a very merry christmas

I hope you all had a very merry Christmas this year! I had such a lovely Christmas, and the last thing I wanted was for it to be over. On Christmas Eve, as usual, I tried to cram too many things into one day, but it all turned out all right. I was able to sew up a skirt for the little girl I babysit, and then I was able to  alter the dress I was wearing that evening (I can't wait to show y'all! It looked pretty good for a thrift store find) and get myself all ready for the Christmas Eve service at church and make it to church just before I was supposed to sing in the choir. Then Christmas Day after church was much more relaxed. I watched It's a Wonderful Life with my family and we exchanged gifts before heading off to a big family party. It was just a happy, blessed day in general and I think I laughed harder than I had in weeks, especially during the Scrabble arguments with my uncle (he's always trying to sneak made-up words in there, and then argues that they are actual words).

Anyway, I thought I would share a look into the decorations I had up around my room this year. I didn't decorate until Monday, but I'm glad I finally put them up. 

How was your Christmas? 

christmas preparations + cozy sweaters

//sweater: target / scarf: target {gift} / skirt, oxfords: thrifted / tights: fred meyer//

Well, finals are finally over, and Christmas preparations are in full swing around here. Actually, I finished finals last Sunday, but I ended up taking an unexpected blogging hiatus to take a much-needed breather and catch up on life. And read The Hobbit finally, among other books. Then I ended up getting sick over the weekend, when I had planned to start up blogging again, so the break extended itself. But I'm all recovered now, and so today has been spent on a mini cleaning spree, finally getting Christmas decorations put up, and wrapping Christmas presents. 

This outfit is actually from a few weeks ago, when we were in the middle of a cold spell here in Washington. I had basically been living in sweaters, and decided to try pairing a cozy sweater with my wool skirt for added warmth for church. It fit a little snugly tucked into the skirt, but it worked, and I really liked the look, and just the overall coziness of it all. You will likely be seeing this skirt with different sweater combinations quite a bit in the near future!

Ok, now I'm going to get back to decorating. :) I hope you all are having a fantastic (and not too busy!) Eve of Christmas Eve!

finals week + cozy sweaters

//dress: thrifted / sweater: kohl's / tights: fred meyer / oxfords: eBay//

Hello, everyone! Well, it's finals week (which explains my blogging absence this week), and I've only got two more assignments to finish and I will be done. I'm incredibly excited because it means that in a few days I'll be able to get all my Christmas decor up (finally!) and start work on Christmas presents. And of course, reading, sleeping, and doing all the things I never have time to do during school will be amazing as well.

This is actually the outfit I wore on Thanksgiving--cozy, comfortable, and casual-dressy. I liked it so much that I wore it again this week, during a spurt of very cold weather...it's gotten to that point of the year when I live in sweaters (and flannel), and I'm loving it. Any excuse to be cozy and warm. Anyways...this sweater is one of my favorites, because it can basically be layered with every dress/blouse + skirt combo in my closet and just make every outfit warmer. The dress I have on under this is actually (in my opinion) pretty unflattering, but I love it layered, and the print is just so fall-ish...so for now, it will definitely be staying in my closet.