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Happy Valentine’s Day! Since I’ll be celebrating with girlfriends tonight, I decided to have my friend, Jilly Hendrix, put together a mix. It’s the perfect soundtrack to turn on while cooking a Valentine’s Day feast before turning on a chick flick and forgetting about all your V-Day woes...

“Here are my top 10 songs to listen to this Valentine’s Day. I decided to choose all of my favorite female singers. Hope you enjoy!” – Jilly Hendrix

1. The Knocks featuring Mandy Lee - Midnight City

2. Lana Del Rey - Diet MTN Dew (Get her album on iTunes)

3. Kimbra - Cameo Lover (G.L.O.V.E.S remix)

4. M.I.A -Bad Girls

5. Nicolas Jaar featuring Scout LaRue - With Just One Glance

6. Sylver Tongue - Hook You Up

7. Jessie J - Domino

8. Little Dragon -Shuffle A Dream (Make sure to get their album on itunes!)

9. Skrillex featuring Ellie Goulding - Summit (Prometheus Remix)

10. Charli XCX - Nuclear Seasons (Michael Brun Remix)

What are your plans for tonight? Also, what songs are you listening to these days?

XO Lauren

P.S. Don’t forget to follow Jilly on Twitter @JillyHendrix and check out her website, JillyHendrix.com!

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Valentine’s Day is fluffed up with a lot of expectations. Between chick flicks and seasonal advertising we’re lead to believe men become intoxicated by some mysterious love punch and happily perform miraculous feats to profess their love for the ladies in their lives. I beg to differ… While I’ve had my fair share of fairytale Valentine’s Days, I’ve also had a couple not-so-noteworthy ones too. Today I am going to rehash the best Valentine’s Day I ever had as well as the worst…

(Note: All suitors will remain anonymous.)

The Best Valentine’s Day: The best Valentine’s Day I ever had was simple and sweet. My guy met me at my house after work and told me to put on comfy shoes. I wasn’t sure what the mystery date could possibly entail, but I went along with the charade. Next thing I knew, I was blindfolded and sitting in the passenger seat of his car as we drove up into the hills along the coast. Once we got to the destination, he guided me up a small path (still blindfolded). When he took off my blindfold I found myself surrounded by dozens of candles along with a picturesque picnic complete with my favorite flowers and food from my favorite restaurant. Simply put, it was a magical evening—unexpected, sweet, simple and absolutely perfect. Definitely a tough act to beat if you ask me…

The Worst Valentine’s Day: A while back I was dating a boy and made the executive decision to take Valentine’s Day into my own hands. I decided to surprise him with dinner at his favorite restaurant. Before dinner, I went and decorated the table—I set up all my presents and had a whole night of festivities planned. I had him meet me at the restaurant and when he showed up…he was drunk! It was really lame.

Tell me about your best and worst Valentine’s Day stories in the comments below. (I’d love to know I’m not the only one with a not-so-lovely Valentine’s Day tale.)

XO Lauren

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I don’t know about you, but when it comes to Valentine’s Day, chocolate is one of the only things on my mind. So if you’ve got a knack for crafts and a craving for chocolate, this is the Valentine’s DIY for you. Behold: Darling Dynamite! It’s simple, sweet and oh-so-clever. Roll a few up for friends or give one to your special someone with a cute card. No matter what, it’s a sweet way to say, “You’re the bomb!”

Makes 1 Darling Dynamite

What you will need…

• 3 packs of Rolos
• 1 sheet of red construction paper
• 2 black pipe cleaners
• scotch tape

Instructions

1. Trim the construction paper into three pieces and wrap each piece around a pack of Rolos and secure with tape. Hold onto the excess construction paper for now.
2. Wrap the pieces of construction paper around each pack of Rolos and secure with a bit of tape.
3. Gather the three packs of wrapped Rolos into a bunch and secure with a pipe cleaner.
4. Using the excess construction paper from Step #1, make a tag with the message “Darling, you’re dynamite!” (Other message suggestions: “You’re a blast!” or “You’re the bomb!”) String the tag onto the pipe cleaner.
5. Lastly, the second pipe cleaner in the middle of the three packs of Rolos, trimming off the end so that your “fuse” is an inch or two long.

Isn’t this an adorable idea?

Do you have a crafty Valentine idea? Share it in the comments below. Better yet—upload a photo and share the link for all to see!

XO Lauren

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Just because our days of exchanging Valentine’s Day cards at school are over doesn’t mean we can’t give our friends a little something on V-Day. Today I am going to show you how to make an adorable little DIY gift to give to your friends for Valentine’s Day. It’s called a Lucky in Love Jar!


Makes one Lucky in Love Jar

Here’s what you will need…

• 1 shiny, lucky penny
• red or pink ribbon
• mason jar
• hot glue gun
• gift tag
• 1 bag of Sweethearts (or your other favorite candy)

Instructions

1. Using the hot glue gun, glue your lucky penny smack dab in the middle of the tag (heads up, of course).
2. Next, take a letter stamp set or a Sharpie and write the message “Here’s to getting lucky in love” onto the gift tag around the penny.
3. Use the ribbon to tie the tag onto a mason jar and fill it with Sweethearts or your other favorite candy.

Are you going to give this DIY a try? Also, if you have a cute V-Day craft, share your idea in the comments below!

XO Lauren

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Valentine’s Day is great if you’re attached, but what about the rest of us? Personally, I think it’s a great excuse for a party. As in a singles soirée! Invite all your single gal pals over, cook dinner together, open a bottle of Skinnygirl White Cranberry Cosmo (if you’re of legal age—it's only 100 calories, it's pre-mixed, ready to serve and pretty amazing) and rehash the best bits from your favorite chick flicks together. (Who needs sappy cards and candlelit dinners anyway?) In honor of all the single ladies out there who will celebrate V-Day solo, here are my top 10 chick flicks to soirée the night away to:

1. The Notebook
Best Quote: “If you’re a bird I’m a bird.”


2. Dirty Dancing
Best Quote: “Nobody puts Baby in a corner.” (Was that even a question?)


3. The Sweetest Thing
Best Quote: “I had them take out all the calories for you.”


4. She’s All That
Best Quote: “You didn't really think I'd leave for All-Star ‘Road Rules’ and still be dating you? Oh, you did? That's so sweet.”


5. The Wedding Planner
Best Quote: “You smell like sweet red plums and grilled cheese sandwiches.”


6. 10 Things I Hate About You
Best Quote: “I like my Sketchers, but I LOVE my Prada backpack.”


7. Titanic
Best Quote: “I’m the king of the world!”


8. Clueless
Best Quote: “Okay, so you’re probably going, ‘Is this like a Noxzema commercial or what?’ But seriously, I actually have a way normal life for a teenage girl.”


9. Pretty Woman
Best Quote: “I want the fairy tale.”


10. It’s Complicated
Best Quote: “You’ve gone native. I was into it!”


How funny are some of those trailers? I had the best time watching them when I put this post together... I swear the same guy does all of the voice-overs for these things! Ha!

What’s your all-time favorite chick flick?

Also, which movie do you think is missing from my list? Tell me in the comments (it was tough picking only 10)!

If you are attached, click here to check out my dude-approved Valentine's Day gift guide!

XO Lauren

P.S. Single ladies, this one’s for you:


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This is my favorite little craft to put together for Valentine’s Day: Spare Kisses! If you don’t have an alphabet stamp set, you can use pretty markers or glitter pens to write the script onto the bag.


What you will need…

• Small burlap bags
• Alphabet rubber stamp kit
• Red ink pad
• Hershey’s kisses

Instructions

1. Using the rubber stamp kit and red ink, stamp the phrase “Spare Kisses” directly onto the burlap bags.
2. Fill bags with Hershey’s kisses and enjoy!

Are you going to give anyone Spare Kisses? What’s the best Valentine you’ve ever received?

XO Lauren

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Let’s be honest, most people see Valentine’s Day as a “Hallmark holiday” which gives V-Day a pretty bad wrap. Naysayers aside, I see it as a great excuse to show a little love to the special people in your life. Whether you’re single or attached, over the next few weeks I’ll be giving you plenty of ideas to make your loved ones feel loved. I’ll be posting some fun Valentine’s Day DIY crafts and I’ll be enlightening you on how to do V-Day in the singles lane. Best of all? I’ll be rehashing my best and worst Valentine’s Day experiences on February the 14th! Trust me, it’s going to be juicy. In the meantime though, I’ve put together 10 great guy-friendly gift ideas to give to your man on Valentine’s Day:

1. For the sappy (or long distance) lover, give a Love Letter Envelope and place your Valentine inside.


2. Bake your sweetheart (or friends) these delicious red velvet brownies I found via Smells Like Home.


3. Give your honey your favorite cologne…


4. For anyone who’s not a fan of good old V-Day, a funny card is a must. (The bacon card is from here and the pink card is from here.)

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5. I saw this next idea on Pinterest and couldn’t resist… Give your special someone a basket that holds 12 envelopes labeled with each month of the year. Inside each envelope are the details for one pre-planned (or pre-paid) date! Click here to read more about Shannon Brown’s adorable idea!


6. Give your guy the coolest shades money can buy: Limited Edition Steve McQueen sunglasses by Persol. Warning: These can be major ego boosters!


7. They say the best way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. So why not bake up some heart-shaped calzones? Click here to check out Kristin Fitch’s recipe on Craftzine.  


8. Get your tech-obsessed guy a sleek iPad cover like this one from Barneys! The silver lining? It’s an unobtrusive way to give your non-metro man a quick pop of color!


9. If he’s a music junkie, find his favorite LP album and frame it for him. Instant wall art that’s as thoughtful as it is cool. (Heads Up: Urban Outfitters has a lot of great records for sale on their website.)


10. Or, last but not least, give him a “dude approved” picture frame, like this one, with a silly (or sweet) photograph of the two of you.


What’s the best Valentine’s Day gift you’ve ever given a guy?

Mine was a home cooked meal

XO Lauren

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Ever since I was little I have made deviled eggs (which I called “angel eggs” when I was little haha) on every holiday. Here I am displaying my dish on Xmas. Even back then I had a thing for aprons (and still collect them to this day). Such a dork haha…

Do you have any silly holiday traditions?

Wishing all of you a very merry Christmas and happy holidays!

XO Lauren

P.S. This was too funny not to share. Even if you don’t celebrate Christmas, today’s the day to spread a little joy…with this hilarious video:

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Only two days until Christmas! Have you done all of your holiday shopping? If you celebrate Christmas, what are your plans? If not, what do you usually like to do on December 25th? Tell me in the comments below. In the meantime, here are a few of my favorite things…

Favorite Laugh (Thanks to Brenna Feeney for sharing!):

Favorite Craving (Eggnog Shortbread Trifles anyone?):

Favorite Holiday Spread:

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Favorite Holiday Dress (It’s from ModCloth):

Have a very Merry Christmas and happy holidays!

Which of my favorites this week is your favorite?

XO Lauren

P.S. Check here for more: Friday Favorites

Photos: Sprinklebakes, Stylemepretty, Modcloth

I was browsing through some old holiday photos for my Christmas blog and came across this gem:

Just hanging out with Santa. If only body language could talk… I’m 99% sure I was thinking, “Who is this man? And where is my Polly Pocket?”

Do you have a funny photo from the holidays?

Upload (and submit) it to your LaurenConrad.com profile page and link the image in the comment section below for a chance to be featured in a Friday Favorites post.

XO Lauren

P.S. Click here to learn how to upload and submit photos and use the Gallery!

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I just got back from a family vacation in the Bahamas and I thought I’d share some photos with you guys. It was nice to get away. I was a little stressed on the trip because the Internet wasn’t always that reliable and I was emailing chapters of my Beauty book back and forth with my editor (sorry Farrin), but I managed to balance work and play. We spent most of our days relaxing. It was just what I needed before all the holiday craziness set in…

Me with my little brother and sister.

 This was hanging over our table while we ate lunch. Lovely!

Spent our last day building a sand castle…

Met this guy at the bar…

Had some coconut water on the beach…

Me and my Mom:

Laying out…

We got caught in a tropical storm one of our first days at the beach and found shelter at a beach bar:

How are you planning to de-stress for the holidays?

XO Lauren

P.S. Click here to check out the old photo I just posted of me sitting on Santa's lap when I was little... It's actually a pretty awkward photo.

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