Victoria’s Secret Lounge Clothes
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No body does sexy-cozy like Victoria’s Secret. Beautiful models? Check. Butter soft materials? Check. Stylish cuts? Check.
Faux-fur Fleece Tunic ($69.50)
Fleece Off-the-shoulder tunic ($49.50)
Cowelneck Tee ($39.50)
Cotton & Cashmere Pointelle Sweater ($49.50)
Cotton Cashmere Colorblock Poncho Sweater ($39.50)
Rouched Cotton Cowelneck Sweater ($39.50)
Disclosure: I have nothing to disclose.
5 Trendy Fall Wardrobe Updates Under $50
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When it comes to trends, trying to keep up quickly becomes overwhelming. So every season, I choose a few of my favorite styles that end up on my list of trends I’m willing to try.
Of course, I’m on a budget when it comes to updating my wardrobe for the changing seasons. As a result, I’m always on the lookout for sales from my favorite designer stores. But sometimes a sale just isn’t enough – so I turn to the stores I know I can count on for a good deal on a trendy piece of clothing, sale or no sale.
I’ve already shown you some of the great clothes and accessories you can find at Target. So here are some other stylish wardrobe updates from my other favorite stores, each under $50! Every one of these pieces exemplifies one of my favorite Fall/Winter trends!
Trend #1: Sweater dresses in funky patterns - Old Navy Leopard Sweater Dress, $44.94
Trend #2: Statement blazers – H&M blue blazer, $34.95 (I actually own this!)
Trend #3: Faux fur – Forever 21 Faux Fur Scarf, $12.80
Trend #4: Cold-weather shorts – H&M Faux Leather Shorts, $24.95 (Yep – I also own these.)
Trend #5: Large envelope clutches – ASOS Portfolio Envelope Clutch ($35.94)
Bought, making and watching
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Bought this today…
Making this for dinner…
And watching this tonight…
It’s shaping up to be a lovely evening. Happy Sunday!
“Low Maintenance Blonde”: Is Fall’s Ombre Hair Trend Here to Stay?
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As a blonde, I’m encouraged to go get my hair colored about every six weeks. Two full months is pushing it. And anything more than two and a half is well, unacceptable. Sound high maintenance? It is. But that’s just a part of being a blonde.
In response to this – Some blondes are lashing out! They want to be low maintenance, damn it. The solution? Visible roots. (Yes, you heard me right. Showing your roots is no longer taboo.) And I don’t mean a measly month of growout – I mean serious roots.
What is the Ombre Hair Trend?
Showing “roots” in this way is called the “ombre” hair trend. It’s supposed to look like you’ve been out surfing all summer when suddenly summer changed to fall and BAM – your hair hasn’t seen the light of day in months. It’s a, um, “seamless graduation of color.” But in layman’s terms: Roots are dark, ends are light, and it’s worn with pride.
Often, the ombre trend isn’t actually about letting your highlights grow out at all. Women are dying their hair to look like this – on purpose. First, the whole head of hair is colored dark. Then a stylist paints some highlights into the lower part of the hair to make it look like it grew out that way. Seems crazy, but when done right, it can actually look quite natural and pretty.
Celebrities sporting ombre hair
Some famous faces who have been sporting the ombre trend include Bar Refaelis (above), Drew Barrymore, Rachel Bilson, Giuliana Rancic and Lauren Conrad… To name just a few.
Not all of these women were blonde to start with, so for them going “ombre” was a step in the lighter direction. But for those of us blondes, embracing this trend more or less means dying our hair dark. This may or may not be something you’re prepared to do…
How to make this trend work for you (as a blonde)
If you’re blonde already, unless you really are trying to become a brunette (and there’s nothing wrong with that!) the key is to make sure that there are still some light pieces around your face.
As you see from the photos above, Hilary Duff, Giuliana Rancic, and Bar Refaelis all have a blonde streak or two framing their faces – which keeps them from crossing over into the realm of brunette. Drew Barrymore, Rachel Bilson and Lauren Conrad choose not to do this. (But they were brunettes to begin with.)
So if you decide to dive in and go for the ombre look, and you’re not ready to go brunette just yet, ask for light, face framing highlights like some of these lovely ladies did.
What do you think? Has ombre overstayed its welcome? Or is it a legitimate alternative for low maintenance blonde hair?
DIY Glitter Shoes: Elegant, Non-messy & Waterproof
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Like a bird, I’ve always been attracted to shiny things. I’ve owned multiple gold and silver skirts over the years (before they were cool – in fact, they were quite the opposite), sparkly dresses, gold shirts… you get the idea.
Thankfully, I’ve been seeing clothing (and crafts!) with gold, silver, and sparkles appearing all over the blogosphere lately. Grateful that sparkle is “IN” right now and feeling confident in sharing my childishly glittery self, I tried my hand at some DIY glitter-iffic shoes. And I must say, I’m quite proud of how they turned out. (I’m wearing the heels today!)
I’ve been seeing some variation of this craft showing up in my Google Reader for a few months now: A Pair & a Spare made full-on glitter pumps. And See Jane made glitter heel booties. And while these both look awesome, I wasn’t sure where my lifestyle would permit me to wear solid glitter pumps or completely avoid any exposure to the Oregon rain. On top of these shoes being a little TOO glittery for me, and not waterproof, I also worried about the mess (both while doing the craft, and after the fact while I wear the shoes).
So, the obvious solution is… Toned-down, elegant, non-messy, waterproof glitter shoes!! I know, it sounds too good to be true. But it isn’t!
You’ll need…
+A pair of shoes to glitter-ify! (I went with two affordable and simple pairs from Target. Patent leather pumps ($29.99 online) and leather booties ($24.99 online).)
+Martha Stewart Crafts Glitter Acrylic Paint. (It’s cheap, weather-proof, and easy to apply. I got mine at Michael’s Craft Store!)
+Two paint brushes: One large, one small
+Tape
1) Decide on a design. Because I wanted the black pumps to be simple, elegant, and wearable, I decided on a glitter toe and heel design. As far as the black booties go, I studied them and decided what would be easy to paint and wouldn’t overtake the whole shoe. (Although in retrospect, I see that these would have been really cool in ALL glitter!)
2) Tape, where necessary. Once you have your vision figured out, tape the part of the shoe you don’t want to get any glitter on. This is especially important for pumps that have a smooth surface, because it’s hard to be precise. This also allowed me to make a clean cut off line for my glitter toe. (I didn’t tape the boots at all.)
3) Paint! With careful strokes, use your paint brush to apply a generous coat of glitter paint. You’ll notice that the first coat won’t make your shoes very glittery – so you’ll need to do multiple coats. I used about five coats on each shoe. The directions on the paint say to wait an hour between coats, so that’s what I did.
And Winston spent the ENTIRE time watching me intently, while chewing on his bone. How cute is he here (and a little creepy haha)?
And the finished product:
Like I said, I’m wearing the pumps today. This is my outfit:
Less Business, More Casual: The Unwritten Dress Code for a Casual Office
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I’m lucky. I can wear pretty much whatever I want to my office (see my outfits from last week, above). I can get away with a cozy scarf, flannel, and fuzzy boot socks one day – then switch it up with a pencil skirt and blazer the next. Of course, there are some unwritten office dress code rules that even employees at the most casual of offices need to abide by.
1) Show very minimal skin. Even if I’m dressed casually, I’m still wearing shirts with high necklines. I still wear tights if my skirt is anywhere above my knees. I still refrain from wearing skirts at all, if they’re more than a few inches above my knees. I still cover my shoulders. Blah, blah, blah. You get the idea…
2) Always look clean, put together, and “done.” Just because you’re wearing jeans doesn’t give you an excuse to look like you just rolled out of bed. If you’re going to dress casually, do it right. Take a shower. Style your hair. Slap on some makeup. Wear clean clothes. And check your mirror before leaving your house. The key is to look like you choose not to dress up because you do better work this way. Not like you were forced not to dress up because you spent the night at your boyfriends house, woke up late, and didn’t have time to shower before coming to work.
3) Avoid distracting, offensive, or otherwise inappropriate clothing. This probably goes without saying, but you’re in an office environment to get some work done. Never wear anything that is going to distract you or your coworkers from their jobs (unless it’s just a quick distracted moment for them to say “cute sweater!”)
4) Dress up for job interviews, meetings, conferences, or other important events. Times when you’ll be representing yourself or your company, you’ll want to be looking your best. That means professional. I promise, you’ll be taken seriously and gain respect if you do. So invest in a nice suite or two for those occasions, and leave your jeans at home. (For more information on how to dress for these sorts of things, check out my other blog post “How to Dress for a Job Interview.”)
5) Dress for the job you want, not the job you have. If your whole team wears jeans to work, but your boss whose job you want someday wears suites – then wear suites! Just because your co-workers dress casually doesn’t mean you HAVE to. If you want to be treated like a respected business executive, then look the part.
6) Have fun with your clothes! Okay, this is a rule I made up. But I think everyone should follow it! Clothes should be a fun form of personal expression, not a restriction. Yes – it’s possible to wear cute, creative outfits in a formal business setting. But you have so many more options in a casual office environment. So be grateful for the environment you’re in and wear clothes that make you feel good about yourself. Plan your outfits the night before so you don’t have to stress in the morning. Pile on some statement jewelry. Throw on a pair of leopard print heels. Belt your button down to give yourself a flattering waistline. Try some new ways of tying your scarves. Or wear some fun tights. Just because you’re working in a casual office environment doesn’t mean you shouldn’t put any thought into your outfits!
And there you have it! These are my unwritten rules for dressing the part in a casual, corporate environment. Of course, I should point out that you should always dress up for your first day of work. You don’t really know what the atmosphere of your office is going to be until you have worked there. So wait to break out your jeans until you KNOW that your definition of “casual” is the same as your boss’ definition.
Do you have any more tips on dressing for a casual office? I always wonder about where the line is drawn. Is it ever acceptable to wear leggings? Do you think in a casual office, any kind of shoes are a “go”? Feel free to weigh in!
Ps. Because people have been asking me for it – here is the info about the outfits featured at the beginning of this post…
(Clockwise from the top) Outfit one: ♥ American Eagle flannel (old) ♥ Target scarf and faux-leather bomber jacket ♥ Free People black jeans ♥ Etienne Aigner riding boots ♥ Steve Madden Boot Socks ♥ Outfit two: H&M denim button down ♥ The Limited belt ♥ Forever 21 necklace ♥ Free People black jeans ♥ Anne Klien leopard pumps ♥ Outfit three: ♥ Splendid blazer ♥ H&M striped neck shirt and scarf (tied like a bow – learn how here) ♥ AG jeans ♥ Mojo Moxi bow pumps ♥ Outfit four: ♥ Target striped sweater ♥ Forever 21 scarf (tied like an infinity scarf – learn how here) ♥ Forever 21 faux-leather skirt and black tights ♥
Black tights and shorts: Outfit inspiration
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Any excuse to get more use out of my shorts is alright with me! That’s why I’m so grateful to Pinterest.com for providing me with all of these shorts with black tights outfit ideas. Dressed up or dressed down, if I can wear this look half as well as these ladies (above and below), I’ll be a happy woman. (Image above via.)
Which is your favorite look? I love them all but I think the first and the last are my favorites. One of the reasons I’m so excited about the last photo is that I already own all of these clothes, sans the polka dot tights. So it should be really easy to recreate. (I could probably just wear my bow print tights from this blog post about mixing patterns.)
What’s your shoe buying criteria? (What I Bought #5)
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Boring shoes no longer have a place in my closet. Practical shoes? Yes. Comfortable shoes? Yes. Boring shoes? Absolutely not.
It’s easy to gravitate toward the same style or color of shoes. I counted and it turns out that I own nine variations of the same black pumps (including those above). Now tell me, why on earth would I need nine pairs of black pumps? I can’t think of a reason.
So, I made a couple of rules for shoe buying, going forward…
1) Each pair of shoes has to have something unique and special about them. For example, the black pumps above have a glitter wedge (although you can’t see it in the photo). I’m a sucker for anything and everything sparkly, so that was special enough for me.
2) Shoes need to be more then just special, unique and creative. They need to be wearable. So when I buy shoes, I visualize the outfit I’m going to wear with them. I do a mental slideshow of my pants, skirts, dresses and blouses to make sure that a new purchase can be added seamlessly to my existing wardrobe.
Once a pair sizes up against this criteria, then and only then does it get added to my collection. I’m hoping this will keep me from buying too many silly shoes, or repeats of what I already own.
What’s your philosophy when it comes to buying shoes? Do you have your own criteria for purchasing?
Okay… Now on to the fun part! Enjoying new shoes! (I bought all of these over the past few weeks. All are from DSW except for the Aldo pumps, which are from the Aldo store in the mall.)
Mojo Moxy pumps with bows on the toes:
AK Ann Kline iFlex pumps in cheetah:
Etienne Aigner riding boots in brown with Steve Madden boot socks:
Aldo black wedge pumps with glitter wedge:
