One Is Silver And The Other’s Gold

Since moving out to Los Angeles, it hasn’t been super easy to make friends that compare to my friends back home. It used to make me feel homesick until I realized that I would never be able to replicate that and that’s ok. That’s why they are so important to me and we make such an effort to visit each other even though we’re all scattered across the country. They are irreplaceable.

That being said, I’ve come to realize the great value of the new friends I have made in LA. I truly believe that people come into your life at specific times for a reason. I feel that since I’ve moved out here, the people who have come into mine are now my new irreplaceables. I have somehow unintentionally, but very luckily surrounded myself with people who have accepted me, motivated me, inspired me and supported me so incredibly much. I don’t know how I could ever repay these kinds of friends.

These photos and this outfit tell a story that goes beyond just pics for a fashion blog. The shirt and necklace were lent to me by my friend after I told her that her outfit was adorable and I wanted to feature it on my blog. I meant that I wanted to take pictures of her in it, but next thing I know, she’s literally taking the shirt off her back for me and she gave it to me to wear for a blog post. I decided to pair it with white cut off shorts because I’m super into the white on white look right now!

My other friend is the one who took these photos. She enjoys photography, I enjoy doing fashion blog pics and we enjoy hanging out with each other…so that’s all there is to it. She asks for nothing in return. It’s friends like these that I am so incredibly grateful for. She also pushed me to start this blog, she helped me design it and she referred me for a part time job as a stylist at StitchFix.com, WHICH I GOT! I look at where I was before I moved out here and how certain things were only a far fetched dream and where I am now… a fashion stylist and blogger. I may not have tons of followers, but this is my passion and I’m doing it. That’s what matters.

Thank you to my old friends who continue to love and support me unconditionally like sisters and to my new friends who I already feel like I’ve known forever who not only constantly push me to be my best self but take their time and energy to help me get there. I appreciate these people so incredibly much!

Top: Paper Crane | Shorts: Paris Blues | Necklace: Pegasus | Shoes: Franco Sarto | Bracelets: Urban Outfitters

Bag: Urban Outfitters | Jacket: Levi’s | Sunglasses: Ray Ban’s

Just Your Average Saturday

Top: Forever 21 | Pants: J.Crew | Bag: Urban Outfitters | Sandals: American Eagle

I’m not here to talk about what I wore to Coachella although I secretly wish I was. I’m just here to talk about what I wore on a normal Saturday spent in Studio City, CA, going out to eat and running errands. When it comes to every day style, I’m all about comfort, flattery and simple chic looks. I’m really into being able to throw on a light, airy, pseudo crop top and then getting creative with what bottoms to pair it with, whether it be jeans, shorts or these drawstring pants pictured here.

I’ve also noticed I’ve been adding many shades of blue as I build my wardrobe. It seems to have become a staple neutral for me. I added a colorful bag with this outfit because I felt it complimented the shirt quite well. I also like incorporating pops of color into my otherwise neutral outfits. To top it off, a pair of white strappy sandals and I’m ready to face my… rather uneventful day. A good outfit can definitely put an extra pep in your step even if you have nothing to get ready for or no one to impress. Do it for yourself. And be creative with pieces that you feel comfortable in. While I love the idea of other bloggers or fashion icons inspiring you (it’s where I am always getting inspiration from) don’t feel you have to jump on board with every single trend or completely copy anyone else’s style. There are many trends out there that I feel as a fashion blogger, I am supposed to get on board with, but it’s just not me. I like to “stay in vogue” as I say, but am careful not to lose sight of what I truly want to wear, not what I think I’m supposed to wear.

A lot of the pieces in this post are many years old, but it’s working in 2015 when put together correctly. Try taking another look at your closet in a new light before feeling defeated and wishing you could go on a shopping spree. Lastly, remember that confidence is everything!

Stitch Fix – My First Fix

| Top and Pants: Stitch Fix | Necklace: J.Crew | Shoes: Target | Bag: Fossil | Bracelet: Target |

| Jacket: Forever 21 |

For those of you who:

A. Don’t have time to shop

B. Hate to shop

C. Don’t know what to buy when you shop

D. Like surprises

E. Are lazy

F. All of the above

Look no further!

One of my good friends and the lovely lady who takes all the quality pictures on this blog (as opposed to all the other iPhone pics on here, shameful, I know), Ashley, introduced me to a website called Stitch Fix. Ashley is a Stylist for Stitch Fix which is a part time job that you do from your computer at home. It sounded like my ideal way to make some extra money while doing something I love!  She referred me to become a Stylist and I applied for the job online. I’m still waiting to hear back, so fingers crossed!

So now that you’ve all put out positive vibes for me to get this job, let’s get down to it. What is Stitch Fix you ask? It’s a quite simple yet brilliant concept. Granted, I’ve only done this once, so I’m no expert in the matter. With that in mind, I am just going to go over the basic way it works as well as my first experience.

You fill out a profile on the website about your personal style. You answer questions about the kind of clothes you like to wear, what your lifestyle is like, what you spend most of your time doing, your body type, your typical clothing sizes, colors you like, would you describe your style as girly, edgy, classic, nautical?… etc. You also get a chance to specify things that you do not like. It allows you to give your Pinterest profile as well to help the stylist see the kinds of things you would want in your wardrobe. Best of all, you can specify your personal budget and what the most you would want to spend on each type of clothing item is. Once you fill out your profile you can order your “fix”. You have the option of ordering a one time fix or you can get fixes sent to you monthly.

A fix is a package that gets mailed to you with 5 items chosen for you by a stylist that has been appointed to you based on your profile. You put in your credit card info and pay $20 to have this package put together and sent. Once it arrives, which is usually in a week or so, you get to try everything on and decide what you want to keep and what you want to send back in the included prepaid envelope. You have 3 days to decide. Once you decide what you’re keeping, you go to your Stitch Fix account and check out. You purchase the items you want to keep (minus the $20 you already paid to get it sent) and tell them what is being sent back and why. If you decide to buy all 5 of the items, you get a 25% discount for doing so. Then you can give feedback to your stylist so she can keep up the good work or improve on your next fix!

If you find a stylist that you thought did a good job and you want to use again, you have the option while ordering a fix to request a specific stylist (Ashley Fischer is really good!!). The fixes come with a personalized note from the stylist herself giving you tips on how you can wear the items she sent.

So that’s it! I decided to request my friend Ashley to be my stylist and got my first fix to see for myself. I did have the advantage of having my friend as my stylist. Other than that, I could see from what I got, the website clearly has an inventory of quality and trendy stuff. They have pants, tops, jackets, sweaters, jewelry, and bags.

When my fix arrived, it felt like Christmas morning. That’s the beauty of it. You don’t know what you’re getting, so you get super excited when it arrives, eagerly open the package and see what’s in store. You get to try the items on in the comfort of your own home and take 3 days to make a decision. There’s much more of an anticipation, excitement and leisure to it than actual shopping. I loved everything I got in my fix. My stylist/friend seemed to have had my fashion sense pinned.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t keep all 5 items just because I couldn’t afford to buy all of them (though the 25% discount does help a little!). The only tough part about this process is having to part with items that you already have in your possession that you want to keep so badly.

I decided to keep two items in my fix that I felt were staple and versatile. I kept a pair of black jeggings which have a quilted leather strip down the side of the pant. They are super comfortable and sleek. I also kept a loose black tank with a sheer black and white polka dotted back. I’m loving the all black look. You can make it edgy or classic, but I like to make it a mix of both.

I suggest you all try out Stitch Fix at least once if for nothing else but to have that feeling of Christmas morning when your fix arrives. If you don’t like anything in your fix then you can tell your stylist how to do better next time or you never have to do it again, but there’s not much risk in trying! I plan to do it again soon myself!

If you want to try it out, click here to use my referral link!

I hope you all had a wonderful Valentines Day full of love. Whether you’re sharing love with your significant other, cat, dog, children, parents, BFF…but most of all, I hope you remembered yesterday as well as every day, to love yourself!

The Dressed Up Sweatpant

| Pants: Mine | Boots: Ziara | Jacket: Xhiliration | Top: The Gap | Bag: Melie Bianco |

 | Necklace: Bauble Bar |

I’m taking full advantage of this dressy sweatpants trend I’ve been seeing around LA. The perfect mix of put-together yet entirely effortless and comfortable is something I can always get behind. The leather stripe down the side of these fitted sweatpants subtly tell you, “yes I may be sweatpants, but I’m not sloppy, I’m chic!”… and I think the many compliments I got on these pants spoke to that point. Pairing them with leather black booties, a fitted black top, statement necklace and gray leather jacket made sure to further prove this to be a polished look and not pajamas (but they sure feel like it!).

There are many ways to wear dressy sweatpants and I plan to get myself another pair! I included my own look as well as some looks from Pinterest that inspired me. I recommend going out and getting your own pair…or better yet, repurpose a pair you already have by pairing them with some heels and owning this cozy winter trend!

Pinterest- the gateway drug

I shall warn you all….Pinterest is a gateway drug  to shopaholism. Yes I already had signs of being a shopaholic very early on in life, but once I was introduced to Pinterest it was all down hill from there. I not only live in a very fashion forward city where I see new trends all the time, but I am addicted to Pinterest, where trends are brought to my attention and then thrown in my face over and over and over again telling me “YOU NEED THIS IN ORDER TO LIVE A HAPPY LIFE”.

Now, I’m all about being a trend SETTER, not always a follower, but in my opinion personal STYLE is more of an expression of yourself than whether or not you follow or set trends. It’s how you wear current trends, how you put outfits together that is the art of it all.

I’m sure many of you can relate with me on being PINspired to go shopping (see what I did there?). The main problem is most of us just don’t have endless amounts of money to go out and buy everything we see on Pinterest.

Here are the things that I consider so as not to go out and buy every single new trend:

1. Is it practical? Something you could wear with many different outfits, a neutral color, not too dressy (for those of us who aren’t getting dressed for cocktail parties on a daily basis), comfortable, something you’d want to wear every day, something that would be flattering on you…

2. Is it something you could foresee as still being fashionable in years to come? A classic staple. Not overly trendy.

3. Can you stop thinking about it? If you see a trend and find yourself noticing every other person who has it and being extremely envious of them and lay awake at night lusting after it, just do yourself a favor… get it! You can have it too ya know! As long as you’re selective with the things you want to splurge on, it’s ok!

4. Can you find something similar to it for cheaper than what’s shown on Pinterest? Don’t just click on the Pinterest link and buy it for hundreds of dollars. Take your time to look around and see if you can find similar trends at cheaper stores. The trend isn’t going anywhere for a while, just relax and wait until you see the best deal. (This has always been the most difficult feat for me. When I want something I want it NOW).

So– following all these rules, there were two trends I went for in the past few weeks.

A. Combat boots

B. Aztec print sweater

I’ve always been a fan of both boots and chunky sweaters in fall/winter time, but I LOVE the aztec print I’m seeing around. Also can’t get enough of combat boots. I just think they can look cute with so many different things, even with dresses or skirts and tights.

In the first picture shown, I am wearing an open front aztec print sweater from Urban Outfitters (can be purchased here). I will admit they have these everywhere and very similar styles at places like Forever 21 where you can get them even cheaper than I did (similar look).

I DID do a good job though on bargain shopping for these combat boots shown in the second two pictures. A place called Lexy Couture in the Burbank Town Center mall is just full of crazy cheap trendy shoes. Not only do these look like they could be expensive leather boots, but they’re super comfortable as well. It was buy one get one half off, so I also got a pair of black combat boots as well. Two pairs of combat boots for 50 bucks! Gotta give myself a pat on the back for that one. (Shown with oversized navy knit sweater from Gap, Jeans from Urban Outfitters, Necklace from J.Crew)

What are the trends you can’t get enough of this fall season?