Guilt-free Friday!

Hi, remember me? I know, I feel like an absentee parent, neglecting this little spot so much lately. I certainly do miss it, and the ideas and inspirations are overflowing, but life just seems to be tugging in a million different directions. Tomorrow starts one of my most favorite months, and with lots of new & exciting things on the horizon, I can't help but feel a little giddy. I'm beyond thrilled to share this most wonderful time of the the year with you. 

Lots of good things coming up, I tell ya, lots of good things. 

Until then though, hey, it's ok...

... if you know more about who the NFL players are dating than you know about the actual rules of the game. 

.... to gain a little weight around the holidays. We'll call it the "festive fifteen" and tell ourselves it's to stay warm through the colder months. 

... to still have boxes from college waiting to be unpacked, if your diploma sits neatly unopened in it's original mailing envelope, and if you still ask for the student discount. There's nothing wrong with holding on to your youth, and if a pile of boxes in the attic and an unframed diploma makes you feel like your college days remain in the not-so-distant past, by all means. 

And just for tomorrow, one of my current favorites...

"December" by Norah Jones

[image via here]

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My mom has always been exceptionally stylish. She has great taste, and we are about the same size, so stealing borrowing her clothes is ideal. I trust her taste, too. Whenever I'm not sure about something, she's the first person I ask. Even when I was off at college, I'd text her pictures of shoe options or jewelry or whatever the indecision of the day was.

Saturday afternoon though, she hit it out of the park in the wardrobe department. Really. She walked out wearing this and I couldn't help but remark, "MOM you look like such a Pinterest girl!" 

She's a master layerer, and this mixture of textures is spot on. Mixing different materials can be tricky, and you have to pay careful attention to weight. The lace skirt, cashmere sweater, chambray shirt, and sweater tights combo is perfection. The distressed boots are the perfect counterpart to monograms and vintage pearls, as they keep the look from being too preppy.

What can I say... my mom, the fashion icon. 

Whose style do you admire?

hands

I saw a picture of two hands laced together and I couldn't help but think of how things ought to be. 

There were fine lines and wrinkles in the creases of the fingers, and though I have no indication of the bodies attached to them, I could tell that those two hands probably match two happy faces, adorned with the lines of lingering smiles after years of laughing and loving and hand-holding. They match the fine lines of crows feet around four crinkled, squinty eyes that have shed happy tears at babies births and funny tears at inside jokes and relieved tears at knowing everything is going to be alright. That's the way things ought to be. I'm not saying that things are happy and blissful all the time, there are probably a few wrinkles from furrowed brows and the occasional frown at a misbehaving child or a dinner date forgotten. But I choose to believe the smile lines run deeper. And you should have someone's hand to hold when things get rough. Or when you're fingers are icy and it's November and nobody else is ready for Christmas but you're making your way to the tree lot. There should be a warm pocket for those two hands to share and there should be a big part of you that wishes your whole self could fit inside that little pocket, because truthfully, a big part of your heart and soul resides in that cozy spot already. 

"If you're in love it ought to make you happy. You ought to laugh." F. Scott Fitzgerald.

That's the way things ought to be. 

Heirloom Jewelery

"I love everything that's old: old friends, old times, old manners, old books, old wines..." 
-Oliver Goldsmith

I must admit I seem to share Mr. Goldsmith's sentiments on the matter. In my opinion, the older the better. I've always been an old soul, and I spent a good portion of my youth fully convinced I was born during the wrong decade. Do you ever feel that way? I'm not lying when I say I dressed up as a 50s girl for more Halloweens than should be considered appropriate, but at least we got our money's worth out of that overpriced Lillian Vernon poodle skirt. See, there's one benefit to an elastic waist. And not growing an inch from age 7-15. 

Though my fashion choices have evolved considerably since my bobby sock days, I still have an affinity for old jewelry. From earrings pilfered from the bottom of my mom's jewelry box to costume pieces found in thrift stores, there's something so romantic about wearing a piece of jewelry that has already lived another life. It just seems wiser, seasoned, experienced. Like dating an older man or hanging out with your big sister, something as simple as an antique brooch somehow elevates you to a higher level of sophistication. 

My mom and I happened upon a holiday bazaar this weekend, and we couldn't help but scoop up funky chains and strands of pearls and countless other baubles. The mystery of their past is intriguing, but the pieces I love most are the ones that  share my history. Here are some of my most favorites:

Clown necklace from my mom's mom. She wore it all the time when I was younger, and anyone who knows her can testify that she is a total clown. When she passed the piece on to me I was thrilled. 

Mom's college earrings. I swiped these years ago, long before the word vintage became a part of my vocabulary, but the detailing makes them so unique.

Dad's ID bracelet from 8th grade. My mom had this in a pile to give to Goodwill. Seriously? It's no secret that I'm a total daddy's girl, and I really love having this piece. Whenever I wear it I can't help but think of my dad as a mischievous 13-year-old boy. 

Great-grandmother's cameo. When I visited my grandparents last December, my grandma let me rummage through her jewelry. I didn't think she was going to let me make off with this cameo necklace, but she did, only after explaining that it belonged to my grandfather's mother for years and years. She died when I was young, but the dainty, delicate charm suits my memories of her perfectly. 

Do you have any heirloom jewelry? Thrift store finds?

p.s. In case you missed it, refashioned vintage bling and vintage rings 

On my mind...

thinking about vision 
and eyes are for seeing 
but sometimes you just have to close them
sometimes our vision is clouded by the billowing dust-clouds of our emotions
sometimes obstacles stand in the way
the naysayers, the rules, the way we think things ought to be
or how they used to be
what a terribly dull existence to be bound by the way things have always been
change. it's bound to happen,
or is it?
"a power of resisting by which every body, as much as in it lies, endeavors to preserve its present state, whether it be of rest or of moving uniformly forward in a straight line."
inertia.
resistance to change
it's monday morning and things are happening and it makes me feel like everything is going to be ok.
sometimes i get overwhelmed.
it's silly, but the anxiety starts to build in my chest like the bassline.
silly expectations, impossible deadlines, i put them on myself and on others and i'm disappointed when they aren't met.
that's the danger of comparison, like apples and oranges, sometimes it's just not a fair game. 
even when things seem bad- when feelings are hurt and egos bruised, when the water turns cold and your breakfast egg rolls off the counter and onto the floor with a splat before you've even sprayed the frying pan- even when things seem bad, they are good.
There's a great, big world waiting out there, somebody ought to tackle it. 
your turn. xo