhile and loved writing with it), and it's one of those things I wish I could force myself to do again, because it's so pretty. For now, though, I'll just check Kelly's site to get my lettering fix. (Don't you just love that Fitzgerald quote? Ah, the romance.)