Black & Red Week: Pants & Plaid

As I'm sure you've noticed by now, my special plan for this week is a theme! I decided last week that I would base all my outfits around a black and red color scheme. It's a pairing I go to a lot, so I thought it would be fun to try wearing black and red in some combination every day for a week.

I could have kept going a lot longer, if truth be told.

This was a lot of fun and I want to do more "theme weeks" like this in the future! It's also a great way to focus on wearing everything you have in your closet and finding new ways to pair things.

I've also been thinking a lot about personal style lately, and what my personal style actually is. I love trying different looks and trends, but certain outfits just feel more ME than others. So, at the bottom of my posts along with my outfit info, I'll now be including the "Me Factor" of each outfit. I'm hoping this will help give me a clear vision of what my personal style really is.

Shirt: J.Crew
Pants: Urban Outfitters
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell
Necklace: Forever 21
Me Factor: High - I'm a jeans and a shirt type of gal. I feel most comfortable in this kind of look.

Weekend Review: April 29th, 2012

This weekend went by way too fast. Luckily, it was a good one!

We got an apartment!!! We signed the lease yesterday and we can officially start moving in on Tuesday! We are beyond excited but overwhelmed with all the stuff we need to get done. Painting, cleaning, shopping, moving...so much stuff to do!

Boyfriend and I decided to celebrate by grabbing dinner in the South End last night and passing out pretty early. This morning we got breakfast a Bagel World (my first time, which is apparently crazy to people who live around here) and he went home to pack.

I avoided packing by agreeing to paint the front door for my mom. We made a trip to Home Depot this afternoon so I could get painting supplies and pick out paint colors and mother decided on a whim to paint the front door red. So I did that and she made dinner. Fair trade, I think.

All in all it was a nice relaxing weekend to prepare for the insanity that is sure to be this week. I just can't wait to be settled into our new place!

Since I'm not going to be around this week I prepared a special week of posts for you all. I'm pretty excited about it and I hope you like it!

xx, Katrina

Friday Favorite: Old Navy Super Skinny Jeans

What?: Old Navy Super Skinny Jeans

How much?: $34.94

Why?: These are just the best skinny jeans out there, in my opinion. Granted, I'm not frolicking around in Citizens of Humanity or J Brand, so I can't speak for those high-end brands, but for the price you just can't beat these. The fit is incredible - stretchy enough to be super comfortable, but structured enough to keep you from looking like Queen of the Thunder Thighs. They also come in various lengths on Old Navy.com. The regular ones fit my short little legs perfectly, so I would say that they run on the short side. I could probably buy the short length for a cropped look and you lucky long legged ladies definitely want to buy the longer length. Seriously - give them a try.


*Note: This post, and all future Friday Favorite posts will be un-sponsored unless noted. Friday Favorites are things I honestly love and I am receiving no compensation for sharing that love.

tweedy blue

Does this coat look familiar at all? It matches the shorts from this post. Yes, I own a blue tweed short suit. No, I don't know what kind of event I would wear a blue tweed short suit to. I might just put it on for funsies and take pictures to show you guys. What good is a style blog if I can't use it as an excuse to play dress up?

In other news, have you guys heard of PicMonkey? Since I don't have Photoshop and my beloved Picnik is now defunct, PicMonkey has saved the day. Aviary is another site I've been wanting to try. Anyone using it and have any thoughts?

Jacket: H&M
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: H&M

April Goals

At the beginning of April I made a short list on my phone of the things I wanted to complete this month. There were only four things on it:

1. Lose 4lbs
2. Find an apartment
3. Complete the FAFSA
4. Send enrollment fee to SCAD

So far, I've finished two of them. Well, really one since it turned out the program I am enrolling in at SCAD isn't eligible for Federal financial aid.(Side Note: I am enrolling in an online certificate program for Digital Publishing through the Savannah College of Art & Design, in case you are wondering what the heck I'm talking about).

Some of my goals correlate with my 26 Before 27 (to be posted soon!), and some are just things from my to-do list. In any case, I've found this technique useful for keeping myself on track for things I want to accomplish. I think I'm going to keep doing this each month, especially over the summer. I always feel like the summer goes by so quickly and I don't do half the things I planned on doing!

What about you guys? Any techniques you have for keeping yourselves on track?

Recipe: Cheesy Chicken & Stuffing Bake

I've finally gotten back into the groove of cooking dinner on a regular basis and I am trying to build my repertoire of easy to throw together meals that are both fast and somewhat healthy.

While this meal isn't exactly what one thinks of when you say healthy, it's definitely not that bad, and it's what I made for dinner tonight. I know it doesn't LOOK particularly appetizing, but trust me on this.

Cheesy Chicken & Stuffing Bake (Basic Version)

1 lb of chicken breast, cut into small pieces

1 box of stuffing (I used Stove Top Low Sodium)

1 1/2 cups of cheddar jack cheese

1 can of cream of chicken soup

Preheat oven to 350*.

Cook stuffing according to directions, leaving a bit dry.

Put chicken, soup, and cheese in a 9 x 13" baking dish and mix together. 

Put cooked stuffing on top.

Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Serves 6

That's it. It's the easiest recipe ever. Want to jazz it up? Toss in some veggies. I had some leftover chopped onions on hand, so I tossed those in this time around. It would also be great with broccoli, corn, cauliflower, carrots, peas...anything you want, really! Or you can always serve the vegetables on the side, which is what I did tonight.

And if I did the calculations right, it should only be about 6 WW points. Not too shabby!

tough girl

I copied this outfit from a picture of Nicole Richie I've had saved on my computer for years. I just never had the perfect flowy, girly mini-skirt to complete the look. Behold, one afternoon at Buffalo Exchange and my outfit was complete!

I love mixing girly things with tough, black things. I'm a big fan of juxtaposition and whimsy. When I was younger, I always wanted my outfits to match perfectly, down to every last detail and accessory. I wasn't any good at it, though. Some of my friends were experts at putting together perfectly coordinated looks, while I always felt a little...off. I've sense learned to embrace my mix-and-match sensibilities, and I'm much happier for it.

Give me pattern mixing, color blocking, and an arm full of bracelets and I'm a happy girl.

Jacket: Forever 21 (similar)
Skirt: Buffalo Exchange
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell

white on white

A fresh and bright color palate for this one. I was wearing white before Labor Day and decided to just go all out and keep the whole outfit in a white and gray color palate.

If only the weather would warm up (and STAY warm) these white pants would be in heavy rotation. It will happen eventually! Just gotta make it through the end of April, which looks like it will be chock-full of those April showers.

Shirt: J.Crew
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Old Navy (similar)

Friday Favorite: Dior Addict Lip Glow

What?: Dior Addict Lip Glow

How Much?: $30

Why?: I can't believe this wasn't the first Friday Favorite I posted. This is honestly the best lip product ever in the whole world. It's definitely pricey for a lip gloss, no doubt about it, but the tube lasts a very long time and I used mine down to the very bottom of the tube. Cost per use is probably a negative amount at this point.

It is, like the name says, addictive. It smells like vanilla, makes your lips feel luscious and soft, and also gives them a perfect pink flush. It's your lips, only so, so much better. I don't even know why I bother with any other lip product, since by the end of the day I've defaulted to this stuff anyway.

while I haven't been here

What I've been doing while I haven't been here...

Buying a new car! The lease was up on my current vehicle and it was basically falling apart, so it was time for a change. I am the proud new owner (well, for the next three years, it's a lease) of this 2012 Honda CR-V. This made the last week horribly stressful as my old car failed an inspection, I had to find a new one, and come up with the money to get it. I'm sure I must be developing an ulcer now.

Still apartment hunting. Though now there are officially no more apartments for us to look at in the area we want, so that endeavor is going on hiatus for the time being.

Reading The Phantom Tollbooth. Yes, it's a children's book, but it's a classic and my dad bought it for me and told me to read it so I am. He also was the one who bought me the first Harry Potter book and told me to read it (I didn't even want to, can you BELIEVE it?!). So I trust his judgement on these things (or really the judgement of whatever newspaper he read about said book in).

Swapping! Casey of Girl in the Poodle Shoes and I went to our first Swap yesterday. I was HORRIFICALLY late (damn you, Boston traffic, and damn me for being really crap at predicting when/where there will be traffic), but I had a blast! The swap was kind of meh (we decided they need more guidelines for what people are allowed to bring) but Casey is so fun to hang out with and I did score a pair of Current Elliot jeans so it wasn't a complete wash.

Learning HTML & CSS! I found this really amazing online tutorial program and I am loving it. They have another program for Javascript as well and I plan on tackling that one next.

I can't even believe I am admitting this, but I always get the below song stuck in my head whenever anyone mentions pattern mixing or even says the words "polka dots" or "stripes". They used to show this video on Disney when I was a kid and I've just never forgotten it. PARACHUTE EXPRESS, PEOPLE.

Oh. I also did this:

I'm hoping to get myself back on schedule next week since I have a backlog of outfits to share! This weekend will be spent relaxing and getting myself together so next week I should be fresh as a daisy and ready to blog.

Friday Favorite: Sephora Instant Nail Polish Remover

What?: Sephora Instant Nail Polish Remover

How Much?: $10

Why?: This was purchased on a whim a couple months ago. The label touts it as being MAGIC and able to remove even the toughest nail polish. I took it home and immediately tested it my using it to remove layers of glitter nail polish. AND IT WORKED. It worked perfectly. Any glitter polish lover knows what a pain it can be to get that stuff off. Just stick your finger in this remover, let it sit for a second, then rub it up against the sponge inside et voila! Glitter gone (and nails prepared for another coat of it, of course!).

Cons?: It did not work on my shellac manicure, liked I hoped it would. But really, I don't get shellac manicures very often so this is not a huge con for me. Just putting it out there that shellac polish is a you-know-what to get off, even with MAGIC.

Tales from an Apartment Hunt - Part 2: Clark & Barry

So Friggin' Bob never got back to me. This past Tuesday Boyfriend and I were all lined up to go see two more places. One of them Boyfriend immediately didn't like the sound of because the landlord lived upstairs. Big Brother's watching, and all.

We went to look at that place first. As we're driving up, we note how lovely the neighborhood is, how quiet the street is, how cozy it all seems. So far so good! The outside of the place looks nice. I call the landlord (Clark) and he comes out to meet us. He leads us inside through a porch covered in trash and a baby stroller (who's baby needs this stroller? Clark did not look like he had an infant.) and Clark tells us this whole, glorious, trash-filled porch would be ours. Gee, thanks Clark.

We go inside and the place is a mess. Clark had warned us he was stripping wallpaper, but that was putting it lightly. The wallpaper that was still hanging was ATROCIOUS. One of the walls in the kitchen looked pregnant, for reasons unknown (omg maybe it was a wall baby, and that's who the stroller was for. MYSTERY SOLVED.) and Clark made it sound like he planned on putting up MORE wallpaper when he was done. No thanks, Clark.

Boyfriend also pointed out the ceiling that looked very leaky and sad. There was also no washer or dryer (there were supposedly hookups in the basement), no dishwasher, and no refrigerator. I went in planning to need to buy a washer and dryer if we moved there, but no fridge? "The previous tenants have always had their own," says Clark. Really? Come on.

Clark could tell we weren't impressed.

So anyway, we left Clark and stopped to have a beer before meeting Barry. In hindsight, we probably shouldn't have pounded beers and then looked at an apartment.

This apartment had everything we could have hoped for. The inside was clean and HUGE and had a refrigerator. No washer dryer, but hookups right in the unit. It was on the second floor, though, and I knew my beloved couches would never make it up there and fit through the doors. Also, there was no parking. Only street parking.

"Where do we park during a snow emergency, Barry?"
"I don't know, people find somewhere."

Seriously? I feel like that would be a common question and he should have an answer. Then Boyfriend blindsides me and tells Barry we're going to apply RIGHT NOW. "Get out your checkbook, honey!" Oh yeah, because Barry required $100 to even APPLY.

"Is it okay if we paint?" I ask, as Boyfriend fills out his portion of the application.
"NO. Oh, NO. No painting."
"Oh, okay...we don't need to or anything, just asking." Barry was really vehement about not painting. He didn't want anyone ruining the wood work. Like I'm some kind of heathen who would ruin woodwork. JEEZE BARRY.

"Look babe, we have a dining room! We could have dinner parties!" I said to Boyfriend, envisioning myself dressed as a character from Mad Men, serving delectable food to our guests.
"Yes, I don't mind you having people over...but parties?" Barry pipes in. RELAX BARRY. I said dinner party, not keg party. Also, Barry don't live there. I'll do what I want, Barry.

Barry also wanted us to move in IMMEDIATELY. Essentially so he could start charging us rent immediately. Barry was not sitting well with me. But Boyfriend usually hates everyone, and he seemed okay with Barry, so I figured that must mean something (it meant he'd just pounded a beer).

We got home and immediately felt Renter's Remorse (like buyer's remorse, only involving apartments). It just didn't feel right. So we sat down to watch Wheel of Fortune and mull it over.

"I don't want to live there! Get your check back!" Boyfriend suddenly exclaimed.
"ME EITHER!" I agreed. I decided to call Barry the next day.

So I called Barry around noon today when I finally had a chance to do it.
"We won't be moving forward with the apartment." *silence* I decide to be more emphatic: "We decided we don't want the apartment."
"Why?" Barry asks, indignantly.
"Uh, we've decided to hold off a bit...keep looking some more..."
"SIGH. You could have called 20 minutes ago. I already started running the credit checks!"
"Sorry?" Like I know Barry's life. I didn't know he was doing that right then.
"Well what do you want me to do with your check?"
"Just mail it back. My address is on the application." Because I never want to see you again, scary man!

I also cancelled the check, on the advice of The Council, just in case. Apparently the bad vibes we had about the apartment came from Barry. Thank God he will never be our landlord. The search continues and I'm already exhausted.

Tales from an Apartment Hunt - Part 1: Bob

So as I mentioned in a previous post,  Boyfriend and I have begun hunting for an apartment.  The process is GRUELING. I knew it wouldn't be easy, but I kind of thought we'd have lots of choices, and the tough part would be finding one that was good enough for us.

Turns out the real problem is finding ANYTHING, let alone something good enough.

We have a specific town in mind (Beverly, MA) and we know we want a two bedroom and we'd like it to have parking, a washer and dryer on premises, hardwood floors, and a dishwasher. Maybe we're too needy, I don't know. I do know that if I was renting an apartment, I would make sure it had all those things.

We found one place and we went to check it out last week. It had plenty of space, and all the amenities we were looking for. It needed a little cosmetic help, but nothing some  Benjamin Moore and elbow grease couldn't fix! It was the first place we saw so we took the application and went to think about it over dinner.

It had a huge kitchen and a huge bedroom. I had them both mentally decorated before we even left the premises. My Martha Stewart kitchen suite was going to look awesome. I had also already planned out the dressing nook I was going to create in the bedroom. Boyfriend was promised a man cave. I had an office space. The bathroom was itty bitty, but really, you don't need THAT much space in a bathroom.

We decided to apply and called Bob, the landlord, to tell him we'd be dropping the application off that night. "Sounds good, dear!" he told me. WE'RE IN, I thought, HE CALLED ME "DEAR". Never mind that he'd told us about a bajillion people had looked at the place in the two days since it had been listed on Craigslist, and about a bajillion more were still looking at it after us. According to Bob, anyway. I never believe people when they go all used-car salesman on me - "This deal is only good for today!!" Liar.

So I filled out the application and we dropped it in the mailbox. Boyfriend told me there was already another application in there. I told him to steal it and rip it up, but he wouldn't. PARTY POOPER. This was last Thursday. I didn't hear from Bob all weekend. Monday I asked The Council (aka, the girls at work) if they thought I should follow up. They answered with a resounding yes. (Our job, essentially, is to follow up with people. We are a bunch that loves following up.)

I also found two more apartments to look at and made appointments, just to be safe. Even though I really wanted Bob's place.

Tuesday I called Bob in the early afternoon. No answer. I called again on my way home from work. No answer. I didn't leave messages, since I wanted to talk to Bob myself and find out what the deal was. We went to look at another apartment. I called Bob again, like a crazy stalker. This time I left a message and asked him to get back to me. I still haven't heard back. I'm sure the apartment is gone already. DEVASTATION. Friggin' Bob. Especially since the next two apartments we looked at were total busts (see Part 2, coming soon!).

lady/business: talk to my outfit tuesday

I am shamelessly copying Annie's "Talk to My Outfit Tueday" post idea because I found myself having a lot to say to this outfit. Plus, I met her last week at the Boston Blogger meet up and she's just as awesome in real life as she is on her blog and I don't think she'll mind my thievery ;).

Dear Hair: You're a mess. It's my fault. You used to be curly, I straightened you. What was supposed to be a 30-day straightener has turned into nearly a year. Now you're in a weird, messy stage. I sense the end of this phase is near, as my curls have been looking bouncier lately!

Dear Sweater: You were a good Gap sale purchase. You're a pretty color. I don't wear you as often as I should and for that I am sorry.

Dear Skirt: You used to be tight-fitting, and now you're too loose. I love this about you. Thanks for reminding me I lost 20 pounds.

Dear Tights: I hunted high and low for you, and then there you were, for like, $5 at Off Broadway Shoes. So random. But now you're with me and we're deeply in love.

Dear Shoes: I found you on a shelf at Forever 21, last pair in my size. Remember when I took you to Charlotte and you gave me the biggest blisters I've ever had? Yeah, you and me won't be going dancing again anytime soon, but I love you anyway.

Dear Bow Shirt: You are Jason Wu for Target and the only cute thing left in my size when I got there that morning. I kind of forgot I had you but now that I've remembered I'm excited to start wearing you all the time.

Bow Shirt: Jason Wu for Target
Sweater: Gap (old)
Skirt: H&M (old) (similar)
Tights: randomly found at Off Broadway Shoes, brand unknown
Shoes: Forever 21

Blogger Meet-Up & Easter

This is what I wore to the Boston Blogger meet-up last Wednesday. I just love going to those things. All the girls I meet are totally awesome and it's so fun to just essentially go out for a huge girl's night (I mean, guys go too, so, sorry for leaving you out guys). Plus we get a list of all the attendees and their blogs which keeps me entertained for hours. My plan tonight is to go through them all!

I'm pretty much obsessed with these pants. I love the way they fit, plus they are floral. Pastel floral. Something I never, ever thought I would wear and yet, here I am, loving every minute of it. Like Justin Bieber says, NEVER SAY NEVER.

I also wore this for Easter Sunday. It's a pretty Easter appropriate outfit, I think. And you know what? I wore it to work today, too. How do you like them apples? I've been too lazy to think up another outfit.

ALSO, I got these jeans at the Zara at the Northshore Mall last weekend, and then last week the store suddenly and mysteriously closed! No warning. No signs. Just gone. What does this mean?! I'm so depressed. I was just beginning what I hoped would be a long love affair with Zara.

Jeans: Zara
Sweater: Gap
Necklace: Mom didn't want it anymore
Shoes: Zara

leather & denim

I just discovered I have a fairly large backlog of outfit of the day photos I never posted. I'll have to try and get through them to make room for more spring-like posts!

It's just as well I have this backlog, since I haven't felt much like taking pictures lately. First I was focused on getting ready for vacation and now Boyfriend and I have started apartment hunting. Apartment hunting is the WORST. There is NO WHERE to live around here. Or if there is it's super expensive. We've only just started and already I'm super frustrated.

Well I'm actually in a pretty crummy mood today so I'm going to go get ready and head to yoga for some de-stressing!

Jacket: Zara
Shirt: StyleMint
Jeans: UO
Necklace: Target
Bracelets: Express, random
Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell

guess who's back!

Surprise! It's me. I'm in a deep post-vacation depression (seriously, why do they go by so fast!?). I'm trying to get back into the normal groove of things around here, but really I'd rather be running all over Disney again. Here are some highlights from the trip!

First up was Animal Kingdom where I posed in a dino car, we discovered they sold beer in the parks (and had no problems with you drinking it in line. Awesome.), and rode Expedition Everest. We also went on a little "safari" where a bunch of rhinos got really close to our truck!

We were absolutely wiped by the end of the day (we went non-stop from 3am heading to the airport to 9pm falling into bed!).

 

 

 

Tuesday we hit up Magic Kingdom where we were DEVASTATED that Thunder Mountain Railroad was closed for renovations. They should really tell you what's going to be closed when you're booking these things. It was definitely construction season, lots of "Disney Dream Builder" signs on things.

I made Boyfriend go through the Swiss Family Robinson house because it was my favorite movie when I was a kid. Even though it's the lamest thing at Disney pretty much, haha.

 

Wednesday was the most important day. It was Tower of Terror Day. It's my favorite ride in the universe. We rode four times (we got to the park before it opened and were very strategic with our Fast Passes). It was amazing. We also did the Aerosmith coaster twice and I had an ice cream sundae with caramel corn on it. Caramel corn on it. And Mickey shaped sprinkles but everything is shaped like Mickey there.

Thursday was Epcot day, where we attempted to drink around the world and I wore silly hats. (Boyfriend: "You take that off, take that off right now you look ridiculous!" Me: "Take my picture!")

They had awesome topiaries for the Epcot flower & garden festival all over the place. This one was my favorite. Look at Lady's ears!

I just love Disney. It's so magical. Now all I want is to go on another vacation (preferably one with more roller coasters!).

What have you guys been up to?? Who's going to the Boston Blogger meet up this week?!