Yesterday was my 26th Birthday, and man was it great! Unfortunately, I had to work all day on Saturday and then got a tiny bit done at Laurel (we finished painting the living room! yay, finally!), and pretty much passed out early after that. But my best friend Emma came over to Laurel bright and early (ish) make me savory delicious birthday pancakes for bfast, and I cant imagine a better use to initiate our new stove! (You seriously have to get the recipe from her, they had corn, and herbs and BACON in them!) Then my parents came over, and our good friend Trygve too. The boys took down the fallen tree in back with a borrowed chainsaw and lots of elbow grease. The whole thing was covered in vines, and so were the surrounding trees. I can't believe what a mess it was back there. But we now have a good tree-sized pile of waste to take to the garden center. Finally, I got a good head start on painting the entryway (flat black! its going to be so fancy!) while my mom scrubbed everything she could get her hands on (the kitchen and bathrooms, the windows and baseboards, oh my!). Oh also! My dad power-washed the front and back porches for us! They look so amazing and shiny and clean now!

Then as a surprise, Alex and I got changed and he took me to The Bachelor Farmer for a wonderful Birthday dinner! (PRESIDENT OBAMA HAS EATEN THERE YOU GUYS). I got to wear my dress that I had altered at the tailor (was long-sleeved and high-necked, now it has a LOW BACK!) My friend Katy is the hostess there, so she sent over some champagne as a treat (what a nice lady! Thanks Katy!) All in all, I have to say it may just be the best and most satisfying Birthday of all time. Thanks family and friends for being the best a girl could ask for!


dress: vintage 70's, thrifted, and altered by the tailor to be sleeveless
wedges: Mossimo, thrifted from Fake Target


OKAY OKAY HOUSE PIX IN THE NEXT POST, I SWEAR.

On Monday night, Emma and Maggie and I attended the first-ever Mighty Swell Vintage customer appreciation event! Which was also, of course, a preview of their annual Summer Sale happening this weekend! So much fun! And way less crazy packed/sweaty as their usual sales have come to be known for (Bonus! Though honestly, I'd brave the crowds either way, they have the BEST selection of wearable vintage and the BEST prices around. I'm dead serious, you guys.)

I really wanted to wear my best Mighty Swell piece, but then I realized that most of the things I get from Mighty Swell are those things you LOOK and LOOK and SCROUNGE for and then finally find when you're not at all expecting to. Exhibits A, B and C: a 70's one-piece crochet swimsuit complete with low scoop-back (just what I wanted for the summer), a lovely 50's black velvet cocktail dress with little embroidered flowers all over it (that I wore to last year's Holiday Party), and a square leather tote bag that I use all the time. So, even though these are exactly what I wanted right when I wanted them, what I wanted for this event was to wear a bright and summery (Emma nailed it on the head with "kicky") dress. So I chose this vintage yellow gingham homemade dress I recently picked up from Lula Vintage, and paired it with with red lipstick and a red clutch I never get to use. ("real" outfit photo above, and some film photos I took of us ladies, below!)

It was a great event, as always, and my faves were the raspberry vodka cocktails and Nutella puppy chow! There was also a braid bar, providing already-adorable ladies super-adorable braids! Not me of course, people with HAIR. Here's Emma in her beautiful braid! I brought home a couple of dresses, of course. Both lovely summer dresses, I am sure they will be making their appearances on here real soon.

Thanks as always Mighty Swell ladies Meghan and Rae Alexis. And also for the friendship bracelets!!

dress: vintage, Lula Vintage
handbag: vintage, Spinario
heels: originally Target, thrifted from fake Target
bracelets: H&M and Mighty Swell!

As promised, here are some photos from my quick trip to Los Angeles to visit Miss Katie (whom I just found out has a blog?!? I've been telling her to blog for years, so I am officially thrilled!) Angie and I had so much fun just trying to keep up with Katie-the-Total-Powerhouse, and seeing all of the most awesome parts of LA that I had never been before.

Mimosas, Margaritas and copious amounts of Mexican food were had (hello, Cinco de Mayo!), shopping, karaoke bars, flea markets, and playing on the beach were achieved and we even got spontaneous pedicures! It was amazing, and makes me want to move out there. Like for real. Echo Park/Loz Feliz/West Hollywood is my new favorite place on the planet, and I hope to go back very soon.

Thanks again for hosting us, Katie and Scott! We will be seeing you soon!

You guys, I still cannot believe that the commenting issue has not been resolved. Even after my multiple attempts to understand and fix the problem (thanks again for the heads up, Kimi!). Rest assured that this is my number one priority (which will probably involve an entire template switcheroo, dangit) AFTER I get back from cali next week. Yes! My best girl Angie and I are going to visit my best girl Katie in LA this weekend! I am hoping that it gets warmer out there, because seriously... I need a sunny vacation. And dont worry, Ill be taking plenty of film photos as usual, and will be posting on instagram. You can keep tabs on me there until I get back and I hunker down to get this fixed.

To all of you out there who follow my blog (I know there are a few of you... ), thank you for being there for me despite not being able to comment. And please, when I do get this thang figured out, introduce yourself! I cant wait to meet all of you guys. :D

PS: Isnt that polaroid of us three up there pretty much the best ever for this post? It was taken during the most awesome girls getaway weekend last Spring. Love you girls (EMMA YOURE IN THERE TOO DUH OMG)!

**EDIT 5/17/12: Bear with me while I switch to a brand new template! I am sure this one will have its fair share of bugs to work out, and it may take awhile before I am posting like normal again, but it should be up and running soon. Thanks for your patience everyone!**

I think everyone should have clothing swaps. I can't believe I had never participated in one until this past fall, with some of my new blogger friends. Well, aside from a few close girlfriends asking if we wanted something before they got rid of it, that is... I always look at my old clothes and accessories as kind of boring and yuk. But when brought to the swap, girls were grabbing for them! One blogger's trash is another blogger's treasure, I guess! And that is definitely true of the new items I was lucky enough to take home at the last one we did, in January. I have been wearing my new items non-stop!

Red Gingham shirt: vintage, swapped

Last time, the majority of items I ended up grabbing originally belonged to Nora, or Maria, I found out. This time, most of the things I brought home were my best lady Emma's, and I didnt even know it at the time! (There's a super cute photo of Emma and I over on her blog, in some of our swapped items, btw. ISNT IT SUCH A CUTE PHOTO?! Best ladies <3 <3 <3) Also, if one the items below was yours, let me know. It is super fun to know who's clothing I'm giving a new life to.

Vintage Fair Isle cardigan, skinny double-wrap belt and basic black dress: all swapped

Equestrian Print flannel shirt: vintage, swapped

Can you tell I cant wait for summer?!?! White cotton blouse and leather bag: swapped

These amazing green cuffed shorts with belt: swapped!

Here are the things I got from the swap. Remixed! And how I've worn them so far! This was a lot of fun to go through and think about different ways to wear my new pieces. I feel like I get into a sort of a style rut most of the time, since I dont have any time to put a lot of thought into my outfits. Especially in the mornings before work. I know I know, I think I grabbed a bit too much this time, the point is to GET RID of clothes, isnt it?!? Oh well... I'm in love with all of these pieces. Like, to bits. Especially that pink H&M dress. I knew I would want to wear it for Valentine's Day! However, I dont think it will be warm enough to go tights-less tonight, like I was hoping it would be. So tights-version it is. I'll let you know what Alex and I end up doing on our Valentines date, we dont really have any plans yet, but I think its way more fun to wing it sometimes and see what happens.

Pink H&M dress (and white cotton blouse again): swapped

Happy Valentines Day everyone, have a great night!
xoxo

You guys,

My hideous pile of thrifted/vintaged/swapped stuff has grown (I have a spot for that kind of thing, right inside the door to our apartment), and I can't wait to show them off. Actually, I walk by the pile everyday when I get home from work, and I really just cant wait to wear all of them! I've even got some outfit inspiration pins for ideas. I have just been so busy lately, so much so that in the evenings I just dont want to do anything that requires getting up off of my warm spot on the couch. Which is too bad, because it really has been so nice outside lately (40s?!?). However, tonight I'm going out to a girls happy hour at Sweeney's, so I cant wait for that! Maybe I'll even whip out some new swapped items for the occasion. We'll see...

I know I've been a lazy blogger, but I will hopefully be back to my regularly-scheduled posting soon. Heart you guys! Oh and if you're new here, I really suggest you follow me on Bloglovin (I just cant sing the praises enough)!

Today, Erin had us over for another swap: winter edition! It was, of course, so much fun (maybe even more fun than last time, if that's possible...). I feel like this type of get-together is just the perfect way to get to know the other bloggers better. Chatting, munching, trying on clothes.... it is really such a girl-fest! I of course, brought back a whole bag of stuff from girls like Lindsey, Maria, and Emma. I am sure there are others, I just have yet to learn who's. :) But that's just fine with me, because I brought at least three bags there in the first place. Win, win!

Anyway, here's what I wore, inspired by two images from my pinterest "outfit inspiration" board. The first, was this image from the Maison Scotch Fall 2011 lookbook (of which I am in love with!), and then I added a fur snood on top for a little bit of extra drama, inspired by this image of Jen from Jenloveskev. Mine is just a vintage fur collar that I wrapped around to make a scarf. Though I wish I had pinned it in place, because with all of the digging around looking for clothes and trying stuff on, it just would not stay put!

Huge thank yous again to all of the girls that came and brought such amazing clothes to swap, Erin for hosting us, and for Lindsey for taking so many pictures! I cant wait to see all of them soon.

SURPRISE! ANOTHER GLITTER POST! Well, sorta. Yesterday, my lovely and most best-est friend Emma and her man-friend Bryan threw what I would have to call the most amazing Sparkle-themed Holiday Party. And while we all decked ourselves (and Emma's apartment) out with glitter and glitz, it was a dessert that ended up being my favorite part of the night. Behold, this cake that I made. Yes, that is gold leaf on top. And yes, yes you can eat gold leaf. AND IT IS DELICIOUS MY FRIENDS. 

Delicious gold sparkle on a delicious indulgent blackberry cocoa buttercream encrusted dark chocolate cake (with oreooooos!). I found the recipe here and knew immediately that I would have to make it and that I would have to make it for Emma. It was actually pretty simple to make! I cheated and bought buttercream frosting, and then folded in a cocoa and blackberry puree to make it the correct flavor and color. (A select few of you might remember the last time I tried to make buttercream frosting, and how it was a complete and utter flaming ball of disaster.) Try it at home for your next celebratory event, and you will not regret it! I got so many compliments on it!  For good measure, I've added a bunch of other party pics as well, some of them are not mine.

(I know I'm sorry Sarah! I had to add it, everyone looked so lovely! I hope you dont hate me... I for one, think you look hott.)

I constantly struggle with how to look put together (I sound like my mom when I say that) once its gets to be 20 degrees outside and snowing. Plus, I am always freezing! So I tend to just layer on as many scarves and winter accessories over my warmest sleeping bag coat. But today, I got up, brushed my teeth, and promptly sat down to peruse my "outfit inspiration" board on pinterest to get a little insight into today's outfit for a little vintage shopping with my lady Emma. We had some delicious goodies and coffee at A Baker's Wife (yum!), stopped by Mighty Swell on the hunt to find the perfect vintage cocktail dresses, and ended by chatting with Megan and Nora at the Two Birds Boutique sale. Those two had some great things to peruse this time around, including a great black statement necklace that I picked up. I cant wait to try it out!

Anyways, thanks to pinterest and of course the lovely Liz, of Olive My Love (pictured above), found via CaliVintage, I was inspired to style an outfit similar to this one! I have a coat from H&M that fit the bill, and some great tan suede booties, by Jessica Simpson. 

What do you think? I wish I could have worn one of my (many!) striped shirts underneath like the inspiration photo, but in order to stay warm enough, I opted for a flannel that I could layer with a tee underneath that.

coat: H&M
plaid shirt underneath: AA
scarf: vintage, antique store
jeans: H&M?
suede booties: Jessica Simpson, from DSW
leather satchel: vintage, thrifted
leather tote: vintage, just purchased at Mighty Swell (among other things!)

PS: This photo was taken with an iPhone instead of my usual digital camera, so I decided to do a little messing around with it. INSTAGRAM STYLE!

I have been wearing this skirt nonstop lately. I got it at the swap awhile back, was it yours? Well anyways, I've been wearing it a lot. This particular outfit I wore to a happy hour to celebrate with the newly-wed Maggie, and later on Erin stopped by too! I had tons of fun, as usual, and I got to try Bell's Double Cream Stout, which I really liked. Yummmm, winter beers! I love this time of year, if only for the beers, the Holidays and hibernating at home with my hubby. I am not looking forward to snow...

dress/tunic worn as top: H&M
skirt: from the swap!
tights: random
socks: husband's
boots: Crown Vintage, from DSW

Just a quick update this morning. Last weekend, I was lucky enough to be asked to model some vintage goods for two birds boutique, owned and operated by my new friends Megan and Nora! It was super fun, and they even let me pick out some things to take home (which I will sharing on the blog VERY soon I am sure)! Well, their very first shop update is complete and here is a little preview! Go ahead and check out the rest of the shop here, and mark your calendars for their next pop-up sale (for you locals) scheduled for December 2nd and 3rd. It will be a holidays themed occasion, complete with wine and good cheer!




Thanks again ladies! Karaoke soon?

These past few weeks have been flying by, people. I have a lot of work to do at MCAD, but will hopefully be back up to regular posting speed after next week (the huge, gigantic, awesome MCAD ART SALE! Go and you may see me running around like a mad woman!). Before I forget, here are some great Instax photos my best buddy Ben took at our Halloween party a few weekends ago! I am in love with them (why dont I just carry an Instax with me wherever I go?)! I ended up just dressing as a Gophers Baton twirler, since I found this costume at the thrift store for like 5 bucks! Alex went as Steve Jobs. Thanks Ben, great idea!

Since I love them all so much, I decided to do a quick post about the pieces I snagged at the clothing swap a couple of weeks ago! It seemed like I had a fashion affinity with both Maria and Nora the most that particular day. Also, there are a few that I do not know who they came from, if you want to chime in out there!! I love knowing the history of an item. Thanks you guys, I had an awesome time!!!

The perfect sundress from Maria:

A b/w checkered dress from Emma!

Cashmere wrap sweater from Nora:

Amazing denim trousers from Nora:

A fur-collared jacket from Maria:

And the best find, a vintage wool peacoat! That I am in love with! ALSO FROM NORA!

I also have some striped espadrilles, the perfect black mini skirt and a cozy oversized sweater to try out (not pictured)!

Went to the vintage clothing and textiles fair with Emma and Erin last weekend. It was an amazing event, as always! Thanks Erin, for taking my outfit photo, and for spotting that great door for the background. I love it so much!


dress: vintage, from Blacklist Vintage
scarf: F21, I think?
shoes: Urban clearance
leather satchel: vintage, thrifted

And some iPhone photos, for good measure! (after the jump)