H&M Try On Session 11.17.18

I stopped by H&M yesterday and tried on a few sweaters and a few holiday party items! 

I liked this sweater. It is perfect to wear with leggings. My store only had L and XL. So, this is a Large. Which could possibly work, but the sleeves were a little long.

I LOVE sweaters like this. I love a great embellishment! This one I DID find online. I am wearing a medium here and it fits really well. It looks like it would be itchy but it is not at all. I paired it with a basic black stretchy skirt that I found online. I would however size up in the skirt. It's stretchy so it will be body conscious. I did grab these boots from their wall o' shoes.

This top is a really pretty forest green - maybe Emerald green - in person. I grabbed a size 10 and it was way too big. I think a 6 would be better. The straps would very easily fall off of my shoulders. It would make a nice holiday party outfit for sure. Unfortunately I couldn't find it on their website. Maybe it is a new arrival and will show up soon.

This top is soft on the inside! It's perfect to throw on and go. You don't have to wear a strapless bra, it can go with pants or skirts, and it's only $25. If you are in a hurry to find something festive and need something non-fussy, then this is it. Great for a NYE party.

NOW. These PANTS. These were my fave fave fave of the day! They're only $25! They are going on my Christmas list FOR SURE. They fit a curvy girls figure perfectly. You know I struggle with finding a pant that doesn't have the gap in the back. The tie waist solves that problem. They're not too long either. I'm 5'4" for reference. Can you believe it - they are not tight in the thighs. Finally.

The top is a great pop of color. Would work well for holiday parties. I did try it on with the skirt but forgot to take a photo! I couldn't find it online either. This is a size 4 that I'm wearing so I would suggest sizing down one (maybe two?) from your normal size.

This is a perfect little party dress. It's on sale for $28 when I looked it up online. This is a medium. It has a white lining dress underneath the black lace. It was very comfortable. I didn't have to pull and tug or adjust it. Hits a little above the knee. You could easily just throw this on and go. Probably wouldn't even need to wear spanx or deal with a frustrating strapless bra.

My New Fave Girl

Man I LOVE it when I find a super special piece at the consignment shop that I just can't wait to wear! This blue tunic was a real score. I love the punk rock aspect with the tears and grommets. Yes! Not that you're going to see me in the middle of the mosh pit (do those even exist anymore?) any time soon, but I do love a rad outfit! 

Outfit details:

Top: Etc Consignment Shoppe

Leggings, Earrings & Necklace: H&M

Boots: Dolce Vita

Fall Colors in Winter Girl

On one of our warmer days I got to finally wear this olive green silky shirt dress that I got as a Christmas gift. Yes, it was on my amazon wish list and my hubby did exactly what he should've done and got it for me!

I went with a more autumnal color palette because it just felt right! Here it is a few days before Valentine's day and I look like I'm heading to Thanksgiving dinner! 

I love a good shirt dress. It is the perfect dress for my body shape. It balances out my smaller top half to my larger bottom half. Pear shape! Plus this fabric is very forgiving and doesn't cling!

Outfit details:

Dress: Target (similar)

Cardigan: Eddie Bauer (few years old)

Boots: gift from my mom!

Pink and Gray Girl

I picked up this soft striped sweatshirt at Etc Consignment one day when I cashed in my balance on my account.  I love trading in clothes that I've grown tired of into new and fun pieces. At this particular consignment shop you get 10% off your purchase that same day if you spend the money you've made. Win win! I only had $20 something bucks on my account and I walked out with like 4 new tops. I know I have a tendency to wear a lot of black and white and gray too, yes, but the fuchsia color was just what I was looking for to bring a little brightness into my winter wardrobe. It's not quite as long as a full blown tunic so I did pair it with a thicker pair of pants instead of leggings. Although if you had some jeggings with back pockets those would work too. 

I added some fuchsia lipstick and over the top earrings to pull it all together. It dressed up the sweatshirt just enough!

Outfit Details:

Top: Etc Consignment Shoppe

Pants: H&M (similar)

Ankle Boots: Amazon (similar)

Earrings: H&M

Practical Footwear Girl

You're getting a lot of practical outfits from me these days, I know. But since I quit going to a corporate setting each day my wardrobe has definitely become more casual and the footwear has become more practical. I have several pairs of platform heels that have long left my closet and went on to Goodwill heaven. I did keep several pairs of my most favorite heels in practical colors like black and gray. 

A lot of the time you will see me in a tunic, a long sweater or long top with leggings and boots! Sometimes I even wear a skirt as a dress over leggings! And you know what? That's ok. When you find something that works for you and works for your body type it's ok to repeat it!

Scarves are an excellent, cheap and colorful accessory. They can update an outfit in a flash when you're rushing to get out the door! This is the second time I've worn this plaid blanket scarf that I picked up with my beautiful cousin Emily one Saturday afternoon. (P.S. I wish she was my sister. I look to her for life inspiration! She is so smart! She is so fit and even did a Spartan race!) It is a commitment to wear a blanket scarf let me tell you. You've got to fix it just right or it will bother the heck out of you all day. AND I cannot wear my hair down with one either. That's just way too much. I feel like I am wearing a neck brace and smothering at the same time! I'll try to do a video for you guys for how to wrap a blanket scarf in the least suffocating way! Seriously!

Outfit details:
Sweater: Thrifted
Leggings: Etc consignment Shoppe, Hue brand
Boots: Steve Madden
Scarf: Altar'd State

Final Four Girl

This outfit is a showcase of my allstars, my top scorers....my final four. One of my favorite sweaters, pants, boots and hat. If all you have in your closet is your all stars then you never have a bad outfit. 

Outfit details:

Sweater: H&M

Leggings: Kohl's (similar)

Boots: Steve Madden (similar)

Hat: Scala

Weekend Getaway Girl

Outfit details 

Flannel: Woolrich, Jeans: Lee, Camp Socks: Eddie Bauer (stolen from my hubby), Scarf: Christmas gift, Boots: L.L.Bean

The hubby and I went on a weekend getaway a few weeks ago to Gatlinburg, Tennessee. We had a great time just taking in the sights, eating junk food and big breakfasts and taking tiny adventures. Just by stroke of sheer luck we visited Cades Cove on one of the sunniest and warmest days. We did the auto tour which is something I have never done - until now! I want to go back and do the biking tour sometime.

 The snowiest day was spent up at Ober Gatlinburg watching the skiers from the warm ski lodge. We're heading back to Ober to take our son to snow tube in a few weeks. I'm looking forward to that. He will really love riding this tram up the mountain.

I loved watching the skiers and snowboarders. We'll be back here next weekend with my son and I'll join him snow tubing. I can do that at least!

I'm probably the worst ice skater in the world so we sat on the side lines and watched everyone else instead.

It was all about comfort and lots of layers on this adventure. I wore two pairs of leggings, a skirt, thick socks and tall boots. I had two layers on top and a warm scarf. It worked! I stayed toasty.

On the last day we ate whatever we wanted (donuts and cupcakes), did a little shopping and finished it off in the heated pool a the hotel. Our hotel wasn't fancy but it did the job. We could walk to wherever we wanted to go and we needed that after stuffing our faces with all.the.foods. 

Breakfast!!! WHAAAAT?

A victorious weekend getaway!

Kimono Girl

I have had this kimono for a while but just haven't gotten around to wearing it yet. Do not ask me why. Actually, ask me. It's because my closet is a mess. It needs major help but I'm being lazy about it and rationalizing with myself that I am going to switch over to a spring wardrobe soon so why bother? Why bother cleaning up all the sweaters and scarves right now when I'm just going to be packing them up soon. But really, it's not going to be soon. Winter is here to stay for a few more weeks thanks to that pesky groundhog.

Let's see...what else. I'm still addicted to sugar. Paleo is still going strong for me. I've been posting recipes and meal photos over on Instagram. The hubby and I went to Gatlinburg last week end and I binged on bad, bad (super tasty) food and felt like crap. My skin suffered, my belly hurt, I was bloated beyond belief and felt like a whale. Was it worth it? I can't decide. Probably so. I don't know. The skin thing is what kills me because it's not like a tummy ache that goes away the next day. When my skin flares up it takes forever to get it back to normal. I was also super lazy on washing my face on vacation too. That definitely contributed to the disaster.

I am trying to make February the month I focus on fitness. My BIGGEST barrier in overall health. I have found a great hip hop dance class on Thursday nights that only costs $1 to attend. I LOVE it. I get great cardio and after an hour of dancing I feel like I have done something really fun. Fun, cheap exercise! I also have a Denise Austin Amazon Prime video that I do. I need to buy the Jillian one because she kicks my butt. Denise's is one I can do almost by memory and it hurts in just the right places at just the right amounts.

Outfit Details:

Kimon: Ebay

Leggings: Dollar Store

Tunic: Walmart

Necklace: NY&Co

Cropped Girl

This cropped maroon (oxblood?) colored sweater has almost been donated many, many times. But I just can't call it quits just yet. It always talks to me and says "I know I look so 90's but I can also be rocker chic too!" So I listen to it. Each time. Yes, cropped sweater, I hear what you're saying.

Outfit details: 

Cropped Sweater: Thrifted

Skirt: NY&Co

Boots: Thrifted

Tights & Socks: Ebay