Aesthetic Phases / 1

I don’t know if I’m the only one who goes through aesthetic phases, but I surely can’t be, right? If you follow us on Pinterest (you better be) then you might notice how every few weeks our “mood” shifts. It’s not a dramatic "tectonic plate inducing earthquake" shift, it’s more of a “let’s switch one or two pillows on the couch and see the difference” shift. I guess that’s why I’m not really a “fashion person” (sue me). I like being able to switch it up on a moments notice, so that’s why  I stick to more basic and simple clothes. Anyway, all I’m trying to say is that what I like and the aesthetics that I like are constantly shifting and changing. I decided to create this little mini series thing where I would create a mood board of my current likes. I have absolutely no idea how often (if at all) I will be posting these mood boards, but as Miley Cyrus once said “it’s my blog I can do what I want to.” Err, at least I think she said something along those lines…

photo / photo / photo / photo / photo / photo / photo / photo / photo / photo /photo / photo / photo  This mood board doesn't really have a name, but if I had to choose one I think it would be along the lines of "Jen Gotch is my girl crush" or "this is what feminism looks like to me" or "pink is cute and strong" or "this mood board may be better off nameless."

Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think of this idea for a series! xox Chloe

How To Style Pictures On A White Background

I’ve been getting a few emails recently asking how I take styled pictures on a stark white background. White backgrounds, for a blogger, are so important in showing items. The white allows the items to “pop” off the screen. White backgrounds as so important. The only problem is that sometimes the white isn’t so white. Often times the white turns out more on the yellow or grey side. And it can be VERY annoying. Today I’m going to save the day and tell you how I take my pictures on a white background so the white turns out white.

1. I use a white poster board as a background. They are cheap, moveable, and perfect for the job. 2. I then place my poster board near a window and turn off all lights. Natural light is the only way to go. Sometimes I have to wait until the next day to take pictures if I run out of time. It’s worth the wait to have natural light, trust me. 3. I shoot my camera on manual mode. This means that I can pick how exposed I want my picture. I typically overexpose my pictures on white backgrounds so that the white will be brighter. Sometimes overexposing doesn’t work (if you’re shooting a white or light colored object) so you just have to play around with it! 4. Once I am finally happy with a picture (sometimes it takes 100 shots of the same exact scene just with different angles) I upload the pictures on my computer. I then pick the one that looks best at first, aka minimal editing. 5. I then upload the picture in Photoshop and work around with it. I ALWAYS fix the “levels,” so that’s my starting point. I then also play around with the brightness and exposure. It usually depends on the picture for the amount you choose to apply of each. It’s like makeup ladies, the amount depends on the occasion.

the before

This is for "levels" in Photoshop.

sometimes you just gotta place a poster board in the middle of your kitchen to get the best light (even if it makes your dad mad because "you have an entire basement and and an office to do your work")

the after!

So there you have it! It’s pretty simple, but it did take me forever to figure it out. Taking styled pictures on a white background isn't always a piece of cake, but once you learn the process and practice you'll figure it out! Sometimes I just can’t get it so I start the whole process over with different natural light. I swear, the amount of natural light (or time of day) can completely screw you over or help you out.

Please let me know if this helped you out! I’d love to see your white background photos so tag us in your photo on social media (@popcosmo).

xox, Chloe

@popcosmo on Instagram

Chocolate Bark Recipe

I have this problem where I want to be healthy when it comes to food, but then I see chocolate and I eat it. It’s like my brain doesn’t work with me. But who am I kidding, chocolate is worth it. And this chocolate bark recipe? Yeah, it’s more than worth it. My brother and I always cook when we are bored and we decided to create our own chocolate bark combinations earlier this week after seeing some drool worthy combinations in the chocolate aisle of our grocery store. We had some crazy ideas in mind (think seaweed) but we decided to keep the combinations rather simple. And they’re all beyond amazing I might add.Here are the combinations we went for, but you can seriously add anything you want. That’s the beauty of this recipe. -Croissant Crumbs (try saying that in a French accent) -Peanuts and Banana Chips (Chocolate Chimp) -Popcorn (kettle corn would also be amazing) -Banana and Coconut (a tropical sweet) -Potato Chips (the perfect salty + sweet combo)

Here’s what you do. It’s painfully easy.

1. Melt a whole bunch of chocolate chips. We melted ours over a pot of boiling water so that we could make sure they didn't burn.
2. Cover a cookie sheet with wax paper and then pour your melted chocolate onto the baking sheet.
3. Evenly spread all your chocolate.
4. Add toppings as desired. We placed ours in strips but you can create any pattern you want.
5. Stick your chocolate in the fridge until it’s hard.
6. EAT. (the best part)

I’d say the whole process takes about 30 minutes (not including the chocolate drying in the fridge.) It’s easy and delicious. A killer combo in my book.

If you make chocolate bark then we want to see! Tag us in any pictures that you post (@popcosmo).

xox, Chloe