is this real life?!

So here I am, watching Project Runway. It's a normal thursday night, right? I decided to check the latest posts from the blogs I follow, and see that one of them announced the winner to a recent giveaway I entered.

I click on the link and prepared myself for the disappointment of losing a giveaway, as I'm all too familiar with that feeling.

I had to take a double take, and sure enough, it said "CONGRATULATIONS Taylor!" THAT'S ME! AHHH!

This is the best day ever! Now I just need to figure out what I'm gonna spend that $150 on!!! ;)

I'm kind of a dress person myself, so I'm thinking I'll have to pick from one of these:

Hydrangea Jacquard Pleat Dress (my original pick)

http://www.jigsaw-london.com/hydrangea-jacquard-pleat-dress

Lace Trim Dress (in white)

http://www.jigsaw-london.com/lace-trim-dress

OR Silk Print Ruffle Trim Maxi Dress

http://www.jigsaw-london.com/silk-print-ruffle-trim-maxi-dress

Decisions, decisions. Right now I'm leaning towards the Lace Trim Dress, it would be perfect for senior pictures! :)

What would you get? Comment below!

Thanks again to Bubby & Bean for the awesome giveaway, as well as Jigsaw London! 

heart,
taylor :]

this song

I tried to find this last night when I was writing the music monday post, but better late than never?

Such a wonderful, uplifting song that's been used on a bunch of Olympic promos.

Gosh, just listening to it makes me feel happy and hopeful. 

Enjoy!

heart,

taylor :]

music monday #3

Hello everyone! I hope you're enjoying the Olympics so far! I know I am (go team USA!). 

I didn't want to skip out on posting my music picks for the week, as I did last week (although this entry will be a bit short). But I finally have a life again! Or at least I will for the next month before I have to go back to school. Bleck. At least it's senior year though, can't wait for it to be over!

This weeks selection is a bit more upbeat and fun. A few of my favorites from these particular artists :)

1. Eyes Wide Open - Gotye

I think that when people think of Gotye, they automatically think "Somebody That I Used to Know." Which is a really good song, don't get me wrong, but it's not their only song. 

All potential meanings aside (which get a little political for my taste), it's a wonderful song with a great beat.

2. Out Loud - Dispatch

This song always makes me think of my friend Jonathan. He actually introduced me to Dispatch, and although they aren't my favorite, they have a few gems of music that I quite enjoy.

Such a sweet, honest song that poses a simple question, would you call my name out loud? 

3. 7/4 (Shoreline) - Broken Social Scene

I have a deep love for Broken Social Scene :) A majority of their songs are just instrumental, and are great for setting the mood. Yesterday I had it playing in the background as a wrote a letter to Jonathan, actually. If you don't already have any Broken Social Scene albums, go and pick one up! I recommend the album that this song is on, Forgiveness Rock Record.

4. Foundations - Kate Nash

Don't you just love the sound of British accents? I know I do! 

This one by Kate Nash describes a pretty toxic relationship, purposefully irking each other for the satisfaction of pissing the other off. 

I love love love the chorus, too :)

5. The Girl - City and Colour

This is undoubtably the most beautiful song I have ever heard. I'm a huge fan of Dallas Green, and this is one of my favorites by him. 

I think if anyone ever played/sang for me this song, I would cry. Or die. Or both. If you just listen to one song on this list, it should be this one:

heart,

taylor :]

shameless self promotion

Hey I just met you,
And this is crazy,
But here's my Pinterest,
So follow me, maybe ;)


But actually.. you should totally follow my boards. Why? Because I have awesome taste in pretty much everything! :) 


Also, while we're on the topic of promotion, I need some help with blog formatting and stuff.


I would very much like to advertise for the various stores I love (ShopSosie, UrbanOG, ASOS, etc. etc.), but I can't figure out how to do that.. 


And the whole pages/tab thing confuses me. Not the actual making of it, but how to make it so every post you have labeled a certain way will end up on that page/tab. 


Perhaps I'm not explaining this well, here's an example: I write a post about how to dip/ombre dye t shirts (which will be coming soon, actually), so I want add it under my DIY tab (once I have one). How do I do that??


Please help?


heart,
taylor :]

Music Monday #2

Yesterday I was super busy, so lets just pretend that today is in fact monday ;)


1. Electric Feel - MGMT


I just love MGMT's vibe, ya know? Very summer-y, blasting through the speakers kind of thing. 


The chorus is incredibly intoxicating, how can you resist?! "Said ooh girl, shock me like an electric eel. Baby girl, turn me on with your electric feel." 


Now the video is a little trippy. No doubt MGMT is on some sort of drug when they write songs or come up with the music videos. Either way, awesome song.

2. Brackett, W9 - Bon Iver

Okay, okay. I know I posted a song by Bon Iver the last Music Monday, but I just can't help myself. They just give me goose bumps! Especially this song. Oh my goodness. This comes from the Dark Was the Night album, a wonderful cause in raising awareness for HIV/AIDS. There are some pretty fantastic collaborations and perhaps some of the greatest alternative/indie artist represented on there. I encourage you to take a listen.

3. Comptine D'un Autre Été: L’après Midi - Yann Tiersen A breathtakingly beautiful song. Sometimes music is more beautiful without lyrics, and I believe that this is the case with this song by Yann Tiersen. I really need to pick up on my french again, but I could translate most of the title: Rhyme of Another Summer - Afternoon. Yann does the majority of the music from the soundtrack of which this song is found, Amélie. I have yet to see the film, but I'm told that it's equally has beautiful as the song.  I chose this video (which my friend used to introduce me to this song) from youtube because I think the animation adds a wonderful element to the song. I think that the interpretation is quite lovely. Just watch:

4. Let's Do It (Let's Fall In Love) - Conal Fowkes I recently watched Midnight in Paris again, and I think every time I do, I fall more in love with Paris. Such a magnificent film. Oh Woody Allen, you just get me.  Anyways, this song always stood out to me when watching the movie. I like the idea that falling in love is a choice, or perhaps this is the response from a lover that is already head over heals. And I adore the utter simplicity of this tune :)  "Birds to it, bees do it, even educated fleas do it, let's fall in love." <3

5. Lua - Conor Oberst & Gillian Welch  Ohmygoodess. Conor Oberst of Bright Eyes and Gillian Welch - best collaboration ever? I think yes. Another pick from the Dark Was the Night album, forgive me, but I couldn't resist.  I love love love Conor Oberst. He's simply fantastic. That ever-so recognizable voice as the lead singer from Bright Eyes. His voice just makes me happy :)

Those are my picks for the week, hope you liked them! heart, taylor :]

PostSecret sundays

Hi there, blogger world.

I've been gone for the past week at church camp (which was the best ever, by the way. Post about it to come soon).

I love sundays. 

One of the many reasons I do is because I get to read a new batch of secrets from PostSecret. (And if you don't already know about PostSecret, read about how it came to be here.) Actually, most of the time I rush to my computer on saturday night and read them, as I live on the west coast so for me they are posted at 9 pm.

I especially like the postcards from this week, so I thought I'd share a few..

I love this secret because it reminds me of my little brother, Jacob. Jacob is eight years old and he's adopted. I honestly can't imagine my life without him. Yeah, we fight a lot, but I love him nonetheless. It doesn't matter that he isn't biologically my mother's, he was just meant to be apart of our family <3

The backside of this postcard reads, "The only time I've EVER cried in THERAPY was when I was MOVING away from my THERAPIST. I could not express my thanks." 

I see a psychologist, and getting professional help is nothing to be ashamed of. My psychologist is wonderful, and I really connect with her. I feel as though I can tell her things I can't tell even my closest friends, and I might cry too if I found out I couldn't see her anymore. I can definitely relate to this secret.

I have certain artists and songs that don't remind me of someone who has died, but rather my ex-boyfriend. Sometimes it makes it very difficult to listen to my favorite music without bringing up both pleasant and unpleasant memories. 

This one kind of saddens me. I know what it's like to be on both sides of this secret. I think it's easier for us as humans to tell others that they are beautiful the way they are than to accept it ourselves. What's easy is focusing on the parts of ourselves we hate, be it physically, mentally, etc. Coming to terms and loving the way we are is probably one of the hardest endeavors one can face.

Ending on a lighter note:

This just makes me happy :) That's all.

heart, 

taylor :]

a poem...

I'm currently working on online school right now, doing credit recovery for junior english (it's a long story). One of the recent assignments was to write a poem about an experience or memory you have. 


The assignment guidelines were pretty broad at first, but then they were like "blah blah blah, write it this way, write it that way." So I'm thinking, "Girl, please. I'll write it however the heck I want to."


Writing comes pretty easily for me. And although I haven't written a poem for quite some time, the words came pretty naturally to me. 


I wrote about a specific experience in my life, one that was about a broader theme and major stage/period in my life. I think you can get a pretty good idea of what it was that I was going through, but it's not like, in-your-face obvious. Poetry shouldn't be like that anyways. 


So before I turn in a final draft, I would very much appreciate some feedback/suggestions/critiques... if anyone out there is reading this...


 In a Hospital Bed


It wasn't until then that I fully understood
the gravity of it all;
Sitting in a hospital bed,
inspecting the newly printed wristband.


Hours before my life 
could have been considered normal.
But that was before,
that was before.


Were things really that bad?
How did I end up here?
Monitored at all times, I wasn't a carefree teenager anymore,
I was their patient.


Worried eyes examined
my hollow face that morning;
Rigid, yet frail bones
poked out from my ghostly skin.


But that was before,
that was before.


I remember the dinner of chicken and tortillas
I had ingested that night in my room;
While the nurse made subtle glances
to make sure I was eating.


It took everything out of me 
to keep from breaking down
and crying.


Lost in my thoughts, my eyes met the gaze
of a little old lady standing outside my doorway,
"I just wanted to tell you that you're very pretty."


I smiled and thanked her as she went on her way.
Why couldn't I see what she saw
when I stood in front of the mirror,
staring at the face and body I disgusted.


But that was before,
That was before.


Thoughts, comments? Please post below!


heart,
taylor :]