Sweater Solutions

Its no secret that I love sweaters.  I am cold all the time, so sweaters are my saving grace.  I'm that girl in the summer who throws on a sweater with shorts.  My friends think I'm crazy, but I love my sweaters.  What I don't love about my sweaters is seeing the "Dry Clean" label on the tag.  Ugh! Nothing takes away from finding a great sweater than seeing that it will need to be dry cleaned after wearing.  To me spending money on dry cleaning is wasted shopping money.  Every now and then I will dry clean when I know that my clothes need some TLC, but for the most part, I am a washing machine girl.  So at the beginning of this sweater season I set out to find fool-proof way (note: I move way quickly, and mess things up in the blink of an eye) to wash my sweaters without schlepping to the dry cleaner once a week and dropping $100 that could be spent on a great new outfit.  

First I started with some good old Googling.  I will admit, I have thrown merino sweaters through the wash before, so I knew that occasionally that was okay, but I was scared to wash my cashmere collection.  I have used cashmere sprays and the like, but I wanted a way to really know that my sweaters were clean.  On of the first stops on my search was The Laundress.  I have purchased items from their sweater care collaboration with J.Crew (cashmere spray, sweater comb, and collars and cuffs bar), all of which are completely fabulous.  The sweater spray smells amazing!  I use it on everything - sweaters, wool scarves, wool jackets, etc.  When I saw their care instructions grid, I knew it would have some answers.  It is awesome!  It lets you know what can be washed, when to dry clean, when to machine wash...amazing!  Next I found the Recipe page.  Also awesome.  The laundry experts let me know that you can machine wash cashmere and wool and that it is recommended over dry cleaning.  The harsh chemicals in dry cleaning can destroy fibers.  With their tips in mind (and some advice from my cashmere loving friends) I put my good faith in the recipe and headed to the washer.  Here is how I got my sweaters so fresh and so clean!  

1.  Make sure you have mesh bags.  I had purchased some when I was in college to make sure that I did not lose socks (I hate odd socks!  Drives me nuts!) and unmentionables in the communal washers.  They have packs of them in varying sizes at Target with the hangers, irons, and drying racks.  I used 5 at a time.  

2.  Split your sweaters up by color.  I went on a sweater cleaning binge and washed every sweater I owned.  In the future I would not do this again as I did not have enough room to dry them all at one time and did not have sweaters to wear during the process.  

3.  Load sweaters into mesh bags.  My bags were all what I would call "medium" sized.  They fit about 3-4 sweaters each, depending on how chunky or fine the knit.  Before I loaded my sweaters into the bags I checked every, single, care instruction.  Some said hand wash, some said dry clean, if it said "dry clean only" I thought twice, checked back with The Laundress and ultimately used my best judgement. Also, make sure all of your sweaters are inside out!  Especially if they have embellishment.  

4.  Load up the washing machine.  My five mesh bags filled the washer nicely with enough room for them to float around without getting crushed.  

5.  I set the washer on cold and delicate cycle.  These two things are key to successfully machine washing sweaters.  (Keep reading to find out why you should use cold!  Ugh!) I let the washer fill up and kept the lid open.  If you watch, the sweaters will float up on top of the water.  I put on rubber gloves (the water was freezing!) and as the washer filled up, pushed the sweaters underwater.  

6.  Instead of using The Laundress' sweater wash (I was too impatient to order, wait, then wash) I went on the advice of a friend and washed my sweaters with Johnson's Baby Shampoo.  I keep some in the house because it is so gentle.  (I once had an eye doctor recommend using it to wash off eye makeup! Works like a charm!)  Once the washer was full I squeezed some shampoo into the washer.  I was nervous to use too much because I did not want the agitation to foam up the shampoo and make a mess.  If you use the delicate cycle, you'll be fine; baby shampoo does not create too much lather.  

7.  As soon as the cycle is over, pull your sweaters out of the washer.  Air dry all sweaters. Do not, I repeat, DO NOT, put your sweaters in the dryer.  If you do, be ready to have the best dressed nieces/little cousins.  They will come out tiny!  I was careful with which sweaters I hung up to dry and which I laid flat to dry.  The more delicate fine knit sweaters needed to be laid out, while other loftier knits I could hang on a drying rack (and even a hanger when I ran out of space!)  The Laundress website recommended laying each sweater out on a towel and rolling it up to pull out the excess water.  I found that my washer's spin cycle got most of the water out so I did not use this step very much.  

8.  Be patient.  Some of my cashmere sweaters took a few days to dry.  Most of my fine knit merino sweaters were done over night.  With some of my sweaters I had to turn them inside out again after the first day.  The outside would be dry and the inside still wet.  Patience is key.  

9.  This is totally optional - steam or iron sweaters.  I love things wrinkle free and after coming out of the washer, a lot of sweaters hold on to wrinkles.  I have better luck ironing merino on the wool setting with a lot of steam (be gentle and keep the iron moving) and steaming cashmere while it hangs.  These two things can take a lot of time.  I like to do this over the weekend or the night before I know I will need to wear them (see: the art of planning outfits).


Now...what happens when one of these steps goes amiss?  Well, that happened to me over the weekend.  
I was totally rushing and put a small load of laundry in the washer.  I put one of my favorite sweaters into a mesh bag, dropped everything into the washer, ran to take care of something else, came back to the washer later, and started my load like normal forgetting about my sweater!  Yikes!  I ran the load on Hot/Cold.  A day or so later, my husband went to change the laundry over, wasn't sure how long the load had been in there and ran it through again! On hot/cold! Double Yikes!  When I heard the washer finish up I grabbed my non-dryer items out and found my sweater bag at the bottom.  My stomach dropped through the floor.  My beloved sweater could fit a 4th grader.  Trying to be resourceful (and let's face it, my sweater is a couple years old and I couldn't find another for sale online) I again turned to Google.  I found a site with tons of suggestions on how to reverse my damage.  The important thing is not to let the sweater dry that size. Here's what I did...

1. I read that soaking the sweater in lukewarm water with conditioner will help to loosen up the fibers.  I filled a big Tupperwear bowl with cool water,  let it sit to get to room temperature, and squirted in some conditioner.  The conditioner may look like little blobs floating in the water.  Don't worry, that will work itself out.  

2. I grabbed my sweater and dunked it in and out of the water.  The conditioner broke up and dispersed into the water and the sweater.  Immediately I could feel a difference in the fibers of the sweater.  It was like magic.  

3. While the sweater was soaking I slowly started to stretch it out.  Wool is very durable (I talked to my mom who is a big knitter and she clued me in).  It is really hard to tear wool, so its okay to give it a stretch.  

4. I let the sweater soak for about a half hour.  Meanwhile I cleaned out the kitchen sink thoroughly.  Once the half hour was up I dumped out the conditioner water, and rinsed the sweater under cool water to get the conditioner out.  When rinsing, be careful not to let the conditioner suds up.  I filled the bowl back up with water and dipped then gently squeezed out the conditioner and water.  

5. Once I finished rinsing I gently squeezed the water out of the sweater.  I grabbed my husband and had him help me stretch the sweater.  He took the bottom I took the top and we started to pull.  In between I would hold the sweater up to myself to see how much further we needed to go.  We each pulled the arms of the sweater.  Be careful to hold the sweater at the wrists and the shoulders.  You don't want to stretch the shoulders too much. Keep checking to make sure that all seams and sleeves line up to as close as "normal" as possible.    

6. Once I felt my sweater was stretched back to where I could wear it again (at 5'10" it was a lot of stretching!), I laid the flat on the top of a towel.  I folded the bottom half of the towel up over the sweater (a towel sweater sandwich if you will).  I then tightly rolled the sweater up in the towel and twisted it tight.  Hold it for a minute or two.  You will feel the water soak into the towel.  Its kind of cool how much absorbs so quickly. 

7.  Next I took the sweater out of the towel and laid it flat to dry on a clean, dry towel.  I reshaped the sweater to a normal shape, stretched it a bit more for good measure, and let it air dry.  I checked back on it a few times to make sure that in drying it didn't shrink back up.  

Its not back to how it was, but it is wearable again.  I am confident that with some wear and some more stretching it will be back to normal.  

Remember sweater-lovers, don't dry clean or donate until you have exhausted all of your options.  Always Google...someone out there has had this happen to them too and most likely, there are bloggers out there happy to post their tips!  

Holiday Gifting

My favorite time of the year is officially here!  I love the holidays more than any other time.  If we could have, we would have gotten married around the holidays.  I love it!  After the Black Friday rush dies down I love going out and browsing around for holiday gifts.  One of my favorite feelings is knowing how much someone will like a gift.  It really is the best.  Growing up when I would holiday shop, without fail, I would end up giving everyone their gifts when I got home.  I had such trouble waiting for the big day!  

I have spent this Black Friday snuggled up at home browsing around online.  I have a hard time looking for Black Friday deals because I feel so much of it is geared toward the technology industry and I don't usually shop there for gifts.  Although this year we did snag an iPad for my dad with a Black Friday deal!  (Yay!) I don't really like dealing huge crowds, hunting for parking spots, and making gift decisions on the spot "because they are a good deal."  I like to take my time and wait for the right gifts to jump out at me.  I started a bit of my holiday shopping online today, and I am so excited for what I found.  Here are some of my favorite gifts this year!

For Moms/Sisters/Girlfriends:
-I love personalized gifts!  I think they are unique and thoughtful.  For my personalized gifts I've  been looking at May Books notebooks and note cards.  The zebra print is to die for! 
-There are also a lot of great options at Anthropologie.  
         - This necklace is great for the glamour girl in your life.  
         - I love giving their kitchen gadgets to friends.  These totally stole my heart! 
         - These chalkboard storage jars would make a great gift for new homeowners.
         - This candle smells great and looks just as great on a vanity once its empty. 
-The Kate Spade Gift Guide is always some place I find something for every lady on my list. (There are also a few things on here I'm hoping to find under the tree... 1 / 2 / 3 / 4


For Husbands/Boyfriends/Dads/Brothers: 
- This year I went to The Art of Shaving.  What a great place!  I had never thought of looking at luxury shaving products for men!  Women get tons of luxe beauty products, why shouldn't men get to pamper themselves in the bathroom too?  I got my husband a great mid-size kit to start him off with.  The lather that he will get with a brush is pretty amazing!  If he likes it I can start to get him more pieces and better brushes.  I hope he likes it!  
- For my brother I grabbed some flannels from the Gap and these hilarious boxers.
- The men in my life are very outdoors-y and so my favorite place to look for their gifts is REI.  

I hope that your Black Friday is relaxing and crowd free.  I think we are pondering a trip to target...yikes!  

electric plaid

I love plaid and I love neon.  So this neon plaid silk top was a no brainer!  I wanted to get the whole outfit from J.Crew - matching top and skirt - but didn't feel like it would fly at work. Today I toned my electric plaid and neon pumps down with a camel pant, finished with a poppy hem.  The poppy was close enough to the neon without looking too matchy, and tan complimented the plaid perfectly!  I must say I was a little nervous about the shoes, but decided to go for it without looking back.  A neon orange shoe gets a lot of attention (so be ready!) but I was surprised by how many people loved them!  All in all, neon + camel = great day!  Enjoy!

It was a J.Crew kind of day: Electric plaid top, color-block cafe capri, neon persimmon Etta pumps, assorted bracelets.  Watch: gift from hubs :) 

Outfit Inspiration

I love waking up and taking my time in the morning.  The early morning rush to work is not my thing and so that is why I try and plan my outfits for the week over the weekend.  I try to take a little bit of time, sift through some magazines and catalogs, take a peek at some images I have dogeared and get to work in my closet.  I keep my magazines, J. Crew and Anthropologie catalogs all in one place and when I can't think of anything new and fresh on my own I flip through for some inspiration.  I may not have every piece in an outfit, but I find it pretty easy to subsitiute pieces I do have, or change the color scheme to better fit my closet.  I find that taking the time to sit down and think about what I am going to wear, before I actually need to wear it makes my mornings a lot easier, and my "go-to" outfits are used less frequently.  I also hop on to Instagram, Pinterest, and some of my favorite fashion blogs and take a look at what others are doing and figure out how I can make them my own.  Another really great way to find an outfit is to take a piece from my closet and Google Image it.  People love to post OOTD pics (thanks everyone!) and sometimes that can give some great inspiration as well.

Here is how I usually do my planning:
1. Either in my planner or a piece of legal paper I leave on my vanity I write down each day and my scheduled activities.  If I have meetings at work I will need to dress up for, I can see them and plan accordingly.  I also write down one "back-up" spot.  Let's face it...we all have those days when "nothing feels comfortable."  Having a back up plan allows you to figure out a comfy and chic outfit before it's needed, rather than in the heat of the moment.  
2.  Let the brain storm begin.  Flip through magazines, browse the internet, look through your own closet and pull out something fabulous you haven't work in awhile and take it to the next level.  
3. List your outfit, shoes, belts, jewelry and all.  Figure out what type of underwear you need each day.  Make sure it's clean!
4.  Look at what needs ironing/steaming/washing.  Get to work!  I like to steam a day in advance or often, the morning I am going to wear it.  I think clothes just feel more polished and put together when steamed right before leaving.  Polish up any dirty shoes.  Make sure you can find all your jewelry without digging around too much.  Plan any dry cleaning.  (I just experimented with a ton of new washing/hand washing/dry cleaning products and styles - a new post to follow!!)  The more that is ready right away the less hustling around you will need to do.  
5.  Try things on!  See if you like the combinations.  This happens to me all the time: I plan out an outfit I think is going to be great and a perfect fit.  The next thing I know I get it on and it is a miserable failure and I am rushing to make sure I am out of the house on time.  Trying things on before you get down to the final hour will help make things so much easier.  If you need to adjust you will know that what you are looking for is clean and ready to go - not wrinkly at the bottom of a hamper, like my favorite options usually tend to be.  
6.  Figure out which coat or piece of outwear you need each day.  I love reaching into the closet knowing which jacket I'm going to wear.  Sweater and hems hanging too far underneath the bottom, skirts and dresses that don't show under a trench coat...all my pet peeves.
6a.  I also use this process (because I am VERY type A) to plan my mani/or manis for the week.  There is nothing I dislike more than not having the right manicure to match my outfit.  Or having a mani that chips mid-week.  I plan a color that will go with all of my outfits, paint my nails at the end of the weekend, and have a second color listed that will go with my outfits for the rest of the week.  This step is optional, unless you are very type A like me!  I also really enjoy painting my nails (post on this to follow as well).  It is very relaxing and instantly lifts my mood for the next days that follow.  
7.  Get to bed early and set your alarm 10 minutes later!  Yay!  So much time is saved each morning by having a plan.  I love to think in the shower and so instead of trying to decide what I feel like wearing and if I will have enough time to pick out and outfit and do my hair, I can slow down and prepare myself for the day.  OR keep that alarm clock 10 minutes early and pack and healthy lunch and make a nice, warm coffee for the commute.  

I hope this helps streamline your morning routines! 

budget-friendly shopping?

Is there every such a thing as "good shopping" on a budget?  Sometimes I say yes and sometimes I say no.  People who find the best deals on things are people who usually are out and about a lot checking in on what's going on sale and which coupons are being honored.  Sticking to a budget has always made me feel like my personal style is constricted.  How would I ever still find the things I loved if I couldn't spend freely or was always looking for a good deal on them?!

Having just left one of my three jobs (for some more quality time with my husband!) I feared that my shopping passion (habit?) would suffer.  I had mixed feeling about this.  In my early 20s I lived however I wanted.  Friday afternoons were spent shopping for Friday and Saturday nights' outfits and Sunday was spent getting coffee recounting the weekend.  This cycle was repeated weekly with the occasional bad day mani/pedi/coffee/shopping trip interspersed.  Over the years I have curated quite an exhibit of clothing, most of which, sadly sits in the closet unworn.  Yet that desire still remains to ease a bad day with a stop at my favorite shops.  

Getting married this summer showed me (very quickly) that I am now living for someone other than myself.  I always kept a retail job for "shopping money" (more-so to help ease my "shopping guilt") but now it was taking up a part of my life that needed to be shared with another.  In the decision to leave my retail job behind (tear!) and really begin my life with my husband and immerse myself in my real career, I put myself on a budget (YIKES!). I have never ever had good luck on a budget.  Ever.  Maybe I am weak.  Maybe I lack discipline.  Maybe my grandmother's love of art has rubbed off in my love of being living art in what I wear.  That last one is a real stretch.  I think I mostly have not had a real reason to stick to a budget before.  The thought of children, homes, college educations, family vacations, trips to the in-laws in Florida, used to bring to mind visions of sunshine, smiles, and seersucker.  Now all I see is dollar signs.  

Mr. S has always teased me about my "expensive taste" and I have always maintained that I work so much because I never want to ask anyone else to have to deal with (or foot the bill for) my expensive taste.  No budget meant as long as my bills were covered I could splurge a little (or a lot) on things I loved.  With building a new life with someone else no longer in my future, but very much in my present, I am having trouble wrapping my mind around fitting my expensive taste into what I perceive as a very small monthly number.  Mr. seems to think it's "reasonable."  He is also the man who used to go "shopping" and come home with a pack of Hanes T-shirts in new colors (woohoo!).  

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and five days without power, I decided that I did need to start living for someone other than myself, but I did not need to abandon the part of me that loves fashion and all it has to offer.  My closet is not full of trendy, of-the-moment clothing.  It is full of what I consider classic pieces that define my personal style.  I have set out toward my closet (closets, really) with a new mantra "make it new."  Find new possibilities from my own closet.  Was the fun of shopping on a bad day really no more than just feeling like I had some control in my life?  Pretty much.  I can take the reins from the comfort of my own home and my own clothes.  An hour spent in the department store can now be an hour spent trying different combinations with what I already know fits and looks great.  It will be a much more fulfilling hour spent with friends getting coffee and a mani then walking around a store, shouting to each other in the fitting rooms.  When I did have my extra to shop I need to choose things that have purpose and staying power.  Or I can be smart and buy less to save more.  

So with that I am "making it new" this November.  Starting with my email in-box and deleting all of those pesky shopping emails.  I will then remember that each item I procure on this budget needs to serve more of a purpose than "Saturday Night."  Budgets do not mean losing my expensive taste, but rather refining that taste down to what really matters, and what is really needed.  

Fall Favorites/Shopping Ban

Today we had some beautiful weather! It started off pretty rainy and chilly, but we ended the day with fall sunshine.  The smell of fall leaves is one of my most favorite things.  Today I'm posting my first Outfit of the Day!  Yay!  I've always been hesitant because I am a little camera shy, but I think I'm going to start posting them more!  
Today I wore boots, skinny cords, a check button down and a great blazer from JCrew.  I really loved today's outfit!  It was perfect for this kind of weather.  I love great pops of color in the fall season, and a berry pink can be a little unexpected.  Most people love oranges and reds in the fall, but this pink was just what I needed to add a little pep to Wednesday.  
I decided that I really need to channel my inner Kate Middleton and start "recycling" my wardrobe.  It is so easy to fall into the shopping trap when a great new outfit is just a few clicks away.  After all the recent shopping I've done I am trying to go on a shopping ban and setting a reward for myself at the end.  I tried it before and it worked, so lets see how it goes this time around.  Hopefully this will force me to dig around in my closet a little more, rather than run out to the store.  We'll see how it goes! Today is day 2 and I'm doing okay so far!  

All the small things

So...this week I'm coming off of a bit of an online shopping bender.  I grabbed all the stuff in my last post plus a cashmere sweater, two pairs of tights, chino pants, and a blazer...yikes.  Needless to say I'm going on a shopping ban of sorts.  When I got home from work today I sat down with my closet and had a heart to heart.  What big things am I holding out for?  What gaps to I see?  I saw no gaps, but saw a few things I had my eye on for awhile, had the money for, and somehow along the way all the small things added up and took place of the big things I have looked at for a long time.  My new shopping question "will I want to pass this on to my granddaughter?"  One of the greatest things about being close with my grandmother was getting to borrow and eventually inherit all of her cool stuff.  I have some vintage Liberty of London scarves, some great tweed blazers with elbow patches and leather buttons, and fur-trimmed coats for special occasions.  When I look in my closet what can I pass along to my grandkids?  The personal-style-defining pieces are what will matter most as my life moves on, and instead of focusing on the little things that I need for a big meeting tomorrow.  All the stylists say "focus on classic pieces" but what are classic pieces?  I've put together a list of resources I used to define my personal style.  These books helped me reflect on my closet in terms of what I have and what I can find where.
Nina Garcia - The Little Black Book of Style 
Nina Garcia - The 100: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own
Nina Wildorf - City Chic: An Urban Girl's Guide to Livin' Large for Less 
Claire B. Schaeffer - Couture Sewing Techniques 
Amanda Brooks - I Love Your Style: How to Define and Refine Your Personal Style
Kate Spade - The Guide to Living Colorfully

On a rainy day, or when I don't know what to wear, I browse these books for inspiration.  They are a great resource for beefing up your closet, or guiding you away from trends and toward classic pieces.  When shopping it's always important to think of how a piece will find a place in your wardrobe, what function it will serve, and how long will it still be active in your closet.

Define your style, don't let style define you!

Happy October! 
xxoo

Saturday Morning

Today marks my first Saturday morning at home in a long time.  I typically am running to my weekend job for a full-day shift.  The promise of the weekend haunts us all week.  We develop plans, create "To-Do" lists and try to hit the ground running and accomplish it all in two days.  Yesterday something funny happened.  I tried accomplishing some of my "Saturday To-Dos" on Friday afternoon.  This morning when I woke up to see my husband off to his race, it was great to look around and see that a great portion of my list was already done and that the weekend now held new appeal.  The sense of urgency that sometimes comes with the weekend had vanished.  

What this laid-back Saturday now provided me with is an opportunity to do some online shopping.  Here are the purchases I'm pondering....

Jacket - in red / Cords - cabernet / Pants - navy / and pretty much any sweater I see.  

JCrew is offering 25% off select outerwear this weekend!  Including winter coats and their great puffer vests (I have hot pink and a blue from last year!  Perfect for fall and winter!)

Happy Saturday!  We are off to the Head of the Housatonic Regatta in CT!  Let's hope it's a beautiful day! 

xxoo

Decluttering

I find that more and more our lives are being controlled by clutter; in it's various forms.  We have endless To-Do lists scratched on scraps of paper and most of us only feel as though we really accomplished something when we can cross it off a list.  With that in mind  I spent this week setting out to find areas of my life I can de-clutter to help me de-stress.  Fall, for me, has always been a time of renewal and fresh starts.  I prefer to have a "new year" celebration as school beings and the craziness of summer settles down.  In this "new  year" I have some resolutions.  

De-clutter at work:

I have always been a bit of a work-a-holic.  I worked through college, and as soon as I graduated jumped head first into a job.  From that day on I have never gone without at least one job.  Most of the time I have two, but currently I am working three jobs.  Now, it's not as though I need these jobs; my husband and I do well for ourselves.  I have always just enjoyed being busy.  In the wake of our wedding I began to realize that I was finding my own self-worth in having so many jobs.  I was proud of my balancing act, and proud that I always managed to excel in all forms of work and still maintain a lively social life.  These past weeks I have woken up tired on a daily basis.  I no longer jump at the chance to take on a new endeavor.  Call it wisdom coming with age, or newly realized sanity, I realized I need to get my priorities in order.  Step one is learning how to say no to the right people.  I never say no, I am always happy to take on something new.  Saying no is key to de-cluttering life.  

De-clutter around the house:

My husband and I are not the neatest of folk.  Don't get me wrong, we do not need to be nominated for Hoarders or anything, but we do have a bad habit of coming in, dropping our stuff and crashing onto the couch together.  We need to get a plan.  We need to have better habits of walking those few extra steps, putting it all away, then crashing.  It will come with time.  

De-clutter the closet:

My closet has come to be quite the collection.  Rather than cleaning, I would say that my closet needs "curating."  My whole morning routine is totally out of whack because I stand at my closet, look in, and decide "I have nothing to wear..." I need to start cleaning house, keeping only solid pieces that I've worn recently and keep my head on straight when I shop.  

De-clutter my budget:

I've made budgets quite often, and have never been able to stick to them.  It's just so hard.  Sometimes I feel like I just lack self-control.  Other times, I don't have a reason at all.  What I do know is that at this point in my life the only way to get ahead is to live on a budget. I need to separate my "needs" from "wants" without depriving myself completely. Do I need a new sweater?  Most likely not, but one won't hurt.  Do I need to stock up on it in a million colors?  Definitely not.  That's where the line in the sand has to be drawn.  Everything in moderation.  

Just typing this list I feel better.  I feel like I have a jumping off point rather than just a giant list of things I may or may not get to.  One of the most important things I've found is to start small.  Don't make a huge list, you'll already feel defeated.  Put one thing on a sticky and throw it out when you're done.  It will feel great!  Keep the sticky with you as you complete the task.  Throw it away once its done and if you feel up to it, grab another sticky and get started.  Rather than seeing how much you have left, focus on that one task.  You will always feel that you can accomplish what's in front of you.  Be an effective user of time and you will see great things!  

xxoo 

Fall Haul

Fall is my favorite season.  The cool breeze, the sound of pencil's being sharpened, a great afternoon walking outside.  I think being in New England a love of the fall is somehow born and bred into us.  One of the greatest things about fall is the shopping.  Cozy layers of sweaters, riding boots, scarves - all great pieces in any wardrobe. 

This year as my fall shopping began I set out with a list.  Some of it I stuck to, some of it I got a little off track (whoops!).  I definitely stuck to a few key pieces in varying colors and styles.  
  - Sweaters: cashmere, merino wool, thick cotton blends are all great layering pieces for fall.  I like to try and buy a couple new pull over sweaters as well as cardigan.
  - Boots: I love boots, its s sick obsession really.  I really am trying to limit myself to one pair of boots this year.  Simple black, flat riding boots.  At the end of last winter I was able to find a pair of booties and wedge ankle boots on sale and so pulling those out this year has been like hitting the jackpot! 
  - Skirts: I love skirts.  Friends of mine have said that they feel like this summer they have only seen me in skirts and dresses.  Exactly!  They are so easy - throw on and go!  I'm so busy sometimes that I really can't think and if I need a quick outfit I usually can make a great outfit with a skirt without much thought.  This year I bought 2 wool pencil skirts in bright colors, and 1 crepe swing skirt for fun.  Great pieces with tights and boots or flats.  
  - Blazers: I truly have a sick obsession with blazers. I have quite a few.  This year I picked a new blazer in a bright blue that will go with every color - including black.  I also bought a blazer in a black and white houndstooth with leather elbow patches.  To me nothing says fall in New England like a houndstooth blazer and skinny jeans - my favorite.  

It feels like I've already done a tone of fall shopping (sorry husband!), so I really want to try and focus on working with things I already have.  Its so hard browsing fashion blogs where everything is linked to the pages where you can click-click-click and own that great outfit.  I can tend to get carried away and the last thing I need is an angry man in my life.  My goal is to try and not shop again until Holiday rolls around.  Fingers crossed, we'll see how this goes! 

Cheers to the last days of summer and the first of fall! 

spring time staples

Every spring there are pieces I find myself coming back to again and again:

Navy blazer - a navy blazer is an essential piece of every wardrobe. After college it is not an option to not have one. A good fit and quality is an essential piece of picking the right blazer.  Look for little details like felt under the collar and gold buttons.  Blazers are an investment.  My favorite is the JCrew Schoolboy blazer.  Its beautiful and versatile.  There are also great options at Urban Outfitters, H&M, and Zara.  If a blazer isn't just right there are small changes you can make to get it there.  Changing out buttons, adding a pin, having silk from a vintage tie or scarf added to collar or sleves is a great way to update a blazer. 

Silk Tops - solid, bright, patterned, spotted, fun, or classic.  A great silk top can take you from day to night effortlessly.  I view silk tops more like collectors items.  Right now I love a good pattern: paisley, ditsy print, polka dots, all great choices.  Always try on silk tops.  They shouldn't pull across your chest or be tight through the shoulders.  Eventually this will cause wear and tear on the silk.  I also love a good machine washable silk top.  Makes life so much easier. 

A colorful handbag - everyone who knows me knows of my long standing love affair with my red handbag.  Its just the icing on the cake.  A good handbag will pull the entire look together.  Handbags should be intentionally chic.  A handbag shouldn't be an outfit afterthought; it can speak volumes about who you are. 

Stacks of bracelets - bracelets are such conversation pieces.  They can be part of a great collection of jewelry for the rest of you life.  I love bracelets with memories attached to them and personal stories.  They can be priced from low to high - F21, H&M, Target, all the way through hierloom jewelry, pearls, and charms.  I love to give bracelets as gifts. 

(see purple above)
Pants that aren't jeans - jeans have recently take the forefront in society, becoming more acceptable in different situations.  Working in a situation where I can't always wear jeans I have come to love pants that are different from denim.  The rich textures and interesting shapes out there are fantastic.  I love lightweight wool, eyelet, prints, twill, jacquard, and chino.  Finding staple pants that can take you from work to the weekend and beyond can be a challenge, but one well worth it. 

Those are the staples that I look for as I do my spring and summer shopping.  Outfits to start soon! 
Thanks for visting! xo
K

the very beginning

As someone who grew up around fashion, the move from the industry to my career in special education has really left a little piece of me wanting to be back in the city amidst the beautiful world of clothing.  What we put on our bodies can speak volumes of who we are, who we want to be, how we feel, and where we are at that moment in our lives.  I pull inspiration from everything during my day and will be bringing it back here to share with you.  Enjoy!
Cheers
xo
Katie