Put a little prep in your step

In college, I hated that people would tell me "this ___ looks like something you would wear".
I had friends whose style I felt was so unpredictable and they could literally wear anything they wanted; I wanted so badly to be that person.
I went through phases of wearing baggy clothes, clothes that were too short for me, lots of dark clothes- all in efforts to keep a "well-balanced" closet.

The problem was, I never felt comfortable in most of the clothes I wore.
I was so caught up with trying to be trendy and stylish that I sacrificed my confidence.
I would try to wear those baggy, aztec-type sweaters and I just felt lost inside of clothes- I had no control over my style and certainly didn't felt comfortable with myself.

At 25, I am finally ok with being the preppy person I am.
In fact, I now fully embrace it- bring on the stripes, glitter, and hearts.
This "style crisis" was one of the reasons I started Real Life Dress Up- I have experienced how it feels to not feel comfortable with yourself and I have taken control back from my clothes.
I now wear clothes that I feel confident in and sometimes that means "skipping" on certain trends.


My tip to you- identify what you feel comfortable & confident with and embrace it.

& if your style happens to be more on the preppy side, then this is the blog for you :)

Sweater: F21 (old)

Shirt under sweater: Ross (old)

Jeans: F21 (old)

Shoes: GoJane

What is your personal style? Has anyone else experienced this shift?

Xoxo,

Nicole

Linking up: Penniless Socialite// Style Elixir

Legging Loophole

I've said it once & I'll say it again- casual Friday is where it's at. 
I don't know what "it" is- but I'm confident it involves the option to dress casually.
Don't get me wrong- I love dressing up just as much as the next girl... but I want it to be by choice.
You can find me in professional attire from Monday to Thursday and on Friday, I refuse to wear anything that is acceptable on professional attire days.

However, casual Friday strictly excludes leggings.
And much against my pleading, it doesn't look like leggings will ever be approved.
When I found these pants at H&M, I knew I found a loophole to the no legging rule.
Technically- these aren't leggings, they are just really tight pants.
Do my legs know any difference?
Nope. They share the same comfort as my trusted leggings.
& here we have it folks, the leggings loophole. 

 

Shirt: Old Navy 

Pants: H&M (12.95 right now!)

Happy weekend, lovies!

Neutral Sweaters

I am loving the neutral sweaters right now.
They are so versatile & will run you all the way through fall & winter- and these ones have such cute details.

Which are your favorites?
I think I have to buy #6- I never knew that buffalo could be so cute. 

 

one// two// three 

four// five// six

From Casual Friday to a Concert

Casual Friday is my favorite day of the work week; I seriously get upset if I miss casual Friday and have to wait a whole week to wear jeans to work.
But, since I am still at work, I try not to go too casual.
Today was going to be an even bigger challenge because the hubby & I are going to the John Mayer concert right after work (with no chance to change), so I needed an outfit that I could wear to work, but easily converted to a casual vibe without having to change.

Work:

 

 

Night: Throw on a camel bomber, pull a teal clutch out of my purse & I am ready for the night! 

 

Shirt: my favorite Kohl's shirt

 Scarf: Old Navy/old: similar

Jeans: Forever 21 Skinny Jeans

Shoes: Steve Madden Pumps via Ross 

Camel Bomber: Target (can't find online, but very recent purchase) 

What is your favorite casual Friday outfit?? 

Happy weekend time, lovies!

Xoxo,

Nicole

Linking up: Vodka Infused Lemonade & Hunters of Happiness

The evolution of the outfit

When I found this sweater at Target, I loved it and instantly thought of pairing it with my cobalt blue peplum skirt.
I put the outfit on together & realized that it failed miserably; I actually gasped when I put it on and realized how bad it looked.
(**I originally wasn't going to post a picture, but decided that it is part of the process & it's important to see that clothes can be very unflattering if you let them be. It's important to keep trying until you get the look that you originally wanted) 

1. This was the outfit that looked great in my head. On me, it looked miserable & was completely unflattering. I identified the skirt as the part that wasn't working, so I kept the sweater on & switched pants.

 

2. I added a pair of light blue corduroy pants and blue flats and knew I was on the right track, but I still wasn't convinced of the outfit.  I decided to see if it was the shoes or the pants I wasn't liking, so I tried to swap out the pants first.

 

3. I instantly knew I liked the jeans better because it made the sweater look less juvenile, but still felt a little matchy-matchy so I added the bubble necklace for some contrast. I liked the direction I was heading, but I wanted to make one more adjustment--- the competing shoes.

 

4. I swapped the blue shoes for some nude pumps and loved the chic look it created. The blue shoes were competing with the necklace and sweater and the dark denim with nude pumps allow for full focus on the sweater detail. 

By identifying pieces along the way that I wasn't crazy about, I was able to end up with an outfit that I love. When an outfit doesn't look the way you intended it to look- keep trying!

Have you ever ended up with an outfit that you loved as a result of evolving your closet? 

P.S. I am loving the comments and support--- you guys are amazing!!

Xoxo, Nicole  

Here's a sneak peak of tomorrow's post: 

Linking up: Everyday Fashion & Finance

Just another lazy Monday

Mondays are by far my most lazy day when I am getting dressed.
After 25 years of life, you would think that I would begin to anticipate that Monday comes after Sunday, but I never seem to quite make that connection.
Monday morning always hits me like a ton of bricks- thrown at my face.

Luckily, dresses exist and they are a quick way to get dressed on lazy Mondays.
Throw on a dress and a necklace & you are done! 

 

Dress: Target (very recent, on clearance)

Bag: Phillip Lim- Target 

What is everyone else's lazy Monday cure?

The story of my $8 Phillip Lim purse

For weeks I have been watching everyone on blogland post about their 3-1 Phillip Lim purchases at Target.
I've window shopped online a few times and one time this little baby made its way into my imaginary cart.
However, like all online window shopping experiences go, the shopping ended when I hit that little red exit in the corner and carried on with life. 

I was at Target today and, like all good Target trips, I ended up browsing through the purses. 
As I was looking through some clearance purses, my eyes drifted to the purse I remembered from my online experience, but I instantly assumed it was just placed in the clearance section by mistake and kept walking.
15 seconds later, my natural curiosity kicked in and I slowly reversed.
I held my breath as I flipped over the price tag; confident that there would be no red tag.
I literally squealed when I saw the red tag and when I saw the price, I squinted my eyes and looked closer; surely I was reading the tag wrong and this $45 purse wasn't on sale for $8.

While checking out, the cashier loudly gasped at the tag and I thought she was going to tell me that the purse had been terribly mismatched.
But she didn't. She simply rang it up and we both watched as $8.76 popped up on the screen.
After lots of oohing and aahing from her and other employees, I was told that online items are marked down when returned to stores because there is no place for them.
I was also told that deals like this are not rare and that in fact, the grey one has popped up a few times in the last couple of weeks.
Moral of the story?

Run to Target. Every Target. And go every day.

New to the blog? Thanks for swinging by & be sure to follow me for more helpful ways to save! Linking up here:

Comfy work pants.

Yesterday I spent the best $11 I have ever spent on these "work" pants.
The quotation marks exist because I felt like I was doing something wrong all day by wearing them.
I was sure I was breaking a dress code, somewhere.

I literally tried to hide as I walked in the office behind the director, but was surprised when she noted how much she loved them.
Work pants that are fashionable, comfy, and outside-of-work wearable?
Yep, best $11 ever.

Shirt: Old Navy (similar here)

Pants: Target (in stores, on sale) (similar here)

Heels: GoJane 

Necklace: Forever 21 (find here) (& similar here)

Would your dress code allow for these pants? 

Saving Money with eBay

I haven't mentioned it yet, but Donnie & I have recently started the Dave Ramsey Cash Plan system. We are still going through the course, so this is still a huge adjustment for both of us. While I don't spend an obnoxious amount of clothes, I do spend at least $100-$300/month & I am going to attempt to significantly drop that. One way I currently save a lot of money is by utilizing eBay to buy statement necklace or trendy/statements necklaces. Sometimes I really love trendy pieces, but full price is usually too much for something that is seasonal.

For example, these Charlotte Olympia Cat-Face Flats are adorable.
But they are $595.
Over at eBay, you can find these for $11.99 + $7.99 for shipping.
Not the exact same, but close enough for me!

Have you seen that fan necklace floating all over blogland? It's $5.99 plus free shipping here

Or what about a classic, black statement necklace? $4.00 plus free shipping here

Take a stroll over to ebay and search for statement necklaces or your favorite trendy pieces to see if you can find a more cost effective price.

Did you find any gems to share with others?? Post below!

Xoxo.
Nicole You can find me linked up over here: