Form AND Function

I am a form over function girl. I don’t care how it works, or even if it works for that matter, as long as it looks good. This is (just one of the many reasons) why I won’t wear crocs- have you ever seen an uglier shoe in your life? I don’t care how comfortable they are. I’d rather wear my stilettos and be uncomfortable all day yet still have some dignity than wear plastic shoes that look like they were made out of tire rubber.
But sometimes, when the stars align, you find the perfect marriage between form and function. And let me tell you- I have found THE ONE.

Enter, the maxi skirt.

Maxi entered my life last week and we’ve been having a mad love affair ever since. Shauna posted about a skirt she found at TJ Maxx on Instagram and after seeing how cute and flattering it was I knew I had to find one for myself. Well, I found two. And I am obsessed.
Why I haven’t participated in this trend sooner I do not know. It could have made my life a lot easier.
All I have to do is toss a tank top over maxi and immediately I give the illusion that I am totally put together and stylish, yet I feel like I’m wearing pajamas. These are so mom-functional- I can move around freely and comfortably, no one sees my underwear when I bend down (which is often), and because I look so cute, I am a much happier mama.

See honey, we all benefit when mommy goes shopping.

Perfection

Has anyone seen this picture floating around online of Jennifer Aniston in Donna Karan?

I. Die.

It's perfection.

Speaking of best dressed, am I the only one who thinks that if you have that coveted combination of hair/body/tan you could be best dressed in anything? I mean honestly, half the time I think she looks better in jean shorts and a tank top than I do in my favorite cocktail dress.

(Picture comes from people.com where she was recently nominated for best dressed.)

The Organization of the Emmys

File these under "Stunning":

And these under "Hot Mess":

all images courtesy of usmagazine.com

Virtual What Not to Wear

I think I've mentioned before that my sister lives in NYC and works in fashion. It's a pretty big job and she's a pretty big deal. Needless to say, we live two very different lives.

While I'm at home in the suburbs playing blocks and making endless peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, she is spending her weekends in the Hamptons, texting celebrities about outfitting them, and prepping for Fashion Week.

To say that she's less than impressed with the percentage of my clothes that come from Target is an understatement.

But, the added benefit is that whenever she comes to visit she plays Clinton from What Not to Wear and I play the pathetic fashion-inept sister. Lots of sarcasm and brutal honesty included. It's fun.

Unfortunately, she doesn't have any plans to visit coming up and I needed help, so I decided to utilize technology and host a virtual WNTW with her via email. I took picture of the things in my closet I hadn't worn in a while/wasn't sure about/couldn't decide if they were cute or heinous (sometimes that's a thin line) and sent them her way. Her comments ranged from:





in response to my button down blue/white striped oxfords "keep them, they're basics and very versatile"

to "God No Throw This Away NOW" when I sent her a picture of a green/white printed cocktail dress. I was hanging on to it because I thought it would be really cute on a cruise or something. Because I go on a lot of those.



While I'm a freak of nature and love cleaning out my closet (almost) more than anything, I've still been hanging on to some things that I don't feel great in, or that aren't really part of my life anymore. Like "going-out shirts". We all have 'em. Back from the days when we used to "go out". Does anyone still go out? Sadly, I think the only going out I do is to Chili's. Fancy. Needless to say, there was no reason to hang on to these no matter how much I loved them.
I took a long sigh and added them to the consignment shop/holy crap my life has really changed pile. It was growing by the second.

I read once that women wear 20% of their closet 80% of the time. I think that is so true. We always go for the pieces we love, feel good in, and make sense for our life. The rest just sits. Yet we have to sift through it every time we go to get dressed. I just got sick of sifting and honestly, I don't have the time. I want to LOVE every item in my closet. I want to feel good in it. And I want to know that no matter what I pull out I'm going to look good.

I read this article in the New York Times about a movement called "sixing" where people choose 6 items of clothing in their wardrobe to wear for an entire month- accessories/jammies/workout clothes excluded. Some of the people are anti-consumerism, some just wanted to see if they could do it. The most interesting part of the experiment? Most people never even noticed they were doing this. I find this fascinating. They wore basic clothes, wardrobed them differently, added cool accessories, and looked professional enough every day that no one took notice to their limited wardrobe.

While I think this is a little extreme, I love the concept. Cute, basic clothes that you feel good in, but creatively mixed with statement accessories to make more outfits than you thought possible.

My plan is to finish my closet revolution by Sunday night and start fresh Monday morning. If nothing else, I'll definitely give my sister some weekend entertainment :)

Spring fashions

I wanted to share this deal with you guys incase anyone is looking for some cute new clothes for these wonderful warmer temperatures...Old Navy is offering 20% your entire order online today (sorry for the late notice) with the code ONSPRING. You can still use the code after today but it will only be good for 15% on April 8&9, and 10% on April 10, plus free shipping on orders of $75 or more. Here's what I picked up. Consider my Spring shopping accomplished.

This dress is black to wear as a bathing suit cover up or with a cardigan on a casual day.


This dress is navy because it is super comfortable and very flattering, and when you're a mama chasing after a very busy toddler, comfort is everything. But don't worry, I'm not buying crocs anytime soon. Or EVER.

This cardigan in a pretty aqua to wear over either of the above dresses, or the cute white ruffle tee below.

This super soft and comfy tee in white because it's cute over yoga pants on those days I'm working from home.
I LOVE this top. I got it in this gorgeous emerald green, white, and black. Little bit overboard, but I can wear it with a cardigan to work or with jeans/shorts on the weekend.

This in navy and white because it was on sale for $7 and I couldn't resist. It would be so cute and nautical with the shorts I got (below) in white.

My wardrobe is changing quite a bit for a few reasons. One- now that I'm working from home a few days a week, I don't need fancy clothes to wear to work all the time, I just need enough to get me by. I mean, I don't think anyone notices I'm wearing my black pants twice a week. Two- my clothes have to be comfortable and functional because when you spend most of your time chasing after your child who is trying to leave you in their dust, those two things are very important. Another thing I like right now- Cheap. No point in buying nice clothes when they're just going to get applesauce or dirt on them.

Unlikely inspiration

I will admit to you, though not proudly, that I watched The Hills religiously up until this last season. I felt I'd met my own threshold of ridiculousness and immaturity by that point and I quit cold turkey right then and there.

But, one thing I loved about watching the show was LC's (Lauren Conrad's) outfits. She has a very easy, effortless, very California-girl style that I just thought was so cute.

(images courtesy frugal fashionista dot com)

Well, imagine my surprise when I found out she was designing a budget-friendly line for Kohls! Now before you start to judge..the line is for misses (not juniors) and yes, I do realize that I am 28 years old. Now that that is out of the way...

The Spring 2010 collection is super cute. So cute in fact that I picked up a few items today :) Since I am now quite a bit smaller than I was before having Madelyn I pretty much get to re-do my entire closet with new items that fit me, so what better place to start than with the basics. I picked up this great boyfriend blazer that has 3/4 cuffed sleeves and the cutest striped lining. It fits like a dream and I'm very impressed with the construction.

I also got this great high-waisted ruffled mini skirt that has an elastic waistband so it is super comfortable And flattering, but I couldn't find a picture. I would have gotten this dress but they didn't have my size:

You can also purchase the line at Kohl's.com or find it in "select" stores. I can't believe my little Fayetteville branch actually carried it. No surprise that the line was fully stocked as these types of fashions aren't very popular in these parts. The fact that I wear skinny jeans pretty much makes everyone think I just walked off the Fashion Week runway. Seriously, not kidding.

Oh and p.s. I have no idea why the spacing is always weird when I publish my posts. When I preview them they look fine, so know that I'm not doing it on purpose!