august moodboard: girly + chic

Witty cards, blush and lavender nail polish, printed pants, homemade calendars, and heels. There are seasons of loving jeans and hipster design trends and seasons of embracing feminine designs and cutesy outfits. I'm all about the latter lately.

This little collage represents my most recent pins on Pinterest and some recent thoughts of mine regarding design, fashion, and diy:

1. I went quite sometime neglecting nail polish. Let's be honest, it chips in a day with the way that I am constantly typing, crafting, and creating things. But even though it rarely looks perfect, it is kind of fun to have your outfit be completed with a fun shade on your fingernails. Also, ladies, shouldn't we take full advantage of our ability to paint our nails? Men don't do it, and what a shame for the nail polish of the world to go to waste. Lately, I've been loving light lavender nails and as always, blush and coral shades are my jam. I would love to get a hold of this gorgeous pink shade by Essie, but for now I'll just stick to my go-to lavender shade.

2. I can't say I own a wealth of them (perhaps because they don't offer as much versatility), but printed pants have been my recent craze. I am loving these ones that I found on Pinterest and brown heels are the perfect pairing (God knows I love a good pair of brown shoes, ahemm 90% of my shoes are brown. Guilty.) I think printed pants make styling easy if you have enough plain tops in your wardrobe to make it work. And it also looks like you have quite the adventurous style when you rock some crazy floral or geometric print, amiright?

3. I finally put my favorite private Pinterest board out there in the open. I'm pretty proud of this board and I felt like it would really help out those that are trying to figure out their voice when it comes to self-promotion. This plastic custom slipcover would be perfect to hold your portfolio and resume for interviews. Beyond that, I stuck some good ideas for resumes, business cards, and portfolios in there too. You'd be surprised how many people contact me about designing resumes, those are some good ideas to start with if you're in that same boat.

4. I may start a series on creating some of my favorite DIY projects on Pinterest. I need a reason to create some new fun things and everyone loves a good DIY tutorial, right? One of my favorite recent finds is this mason jar that is adhered to a wood block and stuck on the wall to help minimize clutter on a desk and use the wall space wisely.

5. I am still obsessed with Emily McDowell. I don't know if I mentioned this artist before, but oh boy, her cards are my favorite. I love her custom writing, her color schemes, and her fun doodles. I may have to devote a future post to using artists like this chick as an inspiration. She's genius.

Moodboard Sources: Blush and Black Outfit, (Outdated) Desktop Calendars, Watercolor Peony Wallpaper, Poster Design, Greatland Lettering, Stop and Breathe Quote.

a few of my favorite things: work out necessities

I love work out classes more then I could put into words. It is the best way to start the morning and I find myself being pushed so much harder than spending twice as long in the gym on my own. I felt like a series on my favorite things would be incomplete without including some of my favorite gym essentials.

1. Nalegene with Splash Guard: Sure you have to clean the Nalegene out frequently so it doesn't get all funky smelling, but I swear by the convenience of having a Nalegene constantly filled up in your refrigerator. I have two, one in my fridge filled with cold water and one by my nightstand. Easy to grab and go and the Splash Guard prevents the water from spilling all over your face when you're doing a fast-paced workout. Trust me, I used to always be that girl. Whoever invented that little thing is a genius I tell you.

2. Nike Running Capris: These I own 4 different pairs of and these are the ones pictured (I'm obsessed with them and other people seem to be too). I've tried plenty of other brands, but I end up just sticking to Nike. Lucy and Lulumeon are my dream, but trying them on is just a temptation, they are way too pricey for a budget like mine. Then, other brands like Adidas and UnderArmour that may run a bit cheaper I often find feel way too thin and don't have the features that Nike adds to their clothing. And you can also find Nike on sale a lot, which cuts down the sometimes rather high price tag. Most of them have a back pocket to put your iPhone in to listen to music so you don't have to have one of those annoying arm band situations. They also never stretch out and aren't so cheaply made that you feel like your scantily clad, ya know?

3. Target Sports Bras: I swear by these. They are cheap, comfy, and they make you further sucked into the fact that Target is basically running the world. Some people invest in expensive ones, I'd rather have a good pair of shoes or pants personally.

4. prAna Headbands: I bought these at REI a while back and I love them. They stay put, unlike most headbands, they are thin enough to not feel like your brain is being pushed and constrained, yet they are thick enough that you can fold them over and make them skinnier if you'd like. Plus, no I will not spend $20 on headbands at sporting goods stores. These are at a price point that I felt okay at, plus I found them on sale. Booyah.

5. Nike Free Running Shoes: Found these babies on sale (can you tell I love sales), and I can honestly say my workouts have been much harder since I got them (in a good way). I push myself more because I don't feel restricted from heavy shoes that weigh me down. They are significantly lighter than the running shoes I've had in the past. And they are cute to boot.

6: Towel Safe Gym Towel: The most convenient thing I could ever have purchased. I put my keys into the little Velcro-sealed pocket when I get to the gym and I don't have to worry about leaving them somewhere by accident. Plus if I drive to the gym and don't want to have to worry about my purse, I'll stick my license and credit card in there too. I have a couple of these towels and I love um.

What are your gym necessities?

a few of my favorite things: fashion blogs

Ever since blogs were a trendy thing, before Pinterest was probably even thought up, fashion blogs were my go-to source of finding new trends and inspiration for my own style. I find that instead of making me want to run to the mall and buy things, these blogs inspire me to use my own wardrobe to put together looks that make the most out of this whole "we have to wear clothes as a human being" thing. The small and concise list I have of my favorite fashion blogs rarely ever changes. Straight to the point, here are my absolute favorite fashion bloggers. (Feel free to share in the comments below some of your favorites!)

 

(left) The first fashion blog I ever bookmarked. Kendi is witty and writes with a familiarity as if you've known her your whole life. I love her simple, genuine sense of style. She makes me want to buy a jean jacket and chop off all my hair. I adore her blog, I love the way that she writes, and I admittedly use my own closet to try and duplicate outfits I love of hers... often.

(right) Tieka is a full-time graphic designer and the blogger behind Selective Potential. She rocks floral dresses and pops of color often. I always love, love, love her shoes and she most definitely makes me want to have straight-across bangs again. I would say out of any blogger I follow, her style is closest to what my own style looks like on a normal basis, so when she wears outfits I would not normally think up, it definitely pushes me to try something new. Not to mention, her apartment is the cutest, her dog is adorable, and if she ever needed a new best friend, I would gladly volunteer.

 

(left) I don't know if there is anyone's style that I would forsake shopping for the rest of my life in order to take the wardrobe of. Just this girls. Andrea's crazy curly blonde hair is gorgeous, her style goes a bunch of different directions: from beachy to modern to rocker-esq to girly and I love that. I love that she is risky with her style and I love that I am always left thinking "I would have never thought of that, and I love it."

(right) I think I've pinned more of her style than I have pinned any other person's outfits. Cara rocks the top bun, which the Lord knows is my most frequented look. I love that she shows comfy outfits, in addition to more dressed up looks. She always has cute accessories and adventures to the cutest locations for her photos. Her wardrobe is the type that would be do-able to recreate for the most part. Also, her hair. Yupp.

(left) A few years ago, I worked at an online boutique, Ruche, as the set design intern. To my surprise, there were several really successful fashion bloggers that worked day jobs there. Mara, behind M Loves M was one of those lovely ladies. She is the kindest, sweetest woman with such an effortless, girly sense of style. She always looks pulled together and I adore the food and lifestyle posts she frequently puts on her blog. Her sweetness and joy about life exudes from her blog (which, might I add, is the most well designed fashion blog I follow, it's adorable.)

(right) Last but not least, the San Francisco blogger, Krystal, behind This Time Tomorrow has an impeccable fashion taste. While most of her pieces are rather pricey, she does frequent thrift stores which I love to see in her posts. Her style is a mix of high fashion and vintage, she is daring and adventurous and I have indeed bought many of the lipsticks she wears. Also, she is one of those women that always has rockin' shoes and bags, she makes me want to rock heels on the daily. Oh, and I love her sunglasses.