holiday dress - pt. 2

i didn't actually take these photos the day of the office holiday party.  i had to take them two days after.  why?  let me tell you.  it all started out with an email from drybar announcing the opening of the newest location in pasadena.  the opening just happened to be the day before the office holiday party.  i then received another email, this time from groupon, for you guessed it - a drybar groupon good only at the new pasadena location.  so naturally i'd rather have someone else do my hair for the party, especially after working all day long.  so i buy the groupon, make my appointment - which is supposed to last 35-45 minutes - leaving me with enough time to go home after the appointment do my make-up and get to where i needed to be at a reasonable time.  the best laid plans.  

i "ordered" the mai tai - loose, beachy waves.  an hour and a half after my appointment my hair was finally done, didn't look like i had expected it too (i told the stylists not to curl my hair with the round brush, as it would fall straight within 15 mintues), and was running late extremely late.  a 10 minute drive back to my house to finish getting ready and my loose, beachy waves looked more like the straight up.  so it looked fine, but it wasn't what i wanted and OH YEAH, why did it take an hour and a half for the "stylist" to blow dry my hair?!?!          

anyway, i am completely inflexible and was so annoyed at the entire situation.  i missed the taco bar at the party.  stupid drybar.  i've given up on drybar, i won't be back and i don't reccommend you go.  seriously, i could do my hair better myself.  and then i had a whole bunch of technology issues and couldn't get the photos edited for like 2 weeks and so now i am finally able to post these photos. 

madewell dress, free people pumps, free people jacket (old), luv aj bracelet and hand chain, marc by marc jacobs clutch (similar)

i could rant and rant about this not-awful but no where near good enough to return experience at drybar.  on the bright side i had a groupon so its not like i paid full price or anything.  now christmas is over and i have two more posts with this dress.  is anyone tired of the dress yet?  i'm not antianticipating anymore tech issues (but does anyone really?) so maybe i'll post more?  who knows. 

the party outfit in bits and pieces

the worst part of being a blogger in the winter - it gets dark really early and can't really take outfit photos at night! friday was the holiday party for the company i work at, and since it was night i had to take some photos inside.  gross.  i hate using the flash!  the photos never turn out good unless you have a really really really well lit room. i don't.  does anyone really?  there were three acceptable photos, and i just really wanted to be able to share this holiday party look! 

topshop leather jacket (old, similar), quicksliver tank (old, similar), zara skirt, hue tights, sam edelman pumps, spike the punch necklace

the party was fun, per the usual.  this was actually the 5th holiday party with the company so i knew what to expect.  if you are working at a new job and wondering, "how drunk can i get?" check out this hilarious article (but sooo true!).  i work at a "cool company" so it can get pretty wild!  hope you all have as much fun as i did at my company party!  

 

party (dress) time!

i literally cannot believe it but, thanksgiving is just days away.  seriously, where did the year go?!?!  the day after thanksgiving - black friday - marks the start of the holiday shopping season, which means shopping for everyone but yourself.  however, this also means that the holiday parties are in full swing - the office party, gatherings with family and friends, and of course new years eve!   obviously, we all need a NEW dress for all these parties!  can't wear the same dress as last year (or can we?)!

top row left to right: feel the piece angel dress, free people sequin fever bodycon dress, bb dakota kassia dress, free people feather slip

bottom row left to right: free people scallop strapless dress, bb dakota faith lace dress, lovers + friends sway dress, velvet cullan slinky rayon color block dress 

i'm in the process of figuring out my holiday outfit, but time is ticking away!  what are your holiday party plans?  or more importantly, do you have your holiday dress picked out yet? 

4th of july pig roast

4th of july has come and gone - it seems like it was over so quickly and we spent way more time preparing for the pig roast at my mom's house than we had expected.  it was all worth it though.  the party was so, so, soooo much fun!  probably one of my favorite 4th of julys in a while.  we had lots of quick diy's - fabric garlands, painted signs, jar lanterns, and we even used an old bathtub as a cooler!  my sister (and future baker) made a awesome 3 layer cake - red velvet, vanilla, blue velvet with a cream cheese frosting. 

its baking time!

who doesn't love cream cheese frosting?? 

directions

all the plates and cutlery from branch

and then of course, there was the PIG - the star of the party really.

carving and shredding the pig - a man's job for sure

yummy

i don't usually eat pig/pork (mostly just bacon) but since my mom was having the party i decided i'd eat some.  even my sister, who recently started eating meat again, ate some.  we all agreed that it was the BEST.  the pig was raised, butchered, and cooked by my mom's friend - free range AND organic - but my mom did give the instructions that she did not want to see it alive and that the head was to be removed.

my favorite boys

my sister is laughing - i literally just poured half a beer on my head/back.  i don't know how it happened.

cute cake garlands i made

cake, i love you.

the outfit i decided on - t by alexander wang tank, rachel pally bandeau (similar bandeau), jbrand jeans, toms glitters

my sister broke my mom's lifelong rule (not the first time for either of us) and got some sparklers and then there was a thunderstorm and it rained twice, so we weren't scared of causing a major fire with the sparklers since all the brush was damp.  we also had a bonfire and smores (i was too full to participate) and these hoodlums (sisters friends + my bf) decided to throw like 10 sparklers in the fire.  not as exciting as it sounds.  but like i said before the party was so fun.  like really fun.  like so much fun i hope my mom does it every year!  hope you all had as much fun as i did this july 4th!

texas birthday party!

happy 25th birthday to my favorite twins, anjelica & carolyn!  they had a little party in san antonio, with lots of good food and decorations (garlands made by anjelica)!

two cakes of course!

anjelica's cake

carolyn's cake

anjelica also made this cute video of the party:

its my party and i'll cry if i want to

i spent a lot of time preparing for my birthday party at my house - the fabric garlands, turning old jars into candle holders, renting heaters, buying flowers and snacks.  i have to say that at least everything looked really good...

the jars

some of the flowers

we had live music from one of the boyfriends bands, and an AMAZING 12-layer vanilla cake with blackberry jam filling and a lemon butter cream frosting, and dark chocolate brownies made by my amazing baker-to-be sister.

the band

amazing brownies and even more amazing cake by my sister

cake interior... omg i die

what i wore:

gifted c&c dress, free people bandeau, frye boots (not shown)

i am excited about my sally hansen salon effects nails - bling it on aka pink glitter

the biggest hair trend of the night - wavy hair!

we all had matching hair - by anjelica

and we ended the night by playing with some sparklers.  so smoky but so pretty and fun!