A Little Birthday Wishlist

At the end of this week (or depending how you count it, the beginning of next week) I'll be 22. It's an odd birthday, the first of many non-milestones when marking another year gone by simply means noting your increasing age. This birthday is also odd because so much is changing. Next Tuesday I start my job in New York City. With my birthday Sunday and my job on Tuesday (not to mention having to be in the city to get all my forms filled out on Monday) everything is a bit overwhelming.

No matter how overwhelmed I am, though, I still have time to think about my birthday wishlist. My ultimate wishlist item is that our apartment application will be approved and I'll know where I'll (eventually) be living. Apart from that though, I'm hoping for some little things to decorate a surely teeny room in my future apartment. I know the big things will get taken care of one way or another, but here are the things I wish I could have to add some character - and color - to my future dwelling.

At the top of my list is this hot pink wire bunny. I've long been a fan of rabbits. My most beloved stuffed animal is a bunny I received at a young age and my room is full of little long-eared figures. This iteration though is a little more adult, but no less fun. In addition to brightening up my room, I'm pretty sure I could use it to store necklaces too.

Now that I'm almost 22, I should probably be over the Pottery Barn teen offerings, but some of them are just as stylish for adults as they are for angsty adolescents. This black and white chevron rug is one of those things (and these chairs are a close second). I'm all about protecting my feet from cold floors and this rug would be ideal - especially since I can't resist a chevron pattern. (Pottery Barn Kids has a chevron rug in even more colors too)

 I love the look of trunks and suitcases as storage pieces and with the amount of stuff that I squirrel away, storage is what I need. I wish I had the time to scout out vintage trunks, but sadly that kind of thing is not in the cards for me. So I'll just hope for these trunks from Z Gallerie. After all, new isn't a bad thing.

Finally, with an ideal decor scheme of black, white, lucite and bright, this electric blue nightstand/side table would be the perfect accent. Not only would it be a great perch for the bunny (or, say, an alarm clock) but the open space underneath makes it perfect for stacking magazines and books.

Style Inspired by: Lana Del Rey

I'm not a big fan of her music (or a fan at all, really. It's just not my thing.) but I do find myself, now and again, admiring Lana Del Rey's style. To me it's a perfect mix of crop tops and varsity jackets, flower crowns and Converse shoes. With a warm, sunny day and nowhere to go, I decided to let Ms. Del Rey inspire my style for the day. I dug through my closet for the elements I like most about her style (the aforementioned items, all of which I own - details at the bottom) for an outfit that I think looked pretty good - even if I don't have the long, flowing hair (especially now since I got a haircut this week) or full lips of the "gangster Nancy Sinatra" (my favorite oft-repeated line about the singer). Just call me Hanna Del Rey.

Flower Crown: Topshop / Jacket: Members Only / Top: Urban Outfitters / Shorts: Gap (cut off by me) / Shoes: Converse

The Striped Shirt Search

Clockwise from top left: Saint James / Chance / Chinti and Parker / Joseph

One of the essentials on my shopping list right now is a boat neck striped three-quarter or long-sleeve shirt. I'm a sucker for stripes - on sweaters, dresses, blazers... - and my old top of that description recently got the old heave-ho while I was organizing my closet (you can only keep something with holes and stains around for so long). So now I'm on the hunt. Because I wore my old shirt all the time - it was a go-to for lazy weekend days and busy school days alike - I'm willing to put a little bit more money in to make sure it lasts a little longer. I'm looking for something classic: navy (or just blue) and white that will pair with just about everything I own. The shirts above range in price from $68 to $195 and I'm hoping for something at the lower end to middle of that spectrum. Any suggestions?

Closet Case: An almost organized wardrobe

A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about embarking on a journey to organize my closet. At that point I had boxes that needed to be unpacked and the difficult task of combining my college closet and my home closet. Thankfully, after a lot of unpacking, some purging, a trip to Ikea and a couple trips to the Container Store I've gotten a (better) handle on my clothing. My closet is still a little overstuffed; even with the thinner hangers I'm having trouble fitting everything in. But I've given everything space to hang freely - no more dresses scrunched up at the bottom - and in the process prioritized some of my clothing (and sent some off to the Salvation Army). While I'm excited about the closet, though, what I like most is what I did outside the closet. An Ikea bookshelf is now shoe storage, putting all most of my heels on display in a way such that they're not squished and the open shelves give me space to add a few other things to live among the shoes. Of course, now that everything is (almost) organized I'm getting ready to pack up again and move, but for now I'm enjoying it.

Warm weather must-haves

We're on the receiving end of a weird little warm front this week on the east coast, meaning that we seem to have foregone spring for a quick taste of summer. With the temperature hovering in the mid-80s and the sun shining as brightly as April will allow, my mind has turned to warmer weather and the upcoming summer months. I'm thinking about summer, shopping and three other 'S' words: sunglasses, shorts and sandals. I'm desperately seeking: a pair of sunnies to get me through this summer and beyond, some fun patterned shorts to brighten up my weekend wear and a pair of sandals stylish enough for work but sandal-y (that's totally a word) to be worn running errands or visiting the beach.

Sunglasses: Marc by Marc Jacobs / Rebecca Minkoff
Shorts: Lilly Pulitzer / J.Crew
Sandals: Carvela / Jack Rogers

Post-Grad Malaise

I haven't posted in a couple days. On Tuesday, I was hit with some major post-grad malaise. I've been at home for almost a month and I was debating the merits of taking an internship here (and living at home for the summer) or taking my chances with the job market in New York. As you might know, I had an interview in March before I graduated, but I hadn't heard very much news on that front. I applied for and received an offer for an internship in D.C., I interviewed for an internship in New York and I spent countless hours scouring MediaBistro and Ed2010 for more things to apply for. I was stressed out from the job search and ensuing uncertainty in my life and I had a bit of a breakdown.

As much as I love my parents (who are the best parents in the world, by the way) I couldn't imagine myself living at home until August. Ever since I spent last spring and summer interning in New York, I've been determined to get back there as soon as possible. All I want is a journalism job in New York City - my dream. I felt like taking an internship in D.C. (at a great magazine, don't get me wrong) would set me back on my path and I was scared that I'd get stuck - that things would get moving here and New York would slowly slip away (metaphorically, that is). After about a half hour of ugly-crying to my mom at the kitchen table on Wednesday night, I knew I had to take a day to clear my head. So I stayed pretty quiet yesterday so that I could think (and put together bookshelves).

Luckily, my story has a happy ending. Today I got an offer for the job I interviewed for in March and I'm over the moon about it. In the next few weeks I'll be moving to New York and starting my new job (I'll let you know what it is in due time) and new post-grad life. I'm excited, I'm scared and I'll be glad to live up to this blog's name and take it from the suburbs to the city.

Black, white, lucite and bright

As I clean my closet and room at home, I find myself daydreaming about my future living space. The (tentative) plan is that I'll move to New York by this summer but I'm already planning out my decor scheme in my head. My room at home is black, white and red and while I still love the color combo, it's a little limiting in terms of the other items in my room (my bright blue jewelery case doesn't quite match my red dresser, for example). I still love black and white (plus keeping the scheme partly the same means easy transfer of items from home) but instead of red accents, I'm thinking about using bright colors and perhaps some touches of acrylic/lucite furniture and gold for a more cheerful-yet-sophisticated look. I've been collecting inspiration from Pinterest and Tumblr, as well as design and decor blogs I follow and here are some of my very favorites.
 

{Images via: 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 }

On Journalists and Bloggers

Warning: long post!

If you're anything like me, you follow fashion blogs and news almost religiously. Recently there's been a bit of controversy about a Texas Monthly article written by Jason Sheeler about Sea of Shoes' Jane Aldridge. The article, the commentary on the article, and the ensuing he said she said they said brought up some thoughts that I decided to share.

As a journalist who blogs (yes, I think of myself as a journalist even though I’m not currently employed and I don’t really think of myself as a blogger, merely someone who blogs) and follows both traditional media – the magazines that threaten to bury in my room everyday – and new/social media – what fills my Google reader, Tumblr dashboard and Twitter feed on an hourly basis – I thought it was a fascinating insight into the interaction of the two worlds. Especially because it seems that it's being used to fuel the (what I believe to be fictitious) war between bloggers and journalists.

In a blog post response to the article and resulting commentary online, Aldridge calls a quote from the article (about her choice to not attend college) “blatantly made up,” even though she’s clearly made the decision not to go to college right now because she’s in a position where she’s already doing what she wants. If the facts behind the quote are true, somehow it doesn’t seem “blatantly” made up. In fact, it seems more likely that Aldridge said it in passing and doesn’t remember or even perhaps said it in a way that to her meant something different than it meant to Sheeler. In journalism school, they tell us that as fact-checkers we should never read back a direct quote to the person who said it, because invariably they’ll deny saying what they said (even if you have it on tape) or try to change their quote so that they sound better. I can’t help but think (and I’m not at all claiming to know anything at all) that this might be one of those cases. (And I really think that Texas Monthly is employing fact-checkers who probably vigorously verified this story. Magazines have had to cut back less than newspapers and with the audience demographics that Texas Monthly has, I doubt that changes in the economy affected them as much as other publications).

One thing that I think a lot of people don't understand about journalists is that there's really not that much incentive to lie. That’s not to say people don’t do it; there have certainly been more than enough stories of journalists embellishing or flat out making up facts in their articles because unfortunately the audience’s standards aren’t as high as those of J-school professors. In a case like this you have to think: What’s the motivation? At a place like Texas Monthly, their audience is, guess what? Texans. Whereas a site like Gawker might pay their authors partially based on how many clicks a story gets, at a magazine like Texas Monthly – where 91 percent of their audience is made up of subscribers – that’s very likely not the case. And since they’re not likely to get more readers from stirring up controversy (again, because so much of their business comes from subscribers and they’re specifically writing for a Texan audience) it seems like a pretty big risk – since a lot of writers who get caught fabricating quotes or fact get, you know, fired or at the very least called out in public – for what would be a flash in the pan in terms of readership. 

My spring must-have: Colorful pants

Last Friday I posted about my search for spring pants and in the past week, I've had some success.

Sweater: Forever 21 / Pants: Gap / Shoes: Milly for Sperry Top-Sider / Bracelets: Ettika, J.Crew and homemade

While these aren't denim (they're khakis, from the Gap) they fit my colorful pants needs. I'm a sucker for anything green so these pants immediately caught my eye. I paired them with this slightly over-sized sweater - another recent acquisition - and my Top-Siders (and my Kate Spade bow earrings and a pearl necklace) for a slightly preppy, super comfortable spring outfit. As much as I love them, the pants are a little long and I'm facing a conundrum: to hem or to keep cuffing. What do you think?

Quoted

I was going to do a real post today but then I got the May Glamour. Why did the magazine stop me in my tracks? Because I'm quoted in it! Sure, it's not anything important or intellectual, but it's always exciting to see my name in print (even if it's not a byline).

Obsession: Initials and Monograms

Recently I've worked myself into a sort of frenzy over monogrammed and initialed items (I blame all the preppy tumblrs I follow). The truth is that I can't help but love a little bit of personalization, something that says "This is mine, don't touch it" even better than staking claim by licking things - not that I've done that in the past 15 years. I think my real love of monograms and initials started with Tommy Hilfiger sweaters. Sure, the giant 'H' is supposed to stand for Hilfiger but I can just as easily pretend it stands for Hanna. Or Howard. The sweater I received for Christmas didn't quite quell my desire and now I'm seeking out even more lettered goodies. Here are some of my favorites:

 Clockwise from top left: Design Darling Acrylic Tray / Bauble Bar Medium Monogram Necklace / Tommy Hilfiger H Front Varsity Sweater / Iomoi Ice Bucket / Lands' End Extra Large Canvas Tote

I'm also quite taken with these monogram plates from Neiman Marcus:

If only I had endless resources and the space to throw summer dinner parties, these plates would be on my shopping list.

The New Workout Plan

Here's a not-so-secret secret: I am supremely lazy. I marathon watch shows on Netflix, glued to my little red armchair until my entire body is sore. But that doesn't make me get up and move. In college, I felt I could get by being lazy. After all, this year my apartment was a 10-15 minute walk from campus, so every time I went to class I was getting a little exercise (especially if I was running late). But now that I'm home and sedentary, I've made a commitment to myself that I'll start exercising again for real.

The only problem is that I hate exercising. I love team sports - I played field hockey from elementary school through 'til the end of high school and played lacrosse for about six years in there as well - but I hate exercising on my own. Even when I played sports I hated running and yoga is way too tranquil for me. But I have to do something, so for now I'm starting out back on the treadmill with some strength work added in.

To motivate myself in my treadmill endeavors I gave my workout a kick with a little new music. Because I'm about the lamest person out there, I'm not always updating my music library. I used to be on top of that in high school when I read Spin, but an editorial shift made me stop reading and my new music discovery suffered. So that's why my latest discovery came by way of a commercial.

Even though the new IE commercials in no way make me want to use Internet Explorer (do people still do that?) I was intrigued by the accompanying tune (titled "Too Close," above) to Google it and buy the CD. So the soundtrack to today's workout was Alex Clare's "The Lateness of the Hour." It's a little pop, a little electronic and sometimes it reminds me of slo-mo scenes in terrible action movies where a transformer transforms or something to that effect. So basically it's awesome when you're trying to push your legs to move just a little faster just a little longer.
 

Weekend DIY

I spent a fair amount of time trying to clean out my room this weekend, but when I wasn't sorting I spent a lot of time watching Crossing Jordan on Netflix (I love me a crime procedural). Of course as a person in 2012, I can't just sit and watch, I have to be doing something else. So, upon finding some chain that I had squirreled away - just like everything else in this room, I swear I save everything - plus some embroidery floss and some brightly colored yarn, I decided to do a little DIY. I've loved the mixed media chain and embroidery floss hybrid friendship bracelets since last spring when I saw them in the June issue of SELF. So I found a diy tutorial on Honestly...WTF, changed it up a little based on my own needs (smaller chain, safety pins for clasps) and got to weaving. I ended up with a bracelet and a necklace that I'm excited about (and I love that if I get tired of them I can switch the thread up).

{You can see how I wore them today on my Tumblr}

Places I've Brunched and Loved: Yolk

The first Sunday of every month I'll be taking a look at my favorite brunch spots.

Yolk was probably the first place I experienced the brunch line. I went with my friends one weekend morning during my sophomore year so that I could write a review for STITCH and we ended up in a 45+ minute wait. But it was well worth it. I could say it's because of the many menu offerings (the menu is seriously extensive and delicious) or the cheery blue and yellow interior or even because of the great service that kept my coffee cup from ever getting below half full. But really, my love for Yolk can be summed up in two words: bacon waffle. How can anyone resist a waffle with crisp bacon cooked in and topped with fluffy scrambled eggs? As a person with a complex about restaurant scrambled eggs (they're rarely ever fluffy enough and way too often they're cooked in a sheet and then cut up to make them look scrambled) and a deep love for bacon, it was a meal that was worth any wait. And many return trips.

{Image via Trip Advisor}