STUFF

 
Did you guys get any good stuff this weekend? I did. I will admit here to the (somewhat) public that I impulse purchased a TV just after midnight in the wee early hours of the Black Friday morn. Oops. I did that. I'm not a line-up-at-the-crack-of-dawn kinda girl, in fact for as long as I can remember my dad has insisted on a family hike the day after Thanksgiving. But when it's right there at your virtual fingertips and your friend tells you over a Thanksgiving meal about the crazy deals at Best Buy you can't help but purchase a little flat screen. Right? Right?

I don't know who else goes into a deep soul searching moment on this weekend of excess consumption (both the belly and the pocketbook kind) but my mind can't help but wander on the topic of 'stuff'. Yunno, things. The things that may or may not be stuffed into a closet that never seems to have enough empty hangers, or drawers that won't shut without force. Yet as I type this there are no less than 20 tabs open in my browser, each is a new item that I feel that I need. Especially before the sales end. Why? Why are things so meaningful to us? Especially us bloggers? It's this idea that our things represent us, who we are. Which can be frightening when faced with the prospect of one day ending up on the television show Hoarders. Don't lie, you know you've watched an episode and can, as terrifying as it sounds, empathize in some way. I believe that somewhere between the show Hoarders and this lies a healthy relationship with stuff. 

While I know that blogs can often feel like a place to worship at the altar of stuff, I'm personally seeking out that healthy relationship, and what better place to do so than a blog? I'd absolutely love your words, thoughts or opinions on the topic as I explore. Or even if you just want to share what you got in the Black Friday sales! Like I said, I got a TV..... oh yea and a couch.  

It's a work in progress.

xoxo Cristina


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SOURCE:  1.   SOCIETY6 2. SEESAW DESIGNS  3. SENECA RISING

How to DIY crystal fridge magnets

If you have a bit of downtime over the Thanksgiving holiday, I have just the project for you. This was one of the quickest diy's I've ever done, hands down. But you'd never guess by the outcome! My fridge was looking a little bare, and you know I love a good moodboard. So this diy was born! First I went to a rock and crystal store here in Austin (aptly named 'We Rock!') and picked up a few crystals. I wanted to have some variety so I chose a few different types, but it could be fun to have a set of all the same crystals too. They ranged from 50 cents to $3, really reasonably priced. Then I bought a pack of round magnets from Home Depot. The last and easiest step was to hot glue the crystals to the magnets. I wish I had more to write but that's really all there was to it!  An incredibly simple DIY that you could easily complete with a full and happy belly this Thanksgiving weekend. 

Might I add, these make a great Christmas gift!

xoxo Cristina

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DIY DIP DYE: Koolaid Hair Tutorial

This weekend was action packed. In addition to the race, we dip dyed Nancy's hair in Koolaid! Slightly impromptu, totally effective. This was an excellent way to spend an evening. Nancy's hair was already ombre'd so her tips were lighter than the rest of her hair to begin with. If you have blonde hair you can skip this step, but if you have dark hair you'll probably have to bleach the ends first. First we boiled a small pot of water, then added 5 packs of Koolaid. We were going for a pink rather than red result, so we used 4 packs of Pink Lemonade and 1 packet of Watermelon Cherry. Nancy's hair is quite long, so if your hair is shorter you could use less Koolaid. Stir the mixture until the Koolaid has dissolved, then transfer it into a large heat safe bowl.

Next, Nancy put on an old t-shirt (in case of stains) and then dipped the ends of her hair into the bowl. She left it in for about 30 minutes, but you could probably leave it for less. We passed the time by gossiping and drinking hot cocoa. When you're all done, simply blow dry. Voila! Hot pink hair. You should know this is a semi-permanent dye, it will eventually fade but it definitely won't wash out for a few weeks. Lemme know if you have any questions!

xoxo Cristina

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PHOTOS: CRISTINA CLEVELAND

KATE BOSWORTH NUDE

 
Now I haven't asked her personally, but I have a hunch I know what Kate Bosworth's favorite color is to wear. And I can see why, Kate's coloring works best with the 'blank canvas' look, coincidentally the blank canvas look bodes very well for her Jewelmint collection - all jewelry looks against it! Besides, Kate's best accessory (and pop of color) has always been her mis-matched eyes. Truly mesmerizing to look at. What I'd give for 2 different colored eyes!

xoxo Cristina

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SOURCE: JUSTJARED

FORMULA 1 GRAND PRIX IN AUSTIN

Sneaking onto the track

The finish line!

And because this is a fashion blog

Best outfit I saw all day

Happy Monday! Who are we kidding, it has been especially difficult to get back to reality on this Monday dear reader. I had the most amazing weekend! For those of us who are not Formula 1 aficionados (neither was I, 24 hours ago) the inaugural U.S. Grand Prix took place yesterday here in Austin. I've never understood the appeal of watching cars drive in circles (56 times no less). 'Hardly a spectator sport' I scoffed. But sitting there with my neon orange earplugs in, ground shaking beneath my feet and the reckless speed of it all gave me quite the rush, or perhaps it was that espresso I downed right before the race. Now I know this is not a sports blog, possibly the farthest thing from it, but I should mention that there were quite a few stylish men present at this event. My favorite was this man in the last photo, he had on pink pants, was riding a fold up bike while carrying his cane, and the very  best part? Green polkadot socks. That is what I call riding in style. You better believe I will be stopping at Target to get some far more instructing socks than my plain ankle whites today. Keep an eye out for fun socks in my next outfit post.

xoxo Cristina

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PHOTOS: PERSONAL

DREE WEARS NEON

 
Here's how Dree wears neon. If I had on leather pants, pointy toe heels, and a bead embellished jacket, I most certainly would not have thrown on a neon orange beanie. A neon orange beanie, the kind I imagine construction workers might wear, or fishermen. How did Dree make that decision to put that on? Do you think she laid out her outfit the night before, carefully planning the beanie for its unexpected statement? Or maybe she had planned a formal look but while she was out her head was cold and she needed a beanie, she ducked into a store and this orange hat was all they had. Or maybe she saw a street style photo of someone in neon, pinned it to her "Street Style" Pinterest board and then went shopping for a similar hat. Somehow, I think that it was much more effortless than all of those options.

Have a neon weekend!
xo Cristina

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SOURCE: STOCKHOLMSTREETSTYLE

FUJI FLOWERS UPDATE

Pink Orchid

Baby's Breath

Green Rose

 Hey loves. For those of you who have requested images of the flower crowns I have available, here are the three of them! I've just sold a Pink Orchid crown (at the top) and I have one more ready to go in that style. As always, if you're interested just send me an email at thefujifiles@gmail.com!

To see these crowns in action click here.

And if you'd like to see how to make your own, watch this video!

xoxo Cristina

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SOURCE: PERSONAL

A SHORT HISTORY OF NEARLY EVERYTHING

I'm reading a book, or I should say re-reading. A Short History of Nearly Everything. If ever you're in search of a good read please, please read this book. It is the compelling science textbook you never read in school. It relates scientific facts in a way that is entertaining, informative and even fun! I'm not joking. You'll learn more about our universe and our earth than you thought you could retain, but the fact that is sticking with me these last few days (especially post-birthday) is that the average human lives 650,000 hours. Why is that figure so much more substantial than saying the average human life expectancy is 75 years? Is it because as I sit here and write this with Sex and the City playing in the background a whole one hour episode will slip by without me noticing. And then I'll have one hour less, 649,000. Just like that. (Or two hours, or four). Sometimes I wonder if sitting behind this laptop screen for hours every day is the best way to be spending my hours. Tolly of AustinEavesdropper has written some really interesting posts on getting away from the computer and back into the real world. But even when we bloggers do step away from the laptop and venture into the physical world, we spend a majority of our time documenting relentlessly with our phones, photographing, filtering, hashtagging, only to end up right back on the internet. Having said all of that, this post is about the offline things I've been up to. It's a short history of nearly everything I did this month.

1 Golden polka dot sleeping things at Target / 2 Spotted Charlotte Olympia's cat flats while on a birthday shopping trip / 3 Vintage shopping, and the perfect boots / 4 Doing candle research for my work's new candle line / 5 Beautiful orchids at the new Zach Theater / 6 Trying out Olivia during Austin Restaurant Week  / 7 ACL Fest / 8 Discovering new flavors of Sprinkles cupcakes

xoxo Cristina

p.s. did everyone notice you can finally access instagram online? (As if we needed was one more way to plug in) 

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SOURCE: FUJIFILES INSTAGRAM

WHAT WE WORE:: NEON LOOK 1

Nancy and I are both feeling excited about our new neon pieces - mine is a sweater from J.Crew (cashmere! majorly discounted!) and Nancy's is a crop top turtleneck from Tobi. We're going to be showing you a few different ways that we wear neon over the next couple of weeks, and this is Look 1. I'll be totally up front with you, this first look was 100% inspired by this outfit. It may or may not be the whole reason I bought the sweater. 

ON ME:

SWEATER J.CREW / HAT H&M / JEANS 7 FOR ALL MANKIND / HAT ZARA / LIPSTICK REVLON / SHOES SHOEMINT (gifted)

ON NANCY:

TOP TOBI / VEST TOBI / PANTS ZARA / SHOES TARGET / BAG THRIFTED / NECKLACE WORLD MARKET / LIPSTICK REVLON

xo Cristina

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PHOTOS: CHRISTOPHER PARKER