Elements of Sunday

When I don't have the hubby around to take decent shots, I get stuck with my own efforts at self portraiture which doesn't work when you can't remember how to use the timer on the good camera.

So this is all I've got.

On Sunday, the dogs were still in boarding so we got up, took care of the other pets and went out for a late breakfast.







I wore my JCrew v-neck sweater with the sparkly Scottie dog, Gap jeans cuffed with sequin Chucks and my mini-retro case.

Then I came home and took a nap. Did you have a good weekend?

Ensemble du Jour

This past Tuesday the rain was pouring down all day so no even half-way decent outside outfit shots. But while I didn't get many pictures, I did stay cozy in my new favorite vintage jacket.

I love this. It has the most snuggly lining and the outside is this gorgeous coppery gold brocade asian fabric with white and pale blue flowers. When I tried this on in the store I just could not take it off. I knew it had to come home with me.



I paired it with a grey-blue sequin placket JCrew henley tee, in case I got too snuggly warm.




I actually wore this with jeans. It's rare that jeans make an appearance when I go to work but, eh!, I was chilly.

More detail shots:

For shoes I wanted something to pick up the same burnished metallic tones and pulled out my Hype Farfalla slingbacks.

The rhinestones are a great copper-orange and there is a really neat mesh fabric detail that wraps around the toe.

I bought another coat at the vintage store too but it has yet to make it's debut outing. It's a very faux fur 60s swing/chubby coat. I feel like a cross between Doris Day and the StayPuft Marshmallow man.

I may look that way too, we'll have to see.

Ensemble du Jour

This is back when Target and the Go International collections were something to be excited about.

I love love love the Luella jacket. I am so glad I bought it a million years ago.



It is so much more vibrant in person.



I usually like to wear this with a bright blue shoe to pick up the smallest stripe color but today I really wanted to wear these Jimmy Choo Violin heels (purchased maybe, I don't know, 7 years ago). A jacket and jeans are one of my best pairings, especially my favorite Gap Long & Leans - because I am neither long or lean.



I remember these shoes being totally TOTALLY knocked off my Steven Madden and getting so pissed.



Not sure if his had the cute little extra strap that came off the sides, though.

I haven't fallen in love with many Choos lately. I used to love them the most but they've changed their style to be really, I don't know... trendy I guess. They used to be unique and sexy but now I feel blase about most of them.

I am interested in seeing how the H&M pairing turns out. I like a few from the collection but we'll see how they look in person.

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit

One of the trends I've been looking forward to playing around with is layering with a long boyfriend cardigan. Luckily there are a lot of inexpensive options and I've picked up a few from Old Navy, Target and a great rugby stripe one from delia's.

It's been cooling off outside and inside our office it is close to freezing, so I went casual with a grey Gap tee, a black long cardigan and my new Gap jeans. My necklace is this silly little Leo symbol piece that I put on for a bit of sparkle.



The Focal Point

Even though they were a bit hidden by my jeans, these Nine West heels still draw attention. I love the tough metal rings and continue to be amazed at how comfortable they are.



I actually brought these to New York with me because I was considering walking around town in them. I still think they might have been more comfortable than even the flats that I wore. The straps are very soft. Plus they look great with heels and skirts. Sexy and tough.

Tea Cups and Tea Parties

On Saturday I went to Target. I know, I know. I should never ever go in there ever again. I needed to get some sunscreen and it was right next door to where I was making a return. What harm would it do to just take a quick spin around the store.

Harmless, right???

Wrong. Gah! There were all things I needed there. And I put half of what I had picked up back on the rack. So that's like saving money, right? Okay, let's just go with that rationalization, shall we?

I got a nice little black rayon dress which will be great for traveling to New York. I also got these cropped jeans in a dark indigo wash. They fit awesome and were only $17. They have some stretch to them too. I was pleased with them. I also got three cropped carigans to wear with some of my dresses. Since it's so hot out but the AC is always on, these should come in handy. They look short-sleeved on the model but they hit me as 3/4 sleeves. And the grey one was on sale for $10!



I liked the dress and grey cardigan so much I decided to wear it to a Ladies Tea tea party the next day. I, of course, had to pair it with my Miu Miu tea cup heels. I mean, come on! What else could I wear???



You don't need to do much to play up these shoes. I opted to wear my vintage gold heart locket and my watch. Both help play up the gold accents in the heels.



To all the lovely ladies from all over the world, it was a pleasure to meet you!

Ensemble du Jour

It's Friday and it's been raining all day. Snore.

I wouldn't mind a nap right now but nope, gotta work. Sooo....

The Outfit
Pink SJP Bittne tank under my Mizrahi brown herringbone blazer with the faux suede collar and elbow patches. I'm wearing this over jeans and have accented with a vintage Weiss strawberry pin.



My pin looks like this one but the rhinestones are more iridescent. I have a single strawberry version too which was my grandmother's. One of the few things I have that were hers.



The Focal Point
The brown herringbone pattern is in both these shoes and in the jacket. The shoes are the Lela Rose for Payless Finsbury in brown. It's a cute style and a pretty comfortable heel.





This blazer makes me feel sort of scholarly with it's patch pockets. I think that is such a cute detail. I think I need to get a sweater with patches to really go the full bookish look though.

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
Well it's Friday. Yeah! I am just too pooped to wear heels today so flats it is! I'm wearing my Gap jeans, a vintage white Lacoste men's sweater over a white camisole from Target. No jewelry except my rings.



Vintage Lacoste sweaters on eBay are my new favorite thing. I'm looking to get some of the great colors they have in big slouchy sizes.



The Focal Point
My new American Eagle flats from the ae.com sale. These are going to be cute all summer.



Happy Weekend!

Ensemble du Jour

We're heading for the mountains and I'm going to be all snuggly and snow bunny-ish!

I'm wearing my jeans, a dark grey camisole, a new graphic t-shirt from Old Navy and my Target cardigan. I also pulled out my winter white suede wedge boots (they're rubbery on the bottom so they're less slippery) with the pink/winter white faux fur edges.



I went into Old Navy to get the new silvered grey jeans (on sale for $20!) and got two of their graphic tees. They had a ton out for the holiday and they were only $5 each.



So comfy and bargain city.

Movie Night Ensemble

When we lived in Florida we used to do a lot more "social" things. We would go to more plays and clubs, etc., but since we've moved, we've been too busy. Also, there is not as much to do in our smaller area, which we are still getting used to. Not that we mind, but we like to go out with friends as much as we can.

So you have to make your own fun.

This year we started doing a "Movie Night" once a month. But not your everyday come-on-over-put-in-a-DVD-and-we'll-pop-some-popcorn Movie Night. We're talking MOVIE NIGHT -



We have a pretty big backyard and we put up a 12-foot screen and play movies for as many people that want to come on over. It's totally awesome!

What I love about it is that we have a ton of friends over, it's really casual and easy to prep for, plus I don't have to clean the house. I don't get to get dressed up but I do think about what I'm wearing.


I wear, my jeans, a graphic tee from Old Navy, yard shoes (sneakers or boots), a scarf (since it's chilly now), blankies and, if we have the time, accessories with a bonfire and s'mores!





This movie night I'm wearing my No Hunting tee from Old Navy. A little political announcement before the festivities.

Ensemble du Jour

The Outfit
I got to wear my new jeans from the Gap today. It's still kind of warm so I wore a mouse-grey polo shirt from Target. I really like these jeans. They are a new style for me. I've always worn Gap jeans. I liked the fit and they weren't too expensive. And since I don't wear jeans all that much I don't have to get them that often. I used to wear the low rise boot cut jean, but when I went to go get another pair, I tried on the exact style and size as I have bought before. But they did not fit right at all and were 4 inches too long!

The Long and Lean style were a recommendation and I'm glad I tried them. They have sort of a boot cut but they fit well. The wash is pretty neutral. Plus they were on a major sale! I know I'll be wearing them all Fall and Winter. I'm just glad I didn't have to try on a million pairs.



The Focal Point
While it was really about wearing my new jeans today, I had to accessories with a pair of shoes that I bought for pairing with jeans in mind. The Paolo glitter peep-toe heels are edged in tan leather (pulling out the brown tone in the mouse-grey shirt) and the glitter is the perfect denim blue.

I love them!



I took this photo with my iPhone. It came out pretty well I think. I've been swiping a lot of my outfit images from the web and using Polyvore to try and build an example image, but if it isn't recent I can't get an image to share. My phone pics look pretty good, so I can add even more images!

Yeah phone pics!

Building a Fall Wardrobe - Part 2

Since I've been writing for this blog, I've been reading more fashion magazines like Vogue (American and UK) and Glamour and WWD. The images and designs are inspirational and in the overwhelming majority, aspirational. Unlike high-end shoes, I tend not to buy a lot of designer clothes. Maybe it's because I know their life cycle is shorter, or because I tend to sit in an office most of the day. Or it could be that I live in a small-ish Southern town where I won't get much use out of them. Or maybe I know I will get tired of my clothes much faster than I do my shoes. Or maybe I'm just to cheap.

Anyway, my wardrobe mainly comes from Target, Gap and Anthropologie with some Old Navy, JCrew and Ann Taylor mixed in. I mentioned the pieces I just bought from the Gap - some classic, some trendy. Here are some of the new pieces I got from Target.


These are the brighter, trendier, more disposable pieces that I'm fine if they only last a season.

1. Argyle sweaters in 4 colors (I got the green one too). I like to add colorful scarves and gloves with these. This year I can wear them with skirts and add bright socks and tights.
2. Dark brown cardigan with stylized alligator design. This has a classic look but could be paired with a bright color underneath
3. Black pencil skirt with great seaming
4. White button-down shirt with low v-neck. This will look great with jeans but also layered under my Libertine skull sweater vest.
5. Faux leather biker jacket with puff-shoulder detail in brown- I can't wait to wear this with jeans and boots
6. Purple alligator clutch. $12!!! And so cute
7. I also got a brown skirt that will be great with my chunky wing-tip shoes and many of my sweaters

They are all a bit streamlined preppy, I guess, but apparently the catholic school influences live on.

Building a Fall Wardrobe - Part 1

I know everyone is buzzing about the fall shows, especially the New York shows. There's coverage of each designer and those in the audience and folks on the street and in the general vicinity. While I like sifting through all the great pictures, I'm more interested in buy stuff for me to wear now.

But I'm not shopping in any couture houses any time soon. Heck, I'm barely going to make it into JCrew based on my shoe shopping habits. So I've been shopping from the versatile options at Target and Gap to start.

I tried to be a little more organized with my purchasing this year so that I wasn't randomly buying stuff. I'm also trying to keep my new purchases in the palette of black, greys, reds and greens. I wanted to get some lighter sweaters and I needed new jeans. I also wanted a dress to wear with my new tights and the Nine West booties, I might get.

So here's what I got from the Gap. Their sweaters are very soft from the cashmere woven in, but not 100%, which I think is better. I got:

• a fun sweater dress with grey and black stripes
• two light sweaters in dark green and red
• long-sleeve t-shirt in bright green
• two kimono sleeve heavier sweaters in black and charcoal
• Long and Lean jeans
• low-top red Converse Chuck Taylors - fun for casual days!

These are my first purchases. I got a bunch of stuff at Target and may supplement with some JCrew sweaters too. Gap has been doing some sales, so I highly recommend gettin' on over there!