Fa La La La Llama!

I know that this llama dress isn't exactly the most Christmassy dress in the world but I wanted to feature it because it was a recent Black Friday purchase from Anthropologie and I thought it might be a nice break from all of the plaid! Also, the weather here this weekend was on the warm side, so I thought it would be the perfect occasion to give the dress a spin. I love animals and, as you may know, I have a lot of clothing with animal prints but I especially love llamas, so this dress felt like it was made for me. Yes, as I predicted last spring, llamas have become the new hot animal and, to be quite honest, I can't get enough of them!

So, to make this post a little bit more in keeping with the Christmas spirit, I have purchased quite a few llama themed holiday items. Last year, I purchased a light up llama from Target, which was the subject of a very epic Instagram story video because it was the last llama of its kind left in the store and it was quite the ordeal trying to get it! This year, I bought a llama tree topper from Anthropologie, which is now adorning our tree in the place of a star. Even though my mother, my husband, and and my father-in-law each described it using the word "interesting", I'm still a fan of it! I guess I am a little bit biased because I am, after all, a self proclaimed llama lover! Below, you will find some of my favorite holiday llama gifts for the llama lover in your life!

Dress: Anthropologie here, shirt version
another yellow dress option here 
Bag: Dooney and Bourke here
Shoes: J. Crew similar red pumps here
Sunglasses: Prada

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Unbearably Cute!

I think I'm on a critter kick with my wardrobe lately! My last post featured an adorable llama sweater from J. Crew and in this post I'm featuring my new polar bear pencil skirt from Talbot's! I guess I'm just a sucker for clothing featuring cute animals! Let's face it, polar bears are unbearably cute, especially when they are embroidered on skirt! (I would imagine that, face to face, they may not be so adorable!)

I've just recently started shopping at Talbot's because I think they've done a wonderful job with their line of clothing for winter. Their clothing is preppy, colorful, and festive, which are three things that I love! When I was a teenager, I remember shopping at Talbot's with my mother and grandmother and thinking that the styles were very dated and "old" looking. I will have to say, however, that over the last year or so, the brand seems more trendy, fun, and youthful, which means the styles can truly be worn by women of all ages.

Since this skirt was one of my first purchases from Talbot's, I'll just add a quick note about sizing for any other first time Talbot's shoppers who might be reading this. (This would have been helpful for me before making my first purchase!) The sizing on all of their clothing seems to run a bit large. I bought both this Talbot's skirt and a sweater in my usual J. Crew size and, unfortunately, they were way too big. I had to take the skirt to the store to exchange it for a size smaller. Luckily, the people working at Talbot's were some of the most helpful, friendly sales associates I've ever met. No, this isn't a sponsored post from Talbot's, but I did genuinely enjoy their product offerings and my shopping experience in the store!

Shirt: Old Navy classical flannel shirt here
Skirt: Talbot's polar bear velveteen skirt here
Shoes: J. Crew similar red flats here
Bag: Dooney and Bourke Alto tassel bag here
Belt: Target similar gold glitter belt here
Sunglasses: Celine

Think Pink!

To be honest, I think every year I add about one or two new blazers to my collection. I now have pretty much all of the colors of the rainbow covered! This pink Dover blazer from J. Crew was my latest addition. Surprisingly, pink was one of the few colors missing from my collection. In addition to loving this particular light shade of pink, I also loved the price of the blazer, which came in at just under $90. You can't beat that for a wool blazer!

As I mentioned above, I now have a rainbow assortment of blazers, which all seem to match perfectly with my equally large collection of rainbow striped sweaters! The one I am wearing here was purchased a little while ago from the J. Crew factory and has gotten a lot of use as of late. Although it's no longer available, the Gap has a very similar one in a stunning "crazy stripe" print that I really love for the holidays! Talbot's also has a cute rainbow stripe sweater and, believe it or not, I purchased it during Cyber Monday! (I know, I said I wouldn't buy anything...oops!) So look for this sweater soon on my blog!

One final note: if you are paying close attention to the background of these photos, you might notice the grape vines behind me. I know what you're thinking: is Katie in Napa, Sonoma, or Paso Robles? Actually, I'm in Rancho Cucamonga for some wine tasting much closer to home! The amazing thing about Los Angeles is that you don't have to travel very far to find some fantastic wineries right in your own back yard. This is yet another thing to love about Los Angeles!

Blazer: J. Crew "Dover" blazer here, pink J. Crew Factory version
Sweater: J. Crew Factory similar here and here
Jeans: Old Navy similar here
Bag: Dooney and Bourke "Alto" here, similar here
Shoes: J. Crew similar red pumps
Sunglasses: Celine here