This week brought birthday celebrations, new babies, sunny days, and its fair share of twists and turns, but I’m looking forward to a fantastic weekend of girly events as well as some down time with my favourite guy. In the mean time, here are my faves of the week!

1. As you may have read last week, I’m mega in to neutrals right now, and this nude lipstick by YSL is the perfect shade for summer.

2. I’m having a bit of a love affair with chickpeas these days. In addition to mixing up this salad on the reg, I am a big fan of this simple chickpea, feta & parsley salad from Quinn Cooper Style. It honestly takes less than 5 mins to throw it together and it’s perfectly fresh.

3. The NuBra has actually been a longtime fave of mine; the perfect solution to backless, low-cut or strapless tops and dresses. I recently broke it back out for an evening gown and was reminded of how genius it really is.

4. I just started reading Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can’t Stop Talking. Believe it or not, I am a definite introvert and this book is blowing my mind!

5. I may be a late-to-the-party coffee fiend (yep, I got through university entirely caffeine free), but now I actually wake up looking forward to that first cup (ugh, I guess that means I’m officially an adult). Along the way, I’ve found that french press really is superior to drip. This press by Bodum is sleek, stylish and makes the perfect tasse every time.

6. Keeping my brain sharp is a big priority for me. The Lumosity app delivers daily brain games that are actually pretty fun. It tracks your progress and forces you to work on your weaker areas. Example: the quick math problems make me want to sweat and scream, but I need to build my strength in that area. I mean, what if the only thing standing between me and the mega millions lottery is a skill-testing question!?

Happy Friday!

xo Ali