I Love it When a Plan Comes Together...

First up, thanks to all of you who have sent good vibes, prayers, and well-wishes out to my dad. I am happy to report that he is now home and recovering. Aside from being basically malnourished and dehydrated (he REALLY doesn't take proper care of himself) the reason he couldn't walk was attributed to "neurological neuropathy from acute spinal arthritis." He spent a week and a half in the rehab section of a nursing home and has not only graduated to using a walker, but he is moving walker-free around the house! He only needs the walker for longer outings.
Needless to say, I am SO RELIEVED about his progress.

Now, onto something more frivolous: clothes!!



Blouse: Heritage 1981 via Reddz Trading
Cardi: Target
Pants: Marshall's?
Shoes: Aeropostale
Cami: Kohl's
Earrings: I forgot earrings! oh no!!

Closeup:


I really love it when I throw on an outfit with little effort and minimal accessorizing and it turns out looking put-together and polished. (Though, after looking at these photos, I think I have made the decision to always wear my nude cami under this top, instead of white.)
I am totally in love with this new-to-me blouse. I love the reddish-coral color (which also happens to be big for spring/summer) and I love that it has not one, but 2 shades of blue in it (aqua and true-blue) so it pairs so beautifully with this aqua cardi. I also love the dainty pleats up near the neckline.

Tonight I am going to my second-ever blogger meetup.
Just two months ago, I attended my first meetup, where I got to meet the lovely Allie of Wardrobe Oxygen, and I also met a handful of new-to-me DC-area bloggers.
I am looking forward to seeing some of these gorgeous gals again tonight and hopefully meeting a few more new-to-me blogs. I love expanding my personal blogosphere! (Of course, being the ever-responsible blogger that I am, I totally forgot to bring my camera today. Oh well -- I'm sure there will be plenty of photos to be shared!)
So ladies, if you are a DC-area fashion or beauty blogger (or heck, even if you don't have your own blog, but want to be in on some DC-area fashion and beauty happenings), check out the newly-launched DC FABB site. There is a link to a list of other DC-area bloggers as well as a tab that lists upcoming meetups and events.

Lizzie the Lizard...

While this top photographs a little "expectant mother," in person, it wears beautifully blousy.



Top: H&M
Skirt: D'Rae's Closet
Shoes: NickelsSoft, thrifted
Cami: Forever XXI
Scarf: Icing by Claire's
Earrings: Claire's
Lizard Pins: thrifted, originally earrings, altered by me
Nail Polish: very old

Closeup:


These awesome lizard brooches were originally a pair of earrings. One hung by the head, and the other by the tail. Oh, how I wish I'd snapped a picture of me wearing them as intended before altering them into brooches. Really, they were totally hilarious.
I don't often wear yellow gold. It's not a color of metal that I think suit me. However, while I love metal-mixing on other bloggers, it's not something I've mastered yet myself, so I steer clear for now. Instead, I own just a few yellow-gold-colored pieces, just so I can accessorize with awesome stuff like these brooches.

I decided to give myself a home mani-pedi, since I have been in desperate need of one for months now. In an attempt to save money still for the wedding, I opted to give myself a manicure, and I decided to use this purple polish that has been in my collection for years. Seriously, y'all, I have had this bottle since high school? middle school maybe?
Dear fiance pointed out his concerns about makeup that was that old, but I assured him this rule didn't apply to nail polish. Which of course, got me thinking -- so long as it's still the proper texture to be used, DOES nail polish "go bad?" I was shocked that this bottle was still usable, but until he said something, it never entered my mind that it may be bad for me...
What say you?

Na-na-na-na, Hey-hey, Goodbye...

I would apologize for cutting my feet off in the full-body shot, but sadly, my shoes bit the dust when I took them off to travel home, and I had to wear my comfy traveling shoes (aka, tennies) to take the photos. Side Note: I usually try to somewhat match my traveling shoes to my outfit, just in case.



Top: Sweet Pea via Nordstrom Rack
Pants: Old Navy
Jacket: don't recall the brand, thrifted
Earrings: gift
Shoes: very old, via Payless?

Closeup:


I loved this top when I found it at Nordstrom Rack. The colors are very "me" and I love the stretchiness of it -- it will fit through weight fluctuation, but it isn't lycra or spandex or some other material that looks cheap. I love the detailing at the bustline. It is work appropriate, but special enough to wear out for dinner or drinks. I hadn't heard of the brand Sweet Pea when I purchased this top, but being that I'm not a brand snob, that didn't matter much to me. However, I receive daily emails from Rue La La, and imagine my surprise when they featured Sweet Pea. It seems I managed to get me a schmancy brand without even knowing it!

Sadly, in the last 2 weeks, I have lost 2 pairs of jeans. My jeans wardrobe was already sadly tiny, at only 4 pairs (2 casual, 2 trouser style), and it was my 2 casual pairs that bit the dust. What's a girl to do? I've been trying to curtail extra spending, but this was an emergency.
Dear fiance and I hurried to the mall last night (jeans-shopping has never been a hobby of mine, so I like to bring him along for feedback and emotional support). I found many, many pairs to try on -- after all, we gals really do need to try on many pairs to find just one that will work, right?
Magically, I managed to find not one, but THREE pairs that all had promise! The dilemma: save money, or buy up the whole lot?
The solution presented itself like an angel in the light with a choir singing in the background: my darling dear fiance offered to purchase one pair for me, and then reminded me that I still had gift cards left over from Christmas and my Bday. One pair from him and one pair "from Nana" left me just one pair to purchase for myself!
In the end, I've not got a lovely pair of Calvin Kleins, and rockin pair of DKNYs, and a practical pair of Levis.
Ahhh... what won't we do for the perfect pair of denim?

Well I Never...

When another blogger pointed out weeks ago that pastels are a huge trend for spring, I said that I hardly ever wear pastels because they tend to wash me out, and also because I tend to see them as an overly-feminine style that I don't reconcile with my own style.
Well, color me a liar.



Aqua Wrap Top: Charlotte Russe
Orange Tshirt: H&M
Pants: NY&Co
Shoes: RSVP
Faux Peal Earrings: very old
Orange Pearl Necklace: Laila Rowe

Closeup:


Here I am sporting not just one, but two pastels. At first, I was concerned I would look like an easter egg, but the longer I saw the two tops together the more I liked the pairing, which was initially inspired by the orange pearl necklace.
I bought myself this necklace last spring from Laila Rowe, which is truly one of my favorite stores for accessories. I bought the necklace to add to my more delicate pieces, then I'm fairly certain I never wore it. If i did, it was only once or twice. I could just never quite figure out how to style it. After having already paired the two tops together, the addition of the necklace was purely natural.

Unrelated, I finally got myself a tripod, so I can venture out a little more with my photo locations. Of course, there are still actual, yknow *people* around, so I haven't ventured out very far just yet. Terra often posts about people catching her "in the act," but dare I saw that she is much braver than I am!

Is there a fashion trend of style piece that you once swore you would never take part in, only to find yourself wearing it later?

ETA: BTW, Danielle also has this same top in white. Small world!

Swirly Thursday...

I wore this outfit on Thursday of last week. I don't wear this top very often, but I love the swirly pattern and the bright colors:



Top: Kohl's?
Skirt: Old Navy?
Tights: We Love Colors
Boots: Ros Hommerson
Earrings: Claire's
Bamboo-Design Bracelet: gift from my parents for my 21st Bday
Sunglasses: Claire's?

This top originally came with a black sash attached to it, but it hit me in entirely the wrong place (as is the case with MOST tops that have attached belts), so I removed it and love the top on it's own.

Does anyone have fit issues with skirts?
I often find (and it is the case with this skirt) that when I find skirts that fit my hips, they are often too big around the waist and gape there. I knew this was an issue with pants for curvier gals, but I don't know that I've ever heard of others commenting on this about skirts. I'm not sure if maybe I need to go up a size, but that doesn't seem like the answer because then the rest of the skirt would be too big. I suppose I could go up a size and then have the rest tailored in...but golly, that can get expensive!

I'm interested to hear what the rest of you have to say on this -- any thoughts? advice?

Kickass Scarab...

Today is another day that I decided to follow Kimberly's Inspiration Calendar. Today's theme was "Dress with a Major Necklace." Truly, I was already thinking of wearing this necklace since I haven't sported it in far too long, so when I saw the theme for today, this outfit was a no-brainer.
Now, while I did make this necklace (and the matching link bracelet) myself, I totally have to give credit where credit is due. I first saw this pendant over on Erin's blog, and when I saw it at my local craft store I snapped it up and totally rode off her. Imitation is the highest form of flattery, no?



Dress: Target
Cardigan: NY&Co
Shoes: Fioni, thrifted
Earrings: aqua stones (unseen) Claire's
Scroll Bracelet: Claire's
Link Bracelet: made by me
Scarab Necklace: made by me

BTW, please excuse the huge nasty bruise on my leg -- dance team is kicking my keister! Despite being a dancer for almost all of my life, I took several years off from competing or even really seriously practicing when I was in college and for a few years afterward. Despite teaching itty-bitties for a few years since then, my body just doesn't work the same way it used to! Needless to say, joining a competitive hip-hop team may have been a bit ambitious. ;)

PS: now that I have a few posts under my belt, I'm interested in hearing your feedback. What are you interested in seeing here on my blog? Simple outfit posts like I have been doing? Coupons/sale alerts? Analysis?

Learning Curve...

I have learned a lot of styling tips and tricks in the time that I have been reading the fashion pages, and I have incorporated several of them in this outfit.



Gray Top: NY&Co
Teal Top: thrifted
Floral Dress (worn as skirt): Swapped
Tights: Spanx
Boots: Ros Hommerson
Belt: NY&Co (I think)
Earrings: made by me

Here are some of the things I have picked up from other bloggers that helped me pull this outfit together:

(1) Layering for warmth.
(2) Making non-seasonal clothing appropriate for the current season.
(3) Turning a dress into a skirt.
(4) TIGHTS!
(5) Thanks to Allie of at My Wardrobe Today for featuring these fabulous boots, "Maryland" from Ros Hommerson. I have a very hard time finding boots to fit over my calves. Combine that with my being extremely picky, and that totals up to two years that I searched for the right pair of boots. As soon as I saw Allie's post featuring these beauties, I knew I had to have them! Alas, they were sold out in my size, but the wonderful customer service staff took it upon themselves to email me and let me know that they would be back in stock in mid-December. So onto my Christmas list they went, and Santa brought them to me! YAY!
(6) Belting.
(7) Hidden layers (you can't see the extra socks I have under the boots or the cami I am wearing beneath the dress and two tops).

Is this the perfect outfit? No.
But it does get me thinking creatively about my clothes, and it inspires me to actually wear what's in my wardrobe.
I received many compliments, comments, and questions on this outfit yesterday, so I think I must be doing something right?