For all the millions of years I’ve been following lifestyle and home decor bloggers and have never had the opportunity to re-do a room. As a renter, I wasn’t sure WHEN I’d get to do a full makeover any time soon— so when my parents asked me to help them makeover their sunroom, I pinched myself a trillion times.

Before we dive into this week’s question, I thought I’d remind you WHO these questions are for. They are for you. They are for me. And they are for you to ask your family, friends, and co-workers. Questions lead us closer to one another when we listen to what others have to say. Questions challenge us to confront uncomfortableness in ourselves. Questions take us deeper and make us feel more connected.

THIS week, we're accidentally getting rewound and having to live life all over again.

Have you ever seen a gorgeous movie and immediately thought— Where is that and are they accepting visitors?

Recently, I felt exactly that about the Woody Allen movie, Magic in the Moonlight with Colin Firth and Emma Stone, set in the French Riviera. I’ve been working through all of Woody Allen’s movies because even though so many of them have left me disappointed, I do love the locations his films are set and I love how strange some of his characters are. The location for this movie was BLOOMING, sunny, quiet, and green. It felt other-worldly and colorful. It felt sophisicated and ridiculous. And I love a good ridiculous vacation.

Four months into long-distance dating, Brett wrote me a list of meaningful things about myself and our relationship he thought I would appreciate. Here are just a few things that made me tear up or LOL while reading them.

This week is our very first question for our Question of the Week series!

If you’re the kind of person who longs to get to know other people beyond the surface, it never hurts to have a solid question or two in your back pocket. My goal with question of the week is to encourage you to get to know others around you with intentional questions.

This week, I’m answering my own question! But if you’re reading along, I’d love to hear your answer in the comments!

I love hearing what my friends’ or co-workers’ favorite television shows are. But have you ever asked someone what their favorite episode of television is…. ever? of all time?

Yesterday, Brett cried while telling me why he loves me.

Every now and then, he shares with me things I don't see in myself. This time, it was an affirmation I'd never heard before, and by the time he was done, we were both crying.

We went through some really hard stuff when we first got married, and he told me that because I had to sit in a really dark and challenging season for so long, he sees me now able to sit in the dark and challenging seasons of those around me, without necessarily having to speak into or fix their season-- he sees me showing up for their highs and the lows, aware that seasons aren't always quick or easily controlled.

Herbivore botanicals makes my face feel like a soft bunny. I wake up with a hydrated face and my makeup actually sinks into my skin instead of flaking it up. SEE YA LATER, dry skin.

Take a foggy walk with us! We walked the Fort Worth Botanic Garden’s Japanese Garden and walked by Eagle Mountain Lake too. Aren’t these foggy pics giving off a foggy Riverdale vibe?!

If you’ve been following along on my instagram every week, you’ll notice I host a weekly Style Challenge.

What is Style Challenge?

We could easily grab and wear the same five shirts every week, right? But the purpose of Style Challenge is to

1) wear your closet (this way we’re participating in slow fashion by not trying to keep up with trends, but trying to buy and wear timeless pieces we want to keep around for a long time), and

2) keep your outfits creatively styled with weekly themes.

I love coffee and I LOVE lattes. So, this week I’m celebrating both of those things by giving YOU a free print of one of my coffee art illustrations!

Did you know it’s Tolkien Reading Day?

On a lighter note, I’ve got three Shire-inspired outfit ideas if you want to dress like a modern Frodo Baggins! It doesn’t have to be Tolkien Reading Day to get your hobbit-style on!

On a more meaningful note, I want to share what marriage, depression, and Tolkien have in common.

I’m celebrating a Texas small business today I think you’ll love. Everything from their super cute handdrawn logo, to their sweet hospitality, to their beautiful flower arrangements.

Our friend Lindsay just opened up the cutest lil’ flower shop in Waco, and I just wanted to let you know if you stop through or visit Waco, you gotta pick up some flowers from Bloom Waco. You can follow them on Instagram here.

I had the idea to take a past DIY photo-booth backdrop I had made, and turn it into a rent friendly statement piece/photo booth backdrop. While this piece I made is mainly for fun photoshoots of my outfits, I have about a million ideas for how I can use these painted or wall papered panels when we move back into our apartment in New York. Especially when it comes to just propping them up against the wall as a statement.

On a somewhat related note, one of the reasons I love watching White Christmas every year, is because... COSTUMES. There's a scene where Vera Ellen wears a yellow turtle neck tucked into a yellow circle skirt, and it's an outfit I've loved ever since I first saw White Christmas in high school.

So, I'm here for the turtlenecks and the yellow turtlenecks at that. I am trying my hardest not to wear my own yellow turtleneck every day. Though admittedly, I am desperately looking for a yellow skirt to match it so I can live out my Vera Ellen outfit inspo dreams. 💛

BUST OUT YOUR JEWELS!

And it surprises me that I'm even doing anything jewelry related at all because I don't have much jewelry and I don't wear much jewelry. But what I've found with this style challenge is that sometimes being intentional to wear something we don't usually pick out of our closet is the best way to wear what's actually in our closet.

There aren’t many jewelry books out there, and that’s why I’m SO excited to share this project with you. Something I really value in a DIY project is that it leaves me with a household item or piece of clothing that is unique to me.

And this Jewelry Book is just that. I’ve included a loose DIY process below for you, so you can make customize your own jewelry book unique to you!

A few months ago, I was on Pinterest trying to find a DIY way to store the jewelry I’ve been making, as well as the jewelery I inherited from my grandmother. I saw really fancy leather/zip up jewelry books that were compact and easy to use, but like anything I find online, I thought— I gotta make this.

Here are a few phrases and questions we have learned to communicate to one another that might be helpful to you in your relationships or marriage when dealing with anger (potentially very helpful if you are married to an enneagram 9):

1. “Is [fill in the blank] really what you are upset about, or is it someting else?” Sometimes we think we’re upset about one thing, when it’s really someting else (or many something elses).

2. Brett and I think it’s important to recognize we can’t read each other’s minds—can anyone? So sometimes we just have to get direct, “Are you frustrated? What about?”

When I asked Brett what conversation he wished we’d had in our first few years of marriage, his answer didn’t surprise me. Because it was my answer too. We both wish we would have communicated more about how destructive my anger outbursts were. They would come out of nowhere, were challenging to navigate, and we both wish we’d have known how to talk about it, instead of passively and hurtfully allowing it to happen.

We would be right in the middle of laughing till we cried in a snuggle fest, and, all of a sudden, without much notice, I would be erupting into an anger tornado about how upset I was with myself, my circumstances, or something Brett said. It was so defeating.

How to create daily rituals to combat feelings of apathy and distraction.

Today I’m talking about my True and Co Bras and how much I love and LIVE in them. Have you found a bra you absolutely love? Tell me about it in the comments!