Pattern Mixing Procrastination

Yesterday, the plan was to get up and finish packing so I could clean.

Instead, I woke up, did some pattern mixing, and went to lay out in the pool with my cousin instead. It's ok though, I got a nice tan.

Outfit
Dress: Forever 21
Sandals: Charlotte Russe
Sunglasses: Delias
Bag: Old Navy
Swimsuit: Target

Have I mentioned how much I hate packing? As if I don't procrastinate enough when I'm packing for a weekend trip, multiply that times 50 with me attempting to pack everything for two different destinations. I think my problem is really over analysis of the organizational methods of all of it... and my strong point is standing around assessing the situation without the motivation to get it finished. Oops! I think I'd make a great supervisor. (Haha) I guess one way or the other it's all getting thrown in a car or truck Saturday and on it's way!

Wonderland Kitchen Update

For those of you who may or may not follow, here's a little update of what's been going on over at Wonderland Kitchen:

(You can click any picture for a link to that post)

Super Cute Anthropologie Apron Obsessions

FARMbloomington Restaurant Review


Iced Coffee


Cookie-Bottomed Cupcakes


How Sweet's Bacon and Gorgonzola Roasted Potatoes

Where Have You Been Hiding?

This outfit is made almost entirely out of things that I have not worn in a really long time. Or, now that I think of it, I'm not sure that I've ever actually worn this tank top. I'm totally baffled as to why I haven't worn this skirt in something like a year. I think I was under the impression that it didn't fit anymore, or that it fit awkwardly, or something. Who knows, but it was a stupid impression because I love this skirt.

I'd like to say a special thank you to Sunday's storm that cooled the weather down to a tolerable level and in turn allowed me to do something with my hair other than wearing it in a tiny little bun.

Outfit
Tank, Skirt, Wedges: Old Navy
Bracelets, Earrings: Charlotte Russe
Ring: American Eagle
Belt: Target
Necklace: Forever 21

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?

Heat Wave, Martha and the Vandellas Style

It finally rained today and brought the temperatures down just a little bit, but prior to that I think most of us in the U.S. have been dealing with some not-so-pleasant temperatures. So what's the plan for getting dressed to leave the house? Easy: things that are as un-clingy as possible, as uncovering as possible without being too-showy, hair UP, and little to no makeup. Here's how that plan pans out...

Outfit
Dress: Old Navy
Pocket Vest: J.C. Penney
Sandals: Target
Purse: Nine West, T.J. Maxx
Headband: For Love 21
Necklace: Target (I think?)

These shoes have been my "go-to nicer-than-flip-flops-but-still-comfortable-summer-sandals"... SUPER comfortable, though even these could not stand up to all of the walking required by a NYC visit. At least they match my summer purse almost perfectly.

How have you been staying cool?

Take a Ride on the Wild Side

Are you wild about leopard print? I know it always seems to catch my eye. The Forever 21+ Collection is all about the leopard right now. There's something for everyone, whether you want to absolutely stand out in a full-on leopard print fabric or just use it as an accent. Here is just a glimpse at some of the current leopard pieces.

(View the entire line on the Forever 21+ Section of their website by clicking here)

Longline Leopard Sweater: $22.80

Sleeveless Leopard Dress: $22.80

Leopard Open Cardigan: $15.80

Slub Cardigan with Leopard Scarf: $24.80

Leopard Pocket Top: $17.80

Leopard Sublimation Tee: $17.80

I know a few of these will have me stopping by the store as soon as I get to Chicago next week!

Staten Island's Snug Harbor

One day before I went into the city my friend Ashlee and I grabbed some iced coffees from Dunkin' Donuts and went over to Staten Island's Snug Harbor (a "cultural center and botannical garden"). Here are some pictures from the day:

Real life Wonderland??

The 9/11 Memorial

I could just about kick myself for not realizing they had a real life garden labyrinth! When googling Snug Harbor I can across that and these other real life hedge mazes.... so cool! I almost want to make it a point to travel to some of these places just to see them.

I'll admit that the following two pictures were not from Snug Harbor, but we saw these little guys over by Ashlee's apartment on our way back. They were too cute! The second picture also made me FINALLY realize why it's called "ducking". Maybe a little slow.

Man down!

"DUCK!"

Brooklyn Summer

I took a 5 day trip to New York City in June to visit my friend Ashlee who lives on Staten Island, my roommate Kelly who is interning in the fashion district, and to meet up with a few of the blogger ladies I have heard OH SO MUCH about from Miss Nickie, our "big sister of the blogging world". As you can imagine five days in the city led to quite a bit of material, so we'll start with this outfit post/Sunday recap and go from there.

On one accidental trip to Brooklyn via the subway and a missed stop, my cousin was texting me and upon hearing of our little adventure replied "Oh, Brooklyn... rough place, but very classic." I'm not sure that he's ever actually been to Brooklyn, but we thought the quote was hilarious, and 'rough' was definitely an appropriate term for the subway station we ended up in. The rest of it: not so bad.

We stayed in the Williamsburg neighborhood with Nickie one night after a night out and spent the next day wandering around doing all sorts of things. Brunch (or maybe more like "linner" by the time we got around to leaving the apartment) was at The Lovin' Cup and for $15 you got a delicious brunch entree and ALL YOU CAN DRINK MIMOSAS. Obviously our idea of a great time. As if that wasn't enough we stopped by the Turkey's Nest Tavern to get giant to-go margaritas for the park and spent the next hour or two lounging around in the sun with our margaritas.


We then made our way over to this little place I've only heard so much about: Beacon's Closet. As Nickie put it, we were "a little too tipsy to sift through the clothes" so she and I just checked out the jewelry sections while Kelly tried some things on. I ended up with a few rings and a necklace, which will surely be making appearances sooner or later.

Pictures resulting from various photo shoots along the way to Beacon's:

Note: Nickie did NOT fall down but was merely "taking her photography very seriously as an art" and getting pictures of Kelly from a new angle. Hahaha. This picture alone could pretty adequately sum up our day.

Sifting through a pile of "free" things on the sidewalk. We actually ended up leaving with quite a few books!

The night ended at an Italian restaurant with Maresa and her husband Tom that may have been a bit too classy for the likes of us and our day drinking... but you can thank Taco Chulo for being closed for the Gay Pride parade. I'm still sad I never got to try these nachos that they're always talking about.

Here's the outfit for the day:

I'd like to take a moment to thank the wind for these oh-so-cute bangs.... or not.

Dress: Target
Leggings: Old Navy
Vest (previously jacket): Charlotte Russe
Boots: Durango, R.C.C. Western
Sunglasses: Delia's
Purse: Carlos Santana, TJ Maxx
Bracelets: Charlotte Russe


Stay tuned, more NYC adventures to come.

Happy (VERY) Belated Independence Day!

Finally have my laptop back and have a lot to catch up on, but I figured I'd go with the most time-sensitive topic before the month was out. Here are a few pictures from the 4th of July when we went to visit family in northern Indiana.

My outfit for the day: I think I ended up rocking the "Texas Soccer Mom" theme? Somehow about a million mosquitos managed to get me through the leggings, boots, and socks. Clearly they were determined.

Outfit
Dress: Forever21
Boots: Durango, R.C.C. Western
Leggings: Old Navy

Our "uniforms" (I kept calling it a costume, clearly I'm not a big sports fan) for the corn hole tournament. It's worth noting that I have neither aim nor skill when it comes to throwing things and we lost both the first round and then the first round of the loser's bracket. Alcohol may have also had something to do with it. Also worth noting that we made these visors for approximately a cool $5 thanks to WalMart. Keep it classy, USA.

My brother Dane and my cousin's baby, Luke. Dane's keeping him hip with his hairstyles, haha.

My dad and baby Luke keeping cool while watching the White Sox game inside. Thank goodness little Luke isn't being raised to be a Cubs fan.

My cousin Katherine enjoying some of the "JOTS" (A nickname for jell-o shots that my grandma apparently picked up from an article about 'how many teenagers die from them'... good thing we aren't teenagers.)

The main party with my mom's family was actually on the 3rd, and on the 4th my brother, his girlfriend Chelsea, my dad and I took off for Chicago to see a U2 concert the next day. We had dinner at South Coast Sushi (obviously a really American place) and then managed to catch not only the fireworks off Navy Pier but fireworks along the entire horizon from my dad's roof. It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen!

Hopefully everyone else in the country had a good July 4th, you know... at the beginning of the month.

Update!

Yet another computer drought going on in my neck of the woods, this time due to a virus that I have yet to get fixed. I've been functioning thanks to my Blackberry, but one of the things I miss most about having a computer is the ability to not only blog but keep up with what is going on with everyone else! I am able to read blogs from my phone, but different formattings can be kind of goofy when it comes to getting the text to a readable size.

I do hope everyone is having a nice summer so far though, and I'm hoping I'll be back before too long with some real updates or posts. I'm off to New York City thursday morning (WAY too early, might I add) to visit some friends (and hopefully hang out with some other bloggers in the area!) so I'm sure that will lead to some good material. By the time I get around to all of this I'm sure I'll have a practically brand new wardrobe to share differing from previous posts. Ok, maybe not completely new, but hopefully lots several new pieces.