[Link up] Trend of the Month: Boots!!!

Today I'm linking up with the amazing Marion at Marionberry Style for her Trend of the Month linkup! This month, it's all about boots. Booties, mid calf boots, knee boots - all kinds of boots! Well....I just bought myself a pair of cowboy boots, so I'm going to be different post about that!!! (Although, I wouldn't be surprised if one of my bloggy faves Molly posts about them, too!!)

Now, I'm sure to many of you that's not a big deal. And it's not like this is my first pair of cowboy boots. But I've been a country girl all my life and every pair of boots I've ever owned have been cheap, poorly made, and "fake" - meaning some trendy shoe company put them out because they were in style. In my mind, they weren't real cowboy boots.

Now, all that has changed.

I went with 6 of my dance team girlfriends for an afternoon shopping outing at Horsetown East in Snellville, GA. Talk about authenticity - they carry everything a country girl could want! Jeans, hats, boots, shirts, jewelry - you name it, they had it.

And the boots. Authentic. Real leather. Made to be broken in. Made to take a beating. Made for a perfect hardwood dance floor.

After an hour or two of giving stylistic feedback to my friends trying on clothes, I headed over the boots. One of the women who was working there helped me out and I explained my situation: looking for boots under $200, I have long/big feet and skinny calves, and I've never owned a real pair. She spent the next half an hour choosing boots that met what I was looking for.

I just knew it when I put these on. I knew they were "the ones" - and when every one of my girls seconded that, I knew I had to get them. And I did.

The higher heel made my foot look shorter, and the skinnier shaft (hahaha that made me laugh when the saleswoman said it, how childish am I?!) was perfect on my skinny little chicken leg calves.

I just love my new boots...and I've worn them out on the dance floor a few times and they're perfect. Yay!

Oh, and as a bonus: here's how I wore them dancing!

Top: Old Navy, last seen here | Jeans: Express, old | Boots: Dan Post via Horsetown | Tank: Macy's

And, as a bonus, since a bunch of you have commented asking to see my dance team in action - here you are! (Sorry, but this is one of the best videos of our most recent performance, but it was recorded on an iphone so the quality is meh.) I'm on the far left in the front, when the video scrolls over that way. :)

Happy Wednesday, ya'll!!

[Link up] Try It Tuesday: Pumpkin Cookies

Welcome to Try It Tuesday, a linkup where we can try out something we've wasted all that time pinning! :)  The only rules are that your post content is inspired by something else - be it a pin, a page from a magazine, or someone else's blog. Also, please link back to my linkup in your post - the button code is below and in my right sidebar if you'd like to use the button.

Since tomorrow is Halloween, I thought I'd share the cookies I made from a recipe I pinned! To me, October screams pumpkin flavored things: coffee, cookies, and my favorite - pumpkin rolls (I make at least 2 of these every October, haha). This time, I decided to branch out and try a recipe on Pinterest that was slightly different than my normal pumpkin cookie recipe to see how it turned out.

The recipe I used I had pinned from this post by Jess of Linen, Lace, & Love:

1 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup pumpkin
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

To start, I mixed the shortening and sugar, then added the pumpkin.

I sifted the flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together, then set aside.

Next, I mixed in the egg with the pumpkin/sugar/shortening mixture.

Lastly, I mixed the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mix.

Scooping rounded teaspoons of cookies onto the cookie sheet, I baked the cookies at 375 for 10-12 minutes (a little longer in my oven because it stinks, haha).

They came out great!!! They had an amazing soft texture to them, a little on the dense side, but this tends to happen when you use shortening in a cookie recipe - however, I love them that way! I didn't do the icing that Jess did in her recipe, because I don't love icing on my cookies. I would definitely make these again!!

[Linkup] Try It Tuesday #2

Welcome to Try It Tuesday, a linkup where we can try out something we've wasted all that time pinning! :)  The only rules are that your post content is inspired by something else - be it a pin, a page from a magazine, or someone else's blog. Also, please link back to my linkup in your post - the button code is below and in my right sidebar if you'd like to use the button.

This was today's inspiration: a 60s Bardot style ponytail from Sweet Caroline In the City:

Via

I was actually happy that I watched the video because I picked up on a tip - I had no idea that you didn't have to feverishly back comb for volume; now I know you only have to comb nicely!

Anyway...since I wore my version to work, I didn't make it nearly as high as this one. And honestly, I think the effect is very minimal. Next time I'll try it with more volume! (Sorry, but I just did this one yesterday and barely had enough time to snap minimally crappy pics.)

Definitely a baby hair bump!

What did you try this past week?

[Try It] First Try It Tuesday Linkup!

I have to admit - I'm a little bit nervous to put this out there today. I'm a pretty small blog, but I've been looking for some motivation to actually do some of my Pinterest pins, and I thought this would give me the boost to do so. Frankly, I'm just hoping that at least one other person links up with me today, haha! :)

For the first linkup...feel free to link up to an older post if you'd like to participate but weren't prepared. The only rules are that your post content is inspired by something else - be it a pin, a page from a magazine, or someone else's blog. Also, please link back to my linkup in your post - the button code is below and in my right sidebar if you'd like to use the button.

For today's inspiration, I went to my outfit pinboard - specifically my pinboard full of outfits worn by other style bloggers that I wanted to try for myself. I at first chose this outfit from Andrea at My Closet To Yours:

Via

I was inspired by the classic polka dots with the classic khaki. I paired a white polkda dotted shirt with a pair of skinny khakis and just didn't like how it looked on me. I think the fact that the inspiration photo uses pink and I wore white, along with Andrea's khakis being a bit darker than mine, made my version of the outfit wash me out. I mean, light colors on pasty white skin is not the most complimentary.

So, I went back to the drawing board. Or shall I say pinboard??

My next inspiration photo came from Merrick at Merrick's Art:

Via

I pinned this outfit because I really like the monochrome - it's lots of blue without the color being overpowering. Since I own this exact top, I thought it would be an easy recreation - and it was! Overall, I stayed pretty true to the inspiration photo.

When using an inspiration photo as a basis for an outfit, I always try to figure out what I like about the outfit - sometimes it's the color combination, sometimes it's the way things are layered, and sometimes it's the way the styles work together, like a flowy top paired with leggings or other tight fitting bottoms. In this case, I knew it was a combo of the layers with the color.

Another thing to think about when recreating an outfit is what parts of the inspiration outfit work for you and what parts don't. Merrick used a belt in her outfit - generally, a skinny belt at that location on my torso doesn't compliment my high hips and short waist, so I skipped it. (Also, she's got a little different definition since she's pregnant!! haha) Other than leaving out the belt, all I did differently was go with a darker brown open toed heel, and added my pop of green at the neckline with a necklace. Overall, I was happy with how it turned out!

Have an inspired Tuesday!

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[Beauty] Polish Swap!!

{Don't forget to enter my giveaway at the end of this post!! Only 2 days left!!!}

I've been super excited for this post ever since I got my polishes, so I'm pretty psyched the day has arrived. :)

Carly of Lipgloss and Crayons and Rachel of Lala Lists put together this fun little polish swap a few weeks back and I immediately joined in. As with many swaps, each of us was matched with a swap partner whom we would buy for - this time it was nail polish!

I am a nail polish fiend. I probably have near to 100 bottles. Yes. It's true. I get on these kicks where I'll buy about 10 new polishes in a 2 week time span and then forget about buying any for a month or two. It was super fun to this time go out and get polishes for someone else and to be surprised with their picks for me!!

I was partnered with Angela from Please Mommy No More Daddies. The swap was simple: each person would buy their partner two polishes - as part of the entry we had to give a little blurb about what we like to help guide our swap partner. The polishes could be any brand, any price - as long as there were two.

I had one simple guideline for Angela: nothing sparkly!! Don't get me wrong, I like sparkles as much as the next girl, and occasionally I'll wear a fun sparkly polish - but man, those things are hard to get off your nails!

So with my simple guide, Angela picked out two awesome polishes for me. (Unfortunately, I didn't get to try them since I was traveling for work when they arrived).

Polish 1:

Maybelline ColorShow Tenacious Teal

and polish 2:

Sinful Colors Hazard

I love both of these! I'm super into the bold nail, and the teal is definitely a nice, bold color. And the peach? So stylish right now!! It's almost a muted coral - gorgeous and will look great with so many things! Angela did a great job choosing polishes, and I can't wait to wear them!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

[Linkup] Pattern Mixing!

Lucky you guys, 2 posts in one day! My roundup post was scheduled for the first and then Marion's linkup happened to fall on the same day so you all are blessed with 2 doses of yours truly!

I've talked before on my blog about my comfort (or lack thereof) with pattern mixing. So when Marion at Marionberry Style made pattern mixing this month's trend of the month, I did frownie face just a bit. Great trend - but obviously not in my general comfort zone.

I take baby steps to pattern mixing currently, and today's look is no different. As seen before, my pattern mixing consists of a patterned shirt with a differently patterned scarf. Don't laugh, I'm still an amateur.

Also debuting on the blog today - pictures taken with my new camera!!! W00t W00t!!!

Top: Gap, $15 (recent) | Jeans: JCPenney, $13 (Fall 2011) | Heels: Shoe Carnival, $25 (they always have these and they're so comfy!!) | Scarf: Ebay, $2 | Blazer: Steve & Barry's, $20 (old, 2009) | Sunnies: NY&Company, $5 | Earrings: Foxy Originals, won a giveaway from Mary Ann! | Bracelets: Charlotte Russe (dangle), $5, Boutique in Helen, GA (blue and white), $20 | Watch: Target, $13 | Grand Total: $118

[Link-Up] From Blog Life to Real Life

The fabulous Jessica at Lovely Little Things and the equally fabulous Britt from the Magnolia Pair have put together a From Blog Life to Real Life link-up for today. I thought this was a really fun idea - they chose 10 questions for fellow bloggers to answer in a post and we'll all link up said posts today. Since it's all about bloggers and blogging I thought it would be fun!




The questions?

1. Do you have any real life blog friends?
2. Which blogger are you just dying to meet?
3. Which blogger's closet do you want to raid?
4. You are stuck on an island. Which blogger would you want with you to help you survive?
5. The first blogger you remember "meeting" and connecting with ?
6. Any blogger that you admire and look up to?
7. Who is the craziest/funniest blogger?
8. There's a reality television show for bloggers, who would you want to be casted with you?
9. Some bloggers have really cool jobs, anybody you'd like to swap careers with?
10. Favorite blog design?

And here are my answers - there were some bloggers I could happily put into more than one question, but in the interest of variety, I've kept it one to one!

1. Do you have any real life blog friends?
It makes me sad to say that no - I don't. :(  Not just yet anyway. But I'm still pretty new to this blogging thing, so I'm hoping in the next few months to a year I meet some!

2. Which blogger are you just dying to meet?

Oh, this one is easy. She was my first follower - she's got great style, a fantastic sense of humor, and is an awesome writer. And on top of it, she is seriously one of the nicest and most positive people I've ever had the pleasure of "knowing" (you know, since we've never actually met). It would definitely be Molly of Still Being Molly!!

Molly's personality shining through :)

3. Which blogger's closet do you want to raid? 

Marion at Marionberry Style. Seriously. That girl has the best clothes! There are definitely a bunch of bloggers who clothes I would love to steal, but every single outfit Marion wears is fabulous while being classic and chic.

Also, Andrea at My Closet to Yours. She has killer style.

4. You are stuck on an island. Which blogger would you want with you to help you survive? 

Maegan at ...love Maegan. She does amazing DIYs and if I were stuck on an island I believe her amazing DIY skills would come in very useful in surviving!!!

5. The first blogger you remember "meeting" and connecting with ? 

Amanda at A.Co est. 1984. I adore her style and found inspiration in her posts! She was the first fashion blogger I ever followed.

6. Any blogger that you admire and look up to? 

Kate at The Small Things Blog. She always comes across as kind and intelligent, no matter what she's writing about. She has amazing style, impeccable taste in decor, is amazing at styling hair, and her pictures always look fabulous. 

7. Who is the craziest/funniest blogger? 

Mish (Michelle) at Mish Lovin' Life. She is downright hilarious. Her style of writing is so engaging and her sense of humor makes me laugh every post I read! She's half Korean and spends a lot of time poking fun at being "Asian", and she's somehow managed to make something as impressive as marathon training come off as fun and funny at the same time. She has an alter ego named Crazy Connie. If you are not reading her blog, go do it now. You heard me. Go on. I'll still be here when you get back.

You can just tell she's fun from her button!!!

8. There's a reality television show for bloggers, who would you want to be casted with you? 

Oh, there are definitely a number I'd want around - Shan from Merci Blah Blah for her ridiculously awesome sense of humor and Sarah from Coming Unstitched because she's a Pennsylvania girl and we all know PA gals are the most fun ;). 

9. Some bloggers have really cool jobs, anybody you'd like to swap careers with? 

I would love to swap careers with Mary Ann from the Dapper Bun. She's a dance teacher, and dances with a local dance company here in Atlanta. I love dance but unfortunately didn't start doing it early enough in life to really become great. I'd love to be good enough to do what she does!!

Amazing!

10. Favorite blog design?

Confession: I hardly ever actually visit people's blog pages. I read all my blogs in my Google Reader. I have no idea who has a good blog design and who doesn't!!!

[Link-Up] Shoes!

Ok ya'll - shoes are something near and dear to my heart. I have about .... nevermind, I'm not telling you how many pairs I own because my husband reads this blog. Babe, you also have lots of shoes, so don't you say a word. Dare I say my hubby enjoys shoes nearly as much as I do.

So, when Sarah over at Simply Sarah planned a link-up asking everyone to share their favorite SHOES, I was ecstatic!!! Only, I couldn't decide what to showcase. So, I decided to go with a theme. Right now, I'm loving both wedges and peep-toe stilettos. But she mentioned hottest and most fabulous, so I have to go with the peep-toe stilettos.

Here are my favorite pairs!!

These were a whim of a purchase at a super cheap shoe store. I wasn't expecting them to be comfortable but they surprisingly are! The word that comes to mind with these is fierce.

I love a great red shoe. These were a clearance grab at Macy's (thanks husband for your employee discount!) and I just adore them. These scream sexy!

These were on super sale as well and I love that I can wear them with a lot of stuff. These are my wild heels!

And of course we couldn't get all the way through without a Lexi-bomb. However, these shoes are my ultimate favorite - fierce, sexy, and wild all in one!!!