OOTD - Surprise Surprise

So when I bought these pants from Banana I thought I could only really wear them with brown. They are a taupe with a dark grey/brown stripe running through them. But I really wanted to wear my black shoes so I had experiment and see if I could make it work together. Low and behold these pants look great against a black pallet! It's like a surprise deal for an item you've already purchased!

The inspirational shoe - Sofft

OOTD - Funfessional

Quick OOTD - this is actually a dress I bought from Target and of course wanted to wear right away (I am awful about waiting to wait my new purchases, lol). I didn't realize how short the dress was until I tried to wear it to work, so to make it a bit more professional I threw black tights underneath and a black belted long sleeve button up on top. Add fun earrings and black heels and I'm done! It's fun, it's professional, it's funfessional! Yup, that's my new word! Haha. Enjoy this OOTD!

Do Retro

I went to a brunch (my absolutely favorite meal of the day) with friends the other day and wanted to do something fun with my hair. I had decided that I wanted to wear my sequined J. Crew top so any hairstyle I did had to be an up-do. 99.9% of the time I start my up-dos with a basket weave in the back - I do it because it's so simple. It's kind of like a french braid, but instead of braiding you're just laying and layering pieces over each other. If you're interested here's a youtube how-to video (hmm, youtube is being uncooperative right now - check back for the link). After my upside down basket weave I took the hair at the top and split it into two sections, rolling them together to create Victory Rolls. This is such a fun and retro look - it definitely turned heads as I walked down the street and got lots of compliments from my friends. It's unbelievable that I literally just threw this together - love it. I have officially added this to my hairstyle library. Next time I'll try to do step-by-step instruction pictures for  you ladies.

I've missed you!

I can't believe it's been so long since my last post! I haven't been able to blog or read any of my favorite blogs, and I have most definitely missed it! But I am back and I have so many things to talk about. As much as I have been neglecting my blog I have also been neglecting my shoe cabinet. There hasn't been an new addition in what seems like forever! Well I rectified that today. I went to Newbury Street in Boston to hit up the H&M. On my recent trip to London I rediscovered the store and wanted to see what I could get today. Well let me tell you how disappointed I was - three was nothing in a size larger than a Medium/10! Hello H&M, there are lots of ladies that wear large and extra large, and need a 12 plus. Frustrating. So since I had already paid for 2 hours of metered parking I stopped in to Marshalls before leaving. Jackpot! There were one pair of shoes in my size... a beautiful pair of suede neutral heels by Stuart Weitzman (Saxony Sandal). I. love. these. shoes. I can see myself wearing them to death this summer. Are they comfortable? Who knows and who cares, they are cute! And really that's all the matters! Plus they were only $150; they're on sale on Zappos.com for $255 and originally they were $365! I love it when a fab shoe deal comes together.

Sized in Style - Summertime... and the living is easy...

Groundhog's Day was a week ago, and that little bugger, bless his heart, didn't see his shadow. What does that mean? It's an early Spring!! So in anticipation for Spring, and eventually Summer, I have started looking for the swimsuit of 2011. I usually by one suit a year to replace the one that I throw out and because I have a slightly hard to fit body I start looking early. Plus bathing suit shopping reminds me that there are warm days coming, even if it doesn't currently feel like it.

I have an average build, although I am tall, but my biggest issue is the chest. My girls are lovely, but they are large, and while I love bikini's those strings only offer so much support. Let's be honest, they offer no support at all! But there are brands that cater to us and they don't look like they're made for our grandmas either.

"Pier" by Freya (photo courtesy of Nordstrom)

"Pier" by Freya. This cute retro number comes in bikini and tankini versions; the underwire top goes up to size 38F! I love the skirted bottom, although I'm not sure how flattering it would be on a non-model body. Good news though - it comes in a regular bikini bottom. Those people at Freya thought of everything. I love the polka dots, but I already own 2 suits with various sized dots, not sure if a third suit is really needed.

"Kenya" by Carmen Mark Valvo (photo courtesy of Nordstrom)

Not everyone wants to wear a bikini, but that doesn't mean you don't want fashion. That's why I love this bandeau number by Carmen Mark Valvo. It has a detachable halter if you're looking for more support, the shirring has a sliming effect, and the skirted bottom is sexy not matronly. Sizes range form 6 to 16 which is great - definitly would have to try it on. My only gripe - I wish it came in additional colors.

Liberty Briland by J. Crew

This suit is another retro favorite - it's fresh with white grounds and a dainty floral pattern and there are decorative buttons between the bust. This suit comes in a d-cup for us well endowed ladies and the bottoms look like they are very versatile for various body types. I wonder how comfortable that strap will be after a day on the beach - looks a little dainty (i.e. unsupportive)

OOTD - Yellow Happiness

One thing I try really hard not to do in the winter is to live in a perpetual outfit of black, brown, and gray. I actually don't even own a black winter coat! But when you're in the dead of the season it gets harder to stay color motivated - but shoes, of lovely shoes, they can always do the color splash trick! I love shoes that are in unexpected colors. New shoes - love 'em. What, they come in crazy colors!? I can't get my wallet out fast enough! That way, when I'm stuck in my hotel because the 5th blizzard in as many weeks is dumping another 8" of snow, the office is closed, and planes and trains are going no where, I have a little piece of happiness on my feet.

Shoes - J Crew (a deal at TJ Maxx)

Tank - J. Crew Factory Outlet

Jeans - Joe's Jeans Cigarette fit

Sweater - J. Crew (on clearance)

OOTD - A Structured Flow

Everyone has been talking about the maxi skirt. I love skirts! I love dresses and I love skirts. Yet I haven't even seen a maxi skirt while I've been out and about in the stores. So alas, my closet is still longing. But wait, I have a bunch of maxi dresses... I wonder if I can get the same look... by golly yes I can!!

Dress J. Crew (last summer)

Tee Banana Republic (on clearance)

Jacket TJ Maxx

Belt - Gap Outlet

OOTD - One pair of boots to rule them all...

Hi Ladies! Welcome back to the work week! I really hope some of you are lounging in a nice warm climate, because we are preparing for our um-teenth snow storm in less than a month. This OOTD is a little different than the ones in the past - I was in New York for work last week. New York isn't very good with snow, actually it becomes lakes of icy cold slush that wait on the street corners and want to creep into your shoes and torment your toes. So no fancy shoes for me. I should have worn my rain boots, but due to the early flight I wasn't thinking correctly and wore my leather boots. So what follows are the outfits for the week that went with my boots.

Day One:

Sweatter J. Crew

Dress Banana Republic

Belt Gap Outlet

Day Two:

Top J. Crew

Skirt BCBG

Belt Gap Outlet 

 

Day Three:

Sweater, tees, pants J. Crew

Belt Gap Outlet

Necklace Nordstrom

Day Four:

Jeans Joe's Jeans

Sweater Gap Outlet

Tee Nordstrom Rack

OOTD - Oldie but Goodie

Just a quick OOTD post today ladies - this is something I wore for a quick "catch up" and dinner with friends. It a simple oldie but goodie - jeans, boots, and a nice sweater. Sorry for a lack of a shoe picture in this OOTD, I was running late (as usual) so I wasn't able to click the pic. Enjoy the rest of the weekend!

J. Crew Pullover V-neck Sweater
Seven Cigarette Jeans

Sam Edelman Boots

Michael Kors watch - love this purchase

Lia Sophia Necklace

Attention Shoppers - Anthropologie

I will admit, I'm not a huge Anthro shopper, but as I browse the blogs I see so many things that I absolutely adore. So when I was in the mall this weekend I thought I'd pop in - results are mixed. First off I think I'm a little spoiled with all the additional % off sales going on right now, so the fact that Anthro didn't give any additional discounts at the register was a bit of a disappointment. Second, there were a few things I loved but they didn't come in my size (bummer) - I noticed that the sizing seems to run small at this store, at least it did for the items I tried on. I'll have to see if they come in additional sizes online. Oh well - it's probably good for my wallet :o)

I saw this sweater on a mannequin and immediately fell in love. It's a dress; It's a cardigan; It's a wrap; It's all of the above! I would wear this to death! Unfortunately this seemed to run on the smaller size so it didn't fit as well as I'd like. And for the price (if I remember correctly it's around $100) it needs to fit. So sad, but it had to stay at the store.

I really like this top. I actually left the store with this top. But I think I will be returning this top. Why? Value value value. This was $50! And compared to the jacket below and the sweater above, I just don't think it's actually worth $50. It's a jersey knit striped open cardigan. It fits great, the sleeves are nice and long... hmm now I'm talking myself back into keeping it. I'll have to sleep on it. What do you ladies think??

I really wanted this jacket to work. Not only was it cute, but it was only $40, which is a steal! It was exaggerated shoulders, a marled fabric, and a cute back! But for me it was a little light under the arms and across the chest. I don't think it runs small per say, I just think it's cut in a way that's not good for well endowed women. But if you have a smaller chest I would 100% recommend this jacket!

Fit for a Queen

It's finally done and I feel like my obsession with HGTV has paid off! I've mentioned in previous posts that one of my unofficial resolutions is to reorganize my life - I started with my bedroom. It's taken a little longer to finish than planned but I just put the finishing touches on last night and I'm ready to share. I decided to take this on in 2011, specifically my bedroom, because I really felt like I was in a rut and I wasn't inspired by my space anymore. I loved the color theme (black, white, and neutrals) that I did 2 years ago, but I hadn't changed my furniture layout in over 5 years and I had so much unneeded and unwanted "stuff" cluttering my space that it just made me feel claustrophobic. And that's not cool in your bedroom!

View from the door

I am utterly mortified at how messy my room was in the before pictures, but in my defense I has just come back from a 2 week vacation so my suitcase had exploded over my room, and since we're all friends I thought I could share. As you can see I have shoe boxes everywhere, shopping bags from my latest retail conquests, random needless papers on my dresser, and the clutter goes on and on. Well no more! PS: Notice the small closet - thanks Boston architecture.

View from head of bed

View from the door

Moving furniture + cleaning house = fabulous new room! Drum roll please.............

View from the door

View from the headboard (old location)
That's my tiny closet in the corner

Above my headboard

My jewelry, perfume, hair station

Attention Shoppers - J. Crew

Holy moly the shopping gods are smiling today ladies! J. Crew is doing an additional 50% off of all sale items in store (I believe it's 40% online). So of course I had to go check it out - I stuck mainly to the sale rack, although I did try some FP items on. Just gotta hope and pray that they will still have my size when they eventually go on sale. I refuse to pay full price (except for pants and shoes) - so I'm reaching way, way, way deep inside to call upon all the paitence I have. The markdowns can't come soon enough! Ok, on to the fitting room...

I L.O.V.E this jacket! If I had a hundred bucks to blow it would go toward this jacket. This jacket is a knit material, so it's structured enough for the office, but casual enough in fabrication for weekend wear. I would say this runs relatively TTS. I tried on a large and if I wore just tees under the jacket I would be fine. Anything thicker and I'd either have to go up to an XL or not button it. It's $118 - I can't seem to find it online so you'll have to keep your eyes peeled in stores for this baby!

This is the Sailor Sweater - I do love the stripes, and the 3/4 sleeves. Overall it is very comfortable - light weight material that would be great for spring with jeans or to throw on over shorts for an evening stroll on the beach. In terms of sizing I'd sat TTF - this is an XL and it's slightly large in the arm area but nothing that would stop me from buying it. At $88 it's a little steep for what it is, but at $30-$40 I'll snap it up. This comes in black linen (shown here) and seaweed ivory.

This was on sale for $12, but honestly I didn't love it. I own a lot on tanks as it is, but I only use them as layering pieces and I just can't figure out how to get optimal use out of this in my wardrobe so it didn't come home with me.

I have never seen this sweater before, and I stalk, I mean shop hehe, J. Crew.com on a regular basis. This sweater is so fab I almost can't stand it. It's an open cardigan with sequin and studs all along the front lapel. I practically stole this baby for $50. I think it runs a little big so I ended up sizing down one size. Look out for this in future OOTDs!

I've seen this sweater on so many blogs for a little over a month now and everytime I see it incorported in an outfit I think go myself "I love that sweater. I wish I had that sweater. Sad face." Now I do! There were two different cardigan styles using this marled fabric. This one is a little longer and it has zipper detailing. And at $40 I think it's a great addition to my sweater collection. It's super warm, nice long sleeves (important for a tall gal like me), and it fits TTS.