so many things

this Memorial Day weekend I was able to get away from the city with a few friends and go camping and climbing in Big Bear. It was fantastic! And freaking hot ... and then FREEZING. Quite literally. Sunburn on Saturday, snow flurries Sunday. So epic and I loved all of it.

My little Family

This is how we do

my baby...  a chair thief.

And among all the fun and flurries, I was ever so thankful for everything I have been given. The freedoms that so many have given so much for. Thank you to our servicemen and women. We miss the friends that we have lost and celebrate those who have given their lives in our stead.

-L

That Iphone really can take a great picture!

I hope your Memorial Day was as beautiful as mine!!

<3

-V

Shake Your Hair Feathers

  Yes... I just went there.  

In case you have been living in a cave this spring and have missed out on my favorite new hair accessory let me enlighten you.  They are FEATHERS!!  I first saw them sprouting up in Las Vegas while I was there in December working a trade show,  let me tell you it took me 4 days but i finally found the vendor who was selling and "installing" these amazing accessories.  All you need for assembly are just a few simple tools and a second or two and viola...instant coolness!  The lady promised if I took good care of them they would stay in about  a month..well close to 3 months later they were still in tight! I took mine out myself (with a pair of pliers, no damage was done to my hair) so I could dye my hair, and have yet to put them back in due to equal parts laziness and indecisiveness about changing the color.  But that doesn't mean I've forgone feathers all together...keep reading below for a less permanent option. ;)

My December feathers. ;)

If you are hesitant about putting these in yourself or just feel like you would rather be able to change your choices day to day, then I suggest clip in hair feathers. 

 Etsy.com has a great selection!  My current favorites are from: 

FOLKANDFAIRY TALE

http://www.etsy.com/shop/FolkandFairyTale

They have a great selection for a very reasonable price, I own the "Skinny Fox" (pictured above) and just love it!  In fact it's going on tour with me in a few weeks... (have i mentioned I'm headed out on tour with the lovely Stevie Scott yet??  blog post to come!)!!!

Here I am with the Skinny Fox, sorry my phone/camera cut off the bottom of the pic..but hey i was sitting in traffic and it started moving.  ;)

I also have my eye on FOLKANDFAIRY TALE's "Auburn Skinny"

I just might need to add this one to my "tour collection" as well!!! ;)

Celebrities are loving this trend too!!  

Hope you feel inspired to put your own spin on this fun new trend and that you shake your hair feathers!

xoxo

-V

Simple Lemon Pasta

I have a friend whose mother makes the most amazing lemon pasta.  It's the kind that you wake up craving in the middle of the night and dream about crashing their family functions just so you can eat it.   On many occasions I have tried to recreate it but unfortunately I fail every time, however, instead of giving up I concocted my own version to hold me over until I can get to their house. ;)  

So this is MY pasta dish..super easy, super simple, and you only need a few ingredients! ENJOY

Ingredients:

Pasta (I use whole wheat Thin Spaghetti) 

Olive Oil

Garlic

Lemons

Cherry Tomatoes

Salt and Pepper

 Start with your spaghetti

While your Spaghetti is boiling cut up your tomatoes and halve your lemons.  

In a saucepan combine olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.  I eyeball the amounts, you want enough oil to coat the amount of spaghetti you used and i'm a huge fan of garlic so I add quite a lot.  Bring the oil to a sizzle long enough to brown your garlic.  Once browned take off the heat and set aside.

Once the spaghetti is cooked, drain it then toss it into the saucepan with the olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.

Then squeeze your lemon halves over the pasta.  I used 3 lemon halves for this picture. (I LOVE LEMON)

Finally add the tomatoes and more salt and pepper and mix it all together!

Finished Product!!  ;)

* If you find that you are adding to much salt to the dish try substituting regular olive oil for flavored olive oil.

-V 

A little giggle

Just as Victoria is sporting her new and lovely clothing purchases, I'm sporting my yoga knickers and tank top. I had to giggle as I was reading her post and looking at her cute pictures and spotting myself in the mirror in the complete opposite attire.

yes, this actually happened.

We'll have to talk about this more later, but I have been making a serious effort to become more fit. I was a sprinter in high school as well as *ahem* a cheerleader that really enjoyed being fit and strong. Now I'm a musician that enjoys drinking coffee and writing songs while sitting in my comfy chair. Oh how things do change.

I'm a big collaborator - in music, in work and in life - which means that I need accountability. And so, great internets, I have stated here that I shall do better, run farther, drink more water and do my best to enjoy that which I do not: working out.

-l

High Waisted Madness & Super Steals

I'm a huge fan of 70s fashion and could not have been more delighted to learn that high waisted jeans had made a comeback!  Needless to say I'd been on the lookout for an affordable pair these last few months and was having trouble finding anything within my budget.  So i decided to look online at one of my favorite stores, ASOS,  I'd only recently discovered their website and must say I was an instant fan. These babies only set me back $64.63 with free shipping!!  Who does that? Amazing!! Plus the site does really cool runway videos of each piece so you can watch how the clothes move, and they also add the models height...very helpful for tall girls like me!!  

What I'm Wearing

Pants:  ASOS Rio Blue High Waist Kickflare  www.asos.com

Top:  Cotton On Blue Polly Woven Tank   www.cottonon.com

Necklace:  The Giving Keys   www.thegivingkeys.com

Clutch:  Vintage, straight out of my mom's closet  ;)

Shoes:  Forever 21 Gladiator Sandals www.forever21.com

I also wanted to share 2 super steals I found this week!

The first being this amazing Royal Blue Dress I bought from Anthropologie! I normally am not able to find much within my price range when i visit, but this day was different!  I found this dress marked down 75% and it was the last one in my size...hooray!  I think it's perfect to wear to a summer wedding, the color is gorgeous and it reminds of a style worn in the 1940s, my fav.  ;)  ... and yep that is my shoe and sock. nice touch huh.

www.anthropologie.com 

Lastly, I needed to find a LBD that was appropriate for the occasion I was headed to and yet one that was still stylish.  Thankfully Macy's had just what I needed that was within my budget!  However the dress came with a  sad looking plastic belt which I quickly took off and replaced with this brown belt from TopShop.  I thought it was a nice contrast with the black and even though you can't see it I paired the outfit with nude heels  and a black vintage bag from my mother's closet.  ;)

www.macys.com

Happy Shopping everyone...be mindful of the best deals and your budget...spend wisely! ;)

xoxo

-V

MTM

Laura and I share many of the same loves, (popcorn made on the stove, a good non animated Disney movie from the 60's, such as the original Parent Trap, and a good blues song).

However, we especially love Mary Tyler Moore 

Our favorites are The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Mary Tyler Moore Show, I might own 5 seasons on dvd...but who's counting.  ;)

So if you are ever in need of some good popcorn and a boxed set of oldies give us a call...we've got the MTM front covered!

-V

Frame It!

Here's a quick project for those of you who are looking for a way to organize your jewelry, or that of a loved one - you know you want to! I'm a big fan of organization and I'm also a little forgetful. This solved both, in that now I can see what I have and its very tidy!

Framed!

 Find yourself a frame. I loved how this one was on the small side and a little beat up. Secret: its actually the inside framing from an old painting that someone didn't like so much and ripped off. There's some old newspaper that was used as batting. Classic and awesome.

 Picture hanging wire. Less than 3 bucks and you'll find tons of uses for it!

(I had my man help, just for the fun it!)

Add one screw to each top corner, don't screw it in all the way, leave a little space to wrap your picture wire around it for hanging on the wall.

 Measure!! I put the first wire at 1 inch from the top and then used my longest pair of earrings as a guide to measure the height from the bottom of the frame for the second wire. Mark your place for the screws with a pen or pencil, cut the length of wire with wire cutters and get to work. Leave a little space when putting those screws in again and wrap the ends of that wire around them. 

Hang the frame up before you hang your jewelry on the wires. 

I really like the end result and I can finally see all of my lovely things!

Some other really sweet examples of frames-turned-jewelry-organizers:

Via cubly.com

Via squidoo.com

-L

She Dances

On the heels of that VERY inspiring video that Laura posted today I wanted to share an organization that I partner with that is very close to my heart called SHE DANCES.  It is an organization run by two incredible friends of mine who have hearts of gold.  The organization provides holistic restoration to young girls who have been trafficked and sexually exploited in Honduras.  If you want to learn more about them or how you can help (I personally give 20 dollars a month) visit ...

www.shedances.org


But if you are not financially able to give monthly then just buy one or two of there amazingly cool t-shirts!

annnnnd talking about fashion, that is a nice little transition into my next blog post... high waisted jeans.. get excited I found some for under $65 that are amazing..you will want them too!!! ;)

-V  :)

Wisdom

watch this:
http://www.wisdombook.org/

be inspired. do something good.

-l

Meet Us

We're friends. Good ones.

We like music, DIY projects, art and fashion, but mostly we like people. Like you.

So we made this blog and we want to share the things that we love with you. It might be random. It might be awesome. You might love it or hate it. But here it is. Things we like.

The End.

-v&l

p.s. italics: when the other person puts their two cents in.

Meet Laura

I love to swing. Really high. And fast. 
Things I am passionate about are World Vision (you must, if you can, sponsor a child. yeah. we do.), environmental causes and my little family.
Obsessive? Coffee. Espresso. Latte. Cappuccino. Its an issue. I own a vintage hand press espresso machine and burr grinder. If you know what I just said, we can be friends.
I also make up words, i.e. muckins: a cross between a cookie and a muffin. 


-l

Meet Victoria

I like to talk; on the phone, to myself, to anyone or anything that will listen. True.
Things that I am passionate about are She Dances, Plays Well with Others and Compassion International. More on those to come.
I am obsessed with reading biographies and Peets Coffee, often at the same time.
I enjoy fashion (what up Ms. Smitley) and vintage shopping, taking thrifted items and recreating them.
Oh yeah, and I'm really tall. Which is amazing.


-v