A 23rd Birthday in Pictures

TOMS Ballet Flats

At one point I practically lived in ballet flats, but I have found that it's hard to find a good pair that is totally comfortable without requiring much "breaking in". I was really excited to hear that TOMS would be rolling out a line of their own ballet flats! I have yet to own a pair of TOMS, mainly due to not being able to decide which pair I would want, and was curious to see what styles would be available for this new line.

The ballet flats, which were debuted this week, range from $74 to $84 and are available in 13 colors/patterns. I'm interested to hear feedback from anyone who has purchased a pair. With pricing so high for a pair of flats, I'm hesitant to even consider it without knowing the quality and comfort is worth it.

Has anyone already ordered a pair? Do you plan on doing so? I would certainly love to hear any feedback about them. I think for now I may try to narrow it down to a pair of the classics for Spring.

You can check out the new line of TOMS ballet flats for yourself here. Which style would you pick?

Steve Madden Spring Picks

I don't let myself wander to the Steve Madden website often, but it has been a while so I decided to take a peak and see what was in the works for Spring. Here are a few that caught my eye:

CHIEEFF in Coral Suede
$89.95
The perfect simple & cute spring/summer wedge!

TASSAL in Cognac Leather
$69.95
One of my favorite colors in shoes because it goes with everything.

IROQUOIS in Cognac Leather
$179.95
These wild little things caught my eye pretty quickly... if only I had the money laying around!

RIOTTT in Pink Multi

$99.95
I love this eye catching color combination.

And of course the sale/clearance section:

My MADIEEs in Stone Leather!

ONLY $59.99
This shoe in the Cognac Leather has been a wardrobe staple of mine, and you can currently get them for nearly a THIRD of the original price in the Stone Leather. Jump on it!

TEXXIE in Cognac Leather
$64.95
Also on sale from an original $159.95, this was another one of my top picks back when I bought my pair of MADIEEs, with just a little extra detail on the side.

It might be safe to say that I want any shoe that's available in Cognac Leather- it's just such a great color that goes so well with black, patterns, or just about anything else you can mix up. Are you dying to have any of these or any other Steve Maddens this season? Or is there another pair of shoes out there making your mouth water?

If you just can't resist, use the code SMFREESHIP on any purchase over $75 to get free shipping from SteveMadden.com!

Tulle Time

Yes, you're welcome for that cheesy Home Improvement reference.

We have less than two weeks left in the Chicago apartment and are trying to make the most of it (though I'll be gone this weekend for a wedding), so last night we went to dinner at one of our favorites: Sullivan's Steakhouse. Long Island Martinis, Filet Trio, and White Cheddar Au Gratin Potatoes? Check, check, and check. Yum.

I love this dress because it's comfortable, cute, and so easy to accessorize with a million different things. I like to keep a little edge on the tulle so it doesn't look too frilly, and these boots did just that.




Oh! And you'll have to excuse me because it does have a little bit of product in it, but for the most part my hair is still pretty silky and shiny from the olive oil treatment the other day- even after a coloring! I'm thinking I might start doing these at least once or twice a week.

Now you'll have to excuse me, I'm off to pack for my second of three moves in less than 6 months. Let's cross our fingers that by the end of January I'll be settled in Denver and won't have to worry about moving for a while!

A Night Out in Denver

Outfit
Dress: TJ Maxx
Leggings, Purse, Cardigan: Old Navy
Boots: DSW
Socks: Target
Necklace: American Eagle
Bracelets: Charlotte Russe

I just got back from spending a few days in Denver and I miss it already! The day we landed the weather was right around 50 degrees, which was a welcome change from the temperatures in the 80's that we had been experiencing in Chicago before we left. I'm not totally in love with Indian Summers... when fall gets here I am always much too excited about it to have it taken away again so soon!

The temperatures got up to the 70's the other two days in Denver, but because we would often leave in the mornings and not always come back until later at night I had to work with layers to make sure I wasn't too hot/too cold at any given time. This outfit was the perfect blend for a nice dinner at the Capital Grille downtown on Larimer followed by a few bars with my dad and what ending up being nearly a whole convention of friends from his industry who were in town. I am absolutely falling in love with these boots and I am so glad I kept them! (They were a bit of an impulse purchase and I wore them around the apartment for two days trying to decide)

Larimer Street in Downtown Denver

Hello MADIEE...

Welcome to the family!

Steve Madden- MADIEE (Cognac)

I LOVE these Steve Maddens. They're still just a little tight so I've been gladly wearing them around to stretch them out a bit. I even learned how to polish shoes today just for them! (Yeah, ok, not hard but I had never done it before. I guess I don't own a lot of leather shoes.) Now I just need to stop even looking at boots. I'm definitely set for a while, but it's so hard to not look! Particularly hard when you have some how ended up on what seems like every shoe-related mailing list on the world wide web.

And I'll leave you with a picture of the gorgeously crisp Chicago day we had yesterday in between rain showers:

Back in Boots

Fall has definitely happened in Chicago, and I love it. I don't know if it's just that I love fall so much or that I'm so glad the humidity has gone away, but I have been in just about the best of moods ever since the weather started getting cooler last week. My house has been in constant candle-mode, alternating between Slatkin & Co's (Bath & Body Works) "Leaves", "Creamy Pumpkin", and "Autumn Apple." Yum!!! I also made the first batch of Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bars of the season last night, and then proceeded to eat two of those and drink a glass of Sauvignon Blanc as my dinner. As someone on Facebook commented "I'm sure that covers at least 4, maybe 5, of the food groups anyways!" Haha.

What fall means as far as my wardrobe goes is this: SWEATERS AND BOOTS ARE BACK! I threw a big chunky sweater on Wednesday night and had forgotten how super comfortable and warm they always are. Mmmm. Here's today's outfit:

Outfit
Dress: TJ Maxx
Scarf: H&M
Sweater, Leggings: Old Navy
Boots: Durango via RCC Western

And in the background? Only my absolute favorite flowers- gladiolas! They were surprisingly cheap at Whole Foods... $3.99 for 10 stems.

What are your favorite parts of Fall that you are excited about? Or are you like me and it's just about everything to do with it?

Hurry!

Through midnight tomorrow, you can use the code "FALL30" on Steve Madden online orders and get 30% off your entire order. I personally will be using this to get THESE little babies:

It does exclude clearance and a few other styles (including a pair I was going to get, but in the end I think I like the MADIEE's better) so be sure to double check when you enter the code at check out.

If you miss the cut off for that code, I believe you can still use the code "SMFREESHIP" to get free shipping on your order, but this unfortunately also excludes clearance and can't be combined with the 30% off code. All clearance shoes are currently only $19.99, and if you wear a women's size 10 it's your lucky day because I've noticed a lot of the cuter styles are only available in that size now!

They have a lot of cute boots in stock now, a lot with a definite cowboy boot influence without necessarily having the full blown western look. Here are some of my current picks in the store:

The PAMMYY seems simple enough but also comes in some wild prints.

The classic Oxford look in a wedge.

The HAIIKU. I believe I posted about this one before, but it's currently on sale for $79.95 from $129.95!

The CHEEEKY comes in your choice of two velvet floral prints or cognac leather.

A New Love for Brown

This is a dress that was a little bit of a surprise purchase the other day at Target. We had to go to get some other things and it had been a few weeks since I had looked at their dresses and thought I would check it out. I picked up four or five to try on, and was hesistant about this one because the pattern at first glance almost seemed a little too "camo" or something to me. I'm not normally really attracted to thinks with a brown base color, but I gave it a shot. It didn't hurt that I knew I could wear it with my brown wedges, which were really my first brown-based inspiration.

I didn't end up liking a single other dress but LOVED the fit of this one! This is actually the dress I mentioned in the last post about wanting to get in more than one pattern or color but they only had this and leopard print. I was also surprised how much I ended up liking this print... it paired REALLY well with the belt from Forever 21 that I have been favoring lately, and of course my brown pair of super-favorite-wedges from Target. And I won't lie, I think this dress really emphasized my tan, which is always a big plus in my book.

One of my favorite parts is the neckline. It comes up high enough to cover plenty and not be too revealing but is also open enough to not feel too restricting. (Forgive the bangs, they're looking a mess in this picture)

Outfit
Dress, Shoes: Target
Purse: Nine West via TJ Maxx
Belt: Forever 21
Bracelets: Charlotte Russe

What's New with Steve Madden

It occurred to me that since I've more or less been living in sandals and my beloved Dolce Vita knock off wedges from Target, I haven't so much as taken a glimpse at any Steve Madden lately. This is good for my wallet, of course, but I was curious to see what was new.

(I think truth be told I may have been a little scared off by the fact that I keep making myself try on a pair I got last year that is more or less way too tall for me to do even the slightest amount of walking in. We're talking "could wear them out to dinner" and that's about it. I'm being more careful with letting the skyscrapers catch my eyes these days!)

I popped on over to the website, and there are definitely some noticeable trends making their way through the collection. Here are a few of the new styles...

One trend that can be easily spotted is the use of a lot of blue and purple:

Color blocking:

Thicker heels:

The sequin trend:

And again, the leopard print:

You can also currently get 30% off on the "Sneak Peek" section... so be sure to check those out and get them while they're on sale if anything catches your eye!

Are any of these new trends specifically appealing to you?