Walking Billboard

I didn't get dressed this morning intending to be a walking Madewell billboard, but that's exactly what happened - maybe I can add that to my resume when I apply to the new Madewell store that opens on Walnut Street next month. I'm still living a life plagued by jetlag, so I was up bright and early just as the sun was rising and was out of the house to run errands. I'm hunting for the perfect set of picture frames to hold print of the photos I took this summer and so I hit every thrift store I could think of. It was cold enough for tights which kind of bummed me out, even though I shed them shortly after leaving the house.

I feel like I missed the gradual transition of summer to fall that we're fortunate enough to experience on the East coast. On the last leg of my Europe trip we jumped from warm and sunny Prague to cool and cloudy Amsterdam, back to a summer-like week in Paris, then to a rainy and cold London. It was so cold in the UK I ended up having to buy a new jacket in Zara to make walking around in the rain more bearable, a compromise I was willing to deal with. Now I have less than a week before I move into my new apartment, to enjoy what's officially left of the summer season, and relish not living out a suitcase.

Chambray shirt, striped skirt, Lovelock satchel - Madewell
Ankle boots - Old Navy
Watch - Marc by Marc Jacobs

DIY Terrariums

Does the internet need another DIY tutorial on how to make terrariums? No. Will I make one anyway? Of course. I'm still overcoming a serious case of jet lag that knocks me out at 9 every night and wakes me up at the crack of 6 AM. In a desperate attempt to make use of the early hours I would have rather spent asleep, I've embarked on a terrarium-making spree.

You'll need:

• glass containers
• small stones
• cactus soil or potting soil
• a spoon
• newspaper to cover your work area
• succulents or cacti

I found two of my glass containers at the craft store and two at the thrift store, and none of them cost more than a couple of dollars.

Start with a layer of small rocks on the bottom - this will provide proper drainage for your plants. Fill the next layer with just enough soil to cover the roots of your plants. Once they're in place, fill the area around them with some more soil and pack it down.

If your terrariums have lids, you should also sprinkle a handful of activated charcoal between the stones and soil to absorb extra moisture.

That's it! It's certainly not rocket science, and I've heard that succulents are pretty resilient plants. Hopefully these will survive once they're moved into my new apartment at the end of week.

Transitional

Faux leather sweater - Zara / Denim skirt - Gap / Belt - Mango / Gladiator sandals - Aldo / Bag - Madewell

I didn't expect myself to welcome cooler weather with such open arms. Especially because this past summer absolutely flew by and before I knew it I was walking off the plane and being inundated with ads for pumpkin-spice-flavored everything. Maybe it was because I had been hoarding a couple of fall pieces that I bought back in the summer on super sale. When I bought this sweater, Prague was experiencing a heatwave and temperatures were at a steady 90 degrees. Did that stop me from trying on every faux leather garment I could find on the sale rack at Zara? No, it did not. Luckily for all of you, the leather romper I tried on didn't make it out of the dressing room.

I'm glad I hung onto it, because it was one of the only things I could wear when we were in Amsterdam and London-but I"ll save those cities for another post.

Letná Park

Top - H&M / Skirt - J. Crew

My favorite place in Prague to watch the sun set was Letna Park. The park is situated on a hill high above the Vltava River - to the right one can see bridge after bridge as the river curves towards Petrin Hill, with the illuminated lookout tower on top. If you stand in front of the giant metronome that sits in the center, you can look down Paris Street and see the lights in Old Town Square.

We happened to be in Prague during an unprecedented heat wave and I realized pretty quickly that I wasn't prepared. I picked up this blouse at H&M within the first few days and ended up wearing it about twice a week. This skirt suffered the same fate and I just recently got around to fixing part of the hem that had come undone. When you're restricted to the confines of two small suitcases for two and a half months, you're bound to suffer some casualties.

The first time I visited the park was after us students were sent on a scavenger hunt that took us all over the city and sent us in search of well-known landmarks and some hidden locations. Our last stop was Letna Park, where a giant statue of Joseph Stalin used to stand until it was destroyed following the fall of the communist regime that had governed Czechoslovakia. The metronome was donated to the city as a public work of art in the early nineties and is meant to symbolize a positive future.The park is always full of activity, with a beer garden in one corner, an art nouveau villa in the other, and this central platform is either occupied by break dancers, skateboarders, or sometimes both.