The Art of Tweeting: #hobbitstyle

Twitter is an obsession of mine. I love to tweet what is on my mind, and retweet people that I am following. Here is a little bit of advice for new tweeters out there.

1. You see something funny, tweet it! Today, I saw a girl with rhinestone pants. When does that ever happen? tweet!

2. Retweet your favorites: There is nothing wrong with retweeting, since you are crediting the person that you follow. If there is something funny or interesting, don't be hesitant!

3. #hashtagproblems: Hash tags are typically the drive of the tweet, and make the tweet even funnier. My favorite hash tags are #semifatgirlproblems #sorrynotsorry and #hobbitlife

4. Quote friends: You would be surprised the sense of humor that you and your friends have, and other followers probably will enjoy it. Tweet it right after your friend says it!

5. Don't post lyrics: No one wants to read them because, let's get real, they aren't your actual words. Coming from my perspective, I find them frustrating and I typically delete the person I am following if they post lyrics only.

6. Twit pics are awesome! See something funny? Take a picture too! It adds a whole new level of creepiness (which I find hilarious) to the tweet! Investigative journalism, right? :)

7. Tweet Longer: I may be the only one that uses this, but I love it. Have something long and important to say? go for it right here.

8. Don't forget the memories: Special events, family reunions, out with friends. These tweets you will look forward to looking at a few months down the road.

HOBBIT RECCOMENDATION: Follow Conan O'Brien, I love his tweets as much as I love him on TV. Just see for yourself:



Happy tweeting! And don't forget to follow me on twitter.

-x Hobbit

Studded Earrings: What To Get

Studs are in! Here's a sneak peak at my small collection:

The Outgoings: These earrings are bold, big and go with any cute outfit that you are planning on wearing out for the evening! Plus, they are easier to deal with instead of having your dangly earrings getting caught on your scarf!
(From Left to Right: Forever 21, Top Shop, American Eagle Outfitters)


The Classics: These are the ones I wear almost every day to school. They are not as bold as my other earrings, but they still have a hint of elegance. Simple with any outfit during my busy days during the week!
(From Left to Right: Coach, Marc by Marc Jacobs)


The Daters: These earrings are toned down a bit compared to my outgoing earrings, but they have enough bling to go with a cute outfit for a date! I find a mix of roses and sparkles are a cute and simple addition to an outfit.
(both: Forever 21)


The Cuties: These are cute, simple, and easy to add to an outfit when spending the day in the library. Plus, I hate leaving my ears bare, so these are great fillers when I'm chilling in my room with my sweats :)
(both: Forever 21)



I actually got this pouch when I purchased my earrings from American Eagle. I suggest looking in Aerie for great jewelry travel pouches, they have a few cute ones :)

So for all of you starting an earring collection, Forever 21 is the best place to start. They have cheap earrings that are cute. But it may be worth the investment for an expensive pair from Coach, because coming from my perspective, I wear my Coach earrings every other day.

-x Hobbit

Playlist: Week 1

Took this at the Jersey Shore, wouldn't this be nice right now? ....*sigh*...

I'm up to my knees in schoolwork today, so I decided to give all my followers something fun to look at along with a few songs to check out during your week ahead. This week is mid-terms for me...which means relaxing music all the way.

1. Loving You Is Easy - Ben Rector
2. Gravity - Sara Bareilles
3. Angeles - Peter Bradley Adams
4. Her Diamonds - Rob Thomas
5. After Tonight - Justin Nozuka
6. Brand New Day - Joshua Radin
7. Your Love Is A Song - Switchfoot
8. What Hurst The Most - Rascall Flatts
9. Down - Jason Walker
10. Sweet & Low - Augustana
11. Almost Lover - A Fine Frenzy
12. The Freshman - Jay Brannan
13. Four Years - Jon McLaughlin
14. The Truth - Kris Allen
15. The Scientist - Coldplay
16. Just A Kiss - Lady Antebellum
17. Chances - Five For Fighting
18. Crazy For This Game - Evan & Jaron
19. When A Heart Breaks - Ben Rector
20. I Just Wanna Run - The Downtown Fiction
21. Mercy - OneRepublic
22. Follow Me - Uncle Kracker
23. Only Hope - Switchfoot

Keep an eye out each Sunday, I'll be posting a photo and a playlist each week! Happy Sunday!

-x Hobbit

Heart Cut Out Decorations DIY

Hey college kids, want an easy way to decorate the room for Valentine's Day? Thanks to this blog, here is an easy way to dress up your dorm with a few heart cut outs :) Brightens the room up, gets you in the spirit, and thanks to the sun, we have heart shadows in the room every morning! So cute :)





The heart cut outs are a result of this blog entry, so check it out!

More Valentine's Day posts to come.

-x Hobbit

Bead Mosaic DIY

A cute desk decoration, and easy to do? Check! Caro is master of making bead mosaics, and she decided to demonstrate on a small canvas for the blog!





Simple to do. You just need Beads, Elmers Glue, sewing needles and a canvas. To create, pencil out a design on the canvas, and lay out small portions of glue and place your beads carefully using the sewing needles. Remember to give it a good amount of time to dry when done.



-x Caro & Hobbit

Message In A Naked Juice DIY

Just a simple idea for all of you that are celebrating Valentine's Day away from your loved ones this year. I created a message in a bottle for a friend back in Niantic, and this is what it consists of:



Make sure to use a Naked Juice bottle, the straight edges and box-like figure will be easier to glue on an address!

1. Each heart represents a day in the month, a small bit of inspiration for her to look forward to every morning.

2. Her personal message in a bottle.

3. Wrap your message in a cute bow!

4. Add candy for a special effect :)



Stay tuned for more Valentine's Day posts :) This holiday is a single one for me, but that doesn't mean I can celebrate it with all of those I love at home and here in Chicago!

What are you doing this Valentine's Day?

-x Hobbit

Green & Blue Stripes

Good afternoon (evening?) everybody! So, today was kind of a crappy day for me, but I decided that dressing in happy, bright colors would give me a little drive to just keep going. So, this dress is one of the favorites in my collections. So, stay on your toes, and wear bright colors. Just like my friend Eric said earlier today, this drabby winter needs some color!

Check out Francesca's Collections by clicking here.

Outfit: Dress (Francesca's Collections), Necklace (Top Shop), Shoes (Uggs Australia). photo credit: Grant Myatt

-x Hobbit

Boho Feather Earrings Steal

Chené was wearing these awesome feather earrings today, and I took that to my advantage when working on a photo project. However, I decided to share them with the rest of you. Such a cute way to add a warm, hippie feel to your cold, wintery clothing.



Here's a site that you'll be able to find the earrings: click for earrings!

Happy Monday everyone!

-x Hobbit

Chicago Snow and Greasy Food

It's Saturday, we all woke up around noon, and decided to grab a wonderful, greasy, American-style lunch at Portillo's, a Hot Dog chain that is quite popular. This was my first trip to this wonderful restaurant, and although I don't eat read meat, I was able to eat at least a quarter of a hot dog! Here's a few pictures from our adventure today :)







Venture out in the snow everyone!

-x Hobbit

Old Hollywood Meets DePaul

Felt like I was back in High School last night. Dressing up for the dance with my girls, dancing with a few boys, meeting new people. Didn't seem like a college thing to do, but figured it deserved a blog entry because I had a great time with some close friends :)



More to come this week, just you wait! if you have any ideas for blog entries or DIY's let me know. (P.S. I think Carolyn will be posting something this week!)

-x Hobbit

Chicago Is Chilly

Today was 18 degrees...but the weather said the wind chills will feel like -8 degrees. TRUST ME, it really did. So, I came out prepared today, with a sweater, a thick cotton dress, stockings, over the knee socks and my new Baker's booties :)





Stay warm Chicago, and all those other places that are feeling this awful chill :/

-x Hobbit

Look out: A Fine Frenzy

photo credit 1

Just purchased One Cell In The Sea by A Fine Frenzy, and to all those Florence & The Machine fans out there, this is a must. Relaxing, inspiring music to study to or just to play in your room when winding down after such a long day. Plus, she makes me want to have red hair!



And, her lyrics give me the chills. What do you think?

"Your fingertips across my skin
The palm trees swaying in the wind
Images
You sang me Spanish lullabies
The sweetest sadness in your eyes
Clever trick
I never want to see you unhappy
I thought you'd want the same for me"


-x Hobbit

DIY Book About You

A few nights ago I noticed that my daily journal was being poisoned by my blog inspirations rather than writing about my day to day life. I love having bursts of inspiration, but I need a concrete place to put all of my ideas.

Introducing "The Book Of Hobbit: 2012." I mean, why not? A notebook of my random, inspired ideas, and it will be created and written all by me! This is my 2012 blog idea notebook!



First, I went and spend too much money at Blick's, this AMAZING art supply store off of Wabash downtown, and I bough all sorts of supplies to get me inspired. Colored pencils, artsy papers, cut out hearts, glues sticks, pencil sharpeners, you name it. And most importantly, a blank 5"-8" sketch book.



Decided to split my book into sections, to keep me on my feet. Each section will be divided into months, to so I know where to look for my current ideas.



So, what will your small hobbit notebook? Get started before you lose all that fresh inspiration!

-x Hobbit

Inspirational Mondays

Sorry I haven't posted much this weekend, I have had a few personal problems lately. Yet, I found the best solution to a depressed soul: Inspiration. Late Saturday night, after watching the wonderful Daniel Radcliffe on SNL, I thought, why not write? So, I spent the next four hours writing, and had to force myself to stop at 3:30AM.

So, I decided to let my inspirational self take over my depressed self, and find what makes me happy. I spent $60.00 on art supplies (you'll see why tomorrow, so stay tuned!), and I am ready to let my ideas just come to me.

Here are some things to look out for when looking for inspiration:

1. The Streets - my favorite inspiration are people. I gather inspiration based on what people are doing, wearing, or saying. I am a prone people watcher, it's in my nature (or not really, I just say that to make myself feel better since I'm really creepy).

2. Magazines - you get those weekly/monthly magazines for a reason, because you like what the editors put inside them! Read, look over, and find things that inspire you.

3. Food - crazy, I know, but sometimes I get inspiration from restaurants or supermarkets, typically for my food blogs, but it is still a great place to look!

4. Music - don't just let Pandora play, listen to the lyrics, write down the artists, and research their sites! You'd be surprised all of the underground musical artists that come on Pandora that you've never heard of.

Okay, have a ball, and check out what I have in store tomorrow!

-x Hobbit

Snow In Chi Town!

So yesterday morning, I head to class at 9:30AM, with the ground looking green and cold as usual. I take a step outside after class at 11:10, and the whole campus is already covered in snow! And the best part, it's still snowing! According to the weather, the next few days are also going to be snowy. I mean, we already have a few inches of snow! I'm starting to realize that I will be seeing more snow here this year compared to all of my years in Connecticut.





ps. This is Grant, he took these pictures of me AND edited them :) Click for more info about Grant!



So, I bought a new pair of snow boots today, and tested the waters. Or...the frozen waters ;) Happy snowfall Chicago! Make a hobbit snowman!



x- Hobbit

Playlists To Bring In The New Year

The holiday excitement has died down, and we are all back to the grind. I collaborated a few songs of mine and made some playlists that may help you in those times of need.

I Feel Like Jammin' (for the people that just need a good car jam)
1. A Little Less Sixteen Candles, A Little More "Touch Me" - Fall Out Boy 2. She's So High - Four Year Strong 3. 9mm & A 3 Piece Suit - Streetlight Manifesto* 4. Zzz - The Cab 5. Ignorance - Paramore 6. The Lock Down Denial - Cute Is What We Aim For 7. I Could Be With Anyone - Kevin Devine 8. Everything Will Be - Relient K 9. Heros Get Remembered - Four Year Strong 10. Echoes - The Raptures

I Feel Like Chillen' (for those of you who need a breather)
1. Marry Me - Train 2. Movie Like - Jimmy Eat World 3. Innocent - Taylor Swift 4. Viva La Vida - Weezer* 5. World Like That - O.A.R 6. Hiding My Heart 7. All Along - Kid Cudi 8. I'm About To Come Alive - Train 9. She Is Love - Parachute 10. Be OK - Ingrid Michaelson

I Feel Like Spinnin' (for all you hippies out there)
1. Headlights - Dispatch 2. Blinding - Florence & The Machine 3. Broseidon, Lord Of The Brocean - Super Mash Bros 4. Tomorrow - The Concretes 5. Nature Boy - David Bowie 6. State of Consciousness - Zzt 7. Can't Be Friends - Taio Cruz 8. This Is The Life - Two Door Cinema Club 9. Love 2012 - 3oh!3 10. Ghost Return - Moby

I Feel Like Dancin' (for all the single ladies getting ready to party it up!)
1. Runaway Baby - Bruno Mars 2. Rumor Has It - Adele 3. Black & Gold - Sam Sparro 4. I'll Never Love Again - Taio Cruz 5. Bedrock - Lil' Wayne 6. Fidelity - Regina Spektor 7. Bounce - The Cab 8. Touchin' On My - 3oh!3 9. Rock & Roll - Eric Hutchinson 10. Love On Top - Beyonce

*some songs I chose are not by original artists, keep that in mind! :)



Hope you enjoy these as much as I do, *sigh* even though my iPod just deleted all of my music. But at least I wrote these down beforehand so I have something to work on when it comes to collecting music again!

-x Hobbit

ps. Isn't Carolyn the best model? Stay tuned, we're doing a meet and greet this week! :)

2012 Bucket List

Alright, so according to the Ancient Mayan Calendar we are all dying on December 21, 2012. Short amount of time, no? I have to admit, one of my favorite movies is the Bucket List, and as a result I made a bucket list of my own. However, if we are dying in December 21, 2012, I think getting married and having kids is automatically a no-no at age 18. So, I rearranged my bucket list in my journal, and I'm hoping that some of you will try these out! Here are some bucket list ideas for your own journal:



1. Read a whole novel series: The most popular are Harry Potter, Twilight, Hunger Games, Lord Of The Rings, Chronicles of Narnia and The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.

2. Enjoy the scenery: Take a full day off for yourself and take the day to hike, go to the beach, or even shop in the city! Whatever your favorite scenery is, take a day off and just admire the beautiful world you live in (which will be blown up soon, right?). Bring some friends along with you!

3. Try a new food: I still haven't tried caviar; not sure if this bucket list is a good enough reason to try it though. How about a grilled Nutella/banana sandwich? Sounds much better :)

4. Learn a new workout: There's all sorts of workouts that are found outside of the weight room! Try Yoga, Pilates, Ballroom, and the world craving Zumba workout! You may like your results ;)

5. Help the troops: Donate to your troops, or donate time to your local VFW. They helped us, the least we can do is show them the same courtesy.

6. VOTE, if you can: The presidential election is this year folks! Research, find your favorite candidate, and make a difference when helping America choose their new contender!

7. Watch the necessary sporting events: If your not a sports person, kind of like me, then take the time to at least watch The Superbowl, The World Series and The Olympics.

8. Read the whole newspaper: Take a trip to Starbucks, buy a New York Times,and read the whole thing word for word. I never have time to do this, but I will make sure at some point I sit down and actually read the whole thing!

9. Write a song: Who cares if you don't play an instrument, write something a capella! Or how about write lyrics for a friend that can perform them for you! Music is life changing.

10. Ride in a shopping cart: Self explanatory...not like I haven't done this already but I'm giving others the idea to try it. Race a friend while your at it. But, be prepared to be kicked out!

Well, there you have it, your 2012 bucket list! Enjoy the rest of the year folks. Well, actually, enjoy your days until December 21, 2012!

(in reality, I don't believe in the Mayan calendar...but what if we are all wrong?)

-x Hobbit

Wall Decoration DIY

So, I get back to school, and I realize that my wall seemed bare. I did have a bulletin board and a white board hanging in this spot, but looking at it I realized I needed something new. Something to keep me inspired throughout my days; to make my dorm room feel like home (which is the prime goal for most females at college).



After making a trip to my mailbox and realizing I had 5 copies of The New Yorker chilling, I figured I wouldn't be reading all of them. So this extravagent idea popped in my head, what if I make a wall design with my extra magazines? Instead of looking for a design to cover my wall, this design is a whole lot cheaper. Yay recycling!



Basically, you grab your extra magazines, and rip out pages in the magazine that intrigue you visually. I found it easiest to first tape the papers on the wall and draw out my design, to make sure it would look exactly how I imagined it. Sketch out a design first with pencil, then with a thick permanent marker. Then, slowly take the pieces off, cut them out and tape all of them together. You may need an extra hand to tape them back up onto the wall.





The moon is a special symbol for me. It is a symbol of my successes, and it is a constant reminder that no matter what, I can actually make my dreams become reality. I'm excited to wake up beside my magnificent moon every morning, so alongside the moon I wrote myself a daily inspiration, and even added a stick figure. It is possible to reach beyond imaginable, you just have to go for it. What will your magazine design/inspiration be?

-x Hobbit

Welcome to DePaul! Meet The Crew

Hi everyone, and welcome back to school for my DePaul friends! Returned back to school on January 2nd, and today was my second day of classes. I'm taking Digital Photography, Intro to Psychology, Intro to Human Communications and Quantitative Reasoning this quarter. Meet my awesome friends! Carolyn (Caro) is my roommate, and had a hard time lifting her head picture :) But that's okay, you'll be seeing a lot of her, we have plans for room decor blog entries! Billy, Alex, Sketch and Tomas live across the hall, Grant lives next door, and Chene is down the hall. We live in University Hall, woohoo go UHall!



Did the usual today. Went to class, took some pictures, wrote an article for The DePaulia (our student newspaper) and made a trip to Allendes, our favorite taco shop down the road. Tomas, who's from Mexico City, found the shop at the beginning of the school year. Now it's literally our Central Perk. Most of our adventures begin or end at Allendes, thank the Lord for 3AM tacos :)

-x Hobbit