Small Time Style

I Might Have to Get These Sneaks...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:40:00 +0000

...during my imposed medical leave of absence of regular, pretty, fun shoes.

SNEAKERS, $128, BE & D, SHOPBOP.COM

Trying To Make it Work

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 15 May 2013 17:27:00 +0000

*sigh*

So, a dress with sneakers is totally ok, right? Right? It doesn't look like a typical DC commuter who has her heels under her desk or flats in her purse? Totally hip and of the moment, right? I'll just keep reading posts like this one from Refinery 29 to convince myself that I am actually just being trendy and not frumpy.

A black dress is a great canvas to work with. I tried to play with the neon blue sneakers by echoing it with the color in that scarf, which also has some great neon colors in it, and with the neon yellow belt (a color that I've gotten quite attached to lately - maybe it has something to do with having to wear neon blue shoes?).

Dress - Banana Republic
Jacket - Gap
Scarf - Madewell
Belt - J.Crew
~~Shoes~~ Sneakers - Gift

Necessity is the Mother of Inspiration...Or Something Like That

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 14:00:00 +0000

A few months ago I was running, took a wrong step, and caused a whole host of old and new problems to flare up in my right ankle, which has resulted in multiple doctor visits, physical therapy, and an MRI. And the result of the last visit was the revelation that I actually had a stress fracture in my right ankle - which actually I was happy to know that I had a legitimate problem with my ankle, instead of it just being nothing, because it makes all of this "taking care of myself" nonsense worth it.

BUT part of the diagnosis requires the wearing of an ankle brace and sneakers for the next three weeks. Which is better than being put in a boot, which I talked the doctor out of, but still - its kind of a sartorial nightmare. Especially when I have been on hiatus for a while - to now be limited in this way - SUPER annoying.

So be prepared to see these bright blue sneaks for a while. It is a pain in the neck (or ankle) to try to come up with outfits around them, but you got to do what you've got to do when you are trying to take care of yourself. Even if that means wearing an ankle brace and sneakers.

Dress - Loft
Shirt - Madewell
Sneakers - Nike (gift)
Necklace - JessLC
Ankle Brace - Town Center Orthopedics

Bad Style Blogger

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 03:30:00 +0000

It's been many months since I've visited this space. And to be perfectly honest, I have felt divided about it. I have missed this space - mainly the community around it - but for a whole host of reasons, I needed to take a step back.

But my creative muscles have been missing this too much, so here I am, and hope to be back to regularly scheduled posting. I hope you'll enjoy these next steps along this creative journey!

I Forgot That Sometimes I Like My Outfits

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 02:46:00 +0000

If you haven't noticed, I have not really been posting regularly. There is reasoning behind it - mainly, I just haven't felt lately that my outfits are really "cool" enough to post up on the interwebs. At some point in this whole process I somehow experienced both a loss of confidence in my own style/appearance coupled with laziness and thus have wondered why to keep on posting pictures of myself on a daily basis. What's the point? And if there's no point, then why try to keep this experiment going?

I am still working on the answers to these questions. But while I haven't been posting regularly, I have been continuing on with taking pictures of outfits. And today as I was looking back through some of my old ones, I realized that I actually like some of my outfits. That though I may wish my hair was longer or wish I was a few pounds lighter or any number of things, I like this outfit. It's way too colorful for my small town, but it's me. And that's all that I ever want to be.

Cardigan, Jeans - Gap
Top, Belt - J.Crew
Scarf - Madewell
Shoes - LuckyBrand via TJ Maxx

Rainy Days Mean Nautical Style - #EBEW

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 09 May 2012 03:14:00 +0000

I am finally participating in EBEW again! Hooray :). Of course, true to fashion, it's 11pm before I am posting today's pics, but oh well - I still count it as a victory that they have even been posted. And I am very grateful to EBEW because otherwise I would have had no idea what to wear today. But with "nautical" as the inspiration, this outfit came to mind.

Too bad that it when the weather man said 50% chance of rain, he wasn't kidding! I had to run home in the rain without an umbrella at lunch because I had decided that I would take my 50/50 chances and not carry one into work. Bad idea. It was great though to grab the umbrella I had left at home and use it in my pics for today!

T-shirt, skirt - J.Crew
Coat - Banana Republic
Necklace, Sandals - Urban Outfitters
Bag - gift
Scarf - Emma Stine

Spring Happiness

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 01 May 2012 02:57:00 +0000

Happy Spring!! I hope you are off basking in the crazy weather days, the warm sunshine, the sweet songs of the birds - that is where I've been :).

And ps - how does one make a summer weekend flowy dress work appropriate? Add a belt & blazer - works every time! (just like the bend & snap)

Dress - Ross

Blazer, Sandals, Sunnies - Target

Belt - J.Crew

Purse - gift

Necklaces - Jess LC, H&M(?)

Blast from the Past

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 03:11:00 +0000

Yes, I do still blog. Occasionally.

Life, a lack of creativity, and lack of desire to take pics are to blame.

My apologies! But feel free to follow me on Twitter or Pinterest - much more fun to spend time there these days :).

Skirt, Scarf, Shirt, Belt - J.Crew
Other Scarf - Charming Charlie
Shoes - Old Navy

#StyleMeMarch Day 1: My Favorite Color

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 02 Mar 2012 03:57:00 +0000

Today for the first day of the StyleMeMarch challenge everyone was supposed to wear their favorite color. My favorite color is all variations of the color mint/seafoam/turquoise blue. There is not a prettier color. If I see something in that color, I have to have it. So I have a lot of pieces to choose from in my wardrobe (yet each one is different and unique!) and while I could have gone many different ways in styling this color (and outfit), I decided to just do a monochromatic color story. Everything just fit together to portray my favorite color.

And with mint so trendy right now, you can better believe that it is taking all my willpower to hold me back from wanting everything :).

I don't know how I'm going to pull off tomorrow's challenge - a braid. I am terrible at braiding my hair! Promise to not laugh too hard! :)

T-Shirt, Skirt, Bracelet - J.Crew
Necklace - J.Crew via Ebay
Shoes - UrbanOutfitters

A New Style Challenge - #StyleMeMarch

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 06:08:00 +0000

Source: deanstreetsociety.com via Lauren on Pinterest

I found out about this style challenge today from Annie and I'm thinking of jumping in on this! It looks fun, simple, and a different kind of challenge to stretch creativity. I'll be posting some looks here and on Instagram at @laurentaggart or Twitter at @lauren_taggart. Be sure to let me know if you decide to participate!

Sort of Making it Work

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

This is another one of those outfits that just sort of happened. For some reason when I opened my closet in the morning, I decided I wanted to try to incorporate this black lace top into my outfit somehow, and this is what I came up with. I only sort of thought that this outfit kind of worked, but a lot of people were very kind and commented that they liked it, so maybe it worked better than I thought it did :). Isn't that always the way?

Hope you're enjoying the gorgeous FEBRUARY weather we've been having! I have to say, even though we're not done with winter yet, it can continue to stay in the upper 40s and 50s for the rest of the season. That is enough of winter for me. Thank you La Nina, thank you for helping to stave off my typical Seasonal Affectiveness Disorder.

Shirt - J.Crew
Lace Top - Piperlime
Jeans - Gap
Shoes - Kate Spade via gift
Trench, Necklace - Old Navy
Shades - TJMaxx

It's Getting Crafty Up in Here

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

I saw this tutorial on I Spy DIY's blog, after discovering her blog through Pinterest. I loved the idea of making this bracelet. I've really re-discovered a creative, crafty side of myself. And though it was a lot harder than I expected, as well as a bit more expensive than I thought it would be, it was really fun and I am so happy that I figured it out. I'm looking forward to making my next one!

Materials - Michael's and JoAnn Fabrics

Mixing Brights Together

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:22:00 +0000

Ummm, so yes, I forgot to mention that I got my hair chopped. It was an early birthday present. And I love it - it is one of the best haircuts I've ever had. As soon as my stylist brought me back to the chair after washing my hair from its color treatment, I loved it. For me, there was no better way than to ring in a new decade :).

This is one of my takes on yellow/turquoise/black. I'll be posting another look on this same color combo soon, but it may be a little anachronistic because it was done before the new haircut (like yesterday's post - this is what happens when you have little time to post but lots of pictures to use! :)). In the meantime, you can see how Elaine did this color combo too!

Shirt - Old Navy (who is kind of killing it lately - tons of cute stuff there!)
Jeans - J.Crew
Necklace - J.Crew via Ebay
Shoes - Target
Earrings - gift

What Happens When You Get Sucked Into Watching Movies on Weeknights

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

I am a sucker for movies on TV. Doesn't matter if I own it - I will still inexplicably watch it on TV, even if I have seen it a 1000 times before. I blame this habit on my father, who suffers from this same affliction and who has approximately watched "Shooter" on TNT about 5,000,000,000 times (how do I know this? Because I've been forced to watch it about 3,000,000,000 times whenever I am over at my parents' house).

So the other night, the terrible romantic comedy "When in Rome" was on FX. And it really is terrible. But yet, it is also really kind of cute. I blame this entirely on the cute-ness factor of Kristen Bell and Josh Duhamel. It would not be cute if they were not in the movie - it would just be plain awful. But somehow the two of them pull it off. Or else I just like awesomely bad movies and appreciate them for what they are.

Anyway, as I was watching the movie I really started noticing Kristen's outfits in the movie and realized how cute they all are and decided that I wanted to try to channel one of the looks into an outfit. So I decided to take this:

and turn it into this:

What do you think? Do you take inspiration from random movies that are shown on cable tv?

Pants - Gap

Shirts - J.Crew

Shoes - Ross

Necklace - Etsy

#EBEW Happy Valentine's Day!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 01:46:00 +0000

Whether single, married, dating, or engaged, I hope that you celebrated and enjoyed Valentine's Day! I loved the fun that was Everybody Everywear today - red and pink. I used an inspiration from one of my favorite sources of inspiration - a J.Crew catalog and added a touch of mint to the outfit.

J.Crew Inspiration Mint & Red

Happy Valentine's Day!

Shirt, Skirt, Cardigan - J.Crew
Belt - Madewell
Shoes - Urban Outfitters
Glasses - Ross
Earrings, Necklace, Bracelets - J.Crew, Jess LC

Celebrating Thirty Years

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

Source: iloveswmag.com via Lauren on Pinterest

Birthdays are so important. On our birthdays we celebrate being alive. On our birthdays people can say to us, "Thank you for being!" Birthday presents are signs of our families' and friends' joy that we are part of their lives. Little children often look forward to their birthdays for months. Their birthdays are their big days, when they are the center of attention and all their friends come to celebrate.

We should never forget our birthdays or the birthdays of those who are close to us. Birthdays keep us childlike. They remind us that what is important is not what we do or accomplish, not what we have or who we know, but that we are, here and now. On birthdays let us be grateful for the gift of life.

~ Henri Nouwen, Bread for the Journey, entry on February 13th

Here's to celebrating thirty years of life thus far!! I have many hopes and dreams for this year (like maybe I can start becoming a real adult?) so am extending my birthday "day" into the entire year. Because why not? :) So happy birthday to anyone else who's birthday is today, to all my fellow Aquarians, and anyone who else who will celebrate a birthday this year. Truly, celebrate it!

Cold Weather Style

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

I have a hard time getting dressed for expected foul weather. This was the one day in Virginia's best winter ever that we had a day with "snow" forecasted. It actually seemed like it was going to actually do something but it never really materialized - just a sweet dusting.

BTW - Never underestimate the power of leggings. They have saved and helped many an outfit this winter. If I could wear them every day I would. Comfort and style = doesn't get any better!

Dress, Hat - Old Navy
Sweater - Gap
Leggings - Victoria's Secret
Scarf - Etsy
Belt - H&M
Boots - Hunter

Happy Accidents

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 15:30:00 +0000

This outfit was a happy accident. Seriously. I woke up as I do often these days from a night spent passed out on the couch (I can't help that it is so comfy and warm) with a small amount of time to get ready to go to work. I wasn't feeling like getting dressed up, but wanted to wear my new hot pink loafers because I think they are so darn cute. So I decided I would wear jeans and try to do a "denim-on-denim" with the polka dot chambray button-down. And then, because it was going to be cold, I decided to add a sweater and thought "why not play with pink?" so added this sweater. A pink belt, necklace, earrings, and one big flower later, and I had an outfit to run out the door in.

And you seriously get yourself to Target and find these shoes because they are on sale and you need to own a pair.

Shirt - Land's End Canvas
Jeans - Gap
Sweater, Belt - J.Crew
Shoes - Target
Flower - Etsy
Necklace - eek, not sure!
Earrings - Jess LC

Work Appropriate

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

How do you counteract the fact that you have to sit all day in a meeting with people who crunch numbers all day? Dress up in a purple skirt, leopard shirt and throw in a black blazer, some black tights, and black heels to make it work appropriate. And then take pictures of yourself when you get home, looking tired and worn out, in your room.

Dress, Skirt - J.Crew
Blazer - Target
Shoes - Urban Outfitters
Tights - TJMaxx

Channeling Mother Nature

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 15:35:00 +0000

One of my favorite inspirations for outfits is nature. When I came across this sunset driving home on Sunday, I had to stop my car and snap pictures of the gorgeousness. It literally took my breath away. It was truly a gift from God.

When I got home, I thought, "how could I channel that into an outfit?" So I decided to interpret the blue of the sky in the form of a sky blue tshirt, the black outlines of the winter trees in black jeans and highlight the clouds in a cream jacket and white belt. The scarf was the cherry on top that helped bring it all together.

I love it when inspiration strikes from unexpected sources. Usually it'll be some kind of color combination that catches my eye, like this sunset. What catches your eye? What was the most unexpected place you have found inspiration (other than Pinterest :))?

T-shirt, jeans - J.Crew
Jacket - Target
Shoes, Sunnies - TJMaxx
Scarf - Calvin Klein

Product Review: Hana Titanium 1.5" Flat Iron

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 15:00:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago I was contacted by a representative from Misikko to see if I would do a product review for them. To be honest, I have received one or two requests in the past, but I've mainly turned them down, as I don't try to use my blog to receive free products - it is chiefly a creative outlet for me. But I've seen reviews of Misikko products on other blogs and I was curious to see if they lived up to the hype.

As soon as I agreed to do the review, I was sent an email with shipping confirmation and the works. No joke - one day later, the product was at my door. THAT was pretty impressive to me. And it was pretty big box for the flat iron I was expecting:

I got my scissors, cut the package open, and I soon saw why the package was so big:

There was a ton of stuff in there!

There were a couple of different pouches to hold the flat iron, an eye mask, some nail files, liquid eyeliner, lip gloss, hand sanitizer, a towel-esque thing, a cooling pad to sit the iron on, a hair brush, and (what I was most excited about) some Hana Shine Shield to use to protect the hair using the flat iron.

All of this was very impressive, but I wanted to see how the actual iron worked. So I went through my normal hair routine. First, it was washed and conditioned and I applied some of the Shine Shield to my towel-dried hair:

Next I dried my hair completely, using a regular brush and hair dryer to get it all dry before using the straightener:

Next I sectioned off the hair so I could get it really straight and started to use the straightener. This was my hair after using the straightener on the "bottom layer":

The crazy top layer came down next and provided quite a fright!

But was quickly remedied:

I was really impressed by the results. This is the straightest that my hair has ever been - and that is saying something! My hair always has some sort of natural curl or wave to it, but this iron keeps it nice and smooth for days. And the iron moves so smoothly across my hair - no hair catching in between plates or anything.

All in all, I was blown away by the quality of the Hana Titanium 1.5" flat iron. If you are in the market for a really good, long-lasting straightener, I would highly recommend them.

And thank you again to Misikko for the opportunity to review this product.

Short Days, Short Skirts

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

To take care of a drab wintry day, add a dash of color, right?

I got this dress from a sale on J.Crew's Factory website. It's a pretty flower print and was uber cheap (cause it was on Final Sale). It is just a tad bit on the short side for my comfort level. I think that if I wear this dress in the summer (because it is a very light cotton), it'll have to be with jeans or shorts. But to make this Virginia winter appropriate, I added a button-down, sweater, and tights. I played the colors off of each other, using the colors in the dress as inspiration. I was going in a different direction with the shoes when I first envisioned the outfit, but they didn't work out. On a lark, I put these wedges on, and voila, it worked!

How do you style short dresses in the winter? Or do you just put them in the back of the closet? Or don't own any short dresses in the first place? :)

Dress, Button-Down, Tights - J.Crew
Cardi - gift: J.Crew
Wedges - Ross
Belt - Madewell
Earrings - Jess LC

Look to the Past for Inspiration

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 17:30:00 +0000

I was going through some old pictures the other day, looking at prior outfits that I put together and I recalled that I used this dress ad naseum during the time I was participating in one of Kendi's 30 for 30 challenges. Since that time this dress has languished in the closet until this week when I decided to resurrect it from the forgotten archives that is my closet. For some reason I decided to go "green" - perhaps it was a reaction to all the grey drabness of winter?

Speaking of winter, my apologies for the indoor photos. My pictures are nothing to win awards with in the first place, but my camera just does not seem to like to take indoor photos. Or, more accurately, I just do not know HOW to adjust the settings on my camera to take good indoor photos.

PS - A shopping tip to pass along - that J.Crew necklace? From Ebay. For at least 75% off its retail price. Always check Ebay - especially when it comes to jewelry - to be sure that you can't find the piece for less than advertised!

Shirt - Land's End Canvas
Tights, Dress, Belt - J.Crew
Necklace - J.Crew via Ebay

Hola!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:00:00 +0000

I think they say that the best way to start blogging again is to just start blogging again. And so my friends, I am back to blogging again. I apologize for the long unintended break. I am not shutting down my blog, nor do I intend to any time very soon. I just got distracted by life, work, and Pinterest (it's reached epic addictive proportions).

But as I was on hiatus, I've decided to spruce some of these posts up a bit. To write a little bit more. To expand from just outfit of the day posts. To try to challenge my creative skills more. And hopefully you'll stick around as the scope of this little spot on the interwebs expands some more.

So what has been up since before Christmas? Well, first my family got the most adorable puppy on the planet:

Then I had a week-long business trip in Puerto Rico. Confession - I did not realize that Puerto Rico was directly to the east of Hispaniola - I don't know why I never realized this, but in all my years of learning geography and looking maps I failed to place Puerto Rico in the Caribbean. So imagine my surprise when I got there and these were the views that I got to see every day (albeit, mainly through hotel windows):

And proof that I really was there working:

Although on the last day after the conference was over, my coworkers and I went to the only rainforest (El Yunque) in the United States, which was pretty awesome:

In front of La Coca Waterfall

View from one of the Forteza's in El Yunque - that's the ocean you can see in the distance!

Puerto Rico is absolutely gorgeous. I would go back there in a heartbeat. I loved the people that I encountered and it was really pretty easy to get around. The beaches are amazing, the sky stunning, and the weather (in January) is pretty awesome. AND apparently boring Ben aka The Bachelor aka Josh Groban is taking his gaggle of lady-friends to Puerto Rico next week. I can only wonder if they will end up staying in the same hotel that we were in for our conference (highly recommend the Wyndham Rio Mar!).

Other than the new puppy and Puerto Rico I've been busy re-doing my bedroom and trying my hand at some DIY projects found on Pinterest, which I will be posting soon!

I'm glad to get back to this space and really truly thank you for sticking around!! And come find me on Pinterest or Twitter as well, as I love to spend my web 2.0 time there these days!

Minimal Style

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:45:00 +0000

As much as I love layering, I also love a minimal look. I chalk it up as a byproduct of my split personality - the same personality that can be happy and content to watch Sportscenter reruns on end or a marathon of "Say Yes to the Dress".

I hope everyone is having fun getting ready for Christmas - I can't believe that this is the week of Christmas. It both feels like Christmas and yet, doesn't. Is anyone else feeling the same way? I basically have all my shopping done*, which is a shocker!

*Actually, that's not true - there are just WAY too many sales going on - I don't know how I can be done. :) Kidding. Kind of.

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

Turtleneck - EmersonMade
Skirt - Megan Nielsen (just launched her Winter Collection!)
Necklace - J.Crew
Hat - H&M
Shoes - Urban Outfitters
Tights - TJMaxx?