Outfits: Birthday Outfit (X2!)

I had a fantastic day yesterday! It may just be the best birthday I've ever had. All of my most important family and friends called and texted me birthday wishes during the day. The Boy and I spent the entire day together today doing fun things out at the lake.

I actually wore two outfits yesterday and documented them both.

Here's my fancy dinner outfit:

Nothing new, just one of my favourite vintage dresses. And of course I wore sandals, we are at the lake of course.  

Vintage multi-coloured dress: Rag Time (Ottawa)

Coral Bangle: Forever 21

Jewel Flats: Aldo

50's Birdcage Purse: Thrifted, Value Village

And this is what I wore during the day:

I didn't notice my necklace had flipped over when I took these photos! Darn!

Sunglasses: Rhymes with Orange

Floral Necklace: Le Chateau

Sequin Tank Top: Ricki's Sample Sale

Green Silk Skirt: Jacob

Black Canvas Flats: George

Thank you again to all my readers for birthday wishes! 


Lisa.xo

30 Things I Learned in 30 Years: Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza!

Whoops! This was supposed to post on Thursday. Don't know what happened! So you get a 2 for 1 today! 

OR: "Dear 20 year old Lisa: Here's Some Advice from a Wiser, Older You"

Life is about growth. I strive to move forward in all things in life. I hope every day that I learn something new, either about myself or the world around me. I thought it would be fun to make a list (another list! can you tell I'm a type "A" personality? lol!) of 30 things I've learned in my 30 years.

1. Take naps.
2. Don't sweat the small stuff.
3. Positive thinking is more powerful than you think it is!
4. Fake it till you make it. 
5. Breath - in bad times it will help you see clearly, in good times it will help you enjoy the moment.
6. An uber clean house is not the sign of a sane mind
7. Spend quality time with yourself.
8. Don’t live in the past, you’ll miss your future.
9. Learn how to accept constructive criticism gracefully.
10. When someone compliments you, don’t be negative, say “thank-you” and smile.
11. Be happy with what you have today. There are a lot of people in the world with a whole lot less, even if there are people with more.
12. Get a dog – life is incomplete without one!
13. Take care of the things you own.
14. You are in control of your own happiness.
15. Love your family with all your heart.
16. Don’t make apologies for your feelings.
17. Be kind to strangers.
18. Eat breakfast 
19. Karma takes care of rude people, you don’t have to.
20. If you hate your job, quit now! There are plenty of jobs in the world.
21. The same goes for anything else if your life that makes you unhappy – change it! You have the power to change your surroundings.
22. Pay attention! You only get to live in this moment once.
23. Cook and Eat delicious food.
24. Laugh! Nothing is better than a good laugh with family and friends.
25. It’s always better to be over-dressed than under-dressed. 
26. Your house should be lived in – you don’t live in a magazine.
27. Walk in beautiful places.
28. Nature documentaries are awesome!
29. Don’t bottle your emotions. Feel them and let them go.
30. If that’s the worst thing that happened today we’re havin’ a good day.
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    Lisa.xo

Flashback Friday: Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza

Today is officially my 30th Birthday.

I thought it would be fun to have a look back on the last 30 years and bring you along!

Let's start at the beginning shall we?

Here's Matt and I at our Aunt and Uncle's Wedding. We must be 4 or 5 here.

Grade 5 School Photo. Look at that hair!

Another Wedding. This one was taken in '96.

This is high school. My Friend Desi and I. This MASH tee was vintage. I lived in it until it fell apart at the seams. 

Grade 10 acting headshot

This is Grade 10. Rehearsal for Twelfth Night. I played Viola

Another high school photo. This one makes me want to cut my hair off again. Look at my phone! It looks like I'm talking into a plastic brick! lol!

Grade 11. Rehearsal for Fiddler on the Roof. I directed the acting for this show. Another vintage tee I wore threadbare. And those pants are vintage 70's wide legs. Loved them...

Grade 12. Backstage for Les Liasons Dangereuses. I played Mme de Merteuil.

High School Grad. As you can see, I've always dressed a little different...

My 23rd Birthday. I had to count the candles on that cake to figure that out by the way. Like that hair? That's a grown out mohawk! 

This photo must be later that summer. I have the same hair.

This is in university. This is my old friend Katherine and I getting ready for Ragpickers yearly $20 All You Can Wear Sale.

My 27th Birthday. Me and the boys. Kim was still living in Thunder Bay.

This was the in-between hair. In-between blonde and brown. I went all brown about 4 months later. I do like this look though.

2009. Nelson Family Reunion at Clear Lake.

And more recently. This was later in 2009. I had started the blog and chopped off all my hair.

Another old blog photo. I love this outfit! I was working at Ricki's at this time. I have no where to dress up this much any more. sigh.

Which brings us to now. And apparently I've chosen to upload a photo with the same blazer! lol! I took this photo for the blog a few months ago.

Good-bye 20's! Hello 30's!!

And thank-you, thank-you, thank-you to all my lovely readers (new and old!) who have left me so many beautiful comments this week and birthday well wishes! Putting together this week's posts has been really fun and I'm really glad you've enjoyed them. 

The Boy and I have a relaxed fun little dinner with some close friends planned for tonight. I'll be posting my birthday outfit (not suit! lol! thanks JMo!) tomorrow, so stay tuned for the final instalment of Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza! 

Thanks again! You guys rock my world! Thank you for reading my blog and encouraging me to keep posting ! :) :) :)

Lisa.xo

Wishlist, the Birthday Edition: Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza

Here's what's on my Fantasy Birthday Wishlist this year:

I'm really loving bakelite these days (like everyone else!), but as usual, I have champagne taste on a beer budget. I like the intricately carved bangles. I'm drooling over these ones on Etsy right now:

buy it here

buy it here

While we're shopping on Etsy, how about this adorable sailor dress?

buy it here

Or maybe something a little fancier

buy it here

And you've got to have a purse to go with your new dress and bangle. I like this vintage ostrich purse, also on Etsy. Wouldn't the pop of turquoise be awesome with the poppy dress? I think so.

buy it here

I've also been in need of a black wicker purse. My summer wardrobe is lacking one. This one is cute. 

buy it here

On a totally different note, I'm dying for a pair of Tara Starlet Sailor Shorts. I'd love Navy or Black.

buy it here

And what list would be complete without some shoes? I'm also dying for both of these styles from Remix Vintage Shoes:

The Babydoll Pump (I'd like Black please)

buy it here

And the Rita. (Is it too much to want a pair in pink and cream? It's my wishlist...)

buy it here

That's probably lots for now!  ;)   I could, of course, go on! lol! I don't have every closet in my house filled for nothing!

Lisa.xo

Lisa's Life List: Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza

I follow a lot of decorating blogs as well as vintage lifestyle blogs. And recently while searching the archives of one of my favourite Canadian decorating blogs Rambling Renovators, I found Jennifer's Life List.

I immediately began writing my own. Here it is:

    TO SEE

1. Take a road trip with The Boy and Dave across Canada

2. Visit Japan

3. Visit Paris

4. Trek around Europe with The Boy

5. See Shakespeare’s birthplace

6. Watch a Shakespearian play at the Globe theatre

7. Visit Hawaii with The Boy- by ourselves

8. Visit The Boy's family in Germany

9. See all of the Louvre

10. Visit the Smithsonian

11. Eat Lobster in PEI

     TO ENJOY

12. See Dita Von Teese perform live

13. Own a piece of quality vintage 50’s Chanel or Dior

14. Swim in the ocean

15. Own an early 50’s classic car and drive it around town dressed up with The Boy

16. Buy more cheap and cheerful flowers at the grocery store

17. Entertain at our house more

18. Get an iPhone

19. Write and send more letters and cards through the mail

20. Dress up and ride my vintage bike somewhere to have coffee on a patio (alone or with a friend)

21. Have pin-up style photos taken

22. Spend more time with my girlfriends

23. Buy a short vintage fur coat

24. Meet Dita Von Teese 

      TO DO

25. Work up to Running/Walking at least 3 times a week regardless of whether I’m working or not

26. Get a better organizational system for my clothes and accessories

27. Drink more water

28. Host a cocktail party

29. Buy a quality tripod for our cameras

30. Sell/Donate anything we’re not using in the basement

31. Take better outfit photos for my blog

32. Learn more about our cameras and taking pictures with them

33. Watch more theatre in Winnipeg

34. Put all our old Black & White photos in acid free boxes

35. Learn how to be the Zen master – like The Boy's Mom

     HOME

36. Renovate the Kitchen

37. Renovate both of our Bathrooms

38. Fix up the patio furniture

39. Create a beautiful patio area

40. Gut the basement

41. Landscape our yard

42. Get Ian to paint our dining room furniture

43. Buy a rug for the living room that The Boy and I both like

44. Grow a potted herb garden

45. Buy more mid-century modern furniture

46. Organize all of our closets

47. Find a better organizational system for our paper and bills – find a place for a desk

48. Fix up the back entrance – bench, hooks, paint etc…

49. Renovate the basement

50. Build a working wet bar with fridge and small dishwasher in the basement

51. Own a summer cottage

     FAMILY

52. Take more pictures and video of my family

53. Start hosting random extended family dinners

54. Cook Christmas dinner for my entire family

55. Get married to The Boy

56. Talk to Opa about his life

57. Have a professional family portrait taken

58. Spend time with Casey as he grows up

59. Walk Dave regularly

60. Be debt free

61. Learn German and talk with Opa

62. Spend more time with Will

63. Call Grandma more

64. Visit Grandma & Grandpa 

     CAREER

65. Stage Manage a large touring show (maybe on a cruise?)

66. Work as a Production Manager

67. Work as a Director

68. Travel more with Work

69. Travel more with TALK, specifically

70. Work as the head Stage Manager at MTC

71. Stage Manage at Stratford

72. Put in enough hours so I can go on EI when I’m not working and not have to get a temporary job

73. Get my Manitoba Film Training Certifications

74. Work on set as an Assistant Director or a Production Assistant

75. Don’t stop acting – do it sporadically

76. Play Gertrude in Hamlet

I'm looking forward to crossing some of these off my list sooner rather than later! :)

Lisa.xo

Lisa's 30th Birthday Week Celebration Extravaganza!

Ok...I might be overselling this one a bit, but you only turn 30 once right?! I turn 30 on Friday this week.

Some people cringe at the thought of turning 30. For some reason they don't want to leave their 20's behind. In February I was one of those people. I was dreading getting older and leaving fun behind.

When I think back my 20's were pretty tough. Especially my early 20's...my Dad died when I was 16: carbon monoxide poisoning at work. He was 38. Only 8 more years than I will be this week. That is a sobering thought: My dad had less than a decade of life left when he turned 30.

Dealing with the grief sent me to some pretty dark places. After high school I had a hard time making friends, I was unfocused at university and was often pretty introverted, at other times I would act out and make bad decisions. Looking back I'm pretty sure I was battling depression in my early 20's. I was really lost.

I'd like to think having my Dad die suddenly really put life in perspective for me. Maybe at times in those early years it did, but certainly not all the time. It was always an undercurrent in my life that's for sure...

What am I trying to say here? The point I'm trying to make is that having my Dad die at such a tender age reminds me now that life is precious. Every day is a gift. These days my motto seems to be: "If that's the worst thing that happened today we're having a good day". I've already had the worst day of my life. The small shit just doesn't matter that much. You never know when your last day here will be. I live every day trying to make good, healthy decisions for myself and I try to do things that would make my Dad proud.

Worrying about turning 30, I decided, is one of those things filed under "Small Shit that Doesn't Matter" because in reality I am happier, more confident, feel more beautiful, more secure and stable than I have ever been in my entire 30 years. How could that be bad? I have a wonderful partner who loves me, a beautiful home and a great, budding career. Who wouldn't want these things?

And besides, I plan on living until I'm at least 90. So 30 only puts me at a third of that age. I'm still young! And I actually still feel like I'm 24 or 25. lol!

So here's to 30!

source

I've got a whole week of Birthday posts planned to share with you. Here's what's coming up this week:

* Lisa's Life List - a list of life goals, big, small, things I want to accomplish
* 30 Things I've Learned in 30 Years OR "Dear 20 year old Lisa: Here's Some Advice from a Wiser, Older You"
* A Special Birthday Edition of my Wishlist series
* Flashback Friday: a look back
* A Special Outfit post of my Birthday outfit

Lisa.xo