I'm beginning to think that Jenna Lyons (president and executive creative director at J. Crew, if you don't know) is my spirit woman. I'd say spirit animal but she's obviously not that. The woman knows how to dress and I've caught on... she seems to always pair her eye catching glasses with the perfect topper. A jacket. A coat. A blazer. A button up. The woman always has the perfect topper - be it simple or be it statement, it always looks perfect and very HER. I love how she looks classic even when she is wearing something very un-classic. I decided to switch that up and paired my very un-classic glasses with a classic topper...
There's something so delightfully easy about black and white, a blazer and a button up, denim and oxfords. I'd love to say I'd like to "simplify" my closet and cut myself down to all black and white pieces... but a girl just needs some color in her life. I do, at least. These glasses are one of my favorite colorful pieces. I get a lot of questions when I wear them: Are they real? As in, do I have prescription lenses? Yes, most certainly. My driving is better for it. :) Do they glow in the dark? Har har, no. But I guess that would be pretty cool. Does the color hurt your eyes? Only first thing in the morning when I am half awake. Only slightly kidding. Some people love them, some seem horrified by them. It's cool. I fully realize neon green is not every person's cup of tea. (I dislike tea, for the record.)
My favorite piece of jewelry right now is this perfectly sized monogram bracelet that I picked up thanks to 9th & Elm. I've been admiring monogrammed pieces for a while now but was never sure what type of piece I would want to get monogrammed for myself. When I saw this bracelet I knew it was the piece I had been looking for - silver, small but not too small, and affordable. It works well worn alone and also stacked with other bracelets.
I feel a little silly telling you that these are a few of my favorite pieces of clothing this summer. I mean... jeans and essentially what can be called a jacket? For summer? Erm. I know. Doesn't seem quite right to me either but this summer has been very mild here in Michigan (or perhaps my body is still thawing out from the ridiculous winter we had) so things I would normally cringe just thinking about wearing in our normally hot and humid temps have gotten a pass this year. As much as I would like to say that has annoyed me, it really hasn't. This girl will take the chance to layer any day of the week. :)
When 9th & Elm contacted me earlier this summer and asked if I would like to try out their site and pick a few items out, I was all ears. HAR HAR. But really, I was looking to add some statement earrings to my wardrobe seeing as how I seem to have quite an array of necklaces and bangles but just a few pairs of earrings. Summer always feels like a good time for earrings, right? Minimal skin contact and easy. Earrings feel like less work than a necklace or a bracelet does. At least to me.
I was eager to give the new-to-me 9th & Elm a try as I am a huge fan of any shopping site that promotes the work of handmade and independent designers. When I'm not spending money at thrift stores or estate sales, I like to spend it on items that are handmade or one-of-a-kind. I love supporting small businesses by purchasing their well made, unique items! I like that 9th & Elm puts together a daily email that shows me all of their sales and hot items - it's a nice curated look at handmade items at great prices.
The earrings I am wearing here are the Blossoming Trio earrings from 4 All Humanity. I loved the shape, size and color of them but I also really liked that 4 All Humanity employs artisans in impoverished areas that use fair trade and homemade products to create their items. Fashionable and friendly? That's a great combination. I was pleasantly surprised when I received these earrings to find out that they are super lightweight! When I ordered, I was actually worried they might be a bit hefty on my ears and I am not a fan of sagging lobes due to a pair of earrings. These give all the look of a beautiful statement earring without all the weight they so often seem to have.
Unfortunately, these are no longer available on the 9th & Elm website, but, no worries, there are lots of beautiful earrings you can choose from! Here are a few of my favorites that are all under $27:
Disclosure: A makeup kit was provided to me for free by Markwins in connection with Brand Backer. This review, however, was written by me personally and reflects my personal opinions after trying the product. I was not expected to provide a favorable review.
Recently I had a chance to try out one of the new makeup kits in the Makeup by One Direction Looks Collection. OK, I know what you're thinking: One Direction and makeup? How do these things go together? I get it. But I kind of like these sort of collaborations... they are different and who says one thing goes with another? Am I right?! That being said, I was excited to try one of the kits because, despite generally being a makeup minimalist, I have such a thing for makeup kits! I love it when I can get a whole perfectly packaged look within one item. It takes a bit of the guess work out for those that are looking for an easy look or maybe aren't very cosmetically inclined.
The Looks Collection includes three different kits inspired by One Direction's three albums: Up All Night, Take Me Home and Midnight Memories. The Take Me Home and Midnight Memories kit appear to include some pretty neutrals with a pop of an accent color in each. I received the Up All Night collection which included two neutral eye colors, three pops of blue eye colors, a hot pink gloss (that GLOWS under a black light!), a vibrant blue chubby eye pencil, a vibrant pink creme lipstick, a good basic black mascara, a funky blue/green metallic nail color and stencils to create cosmetic tattoo-type creations. To say I was challenged was a bit of an understatement. Blue eyeshadow? This girl? Let's just say, the alternative title for this post should be: How to wear blue eyeshadow without looking like a 1980's prom queen. Because I think I achieved that and I think I became a blue eyeshadow fan while doing it!
I put together three different makeup looks using this kit that I hope you'll find useful. I am most certainly not a beauty blogger but I like to dabble in it every so often. That being said, I feel I should fully disclose that I like to spend probably 10 minutes or less putting on makeup. I also don't believe in using 2847475736 products. It's just not in my nature nor do I, personally, feel it is good for my skin. As you'll see, I'm prone to breakouts and covering my entire face in heavy makeup only makes it worse. If you can handle that, then I hope you'll like the looks I put together!
MY EVERYDAY STLE LOOK
Products used here include: More than This on entire eyelid, Gotta Be You on eye crease, Little Black Dress mascara and Taken lip gloss. Nothing too fancy about this look but this is true to my every day style. A simple eye with just a curled eyelash (no mascara), a bit of blush and a little pop of color with gloss. I'm an avid eyewear fan so I don't often feel the need to go to town on the eye makeup. For every day makeup, I follow the "KISS" method: Keep It Simple Stupid. ;-) The Taken lip gloss appears very bright pink in the tube but goes on pretty sheer. I imagine it could be layered for a brighter look, but I like the subdued pop of pink it gives me in this look.
FUN DATE NIGHT LOOK
Products used here include: More Than This on entire eyelid, mix of Gotta Be You and Save You Tonight on eye crease, and Stand Up creamy eye stick as top and bottom liner. This is a look I would wear on a fun date night to somewhere like a concert or eating out at a funky restaurant in downtown Detroit. It's much more makeup than I would normally wear during the day so it's perfect to up the anty a bit for a date night. I kept my lips nude with a bit of glossy chapstick considering the eyes were heavily lined with the creamy blue eye pencil. I smudged the pencil a bit with a Q-tip to purposely make the look a little more deliberately messy.
A FANCY VINTAGE LOOK
Products used here include: More Than This on entire eyelid, mix of Gotta Be You and Save You Tonight on eye crease, Another World eye color used as top liner, Little Black Dress mascara, and I Should Have Kissed You creme lipstick topped with the Taken lipgloss. Guys, I love this look. My favorite makeup look, when dressing up, is a good cat eye flick paired with a pink lip. Normally my cat eye is made using typical black liner but I love this updated look with the blue glitzy Another World as the liner! I think I am a blue convert.
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Final thoughts: I'm surprised by how much I like these shades! I imagine they are geared towards a younger crowd but I think I made them also work for those of us that are, ahem, 30 and possibly older. ;-) My favorite pieces of the collection are all of the eyeshadows and the Taken lipgloss. The eyeshadows are easy to apply, stay put and don't have much fallout. The shades blend well and compliment each other or work well alone. The lipgloss has a great, flat applicator brush, has a great color to it that I think would work for a lot of different complexions and also has a very faint, sweet scent. My least favorite part of the collection is the Stand Up blue creamy eye color stick. I found it was a little hard to apply neatly so it is best used for a smudge-necessary look like my Fun Date Night look above. I also wish the kits came with a cheek color in order to complete the kit and make it an entire look. Other than that, I think these kits are a great value!
Are you loving this collection as much as I am? Are you interested in checking out the rest of the kits? You're in luck! Kits hit Macy's stores around the U.S. starting today, August 11, 2014! After that, you can start finding them in Stage Stores, Dillards, Beauty Brands and Lord and Taylor stores on August 25, 2014. International releases will be announced soon!
Don't forget to connect with Makeup by One Direction on their facebook page!
I was ALL ears a few months ago when Suze contacted me a few months ago about working with Goodwill to style some outfits for a pop up shop they were putting together for the Detroit Eastern Market. If you've been following me on instagram or twitter, you know that I've been hopping into my little Smart car and shopping and styling my little heart out ever since!
Here's the pop up shop's, YB Blue, details before I get any further: WHEN: Sunday, July 27, 2014 from 10am-4pm WHERE: Shed 2 at the Detroit Eastern Market, Michigan WHO: Goodwill outfits styled by me & hand-picked home items! WHY: Shop-Save-Donate-Help ----> Your donated/purchased goods help put people to work while you save money on great items!
Each Sunday the YB Blue pop up shop has had a different Detroit-based stylist selecting the pieces you can purchase! Each shop features between 30-50 styled outfits and accessories along with hand-selected home items and even vintage pieces that Goodwill has curated!
As you probably know by now, I'm an avid thrift store shopper. I've come to a point in my life where, nine times out of ten, I prefer an item secondhand because it not only works for my budget out of necessity but also out of desirability. I can always find five (or more!) well-made pieces of clothing for the price of one piece at a non-secondhand store. And that one piece is probably not as nice as those five I can find at the thrift store. I also like the variety of items I can find in one store, as I'd say my style varies from different looks depending on the day... I don't have to wander from store to store to find what I'm looking for - I can find it all within one Goodwill shop!
I have spent the last few months visiting each of the three metro-Detroit area Goodwill stores selecting pieces for outfits I've put together with every size kept in mind - from extra small to 2X. I tried to make sure to include every beautiful size and every kind of style. I, myself, like I said, like a good mix in my closet. I think you'll find the same to be true here - from work appropriate (but still sassy!), to vintage, to summer ready, to ready for winter... a little bit of this and a little bit of that, I hope everyone can find something that they are looking for, or, better yet, that special piece that you didn't even realize was missing from your closet! :)
But, wait, are you new to shopping second hand? Not sure if it is for you? Or maybe you like shopping second hand but have a hard time finding the time or the patience to put pieces together? Then the YB Blue pop up shop is perfect for you too. I think it will give thrift-newbies and impatient shoppers an easy shopping experience! The outfits are already put together for you and you get a curated taste of the great items that you can find at Goodwill without becoming overwhelmed with everything you might see in one of the stores.
Here's a little sneak peek at some of the outfits I put together for the shop...
Want to see more? You can find these images and more if you follow me on instagram and/or twitter. Want some general outfit inspiration? Follow me on pinterest and pay close attention to my dedicated YB Blue Inspiration board where I'm pinning all sorts of outfit ideas with the pieces I have already selected kept close in mind!
Winning Wednesday is back! Below I have put together a list of my top 10 favorite fashion/beauty giveaways going on this week. I hope you take the time to enter each one - you never know, you might be the next lucky winner!
1. Emily Reviews is hosting a giveaway for a $75 gift certificate to Me and My Feet. I'd love to use this on a pair of the limited edition gold Saltwater Sandals - these are literally the most comfortable sandals in the world and the gold just makes them even more fresh. Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 24, 2014
2. Essie is hosting a "Mojito Madness" summer sweepstakes! Lots of prizes are involved including weekly prizes of manicure kits and $100 Piperlime gift cards and a grand prize of a $1000 Piperlime gift card! Click here to enter!(Note: I receive additional entries by you using that link to enter - thank you!) GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 31, 2014 --- but remember you can enter daily!
3. Hellorigby! is hosting a giveaway for a super cute anchor dress and anchor jewelry from Style Gather. I love the nautical theme - especially during the summer when all I want to do is be anywhere remotely water-related. Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 12, 2014
4. Do you have a passion for fashion? Link up with Lena B Actually's Passion for Fashion this week in order to earn yourself an entry into winning a $20 Modcloth gift card. Anything fashion goes! Click here to link up and enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 10, 2014
5. Selective Potential is giveaway your choice of shoes from BOBS from Skechers to two lucky readers! I'm totally digging the floral design on the Utopia-Turfs style. Can't you just picture those now with a striped dress? Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 15, 2014
6. In Honor of Design is showing off her perfect nude high heels and offering up a pair of Shoemint shoes of choice to one lucky reader! Since I am forever in a boot state of mind, I am loving the Violette in nude - such a great summer bootie! Click here to enter!(Note: I used my Shoemint referral link here which means any purchase you make after clicking the link will result in Shoemint points for me. Thank you!) GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 15, 2014
7. Love your monogram? Bramblewood Fashion teamed up with ONecklace to offer one reader a $25 gift card to the ONecklace etsy shop! I like their necklaces but I'm actually really digging their ring selection! Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 25, 2014
8. Here & Now is giving away the ultimate gift card for anyone: A $100 Target gift card! Get all the low down on her honeymoon packing essentials and enter to win this fabulous prize while you're at it. Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 13, 2014
9. Blue Eyed Finch and a group of other bloggers are offering up a huge giveaway: a little bit of fashion for your home in the form of gold foil fashion prints and $300 cash! I think these pretty prints would look right at home in my half-bath and that $300 would look just as pretty in my wallet. ;-) Click here to enter! GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 15, 2014
10. Love nude eye makeup looks? Me too. Blushing Noir sampled the Maybelline The Nudes Expert Wear Palette and shows off great swatches for you to get a real feel for each shade. Even better, she is offering one up for one lucky reader! Click here to enter!(Note: The Maybelline link is an affiliate link to Ulta - thank you!) GIVEAWAY ENDS: July 22, 2014
Do you have a fashion and/or beauty giveaway going on right now? I'd love for you to join me and link up with my NEW Winning Wednesday giveaway linky! Each week I will be hosting a new round up and may feature your giveaway in my favorites! All I ask is that your giveaway be fashion or beauty related somehow - it can be geared toward women, men or children. Please include the name of your blog, the giveaway item and the date the giveaway closes. For example: Fashion Frugality | $50 JCrew Gift Card| 07/14/14.
Recently I took a trip to Kohl's to use up some Kohl's cash I had earned from buying my guy a new set of luggage for our vacation to Cozumel in May. I went in on the hunt for something perfect for summer and, as a requisite, it needed to not be a dark color. Lately, I feel like all I ever wear is black! Summer is here - I need to start dressing like it!
I came across this peach toned dress on the clearance rack and it fit the bill perfectly. It's sleeveless so it's perfect to wear now AND wear later (something I always aim to do with my clothes), has great color, and is super comfortable. Oddly enough, though I bought it with summer heat in mind, the first time I wore it, it was actually a slightly chilly day so layers were a must.
Dress: ELLE from Kohls [similar for $34.99] - FREE after Kohl's cash & gift card
Lace Sweatshirt: Dots [Similar in navy for $22] - $15
White Jean Jacket: GAP via Salvation Army [LOVE this one!]
Shoes: Mossimo from Target [d'Orsey version for $20] - $6.48 clearance find
Necklace: Vintage estate sale find
Eyewear: Zenni Optical [exact] - $25.95
Oh, hello.
Remember me?
Little 'ol Fashion Frugality?
Well, I'm back and have lots to share with you along with a brand new look!
Stay tuned for more soon as I whittle out all the bugs around here...
Disclosure: I was provided with a MakerWear hat of my choice and Target gift card in return for my honest opinion of the product and brand. Opinions expressed are always, always my own. The compensation received will never influence my content.
Naturally, out of all their hats, it was the Put A Bird On It hat that spoke to me… I'm loving it for two reasons: 1.) It's navy and I think I'm having a color love affair with navy right now and 2.) The birds give it a vintage, happy feel. The artist that created the design is J.J. Spectre who, according the artist bio (all can be found with each hat on the site and the tag that come with the hat), is a unicorn who is a design nerd and type lover. Sounds like a fun guy/gal… hope they're enjoying how I styled the design!
Since the birds are quite colorful, I thought I would go that route too. As you can tell, it was a sunny day and, despite being cold, a sunny day calls for color, am I right? This skirt is such a favorite of mine… I could never believe Suze gave it up, but I'm glad she did and that it came to live with me! This denim jacket is also quite a go to for me… I think it was supposed to be a dress but I use it as a jacket - it fits perfectly over almost everything and covers all the right areas. :-)
I had the day off on Monday so I wore this to do some thrift shopping since it was a half off clothes sale day at Salvation Army. Super comfortable and easy to wear… I normally wear a headband when I don't feel like washing my hair, but I think this hat is a great new addition for those kinds of days! Why did I never think of that before? Cute accessory doing double duty to cover up yesterday's hair? Yes, please.
I love that the underside of the hat brim is a different color than the rest of it. It adds a fun pop of color that I think looks great with my glasses… or my Sally Jesse Raphael's, as I call them. Please tell me you know who SJR is or we might have issues... Plus, red and navy together are just so classic - you can't go wrong with that combination.
One of my favorite things about the hat is that IT FITS MY HEAD! Such a novel concept but I swear I often try on hats and they never seem to really fit my head. I don't know if I have a small head (I wouldn't think so), but all baseballs hats normally feel really roomy on me. This one fits perfectly snug and I think the leather strap and buckle on the back might have a lot to do with that. It allows for a really good fit and it is still easy to adjust while you have it on which I really liked - it made it easy to get the perfect fit without having it take it on and off each time.
So, let's review:
MakerWear is powered by the people - they call it "curated crowd sourcing" and they're using it as a powerful new way to bring fashion to market. Independent artists make designs, the best designs get made and…
They are sold at Target! I'm sure you can agree - it's one of the best stores. Click here to see if they are available at a Target store near you. (Unfortunately, they're not available in every store yet but let's change that, shall we!?)
The hats retail for $16.99. Less than a twenty spot for a new accessory that looks cute AND covers up that dirty hair that we all know you didn't wash this morning……. ;-)
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Ready to become a part of the MakerWear revolution? There are a few ways you can take part:
1. BECOME THE FACE OF THE REVOLUTION! Become the role model for the maker revolution… not only will you star in their photoshoot, but you'll also win a $1,000 Target gift card. Uhhh, HELLO! Click here to learn how you can enter! I would love to see one of my readers win this!
2. JOIN ME FOR A TWITTER PARTY! I'll be joining the @MakerWearDesign twitter party hosted by @ThriftyChicMom and @TammileeTips tomorrow, January 22nd, at 9pm. You'll definitely want to come too because there will be fabulous giveaways: five $25 Target gift cards, one $100 Target gift card and 15 MakerWear hats! Head on over to Thrifty & Chic Mom to view the official party details. See you there!
Disclosure: I was provided with a MakerWear hat of my choice and Target gift card in return for my honest opinion of the product and brand. Opinions expressed are always, always my own. The compensation received will never influence my content.
Can we talk about hats for a minute? I feel like they are popping up everywhere on everyone's heads… and I'm not talking just for warmth purposes. (Although the past few weeks here in Michigan have been FRIGID. I'm sure many of you can relate.) I'm talking wide brim hats, I'm talking beanies with fancy details, I'm talking baseball hats. I'm especially talking baseball hats.
Growing up, my favorite hat was a deep, bright pink felt hat that had a black ribbon around it. Very much a girlie-girl, I was never into the baseball caps my older brother wore on a daily basis. Back then, they didn't exactly have a wide variety of baseball caps for girls who weren't interested in sports teams. Nowadays, there are so many more choices and I am loving them...
I've been gathering some quoteunquote intel on some of my favorite ways others have worn a baseball hat and I am coming to the conclusion that I like mine with a side of feminine touches. Soft leather, full scarves, cuffed sleeves, and amazing statement earrings? Yes, yes, and yes please!
So I was itching to get a hat of my own when Ellen of Thrifty and Chic Mom contacted me asking if she could introduce me to MakerWear - it was kismet! I'm loving the design I picked out and can't wait to show it off to you tomorrow, but let me tell you a little about the MakerWear folks first.
MakerWear is powered by the people - as in, the best designs get made and the designer gets a cut of the sales. They call it "curated crowd sourcing" and I love it! Anyone can become the next designer and what the people want gets made. Underground artists get a voice. New ideas come to the forefront. It's a whole new way of bringing new fashion ideas to market. The hat's tag really sells that idea home:
Right now you can check out all their current designs on their website and can buy the designs in select Target stores. I'm delighted that my favorite mass merchandiser is carrying this brand and hope that more of their stores will start to as well - if you're wondering if you can find them in your neck of the woods, you can use their handy dandy "find your nearest store" tool to find out.
And you know what else is cool? They're currently looking for a face for their revolution… yep, you could be their cover girl! Their model search begins today, January 20th, and runs through February 9th. If you win, you will not only be their cover girl but you'll also have a $1,000 Target gift card in your hand. And, I'm just sayin'… there's a lot you could do with a $1,000 Target gift card. ;-)
Come back tomorrow to see which design I selected and how I wore it… till then, are you into rocking the baseball hat? Which MakerWear design can you see yourself wearing?
Guys, it's been ages. Is anyone out there!? Hello, can you hear me? :-)
While I've been away, I've been keeping up with everyone via all our social media avenues… but I have been missing my blog something fierce! I miss sharing my good deal alerts and frugal outfits. I miss Winning Wednesday posts!
Here's a little dose of what I have been up to since you last heard from me here...
BOUGHT A HOUSE IN JULY! I call it my Christmas-in-July gift! Best ever! :)
Wore lots of dots… don't act surprised!
Finally bought new glasses… um, five pairs to be exact. These are from Zenni Optical.
Thrifted like a mad woman… psst, this cost $2.10!
And went back to school to study Small Business Administration!
That being said… my plate is pretty full but I am excited to add this as an extra slice to it all. I have some new outfits coming soon, an exciting new hat line to share with you, a new layout to roll out and lots of fashionable giveaways to carry on Winning Wednesdays!
See you soon!
Recently I had a chance to try out one of the new makeup kits in the 
