The Liebster

You saw this outfit in a picture on Boxing Day - a lunch date with one of my best friends. We stopped on our way home to take these pictures just before the sun went down. It's easy for me to get annoyed at our crazy, ever-changing weather in Colorado, but beautiful 60 degree days in December (and January. and February.) and really pretty sunsets & drives remind me that this is a beautiful place to live.

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Last week, I was nominated by Paige over at Life's a Party - Dress Like it for The Liebster Award, which is given by bloggers to new blogs with smaller followings but lots of potential. Thanks so much, Paige!

The rules of The Liebster Award:

- Mention the person who nominated you with a link to their blog (check!)

- Answer the 11 questions they asked (below)

- Nominate 11 other bloggers with a smaller following, but a lot of potential (I would, but to be completely honest, I don't know know 11 other bloggers with a smaller following than myself - I follow plenty of other bloggers, but I don't know 5, let alone 11, that are smaller than myself. We all have to start somewhere!)

- Create 11 of your own questions for them to answer (see above)

- Notify your nominees (and again, see above)

Here are Paige's questions for me to answer:

1. What is your biggest pet peeve?

Hmm, definitely spelling & grammatical errors

2. Where is your dream vacation?

Somewhere on a beach

3. Statement necklace or arm candy?

Statement necklace - I just got several more this past week at Old Navy!

4. Where's your favorite place to shop?

Hmm, anywhere with pieces I love [that I can afford!]

5. What is one thing in your closet you could not live without?

Any of my skinnies

6. Why did you start blogging?

Several reasons: 

1) to help to develop my personal style

2) I love reading other blogs, so I thought "Why not?"

3) to make me dress up a bit every day, rather than jeans and a plan t-shirt

4) I have a lot of clothes, so what better way to wear them and then share them? 

7. What's your favorite phone and/or tablet app?

Instagram - lovelovelove

8. What's something your readers probably don't know about you?

I'm driving a new (to me) car, and I just love that it's a sports-meets-luxury car...it goes fast...and it's awesome

9. Favorite fashion trend?

Print mixing

10. What's your biggest blog goal for 2014?

To grow. growgrowgrow.

11. Favorite TV Show?

We don't have cable right now, so I'm watching re-watching all of Ugly Betty on Netflix

sweater: Aéropostale

leggings: Target

boots: Rack Room Shoes (sort of similar below)

SHOP THE BOOTS (sort of)

Festive

This outfit is several weeks behind - it's what I wore Christmas Eve. I had to work (bummer, huh?), but we did get to go home early, so I was able to take outfit pictures outside during daylight! Woot woot! I figured if I had to work on Christmas Eve, I might as well wear something with a bow, something sparkly, and something red - it doesn't hurt that the item with the bow was in the form of my new bulldog tee. 

Christmas Eve started my 5 days in a row off. I'm going to be completely honest with you - it was aaaaamazing. I slept in, wore sweatpants, drank lots of coffee with Irish Cream, and spent lots of time with my favorite men & woman (husband, bulldog & bulldog). I had a huge list of things I wanted to get accomplished, but I hardly did any of them. Instead, I lounged, relaxed, soaked in the time with my sweetheart, and truly enjoyed my down time. We had no plans to go anywhere for Christmas, so the two of us stayed at home and laid low. Going back to work was TOUGH. OY. SO. TOUGH.

Now that Christmas is about three weeks behind us, do you think I'm the worst blogger ever? 

Or, are you thankful that I keep reminding you of the holidays & celebrating well into January?

We're having (belated) Christmas with both sets of parents this weekend - I'm a fan of drawing out the celebrating :)

linking up with:
Two Thirty Five Designs for Casual Friday
Simply Lulu Style for What I'm Loving Friday

shirt: J CREW Factory similar below

sweater: from a friend - Banana Republic similar below

pants: Aéropostale similar below

shoes: KMart similar below

A Dress as a Skirt

This skirt is not really a skirt...

it's a dress! 

Didn't fool you, did I? When I did my November 30 for 30, I wore a dress as a shirt. This time, I wore a dress as a skirt. That's all my creativity in those two outfits, so I'm calling it good and ending this year (2014) on a high note. See ya.

I kid - again!

I'm just wondering why I haven't worn this dress as a skirt before - what have I been doing?! Living under a style rock, obvi. You're going to be seeing this look A LOT. Oh, and I have another black dress that looks perfect as a skirt, so, seriously, get ready to see this look doubly often. 

the herringbone pattern on my tights - lovelovelove

sweater: gift (Coldwater Creek)

dress as a skirt: thrifted (Target)

tights: ??? - had them since high school...

boots: Rack Room Shoes

linking up with:

Two Thirty-Five Designs for Casual Friday Link Up

Simply Lulu Style for What I'm Loving Fridays

Style Elixir for Friday's Fab Favorites

Onward

losing my balance. kinda sorta.

As you read this post, know that I'm in super chilly Minnesota for my cousin's wedding. I don't know that the temperature has gotten above zero all day. Or even this week, for that matter. So, I'm layering and staying inside, on the couch, under plenty of blankets. Pretty groundbreaking game plan, huh?

At least I'll be toasty warm!

If you read a lot of fashion/style-based blogs, you'll see that many other bloggers have rounded up their favorite (or least favorite) outfits of the year, and/or are blogging about their New Year's resolutions. While I'm not going to round up the past year in outfit posts (you can search them by month to the right, or by label down on the bottom of this page), I AM going to state that for 2014, I really want to grow my blog. Grow my readership, grow as a blogger, grow as a "writer," and force myself to grow when it comes to styling outfits, putting myself together, and grow up when it comes to my closet. I'm trying to put my foot down when it comes to buying cheap clothes that don't wash or wear well, and stock up on quality basics - pieces that I'll have for a long time and are timeless. 

I know I've mentioned this before, but I'm really going to try to focus on quality over quantity. Now, know that that phrase means something different to everyone, and it's not going to happen overnight, but I am RESOLVING to give it my best effort! I'm not perfect, and I won't be able to kick my habit (finding clothes on sale gives me such a rush) right away, but I really want to fill (ok, first empty/get rid of/pare down, and then not completely refill, but somewhat fill up) my closet with nice (possibly luxurious!) pieces that I love, and am truly excited to wear*. 

So, that's my blog resolution for 2014 - GROW.

GROW. GROW. GROW.

Wish me luck!

this is my red peacoat. you know, for when it's cold out

When I was packing for this trip, I had the hardest time deciding what to bring. I wanted to bring really warm clothes (below zero temps, my friends), but in looking at a lot of my sweaters, I wasn't excited about wearing them. In fact, I was, not disgusted, but a bit annoyed with myself. I kept asking myself "Why do you still have this if you don't ever want to wear it? Or it's so itchy that you can only wear it for a few hours? Or only fits when you're feeling really skinny?" It motivated me to want to go through my sweaters (again), but as I still needed to pack, get ready for bed, and get a good night's sleep before a day of travel, that will have to wait until I am home again. I'm going to have to ask myself the tough questions, be honest with myself, and get rid of some oldies. But, I think I'm ready!

Baby steps, my friends. Getting rid of some sweaters = baby steps. And getting rid of more stuff = more and more baby steps that combine to make several larger steps (right? I'm no math expert, but I think that's how it works).

Baby steps for a New Year :)

polka dot blouse: Kohl's

sweater: American Eagle

jeans: Kohl's

shoes: KMart

peacoat: gift (Old Navy)

linking up:

Walking in Memphis in High Heels, The Fashion Canvas, and The Parlor Girl for Trend Spin Link Up

Purple Pants, Polka Dots, and a(nother)...Bulldog Shirt?

Cali loves blog pics. but mostly shirts with her silhouette on them

I think the title of this post really says it all. The only thing I didn't mention up there is that these purple pants are my only pair of coated/waxed denim, and I wore black boots.

This bulldog shirt was another Black Friday find. I spotted it at J. CREW Factory weeks ago but didn't pull the trigger. But when I popped in on Black Friday Thanksgiving Night, only a few shirts were left, and only one in my size. 'Twas fate, my friends, 'twas fate. Oh, and isn't this polka dot cardigan fab? You know I luuuurve me some polka dots, so really, 'twas a no-brainer - and I'm a fan of those, especially when it comes to shopping. 

However, when I showed it to the Mr, he said it looked like something I already had. 

I asked to clarify:

"Something I already have? Or something I would wear?"

His response:

"Something you already have."

"Oh, honey, I sure don't have a black & white polka dot cardigan in my closet. 

However, this one will fit right in..."

shirt: J. CREW Factory

cardigan: J. CREW Factory

pants: Kohl's

boots: KMart

linking up:

here, here, here, and over here

check 'em out!

30 for 30: Day 15

Looking at these pictures now, this outfit looks like I tried to be a little "tough" (black boots, black sweater, olive green pants), but then I veered the other direction wearing a scarf with hearts on it. 

Pass?

Fail?

There IS something to be said for "juxtaposing" looks/styles/seasons/textures/aesthetics. 

Right?? Right.

I wasn't thinking that when I put this outfit together - I really just wanted to wear my green pants (have I mentioned they're incredibly comfortable?) and my new scarf. I've found that lately (and by lately, I mean since the first day of this 30 for 30 challenge) I am really drawn to more neutral colors instead of brights & prints, like I have been in the past. 

It feels easier to pair black with black, or taupe, or green, and not worry about matching, but just know that everything will look OK when I pair them together. That said, I just don't think I can give up my love of brights and prints and sequins and twirly skirts and volume and layers and things that me warm & fuzzy (all of the above).

30 for 30: Day 7

Day 7 - one week down. I typically have a hard time putting black and brown together, but I guess this worked for me because it's more cream/tan with black :)

With these booties, I can't decide if I should tuck my pants INTO them, or show a wee bit of ankle skin OR show off some of my fancy socks...any bootie experts out there?

I completely forget to mention this in my blog post on Monday, but happy (belated) Veteran's Day! I've got several veterans in my family, and am thankful for each and every one's service & sacrifice for our great nation. My two favorite vets are my Mom & Dad - thanks for everything, you two are the best. Love ya.

Orange-ish & A Tutorial (of sorts)

I don't own much orange (it's not a good color on me), so this coral-y/orange-y sweater is the closest to orange that I own (I know - these pictures make it look pink-ish, just trust me!). But I wanted to share so I could participate in this link up with Walking in Memphis in Heels, The Fashion Canvas, and Vodka Infused Lemonade for their weekly Trend Spin Link Up. The theme this week is black and orange (for Halloween, obvi). So, please excuse my dark and grainy pictures - the sun goes down so early (curse you, shorter days!)! But please appreciate my enthusiasm for blogging/Halloween/link-ups :) 

A for effort?

.......................................

Let's switch gears. Majorly.

If you have a scarf that you think would be just divine as an infinity scarf, look below for a few simple (REALLY simple) steps to make that happen. 

Place a rubber band around both ends of the scarf, so you have a large loop, and a little "tuft" for the ends.

Place looped scarf around your neck. I put the "tuft" at the nape of my neck.

Now make a figure-eight with your scarf, by crossing one side over the other.

Flip up the bottom of the eight, and place it around your neck. 

You should have 2 loops of scarf around your neck.

Fluff your hair. 

Adjust your scarf. 

Give yourself a pat on the back. Or a thumbs-up.

You have now made an infinite scarf a (temporary) infinity scarf! Ta da! 

I've found that the "tuft" is smaller (and thus, more manageable) when you use a thinner scarf. However, it's not impossible with a thick scarf - I would recommend wearing your hair down so you can cover up the "tuft." Or, become an expert at scarf arranging so you can cover it up with the 2nd loop :)

Ever tried this? I do it all the time! It's just a different way of tying a scarf. Tell me how you stretch your existing closet and wear things in a new way.

sweater: Target

shirt: WalMart

 (temporary infinity) scarf: thrifted

jeans: Trends

Boots: Kmart