Saturday, December 26, 2009

All seem to say throw cares away

Hope everyone is having a good holiday season :) This Xmas was pretty great, I got awesome presents and had a generally enjoyable experience for my last Christmas while living at home.


This is the BF and I before the unfortunately obligatory church services of Xmas eve. (Last time i have to sit through those! YES!)
I'm wearing a Jacob sweater, Nine West skirt, Winners boots, and the belt from my silk bathrobe.


My parents gave me $$, and all these books that I had asked for. I've already started to read most of them. My brother gave me a iron for when I move out in a few months (very good, i love practicality), however he also gave me a four-foot tall teddy bear (probably will end up giving that to neighboor's newborn baby).


My boyfriend's present was really fantastic. He gave me a cold-day survival kit. There is cookie mix, tea, warm socks (pictured above), Seasons 1 & 2 of "The Secret Diary of a Call Girl" (pictured above), a massage coupon, and an electric blanket. Basically everything you need to stop me from busting out the five-year-old attitude and fussiness when i get cold, hungry, or bored.

I have three glorious days off next week, which will be nice since i worked full-time this week. I need to read all my new books before school starts up again!

Love Always,
Amy

Friday, December 18, 2009

Calling out Winter

Tomorrow morning is my last exam. Thankfully. I'm seriously about to die of stress. My friend made me a cookie in the shape of the male reproductive anatomy today, though, so that was pretty excellent.


Sweater: Goodwill, $5
Jeans: Joe Fresh via Goodwill, $3
Two pairs of Icebreaker merino wool socks: Free courtesy of BF's job

Not only was my outfit today ridiculously cheap, it was also super warm. I looked at the temperature this morning (-23 celcius: COLD) and nearly had a panic attack. Can you believe I went through the last two winters with only a fall jacket from Suzy Shier? This year i got a heavy wool coat (Thifted Jordache for $14. I kid you not) and scored some super warm socks from the BFs work so it's been easier to cope with the temperatures.


Details of the sweater embellishment. I've been wanting a beaded or sequined sweater forever and finally found this one a few weeks ago. I took out the shoulder pads and shrunk it in the dryer.

Lately I Am...
Eating: I've had six pieces of raisin bread toast with cream cheese today. It's exam period, what can I say?
Drinking: Coffee, coffee, tea, and more coffee
Listening to: Lots of Anna Nalick, Gaga, and random pop songs like Jordin Sparks' "Battlefield" and Justin Bieber's "Love Me"
Researching: The origins, development, and role of feudalism in medieval society
Reading (book variety): "The Less Noble Sex" by Nancy Tuana for my exam tomorrow. If you're interested in the origins of female oppression (I'm talking biblical and Aristotalian arguments), get this book!
Reading (blog variety): I recently discovered Small Town Chic

Wish me luck on this exam! I'm actually probably going to need it...

Love Always,
Amy

Title song: "Winter" by Joshua Radin

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Sunday Night Shoutouts

Welcome to another edition of Sunday Night Shoutouts, a post in which I gather some of the cool things I've come across on the internet lately to share with ya'll lovely people. Ready?

"If they tell you you're too big for a woman, tell them
you're just too big for your skin.
Tell them
a body just can't hold all this beauty.
Tell them
they only wish they had hills and valleys like the earth...
They will never see the life in your hands and you can never expect them to understand."

-Spoken-word artist Desdamona. Watch the full video here and see her myspace page here

Definately a step in the right direction. Though it's important to remember that we are not in a position to judge cultural practices often seen by Westerners as "oppressive" (i.e. the wearing of the hijab by Muslim women: it's something many women choose to wear!), Female Genital Mutilation is fundamentally dangerous to women's health. Learn more here.

And now for something a bit less heavy and more just pretty: Jon Schmidt's beautiful arrangement/mash-up of Love Story and Viva La Vida!

LOLcats meets Regretsy! My life is complete.

I want to make these. Om nom nom...

And now for something mildly fashion-related? Always been one of my favourite blogs

My plan for this upcoming week includes a six-page essay on feudalism, studying my face off to maintain my A+ in European Women's History, and finding a present for my work's Secret Santa! Sunday night will be the big pay-off: Staff party! Bellinis all around!

Don't forget to follow me on twitter, guys!

Love Always,
Amy

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Somehow your life gets written on your face


Image credit

Inspired by Sarah's post about a book of lists, I decided to write my own list, as suggested by the book and noted in Sarah's post. I love lists.

Thing's I'm glad I did

1. Make coffee tonight, or else I'd be asleep right now.

2. Go to university. I wouldn't have even applied if my dad hadn't done it for me, but I am so glad I'm at university, studying things I am passionate about, and I am so grateful for the opportunity.

3. Harrass Nathan until he finally admitted he liked me & asked me to prom. It's a long story, but the moral is that we're still together a year and a half later.

4. Make a bunch of huge mistakes and go through a lifetime's worth of crappy things in highschool. It's all behind me now and I'm free to live happily ever after. I hope.

5. Teach myself guitar way before it was cool for girls to play guitar. I recieved my guitar in fifth or sixth grade and was super pissed because I had wanted a bubble chair (remember those?). I slowly taught myself through middle school and highschool though, and now there is almost nothing more satisfying than being able to play my favourite songs on an instrument I never thought I'd like or be able to learn.


This list only scratches the surface, but I didn't want to get too personal. Now, you have to tell me. What are you glad you did?


Title song: "Sunday Dress" by Dala

Monday, December 7, 2009

Cowboy take me away

My mom grew up on a farm. This is the only explanation I can think of for her love of cowboy boots. She's got four or five pairs and cherishes them like you wouldn't believe. The only reason i got to wear these was because I stole them for the afternoon while she wasn't home...


Brown shirt: Gap
Cardigan: Suzy Shier
Skirt: Club Monaco
Tights: Accessorize
High-heeled cowboy boots: Vintage from Mom's closet
Earings: Vintage from great-grandmother



I wore this outfit to campus to see my boy perform with his choir in a Holiday concert a few days back. Obviously these photos were not taken today because IT EFFING SNOWED. Ugh. Everyone is all "omg finally snow! :D :D" while I'm preparing to enter full-on bitchy winter mode until it melts and building my metaphoric nest of despair, complete with unflatering sweaters and too much candy.

I had my last class today of the first semester of second year university. Exams should be easy compared to enduring the antics of my Methodology prof twice a week...

Love Always,
Amy

Thursday, December 3, 2009

You've only begun to shine


Flowery Shirt: Smart Set
Cardigan: Suzy Shier
Skirt: Nine West, thrifted
Shoes: Spring



I wore this outfit to school and work, but I added tights and boots to go outside. I could go on for days about how much i love this skirt. It fits perfectly, is excellent quality, super comfy, and was like six bucks. Win.

I've been stressed out lately, though for such silly reasons. However, I have no interest in being stressed right now. I refuse to let silly things bring me down. The following things have been keeping me out of danger zones of nail-biting and skipping class to sleep:

- Listening to lots of Anna Nalick
- Playing guitar
- Not thinking about school when I don't have to
- Eating lots of my boyfriend's delicious cinnamon buns and Hershey Bliss chocolates
- Dressing fabulously where and whenever possible

What do you do to combat stress and silliness?

Love Always,
Amy

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

I just wanna free-fall for a while

Went thift/consignment store shopping this weekend, both with a friend and the boyfriend. Found some awesome stuff, including this colourful (extravagent?) sweater:


Sweater: $8 from consignment store
Pants: thrifted, $2 (srsly.)

I never said i was a good photographer. I make no excuses for my ridiculous poses and unfortunate facial expressions. Here is what was going on in my head while taking outfit pictures this morning:

1. Shitshitshitshit bus comes in fifteen minutes shitshit
2. Ewww wet hair dripping down my back
3. Have to use flash 'cause it's still dark outside... Look down to avoid awkward blinky faces
4. Must show sick sleeves. Spread arms!
5. Too much to remember... I'll just pretend I'm flying and looking down on all the little people! OKAY LET'S GO!

And a few minutes later, when I was rushing out the door with two slices of toast jammed in my mouth, i realized the sleeves literally do not even fit in my coat sleeves. They have to be bunched up into the shoulder space of the coat. So i looked like a chilly football player outdoors today. No big deal.

Honestly, though, I really do love this sweater. Though it's a number of sizes too big, I like the way the gigantic scoop shows off my neck. That and the big sleeves are glamourous if you ask me.

Love Always,
Amy