Black and White

So far, this weekend hasn't been as productive as I originally planned, but I'm hoping this cup of coffee I'm drinking will turn that around. Although I'm pretty lazy at the moment, I was feeling ambitious last night when I took on two recipes I saved on Pinterest - cheesy quinoa and cauliflower cheese sticks. Both were kind of lackluster although healthy. We'll have to see how the cheesy quinoa reheats, though, because I have six servings of that left.

Yesterday I got dressed in black and white stripes and a statement blazer for Inspiration Monday and Bloggers Do It Better.

Striped Top and Blazer: Kohl's; Cardigan: Target; Jeans: Kut;
Shoes: TOMS; Headband: Fred Boutique; Necklace: Etsy

Naming Colors

Source

It's gotta be a fun job naming colors. Crayola's got Inchworm, Macaroni and Cheese, and Purple Mountain's Majesty; OPI's got My Boyfriend Scales Walls, Don't Pretzel My Buttons, and Save Me; and Pantone has Croissant, Palace Blue, and Oxblood. For this edition of Bloggers Do It Better, we're celebrating fall's hot color, Oxblood Red.

Top: Anthropologie; Skirt: NY&Co; Boots and Bracelet: Kohl's; Belt: Forever 21

 It was a tad windy.

Need More Mint and Less Indecision

Tank Top: H&M; Cardigan, Shoes, Necklace, and Watch: NY&Co; Skirt: Webster for Target; Bracelet: Kate Spade; Sunglasses: Target 

I was so indecisive this morning, which is really nothing new for me, but whatever. First, I couldn't decide whether to tuck or untuck my shirt; then I couldn't decide how many and which bracelets to wear; then I tried on three other pairs of shoes before I settled on these. I also considered wearing a white skirt instead of this navy one, but the white one looked a tad casual for work. The only easy part was the top because I have very limited coral and mint options (for Bloggers Do It Better) in my closet.

Actually, mint, or sea green, used to be my favorite color in second grade. The only reason I remember that is because I still have my Bible from grade school (I went to a Lutheran school 1st–8th grade), in which I highlighted using a sea green marker and wrote "favorite color" next to it. Random. I still think it's a pretty color; I should really buy more of it.

Happy first day of summer!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Blouse: Jason Wu for Target; Cardigan: Boston Store?; Skirt: NY&Co; Tights: ?; Shoes: CL by Laundry via swap

If I could, I would send you all one of these cupcakes I made today!

Don't forget to send in your pictures to mixedupbek@gmail.com for wear*it Wednesday: How to Wear Pink tomorrow! I'm hoping I won't have to re-use one of these pictures for the post. I'm on a mission to Gap tonight to see if they still have the pink knit blazer in my size. I have a coupon and birthday money burning a hole in my pocket...er, wallet.  Then it's back home for a hubby cooked meal and some wine!

Oh and one more reminder to enter the giveaway tonight to win some fashion art--an original matted pen and pastel drawing of a fashion workroom!  The winner and the next giveaway will be announced tomorrow.

Breaking Dawn Outfit

Vampire Top: Maurices; Long Sleeve Shirt: Target; Vest: Old Navy; Jeans: New York & Company; Shoes: Vince Camuto (via giveaway); Bracelet: Charming Charlie

This is my official Twilight movie shirt. It’s not official Twilight merchandise, but I bought it at Maurices before New Moon came out, when you could find vampire themed apparel everywhere, it seemed. I’ve worn this shirt three times so far--to the midnight showing of New Moon, while pregnant and going to see Eclipse, and to Breaking Dawn this past weekend. It just has to last one more year for Breaking Dawn: Part 2, and then I can retire it.

I paired the T-shirt with this military-esque vest that a bunch of bloggers have, my new tough girl boots, and cuffed jeans for Bloggers Do It Better: Military Chic.

What’d you think of Breaking Dawn, for those of you who’ve seen it? There was some discussion with my friends after we saw the movie and on Facebook, and we all came to the conclusion that some parts were definitely cheesy. But that didn’t stop me from loudly laughing at some parts and cowering with my hands over my mouth during the suspenseful/gruesome parts (birth scene anyone?). The last shot of the movie before the credits was INTENSE.

I do have some complaints about the Cullens throughout the Twilight series. The Cullens in general have gotten less good looking with each movie, I think. Rosalie was gorgeous in the first one, and now you can tell she’s just wearing a really bad wig. Alice’s hair has gotten progressively worse, too. And all of a sudden, Emmett is just a dumb jock (also with bad hair) instead of a fun-loving older brother type. Esme is the only one who has looked the same and consistently good throughout. And Edward. I did enjoy Jasper in his tux, though. Rawr! Speaking of Jasper, why does he only have a Southern access in Eclipse?

One of the trailers was for The Hunger Games, and I may finally be convinced to read it. Good thing I have a handful of months to do so before the movie comes out.

Animal Print and a Baby on the Go

When I buy new clothes, I tend to want to wear them right away, so here's my new Kohl's dress with the belt switched out for a leopard one and my week-old Kohl's boots.  The black shirt's really old, though.

Belt: Walmart; Everything Else: Kohl's

That's all I have to say for tonight because Bridget is ripping up Kleenex and throwing remotes around whilst standing precariously against the coffee table, so I should probably attend to that. Haha. Kinda like this video I took of her yesterday.



Check out everyone else's animal print on Bloggers Do It Better.

Biz Casz Arm Party

Top: Banana Republic; Pants and Shoes: New York & Company

Here's right when I spotted a lady walking her dog across the street.  Time to wrap it up!

I'm still learning the art of layering, both clothes and accessories, but I am a fan the concept.  In fact, I feel weird without anything on my wrists, so I certainly don't have a problem with piling everything on them.  Hence my business casual arm party for Bloggers Do It Better.

From left to right: booth at Bastille Days, self-made, Etsy, and Mexicali Blues

My tips for creating a stacked bracelet look:

1. Don't bother putting two thin, flimsy chain bracelets next to each other.  My two middle bracelets just kept getting intertwined.  
2. Doing a monochromatic look makes it easier to figure out what goes together, too, I think.

Although, I have seen some fun multi-colored looks, and I'm looking forward to seeing what everyone came up with in the link-up tomorrow.

Day 25 of 30: Last Day of Vacation

Dress: self-made; Scarf: Boston Store; Purse: Michael Kors via TJ Maxx; Sunglasses: Hanson.net; Bracelets: Mexicali Blues

Boo, I don't want to go back to work on Monday and then to the dentist. Why can't vacation last forevsies?

Recently, I decided that I need a new purse. All mine have been falling apart one by one, so I wanted a quality, real leather purse that will hopefully last me years and years and years. On the hiking expedition yesterday, I kept upping the amount I was willing to pay for said new purse, and it got up to $1,000. Haha. I didn't actually spend that much, but I did pick up this snazzy Michael Kors bag for $180. Yeah, pricey, but it was half off the original price. Isn't it puuurdy? I dig it.

Besides shopping, hubs and I took a little joy ride in his family's '77 MG Midget (teeny tiny car pictured behind me below). They recently replaced the transmission, so I didn't mind the shifting part, but the lack of power steering and power brakes definitely took some adjusting to on my part.

And tomorrow, very early, we begin our trek back home.

Day 3: Neon and Neutral

Shirt and Pants: New York & Company; Cami: Kohl's; Shoes and Sunglasses: Payless; Sash: no idea

Why have I had such writer's block lately?  Hmmm, I guess I'll just talk about the outfit and call it a post.  I do realize a couple things are making this look kind of sloppy, namely the cami hanging out underneath the shirt and the too-long pants (or not tall enough heels).  But I feel like the shirt is too short otherwise, so that's that.

Wow, this is thrilling material.  My nail polish is cool though, eh?  I was a little unsure how I would like yellow nail polish, but I think it's fun!  So that and this random sash I have are my neon to the otherwise neutral outfit.

Tomorrow's Friday!  And NKOTBSB day!  I will have two outfits for you tomorrow--a work one and a concert one.  And pictures of nine boyband members if we're lucky.

Menswear

I have a couple of menswear-type looks for you today. The first one is for Inspiration Monday, and I wore it running errands on Saturday and then out to a casual dinner with the extended fam. The shirt is my husband's, which is why I'm qualifying it as menswear.

Here's the inspiration photo:

And my interpretation:

Striped Tank & Shoes: Kohls; White Tank & Jeans: Target; Shirt: Husband's;  Necklace: Old Navy; Hat: TJ Maxx

I did cuff the sleeve once, but I should've rolled them up more to make the shirt more feminine.  I thought I'd feel like a dude in this shirt, but it was actually really comfortable.  And I did try to girl it up with a necklace.  I may have to steal it from the other side of the closet again because I know hubs never wears it.

So from happily grinning on Saturday to sleepily squinting on Monday.

Entire Outfit: New York & Company; Boots: Target

I'm doing double duty on this post, like I did last Monday, which actually ended up being triple duty.  Anyway, the theme for this week's Bloggers Do It Better is Prep School.  While all these items came from the women's section, the argyle sweater vest is definitely preppy and kind of menswear inspired.  Had I worn this with, like, bermuda shorts, I'd be ready for the golf course.  The hands in the pockets pose was supposed to be menswear inspired as well.

Alright, time to start my day.  Weekend recap of food and drinks to come later.

Experimenting with the White Out Trend

The white out trend is probably not something I would've tried on my own. But, when the Bloggers Do It Better challenge came up, I figured I might as well give it a shot. It turns out, I kind of liked some of the looks I came up with. I was surprised to find out how much white I had to work with in my closet.

Here are four different white outfits I came up with:

Winter White (or unseasonably cold spring...)

Sequin T-shirt: Express; Cardigan: Old Navy; Skirt and Boots: Target; Glasses: Hanson.net

Easy Breezy

Top: Old Navy; Skirt: Target; Shoes: Payless

Biz Casz

Top: New York & Company; Skirt: Target; Belt/Sash: From a Kohl's shirt; Shoes: Payless

Creamy Lace

Top: Kohl's; Skirt and Shoes: Target

Hmm, I'm starting to think I need to branch out and start shopping at more places...