August 31, 2016

End of Summer Cocktail Dresses






As the school season comes around there are more uses for cocktail dresses. Whether it’s a formal, back to school dance, or just a fun event, purchasing cute, bright cocktail dresses now is great because a lot of the summery ones are on sale. 

I was actually surprised to find the orange dress above available online because I actually wore it to my senior convocation three years ago! I'm surprised they're still selling it, but it's one of my favorite dresses that I have ever worn!

Another great thing about these dresses are that most of them are on sale! Since it's the end of season, it's easier to find great prices on the dresses that may have caught your eye earlier on in the summer. 

August 30, 2016

Lobster T-Shirt






Shirt / Jeans / Necklace (from a Nantucket) / Bag / Sunglasses / Shoes 

I’ve had this shirt for a few months now, but somehow forgot to get outfit pictures of it earlier.  I’m very picky about the t-shirts I like to wear, which may seem weird because it’s just a t-shirt.  But I really don’t enjoy wearing t-shirts that are too tight or too baggy, so I really try to find a happy medium and this top falls right in it! 

How could I not pick up this top while shopping around? I love lobster, lobster rolls, lobster bisque, lobster anything.  Also seriously bummed that there is still not a lobster emoji! 

Anyway, this is the perfect summer casual look and I love how relaxed it looks with ripped jeans and jack rogers.  I’ll probably be wearing this while traveling to Martha’s Vineyard next week (!!!).

Anyone else have a lobster obsession like me? *insert imaginary lobster emoji* 

August 29, 2016

September Wishlist




There's such a weird in between season in Texas where it's definitely not cold enough for fall styles.  It's honestly quite nice because a lot of the summer's greatest pieces are on sale and can be worn immediately in the scorching temps.  

A lot of the pieces on my wishlist are perfect wear-to-class items.  Like the denim romper? So cute.  I've been seeing a lot of these in different stores, but this one really caught my eye.  

What's on your wishlist currently? 

August 25, 2016

Swinging into Fall







One of my favorite restaurants in Martha’s Vineyard is the Beach Plum Inn. The food is great, but that’s not even the best part.  The view is incredible. They stopped serving dinner and are now only open for breakfast, which is unfortunate because it was such a nice spot to watch the sunset from.  


There’s a charming swing just a few steps from the dining patio, which is where I took these pictures. Honestly, I would get married here one day.  It’s so relaxing and just perfect. 

When we went for breakfast I chose to be comfortable and casual with this t-shirt and my favorite pair of white jeans.  I only have a few t-shirts that I enjoy wearing, and this Lilly Pulitzer one is one of them! It's fairly flowy so it's pretty flattering. 

August 24, 2016

How to Be a Good Roommate


Having a strong relationship with your roommate is really important, especially in your first semester.  There are definitely some situations that don’t work out, but from my experience I loved being best friends with my room mate.  

Like a lot of people, I met my room mate online.  We didn’t meet in the Facebook group though, we actually met on Tumblr! I remember the first night we stayed in our room freshman year being so awkward until we decided to go out and do stuff.  I think after our first night together we were extremely close and even decided to live together a second year! Sadly, we’ve parted ways this year but she is still one of my very best friends! 

Regardless of if you and your roommate are good friend it’s important to be considerate of their space and time, as I’m sure you’d want them to be of you.  Here are some of my tips! 

Give them space. One of my most important tips honestly! It’s hard to suddenly be living in close quarters with a stranger (in most cases).  While it may be so tempting to want to sit in your bed and do homework or watch TV all day long, get out! This could be great for both you and your room mate.  I tried to make myself get to the library to study so that my room mate could have time alone in our room to relax and there were plenty of times where she would be out and I would stay in.  

Include them. The past few years my roommate and I almost always invited the other on our plans with other people.  If we were going with a few people to dinner it’s easy to ask the other person if they want to come.  This is especially nice in the first few weeks when neither of you know many people.  I think it’s one of the reasons we got so close! 


Share. There’s no reason you and your roommate need to have two of a lot of different supplies.  Plan out ahead of time who will be buying what bigger items, but also talk about what food or cleaning supplies you might keep in your room.  

August 23, 2016

Nantucket Strolling









One of my favorite tops to wear during the summer (if you couldn’t tell by some of my recent outfits) is the Lilly Pulitzer Elsa blouse! I love the fit and the fact that it comes in a ton of different colors. This print immediately caught my eye because it’s my favorite shade of blue.  

They’re so easy to wear with white jeans and perfect for summer dinners with nights that are a little bit colder than the daytime.  I even wear my elsa tops during the winter when my closet needs some variety other than the typical winter toned darks.  

August 22, 2016

Tips for College Freshmen


Happy first week of school! (Well, for me at least).  Many of you have already gone back to school, but for others, you may still have a few weeks.  It’s always exciting to come back to college after a summer away from all my friends and favorite places near campus.  

This year is extra exciting because my brother is a freshman at my school! It’s pretty fun that my brother decided to go to the same school as me, but also makes me realize that it’s been awhile since I was in his shoes.  College goes by so fast, guys! If you’re starting your freshman year: cherish it.  I feel like in a blink of an eye I’m already starting my junior year, which I don’t feel old enough to be doing yet.  

I’ve been trying to give my brother every ounce of advice I could give him before he started.  I realized that I didn’t have anyone really to give me advice when I started, and honestly I was probably a major fish out of water.  So if you don’t have older siblings or someone to give you all the tips, you’re in luck! 

1. Be Friendly. During the first few weeks you are going to meet so many different people that it might get overwhelming.  My biggest piece of advice would just to be nice to everyone.  You never know who you meet will be in one of your classes down the line or become your best friend. The best way to start the year is to see everything as an opportunity to make friends.  If you’re in class, say hello to the people sitting around you because you may see them later! Some of my best friends I made in the first few weeks were people I recognized from my classes! 

2. Go out.  Don’t go anywhere truly outside of your comfort zone, but if people in your dorm are going to grab dinner or going to the movies, don’t let yourself turn them down in favor of sitting in your room watching netflix.  For me, the first few weeks of college were a little overwhelming because I’m a little bit of an introvert so I like to have a little time to myself.  But, during those first weeks it was hard not to feel like you are always with someone.  But I promise after the first month or so I definitely got time to myself and I got comfortable turning down a night out every once in awhile because I had a great group of friends.  


3. Get involved. The first week at my school organizations really try to recruit new members! Whether it’s something like Relay for Life, student senate, or greek life it’s nice to be part of something.  Plus, joining an organization early in your college career is great for potential leadership roles down the line, which look great to future employers! 

August 19, 2016

Friday Finds 8.19



Internship Earlier this week I finished my internship working on the digital engagement team at a PR firm.  I’m coming out of these 10 weeks having learned so much and I am incredibly grateful to have had the opportunity to work alongside some really incredible people! There will definitely be some internship themed posts coming up! 

60 days in One of the clients I was working with at my internship did a lot with criminal justice reform, which allowed me to develop a newfound passion.  I have learned so much about the United States’ current criminal justice situation and now understand how corrupt it is.  Right before I went back to Dallas I saw an ad for A&E’s 60 Days In, a show where innocent people go to jail for 60 days as an experiment (crazy!!).  The goal was to help the sheriff understand where the problems lie and overall provide a new understanding for what is going on inside prison.  I only downloaded the first episode, but you guys, this is a major binge watch worthy show! It’s addicting so far and I can’t wait to see what happens. 


New Apartment I started moving into my new apartment (honestly almost typed out dorm for a second there…) earlier this week and I’m so excited with how it’s coming along! While my bedroom is still pretty small, it’s so nice to be able to spread out in a living room and kitchen this year! 

Did you catch this week's other posts? 


August 18, 2016

Apartment Bedroom Mood Board



I’m officially starting to move into my apartment (!!!) at school. I’ve flip flopped on the design idea for this room all summer, but ultimately couldn’t stray away from my love for bright colors. I thought of doing different shades of blue and white with touches of gold, which would have looked just darling, but the accessories I already had from previous years were bright colors and I didn’t know if I could part with them. 

The deciding factors ultimately came when I found this pillow and this rug.  I’ve been seeing bright pink oriental looking rugs a lot lately and really love the look. My mom also found one of these silver moroccan ottomans at Homegoods and although I don’t think there will be any other touches of silver in the room, I like the contrast against my other gold accessories! (If you’re not a fan of most Moroccan ottoman price tags, check out Etsy! There are so many different colors and although these come unstuffed they’re much cheaper). 


I can’t wait to reveal what my room actually looks like in the next few weeks! 

August 17, 2016

Pink Patchwork







Shirt / Skirt (old)  / Necklace / Shoes / Bag

As a sort of variation on the off the shoulder trend, I found this one shoulder Lilly Pulitzer top.  I’ve had to stop myself from getting anymore off the shoulder tops because I definitely don’t need them and who knows if they’ll even be in style in a few months or years! Though, I hope this trend does stick around for awhile! 


My patchwork skirt unfortunately isn’t available anymore since I believe I bought it almost four years ago! They don’t seem to have a similar patchwork pattern out right now, so if you’re looking for the same sort of design, make sure to keep checking back because they do come out with different patchwork designs fairly often!
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August 16, 2016

End of Summer Swimsuits


Top Row


Bottom 


As summer winds to an end (so sad to be saying that!) you may not think to purchase a new swimsuit, but this can be the best time of year to get them! A lot of stores will mark their bathing suits down a lot right now because it’s just on the cusp of Fall.  Even if you might only be able to wear a new swimsuit once before the summer ends, it’s a great investment for next year.  Plus, if you live somewhere warm like Texas, you might not be putting away your swimwear anytime soon.  




August 15, 2016

Gingham in Nantucket











When I was in Martha's Vineyard, my family and I decided that we wanted to see what Nantucket had to offer, so we took a ferry over for the day.  I have to say it was such a cute island with a lot of great shops and quintessential streets.  I wish we had longer to explore, but only had a few hours to see what was there.  

I wore this amazing Jack Wills gingham dress for our trip because it's really comfortable, plus it looked so nice with the hydrangeas (making a perfect picture!). I usually don't think to shop at Jack Wills, but there's one in downtown Edgartown (in Martha's Vineyard) and decided to pop in.  I have been on the hunt for a gingham dress for maybe 3 years by now.  I just could never find the right one. This one is great for a ton of different occasions, plus it'll be great to wear through the fall! 




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August 12, 2016

Back to School Sales



Heading back to school usually comes with a little bit of shopping.  It's fun to start of the year with some fresh looks and of course the first day of school outfit is so important.  Luckily, a few great stores are having sales so you don't have to break the bank to find the perfect outfit!

Even though a lot of people at my school dress pretty casually for class (I'm talking shorts and t-shirts) I still like dressing up for the first day of class.  It's my first time seeing a lot of people in my classes since I may have never crossed paths with these people before, plus it's my first time meeting my teachers.  But, don't get me wrong, I definitely have my dressed down days.

Loft 40% off with code BESTFRIENDS - Favorites: Cardigan, Chambray Romper

Shopbop No specific sale, just a REALLY great sale section - Favorites: Wrap Heels, Pink Top,  Gingham Top

J.Crew 20% off with code LOTSTOSHOP - Favorites: Mixed Stripe T-Shirt,  Ruffle Top

August 11, 2016

Stripes and Bows for the Beach












Remember how I said yesterday that I have a thing for travel bags? Well I also might have a thing for cover ups! A little weird, but I can't resist falling in love with just so many of them.  When I saw this beautiful striped one online, I thought it would be perfect for my trip to Martha's Vineyard.  Plus, I was hoping it would be long enough to wear as a dress.  It's definitely long enough, but it's a little see through so I don't know if I'll be wearing it out any time soon (although if you wore a slip under it, it could work!)

My favorite part of this coverup is the bow at the back! It's such a nice touch.  I love how classic this cover up is compared to my other cover ups that are bright colored or patterned.


August 10, 2016

Overnight Bags For On The Go Gals

I have a weakness for duffle bags, that and cosmetics cases.  I think it’s because I love to travel.  So, whenever I find something to carry my belongings in I think of all the places I could travel with that bag.  

Have a little, cute duffle bag is essential if you’re a frequent traveler.  Not that I really go anywhere too exciting very often, having my Vineyard Vines duffle has been so great because I pack it up to head home on a long weekend, to the beach with friends, or on just any other weekend trip really! It also fits perfectly on an airplane, which is great. 

One of my biggest anxieties when it comes to flying is that my bag won’t end up fitting in the overhead compartment, but sure enough every time it does! So I guess I shouldn’t be worrying next time!



Weekender Bags





August 9, 2016

Lilly Pulitzer in Martha's Vineyard






Top / Skirt / Shoes 

I purchased this outfit while I was in Martha's Vineyard last week and I think it was one of my favorites that I wore while away. While the sky blue top doesn't completely match the blue in the skirt, I love how the two pieces look together.  

I believe this skirt might be in store only because I could only find the navy version to link (above).  Its still cute and could be paired with just as many things (if not more), but if you love the pattern sports, Lilly Pulitzer has a lot of others on their website!

 

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