Friday, May 31, 2013

Heading Home

Today I'm finally heading home after a week of travelling!


So what's in my carry on?  

- Lots of activities because I get bored easily, including my phone, iPad, magazines, and a book.  
- All of the essentials in case my checked bag gets lost: a swimsuit, a clean set of clothes, and makeup.
- Stuff I'm scared of checking, like my laptop and DSLR.  
- Plane essentials: chapstick, hand lotion, and a neck pillow.  

I hope you have a great weekend!  I'm going to a Guster concert and a goodbye party tomorrow night (one of my friends is moving across the pond!) and then running a 5K through the zoo with my sister on Sunday morning.  And then doing lots of napping.  Lots.



P.S.  Today I'm being featured on Simple Easy Style, check it out here!

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Thursday, May 30, 2013

LWD

Sometimes you just need a LWD (Little White Dress) in your life.


Dress - LC Lauren Conrad / Jacket - Elle / Sandals - Target / Bag - Kate Spade / Bracelet - Michael Kors / Earrings - Francesca's (similar here)





I'm still down in Florida today but don't worry your little heads, I'll be home soon!




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Wednesday, May 29, 2013

What to Wear: Hotel Wedding

Happy Wednesday!  I'm back again with another wedding style post.  I already posted about what to wear to an outdoor wedding and a church wedding.  Now I'm looking at another typical wedding venue - a hotel ballroom.  This particular invite is a little more casual than the church wedding I posted, but generally these looks are fairly interchangeable depending on the individual invitation.  The only difference is, you have a little more freedom in styling when attending a hotel ballroom wedding.


I found this beautiful invitation on Wedding Paper Divas.  When you read the invitation, the language is really formal.  However, the design, fonts, and colors are a little more laid back than the church wedding invite.  This means your dress can be a bit more relaxed as well.  Also since the wedding is in the morning, think a little more casual and fun.


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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Orange + Glitter

Hey guys! Today I'm coming at you from sunny Orlando!  Wait, didn't I say on Friday that I was heading to Vegas?  I'm just jetsetting all over the place this week ;)

This skirt was one of those clearance rack snags from Target.  I saw it and thought, "It this color too obnoxious?  Maybe I should pair it with a glitter belt..."


Shirt - F21 / Skirt and Belt - Target / Shoes - Steve Madden (similar here) / Necklace - Stella & Dot / Watch and Bracelet - Michael Kors / Bracelet - Baublebar



I'll be in Florida the rest of the week, but don't get too jealous, it's for work.  I'll still be posting while I'm gone, but feel free to follow along on Instagram!




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Friday, May 24, 2013

Pattern Mixing

Happy Friday!  Today I'm collaborating with some other lovely bloggers to show different ways to mix patterns.  I know I was just chatting about pattern mixing yesterday, but I clearly can't get enough of it!  I'm starting to feel like stripes might be a neutral ;) 



Check out the other ladies' stunning print mixing outfits featured in this post:

Mega from Dress Up on a Cloudy Day
Reid from The Fashion Blender
Cayli from Nightchayde
Elizabeth from Undeniably, me
Brittany from Piece, Love and Sole
Terry from Oh, Ivory
Jo-Anne from Myself Expressed



Top - Loft / Skirt - Gap (old, similar here) / Bag - F21 (similar here) / Heels - Nine West / Necklace - Baublebar / Watch - NY&Co





This afternoon I'm heading off to Vegas for a long (not relaxing) weekend.  I hope you have a great one!




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Wednesday, May 22, 2013

What to Wear: Church Wedding

Hey ladies!  Welcome back to another wedding style post.  Earlier this week I posted about what to wear to an outdoor wedding.  Now I'm back with what to wear to a more traditional church wedding.

This beautiful invitation comes from Bella Figura.


This invitation is fairly formal in color, fonts, and design, which means it's time to dress up!  Also, since the wedding isn't until 6pm, it gives you the option of going a little more formal.  Since the wedding is in a church, it's important to be respectful and make sure not to show too much skin.  You know, just a little skin ;)


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Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Warm Weather Basics

Sometimes all you need are some easy neutral colors to make it feel like you're going to the beach instead of heading to work.  I feel like all of these pieces are going to be in heavy rotation for the next couple of months.


Chambray - Target / Denim - Old Navy / Bag - Kate Spade / Sandals - Payless / Necklace - Baublebar /  Watch - Michael Kors



Have a wonderful day!




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Monday, May 20, 2013

What to Wear: Outdoor Wedding

Hi everyone!  Welcome to the first installment of my wedding wear posts.  Last week I talked about how a wedding invitation can give you a lot of clues of how to dress, so now I'm going to be breaking down different invitations and talking about how they should influence your outfit.

I found this adorable invite for an outdoor wedding in Andimans Etsy shop.


The first thing I notice when I look at this is that it isn't particularly formal - not in the font, language, or design.  And there's a mustache.  That's telling me the event will probably be more on the casual side.  It doesn't specifically say to dress casually so you should still plan on dressing up a little, you just don't have to break out a satin cocktail dress.  You can look for more casual fabrics, prints, or shapes.  (And even if an invite specifically says to dress casually, that probably doesn't mean they want you to show up in jeans.)

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The second thing I'm noticing is the location.  Winter Park/Farmer's Market sounds like an outdoor location.  You can obviously use Google (or ask!) if you aren't sure, but I'm going to assume this is going to be an outdoor wedding.  To me, that means you should wear flat or platform sandals to avoid sinking into the ground, and since it's at night, bring a sweater or jacket in case the temperature drops.  



Check back on Wednesday for another wedding post.




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Friday, May 17, 2013

If I were 16 again...

... this is what I would wear to a school dance:



Is it just me, or have juniors dresses gotten much classier?  I remember having serious struggles to find dresses that weren't strapless and covered in crazy embellishments.  Well, I mean, this dress is embellished, but not with beads and flowers and feathers and glitter.  I remember coming out of dressing rooms when trying on dresses for homecoming covered in glitter.

For your viewing pleasure, I managed to dig up this picture from my senior prom - I'm the one wearing mint (clearly, a few years ahead of the trend ;)


Have a great weekend!

Oh, and PS, I'm being featured on Simple Easy Style today, hop on over to check it out!




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Thursday, May 16, 2013

Ensemble: Pink Stripes

Every year during winter, I look at my brighter accessories and clothes and wonder what I was thinking.  Brights on brights?  Never!  Then the weather warms up, and I suddenly start thinking that a turquoise necklace with bright pink stripes is totally acceptable.


Tee - Old Navy (similar here) / Jeans - Gap / Sandals - Target (similar here) / Necklace - Sira & Mara / Bracelet - BaubleBar / Watch - Michael Kors 



 Oh, and yes, I do have a pair of "those" sandals from Target.  Don't worry, I saw some still in stock at my neighborhood Target if you're still looking to snag a pair.




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Wednesday, May 15, 2013

What to Wear: Wedding Edition

When I first started going to weddings as an adult, trying to decide what to wear would totally frazzle me.  I went to a bunch of weddings in the '90s when all of my parents' siblings and cousins got married, and then didn't go to another until my friends (ahem, my boyfriends' friends) and cousins started getting married.  I actually remember going through friends' Facebook albums from weddings they had attended to try to figure out what would be appropriate.  Little did I realize that there was a big hint right in front of me as to what was appropriate to wear - the invitation.

For really formal weddings, they'll usually spell it out for you in the bottom right corner.  Make sure to check if there is a specific dress code on the invitation and then dress appropriately.  A friend of mine managed to miss on his invitation that the dress code was black tie, and was the only person to show up in a regular suit - how embarrassing.


But if your friends or family members weren't super specific about the dress code, you can still learn a lot from the location, time of day, and style of the invitation.  

I'm going to be doing a series over the next couple of weeks on what to wear to a wedding based on the invitation.  Stay tuned!




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Tuesday, May 14, 2013

DIY Sequined Pocket Tee

When I was out shopping recently, I kept seeing little sequin embellishments and thought, "hey, that's something I could do myself."  One quick trip* to Joann Fabric later and I was ready to go.  


*No trip to Joann Fabric is ever "quick."  It isn't physically possible to get in and out of there in less than 20 minutes.

This was my kind of project, because I started it on one of those typical Sunday mornings when I woke up at about 6am sans alarm, and finished it before the boyfriend got up.  I GET MORE DONE BEFORE 8 THAN YOU DO ALL DAY.  Or rather, than I do the rest of the day, because after I finished I'm pretty sure I stayed in my pajamas on the couch until 2pm.  


You'll need:
Sequin embellishment (I used 7/8" stretch sequins - it was originally $6.99 but I had a 50% off coupon)
Needle & Thread
Scissors
Plain tee


First, cut a piece of sequins to cover your pocket, following the angle of the pocket at the bottom.  Make sure to snip between the individual sequins rather than right across the top, because half pieces of sequins on your shirt will look sad.  Hand stitch the sequins to the pocket, sticking the needle through the individual pieces of sequins at the top and bottom to make sure the piece of sequins doesn't unravel.      I ended up sewing my pocket closed because really, who needs to put anything in that tiny pocket?

Continue cutting pieces of sequins and attaching them to the pocket, overlapping each piece slightly until the whole pocket is covered.  If you have any holes , sew individual pieces of sequins to cover them. 


And voila!  You now have a cute sequined pocket tee shirt.


When my sister saw it, she asked, "Why?"  Which really meant she hated it.  Which is a sure sign it must be cute.




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