Breathing out, hoping to breathe in. I know nothing's wrong, but I'm not convinced.

Hello to you all and happy holidays!

Alex and I ended up getting a white Christmas... and then some. We were pounded with snow and while I was fortunate to have some time off the past few days, my poor darling ended up having to work to make up for the time lost on Christmas Day. Watching the snow fall steadily for two days, I was itching to get outside for a winter shoot. As Alex and I rarely have days off together, I wasn't sure that I was going to be able to capture this snowfall but luckily my shift today didn't start until later in the afternoon. After a quick coffee run, we headed just a few minutes west of our apartment complex to some hiking trails. There's a great view of the mountains and with the snowy white blanket all over, the sky has never been so blue. 

Today, I woke up and decided it was a good day to catch pneumonia. Okay, okay... not really– but I clearly dressed for a photo shoot and not for the weather. When I saw the snow, I knew that I wanted something white and something soft, so my first thought was a white dress. Unfortunately, I realized that the only white/ivory dresses I had were all mini/skater/babydoll and I was looking for something... different. While I didn't have anything specific in mind, I was definitely onto something.

 I grabbed one of the few ivory dresses I had and decided that I would use it as a canvas and then transform it somehow. As the holidays and upcoming bills/rent have sucked me dry of seemingly all my funds, I haven't been doing much shopping and so I'm trying to figure out how to make old things new. I was sifting through my closet when I came across this kimono I scooped last year and recalled how I repurposed a different kimono as a wrap shirt over the summer. I wanted to see if I could make a wrap dress out of this kimono, since it has a high-low maxi cut. I grabbed my favorite belt and threw on the ivory mini dress and sure enough, a wrap dress was born.

What I ended up liking most about it was the asymmetrical cuts at the bottom which were a result of wrapping the high-low detail. The extra layer, while it still isn't weather-appropriate, was definitely a warmer touch and it was an added bonus that the skull lace detailing gave the dress more texture. Because I went with my favorite brown belt, it only made sense to pair the look with my favorite brown boots. Then I just grabbed my grey hat to top it off – okay, I admit that pun was intended.

GET THE LOOK

Hat: H&M
Dress (underneath): Nasty Gal
Kimono (wrapped over dress): Ebay
Belt: Forever 21
Boots: 2020 Ave

Until next time, my loves...
XO

Garden of the Gods

Hello to you all!

I realize that I'm probably about the worst blogger ever but I swear I haven't forgotten about you. As the holidays are approaching, my work schedule has been rather... hectic. I haven't had any inspiration or energy to bang out any shoots. Aside from that, I've been rather disappointed in myself as I haven't been doing any writing in months. It's beginning to take a bit of a toll on me, I really do need to master the art of time management so that I can balance things I need to do and things I want to do. Right now I've been sacrificing a lot of the pleasures in my life trying to make sure presents are bought, bills are paid, and food is on the table. I've been picking up extra hours at work to get any extra cash I can, and it's ultimately taken priority over the things I enjoy. And that's sad, yeah, but I'm slowly but surely pulling myself out of this unenthusiastic rut, so bear with me. 

Alex and I don't often get days off together and the past week or so our "dates" have been errands or Christmas shopping trips, but since the past two days have been so beautiful and warm (60 degrees two weeks from Christmas... crazy!) we decided today would be a real treat. We took a trip just a little over an hour away to Colorado Springs to visit Garden of the Gods. We've been meaning to go since we got to Colorado, and with the weather being so tempting how could we resist? The rocks were just absolutely beautiful. It reminded me a little bit of Sedona, Arizona to see these gorgeous red rocks towering over me. Of course, I wasn't hiking around in this skirt. I'm proud to say that I've successfully mastered the fine art of changing in public, although it never gets any less awkward doing it. Aside from dodging families and little ones as I put this sequin maxi on/took it off again while bopping around different locations, it was a quick and easy shoot – I mean, with a backdrop like this it's pretty hard to get a bad photo. I do have to admit, though, we did get lost on our way back to the car... the crazy curved pathways had about a million different turns you could take, we spent around 40 minutes just trying to find the parking lot!

Get the look!

Top: Gypsum Style
Skirt: Missguided

This skirt was fate. I had just given up on my search of a sequin maxi when I came across this one on Missguided – and it was on sale! When it arrived in the mail, I was so anxious to try it on only to then find myself drowning in nine extra inches of silver sequins. Unfortunately for my tiny self, I ended up paying four times the initial price of the skirt just for alterations. Life is hard at only 5 feet...

Until next time, my darlings.
XO