more pink

Well, I'm not as thrilled with this outfit. I truly have probably tried on close to 100 pairs of pants this month to try to find some that fit my waist, hips, and thighs all at the same time, and this is the pair of khakis that won. However, the looser cut of the pants and the light jacket and the ruffled shirt under add too much bulk to my frame, I think. I think I'll try to wear these slacks with a more fitted top, and this jacket with more fitted pants in the future.

fabulous new skirt

I just love this skirt! Its such a fun mix of contradictions - its a traditional tweed, but its bias-cut and has a slight flare. Plus, it has a bit of pink in it and I've been in a pink-mood this week. Its not the most flattering length, but I think it would look better with higher heels. I wore these because I was going out for a date-night with my husband right after a super intense workout at the gym and my calf muscles couldn't handle my super high heels!

Churcy-centered day

We went to church this morning, then back to church tonight for a musical performance and potluck. I wanted to be dressed appropriately for church, but also comfortable since I'd be in my dressy clothes all day and be wrangling my kids all day, too. I think this fit the bill pretty well. These are the same pants from yesterday, but I washed and dried them on high heat so they shrank just a touch and they fit a little better (I still have a majorly gap-y waist, though). The shirt I found at a thrift store last week and almost didn't try it on, but I'm very glad I did! And, I'm again doing the red boots and red purse - I just love the way they pep up an otherwise plain and sensible outfit.

Night out

Last night my sister and I went to a local singing performance. I knew I'd probably run into several people I knew in high school, so I wanted to look snazzy. I like this outfit! The pants are new (on clearance at Target for $6.50). I have this major problem with finding pants that fit... My waist and hips are about a size four, and my thighs (thanks to weightlifting) are a size 8. I'm trying to figure out if I can take in the waist of these pants myself, or if I'll just mess them up. (I'm quite the seamstress, but I don't do a lot of clothes.)

do my shoulders look fat in this?!

So, I'm very into weight-lifting. I've been lifting since June and I do hardcore weight lifting - not barbie dumbells. I'm talking 115 lb barbell squats, doing rows with 25 lb dumbells in each arm, 80 lb lat pulldowns... so, pretty serious. And I LOVE the definition I have in my shoulders and arms now. (I'm slightly less thrilled with my big muscular thighs, but I think as I loose more bodyfat I'll be happier with them.) Anyway, usually I like the way clothes look now that my shoulders are wider than my hips, BUT this shirt really makes me look boxy and huge-shouldered. I love the fun, funky print and I especially liked pairing it with my fun galoshes... but I'm just not sure if its really flattering to my upper-body shape... I'll have to ponder this one.

Sorry I haven't been updating as frequently! With Christmas approaching, my time is getting divided up more than usual - I make a lot of the Christmas gifts we give each year.

Church to Date!

I managed to find an outfit that with just a very small tweak, goes from church-appropriate to hot-for-date-night! The shawl conceals how crazy-deep the v-neck is, and I got compliments at church on my outfit. And, on our date, my husband was enthralled with my sexy dress! Success all around! I would have liked to have worn some open-toed high heels, but it was about 20 degrees and really windy, so I went with these shoes that would keep my toes a bit warmer.

another pair of pants GONE!

So, I love the idea of these pants - I know that wide leg and high-waisted is kind of an offbeat trend... but I think that once you've had a couple of kids, they just become "Mom Jeans!" So, I wore them the other day, and then put them in the box for goodwill. With regular jeans I think the outfit would look okay, but it doesn't really "pop!" - you know?

Christmas Portrait

First of all, isn't my husband unbelievably HOT?!

Secondly, we did include the kids in the most of the pictures, of course, but I don't think I want to share their pictures here. Plus, in those pictures you can't see my sexy red shoes! We all wore red and black. (If anyone remembers, this is a different red top than I had originally planned on wearing, but I found this one at a thrift store yesterday and felt it was more winter-y.)

a re-do

I like this shirt/scarf combo so much last week I decided to wear it with jeans (instead of trousers) today. I like it this way, too - dressed down a bit, but a nice way to wear jeans without looking the least bit sloppy.

really - it was better in person!

Boy, I look like a huge dork here! I think the messy bun doesn't photograph well... plus, I have anti-glare lenses, but something about the angle my hubby photographs me at always gets a ton of glare! I liked the way that the shoes and purse picked up the red in the shirt. And these are the same slacks as in the previous picture, I'm hoping this is just a bad angle and I don't always look this hip-y in them! LOL

not as harsh as it looks!

I don't think this outfit looked quite as harsh in person... I like the combination of grays and blacks. The shirt is black, the sweater a medium gray, and the slacks are a very dark gray. With black boots.

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is what I wore to the reunion at my grandmother's house and then to dinner at my in-law's. I really love this shirt - the ruffles and short sleeves make it pretty hip, I think. Plus, you can never go wrong with red shoes - especially with a high heel on them!

typical look for me

I like this look, its professional but still youthful (I think). Fitted slacks - flat front, of course - untucked striped button down shirt, and a v-neck sweater. And boots with a heel. These pants were a fabulous find - $3.50 at Goodwill for fully lined Gap wool slacks!

another "love it!"

This outfit was great - its not the best picture, though. The top I'm wearing has lace along the v-neck and the scarf has lace stitching all over it. I thought this outfit struck the perfect balance between sweet and business-like. I had been searching for a nice pair of basic khakis for several weeks and had not planned on getting a pair with pinstripes, but I really like these. Though my hubby said, "Wow, the alternating dark and light stripes make the fabric almost three-dimensional looking." to which I snarkily replied, "Yeah, I really want to add more depth to my thighs!"

sexy!

I love this outfit, I felt really sexy! It was my day off and I went out shopping and ended up having a horrible day... but it sure wasn't the fault of this outfit! I got the red bag at a thrift store last week and I'm pleased with it. I know its not necessary anymore to match your bag with your shoes, but I love doing it - especially when they're a nice contrasting color with the rest of the outfit. I was going for messy-curly with my hair here, but it seemed to have come out more frizzy than anything else! LOL

the shoes make it!

Don't they? I just LOVE these shoes! So does my husband, and even my four year old son told me he loved my shoes this morning! I also really love the look of this necklace, even though I've had to repair it four times since I bought it last month... but this time I got my hubby to fix it and I think he did a better job than I did the first three times. I wish I'd had time to do something more exciting with my hair and makeup, but I overslept.

hate it!

This was not the outfit I had picked out or put on this morning, but in the process of tossing one of my cats off the bathroom counter so I could do my makeup, she grabbed my (new!) shirt with her claws and tore it. I was quite upset. I ended up settling on this outfit - maer inly because it also matched my new labyrinth necklace which I really had my heart set on wearing. I thought that the textured tan shirt and brown pants would be a nice backdrop for the necklace and that a red sweater and red boots would punch up the look a little... but its just too soccer-mom-ish for me. I looked for a red zip-front sweater hoodie for months to replace the one I lost last year, finally found this one this week, and after wearing it once I'm left wondering, "Did I always look like such a big dork in hooded sweaters?!" I'm thinking this outfit would have looked about a million times better if my jacket had been a bright red corderoy blazer. Live and learn, I guess - now I have a new item to look for at thrift stores! The purse is a recent find - its really soft yummy leather and was only $2 at goodwill!








Even if the outfit sucks, you have to admit that the necklace is pretty awesome!

power suit

Okay, I don't know if this really qualifies as a power suit... but I like it! I was actually planning on wearing a black skirt instead of pants, but then saw it was going to be 18 degrees this morning and decided to go with the slacks! I had a conference to go to today and I wanted to look very professional. I really, really love the piping on this jacket. I got it at Target a couple years ago and I think this is the first time I've actually worn it! I'm tempted to wear it with my white tuxedo ruffed shirt under it, but I think it might be a little too over the top that way.

I also bought a new hat today, and got a pretty pin to decorate it. Its nice and soft made out of fleece so it can't get bent out of shape. Plus, it is super warm! I think the pin dresses it up enough so that it looks a bit dressier than a fleece hat normally would.

sweater-y goodness

Okay, this is an outfit that the picture doesn't do justice to! It was such a great, snuggly sweater that is oversized but still clings enough to show off my shape, and the slacks are just nice basic gray slacks that match the sweater great. The picture kind of washes the color out of both, though, and it looks kind of boring. It was a very cold snowy day here today, and this sweater was just perfect! I didn't feel like I needed any necklace or headband because of the oversized drape-y collar on the sweater... but I feel like I should have done something to zing it up a bit. Any suggestions? I think this sweater will also look great with tight jeans and I plan on wearing it a lot this winter!

By the way, I have to say that the absolute worst height to be is 5'4". That's the height I am, and it sucks! It sucks because petite clothes are made to fit women up to 5'4" and regular clothes are made to fit women over 5'4", and so I'm always left with pants either just a bit too short or just a bit too long! These pants are a bit shorter than I would like, but not embarrassingly short - not high waters!

the Happy Homemaker!

Here I am, about to host my daughter's third birthday party. What could be more appropriate than a nice full skirt and cardigan? I really, really love this outfit!

Happy Birthday outfit!

Today was my 29th birthday. I've been down about my birthday all week - I don't want to be almost 30, I'm not ready to give up being young and cute, my baby turns three years old this week and I'm just feeling very yuck about getting older. HOWEVER, I decided to try a new look to help me feel fun and young and cute - and it worked pretty well! I've always loved the look of dresses over jeans, but always felt like it added too much bulk to my frame. However, this combo works pretty well, I think! I used to wear this dress without pants under it, but it is uber-short! I actually felt better about it with the pants on, too. I love the wide neckline on it, too. I would have liked to have worn some super-high heels, but hubby and I went to an art museum today and I didn't want to walk around for a few hours in shoes that would make me sore... these boots are actually incredibly comfortable so they were a good choice.

not sure...

I'm not sure if I really like this outfit. I got compliments on my rainboots, though! And I'm very happy that after months of looking, I finally found an umbrella that matches! I also really love this sweater, its very simple but has a nice little twist at the neckline. I also got compliments on my necklace - the gray stone matched the outfit very well. I'm thinking I need to get rid of these pants, though. Even though they feel comfy, they look awful on me!

Pretty good

I like this outfit pretty well... this jacket was a thrift store find this week, as were the shoes:

I don't know why I look so hung-over in the picture - I was actually having a great morning! LOL This picture doesn't show much detail, though, of the pattern on the shirt or jacket, so I took a couple closer pics:

more coat pictures

Today I wore my coat again! I realized, though, that yesterday I neglected to post a picture of the back of the jacket. It has some nice detailwork on the back...

I did actually have a few doubts about the coat today. I didn't get a single comment on it all day and it made me wonder if its a little more on the "dated" rather than "retro cool" side. I love, love, love the length of it and I wear red fairly often so I do like it...

I will sheepishly admit that my outfit was picked solely on the fact that it matched my coat pretty well. LOL Also, I have three loads of clean laundry to put away, so it seemed like everything else needed something that was not put away and/or would have to be ironed. Notice the red boots - I picked these up yesterday at a thrift store before I got home and opened the package that had my coat. It was a pleasent surprise that they match so well! However, after wearing them together today, it felt a little too matchy-matchy so I don't know that I'll wear them together again.

TA DA!!

I got this jacket on eBay at a ridiculously low price! Its a vintage leather coat, fully lined, and I just love it! There's no tags, only a little scrap of yellow printed paper in the pocket that says, "Genuine Leather, made in Argentina"

Expect to see this a lot the next few months! Especially since I happened to find boots at the thrift store today that match it perfectly!

black and blue

This was a fun simple outfit, and I think the sweater-y tights worked better. Same skirt, but a fitted 3/4 length black sweater so it all didn't look so bulky.

LOVE these shoes!

I got these shoes because I knew they'd drive my husband wild - and they sure did! I wore them to church this morning and paired them with a very conservative dress and my little mini-trench coat and a grown-up looking purse. I think the whole look was great! Oh, I had a black flower pony-tail holder, too, to dress up my ponytail a bit. (I've been wearing my glasses the last several days because I've had a cold and my eyes are always more sensitive when I'm sick.)

family movie day

We took the kids and went out to see a movie yesterday, so I dressed comfortably. I had just gotten these jeans out of the dryer (I'm bad, I know I should lay my jeans flat to dry) and so my jeans were a bit tighter than usual in this picture, they loosened back up to normal after an hour or two, though. I'm still using my purple shoes to inspire me to wear purple shirts more often! And, I even had a pinky-purple flower pony-tail holder, though you can't see it in the picture. I love this jacket, I got it at a Gap Outlet on sale for $12 last summer.

meh

You know, this is a very comfy dress, and I thought it looked good on me - but after seeing these pictures I am not as thrilled with it. I actually bought it to wear in a play and it wasn't quite what I wanted - I was looking for a housedress type of dress with a drab print. This fit the bill, except the neckline is a bit plunging. I paired it with this cardigan to go to work this morning, then ditched the cardigan for the rest of the day. I think since its an empire waist style, my real waist gets lost and it makes me look quite a bit heavier. But, hey! Now I know not to buy any more empire waist dresses!

Love it!

I absolutely love this outfit! We're having some unseasonably warm weather this week and I've enjoyed the (possibly last) chance to wear skirts without hose! I got this skirt at a thrift store this week, and I usually have a strict policy of only buying nicer brands at thrift stores - nothing from walmart, target, or old navy. However, this skirt was a walmart brand skirt, but I just loved it so much I couldn't pass it up!

same old, except new shoes!

I think this was the outfit I wore in my first post! Except that I got a new pair of shoes to wear with it. This is probably my favorite style of shoe right now - very high heels, a little bit of a platform, and open-toed. I bought a bright red pair almost exactly like this last week! I also bought this purse this week. My patchwork purse that I made in pinks and browns has been so well-used this summer that it actually has a small hole in it, so I've been on a quest to find a replacement. The trend right now in purses is HUGE and lots of buckles and such, and shiney is very in right now. I hate all of that! This purse is nice and simple, on the biggish side but not huge by any stretch, and has very little in the way of hardware. Perfect!

the key accessory...

Is the "I voted!" sticker, of course! This is what I wore on Tuesday, I decided I ought to wear nice warm tights since I didn't know if I'd end up stuck standing out in the rain for awhile waiting to vote. The good news was that I didn't have to wait at all, the bad news is that looking at the picture I think this outfit makes me look a bit fat. Oh, well... I guess its hard to combine several heavy fabrics (courderoy, denim, and sweater-y tights) without it adding weight. Plus, neither the shirt nor the skirt are particularly fitted. I really liked the color palette of this outfit, though, maybe there's a way I can improve on it...?

ugh

Well, I liked this outfit when I put it on this morning, but I'm not very impressed with the picture. Maybe its the stumpiness that occured since my hubby is 10 inches taller than me and was looking down at me as he took it, maybe its that the pants are a bit too tight and should be longer, maybe its that the shirt is a size too big. But, I don't think I'll be wearing this particular outfit anymore.

all grown up

This is what I wore Tuesday - the office I work in had an Open House and I wanted to look professional and such in case my supervisors stopped by. I think this worked out well - I got compliments on the necklace during the day. And, I have to say that I am THRILLED to be fitting back into my Old Navy size 4 cords!

day off!

I felt super-hot in this outfit, and I got lots of compliments on it all day! After dropping the kids off at school I went shopping, saw a movie, and then had coffee with a friend. It was a fun day!

Sunday, dressing to impress Granny

A couple years ago, my father in law told me that his mother and sister like me because "they think you're a knock-out, and that's what's important to them." Well, talk about a way to put the pressure on a young woman! So, I felt the need to be looking very nice for Granny's visit on Sunday, it was the first time I'd seen her in over a year. A cotton wrap dress in an Asian-inspired fabric. I had ditched the hose and heels in favor of some less dressy black sandals after church.

sacrifices

And sometimes fashion has to be sacrificed for the greater good. Today's outfit was not exciting - t-shirt, jeans, sneakers, and a red headwrap thingy. But, the message is what was important today!

funky purple shoes!

I loooooove these shoes. I actually bought them (at a thrift store) for my sister, but then I tried them on and and they fit me perfectly, so I knew they wouldn't fit her and I had scored! Wednesday and Thursday I wore outfits that would coordinate with them:

so what's the point?

Well, I've started this blog... and I guess I should explain why!

I realized a few weeks ago that my favorite blogs to read right now are ones that have to do with clothes and people's personal style. I've been trying to define/redefine myself for the past year or so with regards to my style. I'm 28 years old, a mother of two young kids, I work part time in a school system (not as a teacher, though), and own a small business with my husband of seven years. I'm a little psycho about exercising and eating healthy, but try not to let my weight define every moment of my life (anymore).

I realized a year or so ago when I finally decided to move away from functional clothing to stylish clothing, that my personal sense of style had not developed much since college. I'm really too old to be dressing like a cute co-ed, and after two kids I don't really have the body for it anyway. BUT, I'm too young to dress "like a mom." (If I ever go out in Mom-jeans, I want someone to shoot me and put me out of my misery.) So, I'm trying to find slightly off-beat, stylish clothes that reflect my personality and lifestyle. I live in a very rural area now, but until last year I lived in a metro area that was very affluent. I lean somewhat towards the yuppie/preppy style, but my ideals are much more in line with the hippie movement. I guess I would describe my style as somewhat urban-bohemian? I like interesting jewelry, Asian inspired styles and fabrics, and I usually seem to gravitate toward black and red pieces in my wardrobe. And, I'm developing a major obsession with shoes!

As far as where I buy my clothes - I'm addicted to shopping at thrift stores! I also like outlet-type places like TJ Max and Marshall's. I'm quite the bargain hunter!

the perfect outfit for a family holiday portrait

I have two kids and I always have fun picking out clothes for us all to wear for family portraits - not TOO matchy-matchy, but coordinating. This year my four year old son will be wearing a black suit, black and white vest, black tie, and white dress shirt. My husband will be wearing a black suit and black tie, also, I'm not sure what color shirt (maybe white). My three year old daughter will be wearing a red and black Christmas-y dress, and this is what I'll be wearing!