july sponsor giveaway!

i had a lot of awesomespice large-ad sponsors this month, and today 6 of you have the chance to win one of the prizes from this mega giveaway of awesomeness! do you have your seat belts on? things might get cray cray with awesomespice up in here!

first up we have, For Your Basket, a handmade market event featuring 30 local vendors and artists. the event will be held August 27th in Idaho Falls Idaho. the market features unique clothing, accessories, art, decor and gifts. the first 100 customers to the event will receive a free cupcake from The Cocoa Bean Cafe! um, can i have someone's cupcake? you can ship it to me...even if it is stale by the time i get, i still would love to nosh on it. anyway, two of the For Your Basket vendors are giving away prizes today!

first prize is a set of handmade children's jammies from Crazy Adorable.

the winner will get to choose the style of jammies they want :) the sizes are from 0-6 years!

the second prize is a crazy awesome "everday tote" from Marigold and Sage.

the winner will get to choose the design. i personally love this one.

the next prize is from KL Photography!

KL Photography was created by a young woman looking to find her place in this world, and photography is definitely a passion of hers. Kelly is always expanding her portfolio with images that feature fun angles, modern shots, and an obvious desire to customize her creativity to fit her clients needs. A picture is worth so much more than a thousand words.

Since Kelly is based out of Arizona, she is offering a free photo session of your choice to those in-state, or a print of any one of her images off her blog :) Here are some of my favorites of her's:

my friend Ashley (you all know her!) just opened up a darling shop called June/July where she sells handmade flower belts. she is offering a free belt of your choice! i love this one the most:

Pink Lemonade not only has an adorable name, it has the cutest items! i have a cute rosette necklace that i will be modeling for you later on this week...you will love! but guess what?! you get to win one of your own. the item you have a chance of winning is the gray yellow and white rosette statement necklace...i love that color combo :)

the last prize is from Kin t-shirt designs. my friend Angela is the genius behind this awesome shop. have you ever seen families on vacation with painfully dorky matching shirts? as in the kind of dorky that isn't cool? well, Angela fixed that epic problem by designing super sweet t-shirts that even the surliest of teenagers would love to wear, even if it matched his grandma! Angela is offering a free t-shirt design of your choice! here are some of my favs:

so many awesome prizes!

all you have to do is comment once to enter all of the giveaways.

you just need to tell me what kind of posts are your favorite on the blog.

in other words, what kinds of things would you like to see more of? fashion, recipes, home design, photography?

let me know...and remember, only one comment enters you into all of them!

you have until this wednesday to enter.

come back tomorrow for posts by me! (yes i will be back!) and to find out the winner of the last two giveaways!

xo

lauren is moving! guest post by: Brittni

brittni is our lovely guest poster today! she has fabulous style, beautiful hair and a great blog!

recipe for success? i think so! :)

-----------------------------------

Hello Busy Bee Lauren readers!

I'm Brittni from With Love From Michigan & I'm thrilled to be guest posting for Lauren as she's making her move. When Lauren told me that she wanted me to restyle one of her outfits with my own spin on it, I was pretty excited. Lauren has fabulous style and great vintage pieces to work with. Some of my favorite outfits include:

That's when I was all, Gahhh Lauren has so many awesomespice vintage clothes and I have none!!! Okay, I have some, but still. And then I came upon this outfit....

... and I thought, This is so me. I love menswear inspired outfits! Then I remembered it's about 1,000 degrees in Michigan right now. Actually it's 96. In Michigan 96 = 1,000. I'm sweating at 75 degrees, so you can imagine how I feel about 96. It was obvious I had to summer-fy (yes, I just made that up) the outfit. I also knew I wanted to include something vintage since Lauren is the queen of vintage.. and where better to find vintage menswear than your dad's closet?

So Lauren was channeling a rugged, hot, twenty-something and I'm channeling your average golfing grandpa, but it still works. Throw a ruffled vest and some pearls on and BAM! instant girl.

& if you were wondering if I know how to smile...

The answer is, yes.

----------------------------------------------------
The Details:
Shirt: Dad's Circa 1970s, Vest: JC Penney, Shorts: Gap,
Shoes: Sperry Bluefish, Jewelry: JCrew, Fossil
----------------------------------------------------

Thanks for having me Lauren! xx, b

--------------------------------

LOVING her take on my take on Wentworth Miller! ha! wow, that was confusing. but really, that outfit is ADORABLE! what do you guys think?!

lauren is moving! guest post by: Kate

kate is one my very best friends in the world, and we met through blogging. crazy, huh? i think one of my very favorite things about our friendship is that we don't agree on everything, but we share the same common goals, and we value the same things. kate is one of the greatest people i know, and she inspires me daily. and before i get really deep and mushy and start blubbering all over you guys via the internetz, let's get back to talking about fashion...

-------------------------------------------------

this is lauren again. i am typing this up for kate because she is on vacation in florida...and i am unpacking cardboard boxes. to say i am jealous would be an understatement. anyway, she wanted to participate as a guest poster, and so she sent me these photos saying i was an inspiration for her beach attire. i was flattered. observe:

[polaroid of me from last summer]

and kate rocking the vintage glam look at the beach! kate's favorite part of the day was when a surfer girl complimented her on her cute beach outfit. that would make my day too.

i loved her look so much, i added a heart to it. because i am cheese ball. awesome!

--------------------------

This post is about to get extra extra confusing because guess what? Now this is Kate typing! Hey fellow BBL lovers, thanks for letting me pop in and post today. I was able to log on and do a quick edit to the post to add my own words--so why didn't I just delete what Lar wrote? Um, because I am kinda awkward and I sort of really loved the end to this post (down below) and we would've had to cut that out if I deleted what she wrote.

I just wanted to say "thank you" to Lauren and all of her delightful readers for letting me share my beach look. I am so far from being a fashion blogger or really a fashion anything and so it's a treat to be here today playing dress up and having a blast. The truth is that Lauren inspires me to be brave and try new things and without her I would never stumble upon the occasional cute outfit. Both the look at the top and Lauren's recent dots on dots post inspired me to add my scarf to the bathing suit . Also, I bought that adorable scarf while thrifting with Lauren last year and have since decided it has magical properties so I'm on a mission to pair it with everything now. ;) Hooray for beach vacations, magic scarfs and the best blog on the block, Busy Bee Lauren!

xo ~Kate

-------------------------------

i just realized that i made an intro and a closing for a post i typed up. i think i deserve an award for most awkward situation of the year. anyway, let's pretend i am not awkward, and let's talk about kate's cute beach look! i think she fabulous!

tomorrow is the last day to enter the giveaway, so comment for extra entries!

lauren is moving! guest post by: Katie

katie has become a very dear friend to me. her sweetness and creativity really are such a happy thing in my life. you guys will just love the outfit that she put together...seriously, prepare yourselves.

------------------------------------

hi there, folks! my name is katie and i blog over at "off switch." when lauren asked me to guest post for her...let's just say i was flattered. then she told me the theme of the post would be to style an outfit inspired by one of her previous outfit posts. so fun! after searching i came up with a handful of favorites, particularly the simplicity and ease of this outfit.

in the end i decided upon a combination of my favorite bbl fashion staples: oversized glasses, maxi skirts, and vintage.

on tuesday my mom and i went to run some errands and decided to stop at my staple thrift store before heading home. they recently marked down all their clothes to one dollar each. can you believe that? we had a ton of fun playing dress-up in the aisles and suggesting hideous clothes for each other to buy. i think that's one of my favorite reasons to buy second-hand: i can experiment with clothes i would never otherwise purchase. not to mention, i can build my closet up like crazy without spending much at all. and thank you to lauren for being the queen of experimenting with personal style and dressing as an expression of self - and sharing it for all of us to see. all my love busy bee readers. xo.

ps: for all those lovers of analog photography, i present a polaroid. :)

--------------------------------

okay. okaaaaaay. katie killed it. can i please have that maxi skirt? and can i please have her rockin' hair and freakin' boss style? okay thanks. what was your favorite part of katie's outfit? chime in, in the comments! don't forget, your comments mean more entries in the giveaway!

lauren is moving! guest post by: Jasmine

jasmine and i found each other through blogging, and we have become great friends. i love that girl with all of her spunk and sweetness. if you don't follow her blog already, you should! i'm excited to show you her cute outfit today!

------------------------------------------

I drew inspiration from this outfit of Lauren's:

I really like mixing patterns so I was drawn to the combination of stripes and polka dots - two of my favorites! Who doesn't love a good stripe and a fun polka dot after all??! This is what I came up with:

I even drew inspiration from Lauren in the shoe department and went with brown leather shoes!

Denim pencil skirt: J. Crew

Polka dot tee: Forever 21

Striped button-up: J. Crew

Platform mules: Frye

Breaking down someone else's outfit and drawing inspiration from it was seriously such a fun way to shop my closet! I'm not sure I would have come up with this outfit if I hadn't been looking for it. I'm going to have to do this more often. :)

--------------------------------------------------------

gasp! jasmine's look is fabulous! love the mix of prints and how sassy this outfit is! what do you guys all think?!

jasmine, can i have your mules? kthanxbye!

lauren is moving! guest post by: Beth

oh, what a treat we have today. my lovely friend beth is a vintage queen with impeccable taste, and the loveliest smile. she is also the kindest person i know. seriously, her thoughtfulness for everyone around her is amazing. i love her and i am so glad we are friends...

------------------------------

Every once in a while you get to meet a person who makes you realize how amazing life is. Lauren is one of these people that have been fortunate enough to have in my life the past few months. She is so honest and real. She has her fair share of trials but she maintains one of the best sense of humors that I know. She sees beauty in things that many people don't look twice at. I think the world is lovelier because of her.

It was hard for me to pick a favorite outfit to recreate. I finally decided on the Cactus Garden outfit for the following reasons:

1. I too love the cactus garden at the Temple. It is unique and I like unique. Plus, we can walk there.

2. I love the braids- I am crazy for braids right now.

Okay, so there are only 2 reasons. In my interpretation I had to cut the pants. It is 110 and there was no way I was wearing pants today! I wore a blazer that has been hiding in my closet for years. I can't part with it but I have a hard time wearing it. Lauren always pulls them off so nicely, this was the perfect excuse. It has eyelet details which make it more me.

The dress is thrifted and one of my very favorites. I wear it more than almost anything in my closet. It is perfect for summer, nice and bright and cool. I love it. Of course I couldn't not include a head scarf, they are soooo Lauren. I actually wear them a lot too, they are great for days your hair doesn't get washed or brushed- - - or is that only me??

The shoes were thrifted and one of my favorites, very comfortable, easy to slip on, and go with anything. My necklace is from Lisa Leonard, it is extra special to me because it has Jared and I's initials on it, and after he proposed to me we carved our initials on a tree. (we were hiking). I love it a lot. The ring and bracelet were gifts. The earrings were from a few years ago on clearance at World Market.

Now I am off to enjoy my day with my kiddos. I have already shed the blazer- too hot. It looked nice in the pictures though!

---------------------------------

i love how beth took my winter outfit and made it into a summery dream. seriously, how beautiful is she?! what is your favorite part of beth's outfit?

do yourself a favor and check out beth's sweet blog :)

oh hai...

hi friends, it's lauren...you know, the girl that runs this blog? oh you forgot me? no big.

just popping in to tell you that we are alive and happy.

we are currently sleeping on the floor with two blankets(one to lay on, one to keep us warm) because all of our furniture has been moved.

also, we were foolish and packed all of our pots and pans, bowls, plates and silverware...so we are kinda confused as to how we are supposed to eat.

but other than that, we are living in the living room of our condo without anything but a tv...and it's actually been pretty awesome.

is that weird that i think living with nothing but a couple blankets, a change of clothes, a couple bathroom necessities and a tv is cool? because it totally is.

 

why are we still living in the condo when all of our belongings are at the new house?

oh, we are just cleaning and repainting the condo. pray for my sanity.

 

what are we doing when we aren't painting or cleaning?

we are starving to death because of the no pans/food situation...and being obsessed with "Friday Night Lights".

why did i never watch this show when it was on air? don't worry, i watched the entire first season on sunday.

team matt saracen...that's all i'm saying. i don't think he needs a "team" but i just made one up.

 

that is all. the end, amen.

lauren is moving! guest post by: Carlotta

carlotta has mad photo takin' skillz. yes, with a z...because they are that awesome. and she is beautiful, and has a very inspiring blog. i loved the outfit she put together today! enjoy!

------------------------------------

Hey there, I'm Carlotta and I'm so thrilled to be posting here today! I'm sure I'm not the only one that is slightly jealous of Lauren's incredible style -- she just oozes vintage in a nothing but good way. I wouldn't mind stealing some of her thrifting skills either... ;)

Lauren asked me to post about fashion; something dear to my heart. The world of clothing is so easy to get caught up in and it's so simple to become materialistic -- there's a fine line between wanting to look nice and becoming obsessed. However, I find nothing wrong with putting together outfits one feels confident and pretty in.

headscarf: forever 21 // sunglasses: target // top: thrifted // necklace: c/o new fashioned whispers // belt: thrifted // jeggings: american eagle // shoes: target

I lovingly describe my style as vintage modern -- while I do follow some trends (honestly, what girl doesn't?), I love to incorporate things that aren't seen quite so often in fads, hence the vintage element. I confess I'm not sure my wardrobe could be completely made up of clothes from another era, but I'm still head over heels for finding that piece while thrifting and consequently conjuring up images of the woman who used to wear it. (does that sound creepy? because it wasn't supposed to. promise.)

Hooray for vintage!

i'm carlotta -- writer, photographer, artist, and christian. i blog at pastor's girl's ponderings. fashion enthusiast and lover of stripes and scarves. i listen mumford & sons obsessively and believe that life is beautiful. i call the windy plains of oklahoma home. i adore simplicity, early mornings, fresh flowers, and the farmer's market. it's a pleasure to meet you.

---------------------------

that girl with all of her cuteness...love it! what was your favorite thing about carlotta's outfit? voice your opinion in the comments!

lauren is moving! guest post by: Amanda

we are in for a big big big treat today! one of my very favorite bloggers, amanda, is going to show you how she transformed one of my summer looks, into a winter look! amanda lives in new zealand, so it's hard for me to imagine her having cold weather while we have this dastardly horrible heat! anyway, check out her awesome post...

-------------------------------

Hello everyone! My name is Amanda and I run a blog called Here Comes the Sun and I am so happy to be guest posting here today! Lauren is one of my favourite bloggers and I am so glad to share a bit of her internet space for this little moment :)

When Lauren told me the challenge to recreate one of her outfits in my own way I immediately knew I would take inspiration from this look of hers because my husband has the same tshirt!

So this morning I dragged the hubby out of bed to snap a few pictures of me in his top. I live in New Zealand and it's the middle of winter here so it was a bit of a cold experience but totally worth it!

Anyway thanks for having me here Lauren and all the best with your move!

Do pop over and say hello on my blog as well :)

-----------------------------------------

holy moly, guacemole! adorable! i love the look of the shorts with the tights...one day i promise that i will try that look when i get brave. what was your favorite thing about amanda's look?

lauren is moving! guest post by: ilene

okay, so when i read the guest post that you are about to read, when ilene first sent it over to me, i wanted to hug her. she didn't just make an outfit based off one of my outfits...she incorporated something we both love and fangirl over. ilene is now my hero. the end.

-----------------------------------

the inspiration.

the result.

skirt: belk (from forever ago) / top: gift from my mom back in 2006 (college graduation, baby!!) / shoes: Blowfish Shoes /necklace: the Blue Balloon / ring: made it myself / nails: OPI

hello! to the fellow readers of Lauren's awesomespice blog!

(how can you not use that word when guest posting in this fantastic part of blog world?!)

my name is Ilene and i'm the voice over at Much Love, illy. stop by if you have a minute - i love making new friends! i also am obsessed with coffee, neon colors, and snacking during all hours of the day.

when Lauren asked me to guest post with this completely genius theme of replicating her past outfit posts, i jumped right on board. first off, all of her outfits are utterly inspiring and uber cute, so i was up for the fun challenge.

the first thing that came to mind when i thought of Lauren's outfit was the darling velvet skirt she rocked in this post. she is also one of the best fashion bloggers to rock the nerd glasses. and when it comes to Bones, she is my text buddy ("OMG, i can't believe angela" or "i loooove sweets," etc.).

so with all of those pieces, i put together an outfit that i thought best replicated a Busy Bee Lauren classic with my own twist. and not that i'm a huge fan of skulls and crossbones but that is rep of our mad love for Bones and Booth, so it was a must.

so...how did i do, friends?!

thanks for having me, Lauren!

love ya, girl!

much love.

ilene (aka illy)

-----------------------------------

see what i mean?! fashion AND "Bones"?! i love that girl! what was your favorite thing about ilene's outfit? i'm loving that her first pose is basically the same as my pose in the inspiration photo. AMAZING!

remember that your comments on the guest posts can be added as extra entries for this giveaway!