I'll have a martini instead...

I woke up this morning to see I had received the lemonade stand award from the lovely Jessica at Chronically Vintage , one of my new favorite blogs! Jessica is amazingly articulate, and her blog often features fashion inspiration, clothing & accessories finds, tutorials, and all sorts of neat vintage history. I only wish I were as eloquent and sweet as she ^^. Check her out, along with the other great blogs she has given this award to.

Considering I just did this the other day, and so many people have already received this award, I won't be listing any blogs just now. If you haven't yet received this award let me know! I'm currently sitting on a mattress in a gloomy empty room =(

Receiving this award actually reminded me of a very silly, yet painful, event that occurred a couple months ago just after my 21st birthday. I was grocery shopping at Martin's, and was putting my items on the self-checkout thingy, and a plastic 1-liter bottle of lemonade slid off and fell on my second toe. Ouchy, right? It actually started bleeding profusely and caused quite an embarrassing scene. Currently, my toe is entirely black and likely to fall off any day now. People ask, "My God what happened to your toe?? Did a ton of bricks fall on it??" No...a bottle of lemonade... To this day I'm not quite sure how it caused so much damage, just my luck right?

Well, now that I've sufficiently grossed you out, off to clean !

The lemonade stand award

Neither Here Nor There

Hello All! I've been neglecting my blog, due to the fact that I've been moving all my stuff to my boyfriend's all week. There is a ten day lapse between my two leases, so I'm leeching off of him for ten days. To complicate matters further, I'm leaving for Sandbridge, VA on Saturday for a week at the beach. I'm very stressed and anxious about the whole situation and will be very happy on August 10th when I can move into my new home!

In other news, I managed to fix my bikini top! I'm quite proud of myself, and quite relieved I don't have to buy a new one.

I may post a few times at the beach, but if not I hope you all have a wonderful week!

flickr

Erin

It wasn't Grenada, it was just Asbury Park...

Just got back from New Jersey a couple hours ago. The trip was short but great; I didn't even get a sunburn! The worst part of the trip was the top of my favorite retro bikini breaking. The plastic piece in the back snapped; does anyone have any advice on how to fix this? I was considering sewing the two back straps together, but I wouldn't know how to go about doing that. I have my week-long beach vacation the week after next, and I think I'd be heartbroken if I couldn't wear it.

When I arrived home I was pleasantly surprised and flattered that Miss Gingeyginge considers me to be a great read!


Well I'm supposed to list ten things about myself so here goes
1) I'm actually quite a tomboy, I love hiking and really anything outdoors
2) I'm a psychology major at James Madison University and I'm applying to graduate school and hope to one day be a practicing neuropsychologist
3) I am incredibly socially awkward, I was diagnosed with depression when I was twelve, and I have panic attacks on occasion.
4) I think the greatest things in the world are lime snow cones.
5) I can't leave the house without makeup.
6) I am an atheist
7) I have two Moms
8) I am fascinated by lighthouses and the histories behind them.
9) I have been dating a very smart biology major for nearly a year and a half--and I'll tell you, I never pictured myself dating a Jersey Boy, although he is of course not stereotypical.
10) I love to read. I am always always reading. My favorite book is Catch-22, and my favorite genre is dystopian novels.

That was probably quite at bit more than you wanted to know, but I'm a very wordy writer.
As for the blogs I love to read, I'll try to include ones that haven't received it yet, but I'm not really checking!

Wearing History
Beauty is a Thing of the Past
Retro Ways
Gemma Parker
Miss Tavya
Miss Red Lips

These are blogs I've just recently begun to enjoy; you should check them out!

Erin

Being a Produtive Member of Society

Sigh, I have to work in the morning but I just don't feel like sleeping! I'm in a better mood today; the sun was out, and my boyfriend and I bottled our second batch of home brewed beer!The first batch was a dark ale, and it came out darn well (for a first try, anyways). This one is a roasted brown ale, and was brewed on the day of Billy Mays' untimely passing =( and will be called Billy Mays Brew. After around two weeks of fermenting in the bottle, it will be finished! Although I'm not the biggest fan of beer, my boyfriend has made a hobby of it, and I have really been enjoying helping. I always feel so accomplished when I can say I've MADE something.

Speaking of making things, I just finished sewing my third sewing project (yes, ever). It came out pretty well (I think). The only issue was the gathering at the waist; the instructions I had said to make the stitch length as long as possible, and sew two parallel lines across the longer piece of fabric. Then, all you have to do is pull the strings on either side for a nice even gathering. Well, for the life of me I couldn't sew a line where I could "pull the strings" at all. I'm sure I was doing something wrong (and probably moronic). But hey I'm only learning! (By myself I might add!)

Dress: Forever 21
Apron: Made by me!
Shoes: Cheap Mudd's from TJMaxx

Erin (PS Thanks to all the lovely ladies who commented on my last post; the comments made me feel so much better and were dearly appreciated!)

How Long Will We Believe in a Light So Dim ?

I've been feeling very melancholy lately. I'm not sure why. I'm quite a loner and sometimes I wish I were a typical college student; that I had people calling me up to hang out. I suppose it's my fault; I've been systematically shutting people out of my life I think. It's not that I don't like people, I'm just shy, and when I'm around people I feel awkward and inadequate because of my lack of conversation. Recently, I've been growing more and more distant, hanging out with people less and less, declining the rare invitation to hang out. Last night I walked around the pretty neighborhoods of Harrisonburg, reaching the top of the hill just as the sun went down. I was afraid of being home, afraid of being left alone with myself.

Whenever I get in this sort of mood, I can not stop listening to The BlackHeart Procession. I don't normally (ever) listen to indie music, but this is my exception. Their song "A Light So Dim" touches me because I can relate to it so (and also because in my head it conjures up images of a lonely woman atop a lighthouse staring longingly at the sea)



The Black Heart Procession- A Light So Dim
There are no trains that leave from the maze.
My only chance was a ship to escape.
If you are the light house in the storm,
I'll be the ship with a thousand dead souls.
How long will they believe in a light so dim?
Down in the gallows the darkness glows
it was hard to see in the hearts of them
if you see a light call down below.
I'll be moving and sorting out our fears.
How long will we believe in a light so dim?
Cause time is all we have so make the time
throw down the line I'll see to climb
if it's held close it may just work.
If you are the light house in the storm,
I'll be the ship filled with a thousand dead souls,
and time is all we have so take the time
to make the time and make time to take the time

-Erin

Why Am I Not Asleep?

I had an awful day today, and, in order to distract myself, continued to pack for my move at the end of the month. While packing, I accumulated a pile of things I never use, but are pretty much brand new. Of course etsy is far too classy for this sort of thing, so I put some of my "junk" up on ebay.

If you wanna take a peek, you should be able to see my listings here, if not my ebay name is avioletf1uid.

ERRRIN

An Act of Permanence

I got my first tattoo last August, and I've been dying to get a second one ever since. I've recently become set on what I want my next one to be, and I'm very excited about it, even though I can't even close to afford it. I love old school tattoos, but I always try and do something somewhat original. I drew my first tattoo, but I'm not very artistically talented. I've recently been inspired by 1940's era ocean liners, and stories about ships like the titanic. There is something so romantic about traveling across the Atlantic on a majestic, towering ship. So, here goes: I want a tattoo of an ocean liner on my side, probably about 3" x 3". I feel as though a side profile would look kind of odd, so after much pondering, I have decided that it should be the front hull of the ship, but at a slight angle so you can see a bit of the side. The outline would be very dark black in the traditional old-school style, with black shading. I'd want a bit of color, so a red stripe across the side of the ship and a little blue on the tips of a few waves crashing against the hull would be in order. I haven't yet decided whether I want a border around it (like a fancy picture frame)


What do you think?

Erin

Some Vintage Lovelies

Getting into vintage style has really brought out my girly side; I've always been awkwardly proportioned (I am very tall and most of my height comes from my long torso), and older-styled clothes tend to fit me much better. The higher waists of the skirts that I've been wearing lately have made me feel a lot more comfortable about my body, since there aren't any unsightly lumps caused by a space between where the blouse ends and the skirt begins. It's nearly impossible for me to find shirts long enough to wear my skinny jeans with their very low waists! Also, I don't have to worry as much about a dress I buy being super short (often a dress that looks normal length on a model will be super short on me!) SO, coming around to the point, I've become a lot more comfortable being girly and wearing more colorful clothes....but I've realized, I own almost NO jewelry whatsoever. Now I don't really care about owning nice, expensive jewelry - I'd just like to be able to accessorize some of my outfits.

I absolutely...well...love...this ElDoradoClub necklace. It was on my Christmas list in '07 and I never got it =(

I've been spending some time recently looking for a reasonably priced hair comb. I'm not sure how well I'd know how to use it, but I really want one. (This one's from rosebudcottage's etsy)

I adore these pretty earrings from All Things Original

And it seems to me that a pearl necklace goes very well with a lot of vintage clothing

This one is from jewelryland's etsy (fake, of course. Maybe someday I'll have some real nice ones...)

As you can probably tell, I'm not necessarily at a point in my life where I dress completely sophisticated. I still enjoy some tacky and kitshcy things!

-Erin

FASHION INSPIRATION #1

Currently eating:

YUM



Top Left: Orange Blossom Dress at Lulu's Fashion Lounge
Top Right: Persian Printed Scarf in Tangerine at ModCloth
Bottom Left: Gunne Sax Dress at Nice's Etsy
Bottom Right: 60's Yellow Gingham Bathing Suit at thirteeneightyfive's etsy
Bottom Center: Mia Women's Mabel T-Strap Pump at Amazon

PS: I crushed the GRE =D

-Erin

Giant Repulsive Exam

Hey all!
If you're wondering why I've been neglectful and posting so little on this blog, my excuse, (other than work) is that I'm taking the GRE tomorrow!

Here are a few pics from July 4th with the boyfriend in Charlottesville:

Be back Thursday if I don't die in there!
-Erin

Busy Bee

I have been super busy lately with work, but I wanted to post some pics of the pretty lavender dress I posted about buying on etsy, which arrived a few days ago.


Just waiting for the right occasion to wear it! Also, after all my blogging about the 4th being the greatest holiday for clothing, I completely forgot to find something to wear....which resulted in my running around town last night and doing some last minute sewing (which was a disaster).

Happy 4th!