Saying Goodbye is the Hardest Part

This past Saturday, I unfortunately had to say goodbye to my twelve-year-old Golden Retriever, Penny. She was diagnosed with a type of auto-immune kidney disease about a year ago and recently developed minor nerve damage in her spine. We brought her to the hospital on Thursday night and she wasn't getting any better. My family and I made the difficult decision on Saturday morning to have her put down. She spent most of the day sleeping in my lap, getting love from the people she loved most and the doctors and vet technicians who had taken amazing care of her this past year.

I had gotten scratched by a neighbor's dog, about a year before we got Pen, which had turned to a full fledged phobia of anything canine. My mom decided that was ridiculous and decided to adopt a Golden Retriever because they're great with kids. She found out about a new litter of puppies from a co-worker and they just happened to be her breed of choice. That weekend my mom told me she was taking me to visit puppies; all fears of dogs disappeared as soon as I saw the sweet, blonde balls of fur. My mom asked the breeder if there were any left and she said there was a boy and a girl. My mom asked me if I wanted to take one home and I immediately decided to get the girl. Six weeks later, I finished my last day of third grade and we picked Penny up to take her home. She was no trouble at all, fun to play with and I soon started calling her "my little sister."

For the next twelve years, Penny and I grew up together. She took care of me when I needed a friend or someone to cuddle with and I took care of her through her multiple medical mishaps, (major surgery, eating chocolate, Nana's pills, and a magnet, getting a dew claw amputated, etc.) shared more snacks with her than I ever wanted to and taking her on walks when the vet said she needed to lose weight.

For the past twelve years, Penny has been my best friend and little sister and I'm heartbroken to not have her around anymore. It's so upsetting to not have 60 pounds of tail-wagging fur to greet me whenever I walk into the house with a stuffed animal. There's always going to be a place in my heart that aches for Penny and I will always miss her. Losing a close friend is devastating and I'm so appreciative for my other friends and family who have been doing a bunch of little things to get me through this hard time. And now it's time for adorable Penny pictures because nothing about Penny can be a downer....

ipsy Glam Bag Review || May 2013

Price: $10

Value: $50

Number of Samples: 5

Brands Included: Mirabella Beauty, Zoya, Yaby, Pacifica, Nu-Me

Billed on: May 1st

Shipped on: May 9th

Received on: May 13th

Extras: Usable bag, $110 voucher for Nu-Me, coupons for above brands

I love the idea of subscription box services; they are a really affordable way to try out some high end products and I love the surprise factor. I've tried out others in the past but I just signed up for the ipsy Glam Bag. I'm super excited to try this service, as this is usually gets favorable reviews and has an awesome value. Each month the Glam Bag comes with a different theme which you can create a look from. I really like this concept as in the past I've gotten some really random products in subscription boxes. ipsy also has affiliations with some great brands, like Kiehls, NYX and Urban Decay, to name a few, so that's quite exciting.

Design Projects

Style Inspirations No. 001: The Great Gatsby (2013)

Fitgerald's The Great Gatsby was one of my favorite books in high school. In addition to the great story it told I was in love with the portrayal of the 1920s in the novel. Fancy parties, beautiful dresses, lavish homes. The Great Gatsby was probably the thing that sparked my love affair with all things vintage. I'm excited for the new film (which comes out today!) but am I bit worried the story will be ruined... Regardless, the costuming for the movies is absolutely amazing and there have been some awesome Jazz Age inspired fashion lately due to the hype about the movie.

The pieces I'm featuring are mostly way out of my price range. This is simply an inspirations post of Gatsby inspired clothes and accessories.

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photos from Warner Brothers

18K Yellow Gold Elongated Aquamarine Stud Earrings // via Hautelook

Mulberry Metallic Brushed Leather T-Bar Pumps // via Net-a-Porter

Inspiring Sonnets Dress // Modcloth

Lace Drop Waist Dress // via Pinterest

Gatsby Lace Drop Waist Dress // via Pinterest

Cara 'Opalescent Dream' Head Wrap // via Nordstrom

20 Random Facts About Me

Just in case you were curious about my life. Here's 20 random things about me, ranging from the silly to serious, the mundane to completely random, in no particular order:

1. I just completed my junior year of college.
2. I'm a double major in Communication and Media Studies and Graphic Design.
3. I have a twelve-year-old Golden Retriever named Penny.
4. I danced for twelve years, competitively for eight.
5. Ballet on Pointe was my favorite, although I only did it for a year.
6. I've worked at least one job since I was 16. I work two now during school breaks and one throughout the school semester.
7. I love Supernatural Horror movies and TV shows.
8. I also love goofy mockumentry shows, like Parks and Rec, the Office and Arrested Development.
9. I feel incomplete if I'm not in the middle of reading a novel.
10. I'm addicted to caffeine.
11. I prefer salty things to sweet.
12. I'm sort of an adreneline junkie.
13. I'm a bit superstitious. 
14. I hate perpetuating any sort of heteronormativity; therefore I identify as cisgendered and queer.
15. I love anything with polkadots on it.
16. I've been dealing with depression, anxiety and self-injury since I was 13. I'm trying to not be ashamed of it anymore.
17. I'm addicted to cosmetics.
18. I always wear glasses or contacts; I can't see without them!
19. I have 3 tattoos and plan on getting many more.
20. I love baking and cooking.

Tell me something random about you in the comments. Or better yet, make your own post and link it below! I love finding out random things about people. Thanks for reading!

Looking Back in Instagrams

Yesterday, I moved back to my mom's house for the summer after finishing my junior year of college. It's so crazy that I'm almost ready to be out in the real world. The last few months have been a whirlwind of papers, studying, endless hours on InDesign and some great times. I've barely had time in this past few months to sit back and appreciate all of the great things I have going for me right now, never mind blog about them. But, it's reasons like this that I'm so grateful to have Instagram.

So without further ado, here's the past month or so of my life that I 'grammed: