Thanks A-Latte!

Andrew and I are absolute coffee fiends. Our french press broke a few months ago so we've practically been living at one of our local coffee shops. Obviously our little $7/day habit has been adding up and it's become unnecessary. Solution time! Lots of people on this here internet have been passing around a recipe for cold-brewed coffee and it looked delicious.

Not so much according to this photo.
Even made my own simple syrup to get rid of the whole sugar-not-dissolving-in-cold-beverage thing and let me tell you, it is absolute...

B-L-I-S-S
It is so delicious with soy milk. Dare I say too delicious?? The coffee concentrate is 1lb of coarse ground Metropolis Coffee's El Salvador Finca La Fany plus one gallon of cold water, steeped and chilled in the fridge for 24 hours. Depending on how dark you like your coffee, I'd advise you to adjust the coffee/water ratio. I also need you to check out our new über expensive and modern beverage dispenser:


Proceed with caution because you can't just sip it, guys. YOU HAVE TO CHUG IT.

Four Eyes

I'm not the world's busiest person by any means but working typical office hours is just so radically different from my normal routine. So I have to be totally honest, I've been completely unmotivated lately! I started my new job about two weeks ago and waking up at 6am is just plain HARD. My unemployment days were filled with super late nights doing nothing in particular and maybe getting up at 10am if I really wanted to push myself lol. Right now my main ambition is to spend all of my money as quickly as possible, which I know is terrible.

Number one purchase: GLASSES! My sight has been deteriorating over the years and I can't even remember my last eye exam, it's been so long ;\ Taking advantage of Warby Parker's awesome Home Try-On Program made perfect sense. Thankfully the package arrived SUPER fast because I could barely contain my excitement.

Begley in Greystone Fillmore in Revolver Black Huxley in Sandalwood Matte Sinclair in Midnight Blue Colton in Tangerine

I have to say I'm not completely sold on any of them. They all fit a touch too small, especially on my perfectly round face! Though I do really dig the Begley frames (it may be the color). I probably should have paid closer attention to their face shape recommendations, but you know me! I do what I want! I actually started my hunt for frames back in February and I made this animated gif after trying on at least 100 pairs at LabrabbitOptics:


I'm still TOTALLY in love with the blue and pink pairs but the prices are so high! How much have you/would you spend on ~the perfect glasses~?

Teen Vogue Feature

JAIMIELEE VELASQUEZ, HIPPOPOTAMUSLEE.BLOGSPOT.COM

"Why waste your life trying to conform to other people's standards of what is beautiful or acceptable? Once you can think beyond pleasing others, negative comments and attitudes are just laughable. All bodies are good bodies. It's important to remember that!"

Home Chicago, IL

No Limits My love of fashion was rekindled when I discovered body acceptance. I always loved playing dress up but it can be difficult when your options are limited by your size. Realizing that that wasn't my fault was a huge breakthrough! You only get this one body so it's best to love it and adorn it in ways that make you happy.

Everybody's Here I think it's challenging for anyone who doesn't fall in line with standard sizing to feel represented. Through my blog I aim to normalize bodies that look like mine because it can be very disheartening for young women to never see someone who looks like them, let alone someone whose goals are to just be happy.

Fearless Leader Josephine Baker was such a revolutionary woman and I adore how much fun she had with fashion. She's like the style icon! Totally unafraid to take risks.

Fashion Favorites One of the up and coming designers I can't help but rave about is Gisela Ramirez out of Australia. Her new line is amazing and really helps give a voice to fat women who are not afraid of their bodies. I also love literally everything that Christopher Kane is even remotely associated with. I think he's absolutely brilliant! And who doesn't love Betsey Johnson?

Design Dreams I am always creating! From crocheting, sewing, or planning my next project; generally trying to make something every day. I've made clothing for myself as well.

You can go reread it on teenvogue.com, but I just had to put it here because I never really discuss fat issues on this blog and I should start! They featured other fabulous fats too so go read it! GO! GO! GO!

Nail Polish Rack Tutorial

If you're anything like me, you own more nail polish than would ever be necessary for a single person to own who doesn't do nails professionally. Ever. I've managed to amass over 90 bottles so clearly it's become a bit out of control. I got this adorable shelf for a dollar at a local Salvation Army which was perfect for all of my polishes until, well, it wasn't.



It can only hold about 70 bottles so I looked online to find something inexpensive but that doesn't actually exist. Shipping costs were also ridiculous. Then I thought why don't I just make it myself? Duh! This rack holds 60-80 bottles for only $6!

You will need:
Glue Gun
Plenty of Glue Sticks
Utility Knife/X-Acto Knife
2 20"x30" Foam Boards

Make the following cuts:
1 Back: 20"x25"
5 Stoppers: 1"x20+3/8"
5 Shelves: 2"x20"
1 Top: 2+3/16"x20"
2 Side Panels: 2+3/8"x25"
Cut 1"x3/16" notches out of your 2 side panels every 4 inches

Step One: Sandwich the back piece with the side panels and glue.


Step Two: Glue the top piece and one of the shelves to the top and bottom of the back piece so all edges are flush. You'll now have a box!


Step Three: Glue each of the remaining shelves to the back piece so they meet the bottom edge of each notch.


Step Four: Glue the stoppers to the shelves and side panels.




Step Five: Embellish your brand new totally awesome nail polish rack & you're done!

Yay :D
You can reinforce the 'joints' with an extra bead of glue once you've completed the rack. If you're still wary of its strength you can even try paper mâché! It'll be a great way to make it stronger plus you can paint it. I chose to cut a decorative top from a scrap piece and I plan to paper mâché it just to be safe. Hope you love it!!