The Year Past

When I started to think about how to celebrate my one year anniversary I decided that I wanted to recreate my first outfit post, Girls as friends. Looking back on the pictures, it occurred to me that my style hasn't changed that much. Scarf, solid neutral top, cuffed pants, short boots. These are all things I've returned to over and over in the past year. I think the actual achievement for me has been that my non photographed, everyday outfits have improved from what they were a year ago. That isn't to say that I don't represent what I actually wear on the blog, because I do. What I mean is that I can now get dressed without all the stressful planning I had to do before and be happy about what I put together. Whether it's a weekend where I'm taking pictures for the blog, or not.

I didn't set out to change my style when I started this blog, I just wanted to feel like I could put together an outfit that would successfully communicate a little bit of myself to the people around me. I wanted to better represent myself when I went out in public. Not just that I was wearing jeans because they were comfortable, but that I was wearing jeans because that was the vibe I wanted to project that particular day. The majority of the time I get dressed with the intention of doing that now, I think I'm able to achieve it.

I started this blog at a time when I felt really lonely, despite the fact that I was in a relationship and living in one of the largest cities in the world. I was struggling with my friendships, my life choices, and I needed something I could look forward to at the end of the day. Now a year later, I'm happily busy with my life. I have plans with friends (some old and reinvigorated, some new budding friendships), I'm doing things that I want to do, and I'm slowly figuring out what things work for my life and what things don't. I'm making small steps to see all the necessary changes through. 

My goals when I started were to get a better sense of my style, reach outside my social circle to make brand new connections and friends, and get out of my rut by having a creative hobby that was fun and something I enjoyed doing. I have far exceeded all of my expectations. I've said it before, but I have met an abundance of amazing women through this blog. I don't know how well I would have made it through some of the harder moments that have happened to me this past year without them. More than being there for all the big crashing down moments, I have found real everyday friends. People I can turn to for the good and bad, the sad and the hilarious. I am so thankful to this blog for giving me a way to meet people who I would have missed dearly had I not given them the opportunity to become such a huge part of my life.

Sucre Sunglasses, JCrew Shirt, JCrew Pants
Vintage Scarf from my Mom, Vintage Boots from Capricious Traveler

Morgan and Lua has become more than just a style blog for me. It has become a keepsake for some of the most mundane and dramatic moments of my life. I'm glad that I can look back on all the trips I've taken and the things I've done in this past year. More than that, I'm grateful I have it so that I can continue to keep track of all the amazing experiences that have yet to come my way.
The only thing I changed about this outfit is that I cuffed my pants an extra roll. I had to wait a whole year to realize that's all this outfit needed. Even though it might not be that easy to see at first glance, this year has certainly changed me.

  
  
  

Thank you so much for being around this past year. Who knows what I'll be up to this time next year!
Don't forget to check out the One Year Anniversary Giveaway!!

One Year

One year ago today I published my very first post. I can't believe it's been an entire year. So much has happened. I've shared, traveled, and posed my way through all of it. This blog has had a bigger impact on my life in this past year than I ever thought possible. One of the main reasons is because of all the wonderful people I've met since I started Morgan and Lua.

In order to celebrate and show some appreciation to everyone who I have come to know in the last year, I decided to host a giveaway. I contacted two of my favorite, not to mention very talented lady friends, Merl of Clyde's Rebirth and Lisa of Tree & Kimball. They did not disappoint.

Merl created a Morgan inspired pendant necklace in the likeness of one of my favorite pieces from her shop. There's a single fish nestled among an assortment of real sea shells and gold toned vintage chains. I wear my fish pendant nearly every chance I get. It adds a unique touch to the simplest outfits and makes me feel extra special every time I wear it.

A few months ago Lisa created this vintage inspired lace necklace and named it after me. The olive toned lace and blush colored pearls fit in seamlessly with my personal style, which is one of the reasons this necklace has become a staple in my wardrobe. I get so many compliments when I wear it because it's such a striking and original piece. 

    

To enter: 

Show me your best Morgan and Lua -esque post. I've definitely developed some repetitive styles in the last year, so for this giveaway I decided it would be fun to ask you to try and incorporate some of those in a post of your own. 

You could do a post including things like the following: a chambray shirt, lace up booties, layers, pendant necklaces, cuffed pants, neutral colors, or things like posing with your pet, talking a lot about tea, playing up your bangs, copying some of the locations I've been in etc. etc. It's completely up to your interpretation. I want it to be fun, so the criteria isn't strict at all. Whatever you do, if you can relate it back to this blog it will work! 

Post the look on your blog along with a link to this giveaway. Then leave a link to your interpretation post in the comment section of this post and you'll be entered! (Feel free to leave other comments as well. I'll go through and renumber all the entries once the giveaway comes to a close.)

One winner will be hand picked by me and the other winner will be drawn randomly. In order to further boost the incentive the hand picked winner will get first choice to pick which one of these beautiful necklaces they want.

I'll showcase all the looks on the blog and announce the winners on April 22nd! You have almost four full weeks to plan, photograph, and post to your blog. 

I'm hoping this giveaway will be a great way to meet new blogging friends, get some lurkers to come out of hiding, and give my current blogging buddies a free pass to poke a little fun at me (keep it friendly please!). This is meant to be light hearted, and I just want everyone to have fun while trying to win some free and AMAZING jewelry made by some of the most gifted ladies I know. 

I couldn't think of a more perfect way to use these beautiful pieces than to give them away to some of the people who have been beyond incredible and so supportive of me in this past year. Thank you times a million and good luck!

 

Clyde's Rebirth   -   Tree & Kimball

Enter away. Tweet, re-tweet, tell a friend, call a neighbor, blog about it to your heart's content. Big thanks to Merl for creating the collage for me! I don't know what I'd do without all the talented, inspiring, and creative friends I've been lucky enough to meet through this community in the past year. Heart you girls.

Travel Near and Far

Happy Saturday! I'm GUEST POSTING today for Veronika of Tick Tock Vintage while she is traveling in Hong Kong. Thank you so much to Veronika for letting guest post and talk about some of the places I love to travel to. Head over to see more pictures from my travels, and hear me gush about some of my favorite places. 

I've met Veronika a few times between our two cities but only have one picture of us together from when I was visiting in Philly for New Years!

I hope everyone is enjoying the weekend so far! This is what my morning looked like, Morning Scene.

Scenes from a Weekend : XV

I spent this weekend away from the city at my parents house. I stopped on the drive out to grab a cup of joe and my favorite pecan scone. As soon as I got to the house I set up my computer because I had a very important Skype date with little baby Iris! I was so lucky to be able to visit Sarah and Trevor in Denver this fall. It was amazing to watch Sarah, a new mom by just three weeks then, and see how natural she was her daughter. I couldn't be happier for them and Iris is such a sweetheart! 

I met up with some friends later that night and caught up on everyones travels. It was great to hear their most recent stories and tell a few of my own. I went to dinner at a friends house, followed by drinks at another friends house. I love meeting new people, but there's something to be said for the amount of comfort you feel when you're around people who've known you for so long.

Saturday morning I woke up to fresh scones and coffee that my (stick with me) brother's fiance's brother and girlfriend picked up at the bakery. It was quite the pleasant surprise. We chatted for a bit, then I headed to the park with Lua. The wind was whipping by the water so I didn't stay as long as I would have liked but it was worth the trip. I made a quick stop at the beach before heading home to unwind for the afternoon and bake a quick batch of granola. 

Despite the cold, the weather was absolutely beautiful this weekend. The sunny days made for three nights of incredible sunsets. It's always a race against sunset hour when I'm out there. It will be nice once the days are even longer. A completely relaxing and refreshing weekend spent at some of favorite places doing some of my favorite things. 

How is everyone else's Spring getting started? Off to the right foot I hope. 

Ladies, Please

In an attempt to jump start some kind of creative thought I turned to Yen's blog and came across THIS POST about her time in Texas. Not only did it further my jealousy of all the ladies who went to the TSCC Conference, but it also made me think about the complexities of the girl - girl relationship. That, coupled with the ups and downs I've experienced among my own friendships in the past several months, well it all just seems so complicated.

I've been able to very openly share my thoughts, feelings, quirks, downfalls, successes etc. with an almost entirely female audience for the better part of a year. And everyone has been so lovely, both online, and the ladies I've been lucky enough to hug in person. But in my everyday life experiences the way women treat other women still isn't all it's cracked up to be. We can be downright hurtful to one another.

One of the hardest things I've had to learn is that you can't expect other people to treat you the way you would treat them. It just doesn't happen. Everyone thinks differently and handles situations with their own set of baggage that is entirely different than your own. And while I'm not at the point where those discrepancies in treatment aren't hurtful, I'm trying to be at the place where I take a moment to vent (sorry Twitter, but thanks Twitter friends) and breath before I react directly. I've always been the type of person who needs a few hours, or days, to figure out exactly how I feel and why before I can communicate that to the other person. I'm not sure if this makes having girl friends more difficult or less difficult but it's just how I've always been.

Sunglasses from Sucre, Vest & Pants from Madewell, found socks

Old Riding Boots, Vintage Shirt from Tree & Kimball Market, Necklace from Clyde's Rebirth

Basically the female - female relationship is complex. I'm glad I've become (if I may be so bold) a part of such a supportive group of women through this community. I've met so many amazing ladies who have helped me more than they, you, could imagine through some of the roughest parts of this past year. Which is why I'm stuck wondering if some of these girl relationships can be so honest, fulfilling, sympathetic, rewarding, then why are others so convoluted, touchy, precarious, confusing? 

Something about this outfit felt so Jen Loves Kev meets My Edit to me. I couldn't exactly put my finger on what it was though. Maybe it was something from past posts of theirs that's bubbling up in my subconscious. Whatever it was, I will say that it made me feel especially great wearing it.
I posted an extra photo on my Tumblr because I am actually happy these days and just thought I'd show you that I really do know how to smile!

For Japan

Utterly Engaged and Ever Ours have come together and created a fundraising page called, For Japan With Love. Its purpose is to help those who have been affected by the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The funds will provide lifesaving supplies and emergency shelter at a time when the people there need it most. In addition they have asked that we honor a blogger day of silence. Hopefully we will be able to raise more awareness about the help needed, and increase the sense of urgency for others to reach out. For that reason I will not be posting on Friday, March 18th.

In such an overwhelming disaster we often feel like our hands our tied. That there is no way the small things we are able to do will be able to make a difference. But, if we each reach out in the small ways we can, our efforts will not go unnoticed. Please consider giving to those whose lives have been so profoundly affected by these devastating events.

Images from National Geographic - Japan Tsunami: 20 Unforgettable Images

 

You can donate to Shelterbox through For Japan With Love. 

Or you can help relief efforts by donating to the Red Cross.