Dear Mom.

Hello blog world - it's been a while. Of course, the usual things have kept me from updating this blog (a semester coming to a close, a heavy workload, biting off more than I can chew), but something else has put this blog on hiatus.

I just don't feel the need to write.

This blog started as a way for me to do a lot. Busy my mind during a lonely and uninspiring summer almost two years ago. Share my life with the woman who has, and continues to inspire, motivate and support me. Reinvigorate myself in those  moments that flood in when inspiration is hard to come by. It's all done a lot of good in my life. But I'm a totally different person than I was two years ago when I needed Dear Mom. I am independent, confident and excited about the world.

I don't need to write home to ask for advice, retell adventures or share the awesome things I find. It was a tool to keep me grounded. It was a way to make me feel at home.

But I don't need a home anymore. And I definitely don't want to feel grounded.

I'm excited to be thrown into the world. I'm excited to write for myself. I'm excited to discover and make my own amazing things. So, it seems I have outgrown this little ol' blog. I knew it would always happen, I just didn't realize it would be so hard to admit.

So tomorrow I move to New York City. I'm starting a life that excites/scares me to tears. But that's what I'm looking for. You can stay up to date via Instagram if you'd life, or this blog where I'll have some simple updates and photos.

And, with any luck, I'll continue to do some things worth writing home about.

For the past few weeks I've really withdrawn from some online/social media stuff. I put blogging on hiatus, limited internet time to mainly email, and really tried to focus on all of the real things going on in my life – and there are a lot. School got a bit insane for a while, and up until my last midterm I really thought I wouldn't make it. But, of course, I did, and I spent the week after in Brooklyn again for my spring break for a STATE/vacation combo visit. I always feel good in the city. On top of things and productive. I've become more strict with myself about blogging and social media, and I plan to only share things that are important to me. I hope this summer, with the move to New York, leads to more of those things. Despite the productivity, the trip was relaxing. A long, long drive filled with as many naps as possible and gross gas station food. An awesome apartment to call home for the week. Exploring new parts of the city by bike. Good food and coffee. And of course time spent at STATE, the best part of the week by far.

Lately.

Woah. It has, eh, been a while here on the blog. I think these cycles of silence are something everyone goes through (at least by those living in areas in which winter becomes a creative up-hill battle). It's just a little more noticeable when you keep a daily blog.

Sometimes I struggle with why I write and post things on the internet, yet as soon as an extended break pops up, I really do miss the process of blogging. It's relaxing. It's a way to share the things I see and fall into love with. And really, it's a way for me to remind myself where I am and where I want to be.

And right now I am living in a small town that is completely uninspiring one moment and full of wonder the next. I am working through higher education, a task that seems to be less fulfilling than my romantic notions had once hoped it to be. And I am waiting – to graduate, to move to someplace that is dauntingly exciting, to meet new people and to start challenging myself again.

So right now, I actually am really happy. As much as I feel like I have hit an inspiration wall and am ready to move onto the next chapter in my life, I really am so consistently amazed by the things that are around me right now: life-changing opportunities on the horizon, the ability to make so many different things on a daily basis, a wide-grinning, curly haired man who makes me laugh when I need it and also challenges me when I need it, and the friends who, although I don't see them everyday, always have time for a cup of coffee and a little conversation.

So here's to finding that always-disappearing motivation and maybe even posting once in a while...

(photo)

Looking to the Boys.

I have a secret love for men's fashion - I may love it more than women's. There's something about menswear products that are made of classic, well-constructed materials and design that always end up becoming my basics. Leather, wool and denim are my go-tos. So, instead of stealing from Gary's closet like I have been, I'm just going to embrace the styles in my own wardrobe. Annie Hall, move over.

Basics: coat . denim . silk . loafers . trousers . suspenders
Accessories: hat . knife . tie . candle . watch . sleeve . cap . glasses
image

This Weekend.

This weekend was a good change of pace. My beautiful friend Heather and I spent the day Saturday  exploring the town. We woke Gary up early Saturday morning and took him to the lake, which was frozen and covered with snow, so she could take pictures of him setting his Chinese lanterns off. It ended up being too windy, but she still took some great shots of us.
Later, after warming up over french toast and coffee, we went to an amazing building on the edge of town. The top floor is currently empty, but has the most amazing bones: distressed wood floors, original brick walls and beautiful warm light. A man who works in the building let us is and told us it used to be a meat packing factory! He also gave us a ride in the old-fashioned elevator and let us on the roof. It was the perfect, secret spot for some really great photos which will make their way here later this week.
The snow returned and slowed things down on Sunday. It also made me very happy that I work at a warm coffee shop.
I can't believe we're already halfway through February! Even if this semester has been stressful, it's already flying by.

Lately.

I am more than ready for spring. I'm excited to shed this constant layer of thermal. In winter, I forget I have skin sometimes, and the warm weather brings a less busy, more laid-back attitude out of everyone.   It's supposed to snow all this weekend, so I guess I'll keep dreaming about long bike rides and bare legs from the comfort of the apartment.

Lately, I've been thinking about girls in glasses, smitten by a bag, loving these teacup sets, planning to make something bright, anticipating weekend breakfasts, and recreating this look.

Anyone else getting desperate for warmer weather?
photography via awelltraveledwoman

Paperman.

Life has been busy, but this sweet video has had me smiling all day.