new year

as cliche as it sounds, the beginning of january is the most liberating time of year to me. i'm always ranting the daily, "my diet starts tomorrow", then ordering chinese or going to see my loves, mr. ben & mr. jerry (very nurturing fellows). but i'm bound & determined to make this year different. i want to become more active phsically as well as mentally. a friend told me to write down my resolutions so that i'll actually stick to them so, here they are...

1. shed the holiday weight by actually eating right & working out. i want abs this year!

2. taking better care of myself, i.e. less drinking, less processed food, more energy

3. being a more balanced person: friends, family, work, school, study abroad, internships, art

4. read more books & adopt a hobby of watching more classic, old movies.

5. cook more.

6. have more self-confidence.

7. dress with purpose & only buy things i really adore. style icons for the year, the olsen twins

8. explore athens a little more. i've been there three years & don't know it as intimately as i should.

9. watch less television. (gossip girl is exempt to this).

10. my most important resolution: LOVE. love myself, making sure my family & friends know i love them, loving each day. treating it more as a gift to others than just waiting for it to happen to me. everything comes full circle. have a little faith in the karma payment plan.

holidazzle

this year my christmas has been a little less traditional (but, SANTA comes tomorrow!) instead of watching a christmas story, i'm falling in love with 500 days of summer, blogging & looking back at the best celeb fashion for 2009. oh, & there are oatmeal raisin cookies :) not a bad night. these are some of my '09 favorites.

sienna miller in a bold mini.

LOVE vanessa hudgens' booties.

blake livley embracing her cold-shoulder.

wish i had either of these dresses for new year's!

summer daydreaming

savannah is rarely fazed by winter chills, being in the southeastern u.s. but, yesterday was a particularly gloomy day that put me in a particularly gloomy mood. i miss summer...

i crave the golden rays & that feeling of warm, gritty sand between my toes.

whether sailing or sitting, these boats always make me feel at home

sunsets are unbeatable & vitamin D is abundant. life is always seems better in the sun.

it's the holidays, folks

living in a downtown loft apartment makes it difficult to fit a christmas tree (and depressing). but the grand city of athens, ga, has been so kind as to oblige us with christmas lights strung all through the tree tops downtown. the weather has been bitter cold discouraging any kind of cute outfits that don't include fuzzy socks & oversize sweaters. my saturday was spent eating milk & cookies & watching lovely holiday movies. here are some of my favorites. grab a blanket & enjoy the spirit of christmas. love actually, even my macho guy friends love it.

harry potter & the sorcerer's stone: box set+bed=bliss

the wind chimes still give me chills.

the holiday, jude law...need i say more? great music.

home alone, the original. such a lovable kid. and a great score behind it.

everyday dress up

you know you've played dress up in you mom's closet at least once in your life...don't lie. i still do! this is a photo from my article in Little Red Book. if you never have, try exploring the dark corners of your mom & even your grandma's attics. So fun.

i found this floral stitched clutch & blue silk dress in my grandma's closet. apparently she had quite the fashionable past i never knew about.

the ring was my mom's. absolute favorite & i wear it everyday. her best friend of 20 years designed it for her with 8 diamonds that were once pairs of earings from 4 of her ex-boyfriends (she was a bit of a man-eater in her youth from what i hear!). a great reminder for me of loyalty & love between girlfriends :)

since i'm now in need of new (technically old, but i prefer "vintage") interior nick-nacks, i plan on rummaging through some more of my attic when i get home for christmas break. you never know what's inside some of those dusty boxes..

DONE :o)

this is me! in front of all of my drawings for my fall semester. literal sweat was poured into this class & i cannot believe it's over. bittersweet, but sweet all the same.

things i'll never forget...

"Pressure can do one of two things: break a pipe or make a diamond"

after breaking someone down, you have to be able to build them back up.

be happy in your work!