The Repeat Vest

vest and shirt jcrew // pants gap // belt target // shoes lucky brand // purse l.a.m.b. // watch timex // rings forever 21 and mignon faget // bracelet jcrew // necklace the bay

I'm just soaking up the sunshine as much as possible down here in Texas. Don't worry it'll be back to the parkas and snow boots in a few weeks (tear tear). I probably wear this pink vest roughly 4 days a week proving the theory that (sometimes) it is okay to treat oneself to a "full priced" J Crew item (plus student discount of course since we all know I can't actually pay full price for anything ever). 

Happy boxing day to my Canadian comrades and happy day that is extremely similar to boxing day to everyone else! Will you be braving the mall for the spectacular sales or taking it easy? Me and my empty wallet will probably be taking the latter route ;) 

Last Minute Homemade Christmas

We're a little bit last minute in this household, not that there is anything wrong with that! The presents are just starting to pile up as of yesterday. My little sister has already reached inside the one gift bag under our tree  to discover what the texture of the gift inside is. She came into my room this morning and said "kels I just love pillows, they are so nice and soft" she certainly isn't very sneaky! 

Above is the embroidery thing-y that I made for my dad, it's a bit of an inside joke if you know him personally. My sister saw it and went "oooh can that be from me?" which is how I know he'll probably thoroughly enjoy it! 

If you're a last minute wrapper (like my mother cough cough) then you should try out these simple date stamp gift tags. I traced a store bought tag to shape my own from cardstock, added hole reinforcements and a piece of colorful washi tape and finished them off with a Christmas date stamp. 

I hope that you are having an amazing Christmas surrounded by loved ones and that you are blessed by all of the season's little joys and of course by the true reason for all of the celebration. I'll see you later in the week!

Homemade Christmas Part Two

Here are two of my little sisters gifts, a flower headband and mustache pillow. Not gonna lie, the pillow was a pain in the butt to shape correctly but after two tries I ended up with one that I am (somewhat) satisfied with. Now I've moved onto my an ironic cross stitch/ embroidery project for my dad and a tote bag for the little sis. And then I have until next Friday to finish up on Christina's epic pile of presents ;)

I must say that nothing beats sitting at my desk filled with every kind of craft imaginable, sipping a cup of earl grey and listening to Christmas music with my two little helpers underfoot! Definitely a nice  way to de-stress after the oh so traumatizing biochem exam. I also can't get enough of how friendly everyone becomes around the holiday season. The smiles and kindness are all kinds of contagious and I'm loving the amped up southern hospitality.

I hope that your last minute shopping slash crafting slash wrapping is going well and that you have a fantastic weekend!

Homemade Christmas Part One

Here's what my little fingers have been working on for the past few days! I made a warm scarf out of the easy peasy single crochet for my brother, and then a really chunky cowl for my mom out of the thickest warmest yarn ever in a double crochet stitch. I had never used that weight of yarn before and I am hooked (couldn't help the pun) because it works up so quickly.

Do you get in the knitting / crocheting mood when the temperatures cool off? I love how many (affordable) gifts I'm able to make for my friends and family, hooray for being thrifty ;)

No Snow Here!

I feel like I time traveled to mid October, but I am definitely not complaining about the temperatures being in the 70's and 80's for the first few days of my Christmas break. These were snapped in my backyard the other morning, and if you ask me I think that the southern sun has that white fluffy stuff beat! Do you prefer a white Christmas or to soak up some sunshine?

I've been crafting non stop since I finished up with exams, so far I have my brother's gift complete and am almost finished with my little sister. I'll be putting up a few pictures of the crochet madness soon :)

Hope your week is off to a fabulous start (can't believe it is already Wednesday yikes!) and that you're getting in the Christmas spirit wherever this December might have you!

"Look at This Instagram"

Not gonna lie this parody about instagram has been stuck in my head for the past few weeks. It is priceless and oh so accurate. I've been staying true to my pretty buildings obsession, don't think that one is going anywhere anytime soon! Up next: love/hate instagrams featuring me and the snow.

Easy Reads

one // two // bookshelf //smythson notebook 

I can't wait for a little bit of free time over the holidays to catch up on some books I've been meaning to read (like emma by jane austen and mindy kaling's is everyone hanging out without me) and to be completely honest I'll probably be catching up on my favorite blogs until my contacts dry up inside my eyelids. Here's a few things you should check out if you've got a few minutes kicking around:

1. This free downloadable ebook from NASA will rock your socks off. Literally. 
2. If you don't think that Huck is the cutest human ever then I'm not sure if we would get along in real life. 
3. The most amazing Christmas playlist from the lovely Kinsey. 
4. If I were a. even in a relationship in the first place b. married and c. expecting this is how I would want  my maternity photos to look. Gotta plan ahead people. But serious the most gorgeous photos I've seen in a while. See Sarah's blog here.
5. Best motivation ever. thank you to the lovely Christina for this one! 
6. Some new blogs to read and love: Rachel has the most amazing style and Sarah is so witty and she just posted a series of reading recommendations! 

Happy Friday! What are your plans for the weekend??

P.S. I'm free from my biochem nightmare at noon today and then the holiday festivities begin! Look out for some recipes, homemade gifts, thrifting adventures, diy decorations, and all around Christmas spirit next week :) 

Backtracking

I dug up some old treasures on a few 4 year old "compact discs" (so vintage!) the other day. These were taken on a trip to the Nottoway Plantation in Louisiana. It was so gorgeous in springtime and nothing beats finding photos you had forgotten existed! I am exited to see what other kinds of gems I can unearth while I'm at home for the holidays.

P.S. can you find me hiding in the first one? ;)

Holiday Kicks

1. asos heels
2. jcrew collection ballet flats
3. elizabeth and james booties
4. alice and olivia heels
5. target loafer
6. bcbgeneration wedge

One of the bonuses of the season is the ridiculous amount of opportunities to wear fancy shoes. For Christmas and New Years I plan on breaking out some of my most uncomfortable kicks to grant them their yearly 15 minutes of fame. My favorite pair of fancy shoes would probably be some black suede delman slingbacks I grabbed for 75% off at a boutique tent sale. You know you made a smart move when you are still in love with your purchase 4 years later!

So what will your feet be wearing to all of the December festivities? Do you prefer flats or do you break out the stilettos this time of year? 

Motivation for your Monday

This C.S. Lewis quote always picks me up when I'm feeling like procrastinating or giving up before I begin. Perfect during this next week of #deathbybiochem and #waitingforchristmastostartalready. Added to list of things I can't wait to do: impromptu trip to Louisiana to see my best fran, a special mission to find a vintage cape / capelet / poncho and dare I say it I might even create a twitter to further channel my inner sass on the internet. Its the little things y'all.

Wishing you a productive and stress free Monday :)

DIY Ideas

1. I love the thought of using unconventional things to wrap and decorate - this label tape is awesome. 
2. How cute is this tree made out of lights?? 
3. I like using shades other than red and green to decorate, these stockings are beautiful! I would probably leave out the monogram though. 
4. I like this simple tree, and it got me thinking about how cool it would be to search for vintage books to dig into for wrapping or card making. 

What projects are you up to so far? I'm counting down until next Saturday when I get to unleash my crafty cravings and Christmas spirit deep in the heart of Texas. Hobby Lobby employees get ready for me (and my coupons).

Happy December

A quick snapshot of our little happy december sign. We just punched holes in 4 by 6 notecards and attached   some printed letters (I used picmonkey for the font) and strung them through yarn. I want to jazz up this brick wall in our living room for the rest of the school year now. Not to mention I'm picturing some serious mean girls quote banners (you go glen coco anyone??).

On another note, I hope that your month is off to a wonderful start and that you're finding time to enjoy the little joys of the season. I feel incredibly blessed at this time of year and am trying to get creative as far as being grateful goes. It is amazing how influential attitude can be, especially with respect to the onslaught of "omg i have exams how inhumane" attitudes that many of us are battling these days.

I'm trying my very hardest to remember that getting a university education is a blessing and a privilege, definitely not something to complain about. Its amazing how little of an attitude adjustment it takes to make my studies and daily interactions both more productive and more positive. I hope to look back on these four years knowing that I soaked everything up that I could and that I didn't waste time complaining (although lets face it, I am a HUGE complainer by nature - owning it!).

What are you most grateful for during the holiday season? Do you get annoyed by people whining about school or do you tend to sympathize?

A Dash of Christmas Spirit

find me on instagram @kels_ea

Super lazy with the whole taking photos with a real camera thing lately. Here's a few instagrams of the little treat bags I made for a few of my friends for the last day of class! I'm so ready for a Texan Christmas complete with 80 degree (F) weather, little doggies, copious amounts of the nutcracker (my sister is performing in like 20 shows), my old pals lindt, hershey, and cadbury, a giant christmas stocking, snuggies, cheese logs (heaven in your mouth), and crafting until my hands fall off.

What are you looking forward to most this holiday season?

P.S. I made the treat bags above with pages from an old world atlas (a goodwill find)