Outfit Crush

{Banana Republic}

Most of the time I prefer to wear jeans, boots or flats, a button-up, and sweater to keep warm, but lately I've been wanting to wear some "dressier" outfits.  I've tried to steer clear of wearing high heels and trousers for some time now, since I had gotten so bogged down by needing to wear that type of outfit on a daily basis.  But I think that this look, from Banana Republic, is a happy medium between how I like to dress, and also looking even more put together.

Dream Kitchens

{DesignSpongeOnline via Pinterest}

{Pinterest}

{Apartment Therapy via Pinterest}

Touring homes and watching design shows has been something I've enjoyed doing since I was young.  In fact when I was younger, I would beg my parents to go to open houses so that I could look around them.  So it's not a big surprise that this is something that I still enjoy doing.  One of my favorite rooms to think about designing is the kitchen, and more than that I love open kitchens and shelving.  These are some of my favorite kitchen looks.

Black Butte Ranch

{Thank you Amanda for the brownies!}

 {I can't get enough of pretty fires and how great they smell}

{Love these girls :: on the way to Bend}

{At Deschutes Brewery & Restaurant}

{The boys all sat up front so the girls could chat in the back of the truck.}

I had the perfect amount of fun and exploring last weekend.  My boyfriend and I joined four of our closest friends for our second annual trip to Black Butte.  We laughed, played games, ate, swam, and chatted late into the nights.  Seriously, the best.  I am already ready for another get together with some seriously amazing friends!

Updated Blazer

{Before: A boring khaki blazer}

 {Soaking it in my sink for about an hour}

 {Finally rang it out and it's ready to be washed}

 {After: Dyed it twice and added new buttons}

 {Both types of dye I used, I bought the powder first and then the liquid the second time.  

I didn't really notice a difference in ease of  one over the other.}

{Buttons that I bought at Joann's for $1.90 for two!}

{Before/After}

I finally got around to dyeing an old khaki blazer that I've had since high school.  The whole process was easier than I thought it would be, even though I had to dye it two different times in order to achieve a color close to what I wanted.

The dying process was easy, but you want to make sure that you allow yourself a lot of time to rinse the extra dye out of the garment (this took almost 30 minutes for me of constantly rinsing it) and also make sure you have rubber gloves!

I bought the buttons at Joann's and I was pleasantly surprised at how inexpensive they were.  Originally, I was going to buy something at a thrift store in order to utilize the buttons on it, but before buying anything I wanted to check out Joann's.  The selection at my local store was pretty vast so it was somewhat difficult to choose, but I am happy with the final result!

Outfit Crush

{Pinterest}

Since it's snowing out my window right now, I'm having a tough time getting in the spring weather spirit.  For now I'm planning on incorporating some brighter items with my warm winter clothes like this picture.  I plan on wearing a variation of this outfit this weekend, and I can't wait to hopefully enjoy some nicer weather!

Over the Weekend

Do you ever have a weekend that you go into it with little expectations on how it will be and what will happen, but it ends up being one of the best weekends in awhile? That was me last weekend.  There was snow, being paid to grocery shop, a Broadway show, coffee, hanging out with friends and my love, and happy hour.  Here's to it being an equally great week!

Irish Love

{My four leaf clover foot tattoo the day I got it}

This has been a great but tiring week.  I'm so happy that it's Friday, and the weekend consists of little plans other than planning an adventure weekend, cuddling, and eating [three of my favorite things].  Hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and don't forget to wear your green tomorrow!

Outfit Crush

{Sterling Style}

Don't mind me day dreaming over here thinking about how lovely it would be for the rain to stop so I can wear a pair of flats or heels.  Until the 10-day weather forecast shows some dryer days I will just be thinking about wearing a cute outfit like Taylor is wearing.

Wishlist :: Neon Stripes

{J.Crew}

{Gap}

I have had my eyes on these neon striped shirts for a little over a week now, and would love to add them to my growing striped shirt collection.  A girl can never have too many striped shirts right?

Marni for H&M

{All images from H&M}

By this time, I'm sure you've heard about the latest designer collaboration with H&M, Marni.  Although I didn't go to H&M yesterday for the debut, I did have my eyes on a few pieces.  These are some of my favorites from the collection!

Outfit Crush

{J. Crew via Pinterest}

I am smitten over this Chanel inspired jacket with this outfit!  The idea of pairing a somewhat dressier jacket with an otherwise casual look is very refreshing.  It's also a way to extend the "price per wear" for an item that may be above a comfortable price range, which is never a bad thing in my book!

Leopard, again.

{Blouse: Old Navy, Pants: H&M, Shoes: Macy's}

This is what I wore last Thursday for the Nordstrom Spring Fashion Show.  I wanted something comfortable, but also slightly trendy/dressed up.  I'm glad that these shoes are also fairly comfortable because I ran several blocks in them because I was running late.  Thank goodness for having shoes that are broken in!

I've Got a Friend in You

 {Visiting Justine in Granada, Spain}

 {Ugly Sweater Party :: With Justine & Jenna}

{Blazer Game}

{Celebrating NYE}

The other day I was thinking about friendships.  About how long I've been friends with some of my closest friends, some I've been friends with for a few years, others six or seven, and then I started doing the math for how long my best pal Justine and I have been friends.  Guess how long it's been? 15 years.  That's right 15 years.  Any time someone asks us how long we've been friends, we almost always, in unison, say "since fifth grade."  Well fifth grade was actually 15 years ago, and it's hard to believe how long I've known her.  It's so nice being friends with someone who knows you so well, and you can completely be yourself around them!  Thank you for being my best pal Justine!

Nordstrom Spring Designer Preview 2012

 {Justine & I}

{Runway, pre-show}

Last night I had the opportunity to volunteer at the Nordstrom Spring Designer Preview fashion show again.  I had a great time looking at all of the designer fashions, and also seeing how the outfits were styled.  One of my favorite things about the show was the model's hair, that was in some sort of chignon/bun look - very chic.  Unfortunately my iPhone wasn't able to take the best pictures, so this is the only "runway" picture that turned out somewhat decent.  Thank you to my best pal Justine for working for such an awesome organization so we could get into the show for free!