Have An Academic Day

Sooo, is it Friday yet? ;) Haha, just kidding. It's been a long week but I'm game to finish it! As stressful as it can be to start going back to classes, I do enjoy it. It just may take some getting used to and figuring out a good schedule for life outside of work/school!

Caramel Draped Cardi - Mossimo via Target; Light Blue Ribbed Tank - Mossimo Supply Co. via Target; Mixed Print Tiered Skirt - Mossimo Supply Co. via Target; Braided Belt - H&M; Cognac Oxford Booties - American Eagle via Payless

Sometime last week, I was standing in front of my closet, looking around, as I often do. I was trying to think of pieces and outfits that would be good for the transition from Summer to Fall. This cardi came to mind, so then I challenged myself to see if it would work with a skirt such as the one is the outfit. Obviously, it did work, with a tank layered beneath. But I needed something to pull it all together, literally. This braided belt did just the trick! But I didn't want to "waste" the outfit last week, I was still feeling sick and school hadn't even started. I'm glad I waited - this weekend we went to the mall and I, of course, had to stop at Payless where I found some new shoes (don't you love BOGO?!). My new pair of Oxford booties went perfectly with the outfit. And all put together, I thought it look quite academically inspired. Don't you think?

Have A Picture ID Day

Sorry for the slow posting here this week...! Classes started yesterday and already it's been a crazy week. I was actually involved in an car accident yesterday as well - I got blindsided by someone and was fortunate to react quickly enough and swerve so that, while I still got hit, it did not turn out as bad as it would have. So yeah, after that happened I was ready for it to be Friday, to say the least! But luckily, classes have been pleasant so far. I did have a scheduling snafu that I had to deal with today - I had to drop a class and then add another but alas I think it will all work out. :)

Navy & Grey Striped Dress -Merona via Target; Green Ribbed Tank - MKM via Dots; Blue & Green Floral Wedges - Merona via Target

So THIS is the outfit I ended up wearing on Friday, the day I finally made it over to campus for all my errands. While I think my hair looked a bit better Thursday, it ended up not mattering what outfit I was wearing for my photo. The cloth background for the ID pictures was blue, and wearing blue only made everything look even more blue! Oh well, at least aside from the blue tint of the photo it didn't turn out bad.

Have A Floral and Bones Day

This last week was my first week back into the swing of things at work after vacation, yet I ended up getting sick once we got back home. Wednesday I decided to take the day off in hopes of letting the illness pass before school starts back up on Monday. Well it's Sunday, and while I don't feel as bad as I did mid-week, I'm still not feeling 100%. Womp womp. Oh well, I really did need to take the day off and rest or else maybe I'd be feeling even worse still.

Ribbed Purple Tank - MKM via Dots; Blue Oversized Cardi - Mossimo via Target; Blue & Purple Floral Skirt - Old Navy; Purple & Black Skull Print Heels - Iron Fist via JustFabulous

Anyhoozles, I was back to work Thursday and prepping to run over to Marymount to pick up my books, parking pass & student ID. I actually got dressed with my ID photo in mind. Guess I should've paid more attention to the forecast because it ended up raining all day so I had to postpone my visit until Friday. However, it was not for nothing. I was really happy with this outfit and to be honest, kind of surprised it took me this long to put these pieces together! And I was very happy to pair my purple skull print heels with the outfit. I just love the juxtaposition between the floral print and the skull. All in all I was very pleased with this outfit! :)

Pretty Pictures - Chincoteague

While the we here on the east coast are prepping for Hurricane Irene, it was just a week ago that I left Chincoteague Island to come back home. We're definitely glad that we went when we did! I'm hoping the island fares well during this storm. I wanted to share with you some of the photos I took during our stay. Most of the photos I actually took the day that David & I rented a tandem bicycle and rode around the wildlife refuge. We rode all over the park, climbed up the lighthouse and just had a lot of fun!

If you are anywhere close enough to take a trip out to Chincoteague, I highly recommend it! And if you're on the east coast like myself, stay safe during the hurricane! :)

Look At My Nails! - Cracked Purple

I've decided I want to get back into doing my nails regularly. I used to be pretty good about doing them but since they're so time consuming and I'm accident prone I think I got tired of the whole process. And the smudges! Oh the smudges... But that's all in the past. Sure I'm going to experience a few smudges here and there, but luckily for my trusty cans of nail polish dryer it sure makes the job easier.

Anyway! With my renewed desire to keep up my nails comes a new feature - Look At My Nails! I am trying to get into doing them every Sunday since after more than a week they usually look very worn at the edges.

Bottom Coat - China Glaze - Flying Dragon Neon; Crackle Coat - Sally Hansen Crackle Overcoat - Ink Splatter; Line Detail - Sally Hansen Nail Art Pen - Black

The first installment is nothing too fancy, but it's still fun and different. I started with a few layers of the purple base coat. Once that was dry, I took some scotch tape and placed it diagonally on my nails so only one half would get painted with the black crackle paint. The middle nails I decided to do all of them with the crackle paint. I thought about doing diagonal halves overlapping each other, to leave only one quarter of my nail with the purple but I was tired and that involved more work. Once I peeled off the tape I did have to do a little touching up and ultimately I decided to use the nail art pen to better define the division between the black and purple. I was very happy with the results. Since the look is a little rocker, I figured what better thing to model my nails with then a studded leather wrap bracelet?

Have An Earthquake Day

Wow guys. I really never thought, in all my life of living in Virginia, that I would ever experience an earthquake here! I am not ashamed to admit that I was shaken up by it yesterday. We were sitting in the office when all of the sudden I felt a shaking & heard a rumbling. To be honest, first I looked above at the ceiling thinking someone on next floor had dropped something, well uh, HUGE! Then I realized, "No, wait my feet feel the floor shaking too...". The three of us in my office all looked at each other as we realized it was an earthquake. I posted in the doorway but then the shaking began to feel more violent and we were all like, "Let's get out of here!" My office building ceiling crumbles when it rains heavily, so we felt like it may be safer for us outside. When we got outside everyone was standing around in shock. I gotta say, it was a truly bizarre experience. To make matters more frustrating, my phone hasn't been working properly lately, and with phone lines jammed I couldn't even text, tweet or get on FB from the parking lot. Hehe I know it sounds silly, but actually my brother is in Richmond which is right near Mineral, VA so I wanted to make sure it was alright (and luckily he was).

Magenta Lace Tank - Merona via Target ; Floral Mesh Tunic - Stacy Fran via boutique in OBX; Cropped Black Leggings - Torrid; Cognac Braided Wedges - George via Walmart

Anyway, this is the outfit that I was wearing on what shall forever be remember as "the day the earthquake hit Virginia & the rest of the east coast." Ok maybe it won't be remembered by that name... Something I was grateful for - having worn wedges. I could have still booked it down the stairs in regular heels but my feet would've been killing me while we stood around in the parking lot before deciding it was ok to go back in. In the end, luckily, there was no damage done to our building & no injuries. Though when I returned home, I did get a little upset to find some glass items in pieces on the floor. In other news, yesterday's version of the outfit is a vast improvement over this version.

Have A Back in the Grind Day

So Monday's are bad enough, but the first Monday back from vacation? I wasn't really in the mood considering the BF was sick and I was coming down with it too. Yay! Today I actually stayed home from work because with school starting next week, I did not want to still be sick by then.

Grey Lace Cami - Old Old Navy; Teal Crocheted Cropped Cardi - Old Navy; Blue/Green Abstract Floral Skirt - Merona via Target; Pewter Gladiator Sandals - Dress Barn via Thrifting

Luckily, I had an outfit ready to go on Monday, which made the start of the day easier at least. I had briefly worn this outfit on vacation at the beach for like 2 hours one evening. I've realized that I've been getting a lot of use out of the cropped crocheted cardis from Old Navy. I only wish I had maybe bought a few more in some other colors!

Have A Back from Vacation Day

Well I can't say I'm happy my vacation is over, but I am at least happy to be back. Sometimes I miss certain comforts of home when I'm away, even if I'm enjoying myself. And enjoy myself I did, Chincoteague was wonderful! I had a lot of fun and learned a thing or two. I never realized that the Assateague shoreline was so young, it's not even 100 years old.

Teal Abstract Floral Print Blouse - H & M; Roll Tab Shorts - Torrid; Cognac Braided Wedges - George via Walmart

This is an outfit from before I left, but minus the necklace and bracelet, I actually wore this while on vacation too. I didn't take many accessories since dressing on vacation, especially at the beach, is supposed to be easy and relaxed. Usually I don't wear shorts, however I've been opening myself up to them this year. I like them with this top because it echoes the casual feel of a tee shirt but is loose and feminine while still showing off my waist.

Have A Where's My Head At Day

I won't lie, I enjoyed my last few days at the lake so much, it was difficult to come home. But knowing that tomorrow I'm headed out for another vacation was good motivation. Now that I'm back, my head's spinning trying to get last minute preparations together and at the same time I'm just exhausted! Eep! I can't wait till we leave...

Brown Sequined V-Neck Tank - A.N.A. via JCPenney; Fuchsia Crocheted Cardi - Old Navy; Brown Diamond Striped Skirt - Old Navy; Brown T-Strap Wedges - Mossimo via Target

This outfit was a nice little throw-together. I realized this skirt hasn't seen the light outside of the closet for a while! And the cardi perfectly matches the little hint of fuchsia in the skirt. The rest just put itself together. I love how it all turned out. I got dressed quickly but looked well put together. If only I could put my head all together...

Have An Everybody, Everywear Pattern Mixing Day

Eeee! There are many things that I am excited for right now. Tomorrow I'm going to Smith Mountain Lake with my family and BF to spend the day in the water, away from a desk! Then we're coming back Thursday, only to leave on Saturday for our week vacation to the beach! So today felt like Friday almost, and it felt good. :) Last but not least, I am very happy to be participating in the Everybody, Everywear theme this month. This month is all about pattern mixing.

Lace Tee Shirt - Self Esteem via Ross; Leopard Print Lace Cami - Xhiliration via Target; Peach Striped Skirt - Old Navy; Black Woven Belt - Thrifted; Gold Peep Toe Slingbacks - Madden Girl via Off Broadway Shoes

I even had some subtle pattern mixing going on with the leopard print and the floral lace

I don't know what made me put this leopard print cami with this peach striped skirt, but once I did, I really liked the combo. The lace tee shirt beneath was the perfect thing to tie the two pieces together. The look is a little funky and offbeat and that totally works for me. I adore this skirt for the tailored fit, which makes it the perfect skirt to wear high waisted with a top to create the look of a dress. I even had someone compliment me on my "dress" today saying it was fun. Sweet! I love when people get my style and I would definitely have to say that this outfit is a perfect outfit to represent my style. It's got a romantic, vintage feel with a little bit of a rocker edge and best of all it's funky and unique. :)

Welp, I'm off then! I'll won't be posting tomorrow and we'll see about Thursday. But I'll be back in time for Friday, before I say good-bye (briefly) before my week-long vacation on Saturday!

Outfit Mashup - Thrifted Goodness

Last week ended up being a week chock full of thrifted goodness. Of course, I did go to the Salvation Army recently and had some new(ish) duds to break into my wardrobe.

Mocha Sequin Embellished Shoulder Tee - Tees 2 Please via Thrifting; Cognac Braided Skinny Belt - H&M; Brown Tribal/Floral Print Tiered Maxi Skirt - Oltre via Thrifting; Brown Woven Leather Kitten Heels - Franco Sarto via Ross

I was hoping to find some skirts while at the Salvation Army and luckily I ended finding a couple. I was happy to nab this maxi skirt, since I didn't have one already. I like this print since it feels very summery to me, but the color palate will allow it to segue nicely into the fall and winter.

Brown & Black Abstract Floral Print Dress - Alfani via Thrifting; Black Cork Wedges - Montego Bay Club via Payless

I was also hoping to find some dresses but I almost didn't. I had browsed a huge rack of dresses and was reaching the end of the racks for women when I spotted one with a seemingly random mix of stuff. Then I inspected it more closely and came upon this dress as well as the leopard print dress below. Though I'm not 100% sure, I think this dress is some sort of abstract floral dress. But it really doesn't matter either way, because I love this dress. It fits me perfectly and is a nice lightweight fabric, but most importantly it covers my chest well enough that I don't have to layer something beneath it. It is my ideal summer dress!

Teal & Purple Peacock Print Kimono Top - NY Collection via Thrifting; Teal Scoop Neck Tank - Old Navy; Black Cropped Leggings - Torrid; Black & Wood Wedges - Guess via Ross

This top was found while thrifting last year on vacation. As much as I struggle with the fit of it since it's about 2 sizes too big for me, I love it so much, and thankfully the tie back allows me to tuck in the excess fabric. Tops like this are always a little more difficult for me to style in the summer since so many of my skirts flair out and I rarely wear shorts. Luckily for me, these cropped leggings work perfectly!

Leopard Print Bell Sleeved Dress - MSK via Thrifting; Dark Gold Woven Belt - Thrifted; Nude Platform Peep Toes - Guess via DSW

Finally, I found a piece that allows me to get in on some 70's action! I got very excited about this dress. I know it's a little funky, and definitely not everyone's cup of tea. But I love it! I've been wanting a leopard print dress and all the 70's inspired fashion spreads earlier this year had me envious I couldn't join in. All I can say is thank goodness for thrifting!

Thought Jar - Happy Weekend

I hope all of you lovely people enjoyed your weekend! It's always sad to see an end to Sunday but at least my weekend was a good mixture of productive and relaxing, so I'm not feeling too bad about having to start a new week tomorrow.

Yesterday I cleaned the bathroom in our apartment and vacuumed. I also finally got my handbags all straightened up and organized! Then I went out to lunch with my BFF to plan for our beach trip next week. While we were at the restaurant I saw a framed Lotería poster and it had a picture of watermelons on it. Random, I know. But you see, earlier last week I painted my nails like watermelons. I may not be the perfect nail artist but I think they look awesome and then to be able to hold them up next to a pop-art type picture of watermelons was cool.

Since my vacation is coming up, I'm obviously saving money for it. But at the same time, I've been so tempted to buy a few new things. Like this blouse.

Pretty right? And then there's these sneakers.

What you think I never think of buying shoes that aren't heels? Every once in a while I see a pair of sneakers that I feel I just have to have. But for now, I am restraining myself. Sometimes the feeling subsides if I don't act on it right away. I've been eying these items though since Thursday...so yeah. We'll see how things go. Now here's to a swell Monday! (I'm not going to pretend like it's going to be amazingly awesome or anything, but swell seems doable for a Monday.)

Have A Wishing for the Water

You know how the most American summer family vacation you can take is going to the beach? Well, the first time I ever went on vacation to the beach was in high school (we went to the Outer Banks for the first time and I fell in love with it!). When I was a kid, my family's summer vacations would take us far away from crowded beaches, usually someplace in the mountains (West Virginia & Tennessee) or up north in New England (Rhode Island & Maine!). But luckily, one thing I never missed out on during summer vacations was the water. We always ended up someplace near a lake or something. For a few summers we rented an awesome cabin on a lake in Maine. When I think of my ideal summer vacation, my romanticized memories of those Maine vacations immediately fill my head.

Navy Eyelet Trimmed Sleeve Tee - Old Navy; Blue & Green Floral Skirt - Merona via Target; Gold Belt - Xhiliration via Target; Gold Sandals - Xhiliration via Target

For whatever reasons, this outfit just reminds me of a summer vacation. Maybe it's the dark navy blue that calls to mind the chilly yet refreshing lake water, or the bright green and teal that calls to mind thoughts of taking it easy and relaxing. All I know is that I am counting down the days until I leave for vacation. Next Saturday David and I are packing up and heading to the coast to visit the wild ponies of Chincoteague and mostly just relax in a beachy island environment. We're renting a house with my BFF, who just happens to be the BF's auntie (that's how David & I met, one day when you're older I'll tell you how we met ;)), so that means it's a family vacation too. We'll also be squeezing in a little mini-vacay with my family before we leave next weekend. We'll be headed down to Smith Mountain Lake in south-western Virginia for a day on a pontoon boat. I am super excited and couldn't be happier that this week didn't seem to drag on as slowly as I thought it would! I've still got to plan my clothing out to pack for the beach & do lots more planning, so here's to a productive weekend!

Have An Always Love to Shop Day

I think it really doesn't need to be said, but yes, I always love to shop! There is rarely a time that I would say no to going shopping, unless it's my wallet that's keeping me from going. So when the BF mentioned he would take me to Marshall's if I accompanied him to the video game store, it was a pretty easy decision to go along with him. At first we were thinking of getting something for the apartment, but really who am I kidding? The minute I walk into a store that sells clothing, that's where my mind and eyes start to focus. Luckily, we didn't see anything that we had to have in the home section, so I got to buy a piece of clothing instead! The next day, I almost doubled over in disbelief because the BF suggested we go shopping at the Salvation Army. Two days in a row of boyfriend suggested shopping?! Was I dreaming?!

Red Lace Cami - Worthington via JCPenney; Black Lace Trimmed Butterfly Top - Mimi Chica via Marshall's; Jean Pencil Skirt - Old Navy; Red Peep Toes - Poetic License via Ideeli

After browsing around Marshall's, I decided I wanted a new top. There were lots of tops that I liked. This black butterfly top was one I liked in theory but wasn't sure of  how the execution would play out. I usually like how these butterfly shirts look on others, but on me its usually too much fabric and not enough shape. Luckily, the fact that the fabric is a sheer black is what made this workable on me. Beneath the sheerness, my figure can still be seen and it doesn't just look like I'm swimming in a sea of lace trim and chiffon-like fabric! After trying a few other shirts beneath,  I settled on a red cami. The jean pencil skirt worked perfectly to keep my shape intact and balance out the proportions.

Have A Mood Ring Day

So they day I wore this outfit, my initial goal was simply to wear a rockin outfit that went with my new killer shoes. I guess I could say I was thinking gothic rocker yet ladylike combined? And ta-da! This is what I came up with.

Black Lace Cami - Worthington via JCPenney; Pink & Purple Leopard Print Scarf - Xhiliration via Target; Black Lace High Waisted Pencil Skirt - Bisou Bisou via JCPenney; Purple Skull Print Peep Toes - Iron Fist via JustFabulous

Since I couldn't find a top that suited my desires, I did the next best thing and created a pseudo top with a large scarf & belt. Yay, it totally worked! However it didn't photograph so well, so boo to that. Anyway, it turns out that my dark and broody themed outfit turned out to be a good indicator of my mood that day. Stuff went down and attitudes flared at work and by the afternoon I guess I had the "Don't F with Me" look down. A friend saw me and jokingly asked, "Who pissed you off?" He then made a comment that my outfit was like a mood ring. Lol luckily I was not in such a bad mood that I could not appreciate his humor.