Valentine's Day with LAGOS Jewelry

Thanks LAGOS Jewelry for sponsoring this post!

V-day is only a week and a half away, which means it's time to start dropping hints to that special someone. I love a night out and some chocolates but now that I've reached the ripe, old age of 25, I think it's about time to start adding some fine jewelry to my collection. (Did you read that, Brenden?) So, whether you're subtly telling your significant other that you're hoping for something shiny, you need some inspiration for what to buy your sweetie, or you just want to treat yourself to a necklace or bracelet that you'll keep around forever, you should absolutely keep reading.

After the Dust has Settled

It's been a while since I've shared a journal-like post on here. Honestly, last time I spilled my heart out, I got a lot of negativity back so it kind of frightened me away from being open and honest for a bit.

In the beginning of 2016, I set a list of goals for myself. I achieved some of them but lost myself in the process. That year started strong. I had just gotten married, I had just gotten a fantastic promotion at work, and I was generally content. Then, somewhere in the middle of January, something happened that threw everything into flux. I quit my job, I lost my mind, and I almost drank myself to death. Funny how one seemingly insignificant moment can change the trajectory of your entire life, sort of undoing everything you'd worked hard for. Before last January, my mood disorder had been palpable but the shifting between depression, slight discontent, slight content, and euphoria only felt like minor tremors. Enough to throw me off but not enough to shake me. I'd liken January's event to more of a quake-- or whatever is bigger than that. It rattled me to the core and the aftershocks are still being felt over a year later. 

Velvet for a Hot Winter Date

Does anybody else have trouble finding winter-appropriate date night looks? Or is it just me? Though B and I don't go on many dates because we're the biggest homebodies, when we do have an evening on the town, I like to get gussied and do it right. Velvet is perfect. It's fuzzy but in a very sleek and sexy way. The fact that it's extremely touchable doesn't hurt either. (Imagine me raising my eyebrows and winking just then.)

Grown-Up Shoes for Doing Grown-Up Things

While neither the most interesting nor the most planned-out outfit I've put on, I think this one is going to have some sentimental specialness attached to it. Why, you may ask? Well, it happened to be the outfit I chose while B and I took a big step towards becoming "proper" adults: we started looking at houses. Crazy, right? While we get our finances in order (and prayer up-- startup life-- right?) we're still casually browsing just to get an idea of what we want. I gotta say though, this kind of responsibility is harrowing. All I can say is that I'm so thankful that my parents came with us because every time the realtor asked me a question, I kind of forgot that she was asking me. I had many "I need an adult" moments. That might be what adulthood is though, no?

Anyway, I wanted to pick out clothes for the day that would do this occasion justice. Something grown-up but not too grown up. I actually ended up piecing together some of my favorite basic pieces-- something I need to do more often.

Black Denim Culottes

Thanks eShakti for sponsoring this post!

This year thus far has been all about me getting out of my comfort zone. I tend to wear a lot of dresses and skirts and save the jeans for super casual days. I always saw skirts and dresses as a way to cover up the undesirable parts of my body. You know-- just get a flowing dress or structured high-waisted skirt and nobody will know that you're-- well-- a little chubby. Plus-- our bodies are immensely different. There's no way the average pair of jeans is fitting over these buns, you know?

When eShakti reached out and wanted to send me some clothes, I gravitated towards their dresses (which I've done in the past, as seen here and most recently here) but decided to get a pair of custom-fitted jeans.