Hats, Flowers & Rabbit Deer Creatures

I don't like wearing hats.  I never know how to wear them or what to do with my hair.  And because my head is kind of small for a giant, they often don't fit me right and tend to blow off.  Even when it's not windy.  So, no.  Not a fan of hats.  But, I'm even less of a fan of sun damage.  So, I'm always looking for a sun hat that fits my wee head and protects my face.

Enter the roll-up visor from the Dorfman Pacific Scala Collection*:

This thing is brilliant.  First of all, it rolls up for slipping into a beach bag with ease, and because it's paper braid, it does so without wrinkling.  Speaking of wrinkling, I firmly believe the 5-inch peak, which offers the equivalent of SPF 50 protection, will help keep me from doing so as well.  And, it's adjustable, so it fits my tiny head perfectly.  The best part though?  I can wear a bun or a pony tail with it, because it's a visor, not a hat:

No more having to wear my hair down and getting all sweaty and angry.  And, it's perfect for laying in the sun (with sunscreen, of course) as well, because it doesn't continue all the way around.  It's just seriously altogether brilliant.  And reasonably priced as well; it retails for about $25.00.  You can find them, in multiple colors, from brights to neutrals, here.

This past weekend was beautiful here in Oregon, so I took my visor out on a test run to the farmer's market.  And it was perfect; it stayed put, even with the strong breeze, and I don't appear to be any more wrinkled.

Also perfect?  The market:

Purple Dutch iris

Blue Dutch Iris

Cascade Baking Company Bread

A red sedum for my nephew's collection.

The center of this thunder egg kind of looks like a leaping rabbit-deer-creature.  Kind of.

Dutch iris in zinc pails.

Potatoes.  I don't know.  I just like them.

So, in summary, this visor is awesome.  Farmer's markets are awesome.  They are awesome together.

Happy Tuesday, All!  Don't forget to enter my Shabby Apple Giveaway!

Gracey


*This sunhat was sent to me courtesy of Dorfman Pacific.  However, all of the opinions voiced in my review of the hat are mine and mine alone.

Bonus Footage: Gracey at the Wedding

Last Friday I left work early to attend a wedding in the country.   It was an absolutely gorgeous setting, surrounded by vineyards, hazelnut orchards (Are they orchards if they�re nuts?) and wildflower borders.  It was a casual affair, so I wore separates:

Specifically, I wore a vintage floral skirt (thrifted) that I paired with a cream, bow blouse (Old Navy).  I added a skinny belt (Gap), pewter sandals (Lovely People) and a burgundy eelskin clutch (vintage, thrifted).  I also added a cameo bracelet, vintage lion earrings and a heart necklace, because it was a wedding after all.

I apologize for not getting better outfit shots, but I did get some photos of the glorious scenery.  Here is the aforementioned vineyard:

The hazelnut orchard is back behind the tables and wildflower border:

And here is a close up of the wildflower border:

I love that they used flowers instead of fences.  I feel like that should be a T-shirt: Flowers, Not Fences.  Anyway, it was a wonderful wedding and both the setting and the weather were just perfect.

Happy Friday, Everyone!  And have a great weekend!

Gracey

Spring in Oregon

So, it�s spring in Oregon, which doesn�t necessarily mean sun.  We have sun and then we don�t.  Spring in Oregon basically means the trees are blooming and then the rains are coming along and beating the snot out of those trees.  Seriously, I think there are more petals on the ground here than on the poor cherry trees.

This now-I�m-sunny-now-I�m-not weather can also be difficult to dress for.  I mean, it�s spring, I�d like to wear spring-like colors but it�s also raining and sometimes pouring.  Today�s outfit is my attempt at a compromise:

I wore a skirt because it dries quickly but a bright yellow skirt (Eileen Fisher, thrifted) because it isspring, after all.  I paired the skirt with a gray tee (Old Navy) and a black cardigan (Gap) because Oregon�s spring weather requires layers.  I added cuffed boots (Gap) so my toes don�t get wet (I hate wet toes), a silver necklace-as-bracelet and a silver, fringe necklace (as necklace, Jessica Simpson Collection via Macys).

Happy Thursday, All!  I hope your weather is less psychotic!

Gracey

Bonus Footage: New Year�s Eve (Day)

What did I do for New Year�s Eve?  Absolutely nothing � I was in bed by 8:30.  But, once I tell you what I did for New Year�s Eve Day, you�ll totally understand.

We (the FB, the FC and I) got up at 5:30 on New Year�s Eve Day and we went over the rivers and through the woods to Central Oregon.  No, really, the highway we took, Highway 20, is called the Over the Rivers and Through the Woods Scenic Byway.  It starts in the Willamette Valley, where I live, and goes along the Santiam River, through moss-covered forests and the Cascade Mountains.

The snowy Cascade Mountains, I might add:

It rained heavily in the valley the week before New Years, which meant heavy snows in the mountains:

This is Mt. Washington:

This is a mountain lake I can�t recall the name of:

Our destination this cold, clear morning was Smith Rock.

This is Smith Rock:

It doesn�t look like much from the parking lot, does it?  As it turns out, it�s a whole lot.  We hiked up the steep (i.e. dangerous) east side of the rock.  I didn�t take very many pictures because I�m afraid of heights and was too scared to look up, much less take pictures.  But, I did get a couple.

This is from the beginning of our ascent:

You�ll notice there are some steps.  They didn�t do this to be nice.  They did this because it�s so steep you can�t get up there without steps or climbing equipment.  And, I�d like to point out that the steps were icy � not fun if you�re afraid of heights.

And this is farther up, but still not at the top:

But, once we got up there, the view was amazing.  I think it made it all worth it.

This is to the south (I think.  I'm not a Girl Scout and have no natural sense of direction.):

And here is a photo to the east:

The mountains in the middle are The Three Sisters.  The ones to the right and left (north and south?) I can�t remember.

After we got to the top, we ate lunch and then headed to the northwest side of the rock to begin our descent.  The hike down was far less harrowing than the hike up.  The incline was gentler and there were no icy steps to contend with. 

This is Monkey Rock.  If you squint your eyes, it looks sort of like the head of a monkey.  We started our descent way up there:

It really didn�t take us much time to get down, but, after that it was a long hike (a couple of hours, at least) all the way around the rock and back to our car.  Happily, once we made it down, it was relatively flat and there was plenty of time for sightseeing that wasn�t accompanied by nausea and under-the-breath cursing.

One amazing thing about Smith Rock is the rock climbers:

In addition to the rock climbers, the rock formations are very cool.  I thought this one looked like the Sphinx:

I love the verdigris color of these cliffs:

And the window in these cliffs:

It was a clear, beautiful day and a fabulous trip.  But, by the time we made it back over the rivers and through the woods we were all exhausted (3 hours each way).  We ate, showered and, as I said, were in bed by 8:30.  I did wake up at midnight due to a neighbor�s impressively loud fireworks display, but only long enough to mumble something along the lines of �Mmmph� fire� works� before falling back to sleep.

I hope everyone else�s New Years was just as fabulous,

Gracey