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Category: summer diaries

alice + olivia by Stacey Bendet x FriendsWithYou Launch Party

Boy does Stacy Bendet do know how to throw a party! Yesterday I attended alice + olivia by Stacey Bendet x FriendsWithYou Launch Party at the Hollywood Athletic Club. There was a bounce house, lots of yummy drinks, claw machines, dancing clouds, celebrities and candies everywhere.. so pretty much every girl’s dream come true. Check out their new collection here Alice & Olivia x FriendsWithYou

 The collaboration launches as part of alice + olivia’s Art Collective, a series of creative partnerships with renowned artists that began in 2013. The FriendsWithYou collaboration debuted in Los Angeles during an alice + olivia event that gathers the LA art scene in Hollywood, combining art, fashion, and fun.

alice + olivia’s Stacey Bendet was drawn to FriendsWithYou artists Samuel Borkson and Arturo Sandoval’s joyous post-pop imagery and colorful style, and saw how their magical worlds would translate into whimsical, wearable art. The collection itself puts optimism at the forefront, with FriendsWithYou’s signature smiling cloud graphic drifting across knitwear, skirts, accessories and shoes. In the mix are alice + olivia’s saturated rainbows, with West Coast inspired silhouettes.

During the Art Collective event, alice + olivia will also launch its Kindness campaign T-shirt in partnership with Ditch the Label, the anti-bullying charity dedicated to promoting equality and providing support to young people who have been negatively affected by bullying and prejudice. alice + olivia created a black t-shirt with bold, white messaging: Kindness Is For Everyone. The shirt will be available in alice + olivia stores and online; a portion of the proceeds will go to Ditch the Label.

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What do you think about her new collection? Doesnt she have the cutest clothes?

XO,

Joy

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The Scenario Studio

Need new instagram photos for you squad? Or a new profile picture? Taking amazing photos has never become so easy with the newest pop-up museum in la la land. The Scenario Studios has been hired by celebrities and Fortune-500 companies to produce elaborate private photo shoots at their parties and events. The only guests who were able to enjoy a Scenario photo shoot had to be connected to a celebrity or large company, but now, for the first time ever, the public is invited to join the likes of Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, Chrissy Teigen, John Legend, Kanye West, the Kardashians, and over 100 other celebrities who have experienced Scenario on set.

Now, for the first time ever, the “most expensive photo booth in the world” is available to the general public for the price of a museum ticket, located in the heart of LA inside the Grand Central Market. They just had their grand opening today – so rush now and grab your tickets! Bring your friends, bring a date or just bring yourself.

TIP: Come looking your best and ready to play!  Think first date, your BFF’s birthday party, meeting the parents, a pricey restaurant, family photo, first day at a new job, or knowing someone planned a surprise party for you.  Better styling = better photos!

Here’s few of the photos that my friends and I took from the Scenario Studio.

Hope you enjoy,

Joy

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Mapiful

I’m not sure if it’s ever since I’ve dreamt of being a fashion designer or when I first watched Coco Chanel’s documentary or the movie, Marie Antoinette or Anastasia was when my obsession with Paris first started. All I know is, since then I’ve always dreamt of roaming the streets of Paris with my beautiful flowy dress and it will be more than magical.

Thank you so much Mapiful for gifting me this beautiful map of my favorite city in the world that I finally will get to visit on my 30th birthday at the end of this year! Also, huge thanks to my brother for buying me tickets to London and Paris as my birthday present. I cannot wait for this once in a lifetime opportunity and I cannot believe my dreams are finally coming true!

What do you guys think of mapiful? Don’t you think it’s such a great add in any room in your house? I’m completely obsessed with mine! If you ever want to grab one for yourself and would love to have a discount, don’t forget to use “MADEWITHJOY10” to get 10% OFF!

Love you guys,

Joy

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Endless Summer Photo Meet

Hi friends,

A few weeks ago, my best friend and I hosted our second photo meet up at the Venice Canals in Venice Beach. Here’s a preview of some of my favorite shots by our huge photography community in Los Angeles. A Photomeet is a meet up event normally hosted by someone of a few people who gathers photographers, models, creators, influencers to create content, collaborate and magic together. It’s a great way to network, meet new friends, make different connections and get to know your city a little bit.

For this meet, we wanted to host it at the Venice Canals as there’s something about the canals that are beautiful and majestic.

All outfits are made by yours truly! What did you think about these photos? Would you ever want to come to one of your meet ups?

Leave a comment below for your thoughts!

XO,

Joy

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How To Get Invited To Influencer Events

Hi Friends,

If you are wondering how do I get invited to influencer events, soft opening, fashion shows, wine festivals, or store openings, here are the easy steps how.

  1. Make your bio double work for you – include your email address + make your profile a business profile on instagram, where brands or PR can email you with a touch of a button.
  2. Always tag places you go to – on your insta stories, on your posts, tag, tag, tag + also mention them! You have a higher chance being invited back. You have no idea how many times I get to go to free festivals just because I engaged with a city or a brand out of nowhere. Also, PR and social media managers actually go through these tagged photos and check out the latest people that were in there – and that’s how they find you.
  3. Dont be shy! – continuously put yourself out there and do what you’re mean to do. Share what you’re most passionate about and talk about it. Brands that are aligned with your goals will see this and will be attracted.
  4. Create high quality content – once you get invited to your first free event, create high quality content and email back the PR or brand that invited you. You have a higher chance on getting another event in the near future vs. just showing up.
  5. Manifest + find your circle – talk about your goals constantly, write them down and tell your circle of friends or find your people that has similar goals than you. Make new friends if your current friends now don’t have the same goals as you. As you make more friends, your network get bigger which leads to more opportunities and events.

Hope this helps! Would you like to hear more about influencer tips in my blog? Please let me know in the comments below.

XO,

Joy

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Lavender Festival

It’s that time again when one of my favorite festivals at Highland Springs Ranch is here, The Lavender Festival! I love that it’s a family friendly festival yet, it’s also great for a romantic date. We came on the first opening weekend and there were actually less people than we expected, so less crowds, better opps! 😉 The scenery was lovely per usual and this year we ate at the buffet dinner (make reservations here ahead of time) We came late because we were too busy taking picture at the lavender field and ended up sitting in the middle of everything and got our own sweet table. I loved the scenery and being surrounded with light and eating underneath tall trees. The food itself was just okay to me but I was obsessed with their lavender tea and lavender lemonade! I actually mix them together and it was amazing. We also visited a few shops before we had dinner and Eddie bought so much stuff for the kitchen. We are both obsessed with lavender honey and lavender mint tea! Here are few of the photos we took below. There’s also an afternoon tea which we missed this year but definitely would love to try next year!

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Hope you guys get to go this year! It’s open till June 30. Don’t miss out and treat yourself with some lavender goodness!

XO,

Joy

Two Piece Set: Made by yours truly!

Shoes: TOMS

Bag: Wish

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Ostrichland USA

Hi friends,

Have you ever been to an ostrich petting farm? I took my family to Ostrichland USA this weekend and made some new tall friends! To our surprise it was only 5 mins away from Solvang! It’s located at 610 E Hwy 246, Solvang, CA 93463. My family and I had so much fun! (even my grandparents actually) If you’re looking for a family friendly atmosphere, or even a cute date idea, Ostrichland USA is the way to go! Admission is free; however it costs $5 for each bowl of food when it comes to feeding them (totally worth it!)

TIP:  Hold on to your handle very carefully and try not to get too close so the ostriches dont bite you (because they try) but also, don’t stand too close so they dont end up hurting their necks!

Here are a few of the pics that we took. They even had cute angel wings walls!

Let me know what you think about this blog post. Is this something you’d like to add on your places to visit list?

XO,

Joy

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California Blooms

California is blooming and she is magnificent. I’m sure by now you’ve seen all the wildflowers everywhere. Spring has got to be one of my favorite seasons at all time. The other week ago, I finally got a chance to stop by and see the beautiful poppies in Lake Elsinore.

It was so relaxing to be surrounded by nature with thousands of poppies. I made this one shoulder floral dress for the beginning of the spring season. What do you like most about spring? Have you seen any of the super bloom yet?

XO,

Joy

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Hotel Z – Stay Pineapple

Hi Friends,

It feels like it’s been years since I last wrote a blog post… as life has been crazy and I had to take a break on blogging… the past month, a few things have changed and I finally caught my breath and I feel like I actually have a chance to get back to it! *squeals from excitement* Last week, Eddie and I went to San Diego and stayed at Hotel Z – Stay Pineapple and we absolutely loved it! It’s soo cute and it’s literally in the heart of Gaslamp! They also offer free shuttles anywhere in Downtown San Diego, Balboa Park and Little Italy.

They also have bikes that you can rent! We strolled all the way down Balboa Park and visited the cute little Spanish Village.

Each room is designed with pineapple – everything!

Even their bathrooms!

But one of my ultimate faves is the afternoon delights!!! They serve little pineapple cupcakes in their lobby around 3 pm with pineapple infused water!

Do you ever see yourself staying in one of the Pineapple Hotels? I definitely would love to come back at this sweet hotel! They are also pet friendly 🙂

Till our next adventure,

Joy

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How Traveling Can Benefit Your Mental Health x Twenty Nine Palms Holiday Inn Express Review

Did you know that traveling can be a huge benefit for your mental health? And due to today’s Mental Health Awareness Day, I wanted to write a blog post dedicated to how travel can actually benefit your mental health.

What is mental health? It includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps how we determine how to handle stress, relate to others and make everyday choices. Today marks the start of mental health day. Sometimes the little things really do matter like helping a stranger, sharing a cup of coffee or simply having a chat can dramatically change a person’s day. I don’t claim to be an expert but I do know that sometimes listening is important so listen up, talk more, take a break and support each other.

Also, take a vacation, a change of scenery or even just a few hours down the road can magically improve your mental health. A lot of people normally ask me, as a designer – how do you manage to travel so much or go on many road trips on weekends? My answer is always because I absolutely need it. I’ve made traveling and adventuring become a part of my lifestyle because I truly believe that it heals me & it helps me keep my sanity & gives me that small break that I need. So here’s other few reasons why traveling is good for you.

  1. It’s another form of stress relief except more fun – Traveling helps us take a break from our constant boring routine from our day to day lives. It helps us escape our responsibilities for a bit and our worries!
  2. Excitement and happiness is boosted before you travel – Have you ever noticed how happy and excited you are right before your trip? Yes, that alone is healing to your body and mind. When we get so pumped about how much fun you’re going to have in your trip, that’s when you’re the happiest and when you’re actually doing what you had planned to do.
  3. It enhances your creativity – Have you noticed that most artists, designers, writers get their inspiration from a place or their latest trip or vacation? Maybe it’s because when our mind is at rest – that’s when we learn and soak in as much knowledge and inspiration the most. Plus, seeing/experiencing things you’ve never done before is always a great tool how to see things in a different light.
  4. It makes or break your relationships – Traveling helps you learn how you react with certain situations – it helps you as a person and how you adapt to certain unexpected scenarios and it also helps you learn what you can and cannot tolerate from another person. When put in a foreign country/place and you have a traveling buddy, it either strengthens your relationship or breaks it. Either way, it teaches you a lesson.
  5. It’s just so much fun – When you feel happy, your brain is happy. You get to experience life and things you’ve never done or seen before and because of this you’re constantly adapting and becoming the person you’re meant to be.

Last weekend, my boyfriend and I stayed at Twenty Nine Palms Holiday Inn Express, which is situated along Highway 62 and provides easy access to area attractions. The hotel is located three miles from the Oasis Visitor Center and seven miles from Joshua Tree National Park.

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This suite is pretty spacious and is perfect for busy bee business travelers. It has two TVs, a small kitchen with a sink, microwave, a fridge and coffee maker! We were surprised and happy to have all these features as we ended up using them more than we intended to. Also, there’s a free breakfast from 7 – 10 AM that has many options. They even had pancakes!

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There is much to see and do in 29Palms. The hotel is seven miles from Joshua Tree National Park where you can hike, mountain bike, climb and more. If you know me, you probably notice that I’m in Joshua tree almost every other month. It’s honestly my favorite place to have photoshoots in, hike, de-stress (they have the most beautiful sunsets and if you’re lucky, you even get to see meteor showers) & they also have vintage thrift shops almost around every corner!

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Thank you so much Twenty Nine Palms Holiday Inn Express for having us! We had a great stay for the weekend.

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