making a: Tee-skirt

 Hi guys, I’m alive! I’m finally settled into our new place. There are still plenty of boxes that need to be put away, but we’re doing a little bit everyday….

Now that I’m no longer in San Francisco, I can enjoy a truly warm summer. I am busting out all the flow-ey skirts and thin tees that I could never wear (without a sweater) in SF. I’m even wearing my tee-skirts (tee-shirt that can double as a skirt) (yes I made that up!). Ever since I was in high school, I have always worn these kind of shirts as skirts….

BONUS! They are so easy to make. Well ok you don’t really make them, you….Voila! Easy way to double the wardrobe. Now I can enjoy a real California summer. XOXO

hugs, hanalei.

summer sunsets

I am in Utah again, for my brother’s wedding. The sunsets here take my breath away. And just in case you thought I filtered these at all…they are untouched. It was that gorgeous.

Photos by Ivan Ho, my brother 🙂

foggy dress girl moves to LA + how to pack hangers

 Can I still be foggy dress girl in LA? I was joking to Austin that I should change my blog name to “smoggy dress”! Jk…. No matter where I live, just remember that it all started in the foggy city of San Francisco. Am I sad? Def. Am I excited? Yes. Will I be back? Duh.

 And…because I knew you were all dying to know what my packing outfit looked like ….

It was really sad seeing our flat so empty…we left a few pieces of furniture & art, rented a Uhaul trailer, and slowly drove down south (with a trailer hitched to your car, you can only drive a max of 55 MPH on freeways! gah). We had two days to clean and unload into our new place, before getting back on the road. We’re in Utah now, for my older brother’s wedding (tomorrow!!). I LOVE seeing all my brother’s together, even though they get really annoying and try to wrestle me sometimes. I also love seeing my Missita and her adorable baby that I often try to pass off as mine own.

 Ok, I’m sharing this with you now, so you don’t figure this out after your 10th move (like me). If you already know this trick, share something else with me that will make packing easier! Please! I have a feeling I am far from being threw with moving.

Packing hangers has been a nightmare for me. I usually pack them neatly in a box, and when I open them up at my new place….they look like the picture above. It’s always a big waste of my life trying to untangle them all. Instead, I figured out the following quick trick:

1. Gather 10-15 hangers
2. While still hanging, tape bottom pieces together
3. Remove from hanger and tape top pieces together
4. Pack neatly in a box!

THIS has saved me so much time, guys…mostly because I have like 10 thousand hangers. Hope it helps you on your next move!

hugs, hanalei

maroon mani’s & moving

 Note to self: don’t get a nice manicure right before you move! Above: we stopped at the temple in St. George, Ut

Firstly, it is hard to post consistently on here when I am constantly juggling  family reunions, packing boxes, moving vans, loading furniture, 3 am road trips, and weddings. On top of it, we don’t yet have wi-fi at our new place in LA so….this post is brought to you by Starbucks! Been sipping on their Tazo iced herbal tea & bumming off their internet since noon today.

A silly thing I did was get a manicure about a week before packing & cleaning & driving & un-packing & more cleaning.  I just couldn’t turn down a girls trip to the nail salon with the fam. I decided to go with a non-summer maroon shade and my niece chose a very summer-appropriate sparkly-purple. Still no chips (I got the shellac/gel polish)!

I’m hitting the road again, for my older brother’s wedding in Provo. I promise to post again on Monday, about the sad/exciting move from SF–>LA. You can always follow me on instagram! 

desert heat & red rock climbing

 {southern Utah: St. George}

 In this desert city we were fighting 110 degree heat, so even getting up with the sun only bought us a few hours to climb! Before we knew it, the scorching sun was heating up that gorgeous rusty-red rock. We took my sister-in-law (and her hubby) rock climbing in southern Utah, before heading back to SF. Since it was their first time climbing outside, I did a lot of this^^ (belaying). My hands got so dirty from our rope! Almost time for a new one.
That red rock is so delicious, you really cannot call yourself a climber until you’ve climbed on it.
 Megan is tiny and strong (this mama of 3 does Crossfit several times a week!), so she pretty much muscled her way up there like she’d been a climber her whole life. It took me a whole year before I climbed like that! I really need to hit the weights again…. ever since Taiwan & Hong Kong, I’ve gotten completely out of my routine. I’ve been so busy with weddings and guests and vacay’s and packing that it still feels like I JUST BARELY got home from Asia!! I honestly don’t know where the months have gone. Hopefully after the move, I’ll be back in sync with lifting & working out. Anyway…back to packing!

hugs, hanalei