The Mish // Gear

When we found out we were both going to Scandinavian countries on our missions (Finland and Denmark), we were super excited and also terrified. There a number of reasons for these mixed emotions: it’s freezing, the languages are hard, it’s freezing. Luckily our uncle David also went to Finland and is a gear junkie which was a huge help. Get ready for some pro tips.

The most important thing was to find a nice, down filled, long parka. Mine is the Fjallraven Snow Flake parka and goes down to mid thigh. It’s 750 down fill and you need 700-800 down fill to be really toasty in Finland and Denmark weather. Some extra perks (actually super necessary) are water resistance and taped seams. My parka also packs down super small and is very lightweight i.e. easily stuffable. It’s like gas, it fills to fit the container. You can buy your coat when you get to your assigned country but I felt more comfortable buying one when I was still in the US because I was able to search for one I liked plus I was able to get opinions from everyone. Amazon and Campsaver were amazing. Campsaver is a gear junkie haven! They have tons of great deals and lots of awesome brands including Fjallraven, Arc’teryx, Black Diamond, RAB, North Face, and Columbia. Even if you can’t find the size or color of the item you want, it’s a great starting place. 

Be prepared to spend kind of a lot on mittens.
Some key factors:

• Individual compartment for pointer finger–This makes me feel like I have some semblance of use in my hands.
• Drawstring that cinches at the wrist.
• Mitten warmth ranges from 1-6 but its impossible to find 6s that are less than $150 or women’s.  These are Black Diamond Mercury Mitts which are a warmth level 5. I’m pretty much prepared to still freeze though.

I also bought heat reflective glove liners that will go underneath my mittens.

I’ve already waxed poetic about these boots but I could go on for pages. I wanted something with a good grip that was lined for sub-zero temperatures–That is a direct quote from the handbook that was given to me with my mission call.

I have a couple of really warm hats and scarves so I didn’t have to buy any but I feel like I am going to pick up some in Finland. Mainly because I live for hand-knitted scarves, hats, and socks. All of my hats and scarves are neutrals so they can go with tons of different outfits.

Possibly the best find from Amazon is these earbags*. One because they are so dang cute and two because I am terrified of my ears freezing.

*affectionately known as ear socks by Gwyneth and ear eggs by Liesel.

Probably the most important factor (at least according to our mom): SOCKS! (sock, sock, sock, sock, sooocks*). Just get in your car and drive to Costco. And then drive back home and order the rest from Amazon. Wool and silk are going to be your best friends.

(*Sung to the tune of “La Cucaracha.”)

The Mish // A Plethora of Outfits

The minute our mom found out where Liesel and I were going on our missions (Finland and Denmark), she started shopping for knee-length dresses and layers. A group chat with our grandma and our mom’s sister Tina was started, as Mom bought any and all long-sleeve dresses. This gray dress is actually Tina’s and the warmest article of clothing to ever grace my body. The plushness and fullness of the sleeves are very condusive to layers.

The search for these boots was long and exhaustive. Doc Martens doesn’t make them anymore so when we first started looking they were nonexistent. (Long winded way of saying they are l.i.m.i.t.e.d e.d.i.t.i.o.n). I guess someone found an underground warehouse with a stash because a month ago, pairs started popping up. I ordered a size 8, a size 10, and what I thought was a size 9 but turned out to be a UK size 9 so a US size 11. I kept the 10s because with multiple layers of socks, they fit perfectly.

Pro tip (from people who haven’t even left for their missions yet): Ere on the larger side when buying your shoes. You do not want to be like 90% of girls in the MTC who accessorize with band-aids and blisters. And also, you can never have too many types of socks.

Mom bought this fabulous jumper and then Liesel bought this striped button-down shirt which I promptly stole. Button downs and jumpers–two staples I have in abundance. I’m bringing two jumpers and three button-downs, including a gray flannel one. I have resigned myself to looking like a pioneer, milkmaid, and ye olde classic school girl.

Liesel also has quite a few jumpers and she can pretty much wear every shirt or sweater under or over each one.

This bee pin is a prized possession. I bought Liesel one for Christmas but she lost it and so this is round two. She also has a little metal sun pin and a leaf pin. I have a vintage pin from Thredup of a lady with a hat. We can’t wait to start sporting them with our missionary nametags!

One of the most important debates we had was over bags. Backpacks aren’t really allowed but because Liesel has back problems she is allowed to have a backpack. (Medical problems for the win!). Insert Fjallraven’s Kanken. It makes the outfit.

Speaking of staples, Liesel and I also have three skirts each. “Only?” you might gasp. But each skirt is super versatile and can be worn in both the dead of winter and the two weeks of summer we are gifted. Below are some of our simple shirt and skirt combos.

This flamenco dancer of a sweater was a Thredup find. Liesel is a fiend when it comes to secondhand shopping.
Our main stores were Thredup, Poshmark, TJ MAXX, with a little bit of H&M thrown in. Most of our dresses come from Koo De Ker and other Utah-based stores. The larger-than-normal demand for knee-length dresses in Provo and Orem comes in very handy when shopping for a mission.
Examples include:

• Koo De Ker
• Piper & Scoot
• Clad & Cloth
• Roolee
• bohme

Another pro tip: We tried to mix up the stores that we bought from. And the closets that we stole from. Take advantage of sisters, aunts, moms, and friends. Shop thrift stores (especially online ones) because then you can guarantee to make people mad when they ask you where your clothes are from.

MORE PRO TIPS!!!: Layer the h*ck out of your clothes. Everything should be able to go under and over everything else. I only had to buy one sweater (thank goodness!) because I already had three. Now my stash includes a black turtleneck, a white sweater, a light gray sweater, and the dark gray sweater pictured below. Neutrals baby!

Although a good portion of our clothes are thrift store finds, we decided to go the tried-and-tested route for shoes: Famous Footwear and Nordstrom Rack. Liesel bought so many shoes in so many sizes that her bank account emailed her, warning her about the suspicious activity.

Be prepared to see these clothes and only these clothes for the next eighteen months!

The Story of These Jeans

*Sung to the tune of “The Story of My Life,” by One Direction.*

“Where did you get those pants?” I immediately rattle off all of their redeeming qualities, which is all of their qualities, “They’re men’s Levis, 100% cotton, with a button fly, and we chopped the ends off the legs.” They sit stunned as I hit them with all of the unnecessary, and unasked for, information.

But I have good reason to be really excited about these pants. They were found on a birthday trek through thrift stores, in the men’s section, where all clothing gems are found. They have the obligatory Levis patch on the back of the waistband and the inside of the pockets, large enough to hold a graphing calculator if you ever had the desire to carry around a graphing calculator, have “This is a pair of Levis” printed on them. So you know they’re legit.

The week we cut them off, I wore them three times. I tripled my wearing of them in a week. Gwyneth’s wearing them right now, and I wore them last night. It’s going to be a fight to the death to see who gets to keep once we finally split ways. I suspect that Gwyneth will win because 1. Technically they’re her’s and 2. She’ll probably be wearing them on that fateful day and she’ll just run from me and 3. We all know she can run faster. So I’m doomed from the beginning.

Pretty in Pink

This weekend we continued the tradition of watching movies with our dad because our mom was out of town. Mom knows about this tradition and is generally relieved when she misses out on a “Lord of the Rings” marathon.
This time Dad chose to relive the past and educate me and Gwyneth about prom. And so began the, “Prepare Liesel and Gwyneth For Prom By Bing Watching 80s Prom Movies” movement. The first, and only, movie we watched was “Pretty in Pink”. I now have aspirations to be best friends with Ducky Dale; a lip-synching fiend with impeccable style. I would wear everything that he does, glasses included.

This dress is reminiscent of the 80s in that it has huge buttons, a pattern that screams, “Hawaiian”, and tiny little shoulder poofs that I’m not even mad at.

And here’s the ‘pink’ part in “Pretty in Pink”.

The man himself. Babe.

A Pair of Jeans That Fit Just Right

This year for our birthday, Liesel and I went thrift shopping with our mom.
And my love affair with Levi jeans continued.
I found not one, but two pairs of Levis. The pair pictured above are 501s, which I have wanted for a dang long time, but I was pretty sure I would never find any that would fit. My favorite part about them is they are actually guy jeans and (bonus!) they have a button up fly.

4/5

1. Be the type of person who has pajama sets.
2. Be the type of person who has matching hangers.
3. It’s not that serious. (A carry over from my 2017 Goals.)
4. Dress and buy responsibly. (AKA thrift like crazy.)
5. Sometimes you have to dress like a grandma and that’s okay. (This dress is a prime example.)
6. Socks and sandals are encouraged.
7. Radiate positivity.
8. Aspire to be the person who has a pale pink pantsuit.
9. Pink is one letter away from punk.
10. One can never have too many red dresses.

3/31

Dress: T.J. Maxx
Shoes: T.J. Maxx
Socks: T.J. Maxx

Bless T.J. Maxx.

2/19

My love of red dresses has only increased, manifesting itself in a Pinterest board I have titled Red Dresses.
I’m pretty sure it stems from the dance scene in Swing Kids when young  Robert Sean Leonard, accompanied by young Christian Bale, are dancing. And the token female asks, “How do I look?”
“Like gold.”
She is wearing a red dress.
Obviously, there is a correlation.

2/14 // Valentine’s Day

When you come home to your bedroom door decorated, you know that when your mom sent you a text with “#bestmomever” she was not lying.

Since Gwyneth didn’t have anybody to do an ankle pop with (The Princess Diaries anyone?) she did it solo. Also it’s a good move to show off the pink underside of her shoes.

This shirt makes me so happy! So clearly it’s doing it’s job.

Right here I am probably contemplating what color my shirt is. (Hint: I say it’s a very pale pink. Gwyn says I’m notorious for getting colors wrong. I say that because she’s been told by an eye doctor that she is semi-colorblind.) Mom says it’s a very very pale pink. Ha, I win. #bestmomever.

Also let it be known that it’s pretty hard to stay positive when you’ve turned down a total of eight donuts in an effort to be sugar free. We’re still going strong though! And by we I mean just me because all of my sugar now goes to Gwyneth.

At this point a school bus rounded the corner and Gwyneth and I dashed back into the house. Banner flapping in the breeze.
Viva la Valentine’s Day.

1/3 STEVE JOBS? IS THAT YOU?

Black turtleneck: Ross
Jeans: Cut and frayed by me
Boots: Ross (Styled here and here)
Purse: Shamelessly stolen from Mom