Internet Loves Lately

Hi there, it's Kim and it's my turn this week for my Internet Loves Lately. Speaking of loves, it's my anniversary this weekend! An amazing 23 years ago, hubbie and I walked down that aisle to say, "I do" and although we have some wear and tear on us, we are still celebrating and will spend this weekend reminiscing, romancing, and running (our favorite thing to do together). That is, if he's feeling up to it - an injury has kept him on the sidelines for a few months, but here's hoping! And it's also the end of summer with Labor Day upon us. I'm definitely not celebrating the end of lazy days, although I do love a good schedule to make me feel productive and nothing gets me on schedule like kids in school. But this week's Internet Loves are all about what reminds me of summer as it slowly and stickily winds down.

What are you not quite ready to say good-bye to this summer?

{1} Ice Cream Sundae Pops Ice cream IS summer! Are these not the bomb? The absolute cherry on top? Better than any ice cream truck treat, but would have the kids running in from wherever they are!

{2} Purse So I have a purse and shoe fetish. And this mint green color makes me think of summer because of its adorable pastel shade. But there is nothing cutesy about it, it's pure lady and all glamour, especially since it's handmade, customizable, and from Paris by La Contrie. Bring on the heat.

{3} Surfboard Obviously the beach is the ultimate summer get-away, but if it's not in the cards, how about propping up a sparkly surfboard in a corner? This sparkly DIY project could take me away for few hours. Sort of. It would definitely get me in the beach party vibe every time I looked at it!

{4} Confetti Balloons Who doesn't love a balloon... a giant balloon? Doesn't it just make you think of little kids running around, or big ones smiling and skipping and having an outdoor party? That sounds like a summery good time to me, although if you want to hand me a giant confetti-filled balloon anytime of the year, I'll probably definitely take it!

{5} Cocktail Pops One or two or three bites of these say, "It's 5 o'clock somewhere!" And they'll cool you off. Have I mentioned how hot it is here?

Easiest Salad Recipe Ever

I am a foodie.

I know this sounds absolutely crazy, but if I had the option to own a super fancy purse or go out to eat for the next month, then I would probably choose to go out to eat. Call me insane, ‘cause I know it’s true.

However, I used to only really eat food that tasted good (i.e., unhealthy food). But wait, you say. Why does unhealthy food have to be the only food that tastes good? Well, you’re right. I used to think that unhealthy food was the only thing that actually tasted good. But guess what? I was wrong. Very wrong.

I have decided to go on a heathy streak and my Mom is SO happy... but we’ll see how long it actually lasts. This past week, I went to my Aunt and Uncle’s house and my Aunt and I made a her salad recipe together. This was no ordinary salad with tons of lettuce and croutons and all that "junk". It was a surprisingly delicious salad. Like I went out yesterday to the grocery store - by myself I might add - to buy all the ingredients.

This salad is the perfect mix of all things healthy, but it tastes like it could be a guilty pleasure. We’ll call it the “(not so) guilty pleasure salad.” That has a nice ring to it. ;)

But you can also call it the easiest salad recipe ever because not only does it taste great, but it’s SIMPLE to make! All you do is chop and dump.

Directions:

1. Chop cherry tomatoes, red and/or yellow peppers, and cucumbers. 2. Sprinkle some black olives and feta cheese on top. 3. Splash some olive oil and you’re donezo.

It’s that easy!

If you make this salad, be sure to tweet us or instagram us a picture! We promise you’ll love it!

xox, Chloe

News Flash!!

To celebrate the end of summer, ALL phone cases are now only $19.99! Hop over to the store lickety-split because when they sell out... they are gone, gone, gone! {At least until our new collection comes along  ;-) }

Internet Loves Lately

{1} Don’t even get me started on my love on English Bulldogs. I. Am. Obsessed. I’m not going to deny the fact that I dream about owning one practically every night. I already have it’s name picked out and everything. *my birthday is coming up soon, hints, hints.* {photo via Pinterest}

{2} I saw this quote on Pinterest a few days ago and fell in love with it. It’s so simple yet rings so true to a lot of us! Also, how gorgeous is that typography?

{3} The J.Crew fall look book is out, and you can bet your bottom dollar that I’ve stalked it quite a few times already. Perfection. That is all.

{4} I was at an event a few nights ago and a friend quoted Little Miss Sunshine and I shamelessly admitted that I had never seen it. Being me (a fan of Toddlers & Tiaras- don't judge!), I had to watch it right away. It is now one of my all time favorites. I laughed (a lot) and cried (a little) which was a perfect mix of emotions in a light-hearted movie. If you haven’t seen it, go watch it. Now.

{5} Like I said, I went to an event a few days ago (I guess an inspiring one, haha). But, if you know me in real life / have read the blog long enough, you know how bad I am at crafts. In fact, I am terrible at crafts. But, I was feelin’ crafty one day and asked Geni (of Pink Owl (yay!) our photographer / event hostess ) if she needed a photo booth backdrop for her party. She enthusiastically said "yes!" and so I was locked into making a craft whether I wanted to or not. Surprisingly the backdrop turned out gorgeous & my non-crafty self is proud of it. *spoiler* tutorial coming up!

www.instagram.com/popcosmo or search @popcosmo on Instagram

Thanks for reading this week’s Internet Loves Lately! If you have any links that I MUST know about, then be sure to leave them in the comment section. Have a great weekend!

xox, Chloe

Twitter Lists: How to Declutter your Twitter Stream

There is a very simple solution to declutter your Twitter stream... and it's sitting right in front of you. It's called a Twitter List. Yet you may be ignoring it. We were! But we've recently started using this 1 simple trick, and Twitter Lists have made our Twitter interactions so much more meaningful, and easier to follow. I can follow my SITS friends, my BlogHer friends, my hometown friends, and even other people's public lists. Why didn't I start using this simple trick sooner?!

For those of you not familiar with Twitter Lists, I'll explain why they are so critical, plus I'm going to walk you through how to create them (it looks complicated, but it's simple!) both on Twitter and on HootSuite. What's nice is your Twitter list will automatically appear on the other social media site once you create it. So I recommend going to where you are most comfortable to create a list. Personally, I prefer creating a list on Twitter and populating it on HootSuite.

Twitter:

1. Click Me

2. Click the gear on the top right and highlight Lists from the dropdown menu

3. Click Create list

4. Name your list and describe your list (optional)

5. Click public or private

6. Click save list

7. To add people (a) in the following list or when you search for a friend (b) click on the person icon (c) click add to list.  Then check the name of the list to which you want to add them. That's it, they are added! Alternatively, you can search for people you want to add to your list and they can be added by clicking (d) add to list.

HootSuite:

1. Add Stream (make sure you are in Twitter!)

2. Click Lists

3. Select your Profile name (i.e., ours is Popcosmo)

4. (a) If you created your list in Twitter, you'll see the name of the list (ours is "Popcosmo Peeps") so click "Use Existing List" and  the name of the list you created OR (b) name your list, and optionally you can describe your list

5. Click public or private

6. Click Add Stream. Now you'll have a dedicated stream for those tweeps!

7. To add people:

a. While you are in your stream, click the the ICON of the person (icon is to the left of the twitter name) of any twitter name in any stream. You can then simply click and drag them into your stream. You will know they are added when you see the big green plus sign in your stream. OR

b. Click the person icon in the grey box on the far right. Highlight your profile and see all those you follow. Click and drag the icon to your list and you'll know they are added when you see the big green plus sign. Hint: Click on your list to see who's in it while adding, instead of having to go to your stream.

How (and WHY) to Use Lists:

In Twitter: Click on Me and then Lists. Click on the list you want to see.

In HootSuite: You have a stream for your list!

The clutter is gone and all you should see is a stream from those people in your list. A list makes it so easy to ignore all those tweets that distract you from focusing on what you should be focusing on. {For me that means gaining hours of productivity!! No more looking at fashion photos while I should be writing or gazing longingly at your Instagrams!} With a Twitter list I can decide WHO I want to see in a stream and WHEN! All it takes a few minutes to set up a Twitter list and you've got a streamlined Tweet-erverse right at your fingertips.

Why does this matter? Once you start interacting and re-tweeting people, you'll start seeing them doing the same with you and Twitter becomes what it originally was when you only followed a few people: a conversation. It also becomes a wonderful resource for information. And it can become an invaluable asset for promoting your blog and sharing the information you have created. Twitter is give and take relationship, one which is hard to be in when there's so much "noise." Without the distraction of excess "noise" on Twitter, you can focus on those friends and people who you want to focus on, and start seeing the real benefits of Twitter.

Happy Tweeting!

Free Computer Background Images

It's been so long that I've done any free computer background images for you. It's time I created something besides phone cases, right? So I started drawing, but thought why not ask what you wanted? So, I turned to my Twitter friends and asked what words you wanted their computer to say to you all. {Hey, why not, soon our computers will be talking to us - since our phones already do, haha!} And after hearing what you said, I got inspired and started creating a few designs. Thanks for the inspiration, y'all! Enjoy your free computer background images and let me know what you might want next....

Here are the images you can select:

ONE:

TWO:

THREE:

To download, click here:  HELLO  |  DARLIN'  |  BELIEVE |

Mac Instructions: In Safari, simply click and drag the photo to your desktop and right click. Scroll through choices and select "Set Desktop Picture".

Enjoy and let us know what you think in the comments below... & what would you like to see next time?

xox ~chloe