Slacker Style

I admit it- I've been slacking with the blogging. I resolved to do it more and then I promptly stopped altogether. What a slacker! Seriously. I have been keeping myself very busy at work and at play and I have tried to be fashionable throughout it all, but I admit I have been terrible about writing about these fashions. I was hoping to write an awards-show blog after the Golden Globes, but I'll be honest- so many people looked so awful and even the good ones weren't groundbreaking that I just couldn't come up with any decent content. The Grammy's were slightly better. Ah, well.

I've been doing more and more with accessories at work and also gearing up for a big accessories sale. It's made me assess my own accessories and for the first time in a long time, I actually find that I have some gaps in my collection. I've been so satisfied with my closet lately and it's only in the last few weeks that I've looked through things to put an outfit together and thought, "Meh. Nothing appeals." It's partly due to the fact that I have been running, so a lot of my clothes are actually a little too big for me right now. It's also partly due to the fact that it's so freaking cold out lately that the only thing I want to consider wearing is cashmere and fur. So I do.

One gap I've noticed in my collection is earrings. I've got this sassy new super short haircut that is also super blonde. If you haven't seen it yet, check it out:

Anyway, with this new 'do, earrings come into play in a totally different way than they previously did with my longer, brown hair. Earrings become a much bigger statement now, so I find I'm actually wearing a whole lot of dainty studs instead of my typical giant chandeliers and whatnot. 

I've purchased about a dozen pair of little studs in the last few months, but I think I want to get back into statement earrings. Something like these would be a great addition to my collection: 

Kate Spade Chandelier Earrings, Nordstrom, $98

The other thing I've gotten into is the midi- or mini-ring. You know what I'm talking about- it's the teeny tiny ring that you wear above the middle knuckle. It took a little getting used to, but now I love them. In contrast to the statement earrings, I love how delicate and subtle they are, yet eye-catching at the same time because of their location. 

Midi "Knuckle" ring, Etsy, $9.99

Some people like piling on lots of rings- some large cocktail rings and then other midi-rings, too. I prefer the midi-ring look when it's all by itself, like in the photo above. I like how delicate they are. If you haven't tried out this trend, get thee to an accessories shop ASAP and buy yourself one. Give it a whirl! Express yourself through your midi-ring! You just might love it! 

Finally, the other accessory that I absolutely cannot live without is a hat. It has been frigid around here and completely necessary to wear a hat in order to stay warm outside. I've got a decent hat collection, but nothing beats wool and fur for staying toasty warm. 

If you can pull it off, may I suggest a large fur hat- there is nothing better for keeping warm and although it's a bold sartorial statement, it's one I love! 

So there you have it- my winter must-haves, accessories-style. It's not bad style for a slacker, huh? 

Pinterest Organizational Project: FAIL

So, if you know me, you know that I FINALLY got into Pinterest. It's seriously addictive. It was the "funny" board on my mom's page that got me hooked. Now I spend every free minute "pinning" recipes, home decor ideas, DIY projects, fashion ideas- you name it, it's on Pinterest. So, the other day I was thinking about how many clever organizational projects I've seen on Pinterest. Clever and super inexpensive ways to re-organize your life. I decided to try one.

I have a LOT of scarves. I wear them all the time- almost year round. They're a fun fashion statement. My current scarf storage method involves hanging them on a plastic coat hanger on the inside of my closet door. Like this:

Kind of messy, but not horrible. Well, while browsing Pinterest, I saw a whole bunch of DIY scarf holder projects that were modeled after this one from Ikea: 

Most projects involved making circles out of wire coat hangers and taping them together. Seemed pretty simple, right? I thought that I was even more brilliant when I decided not to waste an hour of my life cutting coat hangers and fashioning the pieces into circles. Instead, I decided I should just use a $1.38 package of shower curtain rings. 

You can see I've already bent the coat hanger into shape. I liked the multiple "U" shapes that allowed for hanging belts or small scarves on the hanger itself. And here's the finished product: 

The entire project took about ten minutes to complete. That should have been a red flag. I proudly marched upstairs and started pulling the scarves through the loops. I hung my new scarf hanger in place of my old one and literally before I had a chance to snap a photo, the entire thing fell apart and all my scarves were in a pile on the floor. Fail. 

So, here's how my scarves are currently organized in my closet: 

They're slightly neater and more organized than before the project began, but the single coat hanger method is going to have to work for me for now. After all, the closest Ikea is over an hour away. I'm not driving that far for a scarf organizer anytime soon. 

So, the lesson here is to remember that DIY projects on Pinterest aren't always as they seem. But at least in this case, nothing was damaged and we can all have a good laugh at what a fool I can be. 

Have a great day and as always, thanks for reading! 

Pinterest Parties- They're all the Rage!

You know how in the 70's is was oh-so-fashionable to have a fondue party? I think in 50 years when people look back on us now they'll see all the Pinterest parties that we had and think, "Oh, how charming and quaint they were in the old days."

For those of you unfamiliar with Pinterest, I like to describe it as internet hoarding. No joke. Its true description is a virtual bulletin board, or inspiration board. You "pin" photos from anywhere on the internet. When you pin the photo, you are basically saving the link with the photo as your visual reminder of the pins content. I feel like I hear the word "Pinterest" on a daily basis because it's become the new method of wedding planning. Brides create wedding-themed boards to collect all of their bridal inspiration. They pin every detail of the wedding. It has its pros and its cons, however. The thing about Pinterest is that it allows you to see literally see everything out there that's available. What it doesn't always provide you with are the realities of the photos you see. You may think that bouquet is simply stunning, but the pin doesn't tell you that the flowers were shipped from some ridiculously exotic location, that it was a design made for the royal wedding of some far away event and the total cost is ten times the average bridal bouquet. All you see is a bouquet you love.

So, what ends up happening is this: brides "pin" away, setting aside photos of what they hope for their wedding day. They show it to vendors who then have the unpleasant job of explaining how much the details in the photo cost. I suppose it's not that different from tearing photos out of a magazine to show your vendor, but the main difference is the sheer volume of photos available all over the internet.

But that isn't the point of my post today- sorry for the digression. The point is that I've attended a couple of really fun Pinterest parties and I have another one I'm going to this weekend! A Pinterest party is simple. It's basically a pot luck event where each guest is tasked with finding a recipe on Pinterest that they've never tried before. Whether it's a huge success or a "Pinstrosity," it's always fun to try the different recipes everyone finds.

More elaborate Pinterest parties involve more than just recipes- they involve demonstrations of all kinds based on tutorials found on Pinterest. The most recent Pinterest party I attended was this type of party and we had a blast!

First, there was amazing food:

Yummy Asian Meatballs (my personal favorite of the night)

Feta/Tomato Dip (we spread it on baguette slices like bruschetta)

Jalapeno/Red Pepper Poppers- They were pepper stuffed with cream cheese and wrapped with bacon!

Brownie Batter Dip- it LITERALLY tastes like brownie batter, but no risk of salmonella! 

Lemon Drop Cookies- they tasted like lemonade! 

In addition to the food, one guest brought spices and taught us all the recipe to make your own taco seasoning! 

There were craft and home-improvement demonstrations: 

And my contribution involved teaching everyone how to accessorize themselves for any occasion. Unfortunately, we all neglected to snap photos during my demonstration, but I can assure you it was a success. Here's the state of our living room afterwards: 

Accessories EVERYWHERE!!! 

Anyway, the entire party was a blast and I'm looking forward to the next one. For those of you interested, my demonstration centered around the "rule of three." Basically, the idea is that once you have your outfit determined, the best way to look polished and put-together is to choose three coordinating (not MATCHING!) accessories and you will always look great! 

Maybe I'll have some time to put together some examples- either on Polyvore or in real life. Let me know in the comments if this is something you'd like to see on the blog! 

Have you been to a Pinterest party? What was it like? Did you love it? Hate it? Leave a comment and tell me all about it!