As you may know, I recently turned 27. Being closer to 30 than to 21 really has brought a lot of changes… I enjoy puzzles, board games, and tea more than going out until 2am. I ask for KitchenAid attachments for holidays and birthdays. I shop at Ann Taylor. And, I just want my apartment to look nice.

When my roommate Tori and I first moved in together, we shoved together a bunch of our old college stuff–none of it matched, and we had no money to buy anything remotely new. And that’s how it should be, right? Post-grad problems. They humble you.

Wellllll fast forward a few (3.5) years, and our apartment looks so. freaking. adult. If you haven’t seen already, we got a bar cart, redid our kitchen, then redid it again, I got a new mattress (my old one was from high school), and a whole slew of other things that I haven’t blogged about.

One thing I really wanted to do this year was to fill up this big awkward wall space in our living room. We looked at a lot of options, including prints from Minted, but in the end I wanted to frame a photo that I took. After all, I’m a photographer and rarely display my work.

I chose this photo because it’s my favorite building in my favorite city. Also, I took it with my iPhone 7+ and I think it really speaks to the capabilities of that phone that I was able to blow it up this big without compromising quality!

Of course, with a print this large, it really need some quality custom framing.

I chose Framebridge to frame it for a few reasons:

1) I had seen their frames all over the web–on different bloggers’ sites, on Instagram, via targeted ads, etc. and was really interested in trying them out for myself!

2) I listened to the below NPR Podcast about how Framebridge was created, and fell in love with their story about how they created affordable, quality custom framing.

Framebridge made it soooo easy to get my print framed. I mailed my rolled-up print to them via a pre-paid shipping label, and they emailed me to let me know they received it.

There was some damage due to shipping (not Framebridge’s fault at ALL) and their customer service team could not have been more amazing. They offered to pay for a completely new print for me (and order it wherever I previously ordered from), or re print my photo in their warehouse. I opted for them to print my photo, and they printed it and framed it within a day and had it at my doorstep within 2 days. I honestly couldn’t believe it–never have I ever experienced this kind of customer service, especially when it wasn’t even their fault!

The framed photo was delivered beautifully and I am so in love with the final product. Perhaps the best part of this is that my prized photo was custom framed for a fraction of what it would have been at another framing place (believe me, I checked). This ginormous custom framed piece costs only $200. AHHH!

To say that I’ll be ordering from Framebridge again is an understatement.

Use code Lovealways15 for 15% off your first quality custom framing order!

Shop some of my other favorite art pieces:

Framebridge custom framed my piece as a gift. All opinions are my own and I truly love this company.

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If you liked this post, you’ll like this one and this one.

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As I’m sure you’ve seen on the blog before, I’m kind of obsessed with my home space. It has to look as perfect as possible, and my roommate and I always joke that our apartment can never be more than 10 minutes away from “guest ready”… aka we can throw a party or have people come to stay with us with just 10 minutes of cleaning. Call us crazy, but hey, if you ever wanted to come over, all you’d need to give us is a 10-minute warning and I call that pretty good.

Coming back from THAT tangent… over the summer Tori and I redid our kitchen–we painted the kitchen cabinets black, added silver hardware, and covered the awful laminate with some pretty marble contact paper. And months later, it’s all still holding up–I have to admit, the contact paper still being intact after 6 months surprised me, too.

Because I am completely restless, I decided that I needed a subway tile backsplash, too (something I’ve wanted for a while). While hiring a contractor or installing a real tile backsplash in a place I don’t own was completely out of the question, I was definitely open to the idea of a more temporary, cheaper option.

Enter Smart Tiles.

I first read about these tiles on my friend Krys’ blog a few years ago–she is an expert in rental renovations and totally sold these tiles to me. Smart Tiles are basically giant stickers. They are flexible and easy to cut with a box cutter or x-acto knife. And they are super easy to install!

How to install this stick-on tile backsplash:

First I figured out how many tiles I would need. Smart Tiles has an excellent calculator on their website to help you figure this out! I measured the space in sections–so section A, section B, section C, etc. You can measure in feet, OR measure in inches and divide by 12 (that’s what I did… not sure if that made more work for myself or not but whatever!).

My final measurements:
Section A: 23″ x 17″
Section B: 54″ x 17″
Section C: 30″ x 30″
Section D: 11″ x 17″

I ended up needing about 35 tiles according to their website, and this could not have been more accurate. Wahoo!

I received the tiles very quickly and got to work that weekend. I started out on the top left corner of the largest section, cutting the first tile down to a straight edge so it lined up perfectly with the wall. From there, everything was pretty easy.

I filled up the entire backsplash with tiles, minus the edges where I knew I’d have to do some cutting. Then after a lot of x-acto knife and ruler use, I filled in the edges!

When I inevitably made a few mistakes, the tiles were surprisingly easy to peel off and move around. They are designed to be delicately stuck to the wall so they may be removed easily if necessary. When I was ready for the tiles to be in their final place, I just applied pressure to all corners and edges of the tile to stick them permanently on the wall! Easy peasy.

The whole project took about 2 hours and I could not be happier with the result! The kitchen looks even more sophisticated than it did when we painted it (especially now that I have my new KitchenAid mixer!!).

I should note that Smart Tiles are easy to remove with a hair dryer (for heat). Not that you’ll ever want to take them down!

My favorite styles:

If you have any other questions about Smart Tiles, check out their FAQ page or comment below! Smart Tiles are available at Amazon, Wayfair, Home Depot, and directly from their website.

Smart Tiles provided me with the tiles to review, and all opinions of my new stick-on tile backsplash are strictly my own. Thank you for supporting brands that keep Love Always, Audrey running!

P.S. If you liked this post you’ll like this one, this one, and this one.

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The post Rental Kitchen Update Part II: An Easy, Stick-On Tile Backsplash appeared first on love always, audrey.

I should also note that many of these gifts are from Anthropologie, which is my go-to for aaaaany gifting needs. CB2, West Elm, and Crate & Barrel are good ones as well!

Stay tuned for more holiday gift guides!

Shop all of these items here:

If you liked this post, you’ll like this one and this one.

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Which of these gifts would you want to receive yourself? Comment below and let me know!

The post Host/Hostess Gift Ideas For Thanksgiving appeared first on love always, audrey.

I have long been a fan of a local Chicago artist named Katherine Corden–I started following her on Instagram last year, and have been in love with her work ever since! Katherine paints beautifully and has an amazing, engaged social following–one that she has built through her genuine personality and gorgeous artwork. Keep reading for a discount code AND a giveaway!

Funny story: a few weeks ago, I was brainstorming post ideas and wrote down “interview Katherine Corden?” but hadn’t yet put that plan into motion. Shortly after that, Katherine messaged me on Instagram asking if I’d like to partner up on a blog post! It felt like fate, and I’m very excited to introduce you all to her. I’m also super excited about her newest series, titled “Gather”! Without further ado…

Tell me about your brand new Gather series!

The “Gather” series portrays family and friends in casual environments. Good conversations and lots of laughs – where anxieties and fears are either consoled or forgotten. The good times that you want to really be present and soak it all in because you know time goes too fast… to quote John Mayer, “by the time we recognize this moment, this moment will be gone.”

For a while I felt pressure to paint a meaningful subject that appealed to my potential clients. When I came to my parents and Dave frustrated with finding a subject, they said “just paint what you want Katherine. As long as you like what you’re painting that’s all that matters.” I started taking pictures of my friends and family because I liked those moments and over time I’ve started to discover my “why”.

Many of the scenes feature friends and family hanging out in Chicago or my family’s place in Northern Michigan. I’ve always been a “summer girl” so you’ll notice I spend a lot of time at the beach. The palette is more soothing than my past works. I’m using more muted and neutral colors. I still love capturing the light and shadow contrast in my subjects, I think it really brings the painting to life and creates something more visually interesting for your eye to travel around.

If you want to learn more about my Gather series, I wrote a blog post about it here.

Katherine’s Gather series is launching on Friday, November 17th!

How did you turn your hobby into a business?

I started an Instagram account last April, and started a Squarespace website last July. My first collectors were obviously my friends and family, and then it slowly started spreading by word of mouth and through social media. I remember the feeling I had the first time a stranger wanted to buy my work – pretty unreal!

Don’t be fooled – I spend tons of time working on my business. I take advantage of free podcasts and blog resources. I invested in some continuing education, including paid social media courses. Jenna Kutcher is an awesome online creative educator if you’re looking for a good person to check out.

Finally, to really be “too legit to quit” I registered my business with the state of Illinois as a sole proprietor. I just hired my first accountant, and I opened up a separate checking account and credit card to keep my finances organized.

You work as an inpatient physical therapist… how do you balance both that and a business?

It’s not easy! I have several strategies I try to implement, and “try” should be emphasized.

First, if something is not aligned with my goals and current circumstances, I say no and move on. Saying “no” to one thing means I have room to say “yes” to something else down the road that better suits my business goals. When you have limited time on your hands (like I do with a full time job) this is critical to growing your business!

Second, I have been batch working, which means I try to separate out my tasks by days or in chunks of hours. One day I will only do computer work (emails, invoices, accounting), one day I’ll package and ship orders, one day I’ll try to just paint my own work, and one day I’ll focus on commissions. This is definitely a work in progress but when I am diligent I can see the difference!

Third, I give myself grace to take a break. My fiancé and I just moved in together and we value spending quality time together. You may notice a theme forming… I’m always working on “being present”.

How would you spend the perfect day in Lincoln Park?

This may sound crazy, so bear with me. An ideal day would be waking up early on the weekend to bike to the lakeshore path and watch the sunrise with Dave (we just did this and had SO much fun, it’s a great way to take advantage of living on the west side of Lake Michigan).

Then, we would go to our favorite coffee shop La Colombe on Armitage. We love the coffee here and they don’t have wifi or outlets. They emphasize the importance of catching up with a friend and taking your time to sip coffee and be present in the moment.

On our way home we walk past Chicago Bagel Authority and usually grab some bagel sandwiches and chips to go. My favorite is the “Clayboy”.

After being caffeinated and full of CBA, I’d start painting back at our apartment. We don’t have a TV so Dave might be hanging out in the background practicing his guitar or playing some music on his record player for us.

For dinner, a perfect day would be packing up a picnic, taking it to Oz Park and sitting on the hill with friends while watching a local little league game. Followed by a stop at Annette’s for Italian Ice before going home of course. In the winter, we love to hit up Kincaid’s for trivia nights with friends too.

What’s the first thing you want to know about someone who commissions work from you? Also, how does that process work?

My clients reach out to me through my contact page and we start discussing what they would like painted and the size they are looking for. They often have a photo in mind, and I recommend using photos with good light and shadow contrast – they translate best to a painting. I then ask them if they are drawn to any of my previous works or have certain colors in mind so I can get an idea of the style and mood they are looking for. I often will ask for photos of the room they are planning to put the painting in as well so that I can make sure the art will complement their home.

Once we have decided on these details, my clients pay me a 50% non-refundable deposit I use to start the commission. From there, I usually estimate 6-8 weeks until completion to give myself lots of wiggle room. That way, if I finish early it’s a bonus!

I am continually accepting commissions that are 18×24 or larger and am also always working with interior designers. However, for my typical clients that want smaller size paintings starting at 12×12, I only book 1-2 commissions a month and those slots fill up quick! So don’t hesitate to reach out.

What is one thing people don’t know about you?

I took 4 years of ceramics in high school. I wasn’t a big fan of the drawing and painting instructor, but the ceramics teacher was the bomb.com. I spent every free moment I had in that studio.

What advice would you give to a budding artist?

It’s okay to grow slow! And since I’m a budding artist, I tell this to myself daily. Dave always reminds me that some businesses fail if they grow too fast. I need to remember that God is in control and giving me just what I need right now for a reason.

What’s your goal for 2018, both personally and professionally?

Get married! That’s going to happen for sure though. Right now I’m working with my friend Kelly Etz on re-branding and updating my website. My goal is to focus my brand to better reflect my values, personality and style. I’m starting to feel like I’m falling into a groove with my painting style, and it feels so satisfying and comfy. I want my brand to express that.

What do you do when you get artist’s block?

Sweat it out. As a physical therapist, I really value the importance of physical activity – our bodies are so incredible, the ability to exercise is a privilege! My favorite workouts include running, Pure Barre, rock climbing, and occasionally soccer with my friends. This always helps to clear my mind. Traveling never fails to inspire me either, but working out is much more accessible.

Who are some other artists you admire?

One artist that I haven’t been able to get out of my mind lately is Sarah Petit – a girl who was a couple grades ahead of me in high school. We used to take ceramics together and she now has her own ceramics and textile shop. She lives in Detroit. Her and I have talked about doing some sort of art trade. I want everything in her shop – I want one of her purses, some coffee mugs, and planters… soon! Check her out!

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You can follow Katherine Corden on Instagram and Facebook! Check out her website here–it will transport you to a sunny summer day. Thank you Katherine for letting my readers get to know you!

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From now until November 30th, 2017, Katherine Corden is giving Love Always, Audrey readers 15% off of anything in her store! Just use code LOVEAUDREY15 on her website!

To enter for a chance to win a print of your choice from Katherine, follow the steps in the giveaway module below. Giveaway ends November 3rd at midnight. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you liked this post, you’ll like this one and this one!

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My roommate Tori and I decided to stay put in our apartment another year, but the caveat was that we needed to spruce it up a bit. It was getting a little… stale. Plus, we get bored easily.

If you follow along on Instagram stories, you’ll know that we got rid of our dining room table and converted the dining room in a home office! More to come on that later, but the whole space is a lot more open now, and the statement piece of the office/living room now is definitely our new bar cart.

The very affordable bar cart itself took about 15 minutes to put together–so easy. And you won’t believe where it’s from!

I’ve collected a few trinkets over the years that are perfect for the bar cart. I picked up this postcard in San Francisco last year and framed it–it was sitting in my drawer for over a year until now, when I found the perfect spot for it!

You might remember this bottle opener from my rooftop dinner this summer–it’s such a cute bar cart accessory.

These straws are so fun, even if you don’t actually use them. 

I admittedly broke one of these adorable tumblers (oops), and I can’t find them online anymore, but here are some similar options! I love how these paper coasters match them (and make up for the broken-glass space). Also, Moscow mule mugs are definitely expensive but also definitely a necessity for any bar cart situation.

Before you think that we have drinking problems with how much booze is down there, I have to tell you that all of these bottles have been collected over the past 3 years of us living together. People always leave their alcohol here for us to not drink. Okay, glad that’s settled.

This electric bottle opener is such a frilly thing to have (I mean, the entire bar cart is in general, let’s be honest), but it’s a huge help when I have multiple bottles of wine to open at once. I really recommend it! We keep it plugged in in the back of the bar cart so it’s always at the ready.

Last but certainly not least: the chambong (back of the bottom in the blue and white box). I won this at my company’s white elephant exchange last year, and it is SUCH A HIT when we have parties. It’s definitely a novelty item but again, so is the bar cart.

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Are we missing anything from the bar cart? What would you put on it?

The post Apartment Update – A New, Affordable Bar Cart! appeared first on love always, audrey.

I take a lot of photos.

A lot. I majored in photography and always have some kind of camera with me whether it’s my iPhone, my Canon 5D, or my beloved Sony a6000. (If you want some camera advice, click here)

When I was growing up, I would constantly look through my mom’s old photo albums and memory books–I loved seeing what she did when she was my age. She had playbills from Broadway shows, old Christmas cards, plane tickets, and a whole mix of things you might never expect.

Since I’m basically my mom in 26-year-old form, it’s no surprise that I turned out the same way. I save EVERYTHING. Plane tickets, ticket stubs, museum brochures… if it’s paper, it’s going in a book.

In that same vein, I also insist on printing my photos. Why? Very simple: because I can’t pass my Facebook page down to my kids and grandkids.

Hi Chewy!

Okay, Chewy, get off my prints.

I love finding my old memory books and flipping through them–as mentioned countless times before here, I’m a complete sucker for nostalgia. Isn’t it crazy (and awesome) how a photo can so clearly bring you back to a memory? I love that. This is why I’m on such a kick to bring back print.

Because I value high-quality, archival prints, I order mine from Artifact Uprising. As mentioned before, I’m a huge fan of theirs. Their attention to quality and detail is very impressive and I adore everything about them.

Memories are just way too important to keep on social media or hidden in my hard drive. Tangible, IRL prints are really where it’s at. Aaaaaand if I’ve convinced you, Artifact Uprising is offering 10 FREE prints with code AUDREY10 (just pay shipping) now through October 9th, 2017. Enjoy!

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What are you doing to bring back print? Comment below!

Photos by Taryn

The post Why I Insist on Printing My Photos + Free Prints appeared first on love always, audrey.

Our current apartment is in such a good location and is such a great price that we decided to stay another year! But under one condition–the rental kitchen had to get redone. Luckily, our landlord is cool with us painting, so my roommate and I put together a plan and went for it.

BEFORE

AFTER

TOTALLY different, right?! Here’s what we did:

We painted the cabinets black
We used a Kilz primer that the guy at Home Depot recommended (1 coat), and then painted with Behr Marquee paint (I don’t remember the exact color, but I know I asked the paint guy for plain black). We did use the eggshell enamel on these instead of having them be super glossy,  because we wanted them to look understated.

We installed cabinet pulls
It was driving me absolutely crazy not to have cabinet pulls, so I drilled holes into the cabinets and screwed in the knobs. Don’t they look so much better?! These cabinet pulls were actually really inexpensive but they look great. They also come in gold!

We put down marble contact paper
After seeing quite a few success stories with marble contact paper online, I just knew I had to try it. We’ve been cooking and using our kitchen as normal for a few weeks now, and the paper looks great. It truly does look real! And I’ve spilled on it quite a few times by now, and it looks good as new. I highly recommend this paper! And make sure you get a smoothing tool and an x-acto knife as well–these were extremely helpful.

Also, as for taking the paper off: I haven’t tried this yet, but I’ve heard from many people that you can take a hair dryer to it and it’ll peel right off! Good for rental kitchen, right?

We rolled out a rug
Doesn’t the rug just tie everything in together? I will admit – there are more than a few stains on it already, but it was $40 at Ross so I’m not complaining too much. Plus, the stains are barely noticeable!

Other miscellaneous things
I turned an apothecary jar into a designated Skinny Pop jar (we eat a lot of Skinny Pop in this house). I put up a marble whiteboard so we’ll always know what the dishwasher’s status is. I painted our utensil holder gold using Martha Steward liquid gilding (this stuff is insanely amazing, and you only need that little bottle). And, I added a spice rack for easy access while cooking.

I am not exaggerating when I say that I am obsessed with our new kitchen. It just feels so much more sleek and modern, and I can barely remember what our rental kitchen looked like before!

Questions? Leave them in the comments below! How would you redo your rental kitchen?

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Happy (almost) Hannukah! I’m so excited for chocolate gelt, latkes, and lighting candles. To me, lighting the Hannukah menorah reminds me of the responsibility I have to bring more light into the world–I hope it inspires you as well!

I put together DIY instructions for you to create your own menorah! Please see directions and important safety info below! Happy Holidays!

What You Need:

• 10 wooden blocks (between 1” and 2”)
• 9 1/4” copper tubes (these will set you back about .75 each at Home Depot)
• Blue Tape
• Paint (I used Martha Stewart brand)
• Paintbrushes
• E6000 glue

Directions:

PLEASE read the important safety note at the bottom of this post!

Decide on your color scheme. I chose a white/gold theme, but my friend Stephanie (photographed here) chose a white/gold/blue color theme! It’s totally up to you!

Paint your blocks the base color you’d like. In this case, Stephanie chose white. I prefer to paint all 4 sides for consistency, but you can certainly just paint the sides that will show!

Once the base paint has dried, use blue tape to tape off a triangle-shaped section of the block. If you start at one corner and go diagonally, it should all meet at the corner nicely! You’ll only cover 3 half-sides this way. Be sure that the tape is completely secured to the block so you don’t end up with some spots that leak through!

Paint the taped-off section of your blocks a different color. In these photos, Stephanie decided to use blue AND gold! She’s so creative. Wait for this to dry completely before removing the tape.

Once the painted blocks are dry and you remove the tape, arrange them (without gluing) how you’d like them to look in their final setting. You won’t be able to change their positions once they’re glued, so make sure you like how they look! I didn’t use a specific pattern; I did them kind of randomly but that’s how I liked it.

Time to glue the blocks together! I recommend doing 2 blocks at a time, then gluing 2 sections together, and so on until they’re all glued together. Be sure to line them up as you go so they’re perfectly in line with each other!

Next, you need to glue the copper tubes to the base. I just kind of eyeballed it, but you can certainly use a ruler and pencil to see where exactly the middle is. Make sure these are firmly in place — you’re putting candles in them!

Once everything is glued into place, you’re done! How pretty is that?! If you need candle recommendations, I love these, these, and these. You can also leave this unlit — it can be a purely decorative piece! On that note…

IMPORTANT NOTE: This is (obviously) a wooden menorah, and you’re lighting candles with (obviously) fire. PLEASE be smart and don’t leave your menorah unattended. If you must blow the candles out, do it. No religious rules are worth a dangerous fire (sorry).

Happy Hanukkah to you and yours! <3 And be sure to pass this DIY Menorah Tutorial around to any friends who might be interested.

The post DIY Menorah Tutorial appeared first on love always, audrey.

I live in such abundance. I have family and friends that love me, a job that I love going to every day and that pays the bills, food in my fridge, a big soft bed, clothes for all seasons… I could go on and on. And for all of these reasons and more, I am thankful. If you’re reading this, something tells me you have reasons to be thankful, too. Enter Thanksgiving.

I am lucky enough to be going home to Arizona for Thanksgiving, and will get to spend the holiday with my family. But before that, I’ll be celebrating Friendsgiving with my second family — my friends. And in true personal nature, I’m going to have to make it meaningful and pretty.

Friendsgiving is certainly not a new concept, and I’ve attended many dinners the past few years, each time the food getting yummier and the company growing warmer.

This year, I wanted to put together a decorative, festive table setting that anyone can do! My friends over at Paper Source provided so many options, and I picked my favorite items to really make the Friendsgiving table sparkle.

I stopped by Whole Foods to grab these blooms — aren’t they pretty? The pop of eucalyptus really made the bouquet smell amazing, and I think it looked a little more natural with the greenery in there!

I fell in love with this matchstick and candle combo. Although they’re sold separately, I think they look just darling together. And the candle smells amazing!

One thing that I feel makes a dinner really special are designated place settings. I think everything feels more fancy when there’s a place card associated! The combination of these Rifle Paper Co place cards and these pumpkin place card holders was so perfect. I also included these little champagne bears at each seat for people to take home. They didn’t last long — they’re SO delicious! I can see why these Sugarfina gummy bears are so popular!

Find these items:

Another staple to Friendsgiving? Wine, of course. My favorite wine lately has been Chloe Wines, who has made their presence well known in Chicago over the last few months — and I have to say, I’m obsessed. Their prosecco and pinot grigio are my top picks for everything from larger dinners to small book club gatherings. Trust me, it’s all good.

These string lights added a small but impactful energy to the table. They run on batteries, so there’s no looking for an outlet! The battery pack can easily be hidden with another decoration. The lights paired well with these copper leaves, which added a delicate warmth to the table. But be careful — since they’re copper, their edges are sharp!

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Oh, and the dishes. Paper Source has a great line of matching dish ware out for Thanksgiving! I chose the dessert plates, tea towels, and coffee mugs for my table; I thought they were sweet and subtle, even though they are holiday themed.

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Are you hosting a Friendsgiving dinner this year? I’d love to hear what you’re doing for it, and how you’re decorating! Sound off in the comments below!

This post was made possible by my friends at Paper Source and Chloe Wines, brands I know and love.

The post How To Host a Friendsgiving Dinner appeared first on love always, audrey.

Exciting news: a few weeks ago, I started a new job! I’m still in Chicago (and loving every minute of it), and my new position is amazing and I’m just overall really, really happy. And as it just so happens, this new season of my life is starting just as school is also ramping back up.

While I’m no longer attending classes (at least for the foreseeable future), back to school has always been one of my favorite times of year. After all, I’m utterly obsessed with office supplies, and what better time of year to stock up than BTS?

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The layout of my desk is absolutely imperative to my productivity levels. If I have a messy, unkempt workspace, then I’m unlikely to get anything done. Does anyone else feel that way?

When it comes to decorating my desk, I like to include pretty, functional objects. Things like an acrylic gold paper tray, a beautiful gold stapler, and some inspirational books.

An agenda is an absolute must, as well! I’m not the type to remember much–if it’s not in my calendar, I’m not going to do it. I love this Ban.do planner–it’s gorgeous and purposeful! And who doesn’t love stickers?

Speaking of agendas, Paper Source is currently running their #MYPSCalendar sweepstakes! Now through August 31st, you could win a $500 Paper Source gift card by submitting a photo of your desk! Easy enough, right? Let me know if you win!

Shop some of my favorite calendars:

This candle is also amazing–it lights the room up with fragrance even when it’s not actually lit. It smells like rosé, which might or might not make me less productive (dreaming about summer weekends… sigh).

Another of my favorites is this Kate Spade pencil pouch. Admittedly, I don’t use it for pencils–it’s such a great cord holder! I put my chargers and headphones in there for safe keeping (because I would otherwise lose them, of course).

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I also put together a gifting guide for all of the ladies in your life who are going back to school, work, or just love desk decor! Head over to the Paper Source blog to read it!

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Many of these products were provided to me by Paper Source, a brand I absolutely adore. I promise to always keep it real; all opinions are my own!

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