Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Ten Images of Inspiration - Tattoos

Keeping up with yesterdays theme, I thought I would be inspired by some beautiful body art that I found on Pinterest.  There is just something so sexy about men and women adorning their bodies with ink.










And while all of these tattoos are gorgeous, I must say that my friends tattoos are even better.  Seriously, I have some hot friends with even hotter ink, unicorns and all. :)

I will dare to just do what I do, be just what I am, and dance whenever I want to. - Beverly Williams


Sunday, July 24, 2011

Ink

I got my first tattoo last year.  I started a little late, but just like everyone said it would be, getting tattooed is addicting.  I went to Lucky Monkey in Ann Arbor, MI.  After a lot of thought about what my first tattoo would be, I decided to get quite a large piece.

 A peacock on my side.

I walked into the tattoo parlour on a Friday afternoon to an artist about drawing something up for me.  I talked to an guy named Jesse Stark and told him that I wanted a peacock that looks like something like what you might find on a grandmothers wallpaper.  He said to come back next week and he would have something for me.  I came back the following week and he had two options for me.  Both were amazing! I could hardly decide.  I chose this design because it was a big more intricate.  After I saw how beautiful the drawings alone were, I felt totally confident.   It took two sessions, each about an hour and a half.  I was warned that this is the most sensitive area to have tattooed and to be honest, I'm glad I didn't have a previous reference to compare the pain to because I probably wouldn't have lasted.  Jesse gave me the option to take as many breaks as I wanted, but I just wanted to get through it and enjoy the finished product.   And to be honest, I absolutely love it.  It's exactly what I wanted.

This was not the first tattoo I planned to get but I'm so glad I did.  It turned out amazing and I get tons of compliments.  I've spent the last year wanting more and more.  Last week, I went back in to get my second tattoo.  This was my original plan for a first tattoo.



It seems more appropriate for a small amount of script on my forearm, as a first tattoo, but the peacock was just too beautiful to wait on.  This has been my favorite quote for years.  It's a line from the song by The Doors called "Soul Kitchen".  There is something about those lyrics that just struck a chord with me.  It's just so true.  I always thought that when people said that they could forgive but never forget that they were insane.  You can't forgive if you can't forget and move past the situation, whatever it may be.  



"Let me sleep all night in your soul kitchen, Warm my mind near your gentle stove"  The Doors




Thursday, July 21, 2011

Worst Dressed

GQ Magazine just ranked the Top 40 Worst Dressed Cities in America and lucky #31 goes to...that's right you guessed it, Detroit!

"We don't kick people when they're down, and we don't mock their dress when times are tough. Few cities have been hit harder in the decade past than Detroit. But it's not the poor and unfortunate that are the prime offenders in the D. No, it's the moneyed that singe our eyes and steal our souls. Consider disgraced former mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his penchant for pinstripes, broad-shouldered suiting, and unbearably prideful cigar-chomping. A city weeps from hardship, while fat cats sully a once-proud town's blue collar grit with fat, ungainly lapels."—Sean Fennessey

Damn-it-all if that Kwame Kilpatrick won't stop bringing our city down. 

Despite being voted the #31 worst dressed city in America, my husband and I powered through our tears and did some shopping.  I apparently am really into wild animal prints and colors this season.  My husband of course is sticking with the classics, black and plaid. 



Style and fashion are 100% in the eye of the beholder so I'm willing to take this news with a grain of salt.


"You know what the midwest is? Young and restless. - Kanye West


Monday, July 18, 2011

Weekend Wardrobe

Back to the grind, after another awesome weekend and I have a serious case of the Mondays.  We've been having a serious Detroit heat wave so my go-to style has either been a torn-to-shreds pair of Levi's boyfriend style cut-off shorts (literally they used to be my husbands jeans), a sun dress or a bikini.  This weekend was a mix of all three.  With tons of running around to do on Saturday I went with a short sun dress and the husband was rocking it out too!



Saturday night my husband and I went downriver to the Wyandotte Street Fair to see The Detroit Cobras.  First of all, I love them, second of all the temps didn't go below about 79 degrees even at 11 o'clock at night.  So my choice to wear skinny jeans was not so smart, but I wore a pair of killer heels and enjoyed the music of one of my favorite bands.  After the show, we got to hang out with the lead singer Rachel Nagy, and while she was showing me a special, ummm, certain female pleasuring device in her truck, that she picked up on the way to the show, my husband snapped a few pictures.



Apparently he's not so hot with the photography because you can hardly see anything.  Probably for the best because both of us were fighting frizz and sweat pretty hard.

Besides a quick trip to the grocery store, Sunday was spent sun bathing at the in-laws again.  I have a hot pink bikini that I'm in love with this year.  It makes me look so tan!  I wish I was still floating around on the raft today.  Instead it's the beginning of a new work week.  Albeit, a short one (only working Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday) it's still a time suck away from my favorite bikini.




"You don't knock, strain, push a hole. The door's wide open a-waitin' for your soul. Ya don't knock, ya just walk on in." - The Detroit Cobras


Tuesday, July 12, 2011

Ten Images of Inspiration - Shoes

I have a love affair with shoes.  Plain and simple.  Shoes can make or break an outfit.  I'm dying for double and triple stacked platforms right now.  I'm 5'2'' people, without heels I'll get lost in a crowd!


Gah!
 Baby Heels
 Hot Pink Hotness
 The stuff dreams are made of.
 Classic
 So chic
 Double platform love
 Jeans and heels
 Triple platform heaven
 Sometimes I still wear mine around the house.
 BONUS: My sexy reds from my wedding day :)


"I’m not about fantasies. I think I’m about quality and realness and earthiness and anti-fashion. I’m not about fashion. I’m about things that you own and keep that you cherish. I don’t throw out my clothes. They get better with age." 
                                                                                                Ralph Lauren




Thursday, July 7, 2011

Gratitude

They say it's the little things in life that matter the most.  This week I have a bushel of little things that are a direct result of my mojo.  The holiday weekend and a short work week are a perfect combination.

1.  My Saturday night was spent at a comedy show in town where a friend of ours was the headliner.  His name is Mike Stanley and he is hilarious.

2.  Sunday was spent at a friends families house on the lake and is was absolutely gorgeous out.  This is a picture that my friends dad took of his tattoo that day.  It's amazing.


3.  I got my Style Mint shirt yesterday and I love it!  Can't wait til next month.

4.  I found a new blog online that I officially adore.  The Daily Julie is witty, stylish and adorable.

5.  I stumbled on The Daily Julie when I googled The Tracy Anderson Method.  I just got my Metamorphosis DVD's in the mail and I am ready to get my dance on with the hawt Tracy Anderson.



6.  Plymouth's Art in The Park starts tomorrow! I love living 3 blocks from downtown Plymouth and being able to walk to these great events through out the year.

7.  On the 4th of July, DJ and I went to go see Lynard Skynard at Pine Knob.  It was the perfect end to the weekend.







8.  Yesterday I came home and DJ surprised me with the best dinner!  It's the best to come home to a homemade dinner prepared by my man.

9.  Saturday started off with bloody marys at Vivio's in downtown Detroit followed by an afternoon of shopping at Eastern Market with my best friend.  Once I got to unload my goodies, DJ and I soaked up some sun at my mother-in-laws.  She made us the most delicious daiquiris.  I have the best family.




10.  Today I got to spend a quite day off sitting on my couch with my two fur babies by my side, reading Room by Emma Donoghue.  My friend Nikki recommended it to me and it's one of those books that's incredibly hard to put down. 

Like I said, nothing big happened, but a lot of little, awesome things make me so grateful. Enjoy your weekend!

"Home is where your husband is."


Wednesday, July 6, 2011

Love Will Keep Us Together


In honor of of this past weekend, which besides being America's birthday, was also my husband and I's anniversary weekend.  Not our wedding anniversary, but rather the anniversary of when we first began dating.  It feels like a life time ago when I kissed my husband for the first time, under a bridge in Torch Lake, MI.  We couldn't help ourselves.  We left the group to make a run to the party store and in just a few blocks I had already fallen head over heels.  We leaned in and kissed a sweet tender kiss and just as it was getting real good...a car drove past and honked the horn.  I happened to be wearing only bikini bottoms and a t-shirt, so DJ yelled, "Yeah, yeah, I know she looks hot."  Can you say romantic? ;)

Just teasing, it was both romantic and memorable and started the best relationship of my entire life.  DJ has made me into the woman I am today.  I owe everything to him.  He is generous, smart, funny, handsome and treats me better than anyone has before.  I love my David James.  Here's to spending the rest of my life with my better half.

It takes two baybay.














"I came here tonight because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." When Harry Met Sally