Stripes + Floral

I love the idea of mixing patterns, but I am just not very adventurous when it comes to my wardrobe. I tried plaid with stripes... I liked the look, but felt that it was missing 'something'. I think I'd like to try stripes and floral, I'm just not sure how to put it together. I found these images (all via pinterest) so hopefully I can pull the look together here soon!

Thanks for reading!

Andrea

Hello all & happy last week of April! I, for one, am extremely ready for May to come! I only have a few more weeks left at my current job, my fiance and sister will be home for a week or so from school, and the weather is just getting better! 

Things have been pretty low-key for me. Instead of doing a lot of shopping, I've been working on DIY projects and packing for my move. It may seem quite early to start packing for my June move, but I have boxes all over the house with random things. When I packed up my apartment after graduation, I kinda just threw everything into boxes....some are in the garage, some in the basement, some in my room. I honestly have no idea what things I need to buy for my new place and what I already have. 

This past weekend Ben and I worked on reupholstering the dining room chairs I got off of Craigslist. I didn't mind the cushions before but now I am in love with the new pattern. It's so me and provides a lot of colors that I can use throughout the place. We also worked on sanding/priming/panting an old bookcase of mine. It was one of those laminate Sauder bookcases (blahhh). I'm planning on painting it white and using a shelf liner for the backboard. I hope it turns out as wonderful as I'm imaging. 

Here are a few outfit pictures from the week! Please enjoy!

Friday/Travel outfit

Weekday Outfit

Coral Shorts on a Warm Day!

Have a great week!

Thanks for reading

xo Andrea

I apologize in advance ...

But I left my computer charger at my finances over the weekend. He offered to mail it, but since he will be home on Friday I didn't think it was necessary. Posting from my iPhone is just too much work! My apologies ladies! Have a great week! Thanks for reading! Xo Andrea PS. I'm wearin pink colored skinnies today with a black top. I feel like my go to color with colored skinnies is black. What colors do y'all wear with bright colored skinnies? I'm in a rut!

Confessional Friday

Happy Friday! I'm  linking up with Leslie over at A Blonde Ambition to confess this week.


1. I am off work tomorrow, for the 4th or 5th week in a row. I have become a little to used to three and four day weeks. Although I love the extra time off, I sure could use the extra money right now!


2. I returned two pairs of shoes this evening and left the store with three. I must stop shopping before returning something. I need to high-tail it to the check out, make my return, and hit the road. Buttt I did finally add a pair of nude heels to my closet! And at $20, who could beat the price?

http://www.endless.com/Kelsi-Dagger-Womens-Linzy-Platform/dp/B0041H3K50/175-3678265-9365254?ie=UTF8&suppressRedirect=1


3. I had my first ever spray tan where someone, not a machine, sprays you and I'm in love! The color is a bit dark right now, which is expected. I can't wait to see the color after my shower... I might be looking in the mirror a little more often than what is considered normal 


4. I'm visiting my fiance this weekend- Friday, Saturday, and Sunday- and have packed 7+ outfits. Shoes and jewelry included. The weather is all over the place, I'm not sure what we will be doing, but I don't know if that calls for an unnecessary number of clothes. Oh well, I'm driving so I have the room! 

5. I've given up sugar/sweets this week. Post Lent and Easter I know. I felt disgusting on Easter after the amount of food I ate and knew with extra candy around I wouldn't stop. I'm proud to confess that I have NOT eaten one sweet since Sunday night! 

Thanks for reading! Happy Weekend! 

xo Andrea

Stripes+Plaid

Hi all! The weekend is finally in sight! What do y'all have planned? I'm headed up to Kirksville to see Ben play in his Spring Football Game! I'm so excited to be able to see him play- this is probably the first and last time I will since I'll be moving to Knoxville. Bummer!


Here's my outfit of the day. I really like the look of stripes and plaid, but this outfit just isn't doing it for me. I feel like something is missing and it seems a little masculine-lumberjack-ish to me. Am I imagining things? What do you all think; anything I could add to the outfit to make it better?

Enjoy your Thursday! Thanks for reading!

xo Andrea

It's Official...

... I have accepted my position at the University of Tennessee for the Doctor of Audiology program!

I will be moving to Knoxville in June and am so ready to start this new chapter in my life!! It was a long time coming and I'm so extremely glad it's here. Prior to graduating with my undergrad, I applied to several schools for a Fall 2011 Doctor of Audiology program. Being so busy with school, sorority, other organizations, I just did not invest the time into starting graduate school: I should have researched the schools I was applying to in more depth, I should have studied harder for the GRE, I should have invested more time in my personal statements. Therefore, I did not get accepted to a program. It was devastating. More devastating was seeing my classmates (and best friend) get into multiple programs. It was bittersweet for sure. 

After finding out I was not accepted, I did some serious 'life-questioning'- was Audiology for me? was there something else I could be more passionate about? Should I apply for a different degree? Work for a year? Reapply? The possibilities were endless. I finally settled on working full time and focusing on all my past shouldas. I worked my tail off studying for the GRE, researching schools, and writing 9 different personal statements for applications. From June til January, I did nothing but work during the day and work on grad school stuff at night, but my hard work paid off!

Of the 9 schools I applied to, I was accepted to 5. My first acceptance letter was from the University of Tennessee and ya better believe I cried! It was one of the most exciting moments in my life. My happiness continued as I heard from more schools. Ultimately, UT just seems to be the right fit for me. I'm getting a lil misty eyed as I type thinking about my new journey ahead! Moral of the story: Don't give up on your dreams. Hard work pays off!

Is anyone from the Knoxville area? 

Thanks for reading, 

xo

Andrea

Cardinal Red

I first entered the trend of colored denim on a whim. I wanted to give it a try, but wasn't sure it would look great on my body and didn't want to spend a lot of money on something I wasn't sure I'd wear. One day while shopping at Marshalls I came across a pair of red skinny jeans for $15! I loved everything about them- the bright color, the fit and length, and especially the price! 

I was extremely hesitant to try them at first but had a perfect event for them- a bridal show at Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals! I paired my Cardinal red skinnies with a black and white polka dot top, a leather jacket, and grey boots. The outfit was perfect for the event and for slowly stepping out of my comfort zone. 

Since the event I have created numerous looks:

-Early Valentine's Day Date look: Red pants, leopard print top, camel blazer and heels

-Normal Day: Red pants, black/white stripped sweater, leather jacket

-Normal Day; Red pants, chambray shirt, brown boots

Here are the basic looks of the outfits I created:
(all images from pinterest)

My most recent red skinny jean outfit was in support of Opening Day: 

I threw the outfit together pretty quickly but love the styled look of the baseball jersey. I love the look of this outfit- team support, casual, cute! I'd totally rock this at a game or snazz it up for going out and watching the game! What do y'all think? 

I forgot to snap the pic AFTER putting on my accessories, but I wore my gold watch and chunky bracelet, forgive me!

Thanks for reading

xo

Andrea

Updating my wardrobe!

Last week I posted about my need to 'de-winter-ize' my closet. I'm pleased to report that I removed my winter items and replaced them with my spring/summer pieces. I did leave a few items for cool weather, but for the most part, my closet is full of bright colors, skirts, and dresses! It felt wonderful to rid my closet of all the bulky sweaters and jackets *ahhh* Besides just swapping out clothes in my closet I did some serious purging. I sold a few items this past weekend and am in the process of selling a few more. While I'm all about donating, it is nice to make a little $ on nice, unwanted items. Seriously y'all, once I got started cleaning out my closet I couldn't stop! I have two big shopping bags full of clothes and shoes. I'm loving the less cluttered feel of my closet at the moment!

In aout two months I'm going to be moving out on my own, eight whole hours from home. This was a major motivator behind my closet purge. I really do not want to clutter my new place with unwanted items; it's also really pointless to move items that I never use. Although I am getting rid of quite a few things, I'm also adding to my wardrobe. Grad school classes and working with clients 2-3times a week means that I need more work appropriate pieces. I have the occasional dress and slacks from undergrad, but they are years old and will simply not get me through the next couple years.

Over the next few months I plan on adding the following to my wardrobe:

1. Pencil Skirts- Before last week I had zero. The Limited was having a great sale so I picked up four skirts. That sounds really ridiculous when I type it out, but I figure that I will be wearing them once or twice a week. They really are the alternative to dress slacks which I know I will get sick of wearing. The weather in Knoxville will be slightly warmer than STL so I should be able to wear the pieces for a little longer into the Fall. Obviously, I'll be paring some of the skirts with tights for the winter! Oh, I just love the look of a nice pencil skirt, tights, and pretty heels!

I got this skirt in Mint, White, Black, and a Khaki color. I love the fit and the colors! I'll probably wear one of them for Easter. I'm very happy with the 4 additions, but eventually I'd like to find a stripped, polka dot, and lace skirt. The Limited did have a great stripped one (you can see a smidge hanging) but they didn't have my size! Might have to order it online....

2. Cardigans- I noticed that I have quite the collection of black and grey cardigans, a white, and a few random ones. Pretty boring if you ask me. Again, I think cardigans will be an essential piece for Grad school; there's so many ways to wear them! I would like to find a bright pink one, a blue/green one, and a few patterned cardis. I found some very pretty patterned ones at Target, but they were a little bold for my liking. Any suggestions? 

3. Dress shirts- I have the basic white button up dress shirt, quite a few colors- pink, blue, olive, purple, etc. but I am DYING for a black and white gingham dress shirt. I have been on the lookout for this kind of shirt for months. Someone, please help a sister out! 

How cute is this outfit? Complete with a gingham shirt! 

(image via pinterest)

4. Nude Heels. It seems that I have shoes in every color but nude. How? I do not know. This shoe goes with everything! Skinny jeans, skirts, dresses. Please enter my closet now! 

What else do you think is a must, work appropriate piece to add to my closet? 

Thanks for reading!

XO Andrea