[jacket: halogen via nordstrom (similar) // dress; jcrew (on sale!) // kicks: rachel roy (similar) // baubles: michael kors, jcrew, david yurman // purse: brahmin (similar) // sunnies: prada]

It's no secret that I'm a lover of tweed & mixing patterns.  The moment I saw this drop waist number from JCrew, I was smitten.  It's a little reminiscent of this Tory number which I love, but at a much better price point and with pleats.  I'm eager to rock this number through the warmer months because even though it is tweed, it's a little lighter than I had expected.  Definitely wins all around for the Spring/Summer months.

[shirt: jcrew (similar) // skirt: jcrew // kicks: steve madden (similar) // baubles: jcrew (here and here), michael kors, stella & dot // sunnies: prada // purse: brahmin (similar)]

[dress: jcrew (similar) // shirt: ann taylor (similar) // kicks: rachel roy // baubles: jcrew (here, here, and similar), michael kors // sunnies: prada // purse: brahmin]

I don't know about where you kids are located but the weather over the past week has been downright dreamy.  As in, no humidity, pure blissful fall air, and maybe even a sighting or two of a fall leaf (?!).  It's crazy I know, and I also know that mother nature is going to slap me with a whooping dose of humidity as soon as the post goes live.  C'est la vie.


I decided to take advantage of this gorgeous weather by layering some tried and trues in bright colors.  It was such a fun, bright look that illicited a lot of comments (good and bad - one guy made a comment of he wasn't sure that he could see me...hardy har har).  This dress also breaks my 'blondes should not wear yellow rule' so maybe there aren't any hard and fast rules for fashion afterall.

[dress: cynthia rowley (old, but similar) // belt: jcrew (similar) // kicks: linea pelle (old) // baubles: jcrew, michael kors // purse: brahmin (spring 2012) // sunnies: prada]


It's always entertaining to me how you find yourself in very unexpected places.  Take us for instance: did I ever think that I'd be shacking up with my parents while we looked for a new home? Never.  In all fairness, there are worst places to be; my parents have been wonderfully gracious as we have completely taken over every nook and crany of their home and it has allowed for us to all be together while we find a place to call our own.

Another added bonus: I have another closet to play in. My mother, sister, and I are all close to the same size and have some overlap in what we can wear of each other's.  This has made for some interesting moments throughout the years, but now that we are older (and my sister lives across the continent) we are able to sort it out a bit better.

This dress is a gem that I pulled out of my mother's closet over the weekend.  My mother, she's pretty trendy that one. 

[top:  jcrew // pants: gap // belt: jcrew factory // kicks: jcrew // purse: brahmin (Spring '12) // baubles: michael kors, jcrew]

If you are anything like me, when you first received that notice from your favorite store via email announcing their new Fall 2013 arrivals, you rolled your eyes.  ESPECIALLY if you live in the South (like me) and it's about 900 degrees + 100% humidity on any given day.  But retailors, they weren't born yesterday.  The items they are shipping to stores now are great transitional pieces, light-weight enough that you could actually wear them today, but could still be rocked when the leaves change color and the temperatures drop. 

Take this new top of JCrew (I couldn't even find it on the website yet, although it showed up in my local store on Friday).  Chambray is a great fabric because it's light, it's versatile, and it covers all seasons.  The snazzy rhinestones aren't so much that they make the top seem heavy.  All around it's a great piece.  Right now, you could wear it with white jeans, black pants, skirts, shorts - practically anything. And later this fall, you could still wear it without anything overtop or throw a blazer or cardi over it to keep yourself warm.

Over the next few months I'll be dropping in some Fall-Must-Haves this season to get you and your closets ready for the upcoming season.  What's the saying? 'If you are early, you are on time and if you are on time then you are late'? - well consider this being early for the season...or something like that.

I have had Paul Simon's "Diamonds on the Soles of her Shoes" in my head for the better part of a month.  Maybe it's because that secretly I hope that such a pair of shoes exists somewhere to end up in my closet, but mostly it's a catchy tune.

On to more not-so-random topics, I had almost forgotten how annoying dressing for work in the summer months in North Carolina actually is.  The heat and humidity not only renders your hair unmanageable (unless you have the holy grail of hair folicles), but also simultaneously makes it next to impossible to find a fabric to withstand the onslaught.  Which brings me to more relevant topics, or more precisely, this number.  This skirt is quickly becoming the most versatile piece in my closet this summer.  From nights out to work to errands around town, you can transform it with the switch up of a shirt and slipping on a new pair of shoes.

Fun fact about me: I'm actually barely 5 foot tall without my sky high heels.  Days that I wear flats are pretty rare, despite the fact that I do have a growing collection of flats since any day now I'll actually have to chase after Liam.

Hubs looked at this outfit and told me that I should be riding the Jitney out to the Hamptons for the weekend.  And I'm OK with that.

Another Fun Fact: I've actually never rode the Hampton's Jitney although I have been to the Hamptons.