Hi lovelies!
It’s been a while since I’ve done a life update so here we are ๐ And if you’re looking for an elegant black holiday outfit idea, I’ve got you covered! Read on for more details!
Outfit Details
Chicwish Lace Top c/o (also in blush pink) | Chicwish Brocade Skirt c/o | Chicwish Black Faux Fur Coat c/o | Charlie Stone Black Flats c/o | UNO de 50 Collar Necklace c/o | LC Lauren Conrad Handbag (old – similar here) | Asos Pearl Headband (old – similar here and here)
Although the holidays are looking much different this year, I’ll look for any excuse I can to dress up ๐ When I saw this gold and black brocade skirt, I knew it would be perfect for the holidays! It’s so regal and elegant… definitely fit for a princess! I just love the way it looks with this lace top and although both showcase a floral print, I think it works well together (think of it like print mixing but with fabrics!). This faux fur collared coat is the cherry on top and looks much more expensive than it really is. I’ve worn it out and about this week while I ran some errands and I got so many compliments. These adorable vintage inspired flats and gold choker necklace are the perfect finishing touches for a glamorous holiday look! ๐
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And now for some huge life updates!
Firstly, an update on the world situation. We just got our second stay-at-home order.. and it ends after Christmas ๐ Almost all business are closed (again… not that we opened them in the first place lol!) and we are not supposed to see anyone outside the household including over the holidays. California has had some of the strictest requirements of the entire country since March, especially for my county. We have pretty much been in lockdown the entire time (hence my quarantine diaries on IG stories) with requirements that seem to change every day. We did finally get to the point where people could eat outside but it didn’t advance much further than that. The first time we ate indoors at an actual restaurant was during our Lake Tahoe trip. I mean, it is what it is and I’m glad I’m not going through this alone BUT this is my last Christmas with my little brother since he leaves for the Navy in February and I’m so torn. It’s such a terrible situation. And this brings me to….
A second update. WE MOVED *cue the nervous laugh lol!* In this middle of all this craziness AND in the midst the holiday madness, we moved to our very first house lol! It was completely unexpected and very, VERY quick! I mentioned it a few days ago and promised to share the story so here we go!
My husband and I have been married for seven and a half years. The first three years were spent in an apartment and then we moved to a second apartment, which ended up being our home for the next four and a half years. We didn’t plan to stay that long but you know… life lol. We really did like the second apartment but every single year, they would raise the rent and when we got our renewal notice in July, we knew that we had to find somewhere else as we were completely priced out. For the amount of rent we were paying, we knew that we were probably better off getting a house. We looked high and low for a few months after we signed the lease… and actually for about six months before that but we didn’t want the hassle of moving, buying a washer and dryer, etc during a time when we were both swamped. I guess everyone else had the same idea because there was literally NOTHING available in our budget. We even considered other apartments but it looks like they all followed suit because they were well over our budget as well! I was honestly afraid that we weren’t going to have anywhere to go after our lease.
Then one day, we got a text from my brother in law. It had the phone number and address of a home that had just gone up for rent on their street. I took my husband to pick up breakfast the next morning and we decided to drive by it. I thought that it was super cute and didn’t think much more than that because after all, we still had four months left on our lease (and a penalty if we broke it early). As he went in to grab his breakfast, something came over me and told me to call the number. This is completely out of character and not something I typically do. Being on the phone is seriously the worst for me… let alone calling a stranger lol! The man on the other end gave me all the details including the price, which was completely out of our budget. For whatever reason, I asked to schedule an appointment to look at it and we went that night! We stalked it online and I was happy to see that it looked even better than the photos! It was much more spacious and literally could not be more perfect for us. We both fell in love with it and tried to figure out every possible way to break our lease and get into this place.
The first hurdle was that they wanted someone to move in RIGHT AWAY (as in by the end of that week)! This would have required us to put down a deposit and pay the first month of rent AND pay $3,000 to get out of current apartment lease. This wouldn’t include all the other costs associated with moving and appliances/furniture. It just wasn’t going to work and I hated to see how crushed my husband was. We were both so worried that we would be stuck in a place that we couldn’t afford or that we wouldn’t have a place to go at all. After our appointment, we had a chat with my in laws and they told us to go for it if we could make it work financially. We decided to go back and talk to the landlord to see if they would be willing to hold it for us (with a deposit) for a couple of weeks but they couldn’t do it. Meanwhile, his phone was ringing off the hook and he had back to back appointments of people coming to see it. From the moment we met him, he told us that we were “the ones” and that he had a good feeling about us ๐
When we got home, we brainstormed every possibility imaginable and decided that even with the extra costs, we wanted to do it… even if things would be difficult for a while. We were just about to fill out the application BUT as I reread the contract for the apartment I saw that in order to break the lease we would not only have to pay $3,000 but an additional month of rent as well! We thought about just keeping the apartment and paying for it each month but it would have come out to the same amount. I thought to myself that there was REALLY no way we could do this. That night, we got a text from the landlord asking if we wanted it and I couldn’t even answer back. We were both so bummed.
The next day, we went to talk with the apartment manager who gave us another option that I didn’t know existed! We could pay rent until someone else moved in. It was a little nerve-racking because you just don’t know but she assured me that they had a waitlist of people looking for a unit our size. So we filled out the application and brought it back to the house that evening. As we filled out a secondary application for my husband, we saw at least five other families walk through and his phone was going crazy with phone calls. Regardless, the landlord assured us that it was ours. And it was.
This all happened in a span of three days! Apparently, they never even listed it anywhere! They only put out a sign with a phone number on the Friday that we got the text. Saturday, we went to see it for the first time. Sunday, we went to talk to the landlord again. Monday, we talked to our apartment manager and submitted our applications and that Friday, we got the keys! This was in mid-November (although we didn’t move in until last weekend) and the last few weeks have consisted of me getting ahead on an INSANE amount of work, putting up our Christmas tree at the new house so we didn’t have to worry about it, packing up a two bedroom apartment, moving a million things (we didn’t have time to go through anything so it alllll went), unpacking and finding new places for everything, going appliance shopping at a million different stores on Cyber Monday, buying furniture that we previously didn’t have, putting furniture together, calling a million places to change our address, setting up various appointments for internet, plumbing, appliance installation, etc, spending hours on the phone just to get things done and finally, catching up on 10 days worth of missed work. It has been WILD to say the least and I’m so exhausted but I feel so much joy!
I know I’m talking way too much about this but for good reason. I truly believe the stars aligned on this one. We outgrew our apartment long ago but with the current world situation and being forced to stay home by any means possible really solidified that we needed a change. This year has not been kind to me (as it hasn’t for most people, I’m sure). After dealing with a handful of deaths early on and not being able to properly grieve, losing work after I had just made a huge career shift and then being confined to a tiny apartment because of my severe allergies, extreme heat, broken toes, intense wildfires, etc…. my mental health was not doing so well. I experienced panic attacks for the first time in my life and my recently diagnosed anxiety worsened intensely. Through this, I realized that I needed more space and a more calming and creative environment… and I desperately needed direct access to the outdoors (not just a tiny balcony above my garage).
We now have much more space, a cozy fireplace (bonus!), a front and back yard and the ability to have guests over (our apartment didn’t have guest parking before). As for the price (something I was so worried about), it has solar and we have less utility costs so this puts us within our budget. A lot of people ask why we don’t just buy a home and honestly, there are so many reasons but the biggest one is that I don’t want to have something that longterm because eventually, I’d like to move out of this city but for now, this works and I’m SO grateful that we found not only a place within our budget that meets all of needs but a gorgeous home that has sparked joy within my heart and re-inspired my creativity. It was honestly the worst possible timing but things work out in mysterious ways and let me tell you, there were some strange roadblocks that miraculously resolved themselves. Oh! And as for our apartment, someone was scheduled to move in yesterday!!! See what I mean? It all worked out ๐
This is something that we have both needed for so long and I’m just so happy that it worked out for us! In fact, last week I felt a little like an imposter in my own life. Since it’s been such an awful year, I feel like I’m used to things not working out and the fact that it all fell into place was such a shock to me. It was like… someone was playing a trick on me. I started to feel like I was undeserving of living in anything but that apartment and I felt guilty that things in general were starting to turnaround for the better. I know that makes absolutely no sense at all and luckily, I’m feeling much better ๐
Anyway, this was way longer than I intended (sorry about that haha)! Today, I’m finishing up the holiday decor and I cannot wait to share it with you! Better late than never, right? ๐
I hope you enjoyed this life update (and these elegant black holiday outfit details) <3 Sending love to all of you!
xo
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