Bangs, bugs and blah.

I spent yesterday curled up on the couch with a box of Kleenex. So instead of bringing in the holiday season looking like Rudolph, I’ll give you the outfits I have ready and add the ones I don’t later.

My cold started sometime Saturday prior to taking this lovely shot.

The process went something like this:

E: “Do I have to change out of sweats to go to dinner?”

C: “Yes, and you can’t take that blanket.”

E: “Fine. Then I’m wearing my North Face fuzzy jacket.”

C: “Is that part of your 30 for 30?”

E: “It is now.”

(Clint takes pictures)

E: “You cut off my head”

C: “No I didn’t.”

E: “Yes you did!”

C: “It’s beautiful!”

Haha. I love my husband.  And it’s a good thing too, because he did cut my head off. And this is quite possibly the most pitiful excuse for an outfit. E for effort.

I tried a little harder on Sunday. I even had on a skirt! But felt a little over-the-top next to Clint's t-shirt, so I threw on some jeans and off we went.

Leave a woman to herself for 15 minutes and she'll cut herself some bangs. Well, at least this woman did. Will reveal tomorrow if I'm on top of things. :)

Motivation

I'll admit, the thought of stopping the 30 for 30 challenge has crossed my mind. But it wouldn't be a challenge if it were easy and I'd still like to prove to myself that I can do it! Once again I'm a tad behind on my outfit pictures, but I'm going to post the ones I have and update the ones I don't later :). It's my blog, I can do that sort of thing.

The giant flower pin may have been more suitable in my hair, but I work with wedding clients, so if it looks like a boutonniere, it's not deplorable in my line of work. Just another perk of my job! :)

I'm not superstitious, so I will post day 13, just not right now because I worked a half day, wore my coat the entire time, then came home and climbed straight into sweats and a hoodie before Clint even had a chance to think of snapping a photo. It wasn't terribly exciting anyways, so you're not missing much.

This is what I wore to Thanksgiving dinner. If you look too closely you can tell that the top button is a bit strained. Unfortunately this isn't from the overabundance of scrumptious food that I ate.  I have found that I am not completely in love with how this shirt fits; there is too much fussing throughout the day required to make it look right. I think that's part of this remixing process. I also decided we will not be making a tradition of the post-Thanksgiving dinner "weigh in" as suggested by my husband. It's depressing and has a negative effect on my attitude.

This year I attempted to contribute at the Thanksgiving dinner with a pumpkin pie and mini pecan tarts. Clint was a huge help and even got me to laugh after I botched the first attempt at the tart crust by using twice the amount of butter. Oops.

And now, if you'll allow, I'd like to share some of my current struggles with the 30 for 30 challenge; maybe you can relate. Prior to the start I tried to sketch out some of the different ways I could combine my 30 pieces and this worked for a while. However, I have found that there are a few pieces that are base pieces for several of my ensembles, meaning that I must space these combos out so that I'm not wearing the same shirt 3 times in one week. I think I need to invest in some more accessories. I have realized that I depend too much on a patterned item of clothing to add interest, where I could put a statement necklace or earrings on to pull things together. My comfort zone is definitely on the other side of the camera. Directing others in poses is fun and comes natural, but posing myself, not so much. I feel like such a goober (as you can see). 

And in closing, this may seem like a shameless plea for comments, and it may be, but do you ever feel like a blog consumer. Let me explain. I read PLENTY of blogs, but rarely do I leave comments. Now that I have a blog of my own (nameless as it may be) I know the power of a comment left by a complete stranger or long lost friend. So I encourage you to let the bloggers you read regularly or randomly know that you appreciate their work. I know for me it's a huge motivation to carry on!

I’ve learned a lot in the two weeks this challenge has been going on. First, you should really just take a picture the day you wear the outfit. But if you like that “shopper’s sweat” you get after trying on five outfits in a row, then be my guest. Secondly, it’s a great way to see what works and what doesn’t; this goes for clothes as well as hair and accessories.  And now, without further ado, the outfits.

This kind of look pretty much sums up my style; solid colored tee, comfy jeans and simple shoes (add a scarf so it looks like you're trying). :)

I’m a fan of this outfit, but it gets really tiring to walk on tiptoes all day to avoid the dreaded stumpy leg look. :)

At the Tennessee game sporting our orange!

I was told I look “Christmassy” in this outfit. Not what I was going for, but that’s ok.

The Conservative Women’s Coalition called and they want their uniform back. Eek. The bottom half of this outfit is so drab!!!

We actually shot this on day 7 (Yay!) when we got home from surprising my family with a mid-week visit.

How I really felt about taking pictures.

Out and about for brunch with my Aunt (should have gotten that French toast) and running errands (why are decorative pillows SO freaking expensive?!).

Day nine was an exact repeat of day two (lowers head in shame). I have found it most difficult to find appropriate “wedding wear” in which to shoot weddings. So I was lazy...sue me.

I threw this on for church and I think it works. 

This is, of course, Clint's favorite picture. :)

I’d run out of poses and Clint his patience. 

And there you have it. :) Whew. It's almost Thanksgiving!

Playing Catch-up

Ok. So I’ve got most of the pictures compiled. But I want to stay true to the order in which I wore them, so here is day 2 and hopefully day 3- present will be up tomorrow evening. Don’t get overwhelmed.

In all honesty I felt a little frumpy in this outfit, but the very drunk groomsman at the wedding I was photographing apparently liked it. So if you’re not feeling it, just strap on a pair of beer goggles and see if that does the trick.

*I will not be attempting to match the number of photos with the corresponding day.
That could just get a bit ridiculous.*

I think I’ve finally convinced my dear husband, Clint, to take pictures daily. Pretty soon we’re going to start our own photography business. Watch out world.

Also...God is not affected by the economy. Recession or not His work will be done. Apex Community Church compiled 5625 Operation Christmas Child boxes to share God’s love with children around the world!

Thoughts on Thursday

Things I’ve realized over the past 24 hours:

1)    While reluctant to rise at 6am, my body can be bribed with Nutella on a hot English muffin, but that only gets me to the fitness center where my iPod must take over. Basically I have zero mental toughness.

2)   If PepsiDew (one third Mt.Dew two thirds Pepsi) is a “man’s drink” I am, among other reasons, happy to be a woman.

3)   You take your family for granted when you are young. It shouldn’t take moving away to realize what you have.

4)   My husband does not like being lost due to my hopeless attempts to decipher the GPS. Can I blame the GPS… just a little?

5)   Sometimes your hair looks better when you throw it up on the way to the gym than it does after your extensive morning beauty routine. It’s true.

6)  I strongly advise peeing before squeezing yourself into the tights, pencil skirt and jacket for your workday. They’re called tights for a reason ladies!

7)   If technology can get us to the moon…why aren’t there self-cleaning pots, pans, George Foreman grills, clothes and apartments?! (Still a realization because I thought of this while staring at the pile of dishes, clothes and random papers I so badly need to tackle.)

In other news, I am having serious issues coming up with a proper name for this blog. I’ve toyed with alliterative titles but haven’t found a word that accurately portrays what I want to. I’ve considered something witty, a nice pun for example, but these have either required too much explanation or simply aren’t funny.  Suggestions are welcome.

I’m still working on those outfit photos, but for now it’s the Thursday night lineup; multitask through Community, sleep through 30 Rock, wake up for the Office, Outsourced and the Apprentice. 

Entering the Blogosphere

I have started this post a dozen times only to read Kendi Everyday or The Daybook and quickly become self-conscious, discouraged and scared. I am by no means a fashionista or a blogging expert but I am in desperate need of a creative outlet so that my husband doesn’t come home to a different color living room each evening. The intimidation subsides slightly when I realize no one is aware that I even have a blog!  Cyberspace anonymity!!

Where to begin?! As disconcerting as it sounds, I go throughout my day mentally composing posts (I told you I needed an outlet) but the incomplete thoughts are always wittier, more remarkable and better composed before they leave my mind.  I could tell you all about myself, but the three people reading this probably already know (Hi Mom, Dad and Cora!). So instead, I will start with the catalyst that finally got me to venture into the blog world. I am a self-diagnosed blog stalker. My off days are consumed with photo, fashion and DIY decorating blogs but it wasn’t until I started following Lindsey’s Loves, which lead me to Kendi Everyday, introducing me to her 30 for 30 challenge that I was convinced I needed a blog of my own. What better way to start a blog than with a challenge? Right? I decided, the day before Kendi’s 30 for 30 challenge began, to take part in it.  And almost a week and a half later I’m…fashionably late.

So here’s my line up.

I can count. Only 29 items have made the cut. As a beginner I thought a one-item freebie might be just the wiggle room I need to pull this off. I’ve tweaked the rules a bit since I rarely clean the apartment in fashionable ensembles on my days off, and I’m still trying to convince my husband to take a few pictures each day while putting up with my insecurities and photographic critique.

After one and a half weeks of remixing we have successfully captured one photo. I promise to post the other outfits (either by playing dress up or laying them out) later this week.

So here I am, at the end of my first official post, feeling liberated, and then I realize that I also agreed to start working out with my husband at the insane time of 6am. No more challenges for me…at least until the end of the month.