Weekending in Levi’s

This past Sunday was such a good one so I just have to give you all a run down.  After I finish, you may be asking–ok, why did she feel the need to share that, but bear with me.

We woke up to a rainy, dreary morning and somehow (at the last second) we managed to pull ourselves out of bed just in time to scoot into a spinning class.  We hardly ever, ever workout on a Sunday so afterwards it felt SO good.  Then we headed to grab lattes at our fave coffee shop and then headed back home to clean up.  We ventured back out for lunch [mine consisted of a quesadilla and bloody mary, yum] and then I managed to drag Ethan to do some shopping for the lake house at Home Goods and At Home.  Once our car was totally packed with stuff (did you see our Instastory with the mirror that just barely fit, haha?!) we headed home where I almost immediately fell asleep for a cat nap.  Ethan went to take Remi over to the dog park to run for a bit but they were stopped by a bunch of crazy rain.  Soooo, then they showed back up a bit later with pizza, coke and the idea of a movie night!  We did (what felt like) a zillion loads of laundry, organized the house for a while and then settled in on the couch to watch a Netflix movie.

&& that’s it!  Nothing more special happened and all in all it was just a day of crappy weather in our home city.  BUT it made me so happy.  Sometimes it’s important to let the normal, average, everyday moments make you happy, right?!  I am always one to be planning out things for the next weekend or wishing for a new trip to dream about but I always want to be able to be content with the less exciting moments too.  It’s important to not take any those for granted.  After all, it’s the little things, right?!

Ok–and let’s just discuss the key points you have to know about this outfit for two seconds too..  These jeans are a weekenders DREAM.  I have been searching for a pair just like this for months so I can really thankful I gave these a try.  Howeverrrrrr–take note:  I sized up 2 sizes from my norm to get this fit.  I paired them with a neutral tank and metallic slides.  The tank is only $22 and has such a soft finish on it, almost a sheen. And the slides are under $50, comfy and will go with lots!  [wearing a xs and 7.5, both tts] Lastly, these are the necklaces I am completely obsessing over at the moment.  I ordered this one, fell in love and then immediately ordered this one to layer with it.  Aren’t they fun?!

Top || Jeans || Slides || Handbag || Sunglasses || Eye Necklace || Rainbow Necklace || Bracelet 1 & 2

May 23, 2017

TOPS FOR WORK & PLAY UNDER $50

One of the first lessons I learned right after graduating college (aside from the fact that I couldn’t live off english muffin pizzas and boxed wine) had to do with shopping and my 9 to 5 wardrobe.  I have never been a person who likes to repeat exact outfits often.  I will wear items time and time again but I don’t like to pair them with the same things each time.  Thus, I started buying more tops rather than dresses.  More specifically even, I began looking for tops that I could wear for both work & play.  This way I could pair them with jeans & heels or with a mini skirt & sneakers on the weekends and evenings when out on a date or with friends but they also worked with black ankle pants and flats for work.  

And I think this shopping strategy is one that everyone should follow.  Dedicate a little bit of your budget to tops that work for both!  Now the kicker is finding the right tops.  My go to site to browse for this type of item is Nordstrom. [I’ve already filtered this page for you, so do some browsing —-> here]  Here are a few of my very favorites for you all to shop.  && I made sure to keep all the choices found here under $50! 🙂

This ruffle sleeve number would definitely fit for work or play!  It’s structured without being super constricting and uncomfortable and the fabric is a dream.  It’s a thick jersey so the quality seems high and the best part is that it doesn’t wrinkle easily.  We planned to shoot this look two weekends ago and decided to wait.  I had it steamed and ready to go the first time we planned to take the pics and, even though I didn’t have it hanging up in between, it was still camera ready the next weekend! It comes in some solid colors too.  Pair it with these pants and these shoes for a office ready look (also looks good untucked) or pair it with these jeans and these heels (I like them in red) for a drinks downtown. [wearing an xs]

For this causal look I went with white denim (this has been my favorite pair for a couple years now, true to size) and platform sneakers (size up 1/2 size).  Metallic sneakers are everyyyywhere right now and I think they will be even more popular in the coming months.  A few more options for you all here:

Ok, that’s my two cents for work wear advice.  I hope it helps you all when trying to budget and keep your outfits practical but not boring!

Top || Jeans || Sneakers || Belt [under $50, wearing a small] || Handbag || Sunglasses [transparent grey] || Ring  || Thumb Ring 

 

 

In Collaboration with Nordstrom
May 11, 2017

Versatile Summer Dresses!

I try to buy a couple cute dresses each Summer that will carry me through a variety of events.  The main reason for this being that dresses are just so much easier to throw on.  I need ones that will work for anything from my boyfriend’s office patio party on Friday evening, to a bridal/baby shower during the day, to an impromptu mid-week date night or even for a Sunday afternoon meal with family.  Ones that I can wear casual flat sandals with when my hair is up in a bun but also look good with wedges and wavy hair for a more put together look.

Often times when I browse for a dress like this, I start here on the Nordstrom site.  These are the dresses in the women’s section and the sort field is set to featured.  It gives me an idea of what is popular right now and from there, I can start to decide what direction I want to go in.  After some scrolling, my next step is to change the sort function to Newest so I can see what has just arrived on the site.  And more times that not, I end up filtering both of these pages by price.  Because if you’re actually in the market to get one sent to your house rather than just doing some “window shopping” then you only want to see ones that are in realistic range.  Kind of the same concept as, “no thank you realtor.. I do not want to go inside the $1.2 million dollar home only to fall in love and then remember my budget is $300K”, right?!

I rounded up a few more dresses that would fall in this category for you all and you can shop them here:

I think this one is probably at the very top of my wish list.  (How am I so into red these days??)  But this one is a close second.  I had a Free People white dress similar to this one last Summer and I practically wore it out!  && I would definitely have to snag this one if I was headed to Mexico!

The dress in these photos is everything though so I can certainly recommend it!  It can be tied in tighter or more lose at the waist, has pockets [!] and is lined so it’s not see through.  Under $100 too!  [wearing a xs]

After we snapped these photos last weekend, I ditched the sun hat and switched into these sneaks so we could walk downtown and have a casual lunch (complete with french fries and grapefruit mimosas).  I loved it worn casually too! [I sized up a 1/2 size in the sneaks]

What is your go-to ootd in the summmmmatime?!  Share with me becuase I am always looking for new ideas!

Dress [under $100]|| Shoes || Bra || Hat, also similar option found here || Sunglasses, Color: Transparent Grey || Lips, Color: Stripped and Cherish [BEST nude combo!]

In Collaboration with Nordstrom
May 3, 2017

White Ruffles

I cannot believe it is already May.  I feel like Memorial Day Weekend will be here before we know it and Summer will officially be underway!  We’re heading down to the lake this year to celebrate with friends and I cannot wait–I just need to locate a rainbow unicorn float.  I have my heart set on floating on one this year.  I mean, does that not sound like a good time?!  Add a loaded Corona it’s bound to be a good day.  Have you all ever had those?  Ethan introduced me to them.. You drink the neck of the beer (I like Corona Light) and then you top it off with some Bacardi Limon.  The combination is yum!

Sorry for the ramblings about Summer, ha.  I just love spending time on the water so I get a little carried away!

Let’s chat about this ruffle top–I have been looking for one like this to pair with a denim mini for a while and I think this one is a winner.  I ordered this one and it runs HUGE, so don’t make that mistake and then I gave this one a try and fell in love! I think I will pair it with black skinnies and some fun heels for a date night next weekend and I am sure the look you see here will be repeated asap too!  [wearing an xs]

I hope you all are having a good week so far!  I love how long it’s staying light in the evenings.  Totally helps me get through the week days and makes them SO much more enjoyable.

Top || Skirt, similar || Shoes || Sunglasses, similar found here || Lips, color: Stripped

May 1, 2017

TRAVEL DIARY: REWARDSTYLE CONFERENCE RECAP DAY 3 #RSTHECON

Catch up on Day 1 and Day 2 if you haven’t already!

I can’t lie I am really happy to be home.  I am in some serious need of some couch cuddling time [& maybe pizza] to recoup from the busy weekend I just had.  Buuuuut, I do want to share Day 3 with you all still becuase we packed so many things in and ended the conference with a bang!

The morning started off with a quick breakfast from the Nobu restaurant that was located in our hotel and was followed by a trip up to the Brand Meeting Hall.  rewardStyle does a great job of making the brands that attend the conference available to chat with.  One of the ways they do this is by gathering all the brands in a room together and allowing them to set up their own booth.  Then we are able to walk around and have a conversation with their reps and get to know their mission a little better while viewing some of their currently available items or new product.  This is one of my favorite parts of the conference because while I do love to work with brands on WW, I always want to make sure they are a good fit for both me and my readers.

Another way we are able to connect to brands while at the conference, is my having quick sit down meetings with them and a rewardStyle employee.  This allows for a better chance to explain what sort of blog Weekend Wishing is and hear what plans they have in the coming months for their retail lines, events & marketing.  I had a few of those before and after lunch.  && speaking of….

Lunch was pretty amaze.  Topshop hosted a gorgeous garden lunch for us in the courtyard of the hotel.  The food was excellent, the table scape was so pretty and the flower wall provided a great backdrop for photos.  Can you imagine how many bloggers wanted a pic snapped?  Haha!  It’s great becuase for once it’s the norm to take a photo of your food before you even have a bite and no one minds when you need a few trys before getting your hair to look right in the wind when getting your #ootd shot!

In the afternoon, I had a chance to listen to Rachel Parcell speak.  She was interviewed about her life, her Pink Peonies blog, & her clothing line.  I had seen her outside of the hotel the day before becuase she was snapping photos in the same location that we were and she was so kind.  We chatted with her for a few minutes and she just came across very real, humble and sweet so I was excited to hear her talk.  It was so inspirational to hear the ways that she has grown her business and get advice from her.

Afterwards it was time to go up and change and prep for the finale party!  This was probably the most anticipated event of the conference becuase we were celebrating the launch of the LTK app.  The party was black tie optional this year and at a different location than the hotel.

I got together with Torey of Torey’s Treasures, Brittany of Loverly Grey & Molly of Molly’s Musings to grab a glass of wine and snap some photos.  Molly is not only a great blogger but also a talented photographer and she was kind enough to take these photos and send them to me so I could share with you all!

My dress is a complete steal.  I considered buying it for an event last year and ended up passing so when I saw it was still available before my trip I ordered it right up!  It’s even on sale now.  I just thought… how often do you get to dress like an actual disco ball?? Right?  The lower back is really cute too.  I paired mine with very simple and neutral shoes since the dress steals the show all on it’s own.  [wearing an xs]

Dress || Heels, similar option here

rewardStyle coordinated busses to pick us up and take us to the event.  The party actually took place in a few different locations!   We had drinks up on an outside patio to start off the night and it was so pretty to be able to see the city.  Then they moved the crowd into a downstairs room that included a few huge LTK balloons!  Later on we were having a drink and dancing right outside when suddenly a drum line appeared and performed right in front of us!  It was amazing.  And then they motioned for us to follow and turned and started walking to our next location.  We ended the night dancing the night away [my feet are literally still numb in parts] in an outdoor location with a killer song list.  && side note:  Caroline of Currently Caro is just as big of a Bravo Tv fan as I am, so we got to go chat with Juliet Angus of Ladies of London because she was also attending the conference and she was SOOO great!

I know these posts have been a little lengthy–sorry!  But I really wanted to share my experience with you all since it was one I was very excited about myself.  I felt VERY thankful to be invited to the conference and I think it was so worth it to attend!  I learned a lot, met some wonderful girls & came back [exhausted] but certainly more motivated to make WW an even greater place for you all to visit!

April 23, 2017