Friday Favorites #142: Week of 5/20

Good morning! I hope you all are coming off of a great week. It’s Friday! Who’s excited?

Scott and I don’t have much on deck for the weekend besides attending a 2-year-old’s birthday party in the park later this afternoon, babysitting, and more organizing and settling into our apartment. It’s a process I tell you.

I’m actually looking forward to laying low for a few days. Life has been pretty crazy over the past few weeks, so I’ll take all the downtime we can get while we still have some. I’ll be back to share any weekend adventures worth noting.

Now onto this week’s Friday Favorites. Don’t forget to link up at the bottom with your #FFavorites posts, too!

 

Friday Favorites #142: Week of 5/20

• EcoTools angled kabuki brush

I’ve been using a kabuki brush to apply my powdered foundation for years. In fact, it’s all I’ve turned to ever since I started wearing . The that came with my starter kit got me through a few years (eek!), and I finally replaced it with a new one just a few months ago.

You can find a variety of kabuki brushes at beauty supply stores like Ulta or Sephora, but I found my for a bargain at Target. From what I recall, it was around $10 and does the job just fine!

 

• IKEA glasses

I’ll be the first to admit that I wasn’t initially the biggest IKEA fan. The first few experiences I had in the store (back when we lived in Orlando) were overwhelming, and I thought that all of the furniture was tiny. Funny thing is, now that we actually live in a small apartment, I want the tiny furniture.

I am grateful that there is an IKEA store only a few miles down the road from us in Brooklyn, and we have already been in and out of the store a handful of times. We ordered a dresser and storage bed (hallelujah!) that will be delivered this weekend, so until then, the highlight of our most recent trip was finding these glasses.

GODIS Glasses ($4.99/6-pack) // IVRIG White & Red Wine Glasses ($2.99 each)

For whatever reason, Scott and I put our crystal wine glasses in storage, and we can’t find our every day glasses anywhere. Can you believe that everything you see pictured above cost less than $20? I was skeptical of the quality at first, but they feel considerably heavy. The glass is legit. I love them and just might go back for another GODIS pack!

 

• the best gelato … in New York?

You guys. We found the best gelato! And … this is coming from someone who has been to Italy.

Scott raved about it a few weeks ago, but last night was the first time I was able to try L’albero dei gelati for myself. They have a café, bakery, restaurant, and a gelato window (all next to each other), and they only use fresh, seasonal fruit, organic milk and cream, cocoa, and sugar in their gelato.

I picked the mint chocolate chip flavor, of course. Almost all of the flavors were out by the time we walked over last night, and I totally understand why. If you’re ever near the Park Slope area in Brooklyn … do yourself a favor and drop by 5th Avenue. It’s so worth it!

 

• hidden litter box enclosure

One of the biggest worries I had when we decided to move into an apartment again was how the pets were going to handle close quarters. I was just as concerned with how we were going to be able to adjust to having a litter box out in the open. The bathroom isn’t big enough for it, and it didn’t really “go” anywhere else … until now.

I mentioned wanting to get some type of cover that hides the litter box to Scott early on, and I was excited when he found and ordered this one. It’s more expensive than we hoped, but it has already proved to be well worth the investment. We change it every morning, and we don’t even notice that it’s right there in the living room with us. Really.

 

• crochet shorts

I might be a year (or two?) late on this trend, but I finally found a pair of on a recent trip into Kohl’s.

I found a similar pair at Express not too long ago, but I never purchased them. I like how this Rewind brand fits with a low and an elastic waistband, and I’m looking forward to sporting them around the city this summer. Are we there yet?

 

• cilantro rice and white bean salad with hard-boiled egg

Those of you who follow LIL on Snapchat (username: lifenleggings) might recognize this salad. It’s easy to make ahead and is a great, healthy option to pack and turn to on a quick lunch break at work or at home.

I hinted that I might share the recipe with you, so today I’m here to deliver. Just to throw this out there, I usually don’t enjoy the taste of kale, but I absolutely love it drenched in the lemon juice.

(Courtesy of PlateJoy!)

 

Ingredients

• 3 ⅓ cups kale
• 1 ¼ lemons
• ½ cup brown rice
• ½ shallot
• 4 tbsp chopped cilantro
• 6 oz white beans
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 2 ¼ hard-boiled eggs

Directions

1. Wash kale and chop into bite-size pieces, removing the tough center ribs and stems. Add to a bowl. Drizzle with lemon juice and massage with your hands.
2. Prepare rice according to package instructions.
3. Mince shallot. Coarsely chop cilantro. Add both to the bowl along with drained white beans and cooked rice.
4. Meanwhile, to make dressing, whisk together olive oil and red wine vinegar plus salt and freshly ground pepper in a small bowl.
5. Add dressing to bowl and toss to coat. Top with hard-boiled eggs.

 

Make eggs easier to peel by cracking them all over and rolling them on the counter, to get air under the peel. Then, peel under cold water to help release the shell!

(Also, see how I make the perfect easy-to-peel hard-boiled eggs.)

Enjoy!

 

• Friday funnies

This Toddlerography video with James Cordon and Gwyneth Paltrow is great!

This lady literally made me laugh out loud … more than once. Freaking hilarious.

 

Your Turn

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Have a wonderful weekend!

 

Disclaimer: Friday Favorites is a series of posts that features items I genuinely want to share with you. While #FFavorites isn’t sponsored, affiliate links may appear from time to time. As always, any support is much appreciated! <3