May 10, 2017

One-Piece Swimsuits for Spring and Summer 2017

Hey guys,

So here is a post featuring some of my favorite one-piece swimsuits that I've seen online lately. I'm also going to be doing one for two-pieces and for swimsuit cover-ups! 
One-Piece Swimsuits for Spring and Summer 2017

1) Becca Color Play

So I know that this swimsuit looks like lingerie but I absolutely love the color and the lace. I think that it is absolutely gorgeous!

2) Becca Siren

This swimsuit is a bit low cut for me personally but I love the lace detailing of it and I love the sheer part around the waist.

3) Trina Turk Off the Shoulder

I love how on trend this swimsuit is. Everyone is wearing all these off-the shoulder tops and so it matches perfectly with that theme. I think that it would look super cute and most people. I just don't think you could actually wear it swimming because the arms might come up if you did anything haha.

4) Ted Bake London Halter

Out of all of the low-cut pieces, I kind of prefer this one because of the sheer paneling. It's still low-cut without actually showing too much.

5) J. Crew One Shoulder Stripe

I think that this swimsuit is so preppy and it reminds of Kate Spade! I love stripes and I also love the one shoulder look.

6) Ted Baker London Lace

This swimsuit is very elegant and I honestly don't know where anyone would wear this but it is so pretty!

7) Kenneth Cole Sheer Satisfaction

I love the lattice detailing of this swimsuit and I think that it is so cute and flattering!

8) Seafolly Castaway Stripe

I love the design of this swimsuit and I think that it is so cute and would make anyone look super skinny!

9) Profile by Gotten High-neck Illusion

If you couldn't tell from most of these swimsuits, I absolutely love black and I really love black and white pieces. I think that they are perfect and great to wear because then you can have fun wearing different accessories. I also think that black swimsuits are the most flattering.

10) Magicsuit Giselle

I love the top of this swimsuit. I have a dress that has a top thats similar to this and I think it is so unique and I love wearing it!

I hope this gives you guys some fun spring/summer inspiration for any trips you might be planning or  any beach days that you might be having soon!  

XO, Steph

May 09, 2017

Furniture Ideas for the House

Hey guys,

So here are few furniture items that we are considering purchasing for the house.

So we've had our breakfast nook table for a few months now but I am having the hardest time picking out chairs to go around it. Our plan is to build a built-in bench which will hopefully hold seats for two people at the table and then I really want to find 4 smallish chairs to fit around the table so that way we can have seating for at least 6 people (even though only 2 people live there haha). So I have a few options but I honestly don't know if I'll ever be able to pick haha. 

The main wall in our library is teal so I was thinking it would be nice to tie it all together since the whole area between the breakfast nook and library is all open but then it's kind of hard to do that because I'm not sure if they're the same teal. I'm also conflicted because what if I want to change up the color scheme of the table and I have teal chairs, then this limits my color options a little. I also think that they might not really go with the table that well. I was thinking about doing maybe a dark gray or charcoal but then that might not even go with the table either.
I'm also having a hard time picking between farmhouse and industrial. The table is very farmhouse so apart of me feels like we should stick with farmhouse style chairs but then industrial chairs would help to tie in the theme of the library. 

These are the chairs that actually match the table. We didn't buy them with the table because I didn't know if I liked them enough to spend the money on them. I originally wanted completely different chairs but now I've changed my mind and I'm trying to find chairs that will match with the theme of both rooms better. But we'll see what ends up happening. 

I like these chairs for the industrial look but my issue is with the wood. The top of our table is wood and I'm just not sure if the two woods would look good together. However, my sister says that she doesn't mind mixing woods but I'm having a hard time picturing them going together. They don't really look like they would match but they would definitely match the theme of the barstools we have picked out.

These are the barstools that we picked out. We have a counter height bar area (as opposed to a bar height) and we both agreed that they would go very well with the theme of room plus we both really wanted this style, where the top can screw up or down. In the beginning we both really wanted comfy barstools with a back and a lot of cushion but I feel like these would look so much better because we'll be able to just slide them underneath the bar and it won't look like there's a whole lot going on in that area.

So far this is the coffee table that we have picked out for our steampunk themed library! It is very industrial and will hopefully go with the rest of the room very well.
So for the couch for the living room area, I really wanted 2 navy blue velvet couches but I was having a really time finding ones that I liked so I decided to change my mind and change the color and design of the couch. I am now going with a grey sectional with a pull-out couch and a chaise. I found one online that I liked but now I am having a hard time finding it again so I may have to do some more research find a different one that I like. We also have two chairs that we are still going to recover in blush pink velvet fabric and have them be conversational chairs in one of the corners of the room and then if we ever need more seating options we can just move them on over. We also added an extra chair right next to the TV and it is my black and white houndstooth chair that my mom and I recovered a few years ago. It was supposed to go in my room but unfortunately my room is too small and the chair is too large to fit haha. Currently that room has a lot going on at the moment with a lot of different colors and patterns but I think once it all comes together, everything will look absolutely beautiful!

Also, I know I haven't done too many fashion related posts in a while and mostly just because I haven't gone shopping in a while because we've been spending most of our money on our house. My sister and I are also having a hard time finding time to shoot because we don't get very many days off together and then when we do, we're usually doing chores around the house/ working on the house or going grocery shopping haha!

However, I did recently buy a few new items and I'm hoping to shoot some outfits either this week or next week. I am just waiting for some stuff to come in the mail!

P.S. Everything is from Target except for the chairs that actually go with the breakfast nook table.

XO, Steph
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May 08, 2017

Trips I'm Currently Planning

Trips I'm Currently Planning
Hey guys,

So this is kind of a random blog post and one that probably won't come true but there are several trips that I would like to go on this year if I had the money and/ or vacation days off from work.

The first trip on the list is a trip to Disney! This will most likely be a day trip even though it would be super nice to take a long weekend in May or June and stay at one of Disney's Resorts. I'm trying not to request too much time off from work right for certain reasons so I don't think that it will be happening but we will see! 

Right now I am trying to plan a trip to Mississippi with my sister sometime between june and august because currently that Grammy Museum in Cleveland, Mississippi is hosting The Taylor Swift Experience and I would really enjoy being able to go. Granted this would probably only take like a day or part of a day to do so after the museum I would love to be able to go either one of two places, Nashville, Tennessee or New Orleans, Louisiana! I've technically been a couple of times to Nashville but I am obsessed with Tennessee and I hope to someday own a cabin in the woods there. On the other hand, I have never been to New Orleans and my sister and I have been talking about going there for the last 4 years so I think it. Our mom went a couple of years ago for a work trip and we tried to get her to take us with but unfortunately she couldn't and my sister had to work anyways.

Another trip I'm planning and really hoping on going on is a trip to Italy! My sister and I have been dying to go for the last couple of years mostly because we love the movie When in Rome with Kristen Bell haha! We would be going on the trip in October to celebrate both of our birthdays and we would most likely be going with our mom! The main cities that I want to visit while we are there are Rome, Venice, Florence, and Milan! If I were planning my dream trip we would start off in Nice, France and spend a couple nights there and then head to Monte Carlo, Monaco and spend a night there and explore the city! My sister and I are also obsessed with the movie Monte Carlo with Selena Gomez, Leighton Meester, and Katie Cassidy. We would then make our way to Italy starting in Milan, then Venice, Florence, and finally Rome. I would also like to add the Amalfi Coast onto the trip as well and on our way down there I would like take a pit stop in Naples so that way I can say I've been to Naples, Italy haha! I live very close to Naples, Florida so I think it would be fun to be able to say I've been to both Naples! And then we would head back to Rome after visiting the Amalfi Coast for a night or two and fly out of Rome.

Another trip I'm trying to convince my family to go on, is to Germany this December because I was doing research one year and discovered that Germany goes all out for Christmas and almost every town has Christmas events and Christmas themed markets. Every city is also all decked out for Christmas and apparently Christmas is a really big deal in Germany so I thought it would be fun to take a trip there in December. My family is also part German so I've always wanted to take a trip there to see where my ancestors came from haha! My dad also lived in Germany for a few years because he was stationed there with the military when he was younger.

I will keep you guys updated on what actually happens! And if any or all of them happen then you can bet I will be doing daily travel posts for each trip! 

XO, Steph
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May 05, 2017

College Graduation: 1 Year Later

College Graduation: 1 Year Later
Hey guys,

So it's been exactly one year since I graduated college and I honestly can't believe how quickly time has flown by. Honestly I still feel like I'm in college and sometimes I get anxiety thinking about the paper that I have to turn in or the exam I need to be studying for.

I loved college even though I didn't do the normal college thing where I lived in a dorm my freshman year, joined a sorority or some type of club where I made a bunch of friends, or went to parties. But I've never really been that type of person anyways so I am totally happy with the college experience that I had. I met a few cool people in my classes that I will probably never speak to again but that's okay. I was still able to work with them, experience different viewpoints, and learn a few things from each of them. I pretty much only made one real friend in college and I think that we will always be friends. He's older than me and so I always like to turn to him when I need advice about something or if I just need to talk to someone.

I chose not to have the stereo typical college experience because it was never something that I was interested in. All I wanted to do was go to school to learn and graduate either early or with two degrees. I ended up doing the latter and I don't regret a single thing. I love being able to tell people that I'm only 23 and I have two Bachelor's! People are always super impressed!

Currently, I am enjoying not being in school but at the same time, I miss it a lot. I wish I could go back and still be able to say that I was in college. However, I do plan on going back before I'm 30. I have always had this goal of getting my doctorate before I turn 30. Unfortunately, I don't think that will be happening since I've already taken a whole year off and haven't even started studying for the GMAT or the GRE. I honestly can't decide what I want to go to school for so that's my biggest issue. I have always wanted to be lawyer so I thought about maybe going to back school for business law but unfortunately there are no schools nearby that offer a business law program. I would have to move somewhere new and I just don't know if I want to do that. 

I have also thought about getting my masters in something fashion related since I absolutely love fashion but the main reason I didn't go to fashion school from the beginning was because I didn't want to be restricted with a fashion degree 20 years down the road when I decide that I want a career change and no longer want to work in the fashion industry. I have also thought about going back to school and dual degreeing again and getting a masters in Business Management and another one in Marketing. However, that would be extremely expensive and it would take up a lot of time.

My last degree option that I have thought about is hospitality. Ever since taking a hospitality management class, I fell in love with the idea of working in that industry. One job that I have always wanted to do was be a flight attendant and most recently I have thought about working in a hotel. I live so close to Disney and it would be amazing to work in one of their hotels!

Where I was then:
I was 22, getting ready to walk across a stage to receive my degree's (which didn't actually show up for like another month), jobless and not sure where life (God) was going to take me. I was scared and confused but at the same time I wasn't too worried. I spend a lot of time worrying about things but I've also spent my entire life being told not to worry about things, so it was hard for me because I just had to keep telling myself that everything was going to work out and that I was going to be fine. I finally had to grow up and be an adult (which I still don't really like haha but who does?!). When I graduated I hadn't even started looking for a job because I knew that I had a trip to Europe coming up soon and I really didn't think that anyone would hire me if I told them that I needed two weeks off so I could go on vacation. Also since I had two degrees and zero experience no one wanted to hire me.

Where I am now:
Currently, I am a retail sales associate at DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse). Honestly, I had THE hardest time finding a job after I graduated but I didn't expect it to be easy. I purposely chose not to work in college because I kind of wanted to start from the bottom and work my way up. I was also receiving the GI Bill and didn't really need the money so my logic was to let someone else who might actually need the money have whatever job I could get. I grew up in a semi-wealthy and supportive family and I knew that no matter what they would be there by my side to pick me up if I ever fell (and by that I mean fail. They would never let me because homeless).

What I've Learned so Far:
I've learned that having two degrees doesn't really help you all that much if you don't have any experience. I have learned that a lot of employers don't really even care if you have a degree (and this doesn't include careers where you absolutely need some kind of training such as doctor, nurse, lawyer, etc.). All they seem to care about is the experience that you have. So in my opinion, don't go down the same road that I went down. Get a job after your freshman year is over because then at least you can add experience and degrees to your resume. Now with that being said, I don't regret what I did. I wanted to work hard and start from nothing. I wanted to build my resume and have to fight for what I wanted. I've always been that way and I'll probably always be that way. I come from a family that has always worked extremely hard to get to where they want to be in life and so I don't mind starting out as a sales associate at the age of 23 (technically I was still 22 when I started but I'm 23 now when I'm writing this!) after graduating college.

I've also learned that life is too short to worry about certain things. You need to live your life the way that you want to. Spend time with loved ones, go on adventures, meet new people, and do the things you've always said you wanted to do. Don't wait for the right time or anything else because you could end up missing out on whatever it was that you wanted to do. I've also learned to never be lazy and by that I don't mean no more sitting down on the couch watching your favorite TV show. I mean if you want to do something do it with your whole heart, don't be that person at work that everyone can't stand because they know that if they ask you to do something you won't do it.

Also, there is no right or wrong way to do college. Learning is such an amazing opportunity that you just need to do it anyway that you possibly can. It doesn't matter what school you're at, learning is still learning no matter where you are. So if you didn't get into your dream school, that's okay. I promise that life will still go on and honestly, if you didn't get in the first time then just keep applying. Chances are you will get in eventually or maybe you will realize that it was never your dream school from the beginning.

Food for thought: You are exactly where you need to be.

Sorry for the super long post! I hope you enjoyed it and I hope it helped some people who might be getting ready to graduate soon. Good luck and congratulations to those who have recently graduated or will be graduating soon!

XO, Steph
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May 04, 2017

25 Random Facts About Me

25 Random Facts About Me
Hey guys,

So I've seen a couple of YouTuber's post videos like this and so I thought it would be fun to write a blog post like this. So here are 25 random facts about me!

1) My full name is Stephanie Renee Kamp

2) I have a step-brother that is almost 10 years older than me and a half sister that is 7 years older than me.

3) My sister and I both were born in October! She was born on the 2nd and I was born on the 29th!

4) I was named after the nurse that introduced my parents more then 25 years ago!

5) My middle name is also named after a girl that my mom was friends with growing up and my cousin was almost named my middle name but then my aunt told my mom she could use the name because she didn't think she would be having a girl anytime soon and then about a month later she got pregnant with her daughter (my cousin)

6) My cousin and I are 10 months apart but we are 1 grade away from each other. However, she is so much smarter than me, it's crazy!

7) I bought myself my first designer handbag because I didn't want my parents buying me one. I wanted to be able to say that I bought myself my first designer handbag! I was in 6th grade when I bought it so technically it was with their money but it was with money that I had earned doing chores around the house!

8) I hate getting gifts from people but I absolutely love giving them!

9) I hate surprises and I don't think I'm going to handle getting engaged very well if I don't know what's going to happen! haha

10) I have this thing called a metatarsal coalition and it causes severe pain in my feet when I stand or walk on them for too long. I have gone through two different types of therapy but nothing really helps so I basically just have to live with the pain for the rest of my life.

11) I own over 100 pairs of shoes

12) I own over 25 designer hanbags

13) My first designer handbag was a Coach handbag that cost $98 plus tax!

14) My second designer handbag was a Dooney & Bourke that my mom bought me as a gift!

15) I named my dog after Dooney & Bourke and I absolutely love the fact that I have never met another dog name Dooney! 

16) I own a four wheeler and I haven't ridden it in probably more than 10 years. 

17) I also own a gun that my dad bought me last year but my parents keep it at their house in the gun cabinet because I'm still a little unsure about guns most of the time! 

18) Growing up everyone called me spoiled but most of the time I didn't get things unless I earned them, paid for them myself with money I earned, or if it was my birthday or Christmas. I just happen to get a lot of things during my birthday and Christmas. My parents didn't just randomly go out and buy me things just because I said I wanted it.

19) I have only been drunk once and thankfully my experience wasn't too bad because I didn't really seem to have a hangover the next morning but I did throw up the night before so that was fun!

20) I didn't plan on getting drunk and I don't know if it will happen again. I've only had 1 drink since and it was fruity cider that barely had any alcohol in it.

21) My first designer pair of shoes were my Tory Burch Reva Ballet Flats

22) My first designer clothing item was a pair of Paige Premium Denim jeans that my mom got me.  

23) My favorite food of all time is Tacos because they have the most of items from the food chart all in one neat little bundle haha! They have meat, a grain, a fruit if you get tomatoes on them, a vegetable if you add lettuce, and dairy if you add cheese!

24) My favorite beverage of all time is…Water! 

25) My mother is the one who started my obsession with Paris back in like 2006!

It was kind of hard coming up with 25 facts about myself haha!

XO, Steph

May 03, 2017

House Update Spring 2017

Hey guys,

So I wanted to give you guys a little bit of info about our house and how it's coming along so far. We recently had our TV break on us so we ended up getting a new one that our parents actually bought us for Easter and then we also purchased a new TV stand to go with the new TV. I honestly had the hardest time picking out a TV stand because I found a blush pink one on Pinterest but it was just and advertisement for something else and not the TV stand. I tried searching for the stand but unfortunately I wasn't able to find it or anything like it and we honestly have so many DIY projects going on at the house that I didn't even want to attempt to add another one to the list haha. After not being able to find the pink, I have a really hard time picking a different color, I thought about doing white but then I didn't really want that because it seemed so boring and I was also worried about it showing marks if it ever got scratched or damaged somehow. So then I was doing some more research and I remembered this line of colorful furniture that Target sells. It's called the Windham collection and they have a bunch of different furniture options from desks, to bookshelves, to coffee tables and they also offer them in a bunch of different colors (unfortunately pink is not one of them). So I chose a navy blue TV stand since we decided against the navy blue velvet couch. They have two different size options for TV stands in the navy blue and after measuring and looking at prices we decided to go with the larger one because our living/family/great room is actually pretty large. Like if we wanted to couple probably fit two large couches and a couple chairs in there and still have room for some more furniture. This was my original plan but now we're going to get a large grey sleeper sectional with a chaise.
House Update Spring 2017
Unfortunately, we are currently experiencing a bug problem so we're actually staying at our parents house. We went out of town a couple of weekends ago to Disney for the Flower and Garden Festival and while we were out of town we decided to bug bomb our house because it's always good to do that sometimes just to make sure the house is bug free. We hadn't been receiving pest control for a little bit because we didn't really feel like paying for it and we thought we could just do it ourselves but unfortunately we thought wrong and now we're probably going to start paying for it because it is so worth it! My sister and I absolutely hate bugs so it's seriously freaking us out that we are dealing with this. The bugs that have currently taken over our house are carpenter ants and as I'm typing this our house is currently being treated for them and hopefully they will go away soon! Thankfully our parents only live like 5 minutes from us and are currently on vacation in Hawaii so we have the house all to ourselves!
House Update Spring 2017
I also recently hung up some more art pieces that I've had for a couple of years now but never actually put up anywhere. Thankfully they kind of go with the whole steampunk/vintage feel of our library and we had the perfect wall for them to go on!

The next projects that have on our list is to hang up some pictures in our office, hang up a DIY lighting fixture that my sister wants in the library, add some steampunk themed shelving to one of the walls in the library, and start working on building our built-ins. We also want to work on our lawn this month. We don't really have grass growing in our lawn, it's mostly just dead or random weeds. We also have this planter box in our front yard that we want to plant some hydrangeas in. We also want to plant some kind of citrus tree and then remove some bushes that are in the front and back yard. The previous owner had them surrounding the pool cage and since we live in on the water it makes it kind of hard to see the water when a bush is blocking your view. There are also some bushes taking up room in our dog run and want to be able to provide as much room as possible for our dogs to be able to run around and have fun!

XO, Steph

May 02, 2017

May 2017 Q&A


May 2017 Q&A
Hey guys,

1) Can you curl your tongue?

I can curl and roll my tongue but I can't do that clover thing that some people can do.

2) What do you want to be when you grow up?

Honestly, I am not entirely sure but my goal is to become the CEO of my own company. I don't really want like a huge company or anything but I think it would be fun to be able to say that I started a company and ran it as well.

3) Have you ever peed in the woods?

No, I have been camping before but thankfully I always camp at campgrounds that have bathrooms! haha

4) Do you cut out coupons and then never use them?

I used to coupon a lot and there were some that I never used but that was mostly because I never actually used the product so why would I buy it and use the coupon. However, there have been several times where I have left my coupon at home and so I just didn't bother and threw it away haha.

5) How long does it take you to shower?

It actually takes me a long time to shower and my family always makes fun of me for how long I take in the shower. I typically take like a 30 minute long shower, sometimes shorter sometimes longer depending on how I'm feeling.

6) What are your hobbies?

I don't really have any legit hobbies but I do enjoy shopping or doing fashion research. I also enjoy spending time with my family and friends. I also love traveling and exploring new places!

7) Loud music or soft?

Both! It depends on the situation for me. If I'm studying or doing something where I need to be focused then soft music but if I'm in the car or just doing busy work around the house then I prefer loud music.

8) Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket?

No (knock on wood) and I hope I never do!

9) What is your eye Colour?


My eye color on my license says hazel but technically my eyes change color, it just depends on what I am wearing. Sometimes they are more blue and sometimes they are more green.

10) Do you always smile for pictures?


Yes, I feel weird not smiling for pictures plus one thing you should know about me is that I almost always have a smile on my face.



XO, Steph