Wilder West

Happy 2018, everyone! I know it's been a couple of weeks since I last posted. The wintery weather has temporarily turned me into a bit of a blanket burrito who wants to wear pajamas constantly and never go outdoors... but I just had to get a little dolled up to show off a few pieces from the latest collection from Erstwilder! This range, "Wilder West," is filled with cacti, cowgirls, and critters. As an East Coast girl, the concept of this range wasn't necessarily something I was drawn to at first. But when I saw these adorable pieces in person, I did a total 180°.

I'm styling three different brooches here. "Aces High," the pair of cards with an arrow going through them, is such a great piece that I think I'll be wearing for Valentine's Day this year. And as the girlfriend of a guitarist (who has been known to play a mean banjo), "Stay Plucky" was a must-have. But I think my favorite of the bunch is "Billy the Kid," since I have a bit of an obsession with goats and I love a good pun! They're all perfectly sized and beautifully made, as always. I can't wait to see how others style products from this range!

Details

Brooches: c/o Erstwilder

Red faux leather jacket: TJ Maxx (similar)

Grace Dress in Black: Hearts and Found

Dolly Dress in Lavender Gingham: Hearts and Found

Erstwilder also made a really cool, one-of-a-kind resin wall hanging that looks like a decorative buffalo skull – there's a brooch to match it called "Sacred Ground" – that they're giving away to one lucky winner! For every piece you purchase from this collection on their site, you'll receive one entry to win it (you can receive an additional two entries if you buy the matching brooch!). And since Erstwilder is giving away double loyalty points for 24 hours, now's the perfect time to add those brooches to your shopping cart and check out. Keep in mind that you'll have to act fast to take advantage of both these offers; the double points offer ends at 7 AM EST tomorrow (which is 11:59 PM AEDT on January 17), and entries for the wall hanging end at 7 AM EST on Thursday (11:59 AEDT on January 18). Please note that time zone conversions are NOT my strong suit, so I'm going off a tool I found online! If you want to avoid missing out, I'd suggest ordering right away! :)

If previous Erstwilder launches are any indication, the "Wilder West" collection is bound to be a big hit. I found one cat in the OK Corral who thinks so, at least...

Have a great day!

2017 Outfit Round-Up!

I can scarcely believe 2017 is coming to a close. I know this year was difficult for many of us, and I wish I could say with certainty that this next year will be better. The truth is that I don't know that it will be. But I'm going to do everything I can to try to make the best of things and bring joy to those I love in the new year.

It was a challenge to keep up with my blogging over the last 12 months, but it's also been a wonderful respite and creative outlet (as always). To that end, I'm looking back on 2017 and sharing some of my favorite highlights in outfit form.

January   ||   February   ||   March

April   ||   May   ||   June

July   ||   August   ||   September

October   ||   November   ||   December

Did you have a favorite post from this past year? A definite highlight was my trip to NOLA with Ashley, but I also loved going on weekend outings with my mom, spending time with my work besties, and getting to experience lake house life with my boyfriend's family. Despite how difficult this year was, there were some great moments too. I'm still making my resolutions, but I'd love to hear about yours. And if you're interested in seeing my outfit roundups from previous years, click here!

Have a safe and healthy New Year's Eve! Hope to see you here in 2018!

Merry and Bright

Merry Christmas Eve, friends! I've always loved the holidays, but I've been really looking forward to Christmas this year. I've been listening to Christmas music for the past month and I'm infatuated with all my little decorations. (By the way, I got my pink Christmas tree here – it doesn't look like it's in stock right now, but they have some other fun colors and styles!) I'm probably going to leave them up for as long as humanly possible to keep the cheer going for a while.

This vintage ornament print dress is one of my favorite holiday purchases this year. It seriously goes perfectly with my tree and I'll definitely be wearing it tonight for our family festivities. I've mentioned this before, but Christmas Eve is really a bigger deal for us than Christmas Day. We eat a lot of delicious appetizers (like meatballs, cheese fondue, shrimp cocktail, and – new this year! – latkes) and open the majority of our presents to each other. It's a special tradition that I cherish even more as I get older. We actually don't even know what we're doing Christmas Day. We've often seen a movie and gone out for Chinese food, but I think we may end up going even more low-key... which is totally fine by me, to be honest. Whatever we do, I'll just be glad to be with the ones I love.

Outfit Details

Ornament Print Jenny Dress: Pinup Girl Clothing

Christmas Ornament Lapel Pin: c/o Kate Gabrielle

Gold Heels: ModCloth

Have a very happy and safe holiday! Wishing much love to you and yours.

Marshmallow World

I've been showcasing quite a few traditional-colored Christmas outfits here on the blog, but today's post is all about the pastels. It's very fitting, considering the color of my perfect little tree this year. I don't normally take photos indoors, but between the weather, limited time, and wanting to show off this pastel pink goodness, I decided to quickly snap some photos in my living room. You can't really see all of my holiday decorations here (and I have very few wrapped presents under the tree, as you can tell), but I still wanted to share a bit of my home with you – as well as some photos of this adorable little two-piece Christmas set.

Tree topper: West Elm  //  Pusheen ornament: similar   //  Bike ornament: Anthropologie 

I've admired Violets in May for quite some time now but never had a chance to place an order until recently. When I saw this minty green top and skirt (yes, they're separates!) with its little candy canes, bows, and pom-poms, I had to order it immediately. I'm kind of between sizes right now, so I actually ordered a size up; I'd rather have something too big than too small, since I figured I could always belt the skirt. As it turned out, the skirt fits perfectly, but the top is actually a bit too roomy (which never happens). Although it's not super noticeable, I think I'll probably get it tailored in the future just for comfort's sake. I love that you can wear the straps crossed in front if you want to, but I opted to wear it in the halter style for these photos.

Outfit Details

Peppermint Holiday Two-Piece Set: Violets In May

Shoes: Irregular Choice  ||  Hair Flower: Stardust Dames

Remember I said I had another colorway in this shoe style? I couldn't resist these icy heels!

We did our writing team white elephant gift exchange at work today, and tonight I'll be wrapping presents and baking cookies at my parents' house (and hopefully watching a holiday movie). I can hardly believe that Christmas Eve is this Sunday. That's when we actually do the bulk of our family celebrations. I know that's not typical for most families, but I actually love Christmas Eve way more than Christmas Day! I have one more holiday-themed outfit to post, which will go up either sometime this weekend or on Monday morning... so if you happen to be waiting with bated breath, stay tuned. ;)

Have a great rest of your week!

March Of The Toy Soldiers

Christmas Day is in just one week(!!!) and I'm going into holiday spirit overdrive! The run of the musical I was in closed yesterday, which means I'll be cramming a lot of preparations into this next week. I still need to wrap all of my presents, bake cookies, and watch a few choice holiday films (like White Christmas, A Muppet Christmas Carol, and Little Women – which may not technically be a Christmas movie but it's a tradition in my family). I just hope I can find time for it all!

Although I didn't get to see The Nutcracker this year, this outfit reminds me a lot of it. I never got to style this dress on the blog last year (it arrived so close to Christmas that I just didn't have a chance), so it's making an appearance this year. I love how snuggly and comfy it is... and how perfectly it goes with my new Irregular Choice heels! I know these shoes aren't exactly a practical purchase, but OMG, I had to have them. Best of all, Ashley and I get to twin in them! (See how she styled them here.) FYI, there's also a matching clutch that lights up!

Outfit Details

Holiday Harlequin Genevieve Dress: Pinup Girl Clothing

Hair flower: Stardust Dames  ||  Belt: similar

Shoes: Irregular Choice

Have a great start to your week!

Jingle Bells

Well, I went from Chanukah straight into glorious Christmas! I'm absolutely obsessed with this Retrolicious ornament print skirt (the best gift ever from Ashley!) and couldn't wait to put it on. I'm so happy that they started making longer length pieces and this skirt fits perfectly. I have so many tops I could pair it with, but I decided to go with a classic red and gold accents for a classic holiday look.

This weekend marks the closing of the show I'm in, which means I'll be delving into all things holiday very soon. I am a little sad to see the show end, actually. As difficult as it was to juggle everything, it was a great experience and it feels really good to sing and perform again after taking a year off. That said, I am glad to have some much-needed downtime back for blogging and decompressing. 

Outfit Details

Skirt: Retrolicious (gift from Ashley)

Red Boatneck Top: Target

Hair Flower: NicCoCoCreations

Shoes: B.A.I.T. Footwear (similar)

Have a great rest of your week!