10 Q+A's

How I would spend $15k in 24 hours, trends I hate and love, a product I liked but now hate, and more...

1. Who is your main fashion inspo? I have been thinking about this a lot lately. I have been so wholly uninspired by my wardrobe lately. I know my Instagram gives the illusion that I’m always shopping, but in reality I’m shopping and keeping mostly non-clothing items. My current wardrobe is 85% filled with items that I’ve had for easily 5+ years, and while that’s not a bad thing, the limited space I have in our home means adding in new clothes is more difficult than you would expect, so I end up wearing that same ten outfits year after year. I partly blame COVID for making me way too comfortable in defaulting to athleisure — not even the cute kind — and my pajamas most of the week. The past month I have been trying to get in the habit of wearing real clothes. My very uninspiring closet has forced me to study my follows more closely than usual. I love all the accounts I follow, but I find myself “saving” posts from these four women: Kathleen Barnes (@carriebradshawlied), Julia Berolzheimer (@juliaberolzheimer), Shea McGee (@studiomcgee), and Sarah Branch (@thoughtandbought). For whatever reason I have told myself that everyone who is stylish is wearing neutrals, trouser pants, and oversized items. The girls who wear this look incredible, but every time I try these types of items on I don’t feel like myself. What I see as a common denominator of the four women listed are: tasteful patterns, flattering silhouettes, mixing textures, but most importantly looking and being comfortable.

2. What 90s/00s trends do you secretly love and not so secretly hate? Two 00s trends that I secretly love are the resurgence of peplum tops and trucker hats (not worn together lol). I personally find peplums to be extremely flattering on my frame, but what’s better about them now is they no longer look like “going out tops” or business causal attire. The perfect example of that is this Rails peplum top. I’m not grabbing a Ed Hardy trucker hat anytime soon, but I do wear and get compliments on my Clare V Ciao trucker hat whenever I wear it. I own both the green and black and will probably add navy soon. Two trends I not so secretly hate are denim overalls and knee socks. I find the denim overalls to be so incredibly unflattering, even on the chicest of people, and the obsession with adding socks to every outfit will never not confuse me.

3. Top five pieces to invest in your closet - 1. Jeans. Find one brand and cut that you absolutely love, fit you like a glove, and go with everything (probably a straight leg or skinny jean). My favorite pair of jeans from Madewell have been discontinued, so I’m back on the hunt for my go-to style. I think AYR’s The Pop might be my next try. 2. A great tote bag. I absolutely love my Goyard Artois GM. It’s a purchase I will never regret. 3. A “throw and go” dress. I’m talking about a dress you could buy in any color or fabric because the cut is perfect for almost any occasion. My “throw and go” dress of choice is Anthropologie’s Somerset. 4. Shoes. You probably wish I was more specific, but the reason I’m not is because what I’ve learned as I’ve gotten older is the shoes that I spend more money on are the shoes I wear the most and for the longest. They also are made with materials that can be repaired and prolonged through the work of a good cobbler. I tried on the Chanel ballet flats at my local Neiman’s last week and they were as good as the bloggers say. 5. An everyday fine necklace. I realized over the last two years that I always admire the women who wear their “good stuff” no matter what kind of outfit they are wearing. Jewelry always looks good. My everyday fine necklace is a custom Sarah O Jewelry ten bezel diamond station necklace. A similar style is this one from Dana Rebeca.

4. What is your favorite Taylor Swift song? This is like asking a mom who her favorite child is. I’m sorry but I can’t pick just one. I’m going with Death By A Thousand Cuts and Fifteen. You have no idea how long it took me to answer this question.

5. What podcasts have you been listening to lately? My mainstays are always Be There In Five (I notice some your names in the BTI5 FB group!!) and Second Life with Hillary Kerr. I started listening more regularly to two new podcasts over the last month. The first, The Squeeze, hosted by Tay Lautner and Taylor Lautner. I started listening with my sister on our four hour car rides to and from Crested Butte a few weeks ago. We were especially surprised by the Hannah Brown episode. The second, Just Ignore It, with Liz and Dave Adams. The episodes are usually pretty short (less than 30 minutes) and it’s a very causal unstructured kind of podcast. Short and unstructured are usually qualities in a podcast that I wouldn’t listen to but, I think what I like about it is just how Liz and Dave banter with each other, it’s very relatable if you’ve been with your SO for over a decade.

6. What did you want to be when you grew up? In Kindergarten I wanted to be a nurse, but then I realized I had a huge fear of needles. Later I wanted to be a teacher, but only because I wanted to write on a white board and use a projector. Later in elementary school and through most of junior high and high school I decided I wanted to be Abigail Chase from the National Treasure movies and work at the National Archives. I LOVE history, and particularly American history. Treasure hunter, was never a goal of mine (I am a very risk-adversed person).

7. I give you $15k you have to spend in 24 hours - what are you doing with it? I asked the asker if she wanted fun or practical answers and she said “the more outlandish the better,” so here we go! To get the most out of this $15k I’m staying here in Denver to not waste money on first class airfare. I would start my day with Rosenberg’s Egg Everything Bagel ($5) and an Aviano Matcha Latte ($7.50 — yes you read that correctly). I’d then head to the Four Seasons spa where I would book myself for a body wrap, massage, and luxury mani/pedi ($600). I’d probably also spend some time in the sauna and hot tub as well. After I would drive to my aesthetician who I’ve seen for 3 years and get her signature facial that includes gua sha, cupping, and lymphatic drainage — I literally walk out with new bone structure ($215). From there I’d have some serious massage hair so I’d head to my stylist at Salon Thirty-Eight and get my hair washed and styled ($150). With my hair styled, now I’d need makeup done so to Alchemy Face Bar I go and get a full face ($100). A quick lunch at Brider ($30) and now to really blow some of this cash….I have always dreamed of shopping at A-Line Boutique and utilizing their personal shoppers. I would reserve $4,000 for them to give me a complete wardrobe makeover. New clothes would also need new shoes and accessories…to Neiman’s! I’d reserve $4,300 for a few new shoes and a Celine Micro Belt Bag that I’ve always loved. Before the big finale of the day, I’d meet my husband at Shanahan’s Steakhouse for one of my favorite steak dinners ever ($350). I dream about their truffle butter regularly. I’d end the day with first row tickets (courtside tickets are already sold out) to the Nuggets home opener against the Lakers (we are a house divided) where they unveil the Championship banner. Those tickets are currently selling for $5,152 for two on Gametime. In total this day would cost me $14,909.50. Honestly, this the perfect day: total pampering, shopping for items I will have for a long time and are practical for everyday use, good food, and a once in a lifetime experience.

8. If you had to move back to California, where would you move? I’ve thought about this question a lot over the last 9 years and my head says Orange County area because you have the beach, driving distance to family and friends in the LA area, and all the stores and amenities you’d want. BUT, my heart says the Central Coast around San Luis Obispo. It’s where I grew up going to the most as a child and it’s where I got married. I’m never not happy at the central coast. (The photo above is from my wedding!)

9. Is there a product you reviewed that you liked, but now hate? Yes, 100% the Oura Ring. My original review was not stellar to begin with, but it still netted out postively. I’m one year into wearing my ring and I hate it. I still hate the design, thickness, and look of the ring. It is SO scratched up now and the gold color coating is starting to fade away. Like the Apple Watch’s horrific tan line, the Oura ring has made my index finger so indented that it’s embarrassing to not have the ring on. After a year, they still have yet to allow their HR monitoring to apply to anything outside cardio, which I’m so confused by because the feature continuously tracks your heart rate during a workout, so why can’t I just do that and mark the workout as pilates, strength training, etc like other fitness trackers? Lastly, the “personalized” recommendations for the day still give me no actual direction on how to improve my wellness. For instance last night I slept poorly so my readiness and sleep score was low. The recommendation was “You slept poorly last night. Take it easy today.” Well, duh. The only reason I still wear this ugly thing is because of the BBT and automatic syncing with my Natural Cycles app, but honestly I might just go back to taking my temp because I really do worry my index finger will be indented for at least five years if I don’t take it off soon lol. What really sucks about the Oura Ring is I don’t think I could resell it because it’s so scratched, whereas with an Apple Watch I could easily sell or trade into Apple for credit. If you have the Oura Ring I am very curious what your thoughts are and if you’ve actually seen improvement in your wellness.

10. What are you most and least favorite things about being anonymous on this account? My most favorite thing is the low pressure I feel about it all. Being anonymous allows me to not get potentially trapped into making my life look perfect. I also don’t have great body image, so I’m glad that I don’t have to worry about people DMing or commenting on my looks — I don't know how bloggers deal with that on a daily basis. I never feel any pressure to post everyday. I think if this was my “job” I would lose the joy I have with it pretty quickly. My least favorite thing is that it does limit me in reviews because it would be really helpful to show a face product on my actual face, but I put a lot of effort into my reviews to be as detailed as possible so you all can trust what I say without always getting photographic proof.

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Have a great Saturday and SKO BUFFS!

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