There's one rose sweeter than any that grows.

For mood music to go with the valentine theme, here's a beautiful cover of my favorite sappy love song.

This shirt is my DIY pride and joy. It took me forever to sew the roses on and get them positioned just right. I almost chickened out at didn't wear it today, but I'm so glad I did. I felt really glamorous and it fits perfectly with my valentine-y inspiration as of late. I've been browsing Stylelikeu and it's inspired me to be really creative and expressive with my outfits and not worry about the occasional stare or rude comment. It's funny because my style is pretty tame compared to most of the internet fashion scene, but it can be a little outrageous compared to other people in St. Paul. Sometimes I wish i lived in New York or LA where no one would look twice at me, because I'm pretty shy and don't like to attract too much attention. I'm learning to love standing out though, and I look forward to wearing fake flowers on my bosom for years to come!

I've been having a really fantastic summer so far. I've been trying to fill my days with fun and productive things besides just tumblr, and I've been relatively successful! I'm devouring books and movies (I just rewatched Marie Antoinette for the decadent pastel vibes) and going out to do interesting things in the twin cities. I plan to go to lots of concerts and festivals and spend lots of time outside.

Speaking of, I spent last weekend at the gay pride festival and it was the best! I mostly ate fried food and people-watched. There were so many cute, stylish, outrageous, and/or scantily clad people! For whatever reason there were also a ton of cute dogs. The atmosphere there was so joyful and it felt like anyone would be welcomed and celebrated. Minnesota is facing a potential amendment to our state constitution that would ban same-sex marriage, so the event had a somewhat more political slant than usual. It's really important that we shut this amendment down by voting against it in November, or the rights of queer Minnesotans will be in severe danger. It doesn't mean that if it passes we'll never be able to legalize gay marriage, but it'll make the fight a whole lot harder. Let's crush this stupid-ass law under our fabulous heels and spread love and tolerance instead. Fellow Minnesotans, vote NO!

P.S. brownie points for anyone who recognized the Bye Bye Birdie reference in the title.