MMXI (2011)

i started this blog in the summer as a way to attack my general boredom before school started up in the fall. i had already been a feverish blog reader and with the encouragement of a friend, l, who blogged, i decided that maybe i would give it a go. even in just half a year this blog has transformed and changed as the months have passed and it has become something that i truly love doing!

i have gotten the chance to experience new places, new foods, reconnect with old friends, and had some huge and wonderful life opportunities in the duration of this blog as well as share my general love for all things clothes, thrifting, vintage, food and photography.

the best part has been being able to share them here. for anyone who reads, comments, glances or follows me, you make my day time and time again. from friends of my parents, to my very best of friends, you all are wonderful and i am full of love for you!

so here is a recap of my blog and half of a year spent on it...

born out of a love of coffee and needing something to do while drinking it at my kitchen table

 

guest teaching photography to a group of amazing and talented young women in oakland

falling in love with photography all over again

 

constant thrifting

home

 

ashland or, with the mom lady

 

flea market love with kelz!

shoes shoes shoes

 

the abandoned fort ord

 

discovering and appreciating where i now live

 

recipes galore!

 

holidays!

 

vintage adoration  

as we say toot-a-loo to 2011 and embark on 2012, i just want to pass along an idea/phrase/inspiration that i just found - "be a lot of happy" - juan urbibe

enabling pt1

e is such a swell guy! this joby gorillapod was one of my gifts from him and today i got to start playing around with it. i can't wait to take it outside on hikes and the like to experiment. i may even be able to fit it in my purse...

anyway, there seemed to be themes to the gift giving this year. two that reigned supreme with mine were in the accessory world of jewelry and kitchen, both of which i try to frequently feature here. so this is the jewelry version (the kitchen will be coming shortly, since some of them wont be arriving until thursday. guess i will just have to stockpile a recipe or 5 to try out when they get here). 

 

the bf, b, well she knows me well. so well that she checked out my pinterest and found that incredible stencil print on it and then made it for me. oh, did i mention that she is super talented too? cause she is. 

 

crystal wrapped hoops from e, from a local store here in sc that features all sorts of unique things and handmade jewelry from local artists.

 

okay, now this is really cool! this is a necklace given to me by my brother and his gf, s. it came from the ansel adams gallery in yosemite, where they both work during the summer. it is made by kate rutherford, a professional rock climber who also makes incredible jewelry. she picked these stones out and then hand carved the groove into them for the leather to lay. this gift has also brought about the discovery of her blog/website: kate rutherford which is quite incredible and i encourage you to check it out!

 

i think these are such an unique take on chandelier earrings with the mixed metal and the straight bar across the top

 

a wide silver ear cuff from etsy

mad about shoes

being 5'10 usually means 3 things:
1) i am at least in the top 4 tallest people in the room
2) i played basketball for a good portion of my school career
3) if i add heels to my outfit then i am no longer in the top 4 tallest people, but rather the tallest or 2nd tallest if e is there.

but as i have continually expressed here, i love shoes. a lot. all of them. and most of the time, flats just are not as exciting to me as heels. but lately i have been very drawn to loafers and have had my eye on a few pairs. while i was home for the holiday, e's mom gave me a very sweet gift - a gift card to a local shoe store, Kristines, that has had my business for many a year. well, this is what came home with me...

 

my ubber stylish friend jaq works there and thankfully she put them aside for me until i was able to come in to get them. i had quite the cinderella moment when i put them on...

 

steve madden madee in leopard 

bringing good cheer

 

just a quick note to you and yours for a happy holiday.
thank you so much for the love that you have shown me and this blog thus far in the adventure of amber.thegirlone. i am constantly in awe of your support and i can't tell you just how much you inspire me.
 

so i hope you have a wonderful time, wherever you are, whoever you are with, however you celebrate.

shimmer and shake

what a day! so much was on my to-do list and i feel like i have been going 100 mph. the car is 95% packed and i just have to round up all the last minute things, throw them in a bag, grab the cats and go.

side note about the cats...have you ever traveled with cats? not that i wouldn't recommend it, but it really is quite the experience. i am sure that people with toddlers and babies have a similar experience when they travel. well, we are truly cat people and very much in love with our pets so they are coming to the mountains with us for the holiday and that means they get just as much preparation for the trip as either e or i. however, one of them has been pouting all day (she does this when the suitcases come out) because she thinks she is being left behind. i don't know how to convey that she has to ride in the car for three hours too.

anyway, those that know me know that i am not a girl who is easily swayed by glitzy things as far as clothes go. i usually opt for the understated black thing over the shinny thing but this year with sequins almost everywhere you look in the retail world, i decided to jump out of my comfort zone. it still took many dressing rooms, many garments and many sequins for me to be convinced that this was something i was going to do.

voila! sparkly thing now in possession. 

to stick with the theme of branching out, i am also bringing home this gold blouse (to wear with my suede vest), the vintage red blazer that screams mrs. clause, a new black sweater that my mom, myself and my brother's gf, unbeknownst to her, got for christmas eve, and some instant fav pants - skinny, ankle-length, navy (though they look black here) cords from gap.

the ear jewels that will be mixed in with the above clothing.

if, like us, you are traveling for the holidays, i wish you a safe and low maintenance trip! 

only three more days till christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! woot!

lovin'

i feel like a busy little bee getting ready for the rest of the week. making color-coordinated lists in my composition book that will be by my side for the rest of the week until we pack up and head home is what is making me feel organized. before i dove headfirst into the those lists, i took a walk on the beach this morning. there is something special about the beach in winter that just makes me incredibly happy. as such, here is what i am loving:

 

i am constantly reminded of what an incredible place i live and am so very grateful for what has brought me here and the people who support and love me
 

 

pirate details always make me happy. they remind me of disney land and if you don't already know how much i love disney land then you do now!

 

current rotation of colorful and festive polishes kept in an antiqued teacup

 

catching up on blockbusters as well as holiday favorites - so far i have caught up on elf, the grinch who stole christmas and am currently in the middle of the holiday

 

gorging on peppermint bark and my mom's homemade dark chocolate fudge

on my mind...noomi rapace

after watching the new sherlock holmes the other night, i couldn't get the leading lady in it out of my head. come to today when i buy the dec/jan issue of blackbook magazine and who is on the cover but noomi rapace, the gypsy heroine that had been occupying my mind. this lady is gorgeous and even though i haven't ever done a post on a celebrity, the character she played as well as the character's costumes deserve one.

i have always thought that being a costume designer for a film would be the ideal job. the research, dedication, fun - it sounds like it is right up my alley. noomi's gypsy woman was covered with jewelry, tight bodices, full skirts and rich textures and patterns, not to mention that she rocked a hat for half the film.

hey there cheekbones!

now for my own take on a wee bit of gypsy...
i love a good hat and throw one on when i don't feel like dedicating too much time to my hair (read - very often). and this fedora has been a go-to for the fall/winter months over my straw fedora that i obsess over in the summer and spring.

 

however, this chocolate brown fedora does attract the stray piece of lint 

and a vintage beaded choker that i just acquired from a local vintage bazaar at 1/2 off!

(good) friday

 

today was a really great day. nothing too extraordinary happened; it was just a really nice day. 

i look forward to friday all week. not necessarily for the usual reasons of work/school being over and the weekend beginning but because it is the first day of the week that e and i get to spend entirely together and it always makes me grateful for our time together. today was spent doing all sorts of holiday things like e finishing up his christmas shopping and wrapping presents. we also finally got around to taking our portraits that we are going to be handing out with gifts this year. we took some about 5 years ago while i was at brooks but haven't since and we really have grown quite a bit in every way. the above photo is one of the outtakes that didn't make the cut for the final selections but i love it nonetheless. it isn't quite the standard portrait but then again, we don't really feel like the standard couple all of the time so i think that it (and the rest) really are representations of us. we also did the rare thing of seeing a movie. we don't do this too often but we decided to take in the matinee of sherlock holmes and it was long but very entertaining. the day then ended with pizza and just relaxing at home -- an ideal day. 

now it is just a countdown until we are surrounded by our loved ones next week. i can hardly stand the wait! in the meantime, i will just keep playing my she & him holiday pandora station (seriously the greatest ever!).

 

 

happy weekend. i hope it is filled with fun holiday preparations and lovely people!

4.0

i firmly believe that hard work pays off and that when it does, one should reward oneself. so i went out and bought some pants. i am calling them my 4.0 pants because this quarter i worked my butt off reading, studying, note taking, paper writing and editing and the end result was a 4.0 and even an A+ in my arctic class. woot woot!!!

 

 

i love the pairing of the slouchy pants with the tailored shirt and blazer. the juxtaposition of comfort and classic always intrigues me, as does the mix of patterns with the stripes and the animal print. print mixing has been everywhere and i am hesitantly and sparingly trying it out every now and again. but as for the pants, i can see them being a new staple and a great substitute for just standard blue jeans. 

ae slouchy cargos/gap button up & belt/wool grey vintage blazer/vintage jewelry/uo aviators/leopard wedges

beautiful day

it takes some time to get used to having coastal winters. when we used to live in santa barbara, i remember laying out by the pool or on the beach in december and walking around in shorts while christmas shopping. though it is not that warm here on the northern coast, it still definitely does not have the biting chill of the mountains and during the day a jacket is rarely needed. today is another gorgeous day that tempts me to throw open all the windows and open the back door. yesterday was like this too and i snuck down the road to the beach to enjoy the sun and nearly deserted sands.

 

the beach at the bottom of our street is littered with giant driftwood trees that have been bleached by the sun and salt water.

 i love this vintage suede vest! it is such a rich caramel color and i love the texture that it brings to an otherwise simple outfit.