Law School Fashionista

wedding table

2012-01-29T13:36:00.001-05:00

wedding table by lawschoolfashionista on polyvore.com

IKEA Borrby
$15 - ikea.com

IKEA Pomp
$13 - ikea.com

IKEA Fenomen
$9.99 - ikea.com

IKEA Rotera
$3.99 - ikea.com

IKEA Tindra
$3.49 - ikea.com

IKEA Kåraboda
$2.99 - ikea.com

IKEA Rektangel
$2.49 - ikea.com

(un)suited up!

2012-01-27T14:23:00.000-05:00

I've worn this combination of skirt + jacket + tights + shoes before here. And ya know what? That doesn't matter because I love this combination. I'm able to look put together without wearing a full suit *and* my outfit has some personality. It's not like everyone else wears velvet jackets and booties to court all the time. Even Bella approves!

Rainy Days

2012-01-24T13:45:00.003-05:00

When I first saw this dress I thought of rainy days and how things look distorted through the rain and puddles. Its really what made me like it in the first place. That and the price. I thought I was going to pay $32.99 for the dress, but when I got to the register it rang up as $21.77 including tax. Pretty great find if I do say so myself.
Today I decided to pair it with gray tights from Assets (ie Spanx) and gray heels. I figured that the gray would work with the colors best and still keep me warm. In addition I added a dark blue blazer and a dark blue cardigan for when I'm in court or in my office (assuming it gets cold today, which I doubt). I really like the simplicity of letting the dress be the focal point and allowing the tights and jacket/sweater to be supporting members of the cast.

Comfy Fridays

2012-01-21T09:00:00.000-05:00

I love Fridays! It signals the end of the week, sure, but it also means I can go to work in something less than court attire. In my county, at least, we don't generally have attorney court on Fridays. It *is* possible that I'll do a plea or have to run to court real quick to continue a case, but more than likely (like 99.9% likely) I'm not going to be standing in front of a judge on a Friday. Thus the comfy/casual Friday look you see here. Now, don't get me wrong, its not like I'm wearing yoga pants to work. And if I had to appear in court I always have a blazer and heels in my office to transform whatever casual outfit into a court appropriate outfit. In fact, whenever I wear jeans to work on Fridays and I think I just *might* need to appear in front of a judge, I always bring a pair of pants to change into.
But I think I'm getting ahead of myself a little bit, so let me explain a bit about "court appropriateness." Generally, I wear a suit or suit separates to work Monday through Fridays. The reason being that I more than likely will be in court and thus in front of a judge. Now, there is no dress code nor are there hard and fast rules for what is appropriate for court, but there are lines in the sand that I personally draw. For example, I will always have a blazer or a jacket in court because to me, at least, its a nod to the formality and importance of the court. I'll also not wear mini skirts or short dresses to court either for the same reason. My goal in court is to be professional and represent my clients with the utmost respect for the court. To me, at least, showing up to court looking sloppy or half exposed just doesn't do it for me. In the end, it really just comes down to: what would my client like me to look like when I represent them?

Test Run

2012-01-18T12:31:00.002-05:00

Hi! So I've been thinking about this blog a lot. And I've concluded that I've missed blogging, or at least parts of blogging anyway. What that means for this little slice of the internet is that I'm going to do a test run of blogging again and depending on how that goes will determine whether I continue to blog and how much. And with that having been said. . .

I need your help my wonderful blogging community that I have missed . You see, I bought this dress on Monday and I'm not 100% sure I should keep it. I feel like it looks good on and its flattering on me, but is it *too* flattering? Yes, I know its kind of a dumb question, but the reason I ask is that I plan on wearing this dress to work. And for me, work is court and the office. In court I would definitely wear this with a jacket, which looks great by the way as the top part blouses rather nicely. But is it too form fitting otherwise? What do you guys think? Am I totally overthinking this or is there a grain of truth somewhere to my madness? I guess when it comes down to it, would you like your lawyer to wear this to represent you? Do you feel its professional and appropriate? Help, please?!?!

The Missing Blazer

2011-08-16T21:39:00.003-04:00

I want to tell you guys a little story:

     Last week an attorney friend of mine wore a nice dress to court. I have no idea if she had a blazer or matching jacket with her, but that doesn't really matter since at the time she wasn't wearing it. While waiting for the time for attorneys to check in with the judge an out of town attorney was looking for the day's calendar. He approached the attorney and asked her if she was the clerk of court.

     At first blush, that's not that big a deal. She was hanging out in the area where the clerk normally sits. But upon further reflection, it occurred to me that maybe he asked her if she was the clerk because she's a woman. It turns out that all the clerks that I know are women. And I would hazard a guess that most clerks are women. So, while its not terribly surprising that someone would ask a woman standing near the clerk's are if she's the clerk, it is more than a bit bothersome. I guess my question really is, was it simply her proximity to the clerk's area or was it her being a woman that made him ask if she was the clerk?
   There are a couple of reasons I bring this up. The first is to point out that even in our super awesome modern world, there is still the old-fashioned point of reference that men hold the positions of power while women hold the support positions. (This is quite awful for the simple reason that by being stuck in the support positions, women are relegated to the lower paying jobs with the least amount of power. But this subject really is too complicated for this post just right now) It IS quite sad, however, that in a time when women make up at least 50% if not more of law school graduates and have done so for the past 15+ years, that such a point of reference still exists in the practice of law.
     Now, while its totally possible that I'm thinking too hard and this moment isn't about sex and positions of power, I am 1000000% positive that if everything were the same but that my friend had been a man, the out of town attorney would NOT have EVER asked him if he was the clerk of court.

Blazers by lawschoolfashionista featuring wrap jewelry

Another reason I wanted to share this story is to tie it back into choice of dress. While I completely support my friend's decision to wear a nice flattering dress to court, I think she would have been better served to have worn a blazer along with the dress. A blazer is the perfect item to professional-ize just about any outfit. A sundress is no longer an expression of femininity and girly-ism when its paired with a blazer. With a blazer, a sundress is suddenly professional and an outfit that a woman in power wears. The same can be said for a pair of linen slacks or a brightly patterned skirt; with a blazer each of these looks perfectly appropriate for court. I guess what I'm saying, really, is that if you're in doubt about what you're wearing and want to exude confidence and power, grab a blazer. Without one you could find yourself in an awkward position that really could be avoided. Do you think I'm overthinking it? Anything similar happen to you or someone you know?

2 months later. . .

2011-08-14T20:52:00.001-04:00

So its been a while, a little over 2 months in fact. My life has been crazy busy and exciting and downright boring for that whole span. I wasn't 100% sure I would come back to blogging, but here I am. It seems I just can't get away. In celebration of my return (or just random good timing) I've got a special offer for all of you, my lovely readers who have yet to give up on me! I have a $20 off eShakti promo that is valid for the next month, until September 15, 2011. The code is AC0811. The terms are these:

The discount code is not case sensitive.
Only one gift certificate can be used per order.
The code can be used any number of times until the validity period.
This discount code is not applicable on our Overstock category.
This cannot be clubbed with any other offer / discount that may be active during this period.

I know that I have loved ordering from eShakti before, (Check out my review here and the swearing in blouse here), and I certainly hope you'll take advantage of this offer and enjoy shopping at eShakti too!

Sickly Kid

2011-06-06T12:24:00.000-04:00

I've been sick all weekend. Its pretty much sucked. My throat hurts and my cough sounds like a lawnmower being revved up. Its just as sexy as it sounds. Being sick didn't stop me from having to run errands and take the Fiance to work when his car decided to suck. So, I got dressed in something comfy that wasn't sweats. It was a tough decision, but I figured since I felt like crap, I should try to not look like it.

The Details:

tee: Old Navy

Skirt: Consignment

Normally with an outfit this simple I would wear a necklace to add a little sparkle or contrasting color. It didn't even occur to me to add a necklace, or any other jewelry on Friday to this outfit because I was so out of it. To be honest, its kind of a miracle I put on a skirt, soooo not having a necklace isn't so bad. Besides, the Fiance thought I looked cute. :)

Review: Corioliss Clipless Curling Wand

2011-05-18T07:21:00.000-04:00

About three months ago, John from Misikko.com asked me if I would review one of their products. Misikko.com is the home of Professional Hair Dryers, so I said yes. They sent me a Corioliss Clipless Curling Wand and within days it had arrived. Having never used a clipless curling iron, I turned to Youtube to figure out how to use my brand new Wand. I found a few videos, and this one that recreates Taylor Swift curls was particularly helpful. In addition to watching some videos on Youtube, I also checked out the girls at the mall kiosks that use clipless curling irons to figure out how they used them.
Once I figure out the basics of using a clipliss curling wand, I went ahead and tried mine out. (Turns out that, instead of starting at the ends like with a traditional curling iron, you start out curling at the roots and work your way down the strands of hair.) Without much effort I was able to curl my whole head of hair in about 40 minutes. Once I curled it all I finger combed through the curls and slept on them. The next morning the curls were still perfectly intact. In fact, as the picture below shows, the curls were still perfect the next evening. I would definitely measure that as a success.

The curling iron itself is pretty great. Mine is black and came with a protection glove and a heat resistant pad on which to place the wand while I'm working with my hair. In addition, the wand gets really got really fast and doesn't have temperature settings so its either on and hot or off and not. Because the wand gets so hot, its really easy to get hair to curl. With just a little bit of time for each section of hair, I got great bouncy curls all over my head. I know a lot of people use Flat Irons to curl their hair, but I have to say this curling wand is pretty damn fantastic. I would definitely recommend it and any of the other curling wands in the Corioliss Curling Iron family.

Suiting Up

2011-05-16T07:50:00.001-04:00

This is one of my favorite outfits I've worn in quite some time. My mom gave me this blouse from Zara after she wore it a few times. Despite its pale pink color, I knew that I would wear it a bunch. The reason I say despite the pale pink is that generally, such a pale color near my face wouldn't look so great. However, because I wore a purple necklace between the blouse and my face, I was able to keep the pink from washing me out. In addition to the necklace, my brown suit kept me from looking washed out as well.
By the way, I absolutely love this suit. I think my favorite part is the high waisted skirt. Once upon a time, I would not have even thought to wear such a high waisted skirt. Recently, ie. in the past year or so, I have broadened my horizons with respect to high waisted skirts. At the moment, 3 of my 4 skirt suits are high waisted skirts and I love them. The silhouette has completely won me over. Its both feminine and comfortable and most importantly, it works for my body. Its pretty great to find a silhouette that is flattering for my body and especially one that I can readily find in stores. Have you been fortunate enough to find a silhouette that works for you? Do you have a silhouette you wished worked for you but doesn't?

The Details:
Suit: JCPenney
Blouse: Zara (mom)
Heels: Nine West
Necklace: Target

Hair and the Law

2011-05-11T14:04:00.002-04:00

Sometime last week, someone asked me if I was pregnant. I vehemently said NO! It got me thinking though, not about pregnancy, but about my body. The question made me feel chunky if not outright fat. I mean, why else would anyone ask if I'm pregnant if I don't look larger than normal, right? This made me feel bad. And I realized how my feelings about myself are tied to my feelings about my body. For many women, their body is their self and there is no separation. For others, their perception is tied up in their hair. I feel that way sometimes too. When my hair is long and wavy and behaving, I feel young and sexy. When its up and sleek I feel professional. Luckily for me, I'm able to go from one extreme to another. Other ladies, however, have a more complicated relationship with their hair. My friend Neubia is one of these. Her hair isn't just a thing on her head, but rather its a symbol of culture and heritage that is inevitably intertwined with her sense of self. So I asked her to write a post on her hair and the choices she's made with regard to it. Here is her story:

Law school sucks! Sorry, there is just no other way to put it. What makes it suck more is when your freedom of expression (i.e. individuality) is hampered as a result. Of course, now that I am a lawyer practicing in Fayetteville, NC, I understand that my alma mater, in voicing concern with my stylistic choices, was simply trying to prepare me for what I would face in the real world. So what is the faux pas freedom of expression I've engaged in . . .

I HAVE LOCS! Some of you may know them as "Dreadlocks." Screw that! There is absolutely nothing dreadful about my hair. Hence, the shortening of my choice of hair style to just locs, rather than dreads.

I came into law school with natural hair. That is, I did not use chemicals to alter the texture of my hair. Most of the time, I wore an afro. Sometimes I would wear braids or twists. During my second year, I decided to embrace the tight coils that my hair often created on its own. One of the first comments I received when declaring that I was locing my hair (because in my early stages of locing, it just looked like I had twists), was whether I was considering a career at a firm. Well, truth be told, I wasn't, but even if I was, if a firm is unwilling to hire me because of the grade, texture and stylistic choices I make with my hair, then I am unwilling to work there!

Making the decision to loc is not easy. When most folks think of locs, they think of a chain such as this . . . Bob Marley, pot, rebel, Rastafarian, slacker, etc. Well, as much as I enjoy Bob Marley, and consider myself a bit of a rebel, I am not a pothead, and I am a Christian. I am also . . . (DUN, DUN, DUN) a lawyer. That's right, people who wear locs are successful business types with expensive ass degrees from private schools, too.

There are 0, count it 0 other attorneys in this city with locs. The word on the street is that the one guy who did have locs fell prey to the pressure and cut his off. I refuse to conform! When I walk into court (most of the time to observe for now because we have local rules that take some getting used to) all eyes are on me. In fact, one morning, I walked into the lawyers only area behind the courtrooms (exiting a courtroom) and was chased down by a bailiff. "Can I help you?" he barks with his hands on his assault a black person belt. "Excuse me?" I reply wearing WTF on my face. "You can't be back here if you aren't a lawyer." "Well, good news for you sir! I am a lawyer. Were you going to arrest me?" I proceed to fire off questions to him in rapid succession, none of which he is able to respond to because his face is still on the floor. He walked away, likely still in awe that I, yes, the chick with the locs, was a lawyer. FFFFFFF you and the bus you rode in on!

While this moment was as heartbreaking as it was entertaining, I consider it one giant leap for nappy girls everywhere. Do not underestimate us because we make the choice not to introduce chemicals into our world. We can run with the rest, and indeed the best of them. So the next time you see someone with locs, take off your cap of ignorance, and don't make assumptions about them. Each one, teach one.

Balancing Act

2011-05-10T07:24:00.003-04:00

I can't believe its May already! Or hell, past the first week of May even! Last time you heard from me I had been sworn in. Since then I've gotten to actually practice law. Its been pretty cool. I feel a lot more comfortable going to court now that I can actually do things in court. That and since I got sworn in I've pretty much been only wearing suits. Before I got sworn in I would wear suits every now and again when I knew I would be seeing a client, but lately, suits have been a daily outfit choice. That's not to say that I've gotten completely boring and *only* wear suits and button downs, however. Instead I've gone for suits with interesting details. For example, this blazer is the jacket half of a skirt suit I bought last weekend. Unlike other black suits that I own, this one is short sleeved, which is perfect for the warmer weather. Its also makes a more casual outfit more formal without going all the way to formal (if that makes sense?).

In addition to buying the suit that this jacket belongs to, I also bought this blouse (and a couple of others) as well as these heels. It doesn't seem like the most responsible thing in the world, but I've needed new work clothes for a while, so I let myself have a mini-shopping spree. I didn't go buck wild and in fact stayed at only one store. I bought the one suit, 2 blouses, 1 embellished tee and 2 pairs of heels. A pretty awesome take if you ask me. The way I see it, its an investment in my image and place as an attorney. There is a certain look I think I need to cultivate that is primarily formal but definitely personal. I don't want to be a lawyer in a cookie cutter suit, so personal style is a must. At the same time, however, I definitely want to maintain the right amount of formality. Its a fine line, I think, and one that I'm figuring out as I go along.

The Details:
Blouse: Anne Klein
Suit Jacket: Rafaella
Pants: Gap
Heels: Nine West

Oh and hey look, I accidentally ended up doing the Everybody/Everywear challenge on the right day too!

Swearing In

2011-05-02T17:40:00.000-04:00

Sooo its been a crazy 3 weeks since the last time I posted. I promise I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, its just that life has been spectacularly busy. The big news since the last time I posted is that I got sworn in! It was pretty great. I made my sister and The Fiance hold the Bible for me and all the staff from the office got to watch too. Here are the pictures:

In the office getting ready to head to the courthouse.

Everybody standing just after the Judge walked into court.

My Sister and The Fiance holding the Bible as I take my oath.

I just got sworn in!

My super proud and supportive (and cute!) Fiance

My Wonderfully supportive little sister

My Wedding Dress Story

2011-04-13T21:50:00.000-04:00

     Clearly, this dress is WAAAAAAAAAAY too long. But I just haven't been able to get it hemmed yet. So I've worn it as is a few times. I got it last summer. J.Crew was having a factory outlet sale where I got this dress and this red dress. On top of the ridiculously low prices, we had a 20% off coupon, so both dresses ended up being ~$50.
    Oh, AND I bought my wedding dress there too. For $32.34 if I remember correctly. I'm sure you're wondering how one buys a wedding dress for that much, but let me tell you, every once in a while I have the most amazing shopping serendipity you could imagine.
     So here's the story. My friend Jenn and I went to the outlet on a Thursday and I bought the first two dresses. We decided to go again the next morning with some friends because they hadn't had a chance to go. So when we went the second time, since we had already looked through most of the things there, we decided to go through the formal dresses. Let me go ahead and explain how the store was set up. The sale took place in a vacant building where the J.Crew people set up folding tables with boxes of clothes on and under each table. Each box had a size and category like sweater or pants or whatever. There were no dressing rooms so people were trying things on however they could in the middle of this big room. Oh and there was no air conditioning either.

So Jenn and I were digging through the formal dresses and the wedding dresses and I pulled out a few in varying shades of white, ivory and champagne. I tried them on on top of the dress I was wearing to see if they fit and one looked pretty good. One passed this initial test so we walked on over to the wall so that I could shimmy into the potential wedding dress and out of my springy dress. Luckily we had a guy friend with us and after getting his boy approval along with my mom's text approval, I bought the dress. The Fiance knows about the dress of course. Luckily he hasn't gotten curious about it as its been chilling in a garment bag in an upstairs closet since I got it. Here is where I would normally put up a picture of the dress, but since I know the Fiance checks the blog every now and again, I can't post it. For those of you that have bought wedding dresses, what's your wedding dress story?

The Details:
Dress: J.Crew
Tank: Old Navy
Sandals: Aerosoles
Necklace: Consignment

useless

2011-04-06T07:00:00.000-04:00

I wore this a few weeks ago to work. This of course was before I found out about my bar exam results. But really, nothing's changed. I can't practice law until I've been sworn in and I can't be sworn in until after I get my license. And it will take a good 3 weeks for that to happen. So, while I've received good news, now I get to sit around and wait for a piece of paper to get to my house. *sigh* At least if I'm going to be useless still, its only for a limited amount of time, right? RIGHT?!?!?
So yea. . . I don't have a whole lot to say other than, um, thanks for dropping by! (?) I'm tired guys. I got up at 6:25 so I could get to work by 8 to go to an all day deposition. I'm hoping for some cuddles then sleep soon as I'm feeling kinda useless I'm so tired. So I hope you have a great Wednesday!

The Details:
Henley: Old Navy
Skirt: Liz Claiborne (consignment)
Tights: Hanes
Booties: Tsubo

Spring!

2011-04-04T07:05:00.000-04:00

Look kids, an outfit post! Last time I posted an outfit I was waxing poetic about these shoes and how they go with everything including white pants. Well this is the outfit to which I was referring. I wore this outfit a week or so ago, just after the first day of Spring. Bella and I were clearly loving the warm weather. In fact, I've been looking forward to wearing these white linen pants for the past 2 months. In fact, I've been waiting to wear several of my linen pieces for a while. I'm really quite a fan of this beautiful fabric. In spite of its habit of wrinkling by just looking at it, linen adds great texture and movement to an outfit. Plus, it just fits in perfectly in summery and warm weather.

The Details:

Top: Loft

Pants: Talbots Similar Also Similar

Heels: Nine West

Necklace: made by me

Thanks!

2011-04-04T07:00:00.003-04:00

How often do you say thank you? I try to say it after every time someone does something for me. The truth is that, sometimes that just doesn't cover it. And while I sometimes wonder what I would say if I were recognized in front of my peers á la the Oscars, that's just not going to happen. Sadly there are no awards shows for lawyers or daughters or sisters or wives. So instead, tonight, I give you my Oscar speech, because I have quite a bit to be thankful for.

     I have big news for you, I just found out Monday evening that I passed the bar. I am so excited about this accomplishment, it’s hard to describe. But in reality, I'm not the only that should take credit for it. Yes, I studied for the exam and took it, but for the support of the people that matter the most in my life, I would not be here. So for that, thank you. From the bottom of my heart, I thank you.
     First, my parents: thank you for teaching me to persevere. For supporting me in whatever manner you could after I found out I failed and for teaching me to keep trying until I passed. Thank you for believing in me, for praying for me, for telling me you love me. Thank you for being great examples of leadership and wisdom.
     To my teachers and professors: thank you for offering your support, even after I had left the halls in which you teach. Thank you for taking the time to care, sending me an email and congratulating me on Facebook in adorably dorky ways. Thank you for sharing with me your passion for the law and learning, even if it wasn't strictly in the syllabus.
Thank you to the Firm. Without your support and understanding that I needed to take 2 months off to study, I may not have been able to pass. Thank you for being flexible and not judging me as a failure back in August.
   To my friends, thank you for being supportive as well. It made me feel better to think that you all were astonished at my failing and that you fully expected me to pass this second time around. Thanks for the cards, the pep talks and the reality checks.
     To my sister, there is more to you and I than just sisters.
We are friends, and for that friendship I am thankful. For your help with X-mas gifts to giving me a place to stay while I took the exam, thank you.
   Thank you to my Fiancé. Thank you for holding my hand, for telling me it would all be ok when I needed it, and for kicking my butt in to gear when I needed that instead. Thank you for understanding when I needed to chill in the bathtub for a while or that walking Bella wasn't just for her benefit. Thank you for the discovery that Sam Adams Cherry Beer + chocolate chip cookies is just what I need sometimes. Thank you for being my biggest fan.

Waiting. . .

2011-03-28T07:00:00.002-04:00

     Remember when I mentioned that I would be wearing my new suit soon? (I wouldn't blame you if you didn't---it was a while ago) Well I did and here are the pictures to prove it. I went a bit crazy with the purple + gray combo and made sure EVERYTHING I wore was either gray or some shade of purpley-wine. But ya know what? I liked it! I felt put together in my matchy-matchy-ness.
Oddly enough, this outfit, while being classically conservative, what with the skirt suit, hose and heels, just isn't all that conservative on me the way I've styled it. Example #1, those aren't hose, they're gray tights! Now the difference between gray tights and let's say bright peacock blue tights is lightyears, but when we're talking about the law, one of THE most conservative arenas on this planet, gray tights instead of skin colored hose or black tights is kinda risky.
     AND I'm not wearing gray shoes either! I know rule #1 about lengthening legs is to wear the same or similar colored hosewear + shoes, but long leggedness be damned! I just wanted to be matchy. So instead of opting for gray heels, I went with wine colored ones that matched my tee and necklace quite nicely. These also happen to be one of my favorite pair of shoes in my closet right now. I've worn them to match some purple shades in an outfit (like this one) or to completely contrast (and confuse the HELL out of one of my co-workers) with a turquoise top and white pants. (post to follow later this week). I love their versatility especially since they're patent and not black. I'm all for having a pair (or several) of great black shoes, but having some unexpected color in your shoes just rocks.

Let's ignore the hair in my face, K?

So for those of you that are counting, the third way this outfit is slightly quirky on the conservative scale is my headband. It has a bow on it. Plenty of people will tell you that in order to be taken seriously, a woman can't show any personality. At the very least, people will tell you that a young woman just can't draw emphasis to the fact that she's a young woman. Well, screw that. I like my bow on my headband and I plan to continue to wear it.
Lastly, this tee shirt is just a tee shirt. I've worn it bunches of times with jeans and flats. That's the thing though, its just a plain tee shirt, something that's not *supposed* to be in my work closet. I, obviously, disagree. I hate button downs and I'm having a hard time finding blouses to wear to work. So in a pinch I've started wearing tees under jackets and they play quite nicely with my work wardrobe. Hooray for simplicity!

The Details:

Skirt Suit: Rafaella fit + form (no longer available online)

Tee-shirt: Old Navy Similar

Hose: Hanes Similar

Heels: Nine West

Necklace: Banana Republic

So yea, this is my way of adding some quirk and unexpectedness into a traditionally conservative outfit. On a more real life note, its been a bit over 4 weeks since I took the bar exam again. I should be finding out in the next couple of days whether I passed. I've been a lot more zen about it than I thought I would. From the beginning I've felt like I passed, but there's obviously no guarantee. Hopefully I'll have some good news for you all sometime soon. How do you normally handle waiting for results?

Green!

2011-03-17T11:05:00.001-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! This outfit is from Tuesday, but since I wore my green sweater vest, I decided to save it until today.
Looking in my closet this morning, I realized that I don't have much in the way of green. Sure I have plenty of turquoise, but anything that most people would call green? not so much. I'm not entirely sure why either. I've never been one to shy away from color, but at the same time, I've focused on basics a lot lately. I think this has resulted in my having tons of black and white and cream and a few other colors, namely turquoise and red, and very little of other colors of the rainbow. This is going to have to change. While I'm all for basic colors for suits, its tops and shoes and sweaters that tend to bring more interest, ie color and pattern, into my wardrobe. Next time I want to get a new top I'll just have to put black, white and cream on the no-go list (unless of course its something spectacular).

From: Here

So the inspiration for this outfit came from 2 very different sources. The first is a probation officer that works in our court system. He dresses beautifully every time I've seen him. This last time I saw him, he was wearing a suit, and rather than wearing an overcoat to stay warm, he had on a sweater vest. His outfit was in shades of black, gray and white with a red tie. It was tailored and just plain put together. So that got me thinking. Then I went home and watched part of Love Actually while I rode my stationary bike. If you've seen the movie, do you remember Hugh Grant's assistant's first outfit? (pictured above). While entirely too low cut and tight, I've always liked the idea of it. In the end, I feel like I combined the two to make my outfit. Where do you draw inspiration for outfits?

The Details:

Blouse: Zara Similar

Sweater vest: L.L. Bean

Pants: Gap

Heels: Nine West in Brown Croc

Pearls: by me Similar Color

Blazer: Loft (no longer available Similar

Less than 10

2011-03-14T07:00:00.002-04:00

Soooo, what do you do when you look pregnant in pictures but you're not? That's the impression that I'm getting from this outfit. It could be that when I put the suit jacket on in a hurry to take these pictures before the sun set, I put it on weird, but I don't know. The bad thing is that now I'm self-conscious about the fit. I'm hoping that when I wear it again I'll be able to figure out if I *really* do look like I'm growing a bump or if it was a freak occurence or what. I'm also really hoping that when I wear the jacket with the matching skirt it will look normal. I need some feedback guys, do I look pregnant or is it just my imagination?

Pattern!

On another note, this jacket is from a skirt suit that I bought just before going back to work 2 weeks ago. I had to get the skirt hemmed, but I am in LOVE with the suit (except for the aforementioned baby bump issues). I know that in the far away pictures it reads gray, but up close its a really cool black on gray stripey pattern deal. The skirt has a really sweet ruffle that's just the right amount of feminine and cute without distracting from the formality of a suit. Be on the lookout for this suit on the blog as I'm wearing it today and will hopefully post it later this week.

Speaking of the blog, The Fiance made a comment to me on Friday that it had been a while since I posted. Now, I know that he checks in on the blog every now and again, but I had no idea he kept track of how often I posted or even the length of my posts. He did not appreciate that last Monday's post was the last time I posted nor that it was a short post. So that made me wonder, what do you guys think about my posting schedule? I try to keep posting regularly on Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 7 am eastern time. Last week posting didn't happen on that schedule as I didn't get home in time any day to take pictures in day light. Sadly, several of last week's pictures were really cute. I guess I'll just have to repeat them.

Considering that I don't always have a chance to check in with my Reader every day, how often do you check out blogs? Is there a number of times a week that there is too much posting? too little?

The Details:

Suit: Rafaella (via Belk) Fitted Blazer

T-Shirt: Ann Taylor (gift)

Pants: Gap Similar in Navy

Heels: Nine West

Lavender Pearls: by me Similar

Quickie post

2011-03-07T07:00:00.004-05:00

Wore this a few weeks ago to work when I had to go in to help out in court. Since it was such a beautiful day, posing by the Mustang just seemed like the right thing to do. Bella couldn't decide if she wanted in or out of the picture, so we're left with her tail in the picture. Currently I'm wishing it was this beautiful right about now. *sigh* Hopefully sometime soon. How's the weather around you? Beautiful yet?

The Details:

T-shirt: Old Navy Similar

Pants: Gap Similar

Blazer: L.L. Bean

Boots: Tsubo Hepti

alley chic

2011-03-04T09:55:00.000-05:00

Woo outfit post! This outfit post is brought to you by my lovely Fiance. You see, last week after taking the bar, I took advantage of some free time and wandered around the mall. I just went to look. THEN I stepped into Ann Taylor Loft and had a very serious dilemma. I found this gorgeous brown velvet blazer that was on final sale for $19.99. I tried it on and liked it. Then the salesperson told me that it was marked down an additional 40% and would end up around $14. Suddenly, I had fallen in love. I didn't buy it right then because I wanted to really think through this (albeit small) purchase. So I left the mall and thought about it.

Well I thought about it all weekend and decided I wanted it. Originally, the Fiance and I were going to meet up at Target in town on Wednesday to do some shopping. I was going to take that opportunity of being in town to head to the mall to buy the blazer. Well the Fiance wasn't feeling it on Wednesday, so I asked him very nicely if he would go to the mall on his way home and get the jacket for me. His original answer on Monday was no, that he didn't know where he was going and would be tired and wouldn't know what it was I wanted. The next day I took the initiative and called Loft and asked them to put the jacket aside for me in my size. That night, I again asked the Fiance to go get it for me as now it was set aside. He lovingly acquiesced. And so I sent him a map of the mall signaling where Loft is located so he would know EXACTLY where to go. I even sent him a link to the jacket so he would know what he was getting too. Wednesday night arrived and the Fiance walked in with a Loft bag and my awesome new blazer.

Laughing at myself

Thinking about it as long as I did really made me fall in love with the blazer. As soon as I got it home, I tried it on and was hit with inspiration lighting as I knew that I just *had* to pair it with this skirt. And then I realized that the Tsubo Hepti booties were perfect. You see, I had seen Heather Armstrong of Dooce wear a pencil skirt, tights + booties combination before and loved it on her. So this outfit was born. I felt super chic all day long with my new velvet blazer. That and its kind of hard to not feel spectacular wearing these Tsubo Shoes.

alley chic?

The Detailss:

T-shirt: NY&Co. Similar: Here

Blazer: Loft (no longer available online, but call your nearest store just in case. Online told me it wasn't available near me when I knew there was a whole rack's worth of jackets at the mall).

Skirt: NY&Co. Similar

Tights: Merona (target) In Black

Boots: Tsubo Hepti (no longer available)

P.S. I took these pictures in the parking lot/alley behind my office. I'm laughing hysterically in the above picture because I was just waiting for someone I knew (read another lawyer) to come out and ask what the hell I was doing posing for pictures with my camera perched on a dumpster in an alley behind our office. If you're an outfit blogger--where is the silliest/craziest/most interesting place you've taken outfit pictures?

March Sponsor

2011-03-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to let you all know that Misikko.com has once again sponsored Law School Fashionista for the month of March. Later this month I'll be reviewing a really awesome product that they sent me that I have really enjoyed trying out so far, so be on the lookout for that So yea check them out.

I'm back!

2011-02-28T07:00:00.002-05:00

Hi Everyone! I'm back from the hell that is bar study and bar exam taking. To tell you the truth, I have really missed blogging. Its going to take me a really long time to catch up on reading blogs as there are currently 400+ unread items. I'm guessing "mark all as read" will be making itself known in a day or so. Anyway, I feel really good about the bar and hopefully in a month I'll be planning out my swearing in. Thanks for all of your support too--you guys are the best!
Not only is today my return to blogging, its also my first day back from work. I took all of 2 days off and I'm back to the grind. I wish I could take more time off, but such is life. Part of me is excited to get back to the grind and immerse myself in work, part of me is not so thrilled. I want to take a few more days to sleep in, watch tv all day, and hang out with Bella. I'll be taking full advantage of my weekends though.
One super exciting thing I'm looking forward to is revamping my home office. Right now I have a beautiful desk The Fiance gave me a few years ago for my birthday. I absolutely love it. My office chair and bookcases, on the other hand SUCK. I'm looking forward to replacing several pieces of my office furniture. For example, I want a new office chair, a desk lamp and some bookcases. I'm thinking some artwork would be good too. What, for you, is a must have in your office or working space?

*This is a CSN sponsored post*

Brief Hiatus

2011-02-14T07:00:00.002-05:00

Happy Monday. Today is Valentine's Day, so Happy Valentine's Day to you too! Today is 8 days from the bar exam. Yup, that big bad test will take place Feb. 22nd and 23rd. As a result, I'm going to take a brief hiatus for the rest of February to concentrate all of my energies on the bar and then recovering from actually taking the bar. I may post something between now and then, but more than likely, I'll be back on or about March 1. Til then, I leave you with this beautiful picture I took with my iPhone of the Fiance's Mustang at sunset.

Mixing Patterns

2011-02-11T07:00:00.000-05:00

I wore this outfit yesterday. I've been inspired by Brittney of A Day in the Life Too . . . to get out of sweats and into real clothes while I study. It ended up being just as warm and comfortable as if I had worn PJ pants and a sweatshirt all day long instead. In other words I sat with a blanket over my lap anyway. I'm not sure if the clothes necessarily kept me on task more than normal--but I wasn't embarrassed to go outside to get the mail like I normally am when I wear my monkey face PJ pants.
This skirt is significantly shorter than I normally wear. Because I spent the day in a chair, under a blanket, fidgeting to get comfy, it was PERFECT! The short skirt let my legs move and get comfy without being restrictive at all. I'm not sure I would wear this skirt without tights ever, but with tights I would feel perfectly fine wearing this in public.

Cold!

As you can see, I am boldly mixing patterns with my leopard print rain boots and purple plaid skirt. I am quite a fan of this combination. If I had actually left the house I may have even worn these boots instead of my suede knee highs too. I'm generally not afraid of pattern mixing. The only reason I don't do it more often is that I don't have a lot of patterned pieces in my closet. I should probably work on that. How do you feel about mixing prints? Fun or scary?

The Details:

Undershirt:Fruit of the Loom Available Here

Skirt: Old Navy (on sale for $7.97!(

Tights: Hue Available Here

Boots: Capelli via Stein Mart Available Here

Sweater: Old Navy Similar Shape Similar in Cashmere

Shopping Habits

2011-02-09T07:00:00.000-05:00

Right around the first week of the year, I was talking to my mom about my Christmas shopping. I mentioned that her present to me was an order of clothes from L.L. Bean. She then asked if i did a lot of my shopping online. At first I thought not really, but really thinking about it and then reading Kat's post, I actually do a lot of my shopping online. I do it for a number of reasons too: convenience, price, my home is my dressing room and quality. It is significantly more convenient to order something online and have it arrive at my door than having to go to the mall as well as other non-mall stores to try things on and then come home with nothing at all. Its also more convenient to try things on at home where I have the rest of my wardrobe to try things on with, its all about context. Lastly, online deals tend to be way better, for the most part, than in store deals. As a result, I'm able to afford better quality of clothing at a lower price due to my online shopping.
Because I do so much of my shopping online, I've come up with a technique. It's not fool proof or perfect, but it has brought me reasonable amounts of success. So in the interest of sharing, here it is:

A-C's "Guide" to Online Shopping

1.The Click

Coldwater Creek Blazer

If I'm looking at a store online its because I've been drawn in by a promotion or sale. This is almost always the case as I rarely just browse stores for fun. The sale has to be for a store I already like or have heard good things about too. I'm not a random online shopper, so I stick to stores I know or know of. To get these promotions I subscribe to emails like Ann Taylor, Talbots, Old Navy, Banana Republic, eShakti and the like. Also, every now and again I check slickdeals.net. A lot of great promotions get posted there such as my ruffle blazer.

Talbots Dress

2. Skim

My next step is to figure out what the sale is about and skim the items that are on sale. Is there anything at all that I like? If I look around and only find like one thing, I *might* click on it and look, but generally, unless there are several things that I like, I tend to move on. I think its shopping my attrition, eventually I'll get lucky if there are a lot of things that catch my eye. Reduce the sample size and my odds go way down.

3. Click

Next I open in new tabs everything that has caught my eye and is within roughly 20% of the amount of money I would feel comfortable spending. If an item is more than that but absolutely amazing, I'll open a tab for it. But its got to be spectacular. I generally end up with at least 15-25 tabs open at first.

4. Weed

Talbots Skirt

Now I weed through my tabs and actually look at all that I've clicked on. How does that jacket look in a decently sized picture and not in a thumbnail? Is that skirt or dress long enough or too long? Is that blouse navy or black? All of these things and more can be answered by looking at the larger image of items as opposed to the often tiny thumbnails provided at first. I go through and eliminate anything that I don't find cute. On the flip side, I make sure to keep things I find cute and attractive.

5. Weed (again)

This time I weed by price. I have to decide, assuming the fit and color (to come in a bit) are right, am I willing to spend $X on that skirt, dress, blouse, jacket? I look at each item individually and decide if that individual item is worth it. I also look at the items collectively and compare which ones are more worth my money than others.

Bravissimo Dress

6. Walk Away

This is one of the most important steps. Most of the time I need to walk away from the screen, from all the wonderfully tempting deals and just chill, elsewhere. Sometimes minimizing that particular screen is enough. Sometimes I go in to my closet and imagine how the items I've been looking at fit in to my wardrobe. Other times I just play with Bella. The point is, I walk away from the computer to keep myself from impulse buying. Sometimes its a couple of hours. Other times its been days. It depends on the sale, the store and the item.

7. Fit and size

One of the most important aspects of shopping, whether online or in person is the fit of a garment. You can have the most beautiful dress in the world, but if its too small, short, big or just not cut to your figure, it will be a bad buy. In order to aid me in figuring out fit and size, I check out the store's size charts. I also check out reviews if the site has them. In addition, lately I've been doing the customer representative chat thing. I'll ask them specifically to help me choose a size and in return I get the actual dimensions of the item in whatever size(s) I think will fit me. Because not everything will be available in the size I need or will flatter my shape, this step will also cut some of the items from my list.

Nine West Pumps

8. The Cart

Now I finally add everything I've approved in terms of style, color, price and fit in to my cart. And then I look at the total. When I look at items individually, I tend to think, "wow, $35 for this blazer is amazing!" But when you have 2 blazers, a sweater, a skirt and a dress, it all adds up. By putting it all in the cart and looking at the total, its really hard to deceive yourself.

9. Weed (again!--3rd time's the charm)

Looking at the total, how much do I *really* want to spend today? Is everything in my cart a real steal or just filler? This is the time where I get ruthless. Its time to decide how much total I'm going to spend and what is really worth buying.

eShakti Dress

10. Coupons

Lastly, I do a google search for promotions. Yes, I know I started out by going to a sale, but sometimes you get lucky and can add a 10% off coupon or a free shipping deal to a sale.

11. Buy!

Now that I've exhausted myself and overthought every aspect of this purchase, its time to buy.

I can honestly say, that if I go through each of these steps, I am generally quite satisfied with the items that end up on my door step. Yea, paying for shipping sucks, but being able to weed through things and really think through a purchase rocks. It virtually eliminates impulse buys and keeps my wallet (more) full. Sometimes I do step away again before I buy or ask a friend what they think somewhere along the way. But its not always true, so I didn't include that in my 11 steps. So yea, this is my process when I shop online.

Do you have a particular process for shopping online? Are there certain things you *must* do before you buy?

Post of Many Names

2011-02-07T07:00:00.003-05:00

This post could go by several names: To my mother, Where the Sidewalk Ends, The Little Post that Almost Wasn't, Third time's the charm. . . Essentially, I wrote the post about my mom over a week ago. It took wearing the outfit 3 times (yes I do laundry) to finally get decent pictures, something I wasn't sure would happen. The sidewalk behind me literally ends right there. So yea, here goes. (finally)
I (originally) wore this outfit a week and a half ago on Thursday when I went on a quick grocery trip. I actually wore it that night and decided to recreate the outfit so that I could get good pictures (again). But that's not the point of the post. This is about my mom. (When I originally put the outfit together) I was standing in my closet and grabbed my new pair of black jeggings. I knew I wanted to wear them with my new Tsubo Hepti booties. But then, what else to wear? I didn't want to be weighed down by a coat, so I looked in my sweater section of my closet. I decided to go with this soft caramel colored sweater. And, yes, it used to be my mom's. This was also part of the haul that my sister brought me after her Christmas break.

I've always loved this sweater. The color is a soft neutral that works with everything. It is also the perfect length. A lot of sweaters that I've seen lately are way too long for me. I get that a lot of tall ladies prefer the availability of long sweaters and shorter gals may like long sweaters with leggings, but for a short curvy gal like me, a shorter sweater works best with skirts and pants. To add to the list of awesome characteristics, this sweater isn't all that bulky either. Its not skin tight, but it does highlight my figure. All in all, I love this sweater.

Naturally when I grabbed this sweater I was thinking about my mom. In fact, my mom probably wore some version of this outfit 20-30 years ago. Thinking that makes me feel connected to her, even though she is several hundred miles and several hours worth of a plan ride away. Little did I know when I threw on the sweater and stepped out my door that she would end up text messaging me. Apparently my poor mother has a kidney stone (still) and spent all of that Thursday in the Emergency Room. They gave her pain killers, but she expressly told my sister and me that she would rather give birth to several babies in a row than have to deal with a kidney stone. While it was hilarious to hear her say this, I felt really bad. She's so far away and only has my dad to take care of her. I know they're adults and have lived on their own for a while, but I feel at least marginally guilty that I can't be there to help her out.

Isn't the zipper just killer?

If you want to know the story about these booties--Check out my review of them here.

Do you feel connected to people through your clothes? Is your closet a way to feel close to your loved ones?

The Details:

Sweater: Carara (thrifted) Similar Also Similar

Jeggings: Old Navy

Booties: Tsubo Hepti in Dark Chocolate Suede/Terracota And for a limited time $2.95 flat rate shipping from 2/1 to 2/14!

Tsubo Hepti Review

2011-02-03T12:15:00.001-05:00

Let me tell you about these booties. When booties first came into fashion, I was not their biggest fan. Its not that I didn't like them, I just figured I wouldn't participate. Then, several weeks ago, Tiffany of I am Style-ish had a post in which she was wearing a pair of really cute booties. A day or so later, Sally of Already Pretty posted on Twitter that 6pm.com was having a sale on Tsubo shoes. I've heard plenty of wonderful things about Tsubo shoes and boots from both Sally and Audi of Fashion for Nerds. So I clicked over to 6pm.com and marveled at all the beautiful Tsubo shoes they have available. I thought of getting the Tsubo Eini in Red/Metallic Dark Grey, Tsubo Nabu in Black/Light Grey, or Tsubo Acrea in Mecca/Chartreuse. In the end I chose the Heptis because they were different and I need a new pair of brown boots and I kept thinking of Tiffany's post when I looked at the Heptis. So I called mom to see if I could use the remaining of my Christmas money on shoes, got the go ahead and ordered them.

They arrived within the week and it was love at first sight. Luckily I checked out others' reviews so I knew to order a half size larger than I normally wear. They are really comfortable and I can barely feel that they have a 3 inch heel. The metallic orange inside adds a funky touch that only I am privy to. All in all, I would definitely recommend these booties. They do have a 3 inch heel, so if you're not used to wearing heels over 2 inches, I might reconsider. Also they're suede. I am planning on spraying them to protect them, but I would not wear these out in the slushy winter weather some of you are experiencing.
And guess what guys--Today only: Tsubo Shoes Up to 70% off! at 6pm.com . In fact, the Tsubo Heptis are $43.50! In addition, 6pm.com is offering Heart to Heart Shipping Promotion - $2.95 flat rate shipping from 2/1 to 2/14!

*This review was neither asked for or compensated for*

I Feel Pretty!

2011-02-02T12:22:00.000-05:00

Like I mentioned in my previous post, last night the Fiance had a work event to go to. The thing is, the day was full of a lot of other stuff before I could even think about getting ready. Normally, he takes the car and I stay home to study all day. But because the event was at a hotel in town, it made more sense for me to take him to work and then afterward pick him up to go straight to the shindig. Except that after I took him to work, I went and got a flu shot. It took a good hour and a half to get in for a 2 minute thing, but since insurance covered it, I feel like it was worth it.

Anyway, so on my way home, I stopped to get my eyebrows waxed. While I've been studying I haven't really cared much for grooming them. Sure they're on my face and highly visible, but its such a pain to pluck them. So I've let them grow out. I used the event as an excuse to get them waxed. A friend had recommended this hair salon, so I went online and checked out their prices. Since I would get charged the same thing at the mall, I figured I would go to the salon instead. I got there and was impressed by the salon. Their prices are reasonable and the salon itself is beautiful. I asked if I could get my eyebrows done and within minutes I was headed to the back to get my eyebrows waxed. The esthetician was really nice and friendly. She asked me if I wanted them cleaned up or shaped and I said yes to both. I think they turned out excellent. I would definitely recommend checking out Tanglez Hair Salon if you're ever in the Wilmington (NC) area and are in need of getting your eyebrows waxed.

So after I finally made it home I had to put the Fiance's clothes together so that he could change in the car after work. Then it was time for me to decide what to wear. Monday I had picked out 3 outfits and I let him choose which one I should wear. Since it was his event, I thought it was only fair for him to decide what I should wear. He chose this Talbots dress that I bought using my Talbots dividends last fall.

I got to decide on the accessories. Even though its 66 and raining today, last night was pretty chilly so no bare legs. I went with my Merona polka dot tights to keep me warm and add a bit of a youthful flair to my LBD. To keep the theme of unexpectness going, I went with these burgundy pumps. (Let's ignore that the mirror I used for this is not 100% clean and reflective, k?)
These pumps were my Christmas present from the Fiance. I had been stalking them online for quite some time, and then mid-November they went on sale for 50% off with free shipping. I got him to order them for me and they arrived about 2 weeks before Christmas. *I* wanted to open the box and try them on. He wouldn't let me! So I waited until Christmas day to open them. And lo and behold, I thought they were too tight. I was a wee bit perturbed as I could have tried them on and gone to the mall to check out the sizes all before Christmas. In the end, I dragged him to the mall to try on the shoes on in 9.5. These ended up being too big. The lovely lady behind the counter was able to stretch out the 9s for me so that they were no longer tight. Hooray for great service!

Serendipity!

So, let me tell you about my hair. Since I washed my hair a few hours before having to leave the house, I had to figure out something to do real quick. After washing and putting in my Hana Shine Shield leave-in, I threw my hair up in a towel to dry for a bit. Once it was dry, I finger combed some mousse into it and dried my whole head with a diffuser. The result was a lot of curls and a lot of body. Unfortunately, it was also a lot of frizz. I felt kind of Hermione-ish. So I put my hair in a Clever Clip, ironed my bangs and decided that that would be good enough if I couldn't do something cute with my hair. I ran out of the house with my hair up, resigned to wearing it up. After picking up the Fiance I undid the clip and amazingly, my hair turned out beautifully! I have no idea how it happened or why I was blessed with this serendipity, but I even *felt* pretty. And that is HUGE. So off we went to the Fiance's event looking and feeling great!

The Details:

Dress: Talbots (no longer available) Similar with Belt, Similar, Similar with Sleeves, Also Similar

Tights: Target Available Here

Heels: Nine West Available Here (not in burgundy)

Earrings: ?

Coat: Tahari (consignment store) Similar Shape

Fancy!

2011-02-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

So the Fiance had a work banquet thing to go to yesterday and I got to be all fancy. Here's a sneak peak. . .

Playa

2011-01-31T07:00:00.002-05:00

We went to the beach again yesterday. It was warm and sunny and fantastic! We took a long 30 minute walk, sat around for a while, then walked back toward the car. I had a whole long post in my head detailing how I got to picking out this maxi dress, but, well, I'll save it for some other time.

The Details:

Maxi Dress: Target Same Dress in Purple

and in Blue and yet more!

T-shirt: Old Navy Similar

Cardigan: Target Similar with Frills

Shoes: Target Super Similar

Earrings: gift

Sunglasses: Guess

Jumping for joy at the weather!

Friend Friday: Blogger Mechanics

2011-01-28T17:25:00.000-05:00

Since I recently wrote a post on this subject, I figured I would join in the Friend Friday post by ModlyChic.

1. What technology do you use in blogging?

I use my camera,a Canon PowerShot SX-20IS Digital Camera. Its considered somewhere between an SLR and a point and shoot digital camera. I got it because of the flip out screen that makes taking self-portraits significantly easier. I also have a full sized tripod.

2. What computer and online technology do you use?

I use my Dell computer to write all of my posts. My blog is hosted by Blogger and I use Picasa and Google Photos for my photos. To edit my photos I normally just use Picasa, but every once in a while I'll use Photoshop Elements that came with my computer.

3. What is your process for taking pictures?

I set up my camera on the tripod and take a few test pictures to make sure that I've got all the settings right. Then I set the timer, flip out the screen, and run in front of the camera. I take a few pictures then check to see how they've been turning out. I then take more pictures until I'm happy with at least 3 or 4 of them and head back inside.

4. When it comes to backdrops for your photos what do you consider? Do you scout locations or shoot the same spot daily?

It depends. For the past few months I've been taking pictures at night on my front porch. Since I got tired of doing that, I've tried to take pictures outside around the house during daylight. I do, almost always, take pictures outside, though. My house doesn't have the best lighting and there isn't a corner with enough light that is also neat in the house for me to take pictures inside.

5. If you could splurge and get one new piece of equipment what would you be buying?

I'm about 100% sure that my camera doesn't support a remote, but if it did, I would want one. Barring that, then maybe a course on how to use photoshop elements.

Weekend!

2011-01-28T07:00:00.001-05:00

Since the weekend is just around the corner, I wanted to share with you all what we did last weekend. (Kind of late, I know) A friend of mine that lives in town recently had her dog move in with her from her parent's house. She wanted to take Buddy to the beach and asked us if we wanted to take Bella too. Of course we said yes and headed towards the beach with Bella in tow.

Posing

Getting her to sit for the camera

While there, my plan was to take beautiful outfit pictures with the ocean and dunes as my background. Complete Fail. The temperature was around 48. In my mind it would feel like a brisk 50. With the wind it felt like an awfully cold 40 instead. I got the Fiance to take some pictures anyway in hopes of having *something* worth posting.
After we got to the car we defrosted and once we got home we planted some trees I got for free at the mall on Saturday. All in all, it was a great outing hanging out with a friend I haven't seen in a few months and taking Bella to the beach. Hopefully the next time we go it won't be nearly as cold.

Bare feet was a stupid idea.

Bella had no problem posing despite the cold and wind.

Look! An outfit under the track jacket!

Weird pose while being cold.

We did manage to see some dolphins though. The Fiance was seeing if Bella would approach the water (she didn't) and called out to us that there were dolphins. I pulled out my camera and managed to get a few pictures. I completely missed the dolphin that surfed a wave--but these turned out pretty nicely.

Special Offer!

2011-01-27T17:54:00.001-05:00

eShakti recently contacted me to offer a special promotion to my readers. From now until February 28, 2011, by using the code LAWSCHOOL2011 at checkout, you will receive a 20% discount at eShakti! It can be used on any number of purchases you make until then. It is, however, an exclusive code and cannot be used in addition with any other offer, gift certificate or promotion.
Since this is such an awesome deal, I figured I would also show you what *I* would purchase. Below are some blouses, skirts and dresses with accessories that just scream romantic to me. Any of these looks would be great for a certain romantic holiday coming up (if you celebrate it, that is.) And if you want to check out my review of eShakti, here it is.

eShakti by lawschoolfashionista featuring crystal jewelry

Buttoned shawl collar dress - eShakti.com, $70
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $60
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $55
Triple layer pearl necklace - eShakti.com, $30
Crystal stretch bracelet - eShakti.com, $30
Copper enamel blue stone pendant necklace - eShakti.com, $20
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $50
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $43
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $40
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $40
Wavy square bangles - set of 3 - eShakti.com, $20
eShakti - Shop Women’s designer fashion dresses, tops| Size 0-26W..., $18

Edited to Add: I do not get any payment if you use the code. I recommend eShakti because *I* like it and *I* appreciate having clothes tailor made.

Envy

2011-01-26T07:00:00.007-05:00

I've been kind of jealous of bloggers that are able to take such very pretty pictures for their blogs. Since my pictures are taken by me + a tripod, they don't always turn out that pretty. In fact, watching me take pictures is pretty funny, so I imagine. This is my process: I set up my camera on the tripod, set up the camera settings, take a quickie shot to make sure that everything is right. Then I set the timer and run up in front of the camera, pose and the picture is taken. Repeat 6-10 times. After I take a few pictures, I check the ones I've taken to make sure they're ok. If they are I take a couple more if its not too cold. If they're crap, well I have to take a few more and hope that I won't freeze to death. With my ridiculous little routine and that as of late all my pictures have been taken at night on my porch, well my pictures aren't great. Now while my porch is very nice, the lighting and background just isn't that pretty. So I end up with kind of meh pictures.

Rather than continuing to be jealous, which is a waste of time and energy anyway, I decided to do something about my pictures. I thought for a while on what makes others' pictures so pretty and interesting and on what I could do to change up mine. I figured out that its a combination of lighting, background and placement. I'm still doing the tripod routine, so I can't change the placement of photographs. But instead of taking pictures at night, I plan on taking them when there's still light out.
These, for example, I took just as the sun was setting. And most importantly, I took them out in the field next to my house. The combination of the beautiful light and the pastoral setting made a difference. I realized that what I really need to do to keep my pictures pretty is to plan them out better rather than just run outside real quick and take a few pictures then run right back inside. I know that it'll be easier while I'm at home studying. I'm not sure how it'll work when I'm back at work. But I'm sure I'll figure it out.

This outfit is a mix of new and old. I've had this coat for a few years. I got it for Christmas a few years ago from my parents. When I got it I wasn't sure about the shape of the coat at first. But eventually the color and toggles won me over, so I decided to keep it. The mock turtleneck is also from my mom. Remember when I said that my sister brought back a bunch of clothes from Puerto Rico? This sweater is one of the items she got brought me. Generally I'm not a fan of anything turtlneck-like, but this sweater is pretty ok for the most part as the neck has been stretched out enough for me. One of the benefits of hand me downs.

The pants, on the other hand, are brand new. I got them when I went to Old Navy last week. Like a lot of people, when I get something new I just *have* to wear it right away. There are a few things that I'll just let chill in my closet, like a vintage wine, waiting for the right moment to pull it out. But for the most part, I believe clothing should be worn. And if its new its just too hard to not wear it right away.

When something is new to your closet, do you wear it right away or let it chill for a while?

The Details:

Coat: Old Navy (gift from parents) Similar Coat with Wood Toggles and Similar Shape

Cargo pants: Old Navy

Gold Turtle Neck: Josephine Chaus (from mom) Perfect Replica In Cashmere

Boots: Target

P.S. If you'd like to see another blogger's take on pics in a field, visit Katie of Interrobangs Annonymous.

Ethics of Blogging

2011-01-25T14:52:00.000-05:00

I follow lots of blogs and sometimes forget where an idea came from. Lucky for me there's a search feature in Google Reader that generally gets me out of a conundrum and lets me give credit where credit is due. Nonetheless, I found this post by Design*Sponge to be really useful. Grace offers advice on how to deal with negative comments, giving credit for photographs and protecting your work. Here's just a small bit of her helpful advice:

Knowing your rights is a big part of dealing with this issue. Original content is copyrighted the moment you write it on your blog. You can go to the extra effort to work with a copyright lawyer and copyright your content on a yearly basis, but most people are fine with the copyright level that you get from writing something online with your name attached. Beyond that, you may want to be informed about where your content is being run online without your permission or without you knowing it.

Read more at Design*Sponge http://www.designspongeonline.com/2011/01/biz-ladies-online-ethics-etiquette-part-1.html#ixzz1C4uPI8LZ

I definitely recommend you click on over and read her post. I'm definitely going to take advantage of some of her suggestions, like using Tynt. Have you ever had an ethical problem while blogging? Anyone stolen your content? How have you dealt with it?

New Sponsor!

2011-01-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to let you all know that Law School Fashionista has a new sponsor: Misikko.com.

Also, if you would like to sponsor Law School Fashionista, email me! Rates are reasonable and flexible.

Shopping Karma

2011-01-24T07:00:00.003-05:00

If you follow me on twitter, you know that I went shopping last Wednesday. And guys, I got *really* lucky. Old Navy is not a store I normally shop at. Its been a long time since anything in the store fit me well and so I pretty much gave up on it. It came out of my shopping rotation slowly as I tend to really like their style, but the fit just wasn't there. But since I found the skinny cords that I'm wearing in these pictures, I decided I would give it another try. So Wednesday evening we headed in to town and the Fiance dropped me off at Old Navy while he went to get his hair cut. My purpose for the shopping expedition was to find more casual non-blue jean pants.

I made a beeline for the Clearance section and got LUCKY. Everything in the clearance section was an additional 40% off of the ticketed price. My first trip to the dressing room consisted of a few pairs of pants. Only the skinny cords in blue fit. The second time through the Clearance section though, I hit jackpot. I found a really cute bird and leaf print dress, light pink cardigan, skinny gray cargo pants and black jeggings. Since everything was on clearance and the last time I went to Old Navy I got one of those surveys on the receipt that give you 10% off, everything was way cheap. All in all I left Old Navy with 3 pairs of pants, a cardigan and a dress for about $25 and change. How awesome is that?

Anyway, this is what I wore to go on my quest. Normally when I go shopping I think of the ease of getting into and out of a fitting room. Despite taking that into consideration, I decided to go with my knee high boots anyway. They're easy to slip on and off and since earlier in the day it had rained, I didn't have to worry about wet feet or hems. They were a smidge annoying in the dressing room, but really, aren't most shoes other than flip flops?

When it came down to the jewelry though, I got stuck. I was looking in the mirror and all I could think was "This outfit needs some sparkle." I looked through my jewelry and didn't find exactly what I wanted, but figured this necklace would do in a pinch. I've never worn it before as its an odd shape. I think it ended up being the right amount of sparkle and the perfect piece for this U-shaped neckline. I got the necklace when I ordered some hair clips from the Sew Lovely etsy shop. She was kind enough to add this necklace in as a surprise bonus to my order.

What do you wear when you go shopping? Found any spectacular deals lately?

The Details:

Sweater: Loft Similar, Similar color and style Similar Color in a cardigan

Pants: Old Navy Similar Skinnies

Boots: Target Really Similar, Also Similar

Necklace: gift Etsy

Sunglasses: Guess by way of Marshalls

Similar Also Similar
These aren't really similar, but I kind of want them.

Sticking to it

2011-01-21T07:00:00.004-05:00

Since staying home full time to study, I've been working out a lot. By a lot I mean like every day. This is *so* out of character for me. I've pledged plenty of times that I would workout more often or that I would lose a certain amount of weight. Pledging and doing are two different things, however. This time around, I'm doing. I've known for years that I should workout more. That the health benefits far outweigh the discomfort of getting off my ass and working out. Its just that there was always something I could blame as being in my way. If it wasn't studying, then it was working,or I was too tired or there was much more interesting tv to watch, etc. I just let the excuses add up. So its no surprise that it was nearly impossible for me to stick to some sort of routine.

This time around things are different. I think its because I'm at home all day long and time isn't such an obstacle. That and working out ends up being a break from the grind of studying. I know that working out every day won't last. Once I take the bar and go back to working, its going to be hard to work out 3 days a week, let alone 6. Nonetheless, I think this time at home studying will serve as a sort of reset. By making it a daily activity, I hope that working out will become habit. A good habit. One that will not just change the physical appearance of my body, but will change my health for the better. Speaking of changing my body, I've already lost 2.5 inches around my waist and another 5 pounds from my last weight plateau. Being able to see these changes already makes it a lot easier to stick to my routine. I can see my accomplishment taking shape so it makes me want to keep at it. I want to lose my tummy pooch and lose more weight and just get tone and fit all over. What's your favorite way to keep to a workout schedule? What's your favorite way to exercise?

Closeup of Yoga Pants

Because of my new found devotion to working out I figured I would need a workout wardrobe. I invested in a pair of Old Navy Yoga pants to add to my really old black yoga pants that I've had for years. (I honestly have no idea how long I've had them.) In addition my little sister got me a long sleeve workout top for Christmas. (not pictured) This pink top was also a gift. My friend Claudia entered a Glamour giveaway and won the top. It was too big for her, so she offered it to me. Its a wee bit too big for me around the waist, but fits the boobs just fine.
Here I'm also wearing a pseudo-thrifted item. Some of my sister's friends visited my parents a year or so ago and one of them left this track jacket. My sister offered it to me and I've been wearing it when I walk outside in the cold. Its pretty great as I'm able to throw on some thin layers to keep me warm without being bulky. I also get to add to my slowly growing workout wardrobe. So that's a plus. Do you too also use a new activity as an excuse for getting clothes? (I'm sure I'm not the only one!)

The Details:

Top: Champion Double Dry Seamless Vented Tee Available Here and Similar Here and Here

Yoga Pants: Old Navy Available Here and Disco Pattern Here

Track Jacket: Old Navy Similar and More Here

Sneakers: Reebok Easy Tone Available Here and

Other Colors Here

Review--L.L.Bean

2011-01-19T07:48:00.001-05:00

My parents gave me $100 to spend on their credit card for my Christmas present. So I turned to online sales and decided I would try ordering from L.L. Bean. I've never been interested in them before, but when I got my new ruffly blazer from Coldwater Creek, it came with an L.L.Bean catalog. I really liked some of their sweaters, so when it came to spending Christmas money, I went to their website and found an amazing sale. I ended up getting the Camden Wool Jacket in a navy herringbone pattern and two of the cotton/cashmere blend sweater vests in black and grey stripes as well as in marine green.

Review: L.L.Bean by lawschoolfashionista featuring coats

Sweaters and Sweatshirts: Women's at L.L.Bean, $25
Sweaters and Sweatshirts: Women's at L.L.Bean, $20
Jackets and Coats: Women's at L.L.Bean, $50
Amazon.com: 4x6 / 4 x 6 Triple Picture Frame Gold Wood with Antique..., $7.69

      You guys, the Jacket's shipping box was amazing! It came in a jacket all on its own with inserts to make sure that the jacket kept its shape. I was WAY impressed. You know what else impressed me? L.L.Bean's customer service. When I was figuring out sizing I did the online chat thing and the person on the other end was able to give me garment measurements so that I could figure out what size to buy. It was incredibly helpful.
   Here's the thing, I ordered my stuff Jan 4 and lo and behold a couple of days later, all the items I ordered were further reduced. At first I got mad. I mean, really? Did they HAVE to reduce their prices so I felt robbed? But then! I remembered their awesome customer service from when I was shopping. So I went back on L.L.Bean's website and opened up the chat dialog and asked if I could get a price reduction on the further reduced prices. And I got it! I saved myself a total of $17 just from asking! So the moral of the story is ask, because the worst thing that could happen is that they'll say no. It really is a great motto for life too. No one else is going to ask on your behalf. People won't just give you things if they don't know that you need or want them. The only way to make your needs or wants or expectations known is to tell or ask someone. And you never know what you'll get unless you ask.
     So. . . ask away! Anything you've wanted to ask me but didn't have the chance to? Here's your chance! Ask away and I'll do my best to respond to questions in the comments below.

*This post was not asked for nor compensated for. All opinions are my own.*

Smash!

2011-01-17T07:23:00.001-05:00

Ya know what one of my favorite parts of blogging has been? Crashing through self-imposed boundaries. This outfit, for example, crashes through SEVERAL. Let's go down the list, shall we?
1. Long Flowy top. Normally I steer way the hell away from these types of tops. I have big boobs and flowy tops just make me look big. Because there's no defined waist, flowy tops just hang down from my largest part, the boobs and make it look like the rest of me is that big. In reality, I have a much smaller waist. I got this pink pin-tucked top when my sister returned from my parent's house with it over her Christmas break. Mom didn't wear it ever so she asked if I wanted it. I said sure not knowing how big the top would be. I had no idea how to wear it until I asked Sally in the comments to this post.
2. Super skinny pants. As mentioned above, I have big boobs. Normally I prefer to balance them out with wider leg pants. Skinny pants tend to make me look like I'm a big ball balanced on itty bitty toothpicks. Not the cutest look overall. But I got these pants anyway. I've wanted pants that I could easily tuck into boots without squishing them up around my ankles. When I went to Old Navy a couple of weekends ago I stumbled upon the sales rack and found that the super skinny cords were on sale for $8.79! So of course I tried them on, figured out that they fit into my boots easily and got them. The other advantage to these pants is that I didn't have any non-jean casual pants before I got them. Besides, why not try out a trend for less than $10?
3. Denim jacket. I've owned this jacket for years. I may have worn it once before. The reason is that I'm not a big fan of denim on denim. A denim suit just doesn't do it for me. And since I didn't own non-denim casual pants before these skinnies, there wasn't anything for me to wear my denim jacket with. Until now that is.
When you add all these together you get the outfit to the right. And let me tell you, I love it! Part of it is the look and a whole other part is that I've crashed through some self-imposed boundaries all at the same time with some great results.

The Details:

Denim Jacket: Old Navy Women's Denim Jacket

Blouse:Antilia Femme Similar in Black or in Pink

Skinny Corduroy Pants: Old Navy

Boots: Candie's Similar Boots

Disclosure Statement

2011-01-17T07:06:00.000-05:00

    I love blogging. I really do. I get to share my thoughts with you and get some great responses in return. The thing is, blogging doesn't pay, normally. Sure I could accept payments to review products, but that's not my style. I prefer to give you my independent opinion, good, bad or in between, and not feel beholden to anyone in the process. I have, in the past reviewed products that have been sent to me as gifts and given you my opinions on those. In fact, I've reviewed things I've bought myself just to share my experiences with you. And at the bottom of every such post I make sure to let you all know exactly what's going on. This post is doing the same thing.
     I've decided to try to make a little bit of money off my blog. In the next few days, for example, you'll see that I'll have a blog sponsor for the next 6 months. In addition, I've created affiliate links with a few companies. When I give you "The Details" in my outfit posts, I'll also be linking to similar or the same items that you can click through to and purchase. If you chose to do so, I will get a small commission on these sales in return. Linked items labeled as “similar” are as close as possible to what I’m actually wearing. If whatever I have on is still available for sale, I will always link directly to it, even if I can’t create an affiliate link that will earn me income. I also have ads in the column to the right that will earn money for the blog with each impression or click through.
     I hope that you know that I'm not selling out or trying to push purchases on you. I'll still be the same chick figuring out how to get from law school to be a lawyer and sharing my journey with you. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask by email or in the comments. It is my goal to always be open with you.
<3, A-C

My New Theme Song

2011-01-14T21:18:00.000-05:00

Miss Piggy does empowerment

My Closet

2011-01-14T07:24:00.001-05:00

"A place for everything and everything in its place"

One of the best parts of our move in August is the master bedroom closet. It is HUGE! The Fiance and I divided it up more or less up the middle and we each have more space than we did in the old house combined. For this I am *very* grateful. Unfortunately, its allowed me to keep a lot of stuff that I need to go through and get rid of. But that's not what this post is about. This is about how I organize my closet. I saw this post on Kendi Everyday and figured I would show you my closet too.

This past weekend The Fiance suggested we organize the closet better. For the most part it was fine, but he wanted to put some towels in the closet. So we switched around his shoes and I put my belts on hooks behind the door. This freed up space on the built in shelves in the closet. I took advantage of the extra freed up space to fold some bulky sweaters that work best folded than hung up. One of the shelves is mine to put my bras and other under things on. I've found that bras last longer if I have a shelf to lay them on. In this picture you'll also notice that I have a step ladder in my closet. Its not because we couldn't figure out another place to store it. Rather its because I'm short. I can reach almost everything in the closet EXCEPT for the very top shelf where I've been storing my scarves. Smart, right? I'm looking for somewhere else or another way to store them, any ideas?

The other thing that I have plenty of is shoes. I am lucky enough to have a shoe rack where all of my heels fit. Believe it or not they're also organized in a specific way. The top row is work heels, ie the ones I wear most often. The second row is heels that I wear every once in a while and the bottom row is special occasion heels along with those that are currently not in season like my gold thong sandal heels. Sadly, not all of my shoes fit in it. I have a few pairs of boots that don't fit. They're found laying on the floor under my pants, long skirts and suits.

This last picture shows another aspect of using all the available wall space to my advantage. Like hanging my belts in the picture above, I've been hanging my pins and brooches. I have been using the little doll face my aunt made and sent me for this use. Its always fun to look in my closet and see that happy little face smiling back at me. If you're interested in having a smiley face brooch holder of your very own, I'll be posting them and several other crafties on Etsy this weekend. This wall is also where I've placed my laundry hamper. In our old house there wasn't enough room in the closet to put both my and The Fiance's closet and stand in it at the same time, so I really appreciate being able to put EVERYTHING I need and want in our closet and still have room left over to actually get dressed in there.
Despite having all this room, there is a whole bunch of other clothes that I store in a chest of drawers in the bedroom. Luckily for me my chest of drawers doubles as the stereo stand and The Fiance's chest of drawers doubles as the TV stand, so its not like they're in the way. The clothes that gets stored in there is stuff like socks, undies, PJs and T-shirts. Now that I've shown you how I organize my clothes and shoes, its your turn. How do you organize your clothes? How often do you revamp your organizational methods? Found something that you just can't live without and are dying to share?

And by the way, see the little button to the right of this post? I would *really* appreciate it if you nominated me for the About.com Reader's Choice Awards in the category of Favorite Fashion Blog 2010.

Comfy Jewels

2011-01-12T07:49:00.001-05:00

I was looking through my Picasa album to figure out what pictures I hadn't posted yet and found these from November. I have no idea why I didn't post them at the time. Maybe because I took them in the kitchen instead of on the porch? I don't know.
This is one of my favorite big comfy sweaters. It is exactly as it seems, warm, big and comfy. The perfect attributes to a sweater, as far as I'm concerned. Little did I know when I purchased this sweater, that it is also the perfect color for me. According to this article from Shine on Yahoo, its the perfect color for me. I've read several articles all over the place that claim to tell me what colors are best for me. None of them have ever made sense to me. This one, because of its simplicity, does. After reading through the article, I determined that I'm a Sunrise and as such jewel tone colors are supposed to look best on me.

Sunrise: “In the morning, the sunrise palette colors are clear, clean and crisp,” says Eiseman. “Primarily blue undertones evolve into jewel tones.”
Coloring : Fair-skinned, dark-haired brunettes; fair-skinned silver-haired women; fair-skinned cool blondes; dark, blue-black skin tones with dark hair; and olive skin with dark hair.
Palette : Shimmering jewel-tones like emerald, sapphire, aquamarine and amethyst.

Messy kitchen over my right shoulder!

I guess it makes sense. I mean the sweater does look good, right? And I am most definitely a fair-skinned dark-haired brunette that can occasionally be an olive skin chick with dark hair. I'm not 100% convinced that these are the *only* colors that look good on me, but they are some of my favorite to wear. So I guess this color scheme is a good place to start. Its not, however, a reason to throw out all my pink, black, white or red tops though. Just a starting point.

If you've been looking for a color scheme to help you figure out your best colors, because of its simplicity, I definitely recommend the article as a starting point. If, however, you know what you look good in, then it probably really won't rock your world any, but it might be a good read anyway. Are you a sunrise, sunset or sunlight?

The Details:

Sweater: Target

Tee: NY&Co

Pants: Gap

Heels: Aldo

Necklace: Banana Republic Outlet

"new" to me

2011-01-10T08:12:00.001-05:00

This outfit makes me really happy, and there are a couple of reasons for it. First, its makes me happy because 2 of the items, the sweater and jacket, are "new-ish" to me, but not new. You see, my little sister spent her Christmas break at my parent's house in Puerto Rico. While there, she rummaged through my closet as well as my mom's and brought me back some of her plunder. This jacket, for example, has been hanging in my closet at home for years. I bought it on a whim because it was on sale and never wore it. Seriously, when I got it from my sister the tags were still on it. This time around, though, I knew exactly how I wanted to style it, which by the way, was my problem when I got it. I just didn't know how to wear it, nor did it really fit into my life at the time as an Undergrad.

In fact, this is the second reason why I love this outfit. I've seen plenty of women rock jackets as part of their outfits and not just as outerwear. I have tried to recreate the look, but I just didn't have the right jacket in my arsenal, until now. This jacket does exactly what I want it to. It fits really well and goes from outside to inside without a problem. And it fits my life now. I'm in a position where wearing a jacket and a sweater looks put together AND appropriate. It totally dresses up the jeans and boots combo. Did I mention that it made me feel pretty? What sorts of clothes and outfits make you feel pretty and put together?

Bella posing while I take pics.

The Details:
Jacket: Wilson Leather
Sweater: NY&Co.
Jeans: Old Navy
Boots: Candie's

EDIT: My mom called me to tell me I look great in these pictures! She even said I look skinny! :D

Year in Review

2011-01-07T07:39:00.000-05:00

2010 was a big year for me, I graduated from law school, took the bar, failed it, started my first legal job, moved and turned 26. Here's a look at my favorite outfits of 2010.


January


February

Air Force A-C

2011-01-05T16:25:00.000-05:00

     I put this outfit together and immediately felt like a female Air Force officer out of the 1940s. I didn't mean it that way, but so much khaki and that collar just sort of made it that way. I got the dress months ago and just couldn't figure out how to wear it. I got it at a consignment store over the summer and at that time it was too warm for think 3/4 sleeves. Then it was fall and I thought there was just too much khaki and I needed to break it up. Being that fall here is pretty mild, layering a cardigan would have been too much. Then finally it was winter and cold enough to wear it, but. . .
    The skirt is just too long. It's been tough to put together an outfit. I kept wanting to wear it with heels but my legs would be cut off. Even this iteration of the dress isn't great as my legs look stumpy. Nonetheless, I prefer the boots look over the heels look. I think its because while wearing boots + tights, its ok not to see someone's knees. Anyway, I'm going to see about hemming this dress. I think it will just be more flattering if it hits me just under the knee rather than mid-upper-calf. I also think that I would like to add a tulle skirt ala Audi's outfit under this dress to add some floof and interest to the dress. It would probably fit with the vintage vibe that I get from the dress too.
If you've been following me on Twitter (@lawfashionista) then you'll know that I've already begun studying for the bar exam again. As a way to better concentrate on studying, I've stopped working and will only be studying for the next 7 weeks. This means that I won't be getting dressed to go to work. I'm not sure what that will mean for the blog. I have plenty of backdated outfits to put up and I'm sure when I go on errands I'll change out of my sweats, but don't be surprised if I end up writing posts about how awesome sweats and PJ pants are to study in. As I figure out a good workable schedule while I'm studying I may not be on a predictable posting schedule. For the meantime, the bar is my #1, 2 and 3 priority, so that comes first. The advantage of my being home, of course, is that I have more time to work out, so maybe I'll end up posting about how awesome that is. We'll see. Just wanted to give you all a head's up. Any tips or suggestions on how not to get stressed when studying a humongous test?

The Details:
Dress: Consignment
Cardigan: Target
Boots: Target
Tank: Old Navy

Polka dots!

2010-12-29T09:57:00.000-05:00

Ready for Court

I got these tights late last Spring at a time when I didn't feel like wearing tights anymore. Nonetheless, I've been dying to wear them and finally was able to a few weeks ago.

Closeup of Tights

Silhouette

The Details:

Cardigan:

Blazer: JCPenney

Blouse: The Limited

Skirt: NY&Co.

Belt: Target

Tights: Target

Heels: Aldo

Ruffles and Stuff

2010-12-27T20:12:00.000-05:00

First the Ruffles:

This outfit is from a few weeks ago. In fact, its from before I got my hair cut. I've had this blouse for a little over a year, but am often hesitant to wear it. While I love the ruffles on it, I'm often afraid that the ruffles add a bit too much va-va-voom to my figure. That and the elastic bottom of the top just isn't my favorite. To me it seems like all the extra fabric above the elastic adds volume to my body in an area where I don't want more volume. In order to counteract this effect, I added a cardigan that hits at exactly the right spot. The cardigan "hides" the extra volume and keeps the top part of the outfit close to my body. That and the blue + purple combination just makes me happy. Double win.

The Details:
Blouse: Target
Cardigan: Target
Pants: Gap
Heels: Nine West

Now on to the stuff:

I hope you all had a great Christmas holiday, if that is what you celebrate that is. We went to The Fiance's parent's house for part of the weekend. Of course we took Bella and had a very nice time. I love going to visit them as they have been the nearest family for most of the past few years. Luckily my sister moved to within 2 hours from us in August, so that's a plus. But of course, my parents still live in Puerto Rico, a rather long set of flights away, so closeness of family is important to me.

Aside from seeing family, we also had snow! It doesn't snow here a lot, and it definitely didn't snow as much as it did where I went to law school. Nonetheless, snow is snow, and snow makes me happy. Its so fun and makes everything, even sad dead trees look pretty and clean.
On a not so happy note, I've begun to study for the bar again. At the moment its just plain boring. But I'm about 10,000% sure that at some point over the next 2 months I'll get really depressed because I'm going over the same thing I did this summer and even with all that studying I failed. For some this is going to sound whiney, but I've never failed anything in my life. I've been nothing but a great student my whole life. And then I failed the most important test I've ever taken. I've been trying not to throw myself a pity party since I got my results, but some days its really really hard not to. On days when I'm reminded by how much my bills are or how hard it is to pay off my car or cable bill or anything else, then I feel really awful. Essentially it goes like this:

Bad thing (normally a big bill)--> Can't pay it b/c don't have the $ for it --> It's all my fault b/c I failed the bar --> feel like shit.

When the cycle of feeling like crap begins, I know exactly how it will end, normally me in tears or pissed off at myself or both, AND its all but impossible to stop. I feel tremendously guilty that The Fiance and I are in this position. Everything was depending on my passing the bar and becoming a licensed attorney and since that didn't happen in August, well, life has been hard. For example, even though I want to give him the world, all I could afford to give the Fiance for Christmas was a Fantasia Blu-ray and a SERIOUSLY down-priced iPhone 3GS. He got me a pair of shoes that were 50% off.
     I know I should count my blessings and be happy that I'm not alone in this mess and that we're both healthy and have jobs. But its really hard to feel that way when there have been times the past couple months when I wasn't sure how I would be paying rent or health insurance or much of anything else.
Our situation has improved, luckily. The Fiance started working at the beginning of November so that put an end to the several months where I was the only one working and paying bills. But because it took so long for him to find a job, we're even more heavily in debt and really in the hole.

The Mustang

And on top of it all, his Mustang has decided it doesn't want to run anymore. We're figuring out how to get him a clunker so he can get to work, but the past week and into the near future we've been sharing my car. And let me tell you it sucks. We've had to get up at 6 am, drive him to work (25 mins) then I turn around and drive to my work (1 hour 20 mins in the other direction). On my way home at 5pm I have to go get him and then we get to go home and arrive around 6:45, 12 hours after we've left the house. I'm figuring that I've been spending roughly 3 hours a day in my car instead of the usual 2. ( I work ~60 miles from home).
I guess I'm just frustrated. There's nothing I can really do until I pass the bar, which I retake in February. I won't find out my results until the end of March either. I would *love* for the blog to become profitable, but since I'm just a small slice of the internets, I don't think its going to happen anytime soon. Anyway, to end on a happier note, here's a picture of Bella and Aslan, my sister's dog who we've been taking care of for the past 2 weeks.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T19:25:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas!

I also want to announce the winner of my is Misikko.com giveaway! The winner is Claudia! I'll be emailing you in the next few days so Misikko can send you your goodies. Thanks to everyone that entered!

CSN Review--Hobo Purse

2010-12-22T08:30:00.002-05:00

Hey y'all! Remember when I announced that I would be partnering with CSN stores a while ago? Well I received a $45 gift certificate about a month ago that I used to buy my sister's Christmas present. Over Thanksgiving she and I went through several of their sites and came up with the Sydney Love New Spa Front Pocket Hobo Bag in Brown. She's needed a new purse for a while. Especially one that makes her feel like an adult and not a kid playing one. So the above purse fit the bill. It came within a few days and from my cursory inspection, looked exactly like what we wanted. In fact, its bigger than I thought it would be AND the lining is brown polka dots on a tan background. I mean, who wouldn't fall in love with something like that?
So when my sister visited me at work last week to drop off her dog, Aslan, I went ahead and gave her the purse. I gave it to her early so that she could take it on her trip home and show it off to my mom. She also loved it. In fact, she wrote this review for me to share with all of you:

Originally submitted at CSN Stores

Exceeded Expectations!

By A-C from NC on 12/19/2010

This is a great bag. I wasn't sure what to expect when I ordered it, but it exceeded any expectations I did have. Sits comfortably on the shoulder and definitely holds everything I need.

(legalese)

Lastly, don't forget to enter my Giveaway with Misikko.com. Giveaway ends tomorrow night!

Help for Claudia

2010-12-20T08:30:00.002-05:00

I was on Facebook Chat Saturday afternoon talking to my friend Claudia and she told me she would love my help in packing for an upcoming trip to Connecticut to visit her boyfriend's family. She was particularly worried about her boyfriend's sisters. In her words:

His sisters are crazy fashionistas, only they are bitchy and condescending and very judgy. So basically if I'm not tres chic, it's going to get ugly.

My heart went out to her. I know how it feels to feel judged and not feel cute enough, skinny enough, pretty enough or just plain not enough. So with that in mind, I figured I could help her out by asking her a couple questions, putting together a polyvore and talking her through it.

Claudia for Xmas by lawschoolfashionista featuring knee high leather boots

belted sateen shirtdress, $70
Jewelled Silk Beading Evening Shrug, $825
L'Agence Belted knitted wrap cardigan, $445
Edun Army tank with sequins, 290 GBP
Friend of Mine Black Silk Sonic Tank, 165 GBP
Black jersey shrug, 26 GBP
Let It Be Me Blazer, 140 AUD
Casey Brown Skinny Jegging, $127
Yakem cotton tights, $37
Tights for Every Occasion in Art Opening, $15
Amazon.com: Wine Red Seamless Short Sleeve Turtleneck Top Diamond..., $11
Sigerson Morrison Fully black leather riding boots, $795
Steve Madden Carlsen, $90
Milly Brooch, $150
Jessica Simpson - Holiday Flower Swag Necklace..., $55
Rhinestone and Faux Pearl Cluster Necklace, $18
New Tobia Scarf, $225
Halston Heritage Skinny Sash Belt, $84

She has a Christmas mass she has to go to that will be dressy as well as a semi-dressy open house the day after Christmas. In addition, she's working on losing weight and hasn't had the best history with her boyfriend's sisters with respect to her weight. She has a really cute black and white shirtdress and below knee length boots that she wanted to take with her. I put my outfits together based around these pieces and that Claudia doesn't want to have to check a bag.
In order to conserve room I suggested she remix her dress by wearing it with a sweater or cardigan to make it look like a skirt + sweater combo once and then with just a necklace a second time. In addition by switching out tights she'll still be warm and keep each look unique. She is also planning on taking some skinny jeans that tuck in to her boots, so I put together the rest of the outfits around those jeans. She can dress them up with a sparkly top and wrap, dress them down with a long flowy cardigan, or dress them conservatively with a turtleneck and blazer. By adding in accessories in the form of belts, necklaces, brooches and scarves, she'll be conserving space in her luggage and have an arsenal to switch up her looks with that will keep her looking chic and put together.
After giving her my advice and a closet shopping list of sorts, Claudia went on her way to gather the clothes, try them on and pack. This is what she had to say:

I'm trying your outfit ideas and I am in love!!

So I think I have it all sorted out. I feel much better! You are spot on!

The blazer! I can't believe I don't wear it every day!

The coolest thing about this, aside from being able to help a friend, is that we were able to do it all via the internet and text messages. I've never been inside Claudia's closet, but just from talking a bit and giving her some examples, she has been able to take my ideas, go through her own closet and implement them in ways that work for her. AND she'll feel confident and put together when she goes and visits her boyfriend's family. All in all, it was a great way to spend my Saturday afternoon.
Do you have any words of advice for Claudia? Any great strategies or other ways to deal with less than pleasant relatives?

And don't forget to enter my Giveaway with Misikko.com, only 3 days left!

Hair party

2010-12-17T19:07:00.000-05:00

I went to a hair party a week ago and had a really great time. One of my neighbors stopped the Fiance a few weeks ago while he was walking Bella to invite me to the hair party she was having. The daughter of a friend of hers does hair and several times a year my neighbor hosts a hair party for her friends. If you have no idea what I'm talking about, lemme explain. A hair party is where a stylist does hair, cut, color, style, in someone's home and charges WAY less than in a salon. This is because she's able to pocket everything except for whatever she spends on supplies rather than having to give a cut to the salon. (lol!)

Anyway, so I went over to my neighbor's house and met some lovely ladies and had a great time. We had food and wine and it was great. Even though I was the youngest one there except for the hair stylist (Hi Bethany!) I really enjoyed the companionship. I think I've been feeling starved for friendship and company and this really made me feel good. Since we moved in August, other than work, I haven't had a chance or opportunity to be with people other than family or the Fiance. I really need to find friends in my area, but with time and monetary constraints, it just hasn't been feasible. Luckily for me I have a very sweet neighbor and hopefully will be able to go to more hair parties in the future. I mean, how often do you get your hair washed in someone's kitchen sink and get to drink wine shortly thereafter?

I decided not to do anything super different with my hair. Everything in my life is in limbo right now, so I opted to keep something constant. I asked Bethany to trim the ends to make everything even and then to give me side swept bangs. The truth is that she cut almost nothing off the ends so the length has stayed almost the same as before. The bangs are really the only difference. That and she added face framing layers to blend the bangs in. She also blow dried and ironed my hair for me too. All for $20. It was quite the deal. Have you ever been to a hair party? How was your experience?
This outfit is also a great example of how I've been dealing with the cold. Here I layered a tank, a sleeveless top and a cardigan all to keep me warm. Layering is one of my favorite ways to remix items and keep warm. It also allows for me to wear a leopard print top to work and not look scandalous.

The Details:
Tank: Old Navy
Top: Express
Cardigan: Target
Pants: Gap
Heels: Nine West

Don't forget to enter my Giveaway with Misikko.com!

Giveaway: Misikko.com

2010-12-15T15:39:00.001-05:00

As promised, here is my giveaway with Misikko.com.

In order to enter you have to fill out the form below, please only fill out the form once. If you would like more than one entry you can earn one entry for each of the following:

1. Follow Misikko on Twitter (@misikko)

2. Blog about the giveaway on a personal website.

3. Join Misikko’s newsletter (www.misikko.com/newsletter-signup.html)

4. “Like” Misikko on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MisikkoBeauty)

5. Interact with Misikko’s Facebook – Comment on a post or picture, or write on our wall (www.facebook.com/MisikkoBeauty)

As per Misikko.com:

For the 5^th extra entry option, please make sure your readers don’t just write “extra entry for ___ blog’s giveaway” or “XYZ Blog sent me!” Our Facebook is one place where our customers can access our beauty experts directly. They can ask questions about products or hair care, or comment on a recent trend or style – anything relevant to beauty!

Rules:

Fill out the form once with all of your entries
This is only for US or Canadian readers (sorry International readers!)
You're limited to one Misikko.com giveaway winner. So if you've won a Misikko.com giveaway elsewhere this year, sorry. But next year is right around the corner!
Deadline to enter is Midnight Eastern time December 23, 2010. Winner will be chosen and posted December 24, 2010.

To clear up some confusion: if you put your email address with your name that's already one entry. If you only want one entry, that's all you've got to do.

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Christmas Decorating!

2010-12-13T09:14:00.000-05:00

This past week I finished putting up our Christmas Tree and I absolutely love it. With the stand its a full 11 feet tall. And of course it makes the house smell like Christmas. Getting a Christmas tree is probably my favorite part of the holidays. I get to decorate it and look at it lovingly for a good month or so.
Of course, with such a big tree, we had to move our living room furniture around a bunch. As you can see, we put the tree right up against the wall which puts the tree right in your line of sight when you walk in to the living room from the front door and from the kitchen. The only problem we had with this is that the TV stand we have makes it tough for us to turn on the cable box from most of the couch. If it were up to me we would switch our cabinet TV stand to a corner TV stand which I think would give us more places from which to change the channel. Anyway, here are some pictures of our house all dolled up for the Holidays.

The link in this post was sponsored by CSN.com

Product Review: Chi Silk Infusion

2010-12-13T08:42:00.000-05:00

Remember this post where I said I would be back to review another product sent to me via Misikko.com, home of the "Professional Blow Dryer"? Well here it is. It's taken me so long to post it because I wasn't 10000% impressed with the product. Let me explain.

The product I was asked to review is the Chi Silk Infusion. Now, I have heard about Chi straighteners for years and wondered if their hair products would live up to that hype. For me at least, the Silk Infusion did not. I used the product for a few weeks by doing my normal thing: wash my hair, put product in, go to sleep with it wet, wake up with pretty hair. And while the Chi Silk Infusion did exactly that, my second day hair was less than impressive.
     You see, I don't wash my hair every day so I rely on whatever leave-in I use to keep my hair curly and bouncy even after I've worn it down a whole day and slept on it. Inevitably this means that about a third of the time my hair goes up about halfway through day 2. The thing is that with some products my hair looks great even on day 2, even on the night of day 2! The Chi Silk Infusion just didn't do that for me. This doesn't mean that my first day hair was dreadful, it wasn't. It was beautiful: nice and soft, curly and bouncy. It's just that second day hair fell pretty flat from the second I woke up.
   My conclusion is that if you need to wash your hair everyday or you want to keep your hair straight, then this product is probably for you. It has a nice light smell that is not at all noticeable once hair is dry and its easy to apply. However, if you rely on your products to keep your hair looking curly and bouncy for more than a day, then I would recommend you try the Hana Shine Shield that I reviewed from Misikko.com that is still working beautifully for me.

Lastly, I will be hosting a giveaway later this week in which Misikko.com will provide one of my lucky readers with BOTH the Hana Shine Shiled and the Chi Silk Infusion. So keep a look out!

*This is a requested review. I did not receive compensation for the review other than the products to be reviewed. Nonetheless, all opinions are my own and are shaped by my experiences testing the product.*

Serendipity!

2010-12-06T08:30:00.011-05:00

Do you believe in shopping serendipity? I do. This coat is one of the reasons I believe in it. Every once in a while I'll stumble upon something absolutely fabulous that fits perfectly and is placed nicely within my price range. This coat is one of those things. Several months ago, just after I graduated from law school, I went to my local consignment store to look around. Just randomly I pulled this coat out and almost died. It fit perfectly so I checked the price tag. It was originally $40, but was on sale for $25 or something. My sister had $15 worth of store credit and in conjunction with my student discount, all I paid for this coat was $5. Yup, $5!

The price alone is fabulous, but the fit and silhouette is what really makes it. Thinking on these pictures, I was trying to figure out why I loved this coat so much. I wouldn't normally think that a coat that was fitted to my waist and flared out would be so flattering. In theory it should make my hips look HUGE. But it doesn't. It makes me look super duper tall. And the reason is an optical illusion. By making the waist as high as it is, it makes it look like my legs start at my waist and keep on going until forever. Add to that illusion that it also nips me in at the waist and presto we've got shopping serendipity!

Seriously though, this coat made me re-examine a few of the things that I thought were off-limits. These being different silhouettes, winter white, and long winter coats for my short frame. And a major reason for my going out of my safe zone is the wonderful fashion bloggers out there that showcase how they go out on limb and even though they may not always look their best, they still try their best. Thank you to all of you for providing an example for me to follow in trying new things.

The Details:
Coat: Tahari (Consignment)
Pants: Gap
Sweater: Forever 21
Scarf: Target
Heels: Aldo

Two Belts

2010-11-19T10:10:00.000-05:00

I'm pretty sure I've worn this exact same outfit or something REALLY close to it before. It's not really surprising since I love this sweater and to me, Red, White and Gray just work really well for me. Throw in a black blazer and I was able to hang out in court.
Wondering about the post title? I had to wear a second belt to keep my pants up. I'm afraid it bunched up the pants some, but such is life. There's only so much I can do with my existing wardrobe while I lose weight. Once I reach a good place (and am able to) I'm going to treat myself to a shopping spree. In particular, I hope to focus on my work wardrobe and build up a small collection of suits and work blouses.

I feel like I have a pretty good casual wardrobe. In fact, a lot of my wear to work wardrobe at this point is stuff that should stay or be a part of my casual wardrobe, but for lack of other options, I have to wear them to work too. This means I'm wearing things out faster than I would like. And probably not dressing as nicely as I would like either. Such is life I suppose.

The Details:
Sweater: Old Navy
Red Belt: Target
Pants: Gap
Heels: Aldo
Blazer:
Earrings: Blue Nile

Wrapped in a Blanket

2010-11-17T08:39:00.002-05:00

Guys, so a few weeks ago eShakti.com approached me offering an item to review. I've been drooling over their clothes since I first heard of them, so I said yes. It took a while to figure out what I wanted. There are so many beautiful items to choose from that I had a really hard time to trying to decide. I knew that whatever I got I wound want to wear to work, so it would have to be work appropriate and would need to work under a jacket. Below are a few of my favorite options.

Choices! by lawschoolfashionista featuring a shirt dress

Houndstooth print fleece knit dress - eShakti.com, $65
Surplice front knit shirtdress - eShakti.com, $50
Sash waist fleece knit dress - eShakti.com, $55
Belted cotton poplin dress - eShakti.com, $55
Cotton rosette trim dress - eShakti.com, $50
Surplice shirtdress - eShakti.com, $50

I ended up choosing the Surplice Front Knit Shirtdress in Charcoal. I wore it to work yesterday and from the very beginning I felt like I was wrapped in a blanket. I was comfortable and warm all day long, it was great!
I knew from the second I chose this dress that I would want to pair it with burgundy tights. So I chose to do that immediately. Even though you can't tell the color, I promise those are burgundy tights. To match the tights and incorporate the color elsewhere, I went with my burgundy/pink necklace as well. To keep things from getting TOO matchy matchy, I went with a light blue tank.

This tank is actually really important. I am grateful that I had the foresight to wear a tank under this dress. I didn't realize when I ordered it that there wouldn't be a snap or button closure where the tank is. I'm going to have to add that myself. So to keep from flashing anyone, I wore the tank under the dress and had the surplice front open a bit more so it looked purposeful. In the future I hope that a snap will keep things under control so that I won't always have to wear a tank, but will keep the option of the tank still viable.

     And to be honest, that is my only complaint with this dress. I wish that it had a snap and pockets, but neither is necessary and I'm pretty sure I can add one if not both on my own. The fit is a dream as I gave my measurements when ordering. If you're hard to fit or simply want something tailor made to you, I definitely recommend giving your measurements when you order. And for $7.50 (free the first time you do it!), it really is worth it. My order shipped quickly and got to me a good 5 days before I expected it. So yea, I recommend eShakti.com, and I promise its because I love this dress and the service and not just because I got a free dress out of it.

The Details:
Dress: courtesy of eShakti.com
Tank: Old Navy
Tights: Hanes Outlet
Heels: Bandolino
Necklace: Banana Republic Outlet

P.S. If you would like an awesome coupon code, let me know in the comments and I'll email it to you.

* I received this dress as a gift, however, all opinions expressed are my own.*

Choices!

2010-11-16T19:49:00.001-05:00

Choices! by lawschoolfashionista featuring a shirt dress

More Mimicry!

2010-11-15T08:31:00.001-05:00

SUPER windy day!

So about a week and a half ago Elena of Caffeinerd posted this outfit. I (incorrectly) thought that I had the very same dress. It's not exactly the same, but its pretty damn close. Anyway, seeing her wear it, I realized that I hadn't worn my dress in a while. So that day, I decided to wear it to the Latino Festival that was going on in town.
You see those tights? They're actually gold. In my head, this outfit was going to be really cool. The gold tights would really stand out against the brown of the dress and the black of the boots. They were supposed to be eye catching and unique and ultra awesome. Instead, the tights just look like they're my skin tone. Granted, I'm not quite that gold in tone, but they just didn't live up to my expectations. I guess this means that I can probably wear them to work without causing too much trouble in court.

I was actually really excited to go to the Latino Festival. I may not have mentioned it, but I'm an interesting mix of cultures and ethnicities. I was born in Miami, Florida to a Colombian born mom and a Puerto Rican born dad. In addition, growing up we traveled to Mexico on a regular basis. On top of that, we lived in Barcelona, Spain for two years, from July 1998 to August 2000. My parents stressed the ability to read, write and speak Spanish to my younger sister and I, so we're both fluent and have used our language abilities extensively. Let's just sum it up by saying I'm rather Latin, k? Anyway, so I was really excited because I was hoping to expose the Fiance to some awesome food. They did have a Colombian booth, but they weren't serving a whole bunch of Colombian food. Nonetheless, he got to enjoy an empanada.

Isn't he cute?

Speaking of the Fiance, he agreed to pose for a picture just for all of you! I had to talk him into it, but he allowed me to take a quick pic of us for the blog.

Just had to share this pic!

The Details:
Dress: Banana Republic Outlet
Sweater: Ann Taylor Loft
Tights: DKNY via Hanes Outlet
Boots: Target
Necklace: gift

Baubles & Ruffles

2010-11-12T12:14:00.000-05:00

Sorry this is so late today. Normally I try to post by 8:30 am on MWF, but we had a deposition yesterday (my first) and I got home late. I did not want to stare at a computer screen, so this post is going up late. Sorry!

About 2 weeks ago I was scanning slickdeals.net because the Fiance had shown me a great tupperware set and I was considering buying it. Cute, right? So as I scanned the site, I saw that there was a red wrap from Coldwater Creek for about $8 with free shipping. Of course I went straight to their website to see what else they had on sale. Well, I found this jacket and a couple others. I fell in love with the tweed.The ruffles just had me. And the paisley! As you can see, I bought the jacket. With all the little specials it cost me $29.09 including shipping. Pretty great deal if I so say so myself.

My go to court outfit

When it got here, I was a bit hesitant. As it had been squished in transit, the ruffles just didn't ruffle. And I wasn't sure that it fit well. I tried it one with a skirt to wear on Monday, and it just wasn't working for me. So I left the tags on it hoping I could find a way to wear it. Tuesday rolled around and I tried the jacket on again, but this time with pants. And that was apparently all I needed in order to decide to keep the jacket. I'm actually wearing the jacket again today (Friday) but this time with jeans which work equally well with the jacket. I'm going to have to try the jacket + skirt combo again to see if it was just that one skirt that didn't work or if all of my skirts won't work with the jacket. By the way, am I the only one that does the whole "let's try the piece on with different outfits" when deciding to keep or return an item?

Notice my super pretty hair? <3 Hana Shine Shield!

As the title of this post suggests, this isn't just about my brand new ruffle-y jacket. Its also about this necklace. It might surprise you, but my uncle made this necklace. And I love it. Part of me doesn't want to put it on etsy, but I know my aunt and uncle need the money so I'll be putting it up this weekend, hopefully. This necklace has a distinctly different look to it than the other ones my uncle has sent me. It feels as timeless and classic as pearls, but a bit quirky because of the color of the clay beads and the stones. Also, way less expensive than pearls (it'll be priced about $24).

My around the office comfy outfit

Ruffles! Paisley! Tweed!

The Details:

Jacket: Coldwater Creek

Pants: Old Navy

Heels: Aldo

Cardigan: Target

T-shirt: Old Navy

Necklace: Tio Gordo

Rocker Chic(k)

2010-11-10T08:43:00.000-05:00

The Details:
Dress: Loft
Tank: Old Navy
Cardigan: Target
Boots: Target
Tights: Hue

Red Skirt!

2010-11-08T08:28:00.000-05:00

This is the skirt that I told you about here. I was so excited to get it and even though I love the color and the sheen and the shape, the fit isn't 100%. I should have gone a size down from the one that I got, but because I didn't want to be *too* optimistic about my weight loss, decided to go with a size 14P instead of a 12P. I chatted with a customer representative that told me the measurements of both sizes, and based on that I went with a 14. The 14 fits fine, but I think that the skirt is supposed to be more fitted than it is on me, hence why I probably should have gone with the 12. It would probably be more high waisted in a 12 too. Nonetheless, I love the skirt and just have to make sure that my tops don't make the skirt bunch up around my hips so that it looks like the skirt is too big. If I end up losing more weight so that it becomes noticeably big, I suppose I would just get it tailored down to fit me better.

Notice the bunching? Also, no idea why Bella is checking out my shoes!

Speaking of tailoring, I've got a question for you all. So, as I've mentioned, I'm on a quest to lose weight and get healthier. The only downside is that some of my clothes just don't fit anymore. My bottoms and pants in particular. Now, I'm able to wear my pants if I use a belt or wear my skirts lower towards my hips rather than my waist. My question is, at what point does this "making do" start to look sloppy? I guess my fear is that while I lose weight and am not in a financial position to buy clothes for the intermediate sizes I'll pass through, I won't look as polished as I would prefer. Am I worrying over nothing or is there a legitimate concern?

Speaking of not being able to replace items in my closet. This will be the last time you'll see these, my favorite heels, for a while. I have worn the heels down to the nail, and sadly, I don't know of a cobbler nearby nor how much it might cost to get my super awesome shoes repaired. :( Anybody have an idea of what kind of price range I should expect to for my heels to be replaced?
Lastly, I *loved* how my legs looked in these tights. That the skirt hit me mid-knee works perfectly with my height. It allows my legs not to look stumpy, but I'm still conservative and professional enough to hang out in court all day if need be. And of course the tights keep my legs warm and make them look amazing. Isn't this cooler weather just amazing?

The Details:
Skirt: Talbots
Top: Loft (via consignment store)
Heels: Nine West
Tights: Hue (?)

Product Review: Hana Shine Shield

2010-11-05T10:44:00.000-04:00

A few weeks ago, the lovely people at Misikko.com approached me about doing a product review and giveaway. After checking out the site and seeing that they're the home of the "Best Flat Iron" and being the great big fan of hair products that I am, I jumped at the chance. A few days later a box filled with a whole bunch of goodies was waiting for me on the counter when I got home from work (The Fiancé brought it in for me). I went eeny meeny miney mo and decided to try the Hana Shine Shield first.
After washing my hair I poured about a quarter sized dollop of Shine Shield in my palm, rubbed it between my hands and finger combed it into my hair from roots to tips. I brushed through my damp hair to make sure it got spread evenly, then threw my hair up in a towel turban (as per my routine). A short time later I went to sleep with my hair wet and woke up with fluffy, full of body and soft curls. It only got better as second day hair was equally gorgeous. Having seen what Shine Shield did in my hair as normal, I decided to throw it a curveball by ironing my hair.

If you've followed this blog for a while, you'll know that I don't iron my hair all that often. It tends to take a bit of time and actually requires effort, 2 things I don't have a lot of. But to test this product I wanted to make sure I threw everything at it. So I ironed my hair and the Shine Shield performed spectacularly. My hair was soft, nongreasy, and beautifully straight even after having slept on it. Some products have a tendency to get my hair really greasy after a few hours after I've ironed it, but the Hana Shine Shield did not at all. My hair stayed straight without any creases and didn't grease up at all, even into the second day. Yup, that means that there were no creases or random curls after sleeping on it, TWICE! (Ironed my hair Sunday night and wore it straight Monday and Tuesday).

I very much recommend this product. It handled my hair very nicely and has a very light and pleasant scent. AND it doubles as a body lotion. The directions say you can apply it to skin, and being the curious blogger that I am, I applied it to my legs post-shave and they felt silky smooth. At the current price of $29.99 or the reduced price of $18.99, the 2 oz bottle is a bit steep, however the 6 oz bottle that normally goes for $49.99 and is currently at $29.99 seems more reasonable. I'm not 100% sure I would buy either size as they are rather pricey and currently out of my league, but I would at least seriously consider the 6 oz bottle for $29.99 as this product has worked really well with my hair.
Just an FYI, I will also be hosting a giveaway, but will do that when I review the second product Misikko.com sent me.

*This is a requested review. I did not receive compensation for the review other than the products to be reviewed. Nonetheless, all opinions are my own and are shaped by my experiences testing the product.*