Instagrammin' it up in here

You may or may not follow me on Instagram (@megancooper13 !) and if not I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures from the last few weeks with you!  I also feel I must note that I have reached the 600 pictures mark... I guess you could say I'm obsessed.

It has been dumping buckets here in (northern) California as we are in the midst of the second of three storms to hit this week.  I'm not sure how you can have three separate storms over the course of four days (all one big storm to me!) but that's apparently what's happening.  I'll leave the weather shenanigans to the professionals.  Tonight I'll be submitting my applications to Cal Poly SLO and UCSC for next fall.... Eeeek!  I'm so nervous!  Waiting the next few months to find out if I'm accepted is going to be killer.  Have you applied to any schools for next year?

I'll be back tomorrow (ohmygosh it will be December!!) with an outfit post.  Enjoy your Friday night!   xx

currently listening to..// Your Body is a Wonderland - John Mayer

The time they went like hotcakes

Wow, it has been a really long time since I've written a knitting post.  Maybe I should change my header to "a life and style blog" instead..!  Kidding.  Mostly.

I listed all of these goodies this past weekend and all but two of them have already left my shop; wrapped, stamped, sealed with a kiss, gone.  On the one hand, I'm thrilled that people are loving my designs (!!), but on the other, now I have to get back to the grind and put more items back in the shop!  Oh, how I wish there were more hours in a day...  At least I can take comfort that it's the end of my week.  On the agenda tonight is a few CSI episodes and the beginning of the next huge batch of custom orders.  The work never ends!  ;)

Moral of the story: never get between a woman and her knitwear.   xx

currently listening to..// Jar of Hearts - Christina Perri

Lace & Grapes

sweater | forever 21   blouse | modcloth    jeans | the gap   boots | madden girl

Just gonna put this out there:  I'm considering driving up to our house in Sonoma for photoshoots more often.  After these outfit pictures, I did an Etsy product shoot (hint: the first five listings!) and the idea to do it on this bluff was genius.  It makes me look  rich and famous.  Without actually being rich and famous.  I mean who doesn't have wine country in the background of all their pictures nowadays?!  ;)

I saw this trend (sweater worn over a collared blouse) for the first time a few weeks ago at Forever 21 and I was instantly won over.  It had never occurred to me to wear two pieces together like that, and since the mannequin wore it so effortlessly, I thought to myself, "Hey why not?!"  And wouldn't you know it, I happened to have a sweater and collared blouse in my closet that just so happened to go perfectly together.  Love when that happens.   xx

currently listening to..//  Undercover - No Doubt

Turkey day v.// 2

As promised, my v.// 2 Thanksgiving post!  This one was much bigger and crazier than the first - I have one sibling and five other cousins, on top of their families/significant others/parents and our grandmother.  All of us have (essentially) grown up together, since we all lived/live in two adjacent counties, and that makes holidays so much more fun than they otherwise would be.  I only see my dad's family a few times a year, so it's a little more stiff than my mom's.

Since I didn't talk about what I was thankful for in my first thanksgiving post, I guess I'll do that now.  I have to say that the single biggest thing I'm thankful for is my (inner) strength.  I haven't talked about this here on the blog (although I've wanted to) because I couldn't figure out a way to broach it to all of you, but... here goes:  I've struggled with suicide since 2009, when I was hospitalized for my safety.  

This past year I've struggled so much with suicidal thoughts (because of this), so the strength I've somehow summoned up not to escape the world is what I'm most thankful for.  After I "made it out of the woods" in 2009, I promised myself I would never try to escape again; against all odds, I have kept that promise, because I've never broken a promise to anyone, myself included.  That's (most of) the story behind the tattoo I'm getting in 15 days (eeek!), which I'll reveal soon after.  :)

Now that that surprise (I know you are!) is over, I want to assure you that I've been doing much better in the last month than I have in a long time; you'll still be seeing regular posts from me!  ;)  Speaking of which, I'll be back tomorrow for an outfit post about my first venture into a new (to me) fashion trend.   Enjoy your evening, loves!   xx

^ that's Orion you see through the trees.  :)

currently listening to..// Don't You Remember - Adele

Turkey day. Without the turkey.

dress & purse | the gap   belt | forever 21   jacket | h&m   heels | charlotte russe

It's that time of year again!  It's crazy how time flies...  Today I celebrated Thanksgiving with my dad's family; Saturday will be with my mom's (keep an eye out for turkey day v.//2!).  I call this turkey day without the turkey because I'm vegetarian.  I guess ya'll never would've had any way to know that, haha.  It's been four years exactly; I became vegetarian at Thanksgiving in 2008 - feels like yesterday!

These outfit pictures were super quick, and I'm sorry they're a little blurry - my cousin Allison (who took them) and I were laughing the whole time!  We're a silly bunch, what can I say.  Along those lines... Ignore her brother, Jeff, in the panoramic below.  He's special.  ;)  And can I just say, I loove these heels.  I almost never wear them because 1) I stand at 5'10" and they're like four inches tall and 2) because they're only appropriate for a select few outfits/occasions.  3) See #1.  So on the rare occasion when I do pull them out, you know I mean serious business!  ;)

How was your Thanksgiving?  Did you travel to visit family?  What are you thankful for this year? xx

currently listening to..// Wrapped in Your Arms - Fireflight

Even Hope

top, shorts, & sweater | forever 21    boots | madden girl    purse | ebay    glasses | giorgio armani

Goodness, how stressful life has been lately.  Working 25 hours a week, being enrolled in 16 units, and spending what little time is left over on consecutive custom Etsy orders has left me no time for my blog, and I'm sorry for that.  There's nothing I'd like better than to blog all day!  Stupid statistics.  And philosophy.  And everything else that gets in the way of that.  Let's just say, I'm ready to be finished with school.  Done.  Finito.

I just got these boots this past weekend, and I am not sure how, but I walked out of the store with them less than ten minutes after walking in, without knowing what I was looking for.  I had no idea a girl could shop for a pair of shoes so fast.  As they say, the impossible is often the untried!  ;)

I've also been trying to dye my hair a dark chocolate brown for winter, but it seems no matter what I do, or how many times I do it, my natural red hair won't be silenced!  Speaking of hair, it seems crazy to me how long mine's gotten in the last twelve months or so; the other day I stumbled across a picture of my mom, sister, and me taken during the holiday season last year, and in the picture my hair was just brushing my shoulders.  I sure don't miss that.  Anyway enjoy your Tuesday evening!   xx

currently listening to..// XO - Fall Out Boy

Ohmygod I met Kelly Clarkson

Let me start this off by saying: it pays to be spontaneous.

Last Friday night (the 2nd), my mom and I were shopping at a local shopping center, and there were staff around passing out brochures for the schedule of events of the weekend for the opening of the 29th Microsoft retail store.  If that made any sense.  I took the brochure without really thinking about it, and went on my way.  A little while later, around 8 pm, my mom and I were having dinner at an upscale pizzeria, and we were talking about the events.  It turns out, Kelly Clarkson was performing for free the next afternoon (Saturday the 3rd), and I said how crazy it was that she would be practically in our backyard.

Hypothetically, I said how awesome it would be to go to her concert, since I've practically worshipped her for ten years.  Then we noticed that the first 100 people to camp out overnight would also receive a free meet-and-greet pass.  After another while of hypothetical conversation, I made up my mind to do my first campout, and less than two hours later, I was back at the shopping center with my sleeping bag and pillow.  

Never in my life have I done something on such a whim.  

I spent a cummulative 16 hours waiting in lines over the course of 20 hours.  I know. I am crazy.  But to meet Kelly Clarkson for free?  I literally can't even tell you how worth it it was.

Her concert was off the hook!  If you have the opportunity to see her live, I highly recommend you do it.  She sounds exactly the same live as she does on her records, which speaks to her level of talent.  She's also so sweet (she gave me a hug as soon as I came up to her!) and down-to-earth.  The whole thing was just unreal!

It's been almost a week, and I am still saying to myself: holy. crap. I met Kelly Clarkson.  xx

currently listening to..//  Where The Lines Overlap - Paramore