Thrifted V-Day Dress

[Before, Sal Val, $4]

Not my first, and certainly not my last thrifted item of clothing.

However, it's the first one I saw potential in on the rack.

I knew with a little snip here and a little hem there, I could turn this Amish-esque disaster into something a little more modern.

It turned out great & I ended up wearing it to dinner on Valentine's Day.

[After]

While we're at it, let's see how cute my husband looked.

For the record, this is as dressed up as you'll ever see him, besides in our wedding photos.

I don't think he even owned a button-down shirt before I met him.

Smurf-tastic

See those things on my head?

SUNGLASSES!

It's actually been sunny in the mornings lately. 

This is very exciting to me.

I think that groundhog is going to be right this year. 

Lots of warmer weather in the forecast for February.

Hooray!

However, the day quickly turned dark & gloomy.

Less than 10 minutes into wearing my new tights, my leg rubbed against the rough underside of the kitchen table and they got a run in them.

#$%&!

I went back to Target on my lunch break and bought another pair

because the blue tights and I had fallen madly in love

and I realized I could not be without them.

Shhh... don't tell Tim...

Half Summer/Half Winter Outfit

Yes, the title is a reference to Kourtney & Kim Take New York which premiered Sunday night on E! Scott, Kourtney's boyfriend & baby daddy, always wears very fashion-forward ensembles, and the sisters told him his outfit was half-summer & half-winter.

(Not pictured below, but you get the idea.)



[Photo credit: Life & Style magazine]

It wasn't until I got fully dressed this morning that I realized my outfit was too!

Needless to say, I was quite pleased with myself.

[skirt: forever21/cardigan: old navy/tank: express/belt: old navy/tights: target/shoes: payless]

I'm having a love affair with my high-waisted skirt. You've probably noticed that I won't shut up about it. Apparently high-waisted jeans & shorts are making a comeback, too. This is AMAZING news for gals with rectangular bodies like myself. J. Crew has expensive versions , but I checked out my fav cheaper sources to see if they had anything similar.

And boyyyy do they!

All for around $20. Hot dang.



[Photo credits: Forever 21.com]



P.S. That "no white after Labor Day" rule is malarkey! I'm not following it anymore. 

Who's with me?

Dinner in Mexico

Well... not exactly. 

Our local Mexican restaurant, Mas, was the best we could do to pretend we didn't live in freezing cold Pennsylvania anymore. It did the trick for a few hours.

[Pants: old navy/Shirt: forever21/Vest: pac sun/Boots: dsw/Bag: forever21]



Two outfits in one day?! Crazyness.

I get so tired of work clothes and I wanted to wear my

new green skinny cargo pants.

[Margarita for me... and beer for my husband.]

[Our dinner dates, Dave & Rachael]

[Love him & that bushy beard.]

Snow (Ice?) Day Attire

[Dress: target/Shirt: forever21/Tights: target/Scarf: old navy
Belt: goodwill/Breakfast: grapefruit]

So what do people normally wear on a snow day?

Or, an ice day as we experienced today.

Pants, right?

Not this girl. Because I've come to a delightful & life-changing conclusion.

Pants stink.

You heard me.

I. hate. pants. 

And for that, I will make NO apologies!

Tights are far superior in every way. Not because they keep my legs warm or anything. Far from it.

I'm talking about the ease in which they slide into & out of boots.

This is essential since I bring heels to work in my purse & change into them.

When I would wear pants stuffed into my boots, they'd be wrinkly & static-y for the rest of the day.

And it drove me bonkers.

But with tights... easy in, easy out.

Simple.

Keeping Up & a Monday Outfit

[Sweater: old navy/ Shirt: bitten by SJP/Skirt: gap/Belt: old navy/Tights: forever21/Heels: payless]

Ahhh, the good old "self-pic in the mirror."

It's the best I can do for now with my crappy '07 digital camera.

Our goal is to have a nice SLR by the time we have kids. Can't have those memories looking grainy & discolored.

This outfit was the best I could throw together on a Monday. The Monday after I consumed an entire bottle of wine. WHYYYYYYY?! I might go get myself a Winona Wino tattoo like Johnny Depp soon.

I used to hate the way button down shirts felt. But lately, I've become more accepting of them. And I seriously need a new cardigan. This one is from Old Navy circa 2006. Loving my new black tights though. They go with ev-er-y-thin-g.

===================================================

Currently Reading: Kardashian Konfidential

It keeps me entertained during my lunch breaks. And it's actually pretty cute! 

It's like reading a book written by the big sisters I never had.

I recommend it if you need a quick, fun read and don't feel like getting into anything deep or philosophical. And if you loooove the Kardashian/Jenner clan like me :-) 

Don't be ashamed.

The Friday Five

No more Fab Five Friday... it's now just "The Friday Five" because frankly, life isn't always fabulous. Can I get an Amen?

#1

This changing zodiac sign business.

Who really bases their life around their zodiac symbol anyways? Unless you're a palm or tarot card reader, it doesn't make a bit of difference what zodiac signs mean. You are who you are and only God knows how your life is going to turn out. End of story.

#2

Bad things happen in threes.

I have had this superstition for a while, and it always proves to be right (in my life at least). Yes, I know, I'm being a bit of a hypocrite by believing in a superstition and dissing zodiac signs. Just hear me out. In the past 2 weeks, I've lost my new gloves, free tickets to an event, and my debit card. The rule of threes doesn't just apply to losing things. People die in threes, catastrophes happen in threes, things go wrong with your car in threes... I'm serious. Pay attention to this and you'll be like, wow, Meg was right, that is crazzyyyyy.

#3

Coffee breath.

For the past few days, my coffee breath has also tasted like cigarettes. And I've never smoked cigarettes in my life! It's really grossing me out. Maybe it's this new french vanilla coffee from Target.

#4

Woven belts.

They have changed the way I dress. I look like I actually have a waistline when I strap one on. The best part? My favorite brown one is from Goodwill. $1.50. Wrap your mind around that.

#5

Waking up early.

It's really underrated. I just went through a phase of waking up 30 minutes before I leave for work and it was awful! I think that's what started my run of losing things. So this morning I woke up an hour early and it was amazing! I had time to unload the dishwasher, make coffee, kiss the Mister goodbye & take a few pics of my outfit.



[Sweater, Skirt & Scarf: old navy/Boots: dsw/Socks: gap/Belt: goodwill]

Why is she posting pictures of herself?

Does she think she's a model or something?

HA, absolutely not! That's what is so great about the whole "fashion blogging" thing. You don't have to look like a model to do it. Some of my newest favorite blogs are what you'd call "fashion blogs." I prefer calling it "personal style," however, because I know that I am in no way, shape or form, fashionable. I'm not wearing anything new, expensive or trendy. I don't know how to pose. And I'm not 5'10" walking a runway.

I've been in a style slump. I felt like I was wearing the same thing to work day after day. Dress pants & a sweater. Dress pants & a button down. Dress pants & a turtleneck. I would walk out the door feeling frumpy and this icky feeling would follow me throughout the day.

I decided to reassess my closet and kick my frumpy work attire to the curb. With the help of a few lovely ladies (who's blogs I read daily, see my Links page), I've started wearing the clothes I have in different ways, I've picked up a few essential pieces that I had been lacking, and I feel fan-flippin-tastic!

Posting photos of what I wear is also part of this personal transformation. It forces me to stay on track. I mean, I can't be posting pictures of any lame outfits. That's just embarrassing.

So no, I'm not trying to be a model. No, I'm not vain. I'm just trying to develop my personal style and get out of my boring routine of dress pants & sweaters.

Amen!

Scarf Obsession

Around the month of October, I break out my scarves. There is just something about a warm neck that tricks the rest of your body into thinking it's warm. I've even worn shorts or short-sleeved shirts with a scarf, that's how much I love them. People probably think I'm trying to cover up some hideous scar on my neck, or weird fat rolls like that of Kimora Lee Simmons.

But no, I just love them. They can be tied in so many different ways, and like I've mentioned before, they really help to add some color to the all-black outfits I find myself in.

And it's not just me. One of my favorite style icons, Jennifer Aniston, also seems to be a little scarf obsessed. (Or as my Mom would call her, "horse face.")

But anyways... who cares about celebrities?! This is my blog!

I now present to you... MY COLLECTION.

Top: green pashmina (gift from Jackie)
2nd Row: mustard infinity scarf (strawberry country, etsy); orange & black cashmere scarves (green dragon market); gray fleece scarf (old navy)
3rd Row: black pashmina (macy's); gray fuzzy scarf (made by my mom); gem-tone multicolored scarf (gift from San Francisco); bright multicolored scarf (old navy)

[Wins "most worn" award]

[Wins "best knock-offs" award. Not real cashmere.]

[Wins "favorite colors" award. Thanks, Mom!]

Last night, after I gazed lovingly at my scarf collection for several more minutes, my husband and I scarfed down some food (get it?!) It was a "breakfast for dinner" kinda night. For some reason, snow storms make me want breakfast. It's a weather phenomenon.

[Spinach & Cheese Scramble]

7 Things About Me: circa 1990

Kendi over at Kendi Everyday challenged her readers to reveal some embarrassing things about themselves growing up... along with photos. You know I couldn't resist.

1) I was once attacked by a caged parrot in a book store. What book store keeps vicious caged parrots? I ended up with a hole in my shirt and a lifelong fear of birds. My love of reading, thank goodness, has remained in tact.

2) For a whole year in the early 90's, my older brother would tight-roll my jeans for me before he left for high school. Awesome then, embarrassing now. (See top-left photo)

3) We had a swimming pool. I loved swimming in it all summer long. So much so that I would ignore signals to my brain that told me I had to go to the bathroom. One time, I made the mistake of ignoring the signal for #2. Explosive #2. My parents ended up hosing me down.

4) Two words: homemade everything. That's what I wore until I begged my Mom to buy me clothes from Kids R Us. My most memorable piece was a Halloween-themed reversible vest. Candy corn on one side... black cats on the other. Naturally, I rocked it with a black turtleneck, black stirrup pants & keds (with socks rolled up over my pants).

5) My first kiss. So awkward. It went down in a cluster of pine trees in my friend Lauren K's  backyard when I was in 7th grade. The guy & I stood there for literally 10 minutes just staring at the ground. And then went in for the kill. The relationship lasted about a week. And then I moved on to one of his friends. (I got around).

6) BANGS. Lots & lots of bangs. I rocked them through 8th grade. Spent 15 minutes each morning curling & hairspraying them to perfection. However, no one else had bangs. That was probably why I had to downgrade from the popular girls table in middle school.

7) I spent a good portion of my younger years running a successful business. What business you ask? M.T. Private Eye. For all your spying needs. I had state of the art notebooks, magnifying glasses, a fingerprint dusting kit and 4 clients. My brothers & my parents. WHAT.

Happy Monday!

Johnny Cash Would Envy My Closet

My wardrobe is mostly black. I'm not an angry, dark person. I just really like wearing black. Even my husband pointed out that I've been wearing a lot of black lately. And he is the KING of dark colors. He even wore all black on Christmas. Gutsy, dude.

However, when I saw an infinity scarf in this daringly bright mustard color, I had to have it. It keeps my neck cozy and makes me look like I'm not going to a funeral. They're not in the pictures because I had to do a self-timer shoot this morning, but I'm also wearing burgundy flats. Color explosion. Watch out.



Warning: crappy photo alert. My digital camera is ancient.



[Scarf: strawberry country/Shirt: forever21/Pants: victoria's secret/Bag: forever21]



I love my new bag (my last bag purchase for a while, or so I promised Tim).

Here it is in all it's pleather glory.



[Roomy enough for a small kitten, not that I have one in there...]