Wednesday, July 27, 2011

It's a Beautiful (OOT) Day!

Last night, my fiancé and I went to see U2 in concert at Heinz Field.  Before we left, I struggled with what to wear.  I really wanted to wear a dress, but I so rarely get to channel my inner rocker girl vibe, so I went with something a little edgier instead.  Here's what I wore (no Polyvore for this one because hardly any of the outfit is available anymore):

Sunglasses: Michael Kors
Tank: J.Crew Perfect fit tank
Vest: NY&Co.
Jeans: NY&Co.
Shoes: Candies for Kohls
Necklace and earrings: handmade from a local farmers' market

Here's a close-up of the earrings:
Like I stated above, I got the earrings and necklace at a local farmers' market.  I definitely wasn't expecting to find jewelry there, and I got the set for $10!  I love the earrings because they're like little wind chimes in my ears, and they kind of give off a boho vibe. 

Fashion question:  Have you ever found something fashionable when you weren't even looking?

Ok, on to the concert.  U2 was on my concert bucket list, and my fiancé and I share a love for their music.  The stage setup was ridonkulous.  It took the crew four days to set up what the local media referred to as "The Claw":
U2 took the stage around 10 after 9, and they played until almost midnight.  It was a great show.  For me, the highlight was Bono singing a verse of Jeff Buckley's version of "Hallelujah," which the band used to segway into "Where the Streets Have No Name."  The show could've ended there and I would've been happy.  But, the played for another 40 minutes!

Are any of you U2 fans?  Have you had a chance to check them out on their 360 tour?



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Tuesday, July 26, 2011

The last year of my life condensed into one blog post

I promised a "life update" post (if anyone is even still reading my blog at this point), so here we go.  Yes, it's in bullet form.  I thought that might make it a little easier to read.
  • Teaching became extremely time-consuming at the beginning of the school year last year.  Our English department became the target of a district-wide standardized test improvement plan.  This meant six observations instead of four, mandatory meetings every month, daily two-page lesson plans for every class we teach, and extreme restructuring of curriculum.  I also personally acquired two journalism classes and the school newspaper.  With a year of all of that extra responsibility under my belt, I should have more posting time this upcoming year.
  • Health-wise, I ran into big-time knee problems when I started training for a half-marathon this past September.  I struggled until March, when my doctor finally decided I needed surgery.  The recovery was longer than it should have been, and I didn't get back to working out until May.  Because I was sort of out of commission physically from September to May, I gained back about 10 of the 30 pounds I had previously lost.  This was frustrating and infuriating, to say the least, especially when it came to clothes.  Since then, I have traded running for circuit training, dancing, and yoga, and I seem to be back on track.  I've even lost about five pounds!
  • Fashion took somewhat of a back seat until this past spring.  I was sort of just going through the motions of getting dressed every day because of my knee situation, my weight-gain, and my added work load at school. 
  • My love life flourished somehow, through everything going on in my professional and personal life.  My boyfriend went to doctors appointments, listened to me vent, and encouraged me to stay positive.  On December 3rd, 2010, my boyfriend became my fiancé.  :)  We had our engagement pictures taken last week, and our amazing photographer, Leeann from Leeann Marie Photography, posted a sneak peek of our session on her blog:
Yes, that's a Harry Potter book.  :)  We did a literary-themed engagement session to go with our literary-themed wedding that we're having next June.  We both teach high school (he's history, I'm English), and we're both avid readers, so it's only fitting.

Once I get the rest of our pictures, I plan on doing a post about what I wore for our session.  In this sneak peek, I'm wearing a costume pearl necklace that was my grandmother's at one point (I'm pretty sure I stole it out of my mom's jewelry box years ago and never gave it back...sorry Mama) and a vintage dress I bought in high school at a store that has since closed.  It's one of my favorite vintage pieces, and I was thrilled to get the chance to wear it.

So, that's my life over the past year in a nutshell.  What have you all been up to?  Any new, exciting news that I missed during my blogging hiatus? 

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Monday, July 25, 2011

Let's keep it short

I may be a little late coming to the party, but I am loving dressy, flowy shorts this summer. I bought a pair at Free People for around $32 on sale, and they've been a staple ever since. I can dress them up for a night out with heels and a blouse, I can dress them down for lunch or a day of shopping with sandals and a tank. They're comfortable and easy to wear. If you haven't grabbed a pair for yourself or if you're on the fence, I highly recommend them!

Here's an OOTD from a few weeks ago when we went to dinner in the city with friends. I'm wearing shorts from Free People, a blouse from Target's Mossimo line, an old Guess cardigan, a belt from Target, and my favorite, can't-live-without Cole Haan Nike peep-toes.
And here's a Polyvore I put together of a similar outfit:

A Night Out





Do any of you have dressy shorts? What do you think of them?
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Sunday, July 24, 2011

I'm baaaack!

So, I haven't posted in over a year. My b. :( Life has been insanely busy (more on that later), and I just kind of...stopped posting. But I recently realized that I need to have an outlet for my inner fashionista. Thus, I am returning to fashion blogging. I might throw a little bit of life in my blogging this go-round, too. If I'm a little rusty to start out, please forgive me. Let's ease back into this together with one of my favorite outfits this summer that I wore to an open-mic night at a local bar (no performing, just listening...much to the patrons' gratitude, I'm sure!). Here's me:



and here's the Polyvore. There are a few differences (like those "Spot the Differences" puzzles in Games and Highlights magazines...fun fun!). First, I am wearing a vintage bracelet of my mom's, and I'm also wearing a vintage beaded necklace. Also, I am wearing a pair of purple booties that I got for a song at Payless last year for a school spirit day and never planned on wearing seriously. I couldn't find any of those three items anywhere on the web.




Open Mic Night




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