Neon I’ve Missed You

WHAT I’M WEARING // YASSO Faux Leather Jacket // AMERICAN APPAREL Tee // VICTORIA’S SECRET Jeggings // WANTED Studded Loafers // CORNELIA GUEST Bag

The one thing that I didn’t like about having bright red hair is that it clashed horribly with neon. Last summer I went on a huge neon kick and picked up tons of pieces in highlighter yellow.  I absolutely love it!  But alas, I couldn’t have both the awesome red hair and the neon with it, so I’ve gone months without wearing one of my favorite colors.

Now that my hair is back to my natural color, that means I can wear it again.  Oh neon, I’ve missed you!

On a totally unrelated note, this entire week I’ve had to wear flats and I’m so not used to it.  I had broken my foot a few years ago and noticed this week after an intense Crossfit session it was starting to bother me in the same exact place.  For fear I may have re-fractured it, I figured it best I stay off of it and stick to flats for the next week or so to allow it to get back to normal.  I miss my heels though!

Is there a color you love that you feel forced to stay away from?

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Giveashit

WHAT I’M WEARING // A QUESTION OF Tee (bought in Iceland) // ZARA Blazer // H&M Jeans // TARGET Heels // CORNELIA GUEST Handbag // JUSTFAB Sunglasses

I’m not usually a fan of graphic tees, but I spotted this one at a boutique while in Iceland and just had to get it.  I absolutely love its Givenchy reference, and at the same time speaks to my values in a weird way.  The fact that it’s somewhat profane also sold the deal for me.  Even my mother was like “Oh!  You have to buy that shirt it’s soooo you!”.

So in other news I cut all my hair off last week!  These are actually the last photos I took prior to the big chop.  Now that it’s been a week and I’m used to the new ‘do, it’s actually kind of strange for me looking at my old, long locks.  I must say though, I’m a much bigger fan of short hair on me.  I think it’s much more flattering not only for my face and physique, but also for my curls.

Since I was going to chop off over 12 inches of my hair, there was no way I wasn’t going to get it documented somehow plus I wanted the photos for when I donated my hair to Locks of Love.  So stay tuned later this week for photos of the final result as well as some from my actual appointment.

Loving This Deux Lux Bag

So a few weeks ago I ordered this Deux Lux bag via a Gilt sale and OMG I am so glad I did.  I love it so much I just wanted to share.

That is all!

Going to a Baby Shower

WHAT I’M WEARING // VAUTE COUTURE Belden Coat / Vintage Blouse / MAVI Jeans / TARGET Heels / CORNELIA GUEST Bag / SHOP MAMI Necklace (c/o)

A few weekends ago, Jim and I took a drive out to New Jersey to attend a close friends’ baby shower.

This was really our first set of friends in our circle having a baby, so I’m pretty inexperienced as far as showers go.  I’ve gone to lots and lots of bridal ones but baby ones are total foreign territory to me.  Getting dressed for it was kind of stressful.  Will it be all crazy girlie like a bridal shower so I should wear a dress?  Or is it going to be really casual?  I had no clue.  It was a co-ed shower which made it even more confusing.

I ended up deciding on a totally on trend black and white checkered vintage blouse I picked up a while back with a black blazer (which you can’t see) my trusty skinny jeans and heels.  Yes, the neon heels are back!  It’s been a while since I wore them and they were a big hit, especially with our friend’s 6 year old nieces who went crazy over the color.  They were so cute when I walked in, yelling “Mommy!  Her shoes are so bright like highlighters!”.

The outfit wound up working great because the blouse was formal and dressed up, but the jeans were casual so I would be good to go whatever the situation (which did end up being somewhat casual).

How did I do?  Any advice for me the next baby shower I attend?

Phoning it In

What I’m Wearing // VAUTE COUTURE Coat // HANES Men’s Tee // AMERICAN APPAREL Winter Leggings // CORNELIA GUEST Bag // CONVERSE Sneakers // NYC STREET VENDOR Beanie // GIFTED Scarf

I’m totally phoning it in on this post.  First off, I was so lazy this weekend this is what I wore out in public when I had to leave the house.  Leggings, tee, sneakers, scarf (thank you Gina!), beanie.  Done.  If I had a choice, I wouldn’t have left the house at all.  I’m that lazy lately.  I took a five hour nap on Sunday I was so tired.

Second I really wanted to make sure I had a post up today but am having the worst day at work ever.  So therefore I’m not really in a writing, telling mood.

But hey, at least there’s an outfit post!

Surviving Ikea

What I’m Wearing // TOPSHOP Parka // VICTORIA’S SECRET Jeggings // H&M Tee // CORNELIA GUEST Bag // MIA Boots // NYC STREET VENDOR Beanie

After the snowstorm this past weekend, Jim and I spent the entire day on Saturday doing nothing and enjoying the snow day. We actually watched around 6 back to back episodes of Shark Tank. OMG I totally love that show now.

Sunday we were back to business on operation Clean House, so it meant we had to do a run to IKEA. Each time we go to IKEA, we know our marriage is meant to last forever because we always survive the trip. We have our arguments and spats while there, but we’ve learned to instantly identify when it’s “Ikea Fever” and scale it back a bit. We persevered, and made it home not only with a new cabinet for our kitchen but also a new rug for our living room and a few other items.

Bringing our IKEA goods out of our car and up the stairs into our apartment was a good test of my recent Crossfit training. There was several larger items that were over 50 pounds that I carried up the stairs with no issues at all. In the past, it would have been a major ordeal getting all that stuff into the apartment! This time around it was almost easy.

Speaking of Crossfit, I wanted to mention really quick how much I totally love these new Victoria’s Secret Jeggings. Since I started Crossfit none of my pants fit because although my waist is much smaller, my quads are now huge. After searching high and low on the internet for the best types of jeans for athletic builds, the common answer was anything with stretch, so I invested in a few pairs of these mid-rise jeggings and don’t know why I ever wore normal jeans. They are so comfortable and look the same as skinny jeans.

This post is getting really random. Let’s keep on this roll. I think this is the first debut of my new hair color on the blog. What do you think?

Keep It Conservative

{What I’m Wearing: Sweater: no name brand (thrifted); Skirt: Michael Kors (thrifted, similar one here);  Boots: Aldo; Bag: Cornelia Guest}

I learned a few new things this week.

First is I should always let Jim take my outfit photos for me. He helped me out twice this week because I was short on time and didn’t feel like setting up my tripod. It took way less time, and the photos came out great because he has such a great artistic eye. In fact, in these photos he insisted on using this wall as the backdrop, and I didn’t understand why until I saw the images.

Rock on Jim, rock on.

Second thing I learned is I can’t wear what I used to wear to work now with my super red hair. The hair is accessory enough, and if I wear something else really colorful or busy looking it doesn’t come across super professional. The hair color is pretty punk rockish. Before the change I would very easily pull off neon heels and bright graphic blouses at work and with the new hair it’s almost sensory overload.

While I’m lucky my job adheres to a business casual dress code (plus most of my colleagues are men, and know nothing about professional women’s attire), it’s still extremely important to me that I’m taken seriously. While I don’t really talk about it on the blog, I have around 40 people who report to me just within my own company, and scores of colleagues who are vendors or customers. So this week I’ve learned to lay off the bright accessories and let the hair do the talking. It seems to be working well, since most people noticed the hair but didn’t really make a huge deal out of it. That alone helped assure me that I towed the line between conservative and punk to the best of my abilities.

Now what I wear on the weekends, that’s another story. I’m really excited to experiment with my faves, like leopard. That and I’m excited to do some shopping. For some reason I’m really feeling I need more gray to compliment this red.

What additions do you think I should make to my wardrobe that will compliment my new hair color? I’d love some suggestions!

Crisp

What I’m Wearing: Rain Jacket: Aryn K. (via Crossroads Trading Co.) Shirt: H&M (via a yard sale); Jeggings: Unknown Brand (gifted); Bag: Cornelia Guest; Rain Boots: Dirty Laundry

Friday night after my hair appointment I went out with some friends and didn’t get home until late in the evening. So instead of waking up early on Saturday to get my chores and errands done, Jim and I instead took the day to relax and recharge. I went to Crossfit, got to Skype with my friend Gina for a bit (Which was awesome! Miss you girl!), and then had a Homeland marathon. This was all well and good, but it was absolutely gorgeous Saturday. Like 80 degrees gorgeous. Slightly overcast, but it still was a total waste not to be outside doing something.

Sunday I got my ass up to start getting some things done around the house and around the neighborhood, and it was miserable outside. Temperatures dropped, rain coming on and off. Apparently it’s now officially fall. It’s like overnight all the leaves turned and are falling off the trees.

When I was about 75% done with my chores and projects and there was a break in the drizzle, Jim and I took a quick run to The Blue Stove to grab some baked treats for dessert after dinner. No better way to finish a productive cold and rainy day with a nice vegan ginger pear crisp.

Back to Black

{What I’m Wearing: Denim Moto Jacket: Levi’s (via Crossroads Trading Co.); Tee: Gap (via Buffalo Exchange); Jeans: Mavi; Heels: Target; Bag: Cornelia Guest}

I wore this my first day back to work after my Denver to Chicago trip. Anytime I’m functioning on near zero sleep and can’t think, I always wear black. You just can’t go wrong with it. I had picked up this awesome tee while in Chicago so it worked perfect. I was also pleasantly surprised to learn it was now almost sweater weather in NYC, so I threw on my new denim moto jacket (also a Chicago find) and ran out the door to work.

What followed I seriously couldn’t make up.

I go out to my car and guess what? Some jerk broke into it. The timing of this couldn’t be more ironic because I was just telling Bex the day prior how rare it is to have cars broken into in my neighborhood. Go figure. Oh, and the vandal didn’t take any of the valuables, they left them in the car. The only thing they took was my proof of insurance and registration. What… the…hell? It’s like their primary goal was to make life as inconvenient as possible for whoever’s car they broke into.

After having to file a police report (because of the missing documents, I needed proof in case I get pulled over while waiting for new ones), clean up the glass and vacuum the car out, I finally got into the office. I go to turn my computer on and it doesn’t turn on. It’s totally dead. So I got to spend the rest of the day waiting for replacement parts to arrive to replace its power supply. I got zero done.

I eventually get home from work only to have to take a parking spot a block away because all the street parking is taken by heavy machinery. Guess the city decided this week was a good week to replace our sewage pipes. Yay!

Trying to remain positive, the backhoe did make an awesome photo backdrop.

Chicago Style

{What I’m Wearing: Blazer: Crossroads Trading Co. (similar here); Tank/Dress: H&M (similar here); Jeans: Mavi; Loafers: Target; Bag: Cornelia Guest; Necklace: Love Brigade}

I’m finally back in New York City after a jam-packed week last week. I spent Wednesday through Friday on a business trip in Denver, where I had meetings and played golf (yuck). On Friday, instead of coming straight home I decided to make a stop in Chicago to visit my friends Rebecca (aka Bex) and Vik, who I hadn’t seen in almost four years. We had the best time catching up over cocktails, shopping, and wandering the various neighborhoods of the city.

I have close to 200 photos I’m currently editing from this weekend trip, which I’ll share on Friday. Thanks to Bex for grabbing these quick shots of me, I absolutely loved this mural and it was the perfect place to stop and take a few photos.