October '14 • East Coast Boardwalk

Topshop Duster Coat, Forever 21 Dress, Vagabond Boots, Baggu Backpack, Madewell Bracelet 

Long time, no talk! Has it already been over a month since I last posted? Is it already the end of October? Where has time gone? I'm afraid to ask.

Hi guys! Sorry for my *very long* hiatus! My time management in terms of school, interning, and blogging wasn't really working out the way I wanted it to, and prevented me from posting for a long time.  Since living on my own, I realized how much time and energy it takes to take care of myself--feeding myself, going to classes, working, etc. But blogging is a way for me to take a deep breath and enjoy some down time when I can, so I am ecstatic to be able to share my recent trip to Brooklyn in this post!

My boyfriend Justin visited me in New York last weekend and we had always wanted to visit Coney Island in Brooklyn, so we took the Q train all the way down to the last stop: Coney Island. Unfortunately, we did not realize that the carnival is closed during the weekdays in the fall months, so we couldn't get it, but got a glimpse of the vintage rides and remnants of summer adventures. We also planned on visiting the New York Aquarium, conveniently located right next to Coney Island, but we had to wait till 3 o'clock to get into the Aquarium for "free" (You can pay a donation amount of your choice after 3pm instead of paying for a regular ticket) so we strolled along the boardwalk to kill some time. It turned out to be a pleasant walk--it's hard to find time to just enjoy being with someone without worries and I felt rejuvenated after this mini adventure. 

Growing up on the West Coast has always made me fond of the ocean and its endlessness. Experiencing the East Coast waters was a strange feeling--it felt as if the Atlantic is quieter and more collected than the vivacious Pacific Ocean. Walking along the boardwalk made me miss my home back on the West Coast, but I promised to myself that I would try to come back to the oceanside when the weather is warm. 

Oh, I almost forgot to mention, I cut my hair! Thank you for noticing if you did and I don't know...I just felt like I needed a change so I went in one day and chopped it off! It's a liberating feeling being able to make decisions like this one without discussing with my parents (haha). One step towards adulthood!

I also turned 21 in September and Justin and I reached our third anniversary! I can't wait to see what the rest of 2014 has stored for me...and you! Tell me what you guys have been up to and keep warm! I'm already sick from the wishy washy weather in New York!

Talk to you soon,

Yujin

September '14 • Memories

Six Flags outfit: Rayban sunnies, Foreign Exchange top, LoveCulture shorts, Unknown belt
Las Vegas outfit: UO hat, Madewell top, UO shorts, Korea flats, Prada bag

Hi guys! I've missed you so much! I am so very sorry I haven't posted in ages! When back-to-school season rolls around, I am just thrown off guard by the amount of stress that tags along with it. From the last post to now, I :

1. Went to Six Flags Magic Mountain with my awesome boyfriend, Justin (It was seriously the hottest day to go to an amusement park...I was sweating like no other!)

2. Drove to Las Vegas, NV with my family and Justin for a two night stay (Again, very hot. But I had loads of fun spending quality time with people I love and care about.)

3. Moved into my new apartment in New York for my third year at NYU!

4. Macbook broke for a couple days because of hardware issues.

Moving into my apartment was one of the most stressful events of my life, but I am glad I get this chance to experience being on my own and moving on to become an adult. Running around from IKEA to Bed, Bath, and Beyond is what I did for my last week of summer and now that school has started, I know I'll be busy studying and interning, but I want to be able to dedicate time to this blog so bear with me even if I take a while to post. I promise I will do a mini-apartment tour soon and show you guys how I decorated my space! 

Let me know if any of you are back in school or if you're still enjoying summer! I am jealous of my little sister who is not starting her first semester of college until October (any guesses on where she is attending? Hint: It's in CA). 

Love you all,

Yujin

June '14 • Travel Diaries: San Francisco Part 3

I saved the pictures from the most tourist-y spots in SF for Part 3 of my San Francisco Travel Diaries! On this day, some friends and I decided to grab lunch from Off the Grid: Picnic at the Presidio, which is a food truck event that happens every week in various locations around the City. I have never been to any sort of food truck event so I was pretty excited (and hungry) when we arrived, but we took a little detour to the Palace of the Fine Arts before heading to the picnic because...we just spotted it! We didn't know we would run into the Palace, but we took the opportunity to walk around the Palace and take pictures. I love San Francisco because it's unlike any city--you can find beautiful architecture on every corner of the city, but you can also find the beauty of nature that exists within the Golden Gate Park and the various neighborhoods. 

At the picnic, I bought pork chops with kimchi rice on the bottom and it was so delicious! I am a meat freak so any kind of meat dish I can't resist! (I wish I had another plate of that right now...) I really enjoyed this picnic experience because I saw so many cute San Francisco dogs and the overall vibe of this place was chill and relaxing. We could eat and just relax on the grass without rushing to find seats or leave. After the picnic, we walked down to Chrissy Fields near the Golden Gate Bridge to take some pictures and talk. Having that massive bridge behind me made me appreciate how people can build such a grandiose thing and extended my love for this city even more. I am truly thankful that I got to go on this trip with one of my best friend and I hope I can find more opportunities like this to travel and make precious memories. 

Oh! I should explain my outfit--So, I saved my 'girly' outfit for the last day! My halter top is from Brandy Melville and I know what you're thinking...It looks like a bib (at least, that's what my boyfriend tells me) but I think it looks great because it shows off my shoulders and it's a silhouette I've never worn before. The long carpet print skirt is from H&M and my sandals are from Zara. I like the skirt, but it's something I would wear only on occasions like vacation or something fancy. My hair is in a bun because I learned my lesson and decided not to let the wind ruin my hair :) 

I hope you guys enjoyed my travel diaries! Leave me a comment if you have any plans to travel anywhere this summer! 

xo,

Yujin

Halter top- Brandy Melville/ Skirt- H&M/ Shoes- Zara/ Cardigan- Forever 21 

June '14 • Travel Diaries: San Francisco Part 2

Growing up in LA, particularly in the South Bay area, exposed me to the beauty of the Pacific Ocean early on. The cool ocean breeze and the calming view made me feel very much at home here at Lands End/Sutro Baths in San Francisco. Just a brief fact about this area--Sutro Baths was a privately owned swimming pool complex built in the late 19th century, but turned out to be unprofitable and is now in ruins. The stunning view of the rocks and the ruins of this pool somehow makes this place look more mysterious and magical. I did not have the greatest walking shoes on for this trip to the cliffs, but I managed and snapped some great shots of the view. I am sad, however, because I didn't get that many great shots of my second day outfit.

I was layered up for this look because it was very breezy and chilly near the cliffs. I love wearing parkas because these jackets toughen up any boring outfit and also wore my Forever 21 speckled knit cardigan to retain more warmth. Underneath, I have my Monki eye print shirt from ASOS (it's a new purchase and I LOVE it <3) tucked into my American Apparel Easy Jeans. This hat from ASOS was a staple piece to wear for this trip, but I was struggling keep the hat on my head since it was so windy!

My short and sweet trip up North will come to a close with Part 3 of my San Francisco travel diaries! Come back soon to check it out and have a wonderful day lovelies!

xo,

Yujin

Hat-ASOS/ Eye Print T-shirt- Monki (ASOS)/ Cardigan- Forever 21/ Jacket- Forever 21/ Jeans- American Apparel/ Sandals- Zara

June '14 • Travel Diaries: San Francisco Part 1

What is summer vacation without going on a trip, right? This past weekend, my lovely friend Klarissa and I flew up north to one of my favorite cities...San Francisco! I especially love this city because I have so many fond memories of visiting my boyfriend who went to college in SF. But this time around, the trip felt different because I was going with my friend instead of my boyfriend. I wanted to make the best of it for the ultimate girls' trip! 

On our first day, we decided to disregard the bus and walk around the city to see what we could do. We ended up going to Haight Street--famous for its colorful murals and hippie vibes--visiting thrift stores such like 'Wasteland' and then moved onto Golden Gate Park to visit the Conservatory of Flowers. The weather was so lovely that it was difficult not to sit on a patch of grass and enjoy the nature that SF had to offer. The Conservatory of Flowers is a beautiful white dome building that is within the park, but honestly, I did not enjoy the interior as much as the exterior because it was very humid inside to maintain the plants, which made it difficult for me to breathe in those rooms. But besides that, my friend and I enjoyed our walk and headed back to where we were staying to catch up with some friends who live in SF. 

I love wearing backpacks when I go on vacation because I know I am carrying a lot of different items like my huge DSLR camera, water bottle, an extra jacket to wear, etc. I layered a cropped sweater over my T-shirt dress since it was chilly in SF, and then added the jean vest to make the look more interesting. I love wearing hats in general, but it was appropriate to wear my ASOS fedora on this day because it kept the blazing sun out of my eyes while I was walking around.  

Keep your eyes open for San Francisco diaries Part 2 and thanks for reading! Hope all of you are having a wonderful week so far and I'll be back in a couple of days :)

xo,

Yujin

Felt hat- ASOS/ Jean Vest- Urban Outfitters/ Sweater- Forever 21/ Dress- Zara/ Shoes- H&M/ Backpack- Brandy Melville/ Necklace- Brandy Melville

March '14 • Neutrals by the Beach

Back in New York as I'm writing this, and this is the last bits of my spring break in LA! Honestly, I was not dressed properly for the tide pools (cropped sweater in 75 degrees weather?) because my boyfriend and I decided to go last minute so I had some trouble walking on rocks with my flip flops while sweating nonstop. The view was beautiful though, and it was definitely worth the trip. I really miss the warm weather now that I'm back in the City because it is still so cold here even though it's already the end of March.

With this outfit, I keep it very causal by using neutral color pieces like my beige cropped sweater and black high waisted jean shorts. To keep the sun from blinding my eyes, I wore my Aviator Ray bans!

xo,

Yujin

Top- Forever 21
Shorts- Vintage Levis (from Sister)