Everyday I'm Shufflin'

Isn't it amazing that guys who look this ridiculous can make such good/bad music?

I find it pretty darn amusing.
{trust me - their outfits are way more interesting than the leggings & dingy old tee shirt I'm wearing today} *

Anyway.

Today I'm shuffling off to Buffalo for a week.

I've got my snacks packed up, the ipod is fully charged, and several audio books have been borrowed from the library.

What kinds of things do you do for fun on long road trips?

*p.s. - If I showed you the way I dress to sit in a car for 7 hours, you'd really LMFAO...(today M = your, not my.  Just go with it.)

A Little Bit of Romance

{cardi, blouse: target  //  jeggings: old navy  //  booties: payless}

Last night was date night so I gussied up a little for my boyfriend.

A flowy blouse with a big ol' bow, a red cardi, and killer heels did the trick.

To up the romance, I also added some nice, big, soft, romantic waves to my hair.  

And elbow patches.  Nothing says romance like elbow patches.

Today I'm linking up to:

The ABCs of Style at My Greatest Hits

What I Wore Wednesday at Transatlantic Blonde

Whatever Whenever Wednesday at Rolled up Pretty
What I Wednesday  at Captivated by Grace

Oh Honey, Plea(t)s

{sweater: target  //  shorts: h&m  //  vintage kerchief: gramma's  //  tights: old navy  

booties: payless  //  watch: sprout via pure citizen  //  bangles: f21}

P is for pleats.  At least over at My Greatest Hits it is.  I think this pair of shorts is the only piece in my closet that qualifies as pleated.  Clearly I don't wear a lot of folded fabric.  Unless you count unintentional folds, like wrinkles.  

Because I wear those a  lot.

This or That

On Thursday I'm trucking up to Buffalo for my cousin's wedding.  Most of my family lives there so I'm looking forward to hanging out for a week, spending lots of time with them, eating home-cooked comfort food, and suffering through a touch of frostbite while walking around Niagara Falls.

In order to dispel my reputation for arriving at any given family member's house well after midnight, (one time the should-be-7-hour trip took me over 12 hours - there were extenuating circumstances including an insane downpour and the loss of a muffler, I swear!), I'm going to begin packing early in the hopes it will get the ball rolling in my attempt at punctuality.

Will you help me decide what to wear to the wedding?

These are the two contenders:

bitty in blue  vs.  flower power

outfit #1

{blazer: target  //  dress: jessica mcclintock  //  tights: old navy  //  shoes: aerosoles}

outfit #2

{blazer: target  //  skirt: tulle  //  tee, tights: old navy  //  shoes: payless}

My only worry for outfit #1 is that there is a good chance of the dreaded actual cold feet (not to be confused with the metaphorical cold feet, which neither my cousin nor his fiance better be having!) since the forecast calls for snow.  

And my worry for outfit #2 is that underneath that blazer is a simple tee shirt.  Has anyone in history ever gotten away with wearing a tee shirt to a wedding?  Will I be seen as a trail blazing trendsetter or just a lazy slob who wore a white tee to her cousin's wedding...

What do you think?

Fear & Loathing

{button up:  old navy  //  vest: hand-me-down (altered)  //  skirt, shoes: target  //  tights: payless}

The final of the 10 Day Challenge was to wear something I'm afraid of.  

There isn't much I'm afraid to wear, but I do have an unnatural fear of my sewing machine.

I've had it for about 12 years, but never learned much beyond how to thread the thing and change the stitch (it is as complicated as turning a dial; I am a genius for figuring that one out).  Not surprisingly, my sewing skills are beginner at best.

Yet, my extreme cheapness rational thriftiness compels me to have a go at mangling my clothing myself, rather than pay a tailor to do a perfectly professional job of it.

So yesterday I faced my fear.  I had received this sweater as a hand-me-down from a friend a while ago.  When I tried it on the sleeves were all wrong - too long, but not long enough.  I knew it had potential but my fear of destroying the entire thing resulted in this sweater sitting next to my sewing machine, haunting me, for months.

Last night I finally took the plunge.

Here is the result:

A perfectly nice sweater into a perfectly nerdy sweater vest.

 And since this sweater sat, neglected for such a long time, it also happily ties into the ABC's of Style challenge for today, too, which is Orphaned (as in forgotten, abandonded, and ignored).

Oh sweater vest, can you ever forgive me?

See Your Shadow?

{sweater: gap  //  button up, clutch, necklace: f21  //  shorts: h&m  //  shoes: payless (old)}

Good morning all.  It's Groundhog Day!  Which in this household means the traditional yearly viewing of Bill Murray in, you guessed it, Groundhog Day.

Even though I've seen the movie probably upwards of 15 times, it still makes me laugh every year.  

To quote Ned Ryerson, "It's a doozy."

In other news, today's outfit was inspired by the Open to Interpretation challenge at Freckles in April.
Click here to see the photo and to see how everyone else interpreted it.

Also, I wore shorts - without tights or leggings - all day!  This is my favorite winter ever.
(Reminder: February.  New Jersey.  'Nuff said.)

All Dressed Up

{coat: kimchi blue via UO  //  dress, belt: delias  //  leggings, socks: target  //  boots: steve madden  // vintage brooch: gramma's}

Today I dressed up my coat.  I added a belt and a brooch to fancy things up a bit, and I can't believe I hadn't done it sooner.
A big thank you goes out to Kayla for urging me to try something new!