The energy I feel when I pair like-minded, attitude-infused pieces together is unexplainable. Dressing in color, volume, print or texture isn't always about the shock value to others-- it's something that just makes sense in my life. It's not dressing up to stand out. It's dressing up to fit in... with myself.

This shockingly cool coat mixed with my vintage cat-eye sunnies add instant attitude to an otherwise typical New York black on black moment; a hop in my step and a shoulder swag to match.

You can't wear cat-eye sunnies and pretend to be beige inside. Just like you can't wear a pink winter jacket and pretend that you're not the lead character inside the most picture-esque fictional snow globe bubble town. Let the sparkly snow fall all over you, and brush it off with a smile.

Photography by Ashley Sky Walker

So, yeah, it's been quite a little bit of time since my last post. I'll give it to you straight.

...It was a perfect day in LA, 80 degrees. I had spent the day chasing my daughter around our pool in the backyard, our dog following our every move. A classic, "ahh haaa...LA is simply the best" kind of day. Then my husband came home from work and dropped a mini bomb on us... we kinda, sorta, maybe, probably, had to move to NYC within the month. {For his job.}

WHAT?

I was sad for like... one week. Devastated. Crushed.

Our perfect LA life was over in the blink of an eye. Both my husband and I were from NYC-- we knew exactly what we were getting into moving back to the city. It wasn't a life we wanted. 

OK, SO THEN...

The Stoneman Douglas High School shooting happened. Instantly I didn't care ONE bit about my move. Why on earth did it matter that I was moving across the country with my happy and healthy family? I felt so blessed just to be able to experience this life with the people I cherish most. 

In the end, I reminded myself that life isn't always the stick figure drawing you made up in school. A four person family holding hands in front of your square house-- instead, it's most certainly a scribbled up version of just that. It's the eraser marks and the wobbly lines in between the final portrait. And I learned that quickly with this move. Yes-- I miss LA deeply, but we will be back, one day very soon. In the meantime, I'm going to live the best life I can live with the people I love most, wherever that may be.

So from that awakening onwards, it's just been GREEN LIGHT. Pack, sort, shuffle, organize, rent, buy, store, save, hire, fire. MOVE.

And that's how we did it. Welcome to Elshanesworld.com... the New York City edition!