Category Archives: Fashion & Style

Fashion Love: 4 Favorite Booties For Fall/Winter

October 30, 2013Fashion & Style, Style Guidebooties, ShoesAlicia

I got my fall/winter clothes down from the attic a few days ago and while I’m happy to have warm clothes to wear again, I’m not thrilled with my options. My fall and winter clothes consist of skinny jeans, corduroys, and black GAP and Old Navy sweaters. That’s right, I’ll be wearing skinny jeans with a black sweater everyday for the next few months if I don’t go shopping. So, considering that I probably won’t go shopping soon mostly because of the 10-15 extra pounds I need to lose before I buy new clothes, I thought of ways I can add some excitement to my winter outfit.

I’ve been thinking about what I can do to add some interest to my skinny jeans and black sweater outfit until I allow myself to buy new winter clothes. A few ideas I’ve come up with are to find a couple of statement necklaces. I love big necklaces that scream ‘look at me’ but haven’t taken the time to really look for one so you can expect to see a post about statement necklaces very soon. 🙂

Earrings and scarves are two other things I’ve thought of trying. I hesitate to wear earrings that are substantial enough to be considered part of an outfit because my ears are very sensitive. I am going to put more effort into finding lightweight, larger than tiny, cute earrings.

I am a casual kind of girl so I don’t worry too much about what I wear but as I’m getting older and I feel like my identity is less and less about me than it is about being a mom, I’m searching for ways to stand out a bit again. Not stand out in the ‘I want all the attention’ sense, because I don’t, but in the way that I feel like I’m not just throwing on a pair of jeans and a sweater and heading out the door. I want to look cute.. like I put effort into what I’m wearing.

One more thing that I think will make a big difference with my winter wardrobe is shoes. I own 12 pairs of shoes and none of them are ‘winter’ shoes. I have 3 pairs of ballet flats; all of which need to be replaced, 4 pairs of flats, mostly Merrells which are really comfortable but not the shoes to wear when trying to add something to an outfit via shoes, one pair of black pumps, a pair of black Naturalizer flats, and the rest of my shoes are sandals and flip-flops. I have a couple of UGG boots but while I love them and wear them around the house, I don’t wear them out of the house because they are too big.. they were hand me downs from my sister who wears a size or two larger than I do. Speaking of UGGs, I LOVE the Neevah UGG booties – number 4 in the photo below. I would be more likely to wear them in Chocolate than the Charcoal color below, but Charcoal might not be so bad with my ‘winter outfit’, would it?

1 – Valerie Shearling Lined Booties at Shopbop.com – $428.00

2 – Horrigan Wrap Strap Booties at Shopbop.com – $298.00

3 – ‘Macri’ Bootie at Nordstrom.com – $295.00

4 – ‘Neevah’ Bootie (Women) by UGG Australia at Nordstrom.com – $149.95

20+ Fabulous Long Sweaters To Go With Leggings

October 25, 2013Clothes - mom & dad, Fashion & Style, Style Guideleggings, long sweaters, pinterest, sweatersAlicia

I’m addicted to long sweaters right now. Well, really anything that will go with a pair of leggings because leggings are my new favorite piece of clothing. They are comfortable, come in lots of colors, and versatile. I don’t wear them 24/7, just 23/7. Just kidding. I wear leggings 2 or 3 days a week and I even wear them out of the house. Did you see my work from home outfit post? I’ve learned that there are tops that look good with leggings and tops that don’t. For example, a very short or tight top, doesn’t look good with leggings. In my opinion, leggings should be worn just as you would wear tights. This applies to little girls too. I am not a fan of seeing little girls wear a cute pair of leggings paired with a tight t-shirt. Not cute.

I’ve been posting a lot of ‘fashion finds’ posts lately because I really do love clothes and accessories but I feel a little awkward about not posting selfies when I show you my favorite fashion finds. Right now I have a bit more of a belly than I would like (maybe that’s where the addiction to leggings and long sweaters comes in to play) and I am not confident enough to post selfies just yet. I hope to lose 10-15 pounds in the next few months and may share a few outfit selfies once I lost those few extra pounds but until then I’ll just show you the fashion finds that I love on gorgeous models! 🙂

Here are a few cute and very comfortable looking long sweaters that I love!

Do you have a favorite sweater that looks great with a pair of leggings? Do you have a pinterest board of some of your favorite sweater finds? Share with us in the comments below.

Fashion Finds: 5 Leather Detailed Sweaters For Ladies + 1 For a Little Girl

October 16, 2013Clothes - mom & dad, Fashion & Style, Style Guideclothes, leather, sweatersAlicia

I was looking through my wardrobe yesterday as I attempted to organize my closet and it dawned on me that my clothes are pretty boring. My closet is full of solid colors, mostly black tops, jeans, and black leggings. Fun, right?

I used to wear cute clothes. Back when I was a size 4. Pre-kids.

As I was organizing I tried to think of ways I can add fun, interesting clothes to my wardrobe without getting to risky. I’m not a fan of patterns or bright colors but I do love leather. I’m not ready to jump into a full leather piece though.

One way to jazz up a wardrobe is by including pieces with leather detail or trim. It doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. I found a few sweaters with faux leather detail that are under $100. Not one to be left out of fashion-finds, my daughter spotted a purple long-sleeve cardigan with faux leather detail from about 10 feet away while I was searching Macys.com for pieces. How cute is #6?

If you’re looking for a way to spice up your wardrobe, check out the sweaters below and search online stores like Nordstrom.com or Macys.com for “leather + sweater”, for example.

1 – Faux Leather Trim Tunic available in Regular & Petite at Nordstrom.com – $79

2 – Faux Leather Trim Cardis at OldNavy.com – $36 (plus sizes available and on sale online now!)

3 – LAmade Suede Shoulder V-Neck Sweater with Leather Detail at Nordstrom.com – $128

4 – Vince Leather Sleeve Sweater at Shopbop.com – $335

5 – Long-Sleeve Faux-Leather Cardigan at Macys.com – on sale for $44 from 69

6 – (Little Girl) City Faux Leather Sweatshirt at Splendid.com (available sizes: 7/8, 10, 12, 14) – $82.00

Do you have a favorite piece of clothing that has leather detail on it?

My Favorite Work From Home Clothes

October 15, 2013Fashion & Style, Personal, Style GuideH&M, pajamas, work from homeAlicia

No, it’s not pajamas. 🙂 Do you have a work from home uniform? I realized today that I do. I have.. I don’t know.. several pairs of leggings and long tops that make up my work from home uniform. They are my go-to clothes when I know I’m not leaving the house until the evening. Even so, sometimes I just put a necklace on and go out in my ‘uniform’.

Only after I’d been working from home for 5 years or so, did I discover that if I actually got dressed I would be more productive, energetic, and happy. When you work from home it is important to stick to a normal routine of showering, getting dressed, and putting a little makeup on, even if your office is just down the hall. It’s proven (by me) that when we look good, we feel good. When we look bad, we feel bad. Plus wearing pajamas can make you think (even if in your subconscious) that you can get back in bed anytime.

Get out of your pajamas!

On that note, I’d like to share my current work uniform with you. It’s simple, the pieces are easy to find just about anywhere, and super comfortable, but stylish at the same time. A couple of accessories, cute shoes, and brushed hair and you could even leave the house in your work ‘uniform’! 😉

Most of the clothes I wear I work from home are from H&M

Most of my ‘work clothes’ are from H&M. The clothes are cheap, comfortable, available in lots of sizes.. but as to be expected when you pay $24.95 for a sweater, it may not last as long as your favorite $150 sweater. The good thing about H&M’s prices is that you can buy a lot of things and put together several outfits for the price of one top somewhere else.

1 – H&M Melange Leggings – $9.95

2 – Oversized Knit Sweater – $24.95

3 – Dylan Muscle Tee with Drawstring – $143 (pricey but it’s a top that can be worn a lot!)

4 – Oversized sweatshirt top – $24.95

5 – Chain Necklace (available in gold and silver) – $5.95

When shopping for leggings keep in mind the thickness of them if you want them to hold ‘stuff’ in. When I’m feeling particularly good about myself I wear thin leggings but on my off days I wear thicker leggings because they tend to hold ‘stuff’ in better.

Be mindful of others ladies and as Grechen says here, cover your ass when you’re wearing leggings! Leggings are not to be worn with short tops. 🙂

Little Girl Fashion Guide: 4 Adorable Ballet Flats for Little Girls

October 11, 2013Age 3-5, Age 5-7, Age 7-10, Fashion & Style, Style Guideballet flats, girl, Kid Style, Shoes, summerAlicia

Gone are the days when little girls run around in ‘play shoes’ all day, every day. Now little girls, at least mine, want to wear cute shoes whenever they can. My daughter plays dress up and when some girls might want to wear mom’s high heels, my daughter is perfectly happy in a pair of sparkly ballet flats.

Here are a few of my daughter’s favorite ballet flats.. as of today. 🙂