The Bling Ring

There are two things that can happen when you have a serious obsession with fashion, popular culture, social media, and the city of Los Angeles: You can (A) start a lovely little blog about it. Or (B), join the Bling Ring.*

For those of you who don't know (or have already forgotten.. I haven't!), the Bling Ring consisted of a group of kids from the Valley (more specifically, Calabasas, CA) who burglarized the homes of several A-listers in the Hollywood Hills, including Orlando Bloom, Rachel Bilson, and Megan Fox. While in no way do I condone the actions of these silly little teens, the story is pretty fascinating. Sure, we hear about cases of theft and burglary almost every day. But when the driving force is designer fashion, it's like a fender bender on the 10, heading East.. You have to stop and stare (guilty!).

This obsession to look and live like a celebrity resulted in the formation of the notorious group, led by a pretty wealthy Korean-American teen, Rachel Lee. Through the use of the Internet and social media, Lee and her crew tracked down the whereabouts of their targeted celebs, Googled their home addresses, and made it out with more than $3 million in jewelry and high-end designer goods over the span of a year. Wow.

Yes, it's true, these reported burglaries happened over three years ago, and I'm sure by now you're thinking, "Girl, get over it." But how can I when the chicest director/producer, Sofia Coppola, is bringing the story back to life next year? Coppola, who is best known for The Virgin Suicides, Lost In Translation, and Marie Antoinette (and for being Marc Jacobs' muse!), is currently producing the The Bling Ring, starring Emma Watson, Taissa Farmiga, and new comer, Katie Chang. The stills are both trashy and fierce, with a clear indication of California "cool" (see sunnies and coffee cup in all hands).

via The Film Stage

As I anxiously await the film's debut, I'll be sure to update with more stills and details as they come out. In the mean time, read this and this and get excited with me.

*Just a word of advice.. You probably wouldn't want to join the Bling Ring seeing as most of them are doing time for their actions. Not cute.

As of Late

Easter eggs filled with candy and money! There were only four kids this year for our annual egg hunt, which meant plenty of candy for everyone (aka me). / My mini arm party c/o of JewelMint (Friendship Bracelets) and Brandy Melville (evil eye bracelet). I can wear these with everything! / Turkey burger with jalapeno jam, lettuce, tomato, and avocado from 3 Square Cafe on Abbot Kinney. Def going back for more! / I call this my Rebirth photo from the Santa Barbara Zoo. I'm cute, I know. / Lola, the chubster pup of the office. She's so sweet! / The dock at Fairmount Park in Riverside. This shot totally reminds me of Vada Sultenfuss and Thomas J. in My Girl. / Jared made me dinner for the first time! He made an intense omelet, followed by a delicious pulled pork quesadilla right after. Yum! / This weather has been really confusing. Therefore, I will continue to consume adorable lattes until LA gets it together.

Santa B, Part II

When we woke up Sunday morning, we immediately packed up our belongings, checked out of the hotel, and headed to Old Mission Santa Barbara.

Ever since I was in elementary school (holla if you ever had to build a model of one!), I've always been fascinated with old missions. There is so much beauty and history that lies within these old buildings that it's hard not to want to do some exploring.

Pretty sure I read that more than 4,000 Chumash Indians were buried in the cemetery of the mission. I also realized that much of the missionaries and their families were buried right on top of them. Yeah, that's not very nice. But interesting nonetheless..

On a lighter note, instead of grabbing lunch on State Street, we decided to drive the 45 minutes to Solvang ("The Danish Capital of America") to grab lunch and continue exploring. Best decision ever. Right when we parked, we almost immediately chose The Greenhouse Cafe for lunch, which is described as a "modern Nordic bistro." Not really sure what a traditional Nordic bistro is like, but whatever. I had the Danish Sausage Sandwich, which was sausage, lettuce, tomato, and mayo on toasted sour dough bread. The dishes typically come with red cabbage, but I opted for the potato salad instead. Although the sandwich itself was simple, it was pretty darn delicious.

Typically, I would have gone around the table taking pictures of everyone's plates, but let's face it, we were starving (that's more sausage in the background though, haha). For dessert, we had aebelskivers, which are essentially pancake balls with raspberry sauce and powdered sugar on top.

 I must find a place in LA that makes these or else I'm going to have to buy my own aebelskiver pan to make them myself. UPDATE: they sell these suckers frozen at Trader Joe's, so I never ever have to make them. 

After lunch, we perused the shops and simply observed this odd/cute little town.

I honestly thought I took way more pictures, but I must've been too busy gawking at all of the windmills, homemade coo coo clocks, and clogs. Before we left, we made sure to stop by Mortensen's Danish Bakery to bring home some Danish pastries. Oops, we ate them all before I could snap a shot!

I hope you enjoyed reliving my trip to Santa Barbara County as much as I did! I could probably wait to go back. LA still rules.

Styled: Polka Dot Fitted Sweater

Polka Dot Fitted Sweater | Forever 21, $11.99 Although there were many places to shop in Santa Barbara, I only found something I really liked at Forever 21, and it was such a steal! I'm so excited to pull off Alexa Chung's look either by layering this sweater with a statement necklace and denim skinnies or with a collared dress shirt and skirt. Either way, the neutral colors make it an easy go-to sweater that is both chic and a statement in itself.

Necklace by JewelMint, Astoria Necklace

Love the buttons down the back!

Inspiration: Alexa Chung

via WhoWhatWear

via RDuJour

via AmuseZones

Santa B, Part I

I know I am constantly confessing my undying love for LA, but I have to admit that I love a good weekend getaway! Last weekend, my friends and I did just that by taking a little road trip to the picturesque Santa Barbara County.

The drive to our destination was pretty insane.. Heavy rain, thunder, and lightning. A fire even started on the hillside! Luckily, the days to follow were sunny and clear.

Our first stop on Saturday morning was the Santa Barbara Zoo. Even though I don't own any pets, I'm a sucker for animals, so I was really excited that the zoo was only .2 miles away from where we stayed. Here are my favorite creatures of the day:

But my absolute favorite were the giraffes, especially this little guy!

I even got to feed him. My heart melted!

If you're ever in Santa Barbara, definitely check out this zoo. I have to admit, it's a lot better than the LA zoo.. These animals just seem a lot happier! To be honest, I went to the LA Zoo not too long ago with a plan to post, but it was just too depressing..

Anyway, the rest of the day was spent grabbing lunch, biking along the beach, sipping on lattes, shopping, and then we went straight to bed to rest up for Sunday's events (I'm such a grandma!). Up next.. Old Mission Santa Barbara and Solvang!

Love Letter

One of my all-time favorite songs is from the late, great Rilo Kiley entitled I Love LA. What's crazy about this song is that I have never been able to find a legit mp3 or a hard copy of it (or maybe I'm not looking hard enough?). I've only ever heard the song live (not complaining).

Anyway, after living here for almost three years, I finally feel comfortable enough to call LA my home. This definitely took some time though.. Pretty sure it was just yesterday that I started crying over yet another parking ticket. Or the fact that I somehow ended up in Inglewood again. Or how about the time that I sat in traffic for over an hour just to drive what usually takes 15 minutes? Wait, that's every day of my life, ha! I guess what I'm trying to say is despite all of the shitty days,  thank you, Los Angeles, for all of the adventures, the delicious food, celebrity sightings, fashion, art, culture, and really, just for being you. I Love LA is a beautiful love letter to this amazing city. The video is a little muffled, so click here for the lyrics. You're welcome, and have a lovely weekend!

But when the palm trees bow their heads
No matter how cruel I've been
LA, you always let me back in

As of Late

Our yard sale finds. My sister and I only spent about $10 shopping our block's yard sales! / My favorite dim sum dessert from New Capital in Rowland Heights. My family and I celebrated my parents' 30 year anniversary. Congrats, 'rents! / Leaning tower of Hello Panda at Ranch Market in Rowland Heights. / My mini coconut pie to-go from SimpleThings. / Green tea (ice cream) mochi. Omg. / Adorable bunnies used for a photoshoot at work. Just in time for Easter! / My favorite wall design at Santa Monica Place.