Merry Christmas

This is the Christmas card we sent out this year, and as it's now officially Christmas (mountain time)...

Merry Christmas to you and yours

from our little family to yours

Stripes on Dots

I don't know that I would have ever done such "large scale" print mixing before I started this blog in March - I mean, my top AND bottom in different prints?! This is the girl who used to match EVERYTHING (by match, I mean shoes to belt to bag to earrings - and the. exact. color.). But, here it is!

Too much? Too risky? Or just right?

linking up with:

Two Thirty-Five Designs for Casual Friday

Still Being Molly for Funday Monday

sweater: Express

pants: Old Navy via Plato's Closet

boots: Rack Room Shoes

Layering

I wore this during the cold snap I mentioned yesterday. I had a long sleeve shirt under my chambray, which was under my heavy (and very warm) sleeveless cardigan, and topped off with a big scarf. 

Oh, and warm socks - those boots, although cute, are really not conducive to keeping my toes warm.

linking up with:

Simply Lulu Style for What I'm Loving Fridays

DC in Style for Monday Bloom

chambray: Lauren Conrad via Kohl's

sleeveless cardigan: gift from my mama (Eddie Bauer)

olive skinnies: Aéropostale

scarf: Aéropostale <-- one of my new finds!

boots: Rack Room Shoes

Cold Snap

Recently in Colorado we had a cold snap. By cold snap, I mean the temperature didn't get out of the single digits, or even teens. For DAYSSSS. Denver set record-breaking temps (so many days in a row of a really cold temp; coldest temps for so many hours; temps for this early in the season - I used to work with climatologists, so I'm in "the know").

And I know it's winter, and it's almost Christmas, and why am I whining about cold weather when I live in a mountain state (that's a can of worms I don't think you want to open #beachloverforlife #everytimeitsnowsiwanttomovetothebeach)? However, 40 degree days are a whole lot different than barely freezing temps, which are a whole other ballgame compared to temperatures that stay in the single digits for days on end. When it's that cold, it hurts to breathe, and your nose hurts after being outside for 2 seconds. Forget about dashing outside for a quick second without your coat - you'll be a popsicle before too you can get back inside.

So, what's a girl to do when she experiences temperatures that usually wait until January or February to show their ugly faces? Several things:

1) sweaters
2) multiple sweaters
3) scarves
4) down vests over sweaters
5) sweaters UNDER down vests UNDER down coats
6) start the car a good 10 minutes before she needs to leave
7) lots of coffee/hot chocolate/warm drinks & blankets
8) not venture outside. for any reason.
9) make sure the puppies go in & out really quickly, so they don't freeze their little wrinkled selves
10) whine a little bit and dream about moving to Florida, specifically the Gulf Coast

while I DID all of the above, I've also decided that by having the appropriate "gear," I can save myself a lot of coldness. i.e. coats, sweaters, scarves, and new snow boots (an early Christmas gift from the Mr. - they're essential so I don't complain to him about how my toes are cold, even though I'm wearing 3 pairs of socks).

Interested in seeing my cold weather gear? I'll be honest, cold weather clothes make up way more than half of my closet, and our coat closet is quite full of coats for all different temperatures. 

Any other good strategies for dealing with the cold? And I mean REALLY cold, like "Since when do we live in Siberia?" cold?

sweater: J Crew (thrifted)

scarf: WalMart

jeans: GAP

boots: Rack Room Shoes

Mr. Picks Mondays: Bbbbblue Sweater

I like blue fair-isle so much,  I have two of these sweaters - this one, and
the same print & style in dark navy & light pink

When my Mr. picked this out for me, he really had it easy. When I come up with an outfit that looks good and I want to wear, I hang it up in my closet and loop a little brightly-colored foam 

door-hanger over it. 

This was one of those outfits - he hollered to me: 

"What if it has a thing on the hanger?"

"That means it goes with what it's hanging with."

"Sweet. You're wearing this."

He's all about keeping it simple. That's one thing I love about him.

Two more things before we call it a day (I'm wiped, and my comfy bed is calling my name).

1) I have a hard time styling this sweater and its navy & pink cousin - it's a short cardigan, so I don't want to wear anything too form-fitting, but it's a snug fit, so I can't wear anything very thick/heavy under. Any more suggestions besides a button up?

2) Just want to share that I haven't been able to wear these jeans in about a year, as they were too snug. However, with clean eating & lots of self control, I'm able to fit into them again. Ta Da! :D

sweater: American Eagle - Aerie

button up: J CREW (thrifted)

jeans: Old Navy

boots: UGG

linking up:
The Style Record - Monday Must Haves
Still Being Molly - funday MONDAY
lowercase letters - miscellany monday
Watch out for the Woestmans - Watch What I'm Wearing
Not Dead Yet Style
Claire Justine
Join the Gossip

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!

Mission 30 for 30: Complete

Here it is. All of my 30 for 30 outfits in 1 big picture & 1 post (my 30 items here). What do you think? How'd I do? I think this one went pretty well, considering I moved in the middle of it, and have been missing a washing machine since the move (surprise! we currently don't have a functioning washing machine - supposed to get one tomorrow...)

I'm not going to rehash everything like I did last time, but I will say, the items I chose for November's 30 for 30 seemed to jive better than the ones I chose in June. However, there still seems to be room for improvement - i.e. maybe you don't pick a navy leopard print skirt next time, or, if you do, make sure you have more tops you can wear with it, for example...

I'm glad I did this before Christmas - it's really helped to drive home that I don't NEED anything. I've got a full closet that I'm more than capable of remixing & wearing in different ways almost every time.

However, if someone were to gift me something for the upcoming holiday, I'd be happy to share my favorite stores & sizes...

anyone?
Bueller?

linking up here & here for the first time, and over here, too!