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.

I'm a Pixie, I'm a Paper Doll, I'm a Cartoon...

Welcome to another edition of the Paper Doll Project, hosted by Suze of Miss Vinyl Ahoy!



As you may remember, I participated in the first round of this fun project back in March. I had so much fun with the first go-around that I was excited when Suze announced round two! I signed up immediately!

This time around, I was paired up with the awesome Betsy of Miss B Gets Dressed. Betsy has a great sense of style -- comfy, cozy, and really chic all at the same time. Plus she is really talented and does the most amazing sketches! (This is in no way a shameless plug for her to do a sketch of one of my outfits -- only it totally is.)
I was really excited to see what outfit Betsy put together for me, and the gal did not disappoint! Check it out for yourself:



Dress: H&M
Blazer: Sashimi via Nordstrom Rask
Shoes: Michael Shannon via Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse
Necklace: NY&Co?
Sunnies: Plato's Closet
Earrings: gift
Belt: TJ Maxx

Closeup:


You've seen me wear this dress several times on the blog, but I had never thought to pair it with this blazer. I really like how the pairing makes the dress a little less flowy and a little more businessy. I also really like how she chose my bright orange wedding shoes to go with this outfit. It added a pop of brightness to an otherwise darker outfit, and I really like how well the orange played off of the coral color in the dress. They don't match, but they go. And yet another detail I like about this outfit is how the texture of the necklace mirrors the pattern on the dress.

If you'd like to see how I styled Betsy, check out her Paper Doll Post. I totally want to steal every piece of that outfit, and possibly some other items in her closet too.

Fashion FAIL...

I. Hate. This. Outfit.

Seriously, can you tell by the look on my face that I just wasn't feeling it?



Top: H&M
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes: American Eagle for Payless
Earrings: Old Navy
Necklace: Claire's?

Closeup:


This outfit started out with good intentions. Really, it did.
The skirt. You all seems to love it. I hadn't worn it in a while, plus it was hot. Seemed like the perfect time to pull it out. But alas, I almost Marilyn-Monroe-a-la-Seven-Year-Itched the DC Metro area several times.
And the shirt. I wanted to pull out the orange in the skirt for this wearing. But the shirt...is so bright. and loose. and baggy. I was futzing with it all day.
And oh, little black shoes. I really need a new pair of black flats. Somehow, I manage to have gotten fat in the feet. Seriously people -- in the FEET. This day, my ankles were swollen for some reason, which makes my legs look *extra* stumpy, and really, I should have just worn heels. But no, I wore flats for comfort (I had been on my feet for several hours a few nights before at a reception for dear fiance's office and was not warned ahead of time that there would be no seating. DOH!) and my feet were still hurting.

So, this top has already been tossed onto the giveaway pile. The skirt is slowly crawling its way there, and I'm thinking these shoes are next.

The Day Her Camera Died...

There was nothing groundbreaking about this outfit, other than the fact that it marks my first post wearing full pants in quite some time. The weather in the DC area has been super-sweltering this summer, and, as evidenced by this blog here, my summer uniform has consisted mainly of skirts and dresses.
Finally, we had a few days that took a break from the "kill me, it's so hot" sort of heat. It was more "my, it's quite warm outside, isn't it?" kind of hot instead.



Top: Old Navy
Pants: Marshall's?
Shoes: thrifted
Earrings: Target?

Closeup:


I attempted to get some other more detailed shots of the outfit, but my camera battery was literally breathing it's sad, pathetic last little breaths, just to get these shots. Quite literally -- I had to turn of the camera, wait, turn it back on, and grab a quit picture before the camera caught on to the fact that there was no juice left.
Yknow that scene from the second Hellboy movie where they reanimate the dead little tooth fairy to ask it a few more questions about the underground troll market? (Sure ya do, right?) Well, it was kinda like that to get these coupla shots.

So, instead of schmancy outfit shots, I shall distract you with pattern mixing (florals and stripes, oh me!) and these shoes, which you all seem to love so much.

Inspired by: Hillary...

When I put this outfit together, I wasn't intending to channel another blogger. I was simply standing in my closet, holding pieces next to each other until I felt like an outfit was born. When I held the vest beside this blouse, I knew they would be great together, and I knew balancing out the fitted upper-half with a poofy skirt would be a great look.



Blouse: Zara
Vest: H&M
Skirt: Gadzooks
Shoes: Vera Wang for Kohls
Ring: Laila Rowe
Earrings: Claires

Closeup:


So, as I said, when I pulled this combo together, I knew I had a winner, but there was something nagging at me that I just couldn't quite put my finger on until I actually put the outfit on the next morning. This outfit totally screamed Hillary to me. Poofy sleeves, check. Top nipped in at the waist, check. A skirt that just makes you want to twirl, check. Hillary is a master of this look.
I felt that to truly conjure Hillary, I should have added a long necklace, but none of the ones I have fell right with the vest. Instead, I threw on a slightly funky ring, of which she has several. (I used to wear mine a lot more often, but ever since becoming engaged last year and wearing a rather flashy engagement ring every day, I haven't felt quite right sporting a fun ring anymore. Hopefully when I'm more used to wearing the e-ring every day it will fade into the background and my beloved fun-ring collection can come out of hiding again...)

Dress Your Best: The Girls...

Day 3 outfit for the Dress Your Best Challenge:



Dress: H&M
Shoes: Vera Wang for Kohl's
Belt: TJ Maxx
Earrings: Claire's
Necklace: made by me

Closeup:



Sal always says that cleavage is never, ever, ever appropriate for the workplace. And 99.9% of the time, I agree.
However, on a day when I am celebrating the girls, I decided to go for it.
Normally I would wear a cami beneath the dress, but I knew I had no meetings today and wouldn't be interacting with clients. For just sitting at my desk, I figured I could deal with a little cleavage.
Of course, when I went to my hair appointment later, my hair dresser told me I was dressed like a St. Pauli girl, and the poor college kid sitting in her chair before me couldn't look me in the eye on his way out.
Oopsie!
But I guess that attests to just how awesome my ta-tas are!

I don't have amazingly huge breasts. I wear a B-cup, and sometimes I don't even fill that out. When I was younger, I absolutely despised my flat chest, and was mortified to have to go to a bra fitting. I remember being 11 years old, and my dance teacher told my mother it was about that time, as the studio was cold, and well, you know... I just never saw the point of needing a bra when I had nothing for it to hold up.
Then I discovered padded bras. Something that would GIVE me a little something up there. For several years, padded bras were my savior!
Fast forward to recent years, when I have put on some weight, and wow! The first place it went was to my chest! As I said before, I still don't have the kind of knockers that are gonna rival Dolly Parton. But in being smaller boobies, they have stayed seriously perky over the years, and mine are still right up there where they started while several friends' larger gals are already heading south.
Mine are like goldilocks and the three bears -- not too big, not too small... but just right.

Dress Your Best: Small Waist...

Day 2 outfit for the Dress Your Best Challenge:



Top: Marshall's?
Cami: Old Navy
Pants: Marshall's?
Shoes: Madden Girl
Necklace: Bought from a friend's jewelry party
Earrings: black coral from Curacao, gift

Closeup:


OK, kids, let's not kid ourselves -- I'm not a tiny gal. I used to be, but these days, I am smack-dab in plus-sized territory. But yknow what? That's ok. I still have a curvy figure and a tiny waist. And it's that tiny waist that I'm celebrating today.
Even when I was super-skinny, I have always had curves. I didn't necessarily have much up on top, but I always had hips and a little waist -- and I always loved that about myself. It makes me feel extremely feminine. I have an hourglass shape, which makes me think of the glamor of years gone by. Had I been around back in the 30s and 40s, I could have been a hollywood star on the soundstage of an MGM musical. I have just *that* kind of waistline.

This may not be the most exciting outfit I have worn on this blog, and I know I just wore this top about a week ago -- but I received several comments about how tiny it makes my waist look, so I figured it would be the perfect top to wear for this day, showcasing and celebrating just that.

Dress Your Best: Eyes...

Day 1 outfit for the Dress Your Best Challenge:



Top: H&M
Sweater: H&M
Pants: NY&Co
Shoes: Sam and Libby via Marshall's?
Earrings: Claire's

Closeup:


One of the body parts/areas I really love about myself are my eyes. My eyes are mostly blue, with a gray tone and little touches of green. I love that my eyes turn more gray when that color is predominant in my outfit or green, likewise. I love that whenever I have been crying, my eyes turn a bright aqua blue. (I may be an ugly crier, but at least there's still something beautiful there!)

When I was little, just a toddler, I used to love making faces with crossed eyes. As everyone's parents have said at some time or another, my mom used to say "don't make that face or it will stay that way!" Who EVER believes that? Well, I do -- it happened to me!
Once I was making a face with crossed eyes, and I had some sort of muscle spasm or something -- and one of my eyes was STUCK. I actually had to have surgery to fix it! I am very lucky to have nor only normal, but truly lovely eyes today. I always had perfect vision growing up, but these days I do wear contacts. It's a small price to pay for the wonders my eyes have let me see throughout the years.

Totally unrelated side note:
Are there any bloggers in the OBX area?

Sometimes You Just Know You Look Good...

Sometimes, you just KNOW you look good. And this outfit was on one of those days.



Top: H&M
Skirt: old
Belt: Marshall's
Shoes: Madden Girl via TJ Maxx
Earrings: Claire's?

Closeup:


I just recently bought these awesome shoes at TJ Maxx and I couldn't wait to work them into some outfits. This is actually the second outfit -- the first one never made it to the blog. I felt sexy, and I felt extremely feminine all day long.
It was beautiful outside, and the wind was picking up my hair, my skirt and my earrings -- these earrings are almost like tiny little windchimes. I love hearing the tinkling in my ears all day long, and they always remind me of warm weather.

I really wanted the shoes to be the stars of this outfit, so I went for something simple and ended up with a color blocked outfit that I really felt great wearing!

Do you have any wardrobe items or accessories that you equate with Spring or Summer?

Cherry Blossom...

This is my first time wearing this dress, which I absolutely love. How fun that the splotches of pinky-coral remind me of the cherry blossoms!



Dress: H&M
Shoes: Modern Vintage, thrifted
Earrings: Claire's
Bracelet: Claire's
Cami: Kohl's

I have had gray heels on my Want list for quite a while. I found these lovelies while thrifting the other day, and they look like they may have only been worn once! I love that there is both patent and suede on them, which, as Audi would say, makes them special.

Dear fiance wasn't impressed with this dress when I tried it on, but I think it's perfect for me because it has a spring feel to it with the ruffles, floaty fabric, and floral-like print, but it is still in my comfort zone because of the drape and color scheme. While I love pastels and flowers on others, there is something in the inherent "girliness" that just feels awkward when I try it out myself.
I love the versatility this dress offers. I can throw a belt around it to create a more defined waistline. I can class it up with nice heels and jewelry, but at the same time, I can throw on some boots, my leather jacket, and bass-ass accessories and wear it a little more rocker-style, like Erin would do.

Flower Power...

I wore this button-up open for most of the day and just wasn't feeling the outfit, despite receiving a few compliments on it. It wasn't until almost the end of the workday before it dawned on me to actually button up the shirt, thus giving me a waist, and I liked the outfit much more after that!



Floral Button-up: Old Navy
Purple Knit Top: Charlotte Russe?
Gray Pants: Lane Bryant
Purple Heels: Vera Wang for Kohl's
Earrings: NY&Co
Green Cami: (seen through purple knit top IRL, but not in photo: Kohl's

I really liked these pants when I bought them, but nowadays, I'm thinking they are too big in the pooch region. I sure don't need any help looking larger there! These may end up in the giveaway pile, especially now that warm weather is coming and I won't need to be wearing pants for much longer!

::begin shameless plug::
I am hoping to get more readership for this here lil blog of mine. So if you read me and would care to put my blog on your blogroll, I'd be muchly indebted. Thanky kindly.
::end shameless plug::

Wardrobe Capsule Challenge, Day 3...

I was *thisclose* to actually getting this outfit posted the same day I wore it, but then my camera battery died. Oh well! Today's another day, and maybe today's outfit well get a same-day post!



Top: Merona, thrifted
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes, Urban Outfitters
Belt, Marshalls?
Earrings: Body Central
Purse: Nine West via Marshalls

I received a lot of comments on this skirt when I posted my capsule pieces. Everyone seemed to love the skirt! I admit, I do love the colors, which is why I bought it. However, the light, floatiness of it makes it difficult for me to wear, and I don't think the proportions of the skirt are right for my body: it hits me at a wider part of my waist and a strange section of my knees, and the pleats add volume to my hips where I really don't need any. This is the first time I have worn something tucked into the skirt and belted. I rarely tuck tops into my skirts, but the few times that I have, I like it only when I have the belt in place. Unfortunately, the belt doesn't like to STAY in place, and I was adjusting it all day.

Oh, and please ignore the strange stripes on my legs in the photo -- those are from my rain boots, and they were there for most of the evening! Does anyone have any tips on how to get those types of marks to fade faster?

I realized today that it is 2 weeks until dear fiance and I have the food tasting for our wedding! The tasting is on St. Patrick's Day, and I can't wait -- the catering company is supposed to be amazing! (I think I'd better remind myself to have a light breakfast and lunch, because I'm sure I still be stuffing myself that night!)

I'm Blue (da ba dee, da ba da)...

When I put my outfit together last night, I wanted something simple and comfy. These pants have always felt good for a long, boring day at work. This sweater is new, and very soft. Blues and grays always bring out my eyes, so they are go-to colors for me when I am feeling otherwise uninspired.

There are a lot of things in my world right now that are a little hectic, so comfy, easy, and cozy are huge keywords for me right now.



Sweater: NY&Co
Button-Up: Gap via Thrift
Pants: Larry Levine via Marshalls
Shoes: Sam and Libby via Marshalls
Earrings: Target
Necklace: made by me

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?