Last Weekend: Big E

So last weekend I went to the Big E with my mom, nana, godmother and cousin. It's a family tradition and I've actually never missed a year ever. This year was my 20th fair! Isn't that crazy? It's the perfect time between summer and fall and it was great to spend some time with my family. There's a bunch of fun things to do there. My favorite is seeing the animals and shopping. And I also love eating a bunch of really unhealthy food too! One of my favorites from this year was the fried butterballs. So delicious!

Featured!

This week I was featured at My Sweet and Savory's Meatless Monday for my French Onion Soup Grilled Cheese! Visit My Sweet and Savory for some delicious recipes and for the blog party where you can share your meatless recipes and find new ones.

I''m so excited that I was chosen to be featured on My Sweet and Savory. I love blogging and having my own little piece of the internet to write about my life. I just get so excited when people view my blog and comment, even though I would still love this blog if no one ever looked at it. 

Thanks for reading and be sure to check out My Sweet and Savory!

5 Tips for Redesigning Your Blog

In case you haven't noticed, Living Bittersweetly has gone through quite a big change in design. The original layout was fun but a little confusing. While redoing my blog, I followed a few rules in order to keep the design simple and cohesive. I hope you like the redesign of Living Bittersweetly and these tips help you make your blog look as great as possible.

1. Banner

The new banner is easier to read and keeps the font cohesive with the rest of the blog. When creating a banner, keep in mind that it needs to be simple and readable while still depicting the feel of the blog. 

2. Introduction

My old introduction was barely an introduction. The introduction is a quick way for your readers to learn about you and your blog and decide if they want to keep reading. I emphasized my name, using a different font, as well because it is my personal blog and that way it would stand out among the other text.

Photos from my Weekend

This weekend was a fun one. I got a tattoo with my roomie and best friend, Molly. We both got bears with puns. Mine says "[bear] with me" and her's says that's unbearable. Also, I only refer to it as a "sweet bear tat." We'd been planning on doing it for a while but spontaneously decided that this weekend would be a good time so we did it. It was a lot of fun and makes me want to start saving my money so I can get a big tattoo that I've been planning for a while.

Other than the tattoo, my weekend has been pretty routine. Lots of studying. I did paint my nails though and I used these adorable tokidoki Cactus Dog decals. 

What did you do this weekend?
 

French Onion Soup Grilled Cheese

I  love French Onion Soup. Absolutely adore it. Don't get me wrong the entire bowl of soup is amazing, but that first bite! Cheese, crouton and a bit a caramelized onion. I decided to make a grilled cheese inspired by this first bite of French Onion Soup. Try it out and let me know what you think! (p.s. click on the recipe card and print out for later!)

Outfit of the Day: summer+fall

I love this time of year. Not quite summer, not quite fall. I can wear sweet summer dresses with boots and drink iced fall drinks from Starbucks. Nothing is quite as good as an iced Mocha Salted Caramel Latte. Anyways, this isn't a post about my love of Starbucks. 

I bought this dress from the Modcloth end of summer sale and love how it looks with my mocassin boots.

dress: Modcloth  //  boots: Minnetonka

A Few Weekends Ago...

A few weekends ago, my mom, nana and I went to breakfast a few towns over and spent the afternoon walking around art galleries and garden shops.

We had breakfast at a place called the Barn. It was so pretty inside and the light was just gorgeous that morning. There were a bunch of sweet details inside like the iron rooster coat hook in the bathroom and mismatched wooden chairs. I had english muffins topped with sauteed spinach and poached eggs smothered in delicious hollandaise sauce. It was served with a side of home fries and fresh coffee and was absolutely amazing. All of the ingredients were so fresh and the farm fresh eggs were amazing!

After breakfast we walked around this gorgeous garden and a few art galleries. There was a whole room dedicated to elephant art as in paintings by elephants. Absolutely incredible. I ended my afternoon with some refreshing blood orange sorbet from a local gelato shop. It was such a nice summer afternoon and a great opportunity to spend some time with my family before moving back into school.

Fall Goals

Happy September! It's hard to believe that we're already in September. This summer flew by! I made some goals for myself in July. And I had varied success. I put a lot on my plate. Some things I accomplished and others I didn't. Whenever I plan to accomplish something, it always seems like there's a hundred other things I also want to do and well, I'm just one person. I felt kind of bad for not achieving all I had in mind for July and therefore avoided making August goals for myself. However, Now that I'm two days shy of beginning my junior year of college, I think it's time I set some realistic goals for myself for the upcoming season/semester.

Fall Goals
1. Read all of the required material for class (before class).
2. Blog at least three times a week.
3. Start selling things to Society6 and/or etsy.
4. Keep my room clean.
5. Get at least a 3.5 GPA.
6. Ask for help when I need it. 
7. Save up enough money for a tattoo.

Do you have any goals for the upcoming school year or month? Let me know in the comments.

photo source