happy halloween

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

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Happy Halloween!
Although this is usually a holiday I enjoy celebrating, I dropped the ball this year. No pumpkin carving decorating, no costume parties, no candy. This whole Halloween-is-on-a-Wednesday thing is for the birds.

So tonight, I'm looking forward to sitting on the couch with a glass or two of red wine and the start of my Mexico packing list.

 Instead of celebrating Halloween early this past Saturday, I crossed off another item on my bucket list.
More on that in the following days.

Did you dress up last weekend? Please share your costumes if you did, I can always use ideas for next year!

destination

Monday, October 29, 2012

Sunrise in Cancun, Mexico
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In nine short days I'll be laying out next to this beautiful water with some of my favorite people.
It's going to be a wedding celebration beyond my imagination. 
Bring on the margs, Tulum.

blog worm

Wednesday, October 24, 2012



You know, like book worm. I know you all need to add more blogs to your Google Reader, right?

About once a month I take a hard look at the blogs I am following and attempt to weed out any that I've stopped keeping up with for whatever reason. Currently I have 78 blogs/tumblr sites in my Reader subscription list. That even seems a little ridiculous to me. Granted some of the authors post less than once a week, but there are some that I love (like this and this) that post multiple times a day! Frankly, I'm just never caught up. I don't think I've had under 300 unread posts at one time in months.

And you know what? That's OK with me. Because these blogs I read are interesting, yummy, pretty, creative, funny, and good. I'm always excited to see what the authors have to share. So I hope through this little post, you find some new amazing blogs to read. And for even more blogs that I read on the reg, check out my dailies page up above!

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What are your favorite blogs? 

black on black on black

Monday, October 22, 2012

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Is there anything as timeless as an all-black outfit? I love fall and winter because it gives me an excuse to bust out the black on many different levels in one look. The key here is texture, so this year I'm looking for a pair of faux-leather leggings to add to my closet. I'm thinking these will do the trick, and the price is a real treat! See what I did there.... trick/treat. Oh yeah.

PS: I almost didn't even post the third picture because of the cigs (classy and cigs are not the pair these days, no?) but alas, I'm still obesssed with those four outfits.

bedroom reno: plunge taken

Friday, October 19, 2012



Here's a look in to my life at the moment.....

I'm sitting at the downtown office, sipping a Coors Light (with a K-State coozie, check my Instagram), perusing the internets waiting for the afternoon meetings to begin. A few times this week I've caught myself going back to the new Zara Home site. Have you checked it out yet? If not, I highly recommend. Plus, it's free shipping through the month of October! I'm loving their acrylic side tables, gold flatware, and white bedding sets.

After scouring tons of places online and in stores, I have finally decided where I'm getting my white duvet cover for the bedroom renovation: Zara Home! Here's a sneak peek.

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thoughts on brows

Tuesday, October 16, 2012




Have you ever taken a minute and thought about how important eyebrows are to a person's face? If not, just check this out and then meet me back here.....

Yikes. So other than keeping sweat from dripping in our eyes, they have some aesthetic importance as well.

If you have naturally dark brows, I give you 100% guilt-free permission to skip this post. For the rest of you, I present you with eyebrow experience in hopes it helps you with yours.

As a redhead, my brows are really light and undefined. I tried tinting them for years, which was a nice solution except for the three days after each session. No matter the shade of brown dye, it was always too dark for those following days, and I felt like a ginger Morticia Addams. Not cute.

After all that time of  (expensive) dyeing and not being thrilled with the outcome, I decided my brows didn't need any extra attention. That was the year I learned negligence is never the answer. I then went through a pencil phase, but found them either too chalky or too waxy.

Finally a few weeks ago I texted my redhead friend with blonde brows and asked what she does to make hers look so good. Why I didn't do this years ago is beyond me.....

She enlightened me to the world of using eye shadow as a brow darkener. I decided it was worth a shot. So I went to my new makeup BFF Dan at NARS, picked up Lola Lola and a fancy brow brush (And new bronzer. I got sidetracked.) and went on my way. I've been really happy with the results, and it's easier to apply than I anticipated!

I hope this helps you fellow fair-haired friends out there. If you've found a good solution for your brows, please share in the comments so we can have a list of options!

If you have dark brows and are still reading this, don't you feel lucky?

image credits // 1 // 2 //

at the moment

Monday, October 15, 2012



At the moment, I'm....

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  • loving anything and everything french bulldog.
  • enjoying watching the leaves change colors in Kansas City. (Tiff has captured it perfectly here.)
  • impatiently awaiting our trip to Mexico next month. 
  • looking for a good excuse to purchase something from this calligraphy shop.
  • wanting this sequin sweater.



tgif.

Friday, October 12, 2012

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I'm celebrating two 30th birthdays, seeing a good friend (and awesome blogger) I don't get to see near enough, cheering on the Wildcats, and hitting up the Hollywood casino with my family & Blue Eyes for baby bro's birthday.

Hope yours is lovely too. 

new feature: shop my picks

Wednesday, October 10, 2012



Today is my baby bro's 23rd birthday. Who else has a difficult time shopping for their adult brothers? I always want to get him something creative, but usually end up buying him clothes. He's potentially more of a clotheshorse than I am. I mean, the kid bought five pairs of Sperry's in one trip to Macy's a few years back. (Right when he got his first credit card and didn't understand that he would actually have to pay that money back someday.)

I digress. So here I am on his birthday looking up preppy outfits he can wear to work, and K-State gear that he's apparently lacking. You know what would be awesome? If he had an easily accessible, ongoing list of items he likes that I could look up on the internets whenever I wanted to. Oh hey guess what - I have one of those! See up above where there are links to the different pages of my blog? There's a new one on the far right called "shop my picks". This is a compilation of all the material things I am loving at the moment. Whether you want to buy them for me or for yourself is completely up to you.

Here's a little peek at some budget-friendly items I'm coveting lately.




do you like to color?

Tuesday, October 9, 2012



Did you ever go to Disney World as a kid and tour the offices where grown-ups get to color all day? (Did anyone else think of Charlotte Yorke just now?) Pretty sure they were filling in stills for Pocahontas when I was there, which just made me feel really old. I remember touring those offices and thinking this is totally what I'm going to do when I grow up. Best. Job. Ever!!!! 

I always loved art coloring when I was young, and when I got old enough my parents would drive me to the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art (which is now conveniently walking distance from my place) so I could sit around and draw/paint for hours. Since then, I've made a point to visit some amazing art museums like MoMA and Hess Collection (which was a little out-there for my taste), but haven't done much in the way of art myself.

So when my friends found a Groupon to the Hook Gallery for a BYOB painting class, I was obviously all in. Have you been to one of these "cocktail and canvas" events that have popped up around the country? If you haven't yet, I highly recommend. They are a blast. If you're nervous because you have zero art ability, you will be surprised at how artistic you are when you get a little wine and a lot of moral support. Like our instructor said, "you'll go through a period of depression when you think the painting will never turn out right, but it will all come together in the last 10 minutes." And it did!

There are few things more daunting than a blank canvas. Except being sober staring at a blank canvas.

Supplies.

Face painting. This is when the ADD and wine started kicking in...
the making of a masterpiece. :)


The girls with our works of art. Everyone's was so good, and unique to their style!


My hilarious friend Kristen (who's birthday is today: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!) became buds with our instructor and correctly guessed his original artwork from all the pieces on the gallery wall. The instructor was so impressed that he gave the piece (on the left) to her! 

The final product: Kansas City skyline.

month in photos: september

Friday, October 5, 2012



Last night I had a crazy realistic dream. One of those that when you wake up, you have no clue where you are for a few minutes. I was in Danielle Moss's chic Chicago apartment, just hanging out like we're friends in real life. She was giving me advice and kindly letting me read her collection of motivational books while lounging in her living room. (Must've been a stress-induced dream after yesterday's post.) Know how I figured out this was a dream? I was reading 350+ page books in one sitting. Oh and I was in Chicago hanging out with my blogger crush. Don't know who Danielle Moss is? Check out her blog, and her amazing website, the EveryGirl.

Now on to a topic that makes me sound a little less creepy than dreaming about self-help books and successful bloggers, here is the month of September, courtesy of my iPhone. 


my favorite coffee mug and essie power clutch polish // sand sculpting for work philanthropy
Paper Source is my happy place // nearly completed art project (more on that to come)
best card ever // j. crew pencil skirt with new oxblood flats from ShoeMint



September = K-State football season around here.
Blue Eyes & I at the Miami game // stadium renovations are under way
Wildcats boots // tailgating with our twin couple
K-S-U in Wyoming with my bro and same-dress-wearer mom the day K-State beat OU// EMAW!!!

I hope you all had a wonderful September, and have a lovely weekend. I am off to STL with my besties to celebrate a beautiful bride-to-be! 

whirlwind

Thursday, October 4, 2012

how i'm feeling lately.
These last few weeks have left me feeling completely upside down. Between traveling for work (recruiting trips in Manhattan and Orlando for a conference) and play (Utah and Wyoming), multiple happy hours and other special events each week (not complaining - but it's getting to the point where I have to start saying No) and trying to keep up a semi-consistent fitness routine, eating well, maintaining good relationships, (oh, and that little thing called my job), I'm about to crawl in to my messy room and not come out until I'm completely unpacked, the laundry is done, my vanity is cleaned and my pile of reading material is read. The length of that sentence is reminding me of the length of my to-do list..... Gah. The reading material alone would take weeks, and with lots of fun activities in the month ahead (and hopefully follow-up posts about them) unfortunately  hibernation is not an option.

So here's where I ask you, my lovely readers,  for advice. How do you take a step back from the chaos, get a fresh perspective on things, choose what to attend and what to skip out on, wind down, etc. when it feels like you just can't catch up?

image can be found on my happy pinterest board. if someone can find/knows the source, please let me know!

accidental twinsies

Monday, October 1, 2012



The fall wedding season is upon us, and while organizing a packing list for last weekend's wedding, I found myself with zero cool-weather dresses. In previous years, I would repurpose a summer dress with a shawl and closed-toe shoes, but this year I wanted to invest in a new, sleeved garment for the Wyoming wedding, and a St. Louis wedding in November. I headed to Nordstrom and went home with a beautiful navy lace Adrianna Papell dress

About a week earlier, someone else went to nordstrom.com and bought a pretty purple lace Adrianna Papell dress for a wedding in Wyoming.

accidental twinsies

entertaining our family with twins pics
that's the face of a thrilled daughter

That "someone else" was my mom. As previously mentioned, she's pretty fabulous and has killer style. I was taught (by her) at an early age not to buy a dress right before a special occasion, because there's a good chance someone else will be wearing it too. And then there we were, in the Rock City Holiday Inn with the same dress and no other options. Breaking our own rule really caught up with us this time. Luckily I styled mine with a pair of boots and gold jewelry while she wore pumps and hose. It was a source of much laughter at the family wedding as you can imagine. 

Moral of the story, shop weeks before a special event if you're wanting a new outfit. Or else you might be twinsies with your mom.

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