White Christmas

Outfit Details:
Bernie Dexter Amour and More Dress in Plaid: ModCloth
(no longer available, but similar styles here and here)
Heart necklace: ASOS (no longer available)
White heels: jcpenney (similar here)
Red boots: DSW (old)
Red coat: eBay

We ended up having a white Christmas!  All the snow had melted by Monday, so I was afraid we'd have green grass showing... but miraculously, we got a dusting of snow that night, and then all through the first half of Christmas Eve day, so it was the perfect amount for the holidays!  Our Christmas Eves are pretty low-key these days.  We used to have huge celebrations with my mom's family (she had three other siblings, all with lots of kids), but it's kind of strange and sad when families drift apart as you get older.  I think there is oftentimes a lot of pressure on families to make the holidays special when the kids are young, and the cracks start to show as you get older.  Or at least, that's how it is in my family.  Now, it's just my parents and me for Christmas.  Which is really nice, don't get me wrong.  But I do miss those big, festive Christmases of my childhood.  

Isn't this dress all kinds of amazing??

We still open nearly all our presents on Christmas Eve (we save the little and silly things for Christmas morning), and we have lots of yummy snack-y foods.  I got some really wonderful things from my parents last night, including my new DSLR(!!!), a few books, a couple of dresses (a black velvet one from Urban Outfitters and a pastel vintage dress from Etsy), aaaaand... MY DAD GOT MY MOM AND ME TICKETS TO SEE HEART!!!  They are coming to Rochester in April, and he got us fifth row seats!!!  I knew about almost all of my presents, but this one was a complete and utter surprise.  I am so so excited!  My mom and I both really love Heart, and I haven't been to an actual concert in forever.  It was really sweet of him to do that (especially since he's not even going!).  I am a really lucky (and spoiled) girl, to have such generous parents.  Since I love giving gifts just as much as receiving them, I tried to make sure I got both of my parents really nice, thoughtful things they would enjoy; I got my dad a bunch of books, a couple of CDs, and a wine stopper that has a drum design on it (since he is a drummer who definitely enjoys his fair share of wine...), and I got my mom all the Friends seasons on DVD, some Betsey Johnson jewelry, and a little art print about gardening.

Today, we're starting off the day with a breakfast of orange rolls & cinnamon rolls, sausages and fruit... and then we'll be headed out to see Saving Mr. Banks (could there be a more perfect Christmas movie for me?!), and then out for Chinese food (like the typical Jews we are).  It's always interesting to see how traditions evolve.  You'd think that traditions would just stay traditions forever, ya know?  We started doing the movie-and-Chinese-food thing when I was in college; prior to that, we'd always done more of a sit-down dinner or leftovers or something, or gone to relatives' houses.  The holidays are always nostalgic, but I like to remind myself that making new traditions can be really special, too.  I have a lot of friends who are on cruise ships or national tours who may not get to come home for Christmas, which would be really difficult, but it's also a chance to make new memories and traditions.  I wonder what my holidays will be like in a few years, or when I have a family of my own (assuming that will happen at some point).  It's been weird not having a boyfriend this year to shop for or to kiss under the mistletoe -- and it's especially weird (and, if I'm being honest here, pretty upsetting) knowing that he does already have someone new to do those things with (..... I'll just let that sink in).  That's a whole other topic for a whole other time, but getting confirmation about that piece of information did put a bit of a damper on my Christmas, as much as it pains me to say it.  Even though I know that I am probably much better off without him, it still stings.  I guess I'd rather know than be in the dark about it.  But when all is said and done... I still choose happiness.  I choose to enjoy my holiday and spend time with people who do love and care about me.  And I choose to not let people who don't take anything else away from me.  I will be merry and bright, and dammit, my Christmas will be white.  :)   

I opted out those red moon boots (as I call them) for white heels during our festivities -- much better!  :)

Have a very merry Christmas!  Sending love to you all.

xox Sammi (+ Bing)

The Red Queen (+ giveaway winner!)

Outfit Details:
Luck Be A Lady Dress in Red: ModCloth
Upper West Stride Hat: ModCloth
Doo Bee Doo Bee Shoe Heel in Black: ModCloth
Black cardigan: Forever 21 (similar here & here)

Today's post is a bit of a short one.  I worked every single day last week (I normally get at least one day off), so not only am I exhausted, but I also didn't have much time to take photos over the last several days!  We had a weekend full of holiday concerts where I work, which of course meant that I had to look festive!  This is what I wore on Saturday (though I couldn't wear the hat, since it wouldn't work very well with a headset) for my double header of concerts.  I love these Luck Be A Lady dresses; they have such a flattering silhouette, and isn't the belt adorable??  This particular color has way more stretch than the other two I have (I probably could have gone down a size, but I kind of didn't want to bother exchanging it, since it looks fine with a cardigan over it).  It's a great holiday dress, and it'll also serve me well for auditions, since it's flattering and such a nice color.

I'm super excited because one of my oldest and dearest friends, Meghan, is in town for the holidays!  She lives down in St. Louis now, so I don't get to see her very often, and we are loooong overdue for a catch-up!  We usually go out for Vietnamese food when we see each other, but I think we're opting for a coffee date today.  I'm glad to have the next few days off.  :)  I just hope the weather isn't gross so I can take some Christmas-y photos outside!  Eeeee I love holidays!!

Oh, and before I forget: the winner of the Silent Daisy giveaway is... Kari!  Congratulations, Kari!  Crissy will be in touch with you about all the details :) Thank you so much to everyone who entered!

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Have a lovely Monday!
xox Sammi

Flock Together Style Challenge: New Year's Eve

Christmas isn't for another few days, but the girls over at Flock Together are already gathering inspiration for our New Year's Eve looks!  If you're feeling stumped on what to wear for NYE -- or you just want to take a peek at what we'll be wearing -- head on over to the Flock Together blog today!  I'm still stumped on what to wear.  I included a few of my top choices there, but you can take a look at all the possibilities below.  Be sure to check out the Flock Together post for even more inspiration! 

Dress: Urban Outfitters (old) // Faux fur stole: Target (similar here)
Heels: ModCloth // Earrings: Mom's // Bracelet: old

Dress and headband: Kohl's // Shoes: ModCloth // Bracelet: old

Dress: Anthropologie (similar here & here) // Cardigan: vintage (Mom's) // Pearls: Claire's // Shoes: ModCloth

Dress: ModCloth // Necklace: Forever 21 // Shoes: ModCloth

Dress: old (Free People?) // Feather headband: Forever 21 // Shoes: estate sale store

Dress: Charlotte Russe (old) // Top hat headband: can't remember // Belt: from another dress
Necklace: ASOS (similar here) // Shoes: ModCloth

I wore the gold dress last year, and I'm sort of leaning towards wearing it again... but I need help -- which look is your favorite of the bunch?  :)

Have a great Sunday!!

xox Sammi

Friday Favorites #33: Party Time!

I can scarcely believe that Christmas is only five days away!!  I'm sure a lot of holiday parties have already come and gone, but since I always dress to the nines on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I thought it would be fun to compile a few little color-coordinated wish lists for things that I'd love to wear for the most wonderful time of the year!

a // b // c // d // e // f // g // h // i // j // k // l

Of course, red is a very traditional choice for these wintery holidays, but I have to say that I really love the resurgence in the emerald to forest green tones for this whole season.  I learned on an episode Project Runway last week that green simply doesn't "sell" (in terms of magazine covers), but I think it's such a stunning choice!  I may be totally biased though, since I wore a green dress in Wednesday's blog post, and it may be my favorite holiday dress ever.  Here are some other great green garments:

m // n // o // p // q // r // s // t // u // v // w // x

Finally, I absolutely adore winter white.  I think it's incredibly classy, and it can be worn for both Christmas and New Year's Eve.  I am a staunch believer that white can be worn any time of year (that no-white-after-Labor-Day thing is just nonsense), and it'll make you look positively angelic!  Here are some of my favorite snow-colored pieces:

1 // 2 // 3 // 4 // 5 // 6 // 7 // 8 

9 // 10 // 11 // 12 // 13

I also desperately want to make these gingerbread house spiked holiday milkshakes this week!

And aren't these Olympia Le-Tan clutches incredible?!

Well... I'm off to gorge myself on peppermint bark (if you're in the market for some, Williams-Sonoma's is the absolute best -- and it's 20% off right now!).  :)

Have a great Friday!

xox Sammi

PS:  Don't forget, today's your last chance to enter my giveaway!  It'll close at midnight tonight!

Haul out the holly

Outfit Details:

Dress: ModCloth (old, similar here)

Dream of the Crop Cardigan: ModCloth (old)

Coat: ModCloth (old, similar here)

Snowflake necklace: Forever Bella Jewelry

Bracelet: American Eagle (old)

Bow headband: Kohl's (old)

Boots: Ugg brand (old)

Full disclosure: this is kind of a photo-heavy post!  Sorry!  I just love rediscovering items in my closet.  This dress was one of those forgotten ones in the way back.  I hadn't worn it since last Christmas, but since last night was the holiday party for the orchestra I work for, I was so glad I finally had another occasion for which I could dust it off.  My mom and I both work for the orchestra (she does public relations work for them, and I work in the box office), so I ended up going with my parents for a little while.  There weren't a ton of people I knew there (the box office is kind of its own little world, separate from the administrative offices), but I had fun -- despite the fact I generally hate mingling and am honestly still a kind of shy person at heart.  

I'm so enchanted with this little snowflake necklace from Forever Bella Jewelry!  Although I tend to love loud prints and over-the-top kitschiness, I actually gravitate towards daintier jewelry.  I was searching for something simple and seasonal, and this delicate little snowflake necklace caught my eye.  It's even daintier in person than I thought it'd be, which was a welcome surprise.  There are tons of adorable little necklaces in this shop, and the shipping was incredibly fast!  

I feel very "ugh" towards these Uggs.  They're old (and kind of a ubiquitous sight, here in this frozen tundra of a place), and I would never buy them now, but they are warm and durable.  I've ruined enough pairs of shoes by now that I need to wear unfashionable boots when the snow piles up like this.  Luckily, these don't look totally offensive with this outfit, but here are the shoes I *actually* wore to the party -- a big improvement, I think.  They're from ModCloth (no longer available, sadly).

Side note: found a place in my room where the lighting isn't completely horrible!

I can hardly believe that Christmas is a week away!  I have to finish wrapping a few gifts (and I always feel that I haven't gotten enough for people), and we have to do some baking, and cleaning, of course.  But our holiday is always pretty low key -- which I've come to enjoy.  I always get dressed up for Christmas Eve, but we never even leave the house!  I'll use any excuse to get dolled up.  :)

Have a great Wednesday!  

xox Sammi

PS: Don't forget to enter my giveaway from Silent Daisy!  The winner will receive a pre-made Blogger template of her choosing, a portrait doodle and 3 months of large ad space on daintyfawn.com!  Get all the details and enter here!  :)