This Year I....

Something I thought would be fun and interesting to do would be to make a list (with photos, of course) of some things I did/accomplished this year that were important to me. So here we go!

* I found my way back to my natural hair color and texture! (When I decided to have long, natural hair it was a blue pixie cut that I straightened every day. I also hadn't seen my natural color or had long hair for at least 4 years.)

*Got braces! I can't wait to get them off and be able to comfortably smile with teeth showing!

* Finished my high school education and got my GED! (Unfortunately I didn't get a picture that day...)

* Got my driver's license! I'm so excited to be able to get myself places and go on little solo trips!

* Started this blog! 

Outfits One, Two, Three, and Four.

* Got friendly with my three film cameras (including one that I got for Christmas!).

Left to right: Minolta Maxxuum 5, Holga 120N, and Rollei 35 S.

All in all it's been a great year and I can't wait to start in on the next one!

December Photomix

Just some photos from daily life recently. Things have been so hectic with the holidays recently! It's nice to take a breather and relax now. Anyway, enjoy!

A peek into my photoseries 'Acceptance'. It's been a work in progress for quite some time and will continue to be for quite awhile.

My awesome vintage shorts and turtle belt. You can see the full outfit here.

One of our Disneyland ornaments!

Bokeh practice.

My Christmas Eve FOTD.

Christmas manicure! 

Merry Christmas

I hope your holiday is full of light and love. Merry Christmas :)

FOTD: Up In Smoke (New Year's Inspired)

I wanted this look to be bold, to stand out, to feel sexy. A smokey eye on someone of fair coloring, like myself (read: white as milk, and blonde), is totally striking. For the eyes I blended out black eyeliner and a matte black eye shadow for a basic smokey eye (with more black eyeliner smudged into the lashlines), highlighted the browbone and inner corner with a shimmery white shadow, and used LOTS of black mascara. I didn't use falsies for this one, but if you wanted to make this look even more dramatic you definitely could. I kept the rest of the face fairly simple with a nude lip, clear gloss, some pink blush, and some highlighting on my cheekbones.

Boom baby!

Sweater Weather

Lately I've found myself repeating the same basic outfit every other day. Sweater, jeans, boots, jewelry. It's been freezing around here and I've been doing so much running around (what with holiday shopping, and GED testing amongst other things) that I just haven't felt like messing around with skirts and tights every day. Layers aren't really my forte. 

Sweater: Thrifted

Jeans: Hot Topic

Boots: Thrifted

Earrings: Gift

Hook Necklace: Art Gallery in Maui

Green ring: Saturday Market booth

Orange ring: Hippie shop

A Day At The Aquarium

My family has a thing where we call anemones "Fatty squishies".. I don't know how that started though..

The other day I spent a few hours at the Portland Aquarium with my mom and two of my sisters. I had a fantastic time- there were several tanks that allowed us to touch the things inside them as well as observe them. My favorite was the shark and ray tank- rays are my favorite sea creatures. I got to pet them and feed them and it was an extremely cool experience. I would love to have one or two as a pet someday. Anyway, it was a really cool experience and if you're ever in town you should definitely check it out. The outside looks a little rough, but the inside is wonderful. Especially the sharks and rays. 

Rays!!!!

This particular bird had an affinity for chewing on everything. His name was Chris.

Inspiration: Three Holiday Party Outfits

Look #1: Edgy- sweet, sweater and skirt. 

Dorothy Perkins red jumper / Circle skirt / Ivory tight / Yeswalker black booties / Sia clutch, $43 / Red ring, $9.09 / Sparkling Sage charm pendant necklace


Look #2: Sleek, peplum top and skinny trousers.

Alice Olivia red peplum top / Vero Moda long sleeve jacket, $56 / Dorothy Perkins formal pants / Christian Louboutin black platform pumps / Guess by marciano handbag / Isabel Marant gold pendant necklace / Kate spade earrings / Topshop midi ring


Look #3: Fancy and feminine, lace dress with booties and gold accessories. 

H M white dress, $41 / Lauren Ralph Lauren coat, $625 / Boohoo lace up platform ankle booties / L K Bennett leather purse, $320 / ERICKSON BEAMON pearl jewelry / Full Tilt pearl jewelry / Vintage belt / Nars cosmetic


I rarely, if ever, get invited to holiday parties and I never think to have my own in time to have one... But I love thinking about them. The warmth of a fireplace, shmoozing with a drink in your hand, avoiding (or staying close to) the mistletoe overhead, a white elephant exchange... Maybe next year I'll actually go through with it.

Baby, Don't Fear The Reaper

I remember a long, long time ago reading an article in Seventeen magazine about how to dress a petite body in cold weather. Something they suggested was to wear shorts with tights or leggings underneath. When I looked at the picture, the model didn't look any taller to me (aside from the 5 inch heels she was wearing), and so I pretty much ignored it. Recently I ran across some pictures on Pinterest and other fashion blogs of girls sporting the tights/shorts look and decided I like it. 

.....But I still don't think I look any taller.

Shirt: Thrifted

Shorts: Vintage

Leggings: Aeropostale

Sock: Fred Meyer

Boots: Thrifted

Sweater: Thrifted

Camera necklace: Amazon

Turtle belt: Thrifted

FOTD: Snow Day

I wanted to keep today's look simple and fresh, just like the snow I was playing in! So I used a light tinted moisturizer with powder, a veeeeery small amount of blush (since the cold would make me rosy enough), some brow powder, a shimmery pearl shade all over the lid, and lots of mascara. I finished the look with a dark lip (lipstick I used was Dark Wine by Wet N' Wild). 

Recently I've been working on some more eyes- heavy looks so today it was nice to feel a little lighter and simpler. Plus, I loved bringing back my bright lips!

First Snow

By the time I got to my camera and took a picture the snow was mostly gone, but it still happened and this is the proof! It was beautiful while it lasted, and I hope for a lot more :)

White Christmas, anyone?

Winter Outfit/Makeup Inspirations

Pinterest

Pinterest

The Clothes Horse

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

Pinterest

A few things that inspire me to dress for the winter weather. I find that getting dressed is hardest in the Winter. You need to be absolutely prepared for rain/snow and very cold temperatures if you're going to be leaving the house at all and I'm not really one for tons of layers.. I have the easiest time in the fall- pick a dress, tights, sweater, shoes, boom you're done. Luckily makeup is easiest in the Winter. Things aren't in danger of melting or smudging off, and it doesn't all necessarily need to be waterproof. Also, I love dark lipstick and that pretty much has to stay in the Fall/Winter months. 

They Tell Me Snow Is Coming

Something I've been looking for for a very long time is a lace dress. I love how versatile they can be- dressed up or down, sweet or more edgy... And I was so excited to find this one. It was love at first sight! I keep thinking of new ways I could wear it, too! :)

Dress: Thrifted

Belt: Thrifted

Tights: Kohls

Shoes: Thrifted

Bag: Vintage

Hat: ASOS