professional brights and some type.

A couple Fridays ago I found myself online shopping (shocker), but this time I had $60 in GapRewards to spend. Since I didn't see anything I liked at Gap I looked at Old Navy and was pleasantly surprised—I managed to snag two work dresses, a sundress, and a new bathing suit all for $18! (Thank you GapRewards!) And of course I had to wear the bright pink work appropriate dress first.

What I'm wearing:

Cardigan: Target

Dress: Old Navy (here!)

Tights: Target

Shoes: Urban Outfitters (so old, and I will cry when they fall apart)

Necklace: Plastique

These ponte dresses are so comfortable! I also got one in dark grey (which sadly that outfit did not photograph as well) which allowed me to retire the old black bought-on-a-time-crunch shift dress I had bought for my first internship. I think Old Navy gets a bad rap sometimes, but if you're on a budget it's a good place to look. And they're the only place that I've found decent jeans that aren't $50+ (I'm sorry, but $50 for jeans is entirely more than I am willing to spend.)

Also, you just can't go wrong with typography jewelry (if you're a type nerd that is). I couldn't get a closeup of them, but my earrings are quotation marks (from ModCloth). All the typography things!

P.S. Nothing is sponsored & none of the links are affiliate links. Because the only thing I get from this blog is enjoyment :)

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Easter best.

This is pretty belated at this point, but here is what I wore on Easter—the perfect time for pastels and spring patterns!

Photos by my fiancee.

 

What I'm wearing:

Jacket: thrifted

Dress: thrifted & altered

Scarf: Beltway Vintage (gift)

Shoes: Born Concept via Nordstrom (old)

Necklace: Make Pie Not War (custom)

These photos make me miss having my parents' backyard at my disposal all the time for photos—there's so much green space and the lighting is always perfect. 

Easter was great: my fiancee and I and his parents went to my parents', and it was a great time. There was so much food (including sweet potato casserole which is pretty much my favorite non-dessert food ever), cats, and chocolate. 

This outfit made me happy because of the colors and how perfectly it came together, and the fact that it was warm enough to wear it! I was proud of the fact that almost this whole outfit is thrifted and vintage too! And that wasn't even on purpose.

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sunday inspiration 03: shades of blue.

I can't believe it's Sunday already; this weekend went by so quickly!

1. Blueberry tones from Design Seeds

2. Highlights from the 10th Doctor of Doctor Who via DW Fan

 (no exact link to source)

3. Caffeine Magazine cover via MagazineWall

4. Hydrangeas via Tumblr

5. 'Forks & Corks' poster design by Willoughby Design

6. Ombre blue hair via Pinterest

What's inspiring you this week?

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five photo friday: National Postal Museum

Happy Friday!
A few weekends ago a friend & I went to the National Postal Museum, based primarily on the fact that it was a museum we had never been to before and my interest was piqued after reading a review on Oh So Beautiful Paper. It was definitely a lot more interesting than most people would probably expect; I highly recommend checking it out if you're in the area!

 

You can create your own instant stamp collection which was pretty awesome; these are the ones I got.

The museum is really easy to get to since it's right across the street from Union Station, which also seems to have gotten way bigger than I remembered. So if you're there waiting for a train, there are lots of places to kill time!

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black with some shimmer.

I've really been lacking in the outfit posts lately, my apologies. I didn't even take any outfit photos last week (mostly due to outfit repeating & time constraints). So here's one from the week before that I really liked, but I ran out of time to take photos in decent lighting. C'est la vie.

What I'm wearing:

Cardigan: Nordstrom Rack

Dress: vintage

Tights: Target

Shoes: Born Concept

Necklace: H&M

I really wish I had been able to get a better photo of this necklace, because it's shiny and has rose gold spikes and generally pretty awesome (and only $10!). I've been getting better about restraining myself when it comes to impulse purchases, but this was one I had to give in to.

What was your last impulse purchase?

Have a great week!

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sunday inspiration 02: pastel lavender

Happy Easter! Or happy eat all the chocolate day. Since it is the most pastel heavy holiday of the year, Katie & I decided to do pastel lavender for today's Sunday Inspiration.

from left to right & top to bottom:

1. Shades of purple (original source unknown)

2. Anemones arrangement via Brides.com

3. Pastel hued hair flip (original source unknown)

4. Raw Amethyst Necklaces via kei jewelry

5. Purple ombre hair via colored hair

6. Radiant Orchid Color of the Year swatch via Holtermann Design

Check out Katie's take on lavender inspiration!

What's inspiring you this week?

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a dinosaur in georgetown.

I can't tell you how excited I am that I got to take these photos (er, have them taken—thanks Hannah!) outside, in the sunshine, on a glorious day. Over the weekend Hannah & I went to the new BHLDN store (which is actually within the Anthropologie) store in Georgetown, which was awesome and filled with pretty things, and then to Baked & Wired for cupcakes and (more) caffeine. It was so nice out that we just sat near the canal and hung out for a while.

What I'm wearing:

Cardigan: Gap outlet (old)

Top: Forever 21 (old)

Tank: Old Navy

Jeans: Old Navy

Shoes: Urban Outfitters (very old)

Necklaces: DIY (Dinosaur), Target (crystal)

Sunglasses: Common Era in Denver

I will probably cry when these floral oxfords finally fall apart. I've had them since summer of 2010 and they're still my favorite spring shoe.

I also spent entirely too much money for my budget because that's just what happens when in Georgetown. Side note: H&M now has a home decor section and it's actually awesome. I snagged two adorable cake plates (to use for my wedding) for $10 each! 

P.S. These sunglasses are like a real life Instagram filter (Rise, specifically) and it's really cool & trippy.

What are your plans for the week?

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sunday inspiration 01: cherry blossom pink

I'd say happy Sunday but I think everyone knows Sunday (especially the evening) can be awesome but also kind of a bummer since it's leading up to Monday. So I've decided what better time for a little colorful inspiration? This is a new series that Katie from Today I Want will be doing with me, where we pick a color each week and share the corresponding images that inspire us. Check out her take on cherry blossom pink!

And because it's cherry blossom season here in DC, we decided to start with pink! (Confession: I haven't been to see the cherry blossoms yet. But soon!)

from left to right & top to bottom:

1. Dior lipsticks in different shades of pink (no real image source, thanks Pinterest)

2. Ampersand card from Rafftruck Designs (no longer available)

3. A pink donut

4. A neon pink veil via Brooklyn Bride

5. Vintage pink lace sheath dress from Custard Heart Vintage

6. Cherry blossoms from WishWishWish

What's inspiring you this week?

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cool things of the week #18

1. Pop Fashion Podcast

It's no secret that Lisa from Beltway Vintage is one of my really good friends, and she and Kaarin from Closet Caucus have started Pop Fashion, which is a podcast about fashion, culture, and creative living. And it's awesome. While listening to it at work I actually started laughing out loud and had to remind myself that I couldn't actually respond to them. It's great and you should listen to it. And you can follow them on Twitter!

2. Grumpy Cat Auditions to Replace David Letterman

Grumpy Cat as a late night talk show host. Enough said.

3. The Cure for Your Distraction Syndrome from Zen Habits

This is a really great article from Leo Babauta from Zen Habits on how to minimize distraction, which is really hard to do these days. There are some really great suggestions that I'm definitely going to use at work.

4. Swiss Cottage Designs: A Peek at Our Process

This is a great behind-the-scenes look at how a design agency creates an illustration or design, including their tools and each step of the process. Definitely great for those looking to work on their illustration technique or just find a starting point.

Happy almost Friday!

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teal & gold.

I really love this outfit, both when I was wearing it and in the photos—which doesn't happen very often.

What I'm wearing:

Blazer: Urban Outfitters (swapped)

Dress: thrifted

Tights: Target

Belt: eBay

Shoes: Crown Vintage / DSW

Necklace: Target

I loooove these shoes. Still. And I finally got a much-needed haircut which I also love (when it's not annoyingly humid). Also, I just realized this outfit is kind of similar to this one, but with different Crown Vintage shoes. Hah.

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cool things of the week #17

Happy Thursday! Time for another Cool Things of the Week. This week is definitely a mixed bag of happy, sad, and awesome.

1. Illuminated Cut Paper Light Boxes by Hari & Deepti / Colossal

These cut paper light boxes are absolutely amazing, in the detail and how the way they are illuminated makes the sense so realistic and filled with motion. It's a very unique style, and the scenes almost look like illustrations rather than paper. 

2. Maps of Countries Made From Their Regional Foods / Co.Design

This is a really cool project not just because of the patience and skill that went into arranging these foods into maps (and the research), but the fact that you can learn a lot about the regional foods of each country. There are multiple country maps, all expertly assembled—definitely check them all out.

3. The Color Palettes and Symmetry of Wes Anderson / The Fox is Black

I've seen a good deal of Wes Anderson's films and loved everyone, so it's great to see that there is a Tumblr dedicated to the color palettes and symmetry of each. They're just so pretty to look at. And I want to see The Grand Budapest Hotel even more now.

4. "My Addiction to Exercise Permanently Damaged My Body. But It Also Taught Me How to Love Myself." / Greatist

This article is lengthy, but a must read for any runners or anyone who works or regularly. It's an honest account of how one woman who continuously used exercise as an emotional outlet literally ran herself and her body down to the point where she can no longer run. As someone who uses exercise to relieve stress, this really spoke to me about creating balance and just how easily something healthy can become unhealthy. Definitely worth a read.

5. A Delicate Typeface Made from Paper / Design Taxi

It's a typeface. Made out of PAPER. And it's gorgeous. No really, go look at the rest. I can't get over it.

6. Striking Photos of People Who Are Still Affected by the 1988 Chernobyl Incident / Design Taxi

I saw a documentary in high school about the aftermath of Chernobyl and the city of Pripyat, and I've always found it kind of oddly fascinating what has been left behind of the city. One photographer braved the radiation and captured some amazing photos of what was left behind, and the people who are still affected by the incident to this day.

Did you find anything cool this week?

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