So this Pinspired outfit definitely gets credited to Rachelle. I mean, I basically replicated her look down to the exact same, perfect Sam Edelman booties. This shirt has seriously been haunting me like a ghost, so naturally, it felt appropriate to post this on Halloween. Where else have I seen it, you ask? Well, Gina and Ashley are the other culprits.
I've always had a love for plaid, and even though this shirt has an oversized fit (I sized down, BTW), it still is a long way from the 90's grunge look that I was going for in my younger years with my Doc Martens. Need proof about my life-long plaid addiction? I'm pretty sure my favorite outfit as a kid was a plaid romper - true story:
Ah, man, you can only see the top part, but I assure you, this was a romper. And wow-- are those espadrilles? I guess I was always a fashion blogger in the making, huh? I rocked that bowl cut! My brother LOVED those pink striped slippers by the way. He also loves that this picture keeps re-surfacing...
HA! But I digress. My point to this story though is that plaid is timeless. And regardless of the shape or the fit, I will always always always have plaid in my closet. It just makes me happy, and I'm glad that this top is now in my possession so I can style it over and over again! Just you wait!
Yesterday's post was the perfect segue into today's post. There I was complaining about our last 82 degree day, about shorter days, and potentially 6 months ahead of cold weather. But today, let's focus on all the GOOD things about fall. Look behind me! I just love the colors of fall and I love living in a city that actually experiences fall. Our neighborhood is saturated with fall colors; these trees behind me are just a teeny piece of it.
And hello, blanket scarf weather! You would think with as many blanket scarves that I see in my Instagram feed that I would have an aversion to them by now. Granted, I'm not rushing out to add more to my collection, this one and my other one here are good enough for right now. They're perfect actually.
I wore this over the weekend for family pictures! My brother-in-law is moving to LA over the next week or so, and since we knew opportunities for all the kids to be in the same city at the same time were going to dwindle as a result, we figured it was best to take a family photo before his big move. My sister in law had asked me to pick a color palette that we should all dress to, and well, this scarf basically sums up all the colors I picked - olive, burgundy, and mushroom. I couldn't decide which color to wear, so I figured I would just wear all of them!
If you follow me on Instagram, you already know that I picked up this sweater during the Columbus Day sales. This sweater has everything I like - stripes, elbow patches, button detailing. Love, love love. I had put together some outfit inspirations on Polyvore, which is what ended up getting posted to Instagram here:
Well, the sweater arrived a couple of weeks ago, and I've been itching to wear it. It's just as soft and cozy as I was hoping it would be! I ended up switching the plaid scarf for this leopard one, and I must say, this is the perfect running-around-in-the-fall outfit.
I don't know about you guys, but over here, it hit 82 degrees on Sunday. 82! I think this was nature's way of saying - oh hey, enjoy this beautiful day because you won't feel this again for about 6 months. Not to mention that we are "falling back" this weekend, too, which just means goodbye, sunshine. Wow, sorry to turn into Debbie Downer over here! How about we all just grab our pumpkin spice lattes, throw on our favorite blanket scarves, and make Smores by the fire?
I don't know why, and you'll probably think I'm crazy, but for whatever reason, I have a really hard time just wearing my hair down and straight. I feel like it's so heavy so it just hangs and looks flat. But then I see so many other people who wear it this way and I'm envious, so, why don't/can't I wear my hair like this more? I didn't realize how long it's been getting until I took these photos, either. Probably because I'm usually curling it or wearing it up!
It's been a pretty hectic last couple of weeks. Actually, it's been a crazy October, to say the least. It felt really good to be able to take legit blog photos this weekend. Last week, I was forced (because I was sick last weekend) to only post 3 times last week, and even still all 3 posts were pre-written, in that they were outfits I had worn well in advance. Although it was nice to have extra time back in my life, I felt pretty disconnected from the blogging world!
I originally started this blog as my OOTD documentary on steroids, so to speak. I was taking selfies every morning of everything I wore, and then I graduated from taking photos on my phone to taking photos on a real camera. And then all of a sudden, it went from taking photos every morning before work to taking photos in advance on the weekend. So this past week when I was just "living life" without proper photos of my outfits - I felt lost! Not sure what my life has come to, but I'll say that I'm not quite done sharing my outfits with you, so I hope you're not quite done looking at them yet. :)
Last night, I got to attend another fashion show. Yes, I told you October has been a fun filled month for me. This time I was invited by Shan Keith (from Season 1 of the Project Runway spinoff Under the Gunn) to watch his show called, Boundless. There are definitely perks to getting more involved with your local blogging community, because there's no way I would have crossed paths with Shan had it not been for St. Louis Fashion Week. Thankful.
I was once again tasked with finding something a little fashion forward to wear to the event. I wanted to make sure I was in comfy shoes in case I was on my feet the whole night, so I chose these foolproof booties and built the outfit from there. Naturally, I gravitated to faux leather, and I would have worn this jacket to the St. Louis Fashion Week wrap dinner had I not had to skip it after getting sick. I was happy to get another chance to wear it last night. If it looks familiar, it's because you've seen it already here.
The show was at Plush in St. Louis, and definitely did not disappoint. I love Shan's style, his art, his design process - I knew I was in for a good collection. It was nice because I was able to take the husband to the show with me as my official photographer, which allowed me more time to digest everything and simply enjoy the fashion. So, shout out, first and foremost, to the husband for these great shots!
Clearly he isn't afraid of some animal print. But what I love about this even more is that he takes it one step further by adding texture and embellishments that make his pieces unpredictable and fresh. Despite these many layers of intricacies, he still manages to keep the silhouettes streamlined and figure flattering.
Don't you just want to reach out and touch these fabrics? There's so much attention to detail in everything I saw - every thread has a purpose. Every thread gives each piece multiple dimensions.
But that's just one side of him. He has his simple side as well, and yet it is anything but simple. Shan tackles menswear inspired suiting with winter white, strong cuts, and tone on tone texture.
And last, but certainly not least, are some of my favorite looks from the men's collection. The fearless pattern mixing may have made my jaw drop once or twice. Urban prep is how I would describe the men's pieces. Each look is structured and tailored with familiar cuts, but unexpected prints.
I hope this was enough substance to give you a good representation of his style and concepts. Very excited to keep tabs on Shan and how his career continues to develop!
What a week! Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me. All my fashion week posts, and then my sporadic posting this week while I was sick. Hopefully I can somewhat make it up to you with this installment of Random Roundup. These are all the random outfit selfies that didn't formally make the blog, but usually make it on Instagram for those of you that prefer a real time update. As always, I'm only linking to those pieces that are still available, and hopefully haven't sold out by the time this post goes live! Let's get get on it!
Oh how I love this dress. You've seen this twice on the blog already. The first time was winterized here, and the second time was worn as a top here. I wanted to simply wear it with bare legs and pumps, so here you go. The weather was cool but still "warm" enough to go bare legged. This dress is such a happy piece. The saturated colors make me fall in love with it over and over.
Really not much to say about this outfit. The husband and I were running out for weekend errands. My hair went up, I reached for my foolproof top, easy skirt, and loyal leopard sneaks. Honestly, I may as well be wearing pajamas because this outfit is that easy and required little thought or effort.
Oh look, yet *another* time I am wearing wine color skinnies like I talked about last week. The day I wore this was the day of the blogger awards. I needed a more casual outfit with flat shoes I could wear for work so I could preserve my feet for my heels that night. I just needed a neutral canvas for my face and hair that I could easily supplement and get all gussied up for the evening. I loved how the metallic cap toes of my shoes brought out the shine in my necklace.
And so begins scarf season. I can't help it guys, I'm addicted. And when they drape beautifully like this, it just makes me happy. Anything + a drapey scarf equals an outfit. And because two pairs of destroyed jeans are not enough, I recently bought these from American Eagle. This is my most happiest outfit formula.
Tee: Cardinals store | Jeans: Express Rerock | Shoes:Isabel Marant
October is so stressful for me. Baseball in general is so stressful for me. And yes, I am sad that the Cardinals didn't make the World Series, but I really can't complain about the season they had! I figured I'd post one last Cardinals outfit to officially close out this season. Crazy because it feels like just yesterday I was blogging about the shopping I did in Florida while I was there for Spring Training!!
Last but not least is this "work" outfit. I've said many times before that I can wear anything I want to work - hence the outfits above. But when I know I have to meet with people outside of the office - I do try to wear more of the traditional work pieces - slacks, button ups, and in this case a good old pencil skirt. How adorable is the peplum on this thing? A subtle detail that makes it a little more special, and you know I still need to keep it interesting with my heels.
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I feel like it's been awhile since I've done this yet I didn't feel like I had as many outfits as accumulated as usual. Guess it just comes and goes in waves! Have a great weekend! Can't wait to get back to normalcy next week!
OK, this is officially my last St. Louis Fashion Week related post, and I've got to say, I'm a bit sad about it! It all went by so quickly, and although I was quite sleep deprived as a result of all the festivities, it's been the most fun I've had in my blogging career. (Aside from meeting my partner in crime, Gina, of course.)
This was Thursday morning, the day of the second runway show I featured in Monday's post. A group of bloggers gathered together to drink coffee, snack on scones, listen to a short presentation from the Naturalizer team, and then pick out any pair of shoes we wanted in the store. Yes, I'd say it was better than being in my cubicle that morning.
If you know anything about Naturalizer, you know that they're all about comfort first and foremost. What I did learn, however, was that Naturalizer falls under the umbrella of Brown Shoe Company, whose corporate offices are located in Clayton, a suburb of St. Louis. Sam Edelman, Franco Sarto, and Via Spiga are a few other Brown Shoe Company brands that may ring a bell with you, and are no strangers to this blog.
But back to Naturalizer. Naturalizer was created in 1927 and was the first company to create shoes specifically for women. Up until then, shoes were created for a man's foot, and simply sized down for a woman to wear. I'm all for wearing boys sized sneakers, but for everything else, I want a woman's shoe! They picture their target audience to be a young, professional and stylish woman on the go that doesn't sacrifice comfort over style. The three brands you can find within the Naturalizer store are Naturalizer (duh), Naya (a bit more casual and trendy), and BZees (think Lululemon, but for your feet - a super lightweight shoe to complement your activewear!)
I've had a few pairs of Naturalizer shoes in the past, but my all time favorite are these boots pictured below. I've had them for 6 years. SIX. The folks at Naturalizer have a knack for designing well fitting boots that are classic enough to last season after season - and did I mention that they are comfortable?
Ultimately, I ended up ruling out the black knee high boots with gold buckles. As much as I loved them, they are a bit too similar to the exact boots I was wearing that day and I couldn't picture opportunities where the knee high pair would be any better than the booties I already owned. If I didn't have the booties already, these would have gone home with me stat. They have a hidden wedge!
The cheetah booties stole my heart immediately, but I need more animal print in my closet like I need a hole in my head, so just out of sheer quantity, I had to force myself to put these in the "no" pile.
I've been on a lookout for comfy boots I can throw on in the winter for my commute to Pilates, but well, let's be real - using my "free" shoes for that purpose would be silly. It was hard to part with these though - the back zip allow you to fold over the fur, making them look even cozier!
So that left me with my top two contenders. A classic cognac riding boot and the grey, mid-calf, suede buckle boot.
These are the Janelle riding boot, one of their best sellers, and I can certainly see why. As soon as I put them on, I thought for sure they would come home with me. I loved the clean look from the front, and the detailed seaming on the back - reminds me of the tights with the rear seam line running down the back of your leg - emphasizes the curves of your calves for an awesome feminine detail.
In the end, I chose the grey boots. They're different than anything I have in my closet, and the hidden wedge makes them special and harder to find elsewhere. I know the buckles aren't for everyone, but I love the extra edge and detail. Very happy with my decision, and it's been hard to take them off ever since!
Afterwards, to replace all the calories we burned trying on shoes, Alive Magazine treated us all to lunch at The Restaurant located at The Cheshire. Our server had us at "blood red mimosa" and the rest was history. I was bad and ended up getting fish and chips, which is my weakness.
I couldn't wait to wear the new boots - it was an easy decision to pull them out for work Friday morning. Mid-calf boots can be hard to style if the proportion isn't quite right, but with my skinniest of jeans, I thought they looked great.
If you haven't been to Naturalizer in awhile, I encourage you to check them out! And yes, while I did receive these boots in exchange for this post, all opinions expressed here are my own. I certainly see more Naturalizer shoes in my future! A big thank you from this shoe addict to Naturalizer, Brown Shoe Company, and Alive Magazine for such a fun event!
