New York Inspiration

On Friday, Joe and I jetted off to New York to spend the weekend in the city as a surprise birthday gift for his 29th birthday.  We had a wonderful time full of eating including BRGR, Levain cookies, Grom gelato, a visit to the Meat Hook in Brooklyn (Have you been? it is owned by my brother's best friend Brent and is an absurdly awesome cooking/butcher store), and a trip to Almond restaurant... a lot of splurging, but since I eat clean 90% of the time, these splurges were OK and I am back on the healthy eating wagon this week!.

I spent a lot of time eye-ing up the women of Manhattan to see how they handled the cold weather.  Although it was a gorgeous high-50's day on Saturday, Sunday and Monday were much colder and the city sure bundled up, but the women still looked great.  Of course, as New York as it is, there was a LOT of black, but it looked so good.  Black will never go out of style, it goes with everything, and it looks chic.

It's evident in my blog that I love color; however, I do think that it is a lot easier to get ready to face the day when it is FREEZING outside if you can just throw on a black outfit (maybe a bit of color around your face) to trudge to work.  Without further ado, here is some New York City inspiration for your Tuesday!  (P.S. The boots are only $45!! You're WELCOME!)

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Oh and one more thing - I FINALLY got my hands on a Spike the Punch necklace (Happy dance!!!!).  If you've been trying to order a necklace, you should follow her on facebook because she always posts when she adds new necklaces to Etsy so you can grab one up right when she posts them!

Discover: Topshop

I love Topshop.  The UK-based retailer sells reasonably-priced, stunning, and classy clothes (and free shipping to the US over $75, only $10 flat fee otherwise).  Best of all, they update their offerings frequently, so there are always new pieces to see.  Per my usual, as I was fake-shopping the site earlier this week, I found some really great buys for under $100, and felt it totally necessary to share with you!

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  If you weren't already familiar with Topshop, you now have another online shopping destination; and if you already were familiar, what other Topshop items are you pining after?

12.28.2011

Feeling like you need to spice it up a bit for the new year?  Want to take your drab office looks up a notch?  Consider some "unconventional" suiting options - like a sleeveless blazer, for instance.  It's still dressy, but much more interesting than the typical suit jacket.  Also, women's blouses are so beautiful and feminine lately, why cover the entire thing up with a standard jacket blazer? 

I also threw in a pair of sparkly heels, which may not be practical now, but buy on sale and enjoy a few months from now - can't hurt, right?  The patchwork sandals add a bit of shimmer to an otherwise solid colored outfit.  Do something fancy with your nails to add another layer to your look.  Finish the look off with a bold necklace and a clutch - another colored necklace or clutch could work here - perhaps a teal to go with the bold magenta purple of the shirt.  BE ADVENTUROUS in 2012!

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P.S.  If you're going to purchase anything you see on the blog, please consider buying through the links provided, as they are affiliate links that help keep this little blog running! Many thanks, mi amigas!

12.20.2011

Whew, I finally came up for some air and have a lovely look for you today.  Things sure are crazy when you're preparing for the holidays, aren't they?  This past weekend, we celebrated Christmas a week early with my boyfriend's family.  We had a wonderful time filled with food, wine galore, and a rowdy game of Taboo that ended up turning into a crazy game of Charades - it was a VERY fun night.

Despite how busy I've been, I still try to put together polished looks every day for work because I know it's the best way for me to avoid the "winter clothing slump".  The WCS is a syndrome I would best describe as boring pants + plain shoes + drab sweaters outfits because it's too cold in the morning and too dreary outside to muster up any energy to dress well.  This year, I am NOT letting WCS happen to me, and I won't let it happen to you either!

Here is an outfit I wore to work last week with black opaque tights.  I found a similar skirt on sale for $20 at TJ Maxx (but don't call me a maxxinista, because I am not going to lie, those commercials drive me a little batty!) and thought it would look so chic to wear head-to-toe black and throw on my favorite red coat and gold necklace for a little oomph.  I felt so late 50's/early 60's Mad Men-ish in this outfit!  It's wonderful what a classy outfit can do for my mood.  What do you think?

Turtleneck / Skirt / Coat / Sunglasses / Necklace / Purse / Shoes

Thrifty Thursday 11.02.11

Okay, so I have a confession about this post.  The clutch is not OVERLY thrifty..... however, in my defense, the rest of the outfit is VERY thrifty so I think you could stand to drop a cool $40 on the super awesome, massive striped clutch that is kind of ridiculous but so fun and will add some drama to so many different outfits.  You can thank me later.

Onwards to the savings!

This rust-brown colored skirt is feminine and classy - and initially I thought of pairing it with an animal print (just as Forever21 styled it for their site) but decided to go with something more streamlined and instead chose a black dolman top and a dramatic black collar necklace instead.  Paired with a simple pair of black heels and the amazing striped clutch, this outfit has some great details for a small amount of change!  Happy Thursday dears, see you back here tomorrow!

Ring Shirt or Shirt Skirt Necklace Shoes Clutch