Tag Archives: anthropologie

New uses for old things

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I’ve had this cardigan for a long time, but it never occurred to me until this week that it could work great tied up as well as loose.  I like how the layering allowed the sleeve cuffs of the dress to peek out.  The overall look here is really simple, but I was going for something a little more minimal this day, so I was really pleased with how it turned out.

Sometimes I find that dresses which work great on their own can be some of the most difficult pieces to style originally.  It feels like there’s only so many combinations of cardigans and belts I can come up with.  So I’m always really happy when inspiration strikes and I come up with something new.  I’d put together a look like this with one of my longer drapey cardigans before, but never my short one.

Dress: V Fish (via Why Not Boutique)
Cardigan: Anthropologie (via eBay)
Shoes: Merrell Brios
Watch: Fossil
Earrings: Gifted

A few of my favorite things

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Top: Ann Taylor LOFT (thrifted)
Skirt: Forver 21 (via Revolve)
Sandals: Dansko Neve (via eBay)
Necklace: Express
Bangle: Vintage

I had a pretty awesome Christmas this year.  Lots and lots of family time (all within Tampa this year, yay!), lots of great food (turns out holidays are great for eating Paleo), lots of treats (not very Paleo) and lots of fantastic gifts.  I wore the above outfit all day on Christmas, which turned out to be perfect.  It’s really out of my usual comfort zone (midi peasant skirt, white top, heels) but I loved it.  The simplicity of basic neutrals with turquoise accessories looked nice without being overdressed or too casual.  The jersey skirt meant that I didn’t have extra discomfort after eating too many cookies.  And the wedge sandals dressed things up and weren’t super uncomfortable.

This is what my awesome boyfriend got me.  He had already bought the eBags packing cubes from Amazon for me (I’d been wanting these for years; I can’t wait to try them out next time I travel) and he wasn’t sure what else he should buy me for Christmas.  I suggested he try Anthropologie.  He went, found some presents for me, and told me that Anthro could be called the “Diana store” because he could have closed his eyes and pointed at anything there and I would have liked it :)

I’ve already been digging into the book he got me, and I absolutely love it.  The other present I was super excited about.  Carlo has a very sensitive sense of smell and most perfumes irritate him.  Thus I haven’t worn perfume since we’ve been together for the past five years.  But I was really missing wearing a scent.  Without me eve telling him to, he found a perfume at Anthro that didn’t irritate his senses and bought it for me.  And I love it!  It’s light, floral with just a hint of ocean breeze.  This will be a favorite for years to come.

Here’s some other random pics from the festivities:

 This is the stuff I got from family.

Carlo and Elvis on Christmas day

I got this ornament when I was a kid, and it’s still awesome :)

Customize Everything

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OMG, it’s an honest-to-goodness outfit post!  I was very uninspired outfit-wise all summer, but I feel like I’m finally coming out of my slump, and it feels so good.  With a few recent key purchases (you’ll see them soon) I’m starting to get back into putting together interesting outfits that aren’t just a repeat of something I already wore.

 

This dress fits in completely with my philosophy that pretty much everything I wear should be customized in some way.  I bought this dress on super sale at a local boutique.  I normally shy away from all black, but the material was so fantastic, and the fit so flattering, that I went for it.

 

Originally, there was no blue band at the bottom.  The sleeves were rolled up and secured with button tabs.  To make this dress my own, I first removed the button tabs.  Elbow length sleeves are considerably more flattering for me, and having all that extra fabric was not.  Then, I had the issue of it being too short for work, and too dark overall.  I didn’t want to wear it as a tunic, because all my leggings are dark.  Then I looked through my fabric stash and found a blue dress that I had wanted to alter but couldn’t figure out how.  I took both dresses to my tailor, explained what I wanted, and ended up with the above dress.  And I love it!!

Buy little, but buy quality as much as possible.  Tailor and customize everything to make it work for you.  And then you’ll have a wardrobe that you love, and that is uniquely “you”.

Dress: V Fish (via Why Not Boutique)
Belt: Anthropologie
Shoes: Dansko Sallys
Earrings: Wear-thou
Bracelet: Vintage

 

 

 

Last day of school

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Okay, so this outfit is only three weeks old.  But I’ve been out of town, crazy busy, and didn’t upload these photos until this week.  And it’s still a cute outfit.  I love how all the blues and neutrals worked together.

The t-shirt has a really great story too.  My school has an annual field trip to Kennedy Space Center, and this year it fell on the same day as the Battle of the Books competition, where students compete in a book trivia contest.  Several of my students on the Battle of the Books team were also in the group that was supposed to go to Kennedy, so I volunteered to drive them over and chaperone once the competition was done.  While we were browsing at the gift shop, I noticed this awesome shirt made from organic cotton and recycled polyester (yes, I broke my polyester rule).  I lamented out loud about how I couldn’t afford it, because I was going through a rough financial spot at the time.  My students overheard me, and without my knowing it, they pooled their money together and gave me the shirt at the end of the trip!  It makes the shirt so much more special to me, and now every time I wear of it I think of them.

Tee: Kennedy Space Center
Cardigan: Anthropologie
Capris: Erik Stewart (thrifted)
Shoes: Keen Barcelona (eBay)

“Of Yellow Leaves and Gossamer”

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Well, one of my New Year’s Resolutions to take better pictures is off to a decent start.  I decided to try shooting with a lower aperture and taking lots of shots.  I ended up with quite a few that came out horribly, but I got a few gems.  After adjusting the exposure and contrast, I ended up with some images that I’m pretty happy with.

I’ve also found a better solution for post titles.  Goodreads has a quote search feature which is pretty handy, so I can search for keywords related to my post and then find appropriate quotes to go with them.  This is much easier than what I was doing before, which was trying to keep a word doc of quotes from books I was reading.

And may I take a moment to lament the fact that Morelle closed her shop?  I know it’s been months, but I still feel at a loss when considering getting a new purse that isn’t from her shop.    Over half of my bags come from her shop.

Top: Anthropologie
Cardigan: August Silk
Slacks: Gap
Shoes: Dansko Sally
Purse: Morelle Slouch
Headband: Target?
Earrings: Wear-thou

Quote: J.R.R. Tolkien

“Further proof that librarians should run the world”

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Oh, Fall.  I knew you would get here eventually.  And yet, as the months wore on, I continued to doubt that the temperatures would ever drop below 60.  But I know that you never show up before November.  And this weekend, you stopped in for a visit, with temps down to 45!!!  It feels so good to wear layers and boots again.  I had been feeling stylistically blah for awhile now, but now my style senses are being refreshed, and I can’t wait to put together outfits again.

Thank you for finally arriving Fall.  I missed you.

(The quote has nothing to do with Fall.  I just love it because it’s true :) )

Striped Tee: J Crew (via eBay)
Cardigan: Minimalist (handknit by me)
Black jeans: Levis
Boots: Dansko Nena (via eBay)
Scarf: Anthropologie
Cuff: Vintage
Purse: Morelle Slouch

Quote: Tenth Grade Bleeds #3: The Chronicles of Vladimir Tod, by Heather Brewer

“I will concentrate on my positive and not on my negative…”

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“…e.g. I will think less about my nose and more about my quite attractive teeth”*

*Note: I have no issues with my nose, I just like the quote.

It’s finally starting to feel like fall in Florida with temps in the *gasp* 70s.  I was actually able to wear long sleeves and scarves this week.  Of course, it warmed up by the middle of the day, but it’s nice to not feel drenched in sweat everyday.

Oh, did you happen to notice something new in this outfit?  Why yes, that is a new yellow purse.  Or at least, it was new a few months ago.  It’s so beautiful, that I was scared to take it outside of my house.  This outfit was it’s first official outing.

So here’s the backstory: back when I was underemployed, broke, armed with a master’s degree, and searching for a full-time job, I promised myself that whenever I got a (permanent) full-time job, I would treat myself to one of three things: 1) a watch, 2) a pair of Fluevogs, or 3) a new Morelle bag.  I found out in June that I would get to keep my full-time job (which I love), but money was tight, so I had planned to wait until the fall to get my treat.  Then, Morelle announced that she would be closing up her shop.  And my decision was made.

Despite money being very tight, I ordered a yellow leather slouch from her.  And it was over $200.  Which I did not count against my shopping plan because it was  special occasion.  But let me tell you: this. bag. is. the. best. bag. ever.

I love it so much.  The gorgeous yellow color, the soft leather, the roominess without bulkiness, the wrapped chain handle.  It is pretty much perfection in purse form.  I’ve treated it with water-resistant leather spray, and now that I’ve braved taking it out of doors, it will definitely be one of my regular purses.  Love.

Tee: Old Navy
Cardigan: Anthropologie (via eBay)
Jeans: The Gap
Shoes: Keen Barcelona (via eBay)
Purse: Morelle Slouch
Scarf: Target

Quote: Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging: Confessions of Georgia Nicolson , by Louise Rennison

“They’re only interested in clothes”

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I’m not one to be vainly interested in clothes, but I am coming to the realization that my closet needs an overhaul.  I have a lot of great clothes that currently don’t fit, since I gained a little weight over the summer.  I have a lot of clothes that I don’t completely love – the fabric isn’t soft, the color is wrong, etc.  Some of these problems I can fix, but really, I mostly need to get rid of a lot of my clothes and buy some new duds that I actually really love.  I would estimate that right now, I only regularly wear about 25 – 30% of my closet on a regular basis.  I think I should maybe revisit my wardrobe inventory and wardrobe gaps lists, and really take a look at what I need.

I’ve also got another change in the works: I’m buying a pair of running shoes.  I’ve been wanting to do this for awhile, but good running shoes are expensive, and I didn’t have enough money saved up to afford a pair until recently.  I want to get a really good pair, because my feet pronate (or is it over-pronate?) – the thing where your feet tend to roll to the outside.  I like to wear running shoes that correct this, because it helps prevent injury, and I really don’t want to screw up my knees.

I used to run three times a week for about 20 minutes, but for the past several years, I switched to just working out at the gym, and then recently, I added yoga.  I absolutely love practicing yoga, but the gym just isn’t doing it for me anymore, and my membership rates are about to go up, so I’m thinking it’s a great time to take up running again.  We’ll see how it goes.

Tank: Sonoma (thrifted)
Cardigan: Anthropologie (eBay)
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Keen Barcelona (eBay)
Bracelets: Jill Popowich
Earrings: Mackie Jewelry

Quote: Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat

“A new experience for her”

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As you may know, I generally shy away from primarily neutral outfits.  I love color – bright, bold, saturated, etc.  Wearing an outfit of navy, brown and white with just a little turquoise is a bit of a stretch for me.  But at the same time, I absolutely love how this outfit turned out.  The neutrals all work together perfectly, and they created an outfit that is both simple and chic.

I found it interesting that this outfit contains an unusually large number of non-secondhand items for me.  But what I also love is that each of these items was chosen and purchased with care, and have served me through many outfit remixes.  I can’t even count the number of times I’ve worn that cardigan – it works great with just about everything.  That turquoise necklace always makes for a fantastic pop of color.  And my Anthro belt always adds some extra interest to outfits.  As I’ve said before, I’m not against buying things from larger, corporate stores.  It’s always about balance and buying things that you love.

Dress: Soprano (via Li da la)
Cardigan: LOFT
Belt: Anthropologie
Shoes: Dansko Sally (courtesy of Dansko)
Necklace: Express
Bracelet: Vintage

Quote: No Talking, by Andrew Clements

“Cool as a cat”

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Oh how I missed these black capris!  I haven’t completely gotten back to my regular size yet, but I’ve lost just enough weight so that these fit again, albeit quite snugly.  I just adore the look of a slim fitting cropped pant.  Combine that with some lovely drapey Anthro tops, and I’m set.

I’ve started parting my bangs to the side like I used to do, and I think I like this version of my hair better.  It’s nice to be able to switch it up when I want to.

Because life is keeping me super busy (which I don’t mind, because I absolutely love my job), I’m cutting back to posting five days a week.  It seems to be a more manageable schedule for me, and allows me to enjoy blogging without feeling stressed out about it.  For now, the schedule will be:

  • Sundays – Shopping Ban (and sometimes Link Love)
  • Mondays – Outfit
  • Wednesdays – Etsy Love
  • Fridays – Varies, but usually something related to Craftiness or Sustainability
  • Saturdays – Bento Box

If I can get to a point where I feel comfortable going back to seven days a week, awesome.  For now, this is what seems to be working with the shrinking amount of free time I have available.  After all, I still need to enjoy life outside of work and the blogosphere as well.

Blouse: Anthropologie
Cardigan: Anthropologie (via eBay)
Capris: Erik Stewart (thrifted?)
Flats: Easy Street
Purse: Morelle Oyster
Cuff: via Classy Consignment

Quote: Bring on that Beat, by Rachel Isadora

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