OTI- Grace's Pick

Skirt: DVF, thrifted...Tee: Gap...Shoes: J Jill via Buffalo Exchange...Necklaces: Gap

Grace's turn! (Although Erica and Kayla are rockin' the look, too) I love that she chose this photo... Reese W wears things frequently that I think "Oh, man, that's cozy and cute!" And then I try to replicate and it just looks dumpy. So, I took inspiration from the navy and black & white and the braid. And, oh, the braid. Every once in a while your fingers grab and pull all the right pieces and angles and all of a sudden your hair is awesome. Never to be replicated. I fear that's what this goodie is.

I hope you're playing along with the OTI Game- yesterday's looks were knocking it out of the park. I am guessing today's are only going to be better!

OTI, Erica's Pick

Skirt: BCBG Max Azria via Buffalo Exchange...Button-down: J Crew...Belt: Target...Shoes: Kenneth Cole Reaction via Piperlime  

It's staaaarting!

Erica picked today's inspiration, and I like it a lot. I would have like my interpretation better if I'd done a weekend version. Live and learn. Grace and Kayla have done a version, as well, and I can't wait to check back at lunch to see who else has linked up their own blog! 

Anyway, I've kind of gone blog MIA for several days- my sister's ex-boyfriend, who has kind of been sucked permanently into the family friends circle, was down in Houston for an interview (which he thinks went very well) and we changed his return flight to later today. Moral of the story is I spent the weekend taking him to do all the fun weekend-y things we normally do in hopes of convincing him that Houston would be awesome enough to make the move if he gets the offer. He's been in Rochester NY since college and has found a really awesome community there, so I did my best to not oversell H-Town, just show him a peek into how genuinely awesome our little area actually is. I think it was working.

Pastels

Pants: Gap...Shirt: via Buffalo Exchange...Scarf: Target...Shoes: J Jill via Buffalo Exchange...Shades: Gap via TJ Maxx

I keep second guessing these pants, but then I keep wearing them over and over and over and a little more. Turns out you can do neutrals and coral more different ways than I realized. I also never really found pieces cheap enough to jump on the pastel bandwagon when it rolled into town this spring, but Target recently coughed up this spearaminty green beaut for the price of "yes, please." I can even see wearing it in the fall with navy and dark tan combos. For now it can continue to be my lightweight AC overload deterrent and perk up light neutral summer looks.  It has also made me realize that I would, indeed, wear mint skinnies frequently if I had them. Half hearted hunting party starting.... now.

Sister Swap

Dress: Target...Cardigan: Target...Shoes: J Jill via Buffalo Exchange...Neckace: Target...Bracelets: thrifted

This dress... I purchased this coral stripe the same day I purchased the navy version. I figured why wouldn't I want a cheerful summery colored dress? Several days later I saw a bolder mixed color striped version, but only after I snipped tags off of this goodie. So, here I am, wearing the coral version. And I like it, but I don't love it on my pasty-white complexion.

And then it dawned on me... I have a package full of swimsuits and flats that I'm preparing for my sister in Hong Kong. And she has a perfect warm skintone. So, I'll wash and include a little gifty. And keep the bolder stripes for myself. It's a win-win. I get to feel less guilty about over purchasing and she gets a lightweight dress that will allow air circulation in the Hong Kong humidity.

I love sisters who function as scapegoats. Especially if they promise to mail back a new iPhone case or two. I've worn mine ragged.

One last little bit of weekly fun: Pleated Poppy's What I Wore Wednesday and new to me Rolled Up Pretty's Whatever Whenever Wednesday!

In Preparation for Neighbors

Jeans: Gap...Blouse: Ecote via Buffalo Exchange...Shoes: Nine West via Buffalo Exchange

My Guy and I finally decided to get on with it... and by that I mean finally having our neighbors over for a sushi night. We've lived here for coming up on three years and have never invited neighbors into our home and have never been invited into any of theirs. We spend crazy amounts of time together outside at the picnic table in the courtyard (which is just about ready for its glamour shot post-sod) and we're really looking forward to sharing another meal with the group. One upstairs neighbor has the best wood smoke grill and his sauce recipes are killer, so he rounds the group up every once in a while just to have a BBQ potluck. Sweets and fresh baked goods have been passed around. The woman just above us make a mean guacamole. And now we can share sushi with the crew. I can't wait!

This also means we are doing some last minute deep cleaning. And it isn't close to being over yet. Our darling critters are filthy little buggers and have left more dark oily smears on window sills, nose prints on windows and snot/snout marks on door frames than I realized. Not to mention the ground-in dog fur I've been sucking out of the sofa and guinea pig sized furballs floating around the room after having vacuumed on Sunday morning. I don't know how they get so big so fast. Our cat only weighs 6 1/2 lbs herself.

We're hosting tomorrow night... That's enough time to wrap it all up. Right?

Calm and Quiet

Skirt: Beijing tailor...Blouse: Banana Republic via Buffalo Exchange...Cardigan: Target...Belt: Target...Shoes: MRKT via DSW...Scarf: Liberty of London, thrifted...Earrings: Wish Boutique

Boss Lady is off to Canada for a week. And so I wore tall shoes in celebration of working on my own projects at my own pace without interruptions. Because that seems logical.

We had such a nice weekend, I'm now completely spaced out and preparing for a very pleasant week at work. I'll be back tomorrow morning with something for-real to say. An Ode to Coffee seems a little trite, but it's all I've got going on right now, and that's never a bad thing.

Happy Monday, everyone!

Summertime Elegance

Dress: Emmauel Ungaro via Buffalo Exchange...Shoes: Cole Haan via DSW...Earrings: Target...Shades: Coach via TJ Maxx...Clutch: thrifted

I was asked a few weeks ago by a friend of Boss Lady to help out at a Gallery night- this friend owns two galleries and had an opening at the one up north, extended the show at the one in midtown on "Gallery Row" and represents an artist who had an opening at a different (3rd!) gallery... All on Saturday evening. Gallery Row hosts open houses on the first Saturday of each month from 6-8, which, of course, conflicted with the opening at the gallery up north... So he asked me if I was available to help host the open house. Um, yeah! And hang out with the artist whose work was on exhibit? Um, for sure! I had such a lovely time last night chatting up the patrons who frequent Gallery Row and truly enjoyed gleaning a little extra information about the artist's lithography and collaging technique. Especially in regards to her use of old wallpaper patterns as backgrounds and cut-out elements. Fascinating stuff.

Needless to say, I wanted to represent the gallerist well. Buffalo Exchange has been coughing up some real gems lately for me. I've said it before and I'll say it again- thrifted items can make up an interesting and varied wardrobe, retail items yield solid basics and a trend item every once in a while, but a designer piece of clothing will probably be a better bet if you need to look your best- there is just no comparison in the attention to detail and craftsmanship. Allow me to introduce my relatively new find: a Buffalo Exchanged Emmanuel Ungaro knit dress for, per my estimation, 1/20th the original price, at minumum. With sleeves not to long or short and fluttery, neckline beautifully finished with an appropriately deep v-neck, overall shape and waist nipped in just the right amount to be fitted but not tight, and a hemline about 6 elegant inches longer than any other dress I've tried on in recent memory that wasn't dubbed a "midi"... this dress was spot on for last night's event. Put together, elegant, not fussy in the least.

Well, I'm off to a doggy date with a friend. We're going to take a long, leisurely meander around campus before the sun gets too hot. Not a bad way to start a Sunday, huh?

An Awesome Way To Earn a Few Extra Bucks

Help a friend out by hosting a Gallery event. Write a piece of paperwork or two (but hopefully many many!) to sell the artwork, hang out with the artist herself and spend a Saturday afternoon looking elegant rather than shlubby. Be back later with real photos of my dress (It's a good one. Buffalo Exchange for the win).

A College DIY

That moment when you realize it is, indeed, Friday- magical. I had a heckuva hard time making it through this week with a consistant smile on my face. I'm helping a friend of a friend with a Gallery event tomorrow from 3-8, but I just don't think it's even going to feel like a burden. And I spent major hours last night rifiling through my wardrobe and did some major sorting, so I don't have to do anything other than relax the rest of the weekend. My clothing isn't as thinned out as I'd like, but I am so fearful if I really do a harsh purge, I'll end up chucking some things I truly do like for the sake of Houston climate... and I'll wind up in the middle of the Colorado Rockies or North Dakota plains with no winter clothes after our next move. I'll cling to it for another year and re-evaluate after we know something a little more concrete about where we'll be next. Even knowing where my guy might get interviews will help.

And about this skirt: I dyed, stamped and prepared this fabric during my senior year of college while I was taking a fibers class and this skirt was my final project, meant to blend a more tribal print inspired by African stamped fabrics and a sleek, modern silhouette. My grandmother helped me read the pattern and piece it together, but the intention was to learn a few new techniques including stamp production and dye removal (the pattern was created by stamping a color removing agent). And it's a heavy weight single ply silk. Which never wrinkles. And is the perfect fabric for Houston humidity. Win.

Happy Friday, you all. Thanks for helping me make it through this grump of a week. I really do appreciate the positive nature of this online community!

A Tricky Skirt and Green Curry

Skirt: Express, thrifted...Sweater: via Buffalo Exchange...Belt: Gap...Shoes: BCBGeneration via Ross...Earrings: Wish  Boutique

Ladies and Germs, I need a little assistance. I gave this little skirt another shot today and am having an exceeeeedingly difficult time styling it. I refuse to wear it only as a black turtleneck, tights and pumps type of look and I refuse to wear it in the capacity of black and *insert accent color here.* This little foray into adding a touch of tan fell very flat, in my opinion. Help, help, help. If we come up with no suitable solution, to the resale shops it goes. In fact, there's a whole lot in my closet that I'll try to sell or donate... I'm thinning the herd. Ahhh, a purge. It's always worth it!

We hosted a dinner of sorts last night for a bunch of friends. Mostly vegetarians. And for the second time this year, I made an enormous vat of green curry- potatoes, onions, bamboo, peppers, a little ginger, a lot of basil. Oh, Good Golly Miss Molly, I love green curry. And I especially love having people en masse traipse through our home for an evening and enjoy each other's company and stuffing our faces. There's something so wonderfully gratifying about feeding people a thoughtful meal.

What's your go-to large group dinner dish?