S I M P L E M A T H

hat: forever 21 // shirt: mom's closet // skirt: gift // shoes: thrifted // glasses: firmoo





Happy belated Memorial Day everyone! I'm finally back from camping and I have a ton of pictures to share with you, the first of which being these outfit photos. No, I didn't actually wear this all day camping, but I figured the background would be a nice change of scenery from outfit photos in my front yard. Plus I finally got my firmoo glasses in the mail and couldn't wait until I was back home to take pictures of them. They are super fun and I want to wear them all the time. Of course everyone at home is giving me grief because I don't actually need glasses, but I won't let that stop me (at least not yet). I love the fact that something like glasses can be seen as a fashion accessory nowadays. When I was little it was always lame to have to wear glasses, and now it's cool. Next thing you know, people will be wearing braces as a fashion statement ...

These pictures were taken on the second day, so just ignore my camp hair, haha. My brothers went with me to chase the sunlight for these pictures, so you'll see one of them make an appearance down below. That one is Nicholas. William on the other hand actually stayed still for some more creative photos. Currently I'm sorting through the creative vs. documentation photos of the weekend, which I'll hopefully have all posted by the end of the week. :)





As for the events of today, Matt finally came home from college today! It was the most perfect day ever, to say the least. From hanging out with him, to eating dinner with my family, to frolfing and croqueting, not to mention the perfect weather (despite all the mosquito bites I have regardless of soaking myself in bug spray), it was such an amazing day. Summer has officially begun.






Have a great day!

here to stay

sweater: walmart (?) dress/tights: forever 21 // shirt: thrifted // belt/shoes: target




Some pieces of clothing last a lifetime. This sweater is one of them. I have had it since eighth grade (oh look at how much I've grown) and I have no doubt that I'll still have it when I'm eighty. When my mom first bought it for me, I thought it was the coolest sweater ever. Despite my first thought that it was really old ladyish, I liked the green color (my favorite) and the cool design on the sleeves. It was one of the first "fashionable" pieces I had ever owned, if you can call it that. I always would wear it with my favorite red tank top from Eddie Bauer, another thing that I thought was old ladyish, and I would always throw it on top of my t-shirts. (Man, I look so little there! And look at that great selective coloring and rounded edges. Oh man, those were the good old days.) There was a period of time when I hated this sweater as well, because I tend to not like things that just hang from my shoulders, but I'm trying to get out of that habit and wear things based on color and pattern more than structure (though that is important as well). But anyways, this sweater has been with me a lot and it's still one of my favorites. It will be for a long time.




Well if you're reading this, then I am currently camping somewhere in the wild jungles of Alaska, trying not to get attacked by bears or die of frostbite. But seriously, I'm excited to go camping. In light of the Moore tornado, it will be nice to get away from technology and just forget about things for a bit. My facebook/tumblr/instagram have been filled with tornado related news, people asking for help, posting photos and videos; and not being able to help efforts is pretty disheartening. But thankfully our house and our renters are okay. We were finally able to get in contact with them and the tornado missed our house by three blocks. It shrunk in size literally right before it hit and bypassed the structure, save for typical debris damage. The park by our house was totally destroyed though. It's so weird and crazy how one thing is spared and the thing right next to it is gone. But it makes me proud to have Moore on the list of places I've lived, because even in the face of destruction, people come together and find the good in everything.

But really, I think that's true for most humans. When natural disasters strike, it always brings me to tears because of the good in humans. Total strangers come to each other to help. It's a really beautiful thing. Not only does it make me proud to be an Oklahoman, or an Alaskan, or an Oregonian (or wherever I'm living), or an American, but it makes me proud to be a human, to be a part of a universal community of people who, despite our differences, are really not all that different. Rock on, humans.





:) Have a great day!

film friday: freshman year semester two

Freshman Year Semester Two from Lauren Parker on Vimeo.

It's a very special film friday today, because I'm sharing a video that I made! This video features some of the adventures I had during my second half of freshman year, featuring some awesome things like our spy obstacle course and a picnic! I can't believe my first year of college is already over with. Time sure flies by.

You can see the first semester here!

diy polka dot nails

Today I'm bringing you guys a really simple nail tutorial! People ask me all the time how I do my polka dot nails, and really it's quite simple. I went through a phase of my life where I painted my nails all the time, and then one day I switched my lifestyle and didn't do my nails, didn't wear makeup, and didn't use any products on my skin or hair (except for shampoo and sculpting cream, since this was when I had short hair), and then just as quickly as I stopped using products, I started using them again. Now though, I'm pretty minimal when it comes to things, and still try to maintain a level of naturalness, I guess you could say. Painting my nails is one of those things that I'm glad I'm doing again. Firstly, it's really therapeutic. I love painting, and being able to paint right on myself, however weird that sounds, is a pretty cool thing. It's also a fun way to express myself and add extra color. So now I shall reveal the deep secrets of polka dot nails.



Step one: trim

Pictured is nail polish that is starting to chip. That's the sign that I probably should repaint. I paint my nails about once a week, as I'm always doing things with my hands and the paint chips off pretty quickly. First I trim my nails. This step is dependent upon how long my nails are. I hate having long fingernails and like to keep them as short as possible. Plus with short nails you get less dirt and junk underneath the tips.



Step two: remove

Then I use a cotton ball and remove all the nail polish from my nails. After I'm dong removing the polish, I was my hands with soap and water and sometimes put lotion on my hands.



Next I pick out my polish. This is my entire collection of colors minus a few bottles. Eventually I would love to add more shades and end up with a huge selection like Kaylah, but for now I am pleased with how much it's grown over the years.



Step three: clear coat

Before I paint any actual color on, I paint a clear coat. That way my nails don't get stained with whatever color I put on them. Especially during the summer, I like doing cut out designs where you can see parts of the nail, and having nasty orange nails is never a good thing. Currently I'm actually out of clear coat, so for this tutorial I used a translucent shade of silver/gray.



Step four: base colors

I like to alternate my colors on my fingers. Generally on my right hand I paint my index finger and my pinky, and on my left hand I paint my ring finger. The very first time I ever alternated colors, I painted my middle finger, and only realized later the implications. Whoopsies!



Step five: polka dots

Now on to the polka dots! Instead of using the side of your brush like you generally use to apply the base coat, you use the flat rounded bottom of your brush to make the polka dots. I try to leave a tiny bit of excess polish on the tip of the brush so the circles are nice and opaque. Just don't rush through it. These things take a steady hand.



After I painted the initial polka dots on, I went back and added smaller ones on top. You can do this several ways. I was extra careful and just used the brush of my polish, leaving less excess polish on and angling it slightly so that the entire bottom didn't touch the nail. You can also use a toothpick by using your brush to create a palette on your hand or a piece of paper to dip your toothpick in. Also, you can use a colored sharpie to create smaller circles. Just make sure with the sharpie that the polish is completely dry.



Once your nails are dry, simply add a top coat (if you used sharpie, you should note that running a top coat brush over it several times will cause it to start running), and you're done! Now you have really fun polka dot nails that everyone will be jealous of!

If you have any questions, feel free to ask them! And I would love to see your results of this tutorial. You can post a picture in the comments or email a link to a post.

I hope that you enjoyed this diy and that you have a great day!

tooty frooty

dress/belt/skirt: thrifted // tights: forever 21 // heels: target





I bought this skirt a while ago in an effort to add more basics to my wardrobe (don't know how I figured a bright purple velvet pencil skirt was a basic, but whatevs), and haven't yet worn it on the blog yet! (At least, not that I can remember.) Who woulda thunk it was hard to style it, am I right or am I right? But since I have less than half of my (already fairly small) closet home for the summer, I'm sure you'll be seeing this skirt a lot. I think part of the reason I've been having trouble with it is because I tend to shy away from pencil skirts. I much rather prefer ones that flare away, such as this one, but since looking at these pictures, I'm starting to like it a bit more and am already thinking up other ways to style it.





Well the snow's all gone! No matter how hard I try not to talk about the weather, I swear it's in my blood. And I'm so happy the snow is gone! The moose are out, the sun is shining, and the world is once more at peace. You think I'm kidding when I say I'm excited about this warm weather, but I was jumping up and down and soaking the fresh air in. Aaaah Alaskan summer is marvelous.

I just got back from frolfing with friends and general hanging out, and if this is what the rest of the summer is going to be like, then sign me up. It's weird because in high school I felt like I had hardly any friends, but now that I'm done and actually hanging out with people because I want to and because they want to, I don't feel like I'm forced to socialize. I don't feel like I have to try to make a good impression to get people to like me, like I used to feel when going to a new school. I've been thinking a lot about when I first moved to Alaska, and the last thing I want is for this summer to be like the first summer I was here. This summer, I don't feel forced to try to make friends, and now it's just an effort of making the friendships that I do have here stronger. College has a lot to do with feeling comfortable, I am sure. It's helped me know who I am and who I want to be, and it's helped me not be so self conscious all the time and to just have fun and not be so down about not hanging out with people all the time, and to cherish the times I am around people that I care about. I know I've emailed some of you guys about this, and am planning on doing a more in depth post about confidence, but for now I'll just say that I am really thankful for all my friends and I'm thankful I don't have to try to impress them.

Really, today was an awesome day.






I hope you have a marvelous day!

relief print

I spent eight years living in Moore, Oklahoma. The devastation of the May 20 tornado has left me completely humbled, and even though I can't be there to help my friends and the family of Moore, I'm doing what I can where I am. With that in mind, I'm selling this print I created specifically for the people of Moore. You can purchase an 8x10 matte finish print of this photo (which isn't pixely despite this low res web version), which shows the actual tornado, used from a friend's photo with permission. Dated and signed by me. $25 USD. 100% of the proceeds go to relief efforts in Moore.



May 20 Tornado Relief Fine Art Print
$25 USD

Please share this post to spread the word!

pray for moore

shirt/shorts/tights: forever 21 // boots: target





I don't know. I don't really feel right posting this now, but I have to write something and have people be aware of what's going on. (Please just ignore my smiling face in these pictures because they are not an accurate representation of how I'm feeling right now.) In light of my hometown in Oklahoma being destroyed, something like blogging about my outfits seems worthless. My heart absolutely breaks for my friends and everyone affected. I can't even believe it. I can't believe all the footage. I can't believe the pictures that my friends are posting, pictures with playground swings destroyed ... swings just blocks from my house that I used to swing on ... the theater that I watched so many movies in ... homes that I drove by, stores that I shopped at, parks I used to play at ... I can't even believe it. We still don't know if our old house is okay or if the renters are alive. I'm in a state of shock and I don't even know how I'm supposed to continue on with daily life.

I was there for the May 3 tornado of 1999 and it (and all tornadoes I've been through) are really the scariest things ever. I used to have awful nightmares about tornadoes. Part of me loves the beauty of them and the exhilaration when chasing after them, pretending to be storm chasers. But the devastation, all the loss ... gosh, I don't even know what to say.

I wish more than anything that I could be there and help.

pray for moore.

Please please pray for the city of Moore, Oklahoma. I'm sure you've heard the news by now. They were hit with an F4 tornado a mile wide and at least 50 people are dead so far. Moore was my home. My first house that I spent my preschool through first grade years is completely destroyed, and the house that I spent five years in is either okay but has damage, or is destroyed. We can't get ahold of the tenants that live there now, and whether or not it's okay is by a few blocks. We're just not sure right now. Some friends and family are okay, some we don't know about. It's so weird watching the news and seeing the helicopters fly over places I used to drive by or hang out at. It's now all a pile of debris. There's nothing left.

It's one thing when a natural disaster happens somewhere else in the world, but it's another thing when it happens where so much of your life took place. I just want to cry or jump on a plane and go help. I want to do that more than anything and I wish I was there. The news has been on constantly at our house and my facebook has been exploding with concerns, photos, videos, people trying to contact their friends and family ... it's terrifying. Please pray.

summer dreaming

dress/belt: thrifted // scarf: from Matt // leggings: forever 21 // boots: gift




It was just beginning to feel like summer when I spent all night frolfing, driving around, and hanging out with people, but now it doesn't even feel remotely like that. Especially since we got another snowstorm. Well, we officially broke the record for longest winter ever recorded, so Alaska has no more excuses. The weather report says it's supposed to be up to 65 degrees by Friday, so I can only hope.

What I'm really hoping for is it to be warm when Matt gets home (only one week left!), because with him here I really think it will actually feel like summer. Our whole group of friends will finally be complete, so I'm hoping for much frolfing, video game playing, and general schenanigans. And with Matt, laying out in the grass, taking fun day trips to places while singing at the top of our lungs, going to the arcade and hitting the jackpot on the thunder game, or even just having dinner and family game night at my house ... man, summer please come soon!




But for now, it's back to work. I'm officially selling my photos via arcangel images, which I'm very excited about. I signed a three year contract a couple weeks ago and had my first batch of images accepted. I'm still working on keywording everything (which is a lot more time consuming than it seems) and verifying my model releases, but hopefully that will be done in the next few weeks. Until then, if you happen to be a book publisher or magazine editor, you should buy one of my photos!





Have a great Monday everyone!

my week in instagram #44, 45, 46

laying outside with friends // sunny days in Oregon // the dorm room being overrun with boxes // triple "s" award // my roommate pretending to be me // last darkroom print of the semester // first dutch bros // my favorite stretch of road // graffiti to commemorate our first year // finally back in Alaska // back of camera preview for a magazine // filing old Iditarod film slides // getting ready for spring // superman kitty // baby sled dog puppy // watching my boss take photos of Martin Buser and fans

Since getting out of college I kind of fell behind on my weekly instagram posts, so here are some of the highlights of the past few weeks. You can always follow my adventures @impulsings but since being back in Alaska they've been kind of slow thanks to poor reception. Good ol' cell phone coverage.

Have a great day everyone!

Alaskan Summertime

Welcome to a beautiful summer day in Alaska, where locals are coming out of their caves to bask in the great weather. Shorts are coming out, sunscreen is being slathered on, and everyone is excited to get their tan on. This summer we are breaking records in Anchorage, with the longest winter ever recorded. If that doesn't sing Alaskan summer like tunes on the beach, then I don't know what will. So grab a Coca-cola, roll up your beach towel, and head on up to Alaska, land of the midnight sun!

(Just a fun little photo. Yes, my toes were cold. But I figured since we are literally breaking records over here, I should take advantage of it. But now Alaska has no more excuses to dump snow on us. Cease the nonsense!)

film friday: mademoiselle maurice - origami street art

Mademoiselle Maurice - Origami Street Art from ufunk parseError on Vimeo.

Love all the little beautiful things that people do to make the world a happier place.