So very young were we

It has been far too long! But with the coming of spring and the ending of school, I'm finding myself newly motivated to start writing here again.

Yes, school has ended, and I am officially a college graduate. I would say something here about how radically different my life is now, but the truth is that it hasn't really sunk in yet. For now, it just feels like any other summer. I'm pretty sure it won't hit me until fall rolls around. But before then, I have to join the working world. It'll be nice to hopefully get a job and have some money to put away, but to tell you the truth, I'm quite nervous that I won't be able to find a job that I really love, and I'll be stuck. Oh well! It'll only be for a couple of years, at which point I want to go to grad school.

Anyway, I've been busy at work on the shop. I have updated some pictures and I've newly listed the dress I'm wearing in these pictures: a fantastic silver 1960's dress. I'll be sad to see it go...

We have baby robins in our backyard again! Here's hoping they make it, like last year's birds, and not like the poor rabbits...

So this is the new year

vintage cape: coming soon to Owl Eyes Boutique

Hello, all you lovely readers! Long time, no see. I've been without a battery for my camera for ages, so I haven't had the opportunity to get new photos. But that sad situation has been remedied - I will be getting a new battery soon, and our dear exchange student from last year has just moved in with me and has said that she'll be happy to take pictures for the blog!

The new semester starts on Monday. I can't even believe it - my last semester of college! It hasn't really sunk in yet, and to be honest, I doubt it will for a long time. My class schedule is pretty relaxed, but on top of that, I'll be working on my senior project, working in the Writing Center on campus, directing a choir, as well as running this blog and my Etsy shop (which I've been working on, by the way - I've cleaned up the shop's appearance and added a bit of new merchandise, so check it out!)...

And that's not all, either! Some of you may remember me talking about Coat of Many Colors, a vintage shop close to where I live. Well, starting soon, I'm going to be working there and also selling some of the vintage merchandise online in our very own Owl Eyes Boutique! I am so incredibly excited for this opportunity. My dear friend Rose and I will be running the shop, and I can't wait to start. We'll get to add our own little personal touches around the shop...ooh, I'm getting all giddy just thinking about it. Once the shop is all ready to go, I plan to give you all a photo tour.

I hope you all have been well since I last wrote, and have had a wonderful new year so far!

Laura

Announcing...

The Owl Eyes Boutique is now OPEN! Click on the banner above to visit our shop!

Don't see an item I posted before that you were interested in? Don't fret! I still have many more listings to add, and I will be doing so this week. I know right now there aren't many listings, but I wanted to post at least some! I wanted to take more pictures today, but the weather was not kind.

Have a lovely evening!

Much love,
Laura

Hmm...

Guess what's happening tomorrow?

Much love,
Laura

Store preview!

What? There's going to be a store?

Well, yes. It's been an embarrassingly long time since we announced it, but hopefully within the next month we'll have things listed on Etsy and ready to go. Until then, here's a little preview!

Don't think twice, it's all right

Well, it has been an interesting week, that's for sure! Thank you all for your comments on the baby rabbits. I haven't seen the little survivor since last weekend, but I'm just going to take that as a sign that he is safe and far away.

Esther and I took these photos the other day in the park near my house. It was a perfectly lovely day - finally! So far May hadn't been very springlike at all here in Michigan, but the weather, it seems, has turned around. I rode 5 miles on my bike on the trail right by my house (it goes all the way to the zoo downtown - 16 miles, though I've never gone all the way!) and in the light spring breeze, it was glorious.

We were so excited to take these pictures because we had just finished taking the first round of photos of some of the merchandise for our Etsy store! Things had been so busy - she with her job, me with school - that we hadn't had the chance until now. Unfortunately, when I put the memory card into the computer, the photos disappeared. I downloaded a photo recovery program; still nothing. So unfortunately that time was a loss, but I was able to redo some of the pictures today. I'll have some to share as a sneak preview in a future post!

Unfortunately, I'm going to have to cut this post short - I've come down with an awful cold today and my body's telling me that I need to get some sleep. Who am I to argue? What an exciting life I lead - in bed before midnight on a Friday! Anyway, I'll have lots more to share soon - including the story of how I met Nigel Barker. I'll leave you with some more pictures. Have a great (and healthy!) weekend!

Sartorial temptations...

Vintage 1980's Laura Ashley sailor dress, via pineapplemint @ etsy

Today, I'm wearing my teal boots and a teal bow in my hair. Not ridiculously matchy-matchy by any means - just coordinated. It was only when I grabbed my blue and green umbrella and put on my teal sunglasses that I thought, Okay, maybe this is a little ridiculous.

I find that I'm always drawn to teal and mustard yellow above all else. (And emerald green, when I can find it - my three favorite colors!) Sometimes I have to fight the temptation to buy something just because it's in one of those colors. But I can't help it - I just think they're so lovely.

I also think that I'm going to have to be physically restrained from going too literal with my nautical inspiration. I have been so drawn to sailor-inspired dresses lately that I'm afraid when summer comes around, it's going to look like I'm in costume! Oh dear.

So when I found this dress on Etsy, it was just too perfect for words - it combined my love for sailor dresses and my adoration of the color teal. Score! I debated for a month or two about whether I should buy it - I've been trying to save money - but then I realized that I would probably never find another dress that was more "me" so I went ahead and bought it. It arrived only two days after I ordered it and I absolutely adore it! It definitely needs to be altered - for some reason, the long sleeves and the length of the skirt absolutely dwarf my incredibly statuesque five feet, three inches. I can't figure it out! Ha. So, once I can get near a sewing machine that works (Esther's is broken), I'm going to take off the sleeves and take the hem up. I can't wait to see how it turns out.

So what are your style temptations? Do you have too much of a certain color/style in your wardrobe? Well, maybe "too much" is the wrong phrase - if you love it, wear it, I say.

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