Asymmetrical Stripes

I'm getting closer and closer to giving up on the whole "shop style" created outfits...The majority of my wardrobe is thrifted (mostly from the Fairy Circle) and it's impossible to re-create my looks online because I can never find the pieces!  Well, in a week I should have a camera to use so we will see how that goes...

Cardigans by J. Jill
Wedges by Marc by Marc Jacobs

What I'm Wearing And Where I Got It:
1. Pants: Forever 21 white skinny jeans (rolled) - FC
2. Top: Michael Kors black and white with a hint of blue trim silk asymmetrical stripe tank top - FC
3. Wedges: Frye black patent mary-jane-like wedges - FC
4. Sweater: Express black boyfriend cardi - FC
5. Accessories: minimal...gold rings and cuff, fossil coral rose studs...AND my vintage LV speedy (recently had zipper repaired) - gifted from my dearest mother

I've got a lot of work to do so I'm going to get to that but expect to see some real photos of real outfits in the near future!

Crossing Off The Wish List

It feels so good to cross items off of lists, doesn't it?  As you know, I've been wanting a neutral pleated skirt...well I found a black one and it will do for now!  

Here's how I'm wearing it:

Sandals by Marc by Marc Jacobs
Belts by Fossil

What I'm Wearing And Where I Got It:

  I decided to offset the fancy feel of the chiffon-esque pleated skirt with just a simple tank, and the denim button down worn as a jacket Springs it up a bit!  I also have my Anthro ruffle trench in case it rains!

1. Skirt: vintage black pleated skirt - FC

2. Tank: american eagle cream cami tank - gifted from Mom 

3. Shirt: abercrombie chambray button down worn as jacket/sweater - FC

4. Wedges: pink studio multi woven wedges (I've been practically living in these!) - FC

5. Accessories: Belt: vintage woven - FC; Earrings: vintage gold unicorn (seen in previous posts) - FC; Rings: vintage gold that I always wear - gifted from Mom, B's grandma

High Waist'n It

Ok guys I'm going to make this quick because I've got stuff I need to get done and lots of pictures to show you...so this will be a mostly picture post. Enjoy!

Tees by Asos
Sandals by Marc by Marc Jacobs

What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:
1. Shirt: Tan Abercrombie t-shirt - FC
2. Skirt: Black high waist pencil Cheap Monday skirt - FC
3. Belt: (same) vintage brown etched belt - thrifted
4. Wedges: (same again) Pink Studio black and brown lattice wedge - FC
5. Jewelry: handmade feather in bullet shell casing earrings, vintage gold rings - FC. gifted from: mom, boyfriend's grandma

Here is a close up of the amazing detail on this skirt I'm wearing:

(I don't have the suspenders...yuck)

Here, even cooler, is the back detailing:

So yeah, the fabric kind of sticks up above the actual waist part (and belt that I'm wearing) and I just love it!  Boyfriend thinks all the high waist things I wear are funny but I love them all oh so much.
I also want to share with you this vintage cloisonne pair of unicorn earrings I won on ebay last night. This is my first ebay try/success/purchase/etc. so very exciting!

Wow that was huge!  And, while bidding on these beauties, I found an actual picture of my tacky unicorn earrings from a previous post so here they are for all your viewing pleasure:

Ok well that one didn't work very well.  As my sister knows, I'm not very tech-savvy...you might actually say I'm tech-stupid.  Real pictures to come, I promise!

70s Stripes

Sorry I've been MIA for a few days but I went home and then it's been really busy at work (really shouldn't even be posting but my outfit is so cute today!).  Anyway, I had a lot of fun at home with Mom helping her clean out/purge her closet.  We were going to take some pictures but...well, time flies when you're having fun, I guess.

Sleeveless Tops by Steffen Schraut
Sandals by Marc by Marc Jacobs

What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:

1. Jeans: Paper, Denim & Cloth high waist flare/wide leg - FC

2. Shirt: Forever 21 blue stripe tunic (featuring keyhole bow back-not same as photo) - FC

3. Cardigan: Mossimo mustard print cardi - gifted from Mom

4. Wedges: Pink Studio multicolor lattice brown/black wedges (same as last post close-up) - FC

5. Accessories: Vintage brown belt - thrifted; vintage gold cuff, rings and TOTALLY AWESOME unicorn earrings!

So I tried to do a google search to show you guys these delightfully tacky unicorn earrings but I didn't have any luck...what I did find, however, is a close up of my vintage cloisonne unicorn cuff from a previous post so check it out:

In case you couldn't already tell...I really love unicorns.

Also, I included 2 belts in the picture because when getting dressed this morning I tried on my gold chain belt (not same as picture, but isn't that one just too cute with the coral tassle) and then my vintage brown belt and then went back to gold...then settled with brown.  What do you guys think?  Do you like the brown belt with the outfit or would you prefer the gold chain?

Black and Gold

Another shopping secret is that I write down what I wear each day in my planner.  Now, some people may think this excessive but I find it helpful, especially since I work in retail, as it allows all the clothes in my closet equal opportunity.  If I don't keep track, I forget what I wore and end up wearing the same things (especially because they end up on top after laundry day).  Anyway, this blog is helping even more since I can visually see what I wore rather than just the notes I took!
Today boyfriend said I looked hot which is a refreshing new outlook as compared to his previous statement: that I looked like a mormon school teacher.  Ha! He's so funny.  I've been wearing a lot of colors lately so today I went the opposite end of the spectrum: black and gold (with a little bit of brown)

Camisoles by Michael Stars
Sandals by Marc by Marc Jacobs

What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:
1. Dress: Max studio black wrap dress (featuring crochet detail on shoulders) - FC
2. Cami: Gold michael stars camisole - FC
3. Wedges: Pink Studio basket weave wedge (real picture below) - FC
4. Belt: Vintage multi woven leather - FC
5. Jewelry: Necklace: vintage 3 strand gold - FC; Bracelet: gold cuff - FC; Rings: Vintage rose gold leaf - Mom and vintage filigree - boyfriend's grandma; Earrings: vintage gold mushroom studs - Mom

Here is a close up of the actual wedges I'm wearing of which the woven wedge part perfectly matches my belt!

Close up of weaving:

Well, I've got to really get some work done today...I'm going home this week so maybe you'll get to see some actual outfit photos!  Fingers crossed!

Shopping Secrets

I would like to take the time to let you in on some of my shopping secrets...
I keep a wishlist in my planner (which I always carry with me) to help me focus on what I need (want might be a better word) as opposed to just buying what I think is cute or looks good on me.  This helps keep me focused and my closet organized and not over-crowded with earth tone printed skirts or an overabundance of mustard anything.  The best part of having a wishlist is crossing the items off and, of course in turn, adding new items!  I have made a couple collages of the top items on my wishlist right now:
1. Floral shorts (loooooove these right now)

Shorts by Diane von Furstenberg
Petite Pants & Shorts by Topshop

2. "Paper bag waist" shorts and skirts:

Shorts by Urban Outfitters
Shorts by Vanessa Bruno

3. Pleated skirt:

Skirts by Asos
Skirts by Organic

4. Crochet dress:

Day Dresses by Patterson J. Kincaid
Cocktail Dresses by Topshop

5. Big retro sunglasses and TOMS or toms-like flats in a neutral shade (I combined these 2 wishlist items):

Flats by Toms
Sunglasses by Trina Turk

For some reason I'm really into neutral shades right now like cream, tan, pale pink...maybe because it's Spring and these colors are so soft and feminine, I don't know.  Isn't it funny how our tastes change?  Mine are always evolving and I think that's what makes fashion and dressing up so much fun!

Cloudy Sunday

It was supposed to be sunny and warm today...turning out to be cloudy, not as warm as promised, with a chance of rain.  Oh well, I'm inside today anyway.
Last night boyfriend and I went grocery shopping together (which is a chore I always dread) and we actually had an enjoyable experience!  Then we came home and had a glass of wine while boyfriend cooked 4 cheese sausages on the grill and I readied the yellow peppers topped with romano cheese to also go on the grill all the while listening to Manu Chao, a latino artist who sings songs in Spanish, English and French about mostly political issues.  It was just delightful, like a scene from a movie!  We finished the night (and bottle of wine) watching "Despicable Me" which was cute and pretty funny.
Now, I didn't do too well on shopstyle with today's outfit but here goes:

Sleeveless Tops at Bloomingdale's
Sandals by Free People

What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:
1. Jeans: Cello skinny jeans rolled above my ankle - FC
2. Tank top: Billabong peach/turquoise print cinched waist - FC
3. Sweater: Rice by Anthro turquoise cardi (again) - gifted from Mom
4. Wedges: Tan Soho Lab peep toe slight wedge (but aren't those free people wedges soooo cute?) - FC
5. Earrings: Handmade origami crane earrings (mine are pale pink) - FC
6. Necklace: 3 strands long vintage freshwater pearl (cream, pink, turq.) - gifted from Great Aunt
7. Ring : Turquoise in silver ring - FC
8. Purse: Same one I showed in last post but this color and texture is closer, however mine has a chain strap

Now, here is a picture I googled that more accurately depicts my awesome earrings (and it doesn't even really do them justice either!)  Can you believe these are handmade and only $10!

Another One...

So I forgot to show some of the best parts of my outfit: My rainy day trench and new spring purse!
Well, of course I couldn't find either on shopstyle so here is what I googled:

This is my anthropologie trench, gifted from Mom, and the best part about it is the multicolor forrest animal print lining (which sort of matches the forrest animal shirt I'm wearing)


This bag is similar to the one I switched to today, again gifted from Mom via Francesca's, but mine is pale pink and the texture is more scalloped than braided (or whatever is going on in that pic).  I'm not a big pink person but I really love the color of this bag for Spring!

Now, as promised, is yesterday's super-cute, sunny warm day, outfit:

Day Dresses at Macy's
Belts by M Missoni

What I Wore and Where I Got It:
1. Dress: Heritage by Forever 21 gray stripe t-shirt dress (the hemline on mine is not asymmetrical, but I wish it was 'cause the dress in the picture is so cute!) - FC
2. Jacket/Shirt: Abercrombie chambray button down (sort of menswear style) worn as jacket/sweater - FC (MJ)
3. Belt: vintage etched tan belt - thrifted during super sale so cost me like $2!
4. Sandals: vintage gladiators featuring slight wooden wedge (these are my go-to spring/summer sandals, they are fabulous!) - FC
5. Necklace: vintage 3 strand gold necklace - FC
6. Earrings: the feather earrings shown are not actually what I wore but do look similar to a pair I have and could've/should've worn ha! What I really wore were these rectangular wooden earrings from an artist by the river here in Wilmington!

Colorful Day

Today I went straight to shopstyle instead of fiddling with the camera to re-create today's outfit.  I really like the website as a way to see new items (you can even make a wish-list able to be sent to friends and family...wink wink mom!)  But in terms of searching for items I'm actually wearing, I'm finding it difficult as I wear mostly vintage and thrifted items.  That being said, a lot of these re-created outfits I post are really just as similar as I can get...
I labeled this post "colorful day" because, I guess since it's cloudy outside, I wore a lot of colors: purple, turquoise, coral and they are making my day even brighter!

Shortsleeve Tops by Anthropologie
Boots at Endless.com

What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:
1. Jeans: Bullhead black skinny jeans - TJ Maxx ($10!)
2. Shirt: Ric Rac by Anthropologie multicolor forrest animal print - gifted from Mom via Anthropologie's clearance section
3. Cardigan: Rice robin's egg blue wrap sweater (which I just wear open as a cardi) - gifted from Mom
4. Boots: Bullboxer tan with multicolor embroidery flat boots - gifted from boyfriend
5. Bracelet: Vintage cloisonne unicorn cuff (not at all like the one in the picture (which is Lucky) but isn't it cute too??) - FC
6. Earrings: Fossil coral rose studs - FC (MJ location)

I copied another blog I follow (thechloeconspiracy - petite blogger, check her out!) in terms of labeling the "what I'm wearing" by jeans, shirt, etc.  I think it makes for a smooth, easy read.
And anyway, we are having a yardsale today so I need to get back to work but I might post again (yesterday's outfit 'cause it was so cute!)

My first blog post

So, I've finally decided to go ahead and jump on the blog train.  I decided this for 2 reasons:

1. Family and friends - the main reason to go forward with this was that every time I talked to my mom on the phone I would say, "Ah! I wish you could see what I'm wearing today!" and hopefully this will allow just that!

2. Myself - ha.  But really, after 6 months of reading other's blogs, getting inspired by their photos, new outfit ideas in my head every other minute, developing crushes on items I could never in a million years afford...I decided I would have my own go.

Now, I spent a good portion of this morning playing around with the auto feature in my camera, grabbing a few photos that did no justice to me, just so that I could capture today's outfit.  Well...can't connect my camera to the computer.  I found this website that allows you to search items, pick favorites, and design outfits called shopstyle.  So I created a similar outfit to share...

Tees by J.Crew
Wedges by CAFe'NOIR

Ta-Da!    What I'm Wearing and Where I Got It:
1. Vintage maxi pleated skirt (mine is a little stiffer, sort of like men's khakis, but a skirt!) - thrifted
2. J. Crew white tee - Fairy Circle find
3. Mossimo mustard print cardi - gifted from Mom
4. Tan SoHo Lab wedges - FC find
5. Brown, orange and blue wooden beaded necklace - FC

Alright, well, I'm sure this is enough for a first blog post...hope you enjoyed and stay tuned for more!