Soft Spot for Leopard

It’s no secret to anyone who knows me that I love a good leopard print. I just can’t seem to let go of it. No matter how many leopard print skirts, tops or shoes I have I always manage to add another to the collection. Animal prints to me are not a trend; they're as timeless as the little black dress. Right now colored leopard prints are all the rage and I am on the hunt for something in a bright hue. Dolce & Gabbana has me inspired as pictures of their bright red or green creations on celebs are in every fashion magazine. For now I will just have to settle with the skirt I purchased a few weeks ago and dig into my closet and remix what I have until something with color pops up.

Happy Friday!

Dress: Ella Moss
Leggings: Target
Gladiator Sandals: Steve Madden
Ring: Purchased at Therapy in Campbell
Necklace: Express

Release Your Inner Chic With Chictopia

Interested in knowing what other fashionable folks are doing out there? Just hop on the site Chictopia and get an eyeful for all things fashion. Very inspirational! I have been playing around on this fashion outlet for the past month and I am loving it! Meeting a lot of new fashionable friends and I thought I would share this fun forum with the rest of you.

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More on Chictopia:

Launched in April of 2008, founders Helen Zhu, Corinne Chan and Ricky Ho sought to create a community in which users could finally answer the question “What looks good on you?”
Since then, Chictopia has grown to be the leading online fashion network with over 100,000 registered users and growing. Chictopia is a mecca for inspiration seekers and trendsetters.

http://www.chictopia.com/

Inspiration- What’s in your Bag?

I was reading the blog Runaway Hippie by Sonia and she had a great post called “In My Bag”. It was so much fun to peek inside! This inspired me to dump out all of my belongings in my bag to see what I carry on a day to day basis. Here is what I have:

Keys with my vintage Coach heart key ring * Work Blackberry * Personal iPhone * Heart Mesh Bag that holds my Olympus camera *Tide To Go stick * Vintage Nicole Miller Wallet * Benefit Lipstick * Bloom Concealer * Flower Clip * Simply Vera Wang wristlet * Blister Block * Leopard business card case * Silver card case that I use for my driver’s license * Hair Clip * Static Guard * Advil * Thymes Kimono Rose Eau De Parfum Rollerball * Red Day Planner- I still like to hand write appointments * Work Badge*

What do you have inside your bag?

To see Sonia's "In my Bag" blog see here.

Frugalista Find- Studded Leggings

I am a girl who grew up in the 80’s and wore leggings religiously; I swore that I never would again. I am slowly reneging on that oath. I have being seeing these cute studded leggings everywhere and was thinking about trying them out. The only thing is I was not willing to commit the funds to something I may really not be able to pull off, until now....I located a cash friendly pair.


Simply Vera Wang $20.00

Here are a few other suggestions if you are willing to invest more money than me:

Nordstrom $54.00
Revolve Clothing $110.00

To the Max

Long, flowing maxi dresses have been dominating for a few seasons and I have loved them for all my summer events, so it's inevitable that the maxi skirt would follow. I was reading the Zoe Report this morning and she is stating the maxi skirt is the new wardrobe staple that is ready to be inducted into all of our closets. It has now become a sought-after piece and I am already on the hunt to find the best one that will work for me. This is to be a transition piece for this upcoming fall season as I am not quite ready for summer to end.
(Wore this dress yesterday to a lovely BBQ with friends)

Here are a few maxi skirts I am looking at:
1. Topshop
2. ASOS
3. Ann Taylor (Thought this would be cute with a jacket)



Dress: Gap
Necklace: Banana Republic (purchased on eBay)
Clutch: Flea Market
Ring: Rings Eclectic by Melanie Lynn, Purchased at Heidi’s in Los Gatos (14 North Avenue, Los Gatos, CA 95030-5917 (408)395-3262).

Funky Chunky

Need to buy a new outfit and its just not in the budget, you can just update an older oufit that has been sitting in your closet by adding a funky chunky necklace. It looks like this trend is sticking around for the upcoming fall season, so when you are searching for the perfect piece focus on a mix of chains, pearls and charms. The chunkier the better!
Dress: Libertine for Target
Shoes: BCBGirls
Necklace: Simply Vera Wang

Here are a few chunky necklaces I am looking to add to my jewelry box:



1. J.Crew "Braided Chain and Pearl"
2. Banana Republic "Tough Love"
3. Stella & Dot "Metropolitan Mixed Chain"
4. Simply Vera Wang "Silver-Tone Multi Strand"

Things I Love- Paper Lanterns

I love paper lanterns, they are colorful, fun and add an extra pop of color to a room or patio. For some reason I have been seeing paper lanterns everywhere! (well it is summer afterall). I have been trying forever to add them to the household, but the hubby has not been sold on the idea. So for now, I will keep dreaming. Here are a few places I look on occasion in the hopes that my dream will become a reality.

http://www.omgallery.com/

http://www.lunabazaar.com/paper-lanterns.aspx

http://www.pier1.com/Catalog/Seasonal/tabid/467/List/0/CategoryID/92/level/a/ProductID/6740/ProductName/Polka-Dot-Paper-Lantern/Default.aspx

The picture above was taken at the OM Gallery in Santa Cruz last weekend.

BLUE Bayou

I have never been a French-tip sort of girl and I have been in love with my summer staple colors of purple or orange, but I have been looking for fresh inspiration to shake up my nail routine. Went to my local beauty supply store and stared at all the fun colors trying to find just the right color to shake things up. After about 25 minutes, I walked out with Navy Blue. What do you think?

I purchased Yoga-ta Get This Blue! by OPI $8.50

Here are a couple more that I liked:

Rococo Matte Nail Polish in Eccentric Rococo, $16.50
Essie Nail Polish in Lapis of Luxury $8.00

Girly Ruffles

Embrace your femininity this summer by stepping out in ruffles! This girly embellishment enhances the look of any outfit. Today I chose a loose dress with a comfortable ruffled vest in a neutral color. Its lightweight and flowing nature will make any woman feel comfortable and fashionable.

Dress: H&M
Ruffle Vest: H&M
Shoes: Steve Madden
Necklace: Simply Vera Wang
Bag: Old Navy

The Color Coral

Coral is a favorite color for summer that I have been reading in every fashion magazine. The color looks so gorgeous with a sun-kissed tan, for which I have been working on every weekend at the beach (although you would never know it by looking at me). For day, pair the color with crisp white and neutral accessories. For night, glam it up with metallic’s or black. And when you're on a beach vacation trying going bright by adding teal to the mix.

Dress: Plenty Frock by Tracy Reese
Shoes: Steve Madden "Melrow"
Jewelry by Mark Poulin

Naughty at Nordstrom

As much as I love to shop at small local boutiques for unique pieces, I do like to hit the larger retail stores for basics. The anniversary sale at Nordstrom started and oh boy I was a naughty girl and picked up some things that tickled my fancy.


Here are a few items that I just had to have. Sale ends August 2nd.




1. Sam Edleman "Torin" Bootie
2. Flounce TBD Sequin Jacket
3. Report "Monroe" Mid Calf Boot
4. Halogen Metallic Pencil Skirt


http://www.nordstrom.com

Boutique of the Month- Therapy

If you are in need for a little retail therapy, drop by a boutique named Therapy. They offer everything from women and men’s apparel, accessories and home goods. This one stop shop has really fun jewelry and they also offer some shoes. A little Urban Outfitters meets Anthropologie sprinkled with a bit of sassiness.


Happy Friday!


See here for more information and locations for Therapy.

Frilly Floral

A ruched waistband creates a flattering line on this flowing floral georgette dress. I decided to add a wide belt to mix it up a bit. This dress is perfect for all summer occasions and I look forward to switching it up for fall with some boots and tights underneath.

Dress: Newport News
Belt: Linea Pelle
Clogs: Jeffrey Campbell
Ring: Urban Outfitters
Bracelet: Vintage

Please Pass the Mustard

Finally got a chance to wear my Star Ling strappy mustard sandals. Such a great pop of color! They are great addition to my already growing collection of all things yellow for the summer.


Dress: J Crew
Cardigan: J Crew
Sandals: Star Ling
Wristlet: Simply Vera Wang

To view my other yellow pieces that I have picked up, see them here.