polka dots make me happy

Hello friends of the internet, meet the new inspirational collages on the wall of my room at my grandma's home. Hello new inspirational collages on the wall of my room at my grandma's home, meet my friends of the internet. AW LOOK AT THIS CONNECTION SUCH A BEAUTIFUL FUTURISTIC MOMENT EEK SQUEAL TIMEZZZ.

Um. Anyways. As made obvious by that unawkward and totally natural encounter, here are some new collages. That are inspirational. That are in my room. At my grandmas. The end.



1. "Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and go do it because what the world needs is people who have come alive." - Howard Thurman. Many virtual high fives and possibly even a McFlurry to the supremely smashing Sarah (check out that amazing alliteration?!) for introducing me to this quote. I am now obsessed. JEEZ THANKS. I mean, really, thanks. I love it. It makes me feel good and optimistic and feeling good and optimistic is always GOOD... and optimistic. I need to stop. I find that I'm always writing in roundabouts on this blog thing... But really, people who are alive have a special aura that we should all try to obtain and radiate. It's beautiful.



2. "I, not events, have the power to make me happy or unhappy. I can choose which it shall be. Yesterday is dead, tomorrow hasn't arrived yet. I have one day, today, and I'm going to be happy in it." - Groucho Marx. I've posted this. Multiple times. I think we can conclude that I love this quote. It just encapsulates life. This was my motto for the entirety of my senior year and GUESS WHAT? Yeah, that's right. I'M BRINGING IT BACK BAYBAY.


(Collages by me. Made from various materials. By "various" I mean National Geographics. And threads. And pens. That is all.)

So yeah. There we go! Collages! Hooray! Hip! Hip! Hooray!

Aw, geesh! Have I overused exclamation marks AGAIN?! Oh, I must be in a good mood today! OH WAIT. You are just way to freaking intelligent, girrrrl! (Um, did I just talk to myself? By saying "freaking intelligent"? And "girrrl"? This is getting awkward...) Um, as I was saying, I am in a good mood today!!!!! (extra exclamation marks to detract from awkwardness of post thus far) Why? Because I just had the most fabulous afternoon that I just want to snip out of my life and linger in for a few hours longer PERHAPS. Guess what I did?! I spent three hours watching paint dry! OH SNAP I FOOLED YOU. (This is a sneaky tactic on my part. By introducing you to a "lame" or "cliche" option, any other alternative is relatively "cooler" and, consequently, my afternoon automatically sounds awesome. I'm clever like that.) (It's like in that Lizzie McGuire episode when Matt tried to buy some sort of scooter or something and he started off by listing more expensive items to his parentals so the scooter or something ended up looking relatively cheaper, DOES ANYONE KNOW WHAT I AM REFERENCING? Lenny, his silent friend, was involved in that episode. Oh gosh, I will smooch you on the lips if you understand what I supposedly think is really important to reference and include and just pretend it is YEAH.)

ANYWAYS, my awesome afternoon consisted of going to the Kensington Market (a neighbourhood with amazing vintage shops and bohemian hippie vibes in Toronto) on PEDESTRIAN SUNDAY. This is probably the best idea I've ever encountered in the existence of the universe. It's the basic equation of really good looking and individual people + vintage shops + cafes + creativity and dancing and live music and costumes and free roaming on the streets and OH MY I COULD NOT CONTAIN MYSELF. (Literally. They had this amazing band (seriously, the term "band" doesn't even cover the awesomeness of this ____'s music) and I turned into one of those freaks in bright colours dancing by myself like a lunatic. But the POINT is, there were other freaks in bright colours dancing by themselves like a lunatic and THAT is why this day was awesome.) Anyways, I think my smiles surpassed normalcy today and that's a good thing. I wish we had more days of freedom and individuality and expression and creativity and love. It was basically like a pigment extracted from my perfect world. Seriously, so many moments of "IS THIS REAL LIFE?" That's the best. (And I should have taken pictures. But I didn't. Yeah, I suck, get over it, etc. Just Google it. Or Bing! it. As my dad says. Who uses Bing!? My dad. That is all.)

ANYWAYS I HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A SMASHING WEEK AND HAD A SMASHING WEEKEND AND YEAH YOU'RE ALL BEAUTIFUL CREATURES. (Disregard all the caps. I know they hurt your eyes. I'm just to lazy too retype all that again in itsy letters/ proper grammar. Irony: my exclamation is about 2.32 times longer than that sentence I could have easily retyped but didn't because I'm too lazy to, yet I am typing this ridiculously long exclamation and SERIOUSLY WHY AM I STILL SPEAKING?) yeah, xoxo.

What has been a recent highlight in your lifetime?

of course i wish on 11:11

It's been over a week. I get it, okay? I suck and let's move on. Oh, but before I move on, I may as well sputter my excuse. Trust me, it's a good one: ahem, I've been wayyy too busy attending multiple high class fashion parties filled with sparkling champagne and hobnobbing with exquisite guests. Yeah. I'm a fancy girl. NO BIG D. Oh, and, um, just as a side note, by "multiple" I mean "one." And by "fashion parties" I mean "high school reunion." And by "sparkling champagne" I mean "water." And by "hobnobbing" I mean "catching up." And by "exquisite guests" I mean "ex-classmates and teachers." But you know. Surely, the principle is still there? Glamorous parties and high school reunions? Pfft, practically synonymous if you ask me. Go ahead. Thesaurus it. I DARE YOU. (No, really. Please don't.)

That's my really long-winded way of saying I went to my high school reunion yesterday. It's rather hilarious since we've only been apart for, like, a week. (And by "a week" I mean "four months.") (Are you getting sick of my inability to just get to the freaking point already yet?!) Okay, I'll just get to the freaking point already... This is what I wore.

I was actually really excited about the whole "semi-formal attire" thing that was required. Because contrary to what my awesomeness may lead you to believe, I do not, in fact, get invited to many swanky parties and glamorous events. I KNOW. CALM YOURSELF. Is that a heart-attack I see coming your way? COMMENCE YOUR HEAVY BREATHING EXERCISES NOW. It's a SHOCK for all of us! It's okay. I've discovered that human beings are simply jealous of my awesomeness and are intimidated. I'm powerful like that. I'm still as cool and swanky and fancy as you all think I am. (Woah! Dream big! Go fly a kite!) (That was a Juno reference. Neat-o.)



This dress is way awesome. Do you know how awesome it is? Once upon a time, I stumbled across it. I thought, "this dress is awesome." However, the price tag read $50 and sadness ensued. BUT, OH, THERE IS A SILVER LINING. For two months passed and BAM! The awesome dress was marked down to $16. In conclusion, I'm psychic and channeled my inner "patience is a virtue." Evidently, my wisdom transcends way beyond my years of existence. Some say I'm the next Oprah. Oh, and another irrelevant/ boring thing to note about this dress is that it used to be about one foot longer. I kid you not. I looked like Belle in it. As in that Disney princess with the ridiculous dress. I thought it was fun. Unfortunately, the 1800s is, you know, not existing today so, at last, some snipping and stitching ensued and bam! here we are today! And now you know a lot about this dress and it's possibly getting awkward in a "should I unfollow this chick?" kind of way. Um. Basically, thank you high school reunion for giving me the opportunity to get fancy and wear this dress. (That is, until, those swanky invites come my way. One day.)

Seeing high school people was weird. I mean, I know it's only been four months, so before you get all, "it's only been for months," my golly I KNOW IT'S ONLY BEEN FOUR MONTHS. But still. Given that I've been with many of these people for at least four years, four months of separation is weird. And coming back together is also weird. I guess graduation day never really felt completely, totally the end since I always knew that I'd be seeing a lot of these faces again at this reunion. But now? Now it's the end. Screw swanky fashion parties, I never even went to high school parties!!! Consequently, I wonder how many of these people I'll actually keep in touch with? See again? It's a hard concept to grasp and I'm very aware that we're all moving forward and high school is a blip of the past. It's weird. I guess I'm realizing that my school environment has defined me for essentially all my life; I mean, I spent more than forty hours a week in that thing! I guess now I'm in the process of figuring out who I am outside of the school community? I honestly thought that I'd be sputtering out rainbows of joy upon reaching the end of high school. But I guess I'm realizing just how much it has defined my life so far. And how much it really has given me. (Again, I think I'm only remembering the good bits. My sister was doing functions homework this weekend. MATH NEVER AGAIN PUHLEASE.) Right now, it's about moving forward and growing from the past. It's scary, but exciting. I think being in high school made me a dreamer; it ignited the "there's gotta be more than this" in me. Yesterday made me remember that. I'm ready to dream away again!

On a side note, I don't know how many of my readers are in high school, but if you are, here it goes: take a deep breath and CHILL OUT. It's high school. It will be over before you know it. But I don't think it's something that you just want to "get over" - it's something that you should enjoy, or try to enjoy. The people you meet are going to disappear from your daily life before you know it. So don't give a fuck what they think. Find something you love that's removed from social drama and social circles and go do it. Do the things you love and don't do the things you don't feel comfortable with. You don't know who "you" are yet and it's tough. So just go with your heart. Do what feels right. Not what the media or your peers says is "right." Your heart. And, really, this is the biggest one: talk to people. High school is filled with cliques and generalizations and stereotypes and I won't lie, I was a victim of that. Generalizing people, giving people labels. Don't do that. The most valuable thing I've taken from high school is we're all just human beings. Finally, in senior year, I tried to talk to a lot of people individually - find out what they're about, what makes them tick - and I'm really glad it did. I found that when people were removed from their friends/ social pressures, they were actually all just... humans. Everybody is going through the same shit you are and everybody is struggling and everybody is just trying to have a good time or fit in or move forward. Please. Get to know people before you judge. They will be gone before you know it. Everybody is human. High school is a weird, toxic environment and know that there is life beyond it. Chin up. Make the best of it; it says a lot about your spirit.

Phew. I feel like I'm the Breakfast Club or something. Hooray! If you read all that, we should totally form a clique of simply AWESOMENESS. Yeah. THE END.

What did you take away from high school? How has life changed post high school? If you're still in high school - HAH! SUCKER! (kidding), How are you liking it? How do you picture life post high school?

(Jacket - Value Village $3.50, Dress - Vintage $16, Tights - F21 $10, Shoes - Thrifted $1 (!!!!), Bow - Value Village $3, Jewelry - Assorted)

Have a great week, darlings! I have a lot of outfit posts lined up. But I think we've both determined that I suck, so *fingers crossed* for prompt posting. Till next time... YOU'RE ALL BEAUTIFUL CREATURES.

pop tarts are delicious

HOWDY PARTNERS! Ahem. Howdy? Partners? Seriously, Lexy? SERIOUSLY? Whatever, western is very 'in' and things and I JUST WANT TO BE A COW BOY GOSH DARNIT.

Ahem. Again. Well, this is sufficiently awkward as you now question whether my disappearance was due to being a bad blogger or, seemingly more likely, being placed in a scientific experiment that makes human beings stare at microwaves too long and, consequently, become insane (according to my mom. she's anal like that). Or something. Ahem. Again, again. Can we just *smooth transition* it over to the pictures? You all cheer an hallelujah and a hip hip hooray and we transition and SUCH A BEAUTIFUL MOMENT! We all share a collective sigh of relief, kind of like that moment when you're squatting over the toilet after copious amounts of pee-dancing and uncomfortable wiggling and seriously WHY AM I STILL TALKING?!

My family is a giant dork. I don't know if that sentence makes grammatical sense, but that is the best word to describe us: dorks. A euphemism might be "cute," but that's in the "aw, you guys are so dorky, but I want to be a kind soul, so I'll just say cute" sense. This theory could be proven with various events, such as family game nights and Thanksgiving hikes. I wouldn't have it any other way! DORKZ 4 LYF, BRAH.




Here is the sibling and I. The sibling looks like Where is Waldo. HAH! She always comes up with strange analogies for my outfits (namely, just raised eyebrows that say OH SO MUCH), so now I'm being the witty one here. Please laugh. Or nod. Or something.



And I know it's tradition to start off a post with apologies and excuses but HEY NOW! I'm a non-conformist! I go against the grain! Therefore, I will end my post with apologies and excuses and stuff because I turn things on their head LIKE THAT. HEAR ME ROARRRR. Bitchez.

Ahem. Yeah, so, I've been non-existent due to things such as 1) laziness and 2) being artsy and going to poetry slams. THAT'S RIGHT. This week is kind of a big deal over here so I've been committed to the ART. Aka I'm the biggest stalker/ groupie zomg it's scary. You know how there were always the cool kids in school and you wanted to be friends with them, but the closest you could ever get was being graced in their presence? (Hypothetically, of course. Because we're hipsters and non-conformists and things and this never occurred.) This is totally like that. You know what they say: If you can't join 'em... follow 'em (?). Sure.

I think the greatest things about poetry slams is the vibe. Everyone there is so freaking passionate and genuine and someone described the experience as "like watching a sportsgame" and it really is like that and zomg it's amazing. And the poetry is amazing, too, of course, because it's all "DANG, that's so what I was thinking, but wtf you say it so beautifully"-ish. I have this irrational fear of going up to poets and complimenting them due to the collision of contradictions being 1) my awkwardness and 2) the fact that they are extremely, extremely eloquent. So I will just watch from afar and hope one of them comes up to me in a "nice skirt/ thanks, it was my mom's in the 80s/ vintage, cute!" way. (Mean Girls reference, ANYONE?) It feels like all the poets there have found their niche and I'm all like THAT'S SO BEAUTIFUL AND WHERE IS MINE.


What is your "niche"? Super duper curious - DO LET ME IN ON IT! (lexy's definition of "niche": place/ time/ scenario where you feel most happy/ most like yourself/ most alive)

Have a splendid day!

I like my orange juice with pulp

FRIENDS AND THINGS! Yeah. Hi there. I hope you're all doing jolly and good and what not. I am. Doing jolly and good and what not, that is. THANK YOU FOR ASKING. (Kidding. I'm not being sassy. I know you'd ask me "Are you doing jolly and good and what not?" if we were in real life and, for that, I thank you from the bottom of my heart. Insert sappy tears and oscar speeches and what am I even talking about?)

ANYWAYS. The weather the past few days has been, quite frankly, MARVELOUS. (These photos aren't a reflection of that.) Seriously, I have had a perma-smile on my face the past little while due to the blue skies and sunshine and things. Honestly, it wasn't until I moved to Toronto a few weeks back when it occurred to me that, hey, maybe I'm a wee bit of a tree-hugger. I find myself prancing at Toronto's abnormal city pace (IT'S ALWAYS ON HIGH SPEED. NOT NORMAL) and thinking to myself, "Well, I kind of miss my bike and the parks and the trees and the stars and can I please just become a bird already?!" Apparently I'm a closeted hippie forest creature or something? Time to start playing the harmonica and burning incense and wearing hemp and knitting grass? Okay, sure Lexy...

The other day (Friday, that is) was BEAUTIFUL. I spent the morning walking along the harbour and reading books and doodling and sleeping and eating grapefruits and blah blah blah. The point is, I skipped into the mall, thinking, "Well, yippee! Today will be an easy day as no one will be shopping as it is beautiful outside as ---" That thought? It never finished. Why? There I was. Stopped. In my tracks. Mouth? Dropped. People? EVERYWHERE. I basically spent the majority of my Friday shift hating the customers just a little bit. Sure, I maintained my friendly smile and annoyingly chipper, "Hello! How are you today?" while, really, I was thinking, "Hello! WHY THE HELL ARE YOU VOLUNTARILY INDOORS? GO RIDE A BIKE OR GO ON A WALK OR SIT ON A HAMMOCK OR SOMETHING." I don't understand people. There is much irony in the fact that I am working in a mall at a big, corporate store. I'm telling you, hemp making and grass knitting is an industry that I should be a part of. (Or invent. Does grass knitting exist? It should. Eco is very chic and I reckon it would do well this season.)



Oh, and remember when I was in high school and applying to programs and making portfolios and things? Yeah? Probably not, because I never really posted much from my art portfolio, so maybe I'll get on that. IN THE MEAN TIME, here's a relevant image? One dem portfolio applications called for a "fashion illustration of a favourite handbag." (Looks familiar? Scroll above! Har-har, NOW do you see the whole "relevant image" thing?) Quite frankly, I thought drawing an inanimate object was a pretty dry/ dull task, so I thought I'd give it a dose of fun and humour. But then I was all, "zomg thatz so nawt fashiony enuff but I dunt have time to change it! freakoutzzz!" Somehow I ended up with a 100% on the illustration portion of the portfolio, so I will have a belated celebration (i.e. right now) by watching Ugly Betty in a sleeping bag while outside. Maximization of joy and comfort and laziness. I AM EFFICIENT, KIDS.

(Illustration by me, water colour and pen & ink)

I've been having oodles of fun here so, like, yay me and what not. I took advantage (I took advantage? That's such a "grown up" phrase) of the beautiful weather and ventured off to Toronto Island on Thursday which was the BEST DECISION. If you're in Toronto, I suggest you channel your inner hippie and go to the other side. It's beautiful. I felt like I was trapped on a dessert island and I reckoned that I would do quite well surviving on sunsets and stars and beautiful scenery. Now, I'm heading home to see the family and eat food and enjoy Thanksgiving. Which brings me onto the whole HAPPY THANKSGIVING, CANADIAN READERS thing. Yippeee! To everyone else, I hope you're having beautiful weather or, at least, a beautiful day!

xoxoxo I am now off to grab my sleeping bag and go outside and watch Ugly Betty and maybe eat a grapefruit. I'm being completely serious. THANKFULLY. (What a let down it'd be if I wasn't...)
What's your favourite way to spend a day?

(Shirt - Value Village $3, Dress - Vintage $5, Tights - Unknown, Shoes - Salvation Army $7, Pins - Nepal, Bag - Random gift from my childhood that I salvaged from a garbage bag of donations, Hair elastic - Dollar Store $0.25)

it's getting chilly

A sleeping bag is currently suffocating my entire body. It is wonderful. The weather is getting chilly. Scratch that. Freezing. It's not idealistic for a child who's living out of a suitcase at her grandmother's house*, but it does make for a good excuse to spend a chilly Sunday night lounging around in sweats and eating muffins and not exiting the room and knitting and finally updating the blog and rediscovering the wonder of Ms. Betty Suarez of Ugly Betty. Yes, THIS IS THE LIFE. (I'm not even being sarcastic. I am a crazy soul, I tell you.)

*Oh, and speaking of being a "child who's living out of a suitcase at her grandmother's house" (really, Lexy? did you just quote yourself?), there's irony in that statement. As in, even though I am lacking in attire HERE at my grandma's house, my closet, back at home, is lacking in attire EVEN MORE. Shbam! Cool story, bro! The point to this fascinating story is this: lack of clothing results in creative dressing. I was home a week or so ago and the lack of attire at home resulted in my scrummaging to make an outfit out of shenanigans that normally inhabit the bottom of the black hole of my closet. So yeah, if you haven't seen any of the items I'm wearing in awhile/ in your entire lifetime, then that is why. Mystery closed. I'm, like, Sherlock Holmes or Nancy Drew or Scooby Doo or Detective Lexy or something.

The detailing of this top is simply MARVELOUS. I was hesitant to purchase it because of its colour - OR LACK OF. Har, har. But the scale-like texture was far too enticing and enough to make me swoon and overlook its colourless tendencies. Thus, cha-ching. (This was, like, four months ago. Refer to the whole "clothing inhabited in the black whole of the closet thing.") (I see. Quoting yourself again, Lexy? You really must stop doing that. It's lame.) Oh, and in case you're like the 2 old ladies that asked me about it (on separate occasions!), I DON'T know how I am going to wash it. I JUST DON'T KNOW. CAN I PLEASE JUST LET IT BE STINKY AND LET NATURE TAKE ITS SENSUOUS STENCHY COURSE?! Mmmmhmm. OKAY.



By the way, you know how I'm really fierce and stuff? Yeah, I'm really fierce and stuff... I mean... DUH.


I've recently been pondering about really deep, emotional, and political subjects. An exemplar of one of these subjects - probably near the top of the list with respect to gravity and intensity - would be MY AWKWARDNESS. Academic terms associated would include things like "evaluating my weakness" or "seeking room for improvement." I, however, prefer something along the lines of, "LEXY GET YO ACT 2GOTHER GURL." I've discovered that I'm not awkward... really. I mean... like, um... I'm eating candy right now! (Kidding. I'm trying to be, like, ironic by exaggerating my alleged awkwardness. And thus proving I'm really, in fact, not awkward. Because attempting to be funny and ironic is so, like, nawwwt awkward. Right... I don't even know where I'm trying to go with this reverse-psychology mumbo-jumbo and what my point even is and whether I've concluded whether I'm really awkward or not awkward.)

But really. Socially, there are certain aspects of my personality that I'd like to, you know, tweak. For instance: I am terribly shy in large crowds, I am not the best for standing up for what I believe, I fear what other people will think of me, I don't want to sound silly in front of the wrong people... I've never thought of myself as insecure... but maybe I'm insecure? I'm sure these can all be attributed to "growing up" and will, hopefully, disappear in a cloud of purple dust one day! But until then... I'll just continue to eat my candy and eavesdrop on conversations and things and attributing it all to "awkwardness."

(Blazer - Value Village $3.50, Shirt - Thrifted/ Vintage $5, Pants - Value Village $4, Shoes - Vintage $35, Headband - Ophelie Hats, Bangles - gifted)

Sorry for this mumbo-jumbo of a post. But... better a mumbo-jumbo than nothing at all? Sure. Have a beautiful week darlinz! xxx

What are some things that you'd like to change/ improve on yourself?