taking advantage

You might remember a few days ago I mentioned that spring is NOT here.

Yet.

But I said I had a few spring-ish outfits to share. This is the first one. Bare legs AND sandals. You guys, that's unheard of for late February.

But, it happened.

I was a wee bit chilly, but I was bound and determined to take advantage of the sunshine, so I did.

And had goosebumps when I wasn't in direct sunlight.

Aaah, the price to pay for a little Vitamin D in the middle of winter.

linking up over here, since this vest and skirt are black and white :)

shirt: c/o Aéropostale

vest: thrifted (Levi's)

skirt: c/o Aéropostale

sandals: Target

wine colored

I picked up this wine colored pencil skirt on a whim, on sale, at J. Crew Factory on New Year's Day. And I can't believe how much it goes with. Really. It's filling the hole of a black pencil skirt in my closet just perfectly. Hard to believe, I know, but it's true. It's such a nice, rich, merlot/wine/plum color that it adds just a little something extra to anything I wear it with, more so than a black pencil skirt would do, which makes me thankful I picked it up instead of a different color.

And based on yesterday's outfit (here), I guess you could say that I like this color combination of wine/merlot/plum/berry with black. And, you wouldn't be incorrect with that statement.

shirt: Charlotte Russe

skirt: J. Crew Factory

polka dot tights: Target

booties: Old Navy

faux leather jacket: Target

you guys, it's still winter

If you read any other style blogs, you might have noticed (as I have) that everyone is saying that spring is here.

Let's be real here, my friends. I'm not going to pronounce that spring is here, nor will I dress like it, nor will I bore you with pictures of the peonies that grow in my backyard, because it's not quite spring (that is snow in the above pictures. yes, real snow).

Yet.

It's coming.

BUT

There are at least 2 more weeks until spring officially starts. And, if you've ever wished for spring and warmer weather like yours truly, you'll know that sometimes the harder you wish for it and will it to finally be spring, the more snow you get (see above pictures), and, if you live along the Front Range, you'll remember that we had snow last Mother's Day.

In May.

That was...cool?

So, to end this little rant, you will eventually see some spring outfits here. And you might even see some outfits that could be interpreted as warmer weather ensembles. But, I assure you, spring is NOT here in the Rockies juuuuuuust yet. And as such, I will (un)happily still be wearing my snow boots and sweaters and scarves and coats and hats and gloves and shoveling snow.

Probably until May...or June...or whatever...

shirt: Hollister

jeans: c/o Aéropostale

scarf: WalMart

boots: c/o Aéropostale

all of the layers

If you've ever wanted to wear ALL OF THE LAYERS, you would look something similar to the above pictures. A striped tee, zip up sweatshirt, utility jacket, and a scarf up top, skinnies and flats on the bottom.

Not my best look, but certainly not my worst. I like to think the multitude of layers keeps you guessing:

"Does she look good? Does she look like a green, gray & black marshmallow? Why is she wearing so many layers? Maybe they layers are to distract me? Maybe the layers hide her true, funny, clever self? I think maybe the layers all look cohesive - wow, she must really have her life in order."

Or, ya know, whatever other thoughts popped into your head when this outfit filled with prints, dark colors, and neutrals appeared on your computer screen/phone screen/email inbox. Who knew a neutral & layered outfit could spark SO much discussion?

shirt: WalMart

sweatshirt: Target

jacket: thrifted (Land's End)

scarf: c/o Aéropostale

skinnies: Target

flats: Target

in like a lion

On this, the first Monday of March 2015, I have two outfits to share with you (just like last week). They both feature a sweater, skinnies and flats. Oh oh, and stripes. Always stripes.

It's impossible to discern, but those pants and flats are navy blue, not black. And my necklace, too. But that is a bit easier to see. The stripes in the sweater can lean gray, black or blue, so I chose to pull out the blue on this particular day. And then blue'd up everything else with my pants, shoes and jewelry. Perfect for a long day of meetings.

Cream and green and stripes and python. I tend to shy away from a big chunky scarf and chunky sweater together in the same outfit - it normally feels like too much volume, warmth and potential static for my hair. But this chunky scarf and sweater worked together. I think because I kept the rest of my outfit simple, and you know, it's winter. And winter calls for scarves and sweaters to keep you warm.

pink sweater: c/o Aéropostale

blue skinnies: Target

blue flats: thrifted

statement necklace: Old Navy

striped shirt: Target

cream cardigan: c/o Aéropostale

green scarf:  thrifted

jeans: c/o Aéropostale

python flats: WalMart

B to C

More ideas for ways to go from place to place, or you might say since we already covered A to B, this is B to C.

Exhibit B: frolicking in the mountains, and then driving back through the mountains and a few mountain passes to a lower elevation to run errands and get settled at home after a weekend of play. Exhibit B is comprised of: a bulldog sweater, leggings, a scarf, a down vest, and snow boots.

And lots and lots of snow.

Exhibit C: perfect for running errands and enjoying the winter sunshine in Colorado (the temperature this day reached 70! in the middle of winter! I rolled down my car windows and turned up the tunes. Y'all, it was great). Exhibit C was comprised of: the same (wonderfully awesome) bulldog sweater, skinny jeans cuffed a few times, fancy pointy-toed flats, a faux leather jacket, a pearl explosion necklace, and shades. Shades for the above mentioned sunshine.

This was an easy transitional look - I kept the sweater the same and changed my bottoms and outer layers. And accessories, too. And the entire vibe of my ensemble.

But, you gotta do what you gotta do when you swing from one weather extreme to another, and you need to look good and feel good while you're doing it.

sweater: Target

scarf: c/o Aéropostale

vest: Old Navy

leggings: c/o Aéropostale

boots: SOREL via JAX

sweater: Target

jeans: c/o Aéropostale

jacket: c/o Aéropostale

flats: Target

fancy

When your best friend has a birthday, and invites you out for margaritas at your favorite margarita place, you might wear something like this. Or you might wear something like this for a fun party, or a nice date. Or your own birthday celebration at above-mentioned margarita place.

You might especially wear something like this if you hadn't taken your new skirt out for a test drive yet, and/or your new polka dot tights were burning a hole in your dresser drawer.

I kept it simple up top with a white v-neck tee, and fancy on the bottom, with a bow skirt, polka dot tights, and suede magenta wedges.

And we had a splendid time celebrating my friend.

So much fun, we didn't even get a picture of the two of us :/

shirt: WalMart

skirt: c/o Aéropostale

similar: Solid Pucker Skirt / Chevron Jacquard Pleated Skirt

tights: Target

wedges: ALDO