There’s no place quite like the floating city of light, Venice, Italy. The first time I visited Venice was in 2011 on a college study abroad trip and I was utterly amazing by the wonder that is Venice. Everywhere you look there is a unique nook, a winding path to tucked away sanctuary and countless picturesque views!
We couldn’t be more excited to share with you Seek Wander Share’s FIRST EVER travel guide! Jennifer recently took a two week vacation with her dad in Italy and Bellagio, Italy was her first stop. We’ll share where to stay, play and eat so you can plan your own Bellagio getaway!
Fall. The season when the leaves start to change, the unbearable heat becomes a very teeny tiny amount more bearable (who’s joking, there’s really no relief until winter in the south), football season is upon us AND most importantly a fresh start is in the air. What better way to grab the fresh start by the shirt lapels of your closet and say “I’m gonna refocus, refresh and rejuvenate you whether you like it or not!”.
So you’ve lined up your FIRST EVER photo shoot with a professional photographer and you’re so incredibly thrilled you could literally fly to the moon and back in a rocket ship fueled by your excitement. You might have even shelled out $200 plus for this shoot even! You have this amazing vision in your mind and have even created beautiful Pinterest boards for inspiration to share with the photographer. So… What now?
Photo: Artifact Uprising
After recently watching the movie Amy (which was powerful, eye opening and down right sad), I’ve decided I want to be better at taking more photos and videos of not only the big moments of my life but also the every day occurrences that may seem boring and mundane. I’m not here to critique the movie but I made an observation while watching the film – pre stardom, Amy had quite a bit off video footage and it was endearing to watch her grow up in front of the camera. With this being said, I want to make a conscious effort to document my memories by both printing photos and making videos. Sure, I have a crap ton of photos on my phone and saved on my computer but I want to physically hold them (like the good ‘ol days) and create compelling albums that I can share down the road with my loved ones.
tank splendid | asymmetrical skirt (zara old) similar , splurge | fedora (francesca’s old) similar | sandals steve madden gea | satchel (target old) similar
Yesterday I shared my secret obsession with white tops and how they make the foundation of my wardrobe for practically any occasion especially food truck hopping. Today, my favorite white tank is taking our relationship to the next level and we’re going out on a hot date together. See the thing I love most about my partner in crime is that it’s down for anything and can easily go from food truck hopping to a hot date at one of my favorite Austin eateries, Sway. I mean come on, isn’t that like the number one criteria girls look for in a beau for life? undoubtedly, yes.
A few weeks ago Melissa came over first thing in the morning to shoot some early morning shots at my desk for a Techie Girl Techie World post about Tagspire . In a wild turn of events, I was running late and she was on time, so while I continued to get the light right and try not to burn my breakfast, Mel thumbed through my closet. “You have so much new stuff in here!”, “I love this!”, “You have so many amazing white tops, like seriously such a good selection.” Her last comment that morning got me thinking about the fact that I really do have like 10 plus white tops, from silk blouses and linen button ups to the classic white cotton tank.
skirt ASOS | top (forever21 old) | bracelets Elle Gray | tote Whole Foods | shoes (target old)
As you may know from a few posts ago , this past month I have been on an VERY strict budget because I have been saving like a mad woman who didn’t plan her budgeting very well and has to do it all last minute (don’t be like me peeps!). Because of this, I’ve had to get verrrrry creative with my outfits, because let’s face it, even when a gals on a budget, it can be sooo boring to wear the same thing over and over again. So a gals gotta do what a gals gotta do to keep it fresh!
This month for our Bloggers Gonna Blog series I wanted to talk about Pinterest. Pinterest can be a bit difficult in my opinion and Melissa and I still hunt to refine our Pinterest board as well as our Pinterest strategy still but wanted to share with y’all how to curate a Pinterest board that will resonate with your followers and keep them coming back for more!
Lately, like literally late at night when my mind won’t stop, I’ve been browsing Pinterest and have been drawn to desert scenery in a way that is inexplicable and is planting a seed for an early fall trip to Marfa, Big Bend or just a random desert west of here. Somehow there is something very alluring about these barren, gritty, scorching hot sandy places. Follow our Pinterest and our Wander to the Desert board here.
As a 30-year-old woman, I have learned to love my body just the way it is. Life has taught that there is no need to poison the mind with comparisons or judgement or believe the negative thoughts that people insist are truths. I’ve finally come to a place in my life where I feel confident, healthy, strong, sexy and wouldn’t change a thing about my body. I love every curve, stretch mark, muscle definition, thought in my brain and shape of my imperfect yet perfect body. I strongly feel in praising other women no matter their shape, size, color or any other meaningless stereotype we create to bring others down. So when Jen and I heard about #thisbodymybody movement by the ladies from Beyond the Clothing , I quickly knew I wanted to be a part of a positive message to make women feel beautiful and powerful, inside and outside.
I could have written a million things about this topic, my body. I could have written about the struggles to accept my body. But instead when Mel and I were chatting about this, one thought kept popping in my mind over and over: that when I first wake up in the morning and I’m still lying in bed, I feel completely satisfied with my body. There is not an ounce of me that doesn’t appreciate the shape of it, how strong it is, where this body has taken me and that most importantly, I’m healthy and don’t have to worry about my well-being and living in this body. After all, that’s the most important thing! LIVING in this body. It’s not a tool for modeling clothes, or snagging the hottest guy, or a status symbol for which society will inspect and then say “yes, you go in this group” or “no, you go in this group” or “you earn this much” or “you’re worth less today”.
When Melissa and I started this blog, we had no idea how to use a camera, which one to buy, which lens would be useful and on top of that how to use all of it! I’ve always been a big fan of photography though, so I was super excited to learn and took on the research like it was my day job. I’m here to share with you what we’ve learned in the past 6 months of blogging with our current camera, what we did and what we would do differently camera wise if we had the chance to go back! We’re still figuring out how to get the best photos so this post will be more about your actual camera and lens than how to get the best photos. That post is still in progress lol!
top Nordstrom | sports bra Nordstrom | shorts (old Nordstrom Rack) similar | shoes (old Nordstrom) similar
Sweaty, panting, torture….those are the three words that come to mind when Jen and I do Kayla Itsines Bikini Body Guide workout program. Now don’t take the word’s negative context as a sign of a treacherous workout routine that you should run far away from. As a matter of fact, it’s quite opposite! For you motivated ladies looking for a way to feel confident about your body, you have to try Kayla’s 12 week program to help you get fit, toned and strong. Her belief is simple – eat well, exercise often and make it about a lifestyle change.
striped top H&M | chiffon shorts (old) similar | target flats | red clutch (vintage) love this clutch | necklace (old) kate spade similar
If I was a french girl, I would wear stripes, red lips, a beret and sit eating macaroons all day long in front of the Eiffel Tower before jumping on my bike with a straw basket on the front full of fresh blooms, a baguette and champagne. Fortunately, I at least have the perfect outfit that I would wear in this super specific day dream of mine! I know this is a super literal take on being a french girl, and they’re so much more than stripes, red lips and vespas with boys, but thats the literal french girl in me I guess.
Last week I was browsing Shopbop, as I often do, and I did something impulsive. When I saw that my dream shoes, the Stuart Weitzman Nudist smooth leather in the nude color, were down to the LAST pair and it just happened to be my size, I bought them. It’s my birthday month after all and I had been wanting them for what seemed like forever, but is closer to a year, but mostly I just did it, because I wanted to treat myself for my 25th birthday.
Photo Cred: Jess Lively
I recently had the opportunity to listen to Jess Lively speak at an Austin blogger event and was blown away by her discussion. By the way, at the time I had no idea who she was or why she was speaking at a mixer but I listened with open ears and an open mind. After all, I love listening to other women’s journeys that empower and inspire you to be a better person. After a few minutes into her presentation, I quickly came to realize she is what I call a self-help expert and believes you should start transforming your approach to life with value-based intentions. In a room full of bloggers, she had the confidence to speak to a very vulnerable subject – passion and intuition. Her words really resonated with me because I currently feel that I am stuck in life with my career (oh boy, I hope my employer doesn’t read this). I feel trapped and I have no passion for what I do. I hope I’m not the only one who feels this way but sometimes people don’t want to get real and have this sensitive conversation. However, Jess Lively keeps it real! She is able to inspire and help you take a look at your situation and find a way to keep you happy and motivated.
top Zara | pants Show Me Your Mumu (c/o Root Fashion and Aura) love these too | wedges (old) love these | earrings (old) similar | bag (old) similar
This past weekend I turned 25 and realized I’m half way through my 20’s. My friends who are in their 30’s all tell me they feel more sure of themselves, more confident in what they want and don’t want and are happier than in their 20’s, which got me thinking what’s the difference? And um, can I just start doing those things now so the back end of my 20’s feel just as happy, content and self-assured as I expect my 30’s to be (no pressure future self!)?
denim H&M (less than $20!!) | linen tank (old) similar | sandals (old) Sam Edelman Trina , love leopard print ones too | utility jacket (old) similar | layered necklaces dogeared short & long similar
If these black destroyed denim shorts look familiar to you, its because you’ve seen their medium wash twin before in my lazy sunday look and in how I dressed up that lazy look for night lol! I seriously can’t rave about these H&M destroyed denim shorts enough. They fit really well, aren’t too tight or too loose and at less $20 are an obvious choice for dark destroyed denim shorts of the year, am I right?
A few weeks ago, Melissa and I attended an amazing ATX Blogger Brunch where we met some fabulous Austin women who are making things happen for them and their companies. One of which was Amy Chait, VP of Marketing for Tagspire, an awesome new app that happened to be sponsoring the ATX Blogger Brunch. So what is Tagspire you might ask?
Made with in Austin