Poppies and prints

Somehow this all works: Long sleeved orange cowl neck tee; Alice Temperley poppy blouse; maroon chevron patterned tights; blue ruffle skirt by I heart Ronson and Banana Republic boots

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And to keep warm a cashmere swing jacket by Lord and Taylor

A Snakey Steal

I would never buy anything full price at H&M; while their clothes are appealing and I want something everytime I walk by the window; I don’t think  24.95 is such a nice price when you look at the quality, Prints that don’t match up front to back, stiff fabrics, poor factory stitching that un-ravels, etc. They make it cute, but they make it cheap…but by my standards not cheap enough to pay their full retail price. I generally won’t pick it up unless its on the sale rack; However, I was surprised to find these surplice neck line, long-sleeved (Perfect for fall and winter) cotton dresses in a variety of prints and colors for $14.95! What I said about the quality still stands, but $15 at Full Retail for a dress is not bad, and the cut/prints were trendy and chic….they needed a belt, but for less than a Jackson, I’ll use one I already have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Genuine Snakeskin belt from thrift $2.90!

 

 

In the first two pictures the neckline is off a little bit, but here you can see this dress has a great cut!

It also came in solid black, orange, cream…I was tempted to get one of each

 

 

 

 

 

Add a pair of taupe tights, black cami and Missoni Chevron shoes ($39.99 at Target)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I thought these rose toned earrings softened the look (borrowed from mom):

 

 

 

 

This one’s for the birds

Even though it’s getting more wintery outside and the birds are flocking south….flora and fauna is a popular motif right now; so for my casual Sunday errands to run, I went with this earthy-toned pallette and delicate bird on a branch necklace to femme it up, gamine style with a hair-bow to top it off.

Green textured long sleeved V-neck (with button details on collar) Mudd brand $2.45 at Village Thrift

Ivory crochet bell sleeve cardi by the Limited $6.90

Denim: Citizens of Humanity from Village Thrift  $5.90!!!!

Leather Belt by Gap: $2.90 from V.T.

Bird Necklace: H&M  $3.80

Burgandy leather bow band: $2.99 from Marine Corps Exchange “the PX”

Faux-shearling Lined Boots: ~$37 by Elle from Kohls for a rugged outdoorsy, one with nature look which needs Aviator shades to pull it all together

Black Friday

Black Friday;  frantic shoppers mad with  consumerism and greed trampling others to the ground to get their elusive electronics for half price; I love it. What a thrill,  waking up early, fighting the crowds, its shopping meets X-treme sports!

This is what  I was after, A quest for my Excalibur!

An Ultra CHI hair straightener for 20% off

Thank you Santa for my early Christmas gift

 

 

 

 

Wide-leg trouser jeans; built for curvy hips; slightly higher waisted for that retro  effect. The length of the jean with the high waist creates a longer leg line for extra height.  Balloon Sleeved sweater in Magenta; tucked in and belted with a tan leather toirtoiseshell buckle belt   All by Banana Republic; but the belt I found at the Thrift for $2.90)

Sweater: 14.97    Denim: $19.99

Necklace: $1.45 at Village Thrift

Shoes: 19.99 at Banana Republic outlet—but I used my $20 rewards card—free pair of shoes!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lovely Lace

I previously expressed my loathing for Forever 21; however this sweet lace dress and precious accessories made it worth the while.

And today was the perfect occasion to wear it as I tended my Maid of honor duties and went dress shopping with my big sis.

necklace $3.80 F21      Dress $24.80

with Kate spade Green Croc embossed handbag : $69 from TJ Max

With my Juicy couture trench: 39.90 at Village thrift

I know I look thrilled; can you tell how much I love weddings, lol

Seriously can veils make a fashion revolution come-back? They are an amazing accessory, why don’t we get to wear them just because? Like hats and gloves just to go out, It’s a lost art and I say we start a movement to bring it back!

Couldn’t get any more romantic than these soft pink roses : 3 pairs of earrings for $3.80 Forever 21

Lumber Jane

I’ve been dying for a pair of warm fuzzy booties for the winter but with short legs, I didn’t think I could make it work. This pair by Elle from Kohl’s can be worn two ways, folded down or laced up.

ELHEIDI Brown boots $89.99 on sale for $47 and on friends and family day I got  an additional 20% off = $38

I tucked in my skinny cords from Banana Republic  (~$28) because leggings aren’t work appropriate and pared this part Victorian / part lumberjack flannel tunic top. Rustic meets Romantic with a ruffle deep V collar, faux leather bow belt and buttons $29.90 at Forever 21

Navy blue scoop neck tank with silk collar; $5.99 from Banana Republic; side bag from Urban Outfitters

A touch of nature, I also got this family of birds on a branch necklace; $3.80 at Forever 21

Rustic meets Romantic with a ruffle deep V collar, faux leather bow belt and baby buttons

 

Take a bow!

This cobalt blue bow skirt from forever 21 ($8.90 @ village) gave me so many choices; I loved my glitter pink pumps with the vibrant hue, but I needed to tone it down for work. As much as I love to believe I’m going to a party every day….it’s not practical or appropriate to dress that way. So a simple black blouse and leopard heels(well, I couldn’t help it, conservative is NOT my middle name!) complete the look

Black silk Blouse: White house black market   $4.90 from Village thrift    A blouse with volume is perfect for small chested figures, and the a-line skirt slims down the hips and narrows the waist (especially with the bow as the accent it works just like a belt visually drawing the eye to the narrowest part of the body) That’s what made for a difficult choice because this skirt would create the perfect silhouette with almost any blouse in my closet, in addition to the amazing color combos I could create.

The pleats on the blouse and skirt coincided nicely

Tthese “E” for Emmaline earrings I found at Forever 21 for $1.50 !!! Great prices on accessories….although I still hate that store with a burning passion: it is a cluster F*@! if I ever saw one, completely overwhelming, nothing in the right place, no one on register, line out the door, but if you can handle it, then its worth the trip.   (A dirty little secret if you won’t tell on me….these for some reason came as an E and an R together…can anyone tell me why bc I’d love to know….so I switched the sets so i would get 2 E’s!)

rhinestone Earrings match the rhinestone bow (notice a motif?) of this Betsey Johnson necklace —B-day present from my BFF Alex

Shoes: Jessica Simpson 39.99 at Marshall’s    Blue tights Forever 21 $4.80—-the blue may be too wild for some, but remember wearing the same color over your bottom half  elongates the leg line; a little trompe l’eoil  never hurt anyone

Brush strokes

Love this vintage shift from the 60’s! (belonged to my grandma) and classic drop pearl earrings

Make it modern with peep toe leather booties (39.99 from Ross)

With rain in the forecast I paired it with a trench: Cobalt blue trench Banana Republic $19.99

When my feet can’t take it anymore I switch into these silver flats by Max Studio $9.90 from Village Thrift

Get me to the Greek!

Tonight I got tickets to see Russel Brand on his college tour, so I needed a co-ed rock n roll worthy ensemb, but I also had to make it through a full day at work and didn’t have time to change…

Here is my after school mentoring program “mentee” showing off one of our Thanksgiving projects (turkey cookies) We also made 60 turkey cup table decorations for the elderly at Lakeridge Fellowship house as their service project

Skinny Cargo pants: $7.50 mossimo @ Target

Bronze leather skinny belt: 12.99 @Banana Republic

Tissue Tee in Olive : mossimo @ Target (borrowed from mom) layered under

Orange balloon pleated short sleeve cowl neck tee by Banana Republic 7.90 @ Village thrift

Necklace: Military Chevron pendant 2 for $2.50 from Michael’s craft store (made one for me and one for my BFF)

Polka Dot Ballet flats:  by Nine-west, 7.90 @ Village

White leather motorcycle jacket by Guess $30 from Village Thrift (not a great photo, but it definitely completed the rock-vibe

Trapeze artist

This ensemb started with my MAUVElous trapeze dress from the Sarah Jessica Parker line Bitten-used to be sold at Steve and Barrys, but you might recognize it from project runway as the winning design for her line. The dress was only $9! The volume on the trapeze dress along with the bowtie makes me flash back to kindergarten wearing my smock to protect from paint spills, so I haven’t worn it until now….Instead of the vest from the runway look; I decided to rein in some of the trapeze volume with another blouse on top tucked into a high waisted pencil skirt; wore booties, but for warmth added tights

Ruffle front high-waisted pencil Skirt: by Nannette Lepore brand new from Village Thrift

Layered over dress:  lace neck chiffon tank : 12.99 at Marshall’s    Bracelet: carved wooden bangle with roses; painted purple

Gray striped footless tights Banana Republic $2.97 (always important to wear footless tights with open toed shoes if possible—but not a heinous fashion crime if you don’t)

White leather peeptoe booties by Miss Sixty $39.99 at Ross