It’s become a tradition to go to the flowers come spring and summer. Over the years, my friends and I have visited the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival in Mount Vernon, the Lavender Festival in Sequim, the Cherry Blossoms at the University of Washington, and more. This year’s pick was a peony farm! Flowers are finicky, so we only had a few weeks to hit the blooms before they were gone.

Disclosure: While this post is not sponsored, Toyota graciously provided a vehicle loaner for our trip. All opinions are my own!

And like all good travel stories, this one didn’t quite work out as initially planned. Originally, we had planned a day trip to the peninsula to visit a peony farm in Sequim that we had heard about on Instagram. Then, tragedy nearly struck when I discovered it had closed since last year! Thinking it was the only peony farm in the state of Washington, I really panicked. Had we missed our opportunity to frolic amongst the gorgeous blooms?!

Fortunately, a little Googling landed me on Pure Peonies website, where I was excited to see that they are indeed open to the public for a short window each year. Starting in early May to mid-June, Pure Peonies, a Washington peony farm, opens their beautiful garden to the public for admiring as well as taking home fresh cut peonies for yourself.

For everything you need to know about visiting the best peony farm in Washington, just keep reading!

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When it comes to shopping for fall, I don’t think it’s a secret that I (and almost everyone else, it seems) love hitting up the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. Each year, I refresh worn-out staples like ankle boots, find a statement piece for the season, and shop the latest trends. It’s a good time to dive into your closet and see what could use an update. That’s why I’ve rounded up these Nordstrom Anniversary Sale picks that are also great wardrobe basics!

Disclosure: While this post is not sponsored, it does contain affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may make a small commission similar to a sales associate at a department store. All opinions are my own!

I like to be smart about the sale, set a spending limit, and plan what I’m shopping for ahead of time so I don’t get sucked in by the shiny sale prices. With that said, over the years I’ve noticed some of my absolute favorite pieces seem to get updated for the sale each year. New colors, fabrics, and textures get released, but still, the garment is mostly the same as the year before.

I’ve rounded up 10 of my all-time favorite Nordstrom Anniversary Sale picks that return every year. Hopefully, you’ll find a new favorite or great wardrobe basic, too! And don’t miss the special surprise at the end of today’s post. :)

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Oh, hello! It’s me, your friendly Seattle Nordstrom shopper. I know, I know. Like every other blogger, their sister, Mom, AND grandma, I’m shopping the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. I’ve been shopping at Nordstrom since I was little. Once I graduated college and had more of an “adult” budget for shopping, I got wise and shopped for fall items every July during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, too.

Fall happens to be my favorite season for fashion, so it’s no wonder I get a little excited about the sale. If you’ve been shopping the sale for a while, too, you’ll start to notice a pattern of brands and products that come back every year in new colors, washes, patterns, and textures. It’s a great time to stock up on basics, but I personally prefer finding those standout, colorful pieces that really make a statement in my fall wardrobe.

Disclosure: While this post is not sponsored, it does contain affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may make a small commission similar to a sales associate at a department store. All opinions are my own!

While I love shopping the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, the blogging community goes a little hard. I promise to not overwhelm you with #NSale picks over and over again, but when I asked on Instagram if you wanted to see colorful picks, you said yes. So here we are.

​​​​​​​I’m shopping many of these pieces myself, so stay tuned on Instagram this weekend when I pick them up at my local store if you’d like to see them “live”. (Yes, I was the crazy person checking out at 9:30 am PST this morning when the sale went live to Nordstrom cardholders.)
In the meantime, read on for my top colorful picks from the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale 2019!

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When it comes to fashion advice, I’ve received a lot of it from so-called style experts. Especially as a petite person (I’m about 5’3″), these experts love to tell me what short people can and cannot pull off. I recently remembered the time I was told maxi dresses for short girls was a style to be avoided. The reasoning? Maxi dresses were made for tall people, and the amount of fabric would swallow my frame.

Oh, okay.

Not only is this type of advice terribly confusing and often ends up contradicting what other “experts” say, but it’s also often pretty laughable. Why should my height dictate whether or not I try to wear a trend, or an entire category of clothing for that matter?

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I may make a small commission. Some of the clothing items in this post have been gifted by the brand. All opinions are my own!

As it turns out, of course, as the style has continued to be popular, there are many options when it comes to maxi dresses for short girls. In fact, some of these styles can actually make you look taller, not to mention they make a great wardrobe staple since they can be styled for year-round wear.

Today, I thought I’d dive deeper into this topic and share the best maxi dresses for petites, a few suggestions on how to wear long dresses when you’re short, and how to style a maxi dress for summer!

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What does Carrie Underwood, pink cookies, a breakfast buffet, and glass art have in common? Four highlights of my recent weekend in Tacoma, Washington, of course! Just about 40 minutes south of Seattle proper is Washington’s third-largest city. A bustling area of shopping, food, art, and culture, there are so many fun things to do in Tacoma that our girl’s weekend flew by in a flash!

Disclosure: Thanks to Travel Tacoma for hosting us for an overnight stay, and to Dukes Spirits for providing us complimentary concert tickets. All opinions in this post are my own!

​​​​​​​Before I tell you about my fun girls trip to Tacoma, let me address the elephant in the room: Tacoma has a bad rap. I grew up thinking it was dangerous, seedy, and all-around unappealing. Most Seattle-area natives will probably tell you the same. And often, it’s because people haven’t been there in a while. Or they just have heard it from someone else.

The fact of the matter is that it’s just not true anymore. With Seattle’s crazy growth, people are moving away from the city and new areas are growing and changing at incredible speeds to accommodate. As Tacoma has grown in inhabitants, it’s also grown in new things to do, places to eat, and many of the neighborhoods are up and coming with fun new things. Or they’ve already come up and anyone that doesn’t know about it is just a little behind. ;)

Today, I thought I’d share what we did on a recent girl’s weekend, as well as my other favorite things to do in Tacoma. Trust me, you’ll like Tacoma!

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