the sweater saga, part 7 + sweater #22

previously, the sweater saga...

part 1 / part 2 / part 3 / part 4 / part 5 / part 6

I'm not at all an expert, and I'm not saying you have to , or should do, the same. But I find myself leaning more and more towards less. I've accumulated a lot of stuff in my 20-some years, and have some sorting and tossing to do, as I always will. But my goal is to never be a "manager of stuff" - keeping things just because I MIGHT someday, in 30 years, need it. For one thing. One time.

But, instead, keeping around and actually using the things I use and wear and enjoy every day, as opposed to things that the maintenance of stresses me out - you know, a 90% piece of furniture, instead of a 10% piece. Or appliance. Or feature of my home.

And this argyle sweater is the perfect layer on top of my bulldog tee. I just love my little sweeties so much, I wear them on my shirt. They're so stinking cute, you guys. Olaf runs circles around me when I get home and can't wait for me to play tug of war with him. And a little update: we adopted him with several infections - ears, eyes, and skin (fungal & bacterial). He's got quite the pharmacy, but it seems to be helping!! Hoping we can get his skin issues sorted out soon, so he's not quite to itchy.

shirt: J. Crew Factory

sweater: from a friend (J. Crew)

pants: J. Crew Factory

flats: Target

a new addition + sweater #15

So, we got another dog. Ever since my sweet Cali girl passed away in September, Turbo has been an only dog child. I can't tell if he loves it, hates it, or really has no idea... (he can't really hear, see, or smell, so who knows if he even knows his old companion hasn't been around for months, or if he relates the extra attention he's been receiving to her absence).

Back to current events, the new addition is another white male bulldog. He's 2 years old, and the sweetest pup there ever was. The two of them together melt my sometimes-grumpy little heart, and then explode it into a thousand little warm fuzzy hearts. I'm not going to share his current name, since it's probably going to change, but just know that he's so active, and he runs, and he jumps, and he plays, and he brings so many smiles to my face every day. And his head is so big, and his little wrinkley face is so expressive.

But my Turbo is still my handsome boy and grumpy old man and snuggle buddy, don't you worry.

cardigan: rue21

tank: c/o Aéropostale

belt: thrifted

scarf: from a friend

pants: Target

boots: c/o Aéropostale

tights-less + sweater #4

Originally, this outfit was slated to be worn with bright red tights. But, when the forecast called for “sunny and in the 50s,” I ditched the tights and opted for bare legs. I've still got a wee bit of color from Thanksgiving in Key West, so I wasn’t afraid my legs would blind anyone. I didn't originally intend for this to be a black + white look (plus brown boots), but when tights were taken out of the equation, it just sort of happened that way. And I don’t hate it.

And count this black cardigan as sweater #4 for my "sweater a day in January" style change/style prompt - check back for more information tomorrow!

dress: Target

sweater: Maurice's

scarf: c/o Aéropostale

boots: The Frye Company via Nordstrom

kindergarten and a sweater a day in January + sweater #3

 

After examining these pictures, I’ve come to the conclusion that I look a little bit like a kindergarten teacher in this outfit. Not knocking kindergarten teachers – they do an important job. It’s just that I am NOT a kindergarten teacher. Or educator of any sort. That being said, I really like this printed scarf paired with this polka-dot cardigan. Call me crazy? Or Mrs. Frazzle…

And also...I'm starting the year off with a style challenge. I don't have a fancy name for it (yet), and I have yet to hear of someone else trying it (but if I'm mistaken, please let me know!). My plan is to wear one of my sweaters each and every day during the month of January. According to my count, I've got about 26.

My interpretation of a sweater is pretty loose (i.e. it's a knit cotton, but it's a cardigan, so it's a sweater, and I'm also including a few nicer sweatshirt-y types in the mix), but, 26 gives me a few "off" weekend days where I won't migrate out of sweats, and a few days that I'll be skiing in long underwear and snow pants, so even if I do discover a few more that I've overlooked (because they're in the wash or hiding somewhere...), I can easily add them to my count and not have to double up one day.

There's a few reasons I'd like to do this, but look for those in a few days, as well as my official sweater tally, and maybe some rules guidelines.

If you're interested in joining, let me know and I can figure out a link-up deal type thing-ey, or just post your outfit(s) in the comments, too. Would love to see what you come up with! Is the number of sweaters I own excessive? Just right? *gulp* Too little?

Hope your 2015 is still off to a great start!

shirt: J. Crew Factory

cardigan: J. Crew Factory

scarf: gift (Old Navy)

jeans: c/o Aéropostale

flats: Kohl's

predictable

This has become a "uniform" of sorts. Button-up (preferably plaid and/or flannel), skinnies, fun shoes (maybe boots or booties, or sometimes borrowed oxfords from a friend), and occasionally a scarf.

And a faux-leather jacket on top is practically perfection.

Sometimes I'm pretty predictable...

shirt: Old Navy

scarf: c/o Aéropostale

jacket: The Screamin' Peach

jeans: c/o Aéropostale

shoes: borrowed from a friend

still classic

One of my best friends gave me this cardigan over the summer. I was so excited to have a classic argyle cardigan, but I wasn't sure what to wear with it. I was a little stumped, until I decided to think beyond solid black, white or gray. Somehow this striped button-up got put next to the argyle, and a slightly print-mixed outfit was born.

The shirt and the cardigan are both classic pieces on their own, and paired together, they're still classic, but a bit more modern, and slightly cheeky. And instead of defaulting to skinny jeans, I chose mint jeans to brighten this up a bit. And my new black boots were a no-brainer.

shirt: GAP

cardigan: from a friend (J. Crew)

mint jeans: Lauren Conrad via Kohl's

boots: c/o Aéropostale

30 for 30: day 29 & day 30

day 29

 

 

  

This top. I love. I’m in love. Is it green? Is it gray? It’s a sweater. It’s a shirt. It’s a shirt with a chiffon back. It’s dressy. It’s casual. It keep me guessing, and I’m a big fan. If I stumble across more tops with this look/feel/vibe, I’ll definitely be adding them to my closet.

day 30

 

 

  

Black&white&gray. I’d just about reached the end of my creativity with this one. And what better to wear on a Thursday at the end of October than something easy and almost-mindless? It’s not my best look, but it’s far from my worst.

And hallelujah, the weather tomorrow is supposed to be in the 30s! Can we say "balmy"??

See my list of 30 items here.

eShakti

What feels like ages ago (but was really only the beginning of August), a company called eShakti reached out to me and asked if I’d be interested in ordering a dress through their site and featuring it on my blog.

Of course I said yes

I’d read a lot about this company through other bloggers and couldn’t wait to customize a dress for my short self. eShakti encourages you to customize any piece on their website – want pockets? Sure. No pockets? Ok. Need it a bit shorter? Or a bit longer? Easily done. Ordering by standard size IS an option, but if you’re interested in any of these beautiful garments, I’d go for something a bit more custom. Why not? Why not order something you know will fit you, instead of ordering it, and then having to get it tailored?

I submitted my measurements, took out the pockets, and went with a shorter length on this dress (I’m 5”4’ with short legs, a short torso, and short shoulders. However, my brother once told me I have long arms…what?).

And what do you know? This striped dress is a perfect fit.

I wore this on a date this past Saturday for wine and cheese (same place we went for our wedding anniversary, The Welsh Rabbit – highly recommend this place). Aside from the compliments from my Mr., our hostess/server gushed over my dress, as did another customer at the bar who made it a point to stop by our table and tell me she’d seen me walk in and I looked

“Fabulous. Really. Fabulous.”

Since the dress is black and white, I added some color with my shoes and jewelry, and added a thrifted gold clutch to complete my look.

I’ve wanted to order something from eShakti for a long time, ever since reading about the company through other bloggers, but I haven’t had an occasion that I NEEDED a new dress for (I’m guilty of buying dresses without an occasion, and then allowing them to sit in my closet for ages…whoops…). But when THEY contacted ME, I figured “Why not?!” I’m thinking if we get invited to holiday parties this winter, I can throw on festive tights and accessorize it differently to take this outfit from end-of-summer to colder weather (boo). Not that I want to wait that long to wear it again...

eShakti’s website has PLENTY of other options – more casual dresses, skirts, blouses, and everything in between. Something else that caught my eye was an emerald green tulle skirt…so fun. However, I think I’ll get more wear (and maybe more compliments) out of my black-and-white striped dress than an emerald green tulle skirt *sigh* There’s always the next occasion I need something fancy for…

dress: c/o of eShakti*

shoes: ALDO

clutch: thrifted

*dress provided courtesy of eShakti, however, all opinions are my own