Something New

Well, after finishing the 30x30, I was pretty much just going to wear all new things.  Here's an outfit made almost entirely up of new purchases.  The outlet mall was good to me.  Or rather, I was good to it.  

This outfit doesn't follow the Like+Love+Bling formula.  It's more like Love+Love+Love and then put on some shoes.  I think it works.  

Also, if you haven't yet, please take my blog survey!   I'm going to call it finished on Sunday, and post about the results next week.  Spoiler alert - there are no big surprises.  

Cardigan: J.Crew factory (exact)

Tee: Loft outlet (similar)

Skirt: Gap factory (similar, similar)

Shoes: Seychelles (similar)

Dress Week Overflow

Dress Week is officially over, but I've still been wearing dresses most days.  It's just easier than deciding on a top and a bottom to wear each day.  Also, my posts are generally about a week behind the day I actually wear something, and I felt like wearing dresses in real life during blog Dress Week.  So, more dresses it is. Hope you don't mind.  

Remember back in April, when I participated in the Looking Lucky challenge?  Well, I won a gift card!  YAY!  And I finally picked out this necklace, which arrived about 2 days after I ordered it.  I thought it'd be a fun accent for my plane dress.  I even pinned my hair back so the necklace was more visible.  I really need to learn some cute hairstyles for summer.  (90+ degree super humid days don't play nice with my hair!)

Dress: eShakti (navy option)
Necklace: LuckyB Boutique (exact)
Belt: Steve Madden (similar)
Bangles: Charming Charlie
Shoes: Seychelles (similar)

Tights Season

Well, I had big dreams of avoiding tights until December, but I gave up without too much of a fight.  We had a cold spell last week and I didn't want to wear jeans every day, so I had to rummage through my tights to find a decent pair.  Apparently, I need to get restocked.  (get it? tight are stockings!)

Anyway, happy Monday and happy short work week!  My weekend was pretty good.  I went to see Elf the Musical on Friday evening with my MIL and SIL, which definitely got me in the mood for Christmas.

On Saturday, I went to see Catching Fire, which was fabulous.  Not so fabulous: the women sitting behind me.  They were the worst kind of movie-talkers.  (Warning, there's no real spoilers in these quotes, but you may want to avoid them if you don't already know what happens in the books.)  (And for the record, Gale and Peeta don't look at all alike, except for the fact that they are both white 20-something males.)  "Is that Peeta?"  "NO, it's Gale!"  "Wait, I thought he was dead?"  "No, why would you think that?"  "So, Peeta is dead?"  "No, I don't think so.  Maybe...  I'm not sure!"  UGH - STOP TALKING!

This is the last week of Take One, Pass It On.  My polka dot cardigan is making an appearance from Friday's post.  Make sure you check out Sarah and the other bloggers who are participating.

Cardigan: Old Navy
Chambray & Skirt: J.Crew factory
Shoes: Seychelles

Stripe Week - Dress

Let's be honest - I had a bit of a "BUY ALL THE STRIPED DRESSES" phase earlier this year.  In my defense, I think it was more an issue of supply increasing than me being completely ridiculous.  There were just more options in stores at good prices this spring.  Not that I'm NOT completely ridiculous, but whatever.  Let's move on.

My husband rarely has specific comments about what I wear.  When he does have something to say, it usually surprises me.  He likes this dress, because the stripes get kind of "zig-zaggy" on the skirt part.  Okay. I like it because it's pink and striped and very comfortable and has pockets.  I don't like how wrinkly it gets, but I've already mentioned that!

We're at the midpoint of Stripes Week!  Are you ready to link up with A Journey in Style and me on Friday??

Today, I'm linking up with  What I Wore and What I Wore to Work.

Dress: Gap
Blazer: H&M
Belt: Old Navy
Shoes: Seychelles

Deep Thoughts on Internet Envy

Over the last couple of years, I've seen quite a few articles that warn against Facebook because it will cause depression.  The argument is that everyone posts about the happy things in their lives, and none of the sad things, so we all have a skewed perception of others, and then get sad about ourselves.  Like "All my FB friends have awesome jobs/cars/relationships/vacations, and my life is terrible!!"  This may be true, but it always bothers me for a couple of reasons:

First, if you aren't happy with your life, will it really help to know your friends/acquaintances/strangers on the internet are also miserable?  I think that would just make me more depressed.  Also, it's never wise to base your contentment on what other people appear to have, whether being envious of them, or thinking at least you are better off than them.  

Second, you SHOULD NOT BE INTERNET FRIENDS WITH PEOPLE IF YOU CAN'T BE HAPPY FOR THEM WHEN GOOD THINGS HAPPEN TO THEM!  Sorry to get shouty, but seriously.  If I'm scrolling through Facebook and see that someone I'm "friends" with went on an awesome vacation, and my first thought is "ugh, why do they get to spend 3 weeks in Europe?!"  then it probably means I don't actually like this person.  Un-friend immediately!  Or at the very least, hide them from your news-feed.

Also, how is this different than in real life?  If I ask one of my co-workers how they are doing, they always say "good!" and unless we are pretty close, that's all I know.  Isn't it just common sense to know that you are getting a tiny glimpse of anyone's life by your interactions with them, whether online or IRL? 

And finally, I don't know about you, but I have plenty of friends on my various social media sites that are pretty open about the good and the bad things in life.  Is this just because I have un-friended all the annoyingly braggy folks?  Maybe. 

I'm not sure what my point is here, but I just wanted to throw those thoughts out there.  And look, I may have a cute dalmatian-print* belt, but look how wrinkly my skirt is.  Just keeping it real!  

*No Dalmatians were harmed in the making of this belt.  I actually don't know that, but I assume/hope.  I really don't want to be Cruella De Vil!  

Top: H&M
Skirt: J.Crew Factory
Belt: Limited
Shoes: BCBGeneration

Label Maker

Happy Friday!  It's been another busy week, so I'm ready for the weekend!  This skirt is another item I picked up while my sister was visiting.  We just love to shop together!  It was love at first sight with this skirt, so I bought it without really thinking about how I would wear it.  When I searched on Pinterest for pink polka dot skirt, most of the pictures were of toddlers, so maybe I'm outside of my age range here!  

One thing I've been working on for the past couple weeks is my blog labels.  When I started, I was just using general labels, like colors and "dress/skirt/jeans", etc.  I wanted to have each item labeled specifically, so it is easier for you (and me) to find other ways I've worn a particular item!  So if you are interested in other ways I have worn this necklace, you can just click on the label at the bottom of the post and find all my other outfits.  Pretty slick!

It's also going to make remix posts much easier for me, because I can find exactly what I am looking for without trolling through 400+ old posts.  Pink necklace remix - BOOM!  

1/2/3/4

Linking up today with Friday Favorites, Casual Friday and Favorite Fashion Friday
Shirt: J.Crew Factory
Necklace: H&M
Skirt: Chaus
Shoes: Seychelles

Another Day, Another Mixed Print Outfit

Lately, I just want to MIX ALL THE PRINTS!  Floral and stripes are one of my favorite combinations, so it is likely that I would have come up with this outfit on my own eventually, but I was helped along the way by this and this.

So, I was recently nominated for a Liebster award by the super sweet Brynn. Since I've been blogging for awhile and still have less than 200 followers, this is my 4th time to get this award (previous posts here and here), so I'm not going to do the whole thing again.  But I will answer Brynn's questions.  (and you should go visit her, because she is great!  Plus she is doing a 30X30 challenge in July, which I am still too chicken to attempt). 

1. What do you like to do in your free time?  I read a lot, and watch a lot of TV (usually something on Netflix because I have no patience for watching shows in real time).  Obviously I like to shop.  When I have more free time, I like to get a little crafty with sewing or other projects.  
2. If you could have a dinner party with any three famous people (dead or alive), who would they be and why?  This question is overwhelming!  I mean, ANYONE from ANY TIME?  Also, I'm not that interested in having dinner with celebrities.  Honestly (if I'm not being afraid of getting religious on the internet), my first choice is Jesus.  Anyone else at this dinner would be ignored.  
3. What is your favorite household chore and why?  Favorite chore?  Seriously, Brynn???  I guess my least-hated chore is doing the laundry.  I like how I can be "doing laundry" all day, but it is mostly remembering to transfer to the dryer, and start a new load.  Plus the clean clothes smell so good, and I can fold them while watching TV.     
4. What's your favorite item of clothing that you currently own?  Again, this is hard to answer because everything is my favorite!  Lately, I've been pretty excited about my navy/white striped blazer and want to wear it all the time, but it's not the best for 90+ degree days! 
5. When you're on a road trip, what is your go-to music?  I usually put my iTunes on shuffle and just let it play.  It ends up being a lot of Ben Folds, Weezer, and Regina Spektor. 

How would you answer her questions?

Necklace: Dillard's
Top: Alfani
Cardigan: Old Navy (Dyed by me)
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes: Seychelles

Today I am linking up with What I Wore Wednesday and  Fashion and Beauty Finds.

New Skirt in Action

After refashioning this dress into a skirt, I was excited to start wearing it more frequently.  My striped top was hanging in the closet above the skirt and an idea was born!

Last week was crazy busy and the weekend was no different!  Friday evening, John and I went out to dinner and a movie (Now You See Me - pretty good).  Saturday, we had a VBS teacher meeting in the morning, and then my uncle came to town in the evening.  We went out for dinner and then played some Scrabble (John won) and caught up on life.  It was so great to see him and it made me wish my family wasn't all so spread out!  Sunday we had church in the morning, and then I headed to Fremont in the evening for an engagement party/potluck in the park for my friend Anne (who is in town for a couple weeks).  I was nervous all weekend because it kept raining, but about an hour before the party started, the rain stopped and the sun started peeking through the clouds.  It was a little chilly, but at least it wasn't pouring rain!   

After being out of the office most of last week, I'll be playing catch up on everything, so I hope it is a quiet week at work! 

Cardigan: Gap
Top: Old Navy
Belt: Limited
Skirt: H&M (refashioned from a dress)
Shoes: Seychelles

Update: I'm guest posting over at Mai-Heart today and answering questions that Crystal came up with!  She'll be answering my questions here next week!

Another update: I am linking up with Favorite Fashion Friday for this week.  

Thoughts on Cost Per Wear

Target week continues with skirts/pants/bottoms!  This skirt was the topic of a recent remix post, and I suspect I will be wearing it quite a bit throughout the summer.  Jenn recently mentioned a theory of shopping where you should be able to wear an item as many times as the dollars you spent on it, so the price per wear is $1 or less (and she's doing a challenge right now about it).  I think most of my clothes end up with a cost per wear of $1 or less (except for fancier dresses, probably).  This skirt cost me $8, and this is the 7th outfit I have blogged.  I don't remember if I have worn it any other times, but I think it is safe to say I will wear it again.

I really like this theory, because I think it takes into consideration how frequently an item will be worn, and how many seasons/years it will be in your wardrobe.  For example, my nude pumps were $40, which is more than I would normally spend on a pair of shoes, but I have probably worn them at least once a week for the last year and a half.  A knit pencil skirt from Target probably won't last for that many wears, so I wouldn't spend more than $10-15 for it.  

Do you have any rules or theories on how much you will spend for certain items?

Blazer and top: Gap
Skirt: Target
Shoes: Seychelles via DSW

Mysterious and Spooky

 Last week, I went to see The Addams Family musical with my MIL and SIL.  We met up for dinner before the show, and I took another step in the "taking pictures in public" direction.  I set up my tripod right on the sidewalk and took pictures as people drove by.  I got a few funny looks, but it wasn't too bad!

The show was okay.  I felt like I wasn't in on some of the jokes, because I never watched the TV show.  I actually was thinking of The Munsters, so I was surprised when the dad wasn't Frankenstein.  It's just hard to keep these 1960's spooky family sitcoms straight!

Dress: Banana Republic Outlet
Scarf: H&M
Shoes: Seychelles via DSW
Purse: Thrifted

Stop, Collaborate and Listen

 

On my list of fears and things that make me uncomfortable, I probably should have added "asking for help from others," but I'm trying to get over that one, so here goes nothing! 

It's been a few months since I posted about the whole idea of swapping buttons, and how I really don't think it does a whole lot for building community or even getting new followers.  Since then, I've been thinking about collaboration ideas (does anyone else think of Vanilla Ice whenever someone says Collaborate?), and just haven't gotten around to posting about it.  Looking at my calendar, I realized it's almost June, and I will be at a work conference that first week, so I should really line up some guest bloggers!  It seemed like an appropriate time to run with this idea.

Instead of just swapping buttons that no one will ever click on, I'd like to start swapping guest posts!  We could either trade blogs for the day, or pick different days to guest post on each others' blogs. Here are some topics that I think could be fun/interesting for our readers: 

• Pick a similar item to style - I know there are quite a few of you that have the exact same piece as I do, so that could be fun.  
• Pick a trend to post about - either share a remix, or just show one way to wear a current trend
• Inspiration trade - each pick a favorite outfit of other blogger to interpret.  I did this for Bri back on October and thought it was fun! 
• Inspiration Piece - pick an outfit from Pinterest or another blog and each do our own version of it. 
• Guest swap - just post on each other's blogs one day, about whatever.  It doesn't have to be style-related, but that's my most common topic, so probably what my readers enjoy.   

Would any of you be interested in doing a guest post swap with me?  I'd love to have a few lined up for the first week of June, and then maybe every so often going forward. 

**And if you would be willing to guest post for me and don't want to do a post swap, that's fine, too.  I just want to communicate that I'm willing to reciprocate, since it is work to create an extra post for another blogger!

Comment here or send me an email if you are interested, and we can iron out the details!     

Top: Old Navy
Blazer: H&M
Skirt: J.Crew
Shoes: Seychelles

On a Boat

On Sunday, we were just on the boat, which is actually pretty nice, because we just got to be lazy!  The above picture shows my view for most of the day.  Again, it wasn't as warm as I expected it to be, so I kept my sweatshirt on most of the time, and used my towel as a blanket, but I mean, look at that ocean!  

When we got tired of being lazy, we ventured up to the mini-golf course and played a few rounds.  Putting is much more complicated when the green moves.  

Sunday was also the first formal night, so we got to dress up a little more.  

This is the dress I mentioned in my February goals review.  I changed it from a halter top to just having normal straps.  (Not that you can tell, because my hair pretty much covers the straps!)

Dress: Ann Taylor
Belt: Limited
Necklace: Charming Charlie
Shoes: Seychelles
Scarf: Princess Cruise Gift Shop

Brick Wall

 

Take One, Pass It On Item:  polka dot cardigan from last Monday

**In a less blatant form of copycatting, this outfit is inspired by Kate, again.  I'm still not convinced that a tucked in shirt is the right look for me, but I'm trying to give it a fair shake.

I'm also linking up with Bri for Third Thursday Threads!  The theme this month is polka dots, so it sort of worked out perfectly that I was passing along this cardigan.   

In other news... Look!  A brick wall as a background!  I sort of feel like a legit fashion blogger now.  Lunch dates with quick photo sessions may be the answer to my outfit photo problems.  I have been trying to take pictures in the morning, but I usually have wet hair and sleepy eyes.  And, let's be honest - I get to work late enough without adding 10 minutes for self-timer pictures.  After work, it's dark outside and my outfit is wrinkled from sitting all day.  At lunch, my clothes are only wrinkled by a half-day's worth of sitting, my hair is dry, and my eyes aren't sleepy (which would be relevant if I wasn't wearing sunglasses).  Plus lunch dates are awesome!  

Cardigan and Skirt: Old Navy
Shirt: NY&Co
Belt: Chinese Laundry
Shoes: Seychelles
Purse: Target

Frozen Ankles

Take One, Pass It On Item:  pink scarf from last Wednesday's post

I'm getting pretty tired of winter for several reasons.  One is that I have such limited footwear options. Every day, I mostly get to decide if I want to wear my gray boots, my black boots, or my brown boots.  So when I checked the weather and it was supposed to be sunny and in the upper 40s, I was pretty excited to bust out my peep-toes and let my ankles out to play.  It turns out that my weather app was lying to me, and it was cloudy, maybe in the 30s, with pretty strong winds.  My poor ankles and toes were so cold.  Rookie mistake.

Sweater and Jeans: Gap
Scarf: Charming Charlie
Shoes: Seychelles via DSW

Linking up with Shanna for Random Wednesday.

Bubble Necklace Bandwagon

I'm finally jumping on the bubble necklace bandwagon.  I wasn't really sure about them when I first started seeing them.  Then I liked them, but wasn't about to spend $88 for the J.Crew version.  Then I started seeing them at Charming Charlie, but still wasn't sure.  Then I got 2 gold watches for Christmas, so I decided to swap one out for the bubble necklace.  So this is technically a Christmas present. (Thanks, Mom and Dad!)

I'll also confess that Hilary Duff inspired this outfit.  Since I was a teenager when she became famous on the Disney channel, this is sort of embarrassing for me.  Wikipedia just told me that she is now married and has a baby, and now I feel old!  The internet is a crazy place.

The giveaway is still open - tell all your friends!  

Coat: Gap
Shirt: J.Crew Factory
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes: Seychelles
Necklace: Charming Charlie

Transitioning

I wore this to church a couple weekends ago, on a day that started out unseasonable warm, and then became more seasonably cold that evening.  Instead of coming up with a whole new outfit for that evening, I just made some slight modifications and was good to go!

Which version do you prefer?

Base outfit:
Shirt: J.Crew Factory
Skirt: Sunny Leigh via Macy's

Outfit #1
Belt: Old Navy
Shoes: Seychelles
Sunglasses: Jones New York

Outfit #2
Cardigan: Urban Outfitters
Boots: Wanted via Piperlime