Instagram Sunday! #10

INSTAGRAM SUNDAY! Yes this is technically being posted on Monday, but shhh. This past week was… both busy and not busy at the same time. I felt like a lot happened but looking at my calendar there really wasn’t much going on. But here’s some highlights either way!

My brother’s girlfriend came over on Monday to brighten up my hair. SO THRILLED!

On Wednesday I headed to Adore by Darling‘s studio for a boudoir session! Jen is a friend of mine and we’ve worked together before, so I was BEYOND excited to be photographed by her again. I stopped on my way to have my hair & makeup done by Jessica Candage and couldn’t resist snapping a selfie (or 10) in the car before I left…

Jen takes an Instax photo of everyone who comes into her studio, so me and Cortney (she came along for moral support!) gladly obliged!

I’ve taken LOTS of selfies lately because I adore my hair…

On Saturday I made up a little Valentine’s surprise for Nate — I cut out 45 or so paper hearts and wrote reasons why I love him on them and taped them all over the house. I mean, I could have made up another zillion hearts but had to settle for just 45. 😉

On Saturday night we hunkered down for the big weekend storm, Neptune…

And, oh, right, nothing happened. Portland managed to be right in the break of the storm, apparently — places south of us (as close as Saco, which is only 15-20 minutes south, and down to Boston) and north of us managed to get 12-24 inches, while we got… 2. A dusting, really.

Sunday was the anniversary of the Pale Blue Dot photograph, so I took an awkward photo of my Carl Sagan tattoo to celebrate! I got this tattoo back in 2010 and it’s awesome. People always read it and look confused but then I tell them it’s Carl Sagan and they’re reassured once again that I am a total nerd.

Valentine’s Day

Valentine’s Day is here again and it’s hard not to get caught up in the whirlwind of it. I’m guilty of feeling pressure on ALL holidays, really — whatever the expected emotion or action is, I tend to think of it a little too much, and feel bad or less than if I don’t fully embody it all day long. New Year’s Eve is such a huge party holiday that I feel like a bit of a loser if I’m at home sipping champagne with my dog (err, next to my dog). I feel pressured to have a huge, blowout BBQ on Memorial Day (which I know shouldn’t be the focus AT ALL). And today, on Valentine’s Day, I wonder why I’m not in the kitchen busting out some adorable, heart-shaped cookies, wearing head-to-toe pink and red, and surrounded by flowers and candy. We’re molded by society and media no matter how hard we try.

A big downside of this holiday that is also, of course, deeply ingrained in peoples’ minds is this insane pressure to be romantically involved with someone. SO much of this day is tied up in getting expensive gifts, indulging in dinner and champagne, and just generally having someone in your life to shower you with THINGS and cards and chocolates. It should come as no surprise that I think this is crap. If we can get past the overwhelmingly materialistic aspect, we’re reminded that it’s JUST ONE DAY, and making people feel like shit because they don’t have a romantic partner to shower with money and useless shit is… well, pretty terrible.

Instead of focusing solely on a romantic partner today, why not simply show your affection to ALL of the people you love? Extend kindness and happiness into the world. Compliment someone you see at the store. Give some candy to your mom. Make a homemade card for your neighbor. Send your grandfather a sweet e-mail. Post a funny photo on your friend’s Facebook wall. Make everyone around you feel loved, and realize that YOU are loved as well, by a whole myriad of different people, and hopefully by yourself as well. Treat yourself in some way. Sit down and read a book. Make yourself some hot cocoa (with marshmallows). Listen to your favorite music, or watch your favorite TV show while you’re cuddled on the couch. Sip some wine. Love yourself, ignore the stupid commercials, and remind yourself that not only will it be over tomorrow, but there will be deeply discounted candy, too. 😉

Etsy Loves! #14

This week’s ETSY LOVES theme is SHOES! I love shoes, despite not owning nearly enough pairs. You wouldn’t necessarily think of Etsy as a great spot for shoe shopping but they have TONS of options, from handmade to vintage to completely customized and painted to your liking. Here’s some of my favorites…

Top row, from left: Vintage Saddle Oxford from retroandme ($78) | I Love You(r Shoes) from StudioShoes ($60) | Paris Snow White from Naanoshoes ($79) | Vintage Floral Dr. Martens from RenegadeRevival ($305.99) | Second row, from left: Acordonado Rouge from QuieroJune ($210) | Green Oxford Shoes from BangiShop ($96) | Finn and Jake Shoes from cindystyle ($110) | Womens’ Lace Ups from OliveThomasShoes ($145) | Third row, from left: Leopard Print Shoes from TamarShalem ($132.30) | Totoro Shoes from TapkiShop ($60) | Simon’s Cat Shoes from TapkiShop ($55) | Skeleton X-Ray TOMS from BStreetShoes ($159) | Bottom row, from left: Galaxy Converse from MeganPaintShop ($59) | Black & White Mafia Oxford Shoes from KUKLAfashiondesign ($125) | Leather Oxford Shoes from BaliELF ($165) | Black & White Oxford Shoes from BangiShop ($96)

Mukow Monday! #12

My favorite parts of this photo, in no particular order: 1) Mukow’s distracted gaze, most likely because she was looking intently at her Molly’s house. 2) Her paw with her toes all spread out so you can see her puppy webs. 3) The disgusting clump of unidentified fuzz, sticks, and debris that she was IN LOVE WITH (and that I had to bury DEEP in the snow before she would leave it alone). 4) Her snowy snout. 5) That white chest! Swoon. 🙂

Project 365! Days 29-35

A great week, but much less productive! I’ll be honest, I’m getting a little tired of the snow. It feels like we’re just getting slammed with it nonstop and it can be really discouraging. Nate’s had to snowblow several times this week and it’s just no longer fun to wake up to snow gently falling — no matter how beautiful it still looks! We woke up this morning to more snow and while tomorrow is forecast to be clear, we’ve got another few days of snow coming up (totaling anywhere up to 2 feet) and… I just can’t. I recently realized that since the snow is now piled up in HUGE banks on the sides of the road, it’s really tough for me to explore local cemeteries since hardly any of them — especially the small ones, but even some of the bigger ones — have dedicated parking, and it’s almost impossible to pull over without your car taking up half of the lane. SIGH! Anyways, enough of my complaining, here’s some photos from the past week!

January 29th: My Mom and I tried to hit some local cemeteries but, as mentioned above, had a really hard time parking at most of them. We had to skip by 3 or 4 before we finally found Blanchard Cemetery in Falmouth. Somehow the snow had managed to drift away from the road so we could pull over — there were even spots in the cemetery where grass was peeking through (amazing considering there were other banks of snow that came up to mid-thigh on me!). It was awesome — I can’t wait to go back so we can explore the whole thing!

January 30th: Didn’t do much except play with Mukow outside! Oh yeah, and woke up to my car covered in snow… again.

January 31st: I received my Instagram prints from Artifact Uprising JUST IN TIME to start fulfilling my New Year’s resolution of having photos printed every month! I chose 25 of my favorites and had them printed off — they arrived super quickly and they look amazing. I can’t wait to hang them on the walls.

February 1st: I did a couples shoot with a 2012 couple of mine, and then we went to Nate’s parents’ house for our annual Superbowl party! Honestly, none of us really care about football (except maybe his dad)… we just love the food. 😉 Here’s Gunnar, my sister-in-law’s dog, enjoying herself.

February 2nd: More outside time with Mukow, who is LOVING all of the snow!

February 3rd: Yes… more outside time. This is The Bengal waiting patiently (kind of) to be let back inside. He spends most days going inside… then outside… then inside… then outside… then inside…

February 4th: I managed to take only TWO photos this day, and they were both of this bottle of Burt’s Bees lotion for a review I did. Wah! But, ya know, it’s a pretty bottle. 😉

Throwback Thursday! #9

Here’s a throwback to when my brother, Gray, was first born! My Grampa looks so chill here, which is amazing, and then I look like I’m about to steal both of their souls. I was definitely all dressed up for the arrival of my brother and even requested that I have makeup on, which just makes me look like a demon child. I must have been a little shocked by the whole experience judging by my blank stare, and there’s Gray all red and brand new (swaddled together with a creepy, bald doll). Oh so many bizarre things in this photo, but I love it!

Etsy Loves! #13

Welcome to ETSY LOVES! This week’s theme is SLOTHS — heck yes. Who doesn’t love sloths? They’re slow, cute, and lazy. In case you’re curious (and I know you are), there’s 78 — SEVENTY-EIGHT — pages of sloth-related items on Etsy. This is just a small sampling of my favorites.

First row, from left: Personalized retro sloth and baby print from Nextline ($15.46) | Sloth art print from berkleyillustration ($18) | Hurty paw sloth pin from Disablies ($6) | Tandem sloth greeting card from SurfingSloth ($4.19) | Second row, from left: Hot water bag cover from PetitiPanda ($70.21) | A sloth to hold your keys wall mount from CuriousBurrow ($52) | Astronaut sloth iPhone case from Memeskins ($20.10) | Sloth on a bike t-shirt from darkcycleclothing ($24) | Third row, from left: Sloth pillow from LauraFrisk ($28) | Slothzilla shower curtain from sharpshirter ($49.99) | Sloth scoop neck top from boredwalk ($22.99) | Geeky sloth print from Littlecatdraw ($8.38) | Bottom row, from left: Sloth shirt from CultureFlockClothing ($22) | Sloths garland from BalticClub ($18.27) | Feminist sloth sticker set from riotcakes ($4.69) | Sloth ring from CuriousBurrow ($35)

Wishlist Wednesday! #12

Welcome to WISHLIST WEDNESDAY! This week’s collection seems a little scattered to me but… I FEEL a bit scattered this week so maybe it’s fitting.

#1 Navy Blue Pluto Necklace from BeautySpot ($23). This pendant is just so gorgeous — I love anything space- or galaxy-related, and not only does this have the planet thing going for it, but it’s such a lovely shade of blue. AND at $23 it’s a freaking steal!

#2 Bat Statement Necklace from HartandHuntress ($106.20). I LOVE bats and this gorgeous bronze necklace would be a perfect way to wear one every day!

#3 Ovaries Before Brovaries Hand Embroidered Hoop Art from StitchCulture ($36). If you love Leslie Knope as much as I do, you’ll appreciate this. So, so awesome — I could totally picture it on the wall behind my desk.

#4 Bar Tools 11×14 Print from redcruiser ($30). I want to start hanging more art in the kitchen and how PERFECT would this bar tools print be above our, well, bar area? Oh man!

#5 Cat Cameos Knee Socks from Plasticland ($13). I am a firm believer in socks always being cute — life is too short for plain white socks — and these absolutely fit the bill. So perfect!

#6 “Little Icosahedron” Glass Terrarium from boxwoodtree ($45). One of my goals for the year is to keep more plants in the house, and having a few of these amazing terrariums around would DEFINITELY help. So modern and gorgeous.

#7 Chevron the Go Bag by Steve Madden, for sale via ModCloth ($97.99). I’ve been on the search for a good all-purpose bag and this is damn awesome. I love the relatively subtle chevron pattern and the color is lovely!

#8 Half Blonde Half Black Wig from kekeshop ($149.95+). I am in love with the idea of frequently changing my hair up, and how fun would it be to have a few wigs to throw into the mix? You can get a dramatically different style or color without any of the trial and error involved. Brilliant!

#9 Black Dots Nail Wraps from SoGloss ($8). I am a HUGE fan of nail wraps. I love doing my nails myself, and love all of the color and pattern options, but sometimes I just don’t have the patience. Nail wraps are just as quick as painting your nails (if not quicker), and you don’t have to wait for them to dry — just go about your business. I love this lady’s shop — this is just one of the many patterns I’d like to snag for myself!

#10 Saint Yeezus Prayer Candle from HolyPopCulture ($11.95). I mean… I am really at a loss for words right now. I had to save this one for last because honestly, who would have looked through the rest of the list after they saw this? They’d be too busy not only buying up this candle, but one of the many other amazing candles this store has to offer — I myself am loving Saint Ryan, Saint Amy, and OHMYGOD Crazy Saint Nicolas. So, so, so good.

Product Review! Burt’s Bees Sheer Body Lotion

I picked up this lotion on a whim the last time I was at CVS. During the winter my hands and wrists get INSANELY dry, and washing my hands twenty million times a day doesn’t help. I have tried Aveeno lotion before and it’s decent but it’s never really made my hands feel truly moisturized — it always felt like a temporary fix, and I hated how long it took to sink in to my skin and lose the greasy feeling. I have always been a huge fan of Burt’s Bees products, so when I saw this Burt’s Bees Sheer Body Lotion I had to try it out. They have two other scents — Violet & Mango (which also sounds DELICIOUS) and Cucumber & Aloe — but this Clementine & Calla Lily scent caught my eye. I had also never tried a spray lotion before and it seemed intriguing.

All I can say is that the first time I put this lotion on my hands I thought I had found liquid gold. Just a few quick sprays delivers the perfect amount of lotion, it rubs into your skin so smoothly, it smells ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS (a must for me), and it LASTS. Like I said, other lotions I’ve used have always very obviously been a temporary fix — they made my hands feel slightly less rough and dry for that 10 or 15 minutes, but then it was back to normal. But after just a few applications of this over the course of a day — even with washing my hands with my normal regularity — made my hands look almost normal again. Winter is notorious for making my hands crack and bleed in some spots (usually around the knuckles and sometimes in between my thumb and fore finger), but this lotion allows my hands to STAY moisturized so they don’t get to that point. You need to make sure you’re using it regularly — I try to apply it 4-5 times per day, but sometimes I forget — but this stuff is pure MAGIC. I cannot recommend it highly enough!!!