Flirty Flannel

Shirt: Empyre

Jeans: Old

Shoes: Airwalk

Necklace: Forever 21

Throwback outfit of the day post since it was in my archives. One of my go to looks is a plaid shirt and leggings. I love this shirt because of the lace backing, it's flirty and edgy. I also ADORE my red moccasins with faux fur leopard on the inside. So soft and comfy, I'm wearing them EVERYWHERE! As well as this necklace, the little feathers dangle just right!

Sorry for the short post. It's been a hectic work week and my only days off (today/tomorrow) have been jam packed with errands and photo shoots. I'm hoping to go to the plant nursery tomorrow and start mapping out my plants for the backyard once it's warmer. I'm really excited to see greenery from my kitchen.

Hope you all are having a fabulous Sunday and an even better week!

HeARTs Speak

2016 is being very good to me. I'm a few weeks into my new job at the Animal Foundation and it already feels like I've been there forever. I love being an Adoption Counselor. My days just fly by because I'm always so busy. Giving advice to possible adopters, ferreting out information to make sure our animals are going to a good home, doing meet and greets to make sure that the dogs get along and it's a good fit. Basically all the stuff I was doing before for rescue but now I get paid for it. It's awesome.

I also finally got a response back from HeARTs Speak and I've been accepted as an Artist Member. I'm only the second photographer listed in Nevada so this is huge to me. HeARTs Speak is such an amazing organization and I'm honored to be a part of it and perhaps get some new opportunities to save even more lives.

Phoebe got to be my first HS portrait. She's a 16 yr old special needs Pomeranian who is being lovingly cared for in a hospice foster home. Even if she never gets adopted, she already has a wonderful forever home.

I also have a new foster pup! Iggy went into a trial home... With my Aunt & Uncle! It was such a good fit with the other dogs that none of us doubt it will be made official once the trial is up. That leaves room in my house for a new foster and Farley is such a sweet little thing. Beagle/Basset Hound/Pit is the estimated breed and we think about 3 yrs of age even though he acts like a baby. Once he is neutered and cleared medically (he has some skin issues we are dealing with), he will be ready for a new home!

I'm really starting to love my life, finally doing everything that I love to do!

RIP Goblin King

Usually celebrity deaths don't stir many emotions in me. Yes it's sad but it's not like I knew them personally. The passing of David Bowie however has left me more melancholy and nostalgic than I thought it would. I remember when I was a kid at my preschool/daycare, every Friday they would make us watch either Labyrinth or The Dark Crystal. I hated both movies, they freaked me out and granted... I was about 5 or 6 so it a reasonable freak out. As I became a teenager, I still hated The Dark Crystal. Labyrinth I gave a second chance. I found the Goblin King to be quite seductively hot. Welcome to puberty!

I harbored a new appreciation for all things David Bowie as I did with quite a few other things and artists as I got older. Space Oddity. Rebel Rebel. Dance Magic Dance. Young Americans. I could go on and on. Today I have a few Bowie vinyls in my collection and Labyrinth has become a classic to me as I'm sure it is to many of my generation.

I think Bowie's passing hits me a little harder because it's a reminder that I'm getting older. We are all getting older. Which means we will continue to lose the greats, the ones we love, the ones we admire, the ones we grew up with. A reminder that time passes fast and we need to be true to ourselves and our dreams, like Bowie was. He was a true individual and originalist. So today I'll mourn with everyone else and remember a legend as I listen to his records, watch his movies, remember that time is short.

"I don't know where I'm going from here,
                               but I promise it won't be boring."

RIP Starman

Lazy Girl's Beauty Haul

So I'll admit, I've always been really terrible at being a girly girl. I didn't start wearing makeup until I was well into high school and even then it was just a little eyeshadow, mascara, and lip balm. I hate doing my hair which is why I resort to super easy styles (aka putting it up in a messy bun) unless I use my curling wand and then I can get away with a decent hairstyle for at least 2-3 days without washing it. Honestly I'm terrible at being a girl. Not to say that I don't love getting dressed to the nines sometimes plus who doesn't love to be pampered?

What I'm saying is... My makeup bag is pretty basic. My hair products are everywhere because I'm forever trying to find the unicorn that will give me long, thick, not frizzy hair. But my makeup kit is super small compared to most. I stick to easy stuff. Foundation, eyeshadow, eyeliner, mascara. That's pretty much it. So I don't splurge very often when it comes to makeup. However I decided to change that up and try to put a little more effort into my day to day beauty routine. I stopped into Sephora and purchased a new eyeshadow palette, eyeliner, and mascara. I've always seen Urban Decay makeup plastered in beauty blogs and decided to give it a go. I also follow Kat Von D's Instragram and have been dying to try her much talked about eyeliner. I always love shopping at Lush because I take baths constantly and they have the best bath bombs. Lush also has my favorite skin product, Dark Angels, which was the only thing that fixed my skin when it went completely out of whack when I moved to Utah. My skin had never been bad before but I think the stress of the move, living in a new city by myself, and the new climate change threw it for a loop. I'm completely loyal to it now. I love that Lush is so vocal about animal testing and I just love everything they sell. I decided to try some new stuff and see how their hair products were considering I had never tried anything from the hair line before.

1 // Urban Decay Naked 2 Eyeshadow Palette. I've heard so many good things about this brand and their palette's. I'm a lover of neutral earthy tones so after looking at the selection, I went with Naked 2 which is all neutral colors. I love the color Busted for my eyebrows and Snakebite or Tease as my everyday shadow color. I'm pretty sure that I'll be using all these colors at some time or another. I played with this palette a little today and used Bootycall for my crease as well as the corners of my inner eye. I then blended Snakebite over my lids and used Pistol lightly under my lower lash line. Finally I used Blackout to blend a little at the outer corner of my eyes. I also used Busted for my brows. You can see results below. I really love this palette and think it's going to help me step up my makeup game.

2 // Urban Decay Perversion Mascara.  This was a last minute purchase because it was on sale and in the little checkout aisle. I have a hard time finding mascara I really love. What I like about Perversion is how soft it makes my lashes feel and doesn't clump them together at all. However it doesn't make as big a statement as other mascaras have, it doesn't make my lashes look bigger or blacker. Who knows, maybe it will grow on me as daytime mascara.

3 // Kat Von D Tattoo Liner in Color Trooper. I live by my eyeliner. Sometimes it's the only makeup I'll wear at all. This is hands down my favorite product that I got because the brush is so perfect. It literally glides on like butter and was the easiest application I've ever used. It feels like drawing it on with a pen. Plus this liner stands up to the waterproof claim. My cat eyes aren't perfect to begin with (something I'm still practicing) but I'm excited to work on it with this stuff. 

4 // Daddy-O Shampoo by Lush. I wanted to try this because I want a purple shampoo that doesn't smell disgusting and that actually works. This shampoo is actually Vegan and doesn't have any harsh chemicals in it and smells like Violets. I have a hard time getting brassiness out of my blonde and now that I've gone gray, I need a purple shampoo to help the bottom part fade to an ashy white. I used this last night and left it in for about a minute. I did my usual shower routine and blow-dried my hair and the ends did look lighter than before as well as giving me a more silvery look than it was before. So far I would say this product works and will continue to use it and see how it goes.

5 // Go Faster Feet Foot Lotion by Lush. When I was a lifeguard, I always had my feet in great shape. Now that I'm constantly in boots or shoes and can't afford a real pedicure, I resort to lotions to help keep my feet smooth and soft. With the winter season, my feet had gotten a little rough and after using this lotion once, my feet were already ten times smoother than before. You can also use this lotion and wrap your feet for an hour for a more intense soak and softness. This lotion is fantastic!

6 // Ocean Salt Face & Body Scrub by Lush. What drew me to this was the scent. Anything that says Ocean on it will usually draw me in. My skin's been dry thanks to cold weather, I wanted something that could give me a little boost back towards my usual softness. Now I'm not sure if it was the scrub or something else, but I started to get really itchy and break out into hives not long after I used it. Sometimes I break into hives if I'm really upset or stressed and sometimes it just happens for the fun of it which is always fantastic. I put some Aveeno lotion on the red areas and it seemed to calm down not long after that. I'm going to give it another shot and see if it was just a fluke reaction because I really liked how smooth my skin felt after using it... Before the red bumps popped up.

7 // Twilight & Big Blue Bath Bombs by Lush. Like I said, I can't live Lush without bath stuff. 

                     Urban Decay Naked 2 in Bootycall/SnakeBite/Pistol/Blackout/Busted. Kat Von D Tatto Liner in Trooper. Urban Decay Perversion Mascara

What are your favorite beauty products? Any lazy girl beauty hacks I should learn?

2016 Goals & Resolutions

Photography Goals

- To start taking my camera EVERYWHERE with me. I don't know why I've always had this weird anxiety about what people think when I'm shooting randomly and not doing an actual paid shoot. For some reason I get this uncomfortable sense of judgement that people think I'm a tourist when I'm not. It's SO stupid and something I need to get over because I'm missing out on awesome opportunities when I leave my camera at home.

- Apply as a HeARTs Speak Artist. I've actually started on this right before Christmas when I sent in my application. This would be a huge deal for me regarding Animal Rescue Photography and I'm keeping my fingers crossed tightly. It takes up to 60 days for my application to be reviewed so wish me luck and send me good vibes!

- Take more photo risks. After moving out of state and back and focusing on other jobs, my business got neglected and I've had to rebuild my clientele. This year I'm hoping to spark my creative juices and step outside the box for projects even if it means doing trade work.

- Make new business cards/Rebuild clients. Pretty standard stuff, get this pony back on track.

- Start submitting my work to other blogs/contests/etc like I use to.


Blog Goals

- Consistently post regardless of how busy I am. Basically that's what happened last year and why I put the blog on the back burner. I really love Mocha Fox and having my little internet corner where I can shamelessly post photos of myself in outfits or share dog stuff and don't really get judged for it.

- Find sponsored work. I would love to be able to take Mocha Fox to the next level and offer sponsored work. So with that being said... I'm available!

- Save up for a more personal blog design. I'm broke. Like super broke. Everything I have goes into bills, photography business, and dog rescue. It doesn't really leave me a lot left over to splurge on things like a one of a kind blog design. It would be nice though so I'm going to start putting a couple bucks aside at a time to go towards getting my blog spruced up.

- Purchase a scanner/printer. This could go under photography goals as well since this would benefit both.

- Work on more interesting and personal posts. Self-explanatory.

Personal Goals/Resolutions

-Lose weight. I got into a funk last year and I won't lie, I totally turned to food a bit. I was my skinniest at 115lbs but most comfortable when I was at 119lbs. Unfortunately I'm now over 145lb and it shows. When I don't want to go out because none of my clothes fit the way they should and it's effecting my confidence, then I need to do something. I got a treadmill for Christmas (I lost a ton of weight before by just walking at an incline on the treadmill for an hour every 3-4 days) so my goal is to at least get back down to 120lb. I just need to find that motivation and put down the pasta!

-Fix up my office/photography space. Since I moved into our home, I've been avoiding the office space even though I have a ton of ideas for it. I plan on making the area where the closet was a photo space where I can hang backdrops and do indoor studio work. I also want to make it a bright area to do blogging, editing, and find motivation and be inspired. It's not the biggest room so it's going to take a little creativity to pull it all together and my first step tomorrow is figuring out how to refurnish my desk which will come up in a future blog post.

- Make time for dog rescue stuff that's not just photography. My old job left me so drained that I was barely able to even do photos for rescues when I use to do that and so much more. I want to get back into training and events and stuff like that. Also to continue learning and taking classes when the opportunities arise.

- Read more books. I was always such an avid reader and could read books in a single day. The library was my second home when I was a kid. Over the past few years, I struggle to find time to just sit down and get into a book. I need to make the time and instead of turning on the television, just read instead.

- Start saying yes instead of no. I use to be a very social butterfly but 2015 kind of turned me into a homebody. I need to start going out more, seeing my friends more, just doing more. I want to try to say yes more than I say no and that goes towards all opportunities, not just going out at night instead of staying home and watching Jeopardy. But I do love Jeopardy.

-Bake more! Cook more! I've become quite the little baker if I say so myself. I always excel at trying new Christmas cookie recipes during the holiday season but after I watched the Great British Bakeoff, I got inspired and started baking different stuff and then trying dinner recipes that I usually would find overwhelming and complex. I've had way more success than fails and hope to continue finding joy in my kitchen.

- Focus on my relationship and continue to grow. 2015 brought Johnny and I some major bumps. From long distance dating when I moved to Utah, the stress of living together and his whole family, losing jobs and gaining jobs and being pretty broke... We haven't really had much time to actually be a couple and do fun stuff together. Now that we have our own place and we both have just started new jobs (with better pay!) we can start actually having date nights again. We also plan on taking a trip soon as I haven't traveled in quite a few years (moving so doesn't count) and we have actually never taken a trip together as a couple. Which is crazy.

- Save more dogs! Always. Which brings up the pretty lady in the picture above. Dolly is 14 years young and as you can see... She's a classy lady. Dolly has just been cleared by our vet and is ready for a foster or forever home!

What's your major goal for 2016?

New Years Eve // Sequins & Gold

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful time ringing in 2016. Not only did I get to celebrate with people I love but I can also share my big news... I've accepted an Adoption Counselor position with The Animal Foundation which is our major animal shelter in Las Vegas. I'm so excited to be back in the animal welfare industry and even more so that I can make a difference in my community. The fact that my old employer Best Friends has made my shelter a National Partner sealed the deal for me. My new job will be harder than what I've done before as AF isn't No-Kill but it is heading in that direction. As difficult at some situations will be, I know I'm completely up for it. I should be starting within the next week so this is definitely starting off 2016 with a huge bang!

Coat: Forever 21

Sequin Joggers: Forever 21 (currently unlisted/out of stock)

Shirt: Old

Heels: Fioni Night Old

Cat Ear Headband: Forever 21 

I made sure to go all out this year since last year I was by myself in Utah and asleep before 10pm. Gold sequin sweatpants are the way to go man, I was so comfortable. I also felt like Miley Cyrus crawling around on my faux fur rug in a giant coat and sequined pants to get these shots. Luckily my boyfriend doesn't judge me too harshly. 

As you can see I've also changed my hair, rocking that old lady gray. I really like it even though it's completely different then what I'm use to. The lighter part will eventually fade into an ashy white blond or so I've been told. It's really up to my hair and very rarely does it like to follow direction.

How did you celebrate last night? Share with me what you wore!