Fall Fashion Week: Bonus Post!

Wouldn't you know it, as soon as Fall Fashion Week ends, the weather cools down! 

So I thought I would do a bonus post. With boots! Hooray boots! (said in Jamaican beer man's voice)

This shirt has always been one of my favorites! A good blouse you can wear alone in the summer or layer in the fall and winter is a great investment. And with the amount of wear I've gotten out of this, the cost per wear is insanely low. Plus ruffles = fun. You can't quite tell from the picture but the skirt is a really nice dark maroon, and the boots are chocolate brown. Those were another great investment piece I scored on Ebay for about $70 (they're $300 boots originally!). 

Top: J.Crew 

Skirt: Forever 21 that I found at a consignment shop - so double-cheap!

Boots: J. Crew 

Watch and Bracelet: Arbonne gifts (as always)

What are some of your favorite "investment" pieces - something that you wear over and over again and with everything? 

Fall Fashion Week: Day Seven - what I *would have* worn

It was another hot and humid day here in the 'noog, which meant a disappointing lack of fall attire. I couldn't muster up the enthusiasm to take another narcissistic photo of me in shorts and a t-shirt, so I decided to end the week with what I would have worn had the weather been a bit more fall-ish.

So, come fall temperatures, I will be wearing...

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My chambray shirts with bright pants (I had a red and pink pair of cords that j'adore) . . . 

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Maybe some denim on denim? With a bright lip! 

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Leather jackets with feminine dresses (especially that Oxblood leather jacket I posted earlier this week!) . . . 

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My red corduroy pants with a tank top and denim or leather jacket. . . 

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And lots of boots and scarves! With that striped shirt?! This has me written all over it. 

Ok, southern girls, what are you dying to wear when the weather turns cooler? 

Deanna, thanks so much for coordinating Fall Fashion Week! I had a blast!

Ps: What do you guys think of the new blog design? Comments and suggestions welcome!

Fall Fashion Week: Day Six

Off to a picnic in the park with Molly and friends! Mother nature definitely cranked the heat back up today - it was back in the 80s in most of the south. Short sleeves and rolled-up jeans it is, then!

I am seriously running out of poses.

I look like I'm in pain. Or trying to be a leprechaun.

 

 

Top: Cotton On

White Cami: Forever 21

Jeans: Consignment shop...don't know what brand

Shoes: Target

Bracelet: Came in the mail from Arbonne today...I love it!

 

 

Fall Fashion Week: Day Five

I did not wear this outfit all day long (I worked and cleaned in running shorts and a t-shirt for most of the day!), but I'm all dressed up now that it's time to go do an Arbonne party!

Scout wanted in on the action!

Necklace close-up! I have wanted one of these J.Crew-style "Bubble" necklaces for forever, and I finally found one on the cheap on Etsy. Just search for "bubble necklace" on Etsy and you find a ton of them! Mine was $14.99 plus shipping, I think - such a steal!

Do you like the statement necklace trend? What would you wear a bubble necklace with?

Fall Fashion Week: Day Four

We went to the apple orchard today, which means it's officially fall! It was definitely a day for layering!

Shoes close-up!

Top: thrifted

Cardigan: Forever 21

Jeans: H&M

Loafers: TJ Maxx

I ran out of time to throw on any accessories, but I think a colorful scarf or statement necklace would have made the outfit. What would you wear with it? 

Fall Fashion Week: Day Three

Today was a dress-down sort of day, for errands and coffee dates and such, so I almost didn't take a picture for fall fashion week. Then I thought, why shouldn't our dress-down clothes be fashionable, too! So, here's what I wear on a typical weekday - yoga pants, a tshirt, running shoes, and a windbreaker. And you know what - it's cute! There's no reason to look like a slob on your day off or when you're headed to the gym. You can make a great first impression if you put a little care even into your comfy clothes!

Pants: The North Face

Tshirt: Gap

Jacket: The North Face 

Necklace: Francesca's

Shoes: New Balance

Necklace close-up. Definitely check out Francesca's if you have one for great, affordable accessories.

Running shoes close-up. 

I met a friend for coffee, then took a walk around the art district and across the walking bridge! I live in such a beautiful city. 

The first tips of the trees are starting to change! Hooray! 

Fall Fashion Week: Day Two

Ok, day two of Fall Fashion Week! I was running out of topics for my fashion posts, so this gives me a week to take a breather and figure out what to post next. What would you like to learn in "Fashion 101?" Accessorizing? Adding your personal flair? How to follow trends on the cheap? Dressing for your body type? Everyone submit your ideas!

Today was another warm and sunny day, but there was a great breeze so it was just right for my favorite combo - jeans, sleeveless top, and a jacket! I love that you can wear jeans at our church, and I don't ever wear them to Arbonne parties during the week, so Sunday is usually my jeans day come fall. 

Here I am on the way to the farmers market. 

With the jacket. I love love love my jacket. It's a fabulously soft leather, in "oxblood" which is super on-trend this year, and it was $15 on Ebay. Did I mention it looks brand new? One of my best Ebay scores in a while. 

A close up of the shoes, because I know you'll love these beauties! 

Top: Clothes Swap (also Lexi's  - I'm sure...most of what I ended up with was hers!)

Jeans: The North Face 

Leather jacket: Ebay 

Shoes: Italian leather, bought at a discount shoe store (Marti & Liz in Hixson - you HAVE to check them out if you live in Chattanooga! Awesome, high quality shoes in the $20-40 range)

Necklace: Tiffany & Co (you'll see a lot of that necklace, I wear it all the time! :)) 

See you tomorrow! 

Fall Fashion Week: Day One

Hello, fashion-loving friends.

I've been talked into join a blog round-up of sorts this week by my dear friend Lexi. Apparently, a group of bloggers, led by the lovely Deanna, posts pictures of their autumn wardrobe throughout a given week in September. New day, new outfit. I suppose these serve as inspiration for those putting together their own fall looks, but I see it as an excuse to wear fun outfits, so I'm in!

Today's effort was a bit half-assed I hate to say. I snapped a ghetto picture in the hallway mirror on my way out the door for a movie and dinner with my little brother.

Let's face it, even though it's officially fall now, we still live in Tennessee and have warm days. I just got this dress at our clothes swap the other day so I was excited to wear it!

Dress: Clothes Swap (Lexi, i think it was yours!)

Shoes: TJ Maxx (i just bought these and they're amazing)

Cardigan: J.Crew

Necklace: Tiffany & Co. (a gift from Arbonne)

Watch: also from Arbonne!

I am all about cardigans over tank tops for fall in the south, because you can always take the sweater off if it gets too hot! And I love the cute, swingy dress because it has pockets! 

Pairing a girly dress with some driving mocs and a cardigan or jean jacket is a great way to dress it down for the weekend. 

Don't forget to check back for the rest of Fall Fashion Week, and check out the other bloggers participating, too!

Make it so: Sparkly pumpkins!

Oh, fall. I love the air, the pumpkins, the hot tea and cider, the falling leaves - I love it all!

And I really, really love fall decorations.

While I adore the sparkly metallic pumpkins you see everywhere right now, I do not adore paying $5 a piece for something that will only be out 2 months a year. So, guess what time that makes it - spray paint time! I had a can of silver Krylon spray paint leftover from the dining room canvases, and plenty of gold paint left over from the jewelry box, so this project cost next to nothing!

A few plastic pumpkins from the dollar store...$9.

Coated them with a few coats of silver and gold, let them dry, flipped them and painted the other side....

Ta daaa! Aren't they cute? Some of the pumpkins had a nice texture to them which showed up even better when painted. 

I still haven't figured out what to do with the large pumpkins yet...any ideas? They're each about 6 inches in diameter. Winner gets a painted pumpkin of their very own! :) 

Make it so: Kate Spade-inspired jewelry box

Kate Spade is always cheerful. Whether it's a handbag, skirt, or dishware, the colorful, slightly irreverent designs never fail to make me smile.

(The Kate Spade iphone case that's so popular right now.) 

Since Kate Spade is ever-so-slightly out of my budget, however, (ok, way out of it) I have to settle for finding and crafting cute things with that Kate Spade feel. 

Enter spray paint. My love of spray paint exceeds that of a juvenile delinquents'. Spray paint has the ability to take an old, tired household object and transform it into something new and shiny. Prepare yourself, you're about to see a lot of spray paint posts. 

I bought this old jewelry box from the thrift store a few weeks ago intending to give it a good makeover. When I plopped it into the cart at America's Thrift, Lexi raised an eyebrow, and mumbled something polite about not having the vision that I have for junk, errm, stuff. 

The little heart-shaped pulls really caught my eye, but i'm a bit too old for a ballet-dancer jewelry box, and the white paint finish had certainly seen better days. So I took it home, scrubbed it down with a soapy rag, and let it sit for a few days while I decided on what colors to paint it. 

As soon as I saw the metallic gold Krylon, I knew what had to be done! 

I covered the whole thing in a few coats of Brilliant Gold. I should have put it on in super thin layers, because it still ran a bit. Definitely go with multiple thin coats if you're using a metallic. 

You can see the imperfections. I'm ok with that. 

After the paint was dry, I took it inside and stuck removable round office labels all over it. Mine were about an inch in diameter, but you could probably use slightly larger or smaller ones too. I started out in a precise grid, but that didn't look quite right so I took 'em all off and stuck them back on randomly. 

Random was much better. I thoroughly dotted the whole thing, taking care to wrap some dots around the edges. 

Then, it was back outside for another round of spray paint. This was was Krylon glossy almond. When picking out your spray paint, just pay the extra $2 for the good stuff. That extra 2 bucks makes a huge difference in the quality and quantity of the stuff inside. 

After a few more layers of paint, more drying time, and a careful peeling off of stickers, it was time for the big reveal! 

I just love how it turned out! Some paint seeped in under the circles, and there's still a few subtle drip marks visible from the gold paint, but it think it just adds to the charm! 

What do you think? What's your favorite spray paint project?