-->

Wednesday, September 30, 2015

Backslash

Bralette: Express | Bag: Rebecca Minkoff (gifted) | Top: Express | Watch: Fossil | Bracelets: Nadri, The Foundrie | Skirt: Express | Heels: Kate Spade

So funny story, I had tickets to see Taylor Swift on Monday night except when we got our tickets scanned we found out they were actually for Tuesday night. That made for a fun evening! So I am recovering from scream singing today, but I did have my rehearsal dinner outfit to share with you in the meantime!

The wedding outfit was recapped for you on Monday, and my love for the Express One Eleven collection was first introduced to you in this post here. My love continues to grow for the collection with every piece that I try on. Not only does the bralette add a little extra something in place of a necklace in the front, but the back view is just as stunning and fun.

And can we talk about this skirt for a second? It is the softest skirt you will ever own in your life. I'm such a fan of their elastic waist, pull on, midi skirts, and this one is no exception. But it may end up being my favorite because it is thicker but ridiculously soft. The stock photo doesn't really portray it accurately though. It really is more of a sweatshirt looking material in real life.

Anyhoo, that's all I got for you today! Hope you're having a good week!


SHOP THE LOOK:

Linking up with: Oh, Hey Girl!, What I Wore Wednesday, Mel, Shay, and Sheaffer for What's up Wednesday
READ MORE... "Backslash"

Monday, September 28, 2015

The cousin's wedding


Well, this weekend was every bit as busy and exhausting as I expected it to be! But it was so so much fun! I thought I would go ahead and share the details of our bridesmaids dresses because they were just too perfect. On top of that, the bride gifted us the most adorable glitter clutches, and if that wasn't good in and of itself, she gave me the green light to wear my matching heels! (The original plan was to wear silver shoes.)
READ MORE... "The cousin's wedding"

Friday, September 25, 2015

Random roundup

Well, it is officially fall, can you believe it? Because I can't. I was super excited to wear leggings and a lightweight scarf this week, but by yesterday, we were back into the upper 80s. Such a tease! Luckily, many of these looks I have rounded up for you are nice transitional outfits for fall. Speaking of which, if you missed my big fall wardrobe post, be sure to check it out here!

Ok then, let's get started because it's going to be a busy weekend for me!

Top: Halogen | Necklace: House of HarlowSkirt: Express (option) | Sandals: DV Dolce Vita

Bag: 3.1 Phillip Lim (shop other colors here) | Top: Express | Jacket: JCrew Factory (current version) | Bottoms: Express | Flats: Halogen (limited sizes)

Top: Express | Necklace: House of Harlow, Kendra Scott (in black here) | Bottoms: Express (limited sizes) | Heels: Vince Camuto (other colors here)

Bag: Marc by Marc JacobsTop: LOFT | Necklace: CS Gems | Skirt: Express | Sandals: Sam Edelman

Top: Halogen (solid colors here) | Necklace: CS Gems | Bottoms: Express (limited sizes) | Heels: Valentino

My weekend festivities officially start at 5:15 this afternoon. We have the rehearsal dinner tonight and then we're meeting at the salon at 8:45 tomorrow morning for hair and makeup! The ceremony is in the afternoon, then we party bus it all day until the reception at night! I'm exhausted thinking about it, but also seriously excited because I know it will be so much fun! Follow along on Snapchat if you'd like - carylee07! Have a great weekend!


SHOP THE POST:

READ MORE... "Random roundup"

Thursday, September 24, 2015

Wine and olive

Sunnies: Ray Ban (other colors here) | Necklace: Kendra Scott (gifted) | Bag: Rebecca Minkoff (option) | Top: LOFT (option) | Bracelet: CS Gems (c/o) | Bottoms: Express (option) | Shoes: BCBG (option)

Clearly I am obsessed with olive this year, and I'm not the only one. Now that fall is just about upon us, I had to wear wine and olive again. I love each color separately, together they are perfection. And you already know that leopard goes with everything. It adds a nice touch of surprise to finish off the look.

I've been pleased to be a little caught up this week since I got a lot of my blog stuff done over the weekend for once! But I'm heading into another busy weekend! The cousin gets married this weekend, so it will be a hectic one! And it all starts tomorrow with the rehearsal dinner! Wish me luck!


SHOP THE LOOK:

READ MORE... "Wine and olive"

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

Building your fall wardrobe: Revamped!

I always consider my first year of blogging very similar to my middle school years - extremely awkward and uncomfortable to look at. But there is one post I put together during those first few months that I felt needed to be republished and revamped. Reading through this again, I was actually quite impressed with how thoughtful and thorough this post was and how relevant the pieces I picked out still were! So, I'm sharing this again but updating it with some links to current pieces. I hope you enjoy this trip down memory lane and maybe find inspiration you missed the first time around!
The 30 pieces: 
All items linked below are similar unless otherwise noted
Bottom Row L to R: Moto jacket | Denim jacket | Blazer | Basic pump | Flats (options here and here) | Riding boots (love these Frye boots HERE) | Carry All bag: Shop Rebecca Minkoff totes HERE, affordable and reversible option HERE | Cross body bag (colorful and classic options HERE)

Someone asked me how to build your wardrobe from scratch, and that question has inspired this entire post. I didn't feel like it could be answered in a few sentences, without any visual references, so I decided to just capture everything in a post and hope that others find this helpful as well. It's obviously hard to build your closet for ALL seasons all at once - especially since you're limited to what is currently sold in the stores. Therefore, I decided to make this fall focused and plan to do a spring version, too. So, let's get started!

1. Identify yourself. First and foremost, I think it's important to try and identify what your own style is  - preppy, funky, boho, classic, etc. For me it's hard to describe my own personal style in just a few words, but I know that I love patterns, bright colors, and I'm not afraid to take risks. In my "About Me" section, I describe this as  feminine bold classic glam. If you're unsure, try sifting through magazines or Pinterest - gather images of outfits and pieces you like and figure out what the common theme is with everything. As you shop, keep this common theme in mind - it will help narrow your focus.

2. Be aware of your body type. If you've ever watched What Not to Wear, you'll know that Stacy and Clinton always preach about faking an hourglass figure, and that you should dress around the biggest part of your body. Basically, it's all about balance. Do you have big hips but a small chest? Look for pieces that have volume up top to balance out your bottom half. I'm square shaped with no real defined waist. Therefore, I love the silhouette of skater skirts because it gives the illusion that my waist is the smallest part of my body. 

3. Don't worry about trends. Trends aren't for everyone. It doesn't matter if everyone else is wearing Uggs and leggings as pants. You don't have to dress that way. Trends can definitely, and should definitely, influence how you dress, but you shouldn't wear something just because everyone else does or because everyone else doesn't for that matter. If you like it, and it fits you properly, then wear it.

4. Start with remixable basics. If you're literally starting from scratch, it's not cheap to buy new things. Your money will go a lot farther if you focus on basics that are easy enough to mix and match. A friend once said that she won't buy something unless she can think of 3 different ways she can wear it. That's absolutely great advice.

5. Don't forget about accessories.  If you build a good base, your accessories can do a lot more for your outfit than you realize. Jewelry, scarves, shoes - use these pieces for your pops of fun. They'll also help keep you from getting bored with your closet.

OK, so that all sounds good in theory, but where do you even start? A few of my friends are doing a 30 x 30 challenge. They pick 30 pieces in their wardrobe to create 30 different outfits - one for every day in November. I didn't end up participating because I didn't have time to really prep for this, but this post is now my way of playing along. If I had to completely start over, these are the types of pieces I would pick. 

(4) tops: I can't live without my chambray. Outside of that, I picked one color and one print, and then a cami for modesty.
(3) sweaters: A fitted cardigan, a slouchy cardigan, and a pullover sweater
(2) dresses: One LBD and you know I can't live without my stripes. I picked styles that could stand strong on its own, or work well with layers.
(2) skirts: Two classic silhouettes - skater (or A line) and pencil
(4) pants: Jeans, khakis, colored, leggings
(3) jackets: Moto, denim, blazer
(3) pairs of shoes: Boots, flats, pumps
(2) scarves: printed but still good neutrals
(2) necklaces: one long and one short
(2) pairs of earrings: studs and drop
(1) set of bangles - which could be worn alone, in a pair, or all 3 together
(2) bags: one larger carryall and one smaller crossbody

Alright - I will be honest and tell you that I didn't know if I could make it to 30. It was a pretty long process, but as you can see, it can be done. Just think of the possibilities had I NOT included accessories or shoes in this 30!



That's all great, but now where do you shop? Anywhere and everywhere! I'd hold off on online shopping until you understand what brands and designers you like and you know exactly what sizes you are in these brands. Otherwise, you'll get frustrated pretty quickly ordering online just for it to arrive a week later and not fit you. For work pieces, you can find these at places like Target, J Crew Factory, NY&Co, Express, Banana Republic. For trendier pieces, you can try Forever 21, Express, and H&M. Department stores are always great, too, my favorites are Nordstrom and Dillard's. Discount places like TJ Maxx, Marshall's, and Ross are great, too, as long as you are patient and are prepared to dig. 

Lots of information, but I hope it's all useful whether you are rebuilding your wardrobe or simply just trying to figure out where you have holes in your closet for the fall. If you have any tips or rules that you live by, I'd love to hear them also! Ultimately your closet is an evolution of constant inspiration!


SHOP THE POST:

READ MORE... "Building your fall wardrobe: Revamped!"

Tuesday, September 22, 2015

Transitioning

Sunnies: Ray Ban (other colors here) | Earrings: Old Navy | Necklace: Purple Peridot | Trench: Ann Taylor (option herehere, and here) | Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs (option here and here) | Top: Express (try purple or berry) | Bracelet: Stella and Dot | Ring: Kendra ScottBottoms: American Eagle (option) | Shoes: BCBG (option)

This weekend, I finally felt that cool chill to the bone at night. It's about that time to start transitioning! And that means getting excited to wear some of your favorite pieces that you haven't touched in months. Like this sleeveless trench, which for whatever reason, I keep seeing referred to as a sleeveless vest. Except vests are already sleeveless. Just pay attention, you shall see this error incessantly now also. Perhaps they mean sleeveless trench? Or trench vest? Or trench dress is another thing I've seen them called.

Regardless! It's a fun piece to have and I wish that Ann Taylor's version still existed because it's the perfect amount of structure. I realized I hadn't worn it with jeans yet, so I had to change that immediately. I'm kind of excited to wear all of my vests in general again!! Is that bad?


SHOP THE LOOK:

Linking up for: On Trend Tuesday with Sandy and KileenChic StyleTuesday Talk, Confident Tuesday, Style SessionsErin and Laura for Trend Spin Linkup
READ MORE... "Transitioning"

Monday, September 21, 2015

Hello Monday: Edgy + Express Haul

Sorry for being MIA on Friday. It was a very long week, and I think two weeks of back to back weekend trips have left me both physically and emotionally exhausted. Not to be a Debbie Downer or anything, sorry! But traveling has forced me to blog during the week, and when I finally sat down to write my Friday post on Thursday at 9:30pm, I simply had no strength. I know I'm preaching to the choir here, so I won't dwell on it, but I'm hoping to make it up to you with this photo-heavy post!
READ MORE... "Hello Monday: Edgy + Express Haul"

Thursday, September 17, 2015

NYC: Things we did

Sunnies: Ray Ban | Earrings: Kendra Scott (c/o) | Necklace: Stella and Dot (gifted) | Bag: Longchamp | Top: Express | Bottoms: Joe's | Sandals: Sam Edelman

All week I have been slowly but surely recapping my long weekend in NYC with Jenna. In case you missed any of the posts - this post shares photos from the rewardStyle party, this post shares a super fun brunch outfit, and this post tells you everything you need to know about Kendra Scott. So what does that leave for today's post? Basically all of the other random goodness! Since a picture paints a thousand words, I figured it would be best to use these snapshots as a table of contents so to speak.


Starting clockwise from top left:

1. Shake Shack! Yum! I told Jenna before we left that we were for sure for sure eating at Shake Shack - more than once if at all possible. We were having so much fun that I almost forgot about it! We ended up changing into comfy clothes after the rewardStyle party to eat there and it never disappoints!

2. Macys! We spent a couple couple hours or so Saturday evening at the biggest Macy's ever. I can't even explain how ginormous this place was - I felt like it was a never ending maze of escalators! I ended up buying my skirt I wore to the party on Sunday here at Macy's along with these Joe's jeans you're seeing in today's outfit. I wish I took a still photo of the wooden escalators. They basically looked like they came original with the building and were crazy old. They felt a bit sketchy to ride on, but we still survived, and it was just so much fun to be there wandering aimlessly around. The photo above is of their rainbow display of Kitchen Aid Mixers. Insert heart eyed emoji here!

3. This was my travel outfit on Saturday that ended up being my shopping outfit that evening. I'm wearing the softest boyfriend shirt from American Eagle that I now need every color of!

4. The ball! I hadn't been to Time's Square before and this was the first time I actually saw the NYE ball. I was pretty excited! I can't imagine how packed this place gets!

5. The Express in Times Square. It was epic! Naturally, Jenna needed to take a photo of me in my mother ship! I ended up buying two tops - one shown here, and the other I will need to share with you soon! 

6. More of Times Square just because there is so much to digest!

7. The red stairs. I'm not quite sure how, but I never knew these were a thing. We spent a few minutes here taking selfies and admiring the view.

8. Told you we were taking selfies! This was in Times Square Sunday evening.

9. Huevos Rancheros! This was from Sunday Brunch at Cookhouse! Seriously recommend.

10. And last but not least - this was taken from the rooftop bar at the hotel. I'm still quite surprised and excited that we ended up right across the street from a fashion show venue. This is looking down at the entrances into NYFW. Surreal!

And that's basically a super stripped down version! We were snapping like crazy all weekend, and I've downloaded all those stories so I can at least rematch them and relive the details! The outfit I'm sharing with you today was taken minutes before we were on our way to the airport on Monday. So bitter sweet! Nice to be in my own bed, but it was seriously such a fun girls' weekend!!


SHOP THE LOOK:

READ MORE... "NYC: Things we did"

Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Kendra Scott open house

I was sooo excited to find this skirt! I feel like I've been looking for a blush colored, pleated skirt like this for a long time, but they all seem to be more midi length, which isn't flattering on me. This ends up falling perfectly on me, and I love that the pleats don't start right at the waist. It's a perfect fit! I decided instantly that it would go with me to NYC!


You've been seeing a lot of Kendra Scott stuff on the blog lately, and I figured it was about time for me to properly post about it. Unless you don't have Instagram or you never read blogs, you've probably seen Kendra Scott pieces even if you didn't realize it. The signature and most recognizable pieces are the Rayne necklace and the Danielle earrings. These pieces have saturated social media to the point where I was just meh about them. They didn't bother me, but I didn't seek them out either.

A new Kendra Scott store is opening at Plaza Frontenac here in St. Louis, so to build awareness, a local Community Relations and Event Manager reached out to me to see if she could meet with me to discuss blogger opportunities. Needless to say, Kendra Scott is the biggest brand that has ever reached out to me, so I was definitely interested to hear what they had to say, and figured that for a company with this much clout, I should come prepared. I checked out all their other jewelry offerings on their website and was surprised to see more edgy pieces than their signature stuff. I even put together a social media kit thinking I was really going to have to sell myself to them and how I could provide value to their brand.


The meeting was amazing, and to be honest, I felt like she was trying to sell Kendra Scott to ME verses the other way around. She explained that although they're sold at big box retailers like Nordstrom, they had less than 20 of their own brick and mortar stores around the country. And while the number of stores will over double this year, there will still be less than 50 by next year. Small company but big success.

I feel like a lot of their success is thanks to how much they give back to the community, which is another thing I didn't know about the brand. Twenty percent of the proceeds made from these charms go towards various causes. They are also happy to host any charitable event whether on an individual or a national level. Part of the reason why I work at the current company I'm with is because they have these same cultural values on top of the good products they sell. So, it's great to be able to partner with another role model of a concept in my blog life as well.

At the end of the day, I found out that Kendra Scott has so much more to offer than colorful jewelry! And I'm not just talking about their edgier or more delicate pieces, I'm really referring to what they stand for as a brand. I was certainly enamored by their story. The jewelry they offer is really just a means to get their positive message out there!

Sunnies: Ray Ban | Necklace: Kendra Scott (c/o) | Bag: Rebecca Minkoff | Top: Express | Bracelets: Kendra Scott (c/o), Nadri (exact, option) | Watch: Fossil (option) | Rings: Kendra Scott (midi rings, open ring) | Skirt: JCrew Factory | Flats: Halogen

After Jenna and I made our last minute plans to spend the weekend in NYC, I emailed our local brand rep to see if there were any Kendra Scott events we could attend while we were there. As I was sitting on the plane waiting to take off for NYC, I got an email back that there was an open house that very day to debut their winter collection called Mirror Mirror. We were so excited that the timing worked out!

I wish I could share photos from the designer showroom with you, but the collection will not be released until mid-October and they asked that we not post any photos on our blogs or Instagram accounts until after October 1st. You'll just have to believe me when I say there are a LOT of things I am going to need. 

We snapped a ton of photos and mingled with the Kendra Scott girls, who were just so much fun. I'm pretty sure I want to be a Kendra Scott employee when I grow up. They act like such a close knit family and were extremely welcoming - I definitely felt at home.

I have to end the post with a disclaimer that while Kendra Scott has gifted me several pieces, it was made clear to me that I had zero obligation to even post about them. All of my opinions expressed in this post are my own and are sincere. If you don't know much about the Kendra Scott brand, I highly recommend reading up on them and seeing all that they have to offer! You won't be disappointed!


SHOP THE LOOK:

READ MORE... "Kendra Scott open house"