Eye of the Tiger Lily

Having only two real "working" days these days, I find myself in much more need of casual outfits. When I'm not in the classroom, I'm either in my home office or coffee shop "office," both of which provide some real sartorial challenges. While I've actually grown to love my home office (especially with my precious La Perla de Oaxaca a la French Press), it doesn't really encourage me to get dressed for the day. (Yoga pants and old college sweatshirt does not a bloggiful [totes just made up that word] ensemble make.) And the coffee shop certainly doesn't require pencils skirts and heels! (Not that that has stopped me.) So what to wear, what to wear... Alls I can say is, thank goodness for denim in its many varieties!

Top - Lucky Brand via Gwynnie Bee / Skinnies - Lane Bryant (old)
Sandals - Christain Siriano for Payless (old)

I've honestly loved wearing my skinnies with some kind of voluminous top lately. It's not only a chic way to do casual, it's comfortable and, better yet, a great way to dress for the hotter fall days we've been having in the Midwest. (86° in October? C'mon now...) And once again, Gwynnie Bee comes to the rescue with yet another cute top to don for just such an "occasion." I know I wore this exact outfit at least 5 times before finally sending the top back!

Ring and necklace (old) - Ruche

I loved pulling out the pink in the top with a few choice accessories. The orange and pink made for an unexpectedly fabulous color combo! In fact, I think the accessories pretty much made the outfit.

The other thing about heading downtown to my fave coffee shop is the need to lug more than a few books with me. Sure, I have a backpack, but what fun is that? This is where my many oversized bags come into more "functional" play...not that such function has ever been a consideration for me before - the bigger the better, I say! Happily, and pretty much outta nowhere, the kind folks over at Gustto - after seeing my blog header with one of my favorite handbags ever (my fuchsia Gustto Pavia, worn OFTEN) - offered to send me a bag from their eye-popping, budget-friendly handbag line, Miss Gustto. Was I going to jump on a chance for a free handbag from a designer I know and love? HELLZ YES. The difficult thing was only which to choose! I settled on this goes-with-everything taupe number (The "Katie") both for its fabulous size and delicious hardware. The unexpected surprise was that it not only fit a number of books, but also my laptop! All while able to sit comfortably over my shoulder for all those now easy jaunts downtown. I was also really impressed with the quality of the bag itself. It's a vegan/budget bag-lover's DREAM - smooth faux leather, good construction and really fun details. I tend to think this brand nails the oversized trend, too. Pretty sure I'm officially in the market for a few more...

"Katie" Handbag - c/o Miss Gustto

And you know what, Miss Gustto is offering my readers a chance to win one of their bags! Stay tuned for details regarding the giveaway in the next few days!

Earrings - LOFT (old)

Hmmm...that fuchsia Pavia would have been a perfect choice for this outfit, too, eh?

Double the Fun

It's only Tuesday? Really? Ugh. What's worse is that it's 10:30pm and Bob just went in to work. Yes, you read that right. So do I stay up until he gets home at 3am (cuz he'll wake me up anyway)? Yes, probably. And maybe I'll make myself a Totinos while I'm at it. There, now it feels like the weekend.

Except it's only Tuesday...

But hey, look! The green skirt again! I have to say, a black and white combo is my favorite pairing with this skirt. True, they're stripes and are therefore fabulous with everything, but I especially like their contrast with the vibrant color of the skirt.

Striped top - Dorothy Perkins / Pencil skirt - eloquii / Belt - Talbots /
Sandals - Bandolino / Handbag - Ruche

I also felt that one necklace was not enough. One big statement piece plus one long dangley piece equals necklace nirvana. Or something.

Necklaces - LOFT & Ann Taylor / Ring - Ruche / Earrings - The Limited

My Totinos is ready! One supreme party pizza is served. And LOTR, probably. See you on the other side of 3am.

And hey, then it'll be Wednesday.

Birthday Boy

That's one handsome man. How could I resist starting off this (little later than usual) post by featuring the birthday boy himself? Especially when he's wearing the crap out this blue Ted Baker suit, a crisp white shirt, and BR pocket square (that he picked out for one of his birthday gifts). My outfit pales in comparison after that anyway. =)

Melrose Mesh Top - c/o Kiyonna / White pencil skirt - Macy's (Charter Club)

At least, I feel much less dressed up than I would have liked to have been. Quite disappointingly, the dress I was planning to wear didn't fit, so I had to scramble to put something else together that I could feel comfortable and confident in and wasn't too much fuss. This was Bobby's day, after all, and I wasn't going to let my frustrations damper the cheer of the day. I immediately thought of this great Kiyonna top that flatters all my assets and camouflages everything else, paired with, of course, a pencil skirt.

The real stars of the outfit were my accessories, however. I'd been plotting to debut some fabulous new shoes and my Trina Turk for Banana Republic pieces on this occasion, so it was imperative that whatever I wore would let them shine anyway. I do suppose it's hard to let a little box clutch and fabulous cocktail ring take center stage just by virtue of scale, but I sure as hell had to try.

Box clutch and Ring - Trina Turk for Banana Republic / Necklace - Anthropologie /
Earrings - Banana Republic (eBayed) / Sandals - SM Evan's Pump via DSW

Meh, the birthday boy still wins. =)

As has become customary, we dined at our favorite restaurant in town for the birthday meal itself, having course after course of delectable bites and a helluva bottle of wine to celebrate. Good people watching, excellent service, and just a relaxing evening spent together.

An upside down wine label has to mean good luck, right?

Today? A day off, a firmer footing on Weight Watchers (with a hope to fit into that dress eventually) and being ever so thankful that I get to celebrate birthdays and all manner of life's milestones with such a wonderful guy.

Black and Blue

I recently purchased these black ankle skinnies from Lane Bryant for a song. (In fact, my size was the only one they had left! 'Twas meant to be!) I figured they were a good basic that I should probably have in my closet, no? Especially on clearance, no?? So when I saw this pin the other day, I thought, "Hey, I can do that!" What's funny, though, is the last thing I would have thought to wear with black skinnies would be a blue button-up. But I liked the simple, classic look of it, especially with black flats and the longer line of my tunic version of the shirt. (Excuse the massive amount of wrinkles, by the way.) It's also very similar to the last time I wore the top, so it was already a silhouette I liked - and oh-so-comfortable! Once again Pinterest inspires me in unthought-of ways.

Blue pintucked belted shirt - The Limited / White camisole - The Limited / Black wedges - Payless /
Handbag - Furla Piper Small Cartella Bandoliera (via BBOS)

And the bag! The bag! My rewards balance at BBOS was just sitting there, so I figured I'd snatch up this lovely little snakeskin Furla, especially after they had just tweeted about it. Expect to see her often over the next month!

Necklace - Urban Outfitters / Ring - Ruche / Earrings - Maurices

A Good Year

While watching Bridget Jones's Diary before bed last night (I couldn't imagine a better way to top off my birthday, by the way), I realized that it was Bridget's 33rd birthday for which she hosts that dinner party with her friends, joined by the incomparable Mr. (Mark) Darcy, joined later by the elusive Daniel Cleaver, ending by the two basically fighting over her. She finally wins the man of her dreams not long after the new year. (Can that kiss from behind be any more goose-bump inducing?) A good year, I say...

Betsey Ruched Dress - c/o Kiyonna / Bracelet - Banana Republic /
Clutch - Lodis (eBayed) / "Linzy" Pumps - Kelsi Dagger (via Piperlime)

So far, I can't say I've had any complaints. I got to celebrate my birthday a few days early with close friends, good food, and a dance party I'll always remember. Then I got to get dolled up for dinner with Bobby at our favorite restaurant in town, where they served a menu customized just for us and just for the 1988 Château Haut-Brion Bob had received last month from his parents. (Pause for the "Holy crap!" from all the oenophiles out there.) Another good year, indeed...

And with this outfit post I get to announce a super fabulous partnership with Kiyonna as part of their Blogger Brigade! They sent me this stunning Betsey Ruched Dress especially to wear for my birthday. It's been hanging in my closet for a few weeks now, and I've been beyond excited to finally wear it. I even found (the less expensive - and available size 11 - Kelsi Dagger version of) the gorgeous grey patent platforms that they'd paired with the dress! The restaurant was rather empty last night (it was a Tuesday night, after all), but the few that were around couldn't stop talking about the dress. The "devil in the blue dress," they told me...

Ring - Banana Republic / Earrings - Anthropologie / Nails - "Designer...de Better!" (O.P.I. Muppets Collection)

Even Bobby was looking mighty fine (as he always does) in his Oxxford suit, striped french cuff shirt, and a new yellow and blue polka dot pocket square of his own choosing.

Suit - Oxxford (via Filene's Basement) / Shirt - Banana Republic / Pocket square - Loehmann's /
Watch - Seiko Chronograph (via Amazon) / Cufflinks - Zales (gifted)

You know, it was a rather low key day when I think about it, but a quiet evening over a delectable meal with my sweet boyfriend, who never fails to make me feel special, birthday or otherwise, was pretty wonderful. And the fact that I got to do it in a gorgeous dress that celebrated my curves in the best way possible made it even more amazing.

Thanks to Thad and the rest of the staff at Bacaro for helping, too!

You Say It's Your Birthday

Oh, hello there! It's 50 degrees today (a white Christmas is likely impossible at this point), my beloved camera has found its way home to me (via an exact replacement), this is outfit #1 of my birthday celebrations, and I'm so happy to bring you (albeit cloudy) outdoor pictures! Full disclosure, however: between frantic cleaning and cooking (and eating and drinking), I never got around to taking pictures yesterday. But I had no intention of letting either outfit or the rest of the day's events go to blog-waste, so I couldn't resist getting all dolled up in yesterday's ensemble (even the hair!) and took the pictures today. Forgive me, k?

"Trina" tunic - LucieLu / Dark skinnies - Gap

Last night we had wonderful friends over to celebrate my thirty-something birthday (which is actually not until tomorrow) in pseudo Bridget Jones style - we made a few tasty dishes and had folks also bring a few of their own. I even made a signature cocktail - cranberry martinis that were seriously A.MA.ZING. Though I didn't go whole hog with a theme of any sort, cranberries did seem to weave their way through most of it - from my centerpiece, to my signature drink, to some delectable sugared cranberries that I continue to enjoy today.

Our menu: Glazed half of ham (c/o Bob's work) / Stuffed mushrooms / Goat cheese and honey crostini (all local!) /
Sugared cranberries / Cranberry martinis / Chocolate chip banana bread (my specialty)

The tunic is a new favorite find from LucieLu. Aptly named the "Trina Tunic," it definitely reminds me of many of Ms. Turk's designs that I always love but cannot afford. I'd been lusting after it for a while, finally purchased it, and then waited patiently for the right time to wear it. When we decided to host a party for my birthday, I thought this would be perfect for the event - casual, stylish, comfortable, me! I really like its effortless vibe with skinnies, super nude (and crazy comfy) pumps (thank heavens for stylish closed-toes when pedicures just aren't possible) and some fabulous statement accessories, including a brand new ring I just received as a birthday gift!

Necklace and earrings - Anthropologie / Ring - Ruche (gifted) / Nails - "Suzi Says Feng Shui" (O.P.I.)

Handbag - Tano

Nude pumps - Nine West "Hollyce" (via Zappos)

The party itself was pretty fantastic. Great company, tasty food, super addictive drinks, and even a mini dance party to one of my long-time holiday playlist staples, N'Sync's "Merry Christmas Happy Holiday." Oh yes, my friends. Oh, yes. To top that off, if that were possible, I got some lovely loot as well!

Clockwise from left: Falling Snowflakes Dangling Earrings - Ruche / Vogue: The Covers - the most awesomest coffee table book ever / Ostrich-embossed clutch - ASOS (previously revealed) / I'll aways drink Starbucks (Caramel Brulee and Peppermint White Mocha, you're mine!) /A very unique scarf/wrap in cozy winter white

A table wine with probably the best description out there...for my blog =)

Thanks to my dear friends who helped me celebrate, and especially my Bobby for putting up with - nay, overcoming - my crazed bitch mode as we were preparing. Stay tuned for the main event on Tuesday (my actual birthday): a romantic dinner for two at our favorite restaurant in town, with me strutting some seriously fabulous digs from Kiyonna! I'm oh-so-excited!

Obviously, I totally support celebrating one's birthday more than once. ; )

Sequins & Sparkles

First of all, I'm really sorry for the picture quality. Not only am I still waiting for a new camera, Bob is also out of town on business, and therefore so is his iPhone (with which we've been taking pictures in the interim). So it's back to my crappy Nikon Coolpix for today - I simply had to participate in today's EBEW "Sequins and Sparkles" challenge!

Cardi - LOFT / Sequin tank - LOFT / Pencil skirt - Lane Bryant /
Tights - Simply Vera (Kohl's) / Sandals - Banana Republic

Thought I don't own too much sparkle, when the challenge was announced I knew this sequined delight would be the top I would wear. It fits so nice and is just the prettiest winter white/cream color that makes it perfect around the holiday season. (I did, in fact, toy with wearing it with my new ASOS lurex stripe skirt for New Year's.) I love the raw edge of the always-flattering scoop neckline, too. In keeping with my near-obsession for all combinations of cream and grey, I went for a grey ponte pencil skirt and grey herringbone tights, a cream cardi in a slightly lighter color (I love the tonal variation of the two together), and {gasp} open toed camel sandals. I don't always love the look of tights + sandals on me, but I really like it here. Ties everything together.

Believe it or not (and I sure didn't), I hadn't yet worn the pencil skirt. I've worn the olive and black versions a few times now, but when I went to pull this one out of the closet, it still had the tags on. Craziness! I just love these skirts though. The wide waistband makes tucking in shirts actually possible and the material is so forgiving that I don't have to worry about much else.

Leather Ostrich Embossed Metal Bar Clutch - ASOS

Like my new clutch? I sure do! Bobby bought it for me as an early birthday present. =) I'd been looking for the perfect caramelly envelope clutch for months, and then I found this one also at ASOS, priced so right and ostrich-embossed! (You're rockin' my world, ASOS!) Of all the textures of leather, ostrich is unquestionably my favorite. Good job, Bobby. =)

Ring - Banana Republic / Earrings - Anthropolgoie