Back It Up, Back It Up, You Got It...

For me it happens all the time: You hear the alarm (in my case, it's my puppy Pepper), hit the snooze (put her on the ground), and lay there for what seems like five minutes, before you realize it's been almost an hour and you've got to get out that door NOW!! Don't worry, you can be honest, because it happens to the best of us. But on these days, the biggest question isn't what we're going to have for breakfast or what the weather is like outside. On days like these, it's "what should I wear?" and more importantly "where is it?".

I was recently reading a blogarticle about the importance of always having a back up plan. And I couldn't agree more! It's important to always have a just in case outfit, in mind for those rushed occasions that you need clothes quick and don't want to look like a bum off the street.

Depending on the season, style, and styler, the back-up-plan will be different. Since it's wintertime, and super cold lately where I live, my outfit go-to is a boyfriend cardigan, leggings, and boots. It's warm enough for the chilly mornings, and it's super versatile. Depending on the event, I know I can add a scarf and black slouchy boots to make it casual and comfortable, or grey dressy boots and a necklace to add some shimmer and shine for an evening out. I usually toss on a black turtle neck under it all, but, again, depending on where I'm going, sometimes a white cami or tee is more appropriate.

Plan B by Cannychic

The key to cooking up a great combination is to remember three things:

1. Comfort

2. Ease

3. Versatility

When you pick out an outfit to be your "go-to" choice, it should be something comfortable enough that you can wear all day without the tugging and pulling (Reason #1 that I chose leggings for my bottoms).

It should also be something that's not too complicated, so there's not too much rushing in the am. Focus on about three or four key pieces (1. Sweater 2. Pants 3. Shoes ). The simpler, the better! Less thinking will ultimately mean less anxiety in the morning.

And lastly, it's important to make sure that what you're picking is versatile, meaning that you could wear it just about anywhere and do almost anything in it (you could wear it to work, school/class, lunch date, evening out, etc.). If not, it should be close to versatile, where you would only have to change a few pieces (different shoes or different necklace/scarf combo) to make it work for you in any scenario.

What is your outfit back-up?

I couldn't help myself....



Hat (H&M $14), Sweater (Kohl's $8), Tank (Walmart $3), White Jeans (Delia's $35), Boots (Kohl's $40)

Despite my best efforts, it found me.

It snuck up on me.

As I unsuspectingly searched for the best holiday gifts, it hid in my favorite stores, and waited.

I was completely helpless.
The SALES found me! And I couldn't help but surrender!

I know, I know, I know. Tis the season to shop for everybody except for yourself. But when H&M is having a 50% off of outerwear special, can you really blame me for thinking ahead?? I know. I fail. And I'm sorry. :( But, hey, I got a really cute coat out of the deal!

H&M, $79.99 $39.99

Actually, I got a really cute coat, and a really cute bracelet.

H&M, $5.99

Okay, so I got a really cute coat, a really cute bracelet, and some adorable boots.

Aeropostale, $60.00, $18

But they were ALL on sale...!!
Don't judge me!!

PS: I *might* have splurged on the hat I was wearing too..but I thought it was so cute! And it seems to be the "in" thing right now.

When taking an innocent trip to Kohl's last week, to pay off that tricky charge card, I came across the cutest top, that I hadn't seen in any other Kohl's store, as of yet (I am what you might call a Kohl's connoisseur...but this is besides the point). Despite my Shopping Buddy's attempts to talk me out of the spontaneous purchase, I just HAD to have it, so I splurged!
The lace around the middle continued around the shirt, so it is visible from the back as well as the front. My favorite part of the new deal? Off-the-shoulder! Most of the pieces hanging in my closet are slightly more conventional and are undoubtedly two-sleeved. Once I got home to try on my new find, I realized that there probably was more than one reason for my conventionality's.
The problem is, I have no place to where the one-armed wonder. At work, I have to look "professional", so both sleeves are required. At school, I must also look (you got it!) professional... When would I wear this completely impractical shirt?! Nowhere.
With this realization, I had to choice but to return my new baby back to the department store.
Later that evening, I was surfing some online stores, and I stopped when I saw the most ironic (and cutest!) thing ever: the same exact shirt being sold at Tilly's, for one dollar less, and (here's the kicker) it had TWO sleeves!!! Now, I'm not a fan of ordering much online, so I rushed over to the nearest Tilly's outlet the next day in search of the top. And guess what??

I found it!!!

Well, actually, my Shopping Buddy did. But I was so excited I looked over to see  her smiling and waving the shirt high above hear head (we do our own kind of victory dance!).

The whole outfit was under $60!

Top (Tilly's, $14), Jeans (Deila's brand, from Goodwill, $5) Boots (Kohl's, $40)

Where have YOU shopped lately?

If I Was Going To Shop...

With a Black Friday countdown under way (only 3 more days!) I've been trying so hard to restrain myself from shopping. It's been difficult - but so far, I haven't done any major spending damage. As an outlet for my shopping desire, I decided to make a list some of the things I would buy this week, if I were shopping, and display them in this sunny collage for all of you. :)

I absolutely love long necklaces. The one pictured above is sold at Forever XXI and costs under five dollars - definitely a steal. It can spruce up so many outfits; i think the bow adds just the right amount of vintage charm.

A few weeks ago, I did splurge on a grey boyfriend sweater, similar to the one pictured above from American Eagle Outfitters. This one costs $29.95, which isn't a horrible price when you consider it's versatility.

Everyone needs a cute pair of go-to jeans, regardless of the season. I prefer skinny jeans, because they give a dressy look when paired with flats, yet they can be easily tucked into boots. Target is offering a great sale on Mossimo brand jeans, with a wide selection selling at only $10 each! If I were shopping this week, I would definitely spring on this sale. As a bonus, if you spend over $50 (that's five pairs of jeans) you get free shipping. Click here to see a list of all the jeans on the ten dollar sale.

For some reason, I wasn't able to add in the picture of this fabulous scarf to the collage, but I love the selection of scarves that Target sells - they're all so affordable, as well.



What goes with almost every outfit this season? A great pair of black boots. The best boots to buy are ones that come slightly below the knee and those that have minimal designs on them - this way, you can blend them with almost any outfit. The killer boots in the collage are from Forever XXI, and are selling for $23.

If you were shopping this week, what would you buy?

Seeing Double!

Our mail carrier comes to our development right around lunch time, every weekday. I'm usually somewhere other than our mailbox around the time that she's dropping off my family's notes (yet another selfish reason I seldom check our mail; the only letters I seem to receive are from the dentist, informing me of a much anticipated appointment and occasionally a very boring bank statement). But today, I just so happened to be home during the exciting mail-drop time, and I, for some reason beyond my knowledge, got the urge to pick it up. To my surprise, I not only received my traditional bank letter, but I also received some fancy junk mail from a used car lot, and a new Alloy catalog! After plopping down in my favorite spot with my new read, I flipped open to a random page and stopped in surprise as a cream colored sweater, very similar to my own that I had blogged about only the day before, gleamed up at me from the page.
The sweater I had purchased, with tags still attached, from the Goodwill, unfortunately did not have a price sticker on it, so I wasn't able to see how much I would have saved. But this number that I just so happened to stumble upon (ironically paired with a very similar belt to my own) is listed at $32.90. Considering that I spend about $3.00 on these pieces for yesterday's outfit, I'm feeling slightly proud of my find. :)

Sweater Weather!

With Autumn's chilly winds settling in to stay, it's again time to reach into the back of the closet and show those sweaters the light! I was so excited yesterday, when the temperature took a dip and the weather man finally condoned the acts that I've been dreaming up for weeks: Buying new boots and snuggling up in warm sweaters. Thursdays are usually busy days, with a list of to-do's that only grows as the time left in the day diminishes, which is all the more reason to make sure the outfit of the day is comfortable (and cute!).
Believe it or not, this week's entire ensemble cost me under $30.

I've been waiting for weeks to be able to wear these boots! I picked them out about a month ago on a Wal*Mart shopping trip for only seven dollars, which made wearing them yesterday even better. ;)
The sweater was from this season, and originally sold at Kohl's, but I scarfed up this brand new baby (with sales tags still attached!) from the Goodwill. Unfortunately, the price was torn off the tag, so I'm not sure how much I saved, but I do know that it was a lot, considering that I only paid $1.00. I scored the jeans here, as well, on a different shopping adventure, for about $5.00.
The belt and bag both came from Kohl's. The bag, Simply Vera by Vera Wang, was about $14.00, with it's adorable yellow clearance sticker. The belt, also with the magic sticker, was a mere $2. :)
Fall-time can never come quick enough for me. I wait for it's signs all year, and then in a flash, it's back to shorts and bikini tops. :(. In my opinion, it's hard to improve on an already amazing chilly fall day. But an inexpensive outfit seems to do the trick every time!!