The Mermaidens Thrifting Guide

Wednesday, February 27, 2019

There is nothing quite as satisfying as emerging from your local thrift store after digging for hours, clutching your hidden gems closely! Since I've been thrifting for as long as I can remember, I wanted to share an updated guide on how to thrift like a pro! Huge thank you to Courtney for these pictures ♡

Voilé

Monday, December 31, 2018

Happy New Year's Eve! Thank you so much for being on this journey with me. I hope your 2019 is filled with love, light, and happiness ♡ I wanted to say goodbye to 2018 with a conceptual shoot I'm actually really proud of! Sometimes I feel like there is a thin veil between myself and others — ever present and isolating. Having a hard time expressing myself, occasionally I'll feel like a ghost: always watching, never participating. I wanted to explore these emotions in a shoot, and immediately thought of using veils to literally and figuratively show feeling obscured. I also took inspiration from Victorian era† ghosts — think spirits shrouded by lace and dust — one of my favorite motifs to explore in media.

I shot these on a cold September evening with the very last rays of golden light to spotlight how the veils cast shadows on the face. Shooting these photos felt like a beautiful marriage of many of my favorite concepts and designers which that have been swirling around in my head for months: Meadham Kirchhoff, old favorite Victorian era ghost stories, and past shoots I've done with Hana Haley all served as inspiration.

This dreamy vintage Gunne Sax dress I found at House of Vintage was a perfect match for this shoot. The brand’s use of high necks, puff sleeves, and delicate frills were all borrowed motifs from Victorian fashion trends! The makeup was directly inspired by Rodarte's stunning Spring/Summer 2019 Ready-To-Wear Collection that featured Robin's Egg blue eyes, matte skin, and a deep true red matte lip *.

Here's to 2019!

Golden Light

Thursday, December 13, 2018


I'm Wearing... Miss Patina blouse *, ModCloth pinafore *

I have spent the majority of my life feeling inarticulate and not particularly good enough at anything. It was only through blogging that I finally started to feel like maybe I was *good* at something. But if I am, it has only been through making a conscious, dedicated effort to get “good” at things every single day - like taking photos, conceptualizing shoots, writing, editing, etc. And it didn’t just fall into my lap. It has been a culmination of everything I had loved, felt, and was touched by for years. These feelings were always teeming in me - I had to release them. To do these things justice I had to get better at whatever medium I could express them in.

This October, I find myself sitting on a chair and looking into a small crowd of college students. My voice is shaky and cracking a lot, but I’m addressing their questions and making eye contact. I’ve been asked to speak on my experience with fashion marketing for Lena Cavusoglu’s Marketing Management class at Portland State University.

I was scared to death, I made many mistakes. But I knew I had to do this. And afterward, even though I replayed my mistakes in my mind and cringed, students still shook my hand and thanked me for my time, and Lena said she’d love to have me back. With adrenaline coursing through my veins, I smiled back at her and said I would love to. After all, I know how to do better next time. Don’t give up on yourself or your dreams ♡

Photos taken at Burgerville after the talk - I needed french fries after that haha!

A Goodbye to Summer with Hana Haley

Monday, December 10, 2018

In the past four years, I have attempted to put into words how much Hana Haley means to me many times. We meet at a critical, painful point in my life, and she represented the first time I ever worked with a professional photographer. Not knowing what to expect at all, I was practically trembling when I knocked on her door. But the second I met Hana, all my fears melted - she makes you feel like you are the entire universe when you are around her. Hilarious, protective, and radiating light - I see how people are drawn to her everywhere we go.

After doing a shoot every couple months together for around two years, life forced us to take a break that stretched out to three years. This summer, we were finally reunited. After spotting each other in a parking lot, I ran to be enveloped in a familiar hug - it was like no time had passed at all. On both an artistic and personal stand point, I feel like we click together perfectly - like a friendship heart necklace put back together. Originally planning on just catching up over coffee, we did an impromptu shoot that included location hopping, rose garden smelling, eating fries, changing dresses in the backseat, and taking photos in the Photo Booth. All the while, speaking a mile a minute - that night, my voice was raspy from talking (and laughing, and smiling...) so much!

At the end of the day Hana dropped me back home. Clinging to each other, we swore it was not going to be three more years until we see each other again. "I can't even be sad today is over, I'm so grateful it happened at all," I said before letting go. ☆











OUTFIT ONE:
COAT: Jakke * WAITRESS COSTUME: Hot Topic

OUTFIT TWO:
COAT: Miss Patina * DRESS: ASOS

OUTFIT THREE:
BLOUSE: Forever 21 SKIRT: Amazon then I painted cherries on it PURSE: Amazon

Peonies

Thursday, April 5, 2018

TOP: H&M (sold out, similar) SKIRT: American Apparel BERET: Darling Distraction *
PURSE: Sun Jellies * BOOTS: ASOS (sold out, similar)

For me, this is the perfect Spring outfit! I put it together while shooting this campaign for Revlon, and I'm so in love with every single element! I got the candy striped shirt on sale at H&M last fall, and bought these boots a year ago when my style twin, fellow capricorn, and favorite human Randi shared an adorable outfit post featuring them! I am OBSESSED with the mod vibes they give off and was easily able to wipe them clean after accidentally stepping in mud - phew! Happy Spring!





Portland Mini Travel Guide for Keiko Lynn

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

So excited to finally share it with you all - I did a Portland Travel Guide for one of my all time favorite bloggers, Keiko Lynn! I first discovered Keiko in a print magazine - I think it was Glamour? - years ago and was completely in awe of her super cute style. Fast forward to now, she is one of the sweetest gals I've "met" over the internet, and her content still blows me away with it's consistency and the level of quality in everything she does.

In the travel guide, I discuss my favorite places to stay, eat, and shop including places like Darling Distraction and Voodoo Doughnuts. But this is really just scratching the surface on what some affectionately call "The City of Roses" - if you have any recommendations you'd like to add please leave them below! Click here to see the full post!




With Mei at the International Test Rose Garden




With Courtney and Jess taken by Marika at Darling Distraction
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