I beg of you not to look at me directly

Well, I think I caught something on vacation because I am super sick at the moment :\ I hate that day right before you're full-blown sick when you just KNOW what's coming. We went down the shore Friday night and the whole day I could feel it brewing, so I tried really hard to enjoy my last night of moderate wellness before all heck broke loose the next day. It's just a stubborn head cold but man, I still hate it.

It's been a while since I did a sick day outfit post (this is my all-time favorite) For a while I was thinking about doing a pajama outfit post every Sunday (hopefully I wouldn't be sick every Sunday, haha, just wearing pjs!) and I think I might finally follow through. Maybe combined with a revived slumber party sunday sort of thing? We'll see.

By the way, the title is a quote from Bones, does anyone else watch it? I'm so hooked! I plowed through six seasons pretty fast, but when my favorite character, Vincent Nigel-Murray, left the show (I'm not saying how, because spoilers) my interest waned a bit. I love him so much! I've been re-watching his episodes... he has so many good lines, a perfect British accent, his inflection and mannerisms are adorable, and he's just ridiculously cute.

pajama pants - old navy | sweatshirt - forever 21 

sealed with a kiss

I was watching The Walking Dead last night (no spoilers, promise!) and there were just so many things that crossed my mind while watching it:

- I really love tv. A lot. I just get SO much joy from my favorite tv shows, I wish they were physical objects that I could hug.

- Mad Men is coming back next month!! yay!!

- It's the final season of Mad Men!!! :( :( :(

- I'm SO good at suspension of disbelief. Last night I literally thought to myself that watching this show will come in handy if there ever actually IS a zombie apocalypse because I'll know that stabbing the zombies in the head will kill them. Like as if The Walking Dead has scientifically accurate zombie information or something.

- As much as I love The Walking Dead (and I really, really do) I think I like Talking Dead better. Do you watch it? I am obsessed with Chris Hardwick, for starters. *swoon* And it's just SO fun to hear different theories about the plot, see peeks behind the scenes and (depending on the guests) hear insight from the show-runners and actors.

- I think my dream job would be to do props on a tv set. I'm not going to pursue it because I don't want to live in New York or California and I think that would probably be necessary for that career but it just looks like the best job ever. In Talking Dead last night they showed this tunnel that they created out of wood and it looked exactly like an old deserted concrete train tunnel. I want to be the person who makes wood look like concrete and styrofoam look like rocks.

- Not a spoiler but if you're not super caught up maybe don't keep reading. Chris Hardwick said that the main guest next week after the season finale is going to be Andrew Lincoln. He's never been on the show before... do you think they might kill off Rick? I think it's possible. But I don't want it to happen. 

So those are my tv thoughts. Is anyone watching anything good? Right now the currently-on-air shows that I'm watching are The Walking Dead, Supernatural, Parks & Recreation and Hannibal (And then The Mindy Project and Mad Men when they come back.)

cardigan- c/o oasap | skirt - urban outfitters | shirt - asos | bag - c/o oasap

shoes - bait footwear | lip collar clips - sweet and lovely | wig - minty mix

I want to believe

Today is the 20th anniversary of the premiere of The X-Files! I'm having a little X-Files marathon/party tonight (there will be sunflower seeds aplenty) to celebrate and, as usual, trying to dress on theme. When I got dressed I was thinking "oh, green for aliens" but then I realized that's actually more of a generic interpretation of aliens, not X-Files specific.. so let's just say it represents alien blood instead. Which is green.

I was too young to watch The X-Files with my parents when it premiered, but they eventually started letting me join them when I was about 11. And I've been an X-Files super fan ever since! After it went off the air (in the days before internet streaming) I used to catch re-runs on cable and repeatedly watch my season 6 (my favorite!) dvd set over and over. I was so excited when Netflix finally put it on instant -- I think I've watched the series start-to-finish at least 10 times or more since. And I started my own little tradition of watching How the Ghosts Stole Christmas on Christmas Eve every year. It's the perfect way to start my holiday! :)

My favorite non-mythology episode, hands down, is Arcadia (Season 6.) Mulder and Scully pose as a married couple in a Stepford-esque planned community in order to figure out why residents keep disappearing without a trace. As someone who's not too keen on suburbia, that particular element to the story appeals to me, but I particularly love Mulder and Scully's witty banter while they're pretending to be husband and wife ("that's right, poopy head.") They have a lot of great back-and-forth in the series, but their dynamic in Arcadia is (in my opinion) the best.

I also love Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man (Season 4) which centers on the possible backstory of CSM. I've always had a bit of a soft spot for him -- his villain isn't as cut-and-dry as most usually are. Even if the events detailed in the episode are fictional, you're still left with the impression of a frustrated, slightly pathetic aspiring author-- hardly the sinister, shadowy figured he appeared to be.



If you haven't watched the show before, I (obviously!) highly recommend it. If you like Breaking Bad, try out the Season 6 (there I go again! It's so good though!) episode "Drive" which stars Bryan Cranston and was written by Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan, and see how you like it!

I know a lot of people who weren't immediately smitten and eventually warmed up to the show and grew to love it. I think it really all depends on which episode you see first. Some of the monster-of-the-week episodes can probably be off-putting if you've never seen the series before (like the one about the radioactive monster that lives in the New Jersey sewers or the early internet creeper who projects spider web vomit on his victims. ewww) and some of the mythology episodes can be really confusing if you weren't already familiar with the whole alien invasion backstory. I personally think it's best -- since the whole series is readily available on dvd, netflix, hulu plus, and amazon instant -- to just start from the beginning. The pilot episode was fantastic, and 20 years (to the day!) later, it definitely holds up. If I wasn't already hooked, the pilot would hook me for sure.

Happy Anniversary, X-Files!! :)

dress- c/o modcloth | shoes - modcloth | lady tie - flapper girl

scalloped collar blouse - asos | fox mulder brooch - my shop

DIY television cozy (my favorite project ever!)

Ever since I got my first tv when I was a teenager, I've had a hard time striking a balance between how much I love watching it when it's on and how much I hate seeing it when it's off. Unless you have a monochrome bachelor pad or enough money to make your tv disappear into a dresser, it's kind of difficult to fit these big dark behemoths into your decor.

It probably wasn't super safe, but I covered my first tv in faux concrete acrylic medium so it looked like a big slab of cement. For my last tv I covered the frame in vintage contact paper. Neither of those were perfect (and neither of them covered the screen, which still looked awful when it was turned off) but they definitely helped.



I recently upgraded to a pretty big television (42") and in my tiny pastel room, it just stuck out like a sore thumb. I finally came up with a way to hide it when it's not on, and I wish I had thought of this sooner! It was SO easy to whip this up, and it's equally easy to take it on and off of my tv. And I love it!!

I also spray painted the base light blue (Valspar satin "Encounter") and decided to hang one of my favorite Bette Davis photos from the top when its not in use. It's just on a skirt hanger, so it literally takes 2 seconds to hang it up or take it down and it's lightweight enough to not be doing any damage to my television. Just another simple way to make the tv blend into my room a little more ;)



To make your own tv cozy, first you have to measure your television. Make sure you get exact measurements so that the fabric will fit snug. Also, make sure you actually measure it, don't go by the size of your screen. The advertised screen size is measured diagonally, so my 42" screen is actually 38" across.

Next you want to measure your fabric. Draw out a rectangle that measures the width of the tv by the height of the tv. Then you want to add the depth + 1 inch to each side.



Hem the edges and then sew the corners to create a box. It's kind of like you're making a fitted sheet for your tv! If you're confused at all about what I mean just take a peek at your bed sheet lol :)

Now sew elastic right above the hem. You want to be stretching out the elastic while you're sewing so that it bunches the fabric. Once the elastic is in place, you're done! Just slip the cover over the front of the tv and you're all set.



I found that on my tv the fabric was sagging a tiny bit in the middle (not entirely sure if it's because I wasn't pulling the elastic tight enough while I was sewing or because my tv screen is so big) so I devised a little elastic suspender. I just threaded elastic through small alligator clips (I got mine on etsy) and knotted them tight. One clip at the top and bottom of the cozy helps keep it nice and snug on my tv screen!



When I showed my brother he said "you must be the only person on the planet who would buy a 42" HD television and want to HIDE it!" lol! I just can't stand the way modern tvs look, and don't think we should have to sacrifice the prettiness of our rooms at the altar of entertainment :)

Also, an added bonus to using a cozy -- it also functions as a dust cover! yay!

periwinkle and sea foam green

You can't see it here but I got a new giant television that's hanging out on my table just to the left of me. It's seriously massive and I have no idea where it's permanent home is going to be yet. I just suddenly felt like my little 19" screen wasn't big enough anymore for someone as obsessed with movies and television as I am. And let me tell you, at least for the moment, the fact that it's a humungous eye sore is being seriously outweighed by the fact that I can now look at Fox Mulder on a 42" screen ♥__♥

Also, I think this is one of my favorite outfits in a while. Hubble even hung around while I was taking pictures, giving his seal of approval. Or tail of approval..

blouse - c/o lalamagic | skirt - h&m | tights - target | sweater - forever 21

shoes - c/o bait footwear | tie - c/o flapper girl

the office wrap party - part 2

The first place we stopped when we got to Scranton was the Steamtown Mall. It's mentioned in The Office quite a few times but we were there for more practical reasons -- Kyle forgot to pack a shirt and tie in his suitcase. While we were there, though, we found the original Scranton welcome sign that's shown in the opening credits! I read somewhere that they had moved it off the highway and into the mall so it would be easier (and less dangerous) for tourists to take pictures with it!

We took a LOT of pictures in Scranton so it took me a while to narrow down which ones to share, and even then I still ended up with 40 for this post. Yikes! I decided to do one of those "read more after the jump!" things so my blog won't take 200 years to load :)

the office wrap party - part 1

This was the best weekend of my entire life. I know everyone is probably sick of all of my Office-related posts by now (at least if you don't watch the show you must be) but I just have to do a few more so please bear with me :) We got in late last night and I just woke up (and have a ton of things to do today, eek) so I'm going to keep this post short and share more pictures and details tomorrow!

How this particular photo came about is a VERY long story but basically on the last night of the event, the entire cast was tending bar downtown at the Backyard Ale House and me and my brother were behind the bar with them. YES. That happened. I still can't believe this is real life.. I keep looking at the pictures to make sure I didn't dream it all up!!

bears. beets. brooches.

There's a new brooch design over at sweet and lovely, and it's featuring America's favorite Assistant (to the) Regional Manager! ;D I drew this and had a sample made so that I could wear it to the Office Wrap Party this weekend, and when it came in the mail I just loved it SO much that I had to make more for Sweet and Lovely!

I also drew Michael Scott, Kevin, and Creed but I don't have pictures of the finished brooches yet -- they're coming soon though! If they go over well I might add more characters but for now I'm just sticking with my own favorites in case I end up having to keep all the brooches myself, lol! I also drew a Carl Sagan one, too! I'm probably getting a little carried away with the faces-as-wooden-brooches thing but I am just so smitten with this little Dwight, I can't help myself!

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