Red Friday

Happy Thanksgiving AND Happy Hanukkah, everyone! I hope you all are happily recovering from your feasts and/or getting the deals of your lives out in the mad Black Friday world! We're actually celebrating our family thanksgiving this weekend, and I'm ever-so-looking-forward to all the (real) cranberry sauce I can eat.

Prep will begin a little later this evening, but I've just returned from braving some Black Friday craziness myself. (And by "braving" I mean one store and by "craziness" I mean TJ Maxx. Black Friday's not really my thing, folks.) What does one wear to navigate the, er, masses? Flat boots, of course, and a little frenchie Breton stripes with a perfect red pencil. And a warm, warm scarf. Cuz it's cold out there, my friends.

Striped top - Banana Republic / Curvy Pencil Skirt in Romancing Red - c/o Kiyonna /
Handbag - Steve Madden via TJ Maxx / Boots - Ciao Bella via DSW

It occurred to me recently that I still, after all these years, did not have my perfect red pencil skirt, yet. I have one in nearly every other color, but not red. What was the world coming to?? My love of Kiyonna's perfect pink pencil (the Curvy Pencil Skirt) that I received a few months ago made me realize that their red version just may finally fulfill my every red pencil skirt desire. And it does, my friends. It does.

At the risk of being repetitive, I'll once again hail its length, stretch, and shape. A pencil skirt trifecta! Most importantly, its hue is the perfect shade of cherry red, and there isn't a better complement to navy stripes and tall boots. C'est magnifique!

Scarf - Gap / Ring - Ruche / Earrings - The Limited /
Nails - Essie "Midnight Cami" (via Ulta) with Essie "Matte About You" Top Coat

But let us not forget the scarf, my friends. A scarf that, without it, I sure as hell would not have braved the temperatures for outdoor pictures.

Double Duty

Oh, hello there! Once again, an extended vacation gets the best of me. Also, weekend 1 of 2 of Nutcracker madness. As far as events go, this one is so aptly named - we never get through unscathed... But here I am! The first half of the season is winding down, and so am I. In spite of 70 degree weather today...in December...I have Christmas decor up and have already watched my favorite holiday movies a few times. Now if temps could just drop back to the 30s and, you know, it would snow. (I'm not hopeful.)

When I rotated my closets for fall, I decided I would keep a couple of my favorite maxi dresses on hand and challenge myself to style them for cooler weather. Since one of my favorite layering options for a maxi was a belted cardigan, I knew where to start. Add a scarf and flat boots, and done! It's so easy, so cute, and so shamelessly comfortable, that I plan to find a few permutations of it with the many cardigans/belts/scarves I own...

Maxi dress - Old Navy / Jackie Cardigan - J. Crew / Boots - Coconuts (gifted)

Scarf - Banana Republic / Belt - The Limited / Earrings - Ruche / Nails - Essie Smokin' Hot

I love the rich blues and purples of this rendition the most, though. (It even inspired my current blog template!) It feels autumnal all on its own.

Handbag - Steve Madden / Ring - H&M

Classic Mustard

Navy and mustard. Striped tee and pencil skirt. Boots and jacket. Classic combinations that always work.

Ring - Ruche / Necklace - Banana Republic (eBayed) / Earrings - Ruche

I've been through three yellow pencil skirts now, and this Lane Bryant one is by far the best. It's their classic ponte pencil skirt that I wish they would stock year round in all manner of seasonal colors. (Still looking for a pumpkin orange one!) This one came in yellow, red, teal and black and - wouldn't you know it - I bought it in all of the three colors. (I most certainly don't need another black one.) Length, color and fit is perfect on all three!

Striped top - Banana Republic / Denim jacket - Theory (eBayed) / Pencil skirt - Lane Bryant /
Boots - Ciao Bella (via DSW)

I think this was my first boot wearing for the season, too. It felt wonderful to finally break them about again - as if they were the true herald of autumn. (Aside from that whole leaves thing, anyway.) I had to polish 'em up, but they're still in pretty good shape. I was afraid I'd need to replace them after wearing them out during last fall's Boston trip, but I think I can get at least another year out of them!

I can't believe that Boston trip was almost a year ago already. We won't be able to make the trip again this year, which saddens me a bit, but I am looking forward to spending more time at home for the fall break. That's right, a week of vacation time, staring NEXT WEEK! Time to organize the chaos that is my jewelry collection, hang Christmas decor, make lots of crock pot recipes (the goal for most of the winter, as it happens), and - oh yeah - gorge ourselves on turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, stuffing... Bring on the holidays!

Handbag - Steve Madden

Sloppy Joe

This top is one of those tops that were better in theory than reality. What the theory was, however, I'm no longer sure.

What I thought was going to be a cool, casual topper (read: poncho with sleeves) is really just a sloppy mess. I suspected this the first time I wore it, planning to belt it lest I look like a mossy green tent. Well, belting it makes it even fussier since, as a poncho, the sides of it are completely open and just rides up when belted. Thankfully, taking 100+ outfit pictures means that I can find at least 5 that don't highlight the top's unruliness, making the outfit appear as I had intended it to: layered, causal, springy, cool. And then I write a blog post that unravels all of it. =)

When I got home I immediately removed the belt and threw on some yoga pants. Clearly, this is the only way the top should be worn.

Old Reliable

Thank goodness for those ol' reliable outfit combinations. Not really having to think about whether or not an outfit will work is a blessing to this anti-morning, planning-handicapped girl. Especially when her closet and bedroom is such a disaster zone that outfit planning is impossible anyway.

Striped top - Dorothy Perkins / Ponte skirt - Lane Bryant / Boots - Coconuts (gifted)

Bottom line, any outfit that involves stripes is good by me. (And ponte. And boots. And a big cozy scarf.)

Scarf - Gap / Belt - Talbots / Ring - Ruche / Earrings - Ruche

Handbag - Tano "Minilisa"

Olive Juice

Happy Valentine's Day, dear readers!

I actually had trouble with this EBEW challenge. I do have red and pink pieces in my wardrobe, but nothing that really works together (or with my usual style), so I knew I was going to have to fall back on accessories. Moreover, I was worried that I'd be putting pieces together purely for the sake of participating, without much hope that the outfit would be anything I'd wear again. I'm pleased to say, however, that I might wear this combination without or without a Valentine's Day Challenge!

Pink belt - The Limited / Ring - Banana Republic / Pink earrings - LOFT

A pale pink belt and a red sweater; definitely a minimalist version of the challenge, but it's "me." (I'll save ground-breaking for other participants.) I did quite like how olive looked against all my red and pink pieces when I was trying on outfits, so I wanted to be sure to make it a part of the outfit, whatever I chose. My one contribution, I guess. =)

Red sweater - Lane Bryant / Olive ponte pencil skirt - Lane Bryant /
Boots - Coconuts via DSW (gifted) / Handbag - Coach (gifted)

And now, sweethearts for all!

Full Sun

Mid-day full sun and 57 degrees called for a happy printed tee, denim pencil skirt and bare knees. I obliged.

Trench Girl Boatneck Tee - LOFT / Denim pencil skirt - Lane Bryant /
Boots - Coconuts via DSW (gifted)  / Handbag - Tano

This adorable printed tee from LOFT is what spurred my recent LOFT purchase. I had to have it! To be honest, I'm not sure how else I'd want to wear it other than with a pencil skirt (jeans and a blazer, maybe? yoga pants, too, of course...) but for its first wearing - j'adore. In an attempt to accessorize a little more, I added an equally sunny belt to bring out more of the color on the tee.

You know what I just realized, though? The reason I probably fell in love with the tee in the first place is because I just want to dress like the girl on it... (Isn't there a psychological term for that?) Can't very well dress like said girl when I'm wearing a screen tee, though, eh?

Ring - Kohl's (gifted) / Earrings - LOFT / Skinny belt - The Limited

Dots and Stripes Forever

There's a lot going on here, I know. Stripes, dots and animal print! Black and brown! I had two conflicting thoughts about this outfit: Obey Chanel's maxim to take off the last thing you put on (which would have been the belt), or challenge myself to step outside my comfort zone and just work it. I'm not totally convinced that it's not too much, but I'm proud of myself for sticking with it. I gotta say, though, I do quite like the mix of browns and blacks.

Striped top - Dorothy Perkins / Black ponte pencil skirt - Lane Bryant /
Scarf - Dorothy Perkins / Belt - Old Navy / Boots - Coconuts via DSW (gifted)

It all comes down to the fact that I really, really wanted to wear this scarf. Another Dorothy Perkins snood (just a Britishism for infinity scarf, methinks), the butterscotch brown and black dots make it somewhat hard to wear - I almost wish the dots were navy. But that's why I embraced the combination of colors in the scarf and mixed all those prints in the same color family. I like how the browns are on are the lighter side - more caramel than chocolate - which makes for a better contrast with black.

Handbag - Tano "Minilisa"

Mmm, now I want caramels...

Ring - The Limited / Earrings - LOFT

I always love how turquoise looks with brown, so it was an obvious choice for a little extra color against all these dark neutrals. Shoot, I kinda wish I had a turquoise belt now! It's always something, isn't it...

Told You So

Whoops, I kind of disappeared there for a minute! I got so much accomplished over the long weekend (new closet hangers! finally-hung-up bedroom curtains! newly-hooked-up Wii on which to stream Netflix and become addicted to Downton Abbey!) that it has - once again - been difficult to resume regular life. But alas, it resumes whether you're ready or not.

Burgundy tee - LOFT / Olive ponte pencil skirt - Lane Bryant / Boots - Coconuts via DSW (gifted) /
Handbag - Coach (gifted)

Makes for a great day to fall back on old reliable outfit formulas, no? See, I told you you'd see it sooner than later. =)

I might have cheated (and heard from lots of you who do the same) and tied a regular scarf in the back to turn it into my ever-preferred infinity scarf. It's genius, really.

Chain-print scarf - Affordable Scarves / Ring - Ruche / Earrings - Anthropologie

Formulaic

I've stumbled onto another outfit formula. Well, it's really the same formula as this one, but the use of solid tees rather than striped ones has doubled the remix potential. And I have lots...

Blue tee - LOFT / Grey ponte skirt - Lane Bryant / Tights - Lane Bryant /
Boots - Coconuts via DSW (gifted)

It also makes me revisit my small but growing scarf collection. As you've probably noticed, I prefer infinity scarves, and I want more. And more. They're a fool-proof accessory - such a great way to get a little print or pop of color into an outfit, and you don't have to worry about how to tie the darn things.

Scarf - Affordablescarves.com  / Ring & earrings - Ruche /
Nails - Frankly I Don't Give A-dam (Sephora O.P.I.)

I'm just warning you, but you will likely see yet another variation of this outfit sooner rather than later.

Handbag - Urban Outfitters

Mad About Plaid

The sale room at Anthropologie is a magical place. I walked passed this jacket a few times during my last Anthro trip in Milwaukee's Third Ward, strangely attracted to its rather loud bouclé plaid. I mean, at first I was even slightly repulsed by it, but I just kept coming back to it, each time more charmed by it. As I do with anything that catches my eye, I checked the size (it was the only one), then the price. (Is it even worth it?) A 12, a size smaller than my usual, and $70. But wait! Sale items are 50% off - it's $35!!! That did it, I had to at least try it on. As I suspected, the jacket was much too snug in the arms and across the chest, but I really started to love the look of it on it me. The plaid may have been intense, but it had a wonderful color palette, great cut, and pretty flawless construction. Yes, I needed this - if only my size! I was actually wearing the same thermal tee, skinnies and boots at the time, and it was clear that, had it fit, I would have walked straight to the cash wrap just as I was...

Tartan Boucle Blazer - Anthropologie / Thermal tee - Anthropologie / Dark skinnies - Gap /
Boots - Coconuts "Walker" via DSW (gifted)

But what the heck, I would give hope a chance and ask if other stores might have a 14. With customer serivce not to be outdone - the Friday before Christmas, mind you - the sales associate spent at least 15 minutes on the phone, finally hunting down the jacket in the NYC Times Square store, of all places. (Seriously, her patience and perseverance on my behalf was incredible.) Triumph! The jacket was mine!! For $35 freaking dollars!!!

Earrings & ring - Banana Republic / Necklace - Anthropologie

Later that night, I happened to be perusing my old pins on Pinterest and found - much to my amazement - this very pin from the Anthropologie cataloge. What the what!? "Pretty much want everything here," I noted. It seems I had been lusting after this jacket the whole time! Though I obviously love the jacket with skinnies and boots, I have every intention to style it as Anthro-imagined for next time. (This may be next week, incidentally.)

It seems my subconscious shops just as much as I do.

Handbag  - Furla (via Filene's Basement)