This Very Garden

Here are some photos I snapped while in D.C. the other week! My dad and I love to go on trips to cities close to us and take our cameras along. It's just a great way for us to spend time together while doing something we both share a passion for: photography. This day we went, we didn't even have a clue, but there was a kite competition going on as well as International Pillow Fight Day! I really wanted to see the cherry blossoms but unfortunately they had already come and gone. The trip was still memorable though with strawberry shortcake from a gorgeous French cafe (PAUL) to top it off!

I found my new favorite store, people. It has all that my heart desires... and so much more! Today, my friends, I give you thredUP. They are an online consignment shop providing the very best of secondhand clothing, shoes, and accessories. The items are very like-new and even come with new thredUP tags and beautiful wrapping! So, believe me when I say opening my first box was utter delight! I also couldn't even believe that everything is guaranteed to be up to 90% off! This made my purchases seem that much more rewarding. Keep that in mind and on the tips of your fingers as you continuously scroll through some of their available designer brands: Madewell, J. Crew, Zara, Coach, and the lovely Diane Von Furstenberg.

But then, being their gracious and wonderful company self, thredUP personally asked me to give you a look into a Spring Capsule Wardrobe styled by yours truly AND bought from... h e l l o: thredUP. If you didn't guess, I was 110% ready to jump at the opportunity to shop for new clothes. My curious heart began filling up my online shopping cart soon after I got the green light. 

As you can see, I got a little crazy with freshly picked flowers and even did a whole sneak peek unboxing on my personal Snapchat for all my friends!

Oh, and there's a special discount just for YOU at the bottom of this post! Be sure to look for it!

I decided to capture the pieces I bought with the help of the extremely talented photographer and my friend, Liz Rowe (Liz Rachel Photography)! We spent the day walking around downtown and she made me feel like a proper queen... Or, maybe just a super successful woman with an arsenal of affordable fashion. So, without any further long paragraphs to read, let your wide eyes do the work and see how you can get ready for Spring with the essential pieces to build your very own capsule wardrobe!

The Trench

Ralph Lauren Navy Trench Coat
$24.40 at thredUP
Style this classy trench up with pointed heels and a lace blouse or style it down for a more casual, downtown stroll with sneakers.

The Sweater

The Necktie Blouse

The Cardigan

The Dress

But don't tell my sister that because she'll never be a suggester again and I might never get the chance to capture her beauty in such a subtly gorgeous location.

These darling fern leaves are my favorite thing! How dainty and unique do these babies look?! They are so simple to make too! All you need is some merino yarn in green hues, or just use your favorite colors! I used a thinner yarn, but if you really want, I'm sure a chunkier thickness could technically work as well. Just keep in mind they won't be as small. The hook I had for these was a size 5.00mm crochet hook.

I can't take credit for designing this very pattern; I found them online one day from Attic 24. Follow the steps she gives in her post. It's very helpful! However, I did have to tweak the process some while making them because I believe that depending on what materials you happen to be using, the leaf can be uneven on the second side when mirroring the side chains. I had to change the number of chains you create in between each individual leaf (slip stitching up the main stem or foundation chain) from what she has (which is two slip stitches) to 3 or 4 depending on whether it mirrors the other side evenly. Hopefully that makes sense! 

And if you have never crocheted before, I suggest you practice the slip stitch and chaining before you jump into this! It seems somewhat confusing at first but it comes together quite nicely if you have the hang of it. Happy crocheting! And let me know in the comments if you tried it!

 On January 23, the year of 2016, a lovely large snow storm covered Maryland and probably most of the East Coast (I'm not completely sure about the latter). This is a short bit of time when I was stuck indoors for most of the day, drinking, yes, you guessed it: coffee. I'm usually not a huge coffee drinker but this day called for hot, creamy goodness. Someone on Instagram even said the swirls of cream in my cup looked planet-like. Like, yes ....I knew that. A little bit...