Buen Camino

For the next 2-3 weeks posting will be fairly slow here on Simply Sarah. Thirteen other classmates and I are about to begin a long backpacking trip through the Basque region of Spain on a pilgrimage called the Ignatian Camino. In a nutshell, it’s a journey walking to various significant sites from the life of St. Ignatius of Loyola who founded an order of Catholic priests called Jesuits. Both of my undergraduate school and graduate school are Jesuit schools and my year in Alaska was with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps, so it will be something to visit these places I’ve been learning about for the past 7/8 years. The Jesuits have a deep emphasis on immersing oneself into different cultures and...

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Red Sundress

Every time I wear this sundress I can't help but get Kip Moore's, "Something Bout a Truck", stuck in my head. If you haven't heard it, it's a country song (don't hate me, I'm a country fan) that was fairly popular a few summers back. In the song is the line, "something bout a girl, in a red sundress..." which was circling my head all day. I think it's pretty obvious why the song pops into my mind when I'm wearing this bright red beauty. I bought it and my braided turquoise necklace at Charming Charlie last summer and still can't get enough. Did you know they sell clothes?! I typically have problems with high-low dresses being to short in the front, but this one has enough material...

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Head to Toe Flamingo!

This round of "Save or Splurge" is going to focus on probably my favorite trend of this summer: flamingos! These colorful birds are finding their way onto just about everything you can buy, including cookies! Did you know that a group of flamingos is called a stand? Well I can't stand how much I love this trend! hats: left | right scarves: left | right necklaces: left | right dresses: left | right shoes: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 I will admit that I am not at all likely to wear a hat with flamingos (though I do find the less expensive version is cuter), but if it fluffs your feathers, go for it! These shoes and this sweatshirt are at the top of my list. Which flamingo filled goodies do...

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From That To This: Shrimp and Quinoa

School is out and I have slightly more free time than normal, which means more time to try new meals! During a break at work last week I decided to hop on pinterest for some food inspiration and this recipe was the first post on my "suggested pins". I opened the page to check out the ingredients and skim through the recipe and it seemed pretty easy. That was it. I love seafood, and I think y'all know how much I like quinoa. Decision made - I was cooking shrimp and quinoa that evening. It was love at first sight (soon to be love at first bite). Ingredients: 1/2 lb fresh shrimp w/ tails 1/4 cup chopped onion 4-6 cloves chopped garlic chili powder Old Bay 1 cup quinoa 1/8...

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There's No Place Like Home

Do you ever have moments where you know an outfit reminds you of something, but you can't quite put your finger on it? I wore this one on Thursday and spent the majority of the day wondering why it felt so familiar. It was a pretty hot day so I decided to braid my hair to get it off of my neck. Midway through braiding, it hit me! Dorothy! This gingham outfit could pass for a modern day version of that charming girl from Kansas who finds herself lost in Oz.  The Oz-vibe probably comes most from the gingham Gap top (try saying that 5 times fast). I normally don't like the way button-downs look on my figure, but I loved it paired with this white midi-skirt (also Gap). The...

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Bloomin' in June

I was on the hunt for a new pair of jeans at an outlet mall a week or so ago and ended up looking at more than just denim (obviously). You're all shocked, I'm sure. I had already found a great pair of jeans at the Gap (seen here) but figured it wouldn't hurt to drop by J Crew and boy was I glad I did. Shuffling through the sales section, I stumbled upon this beautiful skirt.  I'm sure you've seen the print out and about and on other blogs (for example here and here). I've been admiring it for some time now, but didn't have an occasion to justify a full price buy. With an additional 40% off on sale, plus J Crew's student discount (one of their best kept secrets if you ask me),...

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This Insta Life

I tried to do a little play-on-words with the title of this series. Instead of "this is the life", "this insta life"... Insta for Instagram. See what I did there?  Anyway, now that I have started somewhat regularly using Instagram, I thought I would share some pictures from from there that don't necessarily make the blog. Be sure to follow along @Simplysarahsblog Obligatory selfie on the way to my college roommate's wedding. I could count on one hand the number of times I had worn lipstick before this event and now I'm in love with lip color - not necessarily red all the time, but I've definitely been busting out some new lip shades. (I'm wearing Sephora Collection "Pure...

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Plum Casual

Though I typically prefer wearing dresses or skirts, there is nothing like a comfortable, nice looking pair of jeans. Pair them with a soft, cotton tee and I am in heaven. This super causal outfit came about on a day where I really didn't feel like putting together an outfit. I had decided to just wear jeans and a tee - classic and simple - but walked past a scarf I recently bought at Old Navy (for $5!) hanging on my door handle and bada-bing bada-boom. Not the most creative or imaginative outfit, but I do love the simplicity with the little jazzing up the scarf provides. What accessory would you add to a plain outfit to give a little more "oomph"? Tee: Target (different colors) Jeans:...

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Zebra-ish

Last week I was home in Ohio for a quick visit before starting work and travel this summer. Going home is always a very delicate balance for me. There is a very fine line between having too little and too much time with my family. I think that this 10 day trip (which included a weekend away for a wedding) hit the sweet spot. I had enough time to fix my missing family but did not reach the point where we were at each other's throats. Always a plus, right? I lent my tripod to a friend and it wasn't returned in time for my trip home, so the one outfit I documented in Ohio was recorded via my grandmothers kitchen counters. Very scenic, I know :P As you have probably started to notice...

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Save or Splurge: Tropical Prints

Guess what! It's Friday! Oh man, I felt like this week would never end and now there's just one workday left and a weekend to explore! I flew back to Berkeley on Tuesday afternoon and jumped straight into the office prepping for next school year already. Can you believe another school year has come and gone? Crazy. Anyway, today I thought I'd share a little bargain hunting I have been doing with the Tropical Print trend that has been popping up everywhere. Here are just a few items I've found... maxi dress: left | right iphone case: left | right tank top: left | right How great are these printed maxi dresses? They both look so comfortable! The black and white pattern leaves...

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To Home and Back Again

This morning I flew back to San Francisco after about 10 days home. As nice as it was being in Ohio, after a week of rushing back and forth from babysitting, to being in a wedding, to visiting with friends and family, etc... I am beat. It's nice to have a calm place to venture back to after a hectic week. Tomorrow I will start working full time at the university for a couple of weeks before heading to Europe, but until then, I think I will just sit back in my own bed, toss on some Netflix, and admire the sunset out my window. I love all of the shades of purple in the mountains tonight. #nofilter ---  I'm clearly getting the hang of the lingo ;) Follow me on Instagram @Simplysarahsblog....

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