Lately {Pyrex and Tangled}

1. Lots of casual outfits this past week (tee shirt not pictured).

2. It's a big hat day! (Big hat courtesy of Maddie.)

3. A pretty graduation present from my aunt in California!

4. Got to spend a lot of quality time with this little cutey this week!

5. Pretzel roll + half an eclair + half a brownie + an Izzy soda = perfect snack.

6. New dress! Thrifted this beaut for just $6! It'll be perfect for my uncle's wedding this autumn.

7. Spent some hard earned cash on makeup this week! (clockwise: L'Oreal

8. My mustache key chain. Can't believe I haven't photographed it before now!

9. Saturday night Molly and I spent an hour skyping + going through our Pyrex collections. After putting aside the pieces for her + the ones to get rid of, my collection fits in ONE box!

1. Only Hope // Mandy Moore

2. When Will My Life Begin // Tangled

3. Home // Ok Sweetheart

1. This song was recommended to me by a friend early in the week and I just love it! It's such a lovely song. ♥
2. Listening to Only Hope by Mandy Moore made me want to listen to When Will My Life Begin - so I did. It's just such a fun song! And I mean, seriously, who can help but like all the Tangled songs??
3. I found this song through Beth's blog, and I love it so much! I've baked chocolate chip cookies twice in the past week (don't you judge me!) and both times I listened to this song. Also, I'm longing for kitchen like that! All the Pyrex and a gorgeous Kitchen Aid mixer?? *swoons*

Wish List Wednesday

1. Into the Tropics Hi-Lo Dress
2. Made for Me Tweed Dress
3. Black Wrap Watch
4. Good Enough to Strut Dress
5. Union Jack High Heel Platform Shoe Boot
6. Stud Leather Bracelet

My Rock Candy Passion // Daily Outfit

This is what I wore when I went out for ice cream with Molly, Maddie and Anna, and I have to say - It's one of my favorite outfits! I love how all the pieces work together, and I totally felt like a chic 1950's lady in it! Molly made the dress for herself a few months ago, and I've been dying for a chance to borrow it from her! (The pattern is some of my favorite colors, and I mean, come on! It matches my Lita knock-offs perfectly!) I saw the hat, as I was literally walking out the door and knew I wanted to wear it - luckily Maddie was kind enough to let me borrow it!

If you want to see more photos of our lovely outing, I did another post, and Molly did a post on it as well.

Thanks to Molly for taking these photos!

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: made by Molly

belt: thrifted

boots: Urban Og

hat: borrowed from Maddie

necklace and bag: ModCloth

sun glasses: Target

Small Adventures

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One day while Molly and Anna were here we decided - on a impulse - to drive out to two of my favorite towns. (We had to go to the fabric store and as long as we had driven out there we might as well drive another hour for ice cream, right??) These two towns are pretty much untouched by time. (One of them still brags about having won the basketball state championships in 1952.) This gives them adorable charm and makes them really fun to visit, but it can also be a pain when none of the shops accept debit cards and the only ATM is out of order.

We spent a fun few hours looking at antique shops, eating ice cream and rock candy. Personally I'm not much of a fan of rock candy, myself, but I couldn't pass up the opportunity to have something so perfect for photographs! It was a lovely day. ♥

Edit: Molly wrote a really lovely post about that day as well. Don't forget to check it out!

Lately {My Superhero Obsession}

 1. My kitty found the one spot of sunshine in the room for her nap.

2. You can't tell very well in this picture, but for some reason the front two sections of my hair decided to straighten out that day. It was weird.

3. Finally got me some more fro yo. I wish Tutti Frutti wasn't 45min away. *sadface*

4. I took Maddie to see the midnight showing of Dark Knight Rises for a late birthday present - I went as Cat Woman!

5. I don't care what else he's ever in, Jeremy Renner will always be Hawkeye to me. ♥

6. Attended a second wedding as an assistant photographer on Friday.

7. Chillin' out with Owl City on my way to said wedding.

1. Shoot to Thrill // AC/DC
2. Live to Rise // Soundgarden
3. Good Time // Owl City and Carly Rae Jensen
4. The Avengers Theme // Alan Silvestri

1. This song is featured in Iron Man 2 - at the beginning of the Stark Expo. It's not something I would usually listen to, but now that it's associated with one of my favorite movies, it sorta has good memories attached to it. ♥

2. This is another song I wouldn't normally listen to, but every time I hear it I'm back in the dark theater waiting for the credits to roll before the special, after-credits-scene in the Avengers. Again, good memories can make all the difference. ♥

3. Yes, this song is still on my playlist. What can I say? I'm consistent. 

4. Seeing the Dark Knight Rises made me realize just how much I love the Avengers. Therefore, this song is making a comeback on my playlist.

We Don't Even Have to Try // Daily Outfit

Let me say one thing: I am not a beach girl. Ironic, isn't it, since I live minutes away from Lake Michigan? I like the sun, and I like looking at the beach, but I hate the sand, and I don't enjoy swimming. But since Miss Jack, Molly, Anna, and Maddie wanted to go, I tagged along and spent a few hours walking around, taking photos and briefly falling asleep - which resulted in a slight sunburn. Bummer.

In happier news I really liked this outfit. It's casual, but I think flower wreath and polka-dot sunglasses make it a bit more chic and preppy - but then, with a Sky Sailing tee shirt how can you possibly go wrong?

♥ ♥ ♥       

shirt: District Lines

shorts: thrifted

sandals: Lulu*s

sunglasses: Target

flower wreath: made by Molly

A Party of Special Magnificence

Here are some more photos from my party. I put a lot of work into it, and got some really cool stuff from Etsy, as well as finding some really neat tutorials, so I thought I'd share where I got some of my favorite parts of it. ♥

paper straws - When I saw this post from Shannon Nicole Smith I knew I had to have some stripey paper straws at my graduation party. I found some great ones from Hey YoYo for only $4 per 25 and they come in lots of colors. Amanda is super nice, too!

paper mustaches - I know I probably could have cut these out myself, but I didn't feel like spending the money on a die cutter, and I know I couldn't have cut out the curly part without one, so I opted just to buy a pack of 100 for $12 (including shipping) from Etsy.

paper cups - I hate the look of plastic cups, so my mom and I opted to get a pack of paper coffee cups. They come in a variety of colors, but I liked the white with the stripey straws, and it gave the guests a chance to get creative when marking their cups.

balloons - I really wanted to get some round balloons, but since Party City didn't have any I decided on the polka-dot ones instead, and I love them.

peanut butter cups - One of the things I knew I had to make for my party was peanut butter cups. I made them for Christmas and my family devoured them - Maddie especially loved them - I made about 48 and they were one of the first things to go. I can't really speak for this recipe, though, because I stored them in the freezer until the night before the party, but when I took them out they got very melty. I think next time I'm going to try a different recipe.

sugar mustaches - I found these on Hey YoYo when I was ordering the paper straws, and for $5 for 10 I couldn't pass them up!

silverware basket - Thrift store. Love it.

spools of thread - Estate sale.

drink dispensers - Target

clothes pins - Bought these from Walmart and DIYed them using this tutorial (except with paper) and this tutorial. I finished decorating the entire 50 in about an hour.

Lit Up the World as I Fell Asleep // Daily Outfit

I wore this Monday. I had to work in the early afternoon, and after that Molly and Miss Jack and I went out to Lake Forest to get desert, and Highland Park for some window shopping. It was really fun and afterward we stopped at the local park to get some outfit pictures - Molly and I thought it would be fun to do a few outfit shots with both of us.

It's so fun to have friends around to do stuff with, and I've been having so much fun with them, but I've also been realizing just how much I appreciate my time alone. Even just little things like blogging - I honestly don't think I could cope without it! It's my little place to just be me and relax and do what I love. Sometimes being alone isn't lonely. ♥

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: Red Dress Shoppe

underskirt: thrifted

belt: H&M

boots: Blowfish Shoes
sunglasses: Target

flower wreath: made by Molly

Sister Gypsy // Daily Outfit

"Not all that is gold glitters

Not all those who wander are lost"
~ The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Lately I've come to the conclusion that it's better to be alone and be yourself, than be with other and feel judged/unaccepted/etc. Don't get me wrong, I love being with friends, but sometimes I just need to be alone. I need to be able to think and be myself and not worry what others are thinking of me. 

There's a thin line between being there for your friends and not being there for yourself - a very thin line that I often find myself tumbling off. I mean, I want to be there for my friends (Who doesn't?) but if it has a negative effect on me, and is leaving me stressed/frustrated/exhausted all the time then that's not ok. Sometimes I just want someone to think about me, you know?

Anyway, I felt like such a gypsy in this outfit! The earrings reminded me of those big hoops you always see gypsies in the movies wearing, and the scarf also made me think of movie-style gypsy. I don't think I've ever mentioned it on here before, but I used to have (and still do, to some extent) a huge love of gypsies. Not the My Big Fat Gypsy Wedding kind, but like the old fashioned kind in books/movies. I created a whole gypsy culture for a book that never actually got finished, and I've gone to the Bristol Renaissance Faire dressed as a gypsy for four years in a row now. Good times. ♥

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: Red Dress Shoppe

underskirt: thrifted

shirt: my mom's

boots: Blowfish Shoes

scarf: a piece of fabric

bracelet and earnings: vintage