10 items x 10 days x 10 outfits

I don't know about you, but every time I go on a trip, I pack way too much stuff! I recently went on a 10-day working vacation with my husband, and I decided to only pack 10 articles of clothing. Stay tuned for posts on how I mixed and matched the above items into 10 different outfits.

sweater || jacket

reversible top || tee shirt 

crop top || wrap skirt 

high-rise jeans || draw string pants 

floral dress || white dress

Fourth of July Round Up

I can't believe that Independence Day is this week! I keep feeling like summer hasn't even started yet. In honor of the occasion, I've rounded up some of my favorite fourth-inspired looks from years past. Beware: some of these shots are from my very early blogging days!

To be fun and festive on the fourth, you don't have to go all out in red white and blue. One or two of those colors will do! Add a pop of another bright color to mix it up, or pair lines and dots to get that stars'n'stripes effect!

one | two | three | four | five | six | seven | eight

nine | ten | eleven | twelve | thirteen | fourteen | fifteen | sixteen

Healthy Quinoa Baked Fudge

Stop whatever you're doing and make this decadent, sweet, melty chocolate dessert, now! I recently modified my diet and I'm not eating refined sugar or dairy at the moment, but I still crave a delicious chocolate dessert almost every night. I recently watched an episode of The Pioneer Woman which featured Baked Fudge. I reaaaally wanted to try it, so I swapped a couple ingredients to make it work for me. I expected it to be a huge fail as most of my healthy dessert escapades are, but this came out gooey in the middle, fluffy on the outside, and crisp at the edges... and oh so sweet!

Please, I beg of you, give this a try! At only 170 calories a serving, what have you got to lose?!

• 2 whole Eggs (144)
• 1/3 Cup Honey (344)
• 1/4 Cup Cocoa (48)
• 2 Tablespoons Quinoa Flour* (78)
• 1/4 cup Butter, Melted (to make it even cleaner, use coconut oil) (400)
• 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract (12)

1. Beat eggs until light and slightly bubbly. Mix in honey until fully combined. Add in remaining ingredients and stir gently until mixed.

2. Pour mixture into 6 ramekins and place in a baking dish. Fill baking dish with warm water until the water level reaches half way up the sides of the ramekins.

3. Bake for 40 minutes at 375.

4. Top with whipped cream, if desired. Devour and enjoy!

* to make quinoa flour, put about 1/4 cup quinoa into a blender or coffee grinder and puree until it becomes a fine powder.

Preppy in Pink

When: Monday, June 23rd, 2014

Where: Home Studio

In a city which practically relies on cars for its sole existence, waking up to an empty street made me feel like perhaps the apocalypse has actually arrived. Nope, just some road maintenance. Alex and I stood in the middle for a while as we took these pictures, and yes, it was pretty weird. I didn't know our street was so... wide.

I bought and wore this dress on Valentine's day, but since that date turned out to me something of a disaster, we never got the chance to take pictures of it. I've been wearing a lot of jeans and tees lately -- a look a abhor, however admit is very comfortable -- but now that Valley Summer is upon us, it's time to turn in the denim and shift for shift dresses.

I love this dress because while I has structure, it still feels very light. The scallop detail makes an other wise basic dress feel so special. I have a hard time defining my style, but I have to say that this look is decidedly preppy. To pump up the prep, I added my bow t-strap flats. So classic and cute at the same time.

For an added touch of glam, I matched my lipstick to my dress. Most of the time, but especially in the summer, I don't like to wear a lot of makeup. I've been having fun lately playing with shadows and eyeliners, but my tried and true, on the run favorite look is power, blush, mascara, and balm. I've gotten so fast at the routine, I can complete it while waiting at a red light!

J Crew Dress

Schutz Bow Flat | Splurge // Save

Emilie Despeaux Locket

Honeymoon Dreaming: Chile Adventure

Just when I thought we had zeroed in on a trip to Europe with stops in Barcelona, the south of France, and Italy, Alex throws a wrench in our plans with the sudden realization that Chile is cool. Which, indeed it is! I love the idea of dipping my feet in the pacific one day, wine tasting the next, hiking the Andes, and peeping some glaciers all on the same trip. It's not gonna be easy to pack light with all those destinations, but hey... That means more shopping for me!

Kate Spade Saturday Weekender Bag

Mara Hoffman Bikini

TopShop Pom Pom Dress

Ralph Lauren Cut Out Flats

ModCloth Red Bootie

J Crew Factory Jacket

Gap Mesh Sweater

Graphic Shorts

Perfect Weekend

When: Sunday, June 15th, 2014

Where: Dog park, furniture shopping, ice cream eating

The weirdest thing happened over the weekend: Alex and I both took both days off! We had both been traveling, and with our overlapping out-of-townedness, it had been over a week since we'd seen each other. To all those people in long distance relationships, military families, etc, a week doesn't seem like much, but for a couple who literally spends every single moment of life together, a week kind of felt like forever. 

Alex had been working hard in NYC, I went on a nice mini vacation at home with my family, and Bucket tried out a new doggie overnight camp, so while only one of us really deserved the time off, it was really nice to get to relax together as a petite family. The first stop for us on both Saturday and Sunday was the dog park. The weather was perfect, and watching Bucket hunt for gophers kept us all amused for a the better part of two hours.

We also made time over the weekend to eat pizza and ice cream, shop for more furniture for Alex's office, drink free mint lemonade at the Grove, hold hands, vedge out on the couch, and take in an awesome live jazz show that we didn't have to work at! It was a glimpse into what normal people feel like for 30% of the week... I have to admit, I liked it.

I wore this dress I bought to wear at our Eastover party. I got it at Urban Outfitters Surplus for ten bucks, and Alex said it's his favorite dress I've ever worn -- which is saying a lot since I've worn a heck of a lot of dresses in my day. It felt just right for a warm summer day with my new mint keds, and MARC bag. I wish every weekend could be like this!

Urban Outfitters Surplus Dress // Similar

Marc Jacobs Cross Body

Keds Champion Shoes

Kate Spade Mrs Necklace

Emilie Despeaux Locket

Ray Ban Wayfarer Sunglasses

Pink and Gold Home Studio Makeover

I've been redecorating my home studio for about 5 months on and off, and, while it's still a work in progress, it is finally presentable! The original design was more of a big white box with yellow accents. Since we rent, I didn't want to paint the room and re-paint when we leave, so I tried to warm up the place with soft pink furniture and golden touches, while keeping the overall look clean. You can see my inspiration here. I hope you like what I've done with the place!

My office // hand sewing corner.

Pink cutting table, pink chair, pink flat file for patterns and packing materials, and a pink bag...

Where all the sewing happens.

My handsome office assistant.

Handy ikea closet with art from Essanel and Le Papier Studio next my well-loved filing cabinets, office supplies, and giant fabric hoard.

This amazing paper doll art piece was gifted to me by fellow MassArt alum, Evelyn Berde. It defines the whole room for me.

I am obsessed with my new studio -- it inspires me to make great work, and spend a little more time in there each day. I still want to recover the chair in the corner with the fabric that is draped over it, but other than that, this room has really become a reflection of my taste and style.

What do you think??