Don't Stop Me Now

My darling friend Gabbie Amontree of Solo Tandem Ride was lovely enough to take my senior // graduation photos for me. She sent me the rest of the set yesterday & I wanted to share them on Stellar Piece. As you can see, my favorite pose involved me gripping on to a tree branch for dear life.

In all seriousness, I can't believe that I've graduated from college. It's been two weeks since I walked across the Sun Dome stage & it's still surreal to me. 

When I graduated from high school in 2010, I had legitimately no idea what I wanted to do. I went to community college for two years, which I honestly recommend to anyone. I thought it was going to be the worst place ever, but HCC was pretty cool because I didn't know what I wanted to do anyways. To be honest, I was super lazy while I was at HCC though. I would go to class, eat and sleep. I gained a bunch of weight & didn't feel very passionate about anything.

Everything changed when transferred to the University of South Florida in the fall of 2012. After taking a marketing class during my last semester at HCC, I realized that it was something that I wanted to learn more about. I decided to major in Mass Communications with a concentration in Advertising. Right after school began that fall, I created Stellar Piece. It was just meant to be a random place where I could put my photos and thoughts but it's turned into much more for me.

Then I found CollegeFashionista. I began writing as a Style Guru a year after I was settled in at USF. I've been in love with it ever since. Amy, Melissa & Sammy have taught me so much about fashion, writing and photography. They always give me such great feedback, feature my articles on the homepage & allow me to participate in various brand campaigns. I love it so much that I've decided to write for them during the summer while I'm in NYC. I cannot wait to to be their marketing intern in the city this summer.

I guess the point is that I made fashion, photography & writing the main priorities in my life. They changed everything. They gave me the confidence I was lacking. They kept me busy. They made me want to search for & pursue opportunities. Now I'm less than two weeks away from leaving for NYC where I'll be working with CollegeFashionista & Marie Claire. I'm thrilled to work my ass off, prove my potential & see where my passions take me. 

 "Life isn't about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself." - George Bernard Shaw

Love,

A

Details: Dress: Zara // Shoes: Nine West 

// Photography: Gabbie Amontree

The Final Countdown

I feel like I've been running around like a crazy person for the past couple of weeks, working on projects, trying to have a life and getting ready for New York. It really hit me today that I am graduating from college in two weeks & moving to NYC only a few weeks later. The thought of that is honestly mind-blowing. How has it already been four years since I graduated from high school? How am I not still 17? I feel ready but not ready, excited, nervous, terrified, happy & sad all at once. Growing up is scary, people.

This might be a little bit ambitious, but my goal is to not have to come back to Tampa. I mean, I love it here, so much actually. It's been my home for most of my life, but I'm ready for something bigger. I want to be immersed in a new city that I love. I want to learn it & hate it & adore it. I want to struggle a little bit. I want to push myself & figure out what my limits are. I'm so thankful for my family & all of the other people who are giving me the chance to get on my feet. Their faith in me is everything. 

I can't wait to document all of my NYC adventures on Stellar Piece. I just want to meet everyone, eat everything & go everywhere. Here's hoping that I make it through the next two weeks to graduation. Here's to the future. Here's to the adventure of it all. Here's to life.

Love,

A

Details: Top: Cotton On // Skirt: H&M // Jacket: Levi's // 

Boots: Aldo // Necklace: Leviticus