Trail Blazer

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I've always loved blazers, though I've yet to find the perfect one. I love how they can make even the most simple outfit looked pulled together and classy. I think that this outfit is a perfect example of that. It adds structure to the loose shirt, making it look more professional and work appropriate. Such an easy way to upgrade an outfit.

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Even when blazers are more loose and less structured, they just make an outfit look instantly cooler. While it still looks nice, it doesn't look like you're trying-- it's more effortless.

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I also like the idea of a blazer over a dress. Of course, it could be a fitted dress like this one, but I also like the idea of a structured blazer juxtaposed with a loose, flowy dress (look at me, using fancy words).

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Even if all you wear is a t-shirt and jeans, blazers just make everything look better.

I feel like this is definitely something I need in my wardrobe, since it would help me move a lot of my work clothes up a notch. I don't have a strict dress code by any means, but I'd still like to dress nicer.

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When I was in Barcelona, there were a ton of cute, affordable blazers, but I was really trying to limit my spending. Limiting it didn't work out to well, since I spent an embarrassing amount on clothes during October (which would be why I didn't even let myself go in stores in September). But, when it came down to it, I really did need to budget so that I could afford to eat and travel. And, after my initial foray into shopping, I really had to stick to a much stricter budget. 

So the hunt will continue once again, now that I have a little bit more wiggle room in my budget for non-necessities. 

Center of the Universe

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I take the bus to and from my internship everyday and my favorite thing about it is being able to see all of the shops and cafes all around the city that I wouldn't know about otherwise. I've lived near Seattle my entire life, but I know embarrassingly little about it (I blame it on not having a car), so I love being able to get to know areas outside of downtown.

Anyways, the bus drives straight through Fremont, one of the most unique neighborhoods in Seattle. I've been dreaming about getting an apartment here or Ballard, a neighboring area, within walking distance of everything. I've spent my entire life living near other houses, I want to live in a city with tons of places within walking distance. 

I just want a cute little apartment down the street from a quaint cafe that I can start my mornings in, with a cool restaurant to go to for dinner with friends on the weekend. Is that too much to ask?

Unfortunately, everyone else agrees that these neighborhoods rock, so rent isn't cheap (and really, rent isn't cheap anywhere in major cities), especially as a broke recent grad. But I'm hoping if I save up, maybe a small studio? 

Until then, I'll just keep staring out the window, making mental notes of everywhere I want to go. Hopefully I at least get up to explore the areas more one weekend (hopefully sooner rather than later).

Work It Out

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In honor of starting my new internship today, I decided to feature some lovely work-appropriate outfits. Of course, these are all far more suited for a more casual office. I'm lucky to be at an office that doesn't have a strict dress code, but if you work somewhere more formal, just keep in mind that these outfits probably won't be acceptable.

And maybe, in the case of this outfit, swap out the leather pants for black skinny jeans or slacks. They might be just a tad more office appropriate... Just a thought.

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With this outfit, I love how clean everything looks. I really think the white pants give the outfit a crispness that you just wouldn't get with anything else.

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Not everywhere will let you wear red pants, but I love the simplicity of this outfit. The colors are bold, yet professional. Though, if you have a more conservative office, this may be a case of swapping the pants for something in a more conservative hue.

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This is another case of me loving red pants. Honestly, most of the pants I was choosing between were some shade of red... I feel like this outfit would be perfect for wearing to work during summer though. A great way of showing a tiny bit of skin while still being very covered.

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I think this outfit is the outfit that would be most acceptable in a typical office out of all of these (with the exception of the first, assuming you swap the leather pants for something more professional). But even though the colors are muted, the outfit still incorporates personality through mixing fun prints.

Magical Monday

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It's official, I'm a college graduate! I know I've said this before, but it doesn't even feel real! I moved out of campus housing for the last time today, which was really bittersweet. It'll be odd adjusting to being at home again. Very different, since every other summer I've babysat my brother, but now I'll be busy with my new internship. I start tomorrow!

1. Graduating. You had to know this was going to be on the list. Graduating college is something I've worked for my entire life, and now I can say that I've done it. And I now officially have an alumni sweatshirt-- pretty legit, if I say so myself.

2. Family. My family (biological and otherwise) all came to my graduation, and then to my celebration afterwards, and it was so nice having them all in one place to celebrate. It means the world knowing that so many people are happy for me and proud of me.

3. Not being totally weak. When I was packing up the last of my stuff, I managed to take the bookshelf off of my dresser and flip my bed so that it was back in freshman formation all by myself, without breaking anything. I had to do both of those things with help in January, so I was feeling pretty legit.

4. My pets. I've been cuddling with my kitty and my doggy all afternoon. It's been wonderful. Also, my cat let me take a picture of her with a little mini graduation cap on. It's probably the greatest picture ever.

5. New beginnings. Now that I've graduated, a big portion of my life has come to an end. Now it's time to start a new phase, entering the working world, which is both exciting and terrifying. Wish me luck!

By now, I think most colleges have finished up with graduation, so congrats to all the other new grads! High school grads, too, that's a big accomplishment! 

With All My Heart

I graduate college today. It doesn't even feel real. I think I'm probably in denial or something. I still have a few hours before I have to leave though, so I've decided to give you one last outfit photo from my on-campus apartment.

When I move back home, I'm not sure how outfit photos are going to work out, especially since I'll be at my internship all day, but I will try my hardest to figure it out. That just means you may get a few more posts with other content in the meantime, while I get things figured out.

Anyways, this is the dress that I waxed poetic about. I definitely want to get it altered since it's a size or two too big and a little long, but I didn't have time before graduation. I am absolutely obsessed with the back, though. It's so pretty. Definitely makes up for the fact that they didn't actually have the dress in stock in my size. 

For the actual ceremony, I don't plan on wearing these shoes, because I can't walk in them well enough to subject myself to having to do that in front of everybody. I plan on just wearing my black flats from Target. However, I'm going to change into them in the car on the way home, since we're having a graduation party at my house afterwards. 

Dress: ASOS. Shoes: Charlotte Russe

I just can't even comprehend that I'm about to be done at my school forever. I've definitely had my ups and downs here, but it's been my home for the past 4 years and I've met so many great people here. It will be sad to say goodbye.

Secret Garden

Today, I had a few graduation-related things to go to. This morning was the ceremony where I got my cord and pin for my major, and then this afternoon as a garden party at the university president's house. I wore something extremely similar to this this morning, but for the garden party I changed into this dress. I mean, florals just scream garden party.

This was only my second time at the president's house. The last time was as a first-year, and it was raining, so I didn't actually get to explore the grounds, which was sad because they're gorgeous. It has both a pond and a little creek running through it.

It is so completely insane that tomorrow is graduation. After that, I am absolutely done with school (unless I decide to go to law school later on, though I think I've mostly moved past that). 

Tonight is my last night in my apartment on-campus, which seems surreal. I'm hoping that my roommate gets back from Seattle early enough that I can hang out with her a little bit. She's the only one really left in the apartment besides me, since  one checked out today and one is staying at a hotel with her family.

Yesterday I spent most of the day with one of my friends who's flying of to teach English in Korea, so I'm glad I got to steal her for a bit.

We took the long way to a mall and I showed her where I went to high school and the house I grew up in. I also got a cute dress at Target. After that we headed back to her apartment where we spent most of the night watching House Hunters International with another friend (who's also her roommate). I know, you're jealous. But seriously, it was super fun, so I'm glad we were able to work it out.

Cardigan: Stradivarius. Dress: Fred Meyer. Shoes: Target.

In other news, Bernie is still on the loose. But he may have a sticky trap stuck to him somehow? One has gone M.I.A. and none of my roommate's has touched that trap. That mouse is insane. 

Girl Crush: Alexis Bledel

I thought Alexis Bledel would be a nice feature since I graduate this week (!), and when I was looking through my list of people to feature, and I saw her name and instantly thought of Rory's graduation from Yale.  

Unlike most people, my first introduction to Alexis Bledel wasn't Gilmore Girls, but Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants. I was a bit of latecomer to Gilmore Girls, since I didn't start watching the reruns on ABC Family until probably 8th grade. I didn't start watching the new episodes until 9th grade, until the show was almost over.

While I liked Alexis in Sisterhood of the Travel Pants, I absolutely adored her in Gilmore Girls. She's so smart and witty, and just the kind of person that you want to be around. And I feel like that's not just her character. I feel like Rory Gilmore wouldn't be possible if they had used anyone but Alexis. Not to mention that she seems like such a sweetheart. 

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And, fun fact, but did you know that she speaks Spanish fluently? Her parents spoke Spanish at home, so she didn't learn English until she began school. Smart, talented, and pretty. I mean, what more can you ask for?

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Also, this last photo clearly isn't from the same photoshoot as the rest of them, but it's my all-time favorite picture of Alexis, so I had to include it.

Alexis, can we please be friends?

The first four photos are from a photoshoot with Lorenzo Agius. The last photo is from Glamour.

Sorry again this post didn't go up yesterday, but I was absolutely exhausted.

Visitor

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I am absolutely exhausted, so instead of the new Girl Crush post (which you'll get tomorrow), I'm going to tell you about last night, since it was rather eventful, to say the least. 

My capstone was due today, so naturally, I was up late finishing it last night. I discovered a couple of days ago that I work well in the living room, so I was chilling on the couch working on my digital portfolio when I saw something move out of the corner of my eye. I looked up and there was a mouse. I gasped in surprise and it ran back into hiding. 

I didn't really know what to do, so I texted my roommate to have her come out and texted another one to let her know. Finally we decided to call out community assistant, and she called Campus Safety and the resident director letting them know about the mouse. 

We kind of looked for it, though we were afraid to find it. I was beginning to wonder if I had been seeing things, because have been getting a lot less sleep than normal due to finals, when we saw other signs of it. And then we saw it run across the kitchen floor. Naturally, we all screamed and ran the other way. This woke up our other roommate, so we updated her. We've pretty much been locked in our rooms with towels shoved under the doors ever since.

Though apparently that won't do us any good. Did you know that mice can fit into an opening the size of a dime? Because I didn't. And knowing makes me feel a whole lot less safe in my room with the mouse on the lose.

His name is Bernie, by the way.

The tigers has nothing to do with this post. I just really love tigers. And this picture is adorable. But, I mean, they're basically just big cats, and cats catch mice, so if I had a pet tiger, this wouldn't be a problem.

Also, Pest Control came and they have set up traps around the apartment.

Look Good, Feel Good

I'm a firm believer in dressing nicely whenever I have a test. That means during finals week, I like to dress up a little on the days when I have my tests. Since I had both in-class finals today, that meant it was time to break this dress out.

Not that I only wear if for nicer things. I kind of wear it all the time-- it's one of my favorite dresses. I love the color and I think it looks good on me, and of course, I like the back. I know you're all shocked. 

I got really lucky because when I saw it on the rack at Forever 21, it was the only one they had. I didn't think it would fit, because it was a size smaller than I normally wore there, but my mom made me try it on. Naturally, it fit perfectly. I guess mom really does know best.

I feel like I have that same story for a lot of my clothes. "Oh, I fell in love, but they didn't have my size, so I tried this one on and it fit perfectly." Either I'm really lucky, or I really don't know what size I am. I think it the past it was more luck, but honestly, right now I have no clue what size I am in anything. Not that I can really complain, because I'm so happy I'm not my old size.

Dress: Forever 21. Tights: Fashion Bug. Shoes: Shop in Barcelona, Spain

In other news, these tights are finally dying and it makes me sad. I got a hole in them awhile ago, but it wasn't too noticeable. But now a run has developed from the hole, and it's only going to get bigger. Guess I should probably get some new black tights soon...

The lighting was crazy on this pictures. I don't know what was up with my camera. This is the first time I've ever had to darken an image, and they're still on the bright side.

Magical Monday

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I didn't have class today, so it doesn't really feel like a Monday to me, but I guess finals week will do that to you. I've spent most of the day finishing a paper that's due tomorrow and making a study guide, since my only two finals are tomorrow.

The list:

1. Being productive. This morning I got up about 8 (an hour before my alarm!), which was surprising since I had gone to bed a little later than normal because I was working on my history paper. I ran 2 miles and then spent most of the day finishing my paper. And then I made a nice study guide for my history final. I'm now taking a quick blogging break before going over my notes and guide. I was really proud of myself, because normally it takes a lot more effort for me to stay on-task.

2. 100%. My partner and I got 100% on our presentation portion of our project, which is super exciting. Now we just need to do well on the written portion!

3. Good partners. Going along the same lines, having a good partner. Group work is something a lot of people dread. But I think it really depends on who you're with. My partner and I are always on the same page, which is great. And my other group project is working out well this semester too.

4. Donuts. I've probably said this before, but I love donuts. Yesterday, my friends and I went to our favorite donut place near campus one last time.

5. Mental health breaks. They're key to ensuring that I don't go insane when spending all day working on homework. And it sounds so much nicer to say that than to say "going on Pinterest" or something like that. But really, they're necessary to let your mind relax a little bit, so that you can get new ideas flowing.

I'm really good at justifying procrastination. Don't worry, I always get everything with plenty of time left.

Also, I love how you can tell it's finals week because these are pretty much all about school.

Fire in Your Skin

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I love this quote. I think it's excellent advice, no matter what you're talking about. Right now, for me, it's doing finishing up my final projects and studying for me final. I need to focus all of my energy on them, giving them all of my attention, so that I can do as good as possible on them. And then, come graduation, that same focus will go to my internship.

It really doesn't matter what you're doing, as long as you do it passionately. Give it you're all. It's kind of the same idea as "go big or go home." If you're not giving everything 100%, why are you even bothering? I mean, obviously, we can't all do what we want all the time. I'd rather not write some papers. But I chose my classes and I chose to continue my education, so I want to finish it with a bang. 

When it is something that you choose to do, I think you should absolutely do it with passion. If you find yourself getting off track, let that fire ignite you from within. You should do things you want so badly they make you feel alive. So do it as if there was a fire in your skin. Don't halfheartedly do anything. Choose to do that which ignites the fire within, and don't stop until you have given it everything you have.

I don't know if this makes any sense. I blame it on finals.

This print is by Lisa Barbero. It was sold awhile ago, but this is the artist's shop, if you're interested in what she currently has for sale.

Love Letter: TOMS

Dear TOMS,

When I first got you, I wasn't sure if you'd live up to the hype. Everyone was wearing you, and they were all obsessed with how great you were. I had heard how comfortable you were, and I was in the market for shoes that wouldn't hurt my feet when walking around a lot. 

Even though you cost a little more than I like to spend on shoes, I decided to give you a chance. After all, it's a good cause. I resisted the temptation to buy children's sizes just to save a few dollars and went for the real, adult sizes. When I tried you on in stores, I was still skeptical. A friend warned me you ran small, but I wasn't sure how small. When I asked, she said hers went from uncomfortably tight to perfect. So I bought you uncomfortably tight. She was right. It took a few days of wearing you, but you were perfect. 

You have been a lot of places with me. You were there when I boarded a plane for my first international flight (solo, no less) to a continent I'd always dreamed of. You were there when I explored the streets of my new home, and when I got to know the city. I went hard in those first few days of sightseeing, walking for hours, and you held up well. And again, when I tried to cram as much as possible into my last few days before I left, you were there for me.

Now I've been home for a few months now, and you're still my go-to shoes. You've been through good days and bad, rainy days and sunny skies. You've suffered cobblestone and sand, and more rain than you're really meant for. You're definitely showing a little wear, but it's something to be proud of, a badge of honor for all you have been through with me.

I love you, TOMS. I wish I had more shoes like you.

Love, 

Stefani

Brighten Up

I feel so on top of it-- four outfit posts in one week! Guess I gotta get them in before I send all my clothes home, since my mom wants to get most of my stuff moved out this weekend instead of waiting until graduation weekend.

Sometimes I make crazy faces.

Speaking of, today I had my last class presentation and the last class of my undergrad career. Um, when did this happen? I swear I was just a first-year, and now graduation is just over a week away. I still have so much to do! I liked it though, because my last class ended with a little story time. I thought it was a nice, symbolic, "I've really come full-circle" moment.

Anyways, the presentation was on a study abroad manual we're making for our intercultural communication class. My partner and I are making it for Barcelona, Spain, so we decided to coordinate our outfits with the colors of la senyera, the Catalan flag. I wore yellow, she wore red.

Cardigan: Stradivarius. Dress: Wet Seal. Belt: Kohl's (Came With a Shirt). Shoes: Target.

I think the presentation went well. Now all we have to do is type everything up and format it. And then I need to tackle my huge to-do list... But first, I have to figure out what to wear for the next week and start packing. It's definitely going to be a busy weekend.

Birds of a Feather

This outfit incorporates two of my favorite things: colored skinny jeans and fun backs. Sounds like a win-win to me. 

I can seriously be so predictable in what I like. All it takes is an afternoon of shopping with me to know exactly what I like. I mean, obviously I don't stick exactly to that, but I'm always definitely drawn to similar things over and over again (open backs, sparkles, stripes...)

Lately I've been window shopping a lot and making very, very long wishlists. It's going to be so hard to restrain myself once I have some money again. I'm hoping that my "I'm too cheap to buy anything" tendencies come back, but they didn't work so well when I was in Barcelona, so I don't know about that...

Shirt: Walmart. Jeans: Stradivarius. Shoes: TOMS.

I'm hoping that the face I won't physically be in stores as much as I was in Barcelona will help. But it will be nice to inject some new clothes into my wardrobe. With the exception of when I was in Spain, I hadn't really bought clothes in a year or so because I was trying to save money, so my only additions where the things my mom bought me.

I wish clothes were free. That would make my life so much easier. Though I think my closet would probably be just a tad out waaayyyy of control.

Make It Rain

 ... cats and dogs, that is. 

I posted awhile back about my mom looking at the store by her office for the shirt that I wanted, but they didn't have my size. They didn't have it at the one by her office either, but she bought me this dress instead. I find it funny, since the shirt she was looking for originally had a cat print. So naturally, she bought the dog dress.

I decided to wear it today in honor of some very good news! I kind of alluded to applying for jobs and internships here, but I ended up only applying to one. I had an interview last week, and then a follow-up call from somebody else in the department yesterday. She said I hadn't gotten the internship that I originally applied for, but that she was looking for an intern as well, so she told me about it and asked if that it was something that I would be interested in. It was, of course. 

She called me this morning offering it to me. I'm really excited about it! I think it sounds like an amazing company, and what I would be working on sounds really interesting. I think it's going to end up being a really great experience!

I promise that story was relevant. The company deals with dogs and cats, so this dress is the perfect dress to wear in celebration of getting the internship. See, it was totally a relevant story.

I'm also wearing socks with cats on them.

In other news, I'm still super busy with projects and essays galore. I think I did well on my final yesterday, though I was the second one done, which always makes me a bit nervous. Then today I have a meeting where we need to work on a big presentation that I have on Friday. Thankfully, he doesn't expect us to have the project fully completed by then as well, since part of the reason we have the presentation is to give us feedback while we still have time to adjust it.

Dress: Fred Meyer. Shoes: Shop in Barcelona, Spain.

Sorry I don't have much more exciting stuff to talk about. The life of a college senior, eh? It's super exciting.

I promise it actually is exciting, when not worrying about finals and whatnot.

I don't want to get too specific about what the company does, because this is the internet, and I value my safety.

Also, I'm proud of myself for getting this posted before class, instead of at 11 at night or whenever I normally end up posting.