billy bob and mr. security man

shirt: thrifted, skirt: thrited, belt: thrifted, 

shoes: thrifted, watch: thrifted, pearl bracelet: gifted, 

flower bracelet: charlotte russe, glasses: target

{total outfit cost: $42}

dear diary, 

have you ever taken photos of yourself on a tripod in public?  no?  well, don't.  ever.  it is SO incredibly awkward.  usually patrick takes the pictures for me, but since he's been at work lately, i have had to take them of myself before the daylight sneaks.  and i hate every single minute of it.  let me give you a glimpse into my awkwardness.....

the first time i tried doing this was in an empty alley behind target.  i got everything set up and right as i was ready to take the pictures, a security guard walked up.  he asked me if he could help me find anything, as if there is anything to find in an empty alley behind target.  i proceeded to tell him no and that i was just taking pictures.  he then decided to stand around and watch me.  seriously?  could you make it any more awkward mr. security guard man?

one of the other many times i had the pleasure of experiencing this humiliation was today.  i was taking pictures by an abandoned old truck on a forgotten trail, thinking i would be safe of embarrassment there.  well, i was quickly proven wrong.  all of the sudden i saw a truck pull up into a hidden drive way.  the truck disappeared relieving me of the worry of more humiliation.  then, out of the corner of my eye i saw billy bob walking towards me.  i could not believe this guy actually lived in california.  he was straight off the farm way in the back country of arkansas.  as he started talking to me with his backwards accent, i discovered that he, along with his 9 siblings, were the owners of this property, furthermore proving my arkansas redneck theory.  he wanted to take me in his backyard to take pictures with their goats and donkeys.  as much as i wanted to be kidnapped by billy bob and be forced to live in the mud with the goats, i packed up my tripod and left.  

i hope that these pictures are worth the humiliation and that you enjoy them.  i'm sorry that the ones today are a little blurry.  i can't figure out why the pictures from the tripod always turn out blurry.  

welp, that's all for today, folks.  hope you had a great monday!

{happy thrifting} 

awesome photo shoot

shirt: thrifted, jeans: forever 21, shoes: gifted, 

watch: gifted, earrings: forever 21

dear diary, 

today was a perfect day, so let me tell you about it.  

it started out with breakfast in bed from my sweet hubby.  blueberry pancakes and a banana on the side.  

then we hung out with our adorable pup.  i love our little dog so much.  if any of you ever want a REALLY good dog then i highly recommend a king charles cavalier.  they are SUPER loving and really obedient.  ok, sorry, enough about Hurley.  

we ate lunch at el taco which is this really good little mexican place in anaheim.  if you ever eat there, get the red quesadilla.  

we spent some time with patrick's family, whom i love so much.  i love them just as much as i love my own.  they are some of the best people i have ever met and i can't imagine fitting into another family any better than i fit into theirs.  

patrick humored me with shopping at TWO thrift stores.  yes, two!  he really is a great husband for putting up with my obsession.  every where we go i am on the look out for a thrift store and patrick is nice enough to pretend like he wants to go with me.  i am one lucky girl, people. 

next we took a hike up to this rad abandoned and empty pool in trabuco canyon.  that's where these graffiti pictures are from.  it was so cool.  i wish it was closer so i could take pictures there more often.  i wasn't really planning on taking pictures of my outfit today, so i must apologize for my kinda boring outfit.  i was actually wearing a different shirt, but once patrick decided to show me that empty pool, i couldn't pass up taking pictures there, so i actually changed into this vintage linen shirt i bought at one of the thrift stores we went to.  in the end, my boring outfit kinda ended up working out, though, because the graffiti background is so busy.

we also got to stop by patrick's fire station for a second since it's rigtht below the pool.  i love that my husband is a fire man and i love that he is such an outdoorsman.  

last but not least, we went to dinner at this delicious thai restaurant, called Thai River.  patrick and the guys at the station go to this place all the time and rave about how good it is, so patrick decided to take me there.  it was DELICIOUS.  some of the best thai food i've ever had.  the owner is awesome.  he actually sat with us during our whole dinner and helped us figure out what we want to do in our future trip to thailand.  anyways, you have to try this place if you're ever in rancho santa margarita.

{happy thrifting}

thrifted wedding

dear diary, 

i'm so sorry that i don't have outfit pictures today.  it has been hard this week trying to find a time to take them.  i was telling patrick how i really needed to do a post but didn't have any pictures, but then he reminded me about our engagement pics and our wedding, and then i got really excited...

so basically, here are all the thrifted things in our engagement pics: 

the striped dress i'm wearing is thrifted.  i LOVE that dress.  it is michael kors.  how amazing is it that i found a dress like that at a thrift store?  like seriously, who was the CRAZY person that gave that gem up?  i also thrifted that belt which is another one of my favorite belts.  patrick actually found it for me one day while we were shopping and bought it for me.  i love the different colors. 

ironically, patrick is actually wearing more thrifted things in our engagement pics.  the corduroy blazer, his vintage striped button up shirt, the diesel jeans, and member's only jacket are all from thrift stores.   yes, you heard me correctly, DIESEL JEANS!  this is where i get my love of thrifting, ladies and gents.  that handsome guy right there.  he is the one that got me into it, which i'm sure he actually now regrets haha.  sorry sweetie!    

i also thrifted a BUNCH of decorations that i used for our wedding.  all of the centerpieces on the tables were from thrift stores, as well as many other details, but i can't show you everything because this post would go on forever.  but to give you an idea they consisted of vases, votives, picture frames, mirrors, and the old books were courtesy of my mom.  

i loved everything about my wedding and it was exactly what i wanted, and mostly from thrift stores!  so, for all of you out there that need to do your wedding on a really tight budget, get your decorations at thrift stores!  i did it and still had my dream wedding.    

{happy thrifting}