Ten lovely branches

I'm counting down to christmas with my twelve favorite things; today is all about that bit of evergreen we display in our living rooms. I simply adore the scent of a fresh cut tree, and once it's covered in lights, what is more majestic?

Above images are not my own, please click for source!

Sometimes I look into my close and think there isn't a thing in there to wear. I pull out a few things and am just not liking anything. The last time that happened, I pulled out the leopard pencil skirt and it was a success. So I decided to try it again and behold; Success!!

This is the Banana Republic sweater I thrifted last week, and I think it was $2.50 well spent. The condition is perfect and it fills a pale pink void in my closet. There was a time I adored pastels. Then I hated them and got rid of them all. Now I might be warming up to them again.

For the No Repeats Challenge, the item I haven't worn in a long time are the shoes. Last seen in January. That's pretty bad. Though, they aren't exceptionally comfortable, so I've been avoiding them for a reason.

The Rundown

Leopard Skirt Forever 21 - Sweater Thrifted Banana Republic - Shoes Simply Vera - Scarf Taken for Granite - Necklace Etsy - Ring The Cavernous Jewelry Box

I was putting the lights on the tree when I suddenly thought about how great some fisheye shots would be, so I ran to switch up my lens and I love the results!

Leopard and Stripes (Outfit Under $150)

Upon the purchase of the striped top last week, I had one outfit immediately come to mind that I knew I wanted to try -- pairing it with the leopard pencil skirt.

I think this outfit will definitely be among my all time favorites. And I apologize for the abundance of photos today. Normally I consider lots of photos a weakness, as it means I was unable to edit and choose the two or three that really portray the outfit and mood well.

Today the weather was simply gorgeous and I could have spent the whole day outside. So as a result I took about a hundred photos and just liked so many!

This look really speaks to my fashion evolution over the past few years. I'm doing things I never thought I would. Big horizontal stripes, mixing patterns, a pencil skirt, a hat, 4" heels!!!

The Rundown

Striped Top Old Navy $11 - Leopard Pencil Skirt Forever 21 $20 - Turquoise Gerry Sandals Frye $44 - Sunnies Aldo $8 - Fedora Market in Italy €15 - Quilted Cross Body Bag Thrifted $4 - Braided Leather Belt Thrifted $1 - Gold Watch and Bangles The Cavernous Jewelry Box Gift

My total = $103

Since I love this look so much, I thought I would put it together for you, and I kept it under $150. My goal was $100, but it's not easy to do nine pieces for under $100 AND nothing is from Forever 21. That was my goal, since F21 often becomes a cop-out with these.

Leopard Pencil Skirt - $25.28 (Orig. $50.55) ASOS
Striped Boat Neck Top - $12.50 (Orig. $14.50) Old Navy
Braided Leather Belt - $14.40 (Orig. $24) Kohls
Quilted Cross Body Bag - $25.28 ASOS
Grey Fedora - $10 (Orig. $28) Urban Outfitters
Sunnies - $7 (Orig. $14) Urban Outfitters
Gold Watch - $12 (Orig. $20) Kohls
Gold Bangles - $8 Old Navy
Blue "Ira" Platform Sandals - $24.38 (Orig $89) Nine West

Total = $139.84


One more thing worth mentioning, I went into the thrift store yesterday and there on the shelf, as if they were waiting for me, a set of vintage Pyrex mixing bowls!!
There were two big yellow ones and no small red one, but that is okay. They were only $28!!

And just as soon as I pulled them off the shelf a woman came up to me and said "OH, are you buying those?" I excitedly replied yes, and then she said "I was just coming over here to look at them, how much are they?" I awkwardly replied "$28" and told her about the $65 set I'd seen at the Antiques fair. It was really uncomfortable since I knew she wanted them and was probably thinking "some dumb kid is buying my bowls!"

But how could she know that I was in fact the person who had intended on them being there for me?

Leopard Skirt

Today was a very lazy Sunday. It was spent on the couch watching movies, catching up on blogs, and taking some photos for the Flickr MacroMondays group. It's 11:30 pm and every time I look at Chloe I swear she is giving me the stink-eye because I didn't take her for a walk today.

So yesterday, when I wore something I'd care to share; I pulled my leopard print skirt out of my closet. Since it's acquisition last April, I only wore it once and when I saw Eyeliah's leopard print style challenge, I got the inspiration I needed!

I also just received my little camera necklace I got from Etsy and was anxious to incorporate it into an outfit.

I had thought I could also make this an Outfit Under $100 post - but I failed by $17.60! Sorry :(

Leopard print skirt - Urban Outfitters (the one I originally wanted, now on sale) - $30
Dolman sleeve sweater - Elle for Khol's (also on sale) - $25
Side Fringe Boot - Qupid (at Amazon) - $35
Camera Necklace - Etsy - $10
Silver cuff bracelet - Forever 21 - $5.80
Tear drop earrings - Forever 21 - $7.80
Black tights - Khol's (on sale) - $5

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

My Cheetah Skirt!

So the ebay skirt went over my $20 limit, which was a shame, since it stayed at three $3 for so long, then the last half hour of the auction people started to get anxious and bidding - so that was lost. I probably could have won it for under $30, but I feel it is important to set strong limits on ebay. It is too easy to get caught up in the idea of winning and to hell with what it costs.

But I decided to check out Forever 21 in the mall, and while they did not have any of the skirts shown on their web site, they did have one cheetah print pencil skirt, and they had two size x-small, and one size large. Fortunately one of those sizes fit me.

So the skirt is somewhat long, hitting me just at my knee, and a bit high waisted as well, sitting just below the belly button. The sides have some rouching, and two deep pockets, which I like. I think pockets in skirts and dresses are fantastic, for your hands.

The skirt is also more of a beige and black, rather than the traditional brownish yellow cat coloring. I've since decided I much prefer the beige, so it is fortunate that was the only color option available.

Now as far as what to actually pair with this skirt, I've only come up with two ideas thus far, the first, an abundance of color and pattern, the second with a far more minimal pallet.

Part 1: Heels. With my tiny height of 5' 1" the higher the better. Since the skirt is so long on me, without a good high heel I'd look like a midget.

Part 2: Belt. Once again my short and curvy figure requires special attention. I added a wide cinch belt to my waist to make sure I look like I actually have one.


Part 3: Top. So for the first look I opted for a vibrant green faux wrap top, and then paired it with my floral printed honey bee pumps. This might be too much, I'm just not sure.

For the second look, I went for a beige top with a studded collar. Not too fussy, with a bit of a hard edge. I paired it with my ivory and bronze t-straps.

So, what look do you like, and any other thoughts of what I might pair this skirt with?

Cheetah Print Skirt

You buy one thing from Urban Outfitters and they inundate you with catalogs – early spring, mid spring, late spring, some more stuff we want you to buy before it is even spring, you get the idea.

But before I managed to get the catalog into the recycling, there was one outfit that caught my eye – a navy top with an exposed zipper, leather and denim sandals, and the star of the ensemble, a cheetah print pencil skirt.

UO wants $48 for the skirt by Silence and Noise, which I will admit, has some very nice detailing, like the thick v-shaped waist band with the little notch cut out at the top, pockets, which I always like to have, and most importantly, a good print. There are some really awful animal prints out there, trying to be some weird neon hybrid of leopard and zebra and giraffe. Animal prints should always look like an animal actually found in nature.

So, $48? I think we can do better. Forever 21, as predicted has one – no, three options: short, high waisted, and knee length. All under $20.

I’m really liking this black and white version from Banana Republic which I found on ebay and could potentially get for under $10. My only concern is that it might be a bit too small for me, and I would have to break one of my cardinal ebay rules: Never buy anything off of the floor. If they can’t bother to put it on a hanger, or at least a table, how much does this person actually care about what they are selling?

The other rule, incase you were wondering, is never buy from someone who can not bother to spell check.

So what should I do: head out to forever, spend ages pillaging through their messy inventory and try to find a skirt in my size, or take a chance on ebay? Either way, I wont be able to return it if I take it home and realize that cheetah goes with nothing I own.