Styling Dots and Bad Advice

What I Wore:

Dress: Target - $25

Necklace: Target - $9 (giftcarded)

Earrings: Target - $4

Belt: LOFT - $18

Shoes: Birthday

Not sure what's up with the Alfalfa piece of hair sticking straight up...I thought I pinned down all of those. 

Darn rebellious summer hair.

Before I started my blog, I had a little sleeveless polka dot dress. I spent a lot of time researching all the different ways I could wear it (I was still discovering that you didn't have to pair dresses with the little string that came with it, you know). I came across what I thought was a reputable site about fashion. It had all the typical "don't mix black or grey with brown" and "no white after Labor Day" advice, so the advice about polka dots seemed especially viable. When it comes to wearing polka dots, the site said that you should be careful not to pair dotted items with circular jewelry or other polka dots. I can't remember why, but I think it said something about looking like you tried too hard to match everything. Consider this outfit my official rebuttal. I'm pretty convinced that you can wear polka dots with just about anything and it will look fine. 

Also, just because it's on the internet...that doesn't mean you have to take it seriously. This blog included.

On that note, today is the last day to vote for me in the Chippmunk Expert Shopper Contest. I'm currently in sixth place and I need your vote! Thank you to all of you who have voted for me already -- if you haven't, it only takes a few seconds and it's painless. Promise.

XO,

Drawstrings and Beach Dreaming

What I Wore:

Dress: Target - $23 (giftcarded)

Belt: from a skirt

Shoes: Birthday

Necklace: Hello Glam - $20

Linking up with T+J Designs Blog for their Statement Necklace Contest

I eyed this dress at Target for quite sometime, but I was unconvinced that I'd be okay with the drawstring around the waist. When I got a giftcard to Target for my birthday, I tried it on and decided that I loved the dress, but I was right about the drawstring. However, the drawstring was in the place I typically wear my belts, so I thought that it would be easy to take it out and cover up the small holes with a belt (thin or thick). I think that for a technically "free to me" dress, this works perfectly! I keep picturing this dress at the beach -- are you sensing a theme lately? I might possibly be needing a trip to the beach soon...

XO,

Summer Wedding

What I Wore:

Dress: Target - $28 (bought with $ from clothes I sold)

Blazer: Charlotte Russe - $20

Necklace: c/o My Name Necklace

Belt: Target - $17

Shoes: eBay - $60

Linking up with Vodka-Infused Lemonade and her Tres Chic Thursday Link Up!

Last weekend, Fins and I attended the wedding of one of my sweet friends and co-workers. The wedding was in Chattanooga at her in-laws' log cabin right next to the river. I knew that "by the river in the mountains" meant a little cooler, so I tacked on my lace blazer -- it's light enough to deal with a little Southern heat, but still substantial to deal with the cool breezes. (Fins also wore a seersucker shirt...so we were kind of that couple...I wish I had a picture of the two of us to share!) The entire day was absolutely perfect and we are so glad we could share in their celebration! 

Didn't Liz make a beautiful bride? (Also, the open bar might explain what's going on in the background...)

PS: If you haven't already voted for me, I'd love your vote! I am so close to the top five, I can just smell the giftcards! With the move, I'd love to have a little extra decorating money, so winning this contest would truly help. The contest ends next Tuesday, so you have plenty of time to click the little heart for me! Thank you!

XO,

Hawaiian Much?

What I Wore:

Flower necklace: GroopDealz - $20

Shirt: H&M - $8

Skirt: Target - (giftcarded) $15

Shoes: Target - $15

I've mentioned a couple times recently that I look like I belong in the South, but I think this outfit belongs in Hawaii. I didn't do it on purpose, but I'm thinking that Hawaii is a great idea. (Hear that, Fins? That's one major hint coming your way...!) If I ever find myself in Hawaii, I will solidify my position as a tourist and wear this outfit to my heart's content. A girl can dream, right?

We traded a big vacation this summer for (a lot of) new furniture for our new house -- it's more than twice the size of our current house, so that makes that initial purchase a bit expensive. We also don't buy anything on credit (other than mortgage), so being financially responsible has its downsides sometimes. Fins has promised me the possibility of  touring Italy (and maybe even neighboring countries) next summer. I can handle a summer of setting up and decorating our new house if the Mediterranean is somehow involved in the not-too-distant-future. Not sure how this outfit would fly in Italy...might have to scale it down a bit and cover my naughty bits (aka elbows, knees, and ankles).

XO,

Guest Posting at My New Favorite Outfit

You can find me today over at Ginny's adorable blog My New Favorite Outfit! You'll see me wearing some of my favorite outfits and learn a little bit more about me (in case I'm not all open book blog vomit enough for you).

Go visit and show Ginny some blog love!
XO,

Literally

What I Wore:

Tee: LOFT - $8

Skirt: H&M - $12

Shoes: American Eagle - $9

Necklace: SassySteals - $12

I think the style in the South is very literal - everything in an outfit matches down to jewelry and accessories! Sometimes,  I get dressed in outfits like these and think that I took the outfit too literally by sticking with the same colors in the skirt as opposed to building off of it. Does that even make sense? In this outfit, the tee I am wearing picks up some mint colors in the skirt, the shoes are a similar shade of pink as the skirt, and my necklace has both the minty turquoise color and pink in it. When I break it down like that, it sounds more matchy-matchy than it looks, but I imagine that no one judged me for it down here. How do you feel about matchy-matchy outfits? Love them, hate them, indifferent?

XO,

Relaxed Date Night

What I Wore:

Tee: LOFT - $8

Skirt: Target - $5

Necklace: birthday

Shoes: birthday

Fridays are my "day off." I don't have class or any schedule obligations (other than Crossfit or Pilates), but when Fins comes home from work (he has a big boy job), I try to put on a cute date night outfit. Fins is a t-shirt and jeans kind of guy, and he loves it when I wear a simple tee with anything, so this outfit is a simple for-Fins-date-night outfit.

XO,

Kind-Of Work

What I Wore:

Shirt: Dillard's - $10 (from the days in which my mom bought my clothes)

Necklace: Hello Glam - $20

Skirt: Old Navy - $20

Belt: From a skirt

Shoes: Target - $15

Every summer, I try to find some constructive way to use my time. I've volunteered at a summer camp for low-income children for the past two summers, and I find it so fulfilling that I can use my passion and love for teaching to give back. I wore this to teach in the morning, so I guess this is my version of summer workwear. Not trying to rub it in or anything...

Linking up with Tara at Mix & Match Fashion for her What I Wore to Work link-up!
Also, Tara is one of the hosts for Chippmunk's Expert Shopper contest -- and I'm in the running! I'd love it if you took the time to vote for me here! Thank you! **UPDATE: I appreciate the love and enthusiasm, but please only make sure that you're voting once, please!
XO,

Backwards or Forwards?

What I Wore:

Top: Hello Glam - $25

Shorts: Old Navy - $10

Sandals: Birthday

Necklace: c/o MyNameNecklace.com

The tag for this shirt is on the "bow side" of this top, so I assume that you're supposed to wear it in the back. However, I've seen a couple pins on Pinterest  and bloggers wearing the bow on the front. I really like it either way, but I think I was partial to the fact that my shirt allowed me to experience what it feels like to impress someone as you walk away. I got a lot more compliments on the outfit when my back was toward someone than when I was facing them. Actually, all of the outfit's compliments came from someone standing behind me...Maybe someday I won't have to rely on a shirt to do that work for me, right?

Also, I'm fully aware that the picture of me from behind is an incredibly awkward picture. I tried fully facing away, but I looked like Lurch's hot mess of a date -- all hunched over and even more awkward in the "facing the wall" pictures I took before this one. And I know that I wore blue every day this week so far. It happens. That's all. :)

XO,

The Temperature Discrepancy Causality

What I Wore:

Shirt: Target - $20

Necklace: Hello Glam - $22

Shoes: Target - $20

Belt: Target - $4

I'm wholly aware that the title of my blog sounds like the name of a Big Bang Theory episode (my favorite). The temperatures inside and out have an inverse relationship; I find myself wearing layers in both seasons to balance the discrepancy of someone's temperature over-compensation. While it was in the high-80s outside, the temperature inside the building for my grad class set it to popsicle mode this week. I was right when I bought this top -- it's perfect for indoor cold, but still works outside when it's really hot. I might be wearing this quite often...

XO,

Shorts Season

What I Wore:

Shirt: Target - $20

Necklace: Birthday

Shorts: Target - $20

Sandals: Birthday

I have welcomed myself into summer by wearing shorts every day this week. Hey, it's the small things, right? 

However, every summer I find myself playing "shorts roulette." Will they fit? Will they be too big? Too tight? Too long? Too short? This year...they were all just a little on the loose side, so I'm just making up for that by wearing belts and tucking in layers to make up for the difference. They're not falling off of me too big and I just find the thought of buying all new shorts a little annoying. I realize this might be a style-blogger-no-no, but I'm just being honest with you--sometimes we all take shortcuts, right? I'll probably buy new shorts next summer (barring any kind of sudden weight gain, of course), but I'm comfortable with the extra couple inches of slack for now.

Also, I completely neglected doing a May closet review...because we're starting to pack up and move to our new house. You'll be seeing some "new" things from late May/early June because I got birthday money, giftcards, and awesome jewelry/clothes. I will try to start over on my entire Closet Inventory once we get settled in, but for now, my blog will basically be "this is what I wore, maybe it's new, maybe not" kind of deal. 

XO,

We Love Target Link-Up : Favorite Score

What I Wore:

Dress: Target - $7

Belt: Francesca's - $10

Necklace: Hello Glam - $20

Blazer: Express - $28

I'm still amazed that I found this dress for $7 at Target. It definitely doesn't look like a cheap-o dress on the sale rack! It was an online purchase that someone returned in-store...and it hung tagless on the clearance rack, just waiting for me to take it home. Linking up with Heidi to show you our favorite scores from Target!

Thanks to everyone who participated this week! 

XO,

We Love Target Link-Up : Shoes

What I Wore:

Shoes: Target - $30

Sweater: Target - $12

Scarf: Target - $15

Pants: Target - $16

Turquoise earrings: Amazon - $4

I unintentionally wore another head-to-toe Target outfit today. In fact, I'm wearing head-to-toe Merona from Target. I tend to find Merona as a safe bet for office-casual clothes (in my closet, very very few items from Target are any other brand). Merona's pencil skirts fit me perfectly and I love their shoes and accessories. I've had a good experience in terms of quality with Merona compared to the other Target brands, as well. The other brands, like Mossimo, seem to be a little more trendy (and in my opinion a little less quality-made) -- Xhileration is definitely Junior's, Mossimo seems to be a "transition" from Junior's to more trendy professional attire (but most of Mossimo (that I've seen) still has the odd-number sizing system), and Merona seems to cover your out-of-college crowd. The Targets near me tend to merchandise and organize the store in that kind of progression from casual teen (Xhileration, et al), to college/late teen (Mossimo), to the young (and not-so-young) professional with Merona. Am I onto something here?

When Heidi and I planned this week's items that we were going to wear (yes, we chose the same items on purpose), I realized that I have these wedges in taupe, purple, and turquoise. I think it's safe to say that I am a fan of Merona's wedges! I also tend to buy an item in multiple colors/designs if it works for me -- do you guys do that, too?

Our last link-up is tomorrow! :)

XO,

We Love Target Link-Up : Accessories

What I Wore:

Necklace: Target - $20

Tank: Forever21 - $17

Skirt: LOFT - $25 (giftcarded)

Shoes: Target - $12

Cardigan: LOFT - $28

Unfortunately, this necklace has become an ignored piece in my closet. My necklace collection has grown pretty rapidly--and accessories have become a great way for me to change up an outfit to make it look different. I wore this outfit with the cardigan for the last half-day of project work with my students, then I took the cardigan off for my grad class that night (the temps are touching the low-90s now). Either way, this necklace definitely makes the outfit stand out more than it would without it!

In case you haven't noticed, Heidi and I have been purposefully wearing Target items that we both have. Her post yesterday highlighted the Merona pattern skirt that we both have, and I wore the Merona paisley skirt. Our inspiration for this link-up came from the fact that we both have so many of the same pieces of clothes, but we wear them so differently (or very similarly sometimes). It's so interesting how two people can have the same taste in the same clothes, but wear them in such a different style! I'm a big fan of the outfits that Heidi puts together with them because they're often not my gut-instinct outfits -- she definitely gives me inspiration and helps me think about my clothes in different ways.

Show me your Target accessories!