#OOTD: One shirt, two occasions

Sheer Sleeveless top (express, $20USD), slim cut indigo wash jeans ($16, Mossimo @ Target), hematite necklace (Forever XXI, $4USD), Pammy wedges (Steve Madden, $32 USD)

Sheer Sleeveless top (Express, $20USD), Black cardigan ($8USD, Mossimo @ Target), Black Skinny Jeans ($12USD, L.E.I. @ Walmart), Adriana pumps ($49USD, Guess)

OOTD: Casually sneaking graphics into the office.

I decided to wear my reasonably priced v-neck to the office with the new boyfriend cardigan I scored in my last Ridiculous Deal.  

'Back to the Future' V-neck ($6 USD, Target), jeans ($16 USD, David Bitton @ Marshall's- I've had these pants since high school.), wedges ($26 USD, Steve Madden), cardigan ($6 USD, Target)

OOTD: Lounge Attire.

Since my friend's birthday falls on this weekend, she rounded up the troops so that we could partake in a night of dancing and drinks at her favorite lounge in Miami Beach. The lucky thing about Miami is when everyone else is pulling on sweaters because October temperature drop significantly, I'm out on a Saturday night trying not to sweat to death in jeans.

Urban Decay Vice 2 strikes again on eyelids. Lips are done up in Sephora lipcolor. 

Top ($14, Jessica Simpson @ Macy's), Pants, ($24, XOXO @ Macy's)

OOTD: Sheer Fishtail

Bought this shirt from Cotton On for $5 and finally found a way to wear it to the office.  

Made use of the Vice 2 (Urban Decay) on eyes.

iWant: Steve Madden After Dark pumps.

While browsing in The Bloomingdale's Outlet a couple of days ago, I came across this wonderful pair of pumps in two variations. It's too bad they're $80 USD & I'm cheap as dirt. They're versatile enough to wear with dresses or jeans. 

(Patent leather with matte leather trim)

Steve Madden AfterDark Pumps in Nude

  

(Matte leather with patent leather trim)

Steve Madden After Dark Pumps in Black

OOTD: My Polka-Dotted Jeans

As un-economical as it is, I find myself in more and more of an affinitytowards patterned  jeans. This polka dotted pair make for a fun alternative to the same old Thursday blues. 

Shirt (Express, $5.00), Jeans (Target, $16.00), Wedges (Steve Madden, $15.00)

OOTD: Nautical

I broke two personal rules at the same time because I felt that these two needed each other. I almost never wear red. Also usually steer away from horizontal stripes as a general preference as well. Would've rathered gold with this 

OOTD: Rugged weekend wear

This outfit is one that I break out separately but never together. Its one of my power outfits if you will & by far one of my favorites. One of the reasons is because the top was purchased from one of my favorite stores- a boutique named Up Against the Wall that was closed quite some time ago. I loved to shop there because you could always find something that was worth buying- something with edge & attitude. This store was the embodiment of everything I enjoyed when it came to clothing & decor. Even shopping there was an experience in itself. there were funky lamps, eccentric lighting & murals and the fitting rooms were graffitied in the likeness of an inner city building that had become the canvas for a spraypaint happy artist. To my good fortune, there were two malls in my area that had these boutiques but sadly, they closed about two years ago which reminds me, I should hunt online to see if any of them are still in existence. I'm hoping with all my might that this storeline wasn't just local.

The brand of this tank is Black Label. I have three tanks from them (one of which went ghost on me.... I need to find it) & the material used is not only quality, but the design is wunique as well. Grommets & tattoo designs are not usually elements that I rave about, but the way things have been arranged- in a subtle yet edgy way- I definetly think it leans more to the rock side & less to the fist pumping, Ed Hardy clad, guido side.

These are my first pair of ripped jeans. I got them on special from PacSun & decided (contrary to my earlier thoughts against purchasing something destroyed prior to wearing it) that I would buy them & watch them evolve. It got me thinking about all the clothing I've ever altered & how I morphed them into something else & I loved being able to recycle my clothing- in a manner of speaking.


Top.
Black Label (by way of Up Against the Wall)

Jeans.
PacSun.

Shoes.
Steve Madden. (by way of Ross)

OOTD: Happy Hour awaits

Picking up stuff on the fly is my middle name. Sometimes I'm out & about, and I run out of time before I have to go to work & end up swinging by a store to get something a little more work appropriate. I did that but of course, this was the day I picked my puppy, Rico up from Miami Animal Services.

I went by Target & saw these shirts for a pretty inexpensive price so I picked up two of them. The way the sleeves are interwoven like a basket really caught me & the burnt orange color was striking as well.

Top.
Mossimo. Target.

Jeans.
Guess. My favorite skinny jeans, right length, right fit.

Belt.
Yes, still Michael Kors. (worn on Espresso Side)

Shoes.
Steve Madden. Scored these at Ross.

Ridiculous Deal: Steve Madden strikes again

Daisy duke. That's the first thing I thought upon beholding this lovely pair. I found these beauties in none other than Ross. I originally went in to buy a pair of shorts but figured 'hey let me look through the shoes, that's always fun' & I came across these.

Steve Madden Platforms

They're on a wood sole with leather straps & reminds me of the way a clog. The leather straps interlace & crisscross in the front, winding around the back of the heel. They're also ridiculously comfortable as they have a platform heel. They're about 5" high. Can't wait to see what outfits surface with these wonderful shoes.

OOTD: The challenge of a long Button down.

Frontal View.

Side View

Back View

First time wearing this combo. I have this extra long button down from Express (they went through one of those shirtdress phases a couple of years ago) and originally purchased it because I thought I could possibly wear it as a dress. It has always been a challenge to see what to put on top of this top to really make it sing. I've tried different things like belting it with both broad & skinny belts and other vests with it but this vest is the only one that brought out the classy quality of the top & played off of the length.

Top.

Express. The buttery yellow color is what sold me on this top. I believe it was on clearance when purchased.

Vest.

Forever XXI. I bought this when vests were super popular & I decided that I was going to have a shopping spree on my credit card. I literally just picked up one of every vest in Forever XXI. (This is back when I had no self control when it came to retail.) I hardly wear this vest so it was just something that I tried on with this top in frustration & it worked.

Jeans.

Guess (by way of Plato's closet) Staple. These are literally my new favorite jeans.

Shoes.

Steve Madden. Staple. These heels have definitely affirmed my belief that nude is the new black.

OOTD: What I ended up wearing to the wedding

Dianne stepped in & came with me to the wedding because my sister went out of town.

Added this shot because I don't look like a heffer here.

 

I'm horrid & sweating by then but at least you can see the dress and the shoes in this shot.

Original post

This is what I ended up wearing to Monica's wedding. I never wear strapless dresses but the color was great and I was looking for something other than black. I didn't want to be That Girl wearing black at someone else's wedding and I have enough black dressses to last me a lifetime. I bought the shoes first that day. I saw them in Macy's while picking up Monica & Trevor's wedding gift & knew that they were THE shoes. The challenge after that was to find a non-black dress with a material I preferred (here meaning satin or silky) I searched Macy's &  two Ross stores (yes I shop heavily at Ross for formal dresses- they usually have a unique collection.) At the last store, two hours before I had to be ready, I found this dress on the second fitting and it fit. I bought it and here is the finished product.

OOTD: Debut of my marvelous new cardigan

Ugh! These pictures suck! I was hoping they were a little better but of course they were taken in a hurry in the morning as I was late to work.

Here are some from my phone:

Cardigan.

Macy's

I purchased this because as you know, all of my cardigans, (save my red XOXO one) are black. The XOXO I usually reserve for a more sultry look. It's great with other things but I hate wearing it with white and that's another story. I felt like wearing white as per my other blog concerning the hunt for this cardigan, I woke up so ready to debut it at work and I must say, complements were rolling in. Chose to pair with pearls because I decided the cardigan would look amazing with it and the white tank.

Tank.

Rainbow?

I honestly don't remember, I bought it freshman or sophomore year of college. 

I'm narrowing it down to Rainbow, Rave or Burlington Coat Factory 

(I went through a phase Freshman year when I shopped there a lot)

Belt.

Michael Kors.

Staple. Worn here on the Espresso side.

Jeans.

Armani Exchange (by way of Plato's Closet)

They're getting a bit loose, which makes me happy. These were bought as fat jeans.

Shoes

Steve Madden.

Staple. I was filing today so I had to bring in the white Coach sandals as reinforcements. Did not expect that.

OOTD: A button down & jeans done right.

From behind

I love the material on this shirt!

From a distance

Closer view of the front.

Top.

Ross. 

I bought this during the time that I had no uniform at the restaurant. Since then I have an abundance of black tops lol I've actually stopped buying black tops because of that. In the past, I thought you couldn't have too much black but got tired of never having another option. I love the material on the shirt. It's textured and that gives it a more tailored look but at the same time it's soft & comfortable. I get lots of compliments on this shirt. The cut mimics the Express button downs so it's super classy but casual when I need it to be.

Jeans.

PacSun. 

I am barely fitting these jeans again as you can tell but it was nice to be able to button them and wear them out again. These were my go-to jeans once upon a time. Now I'm just happy to be able to button them again. Lol that's sad. That's what happens when you eat your feelings. Anyway, these jeans are a very strange length to dress them up. The color is right on the money- for me ideal! I die for indigo wash jeans- I honestly believe there is nothing better. However, these jeans are so skinny that its harder to wear with a lower heel so much that I have retired them (also because I couldn't fit them, but I could've tried with my body shaper) because it was way too frustrating to even try to wear them to work. The incline on these platforms makes them slide elegantly right into the skinny hemline.This it the first time I have worn these jeans with heels & been satisfied with the result.

Belt.

Michael Kors.

Staple. I said you'd be seeing a lot of this belt. I believe this is the first time that I have worn it on the espresso side. Usually it makes it on the platinum snakeskin side (sounds tacky but is so sexy) The espresso side is dark enough and neutral enough to be worn with black :) which benefits me greatly. It's glossy and patent which is a completely different look than the other side. 

A two sided belt is honestly the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Shoes.

Steve Madden.

Staple. I am obsessed with these shoes, I literally wear them every chance that I get. They're so boss! I've noticed that I've worn them with outfits that I've worn before and get way more compliments now! I guess shoes really do make the outfit. It may be the last time for a while that I make a shoevestment like that because I cannot afford to start supporting that habit. I just got off purses!