The Journaler

This, in some ways, is a window to my soul: my book is open. This is an honest reflection where I embrace the highs and lows, ups and downs, roller coaster of emotions I am often riding, the good, the bad, and the extremely ugly...but this is me, and this is my adventure...By revealing myself honestly I hope to inspire and encourage, because we all struggle sometimes and it's nice to know we're not alone. This is my experience as a small town girl living in a big city, trying to make my way while taking lots and lots of detours...

Showing posts with label fashion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fashion. Show all posts

March 25, 2011

An Honest Reflection, And Confession



I am deeply grateful and humbled that you stopped by to check out my blog. I love to write, and strive to portray myself honestly in the hope that when we are able to reflect on ourselves - truly as we are, not how we wish to be - clarity, confidence, appreciation, and vitality will become more easily attainable. It is easy to be jealous and envious, but too much time is wasted on these emotions, and for what? We are who we are. When we can look at the success of others and feel genuinely happy for them, rather than secretly covet their delightful contentment (in all honesty, this is no easy feat), then we can freely embrace our own lives and live joyously, fully, and with gratitude for the life we were given -- OR at least we can move forward in this positive direction without inhibition. I will admit, I battle with this every day. It is my goal to arrive at this level of satisfaction where I can say, "HELL YEAH, I love myself, love my life; I am so grateful to be me!" 

Okay, I've said my piece....now here's one more! Please let me entice you to read on by stating that, I don't think I've ever said this to anyone (for fear that no one would believe me and instead just laugh); I am secretly a wanna-be fashion fanatic! I am secretly obsessed, and you would never know it by looking at me (sad).
Okay I know, who cares! If I want to secretly or not so secretly adore fashion, and shamelessly covet those who live/work in such a glamorous world (ooops! I forgot, no coveting....okay, working on it!), then so be it. But actually, it's not that I covet anyone or anything in this lovely world, I just truly enjoy it, and I feel great when, on the rare occasion, I get it right.
I am truly rambling, but please bare with me. I have two things to address while you enjoy my pretend "fashion forward moments and faux pas." Good or bad, this is me!
1. With so many incredibly trendy and "in-the-know" bloggers out there in regards to fashion, why should I even pretend that people will care about my 2 cents? But ya know something, fashion is one of the most popular and talked about topics in the world for a reason: it is everywhere, it is interpreted and conveyed in boundless ways, it is endlessly interesting and changing, it is highly individualistic, and it is incredibly expressive and a beautiful aspect of life that is always within view. It is a world that encompasses not only the clothing we wear, the makeup we apply, the accessories we adorn ourselves with, and the way we style our hair, but it is also apart of our homes, our food, the arts, lifestyle, our pets, mode of transportation, and on and on.

Fashion is everywhere, and that is why I think I am so intrigued. I love it because it is expressive and beautiful and always at our fingertips. So whether people care about what I have to say or not, it is a world for me to explore, and I enjoy it tremendously, so why wouldn't I write about it?! It's silly for me to try to compete, ridiculous actually because there is no competition - if someone wants to read the words of a fashion guru (I do!) they won't find it here. Instead you will find someone who doesn't know what the hell she is talking about, but is deeply interested in trying! Maybe that will inspire others to not be discouraged if they are not immediate trend-setters - only a lucky few truly are (good for them!).  Instead, like myself, I would encourage one to focus on exploring their own unique and fresh take on what fashion means to them! Yay!

2. I've done so much rambling that I've completely blanked on this one, hmmmmm, probably for the best at this point ; )

Bottom line, I like to feel great about how I look. If I am feeling iffy about an outfit, and decide later on in the day that I must have suffered from a mental lapse rendering me useless in the decision making process about the outfit in question, then, well, I'll have a bad day. That is the honest truth. And I will covet (there's that word again!) other's outfits and their mental capacity to make fabulously informed wardrobe decisions. *deep. long. sigh*
It's okay to make a "fashion faux pas" every now and then (if one never experiments, one will never know...eheh). And it's also okay to feel great about yourself. I said earlier, occasionally I will feel as if I "got it right," but really what I love is being able to express myself in clothing that makes me feel great as an individual, on the cusp of the latest trends or not (usually not). At the end of the day, you want to feel like you put forth the best representation of yourself, whatever that may be. Only requirement that matters is that you feel great about you.

March 20, 2011

Fabulous Flea Market Finds!!

Eugene Oregon has one fantastic Flea Market! The Picadilly Flea Market was bustling and lively by the time we arrived with one hour to spare before closing. This is actually an amazing time to go, although I definitely want to try going earlier before things have been snatched up. At this time people are ready to sell sell sell! This is bargain time people. And omigoooooooodness gracious I found some fantastic items. I've never really been into flea market digging or antiquing - that was always something my mom loved and come'on, how uncool would it be if I actually acknowledged that she might be onto something....well, luckily I've finally come around. I can't wait to explore some of the awesome markets I've recently heard about in San Francisco!

Check out some of the awesome things I found....

INCREDIBLE English made beaded vintage purse, super awesome corked bottle (broke the bank at .25 cents hah!!!) - would look lovely as is or with some fresh flower sprigs and a bit of lavender. I had also been searching high and low for a tan/brown leather belt - can't believe how hard it was to find in the color I was looking for, but viola, there it was! And a bargain at 5 bucks. The large purse on the right by a Parisian watch designer, Charles Hubert was not purchased at this flea market, but I did recently find it at a vintage thrift store and am in love with the color and soft leather, yay! I shamelessly use it as a laptop purse, I don't even care how silly I look prying my laptop out of its tight grib everyday...it fits. I swear!
Also found this super cute sterling silver ring with turquoise stone. Just the kind of simple and easy accessory I've been looking for. Love it. All of this, including giant brown purse was about $60. Not bad! Always fun to go rummaging and find some totally unique and inexpensive items.

February 27, 2011

Oscar Fever!

All I can say is, I have OSCAR FEVER!!! I'm not sure why, but I am tickled to death about watching the Oscars this year. I don't know if it's because I've managed to watch 8 out of the 10 Best Picture nominees, or because I'm obsessed with the gorgeous dresses - especially Mila Kunis, Scarlett Johansson, Halle Berry, Anne Hathaway, and especially Hailee Steinfeld from True Grit who I'm absolutely in love with, or the fabulous hosts this year, but WOW I'm excited!

The film industry really shined this past year. Movies are a fantastic way to escape for a couple hours and be blissfully entertained. Sometimes it's all we need to get out of a funk and relax a bit. I love movies! Hope the coming season is a great one.