Shine Bright

One of my favorite things about being in a sorority in college was the ridiculous outfits that you could get away with for swaps and mixers. Finally I had a reason to dress up in completely crazy outfits. Now in my post grad life I've needed to restrain myself and have sunk into a fashion slump of socially acceptable pencil skirts and blazers. But ask anyone and they can tell you that self control has never been my virtue, so after graduation the search began for ways to still stand out without looking like an unemployable freak.

I have always been easily distracted by loved bright and shiny things. Diamonds, glitter, neon.. how can  anybody not love them! Unfortunately diamonds are expensive and wearing glitter is pretty much a lifetime commitment since it never seems to go away, but neon comes in a wide range of prices and isn't impossible to take off. A bright accessory can be the perfect pop of color to bring a simple, monotone outfit come to life, or it can bring out an accent color in patterned clothing. Neon can work in both the daytime and nighttime and can be used to transition an outfit from casual to "going-out".

While neons are great as accent pieces, why not 'go big or go home'.The key to fully embracing neon is to stick with either warm or cool colors. While I love pink and green in pastels, nobody should walk around looking like a radioactive watermelon.

I prefer warm colors and chose pink as my base color. Then I added yellow into the ensemble and added a splash of orange to blend the two colors together.

This outfit also easily went from brunch with my parents to the bars that night..

In the morning I wore a white tank top under the top, tucked in the shirt, and wore the skirt at my natural waist with nude sandals. I also grabbed a navy sweater because restaurants always seem to be cold. For night I switched out the tank top in favor for a neon yellow crop top. I also pulled the skirt up to my waist-waist and switched out the nude sandals for a pair that matched my hot pink necklace.

xx,

Megan

P.S. If you didn't get that Life-Size reference then you need to stop reading and go watch that movie. Like now.

Summer Blues

Blue has long been my favorite color, and this summer I have fully embraced blue. According the the psychology of color, blue is associated with water and peace, curbs your appetite and creates a calm and serene atmosphere- basically exactly what summer should be like. There are so many shades of blue and ways to incorporate it into your summer style, but I made a list of my 1o favorite ways to add some blues to your life!

 1. Coolers have become extremely  popular this past year, the fad even reached my small liberal arts college in Memphis. Painting them may be fun, but I love this party tub more than any cooler I've painted. We received ours as a gift but you can find a similar one on Etsy here. Just message them if you want a different fabric pattern and a monogram or any other customization. These are perfect for hosting parties or as a hostess gift at parties where you are a guest!

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2. I can't help it, there's just something about a boy in a blue. I am kind of spacey and get distracted easily. But if you want me to notice you and actually hold my attention, these are my suggestions:

a) Seersucker- I think everybody should own at least 1 piece of seersucker, my favorite is my navy seersucker blazer from j.crew

 b) A vv pullover- they are so comfortable and perfect for a cool summer night, preferably on the beach. I am so happy my brother outgrew his and I managed to grab it out of the bag my mom left on the porch for the goodwill! I wear it all the time now.

c) A polo+bathing suit- I like anybody who looks like they make an effort to look nice when they go to the beach. Yes, it's a casual place but that doesn't mean you should show up in a ratty old t-shirt and a bathing suit that leaves almost nothing to the imagination

AND FINALLY..

d) A summer sportcoat- I know that it is summer and its hot, but come on. I just love this outfit. The light colors and even lighter fabrics are the perfect combination to look hot in summer without actually overheating.

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 3. I don't think words can explain how much I love this bag. It fits the crazy amount of items I always carry around with me and adds the perfect pop of color to any outfit. You can buy it from Kate Spade here, or check out some similar bags at a lower price here, here, and here.

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4. I don't know what it is, but my dogs love this dog toy. It squeaks, it bounces, and they are obsessed. The shape makes it difficult for them to pick it up so they spend hours picking it up then dropping it, chasing it as it bounces down the hallway, picking it up again, and starting the process all over again. It perfect for days when I have no desire to sit outside and play fetch with them or don't want them staring at me, begging for food, when I just want to eat. So if you have over attentive dogs, run to your nearest Petsmart and pick one of these up! Your pups may actually leave you alone for a few minutes!

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5. These personalized notebooks are too perfect. You get to pick the background, the monogram or label, and the inside of the notebook. I ordered two and use one for brainstorming new blog ideas and the other for recording my workouts and diet. The insides pages can be customized to an 2012-2013 academic agenda, a 2013 monthly+weekly agenda, a non-dated weekly agenda, a meal planner, or simply have blank, dot grid, graph, or lined pages. Maybooks are also a perfect gift for engagement parties or baby showers as the inside pages can also be customized to be a wedding diary, a bump diary, and a baby diary. Check them out and order one for yourself here!

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6. I love when it gets warm enough for my dad to break out his MG. I honestly know nothing about cars, but I know that when dad starts driving this around regularly, its officially summer.

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7. Now this isn't super nautical, but I can't get enough of the chevron style of the top with the green accent and white buttons. The green gives it the right pop of color that takes this bikini from being cute to one of my favorites. It can be found at Target, so check it out now! Oh and to make it even better, the top is a push-up!

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8. Nothing beats jumping in a cool pool on a hot summer day, which means my parents have about zero chance of getting rid of me. My mom has done an amazing job turning our back yard into a summer oasis. We even made the pool a salt water pool so it doesn't damage our hair color! Now that really is perfection.

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9. I first fell in love with sperry's in upper school when the school administration vaguely described the shoe dress code as "tennis shoes that are 90% white or brown shoes with laces, worn with navy blue knee socks." Of course they meant those ugly brown oxfords, but we all took these guidelines to fit the description of all brown sperry topsiders. Finally there was a part of my uniform that I could wear outside of school without creepy old men asking if I was a catholic school girl. I love that these shoes can go with pretty much everything and have developed a slightly unhealthy obsession with them. My favorite pair at the moment are the Cloud Logo Authentic Original 2-Eye Boat Shoe (pictured). However, if you still need that one perfect seersucker piece for your closet, check out the Angelfish Slip-on Boat Shoe. Or if you're looking for something with a little sparkle, then the Bahama Boat Shoe is for you!

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10. Hydrangea bushes can spruce up any yard. We have a huge bush by our pool and I love the color it brings and how easy they are to maintain. If you want to grow blue hydrangeas, try and grow in soil with a pH of 5.2 to 5.5. If the pH of the soil is too high you can apply soil Acidifier or lower the pH organically, and more gradually,  by adding pine needles or pine bark.

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Now that I have all these, my favorite items are sure to be my only blues this summer! What are your favorite summer style pieces?

xx,

Megan

What I Wore: Formal Season!

Spring Semester is always my favorite. We have rites of spring, pike beach party, KD formal weekend, and fraternities formal weekends! I always love picking out dresses for spring formals because you don't have to worry about getting cold, or carrying a sweater, and can fully embrace pastels and bright colors! I love dresses that are dramatic and have exaggerated elements. This year, the elements I focused on were color and lines. By looking for these bold features, I found some incredible, stand out dresses that made me feel bold and beautiful!

Formal 1

-Reverse Dress: no longer available, but the top portion of the dress is available as a crop top (found at ASOS.com)

-Shoes: found at zappos.com

I loved this dress, the cut outs and hi-lo hem makes it so dramatic and the neon skirt makes it impossible to miss! These shoes were great, the cut outs matched the dress perfectly and the exposed zipper on the top and studded side straps make the outfit a bit more rock and roll. It was a bit chilly earlier in the evening so I added black leather bomber jacket for dinner and drinks.

Formal 2

-Yumi Kim Dress: no longer available, but the Leon Mini Dress and Goddess Dress are very similar!

-Found on the designers website, YumiKim.com

This isn't the greatest picture to show the dress, but my date bought berger cookies and southside mix from home for us to eat and drink at the pregame, so this is the only picture where I am not stuffing my face. I loved the light material and the pink background. The pops of white and navy creating a distorted floral pattern created the dramatic element that I was looking for. 

Formal 3

-Free People Dress: no longer available

-Missimo Shoes, found at Target

This was a THEME FORMAL. I would never wear this normally! We went as a jersey shore couple. I originally bought this dress because I loved the lines it creates. The contrasting angles of the neck and hem lines drew me in and then the difference between the loose, billowing top and tight bottom makes it perfect. Do I even need to say anything about the shoes? They are cheetah and I love them. Done. 

Formal 4

-Herve Leger Pink Palm Dress, rented through Rent the Runway

-Shoes: I paired this with a pair of three inch nude pumps that I borrowed from my friend

I am obsessed with Herve Leger, and thank goodness for Rent the Runway or I would never be able to afford them! I wish I could have kept this dress. The pink and purple were bright and really made the lines created by the bandages pop! It was also very tight (It actually took two people to get the dress to hook at the top, but once it was on, the dress was surprisingly elastic and really comfortable). I loved how the dress accentuated my curves in a way that actually made me proud to show them off!

Aren't I too young to be bitter: how to be single on Valentines Day

When I started thinking about writing this, Valentine’s Day reminded me of the last scene in Thelma & Louise…you know, if Thelma was alone in the car and if instead of cops, she was surrounded by stuffed animals, canoodling couples, and cut-out hearts. At first, the cliff seemed like the best option, but why should she be the one to drive off into the abyss? Thelma is the only non-repulsive thing in this scene. Why not pull a 180, slam on the gas, and run over some of those mutant teddy bears on the way to the nearest mall/liquor store? Before you keep reading, there are a few things you should know; I recently lost three things: my filter, restraint with my credit card, and my sense of shame. I didn’t have much of a filter to begin with, but maybe it isn’t entirely appropriate to scream a long line of expletives as all 57 pages of your unstapled biology reading fly across the quad. I probably should be worried about all the hard work my credit card and the fine people at Zappos have been doing, maybe I will when I have to use my entire paycheck to pay off the four pairs of shoes I bought in the past three weeks. For now I’m too in love with walking around in 5-inch heels, pretending that I’m actually tall and not a little nugget, to be concerned about paying for things. Finally, why do we even need shame? Should I be embarrassed to dance on tables like the special combination of ADHD and accident prone that I am, or to be lying on the ground after a 21-year old boy crumbles from 100 pounds of spazz-attack jumping on his back? Maybe, but why waste your time being embarrassed? If everyone is already laughing, laugh along with them and join the good time

Sadly, this really is me, I actually dance like this, and it happened  for everyone and their parents to see

To all my single friends, come and mingle with all the wonderful things Valentine's Day has to offer people without a significant other. First of all, it's the only day of the year I can wear my hot pink tights or hot pink 5 1/2 inch platform heels in public and look normal-- well maybe not normal, but it's at least socially acceptable understandable. Besides, if you don't shock one person with your outfit, you're doing something wrong. Be bold, break out that pink, and live colorfully, even if it's just for a day!

The second best thing, or the best thing—depending on how much I've had—about V-Day is wine. Wine makes everything better. If you don't believe me, look at Bachelor Ben—do you really think any of these girls would give him and his awful hair (really dude, a center part) a second glance if he wasn’t a winemaker? I still wish they started filming the Bachelor before Ashley's season aired and replaced Ben with Bentley I can't be the only one who would love to see a showdown between Bentley the Bastard and Crazy Courtney. But for now I can only hope to see that on The Bachelor Pad and I'm stuck watching Boring Ben, who totally isn't trying to overcompensate for anything  with that giant machete in this week’s episode.

The best part of the season was when they were in Sonoma; it was like a fruity, alcoholic paradise. Plus, you don't get blackout or shitfaced, or any of those negative connotations with wine. Instead, you get classy drunk while looking as fine as the full-bodied Pinot that you're sipping. Normally I can feel the judgment radiating off people after they learn that I drank a bottle of wine on a school night, but clearly, these people were never dragged to see New Years Eve in theaters. Rejoice fellow vinos, our day has finally come! Raise your glass (or bottle if that’s how you roll) to the great wine gods and to St. Valentine.

Finally, February 14 is the day of youthful bitterness. We may be young, but there is a lot to be bitter about. From having to still ask boys to formals (I thought I got to leave this Sadie Hawkins hell in high school) to the new cafeteria not being completed until after you graduate, college life can be hard... in a #firstworldproblems kind of way. Sometimes you just need to vent about all the things that frustrate you, like how you spent all your money on shoes instead of buying groceries, or even worse, Steelers fans. Valentine's Day isn't the time to complain about things that actually matter. That's great that you found some charity to work for, but nobody wants to watch a Sarah McLachlan commercial when they're just trying to buy a Forever Lazy. Save the stories with substance for later and tell me about this guy who thinks quoting Twilight is the way to your heart.

This may be the day for couples, but lets make it the day to show them what they're missing! Stay tuned for updates, recipes, and overall bitterness for an Anti-Valentines Party! Until then, go boldly, go brightly, and live by the wise words of a Bishop of Seville, "I have enjoyed great health at a great age because everyday since I can remember I have consumed a bottle of wine except when I have not felt well. Then I have two bottles."

Sloppy wine kisses,

Megan

No Clean-Up Dinner

My biggest problem with cooking has always been what a mess I make. I love the modern family episode where Cam makes a mess in the kitchen, promises to clean it up later, and then leaves so Mitchell will clean it for him. This is exactly what I would do at home. Sadly, just like Mitchell, my family learned my trick and stopped cleaning up after me. This left me with a few options..

1. Stop cooking. This was so not going to happen, I love to cook and I love to eat.

2. Stop being messy. I like to say that I'm not a messy person, but don't believe me. I a messy and I probably always will be.

3. Hire a maid or butler to clean for me. I'm still looking at this option. Is anyone out there willing to clean my kitchen? I can pay you with gratitude and leftovers.

None of these options are panning out, so I decided to try cooking things that offered a minimal chance of mess. Cooking in parchment was the perfect solution! I could prepare, cook, and eat out of one package. Finally I found my perfect meal, healthy, easy and no mess. I'll be making this a lot.

Ingredients (serves one) 1 fillet of fish, preferably cod or halibut Salt Butter Asparagus Vinegar or white wine (or both) Bay leaves Parchment paper

Preparation -clean fish, place on a sheet of parchment paper and sprinkle with salt

-cut asparagus (however much you like) into 2" long pieces and place around the fish

-pour a tablespoon of your acid over the fish and asparagus. I chose to do a teaspoon of rosemary vinegar and a teaspoon of Conundrum white wine blend (amazing wine)

-place one or two, depending on your taste, bay leaf(leaves) on top of the fish

-fold your parchment paper into a half moon shape. Fold and crease the edges as many times as you need to keep the pocket closed (probably not more than 2 or 3 times)

-cook for 15-20 minutes at 425

-remove from the oven, open the pouch, and enjoy!