Hogwarts

I love Harry Potter. So much so, I daydreamed about going to Hogwarts when I was younger. And still, of course. This post is dedicated to Hogwarts and the houses. Here is what I would wear in each house, and what I love about each house!

Gryffindor
"You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart"

gryffindor by laurelcrowned featuring Anthropologie

Items in this set:
In-A-Moment Dress - Anthropologie.com, $118
gryffindor slouchy cardigan (:
Rupert Sanderson | Large Size Designer Shoes, 295 EUR
Zoe & Morgan Lion Heart Sterling Silver 24ct Plated Mix Heart Pendant..., $323
The Modern Wayfarers, $12

I love the Gryffindors! I could never be a Gryffindor because I'm not nearly brave enough. I relate to Neville, and I understand that one of the bravest things one can do is stand up to your friends.

Slytherin
"Or perhaps in Slytherin,
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means,
To achieve their ends."

Slytherins scare me! I'm not cunning by any means, and I have far too much of a guilt complex to be a Slytherin. I can barely tell people I don't want to go out, much less use them to my own means. However, Slytherins are fierce and amazing kids. I love the Slytherins in the book- Draco Malfoy, Pansy Parkinson... Fierce!

slytherin by laurelcrowned featuring Ela Stone rings

Items in this set:
Soda Fountain Dress in Cola, $45
slytherin hoodie cardigan (:
PRADA PATENT COURT SHOE, 250 GBP
Ela Stone | Ela Stone Entwined Snake Ring at ASOS, $304
1790s Mourning Portrait Miniature Pendant : Erie Basin Antiques, $675

Ravenclaw
"Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind."

Ravenclaws are amazing! I love reading and studying, so I could see myself in Ravenclaw. One of my favorite characters in the books is Luna Lovegood, a fabulous and magnificent Ravenclaw.

ravenclaw by laurelcrowned featuring Paul Smith

Items in this set:

376J-772 Indigo Cardigan, 110 GBP

Surface To Air Cord Mini Skirt, 80 GBP

Chloe Leather ballerina flats, $395

Knitted Rib Leggings, $20

When Doves Cry Ring, $7.99

And finally, Hufflepuff.
"You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true,
And unafraid of toil"

I definitely think I'd be in Hufflepuff! I'm far too shy and nervous to be in any other house. I love the colors and the name of the house, and I think I'm a bit of a nicegirl that would fit in. There is, of course, Cedric Diggory to remember, and when making this post I learned that Nymphadora Tonks was also a Hufflepuff! The more you know.

hufflepuff by laurelcrowned featuring French Connection

Items in this set:
Buffy Cardigan, 65 GBP
VERS BLANCS Ribbon Pin-tuck Skirt (Mustard) - 77.65USD(Approx.) :..., $78
Hand Made Ribbon Loafers, $137
Harry Potter - Hufflepuff Ring - Noble Collection - Elbenwald.de, 119 EUR
Black 60 denier opaque tights, 4 GBP

Hufflepuff forever!

Which house would you be in? Why?

All images from weheartit.com, except for me! and note about the polyvores: I could never ever ever afford any of the items in the images. I simply included them in case one of you were curious about what was pictured!

tattuesday!

Inspired by Dorm Life's mention of a "Temporary Tattuesday", I want to talk about some of my favorite tattoos. I don't have any currently, but I truly admire and love looking at well done tattoos.

Today's theme is text tattoos. I love, love text tattoos.
NOTE: I got these images from Flickr, Tumblr, and other sites. All are credited, but if one of these are yours and would like me to credit or take down the image, let me know and I'll do so immediately!

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I love this one. This is my very favorite text tattoo. The story goes as follows:

"Beth Loster, 24, a San Francisco writer and waitress was a student at UC Berkeley when she met a young man who said, "Hey, we have tattoos in the same font."
The text of her tattoo - "clad in the panoply of love" - came from "Science & Health" by Mary Baker Eddy. His tattoo, also in a "typewriter" typeface, was in Latin. (She can't recall the translation.)
The text of Loster's next tattoo was written by that young man, who had become her boyfriend. Before leaving for South America, where he was going to study, he left a note on her refrigerator that began, "this is on account of my loving you forever." That phrase - in the form of a tattoo - offered her comfort when he was killed in a car accident in Brazil."

Beautiful. I love tattoos that mean something, and this one just takes my breath away!

I also love text tattoos on the wrist. Even though white ink is something controversial, I do love how it looks.

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adjiajdia I love Harry Potter so much, so of course I love this one! If you can't read it, it says "lumos", which is the spell to bring light.

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Neck tattoos are usually not my thing, but model Freja Beha's tattoo on her neck is gorgeous!

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Then there is Shelley Jackson's insane tattoo project SKIN. It is "a 2095-word story published exclusively in tattoos, one word at a time, on the skin of volunteers." Amazing! There are only some pictures from the site of people's tattoos so far, but this was my favorite.

Do you have any favorite text tattoos?

christmas presents on a budget!

So it's a rough time for everyone- especially us college kids. So Christmastime is always stressful- you want to buy the perfect presents for the perfect people. Here are some suggestions for a money little Christmas.

*Make your presents. Knit, crochet, draw- whatever! People will appreciate this.
*Buy local/small business. Support your local economy. It'll help you in the long run.
*Buy books! Books are cheaper than video games or movies, and they last longer.
*Make your own wrapping paper. I did this in Tucson when I was too poor to buy my own wrapping paper and couldn't borrow my parents.

What you'll need:
*Computer paper. As a college kid, I have an abundance.
*A pen. Pencils work well too, but the lead will smudge onto your fingers and your recipients.
*Scotch tape. I need a LOT of this because I'm terrible at wrapping presents!
*Now you draw. I like to write lists on them. For my roommates, I wrote the 10 reasons why I loved them. For the person for this present, I wrote the ten reasons she will be a great mother, as well as a timeline of our friendship. Her present was a somewhat larger book, so I used three sheets of computer paper. Here are the ones I did for my roommates:
*Then you wrap! It is more difficult than normal wrapping paper because it's firmer, but with enough tape, anything is possible.


Naturally, they look a little... rougher than a "real" wrapped gift, but I like this a lot. I like that gives them something else besides a present + trash!

What do you do to save during this season?

12 wonderful things about Christmas

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My darling friend Rachel visited me tonight and gave me a beautiful charm bracelet with the 12 days of Christmas on it- you know, on the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... and that got me thinking. What are my 12 favorite things about Christmas?

12. the lights

I personally love the Christmas lights. They're beautiful and make the night seem so magical. I recently spent time with a friend and her young nephew, and during the day, he sadly pointed to the unlit string lights and told me, "the pretties are sleeping." Isn't that sweet?

11. the food
Christmas cookies! The best. There's a reason Santa eats them. And for my family, we make dinner every year for the whole family. The last couple years, we did a Mexican Christmas as my mother's side is Mexican. We eat enchiladas and salsa and it is just amazing. Mmm.

10. the gifts
Of course! Getting presents from loved ones is always a treat, no matter what

9. the break
It's not just a break from school. It often seems like a break from life. A little slice of Christmastime, where the world becomes different for a few days.

8. the weather
In Arizona, we don't get very much snow. None at all, where my parents live. But it is still chilly, still so much colder than usual. There is nothing better than waking up on a cold morning and being warm and toasty in your bed!

7. giving the perfect gift
Now, getting the presents are awesome. But there's something about giving the right person the right gift that makes Christmas so special.

6. the tree
Okay, so decorating the tree can sometimes be a pain. I usually love it- my family does it together and we drink egg nog and play Christmas music. And taking down the tree is the worst chore of the year. But late at night, when I'm up to get a glass of water, and the tree is shining in the living room... Magic.

5. the TV specials and movies
There were some good ones this year! Modern Family and the Office were both hysterical with theirs. And then there's the old staples- Charlie Brown and his sweet tree. Even if you hate Christmas, there's always movies like Silent Night, Deadly Night where there is a serial killer dressed up as Santa, or Bad Santa with Billy Bob Thorton. There's something for everyone!

4. the toys
Oh man. It is toy season. Not just for cool new Barbies or beautiful Transformers, but for grown ups too. The movies come out in full force, the music is released. It's playtime.

3. christmas eve
there's always something, when it's dark on Christmas Eve. It's special somehow. I always read some of Little Women under a blanket.

2. santa
yes, virginia.

1. familytime
My favorite morning of the year, sitting around and opening presents with my favorite people in the world.