Skirt: This Way or That Way?

New-to-me Goodwill skirt

I brought this skirt home with the intent of deconstructing it and and making it in to a summery top for my upcoming trip to Cabo.  But then I got it home and decided to give it a shot before I got out the seem ripper.  Now I think I'm sold on it as a skirt. 

I found this skirt at my local Goodwill and there are still some things I just can't get over while I'm in there.  EVERY time I've been in there I've experienced:

• A Von Trapp sized family of screaming children that all seem to belong to the same family.  I realize it is cruel and unusual to leave a gaggle of children in the car during the summer, but it is annoying to have to listen to each of your eight kids should crying, shouting and carrying on!
• A shopper that wants to be in my exact location at all times "C'mon, pick a different isle or section until I've had a chance to browse this 2ft section... yes you!  Move along!"
• A man in the women's shoe section in serious contemplation over a pair of shoes - "Are you buying shoes for yourself?  Or does your wifey trust you to bring home a fabulous pair of shoes for her from the Goodwill?" 
• The smell! Does a person ever really get over the smell of a thrift store?  I'm beginning to think I should stick coffee beans in my nose while browsing to neutralize the "thrift store stink."

When I got dressed in the morning, I left the black and pink layered tank tops untucked.  When I got home I decided to see what it looked like with them tucked in... I will be going with the look on the right next time.  I feel like the look on the left draws a little more attention to my mid section.  The look on the right shows off the different pattern on the waist of the skirt and I think it looked a little more polished.

This way or that way? What do you think?  To tuck, or not to tuck?

Outfit Details
Black V Neck Tank: Express
Rose Tank: Loft
Floral Skirt: Apt. 9 via Goodwill
Rose Sandals: American Eagle Outfitters
Necklace: Cookie Lee

**By the way, I will be on vacation in Cabo San Lucas from July 2-9.  I have guest bloggers lined up during the week and I'm excited to read their take on style.  Stop by and show them some love!**

Super Casual

Let's hear it for a super casual Friday look!

I seldom dress this casual for work but there were a number of reasons I felt comfortable enough to wear this to work last Friday.  Every two years the company I work for has to go through a certification process and the time leading up to it can be a little stressful. We have a general idea of when they will show up, as in a one month window. On the day of the visit we get (at most) two hours notice before the representative shows up.  We had our review on the Thursday prior and passed with flying colors... 100% baby!  Our files were not only in order, we were told they were a fantastic example of how a file should look.  We exceeded many of the commission's standards and felt a great sense or relief (maybe a little pride) after hearing her thoughts on how we are handling things in the office.

Knowing that we'd passed our certification (and kicked ass on it) I thought I could get away with the ripped jeans.  There are certain people that feel that overalls or sparkly graphic t-shirts are appropriate for the office but I tend to disagree.  Realistically, the office is pretty casual but I just don't feel profesh enough wearing something like this daily.  But Friday felt a little like a holiday so I went with it! 

I was very pleased with how the look came together.  It's aways fun to pair a masculine piece (the ripped jeans) with a feminine piece (the white top).  I'm a huge fan of white tops and I'm guilty of buying way to many of them.  But, this one isn't your average white shirt!  When I found this top, what caught my eye was the beautiful detailing on the front and the sheer quality to the rest of it.  I played with the contrast of the picture below so you could really see the detail.  It looks a bit like an antique doily and gives the top a beautiful feminine touch.



I will definitely be on the look-out for more tops by this designer - Daniel Rainn.  When I did a google search I saw that most of the tops have a similar feeling with the light weight, flowing material and lace details. Love!

Outfit Details

White Doily Top: Daniel Rainn via TJ Maxx

Jeans: Express

Shoes: Bass

Shell Necklace: Cookie Lee

Turquoise/Gold Earrings: Cookie Lee

Imitation - Sincerest Form of Flattery

One of my favorite things about following other style bloggers is that I am constantly inspired to remix things I own in ways that I haven't thought of yet.  A few weeks ago as I was cruising through my blog roll and I stopped on Jessica's blog - Surely Sonsy - where I noticed that she was sporting a fantastic outfit featuring neutrals from top to bottom.  The other thing I noticed is that I own very similar pieces but had never worn them together.

Is this a serious lack of creativity on my part?

 OR

Is this me giving a nod to Jessica's sense of style by nearly copying her look piece for piece?

Either way, I was really happy with how the look came together and will happily continue copying being inspired by my fellow style bloggers!

By the way... my curling iron decided to die half way through styling my hair.  I don't think it was incredibly noticeable but there were a few pieces that didn't get the curl love the others received.

I am now on the search to find a great 1inch curling iron... any suggestions?

Outfit Details
Brown Sleeveless Top: Apt 9 via Kohl's
Cream Camisole: American Eagle Outfitters
Skirt: NY & Co. via my friend Lindsay
Brown Wedges: American Eagle via Payless - gift from my friend Trish

Not So Sure...

The jury is still out on this dress.  It was a great deal (we're talking less than $5 at one of those crazy Gap clearance sales) so it was too hard to pass up.  I've been toying with the idea of disassembling this dress and turning it into two pieces - a tank and a skirt.  I think both might be more flattering if they were separate.  I'm still unsure of what I'm going to do with this one.

Do you remember a few months back when I mentioned that we had a Style Dial party with my friend Amy from The Stylist Online?  I found out that I'm a #2 on the Style Dial and that means that my shoulders are narrower than my hips.  It is recommended that I avoid drop waists or wearing belts around my hips - wearing a belt on your hips can create the illusion that your hips are wider than in reality.  This dress definitely has a drop waist and the white belt was hitting my hips.  Despite the fact that I was ignoring two major pieces of advice, I kinda like the way the dress looks in the photos.  It didn't look nearly as frumpy as I was afraid it might - it can feel a bit like a potato sack while wearing it.   

Any thoughts?  Should I leave it a dress or create two pieces out of the dress???

Outfit Details
Red Tank Top: Merona via Target
Blue Pin Stripe Dress: Gap
White Woven Belt: NY&Co
Red White Blue Wedge Sandals: Gap via my sister Erica (Thanks sis!)
Necklace: Cookie Lee

Slippery - Mimi, this one's for you!

Ready... Set... HOT!!! 

I know this is a blog about style but man, the weather seems to be my favorite topic lately.  I wonder if you all are starting to think of me as that boring date that has run out of topics and is now using the good ol' "Can you believe the weather?" line to pass a few more minutes until the end of the dinner. 

As it warms up swelters in the Sacramento valley, it is important to always have a layer with you, especially when you work in an Arctic freeze zone in your office.  I know I've mentioned this before but the front part of my office is typically 10 degrees (or more) cooler than the back half of the office.  As the back part of the office reaches the high 70's, my coworkers creep up to lower the thermostat causing me to sprout goose-bumps from head to toe!  I think the jacket went on and off no fewer than five times as I attempted to regulate my heat throughout the day.

My youngest sister went through this phase when she was about 3 or 4 years old where she wanted to wear a full slip with everything she owned - not just dresses.  She called them her slippery. She would come out of her room wearing a cute little sweat suit with the slip under the sweatshirt/over the sweat pants or jeans with a Minnie Mouse shirt with the slip under the shirt/over the jeans.  It was embarrassing for me because my mom frequently volunteered at my junior high and would bring my slippery-wearing sister with her.  My friends all thought it was funny and at the time I thought it was mortifying.  My lil sis just loved the feel of the slippery and wouldn't leave the house without wearing one.   This shirt makes me understand why she wanted to wear a slip daily...

Reasons why I love this top:

It has so many great colors - burnt orange, lavender, cream, beige, brown, black.

The lovely lace detail.

It is sooo silky soft!

The flowy cut.

Did I mention is goes with everything?

It feels like a socially acceptable way to wear a slippery in public!

I just feel great whenever I put on this top.  Not only is this top versatile, it is also one of the most comfortable pieces I own!  Mimi, this slippery top is for you!

Outfit Details

Beige Jacket - kikaPaprika

Patterned Top - Sunny Leigh Via Macy's

Brown Cropped Pants - Pantology via TJ Maxx

Brown Wedges - American Eagle via Payless (gift from super friend Trish)

Brown Elastic Belt - Target

Walking on Sunshine

I'm still in love with these shoes and I'm bound and determined to pair them with anything in my closet with even a fleck of yellow.  This floral top has yellow accents throughout so the shoes and the top played very nice with each other.  I'm now on the hunt for some yellow jewelry to add to the mix. 

Last fall I dabbled in making fabric flowers and they turned out pretty cute.  I may have go get some coordinating yellow fabric and try to make a necklace similar to the one below. It looks as if I'm not the only one with yellow fever - Loo-La-Bee Simplicity also had a post dedicated to this bright, happy color!

Link

Do you have any suggestions for where I should look for great yellow accessories to pair with these shoes?

Outfit Details

Floral Kimono Top: NY Collection via Macy's

Black Slim Cropped Pants: Loft

Fabulous Yellow Shoes: Steve Madden via DSW

An Easy Choice

Very little sleep, a ton of sun, and a few way too many adult beverages left me low on the creative juices.  After a long weekend in Las Vegas, I needed an outfit that didn't require a lot of thought.

I wore this outfit to work on Tuesday. It's possible I brought summer back to Northern California with me from Vegas because it was warm on my way out the door at 7:30 AM.  This top is great for the summer because it's a light weight cotton and completely airy.   While these flip-flops are a really fun design, they are not great for wearing all day.  Even though I've had them since 2002, the strap still digs in to my foot and they become uncomfortable if I walk around too much. But I do love the Geisha style heel so I can't bring myself to get rid of them.

I had an audience while I was taking photos.  It usually bothers me a little bit when others are staring while I'm doing outfit shots but this guy is usually quietly supportive while I'm doing my thing.

Jake the Wonder Dog

Outfit Details
Shirt: Fred David via Ross
Skirt: Merona via Target
White Woven Belt: NY&Co
Wooden Flip-Flops: Candies

Viva Las Vegas

Last weekend was the girls trip to Las Vegas.  We had a great time but I only managed to get a few usable pictures - strangers never seem to slow down long enough to steady the camera for a decent photo.  Outfit photos from the first day seem to be the only usable ones on my camera!

*This may be one of my favorite "less than $20 outfits" ever!

I love the pattern and the colors on this skirt.  I'm hoping to find a top with royal blue accents soon. The outfit was super comfortable for travel - even the wedge shoes were easy to wear for the whole day.

I'm going to check with my friends that were on the trip to see if there are any other photos worth sharing.  Is that a sign of a good trip when you don't slow down long enough to take many pictures?

Outfit Details
Embellished Tank Top - Old Navy ($3 - can you believe it?)
Skirt - Merona via Free Style ($2 - can you believe it?)
Wedge Sandals - Franco Sarto via Ebay ($9 - can you believe it?)
Belt - NY&Co via Ross ($5 - can you believe it?)

It's All About the Shoes

I'd like to welcome Spring to Northern California.  It may not have hit 80 degrees in Auburn today but it did hit 80 in Roseville where I spent most of my day. So without further ado, I bring you... an outfit post!  But first I'd like to show you to my new little rays of sunshine.

Last weekend I went in to Off Broadway Shoes in Citrus Heights to check out the selection.  I was specifically looking to replace a pair of black wedges that I got rid of at the end of last summer.  The pair that I really liked was not available in my size.  I looked through the clearance section and these shoes immediately jumped out at me. I tried them on and loved them but I was trying to stay focused on what I'd come for.  It was hard to leave them behind, especially because they were 1/2 off of $49.50.

The next morning I pulled up Kimberly's Fab Finds Under $50 and guess what I found - Summer Must Have: Yellow Shoes.  A whole post dedicated to the awesomeness of bright yellow shoes!  That was enough of a sign for me.  Did you know that you can get a $5 coupon for signing up to receive special offers from Off Broadway Shoes? I signed up, printed my coupon and went back for these super lovely, yellow, Steve Madden wedges.  I got out the door for a little over $20!!!

This outfit was pretty uneventful but I've mentioned in the past, I like keep it simple the first time I wear an exciting new thing. Just a little black and white with a sunny splash of yellow!

Outfit Details
Black Cropped Pants: Larry Levine via Ross 
White T-shirt: Gap
Lovely Yellow Wedges: Steve Madden via Off Broadway Shoes
Necklace: Cookie Lee

Splish Splash Swimwear

I guess it is apparent that I'm not afraid of color when it comes to swimwear.  I know that so many people think that black is a slimming color but I think it is such a boring choice when it comes to swimwear. On top of that, my skin is so pale right now (due to lack of sun this spring) that I think black might to too stark a contrast and make me appear larger.  The one piece bathing suit seemed to be the way to go this summer so I sought out suits with a little bit of visual interest.

This weekend I'm going to Las Vegas with my girlfriends and I'm so excited to wear these little darlings poolside!  Let me introduce you to them individually...



Vamp - Jantzen



There were so many things to love about this Jantzen suit.  The rouching on the sides help to distract from any of the lumps and bumps hiding beneath and the length of the "skirt" on the suit is fabulous.  It has a halter strap if I so choose but I love the fact that I won't have to worry about tan lines with this suit.  It also ties in the back so I can adjust the top.  This is important to make sure the girls are getting the support they need.  I found this suit at TJ Maxx for $24.99 but the same suit can be found here for right around $50.  Jantzen has so many other fabulous suits right now.  They also have a great blog that features previous as well as current designs... http://jantzenswim.blogspot.com/.



Gabar



I initially loved the ruffle along the v-neck on this suit.  I've never heard of this designer before and had a hard time finding out where one might go to find this suit online - I did see a few similar ones listed on Ebay.  I found it at Ross for $19.99.  It had a tiny little bow that really didn't fit in with the rest of the suit so I took it off once I got home.  The coverage on this bust line is great and I really like that the straps are adjustable.  I often find that a suit that fits perfectly while dry often needs some adjusting after I've been in the water - problem solved!





Tommy Bahama

 I actually got this suit a while back (a year or two ago) but I've only worn it once.  Usually Tommy Bahama suits retail well over $100 but I was able to pick this one up at the factory outlet for under $30. This is another suit that I can adjust easily due to the tie behind the neck design.  Similar suit.

Looking at all of these suits together I'm  noticing a bit of a throw-back theme.  I think I might be able to wear any of them to a Mad Men poolside cocktail party.  Now I just need to find a cute little white wrap to finish off these great suits!

By the way, it is supposed to 79 degrees tomorrow... Hopefully we will get to 80 degrees and then I'll have an outfit post for you.  Fingers crossed!

The Deal

Here's the deal:

It is still cold and raining, in California, in June... blarg!!!  This past weekend I went to Reno with a bunch of friends to meet up with fellow Active 20-30 members.  Our organization invited close to 300 kids to the Reno Aces baseball game.  On the way to Reno it started snowing over the Donner Pass.  Nothing big, just a few flakes swirling around.  Once we got to Reno it was chilly but not snowing (yet).  We parked near the stadium, got out of the car and could feel the sprinkles coming down - not a good sign.  I had on jeans, long sleeve shirt, tennis shoes and a NorthFace jacket.  This should have been more than enough to keep me warm on Memorial Day Weekend in Northern California or North-West Nevada.  It went from sprinkling, to raining, to pouring, to hailing, to snowing!!!  I was soaked, cranky, cold, really cold and there wasn't anywhere to go to warm up.  The game as eventually cancelled but only after all of volunteers and the kids we invited were all equally as soaking, cranky and really cold. 

I'm so sick of the winter clothes I've been wearing for the past 8 months now.  The greater Sacramento region usually averages in the low 80's for May and the high 80's for June.  This is so not the case this year.  I'm ready for breezy clothes, sandals, cropped pants (I rarely do shorts), tank tops, and summer dresses.  To heck with sweaters, tights, tall boots, long sleeves, wool skirts, etc. 

Henceforth, I refuse to do outfits posts until we get some warmer weather... so don't worry about me until then.  I'm on strike until Mother Nature decides to send back the sun and the heat.  It is 60 degrees in my house as I'm typing and it is ridiculous to think of turning on my heater on June 2nd.  I'm going to Las Vegas on a girls trip next weekend and I promise to take pictures then (mainly because the weather forecast for Vegas is in the 90's for the whole weekend).  Until then, send warm thoughts my way please!

Sincerely,
Tiffany