outfitted:: blue flowers and boots

Looky, looky, two outfitted posts two days in a row. I'm on a role, you guys. Don't get used to it, though. I'm not that excited about getting out of my tank tops and knit shorts most days.

Full disclosure: I did not wear this outfit today. I wore it back in June when we were in LA. I didn't get an iPhone picture of it for the DU Facebook page, so here it is, making its debut on my blog. If I wore this in PA in June (or really any time between May and October), I probably would have melted into a sweat puddle because it's too hot and humid for more than one layer and anything other than the strappiest of strappy sandals or flip flops. We've discussed this before. And before that.

So anyway, did you ever notice that when you're a blogger, you scrutinize every moment of your life to see if it's proper fodder for your next blog post? No? Only me? Seriously own up to it, fellow bloggers, because you know it's true. Unfortunately for me (and you, readers), today I've got nothing. Except it's Friday! Go have a good weekend, everyone!

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{Shop}:: dress, madewell (summer 2010); denim jacket: old navy, circa 2000; boots, dolce vita (several seasons ago); earrings: sun sugar studio; bracelets: j.crew and sun sugar studio; scarf: h&m

outfitted:: ruffles and gladiators

I went to officially/legally change my name this morning. (Yes, it has been seven months since we got married and I'm just now getting around to changing my name- so?) So anyway, after visiting the Social Security office, I decided to go to the pet store to pick up some toys and other random dog necessities.

The route from point A to point B is fairly direct via the highway. That is, if you manage to take the right exits. Guess who did not take the right exits? Guess who also missed not only the first exit, but also the second and third ones? Yep. This girl. And I ended up on a 10 minute detour because of it. Never mind that I drive this highway all the time. From this, only one logical conclusion can be drawn: changing my name also made me a space cadet.

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{Shop}:: dress, madewell (similar); sandals, can't remember (similar); necklace: sun sugar studio; bracelets: AE and It's Me Mary (lots of options here)

currently loving (and styled):: colorful summer dresses from madewell

Summers in Pennsylvania are hot, humid, and sticky, and definitely not good for my hair. But they are the perfect excuse to stock up on silky, lightweight, colorful dresses (because really, that's about all I can stand to wear around these-here parts during the summer months; anything else and I feel like I'm suffocating).

And I'm loving all the cute dresses at Madewell right now (as usual). Even better- these are dressy enough to wear out at night but easy enough to dress down with a pair of cute flat sandals during the day (like I styled my favorite dress- the purple one!- below):



PS- You can see how I styled the pink dress for a guest post over at my friend Brandi's blog.

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{Shop}:: (dresses clockwise from top left) floral croquet dress;  silk safari dress;  midsummer dress;  shadyside smock dress;  electric ikat silk dress;  silk ballad dress;   market tank dress;  silk speakeasy dress

speakeasy dress, day: fringed bag, american eagle outfitters; long links necklace, anthropologie; whistlestop sandal, madewell

speakeasy dress, night: peacock clutch by mermaid's dream; via spiga elyria sandals, piperlime; eddie borgo at j.Crew fringed mesh pocket necklace; classic pave link bracelet, j.crew

styled:: alexa chung for madewell

Madewell finally debuted the much-anticipated Alexa Chung for Madewell line. Yay! There are a ton of cute pieces and they're selling out quickly. Hopefully, Madewell restocks soon because I'd love to get my hands on a few of them, including the Betty Tea Dress.

Here are two of my favorite pieces, the Betty Tea Dress (of course!) and the Sketchbook Tee, and how I'd style them:

Alexa Chung for Madewell Betty Tea Dress
styled with: Infinity Cardigan in bronzed twig, J. Crew
| Embellished leather belt, Abercrombie & Fitch | Hidden Sun Mary Janes, Anthropologie | Blue rose and vintage cameo earrings by The Silver Dog | Gatsby Cuff, Madewell



Alexa Chung for Madewell Sketchbook Tee
styled with: McKenna plaid shirt, Abercrombie & Fitch | Denim shorties, American Eagle | Opaque tights, Anthropologie | Highstep open-toe bootie, Nine West | Tassel rope necklace, J. Crew

So, what about you? What do you think of the Alexa Chung for Madewell collection? Which pieces are your favorites?

what i wore:: peach, green and a pop of neon

I'm having moment with green. A really long moment. As in, I think it's managed to creep into my life and go from one of my most hated colors to a near favorite. And all shades of it, too. From olive to sage to mint to this bright pea-green cardigan.

I once heard someone describe green as the perfect neutral because every flower has a stem and flowers come in nearly every color. I like that idea. In keeping with the flower theme, here I am, in a peach top with petal-like ruffles and a green cardigan with a neon orange belt. So, the top is the petals, the belt is the pistil and the cardigan is the surrounding greens. Erm...

And that concludes the cheesy flower analogy portion of this post. Carry on, everyone.





Top: J. Crew Outlet
Cardigan: J. Crew
Belt: Madewell (buy it here- on sale!)
Necklace: Madewell (buy it here- on sale!)
Jeans: Target
Shoes: J. Crew
Bracelets: AE, Madewell, my own designs


So what about you? Have you ever suddenly found yourself drawn to a color you disliked? Or has the opposite happened- did you suddenly start disliking a color you couldn't get enough of before?

Fashion:: Design Star, Emily Henderson

Does anyone else watch HGTV Design Star? What did you think of last night's finale? I was happy Emily Henderson won because I really like her overall aesthetic and she just seems like a nice person, too. And isn't it nice when a nice person wins? But I'm not really here to talk about the finale. I'm here to talk about the outfit Emily wore in the second to last episode.

Specifically, this outfit:

Image sources: Left | Right

I'm obsessed. I just love the blue ruffled dress with the tan, heeled menswear-style shoes. So, I went hunting for some similar styles. And here's what I found:


I'm on Sapphire dress from Modcloth | Tissue v-neck T from J. Crew | Hammered NuGold Cuff by Cyndie Smith Designs | Double-lock leather belt from Madewell | Sueded opaque control top tights from Hue | Canyon messenger bag from Madewell | Langford platform high-heel oxfords from J. Crew

The dress isn't identical (*cry!*), but I added a long-sleeve gray t-shirt to give it some interest (and seasonal mileage, since summer is fading fast!). I think I like it! What do you think?

PS- Emily has a pretty cool design blog call The Brass Petal. Check it out!

Online shopping :: Madewell

I'm ridiculously, super-excited that Madewell, my beloved J. Crew's sister store, finally sells online! A few things on my shopping list:

neon lights belt | colordrop bracelet | layered ruffles tank | floaty floral dress | city slouch trousers in lantern | fallen needles skirt | the canyon messenger | the sunset sandal