To Dress Outside the Box

I stepped into my closet this morning and randomly grabbed this shirt and this dress.  There was not a lot of thought put into the selection. I was just trying to put a look together before my husband got home from work. (Staying in your pjs all day can lead to ridicule if one isn't careful.) When all of sudden, Bam! I fell in love with the pairing.

Then when I turned around with these pieces in hand and tried to step into the box in which I usually get dressed, I realized that that crazy box was just a teeny tiny speck on the very distant horizon.

Please excuse the blur, but I couldn't really pass up the "looking back" picture with copy like that now could I?

Seeing how far outside of my tried and truly comfortable box I was, I knew with certainty that this was the perfect outfit to wear to close out the year on the old bloggy blog.

All you seasoned personal style bloggers are probably thinking to yourselves, "Stripes and polka dots? That's outside the box?" And my answer is, "Yes, yes it is."

Oh, and open toed shoes with tights is pretty out there too, while we're on the topic of crazy wazy fashion.

Polka dot Dress: Thrifted; Striped Top: The Limited

Pink Sweater: Old Navy; Belt: Express

Black Tights: 9 West; Black Heels: Me Too (DSW Clearance! $17, baby)

Earrings: 600 years old and only been worn once.  I realized today that they have avoided the trash for just this moment

So why then is this the perfect outfit to end the year? It's perfect because as I look forward to 2011 I'm so excited to continue to dress outside of the box. (I mean within reason, don't look for me in some scuba gear and a feather boa anytime soon.  I plan to keep my looks within the realm of reality.)  But, I do look forward to mixing the crap out of my closet.  I'm having too much fun to stop now!  I can't wait to use the clothes I have in new and (hopefully) interesting ways.  I'm excited about mixing and matching and maybe even

NOT MATCHING.

Ahhhhhhhhhhh!

What are you looking forward to in 2011? 

To Feel Like A Personal Style Blogger

Please don't let my silly "high fashion" pose fool you. 

This outfit makes me feel like I'm a REAL personal style blogger.

Here's my evidence.

Lots of Layers: Check

Belted Sweater: Check

What I used to consider my "I don't feel like washing my hair today" 'do,

but I've come to learn is super chic: Check

Awesome Boots secured through Product Review: Check

Homemade Skirt: Check

But you wanna know the coolest part?  This might be my most favoritest outfit EVER!

No. Joke.

And I owe it all to the blogger community!  You guys are totally inspirational.

Oh and thanks to my super-cool aunt/godmother for this awesome belt! 

I promised to put it to good use. Check.

Man, while I'm at it, thanks to Lexi for the photos. {I hope you defrosted!}

 Some days it takes a village. Right?

To Reminisce

Can you remember all the way back to Christmas Day 2010?

Today I was feeling nostalgic so I wore the outfit that I wore on Christmas this year. 

(please don't ruin my moment and point out the 4 day old elephant in the room)

Do you remember the gorgeous snow that made wearing a hat not only stylish but necessary?

Do you remember the slush and ice that made wearing these fabulous boots totally impossible and so they had to stay home and send their much more practical counterparts out instead?

That was such a fun day and this outfit was so cozy and comfortable.  I'm really glad that I got to wear it again today and relive those nearly forgotten memories.

Red Top: Express; Jeans & Sweater: Old Navy
Boots: Candies; Hat: ABC Trading Co.
Earrings: I EARNED them in a giveaway

Adorable Pin on my Hat: itsolive

I really did wear these exact clothes (with a minor boot substitution) 4 days ago on Christmas.  But the gray skies and chilly temps made the outfit pics my wonderful hubby took nearly unusable.  So, I decided to try again today when the sun came out.  The good news is that the blizzard kept us from spending time with friends on Christmas (that's not the good part - this next part is) so nobody (but my hubby and the movie theatre employees) saw my outfit.  That's why I didn't feel bad about wearing it again today.  Plus, when it's butt cold outside, I don't get all sweaty and stank up my clothes.  I love that I can wear them a couple of times without offending everyone around me.  Well, my smell doesn't offend people... winter's chill does nothing to stop my sarcastic, often biting sense of humor from offending. Consider yourself warned.

To Keep My Job

Can someone please explain to me how personal style bloggers who live in places with REAL winters manage to look all stylish and chic when it's frickin' freezing outside?

White Blouse: Express; Black Sweater: 2nd Hand Brooks Brothers

Wool Pants: Gap; Black Oxfords: DSW

Scarf: Target

You have just seen the closest you are coming to a full shot of yesterday's outfit.  I was not willing to exchange my fingers for a better picture.  The magic wasn't happening and my fingers were getting numb.

So, I gave up.

I guess you're going to have to settle for a bit of cheesecake instead.

(I don't mean real cheesecake, either.  I was just talking about an up close, mega smiley picture of yours truly.)

Can I also offer you a detailed picture of my shoes and the remaining snow left over from our white Christmas?

I might not have even shared this outfit since it was just assembled to wear to work (IE. black and white dress code mentioned previously).  But, I believe it has magical powers.  I'm being totally serious.

The first time I wore it, the owner said the one and only positive thing she has ever said to me.  She said, "Now, don't you look nice?  Why can't we all dress just like that? That's a great example of a black and white outfit."  Score one for my ultra conservative, buttoned up look.  I didn't have the heart to tell her that really I just wore it because the sweater is cashmere and the pants are lined.  (Read: It's super warm.)

Today I wore it for the second time and was informed that they've officially decided to keep me on the schedule AFTER the holidays.  This magical outfit not only earned me high praise from the owner, it got me a permanent (super part-time) job.  Not. Too. Shabby.  Don't you think the good deeds it has done earned it a post?  Me too.

To Grow Wings and a (Faux) Pelt

Every time I wear this shirt, I feel like I have wings.

Well, when I'm not worried that it's a charter member of the ugly shirt club.

Did you notice that I now have an ACTUAL furry vest? 

In case you haven't been paying attention, I've wanted one badly.

Thanks to Lexi's generosity and cowardice personal taste I inherited this one from her!

Please don't misinterpret my sarcastic jab as ingratitude.

I truly am all warm and fuzzy (get it? fuzzy) with gratitude.

Paisley Shirt: Express; Furry Vest: 2nd (maybe 3rd) Hand

Jeans: Express; Boots: Victoria's Secret

I'm so happy to be back in the bloggy world full time.  I missed you guys like crazy.

And can I just be TOTALLY cliché and say, I can't believe this year is almost over?

Any big plans for the last week of 2010?

Excuses, Excuses

There's no outfit post here today. (I promise this trend should end starting the 27th)

I've got an excuse to share with you instead.  Go ahead and save your thanks until after I give it to you. Yesterday was my only day off this week (Well, my only day off until Christmas Eve. Of course I'm off Christmas day too.  Plus, I won't be working the day after Christmas.  But, today is my only day off this week until those days.) and it was my intention to take a few shots of the super cute outfit I wore to run around and finish up all my holiday errands yesterday.  One problem, it was rainy and yucky.  The weather made outside outfit pictures next to impossible.  Then I got so busy baking and sewing once I got home that inside pictures were even nexter to impossible.  That, my friends, brings us here to an outfitless post.

However I do have one picture for you.

This is the material out of which I made a skirt yesterday.  Let me start by saying that working with flannel is WAY more difficult than working with cotton.  I didn't know this when I purchased this extra soft and cozy flannel for the most perfect winter skirt.  Last night I finally made the thing and I'm not ashamed to say that it isn't well constructed.  It's a bit of a mess actually.  BUT, when I wore it into my closet there were items leaping off hangers, begging to be worn with it.  I'm serious, a line of potential outfits formed right there in my itty bitty closet.  There was pushing and shoving and dirty looks - just like a black Friday line at the Wal-Mart.  All that mayhem has convinced me that although the skirt isn't perfect, it MUST be worn.  It has the potential of becoming an integral piece in my mixing arsenal.  Therefore, I cannot in good conscience abandon it because of a few uneven (and totally visible) stitches.

Stay tuned for its unveiling (once I get back on track around here) and PLEASE resist the urge to point and giggle at its imperfections.

Are there other materials that I should stay away from as a novice seamstress?

(it's almost an insult to seamstress' to call myself that...)

To Brave the Crowds

The hubby and I had to start finish up some Christmas shopping yesterday.

Which meant we were in the middle of retail MADNESS!!!!

Since there are only 2 or 3 Malls & Targets in the entire Chattanooga metropolitan area, being around any of them is pretty much mass hysteria from Thanksgiving through the New Year.

As a rule we avoid these areas like the plague.

But yesterday, our procrastination need for bargains forced us to brave the crowds.

And we lived to tell about it.

Orange Sweater: The Limited; Grey Skirt: Old Navy

Black Tights: Gap; Grey Boots: FREE!!!

Earrings: Quirky, pretty glass means they must be from my mother-in-law

So, the lovely fluorescent lighting of our local Target didn't show off my color combination as much as I might have liked.  This is the first time I've paired orange and grey and I'm kind of excited to have tried it.  I've seen it done so well in interior design lately that I decided to put an outfit together. 

What new (to you) color combo are you digging right now?

To Blush

While I was taking these pictures,

these teenage boys rode by on their bikes and said the most foul thing to me.

It caught me a little by surprise.

And then I was a little bit flattered, because I'm old enough to be there mom.

Which I told them.

Black Puffer Jacket: Old Navy; Grey Wool Turtleneck: Banana Republic

Jean Skirt: Express; Black Tights: Express

Knee Socks: Gifted; Grey Boots: CSN

Airplane Necklace: Forever 21

Is it wrong to have the take away lesson be, "I still got it?"

To Sit in the Airport

We spent 13 hours in the Chicago and Atlanta airports on Sunday.

Eighty to ninety percent of the flights out of O'Hare were cancelled because it looked like THIS:

I know this blog is supposed to be about what I wore... but I have to mention what I ate.

A Chicago Dog.

{And it was nearly as good in the airport as it was from the street vendor}

That hot dog made the time at the airport a little more bearable.

YUMMMMMMM

Sweater: Vintage (does "From High School" count as Vintage?) American Eagle

Wool Scarf: Brooks Brothers; Jeans: Express

Boots: Payless (??); Purse: Lisa C Purses

What's your favorite street (or airport) food?

To Fa La La La La in Chicago

There were such amazing Christmas decorations all around the city.

We soaked them up, since we STILL HAVEN'T PUT UP OUR TREE!!!

Life has been a bit cuckoo and I'm starting to wonder if it will happen at all this year.

AAAH!

Chambray Shirt: thrifted; Red Cashmere Sweater: Gifted

Izod Tie: Borrowed from the Hubby; Trouser Jeans: Ann Taylor Loft

(I wrote about them previously and then cinched 'em up to make them work this weekend)

Boots: Rocketdog

Now, I have some fessing up to do!  Both today and yesterday's outfits were inspired by one of my favorite stylish bloggers.  Kendra, over at Closet Confections, looked so amazing that I've used her look as inspiration for not only one but TWO outfits!! How could I not?  It's pure brilliance!  I must give credit where it's due.  And credit is definitely due to Kendra.

Whose look is inspiring you right now?

To Be Blown About in the Windy City

I got to spend the weekend in Chicaaaagooooo!!!

(imagine me screaming "Chicago" in an Oprah voice)

We shopped, stuffed our faces, spent time with family

Tunic: H&M; Vest: The Limited

Jeggings: Old Navy; Hat: Charlotte Russe

Pin: Gifted; Boots: CSN

and survived winter's chill!

Remember back HERE when I mentioned that I would be doing a product review for CSN?

These are the boots I received.  I'll be reviewing them in full tomorrow over at A Foreign Land.

But, I'll give you a sneak preview:
{they are pretty fabulous!}

Anywho, back to my trip.  

If I'm being honest, most of the day while we were up and down Michigan Ave I looked more like this.

Did you get hit with the winter weather this weekend??

To Be an Overachiever

A few days after I picked my items for 30 for 30

(yes, I'm still talking about the 30 for 30 challenge)

I got a seasonal job that has a dress code.

Now, I could have just gone ahead and worn whatever white shirt and black pants/dark jeans I wanted to.
(I put in a fail safe for work clothes... check the video)

Instead I decided to style the white shirt and dark skirt I had several different ways and stick to the 30 for 30 challenge. 
Can you say, "Overachiever???"

I included one of my work outfits here as #14.

But, these are three of my favorite unpublished looks.

Are you being nice to the retail workers while you shop this year???

I promise, promise, promise to take some pictures of clothes NOT in the challenge really soon.

maybe.

31, 32 & 33 of 30