Double Stripes

Sometimes there are outfits that I just wear time and time again, and this is one of them.  It was originally one of those outfits that came together unexpectedly, but there's just something about it I love. Before getting my booties I wore this with simple heels, but I love it with the booties. If you want more tips on how to style booties, check out this post. Honestly, I think I just like this outfit because it's a little edgier than my norm and it makes me feel cooler than I really am. :)

How To: Style a Boyfriend Cardigan

I'm excited to be starting a how-to series, which I'll be sharing with you all weekly.  This week I'll be sharing tips on how to style a boyfriend cardigan.  Now, these cardigans can be great, but the length and tendency for them to be over-sized can make them difficult to style.  I have some great tips on how to style them for you all today.

• First, when trying a boyfriend cardigan on in the store, try on your "normal" size and then one size smaller.  You might find that the small works better than the medium, etc.  Also, check the length.  For me, having a boyfriend cardigan hit right below the hips is most flattering.  Due to my short petite figure, cardigans that are longer than this are not flattering on me and look more like a weird dress with buttons on the front.  Not cool.
• One great way to style a boyfriend cardigan once you've gotten a well fitting one is with a jersey dress like this one I'm wearing in the first picture below.  Boyfriend cardigans are more casual in nature, so wearing it with a jersey dress works great.  I'll done this quite a few time and and always feel put together and cozy all day long.  A belt also helps to accentuate your waist with this combo too.
• The second ways to wear a boyfriend cardigan is with skinny jeans.  This is a great combo for casual Friday or for a weekend look.  I think skinny jeans are best because you don't want to create more volume with the outfit by adding a wider leg jean; this outfit can have a tendency to look overwhelming and make you look bigger than you are.  I styled mine below with booties, but you could also easily wear ballet flats or tall boots too. I also feel that tucking in your shirt or wearing a more form fitting shirt is the most flattering with a boyfriend cardigan too, just like with the jeans, an over-sized shirt can make you look bigger than you are.
• The third way to style a boyfriend cardigan is with a mini-skirt.  Now pencil skirts can be ok with boyfriend cardigans too, just keep in mind the casual nature of this piece, so a cotton skirt is probably best.  Once again tucking your shirt in will be the most flattering for this look and I think booties are boots look best.  I don't recommend wearing an a-line skirt with a boyfriend cardigan, just like I stated above with over-sized shirts or wider leg jeans, adding more volume is not very flattering.
• The last way I'm going to show is to wear a boyfriend cardigan with leggings.  I love this with a longer tunic and boots or booties.  I don't recommend wearing leggings to work, I'd stick to wearing this combo for a night with friends or on the weekends.  You also want to make sure your rear is covered by the tunic and cardigan and that the legging are nice and thick.  To wear this look at work, simply swap out the leggings for black jeans or the gigi pant and you're ready to go.

Red and Leopard

I'm loving this combo today. I think I pinned something red and leopard awhile ago and have been waiting to wear them together. I feel like some outfits just don't work with tights. Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks this???? However, I totally think they work here, which is good because I'm pretty sure today is supposed to be pretty cold today, so my fleece lined tights are a definitely a necessity.

*I found out we get a cold weather-no school day today, so this outfit will have to wait for tomorrow. To those of you dealing with these freezing temps, stay inside, keep warm, pin some stuff, and follow me on Instagram while I try to keep the Grantster entertained and inside.

Stripes and Elbow Patches

Today I'm happily wearing my elbow patch sweater again. I love how this outfit came together, it was by accident, really. I had another skirt in mind, and when I tried it on, I looked horrific. Whomp, whomp. I'd originally thought this skirt was more summery (it's linen) but when you pair it with tights and a sweater, it suddenly looks wintery. Sweet! 

Also, I picked out a Chi flat iron for a Christmas present and "may" have opened it early to see if it was all it's cracked up to be.  It. Is.  I'm pretty sure it's only going to be good hair days from this day on. : )

Pattern Mixing

Are you all ready for Christmas? I so enjoyed my small Thanksgiving break and had a chance to do a little Christmas shopping, as well as get the decorations out. I love how the house looks at Christmas, and although Brian needs to finish the trim in the basement, it's done otherwise.  We're really enjoying the extra space and I'm loving having the majority of Grant's toys down in his playroom. Yay!

I'm loving this combo today, I was inspired by this pin, then put my own spin on it. I picked up this sweater at J.Crew Factory and this button-down at Gap factory and love how it came together. I don't know what it is about plaid this year, but I love it! I wondered about these with it, what do you think?

Stripes and Dots

Life is pretty busy right now. We've been working on finishing our basement and are finally at the painting stage, which is where I come in.  Fun. The light is at the end of the tunnel and we are having the carpet laid next week.  Everything is set to be done by Thanksgiving and I couldn't be more excited!  I'm sure I'll post some pictures once it's all done. : )

I'm loving this professional look today.  This blazer, top, and skirt were definitely smart purchases this fall, the outfit possibilities are seeming to be endless.  I rarely thrift anymore, but the one time I went this month I found this new Loft skirt for $3 and I couldn't believe it, I have a bunch of pinned looks with red skirts, but actually came up with this one on my own.  I feel like I've come a long way since last year and now see possibilities in my closet that I never saw before, and that's pretty awesome.

Building A Wardrobe: Skirts

Today is the third day of my Building A Wardrobe series, I hope you're finding it useful!  On day one I shared Essential Blazers and Jackets, one day two I shared Essential Cardigans and today I'm going to share essential skirts with you. It's not secret that I love a good pencil skirt, and today I'm going to share with you some essential skirts, as well as some additional options for you to consider as part of my Building A Wardrobe series.  There are lots of different types of skirts out there, but I feel that a pencil skirt has the most classic and timeless feel, therefore it'll have more longevity in your wardrobe.  Here are more thoughts on what to consider when buying:

• The essential skirts I would consider buying are a gray, navy, black, and one additional color you love; I picked wine. Because of the classic nature of these pieces they don't often make it to the sale rack, however, you can find these at most every retailer.  I personally love Target's options.  The prices are fair and I've always been happy with the quality.
• These essential skirts will probably not be the highlight of any outfit, but they are great pieces to add to so many looks.
• Once you have a few of the essential skirts consider buying the additional options; these could be the "show piece" of you look for the day.  Picking a great bright color, or fun print that shows your personality is always worthwhile. As I said above  Target's options are great for this too.
• Most pencil skirts are safely washed in the washing machine, but always double check to see if it must be dry cleaned before buying.
• As for additional types of skirt, a-line and mini-skirts can be great too: I'm wearing a mini today, however I don't think they are the best place to start when building a wardrobe, but a great additions later on.

 Here's a visual on my thoughts for skirt essentials:

gray pencil skirt / navy pencil skirt / black pencil skirt / wine pencil skirt / cobalt pencil skirt / geometric pencil skirt / leopard pencil skirt 

Today I'm wearing a fun leopard skirt, which had been on my wish list for quite sometime. Pairing it with neutrals like tan and black make this work appropriate, but anything except boring. : )

What to Wear With Orange

For the last day of my series I'll be sharing my tips on how to wear orange. On the first day I shared with you how to wear wine, and on the second day I shared with you how to wear mustard, and of the three I think orange can be the trickiest to wear.  Here are my tips on what to wear it with:

• Neutral tones are an awesome pairing for orange, though I think warm tones like tans and browns are best.  I would recommend steering clear of pairing orange and black, for fear of looking like you're dressed for Halloween.  
• The second way to wear orange is with complimentary colors and you might be surprised at all the colors that work to pair it with. I love orange with different shades of blue, but it can also be great with army green and wine.

Today I chose to pair orange with a combination of neutral and complimentary colors. I love the neutral cardigan and navy skirt with this fun top and I think it's a perfect look for fall. Make sure to check out my collage at the end of the post for some additional ways to wear orange.

Here's a chart for you all to help you see what to pair orange with:

Preppy Professional

This blazer is definitely one of my favorite things in my closet.  I LOVE it, I've worn it with this top before, but I seriously never realized how versatile a navy skirt was until I bought this skirt.  I'm kicking myself that I haven't had a navy skirt before.  I'm excited about all the ways I'll get to wear it this fall and winter and am really happy with the way I wore it today too. 

Jewel Tones

Almost two months ago I tried on this top and was in love....with everything but the price, that is.  What do you know, it went on sale and they only had one left in the stores, and it happened to be in my size.  It was fate.  You guys.  I love it.  I also got this skirt and love it too.  A navy skirt had been on my list for fall and I really like the structure of this one, but that it's not a traditional pencil skirt.  I've got a number of looks lined up for these too pieces and I'm pretty excited about it. 

Blogger Love: Rachel's Lookbook

For the final day of my "Blogger Love Series" I'm going to introduce you all to Rachel of  Rachel's Lookbook. Rachel always look chic and put together and recently won a contest where she was able to travel to New York for a photo shoot, how cool is that! Just like me Rachel loves a deal and creates some great Splurge or Save posts and shows a lot of affordable pieces in her daily posts.

I thought Rachel's look below was so fun. I love the idea of a more graphic shirt with a blazer and skirt and decided to try it for myself. I added a similar necklace and pair of shoes too. Her look is definitely fresh and fun and great inspiration for me today.

Be sure to stop by Rachel's Lookbook to say "hi" to her and check out more of her fun style! 

Summer Fun Steal with Chippmunk.com

As you ladies know, I recently submitted a steal I'd gotten at the Loft for Chippmunk's Expert Shopper Contest, well, thanks to you all I was one of the winners, and I have a $100 gift card coming my way!  So exciting!  Good news for you all, Chippmunk is hosting another expert shopper contest that you all can enter! 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with this contest, you can easily submit a look to Chippmunk's Expert Shopper Gallery is a place where community members express themselves by sharing steals and finding style inspiration based on a budget.

Here are the contest details: Submit a steal you got to Chippmunk starting today. The contest will run for two week's. There will be 5 winners who will each win a $100 gift card to the Chippmunk store of their choice.  3 winners will be determined by community votes, 1 editorially (by the other featured bloggers and myself), and 1 chosen at random.
  For those of you who love Instagram, you can also enter via Instagram using hashtag #chippmunkexpertshopper and mentioning where you shopped, how much you saved, and tips you have for others saving money too.

Also, for you non-blogger fashion-lovers, you can win too!  Just go to Chippmunk's Expert Shopper Gallery and pin your favorite steal using the hastags #summerfun #chippmunkExpertShoper and two winners will each win $50!

 In addition to winning the gift card I mentioned above, Chippmunk has generously given me $100 to create a summer fun steal of my own that I'll share with you today.  When looking around their site for coupons a few stuck out to me, like 20% off at Kohl's and free shipping for Loft.  I clicked Loft's link and found that they were having a huge sale with 50% off everything.  Score!  I looked around and found a number of great deals, thanks to Chippmunk's links. 

Since I'm a teacher I've had a pretty laid back summer style, and the few times I've gotten to dress up have been for Stella and Dot Truck shows.  I thought this look would be perfect for my next show and great for when I return to school in two weeks (eek!!!). I very rarely go out and buy a whole outfit at once, however, Chippmunk made it easy for me to hunt for deals (you know I love that!), and score a few pieces I've had on my wish list.  For example, this navy blazer is perfect!  I have a wool one, but this light-weight version will be so much for versatile for year-round.  I also love this blouse with it's embroidered details, I'll be able to wear it with everything!  I've also been drooling over this skirt for quite a while and seen it on multiple bloggers, I'm so happy to now have it.  Also, these wedges from Kohl's are fab!  I didn't have a nude summer shoes, so I'd been missing have a nude option, I think I might wear these everyday!

Total Retail Cost of outfit c/o Chippmunk: $278

Total Spent via Chippmunk codes, sales, and coupons: $98

Blazer: Loft $32 similar (sold out online) c/o Chippmunk

Blouse: Loft $22 similar (sold out online) c/o Chippmunk

Skirt: Loft $ $20 same c/o Chippmunk

Shoes: Kohl's $26 same c/o Chippmunk

Belt: Kohl's-my own

Jewelry: Stella and Dot-my own

Lovin' Mint

Mint has really come in full force this spring and summer and has a huge presence in stores, Blogland, and Pinterest.  I don't know about you, but although I'm totally drawn to the color, knowing how to wear it can be overwhelming.  I recently picked up a great blouse at Express.  If you are trying to introduce mint into your wardrobe, I think a clean, classic blouse is a great way to start.  I've come up with three ways to style this blouse and was quite surprised by it's versatility.

Casual

For this look, I've paired the blouse with white skimmers, nude heels, a long gold necklace, bright bangle, and a white leather bag. Seen Here

Dressy

For this look, I've paired the blouse with a Jacquard skirt and nude heels.  To accessorize it I added a statement necklace that also incorporates mint, a silver clutch, and a skinny belt.  Similar to this

Girls' Night

For this look, I've paired the blouse with boyfriend jeans and a striped blazer, and leopard heels.  I've accessorized it with a mint statement necklace, a variety of bracelets and a bronze belt.  Seen here

Are you ready to incorporate this great color into your wardrobe?  I've found some great pieces to start you out!

Click on the picture below to go to the item's website:

Click on the image below to go to the item's website:

Linking up with:

Look What I Got

Tre-Chic Fashion Thursdays

What I Wore to Work

Hello, Summer Break and Go Blog Social

Today I have to work 'til noon, but after that I'm free, free, free. I'm so excited for a break. I'm sorry, but I don't know how anymore works year round. Come May, I'm just exhausted. Today's outfit is one I see myself wearing a lot this summer. I love flip flops, but couldn't help but put on my wedges. I'm telling you, this dressing casual thing is going to be work. I'm aware of how silly it sounds, but I don't feel like I know how to do it. This summer Grant and I will be at the park, zoo, museum, swimming, etc, none of which places require heels. Gasp! I'm going to work on it, but getting in a casual, cute groove might take awhile.

Also, I'm so excited to have bought my ticket for Go Blog Social in Kansas City! Anyone else sign up to go yet? Right now tickets are at the early bird price of only $99 for four days of super duper fun in August. :)

Cardigan: Target $3 (thrifted)

Top: Apt 9 ?

Skirt: Target $11

Necklace: Stella and Dot Juniper

Bracelets: Stella and Dot Renegade/ Foundation/ Chimera

Shoes: JCrew (circa 2007ish)

Linking up with:

What I Wore Wednesday

Get Your Pretty On

Fashion and Beauty Finds
We Love Target

Also linking up with IFB to share my summer style : )

Pattern Play

Blog Everyday in May Challenge, Day 13: Issue a public apology

This one was kind of hard for me, I didn't know how to take it, it could be serious or funny, so I tried to take the funny route.  Here goes:  I'm sorry I have such an amazing thrift store down the street.  So many of you comment about my finds, and I know, it's kind of crazy.  I'm sorry that in the thirty minutes I spend in there once I week and I can find such cool, like new items.  I'm sorry your thrift store smells like old men and cheese and only contains clothes with weird stains. Whew, glad I got that off my chest.

Now to my outfit: All of these pieces are ones I've had in my closet for a while, but I hadn't considered them together. I got this skirt back in the fall and wore it initially with a black lace top, then didn't really now where to go with the skirt next. I'm pretty happy with this final look, but I kind of wish I had a cardigan in the same color as the top, instead of the black. Or denim, maybe denim. Hmm...

Also, Ada at Elegance and Mommyhood did a sweet feature of me and a few other moms for Mother's Day, stop by and say hi to her. : )

Cardigan: JCrew (circa 2007ish)

Top: Express $25

Skirt: H&M $12

Necklaces: Charming Charlie $1 and Stella and Dot Libby Layering

Bracelts: Express, Kohl's, and Stella and Dot Kalahari

Shoes: Fergalicious $30