Viewing entries tagged
leopard

weekend trip packing

February 24, 2014

Last weekend, I had the chance to visit both of my sisters in Atlanta. We had a great time, did lots of shopping, and ate so much good food. (If you're in Atlanta or planning to visit, we ate at Fritti, Leon's Full Service, and Two Urban Licks, and I would recommend them all) I always want to pack lightly, but especially didn't want to lug around a heavy suitcase in my current state. I traveled on a Friday morning and returned on Monday afternoon.

It was still chilly in both St. Louis and (less so in) Atlanta, so I took plenty of layering pieces. I would normally have taken a slightly sleeker boot, but I just wanted to be comfortable, so the Dankso booties were it (only available on eBay at this point).

What I packed:
1) lightweight cropped trench
2) draped black tee
3) leopard coat (worn on plane)
4) printed top (worn on plane, you can see the actual top I wore in this post)
5) drapey black cardigan (worn on plane)
6) white long sleeved tee
7) black leggings (worn on plane)
8) lightweight black scarf (worn on plane)
9) Converse
10) dark skinny jeans
11) Linea Pelle Dylan bag (carried on plane)
12) statement necklace (this one is Stella and Dot-no longer available, I just layered a few)
13) Dansko boots (worn on plane)

Since I wore 7 out of these 13 pieces on the plane (including the heavier pair of shoes), my bag was pretty light. Here's what I wore on the plane and to dinner out the first night:

For a day of shopping and eating:

That night, I changed my top and shoes and added a necklace for dinner out:

weekend trip packing night out outfit.jpg

A second day of walking around town, including, um, more shopping and eating....

packing for a weekend trip casual outfit converse.jpg

And on the flight back, I wore the exact same thing as my first travel day.

Some photos IRL:

how to pack for a weekend trip mindful closet

mindful closet - how to pack for a weekend trip

What makes this so easy is that I had two basic outfits that I could tweak a little bit for various occasions. I definitely don't think for a four day trip that you need more than that, and I felt like I could have easily gone a few more days without needing anything more. Essentially, those two outfits were a flowy top and leggings and jeans and a tee. For traveling I layered on a scarf, sweater, and coat to my top and leggings, but it also stood on its own for dinner the night I got in and activities the day I left. By just changing the top layer and my shoes, the jeans and tee worked for casual day activities and nights out as well.

What do you think - did I pack enough or too much?

want more tips on how to stop overpacking and my minimalist travel packing planner?
Go here.

basics+leopard

January 30, 2014

I wore this over the weekend and felt both comfortable and put together.

click on photo for sources - these are not the items I own, just similar.

All basics, plus the addition of a scarf. Easy.

A few other items of note:

If you would like some help with your wardrobe, shopping, or any other mindful closet services, hop on over to Sara's blog, Running from the Law, to see how I styled her Christmas photos and enter a giveaway for my services!

Any brides-to-be out there? I had a great time styling 12 brides, 2 grooms, and 2 bridesmaids with dresses, suits, accessories, jewelry, and shoes for the ALIVE Bride show. The show was presentation style, with three distinct looks: The Rustic Wedding, The Non-Traditional Wedding, and the Traditional Wedding. You can see photos here.

I have a new favorite blog, per Lindsay's recommendation: The Veda House. Cassie is a St. Louis based graphic designer and photo stylist. I love the aesthetic of her blog and her home, as well as her honesty about the ups and downs of making a freelance career doing something you love.

Happy almost weekend, y'all!

leather+stripes+leopard

January 28, 2014

My love for leopard shows no signs of abating. I have to consciously resist adding to my collection. This scarf is one of those faux fur loop through type deals that were really popular a couple of years ago and I love finding new ways to wear it.

When it's as cold as it's been here in St. Louis, I go ahead and make a scarf a permanent part of my outfit, not to be removed with my coat. This leather jacket was also worn all day. They kept me warm! I fashioned a cowl out of my scarf and pinned the ends so they'd stay in place. I often will also pin this scarf to a jacket as a makeshift faux fur collar.

I paired my scarf with a thrifted striped tee, very old leather jacket from Banana Republic, Franco Sarto suede booties, and Paige jeans, which are the one pair of non-maternity jeans I'm still able to wear! So exciting.

How are all of you dealing with the cold?

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turn up the ac and pretend it's fall

September 13, 2013

Because we live in a day of lightening fast updates and immediate information, the Spring 2014 shows just wrapped up in New York, but we haven't even actually hit fall yet. To pull us back from the future, here are a few of my favorite Fall 2013 looks (which showed in February).

My favorite color, leopard, was big.
(all Burberry Prorsum except for center image-Wren)

Leather is everywhere.
(L to R: 3.1 Phillip Lim, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Zero+Maria Cornejo, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Helmut Lang)

Gold belts are sticking around.
(L to R: Balmain, Day Birger and Mikkelsen, Balmain, Burberry Prorsum)

Per usual, there were lots of jewel tones, but cobalt and navy blue are definitely taking precedence over other shades.
(L to R: 3.1 Phillip Lim, Zero+Maria Cornejo, Wren, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Wren)

Lovely patterns and textures.
(L to R: Alice+Olivia, Day Birger and Mikkelsen, Jill Stuart, Alice+Olivia, Wren)

Minimalism continues its slow return from the 90's.
(L to R: Jenni Kayne, Jenni Kayne, Balenciaga, Balenciaga)

I'm excited for fall and for the weather to allow me to wear more than a tank top - are you?

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best buy: leopard coat

March 22, 2013

I started looking for a leopard coat last fall. I think my husband was pretty worried when I first mentioned it. He was probably picturing something like this:

(Patricia Arquette in Law and Order: SVU, via stylealchemy.com)

So in order to avoid that look, I was searching for something not too bulky and not cheap in appearance. This one was my fantasy purchase (A.P.C., via lagarconne.com).

But since that wasn't an option at $1,985, I kept looking. This one at Zara was a contender. It was around $200 (I think), but I wasn't completely sold. However,
I was sold on the styling, as you'll see below.

Finally, I found this one on Ebay. It's actually from Zara as well. I think it was $79. Other than not being warm enough to get me through a St. Louis winter, it's perfect. It's the kind of thing that you feel as though you can just throw it on and it makes everything you're wearing better. I get tons of complements on it. It goes with jeans and a t-shirt, or is the perfect thing to spice up your little black dress. Definitely a best buy. And also, you've now seen my dirty little secret - if I like a look, I copy it shamelessly.

coat: Zara via ebay, tee: H&M, jeans: thrifted, clog boots: dansko

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