Batonga 30 Day Dress Challenge: Day Fourteen

+ Matt's Graduation Party!



the dress: as shirt // skirt: thrifted // shirt/belt: mother's closet



(also day 135 in my 365 project)




Today has been such an exciting day! It started off with me getting my nails done with one of my friends (something that I haven't done in years), running around getting last minute things ready for graduation (I bought those shoes I posted on instagram ... aaaww yeeah!), and ended it with going to Matt's graduation party!




I still can hardly believe we're graduating TOMORROW. I'm trying to find the words to describe it, and really nothing comes to mind. I'm just excited and nervous and can't seem to grasp that twelve years of schooling are almost over and I'm about to head off on a brand new adventure.





One thing that I can get used to is all the graduation celebrations! Matt's party was fun, with yummy Alaskan barbecue and mac and cheese and other deliciousness. It was even warm enough to eat outside! The sun was so bright and the water was probably above freezing. Matt and I talked about how two years ago I would NOT have said it was warm outside. Crazy to think that two years ago today my family took the two week long road trip through the United States and Canada to get to Alaska. I wouldn't trade this crazy adventure for anything.





Isn't the necklace that Matt's mom got me for graduation just the cutest?





That was taken at 10:30pm, and as I was driving home the sunset made all the snow on the mountains glow pink. It was the most beautiful thing and I was sad it's illegal to take photos while driving. But we gotta keep all our focus looking out for crazy moose crossing the highway (a couple days ago I almost died because of those stinkers).

All in all, it was a fantastic day. And TOMORROW IS THE BIG DAY!! I'm waking up bright and early and won't be done till late at night. Eek! I'm so excited!

And tomorrow marks the halfway point for the Batonga Dress Challenge! So if you've been enjoying the different looks I've been coming up with for this dress, you should donate to support girls education in Africa. Every little bit helps!

lines

day 134

Today was spent sleeping, driving around, and working on things for graduation.

This is a sneak peak of a future diy post. I didn't really take any other photos today, but that's quite alright.

Batonga 30 Day Dress Challenge: Day Thirteen

the dress: as skirt // shirt: mother's closet // button down: boyfriend // tights: walmart // shoes: thrifted + diy



Happy Sunday and Mother's Day everyone! Today has been such a lazy day that ended up being really productive. After waking up early to make breakfast for my mom and grandma and taking some photos for church, I went home and took a four hour nap. Seriously, what is wrong with me? I think I'm catching up on all my missed sleep from school.




But after my cat nap (with a cat actually cuddling next to me) I started working on the first diy project of the summer! If you follow me on instagram (@impulsings) you'll kind of know what it is. ;) My hands are still stained with spray paint but that's okay because that means I'm happy.

I've noticed that I am extra happy when I'm productive. If I'm sitting around being bored, I get more depressed and feel worthless. But if I'm doing things and creating art and going out and being active, then I am the happiest person in the world. Right now I feel spectacular and I plan to keep it that way.



Also, these photos were taken by my little sister, so thank you, Moriah!

As always, I'm wearing this dress for 30 days to raise money for girls to receive a full education in Africa.

Donate today!

Batonga 30 Day Dress Challenge: Day Twelve

the dress: as shirt // skirt: thrifted // shoes: thrifted // earrings: noble town vintage

day 133
I could see for miles, miles, miles






Today has been spent driving people from one place to another, listening to classical music, eating cereal on the road, and taking many photos on film.

A question was posed yesterday about how often I wash my dress and how I decided to use this one. I replied in the comments, but I thought I would answer again in a post. I'm washing it about once a week, as long as I don't sweat in it, haha. But I also try not to wear it all day. I usually take it off as soon as I get home from school/church/running errands or whatever so that I can wear it more between washes.

As for choosing the dress? It was sort of an impulse decision. My friend gave me the dress and when I decided to do the 30 day challenge that was the first dress I saw hanging in my closet. And so far it's been an awesome choice because even though it's floral, it's acting much like a neutral color so I can wear it with a lot of stuff. It's definitely good for stretching what prints and colors go together and I love that.

The trick in mixing florals (and I'm no expert, but this is what I hold to be true) is that generally it's easy to mix dark florals (like my dress) with light florals (like my skirt). Again, the dark florals serve as a neutral color so it works.

When deciding what to pair it with today, I almost didn't wear the skirt. I thought, "Man, it's cold outside and I'm going to be in and out of the car a lot, I don't want to be freezing." But then I thought, "When in the world has weather gotten in the way of what I wanted to wear?" It reminds me of the cold winter days when I couldn't stand outside for more than five minutes without my fingers going numb, with the snow blowing in my face and my feet getting soaking wet, but I still did it nearly every day to get a good photo. And now I'm being a wimp in this forty degree weather. But still, it's a lot colder now than it was this time last year ... when will Alaska realize that it's summer?

Well I am off for a date, so I'll leave you with my plea to help girls in Africa. But seriously, if everyone who reads this blog donates just five dollars, we will have raised over $300. It's really not that much per person, and you're helping to change the life of a girl.

So donate to the Batonga foundation today to support education for girls in Africa.

Have an awesome day everyone!