Hats Off

I've been holding on to this outfit post for-eh-verrrr. It is probably one of my favorite outfits from the summer, and it's one I wore often.

I'm not normally a hat person, even though they generally do right by me. But after a series of Instagram pics and blog posts by the infectiously genuine Elena featuring this hat, I was convinced I needed one for myself. A trip to Urban Outfitters and 30% off sale sent me home less a mere $7 and plus one fun little straw fedora that I couldn't wait to wear. A lot.

Of course, I had to modify my normally pouf-tastic updo so the hat could actually sit on my head, forcing me to find another way to wear my short hair up. It's a similar twist and mini-clip technique (I know, I know - I have yet to share with you said technique), but just sitting lower at the nape of my neck. And no pouf. I quite like it even when I'm not wearing a hat.

OH! And it's another maxi! It's the last of the summer of maxis - the third from Old Navy - sister to the purple one and cousin to the printed one. I really did live in these things all summer. So comfy and rather flattering - a pleasant surprise considering how easy to wear they were. I liked them best with various toppers, long pendant necklaces and somewhat dressy sandals. For this one, I loved wearing peachy-toned gold jewelry, chocolate browns to mix with the black of the dress, and a pop of mint ala handbag. (Mmm, ice cream...)

Fedora - Urban Outfitters (similar) / Maxi dress - Old Navy / Instant Sleeves - LucieLu /
Handbag - Ruche / Sandals - Moda Spana (via Endless)

And the hat, of course =)

Necklace - Ruche / Ring - The Limited / Earrings - Anthropologie

P.S. I'm trying to figure out the best posting time for blog posts that will not only work well for my readers but for my own daily schedule. The write-at-night-post-in-morning thing has worked for a while, but lately it seems to contribute to my lack of regularity. What do you guys think? Does it matter what time the blogs you read post? If so, what are your preferences?

The Short of It

It's not a good sign that I'm already exhausted and the year hasn't really begun yet, is it? Nope, it sure itsn't! So I'm going to keep this post short and sweet, and then maybe take a nap.

Maxi dress - Old Navy / Lace Instant Sleeves in Ivory - c/o LucieLu / Sandals - Unisa

Pretty printed maxi dress (last worn here). Instant sleeves. Long pendant necklace (a favorite item for all my maxis lately). Updo (cuz I've been too lazy to do anything else with it). Is all.

Necklace - Old Navy / Ring - Banan Republic / Earrings - Dress Barn / Nails - Cartweels on the Catwalk (Sephora by OPI)

Admittedly, this outfit is from earlier this month, but it reminds how fond I'd been of maxis throughout the summer, opting for one whenever I was at a loss for/didn't want to think about what to wear. It sure did happen alot... <----click link for midweek-pick-me-up-funny, even/esp. if you've already seen it

Professional Pajamas

Oh, hai, maxi dress! Nice to see you again! Why don't you plan to just stay all summer?

Splatter print maxi dress - Lane Bryant / Instant Sleeves (Taupe) - LucieLu /
Sandals - Unisa (via Endless)

Yep, it's official. The maxi dress has become my clothing item of choice this summer. Maxi dress is to summer as pencil skirt is to rest of year. I've recently acquired five new ones, including this one, and I will probably wear them all within a week of each other. And then over and over again at least until August. They are like pajamas that you can wear out in public! "Professional pajamas" a friend called them. What's better than that? (Besides actual pajamas, of course. And getting to stay in bed all day...)

Belt - Talbots / Clutch - eloquii

When I decided that I would need to bulk up my maxi collection, Lane Bryant was probably one of my first stops. I eyed up a few online (especially this one and this one), but none of them really demanded to be mine. Plus, I wanted to wait until I was able to get into a store (the nearest one to me is about an hour away) and see them in person. Though this dress was one I didn't really care for online, I really loved it in store and - better yet - on me. The colorful brushstroke print was just what my maxi dress collection needed. Oh, and 30% off you say? And I had Real Women Dollars? Done and done. (I paid less than $25 for this baby.)

In keeping with the ways-to-layer-a-maxi-without-a-denim-jacket goal, my "instant sleeves" from LucieLu rank up there with about the easiest option possible. They even dress up the maxi a bit, not that work's summer casual mode would care. This dress is also a great candidate for a cardigan, too, and with so many colors in the dress itself, I can pretty much take my pick! (I might go for yellow next time!) But not today... Since I stayed neutral with the instant sleeves and my jewelry, I went with a bright pink belt to highlight the pink in the dress. And cuz, well, it was pink!

Necklace - LOFT / Earrings - Lane Bryant / Ring - Banana Republic

Seriously, though - be prepared for more maxi posts over the next few weeks...

To the Max

You may remember a certain fabulous dotted wrap dress, which was a surprising fitting-room winner over a similarly dotted maxi dress I really wanted but whose fit was off. Well, fate would have it that, on a recent return trip to Gap, a size smaller was available in said maxi AND it was on sale. And it turns out that all I needed to solve said fit issues was a smaller size... Who knew!?

Maxi dress - Gap / Blue cami - LOFT / Instant Sleeves in Dove - LucieLu / Wedges - LOFT

I have to work up the courage to wear it with bare arms, it seems. Cue instant sleeves! I really wish they'd come in a blue, ivory or white, though. Then I could, like, wear them with anything. I guess light grey will do. Maybe a denim jacket for next time. Or a cute little scoop neck tee in some color?

Ah, the best part of a maxi dress - the twirling!

But hey, guys, I've reached 200 followers! Yippee! I'm planning to host a giveaway in the next week or so to celebrate, so stay tuned! And thanks to all my readers, old and new, and however you "follow" this sonsy blog o' mine. This little corner of the interwebs has become a cherished placed to share ideas, obsessions, mistakes, successes - myself. So, thanks. =)

Ring - Ruche (gifted) / Earrings - Ruche / Necklace - Banana Republic /
Nailpolish - Tart Deco (Essie)

I'm Alive!

My dears, I'm so sorry I seemingly dropped off the face of the earth for the past week! As feared in my last few posts, I had indeed come down with the horrible midwinter flu bug that has been flying around these parts. It kicked my butt into last year. I couldn't leave my couch for much of anything, couldn't form any coherent thoughts, and didn't get dressed in much more than yoga pants and hoodie. UGH. My energy level is not quite back to 100%, and my hoarseness (from coughing for nearly a week straight - and still going) makes me sound worse that I feel. But I went back to work this weekend, if nothing else because I felt out of touch with the world and was desperately wanting to wear nice clothes (and my contacts) again. And so I did!

"Marcel" wrap dress - LucieLu / Lace cami - Sisley / Navy faux-suede heels - Payless

I've been sitting on this LucieLu dress for a while now - like before the holidays. I'm not really sure why... I guess there were always other outfits I wanted to wear instead. You know how that goes, yeah?

It's a great-fiiting faux wrap dress in a fabulous graphic print and rich berry tones. Totally my palette; totally my print. Just like the other LucieLu dress I own (the same style, no less), I love the length and elbow sleeves, but I only wish that the attached tie were longer so I could double-wrap it AND have extra left over to dangle off the hip. I dunno why, but that's one of my favorite features of a wrap dress (faux or no).

Nails - Eve-y On the Eyes (Sephora by O.P.I.) 

And, huh, I styled it pretty similarly too - lace cami, almond-toe heels... When it ain't broke, eh? I tried not to be too matchy-matchy with either cami or accessories, though. Early options were a cream cami and purple stone necklace, but I wanted to take it just a tad further. I stayed in the same color family with the cami, of course, but opted for one in a lighter shade than on the dress. I like how the speckles on my necklace unexpectedly echo some of the colors on the dress, too.

Earrings - Ruche / Necklace - Urban Outfitters / Ring - Banana Republic

So here's to being able to rise from the couch and wads of Kleenex to get dressed again! I mean, I'm wearing hose and Spanx and everything...

Handbag - Furla (via Filene's Basement)

I'm not much for reporting on/critiquing the Oscars, but we did watch and thoroughly enjoyed it - and not just the couture! How about you?

Easy Breezy

There are few things easier to wear than a printed wrap dress, methinks.

I picked up this LucieLu dress at Boutique Larrieux, a wonderful plus-sized boutique I found - next to an Anthroplogie, of all things - in Milwaukee's Third Ward. I've come to know and love a number of LucieLu pieces already, so I was tickled pink to be able to see and try on - in person, for once - these and many other plus-sized brands I've only been able to peruse online. I was the only person in the shop at the time, so I got all the attention of the eager and helpful sales associate. Though they had lots of holiday attire (noted!), I wasn't in the market, so I focused my attenion on seperates and casual dresses. This dress, the Sativa, fit all those bills so nicely that I happily walked out of the store with it - and at 20% off!

Sativa dress - LucieLu (via Boutique Larrieux) / Brown lace camisole - Banana Republic

As most wrap dresses on me do, this one showed a little too much cleavage, but it was nothing a nice little lace camisole couldn't fix. The SA tipped me off to a strange sizing issue with LucieLu dresses, too. Online the sizes are marked as the usual 1x (14/16), 2x (18/20), and so on, but they apparently fit more like a 12/14, 16/18, etc.. In short, they run SMALL! The shop even marks the dresses with the revised sizes, which I did appreciate. Oh-so-happy to actually be able to try the stuff on, I sized up to the 2x. Case in point of fit being more important that an arbitrary size!

Handbag - Furla (via Filene's Basement)

I also loved the colors of it much more in person than I did when I first saw it online, where the colors look drab and lifeless. In reality the colors are a subdued but pretty combination of browns, tans, and powder blues. (Another win for in-store shopping!) There's a tie-die feel about it, certainly, but it looks more like an abstract print of florals to me. The best part, though - besides the perfect below-the-knee length and elbow sleeves - is that the material is a cozy cotton jersey. It's practically a pajama dress, people!

Necklace & earrings - LOFT / Ring -  Lane Bryant / Shoes - Payless

So comfortable, so easy - and caught in all the right ways by the day's relentless wind. Even if my my hair wasn't...

All That Lingers

Santa was pretty darn good to me this year. Among other things, an iPhone, gorgeous boots, a fabulous necklace and a cute little reminder of an inside joke between Bobby and me. But now my shopaholic ways continue in earnest...

Things that I just couldn't help pulling the plug on:

Work Of Art Curvy Plus Top
shopruche.com

Evella Multi-Strand Necklace
shopruche.com

Geneve Brass Earrings
shopruche.com

Drinks & Dots sleep set
lanebryant.com

Marcel Dress
lucielu.com

Sativa Dress
lucielu.com

Think. Write. Create. Daily Planner
shopruche.com

Tartan Boucle Blazer
anthropologie.com

A cute, casual faux wrap dress is marvelous thing, and in two irresistible prints? Mine! And who can resist pajamas, really. That particular yoke-style top looks good on busty gals like me when going bra-less for bedtime. Jewelry from Ruche? Some of my favorite things to stalk. I got a number of rings that were on my wishlist for my birthday and Christmas, but those two pieces just spoke to me. (I'm really just trying to replicate this outfit, piece by piece.) I always like seeing what "curvy plus sized" pieces they add, too; this dotty tunic strikes me as having lots of potential. (Skinnies? black leggings?) I couldn't resist that cute little planner/journal/scrapbook, either. It had been out of stock for a long time, so I snagged it as quickly as possible. I shall use it for blogging, methinks. And that plaid blazer from Anthro? Scored with 50% off sale for a mere $35!! My first wearing will most certainly look something like this.

Now, things that I'm obsessively stalking contemplating (to the point of madness):

Spot drape side dress
dorothyperkins.com

Antique Magnolias Blouse
anthropologie.com

Taupe graduated spot top
dorothyperkins.com

Green dandelion print snood
dorothyperkins.com

Paprika heart print snood
dorothyperkins.com

Animal sateen pencil skirt
dorothyperkins.com

Ginger/black polka dot snood
dorothyperkins.com

Samanta Women's Alleyne Pump
amazon.com

I really don't think any of this needs explanation... Dots? Animal print pencil skirt? Infinity scarves? Red pumps? Heaven, help me. You are welcome to either enable me or talk me out of it. My bank account (and the boyfriend) would probably thank you for the latter.

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. ; )