Outfit of the Day: Festive Fall Looks

I always try to convince Janai that she needs a fashion blog. She always has on amazing outfits and I feel like the world needs to see them! The other day, she got a taste of my process for creating an OOTD post. She and I went out to do a mini shoot to put together some looks for Thanksgiving! And turns out she finally did create a blog, which she will be debuting soon!

Now onto the outfits...

Personally, I dress up for every holiday and usually end up being the only dressed-up person in attendance. Typical. But I feel like I have very few real opportunities to dress up and be seen, so it's a must for me! These looks are obviously a little bit on the fancy side, but not over-the-top! I don't consider a tulle skirt or a leopard romper to be super dressy, do you? I'm kind of being serious.

Overall, these outfits are something that would be easy to throw together with pieces you already have. A flannel, a skirt (doesn't even have to be tulle, there are no rules here!), a sassy turtleneck, a dress with no sleeves... Mix and match them and you have reimagined something that you would have kept hanging in your closet until summer!

Oh, and don't forget your holiday red cups...

Details below!

Olivia:

Black Turtleneck Knit Top: Forever 21 // Leopard Print A-Line Dress (actually comes with a black belt): Forever 21 // Opaque Black Tights (old, similar linked): Vera Wang // Skinny Pink Belt (old, linked something similar on Amazon): Forever 21 // Deandra Sunglasses (no longer available, similar linked): kate spade new york // Gold Glitter Flats (old, linked similar): Forever 21 // White Set in Stone Enamel Stone Hinged Bangle: kate spade new york // Jazz Things Up Cat Ear Pave Bangle: kate spade new york // Luminous Creme Lipstick Duo in Violet (no longer available, but linked similar from Bite!): Bite Beauty

Best way to wear a sleeveless dress in the winter - a long sleeve underneath! Janai and I both wore the same turtleneck from Forever 21 for this post. I love how the dress I'm wearing already comes with a belt that is almost identical, but black. I cannot rave enough about a good a-line dress. The style works with almost any shape, since it's meant to accentuate you at your smallest and flare out from there! PS: This one is on sale now. I wanted to add a little color, so I went with a pink one I already had. For shoes, I love these glitter flats. I hadn't worn them since high school and almost gave them away! But I brought them out recently and they have been complimenting a lot of my looks. I have a million pairs of opaque black tights, so I honestly couldn't tell you which ones I am wearing in this post! I know I've had success with Vera Wang, so I linked one of my favorite pairs. For bracelets, I wear my white Set in Stone bangle constantly, with almost every outfit. The cat one went perfectly with this leopard outfit! It's also on sale (plus an additional 30% off for Black Friday, can you believe it?!) Finally, my favorite pair of cat-eye sunglasses called Deandra completed the rest of my feline themed attire. They aren't available anymore online, but I linked the Luann's which seem to be Deandra's bedazzled cousin! For lip color, my favorite lipstick brand, Bite Beauty.

Janai:

White Turtleneck Knit Top: Forever 21 // Pleated Tulle Skirt: Forever 21 // Black Flats (old, similar linked): Charlotte Russe // Blue Plaid Flannel (old, similar linked): Charlotte Russe // Necklace (old, any statement will do!) // Bracelets: all from Alex & Ani // Wine and Dine Metro Watch: kate spade new york // Lipstick (in Blankety): MAC

Like I said, we both wore a Forever 21 turtleneck for this post. The tulle skirt is super popular right now, and Janai grabbed hers from Forever 21. If you recall from my Halloween post, I got mine at Charlotte Russe. I swear, they're everywhere! She started out with just the top and skirt as her outfit, but threw on the flannel to match with our fall photoshoot's vibe! Really, any color flannel would work. Just add a statement necklace to match! She has a wrist full of Alex & Ani bracelets too. And a simple pair of black flats to finish it off! I also am obsessed with her lip color, which is a MAC shade called blankety. It's the perfect neutral for any season!

We loved putting together some festive fall looks for you, 

so stay tuned for our next fashion collab!

Outfit of the Day: Halloween 2016

Halloween is probably my *favorite* holiday, but it was a major struggle for me this year. For one, I had no idea if I was even going to be doing anything worth dressing up for. Second, I had no time to actually create a costume. October was definitely rough in terms of free time!

When I finally did find a worthy occasion, I was way too behind on my original costume idea to even contemplate finishing it! Instead, I randomly found a sale apron at Sur la Table and re-imagined my outfit completely! TROPHY WIFE. My version of a trophy wife is pretty much a cookie tray toting, apron wearing, June Cleaver type of lady. It was a little exaggerated (of course, as most Halloween costumes are) and all in good fun. 

But seriously, you can't even imagine the amount of people who insisted on eating the chocolate chip cookies off of my plate even though they were HOT GLUED. I definitely warned them all about the glue issue, but apparently when people see cookies they experience sudden deafness. By the end of the night, I had less than half a plate of cookies. Which is fine, at least I got my picture!

A trophy wife has always been on my list of potential Halloween costume ideas and I'm so glad I finally pulled it together! Here's how I did it:

Besides the apron, my outfit was put together with mostly things I already had! A striped, off-the-shoulders top from Forever 21 (old, from summer), a tulle skirt from Charlotte Russe, a TON of random pearl necklaces and bracelets that I had collected over the years, and some cheap dangly pearl earrings I got on clearance at H&M long ago. My giant ring was something my uncle had picked up at a vintage store and given to me. Wooden spoon: straight out of the kitchen. My Mary Jane style heels were something I hadn't worn in years, from Wet Seal. I actually pulled them out of my giveaway pile to wear on this night! I hadn't originally planned to be in black and orange, but it was pretty fitting for Halloween!

I did have to buy a pack of mini trophies for $3 at Hobby Lobby and a carton of Chips Ahoy cookies. I glued it all together to a cheap plate and voila: trophy wife!

Next year, I am promising myself that I'll have my costume ready at least one week before! Hahaha, likely...

Outfit of the Day: 24th Birthday!

Last week Friday, it was my 24th birthday! A big one, I know...just kidding. Alas, I celebrated, and it is not a birthday unless you get the biggest and most caffeinated drink for free from Starbucks! It was venti caramel brulee latte with 4 shots of espresso, if you were wondering. 

Later on in the day, my friends joined me at my current fave restaurant and then we did a Pedal Tavern. I had to find an outfit that was appropriate for both of those activities! Basically, it needed to be special, but not too fancy. And side note - fittingly for my birthday, I wore my birthstone in 2 different ways!

Details below!

Embroidered Peasant Dress (im sry but no, it's def a top): Forever 21 // Denim (old, similar here): Forever 21 // Faux Suede Ankle Booties (brown): Forever 21 // Orchard Street Small Natalya Handbag (in pink bonnet): kate spade new york //  Mirrored Metallic Cateye Sunglasses: Charming Charlie // Born to Be November Pendant: kate spade new york // Going Places Metro Watch: kate spade new york // Sailor's Knot Hinged Bangle (rose gold, available in some stores): kate spade new york // November Birth Month Charm Bangle (shiny gold finish): Alex & Ani // Zeta Tau Alpha Charm Bangle (Rafaelian silver finish): Alex & Ani // Zest for Life Charm Bangle (shiny gold finish): Alex & Ani // Faux Gem Cluster Studs: Forever 21 // NYX Butter Lipstick (not sure of the color, but it's a very natural tannish pink!): Ulta Beauty

My clothing here is essentially all from Forever 21! Accessories are from a few different sources. Like I said, this Forever 21 "dress" is definitely not a dress. I'm 5'2'' and it was short on me! But to each's own. So far, I'm loving these inexpensive brown booties though! And for the denim, not my favorite pair, but it was the only color I had that seemed to be working with this outfit.

The sunglasses were something I got for a great deal at Charming Charlie a week or two ago! The deal is 2 for $15, and since I'm ashamed to say I do not treat my sunglasses very well, this was perfect for me! I also love how reflective they are. And I'm obsessed with a good cateye.

I purchased this Small Natalya handbag shortly before my trip to London and I absolutely adore it. It was the perfect travel handbag because it's not too big, but still fits comfortably as a crossbody if you want it to be! That's how I normally wear it if you look at any of my IG photos. I really didn't think that a pebbled leather bag would be my first handbag purchase from kate, but this one is still structured enough for my liking...even though it's slouchy. And the good news...it's now on sale!

For my jewelry, I was wearing the new Born to Be pendant with my birthstone (topaz)! I love each and every one of these pendants and I actually want them all, regardless of the month they represent! They all have an adorable little saying on them, mine says "hello sunshine." For my Alex & Ani bracelets, I also had my birthstone, a ZTA charm, and the charm that represents Alex's Lemonade Stand. My gem cluster earrings were so cheap from Forever 21, but I've gotten so many compliments! They match my favorite colors of fall. My watch is  another thing I bought shortly before London. It has a map of Europe and says "going places." If you know me, it's perfect!

This NYX Butter Lipstick is amazing. I can't read the color on the actual lipstick anymore, but if I were to guess, I'd say it's "sandy kiss." It's a brownish color with a hint of pink. It looks very natural on my lips. Butter is in the title, and it really is buttery and moisturizing!

I was overall v. pleased with this birthday outfit! Hope to share more soon!