Better Together

Jumping off point: new blue button-up.

I have watched other bloggers rock simple button-ups for the last several months. Under a thin sweater, under a pretty pearl bib necklace, this staple can look great in oh so many ways! (But not if you don't have one.) I didn't, until last week. I had a lovely Old Navy gift card and with it, I obtained the perfect trench coat (which will definitely be showing up in posts shortly) and a great new shirt.

Shirt: Old Navy. Necklace: NY&Co. Belt: Thrifted. Shorts: Old Navy. Shoes: Call it Spring.

"Just ONE outfit picture?" you say? "But you usually put so many pictures of yourself on here!" you say.

True. But it just wasn't working for me the day I took these. The pictures that really came out great are of some other little posers in my house that day. My family came down to visit! Look what a little model my sister is:

I know, right? And yes, she just looks like that. 5'9". Yup. Exactly model-size. And here's my "little" brother:

I was so thrilled to see them last week! There's nothing better than being surrounded by family.

(Not) Fake Plastic Trees

Hey guys! I just found out about possibly the coolest thing to happen to my blog yet - it's going to get a tree planted for it! Bah! Ixpo is planting trees for blogs and websites to counteract the carbon generated by hits to those sites, isn't that so great? Here's how you, too, can join in:

1. Add a button to your header/footer/sidebar (as you can see over on the left of my blog now)
2. Write a blog post about it. (Example: this one you're reading right now. Whoa.)
3. Email them to tell them about it.

That's it!

You even get to choose from a few options for the button that works best for you. Neat, eh? I'm psyched. I guess they email you when they plant your tree, so I'll be sure to let all you out there in blog-land know when that happens. It'll be a proud moment for me, I tell ya.

Want more information? Go here.

Short Skirt

It has recently come to my attention that many of the people who view my blog, as well as several of those I follow, are mormon. I am not mormon.

There's no problem with that, of course, but when I realized this fact I wondered why it was so - I think it has to do with modesty. I tend to dress modestly, especially in the wintertime, as my blog so far would attest. BUT. The pictures in this post may just get me kicked out of that ring of folks!

Shirt: Anthro. Belt: Husband's. Skirt: Hand-me-down from friend. Shoes: Call it Spring via Zappos.

For me, propriety is not dictated by hard and fast rules of any kind. (Yes, there's a point below which I will not allow my necklines to go; and yes, there is a definite point above which my hemline cannot rise. Never ever no way.) But really, I think that it has much more to do with time, place, and company. I wore this outfit to an afternoon cookout with some female friends, partially because I was so excited to receive this skirt from a friend (I love it!) and partially to celebrate the gorgeous sunny weather we were having. I think that was appropriate. Would I wear this to teach? No way. Would I wear this to a bar? Not a chance. That's modesty for me.

Also, do you like my little side bun there? I was loving it. I have never gotten one to work well, but for that I:

1. twisted hair, starting at temple on right side, curving back along hairline to left ear.

2. pull all twisted hair into ponytail holder.

3. curl a lot. (My hair was already curled from the day before, so I skipped this.)

4. pin up in a loose, messy bun-thing.

Edit: When I posted this, I wanted to include the tutorial that showed me how to do this. I couldn't find it, but thanks to pinterest, I saw it again! Go here for better instructions, and in-process pictures. Plus, check out how cute the model is:

Have a good day, all!

My Hands Are Small

but they sew things! In the last few days, I have finished up a project that I started on before the deployment began (which, since I'm counting, was over 5 weeks ago) and finally got myself to complete tonight! I had two spots for a cushion, so I bought the fabric and foam (which is freaking expensive, by the way!! Crazy.) and you can see for yourself how great the need. Windowseat:

Boring!

Random, weird square thing in my Bonus room:

But I sewed cushions. Complete with cording (/welting. Potayto potahto!) and a zipper so I can wash them when needed. Look look look:

So the fit isn't perfect, and there are definitely some flaws, especially around each of the zippers, but I am pretty pleased. So if you come over to see it, please stand back to admire.

: P

Sunny Day, Chasing the Clouds Away

Okay, I was bratty, I was all, "Oh, I'm sorry everyone else is having bad weather; my weather is just lovely!" which is kind of bratty. So now it's cold here. Dang my jinxings!

But these pictures are from last week, on a day that was truly beautiful. I had a crazy subbing job that day, but for about 30 minutes of their computer lab time, I got to sit outside on a bench and write my Sub Note.

Sunglasses: Husband's Ray Bans. Tee and skirt: Ann Taylor Loft. Shoes: Thrifted.

I'm still refusing to turn on the heat, but dang, all that sunshine was nice. 

In any case, I have this neat-o friend with a new blog who is just beginning her own 30 for 30 challenge. Honestly, she's probably going to be annoyingly good at this challenge, so be forewarned. But she's all sorts of crafty and inventive, so go look! Now!

You know those days that feel like a Friday? Those days that really seem like they should be the end of your week? I had one of those last Thursday, so when I woke up on Friday I needed a little more reason to get going than usual. This is a little trick I call Dress for Success:

Sweater: Thrifted NY&Co. Tank: Thrifted Ann Taylor Petites. Necklace and Pencil skirt: Ann Taylor Loft. Heels: Bandolino.

I loved wearing this. The shirt was sometimes tucked, sometimes not, and I wore the sweater all day but not in the evening, and I actually liked it each way! But really, be it pencil skirts or sweatsuits, any outfit that gets you from week to weekend is a good one.

One of These Things is not Like the Other

Okay, that's a lie.

This post shows an outfit that I stole from another blogger. Almost exactly, not like "I saw someone wearing blue so I was inspired to wear these socks, sorry I stole your idea . . ." Fur real. I stole it.

Look. Here's Jen wearing the outfit:

And here's me:

Sweater, flower and belt: NY&Co. Dress: Thrifted White House Black Market. Flats: can't remember.

So, wow. That's a dang similar outfit. But I got to wear this dress as the skirt, which I almost never wear.

And this cardigan - I have LOVED it since picking it up at my favorite thrift store in KC but have never quite figured out a great way to wear it, which is what I picked up. The real thing I wanted to pick up from Jen's outfit (above. JenLovesKev, people, get with it.) was that she wore her awesome-bold-floral cardigan all buttoned up, as a shirt. I NEVER do this. They often tug at my belly and accent that area . . . not pleasant. But I tried it, and I don't think it's bad, especially with the belt.

Basically, I loved wearing this outfit, taking and seeing these pictures, and getting to wear some of my favorite clothes. Thanks, Jen!

Happy Birthday to ME!

So my birthday was 10 days ago, but I'm just now getting to the pictures of what I got for myself. I know I've admitted my ATLoft addiction on here, and have been trying to quit slowly, but I had a $15 birthday gift coupon thing (from them! Woo hoo!) and so I decided to take myself down there and use it, as a gift to myself. WELL. Let's just say I was not expecting this little number that I purchased. Here, look:

Dress: Ann Taylor Loft. Flats: TJ Maxx.

Here's why I was very surprised: sure, Loft knows how to fit me. The petites are clearly based on exactly my measurements. But their dresses are usually tight on my hips and make me look about 3 months along, while leaving lots of gaping room up top. (You know what I mean.) But this one is great! It fits nicely, with enough room for easy wear. And look at all that ruffle! I'm amazed. I don't know if you can tell from the pictures, but the skirt has gold thread to it, which is really fun. (It's also very wrinkled. Sorry, these were taken after lots of church-sitting.)

One negative: This was such a lazy outfit. I mean, I could have added a belt, or some color, but no. You can see the blazer I wore over it for church (blending in with my chair in the background there) and the gold shoes and the gold bracelet and earring . . . wow. Are you impressed yet? I promise not to lean so heavily on the wonders of this piece in the future. Thanks for being there for me, support group!

Random note: Can I just say that I'm really sorry to the folks who may read here who have gotten snow lately? That's just madness, say I. It has stayed truly fabulous (between 40s and 60s, some days in the 70s or above, and very sunny!) here for over a week now! I have been loving it and not posting about it. I know it's kind of cruel for me to point it out now, especially for those not getting this loveliness, but I figured I'm just taking it for granted if I don't even mention it. So there, I love you, weather! Please stay with me a long, long time.

Can we Fix It?

Yes We Can!


Okay, so I've been on a buy-this-ugly-skirt-and-shorten-it-cute-like, a la Kara from Unusual Form. Her tutorial is by far the most thorough I've ever seen. While you may think, "I can figure out how to fold something shorter and sew it that way, why do I need her tutorial?" I agree with you but with vintage-y, lined skirts in fabrics like linen and wool, and where you really want to use a blind hem, who couldn't use a few pointers? And her results are so good and so consistent, it's worth a look even if you don't have a stack of skirts like me. (Skack? Okay, maybe that's going too far.) Anyway, go there and read. You'll be better for it.

So *ahem* back to me. I have pictures here of my first skirt to try this with. While I am not at all doubting whether to hack it shorter, I have to say that I liked the pictures I took of it long much more than I thought I would, especially with the mustard tee I randomly tried it on with. I'm going to document it like a normal outfit, but I must be clear: I did not wear this for a day. I know, your whole world revolves around knowing what I wore when and why, so I need to get this right.

Tee: Target. ($7) Skirt: Thrifted. ($1) Shoes: Thrifted. ($3)

This is about the proposed length. I know I need to decide exactly, but until I start experimenting by pinning it up and checking it out, I can only say I think it should be abouuuuuut knee length. (FEEL FREE to leave suggestions! For reference, I am 5'2". Little person size.) Oh, and did I mention this was part of that first 99cent Mondays trip I took? (Sorry I left the tag on for the pictures. That's a little weird.) It makes me feel good that even if I just royally screw up the whole project, almost nothing was lost.

So feel free also to leave comments nagging me about when you'll see the after pictures. I need some prodding with these things every once in a while.

Forget You

This is my favorite song right now. Yes, Cee Lo Green. Yes, it's overplayed on the radio. Fortunately for me, I only listen to NPR so I don't hear any of that nonsense. I have heard this song a few times, loved it, and couldn't help but purchase it on iTunes so I could listen to it when and as many times as I like. But I only love the edited version. Is that silly? Maybe.

SO ANYWAY the outfit - I forgot it. Which is what brought my new favorite song to mind. It was actually the first outfit I wore after finishing my 30, so this should have been right between that one with the cream dress and black skirt, and the one with the pants I don't want anymore. Sorry about that!

Sweater: NY&Co. Skirt: Ann Taylor Loft. Shoes: 

So the morning after I finished the challenge, I awoke with a vision of a high-waisted tulip skirt in my head.

Like that one. (This skirt was sold by MoonCircus on Etsy, but there look to be looots of super-cute things there now.) Unfortunately, it was still unquestionably winter, so I decided to try this cardigan as a shirt - which I had never done before. That part really looks okay to my eye, but the skirt has issues. I finally decided, after wrestling with it all day, that the skirt is about a size too big. Which is really lame, because it's the only skirt I have in this style, and I really like the shape!

With the belt I used this too-big article came out as kind of a paperbag skirt, which is not something that works all that easily with my blink-and-you'll-miss-it torso. Seriously, there do not exist instruments fine enough to measure the distance between my waist and hips. Anyway. I liked the look of the outfit, but not how much fiddling it required from me. Anyone care to opine along with me? Leave your judgments below, please.

I Have Confidence in Me!

Because, let's face it, if you're going to make an outfit out of two skirts, you need to have some confidence in yourself. Also to directly copy someone's outfit. That's guts, friends. Let's see how all that worked out for me . . .

Sweater: Gap. Top skirt: NY&Co. Belt: Target (with dress.) Skirt: Ann Taylor Loft. Tights: Target. Shoes: Thrifted.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I stole this look from the gorgeous Ramsey, and while I feel that she looks more amazing in it, (blazer? Um, great choice. Looks fabulous!) I was pleased at how school-appropriate it came out for me. (Also, if you didn't go see the outfit with the link above, you should go see the blog. Because it's great. And the outfit, because it's inspired.) And while these tights are MUCH more blue in person (think Smurfs), I loved it all together! And I almost never wear this patterned skirt (the top one - for it I made up the term shkirt) anymore, so I love that I have a new use for it! Love. Also, this was one of the more comfortable outfits I've worn lately. So hurray! Hurray skirts, hurray stealing, hurray overall!

Oh, also, there's a very lovely giveaway going on over at A Day in the Life Too and while I am most def going to win (I hope I hope I hope!) you should all get your tushes over there just to see the cute stuff up for giveaway, and to visit that amazing feat of bloggery if you haven't yet. Enjoy!

No One Cares for a Sharp-Dressed Man

I tried the menswear thing! I mean, I've had each of these pieces for years, but all together . . . revelation!

The real epiphany was a really silly one. I think I saw another blogger post an outfit with a blazer over a vest. Even though EVERY man's outfit that involves a vest archetypically also includes a jacket, I had never thought of putting them both on myself simultaneously! So I tried it out, with the following results.

Blazer: Forever 21. Tunic & flower: Forever 21. Vest: Gap. Skirt: Ann Taylor Loft. Shoes: Thrifted Chinese Laundry.

I really, really enjoyed wearing this outfit. It was truly comfortable (the warmth of layers and plain comfy-ness of the tunic contributed to this) and I felt really cute in it. On an ordinary day, I don't know what more you can ask of your clothes! I originally bought this tunic for work when I was a Starbucks partner, but hadn't worn it outside that context until this day. Thank goodness I pulled it out again! 

I felt like the little flower on the lapel was appropriately boutonniere-like, but I'm glad it ended up in my hair.

Okay, that's two posts in one day. Let's throw me a party, shall we?