Breakfast at Lani's

Summer Garden Fun

About a month ago I made the decision to start a veggie garden. Let me preface this by saying I know absolutely nothing about gardening...well.. that's not entirely true... I know they need water and sunlight, but that's. about. it. 

I come from a long line of farmers. My grandfather was a farmer, his father was a farmer, HIS father was a farmer, and so on. Needless to say, the fact that I can't tell you the difference between an arugula and spinach, is a little embarrassing.

Now, maybe it was the beautiful weather, or maybe it's just part of my "turning 31 project" but I felt inspired to grow things!

So I swung by Home Depot on my way home and picked up a bunch of gardening supplies. My first batch of veggies would consist of starberries, blueberries, tomatoes, chili peppers, red bell peppers, and cucumbers.

The good news is nothing has died. Yet.  So far summer has been on my side!  Lots of sunshine and mild evening weather.  My garden even survived a recent visit from a deer.  She did manage to nosh on a fair share of strawberries and chilli peppers (who knew Deer like chilli peppers?) - but for the most part she left the plants intact. Very thoughtful of her, I'd say ;)

 

Flight of Fancy Blouse - Francesca's Collection
Seychelles Hawk Bootie - DSW
Brown Suede Skirt - Anthropologie

First attempt... On the Porch

I was feeling inspired to create a new outfit this afternon! So, before I "let" Dex eat dinner, I asked him to come outside with me and take a few shots of my outfit.

What a disaster.

He managed to snap about 6 photos before I called off the "shoot".  I felt so silly. And bleh. Have you ever had those moments where you sudenly feel very aware of what EVERY part of your body looks like? Kinda like those dreams where you're butt naked standing in the middle of a group of people.  Ugh.

Anyway - I managed to salvage one, so here it is. Attempt #1.

 

The Outfit:
Two to Tango Dress - ModCloth
Grey Heart Skirt - Forever 21
Tights for Every Occasion in Night Class - Modcloth
Espadrille Sergeant Wedges - Modcloth
My Sugar Plum Elastic Belt - Ruche

Style Blog?

I've been thinking a lot about personal style. Specificially - my lack of personal style.

For as long as I can remember I have always been a jeans and tshirt type of gal. Easy-peasy. 

And then something happened... I'm not exactly sure how or why - but all of a sudden, when I turned 31, I had a deep desire to develop my own personal style. I had no idea where to begin. It's not like I know about these things! What I did know was:  I didn't want it to seem forced or artificial. And I most certainly didn't want it to be an epic fail. These are big goals considering I've never had any confidence or skills to develop a wardrobe I could  really call my own.

Can I share a short story with you? (It applies to this post, I promise).  It goes like this... I really only have one memory from kindergarten. It was sports day, and all the kids were sitting out in the field waiting for our P.E teacher to divide us into teams. Kristie (I don't remember her last name) was sitting in front of me. She was so pretty. I still remember what she was wearing. White tennis shoes, orange cotton shorts, and a white tshirt with the word ESPRITE written perfect matching orange. She wore little gold star earrings and a Jem and Hologram's wrist-watch. I looked down at my own outfit: black sweatpants, grey running shoes, and a basic t-shirt that rocked a basket of kittens on the front. Ugh. The only thing I could think was, "I want to be like her!" 

Well, I never did become like her. I continued to dress for comfort rather than style, and I've continued to be super cheap when it comes to clothes. In the past, paying more than $15 for a tshirt seemed truly outrageous.

So what changed? I guess I just got tired of seeing pictures of myself in frumpy and un-original outfits. I also realized that I didn't own a single girly article of clothing. NOT. KIDDING. I am the furthest thing from a girly-girl. And for the first time in my life - it bothered me.

I want to have the confidence to wear a skirt, or a dress, or strapy wedges.

So.

I did it. Just like that.

I started reading articles about personal style. I scoured the internet for blogs about the topic. I purchased fashion magazines from the grocery store. I started watching What not to Wear.  I even rented the Septemeber Issue.

After making a list of "styles" that I liked, I cracked open my wallet, dusted off the credit card and went shopping.

For this first personal style post, I've asked Arwen to be my model.  I know, this was supposed to be about me - but baby steps! 

So here she is... Arwen in a few outfits I put together.

 
Snake!

 
We shot these photos down the street from where we live. This was a neighborhood in development, but the economy put a hault on production. The sides of the road are complete over-grown now.

 
 We had such a fun time shooting these photos. Arwen was a natural!

 

 
In case you're wondering... yes, these are my clothes. Haha! These were the outfits I had planned for myself to model, but I was too chicken, so Arwen graciously agreed to be the guinea pig. (Thank you, Arwen!!). The most challenging part of this shoot was hiding all the safety pins! We had to pin everything in order for it to fit ;)

Downhome eyelet dress in yellow @ Frock Candy   cinnamon cider cardigan @ Old Navy  professional charm cardigan @ Modcloth