Favorite Finds Friday: Hoedown

I am one pair of cowboy boots away from a spaghetti western in this outfit but I kind of like it. I think next time, I'll try a different shirt and see how I feel.  I found this skirt at Savers and shortened it. The top and the belt are also thrift finds :) What do you all think of this outfit?







Outfit Details:
Belt, skirt, shirt - Thrifted
Necklace- Forever 21 (I think)
Shoes - Some tourist shop in San Diego
Cardigan - Old Navy

For the Locals - City Guide

I was just peering at Allison's blog and she posted a link to this city guide.  I LOVE it. So many great places to shop and eat with a description of each one. I can't wait to try all of the places I haven't been or haven't heard of. My own personal Minneapolis check list :)



Also, would you all be interested in a new feature that I've been thinking of? I want to feature local stores and restaurants that I love and share them with you. Would that be interesting at all?

I also want to do some street style pictures... Minneapolis/St. Paul are not known as fashion cities but I want to show how cool people dress around here.  Let me know what you think.

Pride Parade - My outfit

After sharing my opinions in a word heavy post yesterday, I thought I would just show you some pictures of what I wore. I had so much fun at the parade! Drinking in the streets and great people watching makes for a great day. I wore my most colorful dress and new hat. But I forgot the sunscreen... ouch. This dress is from Hill Valley Boutique. Their seamstress takes vintage dresses and makes them into more modern shapes and styles. This was a house dress :) How cool is that?







Outfit Details:
Dress - Hill Valley Boutique
Belt - H&M
Shoes - I want to say Urban Outfitters
Hat, sunglasses - Target
Sunburn - Free


This picture had to be thrown in because it cracks me up :)

Twin Cities Pride

If you don't want to read about my views on gay marriage then don't read this post :)



Love is love. Period. Who is anyone to decide who can and can't be in love and who can and can't be married? If we are going to start picking and choosing then I've met quite a few people who wouldn't pass muster. It all comes down to basic human rights in my opinion.  In the past we have fought for women's rights, equality among different races and now we have another battle on our hands.  Just because you were born a certain way doesn't mean you should be treated any differently. If you think men are better than women, you are sexist. If you think white people are better than black people or vice versa, you are racist. But, if you think that straight people have more rights than those who are gay, you are just defending the "sanctity of marriage." Bullshit. Some states have made it legal for same sex couples to get married and the world hasn't come crashing to the ground. If two people love each other, let them get married. The end. I will definitely be voting NO on the marriage amendment in MN (an amendment to the constitution that would essentially ban gay marriage).



I have a cousin who is gay and thinking of all the things her wife couldn't have access to if she was hurt or dying really pisses me off. In MN, her wife wouldn't have rights to consult with a physician on her care if she wasn't able to, be able to sue for wrongful death and couldn't have a joint life insurance policy with her. They don't love their daughter any less because they are gay and their family should have all the same rights as any other. There are actually 515 ways that MN laws discriminate against same sex couples. If you want to know more, check out Project 515.

Also, some people think being gay is a choice. I know that I didn't wake up one morning and think to myself, "I'm straight. Yes, I think I will decide to be attracted to men." I always just knew that guys did it for me. I have no experience in the matter but I'm assuming being gay is the same way. You can't choose who you love or who you're attracted to.  If you think that people can change the way they are then maybe you should change your own mind set. I would love to see bigoted, small minded people change their point of view. It would make the world a better place.

Ok, I'm done with my speech :) Enjoy some fun pictures of the Twin Cities Pride parade!












FOAM ATTACK!


Favorite float. Lots of dancing in the street :)

One more thing. Just seeing how many people (250,000+!!) came out to support the gay community really made me proud of the people in my city. I know that a parade like this couldn't take place everywhere in the US. Twin cities, you rock!

Home Tour - Recent Additions

I recently added some new decor with the help of my pal and interior decorator extraordinaire Megan. I also re-arranged some furniture thanks to my parents. Nothing like a big event where lots of people want to see your place to get stuff in gear. I had my sister's baby shower in April and then my birthday party in May so I wanted everything to look great.  I really like how it looks now so I thought I would show you a couple of the updates! 


The whole shebang.


New rolling cart courtesy of my grandma. Liquor is courtesy of all my birthday party attendees :)


The little tray and bottle opener are from IKEA, the shaker and jigger (is that the word?) are from CB2, and the glasses were thrifted. Megan graciously gave me these 2 when we were shopping :)


The smiley MN print is the new addition to the collage wall





I'm going to list as many things as I can remember :)
Old cameras: Etsy
Games: mostly thrifted
Records: mostly thrifted, some from Hymie's Vintage Records
Books: thrifted, some from my parents house, some my grandma gave me
Shortbread tin, flower tin - Buffalo occasional sales
Weird egg people salt and pepper shakers: garage sale
Baker and wife S&P shakers: my grandma
Small globe: Patina
Eiffel tower: Paris, Florence glass painting you can't see: Florence street vendor
Puzzle US map: parent's garage
Crates: Some from my mom, one from a garage sale and a couple from Junk Love (including the metal one)


This is one of my favorite additions.  The couch used to face the wall and there was a big IKEA bookshelf here (you can see it in the background of the second picture). I only have 2 windows so the light was blocked by the unit. It is so much more light and open and I have more storage too! The bookshelf now separates the "living room" from the "bedroom."


My one print from Wild Tonic was joined by two others and hung in the bathroom


Thrifted crewel picture in my bedroom


New chair via craigslist and thrifted afghan

Blogger Lady Date

What better reason to get dressed up then to hang out with a fellow blogger and super cool lady? None I tell you! I had a fun date in St. Paul with Lori last week. We ate the biggest tots I've ever seen and then forgoed (forwent?) dinner and had dessert. I had some AMAZING key lime pie and Lori had some tasty chocolate cake. I wore my new favorite dress and trusty target shoes.  Date success! 







Outfit Details:
Dress - Thrifted (Lacoste!)
Shoes, sunglasses - Target


Here is a more serious picture for you all. :)

**Just noticed I'm above 100 followers. Thanks and hi to my new readers!**

Crash the Ball: Party Style Part 2

I've got some more great dresses and suits coming your way!


Left to right: Jacqueline - Saks off 5th, Emily - Faviana Couture, Liz - Saks in New York City
Well, you don't need me to tell you that these ladies looked great. I found out after Jacqueline friended me on facebook that she was Miss North Dakota a couple of years ago. How cool is that? Emily and Liz were the chairs of the events and definitely looked the part. I love the color of both of their dresses and all three of their dresses fit their personalities so well.


From Right to Left: Carl - Hugo Boss, Andrea - Alice Temperly via Rent the Runway, Taryn - Zara, Michael - Hugo Boss
The theme of the event was Paris and these ladies were some of the only people who dressed for it. I love that Andrea took a dress that was pretty in its own right and added such fun accessories like the floral belt and the hat.Taryn's look was 1920's Paris without being too literal. The pale sequins with the black sequin stripes were really eye catching in person. These two guys definitely pulled their own weight and looked great too. I liked that Michael picked a patterned shirt and you can't tell here but his tie had a pattern too. Carl's look was more classic but it had an edge to it that I liked.


I didn't ask where she got her dress but I liked it so I put it in! The dress is all sequins and was really striking in person.


Megan got her dress from Modcloth and Audra's is from Nordstrom
I'm sure you know why I liked these two outfits. They were definitely vintage inspired and had a lot of personality that was lacking in a lot of the black dresses everyone else was wearing.  These ladies looked great but still looked like themselves.

Crash the Ball: Party Style Part 1

I rounded up the courage to ask some of the party go-ers where they got their outfits from.  I think I may have to do this more often. It's really fun talking to people and finding out where they shop. I've got another post coming tomorrow with the rest of the outfits!


Both Rachel and Caitlin got their dresses from Primp
I loved the color of Rachel's dress and the peplum really added a fun dimension to it.  Caitlin's dress caught my eye because of the dimension in the different colored sequins. I also like the non traditional belt she chose.


From left to right: Wendy-Limited, Kara - Lula Vintage, Nicole - TJ Maxx, Julie - Express
All four of these ladies were so sweet. I have to admit I was drawn to Kara's dress first because I sensed it was vintage :) I was really surprised when Wendy, Nicole and Julie told me where they got their dresses. You know me and my thrifty sensibilities.  I love that they made dresses that didn't cost a lot look expensive through their styling.


Laura got her dress in New York City at Saks Fifth Ave. Her boyfriend Matt's suit is a hand-me-down.
Laura is a good friend of mine and I love the dress she picked. The color and the shape are so flattering on her. If you knew her, you would know how fun it is to see her all dressed up. Matt didn't look to shabby either :)

Crash the Ball - My Outfit

I was running around before the event like a chicken with my head cut off. I always procrastinate on getting ready because my hair falls flat so fast. This time it was a little too late. :) I did get to the event on time so it all worked out. This is the reason why I don't have any outfit pictures other than the previous post and this one picture. I LOVED my outfit and I got a ton of compliments. Friends and total strangers came up to me to tell me how much they liked my dress. I can't wait to have another occasion to wear it.

I love shopping local and even more shopping vintage. It's so great to go into a store and have the people who work there care about helping you. The ladies at Via's Vintage were so nice. I spotted this dress right away and didn't really need any convincing that I liked it.  It didn't really fit in the shoulder though (curse my short torso) so I was somewhat on the fence about it.  They were really reassuring that it would be a simple fix and even suggested a tailor that they used a lot. Also, the dress was only $75 which I feel is really reasonable for a fancy vintage dress.  Once I had the dress picked out, I knew exactly where to head to get the accessories.  Rewind vintage always has great pieces so I headed over there.  I couldn't have done it without the help of the lady who was working there. I told her the color of the shoes I was going to wear and she helped me find the rest.  You can't really see the pieces I'm wearing so maybe I'll take a couple pictures of them and do a post on that.  My necklace is made up of small little flowers and my earrings are small purple studs. They match the color of the bow and ribbon trim quite nicely. The bag I bought is a pretty  sequined number with a metal chain. I'm not much of an accessories person so it was nice to have her help me pick things out and convince me that it wasn't too much. I'm so glad I got each piece and I"m sure I'll be wearing them again in the future.



Outfit Details:
Dress - Via's Vintage
Necklace, (earrings and purse that you can't see) - Rewind Vintage

Kate's dress is also from Via's Vintage

PS, the two stores I went to didn't sponsor me in any way. I'm just writing these reviews because I had a really good experience at both places and wanted to share.

Crash the Ball

I had a super fun time! The event was so well planned, my friend Liz and her co-chair Emily did such a great job. Everyone was having a blast.  The silent auction had a ton of great items, the DJ was playing great music, and the food that I got a chance to try was delicious. Plus, I love any excuse to dress up.   It was so fun to take pictures of the guests when they arrived and I'm so flattered they asked me. Especially since I'm not a professional by any means.  Also, it may sound cheesy but it is so nice to be with people that spend time and money on cause that they believe in. It makes me want to get more involved in the local scene and try to do more things that are worthwhile. 

I will be back in the next couple of posts to tell you about my outfit and share some of my favorite outfits of the night too!

Charlotte Jane

My niece, Charlotte Jane was born at 3 this morning! Here is her first picture :) I can't wait to meet her when I go out to D.C. in August!

Crash the Ball Dress Preview

Just a sneak peak at my dress for tonight!

Don't Forget!

My giveaway at Lori's blog closes tomorrow night! Don't forget to enter. There aren't a ton of entries so you will have a high chance of winning! Enter here.

For the Locals: Crash the Ball

I'm really excited to share this with you! I've been taking pictures for a young professionals group called Crescendo Project that some of my friends are members of. All I do it go to fun events and take pictures of people. Easy right? :)  Coming up on Saturday, I'm going to be taking red carpet pictures for their big fundraiser called Crash the Ball. I'm kind of nervous about it but I think it's going to be lots of fun. It's going to be at the Depot (former train station turned ice rink) and it has a Parisian theme. Oh la la!  If you want to purchase tickets and come hang out with me, you can do so here!

I'll be posting quite a bit about the event with pictures of my outfit and the event. I'm also hoping to do some "street style" type pictures and post them with what each girl/guy was wearing. So jazzed. Here's a picture from the event last year. You know me, any excuse to dress up and I'm there!

Summer stroll

I made my first ever set on Polyvore! I always love seeing everyone else's creations, thought I would give it a shot. Fun sherbet colors and straw accessories for a summer day exploring your town!

Summer stroll by babesinthriftland featuring a straw tote handbag