Would you hold it near as it were your own?

I feel like I should let you know that this post will have a lot of photos (come on, LOOK AT THAT SKIRT), too many words (because it's me and my mind is always overflowing), and an obnoxious cat named Little Girl (who's making her very first blog appearance). I got this skirt in the mail today from ANTHOM, one of my lovely sponsors this month. It's also the most beautiful skirt that I've probably ever seen in my whole entire life. It's from a Brooklyn based brand called How Very Dare and I already know what I'm going to be living in this summer. It's very sheer (undies alert!) and I'll need to figure out a good way to wear it when I'm in more formal settings (i.e. the outside world) but whatever. What's wrong with seeing some undies anyways? Just pretend it's a swimsuit. See, not risque anymore. Anyways, bottom line: I'm sleeping in this skirt tonight because it is SO BEAUTIFUL.
My shirt is from Topshop, which is worth mentioning, but don't let it detract from the wonder that is this skirt. Unless if you want to consider that I found this shirt on the sale rack for a few pounds (in London), then it might just almost compare.


Little Girl loves the corner where I was taking these photos and she spent most of her time sitting in a cardboard box screeching at me. She has this scratchy old voice like she's been smoking for the past 40 years and her face always looks like she's smelt something foul. She's about the size and shape of a bowling ball and I absolutely cannot stand her. She's my third cat and I took her in this summer after she lived in my yard for a week and I fell in love with her. However, as soon as she got inside she became a bratty little princess and has spent the last 6 months beating up on my two male cats, Gogo and Peter. Gogo always has dried up blood all over his face (he doesn't have claws & can't defend himself from her) and he also got a nasty bladder infection from the stress of being constantly stalked and harassed. Poor little baby. See why I detest Little Girl so? But dammit, she's so soft. Like a fat screeching, squabbling mink coat that you just want to bury your face into.





Every time I see these photos, I'm like OH MY GAWD that skirt! And then I remember it's mine and am filled with glee.
Now that I've obsessed over this skirt (almost) to my heart's content, and explained some things about Little Girl, I can get into what's really on my mind: re-branding.
Over the past couple of years I've grown to hate my blog name. Urban Tease. It's something I came up with at the age of 15 - and it was something that explained my blog well. It was a teenager's blog, a teen who was exploring her style which was somewhere between being very "urban" and also very much a "tease". (It's less on the tease side these days though this skirt if obvs not a good example.) The past couple of years, I've found myself wanting to write about more than my clothes. And I have. I've given long feminist rants (I made an entire tag for my "soapbox" posts), I've reviewed books, I've interviewed my friends, I've discussed jobs, convictions, religion, family, quarter-life-crises (okay not yet, but it's coming, I swear). As I get closer to "adulthood", I find myself wanting to blog about even more: recipes, home decor, DIYs, professional clothes, working out, etc. but I feel like Urban Tease is no longer the right venue. I feel like I have outgrown Urban Tease in the 5 years that I've been writing it.
And I'm not ashamed of that or anything. In fact, this all feels very healthy. I've loved writing this blog and it's such a stress reliever to be able to get so much off my chest and have people read and respond in very genuine, caring ways. My last post, on religion, was scary to write. I was so nervous about receiving harsh backlash and losing followers, sponsors. But none of that happened. The responses I received were all full of grace and full of love. It made me feel so blessed, and gave me motivation to keep going and exploring new topics.
And so, I have a...I'm not sure...a suggestion...I almost feel like I'm asking permission for this. Maybe I am. Yes, I am. I'm asking permission. I would like to retire Urban Tease and begin writing about this new chapter of my life on a new blog. It would still have a lot of the same Urban Tease-y goodness (outfit posts, my outspoken, opinionated, foolish self) but I'd also like to expand it to so much more. I want to post about what's inspiring me. I want to write about new recipes I'm trying, my workout routine, finding a job. I want to detail moving into my future apartment (when I get a real job, fingers crossed), and talk about buying my first car and taking my subsequent first road trip in that car. There are all of these new topics that I want to take on as I tackle adulthood, but I feel like Urban Tease is no longer the place for it. I look at this blog as a token of my teen years - of high school, of college - and I look at it with great happiness and much humility (and a bit of humiliation), but I feel like I've grown out of Urban Tease. It's bittersweet, but fills me with pride.
In the next few months, with your permission of course, I would like to launch a new blog about tackling adulthood. I don't have a name for it yet as I feel like it's not quite time to make that transition. Maybe I'll title it "Chloe Tackles Adulthood", as that seems most fitting to where I am in life right now. However, there would be no point in beginning a new blog if no one would read it, and so that's part of why I feel like I have to ask permission: Would you, as an individual and beloved, appreciated reader, transition with me to that new blog? And, furthermore, would you be interested in more posts, and more diverse posts? I'm not going to do it without the support of the readers that make my blog much of what it is.



I cannot believe that January is almost over. Tomorrow, my boyfriend gets home. He's been sick lately and spent the past month away, getting better. I've missed him loads - talking to him, seeing him, hanging out with him, doing everything with him. I've been talking to him a little bit in the past couple of weeks and he's already doing much better. I know that there'll be some time before he'll be in the same health as he was, but it will be good to have him back. I'm so lonesome without him - and all of my other friends. So many of them are studying abroad right now, or live too far away for me to visit. Minnesota is really miserable like that in the winter. You have no motivation to go out places to see friends. I'd so much rather stay in and watch movies with my cats, even if it doesn't quite fill that loneliness in me.
With January ending, I'm getting a little anxious about finding a job. My original goal was to have one set up by the second week in February. But, I'm reminding myself that everything will work out in the end. And now that I've gotten the idea of starting a new blog off of my chest, I can feel out the reception of that idea and hopefully start fresh on that project - a bigger, better blog depicting my foray into the endless joys of adulthood.


For now, that's all Little Girl and I have. PBS is airing Some Like It Hot so I'm off to cuddle down with some good snacks and watch the timeless humor of Billy Wilder. Keep warm and please give me feedback about my big new idea xx

2014.

2014 has been weird. I spent New Year's Eve home by myself, eating salami and watching Alice in Wonderland, When Harry Met Sally, and Friends. All the parties I was asked out to were with guys who want to date me. My boyfriend is still sick and is getting treatment right now. My best friend is back studying in Glasgow, though we were Facebook-ing all evening so it wasn't quite as lonely. My cat was home with me, so he and I spent the evening on the couch, cuddling. I enter 2014 with caution. I'm without my two best friends. It's too cold out to go anywhere (the high for Monday is -16F and the office I work at closed down - IT'S THAT COLD). I spent all of New Year's Day cleaning and moving my fish tank to a place where I could sit and watch my fish better. I woke up the next day to find both of my fish belly up and dead. 
My boyfriend had helped me pick out Seymour & Baby after my dog died in March. Jesse and I spent the whole day setting up the tank and positioning all the plants and such just right. And we spent like an hour at the pet store with me pressing my face up against all the tanks and carefully selecting which goldfish I wanted to take home with me. I could barely contain my excitement when we got home and we were able to let them loose into the tank. I'm getting new fish tomorrow. I have the tank all set up and ready, so why not? When I got Baby & Seymour, they were supposed to help me get over Moses. And now I'll be getting two more fish to help me get over my other fish. It's weird. Baby & Seymour belonged to both Jesse and I, and now these fish will only be my own. I hope that this isn't how 2014 will be.


I took these photos today. I've been thinking back to a post that I did at the beginning of 2013 when I was feeling very melancholy. I decided to re-visit that same spot, since I was feeling very much like that same person.
I'm wearing my favourite shirt - one that I've been wearing pretty much since I started this blog back in '08. It's my safety shirt. And these socks remind me of this cabin up north that my family used to rent every autumn. We'd spend a weekend tramping around through the fallen leaves in our Doc Martens, rock climbing across the cliffs of Lake Superior, watching ships cross in the sunset.... They're warm memories attached to warm clothes.
These overalls are new. Although I'm totally into the '90s revival loose overalls, I found these ones in the sale section of ModCloth and decided to go for it because they're all cute and '50s. They're super cozy and kind of like wearing pajamas around - but not in a way where you feel all sloppy and dirty.



I spent today doing nothing. Well, I did some pilates in the morning (I just got an exercise ball and am SO PUMPED), but since then I've been on the couch watching Friends. My best friend left me the entire series on DVD before she left for Glasgow in September, and so I've been watching them all through.
I've also been applying for jobs but not many have stood out to me. I think only two - one of a local non-profit and one for a Minneapolis-based PR agency - have really caught my attention. I was going to apply for an advertising sales job at a publisher that I thought I'd be a shoe (shoo?) in for, but then decided that it wasn't the direction that I want my career to go. (When I told my mom this, she said, "Yeah, I knew a guy who took an advertising sales job at a magazine and then he died suddenly, 5 months later!") I'm under-qualified for every job I'm applying for, but you have to start somewhere, and hopefully someone will take a chance on me! And not be too struck down by my horrid cover letters.


I didn't create any resolutions for the New Year. Does that sound bad? It's not like I think I'm perfect or don't have things about myself that I need to work on improving. I just feel like 2014 is holding so much in store for me, that I need to accomplish those tasks first, and then from there I can figure out how I need to improve. Like I said, this is the year of my first real job, my first very own apartment, hopefully my first very own dog and my first car, too. That's a lot of stuff in itself.
And some things that I feel like I need to "work on", I'm not even sure if they're bad. I was thinking something like....not being so emotionally invested in everything. But is that so bad? Is it bad that I find passion for almost everything I do, all the people I know, everything I say and believe? It backfires some times, but it also makes me fiercely loyal and wholeheartedly compassionate.
I could try getting out more and making new friends - or simply keeping in better touch with my old ones - but I like having my two best friends and others who I check in on regularly, even if I don't do a lot with them. I like staying in and watching movies and being by myself. It's not such a bad thing. I'm social, just only to a certain degree.
In the past few years I've taken huge strides to be more organized, more independent, more dependable, more outgoing. I now consider myself very much all of these things. I consider myself a go-getter, a self-starter, never words that I ever thought I would use to describe myself. I think I'm very happy with how I am right now, and need to make these other major life adjustments before I decide what qualities I need to work on in order to succeed in my new life.




My best friend sent me Cadbury chocolate in the mail today. They make it so much better in the UK! My British auntie sends it over in every care package - I love the popcorn toffee one, and the new Bubbly kind - YUM! I think I'll spend my evening snacking on that and watching Friends. I've been feeling very emotionally spent lately and just need a few days of doing nothing before I can get back into everything. Here's hoping that 2014 brings many great things, and maybe starts looking up some! Stay warm out there, especially to all my Minnesotan friends xx

After Christmas

After Christmas is always such a weird time. It's like this in-between, let down period of time where everything is very surreal. The Christmas tree is still up, along with all the other decorations, but the day you've been waiting for is over. All of the parties and festivities and special Christmas exhibits at the museums are finishing up. People will have lights on their houses until April when it finally gets warm enough to take them down. All the ugly Christmas sweaters at thrift stores and vintage stores are put back into storage. Window displays of Santas are taken down. All of this pent up excitement and anticipation just kind of combusts into nothing. It's such a weird feeling. I don't really remember it as a child. Perhaps Christmas day was more fulfilling when I was younger - a day of endless sweets, fattening food, and piles of bows and wrapping paper. These days, Christmas day is hardly exciting. I prefer advent, and Christmas Eve is probably the most exciting part of the season. So when you are no longer counting down to anything, and when Christmas Day lacks the grandeur that it once did, the whole thing finishes in, well, nothing.

That being said, Christmas wasn't bad. There were my usual favourite dishes, like cheesy potatoes. I made fudge - and this time included peppermint marshmallows. I watched It's a Wonderful Life (my favourite Christmas movie). I gave presents and received presents - and they were all good. My dad gave me a lava lamp and a tea infuser. My mom gave me snowman socks and some bath salts (like the kind you put in a tub, not the synthetic drug - what kind of people do you think my parents are?). It was a good day. I was surrounded by my usual, small family. This year, my sister was missing because she moved across country, as well as my boyfriend because he's been very sick for the past few months. But even so, it didn't really feel like anyone was missing. Christmas day just wasn't magical like I always remember it to be as a child. Instead, the leading up to Christmas is magical, something that wasn't when I was younger. It's a trade-off. It's a trade-off with an unsettling ending.





I'm transitioning back into my work wardrobe. After a couple of weeks of wearing old jeans and sweaters and my Doc Martens, I'll be heading back to my internship. I've been trying to wear dresses and proper boots and carry my briefcase and things like that - things that a young professional would do. Today I wore this dress that an old friend's mom gave me. It's from Forever 21, where I wouldn't normally shop (overwhelming!), but it's very beautiful and has a very nice fit. I'm not much for florals, but it's professional. It's like, you know, young hip creative professional. Not stodgy old boring professional. I wear this all the time with my cardigan from The Loft (well, from the second hand store, technically), but I'm thinking I might put a blazer with it and see how that dresses it up more.

p.s. These boots have pretty much been my best friend this winter.





My day today was supposed to be spent tailoring my resume, writing cover letters, following up on jobs I've already applied for. It's surreal to think that I'm graduated and have no more homework, but trying to find a job is possibly even worse than homework. My entire future hangs on this, rather than just some grade that might affect my overall grade, which may affect my haggard and hopeless GPA.

I wish that I could go to all of these potential employers and just talk to them. I don't want a sheet of paper to represent me. It's hard to express my enthusiasm for a job without sounding fake. I worry that my lack of experience will overshadow any enthusiasm I might have - enthusiasm which they won't really capture unless they call me in for an interview, an interview that I probably won't even get based upon my experience. I've been reading so many self-help books and columns and chapters about how to get a job, but none of them are curbing my anxiety. And, furthermore, I don't even want to sit down and pound out cover letter after cover letter because they all sound so inauthentic and strange.

Obviously I am going to need to go to the coffee shop, get a chai, sit down, and make myself do them. I need cover-letter-writing discipline.





I'm off to bed before a long day of work tomorrow, and then play with my best friend! She's back from studying in Glasgow, but only for a few days before heading back - and boy, I've missed her! My best friend since the age of 4, and the person who knows me better than anyone else. It'll feel like home at last. Keep warm, my friends xx

please have snow & mistletoe

I had my last class (EVER) on Wednesday, graduated on Thursday, had my last day at one of my internships on Friday, went to the Minnesota RollerGirls bout on Saturday, spent Sunday working on two finals, and completed my FINAL final on Monday night! Phew! I had a short day at work today and now am off till Christmas. And obviously I have loads to do! Today my boyfriend and I spent the afternoon at the American Swedish Institute for their Jul to the World Christmas exhibit. It was totally lovely and absolute fun. We have loads more Christmas plans including a Christmas tour of the Alexander Ramsey House, carols and a tour at the James J. Hill House, and A Christmas Story at Riverview Theater (only $1 if you bring a non-perishable food item for Minnehaha Food Shelf). If you live in the Twin Cities, make sure you schedule some time to get out and have some (inexpensive) Christmas fun on the town! The boyfriend and I will also be staying in to make candles, decorate a gingerbread house, and trim the tree. This time of year is so wonderful, and such a relief that I now am a college grad and have nothing to worry about (except finding a job).


I wore this outfit to go to the roller derby on Saturday night. After a few weeks of subzero temperatures, it's finally warmed up to the upper teens even the twenties! It's absolutely fab. I celebrated by showing some leg. I'm wearing a faux leather dress from SwayChic which I obviously wear ALL THE TIME. This is definitely one of the best purchases I've made in a long time. I belted it with a faux leather belt off of some Nasty Gal shorts I bought and which were not such a great purchasing choice. But oh well, it happens. I layered the dress with my fave Eddie Bauer turtleneck. I love that this dress works for all seasons and can easily be worn with a massive chunky sweater, or with a tiny little crop top. I got all matchy-matchy with the socks and doubled up on them. This is definitely the time of year when multiple layers of socks are necessary. I don't even remember the last time I left the house with at least two pairs + tights.




This jacket is absolutely the best! Land's End has some sizing issues (aka an XXS petite dress was MASSIVE on me), but this coat is super cozy. I'm not even cold when I wear it, minus exposed limbs such as my knees.
That's all I've got for today. Don't forget to enter the Rosegal giveaway - it ends Christmas Eve! I have loads of exciting things coming up for the blog and I cannot wait to get to them. For tonight, however, I'm finishing up with sewing my Christmas dress! Stay warm and spread some cheer xx

The Friendly Beasts

I've had this vest since I was 16. Maybe even before that. I bought it thinking that it was so cool and like super rock'n'roll. I was so convinced that I'd probably wear it all the time and just be the coolest kid on campus - the sort of thing I usually tell myself. I don't think I've worn this vest since here, in 2010, back when I also apparently wanted a Spirit Hood. Oh, the times they are a changin'. Anyways, the vest is one of those ones where you can turn it inside out and wear it also, so that's what I did here. It kind of reminds me of a Muppet and now I wish that it was neon blue or something cool like that so that I could really embrace the Muppet in me. Speaking of Muppets, I cannot wait to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol this season. And Mickey's Christmas Carol. I have so much homework to do today so I'm going to try to plow through it and reward myself with some Christmas cartoons afterwards. I'm like so grown up and stuff.


Got this new jacket from Land's End. It is this one here in case I'm such a winter style inspiration that you feel compelled to go buy your own. It's mega warm and I wore it around the office on Friday because it was sort of like being swaddled in a massive quilted blanket. Heaven! Also very convenient when wearing skirts and you don't want ice cold air getting up between your legs. And, red with a furry hood which is beautiful and very Christmas-y. Enough about the coat. Land's End isn't even paying me for this long love letter or anything.




I'm wearing a faux leather jumper that I got from Sway Chic and which is fab. I wore it shopping the other day and a boy in the store completely stopped in his tracks to freak out over how great it is. See? I'm going places.  I made it a little more professional/bookish by wearing a button down under it cause you know I can never stop dressing for the office. It's like a sickness that is incurable. I must always dress like I'm moderately prepared for work. I belted it with a belt that came off some shorts from Nasty Gal so that the vest wasn't completely overpowering on my tiny frame. Oh, and Doc Martens because DUH.




I just realised that there's only two weeks of school left so life is wonderful and beautiful. I graduate from the twelfth (and then have a final after that, so, dumb) and then will be FREE. And unemployed. And crumbling under the weight of my student loans. But before those two weeks are up, I have two more papers to write and a big old project for my typography class because once upon a time I thought that it would be a really great, fun idea to take a typography class. As if I've ever enjoyed graphic design classes before. Stay warm out there my friends! I've just about froze my bum off since it's like 18 degrees Fahrenheit out. Brrrrr! But soon there will be snow and it will be a winter wonderland and hot chocolate everyday! xx p.s. I'd love to do a winter version of Summer of Sundresses. Any opinions on the type of fashion I should feature this time? I need creative input from you, the people who this is geared for!

his girl friday

Being an unpaid intern working in an office and within the court system requires me to dress a certain (boring) way. Gone are my days of ripped tights, cut off jeans, old flannel, and beat up boots. Now, these are the days of pencil skirts and loafers and freaking out that every small snag in my stocking will lead to an unsightly run that will ruin my credibility as a capable working girl. When I started my first internship, working as an advocate for victims of domestic abuse, I found myself in court with a bunch of attorneys and judges and feeling rather unprofessional and childish in my full skirts and bad shoes. Both my mother and my sister work at Nordstrom and so they took me out shopping for some new clothes to wear! I love all of my new blazers and skirts and tailored pants, but I am starting to get the itch to wear fun things again.  When ANTHOM contacted me about being a blog sponsor, I looked through their collections and immediately said yes - they carry so many stunning pieces! I started perusing with the intention of seeing what they had in stock that would be office appropriate, but quickly snapped out of that mindset, realising that I am too quickly becoming boring career lady who stays in the office after 5 every day. So, with a clear mind, I thought about buying this dress (because it's beautiful, duh) but ended up with this hat. I know it will sound totally lame (and it is), but I saw that it was wool and that swayed me. The coming winter months are guaranteed to be chilly - Minnesota has a pretty good history of that - and so a wool hat that probably won't give me hat hair seemed like the perfect fit. (As a side note, I can attest that this hat indeed does not lend itself to unsightly hat hair - hooray!) I look freaking bad ass in it and have already gotten loads of compliments on it, including from the guy in class who always comes late and never says anything. The hat's style is also called The John Wayne so, you know, bad ass.



Besides my beautiful new hat courtesy of ANTHOM, I'm also wearing an H&M shirt from the second hand store, a Halogen brand skirt from Nordstrom (which is dry clean only, so, you know, THE BANE OF MY EXISTENCE), and my new fave The Loft brand cardigan from the second hand shop. I'm also wearing Cinderella of Boston shoes and Nordstrom brand tights. Lemme talk for a minute about Cinderella of Boston, though. Every time I say that I wear kid's size shoes, I am met with a room full of snickers. It's a bit irritating and it's like, "I'M SORRY I DON'T HAVE NORMAL PEOPLE FEET" but seriously, it's really difficult to find normal shoes that look professional. Most shoes in my size (a 2 and a half kids) light up or have Dora the Explorer on them. They're often pink and foam or animal print. Sometimes they squeak. Often they're adorned with little satin or velvet bows. None of these are things which I want on my precious baby feet, and even more so, none of these are things that I want to be wearing around an office where I'm trying to get people to take me seriously (which is already really difficult when you're only 20, are 5 feet tall, and have youthfully curly locks). Enter Cinderella of Boston. They're a shoe company that stocks quality, totally professional and chic shoes in small sizes. Here I'm wearing the Julie style which is totally beautiful and which, now that I own this hat, I wish I had in the purple colour, too.


Sorry about the clenched fists! It was freezing, damp, and windy out. Winter is just around the corner and the only thing making me tolerate the impending weather, besides the fact that it's impossible for me to move out of state right now, is the thought of snow. Beautiful, lush, heavenly snow! p.s. There's no snow in the forecast for the next two weeks so that's lame, but, you know, this is Minnesota. p.p.s. Even though I just hinted about Minnesota being lame, check out this awesome Buzzfeed article of 38 Things Minnesotans Are Too Nice To Brag About. (Hint: it includes Prince, Bob Dylan, Lucky Charms, Scotch Tape, Fitzgerald, and Betty Crocker. Did I tell you guys about the dream I had where I was the new Betty Crocker spokeswoman?)







I'm trying to grow my bangs out gracefully. I'm sort of trying to make them look like Elizabeth's. In fact, I'm trying to make my ENTIRE LIFE look like Elizabeth's. Starting with my kitchen and a fluffy puppy with a clever name. Okay friends I'm off for the night! The Paradise is on in a little bit and it's the finale so I'm very anxious and also very sad. That show has been sustaining me through the week for more than a month now. It's my Sunday night tradition, that last little bit of uplifting entertainment before the 9 to 5 grind and homework. Gah, I love period pieces. xx

dweeb.

Dweeb. A word from my common vocabulary as a grade schooler has re-entered it in the past few months. I've cut out many more "nasty" words of name calling and, to fill this new void, have taken in some very silly, elementary ones instead. Dweeb is my favourite. I drop it constantly, mostly to my friends and usually to their faces. 
Example: A few months ago, my boyfriend comes home and says to me, "I just did something really stupid." I got concerned and said something like, "Uhmm...okay...what?" And he replies by telling me that he bought a few packs of World of Warcraft trading cards at Target. Not as stupid as I was thinking it would be, but still stupid for a 25 year old boy to be buying something like that when it will take him two hours of work to pay it off. So, instead of saying something like, "You stupid fuck up, don't you realize that you're completely broke and can barely even pay to keep gas in your car!" I just said, "You dweeb." And that was that. Using the word dweeb allows me to comment on a situation without getting too passionately involved in the issue, and instead of casting someone off as a loser or a fuck up, they're just a dweeb. Everyone wins because seriously, who isn't a dweeb at least like 10% of the time?
I found the sweatshirt at Topshop when I was in London this past June. I was meeting up with my former pastor and had arrived to Saint Paul's Cathedral early. Luckily, there was a Topshop right across the street from the tube station, so that was great. In addition to that, Topshop was having a sale. It was like the stars had all aligned.




I'm really excited about this outfit because I'm wearing a new skirt that I yearned for for months and finally splurged on (it was on sale!). I found in on Nasty Gal and holy they have beautiful things! I want to buy everything but my income is limited to mostly professional clothes and, unfortunately, not many things on Nasty Gal are oriented towards the career girl.
BUT this skirt is an exception. Because I've wanted it for so long and because it was on sale. Like fate! It's a tad big but that's probably mostly because my waist is two inches smaller than usual, so really, everything is too big for me right now. I've belted it and it has that paper bag skirt appeal to it now. I'm so excited to wear it out! It's also probably the shortest skirt I've worn for like two years now, so, you know...that's something. (I'm not really sure where I was going with that.)
p.s. Gaining weight is ending up to be very very difficult! I'm slurping those protein smoothies like no other, but not putting on anything. Does anyone have any tips? I want all of my clothes - including this skirt! - to fit properly again!






I don't have so many photos today. Yesterday, when I took these, was mighty gusty and I was freezing. My teeth were chattering and in most of the photos I just look 100% miserable. I'm already working to transition my wardrobe to fall - I'm wearing a scarf every day, I make sure there's a pair of gloves in every bag, and I'm beginning to break out the boots and wool socks. These boots here are my total faves and so I'll break them out happily but for the other ones....eh, I'm not so sure yet.
Stay warm my friends! xx

dire wolf

November 5th - voting day! My second favourite day of the year, pretty much. That being said, I almost forgot about it until they mentioned it on the radio this morning. I got very excited and exclaimed, "Oh my! Is that today?! How joyous!" Or at least I would have, if my life was a fifties family sitcom. Either way, I was very excited and headed to the polls after class, my hands trembling as I clutched my ballot. It's not even like there's anything very important up for election this year - a few school board members and the mayor, who is pretty much a shoe in. But I just get so excited about voting, I cannot even hold it in! Plus, you get a sticker afterwards. I will do pretty much anything within my morals to get a free sticker. As I was leaving the polls an older woman ran by me and completely tripped and somehow landed on her back, though she ripped the knees of her pants. It was very odd. She was carrying a bunch of things and didn't seem to be running towards or away from anything. And then she was very embarrassed about the whole thing and my attempts to help her up didn't really go anywhere as she sat on the sidewalk pretty much shooing me away. I still consider it my good deed of the day. That, and voting. Jeez, I write a really boring blog sometimes. How do you write excitedly about how great it is to live in a democracy and to be able to vote for your leaders, without sounding like a 4th grader?


I will confess that this outfit is actually a few days old. I took these photos Sunday after church (my father took them for me, actually). Today was dark all day and now snow is blowing in. I could write excitedly about snow but I'd still sound like a fourth grader. My boyfriend is away at the moment so I've been writing him letters. I wrote him one on Monday and the entire 4 page thing ended up being about snow and winter and the Holidays. I can't help it - I get so excited and school girlish about snow! Remember last years' first big snow?? (p.s. that work boyfriend I talked about in that post? Now my real boy friend! A work boyfriend had never before turned into a real boyfriend, until Jesse. Awwwwww!) Look at that! I got distracted talking about snow again! My purpose to this was to talk about my outfit, which I wore on Sunday. This dress is BB Dakota and I totally love it. It's wool, so it's super warm, and a beautiful deep burgundy colour. My mother bought it for me to wear to the office for my new internships. I have the best mum! Booties are Steve Madden, the cardigan is second hand from The Loft, and the jacket is Banana Republic, also second hand.






I'm working on growing out my bangs - what do you guys think? I'll be on the job hunt soon and want to look older and professional. I love my bangs but I think they make me look young, so I'm going to grow them out and see if that's any better. I've had bangs pretty much forever. Since I was around 2 till 10, and then I cut them again when I was 13, grew them out from there but then cut them back when I was 15. I've had bangs for the last five years! And most of my life! I'd like to see what I look like (as an adult) without them. But ugh, what a freakin' awful process.


I wanted to give a shout out to my new and continuing sponsors for November! ANTHOM is an awesomely curated online store based out of Washington D.C. They have some fab stuff and I'm very excited to be working with them! Susy of That Valencia Chick has an amazingly cute sense of style and puts her blog together very thoughtfully. And then Laila at Tape Parade is continuing! She goes on tons of adventures and captures really beautiful photos from all of them. Check all three out, you won't be disappointed! Okay well I'm off to make cards for a couple of friends. The snow is starting to fall and my spirit is soaring! Oh shoot, I have homework. Well, that dampens my spirit a tad. But snow!! Stay warm my friends xx