Malibu Cafe

Photo Credit// Mallory
Top// Paper Crown (purchased at the Paper Crown Rifle Paper Co. Pop up at the Grove)
Jeans//Leigh Skinny Jeans  Top Shop
Booties// Sam Edelman

Holiday weekends are everything right?! I had such a variety of little adventures. I saw 50 Shades of Grey (by myself) along with every other girl in the world and found it to be just as awkward as the first twilight movie, but at some level still entertaining. I popped by the PaperCrown and Rifle Paper Co. pop up shop at the grove, and when I say popped in I mean I waited for 90 minutes to get in. I bought the floral top I'm wearing in the picture above along with a pair of matching shorts, and the most precious white dress that I can't wait to shoot for the blog! It was obviously also wonderful to be in the same room as LC... don't tell me you you weren't a fan of hers from day one of Laguna Beach (Let the rain fall down and wash my feet....that song plays in my head everytime I think about that show). I saw American Sniper (I actually never go to the theaters, so two movies in 1 weekend is insane ) and sat next to the most adorable old man who ended up wanting to chit chat with me after the movie and told me some very entertaining stories. He used to be a manager for a lot of major rock and roll stars. He just had such a sweet spirit that really touched my heart at the moment. I hope he has a great week. 

The most exciting thing I did was head to Malibu Cafe with one of my besties Mallory from BadWolf Brunch. I stumbled upon it on Google, and it looked too cute online not to try! This must be the best kept secret in Malibu, I have never heard anyone mention it before but it is hands down my favorite place in Los Angeles. I felt like I was on a magical vacation and I just wanted to skip around and throw flowers everywhere. We brunched, we walked around the grounds, snapped a few photos, and rowed a boat in the cute little lake. Clearly a successful Monday. 

But really I highly highly recommend taking a day trip over to the cafe. I'm pretty sure this would also be a magical wedding spot. I can never pass up a good cheese board when im with Mal, I also got their signature cocktail #1 it had gin, strawberries, lime, and light and dark balsamic vingerette I think, got a yummy salad, and the highlight of the meal was roasting s'mores!! They were soooo yummy in my tummy. I'm trying to get sweets out of my system, because Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent and I am giving up desserts (ahhh wish me luck!!!). 

Do you have a best kept secret in your town or city?! I'd love to hear about it. Hope you beauties had as nice of a weekend as I did. 

-Xoxo Becca

P.S. I couldn't find my PaperCrown top online anywhere but I put together a selection of floral tops that I currently am loving.

Reflections

This post is a little different then my typical style posts.... because well I'm not in any of the pictures and it's not focused on fashion at all! I often feel like i'm missing one key thing that every other style blogger seems to have mastered, a handy dandy photographer. I don't have a boyfriend, husband, or friend who is a free lance photographer that can trot around the  globe with me taking pictures of me while I compensate them with brownies and cupcakes. I also haven't mastered (or remotely figured out) how to take my own style pictures using my camera or phone on a timer. As a result, I don't blog nearly as much as I'd like too. I also feel like I have so many other things besides fashion that i'd love to talk about and share that don't seem to blend in so well with my style posts. 

One of my absolute favorite things to do is go out to eat! Food makes me happy. It also gives me an excuse to get out of my yoga pants and into something cute, and it's a great way to socialize because we all need to eat at some point (I also don't really know how to cook...though i'm working on it). So I might start reviewing new places I try, especially dessert and coffee spots! Is that something you guys would be interested in?

I'm also really interested in topics of mental health and well being, so I'd love to talk about self-care, mental health issues, relationships, and if you guys want to email me questions or ask advice I could answer those questions weekly. 

I want Leather.Lace.&Cupcakes to be a platform I can consistently write on, be inspired by, and challenged by. I envision it slowly (very) turning into a lifestyle blog versus a purely personal style blog. We will see though! I just wanted to bring it up since it's been on my mind, and see what you guys think! Don't be shy I really want to know. You don't have to comment below, you can email me if you'd like instead! I would also love to meet some fellow bloggers in the area, so if you live in Los Angeles or near by and you'd love to grab brunch, lunch, coffee, or shop and take pictures also let me know that!

The last few days i've been taking early morning drives to Malibu to walk around on the beach and drink my coffee. I find driving to be extremely cathartic ( I don't even mind traffic, call me crazy) and the best place for me to gather my thoughts and make sense of what's going on in my life and the world. Every time I take the drive to Malibu I am suddenly overwhelmed with gratitude. In the midst of stress and chaos, school problems, job struggles, relationship issues, it's sooo easy to forget all of the wonderful things we DO have going for us. I absolutely was struggling with that issue earlier in the week, but now find myself smiling because I have sooo much to be thankful for! God has a wonderful plan for me, I don't have to worry about that at all, what I need to do is work on trusting in that. I can absolutely say that is plan is not always my plan, but it will always be better then my plan! 

Here are some of the pictures I took on my walks! 

-Xoxo Becca

On Wednesday's we go to the beach

Photo Credit// Alissa Gotlieb
Top// Free People
Shorts// Carmar (bought at LF Robertson)
Shoes// MIA
Bralette// For Love and Lemons
Chain Belt// bought at LF Robertson
Necklace// Turkish Coin
Bracelet// Lucky Brand

What a better pick me up in the middle of the week then a trip to Malibu for lunch? I've lived in LA for about three years now and can only count on one hand the amount of trips I've taken to the beach. Clearly this must change. My friend and I had a yummy lunch at Glandstones before we walked down to the sand and took a little stroll.  

 I'm in love with these MIA gladiator sandals. Gladiators have come back in full force this summer, and to be honest I'm usually not a fan of this trend. However, I found this pair not to be as overwhelming and an overall good compromise on the trend. This Free People top is such a staple in my wardrobe and great for the beach because of how it flows in the wind. The Turkish Coin necklace was also a great add to an otherwise very simple comfy outfit. 

-Xoxo Becca

P.S. Do people really have beach bonfires? I'm having an OC flashback moment, and would love an invite to a bonfire if these things are real.