Hey lovelies! Welcome to part one of my "Staying Organized"/"Get Your Life Together, Girl" series. Today, I'm showing you how to tackle your workspace situation. I went to town today organizing my desk. For me, I find it hard to get work done in a cluttered and unorganized environment. I like things put away neatly, and in it's place (everything has a place). I don't like my workspace looking like my brain - a hot mess. If I want to get something done, I need my space to be organized and clean. Let's handle those workspace woes.
Alright so step one is to take everything off your desk. Yes, I mean everything. Make it look brand new, and wipe it down a bit (because when is the last time it was cleaned, hmm?). Finished? Okay, cool. Let's continue. 
Now we are going to see what actually belongs on your desk. Put your computer back up there, a desk calendar if you have one, and your pen holder. Stop right there. Grab your pen holder, and take out all of the unnecessary items like the pen without a cap, a pencil without led or an eraser, and the twenty extra highlighters you have in there. You should have at most two pencils, two pens, and one highlighter. The rest is all just clutter and not needed, so pop those in your desk drawer and out of the way. 
As you may notice, I have a little tray on my desk that houses things I use pretty much on the daily: my ring/paperclip tray, post-it notes, notepad, business card holder, flash drives, and a stapler. This is my catch all with things I use all of the time, and can reach quickly and easily. I would definitely suggest using one of these because it keeps small things all in one place, making your desk look instantly neater.
Now you should have at most four items on your desk (computer, calendar, pen holder, catch all tray), and it should be looking pretty neat. Now we're going to integrate some personality and design back into your space. I brought out a few of my favorite small decor items like my wooden ampersand, my Voss bottle with a fake flower, and two stone bookends. I didn't want a super boring desk because I know my creative juices will cease to flow if I only had the necessities up here. Just make sure  you are not brining more than three decor pieces into your space or else you are at risk for a messy desk once again. I brought out my dreams and schemes journals and centered them in between my bookends, and created a small creative space off to the upper right side of my desk. I drink between two and three cups of tea per day (I'm obsessed), so I put down a DIY silver coaster (which is actually just an Ikea candle lid ;) and placed my mug-of-the-day on top of it. 
Cool! Your desk is now organized and beautiful. A tip to keep it that way - don't store anything on your desk. If you needed to use a calculator for a math assignment make sure you put it away as soon as you have finished the assignment. If you were watching some Netflix while at your desk and ate a small bowl of popcorn, take the bowl off your desk. Trust me, if you let one thing slide, you are going to go back to hoarding unnecessary items on your desk again and that will defeat the purpose of all of the hard work you just put in organizing it. 
Here's to tackling your workspace woes! May your creative juices flow stronger than ever, and may your desk be clean and organized from this day forward. 
x Alicia
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I admittedly don't clean my makeup brushes as often as I should. When I think about it, it should really be a priority since those things are always touching my face. Well, that sounds wrong. Ha!

Anyhow, I watched this video from BeautyosaurusLex on YouTube and she spoke about how she cleans her brushes in her June Favorites video. I love favorites videos and I ran out and purchased the exact soap she uses to clean her brushes: Mrs. Meyers Dish Soap in the scent Basil! It smells like spring. Such a fresh scent that I won't get sick of (especially considering the frequency of which I wash my brushes).

I don't have any snazzy brush pads or mitts, but I do have these trusty old things called my hands. I put a drop of soap onto my palm and run the brush under warm water for 0.3 seconds, then swirl the brush in the palm of my hand until I see the burnt copper color of old makeup run down the drain. I then proceed to rinse the brush, then put a drop of soap directly on the bristles then massage it in until it lathers nicely. I repeat this until the soap remains a nice white foam as I'm massaging the brush, then rinse until the water runs clear. I shape the brush heads then leave them on a clean hand towel overnight, or until they dry. The next day I have fresh-scented brushes that are clean and bacteria-free! Woo!

What's your favorite way to clean your brushes, and what products do you use? One last thing - how often do you actually wash your brushes?

Hey lovelies! I teamed up with The Blogger Programme to share information about an awesome new shoe company with you all! 
Alessandra Alberta Chiolo is a new fashion start up, which owns copyright over the Albertine, module built shoes (shop: www.alexandraalbertachiolo.com). The “Albertine” concept has been developed to allow modern women, always running between work and free time, to change their look with ease!

I really love that Alessandra is working hard to see her dream come true, and that she is totally on the same wavelength as me regarding the reason behind her company. Individuality is important. It's critical that you remain true to yourself, even when it comes to fashion.  

If you want to get involved with this campaign and help Alessandra bring the Albertine to the U.S., check out her Kickstarter campaign! 
x Alicia
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Hey lovelies! Last night I got to hang out at the Kate Spade x Her Campus blogger event and check out the latest KS goodies. There was a pink bag that I was completely obsessed with (see the four photos I took with it above), and some other super cute end-of-summer/beginning-of-fall bags. My mom accompanied me to the event, and we had some sips and sweets and both left with new Kate Spade merch in tow! Keep an eye out for a blog post featuring my new KS wallet.  I wanted to look casual yet put together, so I threw on a long sleeved knit dress from Zara, a pink longline blazer which is also from Zara, and my Adidas superstars. I rolled up the sleeves on the dress and blazer to "toughen up" look just a tad. It was super comfortable, and just my style.  Thanks to Her Campus and Kate Spade for the awesome shopping party!  x Alicia BLOGLOVIN' / YOUTUBE / INSTAGRAM

Teen Vogue sponsored a Back-to-School party that I hosted on Saturday afternoon! I set my party up like a shopping event with a ton of food and snacks. My guests loved all of the products from the advertisers and had a bunch of fun taking photos in front of the photo wall! Hope you enjoyed the photos, and stay tuned for an upcoming giveaway of some of the products we had at the party. 
Special thanks to the advertisers and Teen Vogue! Aeropostale, American Apparel, Barnana, Delia's, Hask, LeSportsac, Maybelline, Not Your Mothers, OGX, Others Follow, Pasta Chips, Parsons x Teen Vogue, Ryan Porter, Simple Skincare, Staples, Tampax
x Alicia  BLOGLOVIN' / YOUTUBE / INSTAGRAM