so it's been a year now

Well, today is the day. It's been one year since everything changed. Mostly for the better.

so here we are

photos by bailey mingo //@bailey mingo

whewwww child that was a break, wasn't it? 

It's not you, it's me. It's always me. I'm the one signing up for too many classes, spending too much time watching Netflix, and running low on good reasons to write these posts. But I'm going to keep doing it anyway, because I like hanging out with you guys. Plus, unlike my Italian, I don't think I've completely lost the touch just yet. I do think I'll be going in a new direction with the blog - but let's be honest, there wasn't that much direction here to start with. I'm the creative equivalent of a preschool finger painting, multi-colored and with bits of cheerios stuck on. 

 Living in Los Angeles has been life changing - not just because I now add 2 hours to my estimated driving times, or because a smoothie can run you $15, but because for the first time ever my surroundings match my goals. It definitely isn't always easy, and sometimes it's laughably difficult, but I'm so proud of Jordan and I for making it work. It has definitely pushed me to be more aware of my actions, and how I spend my energy. I've become better at saying "no" to things I don't think will serve me, and saying "yes", even if there isn't a whole plan (that was honestly way harder for me). I do a lot of things that *marie kondo smiling peacefully* spark joy for me, and I've seen a massive improvement in how I engage with the world around me. 

Honestly, that's what brought me back to my couch tonight, logging into this blog for the first time in five months to write real words. Over the last eight years, this little piece of the internet has brought me so many good moments, and we aren't even close to the end yet. Moving forward, I'll still be wearing cute outfits, bright eyeshadows, and a loud mouth, but I'm also going to extend on my advice column, talk about pop culture (better than that one time I tried it in 2013), and let you guys in on the bigger parts of my life happening *points into the distance* out there. 

Stick around, this is going to be fun.

x Justina 

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bonjour mon petit baguette

except for the last one, all shot with a fujifilm x-t10

Here is the thing about Paris in the rain: 
In the movies, you can just skip around a puddle and jump in a taxi, and your baguettes and outfit stay nice and crisp. It's all very romantic and French and seems easily achievable with the right kind of hat. In reality, you get a bit damp and a bit frizzy and your outfit looks a bit limp. (But your baguette still tastes incredible. all three of them.)

 Paris was lovely. It looks exactly like you've always wanted to, and is filled with beautiful, silent, intimidatingly chic people who have made wearing monochromatic outfits and bread an art form. They walk impossibly fast, and drive like absolute crazy people (and I'm from California). The museums are huge, the coffee is strong, and the line of people trying to sell you souveniers are seemingly endless. We were there for three days over our anniversary last week, and it wasn't even close to enough time. Much like LA and London, Paris is the kind of city I'd need to go back to at least two or three more times to even wrap my brain around. With that said, there are certainly some things we did on this trip I never need to do again (*cough* Louvre *cough, sideways glance* Versailles). 

If you trust me on this, skip the Louvre and go to the Orangerie (tickets: $8.50 pp for students) instead. Honestly, the Mona Lisa is not that impressive, and having seen it printed on every other surface known to man, seeing it in the canvas was not that much different. Monet's Water Lilies exhibit in the Orangerie is a completely different experience. You literally have to sit down, then stand up, walk in a circle, walk back, get closer, and then go clear to the other side of the room and sit down again to take it all in. It's absolutely stunning, and no photo or recreation can do it any kind of justice.

Regarding food: TAKE EVERY SINGLE OPPORTUNITY PRESENTED TO BUY BREAD. I cannot over-state how good the baguettes are, and you can buy them for around one euro in any bakery you see. They're crunchy and soft and mmmmmm. For more "authentic" French food, get as far away from any restaurant with English subtitles as you can. After getting thoroughly lost on our anniversary (we walked nearly 10 miles around the city) Jordan and I settled on this little hole-in the wall in an alley because "it had character" (translation: we were starving) and I FINALLY got to try proper raclette. It's a dish involving melted cheese, which is all you really need to know. That, and you need to always take the grill pan out of the grill when it has little bits of cheese on it because it will set on fire. Not that I did that. Not at all.

The trip ended with us literally RUNNING across the city attempting to make our train back to Germany after the Metro stranded us somewhere deep underground. I nearly lost a lung and we missed our train, but hey, it was a good story.

I'm going to write a longer post with general sort of tips for traveling in Europe (Rick Steves, watch your job) but for Paris in particular, I would recommend this: if you're traveling just to see the city, and not for work or anything, forget about trying to out-dress everyone and just wear shoes you can walk in.* Taking a taxi or uber will spare your feet but not your wallet, and you'll miss out on a lot of the everyday stuff that makes this city so beautiful. I saw many a stylish American woman falling over themselves on the cobblestones this whole city is paved with, and a rolled ankle is not the sort of accessory you want to take home. 

x Justina


*Note: this is not an endorsement for ugly "walking shoes". Just wear your normal shoes. You're not climbing Everest.

pps. this wifi is suspicious af so pardon the incredible posting delays,
 this has taken nearly four hours to upload.






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it's the holidays, I'm baking (cookies)

It's Christmas Eve, SANTA IS COMING.

 I was informed by those of you on instagram that cooking posts would be favorably received. I can't really cook, but there are a few photo-worthy things I can churn out, so I figured it was worth a shot. Especially because we're almost upon a new year, and if this goes terribly wrong, we can just leave it in 2017 along with fanny packs and most of our politicians.

starter pack

Okay, I know it's not cool but I am a creature of habit. It has to be admitted.  I will try anything once, but I like the things I like. That means I am literally the worst person to shop for ever.

(This has been pointed out to me multiple times (a day) by everyone who is trying to love me and give me a birthday present. That's right, it's that time of year again - October 2nd, I'm turning 20.
 Which is totally crazy in it's own way because that means you guys have been hanging out with me for seven. years. But that's another blog post.)

Unfortunately for my friends and family, I am a. indecisive and b. like to get second- third- fourth- opinions on everything. BUT I'M NOT ALONE. I know you have a friend like me. We're everywhere, ruining dinner plans and changing outfits three times a day. So I made a Justina Starter Pack - all the things needed to properly equip your everyday Justina.

1. Fjallraven Kanken Backpack //
I carry around too much stuff to put in a nice purse and also I'm in college so

2. Fenty Beauty Gloss Bomb //
Okay so I don't have this yet bc shipping is slow but it was blessed by our lord and
 savior Rihanna herself, so I'm sure it incredible.

3. 32oz Hydroflask //
I am from California and I was born dehydrated. I carry this bottle around the way normal people carry around their firstborn child.

4. Revolution Strobe Highlighter //
This highlighter costs $6 for a $6 million dollar glow and I am here for it.
(Note from Justina's boyfriend: it breaks if you drop it.)

5. ban.DO standard planner //
I bought this because it came with stickers and that intrigued me. It now holds all my secrets.

6. INSTAX SQ10 //
Square instant photos. What a revolutionary idea. *Wink*
(No but this one is digital and has filters INSIDE IT and is basically my favorite piece of retro tech.)

7. American Eagle Mom Jeans //
THESE ARE MY FAVORITE JEANS OF ALL TIME. I WEAR THEM EVERY SINGLE DAY, AND THEY WILL BE GETTING THEIR OWN BLOG POST SOON.

8. Baby G-Shock BA110BE - 4A (whew) //
It's pink, pretty, and practically indestructible. Plus it tells me how late I already am to wherever I should already be.

9. MeUndies Monthly Subscription //
All I want out of my grown-up life is to be a MeUndies model. Since that hasn't happened yet,
I'll just settle for dancing around my house sans pants in the comfiest undies known to man.

10. Mantra Bands //
Speak it into existence, and if you're too tired, let your wrists do it for you.

11. ban.DO sticker book vol.3 //
If you're gonna get the planner, you're gonna want more stickers.
Trust me.

12. TOMS sunglasses //
I know some places experience the mythical season of Winter, but here we're permanently stuck in season one of Game of Thrones - they just keep telling us it's coming with no real proof.
Sunnies stay on deck.

13. Sebago Docksides //
The frat bros are onto something. These shoes are mad comfortable, and have a slightly more polished look than the average flip flops (erlack)


There you have it.
Pile all those things on top of each other, throw some coffee at it,
and you'll have a pretty decent replica of me.

x Justina

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flower power

 

 photos by jordan

I love fresh flowers, especially sunflowers. Unfortunately, in the dry heat, Sunflowers dry up very quickly, so our plans for photos in a sunflower field did too. But Jordan had a plan. About 45 minutes away from my house there's a zinnea field taken care of by an older couple. They let anyone who'd like come and pick as many flowers as they'd like, just to brighten up the world a lil bit. You also have to really want it, because 10am temperatures in my part of California can be above 100 degrees. But out we went, into the direct sunlight, to find some flowers for our mason jars. It was absolutely beautiful. There aren't a lot of very simply beautiful things left that aren't wrapped with a fence, or a toll, or a ticket booth. We stomped in the muddy beds and came home with carefully chosen bouquets of bright orange and red zinneas, mostly un-wilted.

Jordan also got a sunburn,
but it complimented the flowers I put in his hair. 

x Justina



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let's talk business

As the blog and audience have started to grow lately, I've had more questions about the way I work with brands, how I do business, and what's important to me. I've been asked to talk about my "real life" as though I can somehow manage to multi-task lives. Guys, I can't even cook and read a book at the same time (or cook at all, but that's besides the point). But I realize that there's always a little mystery surrounding a girl on the internet, and I think it's important to to talk about it. 

The brands I work with are an ethical cornerstone to me for a reason: they don't own my soul, and they've never asked to. I make sure I love something before I even think about telling you guys about it, even if that means sending awkward breakup texts. I always reserve the right to be like "ehhhhh better not".

If I do get paid for something, same rules apply, plus actual trade laws that require me to tell you I got paid, which I don't have a problem with. I'm a college student, textbooks are expensive, and you should all know I eat top ramen like five meals a week.  I get to do cool stuff by the grace of my job, not my bank account.

That kind of real life stuff can't be filtered through VSCO, but it's just as important. I never want to fall in with that group of internet people who are suntanned and smiling in the feed, but sad and angry in their house, and so being down with you guys from the start was always my agenda.

Speaking of: did y'all also forget that I had a face under these glasses? I did.

x Justina

ps. oscars are this weekend, come hang out with me on twitter aight

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sun touched

romper: tobi
sneakers: converse
bralette: aerie
tote: little brick bookstore
sunnies: toms

It's getting to that point in the summ- wait, it's still spring? HAH, okay, whatever you say.

It's getting to that point in the spring where it's so disgustingly hot already that I'd prefer to not wear any clothes at all, but if I have to, they need to be light, flowy, and not touch my skin.

A romper seems OBVIOUS, but I'm 5'8 and most jumpsuits (dresses, swimsuits, shirts, all clothing in general) are made for people considerably shorter. The biggest bummer in the world is seeing a cute one piece and stepping in only to realize the collar is somewhere around the middle of my stomach. With that said, some creative layering can always add upper length.  My new Tobi romper is my favorite kind of simple, with a little bit of flair. It's also loose enough to work for any height. The Aerie bralette is an easy ~staple~, and takes this from a tragedy to a tall girl look. Plus, in the summer, bralettes > real bras any day.

I only realized this morning that I've worn my converse every day this week. I always had this lurking suspicion that they cut my legs off, but I'm dedicated to the high top aesthetic.

Today one of my professors started talking about finals and I was very suddenly brought to terms with the fact that the semester ends in a month, and then it's SUMMER. There's already so much on the books, it'll be interesting to see how it all works out. And what shade of dirt my converse will be once it settles.

x J

ps. because I'm a homie, I want to let you in on the secret of Tobi: they have all your faves (dresses,  rompers, skirts, sequins, cardigans, bodysuits, midi's, crop tops, etc) and ur first order is 50% off.  have fun with that. 

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call me beep me it got ugly

tank: zara
pants:  abercrombie
purse: vintage


I'm baaaack. Bit of another unnecessary hiatus there. I don't know, August is a weird month. It's still technically summer but we all KNOW that school's coming along to end it. Time to test out all the weird outfits before actual people see them. Unless you're me, in which case you plaster them across the internet, because thousands of strangers are less scary than the person you're going to sit next to in English all semester. 

Today's thought train is "ugly" fashion" aka "What made the Man Repeller Repellent" (Until she got married??? To a man?? I have a lot of questions about that still.) Basically, it's all the stuff you wear because you like it/it's comfortable/it has loads of conveniently placed pockets but isn't cargo pants/it reminds you of a favorite childhood cartoon character. It's the stuff that you love but has never and will never be a trend. You will never match this item/outfit with your friends, and you've needed to accept that. (Birkenstocks kinda slid through on that one, but they're a very very extremely rare occurrence that I'm still not entirely convinced on.)

These pants are ugly fashion and I'm not even mad about it. I saw them in Abercrombie (my new habit of spending lots of money there is a post for another day okay) and my first thought was caLL ME BEEP ME BECAUSE I'M ABOUT TO GET KIM POSSIBLE PANTS AT LAST. I'd been waiting for this moment since I was 10. Then I got all up in the many pockets and zippers and rib stitching and it just kept getting better. They're great. They're also the hardest thing to style with anything without looking like you live in a bin somewhere. They're kind of a weird color, and kind of slouchy and have these tight ankles. Just a lot happening.  I went through every top I own (that's a LOT) before settling on this tank top and discovering the real secret to working with ugly fashion: you need to absolutely not care at all. Give up on wanting other people to like your pants, and just enjoy them.

 Kanye has been doing it since he discovered Balmain.

x J

ps. 21 days. That's all I can say here.







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The Princess's Denim

           

jacket: vintage | dress: c.o krisp | shoes: (you should know this already) dr. martens

This jacket is like a cocoon. A cocoon designed to be a jacket for someone much a larger than I.

If I wear it for a few weeks, will I turn into a butterfly?

I snatched it out of the bin at everyones favorite buy-it-by-the-pound thrift shop. 

Mum thought I was crazy, but I saw the nineties shining through.

when you see the shine, spend the dimes

Literally, it was a dollar. Ten dimes.

score

I've had this dress for ages and worn it every where (except here),

usually receiving "You're so pink! and sparkly!" 

                                   like, what am I usually, black and not-sparkly? pfft, no.

It's a really lovely dress though, a little bit fancier without being positively stifling. 

The docs.

we've done this.

Overall, just a really random outfit that I sort of love.

I just need a matching tiara.

xx,

Justina

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So Justina Went To The Beach (sort of)

So..who wants to know where I went?

You do.
guess.

guess again

ok.

I can’t handle this kind of stress


I WENT TO LOS ANGELES TO SHOOT AT SMASHBOX STUDIOS FOR DISNEY CHANNEL’S "TEEN BEACH MOVIE" AND IT WAS PERFECT


whew

Do you even know how hard it is to keep a secret from y’all?

 Especially a secret like that.

I am getting the feeling that you have a lot of questions.

Let me provide you will some general thoughts and answers:

1.You only think you're good at doing your makeup until someone who is actually good at doing makeup does it for you.
2. Having a nice car is good, but being driven around in a nice car is better.
3. Yes, Garret Clayton’s teeth are really that white.
4. Australian accents are really lovely.
5. False lashes are one of the best things ever invented.
6. Sometimes, (always) a lot of bling is a good thing.
7. I'll never get used to having this many people touch my hair at once.
8. Teen Beach Movie songs will never leave your mind.
9. There are a lot of people on shoots you will never see, but who are incredibly important.
10. "Hairspray! Safety pins! Hollywooooooood tape!"

I met some really cool people, and I want to talk about them:

Elisabeth:  She who is in charge of keeping us on track and does a gorgeous job of it. Elisabeth was in charge of all the little details of my trip, and she is so lovely. Everybody clap for Elisabeth.

Kelly: My makeup artist and hair tamer. She completely shamed me in the eyeliner department. Clap for her too.

Chelsea: The first stylist I’ve ever met who completely understand my visual visions, and the power of bling. We'll just clap for them all while we're at it.

Garret + Maia: The first movie stars I’ve ever met, who were both exceedingly charming and fun, and had really good playlists.

EVERYONE ON SET: Dedicated to the Disney magic, and being nice to me, which was absolutely wonderful of them.


I don’t know about you, but my Disney Channel experience is of the High School Musical/Hannah Montana/Kim Possible generation. I’m used to the song and dance, so to speak. Teen Beach Movie is about a flashback, and is a flashback. If you don’t already know the plot, it’s about two teenage  surfer romantics, who, trying to catch the last monster wave in the name of summer, youth, and all that good stuff, get zapped into their favorite 1960’s..er..teen beach movie, Wet Side Story.

It’s all beachy from there, right?

WRONG.

But I’m telling you no more.

Go watch the trailer.

Better yet, on July 19th, at 8, on..come on, you know which channel, watch the movie.

There’s a really strong fashion element to the film. It’s sort of a fifth lead character, defining the different groups and the time period. 

You’ll get more on that in an upcoming post, where I prove to you that you can take Justina out of her town and put her in a studio surrounded by a ton of professionals,

                              but you can’t make the Justina not jump around like Justina.

                                                                                xx,
                                                                             Justina
 

 ps. just in case this is legit and google decides to whack GFC, follow me on bloglovin' here

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