A VEST.
That is at the top of my wish list right now. My wardrobe has never held one before nor did I ever desire to add it to the shopping list prior to this season, but after studying abroad in Italy last spring and spotting faux fur vests on the backs of every girl on the street, it sucked me in.
Anyone have one? Anyone know of a good place where I can find one?!
Here are some styles I'm loving:
{ Top & shorts: Banana Republic | Necklace and blazer: Forever 21 | Purse: Kate Spade | Shoes: Dolce Vita, Nordstrom }
Happy Sunday, guys!
Banana Republic Factory was having a huge sale this past weekend and I wanted to just pop in and eye shop (first mistake), but I ended up walking out with a new pair of beautiful green shorts. After discount, they were 16 bucks — which was a number I could totally justify. And I did. Proof: LE SHORTS! :) Today's weather was high 70's so I wore them to church today, which I was happy about. (Sidebar: how do we feel about the length of these shorts? Church appropriate? Work appropriate? ZG appropriate? I figured they would be fine because the shape/design of the shorts was pretty modest — not too tight, not a flashing color... But then again, idk.)
Anyway, I made one of the girls in youth group take these outfit photos for me. She did a good job. :) To be honest, I'm 100% awkward/shy about every aspect of the outfit photo process (what do bloggers call these things anyway? I'm gonna call them look books). But I'm learning to get over it because I enjoy it more than I'm shy about it. Blogging, photo editing, and documenting my outfits is fun for me and I am going to be bold and proud of my passions and aspirations. :) I hope you like them, too.
Besides, when you step out of your comfort zone, that's where the magic happens.
On another note, tomorrow is my first day of my internship! YAY. I can't believe time has flown by so quickly... People kind of have a hard time really grasping what my MAIP internship is — mostly because I do a half-ass job of explaining it, excuse my french. Maybe I'll try explaining in full detail tomorrow, along with how day one went... if I survive that is! I hear it's a dog eat dog world out there. Pray for me.
Really, pray for me. These are my prayer requests:
- To be kind and humble... to my colleagues, my bosses, my barista, the lady on the corner, whomever. I remember at my last internship last summer, I acted like a know-it-all. I thought I was a rockstar. But really, I was only an incoming junior and 19 years old, so... that's kind of embarrassing But really. There's a fine line between confident and cocky, but that line makes a world of a difference. Confidence allows room for growth and welcomes learning; cockiness is intimidated and threatened by new knowledge.
- To be confident... with my ideas, my opinions, and my story. (: One that that I should not be shy about is the way God made me. I am who I am by the grace of God and I shouldn't shrink down to be anything else — because when you try to be anything or anyone else, shrinking is actually what you're doing. I want to learn to love the person God made me to be.
- To be bold enough to speak up when something is on my mind, and confident enough to remain silent when there is nothing to be said. < My pastor said this last week in his sermon and I fell in love with this saying. Relevant to me in every facet of my life and interaction because I am often aware of the risks of speaking up and the anxiety of being quiet.
- I'm reading the OT right now — and I'm learning a lot! However, I'm very behind in my reading plan. How behind? Oh, about 75 chapters behind. So, I'm excited to be commuting again because I have a guaranteed 2 hours (give and take) in my day to read... Or do my makeup, or check twitter, or sleep, or play 7 by 7. SO! Please pray that these train rides to and from work will be more than mundane transportation, but magical and real and life changing intimacy meetings with my Lord.
How can I pray for you? Have a good week! XO.
I'm linking up with:
Style Elixir
The Life of the Party
What Jean Likes
I'm not sure if I shared it here or not, but I am now a style guru intern at the website, www.collegefashionista.com. The site is more or less a digital magazine showcasing the current street style on the nation's different campuses. The whole site is written by and features only college students, so readers can trust and engage with the content.
I write for the ACCESSORIES REPORT column which comes out every Friday. My first report will go live this week. In the mean time, you can read my bio post right here:
Here is a sneak peek of the photo shoot for this week's article:
Before I came to Italy, I only needed two hands to count the number of times I rode on an airplane. Now, it's a different story. In the past three months, I've flown on an airplane 11 times. I've flown more in the past three months than I have in my entire life! Flying around in Europe isn't nearly as expensive as it is in the states. Example: I flew to Barcelona last week for only 8 euros! Flying is, also, not nearly as glamorous as I imagined it to be beforehand. It's exhausting and tedious and always leaves horrendous blotches on my skin. Given, I do fly through really low-budget airlines, (curse you, Ryanair), so customer service tends to be awful and the restrictions are short of not letting the passengers on the plane -- but hey, it's all part of the experience right? Anyway, maybe flying really is glamorous when you're doing it first class. Wouldn't know.
Along the way, I've picked up some tips and tricks to minimize some of the awfulness that unavoidably follows when flying.
1. BIG SUNGLASSES | Often departure times are at absurd hours and makeup is the last thing on your mind. To not scare off the entire airport with under-eye bags and dry skin, I cover half of it up with sunglasses! This also lets me keep a little bit of my dignity when I doze off on the plane with mouth wide open.
2. SWEATER, TANK, & SCARF | Airplane temperature is SO unpredictable. Sometimes you're in an ice box, others you're in a tanning bed. You never know until you're already high in the air and it's too late to jump. I always come prepared ready to take off layers if the ride starts to get stuffy, or use the sweater and scarf as a blanket if the temperatures lowers.
3. MINIMAL JEWELRY | I keep my earrings on but other than that, everything stays in my carry-on to avoid any hassle during security. I hate when a piece accidentally makes the metal detector go off and I have to awkwardly get felt up by a stranger in front of everyone. Oh, don't forget to take the belt off and leave the bra with underwire at home. (I learned the hard way.) No, I don't have any bombs or knives hidden inside my pants.
4. LONGCHAMP | Now, I don't have a longchamp tote but I do think it would make for the perfect carry-on bag. Any bag large enough to fit everything works, and a long strap to free your arms for balancing other luggage is a plus. Inside the bag? Headphones, tylenol, a good read, hand sanitizer, lip balm, tissues, body spray, makeup, a journal and pen, wallet, passport, and fuzzy socks (in case the plane gets really cold.)
5. FLATS | Usually when you wear flat shoes, they don't make you take it off to go through security. And even if they do, slipping them on and off is painless. It's always annoying having to take your boots off, go through, lug them to a nearby bench, and then put them back on.
6. BLACK LEGGINGS | Because it's comfortable and lets you pretend you're wearing no pants at all. No one likes to sit through a flight in stiff denim. No one. Sticking to black, specifically, is a good choice because its chicness can be dressy enough if you have somewhere to be right after with no time to change.
OTHER THINGS | If you fall asleep on the plane, be sure to keep your belongings wrapped around you so no one nearby can steal your things. Better yet, sit on them if you can! Better safe than sorry. Pack a snack and fill your water bottle before you get on the plane because all the prices get jacked up the second you step on. A cup of water? 4 euros.
Unfortunately, I can't get rid of screaming babies, rude employees, or the long lines at security -- if it were up to me though, I would in a heartbeat -- but hopefully some of these will make your next plane ride more enjoyable. (: I'd love to hear any other travel essentials or tips I didn't mention! xo.
When I was in London last week, I kept coming back to the same conclusion. And it is this. (I suggest you go ahead and grab a pen and paper. To take notes. You ready?)
London thinks jeans are overrated.
Deep stuff, right? I know, I know. You're welcome for that epiphany.
Everyone in London is stylish and beautiful and should be on the cover of a magazine. So if my camera and map in hand didn't give away my tourist status, my lack of long legs and flowy hair probably did. And ladies? If you are single, SAVE YOURSELF. Because your husband is out there waiting for you... in London. And he has a chiseled jaw and perfect hair and he wears a suit. And he has an accent.
Back to clothes. So I decided to start doing "street style" posts to really gather, archive, compare and contrast all the different fashion I've been seeing across Europe, and now UK. I took majority of the photos with my iPhone to be a bit more incognito, but then my phone was stolen and along with it, the photos. :( Whateves, life goes on. I tried to snap some pics with my not-so-small DSLR.
London style:
- No one really wears jeans. It's all about leggings, tights, or leather. Complete with a pair of city flats or wedges.
- Invest in a nice pea coat. Because that will make the world of a difference.
- Accessories? Sunglasses, leather gloves, shoes.
- Messy hair, don't care. It's WINDY in London so everyone's hairstyle is bed head, messy buns, or loose waves
I think next time I'm just gonna go up to ladies/men in nice outfits and ASK for their permission before I take their photo. Til then, here are some pics of people who grabbed my attention and have absolutely no idea their image is floating on the world wide web.
Ciaoz.
^ How creepy is THAT one??
My favorite part about fall?
(Besides toasty cups of coffee, good television show line ups, the lingering scent after a football game, not having to shave your legs, scarves...) The layering of clothes.
Here's one approach I took.
Mustard yellow + polka dots— two prevalent trends this season, and it makes our lives easy because they look effortlessly flawless paired together.
