all that glitters

I am literally so tired right now, I am incapable of doing anything. Anything. First of all, Natalie took me to yoga sculpt with her last night and I worked my butt off - when I woke up this morning at 5:30 am (the "second of all" of why I'm tired) I wasn't sore and foolishly thought I was fine! By midafternoon my abs hurt so much that I didn't want to hold myself upright anymore. Never. Again.

In the meantime, I didn't have time to take outfit photos but wanted to show you some of the pretty, glittery things in my life! Because really, who doesn't love shiny things?

New phone case for my new phone - it sheds glitter everywhere (which I'm hoping will stop soon?) but it's worth it, it's just so shiny.

My necklace for today! Just an old string of (I'm assuming fake) pearls, to which I added this Target ring I've had for a year or so - the elastic band makes it quite uncomfortable as a ring but, once again, it's oh-so-shiny. 

Do I sound like an obsessed child/weird bird-like thing yet? Mission accomplished. Now I can go to bed and make up for all the lost sleep (being home is quite fun but should really be more restful...). Have a lovely night!

moths

Well, I'm sorry to say that today's photos aren't my best. I know Nicole will take this as a personal offense to her photography, but... Still, I'm quite enjoying my insect- and animal-themed shirts from All Saints. Walked past the store today and a guy who was cleaning the front windows told me he liked my shirt... also, it was really difficult for me not to go in and browse. You're saving your money for NYC Alison, just remember that...

all saints spitalfields shirt

old navy skirt

minnetonka moccasins

coach bookbag

jewelry thrifted, gifted, from various travels (a.k.a I'm no help if you want to know where it's from)

 So besides the whole beginning-of-a-new-week-I'm-so-tired thing that inherently comes with Mondays, today was actually a pretty fun day! On Mondays and Wednesdays I have a break in classes from 12:15 - 6:15, so basically I have the whole afternoon to do whatever! Today I walked to this vintage/consignment store up on Wisconsin Avenue (just 10 minutes or so off campus), where I found some really cool stuff. Didn't buy anything, as I'm not shopping before New York, but if I was that Chloe cardigan would be mine no questions asked. Also probably the adorable quilted Brooks Brothers bag. Just saying.

This shoe picture up above is really awkward! It looks like my skirt doesn't exist on the right side... it does. In case you're wondering. And below, the classic "cover my face so that you can see my rings but not my weird facial expression" photo. Or as Nicole thought it was - the "I'm so distraught you didn't take good photos" photo. I mean really, I'm not that melodramatic yes I am. 

 

Oh, in addition to checking out vintage clothing today, I got a cupcake! A free cupcake to be exact. A German chocolate fudge free cupcake to be super exact. Yes, be jealous. And on that note, hope you all had a great start to your week :)

yay for giveaways *closed*

Ok, so here goes. My first giveaway! I have a random selection, not much, but it's my first so hopefully you'll enjoy it. And anyways, it's free, so why not?

The items are:

A fun little floral ring! It's plastic so really light and easy to wear, probably around a size 8? Like I actually know the size of my own fingers... To be honest, I don't know the brand, since I found it at a little boutique near my house. 

A vintage silk scarf! This one I found at a shop in Minneapolis, and I think it's quite fun - in reality, when all spread out like this, the pattern is quite ridiculous. But when you get all creative (you know, tie it around your head turban-style or perhaps in a fancy knot around your neck) the ridiculous pattern becomes a gorgeous mix of color!

Last but not least, a little satchel from Target, courtesy of my sister Natalie. She wanted to get a new purse for summer, bought it, then decided it wasn't her style, so she was going to give it to me. Until I came home with my black satchel, which looks quite similar. So I suggested that she give it to me anyways and that I would put it in my giveaway. That way, we can spread the satchel-love around to some lucky reader :)

So there you are! A ring, a scarf, and a satchel. Perfect accessories to finish out the summer and bring you into fall. Now, onto the most important (yet least fun I suppose) part: rules

1. Follow my blog on Google Friend Connect - look to your right. See that sidebar? Where it says follow this blog, click. Got it? Good. Apparently I'm making the assumption that you're all blog-illiterate, but better safe than sorry, right? Ok, onwards and upwards...

2. Follow my blog on Bloglovin - actually this step is optional. I just find bloglovin the  most convenient way to follow blogs and I want it to be as convenient as possible for you to visit me from now on!

3. Comment on this post: Comment with the name with which you followed me on Google Friend Connect and some sort of contact information (your email or blog address) so that I can find you if you win! *Note: to all my current followers, you need to comment on this post as well if you want to be entered. That way you show that you actually read my blog and pay attention to me every once and awhile :) *

4. Now you wait! And come back and visit me hopefully? I mean, you should probably check back at some point, so you can see if you win... we wouldn't want you to not get your prize!  I'll be picking the winner randomly from my followers (new and old) who commented on this post sometime in the next few weeks, before I go back to school.

Note #2: Also, please don't just follow me just for the giveaway then un-follow once it's done. I know, this is fairly self-explanatory - wouldn't be a very nice thing to do, would it? - I just wanted to ask nicely :)

And that's it! Get entering, and thank you all once again for your support! Good luck xoxo

my new stalker

I got my cousin Caitlin, who's visiting us from Iowa for the weekend, to take a few pictures for me (more like 50... sometimes it's just difficult to find something that's attractive). However she wasn't really warming to the idea - apparently she felt creepy following me around with a camera and snapping random pictures? 

old navy tank

thrifted belt

jcrew pants

h&m flats

various rings

We just wandered the neighborhood for a bit, getting eaten by mosquitoes and traipsing into the neighbor's yard (don't worry, I know them and babysit for their children all the time ^^). On another note, my poor black flats are falling into pieces! If you look closely at the picture below you can see at the toes where the black part of them is starting to fall off. Oh well, I guess that's what you get for buying $13 flats from H&M...

The large stick we found on the ground, a.k.a my "inspiration for the shoot" - I think Caitlin has a budding career in photography don't you? But actually, she did do a good job. If you read this (which you apparently only do when really bored...), thanks bud :)

So today was another lazy, jobless summer day! I got up, made myself an omelette (ham and cheese - I was going to add spinach and tomatoes, but the absence of spinach just made vegetables seem futile), went to pilates, read on the porch (Never Let Me Go, I would recommend it, both the  movie and the book, they're amazing), fell asleep on the porch which I would not recommend, it gives you a crick in your neck, and ate lunch. 

We just got home from Midnight in Paris, the newest Woody Allen movie -  I thought it was cute! I love Paris, and all the 1920's literary references were lots of fun. Natalie hated the ending and Caitlin hated, well, the entire thing, but I didn't think it was that bad. Not absolutely amazing but worth seeing once. And Marion wore some beautiful 20's dresses. So there.

Oh, and I went to the Rihanna concert last night! Colleen and I bought cheap nosebleed tickets then jammed out to the show and laughed at the drunk girls in front of us. Gotta say it was a pretty good time, definitely worth the $10. And that is all. 

P.S. I redid the layout to my blog. Do you like it? I just felt the need for a more stream-lined, clean look. I was up into the wee hours trying to make it just perfect, and now I really like it! Hope you do too :)