kiss slavery goodbye

Before you ask, yes it was absolutely freezing taking these photos.  Sometimes, you just gotta bite the bullet for outfit photos!  This is really more of an outfit to wear at an indoor party or on a date to a warm restaurant, but I had to get photos of it in daylight, which meant braving the chilly out of doors for a brief couple minutes.  I think my neighbors officially believe I'm a crazy person.  As soon as I got this top, though, I knew I wanted to style it with this maxi skirt, and it just didn't look the same with a cardigan on top.  Lately I've been craving crop tops, which doesn't make a lot of sense considering the current temperatures.  But since I have a pair of high waisted jeans now, and quite a few high waisted skirts, I feel like crop tops are more wearable in colder temps.  I'm actually wearing fleece lined leggings under the maxi skirt, and socks, so I wasn't as cold as I could've been.  
This necklace is from Favor the Brave, where I'm being featured today!  Jill is doing a 50 States of Brave feature where she picks one blogger to represent each state and asks them what they consider their bravest moment.  While I've thought quite a bit about the concept of bravery, I'd never sat down and contemplated what I felt was my bravest moment.  In all honesty I don't think I've experienced that moment quite yet.  I have a lot of life to life and a lot more events will happen in my life that will require much more courage than I've yet had to exert.  But, head over to Favor the Brave to see what I picked as my bravest moment to date!

top/courtesy of spotted moth :: necklace/courtesy of favor the brave :: skirt/thrifted shoes/courtesy of blowfish :: cape/courtesy of ruche :: lipstick/courtesy of radiant cosmetics
Have you guys heard of Radiant Cosmetics?  I met them when I was in Austin, TX for the TXSC conference last March when they were doing little mini-makeovers at the TXSC party.  They're pretty damn cool.  They give 20% of all sales to anti-human trafficking organizations and since January is Human Trafficking Awareness month, they've got a Kiss Slavery Goodbye campaign going on right now!  They sent over this fun, bright pink moisturizing lipstick (the shade is Daphne, if you were wondering) and I really love it.  I'm always a fan of companies that not only give back, but also make a great product as well.  I figure since I'm trying to purchase only ethically made clothing this year, supporting companies that are actively trying to stop human injustice goes hand in hand with that.

25 BEFORE 26 // a recap

Since I posted my new 26 before 27 goals, I wanted to do a little recap of how I did on my last goal list!  


1. Become a Homeowner // Huzzah!  Yup!  

2.  Have a regular fitness regimen //  Yup!  I did Insanity pretty consistently at the end of the year, and for most of the year I was climbing regularly.  Dan & I also went hiking and biked during the summer.

3. Watch classic horror films // I didn't do this one, but it was one of those I put on the list randomly because I couldn't think of enough goals, haha.

4. Start a Coffee Shop // While I have all the gear ready to go for this one, finding a location that a) I feel passionate about and b) finding a location that isn't already saturated with coffee shops, has proven difficult.  I'd still like to do it, but I'm waiting for the right time/space.

5. Do Vlogs/Webisodes // I didn't do very many, but I did do this!  I made a little video for my mascara tutorial in my make-up post.  I'd like to try making more this year, but I'm not making it an official goal

6. Sew Dresses // I sewed dress.  Singular.  But I also made a skirt... so that counts, right?

7. DIY Headboard // Nope.  Currently trying to figure out what kind of headboard I want for our new bedroom...

8. Paint my Dresser // Again, nope.  I had an idea in my head of what I wanted to do to it, but didn't do it.  Now we have new dressers, which I did stain, so that kind of counts, though I did that way after my birthday, so doesn't really count.

9.  Publish a book // No.  Although I did make a photo book for our wedding album.  Totally counts?  Not.

10. Make at least 2 new e-courses // I made one!  And I've had one in the works, basically finished, for months now, but just need to actually finish up the last couple details, auughh!

11. Learn more about espresso // I haven't learned more about espresso, but I've learned a bit more about alcohol, actually!  I've been helping Dan learn about different liqueurs, beers, drinks and such for his job and it's been fascinating!  The history and craftsmanship of alcohol is really amazing.

12. Take a photography class // I took Arrow & Apple's The Study of Light e-course.

13. Read more books // I read a few this year.  Not a ton, but I'm counting it.

14. Organize our house // Once we started looking for a house to buy I kind of gave up on this one for our old place, but it was pretty organized.  As good as it gets. 

15. Travel with Dan // We didn't travel a bunch.  Not out of the PNW at least.  Went on a fun trip on the Olympic peninsula for our anniversary, though!


16. Get a tattoo // nope

17. Cut my hair // Did it!  Of course, now I'm growing it out again, but whatever! 

18. Join a rock climbing gym w/ Dan // Totally did it. 

19. Create a photo book of our wedding photos // Done & done.  It turned out so great!

20. Learn how to make cocktails // Learning we are! We got a great book full of cocktail recipes and for a while we would get a different liquor every time and try out new recipes.  We're trying to build out our repertoire and bar currently.

21. Loft our bed... // nope.  but in the end it wasn't practical.


22. Get awesome albums on vinyl // we've got some, but not very many.  I'd like to continue this goal through this next year!


23. Host fun parties // we've had a few fun parties here at the tiny house.  Mostly we've had some great backyard barbecues! The inside of our old house wasn't that great for entertaining, but our new place is way better suited for having people over!  Our recent housewarming party was a blast!


24. Go on a Winne trip w/ Dan and go hiking // we've gone hiking but no Winne trip.  We're on a pretty tight budget right now, so taking out miss gas guzzler hasn't been on the priority list yet.  It'd still be fun to do an overnighter or something.  We did go hiking though!

25. Pay off debt // workin' on it!  We did pay off all of my credit card, but school loans are still in progress.

remix archives // lace top

When I first bought this top, it was at the end of summer when the days were hot and I planned on giving the sheer top trend a go.  I really liked the subtle sexiness of wearing a semi-sheer top and getting just the hint of a bra through the fabric.  Plus, it's a great solution for those hot days of summer when you want as much breeze touching your skin as possible while still being decently clothed.  Surprisingly, though, I've worn this top in all four seasons and it's an absolutely great layering piece.  One of my favorite ways to wear it is over a dress with a belt.  Such a simple outfit, but it can be repeated with a bunch of different dresses for totally different looks.  I like how lace can add a little touch of femininity and texture to an outfit.  
 

MY 26 BEFORE 27 LIST

I've had these goals mostly figured out for a while now, but I'm finally posting them!  Sometimes I think I make too many serious goals and not enough "fluff" goals, kind of over-stretching myself goal-wise.  But I know I can always adjust mid-year if things seem totally un-doable.  Last year I realized mid-year that a couple of my goals didn't make much sense, but I did end up completing almost all of my goals!  I'll post a recap of how I did on my 25 before 26 list on Sunday.   I've mentioned some of these goals in passing already, such as my ethical clothing goal, fitness habit goal, and my 52 week photography project.  I think what I really want is for some of these not just to be one year goals, but more lifestyle shifts, so that at the end of the year, it's just become part of my lifestyle.  I think a lot of these goals are health related because of that.  I really enjoy the way I feel when I'm active, eating well, and fit.  And even though I'm only in my mid-twenties, I know that establishing a healthy lifestyle now will ultimately help me in the long run.  I've heard a couple ladies around the blogosphere talking about getting fit in order to have their bodies ready to have another kid, and while I never thought of that as a reason to be in good shape, it totally makes sense!  Dan & I aren't planning on trying for kids for a few years, but it makes so much sense to have strong and healthy body going into a pregnancy, so that's another good reason to care for my body!  

A lot of my goals are related to photography, which I'd really like to focus on this year.  I already use my camera on a daily basis for the blog, but sometimes I get stuck in a rut and find that I'm definitely not pushing myself to improve.  One thing I really want to do this year is to branch out and take on photography clients who aren't me.  I have a much higher standard for my work when I'm taking photos for someone else, which I know improves my work, so I'd like to do that a lot more.  I really love doing food photography, and I've been doing a few portrait sessions in the past couple months, and I'd like to increase those kinds of shoots in the coming year.  I have a ton to learn, and I know that pushing myself to work for clients, rather than myself, will help with that.  

same old road

Lately I've been super uncreative with outfit photo locations.  This almost always happens this time of year, though, due to not really wanting to be outdoors for very long searching for pretty photo locations.  The sun still sets pretty early in the day, and usually by the time 3 o'clock rolls around I realize I'm about to lose my light and dash outside to grab some photos before it's too late.  I want to say I'll be more creative soon, but next week we're siding the house so the likelihood of me even putting on a photo-worthy outfit is slim, much less having the time to take photos.  Thankfully the weather has been amazing this last week and I'm praying it holds out while we're working outside on the house!  Yesterday we spent a few hours removing the old siding, which was surprisingly quick work, and quite therapeutic.  I wish there was always siding to rip off when I'm feeling stressed/PMSing.  I digress.
I should probably do some sort of 365 or 52 photography project but I've never been able to come up with one that strikes my fancy.  I take photos almost every day for my outfit posts, so I'm already taking photos frequently, which I think is one of the main points of a 365 project.  Perhaps I'll do something like a 52 week project doing one shoot a week which is more creative/introspective/conceptual.  Of course, I'd better decide soon, since I'm already two weeks behind.  Always so behind with this whole new year thing.  Which reminds me, I still haven't posted my 26 before 27 goals!  Soon!

dress/dear creatures courtesy of modcloth :: coat/courtesy of tulle :: boots/courtesy of blowfish top/courtesy of tailor & stylist :: gloves/courtesy of at&t :: necklace/courtesy of  poppy & fern
Yesterday I spray painted my desk legs gold, so my studio feels a bit fancier now.  Of course the piles of things still needing organization don't really make it feel fancy, but if I ignore that part.  My studio is going to be a bunk room for brothers/cousins soon, though, so I'm not too worried about getting it ship shape quite yet.  After hulking dudes vacate my space I will resume working on it.  I also put up a little pallet/hook wall in the bathroom.  I've never done anything with pallets, but holy cow.  They are heavy, and the wood is hard.  I was nailing it and I was like... am I doing this right?  I've nailed a lot of things before, so I figured it wasn't my nailing technique.  How come no one told me pallets suck?  But damn does that pallet wood look so perfectly rustic.  Even knowing how much they suck I want to do more pallet projects.  Maybe I'll just seek out some non-pallet, rustic looking wood I can reclaim.  I still need to hit up our local Habitat for Humanity Re-Store.  I used to LOVE the one in Spokane.  I would get tons of stuff there for art projects in college.  They have $1 doors, people.  Come on.