Saving the Daylight

Get the look:

It's official, Daylight Savings is over and I don't get out of work until after the sun has set. I'm still figuring out how to take photos at dusk (and accepting the fact that I look weirdly yellow in all of my pictures), but I do love the city lights in the background. Also, my outfit has a mix of summer and fall elements, which feels fitting for this weird November transition.

Maybe I'm just being sentimental or nostalgic—or whatever you'd like to call it—but this time change really is a turning point for me. Having worked at the same office all summer, I've still been in a weird "summer" mode until now. Since LA doesn't have seasons (it's been 80 degrees all week...), the slight change in light has marked the new season for me. On top of that, I've been feeling much more settled and content with everything lately. It's a bit of a crazy time, but I feel less insane (mental stability—always a good thing) and more appreciative of the place I'm at in my life right now.

Feelings of true contentment and satisfaction are a lot harder to come by than I feel like most people talk about or would like to admit. If I'm going to get all metaphorical, I suppose you could say I'm just taking a moment to save (or savor) this daylight.

And...done :)

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Outfit Details:

Eyelet Tank—Madewell (similar)

Cardigan—H&M (similar)

Scarf—Urban Outfitters (shop)

Watch—GUESS (shop)

Jeans—GUESS (similar)

Sandals—Target (similar)

Mapping It Out

Get the look:

This striped dress is seriously my favorite because all it needs is a printed scarf and you've got an outfit. My roomie bought me this map scarf for my birthday, and I absolutely love it. My two favorite things in one: maps + scarves—clearly she knows me well. Anyways, I love comfy fall outfits like this even though, per usual, LA has yet to make up its mind about the seasons. After a chilly week, it was 90 degrees all weekend. So, naturally, I protested by wearing fall clothing anyways (note: this was a bad idea).

In other news, things are a little stressful over here and I'm just trying to keep my head above water. I would like to amend my previous statement of "when it rains, it pours" to "when it rains, it pours, and just when you put away your umbrella...it's monsoon season." Forgive me for sounding like an emo preteen, but these past few months have been a little too reminiscent of my middle school days hiding in my closet listening to angsty alt-rock. For right now, I'm just trying to take it day-by-day. And if nothing else, I will hopefully remember to wear semi-attractive clothes and then (maybe) blog about them. Good plan?

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Outfit Details:

Dress—Anthropologie (similar | remixed)

Map Scarf—Urban Outfitters (similar)

Necklace—flea market (similar)

Sunglasses—Ray-Ban (shop)

Watch—GUESS (shop)

Bag—Fossil (similar)

Flats—J. Crew (similar)

Around the World

My spring break is going to be filled with lots of errands. I've got three appointments I avoided making all quarter, and a whole lot of sleep to catch up on. Funny story: last night I took a nap at 6pm...and woke up at 3am. That's definitely going to be good for keeping my sleep schedule regular...

I wore this outfit a few nights ago to dinner with my family. I didn't bring too many clean clothes home for spring break, so while I slowly tackle my pile of laundry, I have been rotating the same few pieces everyday. Luckily, these jeans don't get dirty too easily, and this jacket matches with pretty much everything! I have also been wearing my new map watch from Urban almost non-stop since I got it. I'm a sucker for map prints, and this watch is no exception. It's a nice reminder of all the places I have been in the past year...and all the places I still have yet to see :)

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Outfit Details:

Top—Anthropologie "Stripes of Citrus Boatneck" (similar | remixed)

Jacket—Anthropologie "Openwork Army Jacket" (similar | remixed)

Jeans—Madewell "Rail Straight Jeans in Western Wash" (shop)

Watch—Urban Outfitters "Around the World Leather Watch"(shop)

Sunglasses—Ray-Ban "Original Aviator" (shop)

Bag—Fossil "Explorer Tote" (shop)

Flats—Anthropologie (similar)

Apartment Style

Decorating my bedroom (that I share with my best friend, Jennie) in my new LA apartment has been a fun project for me. Because I was abroad this past semester, I was only able to do furniture shopping the weekend before I moved in...hence why pretty much everything is from IKEA. (Also, side note: building four different pieces of furniture in one weekend is not a good idea. If it wasn't for my friends helping me...I think I may have had a mental breakdown.) Because my IKEA furniture is all white, I wanted to add pops of color to other parts of my room to off-set its simplicity. I used mustard accents on items like my rug and lamp base to match my purple, navy, and mustard bedding.

For my desk, I decided to not nail up the magnetic backing on the side facing my bed to make my room look more open. However, the fiberboard was exposed in the back, so I stapled sheer craft lace over it to cover it up. I then used the extra fabric in a couple of my mason jars (along with some spare clothespins), and cut small pieces to decorate the outside of two vases. On the left magnetic wall of my desk, I used decorative magnets as a fun way to display photographs from my semester abroad. And, as a way to display some black and white photographs, I strung some of my favorite shots up over my bed using twine and clothespins—a craft that I had seen on Pinterest and wanted to try for the longest time!

On my dresser drawers, I swapped out IKEA's standard knobs for six different knobs from Anthropologie that went with the color scheme of my room. It's amazing how a few different pieces of hardware can completely change the look of a piece of furniture. I also swapped out the plain knob that came with my nightstand for a more decorative black and yellow knob.

Ever since coming back from Europe, I have been loving maps. So, I invested in a big floral world map print, a monogram "M" (maps and monograms: two good things in one place!), and put up the "Cities" calendar Andrew got me for Christmas. If I had more room, I would have bought this scratch-off map from Urban which I think is the coolest thing ever!

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Apartment Details:

IKEA—Bed frame, Nightstand, Desk, Chair, Dresser, Table mirror

Anthropologie—Bedding (similar), Dresser knobs, Homegrown mug

Urban Outfitters—Map print, Map letter, Herringbone rug, Jewelry organizer (similar), Mirror organizer

Cost Plus World Market—Mason Jars, Chalk Board, Yellow lamp base

Target—Lamp Shade, Clothing organizer, Ivory basket

Rifle Paper Co.—Cities Calendar

Ruche—Bottle Cap Magnets

Aaron Brothers—All Photo Frames

Joann's Fabric & Crafts—Lace Fabric, Flowers

P.S. check out my home inspiration board on Pinterest for a collection of all the home decor that inspires me...I have been re-pinning interior design photographs like a mad woman lately!