The Sacred Art of Lemonade Stands

Sometimes we get so tangled up in the last days of summer, becoming cloaked in this really itchy, ugly Christmas sweater called ANXIETY and GENERALLY FREAKING OUT, that we forget to do the things we love, like listening to Grimes's "Crystal Ball" over and over again, doodling in Moleskines (sketchbook love), writing stories, and playing with two little mice called Moe and Twinkie.

What a cutie Moe is. She's pretty feisty, though. HEART OF A WARRIOR. Twinkie, on the other hand, likes to tunnel around their cage and eat Frosted Flakes like the glutton she aspires to be.

On Sunday though, two days before the start of 8th grade, I woke up fairly early and started to head downstairs for breakfast. Seriously, FIVE SECONDS passed on the stairs before my dad found me and said, "Why don't you make a lemonade stand?" 

This was an opportunity I could not refuse. My very first lemonade stand. (Well, actually my second. My friend and I made a lemonade stand in 3rd grade. He and I split the two dollars we managed to make.) So, I basically went back upstairs and collected a bunch of old picture books that had no sentimental value and vapid teen magazines and I put them in a little box and then threw that box into a wagon, along with a fancy-schmancy glass pitcher of lemonade and I trucked it to the end of my driveway. Also, fake flowers.

All in all, it was

a really successful lemonade stand. There were always those few bikers that would pass by, obviously not in the mood to stop, and I'd always give them a smile and a piercing stare that said, "Yeah, you better keep cycling."

Ok, I wasn't really thinking that. I'm not as intimidating as I wish I was.

My siblings weren't very helpful, and I'm actually extremely grateful for that. Generally speaking, if my brother or sister lift a single finger for your benefit, they expect a golden calf and a banquet fit for any king. I was not prepared to fork over any of my hard-earned lemon money after they begrudgingly grab the lemonade mix from our kitchen, although I did finally agree to give some money to my sister. She did help reel in the customers with her adorable little freckles and empty-toothed smile.

ISN'T SHE A CUTIE.

AND THEN WE MADE $21.75 AND LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER. AMEN.

iPhone Photo Shoot, and other shenanigans...

Ah, the coveted iPhone photo shoot, an almost sacred artistic endeavor, said no one ever. But sometimes you have to work with what you've got, and frankly the iPhone is a fairly solid alternative if you have nothing else. So, please, work with me people.

Starting with last night: My friend, Maddie, and I decided to head out for a few hours to go and shop. She had never gone to Plato's Closet before, or Salvation Army, bless her soul. I needed to expose her to the fluorescent-bathed beauty that is a thrift store, in all of its broken-in mom jean glory. We weren't that successful, unfortunately, unless you count riding in a shopping cart like a 5-year old in a huge Salvation Army successful, in which case, WE WERE VERY SUCCESSFUL.

See, this is just the amount of class and maturity we bring to our little suburban town. We have so many amazing qualities and talents to share with everyone, like how to properly drive your shopping cart with a friend sitting in it, and how to avoid getting big cuts underneath your calves from the metal rods poking at your flesh (which happened to me. Didn't feel too nice.)

These were the two dresses we picked out. I'm kind of regretting not getting mine, although it was a bit too big. I was kind of in love with the neckline; a small scoop neck like that can be really flattering on A LOT of people. I loved the color on Maddie's, too. Pastels forever.

The last stop was Marshall's (oh how I love Marshall's) and I bought a pretty insane-looking blazer, fairly reminiscent of the Joker. Can't you see the similarities? Oh, and don't mind my face. That's my "I am such a snazzy individual" face.

I think the best thing I discovered there, though, was a little gem of a camera, stuck in a destroyed box and sitting alone on the Housewares shelf. How I felt bad for the little Fisheye2, all alone, with no one to care for it. So the sane thing to do was grab it and run to my mom who was clear across the store, waving the thing around like I had just won the lottery.

The only thing I need is film (expensive) and also a battery for my new Canon AE-1 Program (probably not too cheap either). I thought one of the basic principles of economics is supply and demand, unless there is an international shortage of film and an extreme upward fluctuation of people getting rid of their digital cameras and DSLRs and such. Everything is possible these days, like finding a Lomography Fisheye2 for $15.99 next to a tattered Paula Deen cookbook.

Details:

Work shirt tank - c/o Old Navy (I cut the sleeves off myself. Do this with all of your old blouses immediately.)

Cardigan vest - c/o Plato's Closet

Shorts - c/o Old Navy

Vintage motorcycle boots - c/o my grandma

Flower crown made by me with help from a http://rookiemag.com DIY

I really like this outfit just because it was just really simple. Also, it had been raining, so all of the flowers and greenery were really lush and beautiful. Sometimes nature just shows you simple beauty at its best, like the curve or shape of a leaf, or the pigment in a flower petal. Little things.

Also, I found these flowers that I had never noticed before in my yard. They're ridiculously bright and vivid, and their pink is like this purple-y pastel fuchsia. I think I'll have to paint one of them sometime.

 Poppies are still my favorite flower of all time.

(To-do list: Find that old tripod.)

Greetings, earthlings. I have come to take your Salvation Army.

Sorry. Crappy webcam pic.

      Alrighty, so, being inspired by the plentiful amount of lovely ladies (most under the age of 20) that have started to make a freaking awesome living (not money, I mean life; straight up living, guys) by blogging about FASHION. OH YEAH ANOTHER ONE OF THESE CHICKS, GREAT. 

      Yeah, so I’m particularly new to this gig, but I’m not apologizing for any of my unintelligible rants (or intelligible, it depends on the day). Anyway, the main reason I’m here is because of alternative fashion. Unfortunately, we have to call it “alternative” because of the whole conformist crap that is extremely prevalent in middle/high school. That’s right Abercrombie, I’m looking at you. 

      Maybe by starting this with my cousin, it will help girls my age look at what they REALLY want to wear. Or maybe it just gives them that little inspiration to take a risk. I have absolutely NO idea. If all else fails, I’ll have a really pretty blog with a lookbook type feel to it. 

      So that was a bit of a long introduction. Nadia should hopefully post her’s up, soon.

~Ellie

PS I’ll basically be putting the same stuff up on http://nosferatulle.tumblr.com/, so REMEMBER THAT GUYS. Put it on a pink sticky note. For real.