Valley Books

Recently I took a trip to Solvang. My grandparents owned a house in Santa Barbara and when I was a kid my parents would visit Solvang ever chance we got. If you haven't visited Solvang yet I urge you to do so. It is one of the coolest places. The locals are really chill and friendly and they have a great brewery which I plan to visit again. One of my favorite places that I happened upon was Valley Books. Nestled in the heart of this small town is Valley Books, a neat independent used book and internet cafe that has the kind of feel and nostalgia to it that you long for. With all the beautiful book stores disappearing around us it is a rare treasure with cool books and great coffee. They seriously make some of the best soy lattes that I've ever tasted and I loved the atmosphere. I actually ended up coming back multiple times during my two day stay. For all you fashion enthusiasts Solvang has some really cool artisans, diy jewelry artists and comfy knit scarves, hats etc. You can find some of these items at Valley Books along with some cool used books and cds. It is like having a live etsy store, yummy cafe and old school book store all in one. Looove!

Check it out here: Valley Books

My memories suite software giveaway!

Hey guys :> I am doing a give away of a really cool photo scrap booking editor called My Memories Suite. Ever since I was young I have loved scrap booking. It is really nostalgic and cool to be able to put all my memories together in one big album. My memories is awesome because if you want to save paper like I do you can create your own scrap books and put them on your computer but if you want to have something a bit more tangible you can also make your own album and print it out or even make your own personal photo album or book out of it. I love diy projects so this is right up my alley. I don't like having to pay someone else to do make photo albums for me and sometimes find it a bit impersonal. With this software you can do it all yourself and have complete creative control, whether you are doing a modeling photo shoot or just want to create your own wedding or friends night out album. I am a photography nut and I love shooting anywhere from vintage lomography, holga and poloroid to more modern digital slr stuff. If you want to get your hands on this software, its an $80 value and really worth having. Liz Gardner from My Memories was kind enough to give me one to give away to one of my blog readers for free. Honestly I tried it out and it is so much fun. There is a lot you can do with this program. I was up all night playing with all the interesting features. They are simple to use and have tutorials as well. You can add shapes, backgrounds, choose backgrounds that others have made or create your own. There are free backgrounds as well as ones you can purchase if you wish. To enter my giveaway contest all you have to do is go to My Memories and choose your favorite digital paper pack or layout and then comment in underneath this post which one was your favorite. I will read the comments and pick a lucky winner at random by October 28th right before Halloween.

The page I made with My Memories:

Grace

Gothic tank, Hot Topic. Skirt, clothes swap.

Gothic ball gown, Lip Service.

Velvet red top, Lip Service.

See through top, Morbid Threads.


Photo Credit: Paul Pardue

Gothic summer style

Whenever summer rolls around I get the same question over and over: are you going to ditch the black pants, shirts etc.? Nope not a chance. Black will always be one of my favorite colors and I don't like to compromise my style. I found some great stuff at Lip service and Tripp NYC that I think works just fine in the summer. I've pretty much been in love with Tripp's bondage skirts and pants since high school and wear them year round. When it gets super warm I just put on a tube top and voila very comfy summer fashion for this little vampire :>

Tube top, boob tube top Lip Service. Pants, Tripp NYC.

Coffin purse, Demonia. Laced top, the Gothic Shop (UK), Skirt, Tripp NYC.

Winners of No slow jams teddy bear skirt and lace comic tee

A few days ago I did a small post about Elektra Johnson's etsy store: No slow jams. Very cool clothing indeed!! The lucky winners of the teddy bear skirt and lace tee are Ellie and Amanda!

I do frequent giveaways for the readers of my blog and I have many generous designers, friends and artists that give me some cool stuff to give away. Sometimes I even give away cool shoes and other jewelry I've done shoots in so if you want to participate just follow my blog.

Below is my winner Amanda in her new teddy bear skirt. I came to Amanda's work at Peets Coffee to surprise her and she was pretty darn stoked :> Congrats guys!!

Alice in Wonderland grad party

So for my graduation party my friends and I threw an Alice in Wonderland themed bash. I just kind of had to share this with you. It is one of those things that inspires me.