Month in Review: September 2018

September is OVER??? It just STARTED! It’s already FUMMER!!! 
Okay, let’s get right into it, then, or it’s gonna be the end of OCTOBER already!!!

Top 3 Blog Posts

#1 Last day of Summer – Really! The one where I actually buy something new (!!!) and really really love it!

#2 Sentence a Day: Best & Worst Edition ~ August 2018. Wow, really?? THIS is the second most viewed post of the month? Either my life is more interesting than I think (I doubt it) or my other posts need some serious help!!!

Oh. Well. I forgot I cleaned my kitchen. Now it makes perfect sense.
#3 Week in Review: Week 131. OH COME ON!!!  I work so hard on the outfit posts, hauls, how-tos, etc, and Week in Review is what’s popular?? I give up. Ha.

Top 3 Favorite Blogger Outfits

#1 I’ve been following Sarah of Stylish Sassy and Classy for awhile on Instagram. She always has super cute outfits. I’ve been a little obsessed recently with the idea of an actual raincoat and when I saw this picture on her blog I fell in love with the raincoat and the outfit. Sadly, the jacket from J. Crew is back-ordered til January in this color and my size so my search continues.

#2 I love this photo from Tiffany M. Battle’s blog The Werk Place, because she’s well, werking it! The first thing I thought when I saw it was, wow, she’s really going for it, and I love that! She truly committed to this sort of boho ethnic theme with the colorful pom-pom-ed dress, headband, macrame necklace(s), wide bangle bracelets and colorful bag (that looks like a Chinese lantern? I’m a sucker for a chinese lantern*). And yet it really doesn’t seem overpowering to me. While there are a ton of patterns and colors in the dress, they’re all just a little muted, like sun-softened like a once bright Persian rug.

#3 Remember how I wanted a white summer dress?? I never did find it, but this is exactly the look I had pictured in my mind. Jessica from Jeans & A Teacup is summer white perfection in this romantic, vintage-look dress with the sheer bits on the bodice and delicate sleeve ties, straw bag that looks just like something my mother used to own, and natural-toned espadrilles. Maybe next summer 🙂

 

 

Guess Who’s Back?

Guess who made Gwynnie Bee’s monthly spotlight again? This gal!

Around the Web

• I love abandoned places – houses, factories, amusement parks, towns, hotels, etc. Structures decaying, sagging, peeling, crumbling. I think there’s a certain balance in it. Like, man stole a piece of earth and put this thing on it. And now it’s being slowly reclaimed by nature and returning to the earth. So I enjoyed this listing of Hauntingly Beautiful Abandoned Places Around the World…
• I’ve never really understood why pigeons are so maligned. Robins are adored, eagles revered…why do so many have such hatred for pigeons? I find them peaceful birds…it’s almost hypnotic watching them strutting and cooing in a park. I enjoy this artist’s work very much, as she illustrates the beauty of pigeons on canvas and the sides of buildings.
• Paris Fashion Week is still on, and just like with New York, I love looking through the street style pictures. Here are some standouts to me, for one reason or another:

I know women have been coloring their hair in rainbow colors for some time. But this is the first man I have seen following suit.

And speaking of rainbows, how fresh and charming (and colorful!) is this young woman??

Loving plaid for fall. And those tortoiseshell sunnies. And a red lip.
A Nightgown Dress!!! A girl after my own heart 🙂
Annnnd, it’s always fun to see something a little outrageous!

Book Reviews

I only read two this month:

1. After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid. I’ve liked other books by her better. I like that they are quick reads, contemporary “relationship” (vs “romance”) stories that don’t usually end the way you’d expect. This was fine, not great. It gets a 3.25.

2. The Tea Girl of Hummingbird Lane by Lisa See. I’ve also read most of her books. She tells an interesting, moving story and she tells it well. Lisa See is Chinese-American and most of her characters are Chinese and have been historical in nature. This was different because the story’s time frame went from like 1992-2015 (ish, don’t remember exactly, but suffice it to say it was during our recent lifetime) and yet the main characters were from a Chinese village that had no connection to the outside world and still lived by ancient traditions. I really enjoyed this and give it a solid 4 stars.

No Movie Reviews This Month

I haven’t been to the movies this month (I’m glaring at you, stupid MoviePass!), but managed to squeeze a couple in on Netflix and Amazon Prime. But even of those, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend any. Was not a good month for me for movies. Do you even like this feature?

September Re-Cap

It was fast. Ha. Understatement. I had a lot of days off from work. We had two big work events. It was my birthday. I did fun things with friends. I fell behind on blog work, but I’m 3/4 of the way to being self-hosted. I didn’t eat bread (mostly). I got my windshield wipers fixed (vacation bucket list item). I walked. A LOT. The End.

*Oh, my obsession with Chinese lanterns. I have been looking for years for a Chinese lantern shaped car air freshener (the kind you hang from your rearview mirror: flat cardboard with the image on both sides), complete with red satin tassel. I’ve looked online, I even searched all the little shops in Chinatown when I was in Los Angeles last February, I’ve asked everyone I know – and I have never found one. I can’t believe that’s not a thing! These days, everything’s a thing!