It's still cold - WTF Spring?

It's the end of April and yet it's cloudy out with gusty wind and a high of 56. Not cool, Mother Nature. Not cool. So today is about warmth and comfort, which does not always equal fashionable. Back from a long hiatus are the BR skinny jeans ($89). Paired it with a BR brown tee($35) and an army green jackety-thingy that I gout at a little boutique somewhere for just $60. I've worn it a ton of times, just always seems to come in handy. Boots are Nine West and were $100 I think.

Two more days until I get my new shopping budget. Blew April's in the first week so I haven't been shopping at all!! Proud of my restraint but ready to get a few new pieces. Any suggestions on what I should buy for summer? I NEED a pair of black work appropriate shoes, so those are a must buy. But other than that I plan to have fun!

All Black for New York

Now that I am no longer choosing an outfit based on what smells least like sweat and llama, I thought I'd have an all black New Yorker day to show my city how much I missed it! The answer is A LOT!

Black skinny zip jeans (American Apparel, $78)
Black silk tunic (Silence + Noise, $80)
Purple Wedges (Miz Mooz, $90)

A note on the jeans - these are cheap and they rock. The waist is hilariously high so you can't tuck in, but there's no chance of muffin top and they are comfy as hell. They also come in a huge array of colors and are cheap enough that you can be bold and try a hot pink or something!

My Best Hiking Look

This is 4:30 am the day of the first hike and I'm about as cute as I'm going to get. Four days of heavy hiking, with no shower and it was not a pretty sight.

Back from Vacation!

After hiking for 7 hours in the Andes for four days in a row, I fit in my Paige Denim jeans a little better so I thought I'd try them again today. I wanted to wear a pretty dress and heels after a week of looking like a crunchy granola girl, but the weather did not cooperate. Maybe Friday.

After getting home at 1am last night, I couldn't put to much effort in to today's outfit so I went with some standards that I think look good. Let me know what you think!

Paige Premium Denim ($198)
BR Mullberry Tank ($35)
Silence and Noise Tweed Jacket ($80)
Miz Mooz Brown booties ($78)

PS - the mother of pearl turtle brooch on the lapel was my grandmother's. I think it adds a nice touch!

Honest Journalism Ouch!

Because it's honest and true - here's my Paige Denim Muffin Top. Embarrassing but 100% real!!!

F*$K You Paige Denim Sales Girl!!!

A few months ago, I went jeans shopping with Kim. Since we have similar body types and sizes, I went with her to Paige Premium Denim in the Meatpacking district. She swears by these jeans and so does everyone else so I was excited to get a pair.

In comes expert Paige sales girl. She give me a pair to try on, and I do. They button, but they are tight and giving me a muffin top. I come out and ask for the next larger size and she says "No." That's right...."NO." What followed was a 20 minute discussion on how Paige denim fits, and what my true size was. I asked several times to try on the next size up and she pretty much would not allow me, saying they would stretch so much they'd fall off. She also said this pair would loosen up in just a few hours of wear. Guess what: THEY DIDN'T!!!!

But today I just had to wear them at some point. So I have a muffin top and won't eat lunch today but at least the $198 I spent isn't going to waste.

Marc Jacobs tank, $163
BR open cardigan, $75
Paige Premium Denim, $198
Miz Mooz Wedges, $90

The outfit I will borrow for a wedding!

Gregory Parkinson dress from Barneys and Prada Heels. Thanks goodness we're the same size!

The Shirt Dress

The shirt dress is a classic but can be hard to dress up since it's just one piece. Today, I tied the Chanel scarf Kim gave me along with the belt to give it some interest. The shoes are my Cole Haan gold hurrache pumps($338). Super comfy with the Nike air foot bed and the low heel. The dress is actually from Target (Merona, $25) and I have it in black as well. Kind of hard to go wrong with it!

March Purchases - Sorry it's late!

Sorry this is mid-April and I'm just putting up March's new purchases. I actually came in under budget at $697, which is great since I'm already WAY over for April. I really like what I got..see what you think. Not too much designer stuff, but certainly better quality and more interest. Let me know what you all think of everything.

Striped Blouse - Anthropologie, $98
Printed Cap Sleeve Jacket - Anthropologie, $69
Sequined Jacket - Urban Outfitters, $68
Confetti Tank Top - Marc Jacobs, $163
Velvet dress - Diane Von Furstenburg, $148.54
Cream Buckles Booties - Nine West, $99

Total for March: $647.09

And lookie, lookie - no Banana Republic in sight!

Purging even more!

The weather was nice last week so I got motivated to go through my closet and purge when I swapped out my winter clothes for summer clothes. That big pile is everything I didn't wear this winter, no exceptions. Everything that was light, I sent to the Haiti donation and you can see that here. This is what was left and will go to a charity in New York.

6 pairs of pants
1 coat
7 sweaters
2 tops
2 pairs of shoes
1 vest
1 jacket
1 t-shirt
and 1 bag

My closet feels so much bigger! Now the challenge is not to fill it up with crap!