☼ SHORTS FOR DAZE ☼

shorts c/o one half wolf, top from store in south dakota, jeffrey campbell boots, thrifted belt and bag

Upcycled and handmade by a mother and daughter, the shorts created by One Half Wolf are right up my alley. Get a load of these:

I have a blanket with the same pattern as the second pair. I'd like to wear this blanket. They read my mind and transformed a similar blanket into shorts. SHORTS. My obsession. Blanket shorts forever! 

Normally I wouldn't clash colors and patterns like this but,...WHO AM I KIDDING, of course I would do that. This is only half mismatched, though, as my hair does the rest of the work to have this outfit "make sense" in any way. 

Sometimes I wonder about my reasoning and place in the world of personal style blogging, and I start to feel like maybe I'm just some sort of vanity-obsessed female who spends too much money on clothing. But then I look through my posts at my unbrushed hair and unprofessional photos, wearing mostly secondhand clothing, and I remember that my purpose has nothing to do with being ostentatious. After reading Eckhart Tolle's "The Power Of Now", and spending the last month trying to rid my mind of any sort of ego, positive or negative, I contemplated stopping this blog. I probably would stop if I didn't feel like I could help anyone by having this ol' thing. Over the past year, I've been able to spotlight small businesses through etsy, and I think that's a wonderful thing to be able to do. On top of that, I hope to inspire women to dress how they feel inside, regardless of their age. Often people tell me they can't believe the fact that I am 27 years old. "You don't dress like it!", they will state. Is there some sort of cut off age when you have to begin dressing different than you feel? People are too quick to say that they "could never pull that off at their age", and that's a bummer. I'm here to help stomp that social norm deep into the ground, particularly midwestern people who feel like they are supposed to be 'boring'. I've got a soft spot for my midwesties. It's a lot tougher to not settle into a cookie cutter traditional world out here, but my hope is that more and more people can overcome that pressure and live their lives the way they would prefer. Lastly, I'd like to help Brit with her animal blogging community idea. I love that she wants to use her blog as a platform to teach and motivate bloggers to become active in animal rights and rescuing. Hopefully that will come into action and the entire blogging community can take part if they are passionate! 

Ideas, ideas.

PRAIRIE CHURCHIN'

belt, shoes, and levi's jacket thrifted in cowboy towns, nina mantra moon necklace, jewelry from melrose trading post/random, f21 pants, american deadstock tie dye cropped top, divided black tank, ebay bootstraps

I'm not sure what exactly is going on in that second to last photo but it sure does appear like I have junk in the trunk like crazy, which is AWESOME, if I do say so myself. I've worn elements of this outfit in previous posts, but after venturing to this abandoned church-thing in a small ghost town area outside of the city, there was no way we weren't taking photos. This place was so rad. I keep picturing everything shamelessly covered up in old tarp before suddenly being unveiled and magically dusted in the blink of an eye, bringing life back into this place (graffiti included) like that scene in Addam's Family, if I'm remembering that movie correctly. Ahhh, vampy church, how I love thee.

These shoes are my favorite of all my thrifted finds in some of the recent cowboy town adventures we had last weekend. $4. What? Okay. Yes, please. To add to it, I found this Levi's denim jacket for $5, and this belt for $1.35. One thing I will forever miss about this state - the distaste amongst people for everything I love, who gladly dump their old things at thrift stores, especially in small towns. I don't find a lot of people rummaging through stores like this, so there are multitudes of treasures to be discovered - and at a very low cost. 

Oh, Nebraska, sometimes I love you. Except when I hate you (November through April - gag me).

☽☽ WEEKEND ☾☾

A few pics from this last weekend. No one anticipated the cold, since it was 99 degrees in the city. I only had shorts (duh) so I had to run to a dollar store to pick up those black yoga leggings before my limbs fell off in the 50 degree foggy BS.

Highlights:

*badlands

*cave exploring

*cave/den discovering, full of fossilized seashells and crystals lining the walls

*ghost towns

*rocks

*fanny pack

*hiking

*saving a snake from its untimely highway demise

*buffalo everywhere

*cowboy town thrifting

*black hills

*fog-ass fog

*half naked cody most likely on pcp running through the rockland

Travel is necessary, always. Even if it's just for a few days. Especially travel with no plan and an open road.

instagram: caseystrawberry

 

HIGH SCHOOL SKIRT

thrifted skirt, vest and boots, bootstraps from ebay, random jewelry

These photos really show off how short I am, eh? I am pretty sure the last time this skirt was worn was in high school. Why I still have it in my possession is beyond me. Oh well. I dig it again.

 I spent the last week outdoors and I am going to do just that right now. I can't ever get enough of nature. I should probably just quit renting and buy an RV to live and travel in, already. I don't require much space and if I could pick up and leave every weekend, I'd be one happy camper. Road tripping is the way to my soul. I just drove for 12 hours straight, and am ready to do it again. Outside > inside.

◅◅BABOOSHKA, BABY▻▻

leggings c/o babooshka, thrifted denim vest, american apparel cropped top, boots from uo, bag from euphoria, triangle necklace c/o under the pyramids, random jewelry

The only thing not perfect about today is that Sticky is at the vet getting spayed. All I can picture is my little bearlamb in a crate, scared and wondering where I am. I wish I could know her thoughts. I wish she had a voice. A lot of people were against having her spayed because (obviously) her babies would be adorable and well behaved. My initial thinking was "OMGYES. Her puppies would be FREAKING PERFECT." Approximately 3 seconds after this reoccurring daydream, my logic kicks in and reminds me that there are millions of dogs in shelters and I certainly don't need to contribute to the rapidly growing overpopulation because of something so shallow as cuteness. Every year some insane number in the millions of animals are put in shelters or are roaming around with no home. Of these millions, about half get adopted while the other half are euthanized. A lot of these animals were once litters of cats or pups that were purposely bred and sold to families, while some of them are just a result of careless owners not spaying or neutering their pets. Animals aren't choosy, people. Their intense hormonal drive to procreate is instinctual and they WILL have babies. Lots of babies. And the majority of those babies will end up needing to be adopted at shelters. These are the animals you should be adopting. Quit going to breeders. Quit going to pet stores. It only perpetuates more breeding and less adoption of pets in need. Go to your local humane society or shelter, unless you're lucky enough to find a Stick wondering around your neighborhood, homeless and needing a friend.

What did that have to do with fashion? Nothing. Well, Sticky wears clothes sometimes. So there's my pathetic attempt at a relevant connection.

On a side note - these leggings are the shizzzzz - bright and shiny gunmetal space cadet, and hyped to be worn, especially after finally watching Thor. Thank you, Babooshka, these leggings rule. Check them out here. They've got a ton of rad items on major sale at the moment. And seriously, I say the word 'babooshka' probably upwards of 6 times a week, making me love this store even more. Babooshka babooshka babooshka!

The My Salvation jewelry giveaway is still in full effect, people. 

instagram: caseystrawberry

☩☩ MY SALVATION JEWELRY GIVEAWAY ☩☩

See those two necklaces? See how perf they are? One of my longest running sponsors and rad jewelry designer has decided to give away one of these bad boys to one of ya'll. My Salvation is a shop full of quills, bones, hair pipe beads, and even casted pieces like these dagger necklaces. Browse the store while you eat some brownies and listen to The Tough Alliance, and you're guaranteed to have a great night. 

To win one of these two necklaces you must:

1. "Like" My Salvation on Facebook HERE.

2. Be awesome.

3. Leave a comment with your choice of necklace and e-mail so I may contact you if you win.  

Extra entries for tweeting this post or putting a link to it on your facebook! Please put a second comment if you have done that. 

So which will it be? The blue and white hair pipe necklace? Or the crescent quill one? 

The winner will be chosen in one week - Saturday, May 26th!

instagram: caseystrawberry