Basic black

I wear a lot of black. This we all know. So when given a $20 gift card to Macy's from a coworker, what'd I do? I scoured the sale rack for a black dress. But I already have black dresses. So I had to find one that was special and I think I did :)

Dress: Nine West

Belt: came off another dress

Flats: Stuart Weitzman





























Cute, right? It was originally $118, marked down to $41, and after my gift card and an additional discount at the register, I walked away paying $15 for this dress. I also picked up a pair of dress slacks for $2.99. Can't beat that!!!! All together I saved 75% off retail.

How'd I get an additional discount at the register? I asked for one. Extra 15% for me! It never hurts to just ask the cashier if he or she has any coupons they could use for you. Being extra nice doesn't hurt, but you should be doing that anyway.

The dress is from the petites section and I rarely even darken the door of that section. I'm short, but I'm not petite. This dress has made me a believer and I'll definitely keep my eyes on that section more. The waist and bust are the right length for me and it doesn't bunch up in the back like most dresses do. It's a smidge shorter than I'm used to, but I think the proportions are right. I just think my knees could use some Photoshopping :D

Here's a close up of the adorable inverted pleats on the dress:

Have you scored any great deals lately?

I felt a little bit like Joan Holloway today.

I didn't look quite as smokin' hot, but I felt great in this dress.

Dress: borrowed from my aunt

Cardi: Kohl's

Belt: Walmart

Shoes: Stuart Weitzman

This is SO not something I'd typically wear to the office (though I totally have a Joanie job now!), but we had a "Go Red for Women" luncheon and were all encouraged to wear red. This is the first time (I think) I've ever work red on this blog as I don't even own anything red.

I didn't want to buy a new dress only to wear it once and didn't find squat at Goodwill. As luck would have it, my aunt walked in to Easter dinner with this on and I about yanked it off her - it was perfect. Fortunately we're the same size!

It has adorable cap sleeves but the weather has been ridiculous here, so I had to wear a sweater to keep from freezing.

Here's a close up of meeeeeeeee from earlier in the day:

I originally had on a necklace but decided to take it off as it was too fussy with the dress. The dress had a super cute ruffled neckline and I wanted it to be the main focus.

Can you believe I've not had a hair cut since I got married (Sept '09)? It's ridiculous. It's so dang long and drives me batshit crazy most days. HOWEVER, I don't want to wack it all off for nothing at this point. Locks of Love requires 10 inches and that's just a little too short for me right now. Guess I'll keep growing it and hope for the best!


Oh and I'd apologize about not ever posting, but that drives me nuts when other bloggers do it. Life's crazy, we're busy, blah blah blah.

Quick but not dirty

I've had some work-related changes recently (as you can see by the different background) and I'm trying to make a new habit of daily outfit posts.

Cardi: Target
Dress: Cynthia Rowley
Flats: Stuart Weitzman

J. Crew and pony hair

I know pony hair shoes freak some of you out, but OMG do I love them. I find myself petting my shoes all day. Weirdo...hahaha

Cardi: Target

Black dress: J. Crew outlet ($12 I think)

flats: Stuart Weitzman (via Zappos.com outlet)

necklace: Target

bracelet: Coach

watch: wedding gift from sweet husband


Today's the first day I've gone barelegged and boy did it feel weird this morning. They've not seen the light of day in MONTHS! hahaha

Thoughts on fashion blogging...

There's been a lot of talk on the blogs lately about fashion blogging and how realistic some blogs are (or more specifically, aren't). One of the first fashion blogs I ever started reading was Allie over at My Wardrobe Today. What drew me to her was she was a real woman with a real body. She wore clothes I could afford or even had in my closet. She went to work every day. I could relate to her.

However, she recently posted about why she wasn't blogging much these days. Again, I can relate. I'm not rich and skinny. I don't buy designer clothing, wear vintage fur, or pose in fabulous locations. I'm frequently uninspired, I come in to work before everyone and snap my photo, I shop the sale racks, and I'm broke as hell right now. I'm not trying to break into the fashion industry or make a living off this. I just love the sense of community I've found with this and have made some awesome friends along the way.

Kimberly at Fab Finds Under $50 weighed in on this as well as Budget Chic. I hope you take the time to read their takes as I can't agree with them more.

Now, on with the show! :)

Cardi: NY&Co

Ruffle top: NY&Co

Pencil skirt: NY&Co

Tights: George via Walmart

Leopard flats: Stuart Weitzman (via Zappos outlet for $40-ish I think)

Necklace: Target (I can't find it online but it's one of the lines from the case and it's currently 75% off. Cream, champagne, and grey pearls on goldtone metal. Very cute.)




Both my tights and skirt are brown but the lighting in my office combined w/my crappy cell phone make for the bottom half being a big blur. My camera battery died (snapped too many pics of the house renovations!) and I can't find my charger. Story of my life, y'all.

501

I didn't even realize it, but the last post was our 500th post. Wow!! Thanks for sticking around through everything. I've been so busy lately with getting married and remodeling our house that I just can't post as often as I like. If it makes you feel better, you're not missing anything! Not many cute outfits these days.

This shot is from a couple of weeks ago and I had forgotten it was on my camera. I LOVE this dress. I have a "no ruffles on the bottom" rule when it comes to dresses and skirts but this one is so subtle that it doesn't make me look like I should be on a TLC show for short gals in bad dresses.
Dress: Target ($10!!!!)

Cardigan: Target

Necklace: had it for years. Walmart, maybe?

Bag: Furla (with vintage Echo scarf)

Shoes you can't see: Stuart Weitzman

Sunnies who've recently fallen apart and broken my heart: MaxStudio







My sweet husband (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and I met one of our favorite friends for brunch and this is what I wore. The dress was on clearance since it was from summer (it's a halter and a titscrepancy just waiting to happen) but it looks like fall to me. The brown and rusts and creams and pinks and peaches. Just love this. It's a gauzy material and has some super unflattering smocking around the waist. No way in hell would I wear this w/out a cardigan unless I was mad at y'all and never wanted you to come back. However, I believe most of the world's problems can be solved with a cardigan and this was no exception!!

What a week!

I foolishly thought that once Al and I were married my life would be less hectic. Wrong! With the house renovations and the reception we're planning, I'm busier than ever. I tried to take outfit pics every day this week, but I never got around to posting them. That's half the battle, right?!

I'm unloading the whole week here!!

Red/black/white floral shirt: Target

Black pencil skirt: Target

Flats: Sam Edelman

Grey pearls: gift












Dress: J. Crew

Tank (under dress): Old Navy

Flats: Sam Edelman

Necklace: Sarah Balmer via Scout

I snagged this dress for $12 at the J. Crew clearance center. It was conveniently located 2 miles from where we honeymooned! I'll be posting later about our J. Crewing experience!

The dress is darling and has the cutest ruffles up top but guess who didn't bother w/a detail shot? That's right. This gal.





Double-layer t-shirt: Target

Pencil skirt: Target (same as above)

Flats: Stuart Weitzman

Necklace: Sarah Balmer via Scout


Despite appearances, I didn't wear the same things every day in a row :) These outfits were over six days.








It's remarkable how quickly the hot hot summer temps faded. I love being greeted by 60-something degrees in the mornings! I can't WAIT for fall, y'all!

The prodigal blogger returns...

Looks like I just took a three week vacation, huh? Whoops! My computer is still acting up. The battery is pretty much shot (has about a 7 minute life) and while that's manageable, the outlet for the plug is loose so it's a miracle to get the battery charging cable to make contact. I don't have the patience for it most nights and have been borrowing Al's when he's not looking.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it :)

In other news, I've not felt cute so I've not taken a single outfit pic in two weeks. You know what is cute? The shoes I wore in the last pic I snapped:
Cardi: NY&Co.

Orange cami: Target

Pencil skirt: NY&Co.

Necklace: Target (I think)

Leopard flats: Stuart Weitzman










Aren't these smack-your-mama-good???!!

(And no, I'd never smack my mama b/c she'd put me in the ground and that's no way for a good daughter to behave.)

I scored these for...are you ready for it? $45. Forty freaking five dollars. I <3 the Zappos sale!!

They're pony hair and soft and absolute perfection.