Breaking Upwards....Heck Yea I am

So we've all been through break-ups...if you haven't you are extremely lucky and I hope that you never have to. They basically suck on all levels, saying goodbye to someone you love, getting all your stuff back, saying goodbye to their family members who have become a second family to you, seeing the dreaded facebook evidence of them in another relationship/moving on, basically it just a negative experience all around.

Except that it's not, sometimes a break-up can be a very very beautiful thing. First off, chances are that if you broke up in the first place then you weren't happy with that person and you were probably not very compatible so you get to untangle yourself from a person who probably wasn't that great for you anyways. Secondly, you get to focus on improving yourself which can be pretty awesome. My break-up was a weight loss catalyst, at first I couldn't eat because I was oh so heartbroken and I wanted to exercise because it was a way to take out my frustration and anger, then it turned into a self-improvement mission and now I'm 25 lbs. down and focused on losing 25 more. Plus it's a great excuse to change your hair (just don't pull a Felicity and mess your mane up) or your wardrobe or BOTH. Thirdly, you feel like a new person and you have more time to try out new things with your new adventurous personality. For instance, I've done way more in the past three months than I did the whole time we were dating including going to a Panthers game, pumpkin patch, Chris Brown concert, and lastly going to a male strip club (Chasers...this Saturday and yes a post will follow about that one). The fourth and perhaps most awesome thing about a break-up is that you get to spend more time with your friends and family and more than likely you get to make a lot more new friends too! Lastly, the best part of a break-up is figuring out who you are again and going forward in your life as a much stronger person so....here's to going forward and being more Jolene than ever. Holler!

revamp.

So A LOT has changed since my last post, months ago.....actually A LOT seems like an understatement. I finished my wonderful internship, got my degree, started working two jobs, got an apartment, and oh yeah me & my boyfriend of nearly 2 years (a year and 10 months) broke up and went our separate ways. So I decided to revive the blog and focus some diy projects, home/style inspirations, my attempt to write a screenplay (not even joking), and just me figuring out how to be single again. So stay tuned....

I Love My Internship

As you probably know or have read, I'm doing a visual display internship at Anthropologie this summer. I'm helping the display coordinator at the Southpark Mall location and I seriously could not love my internship more if I tried.

I've always enjoyed making things and love seeing the results of my hard work in physical form. My great grandmother always said that she liked to have something to show for her work at the end of the day and that was why she preferred sewing, knitting, quilting, and cooking as opposed to watching TV. I'm the exact same way, so having an internship where I make things is kinda perfect for me.

Last week, we primarily worked on finishing the window display made of tea bags and it was really fun though frustrating at times. Still the finished project is amazing and I'm so proud that I was a part of it. This week the focus has mostly been on fixtures, so I got to make two ring cases for jewelry which turned out pretty great if I do say so myself.

I really love Anthro and all the people there, I just hope I get to stay with the company when I finish the internship and that I have many more 7 am mornings at Anthro ahead of me.

Now of course, my Anthro love fest wouldn't be complete without mentioning one of the best parts: the merchandise! I made my first purchase since I started working for Anthropologie and I absolutely love it. It's a pleated ikat lampshade and even though it set me back around $60, I absolutely love it and it works perfectly with the lamp that I had.

Saturdays were made for Thriftin'

This summer, I am interning four days a week and working a part time job 1-2 days a week. Which makes for a busy summer, but helps me to have a little money in the bank since the internship is unpaid. So I only get a few choice days off and Saturday was the first of those wonderful free days. I of course spent more money than I had planned, but it was just a really great, relaxing day.

I went to an antique place that my supervisor at Anthropologie told me about and I found some great items for super cheap. I'm all about mixing and matching dining chairs so I was on a quest for find a couple and that I did. I found two great matching chairs that were in really good condition and had a great fabric on the seat as well. They set me back a mere $10. Even though I like the fabric on the seat it does have a couple noticeable stains, so I will probably cover it with the fabric that I got from Hancock's. I also found a really cute 70's waste basket and an old, industrial looking light for only $7. After that I went to the Value Village in Kannapolis and found this really neat looking picture of a kitchen that I immediately fell in love with.

Of course no Saturday is complete without a trip to Target (to get some Mediterranean pizza and Red Stripe), then I planted the house plants that I bought a few days ago in some old jars that I had. I ended my wonderful day hanging out with my cats and watching Blue Valentine which was kind of the perfect end to the perfect day if you ask me.

What I'm Loving Right....Now

1. Rustic Wood Kitchen Accessories: North Carolina Cutting board from etsy shop AHeirloom $40, Wooden Cup from etsy shop furls $18, and Acacia Slabs from West Elm
2. Ikat Pillows: Two PIllow Set from etsy shop ginette1223 $40 and Large Pillow Set from ginette 1223 $170
3. Vintage Canisters: Mod French Canisters from etsy shop Parsimonia $22, Coffee Canister from etsy shop Edisplace $8, and Tea and Flour Canisters from etsy shop retrotreasurehunters $28.50.

Beautiful Day

With my internship in place and my fashion show over, I finally feel like I can relax. Today just happened to be the perfect day to do just that, I checked out a book from the library Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingslover and read it outside. It was a gorgeous day and I was glad that I could enjoy it. All the beautiful sunshine also helped two of my herbs to sprout, both the Basil and the Sage. I'm still waiting for the Rosemary to sprout up.

Fashion Show

I had my fashion show Saturday and everything went very well. I didn't fall on the runway and people seemed to like my dress and the song I chose. I made a nightgown and a summer dress, the song that I chose was the inspiration for the dress. It was "Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?" by She and Him.


Less than a month 'til I graduate!

*In the picture: Me and some of my friends backstage at the fashion show. I made the two dresses on the right.

I got it, I got it, I.GOT.IT.

I found out today that I got the Visual Display Internship at Anthropologie in Charlotte and I am soooo excited. I'm going to learn so much and I really can't wait!

100 Thing Challenge

Lately I've been thinking a lot about materialism and even more about simplifying my life. This could be because I'm getting ready to move and I'm realizing just how many little knick knacks I've accumulated in my lifetime. Still, no matter the reason, I feel like I need to simplify my life and get rid of the clutter. I saw this thing online called the "100 Thing Challenge", basically you try to cut back your possessions to 100 things that you actually need. You can make it as strict as you want it to be, you don't have to count every single book that you own as individual possessions, you could just label one of the 100 as "my book collection", etc. I'm far from finished, but here's the start of my list.
1. Wood Trunk
2. Dresser
3. Bed
4. Laptop
5. Laptop Charger
6. Cell Phone
7. Cell Phone Charger
8. Suede Wedges
9. My Leather Boots
10. My purses
11. Fabric
12. My book collection
13. Dancehall painting
14. My leather boots
15. My coatrack
16. Sex and the City DVDs
17. Photos of my friends and family
18. Bamboo Rug
19. Gold birdcage
20. My Vintage Jewelry collection
21. My leather jacket
22. to be continued...

College in a Nutshell

While I was volunteering last Saturday I found this a print in an old frame. It's Richard Stine and it sums up my feelings about college perfectly.

A Healthy Start

I've really been feeling unhealthy lately and instead of just wallowing in self-pity, I decided to really try to change my habits by working out more regularly and eating healthier food. I went to the Aldi's before I left and stocked up on some healthy food options.

Here's what I bought:
Frozen Raspberries and Mixed Berries (for healthy smoothies)
Yogurt
Orange Juice
Raisin Bran Crunch
Skim Milk
Italian Lettuce
Cucumbers
Tomatoes
Mushrooms
Trail Mix
Apples
Strawberries
Bananas
Peanut Butter (really wanted to try Almond Butter, but Aldi's didn't have it)
Oatmeal
Raisins
Rice
Beans
Frozen Vegetables

My Menu for Tomorrow
Breakfast: Oatmeal with banana, peanut butter and raisins
Snack: Trail Mix and Apple
Lunch: Veggie Wrap
Dinner: Salad with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, and mushrooms

Wallpaper...you're starting to grow on me

Wallpaper is just one of those things that makes people cringe, myself included. But lately it seems to be making a comeback and I'm actually becoming a fan of it. It really spruces up hallways, entryways, and small rooms, but I think it also looks pretty charming for a living or dining room.
The top photo is from Chloe Sevigny's apartment and the others are from DesignSponge.

Summer Plans

To say that I'm looking forward to graduation would be an understatement, to say that I'm so ready for it that I'm marking down the days, hours, minutes would also be an understatement. I know they always say to not rush your life, but I can't help it I'm ready to move on to the next chapter. Is it scary? Duh, of course it is, but I've always been the type of person who looks forward to the unknown, who remains positive about what the future holds.

So while I am trying to work through this motivation rut that I've been in, I'm trying to focus on the more positive and exciting things like the fact that in a little over and month and a half I will be a college graduate about to start an exciting internship (God willing). I've also been focusing on the things that I'd like to accomplish this summer. As you may know I've taken an interest in revamping furniture and such as well as in interior design in general. Some of the projects I'd like to do this summer are: reupholstering my two living room chairs, stripping my old dresser, staining it, and redoing the hardware, and last but certainly not least starting my own little herb garden and trying to improve my no so green thumb.

I bought this planter from Lowe's and some Basil, Rosemary, and Sage seeds from Wal-Mart. Here's hoping that with the Miracle Grow Seed Starting Potting Mix that I bought, those little seeds with sprout right up and "make Momma proud".

Weaving and Fabric Samples from Textile Design

I finally got around to editing and organizing pictures of the fabrics that I made in Textile Design through Weaving, Dyeing, and Printing. So I decided to post them along with some of my favorite pictures from my portfolio of things that I had already done.

The first set is the Hat Fabric that I designed to simulate plaid, cable knit, and straw basket weave. Next are my weaving samples were I painted the warp threads in stripes, gradation, and in two contrasting colors. Lastly is the set of fabrics that I bound, dyed, and printed with the same basic stamp in positive, negative, and mirror image.

My Owl Pillows

Since my internship this summer will most likely be unpaid, I was contemplating ways to make money this summer. So I think after I finish making my garments for this year's fashion show, I'm going to make lots of new Owl Pillows and start selling them on Etsy. I took this updated photo of two of my owl pillows and some fabric garland that I will be doing a DIY post for later this week.

Fabric Shopping

Since I'm currently without car, I haven't been able to go to Mary Jo's, which is this really incredible fabric store in Gastonia, NC. I thought I would be able to go there over break, but since I live about 40 minutes north of Charlotte and have to borrow my mom's car to get there, it just wasn't worth it. I went to Hancock fabrics instead and found some really neat fabrics there, I deviated from my original plans for garment fabrics quite a bit, but I found some really great fabric. I'm making a t-shirt dress for myself to wear so I bought some jersey cotton in a tiny plum colored houndstooth print, but there was only about 2 and 1/4 yds of that so I also bought a striped jersey as a backup. Also, I'm making a dress for the fashion show which I'm going to wear, the sleeves are puffed at the shoulder, and it has a really cool back. Originally I thought I would use a dark blue cotton with a small print on it, but I found this great colorful linen with a really great abstract pattern on it which I love. I also bought a belt closure for the belt that goes along with that dress and a big wooden button to go on the back of the dress itself. Lastly, I had to get some fabric to make a slip dress that one of my friends is going to wear in the show, so I bought this great floral silky polyester that has a watercolor-y look to it and some yellow lace to do some embellishments/detailing with. All in all I was very happy with my purchases!

Bedroom Inspirations

Lately, I've realized that my decorating style is pretty bohemian and kind of 70s. I always love thinking about how to decorate a living room, dining room, kitchen, even a bathroom, but for some reason when it comes to a bedroom, I'm kind of stumped. I googled bohemian bedroom and the top center picture was in the results. It has quickly become my favorite bedroom inspiration and the color in the background is Benjamin Moore Vintage Wine, the sheets are from Anthropologie and the other rooms are from DesignSponge.

Kitchen Inspiration

These are some of the kitchen/dining room inspirations I've been into lately, the color is Martha Stewart Plumage. I'll cite the other items later.

Living Room

So Lately, I've been making decorating mood boards as a way of procrastinating from doing menial school work. Here's one that I did for a living room, the paint color in the background is Benjamin Moore Van Deusen Blue. The Silver Vases are from West Elm, Curtains from Urban Outfitters, Leather Pouf Ottoman from Amazon.com, BIlly Balls, Table from West Elm, Chair from Urban Outfitters, Leather Sectional from Big Lots, Vase that I up-cycled, My UO coat rack, and finally a lamp that looks like the one I like at Big Lots.

Professional Enough?

I have a super important interview coming up over Spring Break. So I went to Old Navy yesterday and found this really cute peach dress that I think would be perfect for the interview. It's a great color and pretty simple plus I think it looks like something you'd find at the place that I'm interviewing at, I'm going to accessorize it up and it'll look really cute with the tan wedges that I got from Target in January. Is it professional/cute enough to land me an internship?

White Chocolate Brownies Recipe

I'm really hoping to try this recipe over Spring Break, because they look and sounds so yummy. I'll post pics after make them. Here's the recipe link if anyone wants to try making them:
White Chocolate Brownies Recipe

My Spring Must-Haves

I haven't really been shopping since I bought a pair of shoes, tights, and a shirt from Target in early January. Before that I hadn't been shopping for clothes and accessories since August, so to say that I'm a little desperate for a little shopping and a lot of clothes would be an understatement. I went to Old Navy today, just to do a little window shopping and see if I spotted an outfit worthy of my upcoming interview, what I found was a lot of really cute clothes that mocked my empty wallet. So I decided to list some of my must-haves for spring in an effort to live vicariously through my blog self. Blog Jolene will be wearing these things this Spring:

Great Tank Top from Old Navy, I'm thinking I would pair it with my jean jacket that I've had forever, $24.50

Fun Lace Necklace from etsy.com shop WhiteOwl, $32

Cute Merona Wedges from Target in Bordeaux, I have a pair of Taupe ones that I got in January, now I really need these, $29.99

Awesome Hat from Anthropologie, $48

A Tie Front Flap-Pocket Skirt, now $19.50 at Old Navy

Home Stuff I'm Loving Right Now

1. Knitted Poufs: I was browsing some home goods online and found some really great, interesting things. On one site I found some really neat knitted rugs and poufs, they're done by a woman named Christien Meindertsma.

2. Tray Table: I really love this tray table from West Elm, with its gold base and interesting wood top. Sadly, at $129, it will be quite a while before I can afford it.

3. Mustard Sheets: I'm obsessed with anything mustard yellow and these sheets from Anthropologie are no exception, the pattern is awesome and has a 70's feel which I love.

4. Wine Rack: I was always a fan of the wine rack that Carrie Bradshaw had in her kitchen on Sex and the City and this is the closest I've come to finding one like that. It's from the Container Store:

5. Mason Jar Towels: These towels are from an Etsy shop: Oh, Little Rabbit, they have a different images on flour sack towels, notebooks, and some produce sacks.

Current Reads and Room Inspirations

Lately, more than ever, I've been thinking about interior design and about the possibility of trying to eventually transition into the interior design field. I've always enjoyed decorating and I've already started planning how I would decorate the place I get after college....and I don't even have a place for after college. I read more decorating, design, and recipe blogs than I do fashion blogs these days. So I decided to rent some books from the library, so I'm now reading Domino The Book of Decorating and [the nest] Home Design Handbook. The first book from Domino is really great, it has great pictures that are really well styled and accessorized and even better advice on getting started decorating a room or your entire home. I've created some mood boards for my future abode and I'll have to snap a picture of it.

Here's some other rooms that have been inspiring me lately, I'm obsessed with mustard yellow bedding for my bedroom and a dark blue or green paint color for a living room. The first three pictures are from Design Sponge Online and the last one is Emily Henderson from the glass box design challenge from Design Star. I love the idea of fabric as cheap wallpaper and think it would be a great thing to try for an accent wall.