Summer Favorites

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. :)

Jacket: Lady Bayard (vintage), Estate sale find, $1.00 [similar idea but different print/colors]
Jeans: Pilcro & The Letterpress (ANTHRO BRAND!), Salvation Army, $7 [exact pair but full price]
Tee: Cheapie old-as-dirt Kohl's buy
Sandals: Guess via T.J. Maxx clearance, $10 [similar w/ studs]
Earrings: Blossoming Trio, made by 4 All Humanity via c/o 9th & Elm
Bracelet: Fitbit Flex (keeping it real!)
Glasses: Zenni Optical

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:

(1.) Silver and Green Glass Earrings by The Glass Bird, (2.) Cream Chevron Earrings by Megan's Beaded Designs, (3.) Faceted Turquoise Studs by Pink Avenger, (4.) Aqua Tassel Earrings by 4 All Humanity

Stay tuned for more looks that include jewelry that I picked up from 9th & Elm!

{Linking up with What I Wore!}

First Day of Spring

In case you didn't know - today is the first day of spring. I will take a spring day that includes blue, sunny skies and 75 degrees any day - let alone the first. I think that is a great indication of how wonderful this spring and summer will  be, no? Shall we sing our spring praises? Ahem. No? Oh.

Top: Liberty of London for Target, Thrifted, $4.99

Necklace: Gift, Made by my best friend

EBEW: Gingham and Green

Everybody, Everywear always reinvigorates my passion for sharing my outfit. I love seeing the different ways everyone takes an idea and runs with it.

It was decided that this month would be devoted to green. Well, naturally. Green is perfect for March - it makes me think of fresh grass coming up through the snow, cold and muck of winter. And it, of course, runs perfectly with St. Patrick's Day!



Top: Shirley of Atlanta, FREE, Inherited from my boyfriend's grandma's closet
Skirt: Waterville, FREE, Inherited from my own grandma's closet
Boots: Sofft, Thrifted @ Value World, $6.20
Belt: Forever21, $2.50
Necklace: Bought at an estate sale, $1
Glasses: SEE Eyewear
TOTAL (not including glasses) = 9.70

I love the idea of combining pieces I've been given from my boyfriend's grandma's closet and my own grandma's closet. We all know I am a thrift lover but there is also quite a sweet spot in my heart for pieces that belonged to those I love. Even if they're not always something I would have picked for myself, I always keep everything I am given and make it work in one way or another.


Ignore that shoebox. Oops!

I paired these two together because I like the idea of a loose blouse with a more fit skirt. I don't know if it transitioned into photos as well as I would have liked but that is ok. It probably looked fresher this morning without my wrinkles and bumps. Real girls have wrinkles at the end of the day though, right? :)




I've actually wanted a green gingham shirt for as long as I can remember... which dates back to seeing the most amazing Anthropologie green gingham shirt on their website a while back. I still dream of owning that shirt one day but, in the meantime, this one will do just fine.







I added in some green eyeshadow (ok, you can't see it here but I pinky swear I was wearing it) and a crazy thick gold necklace and called it a day. I'm keeping it pretty simple these days.

Now head on over to Everybody, Everywear and check out how everyone else wore their green today!

Valentine's Day: Red and Pink, of course!

Happy Valentine's Day, my sweetie pies! This just so happens to be one of my favorite holidays... ok, who am I kidding... I think I have expressed my love for every holiday to you guys. I will say, however, that Valentine's Day is especially near and dear to me because my boyfriend and I began officially dating on Valentine's Day ten years ago. Yep, he asked me to be his lady on Valentine's Day. Sweet and sappy - just how I like it. :)

Floral Skirt: INC, Thrifted (Value World), $3.10 

Red Blouse: Sears (vintage), Thrifted (Value World), $0.80 

Pink Blazer: Dialogue, Thrifted (Value World), $3.80 

Socks: Old as dirt 

Pin: Made by me! 

Boots: Fashionbug.com, $15 

Glasses: SEE Eyewear

Truthfully, I was already planning on wearing red and/or pink today to celebrate the holiday of love. It just so happens that Everybody, Everywear coincided this month with the holiday and the theme was red and pink. I've never worn the two together but have been admiring the combination from afar as quite a few fashionable ladies have been rocking the look lately. Always into trying something new (at least when fashion is concerned!), I gave it a go.





I would certainly say that my combination is a bit more reserved than most. I love the pairing of a vibrant light pink with a prominent red but felt like that may have been a little too wild to wear to work, even for me. Nah, I kept my red bright but added a pink that was close in color to the red and topped it (or, bottomed it, I guess) with a floral skirt that captured both colors.

I can't resist a great tie neck blouse. True story. It is closing in on my gingham obsession but not is not quite at that level yet. (And, yes, that is a cat toy on the ground. Just keeping it real for all of you.)


I made my pin the night before. It was something I have been thinking about doing for a while now but just haven't put into action. Finally decided to get off my duff and just do it... so I did. And I love it. And I have ideas swirling around for more. Here is to making it happen in 2012!

And now a little sap for the road... I was wearing these socks the Valentine's night that my boyfriend and I became a couple. Yeah, they're pretty old and they are pretty worn (you're not seeing the giant hole on the bottom of my left foot...) but they have a soft spot in my sock drawer and heart. :)

Now, go on, get out of here and go hug the person, animal or thing you love. Valentine's Day may be a "made up holiday" but I'll take any reason to tell those I love that I love them - how about you?

Black Banana

Perhaps the title of this post isn't the most appetizing but it is the first thing I thought of when starting this post. Black and yellow apparently equal gross bananas in my mind - not bees... but from every squishy banana comes banana bread so I think there is a rainbow in there somewhere.



Top: GAP, $7 (on clearance)
Black Jeans: Lee, Goodwill of Canton, $4.99
Scarf: Won in giveaway
Boots: G by Guess, Marshall's, FREE (after gift card - but $22 on clearance)
Earrings: Claire's, very old!
Glasses: SEE Eyewear

I bought this super soft tee on a whim while shopping at the GAP right before Christmas. It was marked down and an additional 40% off. I couldn't resist it with that vibrant color and fantastic price. I'm not usually much of a t-shirt girl... you may have noticed that I wear them next to never. They're just not something that I've ever worn often and it is mainly due to the fact that I don't think they're very flattering on me. I end up feeling frumpy when I wear one and frumpy is not something I really think any of us strive for, right?

I did the unthinkable and bought this without even trying it on. I'm used to doing that at thrift stores (where they often don't have dressing rooms) but I normally don't do that at actual stores. It is usually a matter of not knowing my size at a normal store. Vintage clothing? I can eye it. A used skirt in a thrift store? I can estimate. But brand new clothing at a store within a mall? I usually fail every time. I'll walk into the dressing room with what I think my size is and it's either too big or too small. Taking something home that I never wear AND not trying it on? Dangerous territory!



Lucky for me, it worked out. This is fitted yet loose - soft and light yet warm. Now the only thing I regret is not snatching up more than just one color! Darn.


My boots? Yeah, they have tiny skulls on them. I'm obviously not the edgiest girl on the planet but I couldn't resist these. Hey, there's a little edge is everyone, right?

P.S. Yes, it is still winter here despite the lack of snow. It was actually freezing while we took these pictures. Don't worry, Mom, I wore my coat...


Coat: George, Walmart, $7 (clearance - years ago)

EBEW: Black and White

A cool and easy black and white mix today. Quick separates, quick photos, long day. Sometimes that is just how it rolls, right? I'm sure you understand.

I convinced my boyfriend to snap a few quick photos of my outfit today... nevermind our super dim glow lighting. Ah, apartment life. :)



Dress: Leslie Fay, Thrifted, $1.80
Blouse: Old Navy, $7 (clearance)
Booties: Sofft, Thrifted, $6.20
Bracelets: Forever21, Old
Glasses: SEE Eyewear

This is probably the first and the last time I will wear this dress. I never tried it on when I bought it as I was at one of those thrift stores that doesn't have dressing rooms. Yeah, one of those. Anyway, I clearly misjudged it because it's rather large on my frame. The bottom is ok but I was swimming in the top without this blouse over it. It's too bad because I do love me a good vintage Leslie Fay dress. :)







As I mentioned yesterday, I'm dressing in black and white all week. I was inspired by today's Everybody, Everywear but it's also, hands down, my favorite color combination. It is so easy and always looks good!

Hopefully you'll stay tuned to see how I rock out with my black and white out the rest of the week... or, um, something like that. :-)

A Return to Black and White

Hi, guys! Long time no blog, right? Just slightly. :)

After being gone for so long, it was a little scary to jump back into this head on... It was kind of like the first day of school after the end of a long summer. What will I wear? Because isn't that always the first thing you think of at the beginning of the school year? I know I'm not the only one. Inspired by tomorrow's Everybody, Everywear and my already long standing love for black and white, I decided to keep it relatively simple with a week worth of black and white looks. Black and white mixes are always my fallback look. They're easy to put together, easy to wear, easy to accessorize and always look good. How can you not like that? French women come to mind when I think of black and white. Somehow French women could wear the same white tee and black jeans everyday and look absolutely effortless. I think there is, at least, a small part of every woman who craves to have that french effortless look down pat.

That being said, here are a few photo snippets of what I wore today. Granted, it's a bit more black and cream than white, but you get the idea. While I was away from the blog, I gained a new camera, a Nikon, so I'm still mastering the art of using it... I haven't had time to pair it with my tripod and new remote, so no full body photos for at least today. Maybe tomorrow as well. And maybe the rest of the week... I've been keeping up a pretty awesome gym routine after work that I'm not willing to end. I often forget how good I feel after working out (and doing so consistently) - I'm not letting myself forget this time. :)



Blazer: Saks Fifth Avenue A.S.A.P., Thrifted, $3.00
Dress: Apt 9, Hand Me Over *, FREE!
Socks: Nine West, Big Lots, $5 (for pack of 3 pairs)
Boots: Franco Fortini, eBay, OLD
Earrings: Phul Effect, Won in giveaway!
Necklace: Phul Effect, Won in giveaway!
Glasses: SEE Eyewear












My favorite way to wear my hair right now.

* Wondering what a Hand Me Over is? It's my new name for pieces of clothing that people have given me that were not in the form of a gift. For example, one of my favorite coworkers gave this dress (and more) to me because her daughter didn't wear it anymore. Would I like it? Well, yes, of course I would! There is always room in my humble abode for stray black and white pieces. :)

Everybody, Everywhere: Colored Tights

Fashion blogger confession: I only own three pairs of colored tights. And I use "colored" as a loose term - I own this purple pair, a light grey pair and olive green sweater tights. They're very neutral with the exception of the purple. Colorful tights seem like a huge standard in the fashion blogging world. Prior to becoming a reader, I had never seen many "unusual" tights out and about. I thought I was pretty cool buying this purple pair 2+ years ago, but apparently I am still a freshman at colorful tight wearing. :)


Jacket: Arden B, Won in giveaway!
Tshirt: Old Navy, $7 (on sale)
Skirt: Worthington, JCPenney, OLD
Tights: Kohl's, OLD
Shoes: Steve Madden, Marshalls, OLD
Glasses: SEE Eyewear

After doing a bit of a closet cleanout/unpacking my winter items over last weekend, I have been making every attempt at wearing things I don't wear very often from my closet. To say that my closet is filled to the brim would be an understatement. I need to pare down more but I'm having a hard time letting things go. To rectify that, I am wearing pieces I don't wear very often to discover why and hopefully give some of them up.


This jacket is one of those items. I always get so many compliments on it when I wear it but I have a really hard time styling it. I think the color is what prevents me from wearing it often... it's hard to pair things with a metallic lilac color. Any ideas for me?


I was a little worried this might be purple overload when I put it together this morning but when I got told I looked "like a rockstar" at work that worry flew out the door. My work girls are good to me. :)


Check out the rest of the folks who styled up their colorful tights today! After checking just a few of them out so far, I am realizing I would love to add some rust, hunter green and mustard colored tights to my collection!

Sweatshirt Fancy

Hoodie: Moda International, Thrifted, $2.50
Earrings: Forever21, $3.80
On Thursday, I made a promise to myself that jeans and a sweatshirt would be happening on Friday. I had a ton of stuff to do on Friday at work due to one of our systems being down so I wanted to keep it comfortable. I hate when I have a lot of work to concentrate on and I feel uncomfortable in what I am wearing. Who wants to constantly adjust their outfit all day? On a busy Friday? Not me.

If you know me... you'll know I own a grand total of, well, maybe three sweatshirts. They're typically just not my thing. While I think they look adorable and laid back on many, I end up feeling sloppy and out of my element. They're just no my flavor, as I like to say. Regardless, sometimes they are just called for no matter what, am I right?

That being said - who says you can't add a little fancy to a hooded sweatshirt? :)

A Fall Wedding

Shimmy on over to Unusual Form today to check out my guest post! This is what I "wore" to her wedding!

Congratulations, Kara! :)

Post Halloween Layers

I think it goes without saying that today called for some serious loose layers. After all the junk I ate yesterday, I was in no mood to wear anything even remotely form fitting.


Blazer: Katie Mfg, Swapped, Free
Top: GAP, Thrifted, $3.80
Pants: Worthington, JCPenney, OLD
Boots: St. John's Bay, Thrifted, $4.60
Bracelet: Target, OLD
Glasses: SEE Eyewear


OK, so it wasn't the most flattering outfit ever but it worked considering it was ridiculously comfortable and I put it together within five minutes this morning. Remind me to never wait till the morning to get my outfit ready. It does not make for a very relaxing morning, to say the least.



I forgot to put this bracelet back on after taking a photo of it but this is the only jewelry I wore with my outfit today. Loose bangles are my favorite thing to wear.


This is my latest scarf find. I love the color, I love the size, and I love the lace. I can't find a tag on it and the stitching gives it the appearance that it is handmade... which has given me a few ideas to make similar models in different colors.


All in all, not exactly the most fashionable look but sometimes comfort wins over chic, am I right?

Fashion Frugality Reviews: eShakti Blouse

When eShakti.com contacted me about doing a review of one of their pieces, I was more than happy to oblige. I had actually had my eye on their ruffled cascade front poet blouse so I knew the exact piece I wanted already! I received the blouse two months ago but I don't think I need to explain that a long sleeve blouse was just not weather appropriate for August. I am so happy that I was finally able to wear it!

Now, that being said, please keep an open mind. Today was quite possibly the most windy day I have ever encountered. Bring on the windblown photos! :)


Blouse: Ruffle Cascade Front Poet Blouse, c/o eShakti.com ($39.95)
Pants: Axcess (Liz Claiborne Co), Thrifted, OLD
Shoes: Tahari, Thrifted, OLD
Ring: Inherited from my grandma
Gold Earrings: Gift from my former employer
Glasses: SEE Eyewear
Purse: Gift from my boyfriend years ago (from Target!)

I know what you might be thinking: Katie, you're pale. Nude tops are not your thing. Guess what? Don't care. Life is too short to worry about such things! And I like this top too much! Lets do a quick rundown over some things I love about this top and eShakti.com:

First and very important: Did you know that everything eShakti.com sells is completely customizable? Enter in your specific size details and requests and your wish is their command - all only for an extra $7.50! They fully embody the idea that one size does NOT fit all and why should it? We are all different and all have different tastes.


The extra long cuffs and gorgeous fabric covered buttons (which are also down the front of the blouse) - I love little details like that.


The sleeve detail. I love this unique look!


Quite possibly my favorite part: The ruffle front - how adorable is this? Wait, it gets better: It is detachable! I love having multi-use items. I can wear this blouse with both the ruffles and without the ruffles for two totally different looks. (Note: Nevermind how messy it looks here. It actually ties around your neck, under the collar, quite nicely. The wind was blowing mine out of order.)




Topped with my favorite fall coat and the addition of one of my favorites rings, I was ready to go to work!

DISCLOSURE: Though eShakti sent me this blouse (free of charge) to review, my opinions on this blog post and all other posts are my own. I did not agree to give a positive review. I agreed to give an honest review.
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Unfortunately, the top I reviewed is currently out of stock! With that in mind, I put together a quick Kaboodle styleboard to show you some other ruffle favorites from eShakti.com.

Click above to learn more about each piece!