Tuesday, January 31, 2012

HOLEY MOLY

 (Urban Outfitters Tee, J Brand Jeans, Aldo Boots, Vintage Earrings, Bracelet from p45)
These jeans are the only semi-expensive ones I own, and on the first day that I got them both knees ripped wide open. Last time I spend that much on jeans. But, these somehow still manage to look great, and I've been on the search for something grungy to pair with them for awhile. And, as luck would have it, I came across this pre-destroyed and faded tee and threw both pieces together. Yeah, it may look as though I just survived a battle, but you should see the other guy!



Monday, January 30, 2012

LAZY BAKING

Okay... it was one of those weekends.






One of those weekends where I don't leave the house except to go to Target and buy these cookies? 
Yes. 
One of those weekends.
I went to Target on a Saturday night. Bad idea. I do not recommend it because that is when everyone decides it is time to go to Target. Now, let me say this, I think of myself as a baking purist. I rarely, like hardly ever, use pre-made baking stuff. The rare occasion is for bake sales and... yeah bake sales. So these were simply and that apparently meant there are no chemicals and it was all natural stuff and I was excited. So I convinced my mother to buy them. So when I come home, I turn the oven to 350 and wait a little bit. Probably not long enough. But anyway, I opened the package and there were 12 nicely pre shaped cookie dough balls for me to just place on a cookie sheet. Zero effort makes me excited. So I put them in my probably not pre heated oven and waited 16 minutes like the package told me... in my defense they were slightly golden brown around the edges. So I take them off the cookie sheet too early and I immediately know they are not cooked enough. Oh well! I wait for them to cool a bit then pour a glass of milk and grab two mushy and warm cookies. And guess what, they taste like cookie dough. Not to be confused with actual cookie, but cookie dough. And chemicals. Oh well!
P.S. We would like to formally apologize for not posting for a week, and being bad bloggers. No real excuse... except maybe the camera charger was lost... which meant no working camera. 

Monday, January 23, 2012

BALLETS

So there are many shoes that I (Liv) love. But there are only so many shoes that look good with jeans, skirts and shorts (and any other bottoms I may have forgotten), and only so many shoes I can comfortably walk around in all day. Those shoes would be flats. Flats like my oxfords, five pairs of slightly different black ballet flats, purple Mary-Janes, Sperrys, Toms,  and many other flats living in my closet so they do not die from a Chicago snow attack. 

Here are some flat shoes that have been on my mind because it only just started really snowing and I want it to be spring. I hate retail. 

I really like these ballet flats. Unfortunately, I do not own them. But I wish I did. They are colorful and simple and classic: shoes that don't look all that great by themselves, but will certainly go with everything. 

Here is my confusion. See it? Confusion. Toms Flats. What? Yes, confusion. I don't really think I like them. They look freakishly wide, I have freakishly narrow feet. But who knows? They could turn out to be just as fantastic as the original Toms.
I've got me some of these. They don't look like this anymore. They were a summer favorite, which led to their untimely death. I wore them almost every day for six weeks this and they turned brownish grey with a giant hole by each of my big toes. Most comfortable and practical summer shoes I have ever had. They are fantastic. 
And then I saw these and I gasped. Because I own these!!! Yes, they have a peep toe... but I own these! I snatched them up at Akira for 5 dollars two summers ago. These are not comfortable at all, but I really, really like the lace pattern. Pain is beauty? Maybe for just this once...

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Feature: Marissa

 (Vintage sweater, Madewell shirt, American Eagle jeans, Bloomingdale's boots, Gifted earrings, Paul Smith glasses)

Few things pair better together than preppy and vintage. We saw Marissa in this great U.S. Navy sweater and hipster glasses and stuck her right in front of the camera. A few shots later and we were sure that she needed to take us thrift shopping at some point. She knows all the best spots, even if she won't admit it.




Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Fun Fun Fun Fun FUNFETTI



Oh my goodness rainbow sprinkles. Deep down inside, everyone knows their favorite kind of cake is funfetti cake. I do not care if you are allergic to that cake mix, or if you do not like it, it's still your favorite. It's my favorite. I love sparkle and color and general happiness. This cake batter is happiness. I mean, look at it. It just makes you smile. If not, think of all the sprinkles. And the associated happiness. I bet you knew there was a "but" coming, so here it comes. I was killed by the frosting. I first made my favorite buttercream recipe (Mark Bittman), but with some weird "healthy" organic powdered sugar. So it tasted a litttle weird. And it looked a little weird. But "a little weird" was fine enough for me. Until I ran out of frosting. So I then proceeded to make a half a batch of frosting with normal, unhealthy powdered sugar. I neglected to add enough cream... or something. So it turned out stiff and buttery. It tasted less weird than before. I was okay with it. Then I had some remaining cupcakes with no frosting... I'm not going to mention what I did to those poor things.




                   See that awkward frosting difference? It's awkward. And horribly frustrating.


Did I mention they still tasted awesome? I don't think I did. They tasted awesome. Make these. Just make your favorite vanilla cake recipe and add about 1/3 cup of sprinkles.



Even when it's all gone they wrapper is pretty. So much fun.

Monday, January 16, 2012

Snowflakes and Shimmer


(Velvet sweater, Frenchi blazer, Aqua skirt, Aldo boots, H&M scarf)
It snowed. Like super thick 6 inches of snow snow. And I wore a skirt. Probably not the best choice in terms of hypothermia prevention, but flowers in the middle of winter definitely stood out. Not to mention the generous dose of sequins on my sweater, which kept me warm enough to survive another Chicago winter.



Friday, January 13, 2012

Doubles: Skate Skate


Ice skating. Apparently Liv's 30 year old ice skates still work. Apparently Isabelle's untrained ankles still don't like to ice skate very well. But at least she can still pose on the ice. This time, Isabelle managed to not drag Liv down to the treacherous ice. The ice gives a convenient time to discuss life and the meaning of the world and just general problems in our lives. We highly recommend it.

(American Eagle jeans, Forever 21 scarf, North Face coat, Betsey Johnson sunglasses)
(Zara Coat, Frenchi skirt and tights, Gap sweater, Piperlime belt. Forever 21 necklace)



Thursday, January 12, 2012

Tulle Hardware

(Coat via Marshalls, Restoration Hardware Scarf, Zara Jeans, Banana Republic T-Shirt, Old Navy Cardigan, Boots via DSW)

These jeans I saw at Zara when I was about shopping with my mother on Black Friday. She decided to purchase them for me as a Christmas gift which meant I had to wait a month until I received (forgot about) them. I like these pants. I also like that this is January. It is fifty degrees outside and sunny. I do not like how it is messing with my head. Or maybe it's just my excuse for the seasonably lazy winter time.








Wednesday, January 11, 2012

Jeans, Jeans, Jeans

 (Jolt! Jeans, Gap tee, Rubbish shirt, Aldo Boots, Forever 21 and Garnet Hill necklaces, my mama's scarf)
Some people think jeans on jeans can't be done. I'm not one of them. If the colors are dark enough, it turns out pretty great. I kept the rest neutral and let the shirt be the star here. It's one of my favorites because it's incredibly light, making it thin enough to wear well into spring.

Also, sorry for the lack of posts, guys! School's been giving out work like it's going out of style.



Friday, January 6, 2012

Chocolate Lava
































I (Isabelle) woke up with a crazy chocolate craving and decided to find a solution instantly. I'd had this recipe bookmarked for awhile and figured it would be perfect. These were ready to eat in under half an hour, which has made them a go-to from now on. And they were absolutely delicious!