Art Progression

I think I’ve mentioned this pretty often, but I’m majoring in Strategic Communications and minoring in Technology, Arts, and Media. This semester my classes are very creative based. 

We’re talking Film, Photography, and Web Design along with a Crime and Society and a branding class. While these classes are at the peak of my interest and they’re the stepping stones to my future, they’re hard. Really, really hard. I don’t know if it’s because art is a tricky thing to get a grade for or if it’s just the idea of learning and honing in on new skill sets, but my grades this year are lower than last year when I was taking mostly core classes. 

I’ve always been the kind of person to make good grades. I’m not saying it came naturally, but I studied and made the grades I wanted to. My school work felt like it was in my control all the way until this year. My photography class is super fun, don’t get me wrong, but I just got a 70% on a project I thought I did well on. 

It was a little heart breaking because I feel like when your art work is graded lower than you think you deserve it’s a personal thing. Math is a yes or no answer, but art is like a yes, no, maybe, sometimes, here and there, up and down, left and right, all around kinda answer. It’s hard to grade and even harder to hear the grade. 

This year especially I feel like I’ve gained a deeper appreciation for art and all of the thought and hard work that go into it. I’ve decided that I’m going to start sharing a few of my projects on here so you guys can see the progression of my artwork and thoughts and feelings. Also so I can look back and see the progression, but I’m trying to not be too selfish. 
Kidding, but not really. 

So for my photography class, the first project we had was to photograph a series of three with the theme of “life, in-between, and death.” I first thought about what represents our lives as humans and then I thought about how each year to celebrate another year of life we celebrate through cake. I then thought it would be cool to photograph the life, in-between, and death of cake itself and this is what I came up with: 

The next project we had was to take an old family picture and put ourselves into it. I decided to take a picture of my great grandmother and her friends and put myself on one of her friends faces. I then placed us into the quad at my school so it was like me in their lives but also them in my life. A weird little project. 

The next one was on the topic of surveillance and how we, as humans, are always being documented even without out knowledge. We had to go out and take pictures of random people and then put them into a snapshot that we took from google images of the same place where we took our “stalker pic.” I then edited mine to look a little more “surveillance-y” and here’s what I came up with: 

Thanks for reading! 
xox
chloe

My Wednesday

Yesterday morning was a typical day. The leaves were falling off of the trees, ready for the fall crispness to settle in. Homework was on my mind in a pressing way. I was giggling with my friends about stories from the past. I had enchiladas for lunch. The day was my oyster. I was soaking it all in. 

In the afternoon, my best friend and I decided to camp out in the library until dinner time. We both had things to study for, projects to work on, and online quizzes to take. We packed our planners and laptops and headed to campus from our sorority house. Campus was busy, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. It was Wednesday, nothing ever happens on Wednesdays.

My friend and I made it to the library, settled in near the front entrance, and opened up our laptops. Not five minutes after sitting down we received a text in a group message from our friend saying, “Is everyone in a safe place?! Potential active shooter at the UMC.” 

(The UMC is the most populated place on my campus. There’s a dining hall, a coffee shop, the bookstore, the spirit wear store, offices, there was a job fair going on there during this too.)

My friend and I got the message at the same time and looked at each other at the same time in a state of panic. 

We started to realize that everyone else around us was also getting messages, voices started rising from library level chatter to full force panicked conversations. People started running into the library from outside and other buildings. 

Time froze. Everything froze. Everything felt unreal. 

We hear about shootings way too often, which is absolutely disgusting. But we never expect that we’re going to be in that kind of situation, and when we are it’s terrifying and paralyzing and absolutely unreal. 

The library was put on lockdown, and my friend and I moved from the front entrance area to a fourth floor classroom to hide and stay out of the main chaos. We didn't really know what was going on, no one did. 

After they released us from the lockdown, my friend and I rushed back to our house. There were media crews, camera crews, and armed police everywhere. People were either absolutely silent or on the phones with loved ones. It was weird. I keep saying it was unreal, but it’s because we really felt like we were in a dream.

Later we found out that it was all a “hoax” (words used by the school) but it felt all too real to be a hoax. Everyone is still on edge, and no one knows what really happened. I am so lucky and thankful that nothing happened and that no one was harmed, but this situation shocked me — and my entire university — into realization that we’re not immune to this kind of thing. Obviously, you can’t live your life in fear of bad things happening, but it’s important to be aware of everything. 

My friend and I didn’t know what the right thing to do was. Should we have gone home before they put the library on lockdown? Should we have waited longer before going home? Should we have gone to the fourth floor classroom at all? There were a lot of unknowns which I think was the scariest thing. I’ve never felt more responsible for my own actions before.

I’m not trying to scare anyone by writing this post, I just want to spread awareness that these kinds of things happen and it’s important to understand what to do if they do happen. Don’t panic, be smart, and don’t put yourself in any situations that you can avoid. 

Most of all, trust your gut, I know you’re smart. 

If you want to read more about this specific event here is a link:

TheTab

Thanks for reading! 
xox
chloe

Confidence Is Key

We all have those things we don’t like about ourselves. We stand in front of our mirrors and think of a million and one reasons to not be confident. Why? Why can’t we love ourselves. Why do we pick ourselves apart? Is it out of fear? Or are we just blind to our own beauty? 

I don’t know how to answer any of these questions, but I do know that, depending on what I wear, I feel more confident. I’m not sure what it is about the perfect outfit that allows me to be more, well, me. 

It’s not about wearing a certain brand or trend, it’s more about how something makes you feel. You know in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants when they each wear the jeans in certain situations and, in their own ways, are bursting out of the seams with confidence. It’s about that, it’s about wearing something that empowers you to be the fullest extent of yourself. It’s about being confident beyond how you look, and more about how you feel. Absorb confidence and release it to others. Confidence is contagious. 

My froomie (friend / roommate) and I wondered around campus the other day in our favorite and confidence boosting outfits to create this little video. I hope it inspires you to be more confident and less nitpick-y of those little things about yourself that no-one even notices anyways. 

A HUGE shoutout to my friend Jeremy for directing/filming/editing this film. Go checkout his Instagram clips. You won’t regret it, plus I’m 100% sure he’s going to be doing huge things in the future. 

This post is sponsored by Tampax, and I love that their brand spreads the ideals of confidence. They aspire to inspire girls to #WearWhatYouWant and #BeRadiant; I love that their messaging go against what most girls think of when they have their period. Most girls avoid short skirts, white pants, and tight anything. But you know what? If those short skirts, white pants, and tight anything make you feel confident then by all means rock them. Own it. Do you.

I’m sharing #Tampax in my life as part of a Tampax sponsored series for Socialstars™"

Thanks for reading! 
xox
hloe 

TAILGATE TEE DIY

It’s football season and you know what that means... TAILGATE SEASON!

I’m going to be so real with you, I’m not a big football person. I would apologize, but I’m really not sorry for not enjoying watching a sport that has more downtime than actual playtime. I’m not trynna knock the sport that keeps America united, but like, I think I’m more of a soccer fan than a football fan. It’s a personal preference, ok?

But just because I’m not a huge football fan doesn’t mean I don’t love a good tailgate. Soaking up the fall sunshine, enjoying good company, and forgetting about all homework and responsibilities? Um yes, count me in. 

My friends and I hit up the school bookstore this past week for some new spirit wear and decided to DIY some tees. I came home to one of my friends crafting it up in our front yard and I couldn’t help but snap some pictures so I could share her masterpiece with you all. It turned out so well and she got so many compliments throughout the day! Not to mention it was super simple to execute. Totally worth a try if you're a tailgate-er. 

DIRECTIONS:
Basically she bought an XXL shirt, cut the bottom off to make it a “normal” length, used a bottle to sprinkle some bleach on the shirt, and cut a triangle out of the top to make the collar of the shirt look like a choker. SO EASY (even I could do it). 

Here are some pictures to better help explain, but if you have any questions feel free to leave them in the comments! 

Thanks for reading! 
xox
chloe

Remembering The Little Things

In high school people always said that college would be the best four years of my life. Call me naive, but I didn’t believe that you could actually pinpoint the best four years of your life — shouldn’t every year be amazing? 

I’m not saying that I didn’t have an amazing life until college, because I totally did. I had experiences I’ll never forget and I got to spend those experiences with the most amazing family, however, so far, college has been the best part of my life.

I’m incredibly lucky to attend a university that offers exactly what I want to study, I’m beyond thankful to be surrounded by people with similar ideals (regarding life, and friends, and fun), and I’m so thankful to always have the best daily views of the Rocky Mountains. 

A few days ago six of my friends piled into a car that seats five and adventured up to the Flatirons. We blasted my Mountain Top playlist, our hair blowing in the wind, and our voices singing in unison; it was one of those moments that seem so fleeting but I know I’ll remember it forever. 

I’m so thankful to have friends that I can just go on random adventures with and be so utterly content. The same people who said college would be the four years of my life also told me to remember the little things, so in honor of those people, here’s me remembering the little things.

Thanks for reading!
xox
chloe  

Distractions

I’m currently enrolled in a Web Design class. Actually, as I type this, I’m currently sitting in my Web Design class. It’s a two and a half hour lab — aka two and a half hours of my TA walking my lab group through the behind the scenes of CSS, JavaScript, and HTML. It’s a long two and a half hours. A really really long two and a half hours. 

I’m usually a pretty good student too, I take good notes, I’m a good listener, and I love my major. However, I don’t have the best attention span. I’m kinda like that dog, Doug, from the movie Up. When I’m expected to pay attention for such an unbelievably long time, I find my mind wondering. Throughout this class — that I should be paying attention to right now — I’ve had multiple thoughts that have lead me down a path of complete and utter distraction. Like the kind of distraction that when you start listening to the teacher again you’re completely lost and haven’t heard a word of what the TA has said for the past half hour, not a single word. 

Because we’re an hour and a half into class and I’ve tuned it all out (Mom, if you’re reading this I’m sorry, but I can’t focus) I’ve decided to share some thoughts that I’ve had throughout class.

1. Why is it that I could do 8ams every day of my life until college, but now I have an 8am once a week and it feels like literal death to wake up for it. 
2. How did pumpkin spice become a trend? How? Why? Does anyone actually enjoy pumpkin flavoring that much or is it all a media scam? I think it’s a scam and that we somehow have too many pumpkins in America and farmers are trying to get rid of them. I think I’m on to something big. 
3. Why does tomato soup only taste good with cheese? Grilled cheese and tomato soup is the bomb-est of combinations. 
4. Imagine knowing Dwight Shrute in real life. How crazy would that be? Would it be entertaining? Would it be fun? Would it be terrifying? I think terrifyingly hilarious. 
5. It’s almost October and that really freaks me out. This year FLEW by and this semester is flying by too quickly. I’m not ready to be an upperclassman in college, let alone am I ready for the real world. Yikes.