not fade away

Even though I've been feeling blue lately, I've been really really really enjoying my favorite tv shows and some new-to-me movies recently. Does anyone watch The Mindy Project? I loved the last episode (as a big When Harry Met Sally fan, the whole Bruno Kirby/Carrie Fischer dialogue made me crack up) and having BJ Novak for a guest star made my Office-loving heart explode with happiness. Kelly and Ryan, together again! yay!

Also, speaking of The Office, a while ago Amber recommended The Giant Mechanical Man with Jenna Fischer (Pam) and I kept putting it off because for some reason the title made me think it was an action movie (I swear I miss so many awesome things because of misconceptions like this... I guess this is what the google is for?) but I finally watched it this week and I think it might be in my top five favorite movies ever. It was just SO good and touching and sweet and incredibly relevant to my life at the moment. And so many tv people were in it -- Danny from The Mindy Project is the co-star (and he is absolutely amazing!) plus there's Harry Crane from Mad Men, Eric from That 70's Show, Marshall's boss from How I Met Your Mother and the girl who plays Stella in The Wedding Bride movie in HIMYM too! (It's kind of sad that I recognized all these people. But also a point of pride? hmm..)

Anyway, long story short -- if you like sweet, quiet movies about people who are a little lost in life you'll probably love this too. And it's on Netflix instant! And it's not an action movie.

dress - c/o modcloth | tights - h&m | sweater and necklace - forever 21

shoes - from my grandmom | belt - asos

everybody pants now

Whenever I say the word "pants" I think of Leslie Knope singing "Everybody pants now! Pants, pants, pants, pants, pants" ... I obviously watch too much tv.

But yeah, I am wearing pants! It's a novelty indeed, but I think I might wear them more often... at least this particular pair. They're very comfy (for pants) and I am in love with the color and polka-dottedness. They actually are a much nicer color in person.. a little lighter and more like cornflower blue. I'm getting really tired of the overcast weather we've been having here, not just because it makes taking photos virtually impossible (even photoshop can't work its usual magic on my might-as-well-be-midnight dark photos) but because it's affecting my mood as well. I've just been so darn down in the dumps for the last two weeks. Every waking minute I've wanted to be asleep. But hopefully the clouds will soon say toodle-oo and my room, my life and my mood will all be sunny again :)

sweater and pants - f21 | shoes - c/o bait footwear | dinosaur necklace - sweet and lovely

lost and found memories

We've had undeveloped disposable cameras and rolls of film laying around the house for as long as I can remember... some in junk drawers, some on shelves in the laundry room, some under the bed. Most of them expired 10+ years ago and might be completely useless now, but I'm finally going to find out! I was originally going to get them all developed at once, but after searching tirelessly for a very cheap way to develop disposable cameras (to no avail) I decided I'm going to start getting one developed per week. I actually like this way better! It will be something really nice to look forward to each weekend. I've heard of people getting old film developed and just having minor aging issues so I'm hoping I have the same luck!

I'm really excited to hopefully discover some lost memories! I'll post about my progress here if I find any photographic treasures. Who knows how many forgotten places, friends and adventures are waiting to be rediscovered! :)

the slumber party kit!

The Slumber Party Kit is officially complete and up for sale! :) I am so excited about this! I've had the idea since around when I created The Book Fair Kit last April, and I hope to have some more kits in the future (I already have another one in the works!)

The Slumber Party Kit includes everything you'd need to recreate your childhood sleepovers -- whether you want to have a solo party (like I did for the accompanying photo shoot lol) or gather up your BFFs for an old-school sleepover or give your kiddo a little taste of what your own childhood was like! It would also make a cute thoughtful gift to send a long-distance BFF that's too far away for a real slumber party!

In the kit you'll receive a pre-assembled fortune teller, MASH cards, microwave popcorn, a friendship bracelet kit, a mix tape of 90's pop tunes with a hand-written bubble letter playlist and a "rental" movie that you get to keep. And it all comes in a hand-stamped canvas bag. It also includes a URL so you can download the digital slumber party kit, too! You can print out extra fortune tellers, mash cards and invitations and then use the scrapbooking elements to document your fabulous night!

The kit is available in my sweet and lovely shop here! :)

shop my closet update!

I went through my closet this week and purged some stuff that I've either never worn or know I'll probably never wear again, and ended up with about 30 pieces! It's all up for grabs here. Hurry and get things before I change my mind and take them back down lol ;)

I priced everything super cheaper than what I actually paid, just because I really don't have the time to do individual measurements for this batch. But for reference, basically everything (except the one size small shirt) fit me and I'm 37" - 28" - 40" and I'm 5' tall. Some things fit better than others, but I mentioned if anything ran small or large in the description. If you really really really need a measurement on something let me know, but please only ask if you're 100% serious about purchasing.

ps. I listed everything in my sweet & lovely shop so there's combined shipping if you wanted anything from there too. just saying... ;p

clarissa explains it all paper dolls!

I am so so so excited about my newest project! It's a Clarissa Explains it All paper doll! ah! It's no secret that I am a massive Clarissa fan -- I even had a Clarissa Explains it All Week here in 2011, and she was the subject of my first Style Idol post. Her style and outlook on life greatly influenced who I am and what I wear. While I don't necessarily have a closet full of cut-off jean jackets and neon t-shirts, her security in marching to the beat of her own drum and dressing differently gave me the confidence to do the same, in my own particular way.

Anyway! I thought her offbeat 90's style would be a fantastic subject for a paper doll! The main outfit is from the opening credits and it also includes 11 other clothing pieces to mix-and-match plus a choker, earth earrings and Elvis of course! ;) I posted this on instagram yesterday and someone pointed out that I left out her ant pajamas. Those were one of my favorites (and probably the instigator for my massive patterned pajama collection) and I can't believe I forgot to include them! So I'm probably going to make a set of extra clothes you can get to add on later. Kind of like Barbie only flat and made out of paper.

They're available here! All of the clothing pieces actually fit on the doll so you can choose to play with it or frame it, it's up to you! ;)

polka dots

Something a little out of the ordinary for me.. no color! Well, okay, some color. I had to add my new blue bow collar clips, and I had a bright green band-aid peeking out from underneath my sheer tights ;) I've really been going through a huge polka-dot phase lately! I'm coveting basically anything dotted that I see online or getting the urge to add my own dots to the plain clothes in my wardrobe. It just makes everything look more fun, doesn't it?!

On a totally different subject, did anyone watch The Office last night? I know a lot of people gave up after Michael Scott left (which I can understand since he's my favorite character) but I've stuck with it and last night was heart wrenching. Actually, that's an understatement. The show basically ripped out my heart and put it in the shredder like a sheet of Dunder Mifflin paper :(

sweater - forever 21 | faux leather skirt - c/o sheinside | tights - asos

shoes - c/o oasap | collar clips - sweet and lovely

a little bedroom update!

It's amazing what a few tiny changes can do to a room! My room feels so much more fresh and airy now, and all I did was paint my bed and add shelving storage underneath. I think the new color makes my room feel SO much bigger! I have a pretty tiny space and having a dark wood frame taking up about 1/3 of it definitely made it feel more cramped.



I pieced together three different sized ikea expedit bookshelves to fit around the perimeter of my bed. They fit so perfectly it's like it was meant to be! ;) I'm probably a total dork for saying this but I'm absolutely giddy about the storage. GIDDY I tell you! I have boxes and they're organized and nothing falls on the floor when I pull them out!! wheeee!! Also, my Dunder Mifflin boxes fit perfectly in the expedit. yay!



While at ikea I found these gorgeous glass cups, too. I got four to hold my various business cards for packing orders and another four that I stashed away for my future house :)  They also had matching bowls so I picked up four of those, too. I want to have mix-and-match dining things so I like the idea of slowly piecing together a collection over time.





At the foot of my bed I'm using the shelving for my records. There's a little space where the two shelving units meet so I'm using that for records I'm currently listening to, and rotating records with fantastic covers on the front for display. It's wonderful to be able to pull a record out to listen without all of the other records falling over lol :)





Lots of Hypatia in this post! Every time I wanted to take a picture she was there lol :)



I've wanted to organize under my bed for so long... I store a lot of stuff under there (I have a whopping 22" space between my mattress and the floor thanks to a tall bed and 6" risers!) but it was just kind of crammed in there all willy-nilly. Whenever I pulled stuff out a landslide of other stuff would cascade onto my floor. But not anymore! :)



It would have been a huge hassle to actually move my bed to paint it, so I painted all of the visible parts and then taped the paint chip to the inside of the frame. I do have some leftover paint, but this way if I ever use that up (or, knowing me, lose it) I can always finish up the job with the exact same color.

modcloth sale alert

I just saw modcloth is having their cabin fever sale today! They have like 2,000+ things marked down 70% off.. I wonder if it's a coincidence that it starts on blue monday (supposedly the most depressing day of the year) I don't know about you but when I'm feeling blue I usually either spend money or eat. Or watch the Office. Or all three at once.

I was pretty good though and only bought one single dress (the plaid one in the bottom left corner) I do love these other pieces I pictured above though! I wish I could justify buying one more coat because the side-button closure and pretty colors on the grey one are just so tempting!

You can take a peek at all the other goodies on sale here! The site was kind of wonky when I was trying to buy my dress but hopefully they've fixed it (or are fixing it) now..

mint and mustard

Not sure why I always feel compelled to name my outfit posts after the colors I'm wearing (which lately means a lot of my blog post titles include the word "mint") ...

For the last two weeks my etsy shop has been way (WAY) too quiet. Since I'm a full time etsy seller (and textbook worrywart) I decided that to keep my brain from spiraling into a deep dark pit of despair, I would tackle some of the little projects around the house that I haven't had time for before.

To begin with, I organized all of my records so it's easier for me to find what I'm looking for (I have so many Sinatra records that I organized by grouping my albums into "Frank" and "Not Frank") and finished up working on a little hallway supply closet. Then I installed a shelving unit under my bed to create even more organized storage! yay! I'm taking pictures later this week to show how neat it looks :) I'm waiting until later in the week because I'm also (drum roll) painting my bed! I've wanted to do this for about 4 years now and just never got around to it. I'm also painting my bedside table, too!

Tomorrow I'm going to tile the counter top in my bathroom (teenage Kate thought it would be a good idea to paint over the laminate counter and I've been trying to figure out a way to undo that damage ever since) and hopefully finish the mural I started in there in 2011! I'm kind of excited actually, even if I do keep anxiously checking the etsy app on my phone every few minutes...

dress- c/o modcloth | shirt and belt - f21 | tights - urban outfitters | shoes - asos

cadbury flake frozen hot chocolate

The other day I was really in the mood for a frozen hot chocolate (perfectly natural when it's 40' outside, right?) but also very impatient about melting the chocolate, waiting for it to cool... oh and going to the store to buy the chocolate to begin with. That's when I saw some cadbury flake bars sitting on the kitchen counter and the wheels in my head started turning!

We get flakes every year for Christmas from the local Irish import store. They're my absolute favorite candy bars in the entire universe. The chocolate is just SO much better than any other chocolate that exists. It's not just the texture (which is amazing) but the taste. It's very mild, sweet and perfect.  Anyway, long story short, I decided to make a lazy version of frozen hot chocolate using cadbury flakes.



You'll need: 3 flake bars, 2 tsp of powdered hot chocolate, 1 cup of skim milk (or you can use whole milk or soy milk, whatever floats your boat!) 1 tbsp of sugar, and about 1.5 cups of ice cubes.

In a blender combine the flakes, hot chocolate, sugar and skim milk until it's not lumpy anymore. The first time I made this I didn't blend it well enough and kept getting chocolate bits stuck in my straw. Then add the ice and blend it again. Pour it into a cup and drink up! Easy peasy! I know there are probably very specific reasons for most frozen hot chocolate recipes calling for melted chocolate instead of just throwing candy bars into your blender, but this turned out SO fantastic I really can't imagine that it would have been improved if I had waited to melt the chocolate first.

I think this would work amazing with pretty much any candy bar, actually! Imagine a frozen Twix hot chocolate, or a frozen Kit Kat hot chocolate!! The yummy possibilities are endless! :D If you really want to use flakes but aren't lucky enough to live in a country that sells them or near a store that imports them, they're also available on amazon here! :)

modcloth blogger of the moment! eep!

Do you know how hard it has been to keep this a secret?? ahh! To say that I'm beyond thrilled would be the understatement of the century. I mean, in these photos I am wearing a modcloth dress that is literally named after my blog. I am so honored to have such an incredibly pretty namesake dress! I have more than my fair share of lacy frocks and this one just puts the rest to shame. I'm not sure what I like better -- the sweet little embroidered flowers, the fact that this is totally swooshable (swooshable- adjective; meaning the skirt swooshes easily whilst dancing around your bedroom) or the fact that it is named after my blog (!!!!!)

You'll know that this is an exciting post for me just by the fact that I've included not one -- not two -- but SEVEN photos! I know, very unlike me... but I was pretty darn excited to be taking these pictures and couldn't resist including more than I usually do! :D





I love that it can easily be dressed up or dressed down, too! Of course my first inclination was to pair it with the most pretty pastel items in my wardrobe! Mint tights, shoes and a belt, a fuzzy peach cardigan and my sweet and lovely rainbow sweater clips! I have so many outfit ideas swirling around in my head though.. I already have a "three ways to wear it" post planned for next week!

If you buy the dress and wear it in an outfit post please send me a link! I'd love to see!! :)





Of course getting a dress named after my blog isn't the only perk to being Blogger of the Moment! I also got to do a fun interview over on the Modcloth blog! yay! You can find out my favorite way to eat a potato (seriously!), check out my 60's movie recommendations and see how I would style this dress with other Modcloth items for a "Trip to the Natural History Museum" over here!

It has been so surreal typing this post. I actually have goosebumps!

dress- c/o modcloth | cardigan and tights - h&m | shoes - c/o bait footwear

rainbow sweater clips - sweet and lovely | belt - asos