Sunday funday

Outfit details

cardigan: Old Navy, thrifted (similar)

dress: very old SJP line (similar cut - and super cute!)

Although the Monday before my surgery was less than fun (see here), the Sunday before my surgery was pretty darn great.  I attended a Creative Connections meet-up at Cork It in Grapevine, where I got to network, chat, and drink some yummy wine with other DFW creatives.  One of my favorite local fashion blogger pals, Elissa of Dress With Courage, attended as well, so it was great to see her.  Seriously guys...if you don't already subscribe to Elissa's blog, head over there now!  She always has interesting, thoughtful content, and she's an excellent thrifter.  Also, if you're a DFW blogger, please attend the meet-up in December!  You won't regret it!  Elise Ostermann of Hey Sweet Pea does a wonderful job of putting these things together.

Afterward, Caleb and I met up with my Uncle Bob and Aunt Lisa, who were visiting us from England.  I hadn't seen them in over 20 years, when I was just a wee bit of a thing, so it was really great to get to spend time with them and get to know them a lot better.  We chatted at their hotel for awhile, and then we headed for some good ol' fashion Texas cooking at the Stockyards in Fort Worth.  The food was delicious, the conversation was fantastic, and I was with terrific company.  What more can you ask for?  Bob and Lisa have invited us to come spend some time with them in England, so we've got that in the works now.  We hope to visit the other side of the pond in the not-to-distant future.

In other news, I get my stitches removed tomorrow!  Hooray!

How is your week going?



Texas love, y'all

vintage blouse: thrifted (pink, love-but pricey)

skirt: thrifted (more patchwork)

belt: Fossil, thrifted (similar)

oxfords: Steve Madden (similar- on sale!)

sunglasses: Betsey Johnson, via TJ Maxx (similar)

I would like to clarify one thing: I often lament Texas' bipolar weather patterns here on this little ol' blog of mine, but I love Texas.  I'm proud to live in Cow Town, as Fort Worth is lovingly nicknamed, and I love that I live in a large metropolitan area but have the sense of community that makes you feel like you live in a small town.  I wouldn't trade my life in Texas for the world...although I do love a great vacation.

I also owe some thanks to Texas for my outfit.  First and foremost, thank you Texas for fostering a the kind of community where a Texan housewife could hand sew this fine little skirt of mine.  Also, thank you Texan housewife for then donating it to a thrift store where I could purchase and enjoy it.  Additionally, in general, thank you Texas for providing a plethora of thrift stores for my shopping pleasure.  This outfit truly would not be the same without you.  (...seriously.  Most of it is secondhand.)

And, just one more clarification: I did not ride a horse to this photo location.  We do, indeed, drive cars in Texas.

Do you love your state?  Share your thoughts!



Sunshine and clouds

Howdy, howdy!  Hope your Veteran's Day is going fabulously well!

I'm enjoying the beautiful weather we've been blessed with in Fort Worth - upper 60s with a breeze, and lots of sunshine!  It's gorgeous!

I took these photos over a week ago on a more cloudy day.  A dress, tights, and a cardigan is so my go-to outfit for fall - so much so that I recreated this exact same outfit earlier this week, but I exchanged the mustard tights for some olive green ones and my oxfords for some boots.  The rest stayed the same!  I wore the green tights version for one of my testing days earlier this week.  I knew that I'd be sitting in front of a computer typing for hours for my comprehensive exams, and this outfit is beyond comfortable.  I always prefer dresses and tights to jeans!

Now that my written exams are completed, I'm just trying to prepare for my oral exams.  I test next Friday, and I'm feeling pretty confident.  I can't believe I'm almost done with grad school!

Any recommendations on what I should wear for my oral exams?  I don't want to look overly professional, but I don't want to look too much like a student either!  After all, I do want to teach college students when this is all over with!  Please leave any suggestions in the comments!

  



Forever 21 dress (love this silhouette)

Target tights (similar)

Jessica Simpson cardigan, via Ross (similar)

GoMax oxfords (similar)

Don't forget - you can get 10% off spa services at ATI Laser clinic until November 23!  Click here to learn more!

An outfit post!

Yes...I'm alive - and I'm still dressing up in pretty outfits!

I can't even express what a relief it is to have an outfit post up!  I haven't posted one since October 10 - that was a month ago!  Clearly, my love for rust continues because I'm wearing the exact same cardigan, and it's been appearing in my outfit rotation a LOT.  I got it on super sale at Old Navy over the summer for like $6-7, so my price-to-wear ratio is going to be so little!

Caleb and I still have so much to do around our little house.  We're building a farmhouse style table this weekend, and we're really excited.  When it's all done, it should seat 10-12 people, so it will be perfect for entertaining!  In addition to that DIY project, we're also still looking for some stuff for our bedroom.  The master bedroom is in a converted attic, so the ceilings are great, but the bedroom furniture we currently have is just to bulky for the room.  The headboard is super tall, so it wouldn't even fit on the along the wall where we plan to put the bed!  Luckily, the furniture fits great in our guest bedroom downstairs, so it's still being put to good use.  We're thinking about building our own headboard out of fence posts, and we plan to find some used drawers and stuff and revive them.  Should be fun!

And just for clarification, the pictures are not in front of my house.  We've been scoping out places in Fort Worth for outfit photos, and there are so many neat old buildings and houses that are perfect for bloggy pictures!  This old house is just a few minutes away from ours, and what a little gem it is!  You can see more photos and outfit credits after the jump... 

Rainy weather fashion

Rain, rain, go away by jessicamarie626 featuring rubber wedge boots

We've had some pretty gloomy weather in these parts lately, and it's no secret that I hate the rain.  However, the weather would be far more tolerable if I was splashing through puddles in this cute rain-ready outfit.

Do you like rainy weather?

T-Hee

On Tuesday night, my friend Kendra (from Low Cost, High Style) and I attended a blogger meetup at a cute little shop in Dallas called T-Hee.  Truth be told, we were beyond fashionably late.  The event was from 6-8, and we didn't get there until right before 8.  I didn't get off of work until 6:15, and I still had to go home, change, and drive to the other side of the metroplex.  It was still fun to check out the shop though, and, of course, I always enjoy spending time with Kendra.

Fading light and comfort



I wish I could say all my outfits make it to the blogosphere, but this is just not the case.  When outfits don't get posted, one of two things has happened: a) I only wore my work clothes that day, which consist of jeans and a t-shirt (you can see the occasional button-up here), or b) it turned dark before I got the chance to take some decent photos. 

Girl's Night Out - Fall 2011

Last week, I attended Shecky's Girl's Night Out in Dallas with my friend Kendra of Low Cost, High Style.  We had a fun evening filled with shopping, cocktails, a fantastic goodie bag, and some much needed catching up.  (Kendra and I both did a sales internship a couple years ago, and we hadn't seen each other since our training in May of 2009).

Falling in love with fall

I am beyond excited that fall is here!  The summer heat really dragged me down, and I've been looking forward to cool temperatures, cardigans, colored tights, and pretty scarves.

Of course, Texas still has awhile to go before I'll be prompted to put on all those layers, but the recent temperature dip makes me excited about getting dressed again.  As far as fashion goes, I felt so uninspired during the summer months because I was completely focused on staying as cool and comfortable as possible in 100 degree + weather - it was just too hot to think about being fashion-forward!

Cooling down

Texas has been teasing us with on-and-off cooler weather, and I am so looking forward to warm layers and fall colors.  Summer seemed like it was never going to end!  I couldn't help but throw on a pair of tights at the earliest sign of dropping temperatures.  Of course, with the heat wave that seemed to take over these past few months, anything below 90 degrees feels like a relief!

Ladies' night

Last Friday night, I attended a bachelorette/lingerie shower at the swanky NYLO Hotel in Irving.  We started off with drinks and some chit-chat in the hotel's lounge, went to dinner at Mi Cocina, and then returned to our room at the hotel for games, yummy cupcakes, and, of course, the opening of the gifts.

Impromptu date night

I've been donning this boring hairstyle for several days a week lately.  I now work at a coffee shop, so I like to pin my bangs back and pull my hair up in a ponytail to keep my hair out of my face.  With hair on the shorter side, it's difficult to do anything overly creative when wearing my hair up, so this style is usually what ends up happening.  On the bright side, although I'm less than happy with my hair, I love my job.  I'll call that a win.

Weather woes

Everyone is talking about the weather in the Dallas right now - and with good reason.  It's ridiculous when a city celebrates when the high is only 97 and not 107 degrees.  Lately, I'm so uncomfortably warm that I don't feel cute in anything, so, until the weather cools down, I'll be dreaming of winter and pretty, layered outfits.     

Guest post: My mother...seriously

My mom's been visiting me for about a week now, and when she saw me playing on Polyvore the other day, she decided she wanted some of the action.  Here is her creation (she's quite proud of herself)...

She dubbed it "Uniquely Mom."

How'd she do?!

Battling the heat...and losing

Let's be real...this Texas heat (108 degrees, people!) has me wishing it was socially acceptable to go out in the nude.  Alas, I might find myself naked and in hand cuffs very quickly - and I'm pretty sure that's not was intended by those furry cuffs you see in novelty stores and bachelorette gift baskets.

So, I did the next best thing and wore a light, airy dress...which, honestly, was still way too much fabric in this heat wave.  It's impossible to be lady-like with sweat dripping down your legs.