Flowy, Floral Free People Blouse
You may have noticed in my last few blog posts that I’ve been gravitating towards boho style more and more. I’m not sure what it is but something about the relaxed and effortless silhouettes that fall into the bohemian category have been calling my name these last few months! Free People used to be my favorite clothing brand in college and it really reflected my life at the time. I recently bought this FP flowy, floral blouse and its giving me all the feels. Since it’s #FlashbackFriday I feel like going for a walk down memory lane and I’m taking you with me!
I moved to Downtown LA to attend FIDM almost 10 years ago! It will be exactly 10 years ago next month, and I literally can’t think about that for more than a couple seconds otherwise I feel incredibly old 👵 I really wanted to go to LA this summer and walk around the campus to relive some of those memories, but obviously that won’t be happening anytime soon! Maybe next year 🤞 When I first moved out there I only knew a couple of people. It was incredibly intimidating moving to a new city, not to mention a HUGE city, and trying to navigate that along with meeting new people, living with new roommates and taking on new classes. I didn’t take my car with me for the first 6 months so that was a whole other layer of intimidation: getting around the city by walking or using public transit. Thankfully I had my roommates to navigate that with and I learned lots of tips and tricks early on…like the fact that you WILL get caught if you try to take the subway without buying a ticket 😂 After getting somewhat familiar with my classes and new living situation, I got involved with Young Life in Burbank which was the best thing that happened to me. I made some great friends and was involved in an amazing community of people, and little did I know I would meet the love of my life less than a year later at a Young Life camp!
I met one of my best friends through Young Life, and we would go line dancing almost every Thursday night at Borderline, a country bar in Thousand Oaks, with a group of friends. It was such a fun outing that I looked forward to each week, and I loved practicing the dances, trying to get better without missing a beat. It hit really close to home when I learned of the mass shooting that occurred there at the end of 2018, on a Thursday night. So utterly devastating and it made me think back to all the Thursday nights I spent there. #BorderlineStrong
I was obsessed with country music during my college days (I still love Carrie Underwood, Rascal Flats and Kieth Urban!) and I was always on the lookout for western-inspired pieces to add to my wardrobe. Mainly because I wanted to look cute for line dancing, duh! Free People was hands-down my favorite brand, and as a college student I could definitely not afford it. I would save up my birthday and Christmas money to buy clothes there, and when I started working in the tbd department at Nordstrom, I would use my discount mostly on FP. One of my favorite pieces I ever bought was a cream, lace dress that I wore for my FIDM graduation and it’s a piece that I always remember because of the milestone and memories that are tied to it.
I think that might be why I’ve been drawn to Free People more lately and other boho pieces. It brings back so many wonderful memories from my time living in LA and it makes me feel confident and courageous. I am still in disbelief that my 18-year-old self moved to a huge city without knowing hardly anyone and achieved what I set out to do. This brand almost serves as my reminder that I can do anything I set my mind to with hard work and determination.