Friday, June 29, 2012

Friend Fashion: Sarandon



Hey all! I would like to introduce to you my gal pal, Sarandon. She is is one of the high school interns that I have the privilege of working with this summer!  

Read on to find out a little more about this lovely lady!













Name: Sarandon Smith
Age: 16
Hobbies: making art/music/people happy, working at a small town ice cream shop/ running the ship with the one and only Laura Whitman. 
Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years?I want to go to Juniata College (Laura's note: 
Because that's where all the cool people go to college!)  majoring in religion and philosophy/art, then hopefully off to Bethany Seminary to study to become a Youth Pastor,  maybe with a year of Brethren Volunteer Service (BVS) between college and seminary. I want to find a guy who will travel the world with me.


Favorite movies: I love Harry Potter and sappy romantic comedies 


How would you describe your style?: My style is take what is clean and make it work.

Favorite quote: "Be who you are and say how you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." - Dr. Seuss

Favorite place to shop: I love shopping at Jubilee (a local thrift store chain in our area), H&M, and Forever 21.

Favorite thrift store find: My chunk blue and white striped sweater that is filled with holes that my mother won't let me wear in public.

Whose style do you most admire?: I love Zooey Deschanel's style because she really knows how to rock retro/vintage clothing

Biggest fashion mistake: Not having enough confidence until lately!


Dress: Forever 21
Tank (over dress): Hand-me-down from a friend
Belt: Rue 21
Flip Flops: Gap





Thanks Saradon for such a lovely photo shoot/interview!

You can check out my other "Friend Fashion" post here!

Have a lovely weekend everyone!

xoxo, 

Laura 


Thursday, June 28, 2012

Butterfly Kisses



Oh my goodness, this past week has been so cray cray. Work has been wonderful, but busy. I'm so glad that I finally had time to take some photos. 

My lovely housemate, Bethany,  and I have finally stopped crossing paths in our crazy travels for a little and had such wonderful times, including watching ugly man cries on the Bachelorette and great dance routines on So You Think You Can Dance?. We have been cooking (!) and tomorrow we are going to the Farmer's Market. It should be a lovely day, indeed! 


The weather has been so warm, so I pulled out one of my favorite thrifted sundresses. I got this when I first really getting all my clothes thrifted; I found it in a bargain basement for $1! It is so versatile; I simply love it.   


 One of the high school interns, Sarandon, and I had a great time taking these photos around my house and the church, including the peace pole,  which I really love, especially the one at our church has the "may peace prevail on earth" slogan in Spanish and Sign Language. Stay tuned to see the lovely pictures I took of  Miss Sarandon! 

Dress- Thrifted 
Cami - Thrifted 
Necklace - Small store in the Dominican Republic 
Bracelet - Gift/Thrifted 
Shoes - Payless (old) 
See you guys tomorrow!

xoxo, 

Laura 

Monday, June 25, 2012

Melmac Monday: Family Support



Happy Monday everyone! 

Hope that everyone had a fantastic weekend. I got back from Tennessee safely and had a great weekend. 

Also, today, I cooked. That is a BIG deal. I'm not used to cooking, so I'm really proud of the meal I made. I'll have to get some pictures of something I make soon. 


Anyway, these adorable little bowls were given to me by my sister-in-law and niece. They were a part of a plate set that my sister-in-law had gotten a thrift store. She knew that I would like the bowls, so I had a surprise when I came home! It is pretty awesome when your family starts supporting your obsession passion.  These mustard colored bowls are going to be great this summer for ice cream! Thanks, gals, for making this Melmac Monday extra awesome. 






xoxo, 

Laura 



Thursday, June 21, 2012

Southern Belle

Hey y'all! 

I'm in Tennessee right now for a conference and it is going wonderfully. I'm having a blast and kind of sad that we have to leave tomorrow. 


One of my workshops was in the Social Work department! I went to their admission's office asking for information about their grad school program. I still can't believe I'm checking out grad schools already. So unreal.

I am IN LOVE with this shirt, so expect to being seeing it a lot more this summer. Well, I'm going to keep this post short and simple today because I just found out there is a Goodwill, 5 minutes from the dorm I'm in! Score! I'm off to have some thrifty adventures.


Shirt - Thrifted
Sweater - Hand Me Down from my sister (H&M)
Jeans - Kohls (old)
Necklace - Thrifted
Ring - Claire's (a LONG time ago; I used to be obsessed with the 10 for $10 deal they had. This ring is one of the very few things I still like)
Purse - Thrifted (Target )



Have a great day!

P.S. Shout out to my supermegafoxyawesomehot friend Katie, who took all the pictures of me! :)

xoxo,

Laura

Monday, June 18, 2012

Melmac Monday: Match from the Past!


Happy Melmac Monday everyone! 

This post is going to be short and sweet because I am at a conference at Tennessee this week! We do have a lot of free time, so I hope that I will get to post some. 

Any-who, enjoy these lovely Melmac orange bowls that I picked up thrifting this week (for .70 each!) that totally match these here! Love when that happens! 







Hope that everyone has an awesome and classy week!

xoxo, 

Laura 

Sunday, June 17, 2012

My Daddy...


This is my Dad. He's bald and proud. 

He loves ice cream and the Philadelphia Phillies a whole lot 

He is really goofy and silly, like a big teddy bear. 


To share a glimpse of how goofy my dad is, let me share with you what happened in the Dollar Store last night, with my rents, sister, and sister-in-law.

Mom: Ooo, Melissa, look at the Lisa Frank folders. Remember when you used to like her?

Me: No Mom, that was MY childhood! 

Melissa: No, it wasn't!

Me: Yes it was, I had the Lisa Frank version of Twister

Melissa: Well, I had a Lisa Frank backpack. 

Dad: Well, I had Lisa Frank. 

Melissa and I: *dying with laughter in the Dollar Store aisle* 



My dad is so silly and lovable guy; I'm so lucky to have such a wonderful daddy in my life that is always there to love me, support me, and to make me laugh. 

Here's to you, Dad! I love you! 

Happy Father's Day to all the other great daddies out there! 

xoxo, 

Laura 

Saturday, June 16, 2012

The Whitman Family Yard Sale Tips!



Hey all! 
Its that time of year again! The time that I look forward to! (As you can tell here.) The only time of the year where I will roll my lazy butt out of bed at 6:30 morning to walk around some neighborhood to buy people's old stuff on their lawn/garage. 

Yard saleing is really a family affair for the Whitman family. My mom, brother, and I are the ones who usually go. Sometimes my aunt and cousin will come along too. I also know that my sister-in-laws are great yard salers too! We went this morning and my dad decided to come with us! He was just getting off work (he works third shift at the Reese's factory - no lie!), so that was fun too! 

Here are some helpful hints that my mom and I discussed as we were walking along this morning for the yard saleing newbies. 

1. Get up early - This may seem like a no brainer, but if you don't get up early, the professionals (the elderly, Mennonites ladies, and the Whitman family) will beat you out for the best things. So, set multiple alarms because if you snooze you lose. 

2. Carry quarters - Sort of broke this rule today (all I had was a twenty), but a lot of things at yard sales are between 25 and 50 cents. So, it is best to carry your change or at least have small bills. 

3. Look for community yard sales. My mom and I always keep our eyes out for the big developments that have community sales, because it is so nice to just park your car once and keep walking from one sale to the next instead of getting in and out of the car to look at yard sale that just has a crapton of baby clothes (NOTE: If you have a baby, are about to have a baby, or are even THINKING about having a baby, two things: 1.) I wish you the best. 2.) Go to yard sales!!) 

4. Dress accordingly. Wear comfy shoes, especially if you find a community sale. Also, if you want to carry a purse I would recommend one like this. It is just so much more convenient to have your hands free to bend down and look at stuff. Also, green bags are pretty nice to have as you starting buying some treasures. 

5.  Don't be afraid to barter. Seriously. If you like something and you think it is a little out of your price range, don't be afraid to ask if they will go lower. This is especially true, if it is later in the day, such as 11 or 12, as the yard sales are winding down. A lot of people are just going to be either dragging all their crap back in the house or to a Goodwill, so a lot of people are just glad to get rid of it, while getting some money for it. 

6. If you like something, pick it up! If you aren't a 100% certain on something keep it in your hands until you decide yes or no because someone else could easily buy it as you are looking around at something else. 

7. Don't be afraid to check out the free box! A lot of people may turn their noses up at a free box, but you never know what you may find in there - I got these shoes and this sweater in two different free boxes . Do I think those people were utterly insane? Absolutely! Is that going to stop me from taking it? Absolutely not!

8. Where to look: We look for signs that advertise community sales or in the newspaper too. Keep your eyes peeled on main streets; a lot of people put their signs there because they know it will be seen.   Also, if you are up for it, do some "free-styling." My brother and I will do this. Basically, it is just driving around town early Saturday morning looking for sales - sometimes you get lucky, sometimes you don't. 

9. You don't have to buy something at EVERY sale. Some people may feel weird just looking around and then leaving with nothing. Just be polite and say "have a nice day" and most people really won't mind. So don't feel obligated to buy that random pot holder, purse, or lawnmower just because you feel bad. 

Hope that this helps! If anyone has found some great yard sale finds recently, let me know; I would love to hear what you guys have been finding! I'll share some of my favorite yard sale finds some Saturday soon! 

xoxo, 

Laura 

Friday, June 15, 2012

Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer

Hey all! These past couple of days have been so great. 

I got meet up with a friend that I went to high school with, the lovely Miss Elisabeth! 

I got some lovely gems from that trip. 


Liz's outfit matching her ice cream! I think that she needs to be my next friend guest on my blog, don't you? :) 

This cute pooch is my housemate's dog, Annie. I have been watching her while Bethany is in South Dakota. Annie and I have become best friends and I'm glad she is in the house with me, because it can get lonely. However, Annie is probably the silliest dog ever! She is such a diva: she hates to walk on grass, she doesn't like to eat in the same room as her food, and when I bought her this lovely doggy bowl at the ice cream place, she would not eat the dog bones! What a crazy dog. 



Probably should have taken another picture of me that didn't involved me stuffing my face full of ice cream, but oh well! 

The other exciting thing going on in my life? Amy, Melanie, and I got tickets to go see Kimbra in NYC in October! There are no words to say how excited I am!!!! Amy and I have been blasting Kimbra in our dorm room for probably the past year and we are so PUMPED! Now. I just have to wait 4 months...

xoxo, 
Laura

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Green Eyed Monster

Hey all! 

Hope that everyone is having a happy Wednesday. 

I was really frustrated with taking outfit pictures yesterday. My mom and I had gone on a ortho/thrifting outing, so she agreed (after much pleading) to take my outfit pictures, because I just loved what I was wearing. 

However, after about 45 minutes of picture taking I only got a couple of usable shots. Now maybe my mother will see how frustrating my camera is; she doesn't support me getting a nicer camera since I have one that "works." pftsh. I keep dreaming of a day of  a nicer camera. 

Anyway, I still wasn't very happy with some of the better shots, so I used Pixlr again to spruce them up a little bit. I really like the last one now! 

I am such  a fan of this dress. The funny thing? It was my mom's maternity dress. Yep. When I was moving, my mom told me that she had an old garment rack downstairs that I could use, since I don't have a closet in my room. (Why she didn't tell me this before, I don't know!) 

Anywho, she said that I could have it as long as I helped her clean off all the old coats on it. However, after getting through 20 year old snowsuits there was a HUGE garment bag taking up most of the rack. In it was a bunch of clothing from when my mom was in high school, some when she was pregnant, and even some long gowns from when she was a bridesmaid in the 70's!! I was FREAKING out. It felt like Christmas. Even better? My mom was about the same size as I am. 

As you know from this post, I have no qualms about wearing maternity clothes, especially if it vintage pieces  from my family members; for my body type, it is nothing a good belt can't fix! Remember if it is cute, find a way to make it work! (I may have stolen that line from this genius man - a What Not What to Wear marathon was on last night.) 
Dress - My momma's old maternity dress 
Belt - Thrifted 
Shoes - Payless (old) 

Well, the lovely Miss Amy is coming over soon and We are going to enjoy the beautiful weather we are having and take lots of photos! I'm so glad she is near by! <3 

xoxo, 

Laura 

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Moving and Braids


Hey all! 

These pictures are from a little bit ago, when I was moving into my new digs for the summer. 

I still had the braids in my hair that I got in the DR for 500 pesos (about $12!). My friend's host mom's friend did them and they took 3 hours; however, they were so worth it. I really liked them: they were cool, easy, and my hair dried really fast with them. I miss them a whole lot actually. 


P.S. This picture was taken on the front of my house for the summer! Inside pictures will be coming soon. 


T-Shirt - Thrifted 
Shorts - Thrifted (originally Old Navy
Shoes - Thrifted (originally Cole Haan



Hope that everyone's week is going oh-so-fabulously! 

 xoxo, 

Laura 


Monday, June 11, 2012

Melmac Monday: The Fated Plate




Hey all! Hope that everyone had a fabulous and thrifty weekend! 

My internship has been going wonderfully, but I still haven't quite hit the balance of work and blog; I'll get there soon! 

I almost completely forgot that it was Monday, which means another Melmac Monday! 

Today I'm sharing some wonderful plates that I have found while roaming around Etsy. My mom has been complaining that I have been home way too many cups, especially Melmac cups; for some reason I just don't seem to be as drawn to plates. However, once I move to a place that doesn't have dishes provided for me, I will have nothing to eat on, so I decided to look for inspiration, and I found some that I really like. 

I think the first and that last may be my favorites! 

Happy Melmac Monday everyone! 


8 Matching Vintage Shabby Rose Plates White Melmac

Vintage Orange Melmac Plates - Texasware Pair


Mod Floral Melmac Plate


Bright Yellow Mid Century Texas Ware Plates




xoxo, 

Laura