"you are always one decision away...

 ...from a totally different life."

    In my last post I briefly mentioned that I have a new job. I'm pretty excited about it. In 3 weeks I'll be starting a new position as Claim Specialist with State Farm. Its currently a hybrid schedule, so I'll only be going into the office for one week every six. That is, until I can prove my worth and promote to a position totally from home on a flex schedule where I make my own hours as long as I get the work done. You gotta start somewhere, right? I'm not afraid of hard work. 

It does mean, however, I have to change up my wardrobe a bit to include more business casual pieces. Me being me, I've put together a visual to help me stay on track (cuz lets be real, ADD is brutal). The last think I want is my brain telling me a spur-of-the-moment purchase is a great idea -- when, really, its never, never, never a great idea. Ugh, it happens way more than I care to admit. I digress, here is my inspiration.
    -- I consider it business casual meets Parisian streetwear meets dark academia. 

Gimmie all the blazers, loafers, mules, and trenches. I have a great and terrible need for cardigans and sweaters, high-waist trousers and mom jeans...and can we please talk about the Chanel tuxedo slingbacks? I would have a terrible need for those, if not for the $1,000 price tag. I wont say no to some look-alikes however! Like these from Tuckernuck for $198, or these from ASOS for $30.00

*per usual, none of these photos are mine. Thank my pinterest.

"I saw home in your eyes,

 and found love in your smile."

    - unkown.

What is "home"? Is it a person? A place? Is it where you're from? Where you're going?
Or is it where all your attempts to escape cease?

There is a word in Spanish: Querencia. Which essentially means "a place where one's strength is drawn, where one feels most at home; a place where you feel your most authentic self."

I think "home" is the moment everything falls away. That sigh of relief, like when you fall onto your bed after a long day and your back goes, "bruh..." Now whether that's a person, a place, or house with four walls and a roof -- well, that depends on the individual. My "home" is my person (my husband and my kids) but having those four walls and roof as a place of safety and escape definitely help. A house is just a house. I could live if it burned down. Now, if my husband and my kids went down with it? That's an entirely different road I don't even want to go down. But do you see my point? 

Anyway, I'm a very visual person, and a Taurus at that...I need my surroundings to match what I feel on the inside. Full of depth, color, textures, and contrast. A harmony of dark and light. My four walls and a roof need to be full of beauty, comfy couches I can sink down into, things that catch my magpie eye, vibrant jewel toned colors...

The saddest part of living in Arizona is that 99.9% of the homes here lack character. In every subdivision each home is almost a cookie-cutter replica of the one next to it. Then you have HOA's regulating what you can and can't do to the exterior (including your front and back yards). To have a home with any sort of personality, you need to work doubly hard on the interior.

I enjoy anything with a touch of the Old World. I suppose you could consider it modern vintage? Modern victorian?

bedroom

bathroom

living room

kitchen

office

vanity & closet

laundry & potting room

garden & patio

*Disclaimer: none of these photos are mine.