Zeta Day

me & Cat. love love love.

Chelsea. you know her!

I'm a bit behind on a few outfit posts, especially this one. My Zeta Tau Alpha alumni group recently hosted Zeta Day/State Day/ Colorado & Wyoming Zeta State Day (whatever you want to call it - I call it Zeta Day). All of the Zetas in the great state of Colorado + Wyoming get together for brunch/lunch and celebrate being zisters.

This year's theme was "Zeta Carnival." Unfortunately, I was a bit too busy manning corn hole to take pictures of the rest of the decor, but trust me when I say that my fellow alum did a bang-up job with the decor. We had a photo booth, carnival games, raffle tickets, popcorn buckets, oversized lollipops, and lots of Zeta, everywhere (no clowns, though).

This year's event was held where I live, so my commute was about 10 minutes, which is a nice change from driving to Denver and beyond. I know a few current collegiate members, so got to catch up with them, and reminisce about living in the house (triple room. 2 years in a row).

The attire for these types of events is always "pin attire" - business casual to professional to brunch to what you'd wear to see your classy grandmother. I chose a Lilly (after much discussion and trying on of outfits) and some shoes that don't get out much. They're a fun t-strap with tweed & faux-croc on the toes (I never know what to wear them with!).

My bestie helped me come up with the idea to wear my pretty white Lilly (that can lean a little Stepford, depending on the accessories and styling) with some darker shoes and a distressed fish tail braid. I'm often guilty of taking a look a little too far (tweed + pearls + kitten heels + nylons + Stepford wife/Martha Stewart extraordinarie/Suzy Homemaker). Not that that look is bad, but I tend to take it a little bit too far, so I am really trying to tone it down and go with more "mixed" looks: classy Lilly meet dark shoes and casual hair + accessories (or another look you'll see in a few weeks for another Zeta brunch - scholarly meets a young, fun, maybe a little funky, professional).  Or sometimes it's preppy meets studs, or casual meets business professional. Follow?

All of that to say, I think I hit the nail on the head with this look - appropriate, age-appropiate (I'm not 21 anymore *sigh*), comfortable, pretty, and the receiver of lots of compliments :) 

What's your best trick to styling, or juxtaposing looks in one outfit?

And, I'm still alive after yesterday's race. Look for an update in a hot minute...

white dress: Lilly Pulitzer

shoes: Mudd via DSW

linking up with A Touch of Tartan

throwback

These pants are quite the throwback. Junior, maybe senior, year of high school. And whenever it's closet clean out time, I just can't part with them (you can't see it in these pictures, but they have a small pinstripe).

I was about to toss them (they're kind of a funky fit, and really wide-legged, and what do I wear with them?), but my friend Amanda gave me some new ideas for them. And so, life was breathed back into these old pants. I chose a baseball tee, plaid tennis shoes, my trusty cognac faux leather jacket, and of course, my aviator-style sunglasses with monogrammed croakies. We'll call this

"casual, menswear-inspired, almost-but-not-quite-vintage wide-legged pants."

How's that sound? ;)

And please wish me luck - currently I'm running 13.1 miles (I use running very loosely) down a canyon, into Old Town, where I hope to have a beer waiting for me at the finish...

shirt: J. Crew Factory

pants: GAP

faux leather jacket: c/o Aéropostale

plaid tennis shoes (or, as my sis-in-law calls them, "tenny pumps"): Coach via DSW

sunglasses: Smith Eyewear via The Eyes Have It

croakies: Etsy

linking up with Saltwater and Stilettos

30 for 30: April 2015 recap

Ta da!

All of my 30 outfits, in one place. Just what you were hoping for on a beautiful Colorado Saturday morning :)

day 1 // day 2 + 3 // day 4 // day 5

What have I learned completing this challenge FOUR (4! yes, FOUR!) times now?

day 6 // day 7 // day 8 + 9 // day 10 

It's important to pick items that go (not match, just go). All black, all gray, all brown, all blue, etc. But it's also important to have a few items that require creativity. Prints, layers, things I might not normally pair together, or items I don't wear that often because I'm stumped on how to style them.

day 11 + 12 // day 13 + 14 // day 15 

This challenge always reinforces to me that less is more. Truly, truly, truly. 

Case in point: I created almost 30 different outfits with 30 items, including shoes and light jackets. 

I've got plans to go through my wardrobe (yet again) and pare down even more. I recently switched out my winter items for my spring & summer clothes. I thought I had more winter clothes than summer, but, nope. Turns out I have more summer clothes - they take up significantly more space in my closet than my winter clothes, except for my sweaters...riddle me that.

day 16 // day 17 + 18 // day 19 + 20

I also unearthed that the next time I do this challenge, I don't want to include light jackets/outerwear in my 30 items. And here's why - I tend to wear those jackets to & from somewhere, not during whatever activity I'm doing (usually working). So, from here on out, blazers are part of the 30, but faux leather jackets are not. Either are heavy winter coats, down vests, ski jackets, or things that I will take off once I enter my destination/layers that go OVER my clothes, that are designed to keep me warm. Follow?

day 21 + 22 // day 23 // day 24 + 25

Additionally, it's hard to dress for spring. Is it going to be warm? Cold? Why am I wearing so many dark colors in the spring? Why won't winter go away? Is it going to snow? I don't want to wear a heavy sweater, but it's less than 40 degrees right now. I could wear skirts and dresses, but I'm trying to move past tights for this season. The struggle is real, folks.

#springtimeintheRockies

day 26 + 27 // day 28 // day 29 + 30

So, there you have it. This time wasn't quite AS eye-opening as previous challenges, BUT it did reinforce what I already know, and serve as a great reminder of those lessons.

What's your favorite outfit from my 30? I've got a few:

day 1 //  day 4 // day 6 // day 15 // day 30

And some least favorites...

day 3 // day 5 // day 21 // day 26

See my 30 items here

Thank you for reading!

30 for 30: day 29 + day 30

The last two-fer, for the last two outfits in my April 30 for 30 style challenge. So, sit back, relax, sip that glass of wine, and continue to wait on the edge of your seat for my recap of these 30 outfits (you'll be waiting a few days. Did I mention I'm running a half marathon on Sunday morning?

because I am...)

day 29

These tights didn't photograph so well - they look more puke-green than in their packaging from Old Navy. Disappointing.

BUT

Never fear. One of my favorite dresses, my favorite boots, and a new necklace make for a redeeming outfit.

blue sweatshirt dress: J. Crew Factory

green tights: Old Navy

boots: The Frye Company via Nordstrom

navy floral scarf: Target

necklace: WalMart

day 30

The last one. Not to read too much into this and create some meaning out of something that is probably pretty insignificant, but this is one of my favorite outfits. Not just for this month.

But EVER.

Polka dots, leopard, skinnies, flats + a faux leather jacket. I mean...

Do I have to say it?

All of my favorite things. Together. In one outfit.

And the print-mixing. This cardigan. This shirt.

LOVE.

 (apparently I've lost the ability to speak in complete sentences. excuse me. Friday?)

leopard print button up: WalMart

polka dot cardigan: J. Crew Factory

dark skinnies: c/o Aéropostale

black flats: Target

faux leather jacket: Target

Lilly

I shopped the Lilly Pulitzer for Target line last Sunday. And by shopped it, I mean I was in line before 8 am. Only to have a lot of other over-caffeinated ladies swarm the racks and tear it all bare, like how I imagine a shark's feeding frenzy would look to an observant ocean-dweller.

For real though, by the time I got to the clothing racks, all gone. And all the people ladies were reaching all over each other, and hangers were flying like crazy (slight over-dramatization, but not much).

My friends and I circled the store a few more times, and then creepily hung out by the fitting rooms for any cast-offs in our size.

No such luck.

However, we're resourceful young ladies, so we drove to the store the next town over. And we had much more luck there. We had so much luck, that we took our time perusing the brightly-printed items, and some lady came up right behind us and grabbed all the articles of clothing off the racks, regardless of size. Then she made a beeline for the outdoor section for the houseware items, and proceeded to literally wipe the table clean by sliding all the items into one of her three carts.

It was nuts. Nuts, I tell you. Target stores sold out of Lilly in not just days, or hours, but MINUTES. Li-ch-erally. MINUTES. I love Lilly, and I know a few fellow devotees, but even I was surprised by the number of fellow enthusiasts located in Northern Colorado (it's cold here. there's no beaches. no palm trees. I digress).

Whatever your thoughts on Target's designer collaborations or people reselling the items on eBay, the prints are great, and the price point was impeccable.

And now *drumroll please* I present to you, my newest additions to my Lilly collection.

All my spoils, minus a tray that's pictured below.
Beach bag, scarf, cosmetic bag, fancy headband, clutch, and a few articles of clothing.

Unfortunately, I have yet to wear the shorts, romper, and top, as it's been a bit too cold here in Colorado for fun summer clothes (soon!).

Confession: that romper is a child's size. Yes, yes, I DID scour the little girl's rack and find something that fits me (when being short pays off! finally!). Don't worry - not wearing it to work or for when I need to look like a grown-up, just for weekend romping.

And this scarf - I've already worn it at least twice, and gotten tons of compliments on the color and print. The blue clutch made its first appearance this weekend at a ZTA Alumni event, and the beach bag is going to be perfect for a cruise this summer.

This tray. The one thing I was able to salvage from the afore-mentioned-lady's cart. And I LOVE it. It's called a tray, but I'm finding all sorts of uses for it - koozie holder, remote control station, multiple candle-holding dish, etc. etc.

Sooooo, did you shop Lilly for Target? If so, what were you able to find at your store??

30 for 30: day 28

day 28

Black and white. And gray all over.

So many shades of black/white/gray. Love it.

Lately, I'm really loving throwing a blazer over the top of something to complete my look. And this blazer really hits the mark - it's gray, with white piping, and a ponte knit, so it's pretty warm. Casual, comfortable, yet stylish and slightly professional.

black & white buffalo plaid: Old Navy

gray blazer: Aéropostale

black skinnies: Target

black flats: Target

linking up at

Book of Leisure

Pampers & Pearls

Vintage Gwen

Tucker Up

Cappuccino and Fashion

Classy Yet Trendy

Shopping My Closet

Pumps & Push Ups

Fizz & Frosting

Sydney Fashion Hunter

30 for 30: day 26 + day 27

Twofer! Twofer!

Hope your week is off to a smooth start, friends. 

day 26

Here's some serious print mixing - stripes, Lilly, and dots! Ta da! I needed a little extra warmth in this dress, so I layered a striped shirt under my newest Lilly dress. And it appears my dress shrunk a wee bit in the wash...

dress: Lilly Pulitzer

striped tee: thrifted (Target)

faux leather jacket: c/o Aéropostale

flats: Target

day 27

I got told I looked a bit Grease-esque in this ensemble. And at first, I thought "No way." But the more I look at it, the more I think yes. Not quite Sandra Dee, not quite Danny Zuko. Somewhere in the middle, I guess.

Race you for pinks?

black shirt: Eddie Bauer

dark skinnies: Aéropostale

black faux leather jacket: Target

black flats: Target

linking up over at A Touch of Tartan