tights on...tights off...

so these pictures were taken from one of the last photo shoots that i did before i moved to california. 

i just didn't have much luck with this outfit.

the first time that i went out to take pictures in it the sun was setting and the mosquitoes were out like crazy.

so my legs were getting eaten alive through my tights, so we decided to postpone the rest of the shoot.

the next time i went out to take pictures, i just must have been having a bad day.

honestly, i never wear tights.

i think that they itch like crazy.

and i especially never wear purple tights.

with red flats.

but i kind of liked the look.

well after we shot a few pictures and i looked back at the camera to see how they were turning out, i was disgusted and took the tights off.

well then i was disgusted at how white my legs were and how stumpy they looked in flats.

(whenever wearing shorts or skirts i almost always wear some sort of heels cause my legs are so short!) 

so i never posted this outfit.

but as i was looking through all my pictures on my computer the other day, i came across these and i appreciated them more this time than i had before. 

so i decided to post the pictures with and without the tights and let you be the judge! 

dress: t.j. maxx

cardigan: abound via nordstrom rack

tights: romwe

shoes and belt: thrifted

clutch: francesca's 

necklace and bracelets: forever21

sunglasses: kate spade via nordstrom rack 

i'd be lying if...

...i said i wasn't obsessed with watching gossip girl every night on netflix.

...i said taking clients at beauty school doesn't terrify me on a daily basis.

...i said i'm not stupidly excited for this weekend to eat cake oreos and have a sleepover with my cousins.

...i said i would be able to survive a day without drinking soda.

...i said i'm not head over heels in love with these california beaches.

...i said that a stranger didn't leave a note on my car last week saying how badly it needed to be washed.

...i said i didn't seriously consider buying a kitten to make my home feel less lonely. 

...i said i don't look at my pinterest boards over and over and pat myself on the back for my great taste ;)

...i said i wasn't still putting on aloe vera twice a day from a sunburn i got almost a week ago.

 ...i said trying to change my perspective on life hasn't made me a thousand times happier these last few days.

-xoxo

7 things to make a weekend magical...

it may have been a little chilly, but it was nice to stop and look below the pier and see the long haired surfers riding along the waves.

it was nice to watch the beach paintball tournaments from above.

it was nice to see the young boy at his booth performing magic tricks.

it was nice to end our walk with lunch at ruby's, in a booth with a beautiful beach view.

it was nice that it was with him.

weekends when he visits are just the greatest.

it was nice having my diet coke refilled over and over.

it was nice sharing a milkshake... especially since it was his favorite flavor.

it was nice having my best friend to take silly pictures with in the car.

it was nice being able to wear my first maxi dress (first one ever that hasn't been too long on me).

and it was nice to be able to go to dinner at p.f. changs, the restaurant that we had our very first date at many years ago. 

~~~~~~

okay, there were definitely more than 7 things that made the weekend great.

but those are the only things i had pictures of.

two more things that i think should be mentioned:

 we watched tons of red boxes with popcorn and peanut butter m&m's, and ate an entire package of cookie dough.

i truly love weekends like these.

oh and on a side note.

while in huntington beach, it was not nice to see the guy on the street hammering a nail into his nose.

yep.

sick.

special birthday girl + fashion post outtakes...

today is a bitter sweet one for me. 

it's sweet because it's my beautiful mom's birthday, and bitter because i don't get to celebrate with her.

~~~~~~~

when i started this blog about a year ago, i had no intentions of turning it into a fashion blog. 

i had planned on just focusing on my life and crafty projects.

but somewhere along the line i decided to start journaling about my outfits. 

and i'm so glad i did.

my mom and i have made some of the best memories while out doing photo shoots.

we both like to be very silly.

and when there's one of us pretending to be a serious photographer and the other one pretending to know how to model- things can get a bit crazy. 

i wouldn't trade anything for those times- just the two of us. 

out and about.

exploring new places.

laughing.

i'm so grateful that she always made the time to go with me and support me in every way possible.

i'm one lucky girl.

so today this post is dedicated to her.

but i also wanted to share with the rest of you some of our best memories of photo shoots together.

i realized i deleted most of the bad, silly pictures because most of them were so hideous i would never put them on my blog! 

but here are some of the ones that didn't make it into my recycle bin...

here's to you mom...

ok this one isn't silly i know, and this one actually did make it on to my blog.

but this was the first photo shoot that me and you ever did together.

we didn't really know what we were doing, we didn't even know how to use my camera!

and it was like january so it was freezing!! 

but remember how excited we were when the pictures were done being edited. 

we were so proud of ourselves...

and this was the same day.

you were always the best at teaching me how to properly strike a pose ;)

little tiny hands!

remember this day?

when i thought it was a brilliant idea to go out in the freezing cold wearing a tiny romper! 

luckily dad's jacket was in the car to keep me warm. 

and this would eventually start happening towards the end of every shoot...

remember me awkwardly posing with this post?

this was one of my very favorite days, when we went out to the old farm.

remember that dang cat that wouldn't stop stepping into every picture??

yet another one of your fabulous pose ideas...

this was a fun day too.

remember how awkward i got when we actually went down to the carnival and i had to pose in front of those gross carny workers?

and then when our carnival prop got ruined...

you're a natural...

umm yeah and remember this day in boise?

i wore those insanely high heels in the park and had to take them off after about five minutes...

but that didn't stop us from getting our silly on...

and this was an unsuccessful shoot.

my shoes were brand new, still had the stickers on the bottom and everything.

i decided i wanted to return them but wanted to continue with the shoot.

it was rainy and the ground was muddy so you had to drive me every few yards through the alley so that the bottoms wouldn't get dirty.

and then my camera died.

and i was in trouble for not charging it :( 

we had to redo the shoot on another day.

this was taken the night we decided to leave the house an hour or so before magic hour so that we would have enough time to drive around and find a pretty spot.

after an hour we STILL couldn't find anywhere to take the pictures.

then we started to panic because we thought we were going to miss magic hour.

so we finally settled on a spot... and it was too late, we missed the magical hour!

no success that night.

and yet another unsuccessful shoot.

this night we had to stop after about ten minutes because my hands were getting blood all over them from swatting at the mosquitoes that were eating my legs through my tights! 

we tried this outfit another day too and i decided that i hated the outfit altogether.

so it never made its appearance on here.... until now.

this shoot was sad because it was our last one before i moved to california.

it was in our favorite spot.

and we realized halfway through that i was posing with my clutch upside down! 

our first photo shoot together in california.

"maybe i should pose with this stick."

maybe notttt....

and having cousins there on the side to distract me...

thank you mom for being the bestest photographer...

we have many more photo shoots to come.

happy birthday- i love you!!!

~~~~~

if you are new to my blog, here are the links to all of my fashion posts! 

here/here/here/here/here/here

here/here/here/here/here/here  

here/here/here/here/here/here

here/here/here

ipsy glam bag...

 when i find a good thing, i like to spread the word.

glam bags by ipsy... are a good thing.

i found out about ipsy while flipping through a magazine months ago.

basically, you pay $10 a month and they send you 4-5 beauty products made by some of the best brands.

what makes it even better is that each month is a new theme.

and it's kind of like christmas, opening up the bag and having no idea what to expect! 

i only subscribed for two months.

and that was only because i had to basically cut out all of my spending to get back on my feet financially.

but i will be subscribing again asap! 

i didn't take pictures of my first ipsy glam bag, but i actually liked it quite a bit better than the second bag, which is featured in this post.

this was the january bag.

its theme was "super stars".

each month you get a new small makeup carrier that matches the theme. 

 this nail polish is amazing! 

i think this polish was probably worth the $10 alone.

if you are looking for a pretty red color for your fingers or toes- look no further.

this polish went on smooth and stayed for weeks. 

 before i got this bag, i had never even heard of argan oil.

apparently it's an organic moisturizer.

i was a bit hesitant to saturate my face in oil before going to bed.

but surprisingly it made my skin feel so smooth and soft.

i'm not sure that it beats my estee lauder moisturizer, but it's pretty darn good.

this lotion smells soooo good! 

and i actually saw that they sell this brand and flavor at target.

i love it.

i love big sexy hair.

always have, always will.

i wasn't as excited about this product because i've used it plenty of times.

but it was still nice to be given a small size to keep in my purse.

 i'm not going to lie, i haven't tried out this eyeliner brush yet.

and to be completely honest- i have no idea how to use a brush for my eyeliner! 

so i can't give you any thoughts on this one. 

~~~~~~~

if you want to learn more, just go to www.ipsy.com

i just visited the site and saw that april's glam bag was "pretty in pink".

that kills me! 

i love pink.

so definitely check it out- you won't be sorry :)