Cookies + Guacamole

My step-sister Courtney recently moved into a new town house that is veryvery nice, and she invited me, my other two-sisters, and some friends over to have a housewarming party.  It was only appropriate to wear a dress I bought while shopping with them in Austin the day before.  Plus, Courtney lives two hours away, and nothing says "travels well" like jersey fabric.

Dress: from Nordstrom Rack ($20!)
Shoes: Classified
Necklace: Accessory City in Little Rock

I don't know how it got started, but someone ate a chocolate cookie dunked in guacamole, and then decided that I was the only sister that hadn't done it, and surely must for a photo opp.  But I'm a stinker, (or lame), and only put the green cookie in my mouth for the picture.  No contact with taste buds were made, (wouldn't want to spoil the flavor of that delectable Lone Star I'm holding).

New Media Fashion Brunch

I know I am literally "tardy to the party" as far as when I arrived at the New Media Fashion Brunch on Friday, March 12th, (Indiana had to come unlock a door for me to let me in), and in that I'm just now posting pictures.  I have no excuse - I've been seduced by sleep and SXSW the past week.  Nonetheless, I was very excited to receive an invitation to this event that Indiana of Adored Austin put together and hosted for fashion bloggers in and around Austin. 

Of course I tried on about five outfits before I decided on what, (thanks Michelle for helping!).  It was windy outside and we were going to walk a lot, so I opted for flats.  I got this necklace at a boutique in Granada, Spain because I loved the color.  This tunic was too short after I belted it, so I put a white skirt underneath it to add length.

Tunic: Forever 21
Skirt: free from clothing swap
Boots: Buffalo Exchange
Necklace: Spain
Belt: Thrift Town
Bracelet: gift from step-sister

The food was almost too pretty to eat - breakfast treats and lunch fare laced with jelly beans and candy, and lovely displays by sponsors and Etsy Austin.  And the food wasn't just pretty, there was a lot of it; when leaving to walk to the boutiques, Indiana had her purse stuffed with Jelly Belly's and chocolate biscotti for anyone who got hungry, I think that's evidence she's going to be a great mom!  Our treat bags included the supplies for making an obi belt (there weren't enough needles to go around, though), as well as lots of pendants, rings, cute business card wallets, and other fun swag I was excited to find.  We first walked over to the 2nd Street shopping district, and I had to leave after that to see my family, but the girls continued on to South Congress afterward.  I'm sad that I missed my free cupcake!  There was lots of networking and business card swapping going on, so maybe I should make my blog a business card for future, similar occasions?  

Clearly I need this necklace, right?  Or at least that charm.

and finally...

You didn't know I was such a Bowie fan, huh?

In retrospect, I should have taken way more pictures, but I was shy because I didn't know anyone.  There were lots of lovely ladies to meet, though, so please check out the blogs of the following girls!

Rachel

Kelly & Kristin

Katy

Kayla

Tranish

Diya

Market Publique

Fashism

and of course Indiana!

There were a lot more girls there, and I know I'm leaving someone off and already feel terrible, please see the New Media Brunch page for the full list of attendees, and I have to run off to work now!  I hope you enjoy this lovely, warm day.  Prepare yourself for the mass amounts of band photos I'll be posting next.

Downtown Austin Photo Scavenger Hunt

I love weekends - I get to focus all of my attention on cleaning the house, sleeping in, cooking complicated meals, planning the grocery list, writing a bit, riding my bike - the possibilities in a weekend are infinite.  And yes, I like a clean house enough to merit chore completion a high point. 

On Saturday, though, Lennon and I went out for our friend Katie's twenty-sixth birthday.  It was a surprise photo scavenger hunt and night out downtown, planned mostly by her room mate, Jo.

I also love any excuse to wear a party dress.  For a downtown photo scavenger hunt, flats were definitely a neccesity!

Dress: French Connection

Tights: Target

Shoes: ??? I don't even remember buying them!

Necklace: Etsy

It ended up being chilly so I wore a black cardigan over this, but it still equaled the perfect transitional outfit for going from dumpster diving to the dance floor :)

This is my team for the scavenger hunt on top of The Blind Pig Pub.  We never did come up with a name... but this photo was for "entire team on a roof top."  The bar tender was also awesome - he made everyone cheap drinks for the item "chugging contest with a stranger," and acted as our photographer for several shots, including "entire team with a stranger mooning all."  Check and check.

This adorable bulldog helped us out for "Shake hands with a stranger's dog."

"Entire team doing a chorus line with a stranger."  I think we should have gotten bonus because we got two strangers. 

The other team was a bit more coordinated than we were.  Katie, the birthday girl, is on the far right.  And as seen in pictures on previous posts, Lennon's legs look freakishly long.

"Entire team in the back of a truck."  We couldn't find a person with their truck, so our first inclination was to run to the fire station to get a picture there.  A very, very cute fireman took our picture in and around the truck's cab (there's a LOT of buttons in there!), but we were worried Jo wouldn't count it, so we interrupted traffic to jump out of our car and climb into the back of this unattended pick up.  Mara set the camera on top of her car and we jumped in and out very quickly.

Again, the other team totally beat us in style points on this picture - they got in the back of a beer truck.

"Entire team with a food vendor."  The other team copied us and got the same shot.  It's a tight squeeze in there between the grill and the wall.  Other items on the scavenger list included, "high five a homeless person," "one team member in a dumpster," and "one team member in a porta potty."  It's too bad EVERY PORTA POTTY downtown is padlocked.  The only one we found open was on the back of a truck trailer - bonus points to Courtney for running out of our car (stopped at a red light), climbing onto the trailer, and posing in the potty for a picture before the light turned green.  That's dedication.

Katie and Jo after the scavenger hunt.  I'm convinced our team won since theirs failed to put their whole team on a rooftop, and just made Lennon climb city hall.  We all had dinner at this inexpensive and delicious Indian restaurant - Tarka Indian Kitchen, and then hit Sixth Street.  Being a collective beer fan club, we spent most of our time in The Ginger Man which could rival the Flying Saucer on beer selection.  We then spent all of ten minutes in Six Lounge, and ended the night at Qua, which, when I don't think about the $20 credit card minimum I didn't know about until after I'd received one drink, was awesome because there were live sharks under the dance floor.  Being an aquarium fanatic and a dancing enthusiast, I was in Heaven.

The Austin Garden Party

I attended the Garden Party, hosted by the Austin Eavesdropper, at the Liberty Bar on Saturday night with Lennon.  The cold germs that are now building superstructures and mass transporation monorails in my lungs were tending their first batch of hatchlings on Saturday, so I promised myself I could go out if I went early, left early, and only had one beer.  Sadly, this resulted in a lack of pictures from my camera.

Ever enthusiastic about dressing up, I dropped by Parts and Labour the day before to find a feathery hair piece. I chose this sea shelled hair pin by Marlo Adelle.  I thought it would be something I'd never wear again, but after putting it in, I decided a bit flamboyant suits me.

My theme for the night was pearls.

The photobooth was manned by Trevor Ray, and like at the Bleet Up, he had all kinds of fun goodies to utilize as props.  I can't do hair, period, so a bob was out of the question.  Since the Garden Party was in support of sustainable gardening, a lot of the door prizes were beautiful succulents.  Having left early, I bet I won the grand prize and will never know.  It's ok, though, as I no longer have a front yard.  Congrats to the evening's winners - lucky saps!  (I know, terrible pun).