Color Just Makes Me Happy

Last year I was interviewed by a fellow blogger and one of the questions I was asked was: How do you make yourself stand out? Well, obviously my response had to do with my usage of color...lots and lots of color. As a rationale for my choice to saturate my wardrobe with bright colors, I stated, "Color just makes me happy". When my husband read this he laughed, claiming it makes me sound "simple", but who doesn't smile simply just a little bit when they see something that's colorful? Simple joys, like color, are important. As you might already know, my love of color isn't confined to just my wardrobe and accessories. It also extends to backgrounds! As you will see in the pictures below, I found a very colorful backdrop thanks to these funky bike racks at a Southern California outdoor mall. Again, they just happened to match what I was wearing to a T!

Speaking of colorful accessories, the shoes I am wearing might be my all time favorite style of shoes period and that's saying a lot because I have a sea of shoes in my closet! These "Dulci" kitten heel pump from J. Crew have everything I want in a shoe. The heel isn't too high and can be worn for work. On top of this, the variety of colors and patterns they come in are out of this world. I am on my third pair and looking to add to my colorful collection every time they come out in a new shade or pattern. The ones I am wearing today with the colorful jewels are probably my favorite, but I wouldn't mind a leopard print pair or one of the options I've featured below either.

Shirt: Forever 21
Pants: J. Crew Factory
Shoes:  J. Crew "Dulci" kitten heel pumps
Bag: Prada Saffiano Lux tote in Papaya
Necklace: Anthropologie
Sunglasses: Prada

Shop the post below:

Linking Up With: How I Fall, Still Being Molly, Shoe and Tell

Turning Heads,  Garay Treasures

On Trend Tuesday 

Totally Inspired in Lace and Stripes

Last August I finally joined Instagram and in doing so I learned a lot about hashtags and unfamiliar terms like "flat lay". (In case you're in the dark like I was, a "flat lay" is basically an outfit post with clothing laid out on a flat surface, usually a white board, to highlight the individual pieces of clothing or accessories.) Well, in my opinion, no one does the "flat lay" better than Lisa of Respect the Shoes. Her outfit ideas are pure inspiration and always on point. So I just had to steal this one look I'm showcasing below with a black and white striped shirt and green J. Crew lace skirt. I even copied the idea of adding a pin for a bit of vintage flare. The vintage fan pin I am wearing is from the Pasadena Flea market, which is held every month in the Rose Bowl stadium in the lovely city of Pasadena, California. I tried to haggle for it, but due to my non-confrontational nature this proved to be largely unsuccessful.  I suppose even if the whole pin idea wasn't my own, at least the story behind it is!

Shirt: Target similar
Skirt: J. Crew similar
Shoes: Kate Spade similar
Bag: Chanel budget friendly version here
Belt:  Brooks Brothers here
Sunglasses: Prada here

Linking Up With: Throw Back Thursday, Thursday Fashion Files
Fabulous Friday , Fun Fashion Friday

Neon Love

Last weekend I crossed yet another thing off my to do list: The Museum of Neon Art. The MONA just recently reopened in its new, permanent home of Glendale, California directly across from both one of my favorite malls, the Americana at Brand, and one of my favorite dumpling places, Din Tai Fung. Over the last couple of years on many a shopping/dumpling eating excursion, I would gaze at the construction underway for the MONA, including the addition of the iconic neon diver sign, which you will see below, anticipating the museum's opening. When they announced their official opening a few weeks ago, I knew I wanted to be one of the first to step through their doors!

Below you will  see some of the pictures I took of the MONA. Their collection includes both historical signs that the museum is devoted to preserving and more contemporary neon pieces by artists who use neon as a medium for artistic expression. Personally, my favorites were some of the vintage pieces, including the numerous neon clocks in the gift shop. I hope they put more of these types of pieces on display in the future, because I have a soft spot in my heart for vintage neon.

Read My Lips!

If I was better at planning ahead, I would have posted this dress prior to Valentine's Day, since both the lip pattern and the color scheme are perfect for the holiday of love. But just like red, pink, and hearts, lips too can be worn all year round! Speaking of lips, I recently read an article about what your lip prints (not the ones printed on your clothes, but the patterns your lipstick makes) says about you. In fact, you can read it here if you are so inclined. I guess it's sort of like reading tea leaves, palms or handwriting, only with lipstick. Did I analyze the print of my lips? Actually, no. In college I went to both a fortune teller, albeit one at Knott's Berry Farm, and had my handwriting analyzed for fun by someone in my dorm. I had little faith in these sources to begin with and that was only confirmed by the readings I received, but, then again, I'm naturally a bit of a skeptic.

Since any article of clothing or accessory with lips can be charming all year round, not just for February 14th, I've selected some of my other lip-laden favorites. With the aforementioned article in my mind, I am now looking at the unique shape and size of each of the lip patterns featured on the items below and wondering what analysts might infer about each one. Well, regardless of what your lips say about you as a person, I think wearing lip prints definitely shows that you have a fun, romantic and whimsical side!

1. Face cross body, 2. Lip Tee, 3. Glitter smoking slippers,

4.  Lip ballet flats, 5. iPhone case

6. Red lip cross body, 7. White pumps, 8. Coin purse

Dress: Nordstroms similar here

Shoes: J. Crew Factory version here

Jacket: Old Navy other denim jackets here

Bag: J. Crew  similar here

Belt: here

Pom Pom: Etsy other pom pom bag charms here

Sunglasses: Prada here

Linking Up With: Thursday Fashion Files, Throw Back Thursday
Flashback Friday, Fab Favorites, Fun Fashion Friday, Fabulous Friday
Shoe and Tell, Still Being Molly, How I Fall 
On Trend Tuesday, Garay Treasures, Turning Heads

My Asymmetrical Heart

Happy Valentine's Day! I'm not sure that Valentine's Day is my most favorite holiday, but it is one of my favorites to dress for. I have a lot of red and pink in my wardrobe, not to mention heart prints. For example, I have a total of three heart sweaters, but this asymmetrical one from Target is by far my favorite. It seems to go with just about everything and the fact that the heart is slightly askew and off center, like yours truly, makes it even better. In the past I have paired this sweater with floral and houndstooth, but in this iteration I went with a painterly brushstroke print skirt. I actually wore this outfit to Chick-fil-A and an auto dealership to look at cars: what could be more romantic than that? (Please note the sarcasm in case that wasn't already clear.) Today, for the actual day, I think my husband and I will just hunker down and make dinner together, which is what we usually do to celebrate. I personally wouldn't have Valentine's any other way!

Sweater: Target
Skirt: Kate Spade
Bag: Kate Spade Nora crossbody
Bag Charm: Etsy more pom pom options here
Shoes: Christian Louboutin 70mm Simple Pumps here
Sunglasses: Prada similar here

Linking Up: Hello Monday, How I Fall, Still Being Molly, Shoe and Tell
 I will wear what I like
On Trend Tuesday , Garay Treasures, Turning Heads

Kaleidoscope of Options

Sometimes having too many options can be a curse, rather than a blessing. I often think this is what afflicts many women, such as myself, who complain that they have nothing to wear, even though they have a closet full of options. Picking from too many things is oddly just as stifling as picking from too few options. This is always what happens when I decide to wear my crazy kaleidoscopic skirt from Tracy Reese. To be honest, it's one of my favorite skirts from the last few years or so due to the fact that it features every color in the rainbow, but because of this it's often difficult to decide what to wear it with because you actually could wear it with just about anything. The sky is the limit!

I decided, because it is still technically winter (although lately here in Los Angeles it feels more like summer with temperatures into the nineties!), to go with a more subdued color on top. In this case it is a dark maroon wool sweater. The subtle color of the top and my nude shoes allows for some experimentation with more colorful accessories. In mixing some neutrals with neon I hopefully avoided looking like a walking box of crayons!

I also was presented with a variety of options regarding backdrops. Unfortunately, the sun was out in full force the day of these photos, which made for some awkward shadows. Although this limited my backdrop choices, I was given two really good ones. I couldn't decide between the colorful bicycle racks, which happen to match my skirt, and the citrus mural that also matched my skirt. As you can see, I selected both. Why not take advantage of as many options as you can?

Skirt: Tracy Reese love this colorful version
Sweater: J. Crew here
Bag: Coach similar style here
Shoes: Christian Louboutin "Simple" 70mm pump here
Sunglasses: Prada "Baroque" here
Necklace: Anthropologie ribbon style option here