Saturday shots

And by shots, I mean the film kind, not the alcohol kind....but I won't begrudge you if that's your thing. I mean, you could totally do some shots while looking at these shots, and it would probably make them look even better, right?

I digress already, and this post hasn't even really started yet. BLOGGER OF THE YEAR.


ANYWAY.

You know that new-to-me thrifted camera that I've been talking about pretty much every day since I got it? I flew through a roll of film and took it to be developed yesterday evening. I had another post planned for today, but I got so excited that the camera actually works(!) that I decided I'd throw up some of my favorite frames. Keep in mind that (1) they're totally unedited (I don't believe in post-editing film. I'm a bit of a snob about it, if you want to know the truth), (2) I haven't shot anything with a film camera for over three years, and (3) I didn't take much time with these since I was mainly just concerned with seeing how (read: IF) the camera worked. Alright, now that I have all my excuses out there, here are a few of my favorites.

You can see some of my older film shots here.

Recent thrifts

When I started going through my thrifts from last weekend, there were fewer than I remember; I think that's from a combination of being way way way overly excited about the camera and going "regular" shopping on the same days. I'm all about quality over quantity anyway, though, and I'm pretty happy with the finds I dug up. I was in the process of making a fancy virtual board for them, but I have a ton on my mind after a meeting this morning (all good things, don't worry!)...and a minor case of the lazies. Hopefully these iphone shots will give you the gist. 

Yep, more books. Always books. My poor husband.

It's Friday! Hope your weekend is lovely.

The best weekend: part two

It's so hard for me to pick a favorite day from the past weekend. Honestly, a lot of it blends together (although that could have a lot to do with my temporal awareness issues, too). Thank goodness for pictures to help me keep things straight!

We snagged brunch at Brown Egg near downtown--again, super yummy. I seriously wanted one of everything.

And yes, we did more shopping downtown--we even went back to some stores that we had gone the day before because we kept thinking about things we hadn't bought that we had decided we wanted. You know us, just perpetuating gender stereotypes by being indecisive and obsessing over clothes. Nothing to see here.

 Of course, we had to stop by Relics, too. We almost made it through the entire store. Almost. Somehow I managed to come away with just a teacup. My bank account was pleased; my vintage-lovin' heart, notsomuch.

We managed to make it to a couple parks for pictures and communing with nature and all that. Saturday night we headed to Nathanael Greene and stayed there past closing. We also caught a lovely sunset on the way home and snapped some shots in a random field (the editing is never going to end around here). We also went to Sequiota Sunday morning and stayed there until the heat chased us away and into the mall for a soda, air conditioning, and a little stop by Forever 21.

We even managed to get a little pool time in.....even though it wasn't until about 9pm.

Sunday, after the park and the mall, we went to Aviary for a late lunch before Sarah left for home. It was the perfect end to a very perfect weekend. Can I just rewind to last Thursday?

The best weekend: part one

This past weekend was amazing. My lovely friend Sarah came to visit and it was a complete whirlwind. We stayed up way too late every night, got up way too early every morning, packed fun things into every single minute, and still didn't do everything we wanted. It felt like being back in college again. (Of course, I'm feeling super old and tired now, but it was worth it!) Sarah arrived Thursday night, and Tyler and I went to Starbucks beforehand so we'd be awake for her arrival. We stayed up well past midnight comparing music libraries and talking blog things (I recently--finally!--convinced her to start one; you can visit her blog here).

The next morning we headed out to do some thrifting. I plan on getting together & photographing my haul for a post soon, but I have to go ahead and show you my favorite find:

I know I mentioned this little beauty Sunday, but I'm just so excited about her (yes, I've determined that she's a girl. I'm very seriously contemplating naming her, too. I'm already that attached). This is the exact model camera that my mom bought when I was born, and I've borrowed hers so many times--it even went on my first trip to Portland with me (and took all of these pictures over several borrowings).This one was only $15 thanks to a Groupon (did you know they have Groupons for THRIFT SHOPS? What.the.heck.). It normally takes me awhile to get through a roll of film, but I've flown through this one because I'm so curious to see if everything works properly. We definitely had a ton of fun snapping away this weekend, between my new friend, Sarah's DSLR, and both our iPhones. 

Friday we hit the thrift stores as soon as they opened, and then met up with another friend from grad school at Tea Bar & Bites. If you live in Springfield and haven't been, go yesterday. It's heavenly.

I had the turkey & Gouda with potato salad and soup--which tasted exactly like my favorite soup that my mom makes, by the way. (Side note: Remind me to post that recipe soon!) So tasty!

This is Shaye. We love her! It's kinda a travesty that she and I live in the same town and hardly ever see each other. (Also, I look really weird here. I blame it on a combination of the sun in my eyes and extreme happiness, but maybe my face is really just weird-looking. Eh. Whatevs.)

After brunch, we said goodbye to Shaye and headed downtown to walk off our lunch and do a little shopping before.....

 ...I introduced Sarah to Elle's. She's a fan (obviously. Who isn't?)

After that, we did a little more thrifting...

...and then found a half-price bookstore. My aching wallet, man. We followed that up with a trip to Target and finally called it a day. Having friends in town is one of my very favorite things, especially when it's a friend who loves trying new restaurants & stores, and doesn't mind spending hours poking through junk to dig up some good finds. We had all that covered by day one. :)

Meet Sarah B-word.

This is Sarah, one of my very very very best friends in all the world. (Isn't she gorgeous?) She's survived grad school with me, stood by me when I got married, and hugged me at family funerals. She's been the person I've vented to, confessed to, laughed with, cried with, and seen about 25,000 Needtobreathe shows with. 

The picture above captures Sarah perfectly. She has one of the most infectious laughs I've ever heard, and our senses of humor are so alike it's eerie. (You should see us watch It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia together.) She came down to Springfield to visit for a 3-day weekend last Thursday, and we had a blast thrifting, antiquing, shopping, eating, laughing, and taking lots and lots of photos! I'll post more on our amazing weekend later--I'm still recovering!--but for now, here are some shots of the lovely Miss Sarah.

Sarah blogs over at Serendipity Skipity. Go give her some love.

Music Monday: Daughter

I'm in love with the new album "If You Leave" by Daughter. One of my favorites on the album so far is "Still." The vocals have a striking similarity to Kate Havnevik (no complaints there), and there's a haunting sadness to it. Listen for yourself:


P.S. The video is beautiful, too. You can see it here.

Currently.

Drinking: San Pellegrino Limonata. I'm addicted. This could become a problem.

Watching: The Bletchley Circle and Sarah iron her dress for a wedding she's going to this evening.

Feeling: exhausted (and sore!) from two days of thrifting/antiquing/and shopping. Is this what getting old is like? Ugh.

Thinking about: ways to style some of the new and thrifted clothes I snagged yesterday and today. I'm almost giddy about it.

Excited about: my favorite thrift find--a Canon AE1 (like the one I used to take these pictures) that I snagged for $15 at the DAV. I picked up some film from Lawrence Photo earlier, and I can't wait to take some pictures and see how it works! (Related: any Springfieldians know of any local places that still develop?)

Wishing for: a longer weekend. With Sarah here, it's flown by, and I'm not ready for her to go home yet!

Life in Instagram

 Last Monday and Tuesday sucked sucked sucked. I spent pretty much the entire day in the bathtub with a book feeling way less than awesome. There's something about  not feeling 100% that really makes life just seem really dreary. SO glad that's over, even though I don't regret the quality time with Ms. Plath.

 I also spent some quality time at the salon last Friday. I feel incredibly fortunate to have a great salon and hairstylist. Coming from a small town, I've had my share of terrible haircuts for lack of options. (If I ever decide to bob my hair to my chin all the way 'round again, someone keep me far from the salon.) I've been with Shai at Valeria Boss for probably six or seven years, and she's the only stylist I've ever felt this loyal to. The scalp/neck/shoulder massages don't hurt, either.

Right before taking the big plunge and donating my locks. I think she cut off over a foot total! It was drastic! I was super nervous--mainly about the bangs more than anything, but I trust Shai. She asked me a few different questions during the process, and almost every time, my answer was, "Whatever you think would look the best." She's never steered me wrong.

 Maybe this is weird, but I always go treat myself after a haircut (as if a haircut at AVBS isn't a treat enough); I just feel like such a different person afterward. Lighter and more carefree, somehow. It's like a happy pill, and much less drastic.

Here are the results. I know I posted this already a couple days ago, but I really like this picture. My husband did a heck of a job, especially for not being a photographer and just having my silly iPhone. I think he's getting used to taking pictures of me for the blog by now. :)

This was our grocery day. We sure know how to pick 'em. The rain wasn't supposed to start until 3pm, and we left the apartment at 10 (where it was still sunny, by the way). Five miles down the highway toward town, and we had to pull off because it was raining too hard for us to see. Bang up job, there, weatherman.

The same day--one of the scariest muthaflippin skies I have ever seen. I thought we might die. 

Newly obsessed with this stuff. Obsessed, I tell you. I think my blood is lemon-flavored by now.

Gosh, I love this guy.

Almost every morning I have this debate with myself: curly or straight? (Curly usually wins.)

Miss Sarah came into town last night to stay for the weekend. I'm soooooo pumped! We're spending the day catching up, thrifting, antiquing, and eating. What more can you ask for, really?

While waiting for Sarah, Tyler and I made a Starbucks run so we could stay up for her arrival. She got to the apartment a little before 10, and we're usually in bed by 8 or 8:30. (We are geriatric, ya'll.) Guess who got the iced coffee and who got the Caramel Ribbon Crunch? I haven't had a nighttime Starbucks run since grad school, and it took me back.

What have you been up to this week?