Tartan Crazy

So Rita Ora's plaid fashion from last year prompted my need to purchase plaid bottoms.  And because lately I've grown tired of the go-to black leggings, so I figured I'd add a few printed ones to my wardrobe.  Now I won't go as far as saying that I love Rita's outfits from head to toe, but I do like certain parts/elements/accessories/concept of them-especially the plaid.  Either way, I found some super fitted and comfy leggings at Topshop, which were on  sale so that was a plus. I liked the laced up shoe/boot in Rita's Moschino plaid suit so I paired mine with my lace up shearling wedge boots that I actually got from K-Mart a few years ago ( I know...K-Mart...). The next time I wear these, I'll take another cue from Rita and pair them with a blazer and maybe some ankle strap pumps, because when I was playing around with pieces in my closet, it actually looked really cute....date nite cute...hint hint lol :)

Me- Sweater: Charlotte Russe; Leggings: Topshop; Boots: Kmart

(Sorry for the indoor pics...wintertime blogging is hard when it's cold outside.....here's to hoping that spring will HURRY UP!)

Photo Credit: seventeen.com; huffingtonpost.com; lunionsuite.com

LET YOUR SHIRT DO THE TALKING!

 So statement sweaters and sweatshirts have been having a moment this fall/winter season.  Many magazine, articles, blogs, and stores are featuring sweaters with cute/bold phrases, prints, patterns, and famous faces.  Before, the words "statement sweater" was synonymous in my head with the infamous Christmas sweaters-or if you had elementary school teachers like mine--a sweater for wintertime, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, etc!!!! (I shudder at the thought!)  Obviously, I like that these aren't so cheesy and give your outfit a bit of pizazz and sassiness. 

I got this sweater because my name starts with an A and I've really been gravitating to items that have that on them and I thought the ace of spades symbol was a nice/different touch. Originally when I purchased my sweater, I thought it would look good with a skater skirt I have.  Unfortunately it didn't look so hot when I put them together :(  So when in doubt, grab black, which is what I did.  I actually liked that the pants had a white stripe which picked up the white in the sweater.  The red shoes and bag were added to give it some color (lately I've been self conscious about wearing all black-trying to avoid possible weird stares and goth comparisons). 

**Me- Sweater: River Island (ASOS); Pants: JC Penney; Shoes: present from my bestie!!

Interesting fact I found out after I wore the sweater-

Apparently......

To flip over the Ace of Spades in any kind of card reading is to get a warning of impending death - whether it be your own or someone linked to you. However - it doesn't always have to be a literal death - it could be a death of a certain self, or a phase of life, thus opening to path to a new existence or new identity.

Soooooo........

People who sport the Ace of Spades are, whether they know it or not, announcing that they welcome death as a means to a better existence, or simply, that they are not afraid of death and the changes it will bring....ok um, they went too deep with this and that was NOT the statement I was trying to make!! Lol smh! I JUST LIKED IT FOR THE A'S smh!



Photo credit:  http://www.leedsstudent.org/2013/11/11/fashion-micro-trend-statement-sweaters/new-look-8-pound/; http://www.shoplesnouvelles.com/shop/sweaters/msgm-camo-sweater.html; http://www.shoptiques.com/products/let-s-get-it-on-sweater#yelp-reviews; http://www.shopthetrendboutique.com/peandpelivis.html?source=pjn&subid=20648; http://www.mytheresa.com/us_en/logo-pullover-252366.html; http://www.stylebop.com/product_details.php?id=490957&partner=shopstyle&campaign=Kooperation%2Fshopstyle%2Fusd%2F&utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=shopstyle&utm_campaign=productfeed&ia-pmtrack=56971310&campaign=affiliate/linkshare/usa/&utm_source=affiliate&utm_medium=linkshare&utm_campaign=adsus&siteID=J84DHJLQkR4-M4PP8mDYKFeSukF1FWSKrA;

Research credit: http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_does_a_tattoo_of_the_ace_of_spades_mean

Selita's Teal

So there's not too much to say about this look.

I saw Selita's teal Roberto Cavalli and loved it!  I needed a dress for a wedding I was attending.  I figured this color would stand out but not overshadow the beautiful bride. (congrats to them by the way!)  It's a gorgeous fall color and I love jewel tones for the fall. I ended up finding a dress from Vera Wang's line at Kohl's..  It fit like a dream and the color took my breath away.  I added some skin toned stockings because it was cold, but I probably could have done without them. 

Happy Holidays :)

**Me- Dress: Simply Vera Vera Wang for Kohl's; Heels: BCBG; Bag: Aldo 

Photo Credit: www.stylebistro.com

Faux Leather Shift

 

I seriously love leather (well, faux in my case) clothing. I've tried a leather skirt, have several (faux) leather jackets, and I even have two leather vest (sadly, no leather pants-they either give me a weird crotch look (lol) or they don't come up past my thighs :(  The only things left to try were a leather top (which I'm working on finding) and a dress-which I now have.  And since they're making leather pieces in colors other than black, I decided to do a colored leather dress.  All of the looks featured are outfits I've seen and liked so I pretty much took inspiration from them all. However, the Celine blue shift that Katy Perry is wearing matches the style of the dress I wanted, and any dress that was a fall color was close to what I pictured myself in.
The dress I'm wearing is a faux leather shift from Arden B.  It's faux leather in the front and ponte knit in the back, which is good because I'm convinced I would have either suffocated or not been able to fit it if it was all leather!

 (Sorry for the plethora of pics but I just couldn't narrow it down!!! )

**Me- Dress: Arden B; Shoes: Target

 Photo Credit: rudechic.com; superstarmagazine.com; stylelifefashion.com; fashion.about.com; ihandbagpros.co; wheretoget.it; newsgab.com; heatworld.com

Zoe's Printed Pencil Skirt

So here's another feature from People Style Watch's October issue (this issue was one of the best in a long time btw)...

Zoe Saldana, another one of my style favorites, is wearing a super cute top and skirt by Prabal Gurung with Christian Louboutin pumps.  I just love how comfortable she looks in it and surprisingly, I love the print on the skirt.  From past posts, you should know that I don't love prints because for one, I feel overwhelmed looking at them, two, I'm an accessories girl-you can't throw on a bunch of jewelry with a print (at least that's how I feel), and three, it brings back scary memories from my childhood which consisted of wearing big, frilly, flower printed dresses!! But lately, I have been venturing more and more into the world of prints, so I looked at one of the outfit suggestions they included (top right) and tried it for myself.

**Me- Top and Skirt: Sears; Shoes: Charlotte Russe

Overall, I liked the outfit.  Sears had a purple blouse as well as this teal one, but I thought the teal looked better, and I've really been feeling that color lately.  Plus, the material was just so nice!  The skirt was also cute (loved the print and it was half price), but Sears clothing sizes are a bit big, so it didn't fit as tight as I would have liked.  The shoes were the only thing I would change.  My feet don't do well in pointy toe shoes so I didn't have any to wear. Instead, I wore a pair of round toe platform pumps, but I just think it would have looked better with a skinnier, pointed shoe. (Btw, after I wore this, I ended up finding an AWESOME pair of super pointy toe black pumps..and my feet love them too!!!)

Photo Credit: People Style Watch

My Beetlejuice Pants

(I hope you get the title reference lol....)

So the first time I wore these pants in the summer, I styled them similar to Hilary Duff's look-with a bright heel (pink to be exact). 

Recently, I came across this piece in October's People Style Watch (my favorite mag!!) and was delighted to see that their "Everything Under $100" featured the exact same pants I purchased from Foreign Exchange a few months ago! I absolutely love these jeans! They appear to elongate your leg because of the vertical design, they are made of the softest material, AND fit your legs soooo wonderfully! I will say that I didn't like how the black was faded, but that's just me being nitpicky.

This time, I decided to "winterize" these pants and wear it similar to how Gwen Stefani did with a blazer and open toe booties.

**Me- Blazer: Sears; Top: Charlotte Russe; Skinnies: Foreign Exchange; Booties: Guess

Photo Credit: People Style Watch

It's A Celebration B*****s

Today is my blog's birthday!!!!!!!!!!!! This day last year, I put up my first post.  I'm so grateful that I was able to turn a dream into a reality.  This blog was an idea I had in my head for the longest time.  I've always gravitated to "The Look for Less" or "Where to Buy Similar Items" features in blogs and magazines, so basically this blog is just an extension of what I've always done. My friend Tia was really instrumental in helping me make this happen and I am so grateful for her!  Also, I've had a few photographers along the way (for those days when I just couldn't seem to capture the pics myself), so special thanks to Tia, Kim, Cam, Tasha, Josh, and Kay.  And thanks to all who have viewed this blog (I don't know who you are, but my view numbers are increasing daily lol)!

And yes, I brought a cupcake just for this and it was sooo good!! lol