outfitted:: purple ruffles and cargos (and the blond debut)

So, here it is everyone. The blond debut. And it's straight, too, thanks to my awesome stylist, Jenn at Trim Salon, who battled with my hair for a good 30 (maybe more??) minutes, armed only with a brush and a blowdryer. Sadly, while I do have similar weapons, I do not have the patience or the skills to straighten my hair like Jenn does, so my wild and wavy hair has been back to doing its wild and wavy thing for the past several days now. And I'm left with only these pictures as a reminder of the short-lived but happy times my straight hair and I had together.

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{Shop}:: top, lc by lauren conrad, kohl's (purple not available online- check the brick and mortar store); cargos, american eagle (older than dirt); earrings: old and not a clue where I got them; bracelet: sun sugar studio; sandals: madewell silverlake sandal

outfitted:: peach and red

I wore this outfit last week to go fill out all of the paperwork for my new job. Said paperwork also required a drug test. Every time I have to take a drug test, or even hear the words drug test, the following incident I recently witnessed at a nearby pharmacy will forever come to mind:

Irate customer storms up to pharmacist.
Pharmacist: "Can I help you, sir?"
Customer, waves a paper wildly in pharmacist's face, points to it, and says: "I want to know why THIS [prescription] drug didn't show up on my drug test, but COCAINE DID!"
Pharmacist:  (Blink. Blink.)

Clearly (and shockingly), this customer has never had to take a drug test before.

Also, this is the last post where you'll see my non-blond hair (well, my non-light blond hair, since I guess this is still sort of dark blond).

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Shop:: top, loft (last season); skinny red jeans, lc by lauren conrad at kohl's; earrings: sun sugar studio; bracelet: j. crew; shoes: aerosoles (several seasons ago)

what i did on my summer vacation

I go back to work tomorrow, 12 weeks after getting laid off. I haven't had this much time off from work since I was 14 or 15 years old. And while I did stay busy with my grad school class and a few other projects, I still managed to squeeze in some nostalgic summer fun. If it weren't for that little thing called income (or the lack of it while unemployed), I could have easily imagined I was 14 again (save for the fact that those Saved by the Bell reruns were not nearly as entertaining as I remembered them).

So here are a few things I did on my summer "vacation":

Played with nail polish:




Bought Revlon Moondrops Lipstick in 24K Orange, purely because it was one of the first lipsticks I ever bought as a teenager:




Caught up on some mindless but entertaining reading:




Ate way too many Freezee Pops:




Made some friendship bracelets (similar pieces will show up in my jewelry shop soon, after I finish refining them):
taken with my iphone



Visited my favorite city:




And spent a lot of time with these adorable faces:
taken with my iphone


Just because I managed to have some fun on my unplanned summer vacation doesn't mean I wasn't productive. In addition to my fun, I also:
1. Updated the design of this blog and posted regularly.
2. (Soft) launched my business and marketing website.
3. Launched Sun Sugar Studio, my new jewelry line.
4. Created my 35 Before 35 list.
5. Painted our living room, dining room, stairway, and upstairs hallway (walls, ceiling, and trim).
6. Updated my resume and got a new job.

Overall, it gave me a lot of time to recharge from some pretty awful experiences, start some long overdue projects, and get ready to start a brand new chapter of my life (and close those old ones that aren't even worth re-reading).

I have a few posts pre-scheduled for this week because I don't know how much time I'm going to have between the new job and working on my final project for class over the next two weeks. Then, I leave for a long weekend, come back for two days, and then head back to the beach for short week/extra long weekend trip, so posting could be light for the next month or so until I get back into the swing of things.

Happy Sunday and happy summer!

All photos by me.

in my shop:: beach flower earrings in aqua

Short post today, letting you know I just added these beachy earrings to my Etsy shop. Buy them here.

Happy Friday, everyone!

outfitted:: grey and white stripes

I think I'm quickly moving into "obsessed" territory with grey stripes as of late. I keep buying them and the items I have in my closet with grey and white stripes are in heavy rotation. I just picked up this dress and I think it's already earned a place as a closet front runner, sort of like this top and this top (both posted over on the DU Facebook page).

I never really used to like stripes of any color. At all. But for some reason, I'm loving them now. Maybe there's just change in the air. And who knows? Maybe I'll suddenly fall head over heels for polka dots soon, too.

PS- Just in case you're wondering, this was yesterday pre-blond hair adventure. Trust me. It's blond now.

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{Shop}:: dress: lc by lauren conrad, kohl's; sandals, target; jewelry: american eagle and sun sugar studio

new job, new hair

The shopping ban is over, you guys. I found out over the weekend that I got a new job, and while don't like to post too much about work details here on my blog, let's just say at this moment and at this point in my career, this is a really good job.

In honor of my new gig, I thought I should get some new hair. So I went blonder. But don't expect it to be straight like it is in the photo all that often. My stylist works her magic to straighten my unruly waves, but I don't have the patience for that on daily basis.



And- AND!- not only did I get offered a full-time gig, I also was contacted to help out with volunteer work for a local animal rescue organization. If all goes as planned, I'll be taking pictures of pooches, kitties, and other critters, as well as writing copy about the animals for the organization's website. I'm super exited about this and it kind-of-sort-of can count for number 7 and number 18 on my 35 before 35 list (okay 18 is definitely a maybe, since technically, it's not a fundraiser, but it's still good work that will help a good cause).

I'm feeling super lucky at the moment. I think I should go buy some PowerBall tickets and enter every contest available right now while the karma gods are still shining down upon me. I also think I need to buy this dress and these shoes as a celebration of my new gigs.

52 weeks of downtown lancaster (week 17):: music friday and root 222 crew

Every third Friday is Music Friday in downtown Lancaster, so last week, we headed to Binn's Park for free salsa lessons, Cuban music, and to watch the Root 222 Crew create a work of art (pretty fantastic, isn't it?). And because food is an integral part of most of our activities, we ate some crepes and drank some lemonade from the Rachel's Cafe and Creperie food truck.







Photos in this post taken with my iPhone and edited with Instagram.

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52 Weeks of Downtown Lancaster is my photo project for 2011. It's meant to keep me creative and posting about a consistent topic on a weekly basis. And I'm also pretty hellbent on to getting the word out that there's more to Lancaster, Pa. than Amish buggies, farms and outlet shopping. View the rest of my 52 Weeks of Downtown Lancaster pictures here.

All pictures taken by me, unless otherwise noted.

outfitted:: blue flowers and boots

Looky, looky, two outfitted posts two days in a row. I'm on a role, you guys. Don't get used to it, though. I'm not that excited about getting out of my tank tops and knit shorts most days.

Full disclosure: I did not wear this outfit today. I wore it back in June when we were in LA. I didn't get an iPhone picture of it for the DU Facebook page, so here it is, making its debut on my blog. If I wore this in PA in June (or really any time between May and October), I probably would have melted into a sweat puddle because it's too hot and humid for more than one layer and anything other than the strappiest of strappy sandals or flip flops. We've discussed this before. And before that.

So anyway, did you ever notice that when you're a blogger, you scrutinize every moment of your life to see if it's proper fodder for your next blog post? No? Only me? Seriously own up to it, fellow bloggers, because you know it's true. Unfortunately for me (and you, readers), today I've got nothing. Except it's Friday! Go have a good weekend, everyone!

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{Shop}:: dress, madewell (summer 2010); denim jacket: old navy, circa 2000; boots, dolce vita (several seasons ago); earrings: sun sugar studio; bracelets: j.crew and sun sugar studio; scarf: h&m

outfitted:: ruffles and gladiators

I went to officially/legally change my name this morning. (Yes, it has been seven months since we got married and I'm just now getting around to changing my name- so?) So anyway, after visiting the Social Security office, I decided to go to the pet store to pick up some toys and other random dog necessities.

The route from point A to point B is fairly direct via the highway. That is, if you manage to take the right exits. Guess who did not take the right exits? Guess who also missed not only the first exit, but also the second and third ones? Yep. This girl. And I ended up on a 10 minute detour because of it. Never mind that I drive this highway all the time. From this, only one logical conclusion can be drawn: changing my name also made me a space cadet.

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{Shop}:: dress, madewell (similar); sandals, can't remember (similar); necklace: sun sugar studio; bracelets: AE and It's Me Mary (lots of options here)

market research:: will you take my survey?

Hey there readers who are female between the ages of 18 and 45, would you like to help me out and take a market research survey for me? It's approximately 40 questions, will take about 20-25 minutes to complete, and it relates to your general demographic information and overall shopping habits.

This survey is completely confidential but not anonymous because you have to sign a consent form and mail it back to me. This is graduate school research and I have to follow their research protocol. You'll take the survey online via a link I'll provide and it won't be attached to your consent form, so I won't know what answers you gave specifically.  If you're interested, contact me and I'll get you the details, links, and paperwork. Thanks in advance for your help!

Contact me here

photography:: i found my heart in la

Tony Bennett may have left his heart in San Francisco, but I found mine in LA (and I guess I sort of left it there, too, since I'm here in PA pining away for Los Angeles).

Life has been a roller coaster for me the past few months, and today is just one of those not-so-good days. It helps to have a little reminder that there are better days ahead and my goals are waiting. I know I said in my previous post that I was just posting one quick post today, but I just had to add this picture/digital art. I took the photo on my recent to trip to LA and then created the rest of the art. I think this deserves a place in my new living room design, don't you?

from my studio:: project sneak peek

Quick blog post today, lots to do! I thought I'd give you a little sneak peek of a jewelry project I'm working on. If all goes well, I'll be creating a collection based on this prototype. Have a good Wednesday, everyone!

outfitted:: everybody everywear- yellow

In case you haven't heard of Everybody Everywear, it's a monthly fashion blogger challenge and each month participants vote for a theme and then wear it on the designated day. July's theme? Yellow!

I don't really have much yellow in my closet. In fact, all of the yellow I have in my closet, you've already seen here and here, and now in this post. It's not that I don't like yellow. It's that yellow doesn't really like me. It's a pretty one-sided relationship and yellow is holding all the cards. Unless I'm really tan, which rarely happens since I'm not out catching rays all that often, yellow sucks the color right out of me and suddenly, I'm Casper's even paler twin. Not pretty, people. And so, I wear yellow in small doses as an accent or far, far away from my face.

Anyone else feel this way about yellow?

Click this button to see the rest of the Everybody Everywear yellow wearers:

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{Shop}:: dress: h&M; vest: target; shoes: target; necklace: madewell; bracelets: charlotte russe, j.crew, sun sugar studio
All items are from seasons long passed. Shopping bans have a way of forcing one to wear what's already in their closet, so nothing new or current to share with you. Fingers crossed this shopping ban will be over soon. Because I really, really want some of those Madewell dresses.

outfitted:: cutoffs and ruffles

A quick outfit post today. I've been crazy-busy this week with a ton of interviews and grad school assignments (holy crap, summer session is nuts- I only have three days per module to complete major assignments when normal modules during regular semesters are 7 days). Oh, and hobbling to the doctor and visiting the X-ray technician because I sprained my ankle a few weeks ago and it's still swollen up like a stuffed sausage.

But anyway, when I was initially laid off, I was super concerned because the last time I tried to look for a job the only response I got was stone-cold silence. Nada. Zip. Except those awesome "hey, thanks for applying but we found someone better" rejection letters. Those are fun, right? But this time, I'm getting really good responses and lots of positive feedback. No offers yet but I've been called for second interviews at several places, so we'll see what happens. Even if I don't get any offers from this round of interviews - not that I don't want an offer -  at least it's renewed my confidence in myself when it comes to job hunting. Because the last time, I gotta say, my self-esteem really took a beating. Constant rejection before you even get an interview makes you feel pretty crappy.

So about the outfit. As previously discussed, I'm loving shorts this summer. On slightly less humid days, I can manage to peel off the sundresses and wear something else. Like this outfit worn for happy hour last week. It would have looked cute with a little jacket, but it was a little too balmy outside for anything with sleeves or layers.

Also, excuse my ridiculous expression. I took these pictures really fast right before heading out the door and this was the best of the bunch. True story.

currently loving (and styled):: colorful summer dresses from madewell

Summers in Pennsylvania are hot, humid, and sticky, and definitely not good for my hair. But they are the perfect excuse to stock up on silky, lightweight, colorful dresses (because really, that's about all I can stand to wear around these-here parts during the summer months; anything else and I feel like I'm suffocating).

And I'm loving all the cute dresses at Madewell right now (as usual). Even better- these are dressy enough to wear out at night but easy enough to dress down with a pair of cute flat sandals during the day (like I styled my favorite dress- the purple one!- below):



PS- You can see how I styled the pink dress for a guest post over at my friend Brandi's blog.

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{Shop}:: (dresses clockwise from top left) floral croquet dress;  silk safari dress;  midsummer dress;  shadyside smock dress;  electric ikat silk dress;  silk ballad dress;   market tank dress;  silk speakeasy dress

speakeasy dress, day: fringed bag, american eagle outfitters; long links necklace, anthropologie; whistlestop sandal, madewell

speakeasy dress, night: peacock clutch by mermaid's dream; via spiga elyria sandals, piperlime; eddie borgo at j.Crew fringed mesh pocket necklace; classic pave link bracelet, j.crew

inspiration board:: living and dining room take 2

I previously mentioned (in this post) that we're now in "designed to rent" mode with our house, so that (paired with my recent layoff) means I needed to rework my original plans for our living/dining room in our house.

Instead of buying all new furniture, we're using mostly what we have and buying a few pieces (like a less expensive dining room table than originally planned). I'm using a color scheme based on furniture and accessories we already own, and I repainted two of our end tables (used as a coffee table) bright pink and I plan to embellish them with nail head trim (a project I spotted in the July issue of Better Homes & Gardens).

Yesterday, we painted the room the blue color in the background of the inspiration board below, and now I'm on the hunt for artwork. I plan to use some of my own sketches and photographs, as well as some from Etsy sellers and images torn from magazines and catalogs. I also need some pillows in different shades of gold and yellow with 60s or 70s style prints. And maybe an area rug for the dining room.

The inspiration for this room came from this picture from Domino's very first issue (posted over on my DU Facebook page). I added a little more blue to the look with our walls, but overall in person, with all of our furniture and accent pieces, it definitely gives off the warm, casual 70s glam vibe. I'll post pictures of the actual room over on the DU Facebook page when it's completed.


{Shop}:: glass link chandelier, west elm; saga credenza, cb2; brigitte bardot watercolor fashion illustration by silver ridge studio; bjursta table, ikea; damask velvet burnout curtain, urban outfitters; couch: from my living room, bought locally; jamie young lamp base, layla grayce; lack side table, ikea

what to wear:: 4th of july picnic

Usually I'm a dress girl, but this summer I'm loving shorts. I haven't loved shorts since high school, but for some reason, this season's batch is just so cute and versatile. You can dress them up or dress them down, and they're perfect for a weekend's worth of 4th of July festivities. If I wasn't on a shopping ban, I would have snapped up every last piece from the outfits below for the plethora of events I have to attend this weekend (three today, two tomorrow, Monday activities pending). Do you have any fun plans for this weekend?


{Shop}:: top: angel lace sleeve top, planet blue; shorts: flounced silk shorts, anthropologie; shoes: bridgewalk sandal, madewell; sunglasses: LC lauren conrad textured round sunglasses, kohl's; earrings: david aubrey jade turquoise earrings, south moon under; bag: backyard binocular, madewell; bracelet: vintage rhinestone friendship bracelet by essentia


{Shop}:: top: jane, abercrombie & fitch; cardigan: herd geometry cardi, anthropologie; shorts: glitter hem shortie, american eagle; hat: park bench fedora, madewell; necklace: diving deeply necklace by dk jewels; bracelet: multichain brass howlite bracelet by bead blossom; shoes: collected lights sandals, anthropologie

52 weeks of downtown lancaster:: week 16 - barnstormers baseball game

What better way to start a long holiday weekend than with a baseball game? Last night, we headed to a Lancaster Barnstormers game (yep, this little town has its own baseball team and a mascot who is apparently a distant relative to the Philly Phanatic - true story, it said so in the programs). We had a relaxing evening watching the game, taking in the sunset, and chowing down on snow cones, cotton candy, and hot dogs. Because everyone knows any food consumed at a ballpark is calorie-free, right? Right.

Have a safe and happy holiday weekend, everyone!

Photos in this post taken with my iPhone.

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52 Weeks of Downtown Lancaster is my photo project for 2011. It's meant to keep me creative and posting about a consistent topic on a weekly basis. And I'm also pretty hellbent on to getting the word out that there's more to Lancaster, Pa. than Amish buggies, farms and outlet shopping. View the rest of my 52 Weeks of Downtown Lancaster pictures here.

All pictures taken by me, unless otherwise noted.