And it's still raining as I type this, no joke. But I won't complain about the weather since you all seem to enjoy my selfies anyway! <3 And somehow I am not sure how it is Friday already! We had two days of department meetings yesterday and now today and I am beat. Early mornings and late nights are immediately draining! Fingers crossed that this weekend is relaxing but dry and productive!
Now that I feel like I can't wear my destroyed jeans to work anymore, I feel like I *never* wore them. I busted them out finally this weekend, and it felt so good! Another thing that feels good is this Bailey 44 top. Fitted but forgiving - it's the best!
Oh, Piperlime, RIP. So sad. This dress was one of the last things I ever ordered from Piperlime, so it will always hold a special place in my heart. And I love this vest - it always gets so many compliments, and I really wish JCrew Factory would bring it back! It's the perfect layer over a dress like this when I want to have pockets!
I completely plagiarized this outfit from my friend, Renata - you can see her version here. It's such a fabulous combo! I love finding new ways to wear existing pieces! And I love it when your friends basically dress you so you don't have to think!
Sneaking another game day outfit in here for you. I wore this to the Memorial Day game and the guy that took my ticket was very smitten with the fact that I strategically wore camo on Memorial Day. Haha! But yes, it was totally planned that way.
This romper is one of those pieces that you really wish never went out of stock because everyone oohs and ahhs every time I wear it. And, I really can't blame them because it's pretty fabulous. That's why I had to buy it in the first place after seeing it on Rachelle back in the day here! I have Rachelle to thank for LOTS of things I buy, actually!
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Have a great weekend, everyone! I truly appreciate all of your comments and support!
I really don't know how I accumulate these so quickly because I feel like I do this recap all the time! But, I've got another 10.5 outfits to share that haven't formally made the blog, so here ya go! As with all my random roundup posts, I'm only linking to items that are still available.
I was actually inspired to put together this outfit based on my monochromatic outfit I posted. I mentioned in the post that I wanted to mix grey and wine together, and this outfit was the result. Plus I adore these wedges (flashback post here), and I don't wear them enough!
Scarf: H&M | Earrings:Stella and Dot | Necklace:Stella and Dot | Jacket: Kenna-T | Top: JCrew | Watch: Kate Spade | Jeans: Express | Booties:Report
This is one of my favorite sweaters - last seen here with the same Tory Burch wedges from above! No real frills about this outfit, but I love the silhouette and love cognac and grey together! It's nice not to over think things sometimes, right?
Vest: JCrew Factory | Necklace: Kate Spade | Top: Express | Bracelets: Cara, Kate Spade | Bottoms: Express | Boots:MICHAEL Michael Kors (on sale here)
Ah, the obligatory Instagram uniform. I reallllllllly debated on whether or not I wanted to wear the herringbone/buffalo plaid combo since it's been done once or twice before, but what can I say? There's a reason why it's a popular combo. And you know what, I have yet to see someone else walking around with this combo in real life. I've never even seen another person wearing the herringbone vest! So, outside of Instagram, I'll pretend this combo is unique to me.
This was a work travel outfit when I was flying into the snow storm that was New York. I had a planning meeting to go to in the evening, but really didn't want to wear a pencil skirt all day when I was at the airport. So, I just swapped the pants for the skirt. I did bring some heels for the meeting, too, but with the snow, I just kept the boots on and figured the New Yorkers are used to this look. Sometimes my limbs are not worth sacrificing for fashion.
In other news, I'm in love with this blazer and so very glad I bought it! I had gotten rid of all my other suiting items when I transitioned into this job. I have another black blazer, but it's cropped, and this length is perfect!
Necklace: Stella and Dot | Scarf worn as a shawl: Zara | Belt: Gap | Top:LOFT | Bottoms: Express | Boots:Coach "Adair"
I decided to try the whole scarf as a belted shawl thing, and I la-la-loved it! Though, I will say that it takes a wee bit of coordination and trial and error. Folding this in half to make a triangle still left this huge on me, it was draping so low. I had to fold it over one more time.
I experimented with belting the front AND the back, and then also leaving the back out of the belt. I liked it better belted front and back.
And then the last piece you have to deal with are your arms. You can quickly get tyrannosaurus-rex arms depending on how you belt yourself in. Ideally, I would stand there with my arms out to a T and have a second person fold and drape and belt your scarf for you. What, you don't have a person for that?
If you manage to be fully coordinated - the outcome is the best. I was amazed how warm this was, too! But, when you're literally wearing a blanket folded in half around your shoulders, it shouldn't be a surprise that you'd be warm!
This is a modified version of this outfit here. Of course when it came time to wear that actual outfit, it was raining outside, and my feet were asking for knee high boots and not calf-hair pumps. So, I made that outfit just a bit more casual - similar color palette, but in a more relaxed way.
Can I be real for a second? I think this outfit is ridiculous. But I wore it to the airport, and I figured it's a step up from pajamas, right? It's just challenging dressing for the airport in the winter because I want to be warm, but I don't want to carry a jacket around with me. Vests and scarves work perfect. For dinner, I did change into a chambray so I could wear an actual jacket.
I almost didn't post this on Instagram because of its ridiculousness, but of course, it is one of my all time most "liked" posts. Oh Instagram, I really don't understand you, do I?
I had to fly to Toronto the day after we got back from DC, so admittedly, some of the same items came with me to save on packing time - like this tunic. It's just the perfect pairing with leggings, and great for layers. The tunic is so old (see more about it here), and one of my most favorite items I've ever gotten from Express. And I've got A LOT from Express...
This was my Thanksgiving outfit. Clearly a bit on the casual side, but we really just ate and lounged and then did a bit of shopping with the family, so it was pretty appropriate. I'm in love with this cranberry vest and am sad it's not online anymore. It was marked down to around $50 in store, and I highly recommend it if you can find it!
Speaking of recommendations, this top came highly recommended by Gina, and she never leads you astray. It's the perfect layering piece, and I ended up ordering it in a burgundy stripe as well!
Sweatshirt: The Foundrie | Bottoms: Express | Shoes:Express
And last but not least is my Black Friday shopping outfit. It was early, so I definitely went for casual comfort. If these JCrew Factory sweats I had ordered had arrived, I would have totally worn those instead! You can see a better view of this sweatshirt here. I feel like I've been plugging The Foundrie a lot on Instagram lately. I met them during the St. Louis Fashion Week festivities, and I gotta say that everything they sell is darling, and I could spend hours in their store!
That's it for now, until the next dozen OOTDs accumulate! Oh, and there's just a couple more days to enter the $650 EXPRESS Gift Card Giveaway! Check it out here if you haven't already!
I decided to take the plunge and get this jacket after seeing it on Rachelle here. I figured it would be nice to have a jacket that isn't a moto jacket, since I seem to have accumulated a handful of that style! I'm so happy with the fit! It's probably a little lightweight for the winter, but that's nothing a few layers can't fix! It even has buttons in the back so you can adjust the waist! I loved this option since I can cinch my waist when I'm just wearing a light top, but when I'm wearing a sweater like this, I can loosen the fit.
Can we all say, "Happy Birthday" to Mr. Carylee, aka my photographer? After all, if it weren't for his time and energy, this blog would not be what it currently is. This is what I wore during the day before my hair appointment on Saturday. You can see my after haircut pic here! I ended up just switching into my black destroyed skinnies when we went out later that evening to celebrate with dinner and a movie. It was hard to follow in his footsteps after what he did for me for my birthday this year, but I still think I did well!
I bought him a driving experience at the New Orleans motorsports track. He gets to drive a Lamborghini, and I get to eat some authentic beignets. Don't you love the way I think? I have never been to New Orleans before, so I figured it would be a nice long weekend. He seemed pretty stoked about his present, so I shall call this year a success!
Easy fitting pants, soft sweatshirt, cozy scarf, and suede boots? Yes, yes, yes, and yes. This is just about as relaxed and casual as you will see me on the blog, and I've got to say, it really does feel good to wear elastic waisted pants once in awhile, right?
A shopping forum friend found a dupe of this infamous Lululemon Vinyasa scarf at…wait for it… Whole Foods. Or you can order one online direct from the retailer here. I somehow managed to collect 3 vinyasa scarves last year, so I'm pretty maxed out, but it looks like a great budget option! Oh how I love having shopping spies.
Last week was a crazy week! Basically had to prepare for meetings all week, and while I wasn't preparing for these meetings, I was physically in them! Friday was spent trying to get ahead as much as I could knowing I would be away from the office for a few days. We had a baseball game to go to that evening - our last regular season game!! - and that was also the iPhone 6 release date, so I was trying to get my phone all set up after work but before the game because I knew I would spend the night after the game still trying to pack!
I had everything backed up and restored onto my new phone, but it was still saying I didn't have service. We went through the same steps we did for the last 7 phones or so, so we were really confused about what was going on. The husband called AT&T on his cell (his new phone hasn't shipped yet, so nothing was changed with his phone at this time). He was on the phone with the rep for about 15 minutes - she had asked for my SIM card number, he gave it to her, then silence. He lost service on his phone. By this time, we were already en route and late to the game, so both of us had no cell service for about 4 hours.
Oh the horror. We actually had to talk! To each other!
I kid.
Sort of.
Not because we had to talk - but man, there are so many things I do with my phone - check the weather, check my calendar, watch baseball replays! - things I do without really thinking, but I realize I do once I don't have a phone on me.
We get home around 11 after the game, where I had left my old phone, and found that it still had service. So I called AT&T again, explained the situation. After about a half hour with that rep, we found out that the first rep assigned the wrong SIM number to the wrong phone (we have a shared account.) So after all was said and done - I had to put my NEW SIM in his old phone. He had to put his SIM in my OLD phone and I had to put my OLD SIM in my NEW phone. Yeah, that hurts my head, too.
All the first AT&T rep had to tell us was that I just had to switch SIM cards with my two phones. Done. Easy as that. Not sure why we didn't have to do this the other times, but whatever. Why am I telling you all this? Well, the point is - a 2 second task turned into a 6 hour debacle on top of an already crazy week, so by the time I was able to sit down and pack, I was spent.
I trusted my remixing skills, started grabbing stuff and laying it out on the floor to make sure that the pieces I was picking could create multiple outfits. Somehow, in the midst of this chaos, I only managed to bring one pair of shoes, but in hindsight, it worked out because the booties ended up pairing well with everything anyway! Gone are the days when I'm trying to wear something different everyday when I travel, and when I pack so much I have to check a bag! I took proper photos of some of the outfits I actually wore from the group above (here and here), but for those of you that prefer the good old selfie - here you go!
Other than my jeans, I never ended up having to re-wear any clothes. Oh, well, except for my booties. Perhaps I should have named this post "What to wear with black booties" instead! I never ended up needing the denim jacket, as it was definitely too warm, but it's always nice to have something like that just in case. I always enjoy reading packing posts like this, so I hope you enjoyed it as well!
I brought this outfit to wear to church on Sunday. The last time you saw this was here, and it definitely wasn't quite cool enough this second time around for any kind of jacket over it. I was worried that the black booties would be too harsh with it, but lucky for me, my hair is black so it really didn't bother me. And I'm sure SoCal has seen a lot worse combos!
It's honestly still surreal to me that my sister has a baby. My sister has a baby. Meeting him in person was just the best - of course he's adorable and perfect. We got a little lucky apparently because supposedly he can get pretty cranky, as babies can get, but the times we were with him, he basically just slept and ate and slept and ate. Pretty easy if you ask me! But that's also because he's hers and not mine- ha!
I could not resist getting him little Cardinals onesies!! I don't think my brother-in-law (an Angels fan) was too happy about it, but they appeased me and let him wear it all day on Sunday. Although he's looking at me like - uh, daddy's gonna be mad!
He's only two weeks old so I'm excited to see him grow!! When he's old enough, you better believe he'll be FaceTiming with his crazy aunt! I still can't decide who he looks like yet - my sister or my brother-in-law, though my brother-in-law said he was holding him one day and freaked out because he made a face that looked just like me! Aww, I'll take him as a lookalike any day!
Yeah, I caved. I ended up ordering this top in a second pattern (original one seen here.) I had to let it all hang out with this outfit since I tucked it in when I wore the other top. Gina had asked if I had to wear anything underneath it, and the answer is no. There's a snap closure near the neckline that keeps it closed, so this really is the perfect, most non-fussy wrap top.
Booties in the summer may be a bit crazy, but the highs are hovering at 80 degrees this week. Plus I couldn't resist pairing these booties with the top - cobalt and orange just naturally "go" together. (As seen here and here. Oh man, that second post had awful poses. Painful.) I really wish I could find something similar to these boots for you guys because these boots are the epitome of happiness! <3
