Gold Stars for New Year's Eve

So, to be completely transparent, this is the outfit I wore on Christmas Eve, not New Year's Eve. (New Year's Eve will probably be spent in plaid pajamas!) With that being said, I think this look would make for a fun New Year's Eve outfit because of all of the gold and sparkles! I absolutely adore this fun velvet star skirt for the holidays, or any time! This is the second year in a row that J. Crew has come out with pretty much the same velvet style skirt with an elastic waist band. Last year, I bought the skirt in a goldenrod color and I couldn't pass up this year's version in navy with gold stars!

I chose this mosaic wall to showcase my outfit because it always reminds me of Van Gogh's Starry Night.  I think the association is most likely due to the color palette featured in both artworks. I thought the wall would complement my star skirt because of the celestial feeling it gives off. Speaking of things that complement my star skirt, I obviously had to go for the gold with gold accessories to bring out the stars in the skirt. As I mentioned in my previous post, these gold flats have become a holiday favorite for me, as has this sparkly gold statement necklace. All in all, it's the perfect ensemble for a starry night, whether it be New Year's Eve or any other night!

Skirt: J. Crew here
Shirt: Target here
Bag: Clare V.  here
Shoes: Butter similar gold glitter flats here
Necklace: J. Crew similar here
Sunglasses: Celine

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Llamas and Lace

I love dressing up statement tees and there's no better time to do that than around the holidays! This particular statement tee features llamas. Yes, I am obsessed with llamas! (Just see my last post entitled "Fa La La La Llamas"!) The tee here is called "Winter Llama Tee" and it's from J. Crew Factory. Although I think it's intended for Christmas, there's nothing that exactly screams "Christmas" about the tee, so it can really be worn all winter long. Plus, it's a great deal right now at under $15, so now is the time to get in on the after Christmas sales while the selections are still relatively plentiful!

I made my llama tee dressy by pairing it with this lovely green lace skirt. Although the skirt is from last year, there is a similar one from J. Crew Factory in the same shade of green and there's also this J. Crew lace skirt that's almost exactly the same as last year's version, save for the elastic waist band. I also added some gold accessories to bring out the gold in the llamas. I think I have worn these gold glitter flats more than any other shoes this holiday season! They are so comfy and they match everything, including my llama tee, so they are truly the perfect shoe for this time of year!

Tee: J. Crew Factory here
Skirt: J. Crew similar here, here
Shoes: Butter similar gold flats here
Bag: Kate Spade similar gold kate spade bag here
Sunglasses: Celine

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Merry Christmas!

William and I would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! This is my second year taking a picture with William in the park for Christmas and I will have to say that every year it becomes more difficult! You have no idea how many outtakes and just plain bad photos it took just to get a few that were salvageable. Well, the important thing is not necessarily getting the perfect photo (although that's nice) but enjoying the moment and spending time with the ones you love, like my husband and my dog. They are definitely the ones that have made this year and the holidays so special!

William didn't like this particular trip to the park because he has a phobia of skateboards and several kids on skateboards were near the the park, which sent William into a tizzy! He spent most of the "photo shoot" whimpering and looking around, paranoid that the aforementioned skateboarders might come closer. Well, even though he didn't really calm down much, it was definitely a fun Christmas memory, or at least it is now, looking back at it! Christmas, much like blogging, is something we all want to pretend will go off seamlessly and without a hitch, but sometimes it's the imperfections that we remember most. So, on that note, I hope you have the most perfect of Christmases and if not, find the positive in the day or look at whatever went wrong and find a way to have a good laugh over it, maybe over a glass of wine...or two!

Shirt: Old Navy here
Jeans: Old Navy similar jeans here
Shoes: J. Crew similar plaid shoes here
William's Reindeer Ears: 99 Cent Only store

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So Festive!

I wore this outfit on the last day of school before winter break. The universal reaction to it was, "Wow! You look so festive!"(Literally, at least ten people said almost that exact same thing to me!) Indeed, a gold pleated skirt and a red ruffle plaid button down definitely qualify as being very festive, which was what I was aiming for with this outfit. As I stated in my previous post, in the last few days before Christmas I am definitely trying to wear all of the plaid and holiday styles I possibly can!

Sure, I could have just worn this plaid button down with a pair of jeans, which is what most teachers wear on the last day before break or just in general, but I wanted to be a little extra, as that's kind of my style. Without a doubt, I think the gold skirt definitely brought the wow factor to the look! While the gold is very appropriate for Christmas, it would also be fun and festive for New Year's Eve as well, although, to be honest, I think I might go with a silver skirt instead. You see, last year I bought a silver pleated skirt, so it only made sense that this year I had to also get a gold one too! I guess, much like plaid, one can never have too much silver and gold!

Skirt: J. Crew here, gold velvet version here
Blouse: J. Crew Factory similar plaid ruffle blouse here and here
Shoes: Christian Louboutin
Bag: Clare V. here
Sunglasses: Prada

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Plaid Pattern Mixing

I instantly fell in love with this plaid shift dress from J. Crew! It's the type of dress that could be worn on its own for a more dressy look or layered for a look that is decidedly more casual.  Since I was just going out and doing some holiday shopping while wearing this dress, I decided to go with the latter. Additionally, I decided to add my own unique stamp on the look by throwing some pattern mixing into the mix! I thought this dress went perfectly with a fun polka dot button down shirt. It turned out to be a great way to a do a fun little twist on traditional plaid!

As usual, there's always a mad rush to wear all the plaid you can before the holidays! There's really only a one month window for plaid, although I would argue that you could extend your wear of it until New Year's Day, so perhaps the window is just a little bigger! I have at least a couple more plaid looks that I am going to try to squeeze in before then on the blog, so stay tuned!

Dress: J. Crew here, another plaid option here
Shirt: Lauren Conrad similar polka dot button down
Bag: Louis Vuitton budget friendly red tote option here
Shoes: J. Crew
Sunglasses: Prada here

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Colorful Plaid Sweater

Now that there is less than a week until Christmas, I am into "full plaid mode"! Since red and green plaid is usually only worn around the holidays, it always seems like there is a rush to wear all the plaid one can around this time of year. It is nice, however, to have some plaid that is not so seasonal in nature, plaid that can be worn all winter long. Better yet, it's fantastic to have colorful plaid, which is where this colorful plaid sweater comes into play! I saw this vibrant plaid sweater online at Anthropologie numerous times over the last month or so but it wasn't until I saw it in person at the store that I knew I had to get it! Plus, it's now on sale with an extra 40% off, which only sweetens the deal!

Technically, I would classify this as a sweater coat as it is fairly long. When I was in college sweater coats were all the rage and I remember owning several that received a lot of wear during the winter months. In a way, this plaid sweater brought me make to fond memories of lounging around the dorm or taking finals in college in a sweater coat, so I guess it was a bit nostalgic for me to wear this colorful sweater today!

Last but not least, I feel obliged to share my husband's comments on my new sweater. As you may know, my husband always has wonderful "insights" into my wardrobe.  When I received this sweater in the mail and took it out to try on, my husband said it he really liked my new, colorful bathrobe! I'm not going to disagree with him on that, although I would argue that it's one of the more fashionable bathrobes that I have seen!

Sweater: Anthropologie here
Jeans: Old Navy
Necklace: J. Crew similar here
Bag: Gucci similar purple gucci here
Shoes: Saks Fifth Avenue similar leopard loafers

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