I’m off to Las Vegas early tomorrow morning! (Carter has grudgingly agreed to drop me off at the airport at an ungodly hour.) It’ll be quick, two-day trip with some girlfriends, for no other reason than it’s a holiday weekend and...]]>

I’m off to Las Vegas early tomorrow morning! (Carter has grudgingly agreed to drop me off at the airport at an ungodly hour.) It’ll be quick, two-day trip with some girlfriends, for no other reason than it’s a holiday weekend and that’s worth celebrating! (Although Joani and I do have birthdays coming up – sort of – so perhaps one could call this a birthday trip?!) But seriously though, I can’t wait!

I didn’t want to take today off from work, so I’m the last to arrive. My friends are already there, posting photos on Instagram, cocktails in hand. And it’s making me crazy jealous!

I plan to spend pretty much all day at the pool, living in a swimsuit and coverup (and coated in SPF). Then come evening time we’ll probably play a little Blackjack and enjoy a bit of the Las Vegas night life.

Day: Bikini // Tote // Sunglasses // Coverup (this is the one I bought) // hair ties // Sandals // Sunscreen

Night: Dress (this is the one I bought)// Clutch // Shoes

I hope you enjoy the three-day weekend! There’s nothing like a short week (next week) to put you in a good mood! See ya Tuesday! :)

The Nordstrom Designer Sale officially began today! This year’s roundup of sale items is a nice mix of classic and trendy. Great for starting out your designer collection, or adding to it with some special, unique pieces. I almost...]]>

The Nordstrom Designer Sale officially began today! This year’s roundup of sale items is a nice mix of classic and trendy. Great for starting out your designer collection, or adding to it with some special, unique pieces. I almost always present you guys with extremely budget-friendly recommendations on my blog, but handbags are one of the few items I feel good about splurging on. If you treat them kindly, they’ll serve you well for years to come.

My mom and I hit the pre-sale yesterday and picked out some of our favorites. She ended up with this beauty and I snagged this little number. Yes, still a splurge, but a huge step down from their regular prices. Here are some of my other favorites from the sale.

By the way, Nordstrom online has free shipping… But this stuff is selling out fast! As I write this article, I keep checking back to get product links and finding bags that no longer available… So if you’re interested, act fast because there are very limited quantities and these won’t be around forever!

In the order shown above:

What are your favorites from the sale? Are they any big ticket items you’ve been coveting, waiting to buy until they go on sale?

If you’re not feeling up to shelling out cash for designer bags, you can always shop the rest of the Nordstrom Half-Yearly Sale…

Carter and I got back from New York/ Pensilvania late Sunday night. We spent the whole vacation with his parents and brother, which was great. I’m can’t even put into words how grateful I am to have a boyfriend with such...]]>

Carter and I got back from New York/ Pensilvania late Sunday night. We spent the whole vacation with his parents and brother, which was great. I’m can’t even put into words how grateful I am to have a boyfriend with such a wonderful family. I really can’t imagine it any other way, personally, but I’ve heard horror stories from friends so I realize how lucky I am!

Up until the night before we departed, I hadn’t even begun to think about packing. The only outfits I had put any thought into were the ones I was going to wear to the rehersal dinner and wedding in Pensilvania (which I shared here). But as far as what I was going to wear during my time in NYC, well your guess was as good as mine.

But sure enough, packing the night before the trip turned out to be a breeze. Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I’ve become a pretty darn good packer over the years. And that’s largely thanks to some simple packing rules that I abide by….

You might also like: What’s In my Carry On Bag

1. Put outfits together before putting anything in your suitcase
   This may seem kind of a like a no-brainer, but it’s so much more than simply visualizing your outfits or thinking “this goes with that.” You’ve seen me do it in the past, but for this trip, I went one step further and photographed all my outfits on me so I could feel confident that everything I had to wear was comfortable and worked well together. (You can see the photos I took below.) But the most helpful thing about these photographs was that when it came time to get dressed in the mornings during my trip, all I had to do was flip through the photos on my phone and I remembered exactly what I’d brought, and how I planned to wear it – right down to the shoes, bags, and other accessories. Words cannot express how helpful this was!

   
   

   Outfit 1: Target sweater, Chanel bag, Tory Burch flats. Outfit 2: H&M blouse, Fendi bag, Tory Burch flats. Outfit 3: Nordstrom (BP) blouse, Chanel bag, Vince Camuto booties. Outfit 4: Nordstrom (BP) dress, Chanel bag, Vince Camuto booties. Outfit 5: Aritzia dress, Chanel bag, Vince Camuto booties. Outfit 6: Target dress, F21 bag, DV sandals.

2. Stick to a color scheme and/or bring pieces in colors and patterns that can be mixed and matched

   Sometimes, in the interest of packing light, you need to make some tough decisions. Are you going to go with black or brown (think bags and shoes)? Gold or silver (think jewelry, and the hardware on your bags and shoes)? Making a choice and sticking to it makes putting outfits together a breeze and keeps you from needing to bring doubles of anything. So if you need to pack really light for whatever reason (maybe you’re only bringing a carry on?), I’d suggest making some tough color and metal decisions and sticking with them.

   However, if you’re like me, and totally insistant on wearing your glorious new silver bag, can’t seem to sacrifice your gold sandals, and have no real issue with mixing black and brown (aren’t rules made to be broken?)… Well, then the whole “sticking to one color thing” just isn’t going to cut it.

   Okay, plan B: Bring the pieces you love – but don’t go overboard! How do you do this, you ask? Well in my case, I decided that for every accessory I brought, I had to have at least two outfits picked out that I was planning to wear it with. Not just two outfits I COULD wear it with – two outfits I PLANNED (as in had every intention) to wear it with. In keeping with this logic, I was able to narrow my accessories down to three handbags, three pairs of shoes (yes you read that correctly), and some simple jewelry. Success!

3. Bring pieces you can wear multiple times

   Okay, I basically covered this in point #2. But to expand a little, jeans are a good example of something that can be worn more than once. I brought two pairs: one black, one dark blue. And I alternated between the two. (I also wore some dresses in between.) I ended up wearing my leather jacket (not pictured) pretty much every day because it was a tad chilly but more importantly, a leather jacket is a staple that elevates any outfit.

4. Consider the purpose of each outfit, not just how it looks

   Take shoes, for example. Yes, heels may may your outfit look 10 times better, but are you really going to go sight seeing in them? Probably not. And tops – you may feel really good in your tank top back in the hotel room, but if it’s one of those pieces that starts to creep lower and lower in the front (ladies, you know what I’m talking about), you’ll probably be self conscious wandering around in it. Same goes for short skirts, dresses, etc. As much as I hate to say it, when it comes to traveling, it’s important your outfits are practical and not just stylish. I know, pretty lame, right?

5. Be prepared for weather changes

   As much as we like to rely on the weather channel (or let’s be honest, our iPhone weather apps) to play God and predict the future for us, we all know deep down how wrong they can be. Maybe it’s the Oregonian inside me, but in my mind, there’s ALWAYS the chance of rain – no matter the time of year or where you go. And there’s also always the chance that it’s going to be be much hotter than predicted, too. In the case of heat, I brought a few pairs of shorts to wear instead of jeans with all the outfits pictured above (I didn’t end up wearing any of them). In the case of rain, a light rain jacket is always a good option. For cold mornings that turn into warm days, a tee shirt that can be worn alone, or with a coat or cardigan over it (as opposed to a cami that HAS TO be worn with a sweater or jacket) is your best bet. Try only bringing pieces that layer well, but can also be worn on their own.

Phew. Okay, sorry, I know I ramble. But if you read through my rambling, I promise there’s some good advice in there! But now I’d like to hear from you, because everyone’s style is different! What are your packing strategies and how to you get ready for a trip?

By the time this post goes up, I’ll be on a flight to New York City with Carter and his wonderful family. We’re spending a few days in the city then headed to Pensilvania to watch his cousin get married.

It’s finally starting to feel like spring here in Portland, which is a big deal, because our winters are SO GLOOMY. There’s really no better way to celebrate the return of the sun than to spend as much time as possible...]]>

It’s finally starting to feel like spring here in Portland, which is a big deal, because our winters are SO GLOOMY. There’s really no better way to celebrate the return of the sun than to spend as much time as possible outdoors, with friends.

Carter and I enjoyed a drink on our balcony yesterday after work before I headed out to meet some girlfriends for wine tasting at Thirst. It was so nice sitting outside, drink in hand, with a view of the river.

This gorgeous weather is supposed to continue through the weekend and I’ll be taking full advantage. Today I’m getting my hair cut (FINALLY!) and tonight Carter and I are headed over to my best friend and her fiance’s house for a BBQ. Tomorrow, bright and early, I’ll be throwing on a sundress and a big floppy hat to celebrate the Kentucky Derby!

Yep, life sucks right now. (Kidding.) But I must say, the sun really does bring out the best in my little city.

I hope you all get the opportunity to spend time outside in this beautiful weather this weekend! Cheers!

I fell in love with Jessia Alba’s elegant look at the Kenzo fashion show (photo courtesy of Refinery29). That dress is devine. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to track down any more photos where I could see how she styled...]]>

I fell in love with Jessia Alba’s elegant look at the Kenzo fashion show (photo courtesy of Refinery29). That dress is devine. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to track down any more photos where I could see how she styled the rest of her outfit. I’m dying to recreate this look with my own spin on styling, which got me thinking how versatile the little white dress really is.

Jessica’s Kenzo dress hasn’t gone on sale yet (and is probably out of my price range anyway), but this one from Modcloth has some similar elements and is absolutely gorgeous. (I have a feeling the ModCloth one is going to sell out really fast so scroll down to the bottom of this post to see a bunch of other white dresses!)

Here are some options for how to style the little white dress for spring, whether you like a little edge or lean more toward classic accessories.

Dress: ModCloth. Vest: Forever 21. Caged booties: MICHAEL Michael Kors. Bag: CC Skye. Earrings: Kendra Scott. Lipstick: Nars.

Click any of the little white dresses below to buy for yourself!

So tell me… How would you style the little white dress?

Some of my most popular posts have been about clothing staples and I always get a lot of followup questions about how to put those staples together and build on them with more interesting pieces. In answer to that,...]]>

Some of my most popular posts have been about clothing staples and I always get a lot of followup questions about how to put those staples together and build on them with more interesting pieces. In answer to that, there are so many exciting directions you can go with your wardrobe when you own all the staples – but today I thought I’d narrow my focus and talk about dressing for work, because most of us spend the majority of our waking hours in an office. Sure, office basics can be a little boring. But they are the foundation for some really great, non-boring outfits.

I’ll assume that by now, you already own the basic work separates: the white blouse (buy one here), black dress pants (buy them here or here), black pencil skirt (buy it here), and black pumps (buy them here)… But they’ve left you bored and uninspired. And I don’t blame ‘ya.

1. The Leopard Pump

Let’s start with one of the easiest pieces to incorporate into your existing outfit rotation: the leopard pump. Skip platforms when it comes to the office and look for a pump with a mid-height heel. Some of my picks include these, these and these.

As you can see, the neutral colors in the leopard pump are seamlessly incorporated into your already existing work wardrobe of basics.

2. The Peplum top

Peplum is a beautiful thing. It’s comfortable (see: non-restrictive), flattering, and inherently dressy. In other words, it’s pretty perfect for work. Look for a fitted (but not tight!) top with sleeves so you don’t have to think twice about whether it fits your office dress code.

Some peplum tops perfect for the office can be found here, here and here.

3. The Gold Waist Belt

This is by far the trendiest item on this list – but at the same time, it’s still appropriate for work. A gold waist belt makes a statement, without being too bold. Pick one up here, here or here. (Plus size options here and here.)

4. & 5. Gray Tee & Statement Jewelry

Get ready for my favorite outfit combos I’m showing you today! Of course, you can wear the tee without the jewelry, but it just makes the outfit when they’re worn together – don’t you agree? I know a basic tee shirt isn’t really what you think of when you think of business attire, but tucked into a pencil skirt or dress pants, you can totally make this look work. Très chic!

Pick up the gray tee here. And the necklace here. And the bracelet here. (Can you tell I’m having a bit of a love affair with J Crew right now?)

All five of the pieces I shared with you today can we mixed and matched to create a variety of outfits. Add bonus: They also transition seamlessly from the office to happy hour.

Now tell me… How do you keep your work wardrobe fresh and un-boring?

I did a major closet purge on Sunday. I do this seasonally (I shared my closet organizing tips here), but this time, I was ruthless. Any and everything I haven’t worn in the last few months is gone –...]]>

I did a major closet purge on Sunday. I do this seasonally (I shared my closet organizing tips here), but this time, I was ruthless. Any and everything I haven’t worn in the last few months is gone – sold & donated. Good riddance!

Since I stowed my winter clothes away, and purged so many pieces, my closet is looking rather empty these days. I haven’t done much in way of spring shopping yet, but that’s about to change!

In the interest of replenishing my wardrobe, this is what’s on my spring wish list. True to my usual shopping philosophy, there’s a mix of high and low. And you’ll notice the neutral color pallet in the separates, because black and white go with pretty much everything, while mixing and matching nicely. I see myself getting a lot of milage out of these clothes, and if I had the funds, I’d buy everything on this list! (A girl can dream, can’t she?) So without further adieu…

So tell me… What’s on your wishlist for the season? Do you plan to remix a lot of the clothes you already own, or are you planning to mostly shop for new ones? I don’t plan to purchase all new clothes, but it would be nice to add a few of these pieces to my collection.

You guys, I stumbled across such a great website a few days ago that I just had to share. It’s called The Hunt and it’s a community of shoppers like you and I who help each other track down...]]>

You guys, I stumbled across such a great website a few days ago that I just had to share. It’s called The Hunt and it’s a community of shoppers like you and I who help each other track down the pieces they’ve been coveting but can’t find for themselves online. That’s pretty much what I do in my spare time anyway for myself and friends (hence posts like this one), so I thought it was really cool to be a part of an online community that does this too.

For example, if there’s an outfit you pinned on Pinterest but can’t figure out where to buy the individual pieces, you could post it to The Hunt and the community will help you track it down so you can buy it for yourself. Pretty cool, huh?

I’ve only played around with the site a little bit so far, helping people hunt down clothes, but I’m excited to ask the community to help me!

Pretty cool, huh? You should check it out.

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For the record, Confessions of a Product Junkie has no business affiliation with The Hunt. I am just a fan of the site and the idea so I wanted to share it with my readers.