Freaking Blogger!

So apparently yesterday Blogger locked my blog for some weird reason, some malware that was supposedly on my archives page...so I deleted it. This would have been fine and dandy if it didn't bar access to the blog for everyone.

What a pain in the ass.

Well I'm back now so no worries ^_^

Here's to hoping that doesn't happen again.

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Merry Christmas guys!!!! I've been super busy with my grad school finals (which paid off because I got straight A's so far...just waiting on one more!), but I'm beack in the land of Vera!

I hope your Christmas is happy, healthy, and full of love (and Vera!)

xoxo,

Shay

Seeing Summer 2014 on Glenna

So my girl Donna blessed me with some sneak peeks of the Summer 2014 prints! And she gave them to us in the form of Glenna! The Glenna is a really good go-to bag for everyday activity. Not too big, but plenty of space inside. There is a Glenna in CaMa on my list that I'm HOPING Santa is looking at ;-)

Remember when I said that sometimes I needed to see the prints on merchandise before I can make my final judgement? Weeeellllll I had to in the cases of Flutterby and Petal Paisley. Here is the original preview:

aaaand here they are on merchandise:

When I first saw Flutterby, it didn't really call to me. I recall saying I had no real comment on it, and that was true. It seemed like something I'd buy for my 12 year old sister. Purple, purple EVERYWHERE...it gave me a toothache. I didn't hate it, I just didn't love it.

Looking at it now, I do like it. It's adorable. It screams SUMMERTIME. I can see it in a park at a barbecue or even poolside on a really hot afternoon. The dark purple background tones the sweetness down a little so that saved it.

Will I buy this? Probably, but again, for my sister. I have my eye on another print. Would I keep it if it were gifted to me? Absolutely!


Now, Petal Paisley...this one was a little tricky. When I first saw the preview swatch, I compared it to a survey print from a few months ago that I liked. In my head, I kept seeing the survey print instead of the actual Petal Paisley print.

When I actually took time and looked at PP again, I wasn't too jazzed about it. It was very busy for me, and once again I had to hold my opinion until I saw it on a bag, or wallet, or something!


Looking at it now...I may or may not be in love. It reminds me of Ribbons with the color scheme. I see the dark blue background, the pinks, that teal green, and white.  I bet when we get the actual swatch for PP they will have the same colors. It's the colors that are doing it for me. You all know I don't love paisleys, but it's the colors they use in them that make the difference.

Fanfare I still love! Vera is in need of a new black and white pattern, right? The last one was Night and Day(I'm not counting Camellia, there was a lot of grey in that), which is now retired. Night and Day was black and white and that was IT.


Well Fanfare fits the bill! It's style is what I like to call  fancy-pants, it's quite elegant, to me at least. Yes, it has a small splash of yellow but it's still simple enough. I can see this being a nice accessory print for a nice night out. It's very subtle, not busy like some of the others.



Unfortunately she didn't have a photo for Flower Shower. I haven't see it on anything yet...so right now it's still thumbs down for me. I didn't like it when I saw it, but maybe I'll be pleasantly surprised :-)

Happy Birthday VeraObsessed!

I could NOT let this day go by without showing VeraObsessed some love: 

 She's where I get my 411.

I can fangirl to her about Vera and she will totally get it. 

Retirement Sale? YAY!

She's my Vera Godmother...and today is this awesome gal's born day!!!! 

HAPPY BIRTHDAY VERAOBSESSED! 

...and like any true citizen in the Land of Vera, she celebrates in style. 

Jealous!!!!!!!!!!!!

If it weren't for her, I would not have been inspired to even create this blog.
Seeing her love for Vera made me want to share mine too!

HUGS

Be sure to give VeraObsessed some love guys! 

Designer's block

This is more of a Shay Share....I need help!

I'm thinking of changing my layout to go along with the release of Canterbury Magenta....but I LOVE Olivia Pink!!!! I had planned on leaving this layout for a while but the desktop wallapapers came out the other day and now I'm torn!

What should I do?!?!

or....

Gah! Olivia Pink has my heart but that Magenta in CM really POPS! Decisions, decisions....help a sistah out!

Which layout should I choose?
	Olivia Pink
	Canterbury Magenta
	Pick another color!
pollcode.com free polls

Expect me to gab about the November 7th releases and the winter items in depth soon!

Online swaps and Poshmark

I have always had a shopping problem. I can hardly resist a good deal. So I don't know WHY someone told me about Poshmark and the Facebook Sell/Swap groups, but since my first Poshmark post I have bought 3 more bags...I need help!

A few weeks ago I bought again from Posher @urbanava, I got a small duffel and a Vera tote in New Hope, a print from 2004.

 @urbanava is so cute, she sent a free Limes Up shopper tote too, if you're ever looking for good Vera at a decent prices, she's your girl!

Now last week while I was in one of my grad school classes, I was looking for a nice bag for these school nights (I have 3 this semester), and I was in group on Facebook for swaps and selling of Vera, and I came across this messenger bag in Java Blue. Well you all know how much I was CRAVING to get a bag in that print! The woman who sold it to me was so nice, she bundled the tote for $20 more. Who would turn that down?!?!?!

It came today and I was ESTATIC!!!

 When I got home today, I felt the urge to take a picture of all my Vera. So here's an actual peek at my Vera closet, fellow citizens...it's only going to get bigger!

Since I went on a bit of a spree this past weekend, my Olivia Pink tote will join the ranks a few weeks down the road. I cant wait!!!

Till next time fellow citizens!

_______________________________________________________________________

So it's no secret to my friends and family that I have become addicted to the Vera Bradley brand. It's something I have grown to love, so much in fact, that I have created this lovely blog here. Through this blog I have gotten in contact with several wonderful people who share this obsession, it's our own little community and I love it! Vera-land citizens rule!

Everyone has their personal preference in all aspects of life. Everyone likes different things. As people we should be able to appreciate those facts, and respect our differences in opinion. However, with that being said, there are people out there who have no qualms about telling others how they dislike something, and not in a nice way. 

For those people who don't like this brand, that is okay with me. I'm sure there is something out there that you do like, something that suits you, and you don't have to explain to me what it is or why it's great....to you. At the same time, expect that from me as well. I don't have to explain why Vera Bradley is great. It just is to me and that's that. It's unnecessary to ask me why I would ever like this brand, and it's DOUBLY unnecessary to tell me how hideous and ugly you think the prints are.

I don't care. I don't care what you think about it, and I never will.

Respect my preferences, for I will respect yours. 

Poshmark Rules!

A few months ago I joined a Vera Bradley deals group on Facebook, and the leader of the group started posting deals from an app called Poshmark. After some investigating, I found that this is the BEST THING EVER!!!!!

You can literally shop in other people's closets nationwide. And a LOT of people have some good Vera in their closets. They sell their thing for a variety of reasons; they could be moving and need to lighten their load, or they just want to make room in tier closets. 

Whatever, all that matters is they are selling their stuff and I LIKE STUFF OKAY!

So I would see some good deals here and there, but I wouldn't get the urge to just buy, you know? Until last week that is...I saw this:

Do you see $78 crossed out? That's how much this bag originally cost. 

Do you see the $18? That's how much I paid for it. 

Who won?

I did. I SO did!

The bag is a retired style called the Super Tote (I can see why they named it that), the print is a 2008 retired print called Yellow Bird. What's was really great was my underestimation of the size of this bag. I received it yesterday and it was much bigger than I expected, which is greattttt!

It's HUGE and I love it...and I paid under $20!!! I can definitely use it as a work/grad school bag (working on finishing my MLIS finally! Librarians rule!)

So I'm so in love with this bag that I'm scoping out my next purchase, another vintage Vera that I'll post if I get it. 

As the folks at Vera say... be colorful!

Vera Shopping Spree Giveaway!

Hey y'all! There's a giveaway going on!!!!!!

Win a Vera Bradley shopping spree!

Monday, July 1 – Saturday, July 27

Put your best style forward and sign up for the chance to expand your collection before heading back to class. To enter, simply “Like” us on Facebook and enter your email address, first and last name, and zip code.

Bonus entries!
After you enter, you will have the opportunity to share an invitation with your friends. For each person who enters using your referral link, you'll be rewarded an additional entry. Limit 10 referral entries per person.

Grand Prize Winner
$150 Vera Bradley Gift Card
Vera
Lunch Sack
All in One Crossbody
Tumbler

Five First Prize Winners
Vera
Tumbler 

Click here to sign up!!!

No School like the Old School

So last month Vera Bradley had allowed us to sign up to receive mobile updtes and promotions, and I'm sooooooo glad I did!

A few weeks ago, a friend and co worker of mine had brought in her very first Vera bag, a cute brown and blue tote that had been seen a lot of love and use over the years, and it was adorable! She didn't know the name of the print, only that when she bought it, it seemed that it was never seen again!

If you know me at all, you know that I took this as a mystery to solve!

Turns out, the pattern was Java Blue, one of the flyest patterns I've ever seen!

I absolutely fell in love with it, I'm looking for a good price on ebay for a tote in this as we speak.

But I'm sidetracking, back to the topic...

SO it was just a huge coincidence that I get this text today...

....and when I get there, I almost scream out loud because lo and behold, Java Blue was one of the colors on this new Hybrid Phone Case for the iphone!!!!

Clockwise from top right: Java Blue, Sherbert, Pink Elephants, and Petal Pink

I love this Hybrid case, the one I have is just the snap on for the iphone 5, and although it surprisingly has protected my phone well, there are still some vulnerable area on the bottom and side with the buttons. With this new case, the buttons are covered and less space is out at the bottom, I love it.

I also love that they are bringing the old school colors back, gotta love Vintage Vera! I think I'll be gettin a Java Blue and Petal Pink case...

They will be available starting June 21!

Vera for my Mommy!

So yesterday was my mom's birthday. For the last few years there was always something holding my brother and I back from getting her a really cool gift, something she wanted or needed; bills, some medical crisis, etc.. However this year, we were finally able to do it, and I knew just what I wanted for her.

She made it no secret that she wanted a Kindle Fire, especially since I had gotten one for christmas. That was easy to score, and took care of the gift she wanted.

Then there was the gift she needed. My mom always puts herself last when it comes to luxuries, especially with clothing and accessories. She has a ton of bags, but she will rock them one at a time until the wheels (or straps in this case) literally fall off. Half of them aren't really durable either. Since I started my Vera collection, shes always admired them and I knew she wanted a bag, but she would never get one on her own. On top of that, she had been searching her house for an extra lunch bag for work because she lost hers.

Hmmm, she needs a bag that is lightweight, durable, and pretty at the same time. DUH! I knew I had to get her some Vera!

My mom LOVES the color red, so I knew Deco Daisy was the print for her. How lucky for me that Vera had a 50% off sale on that very print last week! Since we ordered it so close to her big day, it's still in the mail, but we included this little card I created in her birthday card along with the kindle...

Siblings names are blurred,
 but I'm sure no one really cared lol

She cried, I cried, then we ate cake!

I'm on Tumblr!

I always see cute pics on Instagram and Tumblr and I can never blog about them because I'm more than likely NOT home! Sooo I've created a Tumblr just for my love of all things Vera Bradley! Check it out y'all!

I've also been fiddling around a lot with Polyvores, and I made this cute ensemble! Now if I could just snap my fingers and make it real!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Soooo I turn 26 today!!

My a-ma-zing grandma surprised me by taking me to my local Vera Bradley store (Roosevelt Field Mall), and let me pick out my gift!

I know right?!

So since I had a case-less kindle fire sitting in my bag, I decided that the smartest choice would be to get the

Medium E-Book Cover in Plum Crazy

And I was able to see the lovely new shopping bags for Spring 2013!!

The Beginning...

In my 2nd year working at an elementary school I begun noticing my co workers with these cool bags and accessories with really funky and neat prints. After asking around, I found out that they were all from Vera Bradley.

I'd never heard of this company before so I let it slide.

Fast forward another year, I see more bags and different prints and I'm intrigued again. One of my friends even brought a duffel bag front here with her on our trip over the summer. So I went to my laptop to really check it out.

That was all she wrote.

When I saw the designs and types of bags and accessories, I went bananas.

No really, I went crazy.

I wanted to buy EVERYTHING.

Me.

But I was informed that I should never shop like that, I would end up with prints I really didn't like, or things I didn't need. It was hard, and I was sad, but I took my time and really sorted out what I wanted.

And now I'm the proud owner of several VB things, and my collection is slowly growing!

Hopefully my closet by 2014