Farfalle

If you still think that bow ties are just for boys, you're wrong! Over the past couple years, bow ties have been making a huge comeback in fashion...especially for women. But this trend is slowly drifting away again. I refuse to let a good thing go so I make it a point to work some bow ties into my outfits every once in awhile.

Since I went through a phase of DIY bow tie making, I just have too many bow ties to not wear. I classed up this outfit with my floral print bow in order to add a touch of femininity to my tailored look. 

Bow ties may be borrowed from the boys but they're oh so right for the girls! So help me bring it back in style, ladies & gents! 

Styling Tip: You can do as I did and add a bow tie to a tailored piece such as trousers or a blazer for a sleek and chic ensemble. For a girlier look, try tucking a blouse into a skirt and accessorizing with a statement bow tie.

Silk Tank: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue here)

Cardigan: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue)

Trousers: Geren Ford (here)

Heels: Jeffrey Campbell 'Solitaire' (here)

Floral Bow Tie: DIY by me

Hoppy Holidays

Christmas Eve dinner was almost a disaster...because my family forgot to make/buy desserts!!! But luckily my handsome hero, Eddie, came to the rescue with a box of DeLuscious cookies and milk. Anyone that knows me will know that I can't live without sweets and desserts. I mean...there must be a reason why literally 95% of people that gave me gifts added in bars, bags, & boxes of chocolates as a part of their presents to me. I'm clearly a chocoholic and there's no denying it lol. Ain't no shame in my game....

Because I tend to get carried away with food and sweets in general (especially during the holiday season), I decided to wear a loose fitting silk dress from Maggie Ward to hide my food baby after chowing down at the Christmas Eve dinner. I styled it with thick brown tights, crocodile boots, and a vintage bunny fur coat I found at a flea market to top off my look. I sloppily piled my hair on top of my head in a bun and called it a day.

Anyway, Christmas Eve and Christmas have been absolutely magical. I was lucky enough to see a lot of people I really care about and miss...especially my childhood best friend from when we were 3. She's been all the way in Panama and I haven't seen her since she left a year and a half ago for the peace corp so seeing her made my Christmas extra special!

I must say that there's really nothing as amazing as finding a friendship that will literally last a lifetime. This particular friendship has lasted over 20 years and it's got enough fuel to last a million more lifetimes. I love you to the moon and back, Tali!!! Ok...enough mushy gushy stuff. I hope everyone had an amazing time celebrating Christmas yesterday! I'm getting ready to head out camping soon and I can't wait to post about it when I get back!!!!

Bunny Fur Coat: vintage

Silk Dress: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue)

Tights: Hue

Crocodile Boots: vintage

Earrings & Necklace: Vanessa Mooney

Rings: Jenny Bird & Spanish Moss

everGREENS

Some of my favorite things about the holidays are: Candy Cane Joe Joe's from Trader Joe's, peppermint hot chocolates, delicious baked goods, Christmas music, pretty lights & decorations, and of course....Christmas trees!

I thought it was only appropriate to dress myself in green from head to heels for something as festive and fun as searching for the perfect Christmas tree. I layered my green anorak over a long sleeve linen tee and paired it with leggings, knee-high socks, and a pair bright green boots.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas now!!!! And I can't wait to celebrate with my family and friends! :)

Jacket: Bar III Anorak (here)

T-shirt: Joe's Jeans Linen tee (here)

Scarf: LF Stores

Leggings: Maggie Ward

Socks: Free People

Green Boots: MissSixty

Jewelry: Vanessa Mooney

Don't Mesh With Me

Now that it's Fall, it's time to bust out those leather jackets ladies! I, for one, am obsessed with a great leather jacket and that's why I believe it's one of those items that are worth splurging on. Like a great classic leather purse, these jackets will last you years! I've had this jacket for about 3 years now and you can't even tell that I've used it and abused it to death! I layered this poor thing over my mesh crop top and paired it with these genie-like silk sweatpants for a girls' night out on the town. I finished off the look with a pair of trusty Jeffrey Campbells and some jewelry. 

The best tip for wearing an all-black outfit is to mix it up with textures and/or prints. For this outfit, I decided to mix it up with a lot of different textures including some mesh knit, leather, sueded silk, and suede leather. Remember to keep your outfits interesting by mixing and matching textures...especially if you're going for a monochrome look like this!

Although my style changes often with my mood, my hair typically remains the same for long periods of time. I'm not really crazy about haircuts and change so I don't really take risks in the hair department like I do with my clothes and styling. My amazing friend, Emily, was brave enough to cut my hair while her fiancé force fed me cronuts and maple bacon donuts! I digress but that was my first cronut and damn was it amazing lol. I'm so grateful for both Em and her man because I'm newly obsessed with my hair and the super delicious and heavenly cronut! 

Leather Jacket: Please (LF Stores)

Mesh Crop Top: Evil Twin

Sueded Silk Pants: Maggie Ward from Nordstrom (here)

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell 'Hough' (here)

Necklace: Vanessa Mooney 'Clearing Things Up'

Bracelets: Jenny Bird and Luv AJ

Movin' On Up

I am beyond exhausted. I've been packing up and moving things day by day for the past 3 days to the new 4 bedroom house that I had recently purchased. I am soooo excited because I decided to turn the smallest bedroom into my very own walk-in closet!!! So far I'm loving how it looks and I'll definitely be sharing my setup later on the blog when it's complete and looking tidier.

Before I started workin' my bum off during the move, I took an amazingly relaxing vacation to Sequoia National Park. I spent my days hiking and exploring with my man, which I'll be sure to post more about in the upcoming blog posts. 

By the way I'm sorry for neglecting the blog...I had absolutely no service out in Sequoia and I jumped right into moving when I came back to civilization lol. Once things start to settle down for me, I'll be back to posting more regularly. Also, I'm posting this through my Blogger app on my iPhone because my Internet still isn't set up yet (so things may look a little funky haha).

Blouse: Anna Catherine

        Pants: Maggie Ward Florianopolis Cropped Pants (full length pants here)

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell Solitaire Pumps (here)

Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney (here) and Luv AJ (here)

Necklace: Vanessa Mooney

Angel's Knoll

I was downtown running some errands and attending meetings so I decided to visit Angel's Knoll Park for my lunch break, which was made famous by the amazing movie '500 Days of Summer'. After snapping some shots there, I took a stroll up and down the Angel's Flight stairs a few times for a mini mini-workout lol. Now my body and legs feel like jelly! It's probably due to the fact that I did some serious water aerobics when I got home too. I know...I'm a huge dork like that.

The focal piece of my outfit was this beautiful light pink silk chiffon and tan leather back vest from Maggie Ward. This vest is summery, chic, and sophisticated. I completed the look with an off-white Sanctuary tank tucked into my favorite pair of Level 99 khaki pants with zipper details at the ankles, and some comfy Matiko 'Lilo' perforated loafers (which are absolutely perfect for summer). This outfit was perfect for running errands in but not casual enough to look sloppy during meetings. In a way, it also kind of acted as my workout outfit at Angel's Flight. Hahaha. Happy Hump Day, everyone!

Silk Chiffon and Leather Vest: Maggie Ward (here in white)
Khaki Pants: Level 99 (here)
White Perforated Loafers: Matiko 'Lilo' (here)
Purse: Lancaster Paris 'Kyla Satchel'
Necklace: Charlene K
Bracelets: Juicy Couture (here) and vintage

Major PLAIDitude

In celebration of my friend's birthday, a few of us kids decided to make reservations for a 1930's themed murder mystery dinner in LA, which turned out to be more of a late lunch at 3pm than a dinner. Although I was a bit thrown off by the time, it worked out for the best because we had the rest of the night to just enjoy each others company. Our birthday girl, Mary, was asked to help play a role of Old Grandmother Gert, which will explain why she is wearing a silly hat and glasses in one of the pictures below. I'm not going to lie, we were one of the few tables that didn't guess the correct murderer but I think we were more distracted with everything else around us instead of focusing on solving the mystery lol. Also, I'll be the first to admit that I have the attention span of a 4 year old hahaha.  

After the murder was solved, we migrated to a speakeasy bar at Cole's in downtown LA where I discovered my new favorite drink, the Gin-Gin Mule. We spent a couple hours there and ended the night at The Edison, which is one of my favorite places downtown. This bar is tucked in a dark, scary alley but the inside of the bar is beautifully decorated with old mechanical artifacts and the ambiance of the place is absolutely amazing. Since there is a dress code, everyone just always looks so beautiful and put together (no lazy people in sweats and flip flops allowed!). We even got to enjoy a little show with the cutest dancers ever, which is pictured below.

When I found out that the "dinner" was set in 1937, I had to google what that meant exactly lol. I found a bunch of images online of women in tailored skirt suits with clean lines and hems that hit mid-calf. I searched through my work wardrobe for something along the lines of that and I found this Maggie Ward plaid pencil skirt. I then styled the rest of my outfit around this piece by adding a grey bowler hat, t-strap heels, and a mustard yellow blouse (matching the tiny bit of mustard yellow in the plaid skirt). Hope you guys enjoy the pictures from my time traveling excursion. 

P.S. Sorry for the poor quality of the pictures. It was taken with my iPhone 5 in some pretty dark rooms. This was just too much fun to not share...

 Let me seduce, tempt, and hypnotize you with my vampire eyes hahaha

Blouse: Olive & Oak (Bloomingdale's) also seen (here)

Plaid Skirt: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue)

Shoes: ASOS

Hat: Urban Outfitters

Whatever...

I even ran into an old high school buddy that used to golf with on the school team! 

Undefeated Mission League Champs all 4 years I was on the team! 

Fashion + Music = Pure Happiness

This past May, I was lucky enough to be a part of music festival history by attending BottleRock in Napa Valley, CA. It was both BottleRock's and my first music festival ever and I must say that it was absolutely EPIC!!! I really didn't know what to expect and frankly I was pretty nervous. I don't consider myself high maintenance, but I do enjoy my personal space and a clean bathroom (which are not things you would typically find at a music festival as you probably figured). Although I was nervous, I couldn't imagine not going and turning down the opportunity to see so many amazing artists. Some of which included: Kings of Leon, Alabama Shakes, The Shins, The Black Keys, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, The Flaming Lips, The Wallflowers, Allen Stone, Bad Religion, Jane's Addiction, Grouplove, Rogue Wave, and so much more!!! I know you're probably jealous because I'm still a little jealous of myself, but no worries! BottleRock was such a success that it's coming back in 2014!

As you probably know, a big part of music festivals besides the music is the fashion. Since my boyfriend and I were traveling up to San Francisco and staying with my friend, Daina, I didn't want to be rude and over-pack. We all know what over-packing leads to...and that's an explosion of clothes all over the place so I planned my outfits using the same hat and shoes for 3 days. I only ended up packing 2 pairs of shoes for 5 days of vacation...which is a HUGE accomplishment for me! And to top it all off, I fit all of my belongings in 2 duffel bags!!!

Below are some snapshots of my outfits from BottleRock. As you can see, I opted for long sleeves and a wide brimmed hat to shield me from the scorching hot sun each day, boots to protect my toes from getting trampled on, and short shorts and a short dress to still keep things interesting! haha

Day 1
 

 

Blouse: Olive & Oak (from Bloomingdales)

Dress: Urban Outfitters (layered under the blouse)

Socks: LF Stores

Hat: UBI Hats & Accessories (from LF Stores)

Boots: Seychelles

Necklace: flea market

Day 2

 

 

 

 

Daina and I showing off our arm candy.

Maxi Cape: One Teaspoon (here in "Dirty Nude" color)

 Lace Crop Top: Millau (from LF Stores)

Corduroy Shorts: Carmar (from LF Stores)

Hat: UBI Hats & Accessories (from LF Stores)

Boots: Seychelles

Jewelry: Amrita Singh, Vanessa Mooney, Stacey Sterling, Charlene K, and flea markets

Day 3 

 

 

 

 Bell Sleeve Lace Top: Mystree (from Nordstrom)

Distressed Denim Shorts: Evil Twin (here)

Hat: UBI Hats & Accessories (from LF Stores)

Boots: Seychelles

Necklace: Stacey Sterling

Nail Art: painted by me

  A shot of a Sonoma Vineyard on our way to Napa.

The reason I'm bringing up the past is because I just attended another amazing day of music and fashion out in San Bernardino, CA at the San Manuel Amphitheater on June 2nd. When I initially bought these tickets to see Mumford & Sons, I had no idea that it was a festival style concert with food trucks and carnival game booths too. I later found out that there were about 30,000 people that attended the show. I had never heard of the other bands, but I am so glad I discovered Michael Kiwanuka and Mystery Jets! Obviously, Mumford & Sons was beyond amazing...but that's a given!

I decided to go with a boho inspired look for this fun-filled day of music. I painted my nails white to compliment my gold jewelry and really make them pop. Hope you enjoy my festival outfits!

What are some other music festivals that you guys would recommend? I think I'm addicted now...

Ran into my beautiful friend, Jacquelyn, while grabbing some food.

Hat: vintage

Necklace: Vanessa Mooney

Crocheted Crop Top: Millau (LF Stores)

Silk Maxi Skirt: Maggie Ward

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell (here in "camel" color which is not pictured)

Jewelry includes: vintage Cartier, flea market finds, TomTom jewelry, gifts from friends, LF Stores.

Mumford & Sons Encore.

Snapped a shot of the beautifully designed stage as 30,000 people were clearing out.

The End.