Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Keep it fresh

Photo from Apartment34

It's only Wednesday, but to me it has already felt like a long week. How about you?
Try and keep some pep in your step mid-week. Wear something unexpected and up your glamor factor at work. Switch out your usual coffee for a cup of tea (or vice versa). Paint your nails a bright, happy color.

...I am going to try and take my own advice.

I've been spending this week doing my usual job duties, learning new work tasks for my "promotion", and getting my laptop organized and backed up before having it wiped this week. It should finally be rid of its nasty virus after that. Then maybe I wont go quite as insane while trying to work/blog on it when it decides to throw hissy fits. There will still be a level of insanity though, I'm sure. I'll do my best.

Hope you're hanging in there this week and keeping things fresh.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Autumn Essentials


 My Fashion Wish List for Fall:

- Tan trench coat
(I already have a semi-decent black one, which I found for $12 at a thrift store. It's more a light, raincoat material, so I'd like to get one in a different color that is more heavy-duty.)

- Top hat
(I wanted one so badly last year, and never picked one up before they weren't on the shelves anymore. This is my year!)

- Leg warmers
(Ok, I should say, more leg warmers. I need some thigh high ones, especially. Great to pair with short skirts, over tights or leggings for extra cold days.)

- Huge, oversized sweatshirts and sweaters
(Fun to contrast with a girly mini-skirt, sleek skinny jeans and heels, or my black leather shorts.)

- Sweater dress
(Preferably off-white and long sleeved. A bit 1960s. I've been searching for the perfect one. Tried one on at Forever 21 recently, but it just didn't look quite right.)

What cold-weather items are you already pining for? Let's compare lists and then go shopping. ;)

Monday, August 29, 2011

Let it be

The weekend seemed to go by quicker than usual, but I managed to squeeze in some workout time (in 110 degree heat. Yay Texas.), a film shoot late Sunday night, and an evening out with Steve on Saturday to one of our favorite sports bars, Bone Daddy's. Despite the name and the Hooter's-like waitstaff (complete with red crop tops and tiny black shorts - way cooler than a Hooter's uniform, if you ask me.), this place has seriously good food and it's close enough to walk to, so I'm a total fan. We had a couple draft beers, shared a couple appetizers, and then walked around the mall for a while with a nice buzz (ok, well I did, at least).


 Two things we always get when we go to Bone Daddy's: "Tailpipes" (southwest eggrolls, not pictured) and a side of their mac and cheese. We also tried their brisket sliders appetizer for the first time, which proved to be a perfect choice.

I have to admit, I feel pretty drained today. I didn't get back from my shoot until about midnight, then I did a little impromptu modeling shoot (this is what happens when you have a wannabe photographer and a wannabe model living together), and heated up the dinner Steve had made earlier before finally collapsing into bed.

How was your weekend??

Friday, August 26, 2011

Coolest Food Ever

Being a style blogger and style blog reader means I tend to come across almost as much great creative food ideas as I do fashion. But in many ways, they go hand in hand. I believe style is all about creating a mood in whatever genre you choose, and inspiring others to do the same. Here's some of the very cool edible stuff I have come across lately.

 This is totally healthy, right?


So cute!!!


The photo that inspired this post - mini grilled cheese in shots of tomato soup. I want this served at my next party.


Ok, not actual food...but still totally cool.


Hope you have a fabulous weekend ahead of you! xx


Thursday, August 25, 2011

New Routines

 Favim.com

 I feel totally beat up from my kickboxing workout yesterday evening (isn't it the bag that's supposed to feel that way?), but it kind of feels amazing at the same time. I'm on my way to some serious toning, I think (hope)!
I've gotten on a sleep schedule where I'm waking up about the same time Steve does to get ready for work, which is nice. Today, he blasted some music while we did our morning routines; he got ready and I took the dog out and made coffee. I need to remember to put music on more often when I wake up and do the little things I do to feel human again (face washing, teeth brushing, and of course, making my first cup 'o coffee). It gives the morning a whole new atmosphere and makes me feel energized. Steve's gone, but I'm continuing the change of routine with some Pandora. I decided to try some stations I wouldn't usually think of, all with upbeat music, to broaden my horizons a bit and keep that "new" atmosphere going.Woo!

This has actually been a really great week. On Tuesday, my girl Kady and I went up to Georgetown and spent the afternoon looking at the shops on their historic downtown square (antique and second hand stores mostly) and grabbed lunch at a quaint little tea room, where I had chilled cucumber soup - SO good. Add some fresh raspberry iced tea and half a chicken salad sandwich, and you get the whole little Texas town experience. Loved it. I have resolved to go back another time and spend some time at the winery there, which we just stopped into for a brief look. Very cool place. Wine tastings, here we come. Next time, for sure. This time, however, I brought back a great casual dress from Express (second hand, $13) and a love-at-first-sight Norman Rockwell print from a little art gallery, which depicts a Hollywood-looking movie star (she doesn't look unlike someone we all know...?) surrounded by reporters (with matting, but no frame, $25). It's a perfect vintage touch for the apartment. I just need to find the perfect place to put it and buy a frame (I like to look for interesting/inexpensive ones at thrift stores).


Lunch at Laurie's Tea Room. I'm cursing myself for not taking more photos while I was out and about in Georgetown.


Currently, I just have the print leaning on top of my little side table by the couch.

The weekend promises to keep me busy as well. I have an audition Saturday and a film shoot Sunday evening. Tell me about your week!

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Fashion Folder

A while back, I told you about the "Fashion Folder" I have on my computer, where I put photos of any great looks (hair, make-up, outfits...) that I come across online, which I can then always refer to for inspiration in my own style. It's amazing how, when I'm sick of everything in my closet, I can find a photo that inspires me and use it as guide to create something that feels brand new...without buying one single thing. Sometimes you just have to be reminded to think outside the box.

It's been a while since I posted some of my favorites, and I have some new photos I really like, so here they are!

 I just want to give this girl a hug. I love the funky hair, and I seriously want to do this cutting job to a couple of my t-shirts.


 It's almost more an attitude and feeling that inspires me in this picture. But, it's proof that a simple t-shirt, a great pair of shades, and cool hair goes a long way.


 Is black lipstick a "do" for Fall? I think yes. What about you?


 A verrrrry "me" look, currently. I can't wait until my hair gets this long.


 Sweatshirts can be sexy.


Just plain cool. I bought a short-sleeved red dress recently, inspired by this photo. It's not quite as simple as though, so I'd love to find one more like this. Pair it with the messy hair and you're done. Swoon.


I think this is really low-key sexy. I adore it.


I just realized all these girls are blondes. Sorry 'bout that. I guess that's what my eye tends to go to right now, since I'm blonde myself.
Ok, so I want to hear your thoughts on these looks. Would you try any of this stuff? Are there any looks you've come across that you are you really digging right now?

Monday, August 22, 2011

Fun in the sun...



How was your weekend?
Steve and I had plenty to do, but we still managed to squeeze in a nice amount of down time together. We attended a pool party/cookout on Saturday; sort of an end-of-the-season party for Steve's flag football team. On Sunday, we woke up bright and early to head down to the San Marcos river for a friend's birthday party. Both events were great, and I never get tired of grilled hamburgers, hot dogs, and other picnic-like foods. How about you? Our new drink obsession is Mike's Hard Black Cherry Lemonade. It tastes so much like black cherry soda, which growing up, I used to get with my mom at a great bagel shop in D.C.
We left the river just early enough to get our usual weekend grocery shopping done, and then settled down with some beef tamales (I had actually never tried them before! I'm a new fan.) and a movie ("Miracle").

It's amazing how being in the sun even just two afternoons in a row can drain you so much. I was able to fall asleep by midnight last night, and honestly, that was just what I needed. Maybe I've finally gotten off this schedule of staying up until 3am and finding it hard to drag myself out of bed before 11am. I woke up at 9:30 today and felt great.

Wishing you a fabulous week! xx

Friday, August 19, 2011

Let's chat


 I do so much better when I'm keeping busy. Lately, while seeing friends more often, auditioning, and just knowing I have a couple modeling and acting projects coming up soon, I feel a bit rejuvenated.

I've never been one of those people to use "daily planners" and jot down appointments and such in some calendar book, but yesterday I actually took the initiative to program some upcoming meetings/shoots/rehearsals in the calendar on my smart phone (or dumbass phone, as I more commonly call it. I'm sorry, but I hate Droids with a passion). This is something I would never normally do, but it was getting really hard to keep all the dates straight while trying to book further auditions. But, I got very confused when I heard it beeping some sound at me that I'd never heard before. It took Steve and I a few times to figure out where the sound was even coming from, but when I looked at the phone, it was reminding me of one of my upcoming calendar events. Um, no thank you. I don't need you beeping at me every time you think I've forgotten an appointment. I just want the dates stored, so I can refer to them and make sure I don't double book an audition or something. Yeah, um, "Cancel". This is why I don't usually waste my time with this stuff. I might be doomed to never be organized and keep way too much information swirling around in the front of my brain. I guess it's worked for me so far. I always have my trusty handwritten to-do lists to fall back on.

Ok, that was a total rambling rant. Moving on...

Anyway, yesterday was a busy day. Well, not exactly "busy", but I was out of the house all day, came home for about an hour, and then was out again until about 11:30pm. That always kind of drains me, even though I love having no risk of becoming stir crazy around the apartment. I had fun over at my friend Sally's, discussing some of her new business ventures (possible opportunities for me) and enjoying some of her all-organic homemade treats like chai lattes, and split pea soup for lunch. We squeezed in a little gossip and bad-reality-TV viewing, too.

Steve and I decided to grab dinner and a beer at Black Star Pub, a local co-op brewery. In addition to a unique selection of beers, they have a really interesting food menu, with lots of local ingredients. Just about every time I'm there I have to get the Circle Blur Texas hefeweizen. It is so good. I got the chicken salad sandwich to eat (I added avocado. Yum.). Quite good, but I still think my favorite is the grilled cheese with cheddar and gouda or the fried egg sandwich with tomato and arugula. Next time, I've sworn to myself that I'll get their snack plate with choices of different meats and Texas cheeses.
I actually felt like I didn't completely overeat as we walked out of Black Star (I'm always proud when that happens), but then Steve sneakily took me to Amy's Ice cream where I had a scoop of coffee ice cream and a scoop of "White Lightening" (white chocolate/rum). So, you can imagine how I felt after that. I already had it planned out: if some stranger asks what I'm expecting, "a boy or a girl?", I'll say "an ice cream cone".

On totally random (and happy) note, I somehow managed to wear both my diamond-ish tiara and my brand new black blazer (yay for cold restaurants) at one time or another yesterday evening. :)

So how did everyone fare this week? I hope you have fun plans for the weekend, even if that means just vegging on the couch and not doing anything. Steve and I are planning on taking it easy tonight and just watching a couple movies, because we'll be out and about a lot this weekend for various parties and BBQs.

Also, how do you keep everything balanced when you have tons going on??

Thursday, August 18, 2011

A little inspiration

Right?!


Try not to sweat the small stuff, a  mindset I still struggle with at times.
Hope you have a happy day! xx

Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Model Behavior


Doing my best to channel my inner Kate Moss this morning (you know, minus the cocaine and all. I know. I'm no fun). I'm off in a bit to try and snag a spot in a September fashion show for the Art Institute. Yeeeah.......wish me luck.

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Little things that make me smile...

 Life's been pretty good lately. Here are some of the simple things I've been enjoying:




 Beautifully detailed sandals, which I got (new) at a yard sale for just $3.


A Cupid ring I found while cleaning out an old drawer. I had no memory of it!


Trading in my hot pink manicure for  pale pink with sparkles.



 A pretty new wallet (Walmart) that makes me happy every time I open my purse. It also forced me to totally clean out my old wallet and get my purse organized!


Handmade, reversible drink coasters from "PK Stuff" at Etsy.com. They look a little like my new wallet, don't they? I'm kind of obsessed with that sort of pattern lately. I was a little disillusioned when I first started to look for coasters and saw how expensive they were, even at places like Walmart. These are way prettier than anything I found in stores, and they were just $7 for four! Make sure you go check out the PK Stuff shop!

Monday, August 15, 2011

Prosperity playground...


 Shopping fuel

 My weekend pretty much began with a trip to MT Supermarket, a huge Asian grocery store. I had read online that, for some odd reason, they carry Cafe Du Monde coffee. Being there felt like going on a super-quick vacation, reminding Steve of some of his time overseas and me more of Chinatown in San Francisco, as I have yet to visit any Asian countries (going to Europe a second time is much higher on my list, honestly). It was a perfect Saturday afternoon activity; there was so much to see and explore.
There were meat counters with giant fish, squids, and octopus, fruits I'd never even heard of before (some that looked like they might bite or stab you), yummy looking juices and sodas (like aloe vera-honey or coconut), interesting frozen ready-to-eat foods (dumplings, pumpkin cake...), dried snacks like plums and seaweed, Vietnamese beer, and much, much more.

We got our coffee, but picked up a few other things in the meantime, including an assortment of candies.
We stocked up on reusable chopsticks, because I can not stand when Chinese delivery places forget to bring any. This should be mandatory, mainly because I always forget to request them. I do not like to eat Asian food without them; it's not nearly as fun. ;)  
We finished up by sorting through the "mountains" of what I like to call "more exciting Ramen Noodles". It cracked me up how some of the packages said, "sauce flavor". Oh, why thank you for clearing that up. Now will someone explain what "sauce" tastes like? We picked out a few different flavors of instant pho, avoiding the packages that had 146% of your daily sodium. EESH!

Waiting in the check out line

Our stash. The coffee looks out of place. I will NOT be eating the wasabi peas, by the way.

Next up, a stop at a great used bookstore, which they about tripled in size since the last time we went. I guess they combined spaces with the lot next door. I was wearing my new red dress from Charlotte Russe, and was freezing to death. I'm normally cold anyway, but this store was frigid. I heard about 5 other people say the same thing. I did an elaborate search for "If You Give a Mouse a Cookie" before my fingers were too numb to continue, but wasn't able to find it. Maybe next time. Still, we brought home the opening book to "The Boxcar Children" series, which I was telling Steve about recently (I couldn't believe he'd never heard of it), and a few books from Beverly Cleary's "Ralph S. Mouse" series - one of Steve's childhood favorites, which I had never heard of. Looking through the children section there is so nostalgic. They really have some good stuff (for super cheap), and we decided we need to try and go there more often, even just to look.

We curled up on the sofa for the evening, ate our big pot of spaghetti and meatballs that we made a couple days before, for just such a lazy not-in-the-mood-to-cook occasion, drank a little wine, and snacked on our international candies while watching the Iowa Straw Poll (recorded) and a cute Disney movie from a few years ago called "Sky High", about kids at a high school for super heroes.

 Movie snacks. I recognized the Pocky as soon as I saw it. Emily from Cupcakes and Cashmere has posted about how much she likes it. I just had to try some, and it is indeed good!

 I wont go into a lot of details about Sunday, because it pretty much consisted of not even really getting dressed (ok, I did put on my new, pink Hello Kitty t-shirt) and an excess of nauseating cuddling and smooches on the couch, in bed, in the kitchen. Steve cooked up a salmon dinner, and I drank a little too much chardonnay beforehand. The end.
Oh, yeah, I woke Steve up in the morning by elbowing him really hard in the head in my sleep, if that makes anyone less disgusted. :P

Our morning coffees hanging out

How was your weekend?? Hope this week treats you right.

P.S. Sitting crossed-legged on the living room floor, with my face coffee-table-height, and eating a bowl of pho while flipping through the latest IKEA catalog, might be my most favorite, relaxing weekend activity in the world. And the pho was actually not bad at all, considering the "instant" factor.

Friday, August 12, 2011

Bedroom: Before and After

I tackled the challenge of totally cleaning out and organizing my bedroom recently. It's been taking me a while to decide what I want to do with the room, decorating-wise, but I knew having it de-cluttered would probably help with some inspiration and make the space more livable in the meantime! It was actually very therapeutic to go through every drawer and come across so many mementos from my past. I'm a really sentimental person, so I don't like to throw much away. I was proud of how much I actually decided to let go of though, and the rest (which, admittedly, was still a lot) went into the large keepsake boxes in my closet. My boyfriend actually has a full nightstand drawer to himself now!

So, the goal was really to clean out or store things I don't use often and make the things I do use more accessible and organized. In addition to that, I finally moved my big, long work table into the guest room, which I had used as my desk back when I used to do packaging/distribution tasks as part of my job. Since then, it more accurately became a place to dump junk that I didn't know what else to do with. Not cute. There really wasn't space for it in my room anyway, but I didn't have anywhere else to put it until recently. In its place, we put a TV table that we obtained for free (we are going to line it with fabric to cover the clinical-looking legs) and a small filing cabinet - perfect for organizing all the important papers that were cluttering up my desk!

The room looks so much more open and clean. I'm really happy with it. Here are some before and after shots:


 An eyesore of a work table (with inventory boxes from work underneath! Ack.), and the clutter 
made its way over to my dresser as well.

My dresser is now just that: a dresser. And no more squeezing furniture where it doesn't really fit!

 This tray used to be over on the desk that belongs to my bedroom set, filled with dust and random stuff I never even used. I cleaned it all out and used it to organize the beauty products and jewelry that used to be strewn all over my dresser. It works perfectly, and there's even a place to hold my sunglasses.

 My actual bedroom desk can now be used as a desk. I hope to find some more attractive things to fill the shelves, as we begin re-decorating the room. 

 I do like the area where I have notebooks, journals, and small keepsake boxes, plus my place card from a wedding
reception I attended a couple years ago.


I got this accent pillow from Target a few months ago with the intention of putting it on the sofa. Steve and I decided it looked much better on the bed. The cream and brown bedding, while sort of calming, will 
definitely be going away when we re-decorate.

Just over the last few days, I think Steve and I have settled on an absolutely gorgeous idea for how we want to decorate the bedroom. I'm really excited about it. It probably wont be done for a couple months, but I'll be sure to post about it as soon as it's photograph-worthy!

So, what do you think? Have you tackled any crazy organizing jobs lately? I need all the stay-organized tips I can get. Hope your Friday goes by quick and you have a fabulous weekend! xx

Thursday, August 11, 2011

Project Paint

This past weekend, we finally got around to painting the accent wall in the living room, which we'd been talking about forever.
When Steve first mentioned the idea (yes, I have a boyfriend who actually gives a care about how the apartment looks and even comes up with fun ideas), I immediately pictured a calming, yet strong, dusty blue color. We picked up color samples one night and spent a good amount of time holding them up to the wall, looking at them in the day time and night time, and discussing which shades we liked best. It became clear pretty quickly, that with all the other blue we had in the room by this time, that a blue wall was just not the way to go. I've never wanted the room to look too matchy-matchy, and we really wanted this accent wall to be a true accent. A paint epiphany hit me. "Um. You know...I think we need to go green", I said, with a slight lump in my throat, as Steve had expressed his dislike of certain greens the other night while we were picking out blue paint cards. To my surprise, he agreed! A few nights later, we went and added some green color samples to our collection of paint cards, most of them being sort of a bright, minty green. After much calculating and discussion (and a few glasses of wine), we settled on "First Green Season" by Colorplace.


Since I'm one of the most clumsy people that ever lived, I was pretty ok with letting Steve do most of the work. My one attempt at helping turned into me smearing paint onto the edge of the adjoining wall (which was not to be painted). Oops. I gave up at that point. Thank goodness for water-based paint. ;) Steve did such a great job, and it was only later that he confessed how nervous he was that he was going to mess something up.

Dawson spent most of the afternoon crying (even with a treat in his mouth), because he was blocked from the living room with chairs. Haha.

The finished product:


 I highly suggest that you go pick up this white, "Fresh Cotton" scented candle (the one that's lit) from Walmart (only $3.00!) before Summer is over. It smells amazing, and it's not too sweet or too strong. We love it!
 I don't think I ever showed off my new bird pillow from Target, and this is my brand new summer fedora (Sasha, on sale for $6.99). Love!!


Ok, so what do you think of our new paint job? Even if you think it's hideous, I'd love to hear your opinions! Our next step is to finally get some art up on that wall. I can't wait!