June Challenge

So, my whole idea of a shopping ban for May didn't go so well. I finally got fed up with my color lacking wardrobe and set out to purchase some items that would brighten things up a bit.

And bright my wardrobe has become. The May roundup:

JCrew: Biennial Satchel in red. Striped bow flats. Red eyelet pencil skirt. Mint green tippi sweater and modern red vneck (coming Monday, eep!). I really can't wait to pair the stripes with the red eyelet pencil skirt. And I have to say, of course, all the items were on sale. Huzzah!

Nordstrom: Frenchi blazer in cobalt (for 28.90!), polka dot blouse, and my much lusted after Sam Edelman spiked flats.

Gap outlet: Mint green tank, cobalt sweater, kelly green skinny jeans. (linked to similar items).

Via polyvore

Target: White cropped jeans (!), pink tunic, and The Webster patterned tank (never would've thought to get this, but its adorable).

Photo via polyvore

And perhaps the big finale, from Neimans, the Tory Burch natalya wedge in black.

Which friends, leads me to a shopping hiatus for the month of June. And perhaps July. I used the word banned for May and that just seemed to spurn my need to shop. And with two weekends away this month, I'm hoping I can reign it in.

So far, the responses to my new clothing items have all been positive. I've gotten a lot of compliments from coworkers and it makes me feel more confident in myself and what I'm wearing.

Outstanding items to get at some point: Tweed jacket.

That's it for now.... have a fantastic weekend!

Ode to the J Crew Biennial Satchel

I'm not gonna lie - I'm a former handbag addict. Perhaps I shouldn't say former as much as I should say recovering. I had been eying the J Crew Biennial satchel in store and in the catalogues ever since I first saw it sometime last year. And a few weeks ago when it got marked down online, and had an additional 30% off, well I bit.

Here I am trying the bag on in store. It was love at first sight.

Today's outfit in a dressing room: Blazer and crops: Gap. Bag and blouse: J Crew. Scarf: Jason Wu For Target.

I'm a leather gal - and the leather on this bag is AMAZING. It's probably the softest bag I own now - even softer than bags that I own that are much more expensive. It's a true red (even though the photo above doesn't show it) and I can fit it over my shoulder. The only thing that worries me a bit is color transfer from dark jeans or scratching, but I guess all leather is prone to that. The bag has three zipped compartments and the above pic is holding my wallet, makeup case, headphones, sunglasses, kindle, and a few other miscellaneous items tossed in. I could fit my ipad in there too, but I don't like taking it to and from work so it remains at home. But really - this bag would be perfect to travel with too!

Better pics of today's outfit:

Anyway. Life has been hectic. Work is good and it's hard to believe that in about two weeks we'll be going to Colorado for the first wedding of the season.

Also, for what feels like the first time ever, I bought a pair of white jeans. Thank you target, for cute affordable items that I can test the waters with.

Outstanding summer wishlist items:

Spiked shoes, mint colored sweater, another pop of color blazer, the Asos Penguin blouse I found online the other day..

In wedding news... invitations are here and going out this week. I have a dress fitting on Saturday and my sister and mom are helping me with some stuff :) Trying to keep it a secret... shh!

Hope everyone is having a good week so far... so looking forward to this weekend and an extra day to sleep in!

Favorite things

Things lately have been so busy - in fact I can't even believe that we are almost at the 90 day mark to the wedding countdown. Where does the time go?! Even though we are knee-deep in May here's some things I've been loving lately..

All shades of blue:

Blouse and skirt: JCrew, Cardigan: Banana Republic, Shoes: Anthropologie

Legging jeans and blazer: Gap, Lace shell: Banana Republic, Scarf: H&M (thanks mom!)

Ladybugs in my in the back garden near my windows..




This leopard print blouse from Zara:
 

The JCrew biennal satchel I picked up on uber sale...

Seattle for 24 hours with my future MIL to meet the President...

And that's about it! It's Friday, the sun is out, it's also payday, and I can't complain!

What are some of your favorite things as of late?

 

Mixed metals

I've come to the realization that I really don't post too much about my jewelry pieces - so I'd love to share some of my favorite and most worn items with you. It's a collection of silver, white gold, and yellow gold. I used to primarily wear yellow gold (my grandparents are old school and always believed that its not real gold unless its yellow...) but as I've gotten older I've gravitated more toward white. And I've started to mix and match pieces without feeling as if its against a fashion code.

My everyday wear on my left arm



Since I'm right handed my left wrist bears my watch and my engagement ring. A few years ago I decided that it was time for a grown up watch and I saved up to get my beloved Michelle diamond CSX. I love this thing. Just the perfect amount of bling and it's still grown up. Plus it has the date. Love! And of course, my most favorite piece of jewelry - my tacori engagement ring.

I got the silver knot at one of the bay area's many arts and wine fairs that pop up during the summer. I'm blanking on who its by, but I love it because its so simple yet feminine at the same time (I found this similar one but in yellow gold through Dogeared). And the fearlessness necklace was a present from my soon to be mother in law when I graduated college. Whenever I feel as if I have a daunting task ahead of me I put it on to remind me to not let fear stop me. But what's really awesome about this necklace is that the proceeds benefit Mariska Hargitay's foundation for assault victims. Click here to purchase this necklace.

Two more dainty pieces. D for David - another purchase from an art and wine festival. I was wanting something with his initial on it and I searched and searched until I found this one. The gold one is a piece that I got off etsy with my first ever big bonus from work. It's a bit of a reminder to myself of how hard I've worked and to not forget that. Purchased from Three Black Cats - Karen is an absolute gem!

My charm bracelet - which I recently dug out of my my jewelry pouch and have decided to start wearing again. Pictured are charms for my high school and perochial school graduation as well as a sweet 16 charm. I also think I need a few more charms for it though, such as 2007 for my college graduation and perhaps a 2012 one for getting married. Or maybe a cat. Opinions are welcome!

As for earrings, I usually have on a small pair of diamond studs that I got on my 13th birthday which are set in yellow gold.

And that's some of my favorite stuff... what are some of your more often worn jewelry items?

PS: Stay tuned.... I'll hit 100 posts soon and am planning a giveaway!

Yellow stripes and blue gems

Since I'm still on a color binge I decided to pair yellow and blue together the other day - and decided that it didn't look so bad (and if I happened to be going to a Golden State Warriors game then I'd be adequately dressed). Not that it's ever a bad thing. And what's even cooler is that when I pulled out the black slacks I found 2.00 in my pocket. Hey, at least its something, right?

 Blouse: Forever 21. Sweater and shoes: Banana Republic. Slacks: Gap.

I have to admit that I'm loving this sweater. I snagged it on sale at Banana and its love. I know it also came in yellow as well.

While the plague that I've caught is still raging a battle against my immune system (hey cough, it'd be nice if you went away now) I'm still sleeping a ton and almost back to my normal self. Except for the fact that food is not my friend. Nothing seems appetizing and I have no real desire to eat

Well, at least we've made it through just about another week - and may is I. He horizon. Are you looking forward to anything special in may?

Updates of all sorts.

Not going to lie April, I'm really ready for you to be over. The past few weeks have had its plethora of ups and downs - and now I have the flu (the flu, really? in April?) so I'm already over this month and ready to get on to May.

Wedding updates:
Under 4 months to go! We've accomplished more things (flowers, ordered invitations, dress brought to tailor, wedding cake, halfway through writing our ceremony) and we have a few more large things left (menu tasting, order ketuhbah, get marriage license, started to book our honeymoon) and I'm getting more excited (but sometimes stressed out) by the day. We've registered at Crate and Barrel and Macys - and if anyone has any must have necessities for the kitchen or home that's made your lives easier let me know. Our list is looking a little sad and people are already purchasing!

Fashion and all pretty things:
I'm not gonna lie. I'm still on a color rampage. I actually purchased three blouses this past weekend in patterns (!) and some with more color (including orange... who am I?). I'm really excited to wear them - of course it would be better if I could actually get out of bed and go back to work first. My picks:
From Zara - leopard shirt with applique on collar, animal print blouse
Forever 21 - floral shirt (loving that price!), invisible buttons shirt in yellow and blue.

And so this isn't completely lacking, here's an outfit that I wore this past weekend to go out to dinner with some friends and I love it!

Blazer and jeans: Banana Republic. Buttondown: Gap. Scarf: Forever 21.

Well, thanks for being patient with me in my lack of posting. I promise some more posts to come in the near future with some of my newer items and a less sick more healthy me.

Spiked motion

I've noticed lately that spikes seem to be huge this spring, particularly on shoes. And well, I almost can't help myself. I really want a pair of something awesome. So I've rounded up a few pairs that I'm lusting after. Help me pick a winner!

Via Nordstrom.com

 I tried this pair on this weekend and these are my front runners. The Sam Edelman Beatrix flats come in an array of colors and I know will give my outfit the bit of badassness it needs. But.. the only thing that's holding me back is the price point. Perhaps I just have to bite the bullet on this one and just do it. Available at Nordstrom, 129.95.

Via SteveMadden.com

I also spied this pair while out shopping but I'm a little undecided on it. I can't tell if I love it or hate it. These from Steve Madden are in a similar price range to the Sam Edelman pair but I'm not too sure how keen I am n the heel and the masculine shape of the shoe. Regardless, they are pretty punk and awesome. And they also come in leopard print, too! Steve Madden Melter shoes, 139.95.

Via Bergdorf Goodman

Okay okay. I know, I'm a geek. But I LOVE these. How cute are they? A new updated twist on MBMJ's mouse flat... spikes! And studs! This little guy is hardcore. I know that I've seen these in black and also cream. In case you really want to take a walk on the wild side... I adore these too. Marc by Marc Jacobs studed mouse flat, 250.00.

From Neiman Marcus

And of course, the granddaddy of them all. Christian Louboutin knows how to make a girl drool over some shoes. I don't think I can put into words just how awesome these are. Loafers. A crest. Spikes. A bit of patent. Now if only I had won the megamillions lottery..... Christian Louboutin Intern spiked toe crest velvet loafter, 925.00.

Whew! Well now... I guess the hard part is deciding which pair to get...although I have a hunch what they may be.

And so this isn't entirely about shoes, here's yesterday's outfit from the Banana Republic fitting room. Skirt and blouse, Banana Republic. Shoes: Jcrew. Cardigan: Gap. Vintage Scarf: Ferragamo via ebay. Wrinkles: Sitting at your desk for 9 hours straight.

Have a good Tuesday!