the sienne necklace

it's safe to say that i instantly fell in love with vrai & oro when they launched last spring. i have a very minimal approach to jewelry, and their stunning pieces perfectly align with my aesthetics.

i was very humbled when they asked me to collaborate with them on the launch of their sienne necklace. the necklace is personalized with an engraved word or short phrase that holds special meaning to you.

my necklace is engraved with the french phrase c'est la vie which translates to that's life. although i've never traveled to france (someday... hopefully multiple trips!), i'm pretty obsessed with that country. i may as well rename my travel board on pinterest to "take me to france asap!" so having a french phrase engraved on my necklace was a nod to my francophile self.

as for the meaning of the phrase, i think it's one that we can all relate to. there are some things in life that you will never see coming, that can turn your world upside down, in either the best or worst way possible. while i've had a lot of incredible opportunities and events throughout my life so far, i've also had my share of hardships as well. it's during those not so good times that you learn to accept things as they are and power on. life isn't always fair, but it's still good!

the diamond sienne necklace / the sienne necklace

{disclosure: i received the diamond sienne necklace ℅ vrai & oro. all opinions and thoughts about the product are my own.}

avocado toast

i love food. like, so much. however, i'm not exactly the best cook or baker. but i do make really good pasta alfredo… so i have that going for me. i thought it might be fun for me to occasionally share some things that i'm making (or attempting to make) and eating. first up: avocado toast.

avocado toast is the most basic and delicious meal or snack ever. there also must be thousands of variations and recipes out there. *googles avocado toast* well, look at that. over 11 million results.

so i start off with a toasted (toasted, people–not warm) piece of sourdough bread. bread is probably one of my greatest loves in life. nothing smells or tastes better than fresh bread–nothing! i then layer a slice of prosciutto and half of a mashed avocado. season the avocado to taste. taking the saltiness of the prosciutto into consideration, i only season it with pepper. but by all means, if you love salt, season with salt to your heart's desire. i then top it off with a few slices of tomato and season it again.

in retrospect, i totally should have added cheese to this. considering how much i love and adore cheese, i don't know what i was thinking leaving it out. a slice of american or monterey jack would do the trick.

enjoy! i should also mention that when i just googled avocado toast, this was one of the first results–MUST MAKE ASAP!

sweet kicks

i feel like there's a certain level of coolness held by a girl that can wear sneakers every day–no matter what she's wearing–and still look stylish. that's not to say that sneakers aren't fashionable or stylish, because as you can see in the photos above, they totally are.

i'm not really that girl. actually, i'm definitely not that girl. but in my head i like to pretend that i am. last fall i bought a pair of black superga classics and i adore them. they definitely became a staple in my fall and winter wardrobe, seeing that i reach for them quite a bit. i also like to channel my inner alexa chung whenever i wear them.

i've shared a few of my favorite pairs below. i'm dying for those perforated vans slip-ons!

{images 1 / 2 / 3 / 4}

oh, love

last week hallie wrote a post about a new york times article on how to fall in love with anyone. you can read her post here, which includes her answers to some of the questions.

of course i read the article, and was shocked and surprised to find out that this study–created by dr. arthur aron–has actually succeeded (...and led to wedding bells). by answering the questions, the participants become more vulnerable by revealing details about themselves, as well as stating opinions about their partner. this vulnerability then fosters feelings of intimacy and closeness between the participants.

there are 36 questions in all; however, i'm going to pick and choose only a handful to answer. here we go...

let's start fresh

is anyone still here? yikes. although i had initially planned a three-week break from blogging, the fourth week came and went and i don't feel much remorse about it either.

before the holidays i shared that i would be taking time off to recharge and refresh, and i'd say that i accomplished both of those things (if tested, i would pass with flying colors). i also used the time to reflect on this blog and really think about the content that i had published over the past year. honestly, it left me with a pretty bad taste in my mouth.

i've been blogging for 2 years, and over that period of time a lot has changed. one of the biggest changes has been my style and taste. when i started this blog, my style was pretty eclectic and naming my blog color me caitie was a natural fit for me. i owned a pair of jeans in every color of the rainbow (polka dotted pairs too), and more often than not i was dressed in a mishmash of polka dots and stripes.

during my last semester of college my taste in clothing, accessories, and decor became more refined. after graduating, and soon beginning self-employment, i no longer felt in-touch or relatable to the color me caitie persona (fact: my sister nicknamed my blog color me blah blah—a fitting name if i do say so myself). i spent almost all of last year just going through the motions with this blog mostly because i didn't know what i wanted to become of it. what could i rename it? given how quickly i moved on from color me caitie, how long would the next schtick last? then what do i do? ugh! too many questions! instead of dealing with this issue, i just moved on from it and kept the routine i was in.

come the holidays i knew that changing up my blog was a task i would have to tackle. and instead of coming up with a new name for it, i've decided to use my own. i know that my interests are going to continue to shift and change, and i couldn't be happier to catalog and share them all here.

as far as posting goes, i really want to give you more original content, and a lot more personality (something this place is seriously lacking!). there was a lot of content that i posted last year that felt like filler content. or posting just to post. or i don't know... just crap. i'm cutting that out and doing my best to only give you the best. so no, i cannot guarantee that i will be posting five days a week, but i hope the posts that i do share will make up for that.

i'm feeling really good about everything, and i have to say i'm really excited too! i'm still making some minor tweaks and changes to this site, so don't be too surprised if things look a little different the next time you stop by! :)