URBAN OUTFITTERS
As if I haven't talked about this enough already...
URBAN F***ING OUTFITTERS FEATURED ME ON THEIR BLOG.
I don't think I'll ever get over it.
It's one thing to have companies send you some product and ask you to post pictures of it on your Instagram, but this experience was on a whole other level. I've been shopping at Urban Outfitter since I was about 12 and didn't really give a crap about what I wore/what I looked like. I've been on somewhat of a style journey since then, and Urban has been in my life all along the way. I've spent many a hard-earned dollar there, so I was completely floored when they emailed me asking if I would be willing to do a feature on their blog.
*cue dramatic flashback*
It was an ordinary Tuesday morning. I lazily forced myself to wake up at 9:15am and, as usual, checked my phone.
Gmail Notification Re: Urban Outfitters blog feature
Wait, what?
Hi Caitlin! I'm reaching out from the UO blog to see if you'd be interested in working with us on a blog post. We'd love to send you some products and then send over someone to shoot you for a post...let me know if this is something you'd be interested in and available for, and I can send over some more details!"
HOLY SHIT BALLS. I couldn't believe what I was reading. URBAN OUTFITTERS, one of my go-to stores of almost seven years wanted me - ME - to participate in a blog feature. I ran upstairs to tell my mom. I was kind of yelling, and definitely shaking, completely filled with excitement and happiness. She was hesitant as first, wondering if it might be someone trying to scam me. She said she couldn't remember the last time I woke up
happy
.
After a whirlwind week of picking out products, communicating with my contact from Urban and with the photographer,
, and dying to share the news with my friends, I had done it. I had shot for Urban Outfitters in Malibu with an incredible photographer.
This was truly an amazing experience, and I am so honored that I was deemed "cool enough" (when in reality, I'm just a nineteen year old taking a year off from school who spends 50% of her time binge-watching shows on Netflix) to do an entire interview+shoot feature on the UO blog.
Go take a read and let me know what you think!!
And thank you for all the incredible support both on this blog and on my Instagram. It seriously means the world to me :)
OCTOBER MOOD BOARD
by
I've decided to start creating mood boards. Not that my Pinterest account isn't enough of a mood board (and an insanely organized one, at that), but I thought it would be fun to create collage-y mood boards to draw inspiration from each month.
October (especially in LA), is an awkward month. While other North American states are experiencing cold weather,
our
temperatures are somehow still in the high 80's an 90's. No, seriously. It's going to be 99 degrees this weekend. IT'S ALMOST MID-OCTOBER, FOR CHRIST'S SAKES!!
As I was saying, October is an awkward month. It's hot, but magazines and stores are featuring beautiful knits, coats, boots, and holiday shopping deals...
This mood board is a celebration of what Fall in sunny Los Angeles means - palm trees and "cheat" cold weather wear. As much as I would love to wear a leather jacket right now, doing so would probably end with me dying of heat stroke, so I might opt for something like a leather bralette instead - it's "Fall," but with a summery twist. Are you catching my drift?
More things I'm inspired by this October:
-unique eye makeup - a swipe of dark green eyeliner in the crease of your eyelid. It's unique, without being too crazy.
-oversized structured silhouettes
-neutral color-blocked kicks
BLACK MAGIC + GRAFFITI SUBLIME
Quick question...how do we all feel about this post title? The only excuse I have for calling it "Black Magic" is that my outfit here is (almost) all black. If you take away the jacket. Is that reason enough? Or did I just make a complete fool of myself? What comes to mind when
you
hear the words "Black Magic?"
In my humble opinion, this outfit is pretty magical. And it's (almost) all black. Very fitting, then, that this post it entitled "Black Magic." Not going to lie - this might be the worst thesis I've ever presented...
Last week, I took a major step by finally checking out
, a West LA coffee shop infamous for its litany of strictly enforced rules (read more about them
). After reading several low-rated Yelp reviews written by angry customers complaining about everything from rude baristas to the 90-minute wifi limit, I was absolutely terrified.
What if I decided to go there and ended up getting yelled at for bringing my reusable water bottle (no outside food/drink allowed)? What if I stuttered whilst trying to place my drink order? Would I be met with a judgmental side-eye from the barista? What if???
All of these concerns were completely unnecessary. I honestly don't understand why people give this place so much shit on social media! The barista was friendly enough, I had a wonderful time catching up with my friend,
, without getting reprimanded for being too loud or anything, and the interior was absolutely stunning! This coffee shop is really more of an art gallery. Two floors of all-white floors, walls and ceilings. It even has a fire place?!?! I mean, how cool is that?
The lesson to be learned here is that you shouldn't believe everything you see/read online. Don't knock something till you've tried it. I'm sure that at some point or another, we've all been scared off by over-zealous Yelp reviewers expressing their hatred for a coffee shop whose rules have been put in place merely to achieve a certain (perfect for conversation and/or getting some work done) ambience. Ignore the haterz and just check that place out for yourself. If you end up siding with the angry Yelp-goers...no biggie! But you might just end up finding your new favorite spot.
Moving on to the look...
Can I just say that I always feel so weird talking about what I'm wearing?
Should
I be discussing the benefits of wearing jeans and a t-shirt, or my preference for all-black outfits? You tell me.
My wardrobe is in desperate need of an update. I have owned all of the items featured in this post for at least six months. I feel like I've tried almost every possible combination of the items I own, but after an hour of trying to figure out what to wear on this particular day, I finally found
this
. Why had this ensemble never occurred to me? It's got the best of all worlds. Double denim (black high-rise denim shorts + denim jacket) + distressed black tee + cool shoes + RayBan's = happy me.
This outfit's a winner winner chicken dinner for sure.
Denim Jacket - Madewell
|
|
| Shoes - Asos
|
DEAR LA WEATHER: a rant about this never-ending heatwave
Day:
?
Notes:
It's still 90 degrees. I want to buy knits, but I can't. It's too hot for knits. When will it
really
be Fall in LA?
I'm so over this heatwave.
I can't stand it. I shot this ensemble an entire month ago, thinking it would start cooling down by the end of September. And yet, here we are...
This is actually a fine example of what I would wear once the temperature drops somewhere closer to 70 degrees during the day (as it should at this point of the year). *sigh*
All bitching about LA weather aside, I'm absolutely in love with this mustard/rust-colored (*insert gif from Project Runway of Christopher Palu making fun of a fellow contestant for describing her orangey-red fabric as "blood orange"*) pinafore dress from Zara.
You know those impulse buys you sometimes make? (
Of course
it wasn't within your control to think more carefully about how to spend your money. Who needs budgeting? That Nicholas Cage pillowcase on Amazon just showed up in your shopping cart, right?) This was one of them. I saw the color and immediately decided that since I didn't have a pinafore dress yet, this would be my first one.
After I got home from shopping, I eagerly tried it on again. After five minutes of trying to find different tops to wear under it, I was hit with the sinking realization that I didn't have anything that really "went" with it.
The logical solution, then, was to go out shopping,
again
, to find something that
would
match.
...And I wonder why my debit card balance shrinks so quickly...
Keeping my budget in mind, I walked into Forever 21 for the first time in maybe four or five years. My last trip to that store probably involved walking around aimlessly with a squad of ten girls as we all waited for our parents to pick us up from a movie we had decided to go see after school. Ahhh, middle school. Good times. Not really. But it's good to look back and laugh at your younger self every once in a while.
I'm not going to lie. Forever 21 is actually pretty great. I'd forgotten how many basics they have, and for SUCH CHEAP PRICES. This super cute bell-sleeved knit sweater with scalloped hem details? $20.
In conclusion:
-mustard/rust is my new favorite (at least for Fall) color
-don't buy an article of clothing without thinking first about whether or not you have the necessary items to match
-Forever 21 is kind of great
-LA...get your shit together. I'm tired of this heat. Give me 70 degrees. That's all I ask.
