Saturday in the park

...or more like Sunday in my driveway.

Sweater: J.Crew, Skirt: Hollister, Shoes: Old Navy, Ring: Hippie shop

It's inevitable. Every year just as spring starts to turn into summer, I get glimpses of the autumn/winter collections from various designers and think: Ohhhhhhhhhhh. I can't wait for fall so I can wear those tights/boots/jackets again!!!

I totally felt that way today looking at the kate spade 2009 fall and the J.Crew 2010 fall collection. Everything's so pretty! Why do the coldest seasons give you the most license to be fashionable?

(I also am coveting Katie's alligator gloves.)

Actually, this is kind of a year-round outfit. Just add tights and flats and maybe a beret. Hello, autumn.

But this is just an example.

I'm still liking the warm weather just fine.

(Title brought to you by: Chicago- Saturday in the park)

Back to Basics

I started this style blog as kind of an exercise for myself to wear the clothes in my closet in a way that I have never worn them before...

but I am finding that as the temperature warms up, my style becomes less about "chic-ness" and more about comfort, which can be a dangerous thing.

Luckily, it's kind of hard to go wrong when you're wearing Basics from head to toe.

Tee: Victoria's Secret, Shorts: J.Crew, Sandals: Aerie

I'll try to wake up my wardrobe with a shopping excursion sometime soon. My birthday gift cards are burning a hole in my pocket.

Enjoy the sunshine, wherever you are.

Lost in translation

Ahhhh sorry it's been so long!

Work has picked up where College left off, and is now running my life.

That's no fun.

Shirt: f21, Shorts: Abercrombie (reconstructed), Shoes: Old Navy, Necklace: Anthropologie

These shoes, while very pretty, are the most uncomfortable pair of sandals I've ever worn.

I found this kind of funny. After we went out for dinner the other day we brought home our leftovers and my dad labeled them.

I'm not sure what "leftovers" is in Spanish (I should, because I took four years of it...) but I'm pretty sure it's not "los sobre isquierdas".

But good try, dad!

Hasta luego, ya'll.

I will buy you a garden, where your flowers can bloom

Hello!

So these pictures have been a long time coming.. I won the Delightfully Tacky giveaway for this dress from Dixi (formerly Baby Says Boutique ) back in March. It was waiting for me in a package on my bed when I came home from school a week ago.

I absolutely love it!

Dress: Dixi via giveaway, Shoes: Vintage

Sorry the pictures are a little washed out, the dress is a very pale pink.

And it's unlike anything I've ever owned! Never owned a one-shoulder garment, but I love this one. It feels like something I'd wear to a tea party.

This cameo brooch I got in a church junk sale for 50 cents! I've been looking for years for a garment to attach it to, and now I finally think I've found it.

And one more thing that makes me happy today...

Making my own ice cream sandwiches!

I had never tried this before, and I suggest that you go try it right now!

Two of any kind of cookie, homemade or storebought + Any flavor of ice cream + sprinkles or chocolate chips around the outside = your new favorite summer treat.

Trust me, it's way better than a prewrapped ice cream sandwich.

(Title brought to you by: Everclear- I will buy you a new life)

Walk, walk, fashion, baby

Little known fact about me: I'm crazy about museums. Whenever an interesting exhibit comes to the Wadsworth or to the MoMA, I always try to check it out. Unfortunately, it's hard trying to get friends to come along because an afternoon at a museum just doesn't sound as interesting as, say, seeing Iron Man 2 on IMAX.

Other little known fact about me: I'm not a shoe person. I only own a couple of pairs of shoes, mostly flats, and I rarely wear heels. And if I do wear them, they are the one and only pair of black heels that I've owned since freshman year of high school. The ones that I went to the junior prom in.

But even though I'm not a shoe fanatic, the Ruthie Davis shoe exhibition was initially the sole reason why my mom and I came on this rainy day to the New Britain Museum of American Art.

I had never heard of Ruthie Davis before, but she's a Connecticut native who started her amazing line of shoes in 2006. She's already developed quite a following with celebrities such as Beyonce and Lady Gaga.

The pictures don't do the shoes justice as to how COLORFUL they were!

Unfortunately at this time, as I was desperately trying to snap pictures of all of the shoes, my camera died, and my back up batteries were also dead.

So my mom offered me her cell phone camera to take the rest of the pictures! Thanks mom!

We also saw this gigantic wall mural comprised entirely of multicolored cups.

Sweater: Express, Cami: Hollister, Jeans: f21, Shoes: Macy's, Bag: American Eagle

We then gazed at the contemporary art on display.

I love when the subjects in a painting look lifelike.

This work was done by Dalton Ghetti, who is known for making miniature sculptures using the wood and graphite from ordinary pencils. You might be able to see that the pencils have the alphabet carved at their tips!

More pencil art. I never can get enough.

If you've never been to your local museum, now is the time to go! You never know what you'll find.

(Title brought to you by: Lady Gaga- Bad Romance)

All in all you're just another brick in the wall

New England stone walls- Resilient structures built between 1775-1825. They are found everywhere, sometimes spanning for miles. (SOURCE)

They are home to squirrels, chipmunks, toads, snakes, slugs, spiders, and other small creatures that live in the woods.

I thought I'd try my luck and just hope not to run into any creepy crawlers here.

Shirt: Thrifted, Shorts: Hollister, Sandals: Greece

(Thank god for the flat slabs of stone, because it was not very comfortable sitting on this wall otherwise.)

So this shirt has quite a bit going on with it...

It's sort of checkered, and then it's got a bunch of other geometric designs scattered about...and then it's got colorful medallion things thrown on for extra pizzazz.

You gotta love thrift stores. I don't know where else you would find such a distinctive gem of a garment.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

(Title brought to you by: Pink Floyd- Another brick in the wall)

When you're here, you're family.

I AM HOME!

Oh man, what a ride.

I packed my tiny car on Tuesday with everything in my dorm, and then drove it home right after my last exam. I was home by 9:30.

I cannot tell you how happy I am to be here.

Unfortunately, in the spirit of every semester's end in my college career, I came down with a horrible stress-induced cold the day I came home, and so I've been overcome with fatigue and the sniffles ever since.

Grrr.

Fortunately, I'm feeling much better today after getting a full twelve hours of sleep last night!

Thank you, Nyquil. Thank you.

Cardigan/Jacket thing: Thrifted, Tee: Delia's, Jeans: Hollister, Shoes: Macy's

Sooo, notice anything different?

Yup, I cut my bangs. I tell everyone when I'm bored, I cut my hair.

And it's totally true. And that's what I found myself doing on Monday night.

And today I'm going to a real hairstylist to fix them up (they are a little crooked) and to trim my layers.

And yup, I'm still trying to incorporate all of my pins into my everyday outfits. This pin came from the Disney Cruise! We went when I was about 8 years old. Awesome, awesome times.

One more thing! Kind of unrelated.

They are selling the entire complete Daria series on DVD now!!!!

This is a huge, huge, big, big, deal for me because Daria is my absolute favorite show.

And I also just discovered that they've been available on iTunes since early 2010.

I am so excited to blow my birthday iTunes gift cards on all five seasons.

Seriously, I've been waiting to have Daria on DVD since middle school.

Aaaaaaaand I think that's about it! I should be back to posting regularly now.

Again, it is so great to be back home for summer vacation. I can't express how wonderful it feels.

(Title brought to you by: The Olive Garden commercials)

What we wore: Breton Stripes

Hey! Just a quick post today!

As you may know, Jessica of What I Wore thought it would be fun if today (Tuesday) was unofficially Breton Stripe Day, when everyone wore Breton Stripes on their blog!

I knew she'd have a huge turnout of ladies participating (FIFTY-TWO!), and I definitely wanted to be a part of it! I wore my Breton Stripes a couple of posts back.

This must've taken a lot of work to get all of the ladies' pictures cropped, their names hyperlinked, and so on, so thank you for putting this together, Jessica!

You may wonder why I'm not wearing Breton Stripes today, and that's because all of my clothes and other belongings are in suitcases! I'm taking my last two finals, and then I'm driving home tonight!

I can't wait to show you what I have in store for summer. It will be great!

Cheers to the good times.

HEY! It's my 20th birthday today!

I'm extremely excited!!

I went out to a party last night with friends and it was just so cool. I turned 20 fifteen minutes after we showed up. Impeccable timing.

All of my birthdays have been a little bit different and special. I've done something different for each one.

My sweet sixteen was all about just having a huge party on my porch. It was also the first (and only) party I'd have where I invited BOYS. It was a big deal. My brother decided to shoot a couple of baskets in the middle of the party, and then my boyfriend (in the blue) joined him, and then the other guys joined, and then everyone was playing basketball! It was so spontaneously awesome. My 17th birthday was the day after closing night of our school's production of "Beauty and the Beast". I was Belle. That was one of the most amazing moments of my life.

The play was such a stressful production to put on, because there was so much that had to go into the costumes, set, musical numbers, and everyone having to memorize their lines.

But when we actually had to perform, I was on top of the world.

That night, we had a cast party at a friend's house, and there was nowhere to sleep, so I had to sleep alone on her cold, hard, dining room floor.

If that doesn't humble you after you've just been the lead in the school musical, I don't know what will. My 18th birthday was CRAZY. First crazy birthday party I'd ever had. This picture from the party was my favorite for the longest time.

There were a couple of people who were mad that they weren't invited, so they attacked our cars in the driveway with shaving cream, vaseline, and dead fish.

Yes, dead fish.

Classy individuals, no?

Good way to kick off my 18th year.

My 19th birthday, I was a freshman at the end of the school year, and my friends and I went to the playground across the street and played for a couple of hours! It was a very cute time.

And this is me just before I turned 20, with a cupcake with an "M" on it.

Sorry if this post was totally self-centered. It was kind of cool to take a look back!

And happy mother's day to all the moms out there!

Siiiigh. have a wonderful day, everyone!

(Title brought to you by: Atmosphere- Guns and Cigarettes)

Nobody on the road, nobody on the beach

So what do you do with a completely free weekend?

Go exploring!

I have never been to Jones Beach before, and I didn't really know how to get there, since it doesn't have a specific address, but I basically followed the road signs and somehow got there.

It was a beautiful day, and the beach was completely empty. It was lovely.

Shirt: H&M, Dress: Aerie, Shoes: Macy's

What will tomorrow's adventure be? Whooooo knows.

(Title brought to you by: Don Henley- Boys of Summer)

I must eat so many lemons...because I am so bitter.

You may notice something different about my outfit pictures today...

Cardigan: Gap, Tank: Thrifted (Gap), Shorts: Hollister, Bracelet: Coach

...I am not smiling in any of them. That's never happened in an entry, has it?

For some reason on this lovely afternoon, I felt compelled to take pictures, but was also compelled not to smile for them.

I am not in the best of spirits, perhaps. I think I am ready to leave school and not give it one more thought until my return at the end of August.

I also really miss my friends from home. I want to see them soon and let them know how much I appreciate them.

And my family, too. My little fan club back home.

There's nothing but celebration waiting for me when I go back to Connecticut. It will be a very exciting time.

(Title brought to you by: Kate Nash- Foundations)