outta pocket

sweater: primark
overalls: h&m
shoes: converse

Okay so unlike basically everyone else on earth, I didn't go to Coachella this year. But in my defense, I dress like this every day. 

All jokes aside, for the last couple of weeks I was so busy that I definitely started to slack off in the outfit department. I definitely have a ~uniform~ and it makes it really easy for me to get dressed quickly, without thinking about how my clothes make me feel. Noooooot the healthiest form of self-care. In an effort to reverse it before I got in too deep, I've started actually checking the weather and trying to at least lay out clothes the night before like a Responsible Adult™. I mean, true, the short dress I had planned for today didn't work out with the whole "surprise hail storm" thing, but I ADAPTED okay

 I've literally been in overalls since the day this blog was born, and I don't anticipate changing my ways anytime soon.

You really can't beat the pouch pocket
(or all the things you can fit in it, thus reducing the need to carry a purse)

x Justina




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girls girls girls

Okay I am the least domestic person I know, but I was proud of this.

When I was in Germany, I started watching a lot of Parks and Rec, and it made me miss my girl friends, as Leslie Knope does. So I sent out a spontaneous e-vite to my friends (and then texted them all about it) for a girls night in...and promptly forgot about it. In all the excitement of coming home, it became just another sticker on a day that seemed pretty far away, as far as my schedule was concerned. But then it was two days away, and I needed a Party Plan, stat. As most desperate women do, I turned to Pinterest. After a lot of harried pinning, I HAD A LIST. In an effort to save you my panic attack, here's how it went down:

1. A craft is KEY. We made floral letters like these, and all the supplies only cost me around $15 with a nifty Michaels coupon and a raid on the floral section at Dollar Tree. 

2. I have a tendency to overfeed people, (see: the Super Bowl Mac n Cheese fiasco of 2018) and since there were just four of us, wanted to keep the menu small. I set up a popcorn bar, made some cupcakes, and also (not pictured, because my camera died) made some virgin gorgeous mai-tais. 

3. Basic elementary school knowledge tells you that you must have a movie, so we watched this mini-doc on Bella Thorne, and then The Princess Diaries 2 (clearly the superior one).

4. If you know me, you know there was a dress code. I told everyone to come in their comfy clothes, be it pyjamas or leggings or whatever.  This is where the guest list comes in, because you need to have a ~safe space~. You've got to really trust a woman to wear pyjamas in her house.

Needless to say, we had a laugh. As you get older, there's a lot less opportunities to just hang out in someones house without boys or drinking or whatever. The social pressure to go out is very real, and honestly, it's exhausting. I think we can all agree that it's much more fun to sit on your couch. Or maybe not, I don't know, I've never sat on your couch.

If you need a party in a pinch, here's a link to my board. 

May you go forth and party with your girls.

x Justina




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think pink

top: primark

jeans: topshop

clogs: troentorp

look who's back in the sunshine

25 hours and an aggressive case of jet lag later, I'm hoooooome. I've spent the last two days tearing around town in my Jeep, enjoying the 75 degree blue skies, and clopping about in my new Troentorp clogs. I never remember how much I hate leaving my house until I do for, you know, a week or four. 

This top is the last thing I bought at my beloved Primark before we left Europe. It's part of my effort to wear ~real shirts~ every once in a while, instead of my usual graphic tee or massive sweater. I wasn't sure how I felt about the pattern,  but am pleasantly surprised by the ice cream man vibes it give me. Plus it's got massive sleeves, which is pretty nifty for hiding the massive amount of hair bands I wear looped around my wrists like a 6th grader during the silly bandz era. 

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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fresh kicks

shoes: chuck taylors 

I grew up in sartorial chaos.

 No one in my family dresses the same, as a rule. Trying to get ready for holiday photos was an absolute nightmare. No one agrees on patterns, aesthetics, or, god forbid, colors. But we always had Chucks. (Pink, black, bright red, and solid glitter, to be exact.) They were the one thing we all agreed on, probably because we could each have our own look. I can't say I was never in awe of the families who dressed like an LL Bean catalogue, but hey, it's what makes us unique. Years later, our chucks are still a wardrobe staple, and since he's part of the family now, we had to get Jordan his own pair. Don't worry, he's keeping the streak alive - he insisted on wearing floral print even though I was in plaid. 

But I guess that's what makes Chucks so iconic - you can wear them with whatever you want, 

and your girlfriend is still going to put you on her instagram feed. 

x Justina  

ps. how blinding are these? we need to put some miles on them.

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parked on a freeway | LA Photo Diary

You've never stood still until you've sat in your car on the 101 at rush hour in LA because a semi truck has flipped off an overpass onto the freeway in front of you. That may seem very specific, but if you've been to LA, you know it's not.

Every year I go to LA this time of year, and every year it pours rain for the first day. Then the sun comes out, the crowds resume at observatory, and the almond macademia milk lattes start flowing. (Let me spare you the $6.25. They're gross.) Sallie + I always try to find new things to squeeze inbetween our tried-and-true favorites, and this week was no different. 

We hit up The Last Bookstore for some literary enlightenment (and solid photo opportunities, if we're being honest). Let me disclaim that while this is most definitely a bookstore, it is primarily a hipster tourist trap, and is filled to the brim with vageuly 20-something year old people discussing ~philosophy~. There are also people everywhere with cameras who will probably take your picture without asking, and a couple of decent books. 

The Grand Central Market is a short walk from the bookstore, and is peak LA. Filled with every kind of food you could possibly want to try (and some you might not), each stand is topped with a massive neon sign. There's vegan japanese ramen, authentic german currywurst, and the aforementioned almond macademia latte's. There's also outdoor seating that's perfect for enjoying the food, petting dogs, and eaves dropping on people who work in ~the industry~. 

Right across the street is the Angels Flight funicular - for $1, you can ride the shortest possible railway in the US. Going 300-ish feet up the side of a hill, it's more of an experience than a necessity (you can just take the stairs) but it is fun, and you're rewarded with a great view of Downtown LA. Plus, you get to use the word "funicular", and when are you going to have that opportunity again?

The next day, we got in the car and drove 4 hours to a mountain in the desert by the Mexican Border,

but that's another story. 

x Justina




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what a lucky girl

mosebacke rain jacket : stutterheim 

shirt : american eagle 

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. Obviously, I love to eat, but I also love spending a day thinking about how lucky I am. I am very blessed in a lot of ways, and even though I try to remember that every day, it's not always easy when it's midnight and I still have half my math homework to get through. This is a day for me to say thank you, and to get on my (new, very snazzy, impeccably waterproof) raincoat, and go for a walk with my family. To tell my partner why he's my favorite, and to remind all my friends that I love them. To pet my dog, and clean my house, and invite more people over for dinner. To be happy, and pass it on.  

Thank you for hanging out with me,

 and for making this little piece of the internet the best place to be. 

Happy thanksgiving!

x Justina 

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market day

photos by jordan

shirt: charlotte russe

jeans: aeo

California is a fruit basket. 

No, I'm not talking about people from LA. We just really have a ton of fruit. and vegetables. and bread. and juice. looooots of juice. All of that adds up into some pretty fantastic farmers markets. 

One of my personal favorites is the one on Saturday mornings in Davis. From the still half-drunk college students to the frozen apple juice, it's just really cute. There's tons of dogs, and a woman who makes biriani, and lots of fresh flowers for me to sniff. But this weekend, I had a more important mission: PERSIMMONS. They're my absolute favorite fruit, and I wait for MONTHS for them to show up at the market, at which point I promptly buy them by the pound. There's an art to the whole thing, and I'm not going to divulge any of my secrets because I don't want any competition.

I keep waiting for some sort of sign (other than the presence of PSLs) that it's ~actually autumn~, but it's been 20 years, and California has barely turned a leaf.

x Justina 

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spooking season

overalls: modcloth

The only thing better than the start of spooking season? Blue corduroy overalls.

A slight breeze rustled through the evergreen trees in my suburb, and like that, it was fall. That's really the only indicator we get here. It was enough for me to reach for my brand new overalls from Modcloth and hit the old 'patch. When I was a kid, I used to ferret around for the biggest possible pumpkin my little stick arms could carry. Now, I just look for something cute and sufficiently spooky.

Speaking of childhood: corduroyyyyyy. These overalls are so satisfyingly textured. I'm constantly running my hands down them. Plus they're this deep navy blue color that makes them a bit fancier than my standard get-up. Even more enticingly, they just feel like fall. Or at least, what I imagine ~fall~ to feel like. They were part of my latest Modcloth raid - wait until y'all see the velvet dress.

We spent this evening wandering through one of the biggest corn mazes in California with a very confusing map, our suspiciously cheerful friends, and a rustling in the stalks that Jordan said was a mouse..

..but I'm pretty sure it was just a very small ghost.

x Justina

ps. I need ideas for a Halloween costume!! Any suggestions?

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