hellooo july!
well, i totally skipped mayβ¦ and juneβ¦ on JDCβ¦ i was reminded by a few people about how my last post was in april, whoops.. so here we go! getting back in the swing of things and talking about one of my favorite places to buy maxi dresses for #shortgirlproblems. go to the tailor? ainβt nobody got time for that. enter @bananarepublic! they are my go-to for maxi dresses because they offer a great selection of petite maxi dresses! i picked this one due to the faux wrap and the ruffles (of course, you know ya girl is ruffle obsessed). it also a features a flattering high-low hem which i am totally a fan of. kinda gives some leg action, more movement in the dress, and by golly how about some ventilation in this TX heat? oh nelly. itβs gonna be a long hot summer and ya girl is not looking forward to it!! #grumypants
side happenings: REAL TALK after the jump but letβs seeβ¦ here is what most people would be interested in β Vegas was a whirlwind. letβs just leave it at that. ;) i met with the team at @phlur and was amazed by the company and the people. i canβt wait to show you what weβve collaborated on! iβve sampled all their fragrances and my fave is Ameline, it is DIVINE! PS β theyβre ATX-based so they are automatically get extra points on brand-coolness. @thecandlebar.co opened at the @domainnorthside and they invited me in to experience their candle pouring class. yβall, i was a kid in a candy store. haha, i canβt wait to gift this experience to my gals! @kendrascott sent me way too many goodies from their summer 2019 collection but these are my fave. saving the best for last β but @tatcha sent me the biggest PR package iβve received in a long time. it reminded me of what a true partnership should feel like and how lucky i am go get to work with a company that realizes my value. #grateful
currently on my playlist: ME! by Taylor Swift ft. Brandon Urie
LIFE UPDATE: iβve been absent for so many reasons. but mainly because i was beginning to feel that the time i was pouring into IG trying to grow my business was not going anywhere. instead of getting ahead i was actually falling more and more behind. donβt get me wrong, i love supporting all my boss babesβ¦ but something about spending hours and hours everyday scrolling, liking, commenting was adding up to almost two hours a day based on my IG insights. thatβs about 14 hours a weekβ¦ UMβ¦ that was eye opening. DO YOU KNOW WHAT I CAN DO WITH 14 HOURS?!! oh, let me tell you: watch re-runs of my favorite old show (The Office) & laughed hysterically; watch a ton of movies; i saw Always be my Maybe haha, soooo cheesy; watch Ellen Degeneres & Ali Wongβs stand up comedies (thanks bro for the Netflix haha); read a book (The Untethered Soul: the journey beyond yourself by Michael A. Singer) a must read; re-arrange my office; crossed some things off the never-ending-home-to-do-list aka: daddy-can-you-help-me list haha jk; cleaned & conditioned my hardwood floors (ps my dad literally told me, βsometimes you just gotta get on your knees and put some elbow grease into it haha, gotta love the man); went to Vegas; worked a ton; quality time with friends & fam; oh, and how can i forgetβ¦ SLEEP (which was really the most important thing i needed). it was all glorious but it feels good to write this post and be back & find my own rhythm again. plus, i have a backlog of old photos at this point (yikes) and i have a few brands i canβt wait to work with again.
lastly, my grandpa has been ill for quite some time now and was recently hospitalized for an infection. heβs suffers from dementia and it always breaks my heart to see him. can you imagine a life where you donβt even remember who you are or who anyone else is? i think heβs taking a turn for the worse and itβs so sad to see. speaking of health issues (less severe), i also went through some major abdominal pain. think, sharp, stabbing-like pain (luckily i havenβt actually been stabbed before but you get me). yea, it sucks. but could be worse. trust me, a CT scan isnβt really high on my to-do list but thatβs life right?! on the flip side, perhaps my body isnβt digesting #punintended stress well as it used to so itβs coming out in the form of knife stabbing-like pain?! IDK. oh well, still trying to figure out the cause but one thing is for certain β i gotta take it easy.
so hereβs to all the ebbs & flows and finding more balance in this crazy life.
andβ¦ if youβve read this far you should give yourself a pat on the back or treat yourself to a scoop of ice cream for being a caring person to read the endless ramblings of my life. :D
dress | Banana Republic floral ruffle wrap maxi dress in navy blue (also available in soft blue & of course the petite is sold out at this point) β love this pleated red one & colorblocked
bag | J.Crew Factory rattan clutch in natural pale gold (really old) β similar at J.Crew
shoes | Sam Edelman gigi sandal in saddle leather β similar from Target for $16
earrings | Kendra Scott sky earrings in white pearl (old) β larger version // similar
sunglasses | Celine marta sunglasses in havana (my fave sunnies!) β newer design // love these for $99
necklace | Anthropologie monogram pendant necklace
rings | Gorjana amara ring set // Amanda Deer c/o CZ solitaire ring // Amanda Deer c/o CZ accents midi ring
watch | Michael Kors darci watch in gold
thanks for stopping by!,
JD
photo credit: Steven Gunter