Hot house floral + viridian green pencil skirt, and a picture of my boys

Chiffon top in hot house floral (size 6): J.Crew, fall 2012
Wool blend pencil skirt in viridian green (size 6):  J.Crew Factory, fall 2012
Mint belt (size small): J.Crew (recent)
Nude mary jane heels:  Sam Edelman

Here's a dose of boy cuteness to start your week, a picture of me and my three sons!  We were on our way to mass yesterday, and I wanted an OOTD shot so I thought I'd show off my boys too.  Don't they look like little angels?  They totally are...when they're sleeping! 

This pencil skirt was a steal during one of the Factory's promo offers in January.  I want to say it was $29.99 + an additional 30% off.  As long as I can nab it for such a low price, I don't mind that the Factory's pencil skirts are a wool blend (and therefore prone to wrinkling), and a couple inches shorter than the retail verison. I missed out on the retail viridian green pencil skirt in 2011, so I was happy to have a similar version this year.

This may be a whole lotta green for some ladies...but as you may know, green is my favorite color so I wasn't afraid to be mistaken for Kermit.  After mass I, along with some other boy moms, volunteered at our school's lovely mother/daughter luncheon.   I spotted a familiar print across the room, and realized another woman wearing this same top!  What are the chances?  We laughed and complimented each others' tastes of course. 

Thanks for visiting!

Banana Republic Ankle Boots

Silk dress (size 4):  Lilly Pulitzer, 2010
Small gold coast Maryanne handbag:  Kate Spade
Ankle boots:  Banana Republic
Bubble necklace:  J.Crew Factory

Hope everyone has had a great weekend!  I"m a little exhasted today...our weekends are kind of crazy between kid activities and nights out. I keep telling myself we're going to have a quiet weekend one of these days, but fun plans seem to always crop up.  We were invited to a wine tasting downtown last night, and this is what I wore.  I am late to the ankle boot look but I think I kind of love it.  I was hestitant to try it for fear of looking like I had cankles, but when I found these boots on super sale in Banana Republic last month, I decided to give them a shot.  The SA suggested wearing them with a dress and no tights, so that's what I did for their first time out.  She also suggested wearing them with skinny jeans rolled up, and I think that sounds really cute as well.

Do you like ankle boots, and if so, how do you style them?

Thanks for visiting!

"Winterizing" a silk dress

Palma dress by Sariah (size 6):  Anthropologie, spring 2012
Black velvet jacket (size 6): Ralph Lauren, old
Black leather intyce boots:  Steve Madden

So often I have grand thoughts about winterizing a dress... ("I can just wear it with tights and boots and a jacket and it will be fine!")... but I never actually follow through with the idea.  It's a similar notion to the whole theory of post-wedding, you will "shorten this bridesmaid dress and wear it again!" Yeah, has anyone ever actually done that??  I don't know why I don't winterize my lightweight dresses.  I guess I just think it can look a little weird wearing a silk dress in the dead of winter.  But today I was so sick of wearing wool from head to toe that I was looking for something different, so I finally did "winterize" my Palma dress.  And guess what?  The whole "tights/boots/jacket" cliche worked out quite nicely.  It's not my normal structured work look, but still along the professional/creative lines that I like to follow.  I liked how the flat boots and dark tights balanced out the shorter-than-I-normally-wear-to-work dress, and I was comfortable all day.  The Palma dress has to be one of my top favorite dresses, ever.  It's comfortable, flattering, and colorful...Anthro please make more dresses like this!

Do you like to winterize your lightweight dresses? 

A few minty fresh, budget friendly accessories for spring

I'm staring at a blanket of snow covering Cincinnati, but that doesn't stop me from dreaming of spring weather to come.  Is everyone else as happy as I am that mint is THE color this spring?  Who doesn't love mint?  So pretty, fresh, and springy.  I've picked up a few budget-friendly mint items lately, so I thought I would share them with you in a quick review set.  The first item up is this cute Merona tote I found at Target.

Merona Tote in mint
$34.99 in stores

According to their website, this tote is no longer available online, but check in your local stores...mine still seemed to have several.  Now I admit, I am typically very particular about my handbags.  But how cute is this trendy colored tote for spring, at a steal at $34.99?  Of course it's not leather, it's polyurethane, but the synthetic material actually doesn't feel too bad...it's a great tote for files, workout clothes, or kid gear.  I was actually quite impressed with a lot of Target handbags...there were many J.Crew inspired looks, especially Eden bag look-alikes in pretty colors. 

Calvin Klein mint green leather pumps
$79.95, DSW

I have been on the lookout for the perfect pair of mint green pumps for spring.  I found these Calvin Klein at DSW and fell in love.  They are the prettiest color, not too high, and a stacked wooden heel rather than a wrapped heel.  I love this because wrapped heels get nicked up so easily.  I wear anything from an 8.5 to a 9.5 in shoes, in this brand I wore a 9.5.  DSW is so strange in the fact that the stores don't carry the same labels as the website.  I couldn't find these online but hopefully your local DSW will have them because these are a great buy!  I had a $10 coupon and a $5 coupon that I used, which brough the price down to $65.00.  Not bad for a pretty pair of leather pumps.  They feel comfortable too, which is always important.

Audrey Brook pastel pump in multi mint
$69.95 here but check for sale in stores

Last are these pretty kitten heel pumps by Audrey Brooke, which I believe is an in-store label at DSW.  I never would have paid full price for these shoes, but I was strolling along the sale racks at DSW the other day and they were marked 50% off.  I then had another $5 coupon, which brought them down to just $30.00.  I love the low heel for work and the more trendy pointy toe.  Online the description says faux leather, but on the actual shoe it say leather upper with man-made material accents.  I'm OK with that for $30.00.  These are really comfortable but I recommend you size down.  I took an 8.5 in these, a full size down from the Calvin Klein pumps.  The online reviews say they run big as well.  I am surprised these are still full-price online, so check your local store to see if they're on sale.  I know individual DSW locations have different styles on sale at different times, but at my store, these were 50% off. 

Do you love mint for spring?  What do you think about these steals?  Thanks for visiting!

Guest post by yours truly at Effortless Anthropologie

Hi everyone!  No blog post here today, but I'd love for you to head over to one of my favorite blogs, Effortless Anthropologie,, and check out my guest blog post, here.  I talk about how to shop the sales at Anthropologie.  Thanks to Roxy for this really fun opportunity to fill in for her while she enjoys a vacation.  I hope you enjoy the post!  See you tomorrow!

Polka dot tippi + tweed

Polka dot tippi sweater (size small):  J.Crew, fall 2012
No. 2 pencil skirt in multi-color tweed (size 6): J.Crew, fall 2012
Necklace:  Anthropologie
Booties:  Enzo Angiolini

Oh Monday, you beast.  Why must you be so harsh?  This Monday definitely called for polka dots to help my ease into my week with cheer.  I added the tweed skirt because it's still fr-fr-freezing here!  This skirt has been a surprising work horse in my fall and winter wardrobe.  I remember back in the early fall, when I first tried it on, I thought it was pretty but that I didn't need it.  Well then of course when it went on sale for $49.99 plus an additional 30% off my tune changed quickly!  Now I'm so glad I purchased it... I have so much to match it, and my concern that the material would pull and ruin quickly has thankfully gone unfounded so far.  I paired it with my new polka dot tippi that I picked up in-store during a recent addional percentage off promo for a fun, yet subtle play on pattern mixing.  I REALLY love the polka dot tippi, both this version and my Factory version.  It's just fun and whimsical but professional at the same time.  Kind of like me, right?  Right. 

Thanks for visiting! 

Liefsdottir silk top + denim, shopping my closet

Liefsdottir silk top (size 6): Anthropologie, 2011
Denim (size 28): Joe's Jeans
Bow pumps:  Seychelles
Necklace:  Anthropologie

The weather here is far from springy but I just felt like wearing spring colors for a casual gathering at a friend's house Friday night.  I haven't worn this Liefsdottir top in far too long...I love it.  The poofy shoulders, the colors...it kind of has an '80's vibe but in a good way.  Apples and Pencil Skirts mentioned that she is going to be shopping her closet more...I really need to do that. There are so many pieces in there that I love but never wear!  I've really edited a lot of items I wasn't wearing or loving anymore and shipped them off to consignment...so now it's time to enjoy what's left rather than always longing for the next new thing.  If only shopping wasn't so fun...sigh. 

Thanks for reading