throw down like a rich girl's bar tab

Leaving Lancaster on Saturday was much harder than leaving Lancaster last August or January. I spent my last week working (most hours all summer), running errands and basking in the simple joys of Lancaster County. Pictured above is little Ivy and me posing in front of a sign that says Lancaster. Sooo Lanc.

Before crepes, Alyanna, Ivy and I wandered into Pappagallo's, a cute boutique in Lancaster City because 1) They were hiring part-time and 2) This Sharon Segal dress in the window. I'm almost certain this dress was designed just for me. Sleeves, sparkles and shorter length- all necessary when it comes to choosing party dresses. It fit perfectly and there were only 2 in the whole store. Sadly, my recent attempts to take full advantage of my employee discount at J. Crew did not allow me to purchase this little gem, but I saved the picture on my phone and fantasize about wearing it to formal dances and birthday parties I won't be invited to.

Things I Will Miss Most:

1) My family- I was such a mess at the airport. Every time I've flown back to school I always tear up a little, just because my mom does, but I was full-out crying in the Philadelphia terminal. I rendered many sympathetic looks.

2) My cute, cute house- I love my house and bed so, so much.

3) J. Crew employee discount- This is kind of painful to think about. Obviously it will be better for my bank account, but I can't help but imagine what new pieces will be arriving for winter that I won't get to have an extra 30% off on.

4) My mom's cooking- Since I arrived late Saturday night, I haven't had a chance to do any grocery shopping. Thankfully I have sweet roommates that share their food, but no Easy Mac will ever take the place of my mommy's delicious Filipino cooking.

Anyone who's ever read this blog knows I'm a sucker for street style shots. I'll go through 200 pages of a street style blog and save half the images. Stockholmstreetstyle is one of my favorite blogs and I thought this shot captured summer well. Fashion wise, the thing I will miss most is bare legs. I love breezy dresses, little skirts and preppy shorts, all of which will never make an appearance during Provo's ridiculous winter.

I'm almost done unpacking all of my clothes. Can I just say I LOVE unpacking? Clothes at least. It's so much fun taking out all the clothes you forgot you had, or the ones that you thought about and are so excited to wear. I still have a box somewhere in the United States full of some of my most favorite pieces, so I'm anxiously waiting the arrival of that package. It's so weird being in an apartment. You felt so safe and sheltered in the dorms. My room is still in shambles, but Jadyn and I are slowly adding personal touches and making it more livable. Someday I will dedicate a post to my new living space when it doesn't look so disheveled. My roommates are all very sweet and I think this year is going to be much better than last.

Things I Am Looking Forward to the Most:

1) Fall fashion- Jackets, boots, tights and skirts, turtlenecks, sweaters, cardigans, flats. Did I mention I scored a new pair of Tory Burch flats and vintage Ferragamo pumps on eBay for all under $50?? No big deal.

2) Winter fashion- Coats, scarves, hats, mittens, thicker sweaters, more boots.

3) Laid back schedule- My courseload seems pretty reasonable and will definitely be a challenge, but my schedule is so nice this semester. No Friday classes and my first class on Monday is at 3 PM. Also I'm taking an anatomy class which was my favorite class in high school, however this will probably be the bane of my existence this fall.

4) New friends/old friends- I'm excited to make new friends and start fresh, as well as see the great people I met last year again.

5) Christmas- Duh?

i heard from someone you're still pretty

Check it out. This chick, Marisa Lynch lost her job so she decided to challenge herself to make a new dress every day for $1. So she goes to thrift stores and hits up their $1 sales and transforms disgusting muumuus into cute, functional dresses. I am amazed! I'm literally going through her entire blog as we speak. This girl has serious sewing skills and now I'm inspired to learn to sew. Not really. But I am still very impressed.

And this song has been on repeat for the past 2 days. Iron & Wine + Kid Cudi = brilliance. This is easily the best cover of Pursuit of Happiness I've ever heard. I will even go as far to say as it's in my top 10 best covers of songs ever.

Look what came in the mail yesterday! I think I've been looking for the perfect leather riding boot since fall of senior year and believe me, I've found some gorgeous ones, but they were usually $350+. Usually because I fall in love with the ones at J. Crew every fall. And every fall they're always way too expensive. So I did an eBay search for "jcrew boot 6" and came across these beauties. I think these were from Fall 09 or 08 and were originally $325. I got them for $100, plus $11 shipping. You do not know how many outfits I have been envisioning since I secured them online. I'm pretty excited about them and not only do I like the way they look and feel, they even smell absolutely delicious. I guess they are the one thing about going back to school that I'm excited for. And yes, I will continue to complain about going back to school until I leave, and then expect me to complain that I'm at school once I'm there.

Btw, J. Crew is getting their second fall shipment tonight and I think I may die when I go into work tomorrow. I may or may not write "leather jacket" on my hand to remind myself that that is the only purchase I'm allowed to make for fall/winter.

hi-fi fellas and lo-fi chicks

This weekend was so fun. Last night I saw MGMT in Philly and they were very good. Sooo many little hipsters. The lead singer (Andrew?) had the cutest mannerisms and voice and was so little, I just wanted to squeeze him. I like his voice a lot. The best parts were during the most popular songs because we were up in the balcony so it felt like it was bouncing. Actually it made me nervous. The venue was very cool too. It was like a big outdoor theater. So go see them if they're ever in your city.

Highlights:

1) Electric Feel, duh. I've loved this song forever and it just makes you want to dance.

2) Time to Pretend

3) Destrokk

4) Kids! So much fun and probably the most appreciated by everyone.

5) Congratulations encore. Such a good song and so great live.

Saturday night I went to see the Jonas Brothers in Hershey. We missed all of the opening acts so the concert felt really short and almost surreal, like we hadn't even gone to one. They played Please Be Mine, which is the first one they ever recorded and they showed pics of them growing up and I literally felt so sad. Like. Tears a little bit. More during Lovebug though. It was like, "Oh I'm growing up and so are the Jonas Brothers and they're probably going to stop touring and I'm growing up and that's scary." Some really emotional moments for me.

Highlights:

1) Nick Jonas everything. I am so into guys that can pull off the headband look. And, I mean, it's Nick Jonas.

2) Singing Happy Birthday to Joe (who is now 21. so old.) and watching him blow out cake candles. Presented by Kevin Jonas' cute cute wife.

3) Letting John Taylor sing BBGood.

4) A Little Bit Longer. Always.

I just really like the Jonas Brothers.

You know what sucks? The fact that it's August 16 and in 12 days I'll be boarding a plane back to Provo, Utah.

ynna's fall 2010 must-haves

As much as this depresses me, I think it’s time for Fall 2010 Must-Haves. Last night I bought some corduroy skirts and I recently received an e-mail confirming the shipment of the most beautiful J. Crew riding boots (!!!). So here they are. My must-haves for fall:

1. Corduroy mini skirts- Paired with a plain long-sleeve tee or chunky turtleneck, textured tights and boots. So perfect. I can’t wait.
2. Textured tights- To go with those cord minis, jersey dresses and ruffled skirts. They look great with boots or flats.
3. Leather riding boots- I think brown is good basic, but black doesn’t hurt. I will probably dedicate an entire post to the ones that will be arriving shortly.
4. Shimmery boyfriend blazer- After my first boyfriend blazer purchase, I’m already obsessed with them. It’s so polished, without being too fussy. I am loving the shimmery accents in this Madewell one. Also loving entire sequined blazers.
5. Leather bag- I love big bags for fall and I’m lusting over this J. Crew hobo. It’s the perfect shade of brown and I am so, so into having a handle and a crossbody strap. I think it makes the bag so much more functional bc it can be dressy or casual.
6. Sequin sweatshirt- This Elizabeth & James sweatshirt is gorgeous, but I actually like the version J. Crew made better, and it’s half the price. I love the juxtaposition of a piece that’s meant to be strictly comfortable and kind of sloppy and a pretty touch.
7. Leather motorcycle jacket- Because I don’t know what’s cooler than a fitted leather jacket.

I can’t believe I’m shopping for fall stuff already. I leave Lancaster in 16 days and it hurts my heart.

I failed to include a playlist bc I don’t do well with playlists. I always make one and then wish I included something. But some albums I’m looking forward to/enjoying: Arcade Fire (just released a little over a week ago!), Tay Swift (it’s embarrassing how excited I am for this one), Weepies (end of this month! actually set an alarm on my phone) and Kid Cudi (not entirely sure on release date).

Forbes compiled a list of most enduring fashion brands and the perfect house of Burberry made the list. Of course!

a simple little kind of free

This is going to be way too long.

Um it's August 6? When did that happen? It makes me really sad actually. Last week I went to the beach with my family. There's a nice sisterly shot for you. We go to Bethany which I love- good amount of people, overall pleasant crowd and cute little shops. A little bit crowded, but nowhere near as bad as some other east coast beaches. The majority of that week consisted of lying in the sun, eating delicious food every day, friendship bracelets, reading really good books and taking advantage of Rehoboth's outlets. I like lists so here's a list of highlights, in random order:

1) I loved The Hunger Games and recommend it to anyone. It really is as good as all the hype.

2) Ok, but I LOVED The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo even more. Pretty much complete opposites, but I can't wait to read the next 2 in this series. I have never been into crime/mystery novels, but I literally could not put this one down. It's pretty graphic though.

3) We found an Asian food store that sold MOCHI. My most favorite food in the world. The luck traveled home with us, because my mom has recently discovered a place in Lancaster that sells those little gems.

4) Perfect, perfect weather. When we went for the 4th, it was so humid, I couldn't stand to lay out for more than 20 mins at a time. This past week was breezy and sunny and perfect beach weather. It rained once, but the rain ended up cooling down the rest of the week.

5) Rehoboth outlets! Ok, so I guess I broke my spending fast. Whatever. But I totally scored at Lacoste and Michael Kors outlet. Why don't they have any in Lancaster?? Also marveled at everything in BCBG.
So anyone that has ever shopped with me knows that I've been on the hunt for the perfect boyfriend blazer since the end of last summer. I foolishly purchased a knit blazer from J. Crew earlier this summer, thinking it would satisfy my blazer needs, but I was so wrong. It's very cute, but it was a fraction of the price of real blazers since it wasn't actual suiting material. And then yesterday, I found it. Actually 2 days ago after my interview with Teavana (rejected, since I'm leaving in 3 weeks), I wandered into H&M and there it was. The perfect little boyfriend blazer, but alas, no size 2. So I continued to wander around the store and bam. Misplaced with semi-ugly party dresses, there was my little blazer, size 2. We have been very happy together.

Btw, excuse the lameness of this Photobooth pic, but I am blogging from my bed and had no desire to put on a real outfit to model the blazer.

Lately, I have been so into bangles. I love the look of stacks of bracelets on each wrist with a mix of sparkle, string and leather. Summer means friendship bracelets, so I have one that won't come off on my left wrist. I like to add a little bit of sparkle though to offset the summer camp-y look of my friendship bracelet. Presenting my small collection! From left to right: J. Crew, Ten Thousand Villages, Ten Thousand Villages, American Eagle, American Eagle and American Eagle. I am on the hunt for a nice sterling silver clasp bangle and lusting over a leather studded Madewell bracelet. I just can't bring myself to spend more than $8 on jewelry at a time.

Last night I experienced the brilliance that is John Mayer. The concert was originally scheduled for July 25, but it rained badly and equipment got damaged so it was rescheduled for last night. The reschedule ended up working in our favor, since they opened up 2/3 of the floor to general admission. So instead of sucky bleacher seats, we got a lot closer (my picture does not prove this point at all). I think anyone that appreciates music needs to attend a John Mayer concert at some point in their life. Highlights:

1) John referencing Gaga's "little monsters" as her fanbase and deciding his fans are "little dirtbags." I'm touched, really.

2) When asking the audience whether they wanted to hear Assassin or No Such Thing, and compromising with a super-sped up version of No Such Thing. Think Chipmunks.

3) Ain't No Sunshine cover. So brilliant and so sexy.

4) John's monologues before certain songs. I am pretty confident in the fact that he smokes a bowl before every show or that his water breaks include shots of something. But I mean, I enjoyed them.

5) Just jammin. John would just jam for so much of it, and I've never experienced that bc of my narrow concert experience, but I very much enjoyed it.

6) Who Says encore!! I was waiting for it the whole time. I like when he substituted Austin for Hershey. Cheesy, but appreciated.

I could keep going. But I'll spare anyone who has miraculously made it to this point. Basically John Mayer is phenomenal, summer is almost over and I want to cry and I need to blog more often so my entries aren't so long.