Friday Favorites

Now comfortably in my 30s, I have to admit when I go in to an actual Forever 21 store, I feel like a grandma.  The vast majority of the store's content is too short/tight clothing in tiny sizes.  But online (and in some stores) they have this great section called Love21, which clothing is more modest and sized a half size larger than the standard Forever 21 line (why ALL the clothing can't be of the same sizing, I don't know. But that's another rant.)  F21 (and L21) is a great place to get seasonal trendy pieces without breaking the bank, and actually even some classics that could last you a few years.  And since everything looks better/more expensive when it fits you perfectly, the pieces here are so cheap that even after the cost of the tailor it was a steal.  Here are some pieces I'm eyeing. 

Clockwise, from top left: Great Double-Sleeve Cocoon Coat, trendy fringe sweater, boucle coat in a great color, fall season maxi in a great tribal print, backside detailed sweater, great for work blazer with faux leather trim, dress up or down chevron shirt, and too pretty retro midi skirt.

Scandalous Attire

Do you watch the Shonda Rhimes' show "Scandal" starring Kerry Washington?  If not, you're missing out on some fun characters, but even more enjoyably some great professional style.  Washington's character Olivia Pope is a great, strong female role, and wardrobe for the show does a great job making her look strong and confident and professional while retaining femininity and, well, just looking pretty.  Olivia Pope proves suits can be sexy.  And thanks to The Limited, we can all feel confidently dressed à la OP.

Currently craving...

Haven't done one of these posts in a while. But we're getting closer to spring, and especially here in LA where the weather was in the 80s the weekend, the pretty prints that are popping up everywhere are calling to me. Here are some that I'd love to add to my closet right now.

Ruano Kaleidoscope Print Shift
by Rhyme Los Angeles

The interest in the details...

Sometimes when picking what to wear, I battle mentally over wanting to just be comfy, and still wanting to look polished.  I think this outfit looks put together, but is deceptively comfortable.  The pants I love, they're super soft and lightweight.  The shirt is jersey, and the jacket is lightweight and cotton.  If anything in this ensemble foils my attempt at comfort, its the heels, but even for those, these ones are good. A little platform in the front makes a tall heel feel not so tall, and also allows for a little cushion in the front.

Jacket: Forever21 // Necklace: Mango // Top: J. Crew // Pants: Mango // Shoes: Calvin Klein (similar here)

My Instaweek...

Last week was busy but good. Here are some images from my Instagram, you can follow by clicking below.

• Red lips at work day
• Comfort dinner and fun reading
• Trying out a fun new all, SketchGuru
• Selfie at work with sleepy eyes

• Drive to work in a glow
• Table of sweets at friend's engagement party
• Fun print work outfit
• Someone's watching me study

• Close up of necklace and plaid shirt
• Colorful casual Friday outfit
• Colorful non-casual outfit
• Cool old building in Hollywood

• The Pantages, glowing at night
• Cool old gate door on the way to Runyon Canyon
• View of the Hollywood sign from Runyon hike
• Outfit post on the blog

Pattern and lace...

As I'm sure you can imagine, much of the attire you see in a law office is drab. Most business suits are drab, even the decor, walls and carpet here are drab. I, however, am not drab.  And I refuse to allow my drab environment to suck me in. So even if I'm alone in it, I will bring color to the drabness I spend the bulk of my day in.  By my clothes and by my smile.

Shirt: Zara (first seen here) // Skirt: Mango // Heels: Calvin Klein

Thought it's hard to tell from the pictures, my skirt is actually navy lace, and my blouse is more of a sheer fabric.  The shape and length of the skirt are totally work appropriate, but the texture of the lace is more fun than just a solid.

Necklace: Newport News (old) // Shoes: Calvin Klein

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Be our guest....

What kind of fashion blog would I be if I didn't do a post today about the Oscars? Did you watch? I have to say, about the show, that I liked Seth McFarland as a host. I felt like his humor was just enough and mostly non-offensive, and the intro was a performance that actually made the show a Show, and it was great to see all the other actors that participated performing with him. But of course, the real reason anyone watchs is the fashion. Who is wearing what. Here are some of my faves and least faves, from the Oscars and the after parties.



HIT: Halle Berry in Armani Prive - Sometimes its hard to tell if someone looks gorgeous because of how they are put together, or if they are gorgeous just because they are gorgeous. I think Halle is both. She looks gorgeous in street clothes, so here she looks like a movie star.  She said she wanted to go to the awards looking like a Bond girl, and this is what they made for her.  Unique and flattering, just enough skin.



HIT: Charlize Theron in Dior - she looks stunning, though I think you could put her in a burlap sack and she'd look stunning.  Actually, the dress itself is kind of boring, but as a complete package (I love that she can wear hair like that) she looks like a movie star.

HIT: Nicole Kidman in Elie Saab - This picture doesn't do her hair and makeup justice, but Nicole looked flawless last night. I read somewhere that this dress looked like liquid, and it really did. I want to know what undergarments she was wearing, b/c her figure was flawless.
 

HIT: Lily Colins in Zuhair Murad - I don't know what the front looked like, but from the back everything works: the hair the dress, the earrings.  Love the color on her.

My Instaweek....

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so here are 8,000 for you...

Top L: chilly day in LA requires a turtleneck and a hummingbird brooch; R: a chilly night in LA requires a snuggly puppy
Bottom L: A gloomy day in LA brightened by some calla lilies; R: headed to the gym at lunch.

Winter leopard...

This week has been cold for LA again. I say again, because we were having a cold wave (opposite of heat wave?) for several weeks in January and it was all anyone could talk about. Jimmy Kimmel did a recap:

Red-y or not...

As I mentioned earlier, I am going to try to post more apparel pictures, and today is one of those days. I must disclaimer that the pictures are not the best possible.  Saturday turned out to be a great day for talking pctures outside, but I ended up sick.  Then Sunday when I was feeling better, it was a bit sunny, plus it was Super Bowl, and my husband and I spent the morning in the kitchen prepping food, then the afternoon at our friends house to watch the game. Didn't get home until after dark, so the pictures ended up just being in the house (boring!) with the iPhone.  Ah well. Next time.

Currently Craving...

Sorry for the lack of posts the last couple days. It's my goal to post daily on weekdays, but the hubby hurt his back the other night and my week got a little out of routine with having to take him to doctors and care for him at home.  He's doing much better now, though will be uncomfortable for probably a few more days at least.  But I'm back at the computer, so here's one last post for the week.

The weather in SoCal teased us last week with cool --dare I say fall?--weather.  We even had some rain. Everyone were pulling out their sweaters and boots. Then it was 90 degrees again this week.  [Sigh.] 

Fashion for home...

I think pretty much anyone interested in affordable fashion knows about Zara.  A spanish company that is big in Europe and for a long time was only available on the east coast here in the states, finally opened stores in the west a couple years ago, and started online sales even more recently than that.  What wasn't available in the west coast stores or online was their home department.  I had heard tales of how wonderful it was, but unfortunately don't make it to the east coast often (ok, like hardly ever) and had never experienced their offerings for myself.

Become a Lucky Lady...

I do most of my shopping on line, for multiple reasons:

1. between working full time and going to school at night, I have little time to go to the mall;
2. I find it easier to find items organized on a website than through the racks in a store;
3. being almost 5'11", I usually need the special Long or Tall sizes, which many companies only carry online (annoying, actually.)
4. I can always find coupons for my orders online.

So since I'm spending most of my clothing budget on line, how great is it that I can get money back for my purchases?!

I'm talking about Lucky Magazine's Reward program.  If you already subscribe to Lucky Magazine, you can sign up for free, and if you're not a subscriber, you can get a 90 day free trial.  The way it works is that when you are going shopping on line, you log in to the rewards site first and look for the merchant you want to shop from.  When you click to the merchant's site through the Lucky Rewards page, then a percentage of whatever you spent at the merchant gets returned to your Rewards account, and quarterly you will get a check (or shopping credit, your choice) from Lucky to spend however you want!  I made a couple small purchases mid-last-quarter, and got a check for over $20 back.  Not a lot, but better than nothing, and since I'm spending the money anyway, why not be getting some of it back?  You can use it to pay off some of what you spent (if you're responsible), or you can just shop more (umm, yeah!).
And don't forget to search on line for additional coupon codes you can use when checking out for savings or free shipping!

An Expert Reveals....

It is my goal when I shop to be frugal yet to buy things that don't look cheap.  I also don't want to settle for something if its not EXACTLY what I was envisioning in my mind's eye.  But my mind's eye seems to have expensive taste.  You know those pages in fashion/beauty magazines that show multiple options of a current trend? Like "Oxfords are in this season! Here are 8 different styles all of different prices."  Inevitably, even before I know what the brand or price is, just by looking at the style, my favorite on the page will be the most expensive.  Never fails!  So annoying!

Well, I discovered this book yesterday that I have started reading and I'm hoping it will transform my shopping (and by consequence my wardrobe and style!).