1 what I'm reading

I picked up this book during my break from blogging last month and I have to say that it was very instrumental in me turning things around. DeVon Franklin wrote this book about career success from his perspective as a Christian Hollywood executive. However, it certainly applies to ANYONE building a career for themselves. He tells his story about staying true to what he believes while still relentlessly pursuing his ambitious goals. The theme that resonated the most for me was remembering that we are all just characters in our own movie. Often times we get so caught up in our own ambition that we think we are the writer, director and star of our life's movie, but in reality, it's next to impossible, and probably not the smartest idea, to attempt to play all those roles. Focusing in on who YOUR director is, listening to His direction and playing your role is the key to giving an outstanding performance, according to Produced by Faith.

I highly suggest you pick up a copy! Or you can download it directly to your Kindle here. Check out DeVon talking about his story and the book below!



PS - What are you reading right now?




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And don't forget, I'm collecting donations for my 2012 Room Service Atlanta project. If you'd like to make a donation, click the button below!

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1 what I'm reading: instantly! how quickly I realized I hate my job

For anyone who has had that sinking feeling in your stomach while you sit in your car dreading walking into work, this novella is for you! Shameeka Ayers (aka The Broke Socialite) recently released her first book, Instantly! How Quickly I Realized I Hate my Job, and I had the pleasure of attending one of her book signing events here in Atlanta.


The book follows Nia as she enters a new job which she quickly learns is her worst nightmare and her transition OUT of a bad situation and one crafted by her own dreams. But of course, every dream has it's hurdles... Nia is surprised at the end of the novella with one of her on.



In true "TBS" fashion, the book signing was fabulous; with a bevy of sweets, bubbly and great people!


I ran into my blogging buddy Eboné Smiley! Obviously she loves animal print as much as I do...


...and I had a chance to congratulate Shameeka in person on a job well done! She has been an inspiration to me ever since I moved to Atlanta in 2009 and I wish her much continued success!

Pick up your copy of Instantly! here.

0 what I'm reading

My sister recommended this book to me at the beginning of February and although I haven't finished the entire book, I HAD to share this with you. This book is AMAZING, to say the least. If you're a person that believes in anything larger than you, this book will reinforce your faith. The premise of the book is to prove that the act of writing down your thoughts/desires/fears literally accelerates what manifests in your life. She gives anecdotal evidence, as well as scientific basis, to help you create a step-by-step system of writing for yourself. The thing I like the most about this book is that there is not right or wrong way to do what she proposes for you to do. This book isn't aimed at a particular race, age, sex, or religion because it works for EVERYONE.

The funny thing about this is, the day that my sister recommended this to me, I had just received a brand new blank leather bound journal and pen as a gift from the Brizo team! I was actually really excited to have a new "sketchbook" and it's almost as if God was giving me a "textbook" on what to do with it, by having Adrianne recommend this book. Since then, I've been writing in that book pretty consistently, and I have to say, it feels great!

I highly recommend you pick it up: either in paperback or on your e-reader. Here is a very animated, but in depth, review of the book from one of my favorite YouTubers - Shira. She's hilarious and her enthusiasm will MAKE you get this book! :)




What are YOU reading right now? If you've already read it, let me know what you think!

8 what I'm reading: commander in chic

I'm starting a new series here on the blog where I share what books I'm reading! I don't always have time to sit and enjoy a novel, but I'm always reading SOMETHING. Last month, I read through Mikki Taylor's Commander in Chic. This book is a how-to-guide for any woman who aspires to put her best look forward just like our First Lady Michelle Obama does so (seemingly) effortlessly!





Mikki uses Michelle as an example throughout the book with step by step instructions and sources on how to keep everything from your hair to your shoes on point. It's a really fun read full of "Mikkisms" - rules according to Mikki - about beauty, fashion and more. I love that she suggests embracing color, making sure you have a foundation of great hair and nails and ALWAYS rocking fabulous shoes. She gives great sources to fit any budget, from the Target fashionista right on up to Neiman's. The entire book is written in a really approachable way that will appeal to a 20-something year old just starting out as well as a 50+ woman who just wants to revamp their style.




The book is probably about 30% photos of Mrs. Obama, so it's definitely a great coffee table book. I sat down with Rosalynn of Chic Boutique Tour and got to hear what some other ladies thought about the book too!





Have you read this book? If so, let me know what you thought! If not, be sure to pick up a copy.



Full Disclosure: This book was gifted to me by Chic Boutique Tour. All opinions expressed are my own.

1 christmas book wishlist!

Honestly, I never really believed in Santa Clause. The whole idea didn't make sense to me! I knew my parents provided everything I wanted and needed, and Christmas was about Jesus.... so where did this chubby Caucasian man come into play?? With that thought process as a child, I would spend HOURS creating Christmas lists for my mom each year. Way before blogging, I'd copy & paste pictures into Microsoft Word and email them to her with prices and where to purchase.


So! This year I decided to do a few wishlists for those that are still shopping and looking for ideas!! (Or want to buy me something ;-)) First up: books for the design enthusiast




Any design lover will LOVE one of these for their coffee table collection.
Domino: The Book of Decorating. Live, Love & Decorate. Black & White . Hue.JA on Happy Chic Colors. Design Sponge at Home

Stay tuned for more wishlists this week!

3 dreamer's digest: week 4

The French love to read! Everywhere you go in Paris from the cafes to the museums, even riding on the metro you are more than likely to see many people with a book in their hand. Reading is an understood favorite past time of the average French person. The couple I live with probably have over one hundred books on their bookshelves, and other homes I've visited in Paris usually have the same.

I love to read; I remember as I child I couldn't go to sleep without reading a book! Although I'm learning more of the French language every day, I'm not quite proficient enough to read French books. In effort to spend less time on the computer when I'm not perusing Paris, I stopped by the infamous American bookstore Shakespeare & Company yesterday to pick up a good read.

Shakespeare and Company opened in August 1951 by George Whitman, an American who enrolled at Sorbonne after ending up in Paris after World War II. During his time at Sorbonne, he collected many books and created a large collection of books to use as both a library and bookstore. Soon, Whitman and his friend, Lawrence Ferlinghetti began to seriously decide to open a bookstore. Their venture led them to purchase a petite apartment just beside the Notre Dame and use it as their store.

Whitman's aspiration was to create a sanctuary for up and coming writers, established writers and artists. Today, more than 50,000 people have visited Shakespeare and Company. Many world renowned authors have visited the bookstore; it's not rare to find the author of the book's signature amongst the pages that you're reading!

You really could spend hours in Shakespeare and Company. Take a look at my pictures and you'll see why....


Outside Shakespeare and Co.

Reading room on top floor where groups can meet and discuss books.

Me!

I picked up a book for myself! Only 4 euro. The cashier stamped the book after I purchased it :)
I was kind of in a rush so I couldn't read many of the notes, but they were various things. Love notes and messages in many many languages.

Shakespeare and Co has both new and used books at really reasonable prices!
Another quaint space to read.

There are books everywhere. They line the entire store!

A piano on the top floor! I love it...surrounded by books of course.



Hope you enjoyed this tour of one of Paris' hidden treasures!

-Adrianne

5 saturday in firenze

Today I decided to NOT spend the whole day in the apartment, yesterday I was extra lazy + it was rainy so I only left for a few minutes.... the rest of the day was spent reading and slumming. So my roommate Becca and I decided to go explore the city a bit. It stormed here yesterday so the weather was nice and cool and partly cloudy... perfect day to walk around! We headed out with the intention of walking around for a while and then checking out the Uffizi gallery near my house but we were so content with just wandering, we never made it to the gallery.

this little car was so cute...
and i think it's funny it is called MEGA, it should be called MINI!

my best photo of the Duomo yet!!

Anyway, we headed toward the Duomo as a starting off point (since its about 5 minutes from our apartment) and found our way to the Galleria Accademia. This is the art gallery that houses Michaelangelo's David. The line wasn't too long, but we didn't feel like waiting and get walking to see what else we'd find. There are tons of great shoe/handbag/clothing stores here so we looked in a few of those.... Found an English bookstore with a big selection of used books.... I got one for 1.5 euro: The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom. (He's the same guy who wrote Tuesdays With Morrie....)

Then we stumbled upon what looked like another museum from down the street but turned out to be an open air market. This market had everything from fresh produce vendors, handmade jewelry, hats, wool clothing, spun wool, coffee, tea, and fresh honey. It was amazing! We walked around and looked at every single booth; I got some ground coffee for only 2.8 euros.

we thought this was a museum but it was just another gorgeous building!
see the little bus, that's what all the city buses look like.

By this time, it was like 5pm and we were pretty hungry so we went in search of food. Side note: every time we came to an intersection today, we tried to go down a street we hadn't been down yet, so we found all new places. As we turned down another new street, we saw this cute little cafe called Cafe Deluxee. This place had the BEST pizza I've had since I've been here... and reasonably priced too. I had a margherita pizza with a Diet Coke (or Coca-Cola Light as it's called here) and then a Mirocchino, which is espresso with amaretto and dark chocolate powder. Becca and I just sat and ate and talked like real Florentines. ;)

so so GOOD!!

mirocchino

After we ate we decided to head in the direction of our apartment to make sure we got back before the rain started again and we found a 99 cents store!! Everything is so expensive here, so I was excited to get some of my school supplies there and some other junk. Then we passed through the leather market.... and I bought a bag! I hadn't planned on buying anything for myself for a while but I have been seeing these knock-off Fendi Spy bags all around the city and I love them. I'm not usually one for buying knock-offs but these are really well done... plus I haggled him down to 17 euro... all the other spots I saw them at were selling them for 30 euro, so I think I did pretty well!

the straps are actually dark brown....
it has all these cool compartments... i love it!!

As I was buying the bag, most of the vendors were closing up shop, the sun was going down and the clouds were rolling in so that was our cue to head home. I have to say it was a perfect afternoon. I'm starting to feel like I live here... and not so much like a tourist. Now that I'm learning more Italian, it helps a lot getting around and communicating. Even though I can't speak it very well yet, at least I can understand them a little better and at least get them to understand me! Everybody here has been pretty nice... but I definitely don't trust the guys in the street though, something about them always seems sketch!

Hope you had a great Saturday! Arrivederci ;)