OOTD: It's hot outside

This weather requires wearing as little clothing and as light a cloth as possible. Connecticut is currently going through a heat wave with temps in the 90's to 100 and humidity is just gross. I was so happy to find this cute little dress in a thrift shop, Retrospect Vintage, on my vacation to Philadelphia. Good to know that they have an etsy too! (link below). This dress reeks of 1970's fashion so it pairs great with my fro :P. This dress happens to be from NPC Fashions based out of Warren, Pennsylvania. Pretty dope. The fabric is a super lightweight cotton so it's breathable and comfy without being see-through. Score!

I wore this outfit to go see a wedding venue with Fiancé and to run some errands. dressy enough to make a good impression, comfy enough to survive this heat. The venue we visited is a French tudor styled castle from 1898 and was absolutely beautiful. Fiancé is pretty much sold on this one.

D E T A I L S :

• Dress: Retrospect Vintage
• Belt: Goodwill
• Shoes: Payless
• Earrings: Reading Terminal Market
• Necklace: ???
• Alex & Ani Bracelets

M A K E U P :

• lol no too hot
• SPF 35 lotion!

Hope you all are staying cool in this heat! I'm looking forward to the fall now.

Bring on the Heat!

via

I dread summer every year because it's always the most uncomfortable. Don't get me wrong--my curves look great in summer dresses and breezy skirts, but I've always had a problem with chafing in my inner thigh area. I've tried biker shorts, leggings, powder, and several other remedies that have all fallen short and I've just about had it. This summer I really wanted to say good bye to chub rub and searched the internet for advice (because duh the internet solves everything right?) I came across the big girl blog with the absolute best product recommendation!

I've used Monistat's chafing relief powder gel for the past couple of weeks on hot days and I am free to wear all the skirts and shorts and dresses I dream of. It works great at both preventing and soothing and a little goes a long way. What could be better? I figured I'd share my enthusiasm about this product because it really is a game changer for me when it comes to summer style. Hope this helps any other ladies with this issue!

OOTD: First Day of Class!

I may be entering my fourth year of college, but my first day of class outfit will always feel special. It's a new semester, new faces, new impressions. People do judge a book by its cover, so I guess I like to make sure my cover is representative of me. Today I only had sculpture and Chinese, but I can already tell this semester is going to be a doozy!

D E T A I L S :

• Animal print tank - H&M
• Blue collared tank - thrifted
• Dark skinnies - Kohl's
• Brown flats - Target
• Necklace - Target
• Spiked earrings - Forever 21

The collared tank top is from a new thrift store that just opened up near by called Helping Hands. Most of the clothes there are 99 cents! The bulk of the store is quality vintage furniture that made me so jealous that I dont already have a place of my own. I had my eye on this pair of orange ceramic lamps from the 70's that were $60 a piece. Alas, I have no place to store them until they would have become of some use....and i didn't have $120 to splurge....*le sigh*

Kohl's was generous enough to offer my readers a 10% off code too! You can use the code UBLOGTEN now through October 24th and stack your savings with one other department specific code. Woop woop! I'll probably pick up another pair of these jeans [Apt. 9]  in one of their fall colors. Can't wait!

M A K E U P :

• UD's NAKED palette - virgin, smog, toasted
• UD's Eyeshadow Primer Potion
• UD's Oil Slick Eyeliner
• Revlon's Double Twist Mascara
• Revlon's Just Bitten Kissable Balm Stain - Sweet Heart Valentine (025)

OK, I have to go freshen up my Chinese big time. Off to the books! 再见！

TTFN!<3
- Avé

Busy Busy Bee, this summer!

I can't believe june is almost over! I've been keeping myself busy trying to build up my etsy and and working towards maybe showing in some craft fairs. Not to mention working full time and starting p90x. I have so many ideas for this blog; never ending todo list! I cant wait to get some of the posts I have in mind published.

I'm shapin' up all the areas of my life, and it feels good! here's photos of some of the crafty things I've been up to:

starting a watercolor series on fruit

hopefully I can order prints soon

splurged on some lace...

...and some necessary supplies

made this awesome camera strap cover for my photography major friend for graduation :O)

made some new banners for my tumblrs

made lots of button pins

and watched moose try to fight the lawn mower.

I think this is going to be a great summer :)

TTFN<3

DIY: Ombre Canvas Shoes with Sharpies

I've been wanting to alter these plain Jane canvas shoes for quite some time, and I've finally found a fun and easy way to add some color. Just in time for summer!

You will need:

• Canvas shoes
• Rubbing alcohol
• A sponge, cotton pad, or dropper (something to drip the rubbing alcohol onto the shoe)
• Your choice of Sharpies
• Tester fabric (optional)
• Newspaper
• Bowl

Inspect your shoes if they're not new. Make sure they're relatively clean! I had to wash mine. They'll be fine in the washer machine with a couple of old towels. Remove the laces, get your stuff and head outside for this super fun craft! (if not outside, A well ventilated area is cool too)

What colors and fades do you want for your new kicks? I recommend a tester fabric because I found out later on that some colors don't spread at all, and some colors spread into other unexpected colors; although the surprise outcome is part of the fun.

To get colors to fade, color across the shoe with one or two colors, and immediately drip the rubbing alcohol over the color. To do this I poured some rubbing alcohol in a bowl, used the cotton pad to soak some up, and squeezed the pad over the color. The more rubbing alcohol, the more it spreads. You don't want to wait too long to drip the rubbing alcohol, because the sharpie ink could dry permanently. 

~ Color and drip, color and drip... ~

The teal in the middle didn't spread well, so I went back over with a blue that did

A few tips: 

• If you want to go back over a section, try to wait till it's a little dry at least. If you color on parts still really damp with rubbing alcohol, you'll dry out your marker.
• If you must and you're impatient like me, then go ahead. When the marker appears like there's no ink coming out, then grab a scrap sheet and color till it's revived.
• The ink spreads in all directions; experiment with other shapes and patterns if you'd like!
• Sharpie.com goes into greater depth about this technique.

Once you're all done, leave them out to dry over night. Once they're completely dry, the ink will stop spreading. Don't be afraid to go over a few spots if you feel like it! I did a OOTD post earlier with these shoes, if you want more pictures. I think they came out pretty great; I want more!

Let me know if you make these and how they turned out for ya! Hope you liked the tutorial; feel free to post any questions.

TTFN <3

OOTD: Ombre Shoes and Radiohead

So I know my last OOTD post was for a RHCP concert, but don't think concerts are the only things I get dressed up for :P In case you haven't met the little fella at my feet, Let me introduce you to Moose, the best pugalier around.

 Details

• Blue button down - Burlington Coat Factory 
• Skinnies - Dress Barn
• Skinny brown belt - Gift from sister
• Canvas shoes - Target, modified by me
• Necklace - Urban Outfitters
• Earrings - Target
• Makeup - Naked Palette [dark horse and sin], Smashbox lipgloss 

 

I'm so excited that these shoes came out so well that I wanted an outfit to highlight them. What better place to debut my new kicks than at a concert? I'm so stoked to see Radiohead again. I can't wait to tell you all about it! Be on the look out for a DIY post on how to make these rad ombre shoes. 

Now, off to the show! TTFN <3