Ikat and White

Hey there, lovelies! PHEW. So, the reason I went a little MIA there is because I started having some major anxiety issues again. I was having some panic attacks and I really had to just take things easy until my doctor could see me. Fortunately he was able to fit me in, and we did a little tinkering with my dosage. So far so good. I think maybe it was triggered by my recent interest in exercising so much. Supposedly that can trigger panic attacks in people who have anxiety. To me that's a little ironic since I've always heard that excercise is sooo beneficial to your mental health. Not for me, haha! Now that my dosage has been upped I'm slowly starting to incorporate exercise back in.









So these photos are actually from a couple weeks ago, before all that unpleasantness. It's already too hot for long sleeves here, if you can believe it. But at the time, this breezy blouse was just the right amount of coverage and lightweight fabric for that bizarre in between weather. Also, I love that little cutout on the back, but I could NOT get that little flap of fabric on the inside to quit sticking up. I guess I'll put a little stitch in there to hold it down.







I know there's some rule about what part of the year you're "supposed" to wear white pants, but honestly I don't even know what it is. I am so disinterested in any kind of fashion "rules," it's ridiculous! I do what I want. ;)









Anywho, things are getting back to normal around here, so yay! Hope all of you are doing fabulously as well.

white skinnies, dots. ikat print top, old navy. earrings and necklace, thrifted. beige booties, makemechic.com.

Quilted Dress and Studded Flats

The sun is out! Hallelujah! I'm so excited that summer is just around the corner. I love warm weather SO much. I love wearing short shorts and rolling around in my car with the windows down.





This June is my grandma's 90th birthday. Can you believe it? She's a huge part of my life. She moved in with my parents about four years ago. But even when I was small I spent a few nights a week at her house. She is hilarious and plainspoken, sometimes painfully so, haha! Anyway, for her birthday we are driving up to my aunt's house in Maine to have a big party. Then from Maine we will be headed out west again for the second summer in a row!







I'm so excited that I actually have the freedom to travel now. I'd probably do it even more if I was able to financially. I guess that's life!







I don't know if you can tell from these photos, but this navy blue dress has an awesome quilted texture. It's a sturdy ponte knit and I'm so in love with it. I think wearing it over this chambray button down gives it a spunky little kick. These shoes were an amazing score from Gabe's, for $7. You can't really beat that!







What's summer going to look like for you guys? Any exciting plans?

quilted dress, ross. chambray button down, thrifted. burgundy studded flats, gabe's. jeweled necklace, wal-mart.

Grandpa Green and Pale Pink

Hey there, kids! I'm trying to grow out my pixie cut, and it is officially driving me CRAZY. And it's only been three months! I'm not sure I'm going to make it, haha! I'm heading out west again this Summer (yay!) and I'm dreading dealing with awkward hair in the blazing Nevada heat. But I've told myself I will trek on, at least until right before my trip, and see how far I can get. I don't want it to be super long again-- I'm thinking bob length.







Happily my husband's work seems to be giving him back some of his hours, so that's taken a ton of stress from the both of us. Things are still tight financially, but we're scraping by. Phew!







I found this sweater at a thrift store ages ago, and I've been waiting for the perfect temperature to wear it. It's pretty warm, but not warm enough for crazy freezing temps. Luckily the perfect day presented itself, and voila! Textured grandpa sweater was victorious.







I paired it with these pale pink skinnies that have a metallic gold fleck on them, but that really didn't come across in any of these photos. Shucks! You'll just have to take my word for it. I'm pretty pale so I'm always a little hesitant to reach for such a pastel color. But I think it works here, paired with the saturated green knit.







That's all for now! I'm still working on getting some finished embroidery pieces up for sale. Stay tuned! Follow me on tumblr or instagram if you are interested in seeing progress pictures. :)

textured sweater, thrifted. pale pink skinnies, target (old). wedge booties, kmart. peter pan necklace, f21. opal studs, antique shop.

Vintage Fur and Triangle Print

Now that I work from home, I hate Mondays a LOT less. In fact, I actually kind of enjoy them. It's the day when my spirit of "roll up them sleeves and get junk done" is at its strongest. I feel refreshed from the weekend, and just ready to go. It's great too, because I have been working on couch to 5k. (If you've never heard of this, it's basically a fitness program that helps beginners gradually learn to run.) It's so fun! I have to take it at a much slower pace-- I usually spend 3-4 weeks on one "week" of the program-- but it's been really challenging and fun to get my muscles going. I do my walking/jogging combo on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with a total rest day on Sunday. So by Monday I'm ready to get cracking on that, too!





In between couch to 5k training I've been doing some light at-home workouts and some beginner's yoga. I am NOT flexible so it's been pretty funny, haha. But it's getting better! I used to be very athletic as a younger teen and I had kind of forgotten how great it feels to rediscover the strength of your body. It might sound corny, but I just feel so powerful!







I never, ever thought I would be the kind of person that was "into" fitness, but I have to say that I've been enjoying it so much it's occupying my thoughts a lot more as of late. I've been pinning up a little storm!







I know I've been wearing this triangle print jacket a lot lately (sick of it yet?), but it's just so cute! I feel like it instantly peps up my outfit. For this look I decided to top it off with a vintage fur collar I found at a local thrift shop. I've never owned anything fur before-- it feels so opulent. Hence the photo where I'm doing my "Cruella de Vil/rich lady" laugh.





Anyway, I hope your week is off to a great start! Have any of you ever tried couch to 5k before? Or do you have other fitness expertise? I'd love to hear from you in the comments!

velvet dress and vintage fur collar, thrifted. triangle print jacket, f21+. earrings, target. red wedges, shoeocean.com.

Fancy Pineapple

WOW-- time got away from me there! Like I promised earlier, in an effort to be more transparent and open, I'm just going to tell you the truth. Things have been STRESSFUL. My husband's hours at work have been temporarily slashed, and since we live paycheck to paycheck, I have spent the last few months scrambling to rake in as much supplemental income as possible. Basically, it's felt like standing on the precipice of a cliff from morning 'til night. We're definitely not out of the woods now, but all I can do is have faith that God will carry us through this too.





I've started a few part-time work at home jobs to get a little more money coming in, but my first priority is still my SHOP! You may have noticed it's solely eBay based now. I found that's where I was doing the best, so I moved everything over there. Please check regularly, I'm constantly adding new things! As always I try to keep prices very reasonable and have a selection of larger plus sizes available whenever possible.





Pretty soon I'm also going to start selling some hand embroidered items via Etsy! Nothing has been stocked yet, but here is a link to my shop there if you want to keep checking back! If you follow me on tumblr or twitter, you'll have seen a few images of stuff that I'm working on. I definitely want to put some fat positive pieces in there, so if you're into it, keep your eyes peeled!





Also, I just have to slow down for a second and say this: I couldn't have made it this far without the help of my readers. YOU GUYS. You are amazing and I appreciate you all. Please know that every kind word reaches my heart and stays there. :)





These outfit pictures are actually from November-- eek! They have been sitting on my laptop that long. I know, for shame. But still. That fancy pineapple sweater is pretty amazing, right?





coral jeans, lys c/o kmart. fuzzy pineapple sweater, thrifted. floppy fedora and wedge booties, kmart.