time of my life

The commencement celebrations were a weekend-long affair and the first thing I did was...

get my nails in order

Class Day was on Sunday, May 23rd and it is a tradition on this day to wear crazy/silly/funny hats to the event.  Every year, Class Day is organized by the Senior Class Council and it is a day to hang out with friends and less formally recognize the graduating students.  

my roommates

a gaggle of girls

her grandmother made this for her- I mean, how awesome is this hat?!

twins

this is a hat modeled off our bell tower- the most detailed hat I saw!

This year, we were lucky enough to have Tom Hanks as our Class Day speaker.  One of the first things he told us was not to put away our phones, and to instead tweet about his speech or post it on Facebook!  Funny guy! :D

The official commencement ceremony was the next day.  First all of the schools at Yale (undergraduate and graduate) assembled together, then us undergraduates split off into our residential colleges to attend a more intimate graduation there.

my sister and I

my parents. don't worry, my dad is not angry, he just rarely smiles in pictures!

my family- left to right: brother, mom, me, dad, brother, sister, godmother

waiting for my name to be called

diploma in hand, feeling good!

So now it's been a couple of weeks since all this happened, but I have to say...it hasn't really hit me yet.  I said my "see you later's" and my goodbyes to both friends and acquaintances, but I haven't really come to terms with the fact that this chapter of my life has officially ended.  There is still a part of me that thinks I am on a temporary break and will return to school soon.  I (as well as many other graduates, I'm sure) am wondering, "What's next?"  How about I get back to you on that?  ;)

maxed out

Phew!  I can't believe I haven't posted in so long!  May was a particularly crazy month for me and one important thing after another came up, which unfortunately meant that I didn't have time to post.  However, over the past couple of weeks, several exciting things have happened to me and I cannot wait to share all of it with you guys!  That stuff will be revealed in the coming weeks, but I figured I would ease back into the blogging world with good old outfit post.

lace top- charlotte russe, black cami (underneath)
and skirt- forever 21, sandals- Payless

parka- h&m

purse- tj maxx

For a long time, I resisted the maxi trend.  I just assumed there was no way it would work on short people!  However, since starting this blog, I've learned that many styles are worth a try, even if you don't think they'll work for your body type!  So I bought this maxi skirt from Forever 21, but it took me another couple of months to figure out the right outfit and to work up the nerve to wear it out of my room!  That said, I really love this outfit!  I don't think I look short and stumpy like I feared I would and I think the accessories I chose make the skirt look young and fresh, as opposed to old and dowdy.  What do you guys think- did I pull off the maxi skirt?

Also, a couple more notes about this outfit. Say hello to my favorite spring purchase- this H&M parka!  I seriously cannot believe this is the first time it is making it into an outfit post because I've worn it practically nonstop since I bought it!  It is the perfect lightweight jacket and I'm so glad I purchased it in this dusty rose color (my friends had to convince me not to get the black one!) because it looks great with so many items.  Also, I realized I rarely take my outfit pictures with my purse because I use the same few purses and don't rotate often.  This is one of my trusty crossbody purses- perfect for running errands and the like.

All right- that's all I've got for now, but I want to hear from you!

Tell me: Everything I've missed- I need you guys to catch me up on what you've been up to!

Hope you all are having a fantastic Memorial Day weekend and thanks for hanging in there! =)

Bloggers Do It Better: White Out

The first Bloggers Do It Better Challenge was so much fun, I couldn't wait to do it again!  This time the assignment was White Out- using whites, creams, or a combination of the two in your outfit.

cardigan- Ross, cami and skirt- forever 21, wedges- target

I only had one creme skirt, which solved the problem of what to wear on bottom.  Not going to lie, the skirt is pretty tight and short, so I want something flowier on top to balance that out.  I wore this open white cardigan which I shrunk in the wash!  It used to be much longer and the sleeves were full-length, but it actually doesn't hit me in a bad spot, even in its shrunken size.  Then I zipped up these Target wedges, which I love love love!

This was a pretty good weekend =)  On Saturday, I went shopping and I finally bought my graduation dress.  I'm going for an overall summery look, but still dressy of course, and I'm probably going to wear it with these Target wedges since I know we have to walk all over grass and such and I wouldn't want my heels to sink in.  I can't wait to wear my dress on graduation!  Also, in preparation for my trip to Myrtle Beach in a little over a week, I bought a floppy black straw hat, a bathing suit, denim shorts, and two pairs of sandals.  I think I'm pretty beach ready!  I know you guys have never seen me in a hat, but it is something I've been meaning to try, so don't worry, there will definitely be pictures!

Tell me: Would you wear an all white (or off-white) outfit?

And don't forget to check out the other outfits here!

let's trade boots for sandals

cardigan and tee- forever 21, skirt- thrifted, boots- UrbanOg

Unfortunately, it is quite rainy here, which means that I am still wearing boots some days.  All I want is for it to be sunny so that my feet can breathe in some open sandals and I can only wear a dress and be perfectly fine.  I really want it to be nice for Tuesday, which is Spring Fling!  Spring Fling is our annual outdoor concert and this year the lineup features Third Eye Blind, Designer Drugs, Big Gigantic, and Lupe Fiasco.  Half of those people I have never heard of, but I think Third Eye Blind should be all right and I'm excited for Lupe because I actually know his music.  Cross your fingers for me that it's sunny!

These boots are one of the few shoes that I own that aren't black (shocking, I know!).  Casee and I have been talking about how we want to incorporate more color into our wardrobes and I think I definitely embraced color with the first Bloggers Do It Better Challenge!  I think I really need to take a pledge to add more color to my wardrobe, so here goes: I hereby pledge that at least 90% of the clothes/shoes I purchase over the next month will not be black (see how I cut myself a little slack there? ;)

Tell me: Is anybody else addicted to black?  Also, if you celebrate, what did you do for Easter?

getting crafty with it

A couple of weekends ago, I was in a crafty mood, so I did a couple of DIY projects.

1. The t-shirt scarf in the middle I made through the tutorial on Made This/Love This.  If you haven't joined yet, it is really easy to do so and I'm looking forward to doing more DIY projects alongside other people.  This one only took about 15 minutes to make and the result is a very cute accessory!

2. I got the idea for this little ring from Jamie of Blog Redhead.  Also, very simple to make- take a cute button and glue it to the top of a ring band and voilà, you've made yourself a ring!  This ring band came from a ring I bought where the top fell off, but I saved the band.  The button came from my collection of buttons that I store in the tin boxes (on the left) that I decorated myself.  Easy peasy way to make a unique ring!

Also, here's an outfit I wore when we were going through a cold spell a couple of weeks ago:

sweater- thrifted, tights and skirt- forever 21, boots- Wanted

Looking at the ring again, I wish I had made it sooner because it would have looked really cute with this outfit! Oh well, next time! =)

Tell me: Would you try one of these two projects?  Share with me anything you've made recently (food, clothes, jewelry, anything)!

Bloggers Do It Better: Colorblocking Challenge!

When I read about the Bloggers Do it Better Challenge on Kristina's PSS blog last week, I was immediately in!  I thought it would be a fun way to try out new trends and that it would give me extra motivation to take outfit pictures.  This week's challenge was colorblocking or bold stripes, and when I remembered about it yesterday, I had no clue what to wear!  I almost thought about bowing out and waiting for the next assignment, but then I decided to push through because that's the whole point of a challenge!

earrings- gift, shirt and skirt- forever 21, wedges- Old Navy

First, I found the brightest solid-color bottom I own- this skirt.  Then I searched through my shirts to find something that I could wear with the skirt.  I didn't want to go for green because I thought then I would look too Christmasy, so then I pulled out this bright turquoise tee.  And that's where I stalled for a while.  In my head I thought, "Do these colors really work together?"  Then I said, 'Screw it! I'm going to wear them anyway!" I set up my tripod, put on some bumping music, and had so much fun taking these pictures!  I was just bouncing around and trying all sorts of poses and here are the results =)

Tell me: Are any of you participating in Bloggers Do it Better?  Have you guys tried the colorblocking trend?

Check out other submissions here!

dress up your denim

jacket- forever 21, top- Target, jeans- Plato's Closet, shoes- Old Navy

This outfit is from a couple of weeks ago when I participated in Dee's Dress up Your Denim Challenge.  The idea was to wear at least one denim piece and create an outfit that would work for both day and night.  I kept things pretty casual here- I think this would be a cute outfit to go shopping in and then for night, throwing on the leather jacket gives it some edge.  Check out how other people styled their outfits here!

In other news, I had a good weekend just relaxing and hanging out with my friends.  On Saturday, my roomie and I walked to the yarn shop to pick up some supplies and it was so fun to see all the new yarns they had in stock!  Plus the weather was nice, so the stroll over there was great.  Then at night, we threw a party and the theme was Real Housewives of New Haven.  We dressed up like we thought the Real Housewives would and there was plenty of wine to go around!  Reality TV is such a guilty pleasure! :D

Tell me: Do you watch reality TV?  If so, what's your favorite show?

now I can be a real person again

everything except boots- forever 21, boos- GoJane

my happy nail polish color

Hiya! I missed you guys!  For most of this week, I have been locked in my room, furiously working on my senior essays.  Since I am a double major, I have to write two separate essays, one in Spanish and one in English which has meant twice the fun...not!  My suitemates have only seen me on my way to shower, get food, or go to the bathroom.  As of thirty minutes ago, I have submitted a draft of each paper to my senior advisers, so now I just have to get their comments, hopefully do only a little light editing, and turn in the final copies!  In the meantime, I am feeling quite light and free, so I can be a real person again!  I'll be taking the weekend to catch up on all the tweets, posts, and comments that I missed while I was in my bubble and I can't wait!  Plus it is supposed to be nice and sunny here tomorrow so hopefully that will mean some knitting outdoors.  I'm so excited to NOT think about anything academic for a couple of days!  See you soon! =)

it's just me

everything but boots- forever 21, boots- GoJane

Firstly, thank you to everyone who commented on my last post!  It was a great experience for me and I was more than happy to share it with you guys. =)  Secondly, I almost didn't post this outfit.  You know how you get the feeling that an outfit isn't blogworthy?  Well that's how I felt about this outfit.  Then I was like "Forget that!" because I've never claimed to be writing a high fashion super blog, but instead a blog about my life, which includes all sorts of things like fashion, my knitting, school, family, and so on.  Part of sharing about my life is showing the outfits I wear and this is something I wore, so why not post this outfit?  Basically, I'm trying to take the pressure off myself to be something I'm not and to keep true to who I am.

I think this little tee is so cute and I've
actually done some of the things on this list!

Also, I've been thinking a lot about commenting on blogs lately and Alyse wrote a post that really resonated with me.  So I have some questions for you guys (which are sort of a follow-up to the Fashion Beauty Friend Friday ones that were asked last week) that you can answer if you like and I'll include my answers as well:

Questions
1. Do you only comment on a post if you have something completely original to say?
2. Do you check back on posts you've commented to see if the blogger has left you a response?
3. How do you feel about Disqus? Love it/hate it?
4. How do you feel about people who leave a link with their comments?

Answers
1. Not necessarily.  I don't mind being the 20th person on a post to compliment that person's outfit choice because I'm showing my appreciation.  Some people might find it repetitive to read a bunch of comments about how gorgeous their shoes or necklace or skirt is, but I am grateful to each person who takes the time to comment.  I am certainly not knocking those who only comment when they have something original to say, I guess I'm just wondering if people are annoyed by reading comments that are fairly similar?

2. Not usually.  I only check back if I have asked a question or if I think the post discusses a really interesting topic and I want to see how other people respond.

3. I have had a pretty pleasant experience with Disqus so far.  I love how it has threaded replies, that way if other people have a similar question, they can see how I've replied.  Also, I like how it emails to let the commenter know that I've responded to their comment.  The only problem I've had is a couple of times Disqus hasn't loaded for while.  I've read on other blogs that some people despise Disqus, so as readers of this particular blog with Disqus, I would love to know how you feel about it!

4. I don't mind people who leave a link with their comments and I usually do it myself.  Let me clarify- commenting "Nice blog" and then leaving me a bunch of links to a blog or giveaway I consider spamming.  On the other hand, I'm totally fine with people who leave a thoughtful comment and include their link at the end.  To me, it is sort of like a signature and allows me to easily click onto their blog when I want to check it out.

Tell me: your thoughts! I'm curious to find out you guys think!

P.S. Speaking of commenting- thank you sincerely to every single one of you who takes the time to read this blog!  You guys are the support that encourages me to keep up with this blog and strive to make it better.  =)

a pearl tee please

Did you guys have a nice weekend?  I certainly could have spent my weekend more productively, but I did have a good time with friends, as well as applied to a couple more jobs.  As graduation gets closer and closer, I get more and more nervous about finding a job!  But really, what I want right now is for this weather to make up its mind so that spring can come and stay!

cardigan, skirt, shoes- forever 21, tee- charlotte russe, tights- target

Since the warmer weather is not cooperating here, I had to wear tights with this outfit.  I got this t-shirt with the pearly neckline on sale at Charlotte Russe for $10 and I absolutely love it!  It gives the outfit a dressy feel and matches perfectly with my earrings.  Also, this skirt was a steal at Forever 21 for $6.80 and because of the waistband, I can easily fold it and wear it at different lengths.

Also, I ordered some things earlier in the week and these packages should be arriving tomorrow so I am quite excited!  No more shopping for a little while though as I need to earn back all the moola that I spent over spring break!  Has anybody else been doing some online shopping recently?  If so, what did you buy?

Send me a little hello on twitter- I'd love to chat with you! :D