that one time i turned a skirt into a dress...

the title pretty much sums it up, kiddos!

i was inspired by this idea.

and thus i went to this beloved place:

and thus i spent $4 on an old lady skirt,

had a little rendezvous with my beloved sewing machine,

and thus...

i'm more than a little bit in love with it.

i also love that it was super easy.

and i feel a bit like fraulein maria, aka the original hipster, in my homemade dress.

i had to tweak the original pattern a bit because i wanted real sleeves rather than flying squirrel sleeves, and my skirt had two layers (a sheer layer and a solid underlayer) to work around.

if you want info on how i did it, grab my email over on the sidebar and send me a request.

i'll draw you a fancy picture with crayons or something.

ok ok here's a bigger view of it, if you insist:

skirtdresses for the win,

katilda

music: scattered trees

don't go breakin' my heart, newest-band-love-o'-my-little-aorta!

i highly recommend a little spotify rendezvous with their entire album.

a totally platonic rendezvous though.

lest i become possessive and jealous.

also, i love them dearly for the storm trooper swag in that one music vid.

and for whatever the hezz is happening in the background of their website.

big kiss, little hug, kiss kiss, little kiss

we came. we saw. we camped.

at long last,

the camping photos have arrived!

three items to note:

one.

on saturday i went exploring in the woods,

and it was one of those times where it starts out as a good idea,

and ends with a drove of thorny bushes robbing me of a layer of skin,

and my sunglasses becoming forever lost...

the point is,

the wilderness took something from me that day.

but i conquered...

two.

at night, as all the ladies crammed in a big tent,

our convo turned to girl chat.

my dear friend was telling a juicy story of a recent date,

and finished with the grand finale:

"and then we made out. and it was great."

...at which point our friend nate busted up laughing,

because apparently he could hear her the entire time.

blast those thin tent walls!

three.

the neon hat is the best thing that ever happened to my head.

pair it with plaid flannel, and this girl's never had a better outfit.

now on to los photographs!

how can i have s'more of nothing,

katilda

you say pants, i say elastic waistband

so i have this pair of skinny jeans.

it's actually the miley cyrus brand.

they came into my life via goodwill and 8 dolla bills.

the thing with most skinny pants is,

the legs never seem to be the same size as the hips.

i haven't finished conducting my scientific research and field studies, but i'm pretty sure about the widespread veracity of this egregious error.

...too early for big words.

the point is,

them miley cyrus jeans fit my legs like a dream.

a dream, i say!

but...

they won't button without the use of a lower-abdomen corset.

turns out i don't own such a corset.

or any kind of corset.

i guess they call them spanx these days...?

however...

i remembered hearing from a preggers friend about the genius of attaching your jeans with a hair tie when you outgrow them a bit.

let's just say...

why have the pregos been hoarding this magic secret for their own?

but, you know...

be sure to wear a long shirt that day.

or just go for this option and skip the jeans entirely:

[via]

i believe in a thing called stretchy pants,

katilda

party like a 90s girl

as long as we're on the 90s kick,

[thanks to the lovely carlton flash mob]

take a minute to check out the following link:

240 Reasons Why Being a 90s Girl Rocked Our Jellies Off

um...salute your shorts? land before time? ramona quimby? every legit boy band ever? sister sister??

not to mention...

Source: tressugar.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

your faves from the list??

don't even worry that i clicked through all 240 of them.

double double toil and trouble,

katilda

the. carlton. is. BACK.

all of my 90s dreams just came true.

yo homes to bel air,

katilda

a decisive tuesday.

i have decided...

that this is one of my favorite outfits ever:

[photo via this girl and her instagrammy ways]
[shirt via this lady for a christmas present, best-belt-ever via butter toast boutique, and blue grandma skirt via goodwill]

and that this shall be my wedding ring,

when i find me a huzby to buy me said ring:

Source: etsy.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

and that someday i am going to open a summer camp for children/teens with cancer,

because it combines two of my greatest passions in life:

1. helping sick childrens

2. summer camp

it'll be kinda like this...

[via]

...but kinda not, at the same time.

and i have also decided that the phoenix suns must thoroughly stomp on the utah jazz tonight so that they may go to the playoffs and so that i may be a happy clam and so that all my utah friends will stop sassing me on facebook.

[via]

it is good to be decisive.

go steve nash go,
katilda

p.s. 
stay tuned for pics of my woodsy weekend camping adventure!

swimming is for da birds

i just had one of those moments where you see something online and it's in the mail to your house before you even have a chance to think about if it's necessary or not because it's like someone went and turned your soul into a tangible item that you can wear.

behold,

my summer suit 2012!

Source: limericki.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

gray!

yellow!

ruffles!
stripes!

BIRDS!

GRAYYELLOWRUFFLESTRIPESBIRDS, FOR THE LOVE!

...deep breaths...

k but maybe go check out the lime ricki shop.

i dig a few of their items!
this gem is my second favorite.

come sail away with me,

katilda

bye bye city

all you need to know right now is that i'm leaving town in a few hours to bond with the wilderness.

i have a stack of treasures waiting at home to accompany me:

neon beanie

plaid flannel shirt

cut-off shorts
el guitar

s'more ingredients

plus a dozen friends with plaid flannel of their own.

and a few manly beards.

mmmmboy!

and there never was a happier girl in all the land!

Source: google.com via Katie Elizabeth on Pinterest

home home on the range,

katilda

on being a writer.

today i feel grateful for my job.

i love being a writer.
it surprises me all the time that i actually pulled it off.
the first thing i remember writing was a story about astronauts.
i think i was in 3rd grade.

then there were a lot of overly florid essays in high school,
about a thousand journal entries and rambling song lyrics,
a grueling year with a newspaper in college,
a few internships,
a couple years dabbling in the PR world,
several rejections and lucky breaks along the way,
and,
here i am.

in addition to the favorite up there in my blog header,

i also adore these quotes:

“And by the way, everything in life is writable about if you have the outgoing guts to do it, and the imagination to improvise. The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” Sylvia Plath

"You don't write because you want to say something. You write because you have something to say." F. Scott Fitzgerald

"I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions." James Michener

"A writer and nothing else: a man alone in a room with the English language, trying to get human feelings right."  John K. Hutchens

"If you do not breathe through writing, if you do not cry out in writing, or sing in writing, then don't write, because our culture has no use for it." Anais Nin

"It is impossible to discourage the real writers - they don't give a damn what you say, they're going to write." Sinclair Lewis

"A professional writer is an amateur who didn't quit." Richard Bach

dear everyone,

don't quit.

write your tail off,

read your brains out,

be ok with rejection,

and don't quit.

movie: moonrise kingdom trailer

um, you guys.

did i already post about this movie?

if i did...

i'm not even apologizing.

because the trailer needs to be watched at least twice.

it looks incredi-wonder-amaz-love-sparkles-unicorn-magical.

yeah, that can be a word now.

also, charming.

also, bill murray! bruce willis! hot diggity!

ok go watch now.

revenge of the houseplants.

[via]

you know what some of my favorite things are?

those funny things that happen that you can't think about, even years later, without having to stifle laughter and maybe leave the room to control yourself.

i just thought of one of those instances...

it was about 5 years ago,

and i was in the college library with my bestie,

and she was registering for classes.

well there was this class on"plant breeding biotechnology."

but it was abbreviated on the class schedule and said:

PLANT BREED BIOTCH

...i'm pretty sure we laughcried for about an hour.

and now i'm all wiggly inside about it again.

do you have stories like this?

i have like a dozen.

but i want to hear yours!

sounds like somebody ticked off the herbology professor,

katilda

the Titanic coincidence

i had a couple of big firsts on saturday night:

1. i saw my first 3D movie

2. i saw Titanic for the first time

i know i know, i'm like 15 years behind.

see how excited i am! that's my blonde cassie-roommate on the left.

she brought a stash of cadbury minis to the theatre.

we like her.

i wasn't sure if the 3D or the movie was going to be more emotionally distressing for me, to be honest.

the movie was awful and tragic and beautiful and made me want to listen to celine dion on repeat and lie around comatose for a few weeks.

i loved when they talked about living a simple, poor life together and riding a roller coaster at the beach.

i do wish the movie had less nudity, however.

i prefer my cinema without da nudes, thankyouverymuch.

as for the 3D,

it made me feel a little cross-eyed.

perhaps my little retinas aren't built for such things?

ready for the coolest part though?

the Titanic hit the iceberg on april 14, 1912,

and finished sinking on april 15, 1912.

...i started watching the movie at 10pm on april 14, 2012,

and finished it around 1am on april 15, 2012.

are you picking up what i'm putting down??

100 years to the day! to the very minute!

it was the best accidental thing i've ever done in my life.

let's close with some of this:

[via]

and my favorite line from the movie:

"but now you know there was a man named Jack Dawson and that he saved me...in every way that a person can  be saved."

time to crank up the celine,

katilda

skinny is the new wrong

i have something to sayyyy...

this isn't an angry blog,

just more of a "maybe think about it" blog.

here's the deal:

lately i've been noticing a trend in blogs, articles, etc.

these articles are usually about self esteem, body image, etc.

which, is totally great.

but, some of the statements made therein are not-totally-great.

statements along the lines of...

"who says i need to be a size 2??"

"all those skinny girls look anorexic anyway!"

"real women have curves!"

well...

well now, hang on there.

guess what?

some women ARE size 2.

and some women are size 6. 

and some women are size 10.

and some women are size 14.

and some of them are thin.

and some of them are curvy.

and some of them are flat-chested.

and some are tall.

and some are short.

and...

and....

none of them are wrong.

and they're all "real women," thank you.

self esteem is great.

loving your own body is great.

but saying another body type is wrong?

not great.

i don't think healthy body image has much to do with throwing another body type under the bus.

that mindset actually sounds like the opposite of healthy.

so, you know,

champion your own bodies!

but don't hate on skinny girls to make your point.

and for the record,

saying "you're so skinny! i hate you!" to another person

is not an acceptable statement or joke or greeting or whatever the hezz it's supposed to be.

let me tell you, there's truth dripping from your sarcastic remarks,

and THAT is not attractive or OK.

so, you know...

don't be a mean girl.

being thin doesn't make life automatically easy,

and it doesn't make all your problems go away,

and it doesn't mean you'll automatically love everything about your body.

and if you're under the delusion that it will,

then you have bigger fishies to fry, my friends.

and before you tell me, "but you don't know what it's like! all the actresses are skinny! all the models are skinny! the media says skinny is in!"

then let me remind you,

maybe you should take a closer look at what sources you are letting tell you what is "in."

if you're going to listen solely to the media or any other external source to tell you what is right or wrong for your body and your life and your talents and your goals, etc.

then you're always going to be disappointed in yourself.

....and that has nothing to do with being thin.

also, here i am, wearing a crown:

i actually think everyone's self esteem would improve if we all got to wear paper crowns at least once a day.
...and stripes.

sometimes i wear a size 2 and that doesn't make me the enemy,

katilda

ron, ron, ron WEASley

this is all...

bahahaha,

katilda

let's just think about this.

hello and welcome to today's round of

"who the eff possibly thought that was a good idea?"

...because sometimes ya gotta get this stuff off ya chest!

ready? i'll start...

+ automatic reply-all messaging on facebook

+ a catering business with the website "affairs.com"

+ lionel richie's "hello" video

+ harem pants

+ junior high

+ the word "moist"

...i feel so much better getting that out there.

[via]

your additions to the list?

ok the lionel richie vid is wildly entertaining but still,

katilda

music: anna cate

today's musical selection is particularly awesome because i actually know the girl in real life.

yes, we used to go to church together.

then she up and moved to seattle,

where she created this magical music video.

love that the harp is her primary instrument!

and she's got such lovely vocals.

so check out the video below, 

go visit her website,

and like her on facebook.

i'd say any of the above would be an excellent choice.

gaaaatorade

if you wanted a lot of details about my easter,

you'd get to hear some stuff about a fever and green vomit.

but i'll spare you any more fun facts...

suffice it to say,

my immune system has failed me yet again!

in good news,

mi mama y papanwa came to visit me...

not pictured:

+ banana popsicles

+ a dozen hard-boiled eggs and easter egg dye, in case i got bored whilst wallowing away on the couch

my parents know what i need, yo.

now it's time to karate chop the germs.

crane kick,

katilda

a series of uncoordinated events.

let's just take a minute and review my yesterday....

it all began when i spilled water all over my nightstand.

the biggest casualty?

a book that doesn't belong to me.

i felt so bad, i wrote a whole email to the guy i borrowed it from, explaining to him how his book had been a martyr in an unfortunate literary tragedy.

then i ate breakfast at the office,

where i spilled mango juice on the front of my shirt.

i thought, "that'll dry and not be noticeable."

four hours later, i decided to go get some jamba juice.

during the drive, i finally noticed all the crusty orange stains on my shirt.

awesome.

whilst leaving jamba juice,

an awesome car cut me off and i had to step on the brakes.

cue this incident:

yes, my car got peanut butter moo'd.

i imagine it was marvelous entertainment for all the people who saw me cracking up in the parking lot while i attempted to shovel the pile of goo out of my car.

also, some of it got on my foot.

i went back to the office and looked in the mirror,

at my orange-stained shirt and fuzzy katniss braid,

and stood there on my sticky foot and thought,

"get a hold of yourself, woman!"

also, while i was in the bathroom that afternoon,
i knocked a roll of toilet paper onto the floor and it rolled into the next stall.
there was definitely someone in the next stall.

i had to go straight from work to my nephew's 6th bday party,

and i decided to regain some dignity by stopping to grab a new shirt.

fact: i am obsessive about the material of my t-shirts.

they. must. not. be. made. of. stiff. cotton.

and you know who sells amazingly soft v-necks?

michaels.

yes, the craft store.

i swear they weave them out of clouds.

[elise if you're reading this...cloud pants!]

and what colors did they have left in my size?

oh hello neon...

good thing i heart neon!

and bonus, i think it's totally in these days, yo.

now if only tie-dye will make its reappearance, i'll be ultimately cool.

and so i was off to the party!

and this is where my day redeemed itself...

let's just say,

all my wildest dreams came true.

also, when i said "happy birthday" to my tough guy little nephew,

he looked down at the floor all shy like and said,

"oh i just wanted you to be here!"

dizzang somebody build that boy a fence when he gets older!

them females will be flocking.

he should give some pointers to the boys my own age.

also, my car smells like hot peanut butter.

friday, friday, gotta get down on friday,

katilda

photo bomb.

aaand i'm back at work,

mango juice in hand.

the condition of my immune system is still currently debatable,

and yet grown-up world must continue on!

what did i do whilst i was sick?

in addition to the entire first season of downton abbey, 

[which i enjoyed but don't know that i'd say it's addictive]

i knocked out a couple classics:

ah, such gems!

aaand here's some other pics from my smartyphone:

to answer your questions...

yes, that is actually a cat.

yes, my friend carved that fruit tray himself.

yes, i love cheap arcades and cheap arcade prizes.

back to the mango juice,

katilda

music: we build bridges

i am still in the throes of illness,

and thus i am currently still lying in mi cama.

i love mi cama.

[that's "my bed," if you don't speak the espanol.]

it is a pretty iron sleigh bed that i scored on craigslist last year.

it squeaked a little, but i fixed that right up with olive oil on the hinges.

and i can't even explain my deep and abiding love for the gray, t-shirt material sheets.

fact: gray is the most comforting of all colors.

it is true love.

but hey, here's some music...

it is as comforting as gray sheets.

good afternoon, good evening, and goodnight,

katilda

downton germs.

have i mentioned my immune system is the pits?

the germs are on the rise!

and they are currently winning!

and thus i find myself in bed today.

i got out of bed once and put my hair in a bun.

i thought about going to get a jamba,

but then i got back in bed.

now i'm lying here looking across the room at my ostrich shirt,

which is hanging on the back of my door.

you have never been so excited to hear about the thrilling details of my life, don't even try and deny it!

in other news,

my loving sister has let me borrow her netflix log-in,

seeing as how i don't own a tellyvision.

and thus i have decided to explore this gem:

...i have heard big things!

am i going to get addicted?

someone should probably warn me.

this might be like that time i graduated from college and didn't have a job for a couple months and proceeded to catch up on five seasons of Lost that i had previously avoided becoming addicted to.

it was a tumultuous couple of months for jack shephard and i.

we had something beautiful, i tell you what!

oh hey there...

[via]

soooo,

what do you do when you are sickly?

if only i could translate my dr. mario skills into battling real germs.

because trust me, this sick day would be toast.

french toast!

on to the abbey,

katilda

p.s.

at least i am not picking up a cute boy from the airport.

or having feverish selfersations.

or going for an ill-fated nightly run.

katilda closet party: penelope

aaaaand it all comes to a triumphant end!

i am glad for two reasons:

1. i get to have my blog back and be lazy about my clothing once again.

2. we are finishing with penelope, which is where most of my style inspiration stems from anyway (e.g. copious amounts of color and slight mismatchment.)

3. yes, mismatchment can be a word now. this "two reasons" list can also have 3 items in it. i'm just breaking rules left and right.

i love all these pictures! 

favorites!

myself, posing on the couch:

another katie, at sparky

yet another katie (we're taking over the world!)

the kels, at kelsey anne design

color, color, color!

my blog is a thing of happiness today.

"everyone else is penelope and i'm stupid static cling,"

katilda

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