LuLu*s x BB Dakota: Sunny Days Giveaway!

In this outfit:
Sweater: c/o Free People (2012)
Lace top: UO ($7 sale)
Pants: BB Dakota c/o Lulu's
Wedges: Matiko c/o Lulu's
Sun necklace c/o Sisters of the Moon
Skull necklace: gift & flea market
Ring: ModCloth (2011)
Bracelet c/o Lulu's

I wore this to: An early morning coffee date

There's a chance that, somewhere, my younger self is rolling over in her grave when I say this but, you know what? Palazzo pants are pretty great. These are palazzo pants, right? Whatever they are, they're awesome. I mean, I'm basically wearing pajamas. Which is perfect when it's early and you don't want to be dressed, but you need to be dressed.

Lulu's was kind enough to send over these comfy pants courtesy of BB Dakota, and I love them in all their tropical glory. And guess what? I have something exciting for you today too... and no, it's not palazzo pants...unless you want it to be? I've teamed up with Lulu's and BB Dakota for a special giveaway! Lulu's and BB Dakota are each giving away a $100 gift card! That's right, $100 to Lulu's and $100 to BB Dakota for one lucky winner!

To Enter: visit Lulu*s and leave a comment here with a link to your favorite BB Dakota item on the site! Want an extra entry? Tweet this: “I hope I’m the lucky winner of the @lulusdotcom and @bbdakotainc contest! #LULUSxBBDAKOTA” and be sure to leave an extra comment saying you tweeted. Contest is open to US/Canadian residents only, giveaway ends next Wednesday, June 5th. Good luck!

Tiny print: Giveaway ends on Wednesday June 5th at 10pm. One entry per person, two if you follow tweeting directions. Winner will be chosen using a random number generator. Winner will have a 48 hour grace period to respond to email notification before a replacement winner will be chosen.  Be sure to leave an email address in your comment if you do not have a blog where I can EASILY reach you. The winner will be chosen in a timely manner, and notified, but I reserve the right as proprietor of this blog to announce the winner when I see fit. This giveaway is open to US/Canada only. The winner of the Jo Totes giveaway was Meanz, congrats! Winner has previously been notified.

Purple Haze

What I wore:

Jacket: ModCloth (Find it here on sale!)

Tee: Vintage (gift)

Skirt: Thrifted ($4 - similar)

Shoes: Dr. Martens/ Thrifted ($7)

TriGraph necklace c/o InfinEight
Skull necklace: gifted skull charm & flea market crystal
Bracelet: Thrifted ($2)
Flower ring: shop in Beverly ($11)
Eyeball ring c/o Lulu's
Coral ring: Vintage ($6)
Sunglasses: Vintage ($5)

I wore this to: add a little color to my life!

Patience really is a virtue when it comes to thrift shopping. I had been stalking this skirt for a little while this spring, but just wasn't quite sold on the color. So I waited. And I didn't buy it. And then a couple of weekends ago, Chris and I were at a Goodwill out in the middle of nowhere, and hey! I found this purple suede miniskirt! For four bucks! That's a pretty satisfying feeling. And while I'm still looking for the perfect real leather jacket to call my own, I'll take what I can get.

For more thrift shopping tips, go here.

Girlish, Boyish

What I wore:

Tee, Bracelet, & claw ring  c/o Lulu's

Bra: American Apparel

Shorts: Urban Outfitters ($14 in-store sale)

Shoes: Bass/ Thrifted ($5 - similar)

The Sun circular necklace c/o Sisters of the Moon Jewelry

Beaded necklace: Swapped

Skull necklace: gifted skull charm & flea market crystal

Flower ring: shop in Beverly ($11)

Midi band: Urban Outfitters ($6)

Coral ring: Vintage ($6)

I wore this to: avoid coming into contact with stadium seating.

There are many unpleasant feelings in the world, one of them happens to be when you're wearing shorts, or a skirt or dress, and your legs cement themselves to whatever it is you're sitting on. Extra points if you're sitting on some sort of public seating, like at a ball park. Which is where I was on Sunday for a Pirates game. Long shorts solve this problem, it's a pretty good solution as long as you don't mind feeling a little bit like your high school self for a day. Or maybe you weren't consistently mistaken for a boy in your younger years.

While this outfit does remind me a little of my high school self- giant skate shoes and tent-like hoodie not included- I was actually inspired by Beth of B. Jones Style who can rock a pair of mens pants/shorts/overalls like no one's business. I found these shorts randomly hanging on the women's rack in UO this weekend, thought to myself "what would Beth do?", and decided to take a chance. And I'm glad I did, and while this look was admittedly outside of my comfort zone, I've found the solution to that is just piling on jewelry. You know that quote that says you should take one thing off before leaving the house? I disagree, I say pile it on.

Currently...

Top: favorite mug, favorite coffee / the costume workshop at CMU / drawer upon drawer and stack upon stack of buttons at the CMU costume workshop

Middle: An evening Riverhounds game / Sunday breakfast at Dean's diner in Blairsville / String time!

Bottom: A free therapy session / Friday party hair / Spring!

Eating...

My favorite breakfast: sweet potato hash with apple, onions, cinnamon, Trader Joe's turkey kielbasa, and two eggs cooked in coconut oil. With coffee and water on the side. It's the best, and I eat it nearly every morning. Now that the weather is warming up, I've been experimenting with smoothies in the morning too, but am starting to realize that they leave me feeling hungry for the rest of the day. I wish chia seeds didn't make my stomach upset, because Maria's smoothies always sound amazing.

Listening to...

High school flashback time: I've been listening to the Rancid/Tim Armstrong Pandora station on my to work each morning...and it's awesome. Except it makes me feel old that I used to remember the words to all of these songs, and now I don't. I just mumble incoherently along, with a giant, stupid smile on my face.

Thinking about...

A lot of stuff. You all are probably sick of hearing about this, but: We move in just a few weeks- and we're so excited! The good thing is, we have our place until the end of June, plenty of time to clean up and clear out. One thing I'm really looking forward to is the opportunity to get organized. I've been incredibly frustrated with myself my own disorganization lately, I used to be so on top of things, and lately I've felt like my head is a balloon, not attached to my body. Also, my brother might be moving to Oregon this summer, and that's exciting, but I'm going to miss him. And it's so far away, but it would be so good for him I think. In the simplest terms, he builds snowboard parks for a living and the season is much longer out there, and the snow is better. He's out there now learning how to manipulate park elements using a snowcat, and from what I can tell from his Instagram, he's in heaven.

Missing...

Our other kitty, Zeb. Hopefully once we move, we'll be able to bring him back to Pittsburgh, though from what I hear from my mom, he's happy as a clam up in Maine. And has since been leash trained! I have a feeling he's going to hate us when he comes back.

Working on...

A new blogging schedule. And generally being more accountable. There are posts that I've had on the back burner for months, despite promises of getting them up much sooner (hello Whole 30 and Content Calendar posts, whoops). But between some insane work projects and wanting to have a life in general, I haven't found the time to complete them and hit 'publish'. I'm thinking I probably won't until after we're settled in to our new place and have the new office/studio set up. Oh well.

How are you this week?

Post inspired by Danielle of Sometimes Sweet

All Tied Up

What I wore:
Top: Thrifted ($3)
Jeans: Cheap Monday via ModCloth (find 'em here)
Belt: Thrifted ($2)
Bag: Gift
Scarf: Thrifted ($2)
Shoes: Lulu's ($69- bought partially with a Lulu's gift card that I received at an event)
Earrings: Oona's Vintage, Boston ($18)

I wore this to: work on my latest photoshoot...and show off my new cat bag.

Things scarves are great for: decorating microphones, tying around your neck, hiding greasy hair. Ladies and gentleman, I think I've found my latest obsession. I bought this huge silk scarf on a recent thrifting trip with Chris, and really wasn't sure what I'd do with it. I often find scarves that I love, but don't buy because the pattern is always hidden once it's styled, but, this one was abstract enough to make it to the register and home with me. What a perfect way to hide dirty hair!

ps- You know what's the worst? Coming up with names for posts.

Tried and True

What I wore:
Cardigan: J.Crew
Dress: Beacon's Closet ($12)
Sneakers: Nasty Gal (Jeffrey Campbell) ($122)
Bag c/o Ruche
Earrings c/o Spotted Moth
Bracelet c/o Lulu's

I wore this to: Make my life a little easier last week.

Last week was one of those weeks that called for quick and easy everything, it was stressful...like, crying in the nursing mother's room at work at two o'clock on a Friday kind of stressful (I'm fine, really). For weeks like that, I stick with the tried and true- comfort is key when you're having a mini breakdown- and a little dress and sneakers will always be right to me. I've been especially appreciative of the sneaker trend this year for making cool and comfortable footwear more readily available. It was something I knew I would want to invest in this past January when I had a little Christmas money burning a hole in my pocket, and these studded platforms went on sorta-sale. I knew they'd go with everything, and I was right.

I hope you're having a good week, so far this one is much better than last for me. Despite feeling emotionally heavy at times, I appreciate this time of year for making me feel a little lighter and brighter. Fewer layers, lighter fabrics, make-up becomes less of a priority in my daily routine. Cheers to a new week and a fresh start and, hopefully, warmer weather (it SNOWED on our hill yesterday).

Back to Basics

What I wore:
Vest: Thrifted ($3)
Dress: ModCloth (find it here)
Sneakers: Nasty Gal ($122- similar)
Beaded bracelet (necklace) c/o InfinEight
Gold bracelet: Thrifted ($2)
Midi ring & Eye ring c/o Lulu's
Daisy ring: shop in Beverly ($11)
Bag c/o Ruche

I wore this to: make Monday morning a little easier.

On the first day of the 4th grade- incidentally my first day of traditional public schooling as well (Montessori kid)- I remember wearing this great pair of plaid platform sneakers that my mom bought me from Payless. I have no idea what I wore for pants or a shirt, but my jacket was this fringed, fleece, southwestern number that was equally as awesome, to me at least. I don't know why I remember those pieces so specifically, maybe because of all the changes happening in my life at that point, but I remember loving those sneakers so much. So yes, you could say I'm stoked to see the return of platform tennis shoes. I know a lot of people have been rolling their eyes over the return of everything 90's, but I love it and I'm embracing it. The eyeball ring reminds me of my middle school notebook, which I covered in left-over doll eyes from a home ec. project and gobs of glitter paint, and felt pretty damn proud of myself for.

This specific combination has been my go-to on lazy days where I just want to feel like I'm in my pajamas. Maxi dresses are good for that sort of thing.

Also, who doesn't love shoes that you can stand on your toes in? That's what I thought.

Golden Lights

 

What I wore:
Tee: ModCloth (find it here)
Skirt: Thrifted ($2)
Kelsi Dagger heels & midi ring c/o Lulu's
Daisy ring: shop in Beverly ($11)
Coral ring: Vintage ($6)
Necklace: Vintage/ Avalon ($12)
Sunglasses: Vintage ($5)
Cuff bracelet: Thrifted ($2)
Beaded bracelet c/o Musana Jewelry
Bag: Vintage Coach/ Avalon ($20)

I wore this to: show off my new favorite skirt

This skirt was something I wasn't completely sold on when I brought it home from Salvation Army, but I liked the colors and I liked the pattern, so I took a chance. Well, after actually styling it, rather than just trying it on with my baggy tee shirt and sneakers at the store, I feel in love. Sometimes it's worth taking a chance on something you're not sure of, especially if that something costs a whopping two bucks.

ps- Musana Jewelry, who kindly sent me that sunny yellow bracelet up there, is a pretty awesome organization. You can read more about them here.