63. Look like a boy?

Yet again, Kayla managed to stump me (at least I thought). Day 16 = Menswear. Really? Where am I supposed to find menswear inspired clothes among my tank-tops and skirts and dresses? I thought I'd be left to steal one of boyfriend's watches and call it a day..

And then I googled it. I have so much stuff that works!

Since I've recently been working in the professional world, I have many tailored pieces that fit in with the menswear theme. Pencil skirts are favourite of mine, therefore I decided to take my inspiration from Jayma Mays of Glee for this look!

I know, we're twins.

 

Shirt - Heritage 21 / Tank - Garage / Skirt - Suzy Shier / Pearls - costume jewelry, stolen from Mom

Shoes - Clarks / Nail Polish - CND Taffy Pink / Belt - Joe Fresh

I actually love this. Like, really truly sincerely love it. I would have liked some bright pink lipstick to pair with it now that I'm seeing the pictures, but I'm not that brave haha. I love the mix of masculine colors but feminine cuts. And the fact that I managed to set it off with pink just makes me so happy. My love of pink is still going strong. 

More good news, my blister on my heel is almost gone! That shows me what happens when I go exercising; I get injuries. I am so lazy that my body actually manages to hurt itself. I plan on showing my feet who's boss once the blister heals. I need as much fresh and semi-warm air as I can get while it's still almost summer like here. 

Til next time!

62. Something different.

My 100th post! Holy crap!

Today's Challenge is to do something different with your hair! This was also kind of difficult for me, as I do basic things with my hair and am usually too useless to do much. I can now, after much practice, straighten, curl with a straightener, and braid my hair basically any way possible. I tend to braid my hair while bored. Party trick?

 

 

Jacket - Vero Moda
Top - Old Navy
Skirt - Mexx
Flats - Clarks, not pictured.

So since I'm pretty good at braiding, I figured I'd try this waterfall braid! I tried and failed to do it this morning. I tried again during the day and it finally stuck! It may will take a lot more practice, but I'm thinking I like this look. Might try out some more styles this week if I manage to make time in the morning.

In better news, my first day went really well! Downside was the absolutely brutal humidity that is currently happening, but the air conditioning helped me not hate my life too much. I would have rather been outside but sometimes you just gotta deal!

Til next time!

61. Inspire me!

I thought this challenge day was going to be easy. I read so many blogs that it should be a breeze to find an outfit to copy, right? Wrong. I got so stumped looking for one. I have no favourite outfits saved, I have not a single picture tagged as inspiration. I looked and looked and every outfit I saw had no similar pieces to my wardrobe. Well, very few and not many that I felt like wearing. I decided to rely on an old stand-by of a blog that first inspired me.

Tee - F21
Dress - F21, 2nd wear of remix item!
Belt - unknown?

Liz of Scholar Style Guide was a big help in changing the way I viewed clothes. The girls of the SSG helped me to see how things could be remixed or worn differently than I had ever thought of doing. Her belting and using dress-as-skirt tutorial benefited me the most. Here's the link to the post [link]

source: scholar style guide

Though they have closed the blog and stopped updating, I frequently check back for inspiration or ideas for an outfit. I can attribute several pieces of my wardrobe, such as my cognac boots and thick black belt, to outfits seen on their site. Like Kayla said, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!

Check in with me this week for the last week of the 21 day challenge! I'm heading back to work so it's going to be interesting to incorporate each prompt with work appropriate wear!

Til next time!

60. I am Switzerland.

I am Switzerland. I am neutral. But I do have a pop of color to keep it interesting! Day 13 is, in case you don't know it yet, neutral with a pop of color. I didn't realize I do this all the time, counting jeans as neutral. Dark denim/black/bright scarf is really common for me.

Tee - F21, circa 2008
Tank - F21
Shorts - Old Navy
Sneakers - New Balance

I wear a lot of those two brands, don't I? I forget how much I do it from day to day but seeing it all added up really makes it visible. I think this shirt is so cute, and I'm sad I didn't get a picture of the back of it. Up on the right shoulder it has the words "all the pretty things in life". Cute, I think.

Let's see....what else....I've finally gotten my laptop back! I haven't got it all reconfigured yet, but that will happen tomorrow. Parents are gone for a couple days, to be back again on Tuesday. This dialysis thing should be interesting, the best thing is that it seems to be working so far. It's been a long process but finally something is working for my Dad which is awesome.

Two weeks completed! I'm so proud of myself. Hoping to catch up on Project 52 soon, I'm a few weeks behind. Only one blog project at a time...

P.S. anyone know the title reference? Much better as a book....
Til next time!

59. And all that jazz!

What is it with my mind deciding to pick song lyrics? For anyone interested I'll be watching the musical Chicago tonight. Such a good movie.

Today's challenge day is jazz up your jeans. I do this for all jeans days when working (which I'll be doing soon!) I wasn't going to write up much for this outfit, but I'm in a good mood. I feel miniature today, like, really skinny. I don't know why. I am no smaller than I was yesterday. It may be a little shallow but I feel good damnit.

Sheer b&w top - Ross
Green tank - F21
Jeans - Gap

I think it's the belt. I've worn this shirt a few times before (and have had nice days on which it rained, like literally the last three times I wore it. so weird) but I've never belted it. I think this is a good option. A big ol' win for me, I'm finally catching up on the Challenge to blog on the right day. I hate leaving it too long, it just annoys me.

Not a bad outfit for an eye dilation, eh? Lucky I didn't post a picture of my pupils, you'd all run from your screens. I kinda looked like the devil. On the absolute bright side of things, my retinas are clear and smooth according to my optometrist, who I saw this morning. Nice to hear when I tend to worry about so much stuff. I like being reassured that I did the right thing and am right to want to get myself checked out (I may in fact be a slight hypochondriac, no biggie.) The important thing is I am only slightly a freak, and my eyes have no problems. Yay!

Til next time!

58. Playful in a dress

This is such an easy day. Don't feel like writing too much so I'll keep it simple. I love wearing a cute dress or skirt for how easy it is to throw on and just go. So easy and usually really comfortable, as is the case with this Tommy polo dress. An awesome way to make a cute outfit. Quickly snapped pictures again!

Want something to do? Head on over to Freckles in April to see how everyone else is doing with the challenge!

57. Orphans

Challenge day 10 is saving a closet orphan. Maybe somewhat unfortunately, I don't have many orphans in my closet anymore. A lot of my clothes tends to be cheap, like my endless collection of F21 shirts, so I do a clear-out of my clothes every few months. Things that don't fit or are stained get tossed out. I'm left with much more useful clothes this way, but this challenge becomes a little more difficult!

Jacket - Old Navy
Tank - Urban Planet
Jeans - Stitches

I was thinking comfort for today's challenge, so I broke out the old Old Navy track jacket. Bought in 2004 I think? Lots of old clothes from Old Navy in my closet now that I think about it. I had better ideas, clothing that I've abandoned but shouldn't have, but they're all in my parents home. Forgot to bring any of it back in. More quick shots today, cropping my face out might be a common theme this week.

Til next time!

56. Change of plans

I'd hoped to stay out home for a couple more days. Due to some health circumstances I had to come back in town. It's all good now thankfully, I've got things sorted. My parents were on their way in yesterday as well so I had a driving buddy (a.k.a. my mom drove me and my dad drove my car).

Didn't get a chance to blog at all yesterday, just too tired. Long day, but I did participate! I'm glad I remembered, but it was weird not to blog since I've been doing so well. I liked the combination of the dark blues in this outfit. My most monochromatic outfits usually happen with jeans, I'm really drawn to blues as you can see through my challenge posts! The pictures suck, due to leaving my camera remote home, and how quickly these were taken. Boo.

strange glare on glasses + low camera angle = cropping my head out.

Off to get some errands done. Boyfriend has left the province to visit some family, I kind of miss him already, it's gonna be weird without him! Excited about the fact that next time I see him I'll be going to T.O.! The countdown begins!

Til next time!

55. They be linin' down the block just to watch what I got

Sequin tank - stolen
Purple tank - Urban Planet
Skirt - Old Navy, circa 2003
Sandals - Spring
Necklace - Fluorspar pendant

I have no idea why, but for some reason thinking of today's outfit reminds me of Fergie's Fergalicious. Today's Challenge, day 8 thank you very much, is mix fancy and casual. I was sure that Fergie had a song called Fancy, apparently I made that up in my head. Nonetheless, this outfit is, as Will.I.Am says, t-a-s-t-e-y. I love me some sequins. No idea where this shirt is actually from, as it was given to me by a bestie to convince me to go out dancing with her. I accepted the shirt and the invitation of course. I haven't worn it out in the day but I think with the right accessories it looks pretty awesome don't you?

I think fancy and casual is something I do a lot more than I realize. I'm always choosing jeans with a nice shirt to dress it up. Or wearing nice jewelry with plain tees. I changed three times, first jeans then cut-off jeans before choosing the skirt. It's so nice out today, and so weird that it's not the first day this week. I was thinking about getting my old grad dress out and putting a tee over it, but I thought I might get some funny looks. Once again, a reminder to head on over to Freckles In April to see how everyone else is doing with the Challenge! One week finished!

P.S. Because I know you're going to get it stuck in your head, here's the Fergalicious video. You're welcome.

P.P.S. I'm trying to do some formatting on my blog, putting in a navigation bar at the top but I'm completely useless. Can anyone help?

Til next time!

54. Pile it on!

Pineapple, thicker chain - borrowed from Mom
Tee - Old Navy
Skirt - H&M
Flats - Marc something? New :)
Bracelet - old, gifted.
Polish - Sally Xtreme Wear Lacey Lilac

This post brought to you by...my mother's wardrobe. I didn't really bring enough accessories with me for this challenge day. I have a few pieces of jewelry, but I decided to scour my mother's collection instead. Oh what lovely jewelry she has. I've already stolen some of it, but there's so much more hiding away! So much fun to play with.

I don't like piling on too much jewelry so I just decided to go with a few thicker chains. My absolute favourite is the pineapple. It was bought by my Nan, on my Dad's side, on a vacation to Hawaii back when my parents were dating. My Nan passed away when I was young so I really like having things that have some attachment to her. The other two chains are just another simple one from Mom, and a #1 Daughter necklace I got when I was about 8 (which I didn't get a close-up of). So much goodness. The bracelet is so old too, remember the link bracelets everyone had? Lots of very specific charms that suit me lol.

Off for another day of adventuring!

Til next time!

53. Something unexpected.

Okay I'm not gonna lie. This one confused the hell out of me. How am I supposed to wear something unexpected? Something not for it's original purpose? I've worn shirts or dresses in different ways than intended before but this kind of stumped me. So I decided to go all out. This started as a dress from H&M, bought the first time I was in one in NY back in 2008. I loved this dress, it was so useful and functional and cute! Swingy skirt was so fun but not so good on windy days as it was a little too short for a skirt that wide. I wore it as a skirt last year for the first time and realized how much more awesome it was. I did this a few times, then decided I would get my seamstress (a.k.a. Mom) to permanently cut it off. It still needs to have the elastic fixed but it's so much better now. So, here's how I'm wearing it unexpectedly...

...as a shirt! I've done this with my most favourite American Apparel dress, seen here. Not something I'd wear everyday but an interesting change, no? P.S. I promise to start resizing my pictures, I shoot in a huge format and they get so distorted! Blech.

I'm having a wonderful time being out home. It's foggy and overcast most of the time, but it's nice to be back relaxing. Nothing too much going on and that's quite alright with me. I'm planning on doing some baking today, so hopefully I'll get to post a recipe later on! Hope you're all enjoying your weekend!

Til next time!

52. Belt it

Cardigan - Target

Tank - Urban Planet

Jeans - diy'ed, Bluenotes

Belt - f21

I have a confession to make. Up til about last year, I thought that belting things was weird. Gasp! I didn't understand why you'd add on more accessories to an outfit when it fit fine. I now realize my silly ways, and my accessorizing is slowly improving. Very slowly, but it's happening at least. My belt collection is now increasingly steadily. I've got mostly skinny belts with a few wider ones. I love having a simple outfit and adding a pop of color with my most favourite hot pink belt, or cinching in my waist with my wide black elastic belt. They're so versatile, I think everyone should have at least one skinny and one wide belt, so wear with anything!

So, for today I chose my new favourite skinny belt. It's a cheapie from f21, braided "leather". I just love how long it is, so I can wear it around my waist or hips. I love belting cardigans just to add a little something to the look. Nothing too special, but a good outfit I think. I also had to include a picture of my hair. I saw this last night on "Rules of Engagement" and I had to try it out. Definitely going to be done again and again.

Like my room? It's the childhood bedroom, and the decal behind me was hand painted by me and my bestie. Good times. Also, no editing program at all so these are all straight from the camera! A little dark but that's okay :)

Til next time!