Arizona wedding

I'm going to an old friend's wedding in Phoenix this weekend and wearing something like the outfit below.  I don't think I'll need either the sweater or scarf as a cover-up seeing as it's supposed to be 94 on Saturday, but this Oregon-girl can't imagine it not getting cold at night.

Arizona wedding by nugical featuring j.crew hats

Clover Canyon tank dress
shopbop.com

DKNY black top
stylebop.com

Zara wedge heels
zara.com

Cashmere shawl
$300 - black.co.uk

J crew hat
jcrew.com

Butterscotch Budino & L.A. (part one)

My sister made this delicious butterscotch budino a couple weeks ago for Sunday night family dinner.  I flew in from S.F. that night, and so didn't help at all, but it was so good I thought I should post it anyway.  It's a pretty famous recipe, from Nancy Silverton of La Brea Bakery and Mozza fame, and it made the blog rounds a couple of years ago.  I think you can stumble upon the recipe relatively easily via google, but I linked to the James Beard Foundation version, because of anyone I think you can trust them to get it right.

Megan's version:


It's made up of a butterscotch pudding, then a salted caramel layer, and finally whipped cream on top.  Actually, I take that back, I did help!  After dinner I helped make the salted caramel and the whipped cream.  I just didn't help with the pudding.  Also, Megan skipped the rosemary-pine nut cookies, in order to make it more manageable, and while we didn't miss them that night, Megs and I had them when we went to Pizzeria Mozza in L.A., and they were delicious.

Style Spotlight: Mary Kate Steinmiller

Not to be mistaken for the other fashion-famous Mary Kate, I have long been a fan of Mary Kate Steinmiller and her street style.  She's the Fashion Market Editor at Teen Vogue and is featured often on The Sartorialist.  I love that you'll see her re-wear pieces, plus I think she does the perfect job of classic but with an edge or unexpected element.  If you want to peek into her closet, she's also been featured on The Coveteur.


{The Sartorialist}


{The Sartorialist}

Southern California Bound

My sister and I are headed to L.A. and then Palm Springs for a long weekend, and this is what I'm looking forward to wearing.  Lots of J. Crew, as always it seems.  My sister, mom, and Steph all chipped in to buy me those old J. Crew glitter sandals off eBay for my birthday this year, and I cannot wait to wear them in the sunshine of southern California!

LA/PSP by nugical featuring old navy bikini

Print dress
nordstrom.com

J Crew j crew
jcrew.com

Stretch skinny jeans
factory.jcrew.com

J Crew j crew
jcrew.com

Old navy bikini
oldnavy.gap.com

J.crew sandals
jcrew.com

J Crew j crew
jcrew.com

Medallion Beach Towel
target.com

Fashion Inspiration - Bright Winter Coats

As all the street style photos from NYFW have been trickling in, I've been so impressed with how much a bright winter coat livens up an outfit.  I usually tend to gravitate towards neutral colors for outerwear, with the mindset that it makes them more versatile, but maybe I just need to go for it with a bold color.


{Via Brooklyn Blonde}

{Via Atlantic-Pacific}

Currently Craving: Liberty Jeans

I have so far been resistant to buying any more brightly colored or patterned skinny jeans, because I feel like they're such a trendy piece that they're bound to be out of style shortly, and look really dated.  I already have red, green (that I sold to Aggie), and gray polka dots jeans, so what other color/print could I possibly want?  However, I tried the J. Crew Liberty of London jeans on last time I was in the store, and they fit beautifully, and now they're on sale.  Queue indecision.



I also was kind of swayed after seeing how Gayle styled them in the look book, with an oxford shirt and updated puffer jean jacket.  She just looks so good.




In my defense, I wasn't so interested in the Isabel Marant Aztec printe jeans.


Or those leopard print jeans that were popping up everywhere for a while.


It's just these Liberty jeans that I find so appealing.  Steph thinks I should buy them while they're still in stock in the my size, because I can always return them.  However, usually once cute clothing items enter my house, they don't end up getting returned.

Images via 1, 2, 3, 4.

Gray & Pink

{Sweatshirt: Target (old, similar here), T-shirt: Nike, Skirt: J. Crew, Tights, Socks, & Boots: Target (old, similar here), Earrings: Harlow, Watch: Anne Klein}

Another all gray outfit, but with the benefit of a bright, Pepto-Bismol, pink skirt (and a messy room).

Dots on Dots

{Dress: J. Crew (old, similar here), Coat: Marc New York (from Nordstrom Rack, similar here), Tights: Target, Booties: Sam Edelman, Purse: J. Crew (old, similar here), Gloves: Target, Watch: Anne Klein, Necklace: old}

A warm outfit for a cold winter day, with the added interest of a red coat, red lips, and leopard print shift.

Photos by Megan Nugent.

Gray & Blue

{Jacket: J. Crew (currently on sale), Dress: J. Crew (old, similar here), Tights: Target, Boots: Fergie (old, similar here), Necklace: Harlow, Watch: Anne Klein}

Some poor lighting, but I wanted to share an outfit entirely inspired by pieces I've seen Steph wear and then went out and bought.  Thanks Steph!  Also, a good chance to wear my new jacket, that's currently on sale - hurry, before they run out of your size!

Photos by Megan Nugent.

Brown & Blue

{Jacket: Michael Kors (old from Nordstrom Rack, similar here), Sweater: H&M (similar here and here and here), Tee: Gap, Scarf: scarf shop, Jeans: Joe's (old from Nordstrom Rack, similar here), Boots: J. Crew (old, similar here), Purse: J. Crew (old, similar here), Gloves: Target, Sunglasses: Michael Kors}

A warm outfit to walk to a weekend brunch with Steph and Chad a couple of weeks ago, with some silly posing.

Photos by Megan Nugent.

Winter brights

{Sweatshirt: Target (old, similar here), T-shirt: J. Crew, Jeans: Target (old, similar here), Boots: Target (old, similar here), Scarf: Fuchsia (old, similar here), Purse: J. Crew (or available on eBay), Sunglasses: Michael Kors}

Often in the winter I find myself wearing all black, or all gray (as above), so sometimes it's nice to throw in a brightly colored accessory or piece, to keep it all from getting too boring.  I was also excited to model some of my Christmas presents, this amazing purse from Stephanie and the killer sunglasses from Megan (even indoors).

Photos by Megan Nugent.

Fashion Inspiration - Winter layering

I've been trying (I said trying) to do less shopping, which inherently means re-working items already in my closet.  Luckily, there have been some great examples of re-purposing more springlike items for the winter through aggressive layering.  It all got started with this image of Keira Knightley at LAX wearing a big sweater and jacket over a flowy skirt with tights and ankle boots.  I only wish I looked this good when traveling.


{Keira Knightly at LAX, via TomandLorenzo}

I love how the proportions work, and are effectively opposite from those above, with this shrunken fisherman's sweater over a tea-length skirt.


{Mary Kate Steinmiller, via The Sartorialist}

Style Spotlight: Miranda Kerr

While I'm sure she also wears some very nice clothes on red carpets for fancy events, I have always been most impressed by Miranda Kerr's street style looks.  While she's still wearing very expensive clothing, I think her street style looks can more easily be interpreted by non-celebrities, like me.  While I will never have her legs, figure, or clothing budget, there are still some style take-aways from many of her looks.

I love the simplicity of this look, with an over-sized blouse and skinny tuxedo pants.  She almost always has on a great pair of sunglasses and is carrying a great bag, good inspiration for paying attention to even the little details in an outfit.


{In A.L.C. and Equipment in New York via People}

While leather shorts are certainly a little risky, I think it's best to keep the rest of look simple, as here, with just pumps, a white tee, and shades, or as in the look below, with tights and gray and chambray layers on top.


{In Paris for the Dior Spring 2012 fashion show via RCFA}

Fuchsia Trunk Show

My favorite jewelry store Fuchsia is having their annual holiday trunk show this Thursday and Friday.  The vast majority of the jewelry on my board is from there.



So come on out!  I'll probably go on Thursday, in case you were interested.  Details below:

Hello everybody!

Time for our Holiday Trunk Show!

Thursday December 6th and Friday December 7th.

5:00 to 9:00 both nights

Tons of local jewelry, sweets, and bubbly!

Hope to see you here...

Fuchsia

6658 se Milwaukie Avenue

503 232 3737

First image mine, second from Fuchsia email list.  

Currently Craving: Cyber Monday Sales

Are any of you guys taking advantage of the Cyber Monday sales?  There are some great ones going on.

Here are some of the best, and some of the items I'm craving.

*Shopbop is 20-35% off everything with code BIGEVENT12.
*J. Crew is 25% off and free shipping with code MONDAY.
*ASOS is 30% off with code CYBERMONDAYSPECIAL.
*Nordstrom is having a huge sale.
*J.Crew Factory is having a huge sale - 50% off everything - with code YOURGIFT.
*Net-a-porter is having a huge sale.

However, I don't know that I'll be partaking this year, although that Chloe purse is calling my name, but as my sister said, it isn't silly to want it, but it's silly to buy it.

Chloe Marcie-Small Nubuck Leather Shoulder Bag - Nordstrom.

Currently Craving: Nail Bracelet

So, Cartier came out with this Juste Un Clou bracelet a while ago, but Kristen Stewart has been wearing hers all over the place on this most recent press tour for the latest Twilight movie, and it reminded me that I wanted one.

Style Spotlight: Solange Knowles

While she wears some totally crazy stuff, I have always been inspired by the fearless dressing of Solange Knowles.  She doesn't shy away from bright colors or from mixing patterns and/or colors that might not be an intuitive match.

With that said, I think her look is a lot more approachable in the new Madewell Fall 2012 ad campaign.


{In Madewell for Madewell's Fall 2012 Ad Campaign via RCFA}

Currently Craving: Winter Jackets

The rain has started here in Portland, so it's time to look once more at pulling out the winter jackets.  While I already have quite the collection, here are some of the jackets I've been craving recently.



{Macy's - Nine West Wool-Blend Colorblock Pea Coat}