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Everyday Style & Recipes. Est. 2010

Fashion

Winter Botanicals

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It has warmed up quite a lot here and it’s starting to feel a little like Spring! Which is crazy to say in February but I guess Colorado has a different idea of what Winter is.  It’s still pretty likely we will get a ton of snow in March, so you never know what the mountains have in store!  For those who read this blog you probably know that I love vintage botanical prints.  I was recently gifted this lovely botanical print tee made by an Etsy shop.  I love supporting small sellers on Etsy, plus they make some pretty awesome stuff!  This tee features a Xeranthemum Annuum, also known as the Annual Everlasting or Immortelle flower.  Pretty cool right?  I love the Spring vibes and the vintage feel of the print.

I wanted to feature a cozy layering outfit perfect for in-between seasons (or if your climate is just confused right now).  This cardigan from American Eagle is a great convertible piece because it’s half-cardigan, half top.  You can button this up and tie it at the waist, or you can wear it as a regular cardigan.  Gotta love those versatile pieces!  I’m pretty in love with the rosy berry color combined with the neutral greys and tans.  These grey corduroy pants from Adriano Goldschmied are great for Spring or Fall, and they go great with so many outfits.  Plus they’re perfect for work or for an everyday casual look too!

Outfit Set:

Outfit Details: Tee: Botany Press, Cardigan Top: American Eagle, Pants: Adriano Goldschmied, Chukka Desert Boots: Lucky Brand, Scarf: Amazon

January Blues

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January is one of my least favorite months–something about the holidays being over, a new year and lets be honest, January has the worst weather.  Even if you live in a place like California with perfect weather year round, rainy and relatively cold weather usually sets in.  Here in Colorado, January was welcomed by negative temperatures and freezing rain, but no snow!   If it’s gonna be freezing cold, I want there to at least be a pretty snowfall but nope, no snow this month so far.

That said, drinking hot tea and hibernating is the cure for January blues.  I have been keeping warm in cozy knit sweaters and binging on netflix!  This sweater from H&M and these ultra soft leggings from Felina have been the perfect pair on cold January days.  Another recent favorite has been these Anthropologie ankle boots found on Poshmark.  I love the details and the quality of the leather! And for a girl who isn’t super down with heels, these block heels add a little height without hurting your feet.  Plus they are perfect for a dressed down casual look or for a night out, so it’s a win-win!

Outfit Set:

Outfit Details: Sweater: H&M, Leggings: Felina, Boots: Anthropologie (found on Poshmark), Charm Necklace: Etsy

Winter Green

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Happy New Year everyone!  Winter has officially hit on the Front Range in Colorado, and I was looking to find a warm and cozy outfit for the colder days.   That’s why I love American Eagle sweaters so much, since they provide looks that provide comfy and stylish options that are great for everyday wear.  This sweater is so great as a warm pullover I have been wearing it non-stop!  It’s so comfy and warm–this Striped Crew Neck sweater is a perfect casual look that is great for winter weather layering.

In other news, I was recently gifted this minimalist leather lunch bag handmade by Homestead Leather on Etsy.  It was a perfect addition to my lunchtime routine!  I used to bring my lunch in plastic bags, but nooo more.  It’s a great environmentally friendly option for those who don’t want a big, bulky lunch bag. It also avoids bringing your lunch in wasteful plastic bags (yep, that was me) so in my opinion it’s a win-win!  Another brand I’ve been crazy about this past year has been The Frye Company and their fantastic boots.  I wore these leather “Celia” shearling-lined boots outside in sub-20 degree weather, and my feet were as warm as can be.  I recommend wearing these without socks, which sounds weird but they actually keep your feet roomier and warmer.  My feet get cold really easily, so I can’t recommend these enough.  Another recent gift was this extra cozy cable-knit scarf from Amazon.  It goes great with so many outfits that I have to hold off wearing it sometimes–it’s kind of ridic!

Outfit Details: Sweater: American Eagle, Leggings: Felina, Boots: Frye Company, Bag: Homestead Leather, Scarf: Amazon

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Electric Dreams

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To be honest, I’ve mostly bought coats for utilitarian purposes only.  Just give me something that will keep me warm even if I look like a puffy bowling ball (basically George Costanza’s Gortex coat).  But lately I’ve started looking for nicer, slightly less ridiculous looking outer gear.  I’ve had my eye on camel trench coats for a while but I couldn’t decide which one to buy.  My goal was to find an affordable coat that still had a fairly high wool percentage.  That wound up being a challenge since most of the affordable coats weren’t made of decent fabric, and then I had the opposite problem where the decently made coats were way too expensive.  So what to do? After searching around I stumbled across this coat from Zara which retails for under $200 and is made from 75% wool.  Perfect–exactly what I was looking for!  I wasn’t disappointed, this coat is well made and looks fantastic with denim.  It’s pretty much the perfect “going out” coat for winter that will actually keep you warm!

Onto the details:  I’ve always loved the minimalist trench and graphic tee combo, so this tee from Urban Outfitters was a perfect addition to this look.  I went with my favorite pair of classic vintage style levi’s in a lighter wash and a high-rise. You can’t go wrong with a good pair of Levi’s, and while I love all their styles, I’m personally a fan of the 721’s.

Outfit Set:  Outfit Details: Coat: Zara ‘Masculine’ trench, tee: Urban Outfitters, Jeans: Levi’s 721’s, Shoes: Marc Fisher Chelsea boots

Wolf Tee & Coated Denim

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When I was a kid in the 90’s, I was pretty much obsessed with wolves.  I had wolves on everything, including my clothes.  As soon as I saw this graphic tee from Urban Outfitters I was instantly nostalgic for 80’s/90’s printed tees.  I gotta say, not much has changed! Still love fun, vintage-style wolf tees–sorry, not sorry.

Recently I came across faux leather denim, which is not exactly something that has been in my wheelhouse in the past. Leatherette jeans? No thanks, I am not an extra in Coyote Ugly (remember that movie, ya’ll?)  These coated jeans from AG are way, way different than what you’re probably thinking.   These are not anywhere near leatherette material–they are still like regular denim fabric, but they have a coated feel that gives an appearance of leather.  The thing that sold me on them was their very natural finish–they aren’t plasticy or shiny, but they still have an appearance of matte leather.  Plus, they are flexible and don’t feel painted on–it’s a win-win!  While these run on the pricey side, they’re worth it.  A side note about AG Jeans–they are by far my favorite denim brand.  Their sateen jegging is pretty much the softest material ever.  Below I’ve taken a few pics of their recent offerings–I am absolutely in love with their colorways!  If you want to know which styles and color varieties are in these photos, leave a comment or send me a DM on Instagram, and I would be happy to help you find the color you want.

I’ve also had a bit of an obsession with Frye boots lately.  It’s probably because winter is officially something to contend with, after having lived in California for years.  You need quality boots in Colorado that are built to last!  These Fryes are such an amazing color, aren’t they? I was instantly in love with that dark cherry finish!  I’ve never seen leather boots in such a beautiful color.  And they are super comfortable too, so you can’t get any better than that!


Outfit Details: Tee: Urban Outfitters, Cardigan: American Eagle, Jeans: Adriano Goldschmied, Boots: Frye Company

Outfit Set:

Snow & Roses

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As the days get colder, my focus has turned to high quality boots and cozy knits.  This cardigan from Forever 21 has become one of my favorite over-sized pullovers in the closet.  The knit material is surprisingly good quality, and I love it in this “rose” color.  At first I thought it was more brown than rose when I first unwrapped, but in different lights the rosey tones come out.  I love in-between colors like that!

Something I’ve learned about Colorado winters: snow doesn’t stick around like Minnesota winters, and they come earlier too.  It’s already snowed twice here and it’s only mid-November! As I’m writing this, the snow from this shoot is all gone and the grass on neighborhood lawns is still mostly green.  It’s kind of weird, even after living in California for almost ten years, I still expect snow to hang around longer as a holdover from growing up in Minnesota, but I digress.

Another thing I have been loving are Frye boots–I mean who doesn’t love Frye?   I recently picked up these Frye Lindsay Ankle boots and I love how versatile and durable they are.  Comfortable, great quality and stylish–can’t ask for more than that!  They come “distressed” which everyone knows about with jeans, but I definitely haven’t heard of that with shoes.  Turns out I like the roughed up look, and it just gives the boots more character!

Outfit Details: Cardigan: Forever 21, Tee: Urban Outfitters, Skirt: Vintage/thrifted, Tights: Target,  Boots: Frye, Scarf: Forever 21 (old)

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For Warmer Fall Days: Floral Midi Skirt & Layers

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Last weekend was incredibly nice: the leaves on the aspens were transitioning from yellow to brown, it was in the upper 60’s, with a mild breeze–you couldn’t ask for a better Fall day!  That said, I wanted to show what you can do on days like these in terms of what you can get away with wearing.  You never know with Colorado where the weather changes at the drop of a hat, but some days are just consistently perfect!

This skirt from Zara is great for this kind of weather since it’s a little bit heavier and longer than a typical midi skirt.  Plus it has some great Fall vibes.  I love this vintage floral pattern and the color!  The pattern really pops against neutral tones, so I chose a cozy, dark (taupe-ish?) Cardigan from American Eagle to complete this look.  This cardigan is super comfy, and goes great with skirts.  Whenever shirts or cardigans err on the longer and bulkier side (like this one), I like to just front tie to make them less bulky and more versatile.  For added layers, I like to throw on a loop scarf like this comfy olive toned one as well.


Outfit Set:Outfit Details: Cardigan: American Eagle, Skirt: Zara, Shoes: Free People, Scarf: Amazon

Halloween How-To: The 1920’s Flapper/Gatsby Costume for under $100

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How to create a costume that looks way more expensive than it is?  Getting creative; that’s how!  I live in a city with a lot of great historical bars and restaurants that used to be 1920’s speakeasies and illicit bars and gambling places.  You can probably guess where the inspiration for this costume came from.  I’m actually looking forward to rolling into these converted speakeasies in full Flapper attire on Halloween! It just makes sense right?  I know Flapper and Gatsby outfits became super trendy when the newest remake of The Great Gatsby was debuted but this costume is seriously a classic and never gets old.  I wanted to try creating the perfect 1920’s Flapper look and getting all 1920’s glamorous without spending beaucoup bucks.  I also wanted the look to be somewhat traditional, but I’m not sure I quite succeeded there, but no matter.  This dress came from Amazon, and I couldn’t pass it up.  The dress was about $39, and it really has that glamorous Art Deco flair.  Love the fringe, and the green and gold accents! It’s surprisingly heavy for a dress; probably due to all that sequins.  I’m hoping to somehow get away with wearing it again!  I personally like dresses that don’t require a lot of adjusting and this dress just goes on and you’re done and comfortable the rest of the night.  No bra strap issues, no awkward fit problems, nada!  Fits like a comfortable glove, and runs true to size.  I believe it comes in several different colors too. Oh, and one of the most important details that adds an extra bit of glamour to the costume is the faux fur shawl!  I found this one on Amazon for about $30, and since it’s getting colder I know I’m going to be relieved to have this on Halloween night.

Accessories are everything for a Flapper costume, and I found mine at a local costume and thrift shop for about $6 total.  The feather headpiece, the gloves, the pearls and the cigarette holder really pull the costume together with those extra details!  The most difficult thing, really, was my hair which is way too long for the period.  And nope, I wasn’t willing to chop it all off for one costume.  So, what to do? I’m not very talented in the hair department so I went with a simple bun fixed up with pins, and it stayed together very well, and it looks passable for the period.  Ideally, you should have a bob cut but oh well.  There are plenty of tutorials online for a fancier 1920’s style up-do if you’re better at that than I am. The final touch were the shoes, and I didn’t want to go with the more modern idea of the Flapper Costume: the T-strap.  Apparently T-straps weren’t really the thing back then, so I went with a heeled leather oxford.  I also like that these shoes can be worn with a modern outfit, but has just enough retro vibes for a costume.  You can find tons of great retro shoes from thrift stores and I found these, practically new, Franco Sartos at the local thrift store.  I plan on wearing these shoes with other everyday outfits so it was a win-win!  Here’s the expense break down for this costume:

Expense Breakdown:

-Dress: $39.99

-Faux Fur Shawl $28.66

-Shoes: $19.99

-Headpiece: $4.49

-Accessories (gloves, beads, cigarette holder): $6

Total: $99.13

 

 

Outfit Set:

Outfit Details: Dress: Amazon, Shawl: Amazon, Shoes: Franco Sarto (thrifted), Accessories: Costume Shop, Tights: Target (old), Headpiece: eBay

Cozy Grey Pullover & Denim

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Good cozy pullover sweaters and jeans have been my jam this Fall.  They make for a great everyday minimal look without much effort. I recently picked up this oversized knit sweater from Zaful in a heather grey color, and it’s a perfect sweater for this time of year.  I love the open neck, where you can make it as drapey as you’d like and it goes well with scarves, leggings and boots.  And anything from Zaful is super affordable so if you’re looking for affordable knits, check them out!

So, I kind of have an obsession with this AG Adriano Goldschmied Jeans, and I plan on making a post featuring my collection of their colorful range of pants and jeans.  These distressed boyfriend cut jeans from AG are so ridiculously comfortable!  The denim is soft and flexible, which is important to me in a pair of jeans.  I really don’t like stiff denim, and I like when they feel “broken in” right away!  I normally don’t go for distressed but with the boyfriend style cuts it fits well.  The distressed parts are in the places that make sense and isn’t “over done.”  I don’t know about you but I really don’t like distressed jeans that look like you’ve been attacked by a tiger.  Also featured in this post are a few charms from one of my fav Etsy stores–love the silver leaf and pine tree!  I went with different chain lengths to create a more layering effect, and you can also buy them with chain or just the charm only.

Outfit Set:

Outfit Details: Sweater: Zaful, Jeans: AG Jeans, Shoes: Marc Fisher, Necklaces: Etsy

Fall Neutrals

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Some Fall days are warm enough for short sleeves, others not so much.  This post is about those warmer Fall days, where you want to wear Autumnal colors, but you can’t justify the layers.  I recently came across this great 70’s inspired button up top from Urban Outfitters and fell immediately in love with the color and pattern.  Really digging that retro menswear vibe–and it’s comfy AF too!  I went with my classic Joe’s skinny jeans because they look great as part of a neutral toned look.

Another recent shoe find I’m currently in love with: the Destino Flat from Free People. While I don’t typically go for black sandals, these were too perfect to pass up.  They come in a variety of colors besides black–all of which are equally tempting.  I especially loved the black for some reason which is totally not like me! These go so well with jeans and skirts alike, and the leather and overall construction seem to be of good quality.  I always need to remind myself to go against first inclination and try to branch out from what I’d normally gravitate towards.  It’s nice to do that, otherwise everything you buy winds up looking the same!  While they do run a bit pricey, you can find them on sale on eBay, Zappos, etc.

Outfit Set:

Outfit Details: Top: Urban Outfitters, Jeans: Joe’s, Shoes: Free People, Necklace: Etsy