Style – Page 29

Easy Spring Style

May 7, 2018 by jessica Leave a Comment

Don’t you just love when you go to Target with a shopping list of the essentials and you leave with a dress you’re excited to wear all season long? This little spring frock was just too good to pass up last weekend. The attention to detail with the ruffled hemline, a subtle gingham texture in the fabric, and a lining (a rarity for something with such a low price point) makes it well worth the $33 price tag and reminds me of something you’d find at Anthropologie. If you click through to the product images, you’ll see that it has ruffled cap sleeves. I thought they were too fussy and looked silly on me, so I tucked them underneath the straps and I’ll eventually have a tailor remove them.

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Review: Paravel Motorist 3-in-1 Backpack

May 3, 2018 by jessica Leave a Comment

As you may recall, last December I purchased my first Paravel piece: the three-in-one Motorist backpack. I thought it would be perfect for travel and now that I’ve actually taken it on a trip (see glimpses of it here and here), I wanted to give you a run down of the pros and cons in case it’s on your own wish list.

Pros:

This bag is ultra practical. As with many women, I get saddled with bringing all of the day’s necessities with me in my purse. Things like tissues, pain killers, and printed tickets don’t take up a lot of space, but I can’t tell you how annoyed I get by shoving my camera into a cross-body bag for our adventures. It doesn’t always fit well and the shoulder strain starts to bother me after a few days of lugging it around. This bag was a game changer. There’s more than enough room for the camera and other essentials, plus space to add any small souvenirs collected throughout the day. And, since it’s a backpack, the weight was evenly distributed and was comfortable to tote around.
When you unzip the bag, there’s a fabric gusset on the sides that extends about halfway up the bag. This helps keep your belongings from falling out when you need to get something.
It transforms into a shoulder bag (worn as such above), which is great for visiting museums that don’t allow backpacks. It’s also handy when you’re shopping. There’s a zippered pocket inside where I kept my wallet. It was easier to access when I wore it as a shoulder bag.
It’s durable and waterproof. It rained at some point just about every day in London, but we had one day where it drizzled constantly. I wondered how my things would fare in the bag and, as it turns out, they were completely dry. As for the bag itself, I never did wipe my bag dry after the rain, and it still looked new when it dried on its own.

Cons:

Even when the straps are all tightened to the last hole, the bag still doesn’t fit flush against my back. (You can kind of see what I mean here.) This means it’s always kind of dangling a bit. It’s an intentional design feature, as you’ll see in one of their shots here, but it made me paranoid that I’d whack someone with my backpack when I was in crowded areas. I’m planning to take it to a leather shop to have additional holes added to the strap so that I can shorten it more.
The outside pocket has a magnetic closure. When the backpack is clean, you can’t even tell that it’s there. But after each stretch on the plane, the front rubbed against something filthy and left a circle right around the magnetic closure. It was easy to clean off with a damp rag, however. (That’s definitely the benefit of coated canvas.)

Bottom Line:

I love it. It was incredibly practical for a week of exploring, plus it’s chic. (Always a winning combination.) It also gave me a lot of confidence for purchasing other Paravel items. I’ve already snagged the crossbody capsule (see it here) and I adore this foldable suitcase (although I’m kicking myself for not getting it when the green colorway was available). Sign up for Paravel’s mailing list at the bottom of their home page for 10% off your first purchase and keep an eye on their social media account as they sometimes offer discounts. They also extend a discount offer with your package so that you can continue to build your collection.

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Wardrobe Update: April 2018 (Back on a Budget)

April 30, 2018 by jessica Leave a Comment

Now that we’re finally into spring and embracing the fresh start the season brings, I thought I’d give my financial situation a bit of spring cleaning. With house projects (which are all more expensive than you think they should be), savings goals, and travel dreams, I’ve got to button down on the sartorial front and keep myself to a more reasonable amount. I’m going to start with $200 per month, and put $50 per paycheck into a “splurge” savings account for whatever captures my fancy down the road. (That, along with blog revenue, is how I saved for my Gucci bag.) I feel like I’m in a really good spot with the foundation pieces in my wardrobe, so $200 should be plenty of money to freshen up my collection and add a few nicer pieces over the months.

TOTAL SPENT: $169
(Budget: $200; $31 rolling over to next month)

PURCHASED
See all of this year’s sartorial additions here.

Old Navy bow-topped slides in gingham ($15) – Aren’t these adorable?! They fit true to size.
New Look ruffle strappy jumpsuit ($32; worn here) – With black slides and statement jewelry, this jumpsuit is perfect for warmer days. I went up a size because I liked the looser fit.
Target short sleeve mini dress ($33) – As with most Target purchases, this was an impulse buy when I ran to the store for household needs. It’s such a sweet dress and well made for the price point. It’s lined and has great attention to detail with the ruffled hem. I’m not crazy about the sleeves and tried it with the sleeves tucked under, which I thought was much cuter and I’ll likely get it altered. It runs large. (I’m typically a size 8 and went with the small.)
Anthropologie Lucite tassel necklace ($68; pictured above) – We stopped at Anthropologie while we were waiting for our dinner reservations in London, and I fell in love with an oversize Lucite beaded necklace with a tassel pendant. I almost didn’t purchase it since I hate buying things overseas that I can get here, but I couldn’t bear the idea of not having it in my collection. As it turns out, it’s a good thing I bought it because it’s not on Anthro’s website.
London street vendor earrings and ring ($21) – I bought an oversize silver and lapis ring at Brick Lane Market and a pair of circular brass earrings at Old Spitalfields Market that will probably irritate my ears, but they were super cute and cheap.

DIDN’T WORK OUT
Things I tried and didn’t love.

Gap mid-rise skinny jeans in black – I own the blue version of these jeans, but for some reason the black pair ran exceptionally small. I couldn’t get them over my hips.
J.O.A. striped mini dress – I wanted to love this dress and even tried it in three different sizes to see if it could work. The medium was way too small, despite the claim that a medium fits a size 8. I tried the large and couldn’t breath with it zipped up. And I even tried the XL, which was too large in bust and waist. Sigh. It’s super cute, though!

What I Wore in London

April 26, 2018 by jessica Leave a Comment

I made a concerted effort to pack as lightly as possible for our trip to London. After dozens of vacations, I finally realized that I’m likely to wear and rewear my favorites. While I’d love to be the type of blogger who takes outfit photos on each of her adventures, I’m not. I’m way more interested in sightseeing instead of location scouting, and oftentimes that means I favor the more practical pieces in my wardrobe that rarely make it to the blog. I’ll admit that it doesn’t make for the most exciting packing list, but it did make getting dressed a breeze in the morning! Plus, paring down on clothing means there’s more room in my suitcase to bring home treasures. (Admittedly, I brought a few extra pieces that didn’t get worn, like a black dress and loafers.) Below, you’ll find a list of everything I wore while I was in London.

WHAT I WORE IN LONDON

J.Crew trench coat – With the amount of rain and misty days that London gets, this was such a practical jacket to have in tow.
Lululemon lightweight jacket – I actually brought this to wear on the plane with an oversize sweater and yoga pants, and didn’t expect to wear it while we were in London. But there were a few warmer days that the trench felt like too much and when we were just heading out for evening beers at a pub, it was nice to stash things in the zippered pockets and not bring a bag.
Gap jeans – I’ve been losing weight and brought these jeans in a larger and smaller size on the trip. After the first two days, the larger ones were much too big and I wore the smaller size the rest of the trip. (Yes, I’m totally bragging, but I’m really excited! I’m going to order the next size down, too, since they’re on sale right now. May as well be optimistic, right?)
J.Crew striped long sleeve t-shirt (plus an old one from Banana Republic) – A striped shirt is such a classic piece and I felt pulled together for a day of exploring when I paired it with the rest of my daily uniform.
J.Crew crew neck sweater (both black and grey) – If you don’t have these sweaters yet, you’re missing out. The price point is great, especially when they’re on sale, and they hold their shape throughout the day. I own half a dozen in various colors.
Banana Republic grey v-neck sweater – What I love most about this sweater is that it’s machine washable.
Old Navy umbrella – Truth be told, this Old Navy umbrella is questionable quality, but I loved the stripes. You might just be better off going a more practical route for this item rather than picking one just because it’s cute.
Garnet Hill scarf – As many of you know, I’ve had a relationship with Garnet Hill for a couple of years now. I received this cashmere scarf from one of our first collaborations and it’s one of my favorite travel items. It’s so soft and generously sized that I also use it as a wrap on the plane, but it’s not so large that you can’t wear it as a regular scarf. (You can see a glimpse of it in this photo.) There’s a dark grey version on sale for $88 right now, but I think the scarf warrants the money even at full price. It really is beautiful.
Karen Walker sunglasses – We only had a couple of sunny days, but these were great for hiding my tired eyes since I was sick for part of the trip!
Vrai and Oro stud earrings and Monica Vinader ring – For as much of a jewelry hoarder as I am, I try to pare down my gems to everyday pieces on vacation. What that means definitely depends on the vacation. Since this wardrobe skewed more classic and comfortable, stud earrings and my favorite ring fit the bill. On a tropical trip, I tend to bring statement earrings and long pendant necklaces.
Paravel backpack – This was the first trip I’ve taken this backpack on and it did not disappoint. I have a full review in the works, but suffice to say it’s worth every penny. It’s durable, rain resistant, easy to clean, and has ample room for everything you’ll need (and collect) during the day. Plus, it transforms into a shoulder bag, which is great for museums that don’t allow backpacks.
Peds no-show socks – I bought a dozen pairs of these socks for the trip and love them. On colder days, I wore the Smart Wool version.
Puma sneakers – We walked an average of seven miles a day, so sneakers were a must.

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The Coveted

April 24, 2018 by jessica Leave a Comment

*On my wish list!

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