Wednesday, November 26, 2014

BIG SURprises

When Eddie asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday, my first thought was obviously to go camping! Before this past trip to Big Sur, the last time we had gotten enough time to get out of the city was back at the end of March...which has just been way too long. Eddie and I planned on having this trip at the beginning of October for my actual birthday, but his work schedule kept forcing us to postpone it. We initially planned on camping somewhere a little closer like Santa Barbara but last minute, we decided to bite the bullet and go somewhere we've been dying to visit for awhile...Big Sur!!! We had only heard amazing things of this place, so we were both ecstatic when the trip was actually happening. Looking back at these pictures from Halloween weekend only makes me wish I had more time to spend there with my love.
We hit the road before the sun came up and headed straight through the storm to one of our favorite breakfast joints--Paula's Pancake House!
As we were driving, we passed by the beautiful San Miguel Mission off the side of the freeway and decided to go exploring.
After our detour, Eddie took us through an army base with crazy beautiful mountain views and tight, windy roads...where he pretended he was a race car driver. 
Before we reached the ocean, we encountered a few hiccups along the way. We almost ran out of gas with nobody around, which may have been my fault lol. After I panicked for a bit, we encountered a police officer who led us to the nearest gas station...which was on the army's private station! After backtracking for gas, we came across fallen boulders all along the sheer cliffs. 
Once we made it through those obstacles to Hwy 1, we reached this bright and sunny view.
Imagine 25 miles of this gorgeousness! 
After finally arriving at camp, we unpacked, made some soup, & then headed off for a hike.
We decided to go on a short 30 minute stroll on the Nature Trail & then head back for dinner before it got dark, but I was so eager to immediately start exploring that I didn't realize I led us to the wrong trail head. Oops! We only realized this after nearly making it to the top.
 We headed out early the next morning for the Buzzard's Roost Trail when we came across this beautiful underwater pathway across the river. Hooray for waterproof hiking boots!
A view from the top of Buzzard's Roost.
 Lunch: Hotdogs, Belching Beaver's Me So Honey Beer, and S'mores (made with square marshmallows!!!)
Hiked a mile down a steep trail from Hwy 1 and discovered the gorgeous Partington Cove!
 
 Then we hiked back up to our car & drove to McWay Falls, a gorgeous 80ft freshwater waterfall that cascades down into the ocean.
 As beautiful as McWay Falls was, it was just too crowded & noisy so we hiked back down to Partington Cove where we spent a few more hours just watching the sunset as a pod of dolphins swam by us. Everything about that day was just so perfect & so romantic!
After a long night of raccoons raiding our campsite & ground squirrels stealing my pants, we packed up and hit the road for Pfeiffer Beach.
 Sea Anemones, Mussels, & Crabs
 Pfeiffer Beach Keyhole Rock
  Late lunch with a breathtaking view at Nepenthe Restaurant before heading back home.
In the spirit of Thanksgiving, I just wanted to express how grateful I am for everything in my life. Especial the people that are always there for me time and time again. I owe my happiness to my family, the love of my life, and my friends! 
Now I can't wait to spend thanksgiving day with my family and boyfriend and then head out to go camping with friends early Friday morning! Wishing everyone a safe and happy thanksgiving! 

Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Belt It Out

Maxi Dress: Black Swan "Silver Soul Maxi Dress" here
Heels: Jeffrey Campbell "Hough" 
Belt: Express
Necklace: Vanessa Mooney
Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney & Luv AJ
Clutch: Vintage
In my opinion, belts can almost always upgrade an outfit! This skinny black leather belt really completed my whole look! Before I accessorized and added the belt, this dress looked like a massively oversized and colorful potato sack...which did NOTHING for my figure. But by adding the belt, I instantly appeared thinner and taller.  Because it accentuated my waist and broke up my upper and lower body, my waist appeared smaller and my legs appeared longer. Try out this quick and easy tip and see what a huge difference it can make for you too! 

See how unflattering this dress is on these gorgeous models when styled without a belt: here!!!!

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Save Your CASHmere

Cashmere Sweater: Reformation (more sweaters here)
Denim Shorts: Oneteaspoon
Booties: Jeffrey Campbell x Nasty Gal
There's a reason why the word 'cash' is in cashmere...it typically costs a lot of money. So when you splurge on a cashmere item, the last thing you want to see are moth holes in it. In the past when I would bust out the cashmere for sweater weather during the fall, I would find holes everywhere! So I did some research and decided to save my cashmere and save some cash on the holes I'd have to mend due to those pesky little moths. Below are some tips and tricks on how to care for your cashmere (and wool) goodies.

Cleaning & Storing your sweaters properly when winter is over is key to keeping your threads looking nice and new.

Clean: Make sure you clean your sweaters before you pack them away for spring and summer because any bit of sweat will attract moths and other bugs. Plus, the smell of the detergent or dry cleaning chemicals will help keep the little pests away. Some people prefer to dry clean their cashmere but I like to hand wash mine because I find that the cashmere gets softer after every wash (and it's a lot cheaper than dry cleaning dozens and dozens of sweaters lol). If you're like me and want to hand wash, remember to wash with mild detergentnever wring out excess water, and lay flat to dry.

Wash: Use lukewarm water to dissolve your mild detergent, turn your sweater inside out, and just squeeze the soapy water through the sweater. Rinse with more lukewarm water.

Dry: Instead of wringing out the water, I put my sweater in between 2 towels and roll the towels up gently from one end to the other. Repeat this until you get as much excess water out as possible and then lay out to dry. Remember to NEVER HANG wet cashmere because it'll stretch out. Just let it air dry naturally.

Store: Store the washed and dried cashmere in a clean and dry space. In order to keep the moths away, there are plenty of products you can find at stores like cedar balls. But my favorite thing to do is tuck some sachets of lavender in the drawers where I store my cashmere and wool. This not only repels moths, but it also leaves a pleasant smell on your clothes instead of that nasty chemical stink from moth balls.

Let me know if you have any other tips to share!