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Toronto for the weekend

by Kaylah Stroup
The view from our hotel room!

Getting my passport had been on my list of new year’s goals for way, way too long. I just kept putting it off, and putting it off. But last month I fiiiiinally sucked it up, and applied. One ugly photo, a nice chunk of money, and a few weeks later it was here!

Basically ever since Jeff and I met he’d been talking up Toronto. Toronto is soooo great. I love that city. We have to go! Blah, blah, blah. Toronto seemed liked it would be an awesome first trip to break in my passport…and HOLY COW, it was. If I had known how much I’d love it there I probably wouldn’t have delayed getting my passport for so long.

We stayed in downtown in the Sheraton which had the most amazing view of the city! We spent the weekend walking around, shopping, taking photos, eating awesome food, and admiring the graffiti. We valeted the car and opted to see the city by foot and by train. We walked over twenty five miles in those the three days! My feet are still aching but it was totally worth it. I’ve never been somewhere where walking to literally anything you could need was possible like that.

I don’t even know where to begin talking about how much I enjoyed this city…seriously.

I never really thought of Canada as being too much different from the United States but there were all kinds of subtle differences that totally won my heart. Maybe it’s just Toronto, obviously I can’t say, but y’all are some well dressed folks. I never seen so many stylish people. Jeff and I both agreed that we felt like slobs and needed to totally redo our wardrobes. Something else I loved was how friendly people were. I know that’s a stereotype about Canadians but everyone in Toronto we interacted with was so nice. I didn’t see as many people with their faces buried in their phones which was really awesome. And the subway?! It was so clean! I’ve just recently come to love taking the train except ours, in Cleveland, is so small…and it’s pretty gross smelling a lot of the time. It killed me that we didn’t have enough time to just take the train from stop to stop in Toronto just because I liked riding it so much.

I know I’m probably romanticizing the city at least a little bit but I am madly in love. If moving across country borders with no real reason (marriage, career, etc) wasn’t so difficult I would most definitely be browsing for apartments. I just can’t stop thinking about all the little reasons why I am so enamored with Toronto. Love at first visit!

I’m definitely looking forward to going back up as soon as possible. I feel like we didn’t even make a dent in that city. On the way home, while raving about how much fun we had, Jeff and I realized we barely left downtown at all which kind of blows my mind. Cleveland’s downtown is so small that spending more than a day there seems unfathomable. We walked up and down Queen street, where our hotel was, multiple times and each time I still saw something new I didn’t see before.

It was a bit overwhelming how much there was to take in. I had planned to take tons and tons of photos but so often found myself just trying to take it in with my eyes. Hopefully next visit I’ll be able to take more photos instead of just being completely blown away and unable to function like I was this time.

Hey Toronto,

See you again soon!
xoxo

Also, if you’re in Toronto, you need to go to Morba! Everything in that store was AMAZING. I honestly have never loved a store so much. It was like someone created a store from all the things in my brain. Taxidermy, medical models, globes, weird furniture, interesting light fixtures, and so much more. I sadly did not take any photos inside because I was overwhelmed – dude, it was like a religious experience – but next time I’m in town I will ask permission so everyone can see how amazing this place is.

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Friday Favorites #336

by Kaylah Stroup
How great is this shelf?! It’d look so great in an apartment with brick walls, wouldn’t it?!
(Don’t mind me, I’m just dreaming of brick walls.)
 (via: Dot & Bo)
I’d love to learn calligraphy. This starter kit sounds pretty awesome.
Uh, yeah… I’m gonna need this!
(via: Moorea Seal)
This hedgehog flash drive is too cute.
(via: Mink Is Love)
Black thumb? Here ya go!
Ooooh! This necklace is pretty. I can’t get enough opal.
(via: Moorea Seal)
Love these simple glass catch-all trays.
This dress is covered in foxes, deer, and flowers!
(via: Modcloth)
I know I already have lockers but would you just look at these beauties!!?
Is it close enough to the new year that I can start talking about how excited I am about getting a new calendar? Eh, I don’t care. Look at this one!!!
(via: Brit + Co)

Link Love…
▴ Georgia in Dublin makes the snazziest rain gear for cyclists. I’m particularly fond of this jacket.
▴ Are you stupid in love with novelty bags? Okay, well, here’s a bat shaped bag!
▴ You know those little ceramic Christmas trees that you put the tiny lights in? Well, there is a cactus version!!!!
▴ I discovered Silvia’s blog, Heart My Backpack, a week or so back when she bought ad space. I spent SO long digging around her blog and reading posts. I highly recommend grabbing a cup of tea and sitting down to read a while (…or not because you’re going to be aching to travel after getting like three posts deep)
▴ Shark plugs! Ahhh!
▴ This ring is soooo pretty!

Happy Friday!
xoxo

Ps. Don’t forget to browse my Everyday Favorites if you want to see more fun finds!

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what we wore : no bones about it

by Kaylah Stroup
dog skeleton costume, skeleton
 

Way before I ever adopted Klaus I wanted to get a dog of my own so I could dress him or her up in a skeleton costume. I don’t know why but something about dogs in skeleton costumes just melted my heart. I kind of forgot about that until I saw this one at Target. I told Jeff about it later and explained how badly I wanted it but didn’t know when Klaus would actually wear it. He was like “Get it! He can wear it all the time!” That’s a good man, justifying my stupid purchases. So next trip to the store Klaus got a skeleton costume and all my stupid little dreams came true. I didn’t think it was possible for this puppy to get any cuter but I was proven wrong. He will totally be wearing this thing all year long. I own skeleton footie pjs so I guess Klaus and I will be able to match in the evenings in the winter too!

Unrelated to this outfit post but in the spirit of Halloween I crossed off one of my big fall goals – visiting a haunted house! I’ve had two experiences with haunted houses in the past. The first was with my mom, and brother when I was eleven or twelve. I spent the whole time with my face buried in my brother’s back. I didn’t look at single thing. The second time was in Niagara Falls the next year. I wanted to redeem myself after the first haunted house so my aunt and I bought tickets, walked maybe ten steps in and then I ran out. Since then I’ve just presumed haunted houses weren’t my thing and wrote them off. Even as a huge chicken, I loved the idea of haunted houses. I desperately wanted to be able to go so this year I made it one of my goals.

Last weekend myself and five of my friends visited Spooky Ranch. There is a fun house, haunted hay ride, 3-D clown house, and “extreme nightmares” haunted house. You guys, I don’t remember the last time I had that much fun. IT WAS A BLAST. Seriously, I can’t think about it without getting this massive cheesy grin on my face. We actually all had so much fun that while waiting in line for the last attraction we started looking up other nearby haunted houses so that we wouldn’t have to call it a night. Sadly it was too late and we wouldn’t be able to make it to another before they closed for the night.

I’m bummed I missed out on haunted houses all these years but I guess I’ve got the rest of my life to enjoy them. I cannot wait to go to another!
xoxo

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my lapel pin collection

by Kaylah Stroup
pin game, lapel pins

If you’ve been following my blog for any amount of time, you might have noticed in my what I wore posts that I kind of have a thing for accessories. Fun necklace, rings, brooches, lapel pins, etc. I love them all. I 100% do not abide by the quote “before you leave the house, look in the mirror and remove one accessory.” I basically do the opposite. Before leaving the house I usually look in the mirror to make sure I have at least a few eye catching things on.

These last six months or so lapel pins have become pretty darn hip. I’m ashamed to admit that I’m usually kind of sour when things I love become super popular but there are so many independent companies out there making them and you can find one for just about any interest you may have. I’ve welcomed this boom with open arms. I love finding new brands with lapel pins. They’re small, and usually cost less then $10 a piece so they’re easy to collect. They’re a really awesome way to support creative folks and their businesses (…at least that’s how I justify having so many!)

I thought it would be a fun idea to share some photos of my collection! This little three dollar bulletin board from the deals section at Target is the perfect way to display them all. It’s nice to see them all at a glance instead of storing them in a dish where I may forget what all I have.
 

valley cruise press, lapel pins,
lapel pins, collection, lapel pin,
asilda store, lapel pins

 Directly above in the dish are a few of my favorite and most worn pins.

 
It would be crazy hard to link to where each of the pins are from so instead I’ll link to all the folks I own pins from and then you can blame me when you blow all your money on pins!
Valley Cruise Press 
Explorer’s Press 
Asilda Store 
No Fun Press 
Fair Goods
Pintrill
I like cats
ShellyMarz
Hooptedoodle
Spellcaster
Seltzer Goods
Applesauce Industries
Thora Ford Jewelry
If you see a pin in my collection that you can’t seem to find in the links above, just ask!  

Do you collect lapel pins? I would love to see your collection!
xoxo

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what I wore : blending in

by Kaylah Stroup

 

details
jeans – Skinny jeans c/o Macy’s
camera bag – Jo Totes
boots – Palladium Boots

Insert obligatory few sentences about how much I love fall. The colors, you guys, the colorssss! 😛
This is my first year having orange hair in autumn. I usually try to avoid it since strangers inevitably ask dumb questions and make rude comments. Seriously, where do people come from that calling a stranger on the street “pumpkin head” is acceptable?! I wasn’t ready to dye my hair a new color so I just decided to roll with it this year. While the comments are just as annoying as ever I kind of love having a hair color that matches the season so well. Just down the street from me there is a tree that perfectly matches my hair and every time I walk under it I hope anyone who see me is appreciating just how awesome it looked. Hah!
I knew since I blended in so well this year I had to make sure to go find a pretty background to take outfit photos in front of. My obvious first choice was the cemetery! I’m pretty sure there is nothing prettier than a cemetery in fall. I visited Monroe Street Cemetery (which I blogged about last fall) and it did not disappoint. It was a struggle to not pick up every single pretty leaf I found to press. Can this season just last forever!?

 

Hope you’re having an excellent week.
xoxo

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abandoned greenhouse : round three

by Kaylah Stroup

Last Sunday, as part of our anniversary adventure, Jeff and I swung by the abandoned greenhouse. We’ve visited in the winter, in the spring and I’ve been not so patiently waiting for the perfect time to go see it in the fall. Alas, it wasn’t as colorful as I had been hoping and dreaming it would be. …At least that’s what I thought while we were there. It wasn’t until I got home, sorted through the photos, and compared them to past visit’s photos that I realized there was some definite color going on in there. It’s kind of funny because that was the same reaction I had the last time we were there.

It’s hard to go into a place like this, that doesn’t really have too many objects to photograph, for the third time and try to find new things to shoot. I honestly wasn’t sure I got anything I really liked but the more I look at them the more I appreciate them, especially that first shot. It’s easily my favorite of everything I shot.

I didn’t plan very well in terms of taking photos that I would easily be able to replicate on future visits to compare the differences. I did take a very similar shot of the car each time though. I found it interesting to open each of the greenhouse posts (links above + below) in a separate tab, scroll to the car shot and click back and forth. My urge to shoot this place in the snow isn’t all that strong considering what I mentioned above about struggling to find new shots of this place but I feel like I need to take that car shot with snow.

Abandoned, Greenhouse, Ohio
Abandoned, Greenhouse, Ohio

One of my favorite things about this spot is that it could easily be overlooked. It’s in a fairly rural area, surrounded by fields, and if you aren’t paying attention you may just drive by it. It could be mistaken for just a large overgrown area. There are a few spots where you can see the glass paneling but otherwise it really doesn’t look like too much from the outside. After entering it’s like being in a jungle. It’s kind of weird because you’re inside of a building but this building is just a frame that is covered in vines. It’s like being outside but you’re inside. …It’s also like I’m trying way too hard to explain this! Heh!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jeff and I had planned to take outfit photos together and make it a little tradition to do that for every six month anniversary. I was having one of those days though where after every photo I found something “wrong” with myself. We didn’t end up shooting too many of us but I managed to find a few that I just adore. So maybe every six months we won’t get a full outfit post but here’s to hoping we can at least get an adorably cheesy shot together.
xoxo

Find previous abandoned green house posts here: winter without snow, and in the spring.
Unrelated to the greenhouse but way, way cute – Mine + Jeff’s one year anniversary photos.

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what I wore : I’ll never get out

by Kaylah Stroup
details
sunglasses – c/o
sweatshirt – Kin Ship Goods
button up shirt – Classic Plaid Poplin Shirt via Old Navy
lapel pin – Explorer’s Press
jeans – TJ Maxx
shoes – c/o Famous Footwear
camera bag – Jo Totes
Fall means I basically just live at the beach. Every year when the weather starts to cool down I just start writing post after post about how great it is (which will totally come back to bite me some day when everyone realizes how magical the beach is in cool weather!) The weather this last week or so is what I live for. It’s not too cold but there is a definitely chill in the air. I don’t know why exactly but I seriously just love it so much. If the weather could just stay like this all year long…

At my favorite beach there are two sections. One is like the main beach and the other is a little area on the other side of some trees that is pretty secluded. I’ve actually never seen anyone else hanging out on that part which makes it feel like it’s my little secret. It’s definitely not but it’s fun to have somewhere in the city that it’s almost a guarantee I can go there and be alone. It’s also an awesome spot to take outfit pictures when the lighting is right. (Here’s another post from the same spot!) The only thing is that for some reason all the trash washes up on this side. I mean, the other side is usually a mess too but this side is even worse. Surprisingly enough on my latest visit to take these photos there wasn’t much trash at all but there was tons of beach glass! I found a few rare colors that I was super excited about and one of the coolest finds of all, a little porcelain doll hand. I can’t decided whether I think it’s the creepiest, or the coolest but you best believe it came home with me. It absolutely had to go in a jar with the rest of my neat-o beach finds.

xoxo

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Szalay’s Farm and Market

by Kaylah Stroup

I still haven’t made it to a haunted house this season but that aside I’m pretty sure I’m killin’ it this fall. I’ve taken lots of photos of the pretty colors, I’m getting outside a lot to enjoy the crisp cool weather, and on Sunday Jeff and I went to Szalay’s Farm and Market. Szalay’s is a sweet corn farm and an old-fashion farm market that offers a huge variety of fruits, veggies, and other treats. It was my first time visiting there but Jeff has been talking it up for quite sometime now.

We had spent the day doing fun things for our anniversary. First our favorite breakfast spot for lemon curd crepe and smoked salmon omelet then the abandoned greenhouse to catch the fall colors. Szalay’s was our last stop of the day before retiring early to watch scary movies. When we pulled up to the farm I wasn’t really feeling it. There were so many people. I’m not huge on crowds. It took me a little bit of time to find my groove but once I did I had a blast!

We of course walked through the corn maze, which every year they shape like something different. This year’s corn maze? The headless horseman! (There’s a photo of the map a few images below.) It was SO much fun. There’s this look that Jeff gets sometimes when he sees that I’m really happy. It’s the cutest face in the world and because he looks so happy it makes me even happier so we’re basically this ridiculous mess of giggles and smiles. That happened in the corn maze, so perhaps thats an indication of how much fun it was. I kind of wish that we could have stayed in there even longer.

After the maze we walked around the market a second time, this time actually grabbing a bite to eat. I had grilled sweet corn for the first time and wow, it was unlike anything I’ve ever had before. That corn was so good it made all the other corn I’ve eaten in my life taste like garbage – and I LOVE corn.

There couldn’t have been a more perfect way to end our anniversary adventure. I’m already excited to go back next year …and to eat more corn!
xoxo

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Post Apocalyptic Columbus

by Kaylah Stroup

I’ve never been someone who though the idea of an apocalypse was cool. That kind of sounds silly because I’m sure that most people don’t think the idea of an apocalypse is “cool” but what I mean is that post apocalyptic movies and books don’t necessarily spark my interest. They aren’t something I search out. Obviously I have a love for all things abandoned. I love to see what things look like after humans have left them behind. So I guess in a way I am totally enthralled with “post apocalyptic” stuff.

Over the weekend Jeff had to run to Columbus for some business. He invited me to tag along. I agreed to go on the promise that we would find something to shoot down there. It can be kind of hard to find abandoned things to explore in a city that you’re not familiar with and we didn’t have all day to search for spots. I knew that so I was trying to keep an open mind about whatever we did stumble upon.

After driving around a little bit Jeff remembered a spot he had recently seen a photo of. We did a bit of research on our phones and as luck would have it we were actually less than five minutes away.  It’s a small stretch of abandoned highway that has a perfect view of Columbus. The only way to describe this spot was post apocalyptic. It’s impossible to see the skyline peeking out from behind the over grown highway and not feel like you’re in the Walking Dead.

This was my second stretch of abandoned highway (the first being the abandoned PA turnpike) and the one thing I cannot get enough of is that center line. I don’t what it is. Maybe because those lines just prove what this used to be. It’s not just a hunk of concrete with cracks in it where plants have begun to sprout, it’s a road!

After leaving that spot we hit Thurman’s Cafe for lunch. My burger was pretty awesome but dude, those onion straws were what really won my heart. I could really go for some right now… From there were headed to some abandoned trains cars we found online while researching.

Not our most exciting adventure but an awesome one nonetheless! These two spots were way cool. It’s always fun to find weird little forgotten spots that are just barely off the beaten path.
xoxo

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