My Love for Phish

I usually try to keep my insane Phish obsession on my personal mediums, but I feel like sharing.  Most of you have very little knowledge about this band from Vermont.  Some of you might know of them, know the “type” of people that like them, know the kind of music they play even if you don’t personally enjoy it.  Many of you might understand the kind of obsession I’m talking about. It might be for another band you love or it might be NASCAR.  You understand the passion.  A rare few of you really get it and get Phish.

Thousands are congregating in Bangor, Maine today to see Phish kick off their summer tour.  Thousands more will be glued to their computers and smartphones this evening to get live streams and updates from the show.  I will be one of them.  I will be vicariously living through my friends who will be dancing tonight and every tour stop along the way until I get my chance to dance later this month.

I will never try to convert you or try to make you understand why Phish is such a important part of my life.  It’s beyond words for me.  It’s a feeling I only feel when I’m in the moment at a Phish show.  That moment so clear, so joyful, that it brings tears to my eyes.

Here are a few guys who express this much better than I do if you want to understand more: Please Me Have No Regrets.

Have a fun and safe Fourth of July weekend.

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International Women’s Day Outfit

Yesterday I had the pleasure of joining the Girl Scouts of Utah as they celebrated International Women’s day with an amazing dinner program at The Complex.  I love supporting the Girls Scouts since they provide much needed mentoring and education of girls.  This is always a fun event and I seem to run into other great women active in the Salt Lake community.

I haven’t done an outfit post in a while, so I took some photos of my outfit from yesterday.  This was a very Zara heavy outfit.  The blazer, faux leather peplum top and shoes were all found from Zara online.

GSoU

This outfit works because the tweed blazer adds some polish to the slouchy boyfriend jeans.  The faux leather top works well under the blazer mostly because the break on the peplum is in line with the break in the blazer, so both flare out at the same point.  This can be tricky when layering a peplum top underneath something else.

Zara top

Then there are the shoes.  I’m loving simple pointy toed shoes this spring.  These reminded me of the Alexander Wang pair that I picked up for my birthday, but about a 10th of the price.  I was most amazed at the fact that Zara had them in a size 5, which they almost never do.  The woven metallic toe piece is a great way to add a bit a shine to the outfit without overpowering.

Zara shoes

Happy International Women’s Day and I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

parting shot

One Year Anniversary and My New Bag Obsession

I know you have been wondering where I’ve gone, but I warned you that I wouldn’t be blogging much this year.  Since this is my one year anniversary of starting my blog, I decided it was time for a new post.  I started this blog showing one of the bags from my collection and I celebrate my anniversary with a new bag that I recently purchased.

I don’t purchase many purses now that I’m surrounded by them on a daily basis.  I also almost never pay full retail price for anything.  So when I do buy a bag at full retail price, you know it is something special.  I purchased this bag last week when I was in Las Vegas for some trade shows.  Walking into Barneys is always dangerous for me, but this time I found love.

Golden Lane is a brand from Britain.  They have created quality leather goods for sometime, but only recently entered the world of women’s handbags.  And they hit it out of the ballpark with their first design.  The Duo Satchel is unique in that the bag is separated into two compartments that has its own zippered opening.  This creates a bag that organizes well and allows the user to find items easily.  The satchel has a top handle as well as a longer adjustable shoulder strap that can be used cross body as well.  This style is offered in leather, suede, patent leather, and leather with metal corners.  It also is available in two sizes.

Golden Lane Duo

I purchased the smaller sized satchel in nude gray nubuck suede.  I loved the two toned composition of the bag in neutral colors.  I also like how the black leather adds punch to the soft suede.

Small Duo

Gray side

Side view

Zipper Detail

What drew me instantly to this bag was the versatile shape and construction.  A satchel that converts to a crossbody happens to be my favorite kind of bag since I can use it as a handheld or hands free.  I was also impressed with the quality details like the zipper pulls that lay flush against the zipper when closed and then creates a loop when the zipper is open.

Right now you can only get these bags through Shopbop or Barneys, but I loved these bags so much that Purse Dreams will soon be carrying Golden Lane.  I know that when you see how well thought out these bags are, you will love them too.  Happy shopping!

New Beginnings

I’m spending some quality time with my daughters today knowing that we will be heading back to the craziness of life tomorrow. I’ve been truly blessed this year life. I think about my adventures and realize that when I’m down and complaining, I’m just being a whiny pussy.

I also have realized that although I initially started this blog to expose my business, I’ve fallen into the trap of the “quantified self”. Looking for outside approval, looking for affirmations from others to quantify my efforts. I’m not sure this is a healthy way to live. Our electronic world provides us with immediate “likes”, “favorites” and “re-tweets”. All of which makes us believe that what we have to say is important, that we are important. Attached to our screens, but not to each other.

I’m done. This year, I’m working on my real relationships. Instead of posting about my outfits, I’ll be wearing them and hoping you see me in real life, rather than just on your computer. I want to get involved with the people who are making Salt Lake City a more beautiful and diverse place to live. I want to challenge you to spend less time looking down at your phone and more time looking into each other’s eyes.

I might still post when I’m really excited about something and want to share, but I’m not going to post just to keep up the views. Just to affirm what I am doing. I’m going to keep doing what I want. No offense, but your opinion doesn’t matter.