Gruene and red rain boots (again)

The other day I headed out to meet my mother-in-law in Gruene, a super cute little town nestled in between San Antonio and Austin.  It was POURING rain that day, but we were not deterred!  Walking into lunch was a sloshy, rainy mess, but by the time we finished our meal, the sun was back out, and if it weren’t for the puddles, you’d never know it’d been down-pouring torrentially just an hour before. Gotta love Texas.

Here’s a few outfit shots from our time in Gruene… sure looks nice and sunny, but I assure you those wellies were needed just an hour before! :)

Shirt: Madewell (on sale here!), jeans: J.Crew, Boots: Hunter, Necklace: Stella & Dot, Ring: Charming Charlie

 

And HOW CUTE is my MIL?!

Happy Wednesday!

May Showers

I love stormy days. LOVE THEM. Maybe it’s because rain is scarce here in Texas, and when we do have thunderstorms, they tend to be in the middle of the night when you can’t really enjoy them so much… especially when your 55 lb pitbulls attempt to directly adhere themselves to your sleeping body, as if actually being on top of Mommy will protect them from the thunder.

(Ok, what am I saying here? I love that. Thunderstorm cuddles are the best.)

Point is, this week we’ve had some really excellent stormy days and nights, though they always leave me yearning for more. I think I’d be right at home in a place like Seattle. Rain, to me, always feels like release.

Plus I get to wear my red wellies. Winning all around.

Dress and clutch: c/o Kiki La’Rue, rainboots: Hunter (red here, more colors here), Necklace: Sora Designs, Bracelet: Madewell

I know. I am clear. (the stage that comes right after white.)  Also, that adorable dress I’m wearing above came courtesy of a new online shop called Kiki La’Rue, which is definitely worth checking out!  They have a great variety of adorable and affordable dress options (like this one and this one and this one!), as well as super cute tops and handbags.  I love to support smaller shops that are dedicated to quality and customer service, as this one clearly is. This dress is comfy and looks super cute paired with bright pops of color in a necklace or, in this case, red rain boots. :)

Be sure and check out Kiki La’Rue before spending more money on the same products at a department store!

Have a great Thursday…

Yellow

 Dress: Ruche, Shoes: Aldo, (camera)Bag: Theit

Yellow is one of my favorite colors.  Probably in the top two.  Just something about the sunniness of it, I guess… I’m drawn to yellow clothing and accessories, and yellow is one of “the colors” of my kitchen. 

It’s funny, I’ll always remember trying on a yellow t-shirt at good ol’ Abercrombie and Fitch back in the day when that was the thing to wear, and I came out of the dressing room to show the boyfriend at the time, who promptly informed me that yellow definitely isn’t my color.  I didn’t wear it for years after that (silly how negative things people say stick in our mind, isn’t it?), but recently I decided to ditch the idea and wear it proudly anyway.  What did he know?

On another note, if you happened to notice my eye makeup in the first photo is a little smokier than normal, well, you’re right!  Check back tomorrow for a post on a fun little event with Radiant Cosmetics that I had the pleasure of attending!  Champagne, cupcakes, and cosmetics, anyone?  Yes, please!

Happy Monday…

An outfit and… A free pair of Blowfish shoes, anyone?

 Shirt: Gap, Pants: Madewell, Bag: Theit, Shoes: c/o Blowfish—the “Gelines”, Necklace: Stella & Dot

The incredibly awesome folks at Blowfish are offering up another free pair of shoes (your choice!) to one lucky SOML reader, and I would just like to say that the ones I’m wearing in the photos above are ridiculously comfortable for having high heels.  I am exceedingly awkward in heels (ask my husband—I’m a liability) and usually have blisters and/or am limping within a half hour of spending any time in shoes that aren’t slippers, but these are so comfy that it’s weird. 

Anyway, enter below for your chance to win!

View Full Album

To enter:
(only mandatory entry)

+ “Like” Blowfish on Facebook and leave a comment here letting me know you did! Please leave your email address if it’s not on your profile.

For extra entries:
(all represented by separate comments, please)

+ Browse the shoe selection at Blowfish and leave a comment here with one of your favorite pairs
+ Follow Blowfish on Twitter
+ Follow Blowfish on Pinterest
+ “Like” Story of My Life on Facebook

Good luck!

* * * * *

And the winner of last week’s Dave Owens music giveaway is…

Thanks for the support, Margaret… we’ll be in touch! :)

They can’t all be winners…

I’ve been in a glass case of emotion this week, y’all.  Allergies? Check. A relentless stomach bug? Check. Accidently dying my hair black? Check. Falling down the stairs yesterday and almost dying and/or becoming paralyzed from the waist down? CHECK. 

Seriously, you should see the bruise on my tailbone.  It’s downright scary looking. I feel lucky I (hopefully) didn’t do any permanent damage, and it also occurred to me that it’s sort of a miracle it took me over two years to fall down our stairs, given my track record of supreme awkwardness.

But today!  Today is Thursday, and a brand new day.  I can hardly believe we’re already almost to the weekend, but I guess time really flies when you’re having fun (not).  Today I’ll be editing pictures, visiting the oral surgeon to make sure my friend the cyst isn’t taking over my face again, and other miscellaneous tasks I needn’t bore you with.  What I will bore you with is another outfit, cause I thought this one was pretty cute. 

Happy Thursday!

Dress: Ruche, Shoes: c/o Blowfish, Belt: J.Crew, Bag: Theit, Necklace: c/o Shabby Apple, Bracelet: vintage, Ring: Premier Designs, Nailpolish: Essie

Floral Print + report on last month’s spending freeze

Skirt and shirt: Fabrik, Shoes: Target, Bracelet: by Jenna

Do you all remember this post about my goal to give up shopping for a month?  Well, I thought I’d give you a brief update on how that went and my thoughts on all of it, for any of you who may be interested in doing the same. 

In short, I did, indeed, give up shopping for the month of March.  I didn’t buy myself one darn thing. Not nailpolish. Not a single piece of cheap jewelry. Not a crappy pair of $1.85 sunglasses from Forever 21. Nothing!   It’s funny, I even tried to cheat one time—I found an inexpensive dress online that I HAD to have, and since I’d given myself an allowance in case such a circumstance arose, I decided to buy it.  It was towards the end of March, but still within the month.

So I made that purchase and never looked back, but then guess what happened? I got an email from the company two days later saying how sorry they were but someone had purchased the last dress in my size just seconds before I did, and their computers didn’t catch it. CURSES! They even offered me a discount code in case I wanted a different item, but I considered it all an ill-omen and made it through the rest of the month without cheating. 

And honestly, it felt good. Freeing up that part of my mind that I spend focusing on my next purchase was an interesting exercise, as was working with the items already in my closet.    I realized that I absolutely do not need to shop to be happy, and in fact, I dare say I was even happier with that option taken off the table, because I saw the money I make being saved instead of spent, and I realized that there’s nothing I really need.  Sometimes I think I convince myself that I need things, but a month of surviving and thriving without making a single unnecessary purchase really helped me to see otherwise. 

Now, this is just my story. I realize that everyone is in a different position and some folks can’t afford to shop much at all.  Some might call me materialistic for even devoting this much attention to the topic, but hey.  This is the story of my life, and I happen to have a love affair with shopping and a bit of disposable income (sort of).   I just like to write about things I experience for those who can relate and possibly benefit from it. 

Anywho, hope you fine people have a great Wednesday!  Let’s meet again tomorrow, shall we? Same time, same place? :)

An outfit and some words

 
Shirt: Forever21 (recent, but not online), Pants: J.Crew, Boots: Franco Sarto (similar here), Bag: Theit, Necklace: Sora Designs: Bracelet: Madewell. Earrings: c/o Acute Designs

I’m not feeling particularly loquacious today.

Really, I just wanted to say loquacious.  It’s a good word.

But no, seriously, I don’t have much to say on this fine Thursday.  If you must know, I desperately need to go grocery shopping (all that’s left in the house is bread, cheese, crackers, and frozen veggies) and I’m also determined to finish that damn gallery wall we started in our bedroom.  Finishing projects is not my strong suit. 

Also, my mom and I go pick up Edd’s ashes at 1:00 PM today. I can’t even wrap my mind around that, and the fact that I just said what I did so flippantly.  It seems wrong. But it’s the truth…

And you thought this was going to be a light-hearted outfit post?

Life feels sad right now.  Showers and long car rides are the worst.  My counselor got an earful yesterday.  He said I should write about this more.  And maybe I will.  But for now, pictures of how I dress myself will have to do.

* * * * *

Side note: can we talk about those cute Chevron earrings in the pictures above?  They’re from the amazing (and incredibly kind and patient) Gina of Acute Designs.  She has both a fabulous blog AND shop! Everything is so affordable and pretty over there.  Here’s a few more of my favorites…

1, 2, 3, 4

By the lake

Do not confuse this bun with the “blogger topknot.” This is what I call the “it’s-humid-and-I’m-lazy-messy-Jenni-bun.”

{ Shirt and shoes: J.Crew, pants: Madewell (on sale!), necklace: Sora Designs, Bracelet: c/o LeeLaLa—25% off discount with code LOVEJENNI }

I reconnected with an old friend recently… we hadn’t seen each other in about 11 years, and when we finally met back up (thanks to Facebook and the wonderful world of blogging), you'd of thought that not even a month had passed.  I love that about technology, don’t you?  How it brings people together. What in the WORLD did people do before the Internet?! It boggles me, truly.

Anyway, thanks again to Brittany for taking my outfit pictures yesterday! She’s just starting up her own life and style blog, and I feel a very symbiotic relationship coming on… one which could eliminate the need for husband-photographers altogether, ya feel me?  ;)

Also, I’d like to point out that pretty little custom bracelet in the photos above! It was handmade by my dear friend Lindsay over at Lee La La—she runs a shop full of fab wrap bracelets, which you should probably check out.  This was my favorite color combo, but there are lots of other good ones too. (especially this one… I die!) 

The good news is that Lindsay is offering up SOML readers a 25% discount to the shop using the code LOVEJENNI (yessss), so take advantage of it!  And have a great Tuesday!

Leopard, Burnt orange, and Blue

   
{ Dress: Forever21 (recent, but couldn’t find the same one online), Jacket: Loft (past season), Shoes: c/o Blowfish, Necklace and bracelet: Madewell, Ring: Premier Designs }

It’s totally creeping me out that my right foot looks all weird and veiny in that picture above.  Bet you wouldn’t have even noticed if I hadn’t mentioned it, but I just wanted to know that you know that I know.  The veiny foot is creepy.

Anyway.  I think I’m going to do it, y’all.  Shop only my closet for the month of March.  I thought about doing Kendi’s 30 for 30 challenge, but that seems a little bit too much like math.  And commitment.  So I’ve decided to give myself a $100 clothing and accessories spending budget for the entire month of March, to be used only in case of extreme emergency.  Feel free to join me in this endeavor, and we can be sad together. 

Also, have you seen all the super cute new shoes over at Blowfish? Those of you have some discretionary income, that is.  ;P

Happy Thursday, and happy first of March!

Spring style

It has been downright spring-like here in Texas.  Guess what the high is today?  88.  Isn’t it supposed to be winter?!  Just a thought. 

Well anyway, the weather has been ideal for taking outdoor pictures, and yesterday I had Matthew snap some of my outfit.  I think even he felt the power of the Mark II in his hands.  He is usually rather grumbly while taking pictures, but this time he seemed to be getting a little carried away by the super-fast shutter speed.  I have a lot of sexy mid-blink, drunken-looking shots to show for it.  Seriously, I could fill an entire blog with only awkward outtakes from outfit posts.  It’d be awesome.

Anyway, this outfit is simple and sweet… just how I like it.  I am all about the awesome bright shorts out at J.Crew right now, and this green color was my favorite.  Also, pay close attention to the necklace I’m wearing!  I’ll tell you where to find it below.

  

{ Shirt, shorts, and flats: J.Crew, bracelets: F21, necklace: c/o Vintage Wanna Bee }

So let’s talk about that necklace for a moment, shall we?  Can we all just take a moment and admire the adorableness?  Nichelle from Vintage Wanna Bee sent it over for me, and I am mildly obsessed with it now.  Definitely the perfect little pop of color to spice up an outfit (and there are many other colors to choose from—I’ll certainly be going back for more). AND it’s handmade AND it’s affordable.  Win win win.  Check out the mustardy/gold color here or browse the rest of the shop here!  Girlfriend has some seriously sweet stuff. 

Have a happy Thursday!

The most depressing day of the year (and, to ease the pain, a giveaway!)

Did you know that today is the most depressing day of the year?  I didn’t either until I heard that on the news the other day...  and thank goodness they told us, because I would have been confused if I’d woken up this morning not knowing why I was so damn depressed. 

Just kidding.  No, but really!  Some experts have declared January 23rd of 2012 to be “Blue Monday,” the date on which a combination of weather, the passage of Christmas, holiday debt, and failed New Year’s resolutions all catch up to us and we start feeling really, really crappy.  There is some debate that last week, the 16th, may have been Blue Monday, but I’m going with what I heard on the news. Today is the day.

In honor of Blue Monday, I incorporated blue into my outfit which, consequently, is quite springy in nature thanks to unusually warm temperatures here in Texas.  If you’re feeling a bit down today, I hope you won’t do anything too drastic.  It’s scientific people.  You simply cannot help it.  

Personally, I think what you need is some red lipstick. And maybe a super bright colored scarf.  Oh! And free shoes from Blowfish!  Any shoes of your choosing!   Might turn out to be a great day, after all. :)  (giveaway below!)

My pants are glowing.

Love these. Super comfy.

{ pants, shirt, scarf: J.Crew, necklace: Stella and Dot, bracelets: F21, shoes: c/o Blowfish, bag: Kate Spade, lipstick: L’oreal Colour Riche in “true red” }

To win your choice of shoes from Blowfish, enter below!

Mandatory:
+ Visit Blowfish and leave a comment letting me know what pair of shoes you’d choose if you won!

For extra entries (all separate comments):
+ Like Blowfish on Facebook
+ Like Story of My Life on Facebook
+ Follow Blowfish on Twitter

The contest is open to international readers, and a winner will be chosen next week! Happy Blue Monday everyone.  Let’s CELEBRATE! :)

I should have been a Cullen.

YOU GUYS. My mom and I went out and took some pictures last night and HOLY WHITENESS.  Upon reviewing said pictures, I realized that I have, indeed, become so pale that it appears I am literally bloodless and could pass for a stone cold vampire, especially while wearing blood red lipstick as pictured below.  I’m not sure if I feel awesome about this or slightly terrified. I think it may be a confusing mixture of both.

Point is, this girl needs to find herself a legit looking spray tan, stat.  I’m trying to give up tanning, and it’s NOT easy!

ANYWAY.

I also wanted to mention how amazing it feels to find the perfect shade of lipstick.  Especially when it costs 5-7 dollars at your local Target/Walmart/HEB/pharmacy.  I’ve never been a lipstick person (primarily because I’ve always thought I look all kinds of ridiculous in it), but the winds of change are blowing, people.  And I don’t think I’ll ever be the same again. :)

 I vant to suck your blood…

Nope, it wasn’t raining.  Nope, I didn’t care.

   

{ Belt, gingham shirt, pants, and necklace: J.Crew, Jacket: Loft (last season), Boots: Hunter (duh!), Bag: Kate Spade (similar here), Bracelets: F21,  Lipstick: L’oreal Colour Riche “true red” }

Happy Hump Day everyone! Hope you’re having a wonderful week!

PS – If anyone is in the market for Hunters, go a size down!  They run big.  I usually wear a 6 1/2 or 7, but I got a 6 and they fit perfectly. :)