Life Lately + Friday Faves

Happy Friday!

Life has been crazy busy lately, mainly in the work department so I apologize for being MIA. I've been working til 2 am most nights and then waking up at 6 am to head to the office. Thankfully, yesterday I got to work from home saving me the two-hour round-trip commute and giving me a mental break to focus on getting shit done.

Fall Fashion Accesories

Tomorrow is the official start of Fall and, while it stills feels like summer weather in Florida, I'm already planning all the cute fashion accessories in preparation for the crisp air finally making it's way south.

Blushing For Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's and Galentine's Day my lovely friends!

K and I celebrated Valentine's day last night with Thai food for dinner. Our work schedules this week are crazy busy so that was the only opportunity for us to catch up but some fun things are planned for the weekend ahead! 

International Women's Day & Fashion Faves

In honor of International Women's Day this week I celebrate my beautiful fashionista grandmother who raised 6 strong women including my mother.

Here's to strong women.
May we know them.
May we be them.
May we raise them

She is no longer here on earth but her love will never leave me and her sincere support and guidance has given me strength to be a strong, independent woman.

Many of us, like my grandmother, have a love for fashion, shopping, and finding gorgeous accessories to compliment our outfits so I'm ending this week sharing some of my fashion lusts perfect for the beautiful and strong women out there.

Michael Kors Smart Watch * Crossbody Purse * Michael Kors Sunglasses 

Feather Hinge Bracelet * Slingback Block-Heels * iPhone Case

Cheers to the weekend!

Fun Adult Backpacks

I recently decided I needed a small backpack not only for traveling but also for the theme parks so I can fit a sweater, snacks, a water bottle and so on in there. Target came to the rescue! When I saw all the cute styles they had on the shelves I didn't know where to begin. It was tough choosing just one but I summed it down to three favorites based on the durability of the material and of course cuteness.

My favorite three are in the top row below but I wanted to share all the other backpack styles I was tossing up between. I eventually decided on "the one" and purchased it for 25% off during the President's Day sales over the week.

one  /  two  /  three

four  /  five  /  six

seven  /  eight  /  nine


Which one is your favorite?

Birthday/Holiday Wishlist Items

For most of this year, I've been focusing on saving money to decorate our new home (which has finally come together) so I barely did any shopping but with my birthday just around the corner as well as Christmas, I've come up with a few wishlist items.

Pandora Charm

I've started collecting charms for the Pandora bracelet my best friend gave to me in June so when my MIL asked what I wanted for Christmas, I said a Pandora charm and told her to surprise me with one of her choice.

Michael Kors Jet Set Travel Crossbody
Color: Plum
Crossbody purses are the perfect travel buddy and I adore this color.

BaBylissPRO Porcelain Ceramic Flat Iron

Massage Envy Membership

I'd love to get facials and massages more regularly and since my back has been giving me severe problems for the past 6 months, I think a membership would be the way to go.

Tory Burch Sunglasses

I've had this exact pair for the past several years but at this point they're very worn with scratches on the lenses but I'm clearly so attached to them that I'd love a replacement pair.

I think the most exciting gift of all is that we're taking a long weekend vacation down to the Keys to celebrate my birthday. K planned this trip and I can't wait to relax and enjoy!

  

Sorry I haven't been able to read all your blogs or respond to comments this week. My laptop charger got some water damage last weekend leaving me with a dead computer. Way to feel helpless and useless in the evenings when I usually dedicate my time to blogging. 

I should be back up and running this weekend with a computer so I'm looking forward to reading your posts and catching up on all the blogland happenings.

I hope you have the best weekend!

Faux Fashion

When it comes to faux fashion I automatically think of faux leather or fur vests but there are so many other cute styles out there that are worth taking for a spin in the dressing room. I've always loved faux leather tights but they are not flattering on my body type yet I do love how they look on women in general. The relaxed fit of faux suede has been on my radar along with some other faux pretties under $50:

one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight / nine / ten / eleven / twelve

I've only just begun dipping my toes into faux fashion but I hope to add some of these cute and affordable pieces to my closet when the prolonged shopping freeze comes to an end.


Do you have any faux favorites?

Lace Looks

Lace is one of those fabrics that automatically adds a feminine touch to any outfit. I have a handful of lace-detailed dresses that I bring out for special occasion but I've been browsing some more casual looks for the summer. There are so many affordable and cute options out there from lace-back tops to shorts with a subtle lace trimming as well as rompers and even swimsuits. These are some of my top picks:

one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight /  nine / ten / eleven / twelve


Do you have any favorite lace pieces in your wardrobe?

Scalloped Style

Happy May 4th!
Some people like to celebrate today (like my company) but I've never really gotten into the whole Star Wars thing. What I do love is fashion and shopping so today I'm talking about some fashion finds of the scalloped variety.

I actually don't own one piece of scalloped clothing but I do love the look so I was browsing some affordable yet cute options online and wanted to share some of my faves. Let's be real, some scalloped styles can be on the tacky side so with that in mind I was looking for more sleek and versatile dresses, tops, and bottoms. Here's what I found:

one / two / three / four / five / six / seven / eight

nine / ten / eleven / twelve / thirteen / fourteen / fifteen

 What do you think about the scalloped style?

Spring Casual

When I think of Spring fashion, comfortable florals and colorful outfits come to mind. My closet once used to be very black and white but I've been adding lots of colorful tops and accessories over the past few years. I don't however own many floral pieces probably because I'm very picky with florals as they can't be too "flowery". Does that even make sense? I guess I don't like too much noise in my outfits. This cute yet subtle floral top from Forever 21 has been in my closet for over 7 years and I still love it! It's has a super comfortable elastic waist and is light and airy for Spring and Summer in Florida.

 

We took these photos while exploring the historic district in St. Augustine over Easter weekend. One of my favorite (and must-have) accessories for traveling is a good size cross body purse that can fit more that just a couple credit cards and a lipstick. My pink Kate Spade cross body purse is the perfect travel companion (this particular one is sold out but they do have similar cross body purses in a variety of colors).

I don't consider myself a fashion blogger and I don't have a professional photographer sidekick so these photos come to you as they are - unedited and imperfect. I love fashion and will share some favorite outfits from time to time.

Has anyone tried mid-rise jeans as yet? They are life-changing!! At least they are a life-changer for me and my particular body type. Express has a good variety of styles and after wearing my first pair for a few weeks (the Dark Wash Mid Rise Supersoft Jean Legging that I'm wearing in these photos), I've gone back and purchased two more styles.



Mac's Flat Out Fabulous matte lipstick is still one of my prettiest lip colors and it was the perfect touch for this spring-inspired outfit.

While we were exploring downtown St. Augustine, we had to make a stop at one of my favorite spots,  Sangria's Wine & Piano Bar to cool down and have a refreshing glass of fruity sangria.



I bought these adorable Purple Flash Mirror Aviators in Las Vegas last year from the Michael Kors store with some winnings from the Wheel of Fortune slot machine. Purple is my favorite color so I couldn't resist but they definitely don't go with just any outfit. Luckily I was able to wear them out that weekend with the outfits I packed.



My latest Kendra Scott addition (purchased from Rocksbox) is this adjustable Jamie Bracelet in Platinum Drusy which I love because it sparkles in the light. Rocksbox just sent me the matching necklace and earrings so temptation is running high to purchase those as well. I mean they're meant to be worn together, right?

Shop The Look

Express Mid Rise Jeans * Michael Kors Watch * Kendra Scott Jamie Bracelet * Kendra Scott Elisa Necklace * Kate Spade Cross Body Purse * Michael Kors Chelsea Aviators * MAC Flat Out Fabulous Lipstick


What do you love about Spring fashion?

Weekend Whereabouts

Hope everyone enjoyed the weekend. I'll start by saying my whereabouts were pretty minimal the past few days. It was a rainy weekend so it was perfect for catching up on some R&R since I have a few busy weekends of travel ahead.

I did venture out on Friday afternoon for some puppy playtime and a quick dinner.

After dinner we watched the movie Steve Jobs at home and had a quiet Friday night which was much needed!

 On Saturday I stayed local to get some errands done and rest up at home. I shopped around for some essentials for our Easter dinner party, did a ton of laundry, took some naps and spent lots of couch time with Lola watching TV.



Some inevitable online retail therapy happened on Saturday night since I had all the free time to browse. Maybe this is why I try to keep myself busy on weekends?

On Sunday, I went to Kohl's to pick up a dutch oven I had ordered to make the Guinness Beef Stew I posted about last week for my Friday Faves. It came out amazing by the way and I have to thank the lovely Andrea for helping me out with a few secret tips!

 Of course I ended up venturing over to the clothing department in Kohl's but not too much damage was done. I purchased these cute coral-colored shorts and navy crochet shorts for the Spring/Summer time weather and used a 30% off coupon.

 I'm so excited this is a short work week (we get Good Friday off) and I'm looking forward to our quick road trip adventure this coming weekend.


Joining the lovely Biana for her weekending linkup

Booties & Scarves

Florida has been getting it's first taste of Fall mainly at night which means it almost time to pull out our sweaters, booties and scarves. I love booties with a medium height heel and just bought the first pair of studded ankle booties in gray since I wore my other gray pair to the ground. All of these booties are under $75 and look very comfortable yet stylish. I also own a black pair like the bottom left one which I've only had a chance to wear a handful of times.

1 * 2 * 3 * 4 * 5 * 6

 I own several cute scarves but there's only a small window here in Florida when a thick scarf is needed so most of mine are on the lighter side but it's good to own a few of each especially for traveling to colder temp places. All of these are super cute and very affordable in the under $25 price range.

1 * 2 * 3 * 4 * 5 * 6 * 7 * 8 * 9 * 10 * 11 * 12

Over the next few weekends, I'll slowly be putting away the summer clothes and pulling out all the cute Fall things.

Where do you shop for affordable boots/booties, sweaters and scarves?

 

Fall Fashion Finds

Even though it doesn't feel quite like Fall here it doesn't mean we can't start preparing our outfits for the cooler months ahead. The one thing I'm looking forward to is not breaking a sweat as soon as you step outside. My office feels like the Arctic tundra and then outside is hot and humid so it's hard to plan outfits for opposite conditions. I'm all about some booties, furry vests and, cute scarves this year along with some warmer colors for tops and skinny jeans/pants. I'll just be here twiddling my thumbs until we can bring them out to play.

What's your favorite Fall find or purchase?

Faux Fur- Knit Vest * Long Sleeve Ribbed Tee * True Religion Army Skinny Jeans

Kate Spade Owl Stud Earrings * Tory Burch Booties * Miu Miu Top Rim Sunglasses

Michael Kors Printed Infiniti Scarf * Belted Faux Fur Vest * Tory Burch Riding Boots

Snake Skin Style

I'm a big fan of different prints and one print I clearly don't own enough of is snake skin. I was searching for snake print sandals like the Michael Kors sandals pictured below and found so many other cute pieces clothing and accessories that I'd love to add to my wardrobe. I'm also in love with the Vix Snakeskin bikini but it's too bad colder months are ahead of us. The Snakeskin Pumps
 would also look great with a little black dress for an evening out.

Michael Kors Charm Sandals * Strapless Dress * Dolce & Gabanna Compact Mirror Case

Snake Print Leggings * Michael Kors Snakeskin Wedges * Lumier Snake Charmer Skirt

Snakeskin Pointed-Toe Pump * Michael Kors Faux-Wrap Sheath Dress * Vix Swim Bikini

Snake Skin Multi Cross Bag * Karen Kane Snakeprint Scuba Skirt * Snakeprint Stappy Heels 

Do you like the snakeskin style?