vegan leather sounds so much more posh than pleather...

12.26.2013

I hope you all had the merriest of Christmases and spoiled yourselves silly with good food and even better company! We had a great day and look forward to another week of fun, as many of our family members are trickling in--New Years Eve is sort of big deal in my family and we're excited to have many of my out of town siblings coming to ring in the new year with us!

On another note, anyone else notice how the term "vegan leather" has slipped it's way into common fashion lingo--let's be real here, this is the same stuff a few years ago we were all making fun of with the term 'pleather'--same stuff, friends, same stuff. But who am I kidding, as you can see I jumped right on that bandwagon! 

That's all. Happy Boxing Day--feel free to tell me what that even means! :)
<<what i wore>>
hair//beach curl tutorial brushed out (see here)
bull necklace//c.o. stylelately (buy similar here)
geo batwing cardi//c.o. oasap (buy here on sale!)
white crop top//nastygal (buy similar here or here)
vegan leather skirt//sheinside (buy similar here)
leather clutch//vintage (buy similar here)
ankle strap heels//oasap (buy here)

Merry Christmas, Ya Filthy Animals!

12.25.2013

Here's a Christmas tip: buy a tiny tree, it makes your small amount of presents suddenly seem substantial :)

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

new eyes//free write

12.23.2013

I feel like lately I've fallen into the trap of negativity. I truly believe that just like optimism is contagious, negativity is equally so.

For the past several months I've been complaining about living here in Arizona--I was hating the weather and griping about how there were so many beautiful places to live--why in the world were we stuck in a place who's favorite color seemed to be brown and faded (very faded) green. Almost every weekend would come and go and the only thing we could find to do was eat and sit on our couch watching movies. We have yet to find friends to fill the spot of our Idaho besties and the lack of socialization was really getting to me.

I dreaded seeing co-workers or family members after a weekend because I knew they would ask something like, "How was your weekend, did you do anything fun?" and I would rack my brain trying to think of something, anything that was noteworthy, but always ended up replying something like, "It was fine--we went out to eat..." and then quickly changed the subject.

I constantly rolled my eyes at the dirt lots and chain-link fences that were the ever-present eyesores of the neighborhood--my eyes were yearning for scenes I had found in Europe--cobblestone roads, wild green grass and lush wisteria vines taking over thousand year old walls.

I was a grouch--and i was getting sick of myself.

Then a friend of a friend contacting me through Facebook and asked if I wanted to be part of his photography project. He and his wife had recently moved from Utah, a place surrounded my some the prettiest mountains in America to the desert of Arizona and he felt similarly to how I was feeling about the desolate landscape. The difference between he and I, was that he was working to love with his new home. He embarked on a project to find the good Arizona has to offer (it does have many good things) and capture the beauty--he wanted to fall in love with the wild desert.

I thought his idea was interesting, so I drove out to east Mesa and met him and his wife and we all drove out to the Superstition Mountains. As we got closer, I realized that I hadn't ever been right up to them--they're mountains I have seen my whole life, but had never taken the time to really experience them. My mouth was gaping open as we drove through the untouched desert, at peak time--the golden hour--those red rocks rocked my world. I was so happy to be right where I was.

The shoot was so beautiful--it was extremely quite and peaceful and there was a gentle, but crisp breeze. He shot film, so there as no peaking. We stayed out for a few hours and just as we were wrapping up, both he and his wife's eyes widened, I turned to see what was of such interest and right behind me over those gorgeous flat mountains, rose a bright silver dollar moon. I got the chills and my eyes welled up a little. It was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen.

I was suddenly so proud of my state. I had fallen back in love with it. Out there in the silence, I could feel that God loved me. He made beautiful things for us to look at, because He knew there were people like me, who needed to see them. That's when I know God is there the most--when I see His creations, unaltered by man.

Since that time, I've had the chance to drive out there again, this time by myself. It was just as magical and I felt just as loved.

I needed new eyes, and out there in that cool desert, I found them.
all photos by Pressing the Plane

simple sally + a few tunes

12.17.2013

It's a busy week--I'm working feverishly with my partner to plan an influencer's conference in Salt Lake as well as doing a ton of 'end of the year'/christmas planning for the position I volunteer in at church. I'm the secretary of the primary, so it's a lot of paper work (which is luckily something I actually sort of enjoy). It's weird, when I look at my to-do list, I should feel overwhelmed, but instead, I feel excited. I need to be busy to feel fulfilled, I guess. I busy week also makes me really appreciate my weekends, so wish me luck!
What do you do to stay motivated? 
I think my helper is good music! {Like this song or this one}
<<what i wore>>
boater hat//free people sale (buy similar here)
sunnies//oasap (buy here)
khaki green jacket//ann taylor (old) (buy similar here)
metal and lace sweater//c.o. pb&j boutique (buy it here)
sweater pencil skirt//c.o. persunmall (buy here)
watch//arvo
pink lips//magic lipcolor (buy it here)
ring//c.o. persunmall (buy here)
ankle strap heels//c.o. oasap (buy here or similar here)

red.

12.16.2013

I find it funny that every year around Christmas time I get this subconscious desire to dress in festive reds. Red is generally my 2nd most feared color (yellow being the first), but once December rolls around, I'm suddenly drawn to it. This coat was a gem of a find. It's a great color of red that doesn't make me feel like a tomato face. There really are few things worse than feeling like a tomato face, let me tell ya. Here's a look back at almost exactly two years ago when i was on my festive colors kick--also happen to be listening to that song earlier today...not much has changed in the last two years, i guess!

p.s. the movie I talked about on Friday was The Bewitching of Ben Wagner! 
<<what i wore>>
sunnies//c.o. oasap (buy here)
gold floral necklace//old forever21 (buy similar here)
pave stud earrings//target (buy similar here)
striped tee//nordstrom old (buy similar here)
red overcoat//c.o. persunmall (buy here)
distressed jeans//nordstroms (buy similar here)
boots//blowfish shoes (buy similar here)
Do you have a hard time with any specific colors? Why?

comfy casual

12.14.2013

We've been working on our back patio as of late. It's been a glorious transformation, since for the past year plus it's served mostly as a junk yard for old tools and construction scraps from our indoor projects. We still need to plant a lot of the treasures we've gathered, but just having them around makes me so happy! I can't hardly wait to get it all finished! If I had it my way, all we'd get for Christmas is all our little projects finished! (hint hint, marcus :))

Yay for productive Saturdays!
<<what i wore>>
baseball cap//j.crew on sale (buy here)
hair//my beach curl (tutorial here)
striped cardi//old urban outfitters (buy similar here)
merci tee//j.crew on sale (buy here)
jeans//old ross find (buy similar here)
booties//target (buy here)
magic lipcolor//ebay (buy similar here)

mad for plaid.

12.13.2013



It's Friday the 13th and you better believe I'll be taping into my inner witchy side. Have I ever mentioned that growing up (and even still) I really wanted to be a witch. Like the good kind, that know how to make potions that heal sores and make people sleep better and have happier thoughts. I think what I really want to be is an Apothecary...but witch doctor sounds so much more fun!

I grew up with this movie that I have no idea what it is now, but the main little girl was raised by a witch grandmother and she wore earrings with airplanes on them--ever since then I've dreamed of being her and ever since then I've been on a hunt for those earrings. I wish I could remember what the movie was. Does anyone know what I'm talking about?

Anyways, have a great day! Watch out for black cats and stuff...
<<what i wore>>
wool hat//c.o. oasap (buy it here)
plaid jacket//c.o. persunmall (buy it here)
black long sleeve tee//gap body (buy here)
high waisted skinnies//asos (buy them here)
geo earrings//gift from cleo & clementine (buy similar here)
moon necklace//gift from marcus via local artist (buy here)
black wedges//last chance (buy similar here)

November Highlights

12.11.2013


We had such a lovely November, so sorry for the photo drop, but I really think November is our busiest month of the year! Since both our families are from Mesa, we generally try and hit both houses for the Thanksgiving festivities. This year was extra special since Marcus' parents were leaving for their mission to London that very weekend. Every hour of our day from Wednesday-Saturday was planned and packed with family time. It was a lot of fun--the more time I spend with the Nielson's the more I realize how lucky I am to be in the family--I love them!

We also got to spend thanksgiving morning at my parent's house. I did my best to help my mom in the kitchen, she always takes on a lot of the responsibilities--not because other's don't offer, but I guess being a homemaker and mother of 8 turns you into a bit of a control freak when it comes to food!

Anyway--here are some glimpses into what our holiday weekend looked like!
Do you have any great traditions? I'm looking for something to get my excited about Christmas, we don't even have a tree up yet! I'm thinking I need to bake something to bring to our neighbors!
Football in the park with the Nielson boys
we have a lot of vegetarians in the family, so this was an exciting treat!
marcus and my nephew both showed up to lunch in blue gingham and green chinos!
little nieces
big nieces
my brother and his wife--she just found out she's having a girl after 3 boys! we're so excited!
my mama and i
my incredibly talented sister in law, Lizzy, decorated and it looked like it was straight out of a magazine!
i believe there were over 30 pies at the Nielson's. It was insanity, but a very delicious insanity--not like that crazy workout, not at all.
my newest niece--look at those lips!
we had our traditional Christmas Eve celebrations that weekend since Ma & Pa Nielson will be away for Christmas
Alice and Lizzy
saying goodbye for a year (hopefully we'll go see them in London before their mission is over!)
birthday dinner at one of my favorites, Republica Empanada--it was cold and rainy!
High-Low Dress//Asos (buy it here)
Floral Tights//old (buy similar here)
my baby, Poppy Reh!
cutest scorpio loafers! c/o choies sold out :(

© i believe in unicorns. Maira Gall.