Madewell maxi

I'm still on the hunt for cropped sweaters to wear with dresses and skirts.  I wore mine half tucked which probably looked a bit sloppy.  Next time I might employ the safety pin trick from Jentine and try a faux tuck.

Outfit details
Top: Banana Republic

Skirt: Madewell

Shoes: No. 6

Accessories: ?? necklace

Puppies + Bergdorf = Magic

Black Friday

I know a lot of people avidly avoid Black Friday sales but I was not one of them this past weekend.  In fact, I was with the group of 400 people lining up at the mall at 6am on Black Friday.   Is that a bit crazy?  Sure.  I don't really mind crowds and the thrill of the hunt energizes me.  To prep, I do advance detective work on what the sales are going to be (ie 50% off sale at Anthro) and then have a mental list of things to look out for.  Then I go in, I peruse, I grab, and I buy (my shopping version of veni, vidi, vici). 

This year, I did get some of the items on my mental wishlist, and was pleasantly surprised by the Madewell sale.  I scored big time and above are some of my favorites: a chambray shirt, a cozy sweater coat and two maxi skirts--just in time for the cooler weather!

What did you find this Black Friday/Cyber Monday?

Gap bird top

Do you gravitate towards certain combinations when choosing an outfit?  Here's my tried and true favorite:

• Am I in a skirt?
• Do I have a cardigan on? 
• Am I wearing any shades of grey? 
• How about some comfort shoes?
• A belt?
• And lastly, any sort of quirky animal print?

Outfit details
Top:Gap

Cardigan: Jcrew

Skirt: Vintage

Shoes: No. 6

Accessories: Lisa Levine necklace

Vintage bracelets, Jcrew belt

Tess + Sikara event

Last Friday evening, Grechen, Sydney and I attended 

a lovely event at Sikara featuring the new Tess Dress holiday collection. 

The space at Sikara is gorgeous and filled to the brim with beautiful jewelry and gemstones.

Here Sydney tries on the coolest silver cage ring, one of my favorites of the evening

Theresa's holiday line of cocktail dresses feature her trademark fit and attention to details and 

are done up in beautiful silk dupioni in vibrant colors.  You can check out the entire line here 

and also a fun feature on how to style the dresses here (I love Sydney's choices!)

We had a lot of fun trying on all the gorgeous jewelry and 

here's the gemstone ring Sydney went home with that night!

It was a lovely evening of fashion and friends--thank you Tess and Sikara!

Fall wear

Trying out the sweater over a dress look.  It's a great way to extend the life of my summer dresses and change the look up.  The length of the sweater is probably the trickiest part.  I tend to panic if I don't have my waist defined with a belt b/c then I feel sloppy.  Fortunately, a cropped sweater is a fair compromise and I was comfortable in this outfit all day *and* it hid the enormous amount of Thai food I consumed at dinner!

Outfit details
Dress: T by Alexander Wang

Sweater: H&M

Shoes: Madewell

Accessories: Vintage necklace and bracelets

Black Friday sales

Are you looking forward to Black Friday deals?  It seems like most retailers are already starting their sales--it's tough to hold on to my pennies!

Speaking of which, I was perusing BF ads and came across this one from Northpark Center in Dallas.  I had to count the zeros twice.  Only 2 after the decimal, whew!

Which stores/items are you stalking for Black Friday?

Jcrew jersey dress

Still trying to figure out indoor pictures.  If anyone has any tips let me know!  I was happy to pull out this Jcrew jersey dress from my winter clothing pile.  Usually I wear a belt with it but went with a big necklace instead.  

Outfit details
Dress: Jcrew

Shoes: No. 6

Accessories: Anthro necklace

Accessories Part II

Outfit details
Dress: 3.1 Phillip Lim

Sweater: Mayle

Accessories: vintage belt

Madewell cuff, Shaesby ring

vintage knot ring

Madewell widelegger

Today's post is for the petite ladies.  It's great that brands are now coming out with petite lengths for pants and jeans but I will say that a 30-31 inch inseam is sadly still too long for me.  Seriously.  I wear a 27 inch inseam for flats and maybe 29 inches for heels.  That's another reason why I dislike pants because my proportions are usually off (longer torso, short short legs).  Heels are a great way to offset some of that, hence my endless search for comfort shoes with a heel--and these No. 6 clogs certainly fit the bill, giving me 3 inches of height but are wearable and walkable every day.   Next, these Madewell wideleggers are close to the perfect pant because of the shape of the leg.  It hugs in at the thighs and knees then flares out at the bottom, giving the appearance of length.  From a gal who doesn't love pants, these are actually my favorite so that's saying a lot!  I highly recommend them and they're on super sale right now as well!  ps. I still had to hem them but other than that, they're still pretty perfect!

Outfit details
Top: Patterson Kincaid

Pants: Madewell

Shoes: No. 6

Rearranging

Welcome to daylight savings time and a new change of scenery!  Since it's pitch black dark when I get home now, B and I are trying to figure out another suitable location to take outfit pictures.  (well, I am, B naively thought we'd just stop outfit pictures all together--sucker) As you can see, not only do we have limited knowledge on how to operate our fancy camera, we also aren't quite sure about lighting.  Do you stand under the light, by the light, away from the light?  The puppies are also quite confused by the new location. We'll get it together soon enough!

Outfit details
Top: LE Canvas

Skirt: thrifted

Accessories: totally forgot the brand of the necklace right now

Shoes: No. 6 / Joie

I wore my No. 6 clogs with this outfit for the day but came home to these gorgeous Joies waiting for me.  What do you guys think about "shooties" (it's a shoe, no, it's a boot!).  I like the unique look but the heel is a bit unwieldy and you know how I like my comfort shoes...

Wide leg pants

Ok, so I can't give up wide leg pants just yet.  They are so comforting to me and if I don't try to buy the next size up like I usually do, I don't look like I belong in a skate park.  Not that I do anyway but you get the point.  Anyone remember JNCO jeans?  That's a way back flash back for ya.

Outfit details
Top: Jcrew

Sweater: LE canvas

Pants: Level 99

Shoes: No. 6

A love hate relationship

I have a love/hate relationship with jeans and pants.  I love that they keep me warm, but I absolutely hate how they look on me.  Due to my body shape (pear, bottom heavy), it's challenging to find pants that fit properly, let alone look good once they're on.  I've gravitated towards wide leg jeans and pants because I guess camouflage is part of human nature.  However, a wise stylist kindly told me that baggy pants weren't exactly flattering either and encouraged me towards trying slimmer pants.   I'm still not going all out emo skinny jeans or leggings, but here is my compromise.  With the weather turning cooler, I've either got to figure out how to pose in pants or find me some fleece lined leggings to wear with my beloved dresses and skirts.  Am I the only one out there that hates pants? *crickets*

Outfit details
Top: Muji

Blazer: Jcrew

Jeans: Paige

Shoes: No. 6
Accessories: Candace Ang

Secretary blouse

I never fail to visit a H&M when I'm near one and recently found this gem of a top in NYC.  I've been trying to curb my spending at H&M because it's rare that I keep a piece of theirs longer than a season or two.  Still, they are a nice way to try out a trend for minimal dollars and this secretary blouse with a tie front is impressive at just $10.  The fabric is actually quite lovely and light and drapes well and the print works perfectly for fall. I'm plotting on how to wear it next, perhaps under a blazer or cardigan!

Outfit details
Top: H&M

Skirt: vintage/thrifted

Shoes: Camper
Accessories: Jcrew belt

And a bonus picture, just because I think Link is mocking me: looking down and putting his left foot oh so delicately in front of his right.

Belt-a-holic

It is not a secret that I love belts.  They are a great accessory to add to your outfit and also act as mini alterations fixers (dress too big?  belt it!).  Animal belts in particular add a bit more fun and Anthropologie has got a few cute ones this season, and they just went on sale today! *except the bow belt  

Clock wise: Owl belt;  Horse belt; Fox belt; Bow belt

Fall is in the air

This past weekend, I put away most of my summery items and greeted my fall sweaters, skirts and pants.  I adore my summer wardrobe most of all so there are a few items I kept out to wear during these last few days of 80 degree weather.  This is my last hurrah for my J.crew fish skirt this year and I'll be sure to store it at the top so it'll be the first thing I see in March/April!

Outfit details
Top: Jcrew

Skirt: Jcrew

Blazer: Uniqlo

Shoes: No. 6
Accessories: BR belt
knot necklace