Spring has sprung.

The weather has been absolutely unreal the last week or so here in my corner of the east coast. 75 degrees in March?! Unheard of. This time last year we were hit by of month of storms and were blanketed under a few inches of snow. I'm just hoping mother nature has had her fill of chilly days for the season and is as wholeheartedly pro-spring as I am!

I love the beginning of spring, when it's warm enough to prance about without a jacket, but cool enough that a dress with tights and boots is still comfortable - I have a feeling you'll be seeing me in some similar get-ups to this one, at least while this gorgeous weather lasts.

In the mean time, there's a pile of laundry about the size of Mount Everest in my room that's waiting to be conquered. It might explain the "I have nothing to wear" feeling I've been getting while trying to clothe myself each morning. That, and the fact that a lot of my stuff is too big now. In that vein, keep an eye on the shop - I'll be adding a TON of items very soon!

Dress: ASOS Curve
Tights: We Love Colors
Boots: DUO
Scarf: Old Navy
Necklace: H&M
Bracelets (from left): Greece, Brooklyn Flea, Ebay
Rings: MARYJOHN

Bumble bee

Despite looking a bit like an angry stinging insect, I really have a thing for bright mustard paired with rich black. Case in point: this post from way back in 2010, and this instagram as well.

I decided to dress up this relatively feminine outfit with my knotted leather belt and rocker-ish boots to make it a little edgier. I like how it turned out!

Oh, and lookie lookie! I bought myself a new amber ring from Etsy to replace the stolen one (tear!), and also as a reward for losing 26lbs so far :D

Dress: H&M
Cardigan: Target
Teggings: Re/Dress
Boots: OneStopPlus
Belt: Forever21+
Necklace: Francesca's Collections
Rings: Amber ring, GoingBizerklee. hammered gold bands, MARYJOHN
Bracelets (from left): Greece, vintage via Brooklyn Flea, Ebay, flea market

Stripes Around My Shoulders

Yay! Real OOTD pics! So you guys know my obsession with stripes (ok, who isn't obsessed with stripes nowadays?). It was Friday afternoon, the day before I left for vacation when I saw this striped blazer on Forever21's site. I gasped in excitement and immediately started wracking my brain as to where I could have a packaged delivered while I was away, because there was NO way I was letting this baby pass me by. Fifteen minutes, a new shipping address, and $28 dollars later, she was on her way to me :)

Blazer: Forever21+
Tank: Kohl's
Skinnies: Torrid
Shoes: Franco Sarto via ideeli
Sunnies: Cole Haan via Syms
Necklace: Forever21
Bracelet: Gift from my brother
White ring: Nordstrom Rack
Gold Rings: MARYJOHN

Personally, I'm a big fan of the stripes with florals trend, how about you? Do you mix your stripes with other patterns, or would you rather pair them with basics?

Another day, another maxi

Another day, another blue maxi dress. Seems I have a penchant for these, doesn't it? It was cool enough today to throw this light cardigan over the dress, making it a wee bit more office appropriate, though how office appropriate can you really be when wearing a dress fit for the beach and bright orange sandals? But I digress.

I took these photos around the back of my local Goodwill, where I picked up a cozy purple wrap sweater and a great light weight tweed cropped jacket for a song. The little Spanish man digging through the dumpster a little ways away gave me a few funny looks as I snapped photos of my self...but dude, you're digging through a dumpster - who are you to judge?!

To each his own, I say.

Cardigan, dress, sunglasses: Target
Sandals: Torrid
Necklace: Sister's
Ring: H&M

Now or never

These pictures are not the greatest and there's only a few, but I wanted to get these City Chic pants on the blog. I've had them for a while now and I wear them constantly, but somehow the world seems to be working against me when it comes to snapping shots of my outfits. So here they are in all their glory!

Top: H&M
Pants: City Chic
Wedges: Payless
Necklace: Forever21
Rings: MARYJOHN

I love these pants. I seriously love them. I wait eagerly for them to come out of the wash every laundry cycle. They're so freaking comfortable and cute to boot. These are my "pajamas to work" pants, except way better looking. Pop on a pair of wedges and top and I easily pass for a put-together individual. My coworkers are so easily fooled! And guess what? They're on sale for $19.99. Did I say that I really love these pants?

Floral explosion

I had some extra time before work today; it was nice to have a leisurely morning for once instead of my usual bum rush out the door. I made myself a tasty omelet and lunch for later, actually applied my makeup at home instead of at work, and stopped at a park around the corner from work to take pics in the pretty morning light.

Did you all have a good Fourth of July weekend? I must say mine was quite spectacular! Friday night was spent at a friend's Poconos lake house, sitting around a fire drinking and chatting. Saturday got a little wild down in Lancaster, PA, where we went to a giant Greek barbeque with my sister's BF's friends. The food...oh the food was phenomenal; roasted lamb on the spit, homemade gyros with all the toppings, steamed crabs, tons of apps and desserts, and more drinks. Best of all was the company, though! This group was so open and welcoming, and I was feeling confident and sexy in a strappy little blue and white sundress. Pics didn't happen but I'll show it to you one day!

So, this outfit is pretty simple and straight forward, but I was feeling amazing in it all day. The super bright colors really boosted my mood, and I can definitely tell that my hard work at sticking to WW and working out is paying off. I can see a definite difference in my silhouette in this form fitting outfit! I was feeling guilty about not tracking and eating and drinking so much this weekend, but I won't let it get me down, I hopped right back on track with Body Pump last night and yoga and round three of C25K tonight. If the scale goes up because of my sins this weekend, that's ok. It's life - I'll just work that much harder next week.

Do you like my little gold rings? They're a find from another awesome Etsy seller, MARYJOHN. I fell hard for her delicate little gold bands and tiny stones. You'll be seeing a lot of these in the future!

Top: Not sure!! Target? H&M? Old Navy? I've had this shirt for 4 or 5 years easy!
Tank: City Chic
Pants: Michael Kors via Nordstrom
Sandals: Franco Sarto via ideeli
Necklace: F21
Bangles: Some from Greece, some borrowed from the sis
Rings: MARYJOHN

Check back in a bit for the winner of the Forever21 Gift Card!