Spring Time Outfits

So obviously with everything going on, I haven't put much thought into what I'm wearing and have gotten back to the point of grabbing many of my stand-bys. Accessorizing is the last thing on my mind these days...and honestly I've taken more personal days in the last two weeks than I have this entire year. But I did discover a few old outfit pictures from March when we first started having some nice sunny weather on occasion.....and then I bought two new dresses in the last few days which make me happy and "springy." You can tell these top three pictures are from before the separation because a) I still have my ring on b) you can see some of his stuff in the bedroom and truthfully c) I've probably put on 5-10lbs in the last 1-2 months since I'm not working out as much.

MARCH SUNNY OUTFITS:

The usual standby--pencil skirt, plain tank, cardigan, and ballet flats. Pretty sure these are all from Target.

Told ya---uniform, much?  :) 

Pencil skirt, tank, button-up, belted, & w/ leopard print ballet flats.

Pencil skirt, tank, cardigan, ballet flats---theme continues. 

On off days, I love this one with my jean skirt. 

APRIL SUNSHINE:

Pencil skirt, button-up, sandals, & chunky white accessories.

RECENT PURCHASES:

White cami, CK dress (Costco), sandals, & the same ruffled teal cardigan from picture #1. Wore this last evening to teach in.

Dress (recent sale Target), old turquoise cardigan, orange ballet flats--also all Target. 

And both dogs felt the need to help today....and that in Tall D's absence they get to be on the bed more ;) 

Obviously I wasn't joking that when the weather gets nice, dresses and skirts are my FA-VOR-ITE! :)

What are you loving to wear these days?!

Last March Work Week Wear

Folks, next week is spring break and I'm going to do my utmost best to stay away from work....and that includes scheduling, emails, and the like. An entire week just to.....read, drink, enjoy, hike, breath, and just plain be.

So what did I wear this last week? Well here ya go:

MONDAY: Presentation & Office

A) Going in for a presentation on my normal day off, led to 3 hours in the office. B) This dress really is not my favorite, as it shows every bulge & bump except for when I'm in better shape, ie it's always worn with tights to hold it all in!

(dress: clearance Ross (3yo); boots: Penneys (this winter); belt (from other dress); cami & tights: Target staples)

TUESDAY: Office & Meeting

This outfit apparently made me appear as if I had a sign on me asking to be hit on. This color combo was a new twist but I enjoyed it. I always feel bad that this dress came out of Walmart from our Louisiana days...but I always get tons of questions/compliments on it.

Work today included being in the office most the day and running into some frustrating details with employees. Then I traveled to a different campus for a meeting. No class since it was finals week, but I spent the evening taking care of some teaching stuff.

(dress: Walmart (2yo); gray suede boots: outlets (this winter); accessories: Freddies (new necklace, 5yo tights); gray cardi: Target (recent))

WEDNESDAY: Office, Event Mtg downtown, & Teaching

You also should be realizing by now that when I get something new, I wear it ALL the time. Almost as if I think I need to diminish it's CPU as soon as I get it. :) (Which is probably also why hub hates that I wear cardigans so much!)

Today was a mixed bag at work. Office in the morning, followed by a meeting downtown with our event planning team to allocate payment coverage, and then back to the house to work on some stuff before heading off to proctor the first final exam. Hub and I grabbed lunch together downtown which was out of our norm but a very nice surprise. And then my students surprised me with flowers and a card signed by all of them---with how emotional I've been, it almost brought me to tears---it's truly the little things that matter. 

(brown tweed pants: Macys (fall); same recent gray cardi & white cami: Target; blue lightweight knit: Banana Republic outlet (1yo); same gray suede boots: outlets (winter))

THURSDAY: (SNOW): Office, Mtg, & Teaching

And so not office appropriate BUT there was another freak snow fall so thick socks and boots it was....which means jeans or a skirt/dress.....and this knit was warm with tights. Plus it gave me another wear of this new dress that I bought recently back home.

Remember the children's book....No Good Very Bad Day? Yep that about sums it up here. The morning started out with a big blow up in the office and I had to harp on another guy in the center. It was a day where I hated being a female in a male dominated culture. 90% of the time they appreciate it, 10% of the time it's a struggle. Yesterday was a struggle. I also realized I hadn't finished grading my students papers to hand back during their final exam, so I felt like a horrible teacher. I then spent four hours last night grading, calculating grades, and emailing every student their scores. Somewhere yesterday I ran out of much time to eat, so by the time 11pm rolled around last evening while I was waiting for hub to get home, I realized there was a major reason my stomach was grumbling. No Good Very Bad Day. I really just needed a big hug.

(dress: Ross (recent); boots: Target (2yo); long sweater: Old Navy (2yo); tights/socks: Freddies; black cami & brown belt: Target)

This morning hub and I scarfed down much food to compensate for missing nutrients yesterday. (Yea for backyard eggs & blueberry waffles!) And then I finished grading my class and inputted the info into the online system. My new online class is set. I sent two emails to both my bosses. Now all I have left for the new term is just to create new syllabi and online folders for students to access resources. Sigh...I am oh so ready on oh so many levels for happy hour this afternoon and va-ca-tion this next week......Now if I can just get my personal life to smooth into place..... :)

Hope y'all had a good week!

Week Wear M3

Bahaha---all skirts/dresses again :) And here's an attempt at using my good camera rather than the Iphone.

TUESDAY: Long office day & teaching

(black tights & poppy dress: Freddies; black cardi, flats, & longsleeved shirt: Target; belt: Ross)

WEDNESDAY: Office & Teaching (so cold this day!)

(black long sleeve shirt: Target; argyle sweater & black leather boots: Penney's; black tights: Freddies; tweed skirt: thrifted)

THURSDAY: Teaching

(cami, flats, skirt: Target; belt: gifted; flowered button-up: Penney's)

FRIDAY: staff & event planning meeting

(blue flats & teal cardi: Target; striped tank: H&M; gray cordoruy skirt: Walmart; gray coat: Costco; jewelry: Freddies)

I'm beginning to realize most my clothes come from Target and Penney's with a few items that were thrifted, from Walmart when we lived in the rural south, or from Ross or Freddies. Of course there's the occasional JCrew or BananaRepublicOutlet thrown in there. The other thing I'm realizing is that most of what I own is probably 2-7 years old, except for a few newer cardigans I've picked up this year. I'm enjoying this lil personal challenge of mixing it up however and attempting to use different items from my closet--love it!

No Pants Week in March?

Just kidding--I'm not really planning on going the rest of March only in skirts and dresses, but I WAS incredibly thankful that we finally had some sunny days again this week to let me air out my gams. In all honesty, I absolutely feel more at home in skirts and dresses than in pants---I think it's mainly because nothing's squeezing the top of my waist or letting anything extra hang out on the sides. With a dress or a skirt, I just zip it all up or in---wham bam! 

So without further ado....here is my no-pants week (minus Friday, which isn't pictured, when I dressed in my other standby of beat-up jeans, a cami, a cardi, and beat up flats for a casual event planning meeting downtown)

MONDAY evening: Anniversary Dinner

So hub and I celebrated Tuesday's anniversary with dinner out on Monday. It was sort of a last minute decision but I decided to try to put some effort into looking nice for him....and I wanted to finally wear my tiger peep-toes I have yet to wear. I've also been wanting to come up with other ways to wear this dress and this was a new attempt for me. But let me tell ya, that might be the last time I dress up for hub, since he responded with a "why did you do that?!" Husbands......sigh. (He did later tell me that I looked really nice....but.....).

(dress & cardi: Target; black belt: gifted; tiger peep-toes: Naturalizer)

TUESDAY: Office & Teaching

(black skirt: Penneys; red flats & cardi: Target; white button-up: ?; chunky necklace: Freddies)

WEDNESDAY: Office & Teaching

Old skirt alert, but I'm trying to remix everything in my closet. Although this outfit felt more fall to me...and half of it is from Penney's when I worked there briefly seven years ago. (Wow, SEVEN years?! How has it been that long already?) Should the skirt stay or go?

(brown suede boots, brown tank, & skirt: Penneys; merlot cardigan: Sears; belt: Target; wood necklace: Freddies)

THURSDAY: Mainly teaching 

I LOVED this outfit to pieces. And from the numbers of wears that blue ruffled tunic is seeing, I'm impressed with how well it goes with so much...and to think I almost gave it away last summer.

(khaki skirt, blue ruffle tunic (resized), teal ruffled cardi, blue flats: all Target; blue necklace: Freddies)

SATURDAY evening: beauty pageant attendance

And I'm not going to lie....the leopard dress is a new purchase. I'm visiting family and I needed something cute to wear to watch my "sister" compete in the county beauty pageant tonight...so I ran around town trying to hunt something out and this is what I ended up with. I'm not sure what I think........thoughts??????? Is the leopard too much? 

(leopard dress w/ belt: sale Penneys ($19); black tights, cami, flats: Target)

Favorite outfit this week---hands down was Thursday, although Tuesday was a close runner up!

And PS, for those of you who do read the clothes posts....yes, I am realizing more and more that my lighting  and Iphone photo quality is horrible---apologies! :)

Outfits & The Week in Review

MONDAY: Meeting & Errands

Usually I don't formally work on Mondays (I do a lot of emails, planning, and grading at home), but last Monday one of my vets had a presentation to give to the campus president so I wanted to make sure he was there and it went well (he forgot the last time he was scheduled.....). Luckily it also gave me another chance to address some of the campus big wigs on veterans issues and events, so it turned out to be a win-win. However, I also stepped it up a professional notch.....and pulled some of my oldest work wear out of the closet.

(wrap dress & cami: Target; tights & jewelry: Freddies; boots: Penney's; blazer: Macy's)

TARGET PURCHASES

And then I "had" to stop at Target----which led to a big fat shopping fail on my part. :) I stopped to get gift cards for my sister's family (3 of them have March birthdays) and to pick up a baby gift for the front desk worker at the distance campus I also teach at....but I couldn't help but wander over to the clothes section.....

....and cardis & camis were on sale......and then the tweed dress you see above was on clearance....and they all made their way into my basket and out of the door. (Hub was oh.so.glad to see yet another cardigan, but I can't tell you the number of times I've wished I had a gray one......)

That cardi, cami, jean outfit got me through the afternoon and evening though---which included cleaning the house, finishing grading, picking up the yard, having a heart-to-heart with one housemate, attempting to read more, making an awesome take on a curry dish over couscous, and the like.

TUESDAY: Meetings & Teaching

The day started off with my dropping off one housemate at work before I headed to another campus for meetings. I meant to change before I taught, but I ran out of time as my morning meetings turned into a working lunch that continued into the early afternoon.....and then I was left with just enough time to drive to my campus, finishing prepping/make copies, and teach. I sort of feel like this was a bit too casual for the usual vibe I try to give off while teaching however.

(cardigan, cami, dark jean pencil skirt, black ruffled blouse: Target; boots: Penneys)

The rest of the evening was spent doing a P90X work-out, getting ready for the next day, and then keeping one of the housemates company while he made the most amazing gumbo from scratch (including a veggie portion for me!!). It seriously was delish and just may have been one of my first exposures to okra.

WEDNESDAY: Office & Teaching

You can't really see the plaid in the red button-up shirt, nor that it was tucked in. Nor do you see the brown belt that started up around my waist, then made it's way around my hips, then under the sweater as the day progressed (and somewhere in there I also had one of my vets put two more holes in it in order to distract him from whatever was bothering him). Today was my extra long day in the office this last week, followed by my usual late night of teaching, followed by 30 minutes with a student after class, followed by an hour of reading for the next day's meeting in another town, followed by showering/eating/cleaningthekitchen/throwing random clothes in an overnight bag and crashing into bed somewhere between 11pm and 1230am.

(red plaid button-up, brown suede boots, brown tweed pencil skirt: Penney's; cream cardi: Target)

THURSDAY: Out of town meeting

Cue random snow arrival over night. Okay, so the snow had been discussed but I was oh.so.hopeful it wouldn't arrive.....and I was oh.so.thankful for my AWD vehicle as I hauled down the interstate running late for my meeting/conference on veterans issues that was in the town an hour south of us. Waking up at 5:45am on a potential snow day (for a meeting that ended up only leaving me annoyed.....) wasn't exactly my ideal way to start a day, and I honestly struggled with selecting something appropriate to wear. The outfit I came up with above was attempt #3 or so and at that point I was already 20 minutes behind schedule, so while it's boring, it was also my last ditch effort. Beg your pardon of the photo, I had to snag it from Granny's bathroom mirror....... :)

(gray pinstripe pants & black cami: Target; white cardi: Walmart; black suede boots: Penneys; black belt: gifted)

And yep, you read that right. I'd already arranged for someone to cover my Thursday evening class (moved the exam to that date), so I was able to spend a few days with Granny. (First I stopped off at a friends place who I have hardly had the opportunity to see since we've moved back---SO great getting to catch up with her and see her beautiful pregnant belly!) But then I headed over to Granny's and off to dinner for burgers and beers we went. I ended up staying until this morning (Saturday) and it was amazing to go to bed super early both nights (9:30pm!!), eat on a regular schedule, and really just spend some time enjoying and butting heads with Granny. :)

FRIDAY: Errands

And you've seen this outfit before and will see it again.....it's one of my favorites honestly and I've been itching to wear it with my black pencil skirt and boots to work---but it's a standby. Granny and I woke up late, breakfasted, and then headed off to run her errands. She always loves to get cards at Hallmark, so we headed downtown to pick up three months of birthday cards for the family (and to grab me a stronger coffee!). After lunch and a rest, we picked up her groceries and a few other things she needed......and then we decided to see if my sister's crew could celebrate their birthdays with pizzas in their town. Soon enough Granny and I loaded up again and headed over there for pizzas and beer for dinner.....topped off with homemade cake made by my sister. We also got to see my great-niece (Granny's great-great grand-daughter), and it was so cute watching her play with the tea set Granny got her.

(jeggings: Walmart; cami & sweater: Target; scarf: Freddies; black suede boots: Penneys)

SATURDAY: Return Home

You've also seen this outfit before but it's another great weekend standby. This morning I changed the sheets on my bed at Granny's, breakfasted with her and got her set-up with her schedule for the day (2pm Beanbag baseball practice & 7pm Blazers on TV), and then I met my brother for coffee before leaving town. I made it back in record time and then was able to run up to campus to complete a few of the things that I'd scheduled to do this afternoon. Coming home, I did some laundry, unpacked, and picked up after the dogs & chickens out back. Blog completed, hub's dinner eaten (cod fish tacos w/ mango slaw), now it's time to attempt some quality time with hub before bed.

(black leggings & flats (not pictured): Target; purple sweater dress: Dress Barn)

Clothing wise I feel the week was a bit boring, but I'm okay with it. Sometimes we compromise in some areas in order to live our lives more fully in others. The two days of work in Portland were way busier than most, I'm "sharing" more in more ways than I used to, and the end of this week saw me getting to spend time with my gal (who I hadn't seen since last summer), my sister's family (also since last summer), my brother (last seen on New Years), and this was the first time I've spent the night at Granny's in almost three years. I'd say that the lamer outfit choices were well worth the extra time spent with loved ones and the busyness of the work days! :)

Hope you all had a good week too!

FW3: Three Days of Work Wear

TUESDAY: Office & Teaching

Something a bit different than I usually do but the layers were great for my too-warm evening classroom. Cardi came off, blouse was untucked and the class started. I also had white oval earrings on to provide a more youthful, contrary element to the uber-professionalism. I wasn't sure about the yellow-on-yellow, but decided I liked it better than the matronly look the white cardi gave it. This outfit also led to discussion with the guys in the office about the awesomeness of pattern mixing (polka dot top, pinstripe pants)---of which they laughed and indulged me---bahaha! The authoritativeness of the tailored pants and heels came in needed since I "put the smack down" in the office about some inappropriate commentary that had been happening---to say they knew it was coming but still didn't expect my furor is probably an understatement, but I had several other vets quietly tell me they appreciated it. 

(yellow cardi & gray pinstripe pants: Target; yellow polka dot blouse: Penneys; gray suede mary janes: Naturalizer)

WEDNESDAY: Office & Teaching

Honestly this is a wrap-dress that I'm never overly satisfied with, but it's long-sleeved and easy so I covered it with the white cardi & a belt, accessorized, and ran out the door. This look (dress, cami, cardi, belt) seems like it's fast becoming a new trademark outfit for me.... 

(gray/blue/black wrap-dress: Ross clearance; black cami: Target; white cardi: Walmart; belt: gifted; black heeled boots: Penneys; necklace: Freddies)

THURSDAY: Meetings & Teaching

This is called "I wanted 20 extra minutes of sleep," so I grabbed what I know to be my truly easiest and comfortable combo: cami under sweater, skirt, and flats. Since it's still chilly I pulled the tights on, and then accessorized with a black bracelet & earrings. Probably not my most professional look to lead the taskforce meeting this particular morning, BUT it worked. The biggest irony of this outfit is that one of my "hardest" vets told me this particular day that he considers me as "one of the guys," so I laughed and retorted "a guy in a skirt" to which he agreed. ;) (At least I know I've completely gained approval.....I suppose.)

(sweater, cami, skirt, flats: Target; jewelry & tights: Freddies)

It's been interesting starting to "follow" more fashion bloggers, although there are truly only a few that I regularly follow. The ones I enjoy the most are those that use budget conscious or thrifted items and repurpose combos of what they already own. What I realize about some is that even though their outfits are stylish and unique, they're almost always the same outfit----but I think most of us follow this. We find what works for us and we just make alterations on it. (Are you noticing this here?! :)) However there are also some fashion bloggers out there that I find and seriously think "what were they thinking?!".....only furthering me to believe that plain Jane sometimes truly is better. But anyway....one of my newest faves is Literate & Stylish if you're interested in checking her out. Sort of a Portland vibe with total professionalism on a social worker's budget---and always with thrifted or created pieces---love it!

Week Wear 3

So I might need a new photo location but spots with mirrors are even more limited in the house now! However, I'm also relegated to sitting on the bed and even worse lighting---my apologies. Although I'm pretty sure I'm only documenting clothing choices for myself---so then the photo quality doesn't really matter :)

TUESDAY: Work & Teaching

Not gonna lie---this is probably one of my new favorite combos I've put together since challenging myself. I know it's pretty plain but it totally fits my personality. 

(cami & burgandy ruffle button-up: Target; black pencil skirt & leather boots: Penney's; belt & bracelet: gifted; necklace: Freddies)

WEDNESDAY: Work & Teaching

This outfit I've had in mind since I saw the examples of pattern mixing at Freckles in April. I've still got another combo I want to try that mimics this outfit here, but this leaf skirt and striped tank combo was my next foray into trying. This definitely was a day when I had to ask hub what he thought---luckily he reminded me that pattern mixing is all the rage (he's so with it! ;)).

(white cardi: Wal-mart; brown belt & bracelet: Target; leaf skirt: Ross; brown suede boots: Penny's; wood necklace: Freddies; orange striped tank: H&M) 

THURSDAY: Meetings & Teaching

And honestly this counts for pattern mixing too because what you can't see is that those are gray pants with a white pinstripe. I'm thinking that it's time to get rid of the button-up however---it looks too young and casual, plus it's one that won't button up around my boobs--sigh. Not my favorite outfit this day---and it could have easily been altered. 90% of this day I also wore this with that cream boyfriend cardi I honestly wear all the time....I'm noticing that it shows up all the time. :) (You can understand why hub hates me constantly wearing cardigans!)

(brown tank & suede boots: Penney's; dress pants: Target; necklace: Freddies; pattern button-up: Walmart)

FRIDAY: COFFEE 

Mixed thoughts again: I thought maybe my legs were back to a point to wear my skinny jeans/jeggings again, but looking at this picture I'm not so sure! I think I'm just in an "I'm dissatisfied with how things are fitting/looking" stage lately. Today I felt like just being casual and a bit more plain, and honestly the pea coat and shoes are the statements of this outfit.

(red flats & black cowl neck shirt: Target; skinny jeans: Walmart (dang Louisiana!); black bracelet: Freddies; red hooded peacoat (Calvin Klein): Costco)

What are you enjoying lately?

February Week Wear 2

SATURDAY: Happy Hour

Just a snap shot into a lazy day where I felt like a sweatshirt fit my mood. A day of sunshine culminating with an afternoon happy hour at a pub with my cousin. I seriously love this patchwork skirt in summer...

(black flats & black cami-Target; patchwork skirt-thrifted, gray sweatshirt-H&M basics)

MONDAY: Errands

An afternoon of needing to throw something on to run errands. I'm contemplating again getting rid of the brown suede coat----thoughts?!

(jeans-clearance Gap; brown flats-Stage; cream cardi, pink flowered shirt, brown suede coat-Target)

And this is why I don't leave the grocery area of Fred Meyer nor like to shop without hub. Talk about goal-of-not-buying-anything-new-or-anything-beyond-necessities FAIL! Fashion jewelry and winter accessories were all massively on clearance...I'd been contemplating wanting more variety of fashion jewelry.....and I came out with 4 new necklaces and a new bracelet.

TUESDAY: Work & Teaching

This was a little beyond my norm but I wanted a pop of color on my feet this day---however the gray tights made the orange shoes pop even more. They were much talked about both by the vets and the students---all reported liking them but all were surprised too. Guess it's good to keep it interesting! :) This entire outfit (minus the new blue necklace) was all from Target also.....have I mentioned I shopped a lot at Target for clothes?! (Can't beat J. Crew like items at Target prices.....)

WEDNESDAY: Meetings & Teaching

Completely new combo and I actually really liked it. It's taken me a really long time to be okay with tucking my button-downs into skirts.....

(brown tweed skirt & brown suede boots-Penney's; wood necklace-Freddies; white cami & gray/white pinstripe button-up-Target)

THURSDAY: Work & Teaching

I liked this outfit too.....and this particular evening I lectured on communication styles, of which the message one's clothing transmits is part of my conversation on non-verbal convo styles. (I mentioned that I always try to dress professionally, especially since I recognize I'm younger than what many would expect for a college instructor....) After class a student approached me to say that she always enjoys my fashion and that she thinks I dress perfect for my job----both professional and yet youthful. It was actually a great compliment to hear and kind of fun!

(black long-sleeve shirt, flats, & patterned dress: Target; white cardi-Walmart; black belt-gifted; black tights-Fred Meyer)

FRIDAY: Environmental Health Conference

I'm not going to lie, while this outfit is somewhat bland (lots of brown), I loved being able to dress casually earthy but with a professional twist to attend the environmental health conference this day! (More on the conference later.....)

(brown tweed skirt-Penneys; brown flats-Stage; brown cardi, bracelets, & pink shirt w/ embellishments-Target)

February Wear 1

This challenge for myself has me digging in my closet--I like it but it's also leaving me realizing just how much stuff I actually have in there! The good news is two fold. One, I realize I have no more reasons to claim I have "nothing to wear" and it's making me dig out items that I otherwise don't frequently wear. And I still have several "usuals" that I haven't touched yet. I definitely do not need to go shopping for the next year??!

SATURDAY: Book Club

Pinterest inspired. This dress has been in the "maybe-give-away-pile" for a few months, but I liked the way it came together this day.

(Sundress, utility boots, boyfriend cardi, earrings, bracelet, belt--Target; Blue tank--old Penney's)

SUNDAY: Evening errands

Honestly this is the day I did almost nothing. I threw this on after showering in order to buy groceries. Comfy like sweaters=I loved it.

(Purple sweaterdress--Dressbarn; leggings, utility boots, belt, earrings--Target)

MONDAY: Afternoon Meeting

Not my favorite outfit and I should have photographed it without the blazer also. I had a meeting on campus in the afternoon with a mini-presentation. This was one of the few days I followed a prompt from Freckles in April (although out of order). The prompt is: Something that Scares You. A) I don't like wearing light pants when it's that time of the month. B) This was a lot of purple together and included a corduroy blazer to boot (Rags to Stitches should be happy again!). C) I never would have felt okay putting gray and cream together before this challenge.

(gray dresspants, boyfriend cardi, lavendar cami, purple wrap tunic---Target; purple corduroy blazer--thrifted; gray suede heels--Naturalizer)

TUESDAY: Work & Teaching

Much more casual for me---but it felt great. A day in the office, followed by teaching my evening course, followed by participating in the Governor's Taskforce on Education forum (And the governor even showed up to chat!).

(dress pants--gifted Macys; cami, flowered wrap-top, blue cardi--Target; brown heels--Penney's)

WEDNESDAY: Work & Teaching

I call this outfit "pumpkin spice mocha/latte." Another day in the office, followed by a break at home, followed by a night of teaching. And this is my Bright Colors day.

(dress, boyfriend cardi, belt---Target; brown tights--Freddies; brown flats---Stage)

THURSDAY: Networking & Teaching

Here's a secret: pants and heels make me feel more authoritative. Today I had to present at a networking lunch for veteran services---thus authoritative was a good thing. And I suppose I could argue this maybe could be similar to the Open to Interpretation on FinA.

(gray pinstripe pants, cami, ruffle cardi---Target; gray suede heels---Naturalizer; white button-up---???, and you can't see my main accent---green dangling earrings from Target)

A Clothes Challenge Week

So I have to share that this week I've been somewhat trying to follow the Winter Fashion Challenge going on over at Freckles in April. Although I didn't really care to somewhat join in until Tuesday---ie I didn't really think I was going to do it and forgot all about it til Tuesday. April posts a different inspiration for each day of the challenge and then individuals are to put together items to wear based on what they already own. 

MONDAY

 

Again I didn't see the prompt for this day until somewhere around 10pm (it was Layers, which technically I followed cause I worked from home in layers of sweats until 3pm....although can I call sweats fashionable?!....cough cough ;)). This outfit above was worn to the diesel class I attended to advertise the center where I work---so about 1 hour total including commute time. Since I was going to the diesel department, I wanted something professional but not over-the-top nice, ie approachable.

Sweater: sale Target (December), Trousers: gifted Macys, brown suede boots: ol' Penneys

TUESDAY: monochrome

I got lots of compliments on this outfit. This is also a take from Sorta Crunchy with the top over a dress look.

burgundy dress: Walmart :(, sweater & belt: Target, brown flats: Stage, tights: Fred Meyer, Jewelry: thrifted from mom ;)

WEDNESDAY: embrace a trend

....which stripes were listed...and I feel like the whole belted look is a current trend too. I debated wearing the awesome modern stripe wrap dress I have (& posted here) but wanted to do something different, and honestly I have only worn this dress a handful of times and part of this goal for me is to use more of what already is in my closet. Honestly I loved this look, even if it's not my most professional outfit.

 cami, striped dress, cardigan, & black flats: Target, tights: Fred Meyer, belt: gifted

THURSDAY

....was "channel someone" (I would have worn my green military inspired dress with brown belt, tights, & shoes....channeled an Air Force flight suit) BUT I woke up with a scratchy throat and extra tired (and needing to do 20 mins of work before heading to the office), which means I just wanted to wear something comfortable & easy (ie really I wanted to wear a sweatshirt!). The top half of this outfit is something I wore in Louisiana all the time but haven't worn lately, so guess this could be 2010 ThrowBack Thursday for me.

sweater: Forever 21, purple tank: Target, black suede boots: Penney's, pants: thrifted Express

FRIDAY: pattern mixing

I honestly didn't think I could do it and then I loved it (which actually is one of the pieces of feedback that Freckles in April says about this one!). I know my outfit is incredibly subtle but I absolutely love some of the examples she gave on her page and I just might give this prompt another major go (stripes on top, flowered skirt below=LOVE!). And for good measure I went off the recent post by Rags to Stitches and wore a blazer to boot!

patterned cardi, flats, jean pencil skirt: Target, red & white striped button-up: Penny's, khaki blazer: inherited from a friend and its Gap

Two extra things to mention about this week:

1) This was the first week after starting P90X that I'm thinner both in the legs and waist...and yes I know my calves are becoming muscular chicken leg equivalents....and just cause I'm thinner in the waist doesn't mean I don't still have 1/2 to 1 inch of extra padding on top of these developing ab muscles! 

2) Thursday of this week is the first time hub noticed I'm photographing my outfits---bahaha I love that man....but he actually thought it was pretty neat. We've started having Thursday evening catch-up chats once I'm home from work, as it's really the first opportunity since Monday that we get much decompression time together--it's nice!