Bellas, now that we’ve done the eating healthy portion of our 4th of July weekend, might I propose a toast?

Cheers to fabulous 4th of July cocktails!

But only if you’re over 21, mmmkay?

Part of the fun of having an at-home celebration is whipping up deliciousness in the kitchen and serving your guests something both festive and delicious. So allow me to present to you the Afrobellatini!

This concoction was made by my friend Courtney who has an amazing food blog at CocoCooks. You gotta check her out! Here’s the deetz on the drink:

“Natural, real, rich, complex, and sweet. Raspberry Currant simple syrup, Cognac, Cointreau, served in a chilled martini glass. Garnished with currants. Edible Blue Glitter optional for Independence Day.”

How do you make this summer fruit inspired deliciousness? Here’s the recipe!

– Raspberry Currant Simple Syrup: 1 pint each of raspberries and currants. 1 cup water, 1 Cup sugar. Bring to boil. Let sit for 20 minutes, Strain, set aside.

– Cocktail: 1 part Cognac, 1 part Rasp Currant Simple syrup, 1/4-1/2 part Cointreau, Shake all with ice and serve in a chilled glass. Garnish with edible Blue Glitter for Independance Day and a sprig of currants.

Fabulous, right?

The Afrobellatini is an elegant cocktail, meant to be sipped at a fab garden party. But what if you’re having an affair that’s a bit more um, down n’ dirty BBQ style? Well that might call for a little something we came up with called the Pank Drank.

Myself and my homeboy Francisco Alvarado — ahem, multiple award winning journalist Francisco Alvarado — came up with this when he helped us move from Miami to Chicago.

The recipe is easy! Get a big ol’ glass pitcher, add a liberal and unrestrained amount of Rosangel hibiscus tequila, lots of OJ, a little grenadine and a big splash of Grand Marnier. Over ice? So very nice. This one can sneak up on you, so be forewarned. And PS - the Rosangel website includes several, far fancier recipes. We just wanted to whip up something simple and super easy.

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My daily shower routine is a little bizarre I guess.

I like to use bar soap first, then slough my skin with a decadent, lavishly scented body wash using my trusty bath puff-thingy. And I like to have several options at the ready. How do I choose the body wash du jour? That entirely depends on the day and the vibe I want to enjoy for the next 24 hours (unless I feel like spoiling myself with an evening shower too)!

These are my top 5 current fave body washes. There’s one for every beauty lover’s taste — expensive, affordable, and every price point in between!

1. Caress Evenly Gorgeous Body Wash. OK, I’ll make it a tie with Caress Cashmere Luxury Body Wash, just because I love anything and everything vanilla! But if you have rough skin or just want really soft smooth skin, Evenly Gorgeous is the one for you. It’s infused with burnt brown sugar and karite butter to tone and exfoliate, and I gotta tell ya, it smells delish. And apparently Spoiled Pretty and Kim Kardashian agree with me!

The texture isn’t too grainy so this won’t irritate my sensitive-skinned bellas. Plus it’s affordable and here’s a bonus — coupon, anyone?

Caress has a great initiative with fashion guru Carson Kressley, all about flaunting your skin with the hottest clothing trends. Click here to peep his vids and be inspired!

2. Bodycology Foaming Bath & Shower Gel. If you really like the kind of lush scented body washes available at Bath & Body Works and Victoria’s Secret but don’t want to break a Hamilton, check out Bodycology, a line of bath products that cost under $10 and are typically available at supermarkets and Walmart, but smell like heaven. I’ve tried a number of their scents, but I keep returning to White Gardenia and the delicious Coconut Lime, SO refreshing for summertime!
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My homegirl Renae of the ever-inspirational In Her Shoes blog put together a wonderful Father’s Day post featuring yours truly. I was asked to share the best wisdom my dad taught me over the years.

After considering all the priceless bon mots and tidbits of advice my father has offered over my 30 years of existence — some of which he has shared right here — it was difficult to choose the best. But I came up with this:

“When I was a rebellious teenage bella, my dad always repeated two phrases. The first was, “if you fail to prepare, prepare to fail.” We kids used to clown him for that cliche and it was repeated most often when we had to study for exams at school, but it’s proven to be so true in many other circumstances. My dad taught me the importance of hard work, focus, and diligence and those lessons have stood me in amazing stead. Without the lessons he taught me, I wouldn’t be Afrobella today.”

Very, very true.

So you may be wondering — what’s the second phrase? It’s this —

“there are mad people everywhere.”

And sometimes, they don’t know that they’re mad!

Mad meaning crazy, as the English tend to say. I know many of you know what I mean but I wanted to clarify. That particular piece of advice has saved me quite a bit of drama and heartache through the years.

My father is a very real, down to earth, smart, supportive man with a measured temper and a tendency to pontificate. That’s been passed along to me. I’m feeling a bit down that I couldn’t hear his voice today, but it’s for a great cause. He’s on a cruise with my mom! Happy Father’s Day, dad — wherever you are, know that I love you and respect you tremendously!

Thanks again to In Her Shoes for the opportunity.

What’s the best advice your father’s given you?

Consider this your daily reminder, courtesy of an old school Sesame Street clip!

I grew up a Sesame Street junkie, and this song was always one of my favorites. The empowering message resonated with me at an early age — “just look around you, it’s easy to see. There’s NOTHING we women can’t be!”

This year, Sesame Street celebrates 40 years of excellence, and according to that Newsweek article in the previous link, it’s ranked #15 in popularity of the children’s shows on air. That’s terrible news and I blame Elmo. Just kidding (I’m a Grover stan, for the record)!

It’s true, the Sesame Street nowadays isn’t quite the show I grew up on. But it’s still awesome and the messages of inclusion, equality, and respect remain. And for classic Sesame Street fans of my generation, all isn’t lost. You can get
Sesame Street - Old School, Vol. 1 (1969-1974) and Sesame Street: Vol. 2 - Old School (1974-1979). Your kids will LOVE it. And so will you!

New York, New York!

I have a love/hate relationship with the city, I can’t deny. I love it because there’s so much to see and do and experience! It’s the epicenter of absolutely everything I’m into - writing, blogging, beauty, style, good food, fun…

I hate it because I don’t live there.

Don’t get me wrong, I just moved to the Chi and I’m happy to be here! But I’ll be damned - doesn’t it seem like EVERY hot event is in NYC? What’s with that?

Every time I visit New York, it’s hard for me to leave. I always leave with a feeling of loss, of imcompleteness, of wait - there’s SO much more I wanted to do here! But I reassure myself with the knowledge that I’ll be back. I just visited in March, and I’m already plotting my return. Did someone say Fashion Week? Hell yeah! Next time I visit NYC, I’ve got 5 places I need to spend more time at. Here they are, in no particular order.

1. The East Village. Every time I come visit, I stay with my homegirl Jenny in the West Village. And it’s super fun for sure… but I’m new to the East Village. And it just has a flavor to it that I LOVE. Mohawked punk rockers strolling alongside silver haired abuelitas dragging little suitcases on wheels, hair colors, piercings, and tattoos the likes of which you don’t see regularly anyplace else, and a plethora — PLETHORA of funky restaurants, boutiques, and bars to check out. I darted in and out of Max Brenner, Chocolate By the Bald Man for a fabulicious hot chocolate, and I NEED MORE. This place is a chocolaholic’s mecca, I swear! En route we whizzed through Village Kitchen — I could spend a grip in a store like this! Every kind of kitchen gadget you’ve imagined, and a score more you’ve never seen before. If you imagine yourself an at-home like I do, this could be your little corner of heaven. Another store I have-to-have-to-have-to visit next time I’m in NYC is a teeny jewelry shop that all but yanked me in as I strolled by. When I met the owner, I realized fate had stepped into my life yet again. The store’s called The Shape of Lies and the owner’s name is Peggy. Just like my mom!

The Shape of Lies specializes in historic reproduction jewelry, and some of their pieces are just stunners. I almost don’t want to blog about them too much because there’s a necklace there that is MINE, you read me? MINE! As soon as I can pony up the cash! Their jewelry isn’t cheap, but it certainly will get you noticed and remembered. I have made a promise to gift myself with a little something from The Shape of Lies. If you’re ever in the neighborhood, please stop by and tell Peggy you read about her on Afrobella!

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I was sent this inspiring CNN story about Trinidadian woman Susan Lakhan Baptiste yesterday, and just had to share it with you bellas and fellas. I love animals, and I have so much respect for animal lovers and activists. Susan Lakhan Baptiste has made it her life’s mission to protect the endangered leatherback turtles that come to nest on Trinidad’s Matura Beach. In case you’ve never heard of a leatherback turtle, it’s the largest of all living sea turtles, the only surviving species of its genus, and they can live to be 150 years old.

Susan makes me so proud as a fellow Trini, and as a fellow animal lover. Next time I visit home, I hope it’s during nesting season. Regretfully, I’ve never been to Matura Beach to witness this amazing natural phenomenon. I hope to rectify that soon! Big respect to you, Susan Lakhan Baptiste — keep on fighting the good fight!