must have: chunky knit sweater

1. {for work} one | two | three | four | five

2. {for play} one | two | three | four | five | six

3. {for weekend} one | two | three | four | five | six | seven

I bought this chunky knit sweater on a whim last week. There is an H&M in the DC train station that I have proudly avoided during all my work trips in which I travel by train. And let me tell you, there have been a number of opportunities to just "pop in". It is usually the weight of my overpacked luggage or work laptop that dissuades me from stopping in to browse but this past week coming back from Philadelphia, I found myself asking "why the heck not?" Right there in front of me when I walked in was this sweater underneath a sign that said "Weekly Deal -- only $14.95". It is almost as if the universe was rewarding me for avoiding H&M for so long. I think I could actually hear the universe whispering..."Here you go, Nicole! A cream colored chunky knit sweater for less than $20 and it's all yours. You're welcome." Before any purchase, I put the item through a can-I-wear-it-three-ways test which was, truthfully, implemented as a result of a bad impulse purchase habit. Who me? An impulse shopper? Shocking I know. Suffice to say, the sweater passed the test. In fact, I can even wear it a fourth way though not pictured here. I envision it with leggings, a bowl of Special K, the couch and Scandal OnDemand.


How do you wear chunky sweaters?

i really love.....my blush blazer

This blush blazer was a total impulse H&M purchase and turned out to be $35 well spent....unlike that sequins jacket I bought on sale a few years ago (that's a story for another day). The structure and color made it an easy to dress up dresses during the spring and summer and I'm happy to bring it into fall since pink is right on trend this fall. Unfortunately, H&M no longer carries it in pink (online) it does carry it in light beige, black, and natural white. You can check out how I wore it in black here.


STYLE TIP #1
Wear blush with warmer tones in the fall. Think cream, brown and cognac.

STYLE TIP #2
Wear an over sized blazer with jeans, boots and an oversized scarf to make a casual outfit a bit more polished.

Shop other blush blazer options below!

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Original posts:
blush florals
dusty pink
Linking up with Lauren today!

baseball tee for the weekend

A Monday post?! Your eyes do not deceive you. 

I spent some time chatting with a friend this weekend about how to balance a love for your day job with a creative outlet. Do you even need a creative outlet when you love your day to day work? I would say that you do. Well, I do at least. But how do you find time to direct energy into the outlet when most of it is spent on what pays the bills? While the simple answer would be to make the creative outlet pay the bills, alas that is just not my reality right now. So for now, my answer is simply make the time for my outlet (that being this space right hurr).  

And while this may fall into a bigger discussion of being intentional and present, right now I’m re-energized in making this blog what I set out to make it: an outlet for my interests, thoughts, and passions not fulfilled by my professional career. This new energy excites me (and recommits me) to post more often. I think I lost touch with how I wanted to use this space to share little anecdotes, my pursuits of a great deal and how I’m working to create a personal style that is practical, relatable and versatile. .

Which is how we landed here with today’s post. There are two things I have a hard time passing on a road trip: an outlet mall and Taco Bell. I’m not necessarily proud of the latter but I just can’t help it. Throw that shade elsewhere because you know you love it too. I stopped by the outlets on my last road trip (and TB, who am I kidding) because I had a Gilt City deal for 30% off at J.Crew Factory and left a very happy camper. I mentally debated if I could make this shirt both weekend and work appropriate which is a prerequisite of mine before any impulse purchases. Clearly, I decided I could. So be sure to check back later this week to see how I styled it for work. :)

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Baseball Tee- J.Crew Factory

Jeans- Gap

Flats- Banana Republic (similar)

Earrings- J.Crew

black and blush

I've written before about disguising comfortable pants as work appropriate pants so you can imagine my excitement when I started seeing drawstring pants start popping up all over the place.  Lounge wear disguised as work pants and under $100? Pants I can dress up or dress down? Be still my heart.  Since wearing these to work last week, I've a) cut my hair (!) and b) worn them with a white tank, my trusty jean jacket and favorite d'orsay flats. I’m planning on packing them to bring on my trip to SF next week and wearing them with a black top, faux leather jacket and some my strappy sandals (last seen here).

Are you embracing the track pants trend? How are you wearing them?

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Blazer- H&M
Top- Philip Lim x Target
Pants- Gap
Shoes- Target, old (similar)
Bag- Kate Spade (75% off flash sale going on NOW!)

blush florals

I really don't have much to write except that.....

a) I've been getting so much use out of this blazer. It was the best $30 I've spent in a long time.

and b) I can't believe GCB was canceled after one season. Thank goodness for hulu.

^^^ I'm clearly doing some hulu marathoning right now

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Blazer- H&M
Dress- H&M (same pattern but a maxi)

Bag-  Madewell

Sunnies- Anthropologie
Sandals- Banana Republic 

i get it from my mama

Literally, I get it from my mama. This skirt is from my mom's closet and I've loved it forever. Last time I was home, she told me just to quit threatening to steal it and just take it. And now here we are. I'd also like to think I get my smile, my sense of humor and love of shoes from her. Thanks, mom :) I've tried to write a few times how much my mom means to me and I've decided, I'm not sure I'll ever really have the words. She's my best friend. She is strong, independent, selfless, and would give her family the clothes off her back. Or in my case, her favorite skirt in her closet.

Posts about moms flooded my social media feeds yesterday and I kinda loved it. I loved reading all the sweet messages to peoples mamas and sharing what mother figures meant to them. What a beautiful day to be a woman and to see how much love we harness! I know it can be a challenging day for those close to me who have lost their moms or perhaps know they will never be a mom. I hope those special friends were able to surround themselves with uplifting women that remind them they too are an inspiration to others.

What a mushy Monday post. Sorry, I'm not sorry. I can't help it :)

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White shirt- J. Crew Factory
Skirt- Old Navy (old)
Shoes- Gap outlet
Sunnies- Anthropologie
Bag- Madewell
Necklace- Ralph Lauren

polka dots and lace

Happy Monday Tuesday!

I tried to be a responsible blogger and have a post ready to go yesterday but clearly, I failed. At one time, I was so on top of it and scheduled posts in advance but I have fallen off the wagon recently. Whoops!

As mentioned on Friday, I went wine tasting this weekend for a friend's birthday celebration. We bought tickets for a bus which we anticipated being a charter-type bus with 12-15 people or so. Well you can imagine our surprise when a zebra print school bus was parked around the corner waiting for the 9 of us... and 25 other people. Once inside, it wasn't even a school bus with rows of seats; benches lined the perimeter and speakers were blasting a combo of top 40 and 90's boy bands. Oh and on-board mimosas were encouraged. What I really truly thought was going to be a laid back day of wine tasting was a day of winery hopping on a party bus. It was quite the unexpected (but still super fun) little Saturday! 

Naturally, I was a lump on a log on Sunday.

So I had to do everything I planned for Sunday after work on Monday. Including writing this post. 

&& here we are friends. Happy Tuesday.

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Top- J.Crew Factory
Skirt- Target, last season (similar, similar)
Trench- Target
Heels- Target
Bag- Madewell
Glasses- Warby Parker "Baxter"

you guys, its spring

You guys, the sun is finally shining, I've unpacked all my spring and summer clothes, had my first spray tan, and I think it is finally safe to say spring has arrived. And it is remarkable how happy it makes me! You're certainly sick of me writing about the DC weather but with the winter we just had, you have to give me a pass. It felt like forever! 

It's because of a number of things right now -not just the sun- but I can't shake this giant freaking ham and cheese sandwich smile off my face! I'm just like a giddy little girl all the time right now. Which truthfully, is a pretty big contrast from just a few months ago. I had hit a rough patch a few months ago and it took me a a bit longer than I would have liked to get my groove back. But then just like that, I feel as if I've really turned a new leaf with spring (see what I did there) and I'm not mad about it ;) And isn't that just how life works?

I hope you had a great weekend! Cheers to a good week! Happy Monday!

PS- Just a note, I grabbed the sunglasses I'm wearing here last summer at Anthropologie and I wear them all the time. They sold out and were back stocked a few times last summer so if you're thinking about getting this years version, don't wait! I'd bet they'll sell out again this summer.

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dress- c/o Peruvian Connection
vest- Gap, old (similar and on sale)
hat- Target, last season (similar)
flats- c/o Aeropostale
bag- Madewell
sunnies- Anthropologie (this seasons version)

chambray and leopard

Ah, another snow day is upon us. As excited as I was for snow a few months ago, I am O-V-E-R over it now. I am so freaking tired of the snow. And the cold. And the wind. And always being so bundled up I look like Randy. It's just not cute anymore. NOW I get why people on the east coast take so many vacations in February. Spring cannot come fast enough. 

I'm assuming you all watched the Oscars last night? I'm watching this morning so I can fast forward through all the boring awards the commercials. I did however do plenty of red carpet watching last night and am already anticipating how we'll be seeing the red carpet styles translate to every day trends. We're already seeing a lot of powder blue and I'm sure that won't slow down after Lupita Nyong'o dress last night. [Side note: we can all agree she's been the best dressed this award season right?] I think we'll be seeing a lot more people wearing necklaces backwards like J.Law and a lot of navy which I'm pleased about. Thank you Amy,  Sandra and Ellen. Oh and then Ellen crushed it in winter white. Bravo, Ellen! PS- WHERE can I get a sparkly navy blazer? I obviously need one stat.

But the real winner? JARED LETO'S HAIR. I think I should just bring a picture of his ombre next time I get my hair done.

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Sweater- Loft (old)
Chambray- Gap
Skirt- Loft (old)
Boots- Frye
Bag- Philip Lim x Target

florals and leopard

I'm not much of a pattern mixer because truthfully, I don't really know how to do it without looking like 6 year old Nicole dressed herself. But I want to be a pattern mixer so bad you guys! SO BAD. So I did what any modern day woman with a glass of wine, a comfy couch and an episode of the Bachelor on in the background would do- I created a pinsipration board. I'm not 100% at official pattern mixing status yet but am using my favorite neutral - leopard- to get my feet wet. It's a seemingly easy way to compliment another pattern.

I have also found that another way to ease into pattern mixing is through stripes. If you follow me on instagram you know that I have plenty of options for stripes. Between florals and stripes, I think I'll be graduating from Intro to Pattern Mixing soon. I think I'm on my way to becoming a pattern mixer!

Speaking of things I want to be SO BAD, I've really wanted to get into running but just for the life of me cannot get into it! So instead of creating another pinspiration board, Aaron and I signed up for a 10k! Its in June so I have plenty of time to become a runner (or not). We'll see how well this works out......

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Top- Gap
Jeans-Gap (this season)
Blazer- Banana Republic
Bag- Madewell
Shoes- Target (similar)
Beret- Nordstrom, old (similar)
Necklace- J. Crew Factory

Linking up with Shanna and Lindsey today!

square

Apologies in advance for the brevity today! All of a sudden and out of nowhere, this week became insanely busy!

The other day I was not surprisingly running late for work and I pulled together some of my favorite neutrals/earthy tones- taupe, forest green, oxblood- because it was easy and I didn't have to think about it much. I didn't realize how schoolboy looking the outfit was though! I would like to say the academy look isn't normally my style; I think it just makes me look like a square. Or an L7 weenie if you will. But clearly that's not totally true seeing as how I subconsciously put this together in a haze after waking up late!* 

 Catch you all tomorrow! BIG snow storm heading our way....my fingers are crossed for a snow day!

*should read "waking up later than usual after hitting snooze 6 times too many."

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blazer-Gap
top- H&M
skirt -Limited via Marshalls
Shoes-  Franco Sarto via Marshalls
Bag- Madewell
Belt- Gap outlet (similar)
giraffe necklace- J.Crew Factory
glasses- Warby Parker "Baxter" frame

red and plaid

Happy hump day everyone! 

So a random humpday story- I always get really nervous when I send emails over our office list serv fearing a glaring grammatical mistake or something else of the sort that gets sent to the entire office. Does anyone else get anxious about that? One time, I signed my email, Happy Wednesday and linked it to the hump day video. I was rather proud of myself for sending an amusing email to the office and minutes after I hit send, I heard people at their desks giggling which I assumed meant my email was a hit. Oh it was....because it was THURSDAY. 

Anywho, I wore this to brunch this weekend with one of my new roommates and our boyfriends. It was unusually warm in DC this weekend so I was excited I could toss on a blazer and not to have to lug around a coat. I think the blazer made the outfit a bit preppier than is my comfort but I'm hoping I could balance that out with distressed denim and my Frye boots. It's all about the balance, people!

Speaking of new roommates, I'm getting all settled into my new place and really am a huge fan of my roommates! I'm really excited to get to know them better. I consider myself pretty shy and take awhile to warm up so my new living situation sure is forcing me out of my comfort zone. But I'm sure that is a good thing :) It also helps the comfort zone to be so close to Target. Don't even ask how many times I've already been. #dangerously convenient

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Plaid shirt- J.Crew Factory
Red lace top- Loft (on sale in stores)
Jeans- Gap
Blazer- Banana Republic
Boots- Frye
Bag- Madewell
Necklace- J. Crew

Linking up with Because Shanna Said So and The Pleated Poppy today!