Adventures in steaming

I spent most of the day today in my PJ's, catching up on laundry and other fun stuff. When it comes to wrinkles, I have always been a 'throw it in the dryer for a few minutes' kind of gal. I actually just bought an iron this past year. Ben came home one day a couple of weeks ago with a clothes steamer from Macy's in tow. I thought that maybe he was trying to tell me something about the state of my clothes, but it turns out he needed it to steam his bread (so that the outside doesn't cook faster than the inside). His bread baking obsession has risen to a whole new level (haha). I have been reading about how steaming clothes is much better for the article of clothing than ironing it, so I decided to give it a try.

Things did not start off well. As you can see below, we went through quite the process. I had to stop and snap this picture because the whole situation was hilarious. Yes, those are tongs. Yes, Ben has on gloves.

By the end (we steamed 16 or 18 pieces), I think we had it figured out (kind of). Some pieces were pretty tricky though.

So, what is the best method? Do you just hang it up, apply steam, and hope for the best (it seems like without tools, like gloves and tongs, that's all you can do)? Give me some tips!

I did finally get dressed:) I wore this out to get my hair done and over to a friends house for dinner. I picked this chemise up at the anthropologie party a few day ago. I have never tried the chemise as a dress look until now. I think I like it!

After-hours party at anthropologie!!!!!!!

I had a wonderful time last night at an after-hours party at my local anthropologie. My friend Alicia, from likelybadger, hosted/organized the event. I arrived to a lovely set up of champagne, cupcakes, and other goodies. Alicia and one of the anthro SA's had a rack of outfits picked out to showcase. I really liked the way they had the outfits organized. They had a few different categories outlined (modern, 70's, and 60's) and a few outfits for each category to show as examples. After that, we all walked around the store and picked out things to try on. Alicia, along with a few SA's, were there to help pick out outfits, give suggestions, offer styling tips, etc. I had a blast! I also had the chance to meet Farmer Jo! How exciting!


Yummy!

This is what I wore to the event. All of the full-body shots were super blurry, so this is the best I could do. You get the point though:) I love the marine mural dress (even in winter)!


I tried on quite a few beautiful things at the party. This top (the Eastpoint Garden Top) was one of my favorites. The color is gorgeous! Definitely size down (I sized down 2 sizes).


I loved it so much, I wore it today!


After trying on so many gorgeous items last night, these two are now at the very top of my wishlist: The Back Porch Blouse and the Take Action Dress.


Happy Friday!

Back to work

Going back to work after a week off is never fun. Of course I had about a million emails in my inbox and the president of my company decided today would be a good day to stop by my office for a couple of meetings. It was a stressful day, but now it's over:) I decided to go to a spinning class after work - it felt really good to work out and get sweaty! Now, we are headed to an art opening for Ben's brother.


Skirt: J. Crew (Francie)
Top: J. Crew
Cardigan: J. Crew
Tights: Hue
Shoes: Dansko

I heart the J.Crew clearance center!

I'm home! I survived family time and ended up having a really fun trip:) Even though I had a much better time than expected, I was still so very happy to sleep in my own bed last night and cuddle with my fur babies. I did get to visit the J. Crew clearance center in Arden, NC while I was away. It was wonderful! Although the selection was not as great as the last time I visited, I still found quite a few things to bring home with me. They were having a couple of sales (20% off outerwear and buy one get one 1/2 off of all cardigans). I noticed that there were more outlet items there this time, which was a little bit disappointing.

Here it is! It is off of the beaten path in an industrial area, but it's really not too hard to find.


The SHOE WALL!!!!!!


More shoes! I spotted some really beautiful shoes, but I didn't purchase any of them:( I have a foot injury that is in the process of healing, but until it is fully healed, I have to be very careful about what shoes I wear (this is why I have been wearing my dansko shoes nearly every day). I have some very gorgeous shoes in my closet that I cannot wait to wear once my foot heals. Until then, I'm trying to not add to my shoe collection!


Beautiful dresses!


I brought this little purse home with me. I don't usually go for velvet accessories, but I just couldn't turn this one down. The color is gorgeous, I love the chain, and the kiss lock closures look like little flowers!

Details


I love this cardigan! It is very warm and the off-center zip really makes it feel a bit edgy.


I picked up a few more items that I will feature in OOTD's sometime soon.

Hope you all are have a great week!

what a long day

I am leaving tomorrow morning to go out of town for a few days. I'm headed to North Carolina to see my family. I'm somewhat dreading it and somewhat excited. One thing I am looking forward to is visiting the J. Crew clearance center in Arden, NC! I went there last year and it was fabulous! I was very lucky because they were having a huge sample sale the weekend I was there. I will certainly report back about what I find this time.

I have been rushing around most of the day, preparing for my trip. Work was crazy, I had a couple of appointments to go to, and then of course laundry and packing once I got home. Now, I plan to take a few minutes to read a book and relax before bed.

My dog Kya always gets a bit sad when she sees my suitcase. This is what she did while I packed:
Poor girl! I hate leaving her! She will, of course, be just fine. Ben is staying home to take care of everyone and (hopefully) keep things under control:)

Here is my outfit. I love the dress, but it wrinkles like crazy. It seems like the moment I put it on, the wrinkling starts and by the end of the day, it's a mess. Oh well, I like it anyways.

Dress: Anthropologie
Cardigan: J. Crew
Necklace: Anthropologie
Shoes: Dansko

Wightwick Manor

I added this dress to my wishlist when it first came out, but when it made it to sale, I passed (I just wasn't sure about it and there were other items higher on my list, etc.). However, there was a popback in my size during the 25% off sale and I went for it! I'm so glad I did. This dress is beautiful, cozy, and very well made. The first time I wore it, I went with gray tights and a gray belt (this time brown). I can't really say which I like better - both colors work well. The pleating on the dress is beautiful and I love the pattern!


Dress: Anthropologie
Belt: Anthropologie
Tights: Hue
Shoes: Dansko

ps - sorry for the poor lighting, I'm working on finding a better spot:)

Pizza on the grill

Ben and I decided to have grilled pizza last night. We tried this once before (on christmas day actually, when we had some friends over). The pizza was excellent the first time around and even better last night!


Here is the homemade dough. Ben started it a few hours before dinner time so that it would have time to properly rise, etc. He has been on a bread baking spree lately, filling our house with lovely smells almost every day!


Here is the huge mess I made in the kitchen while cutting up all of the toppings!


On the grill!


After grilling one side, the toppings go on, and then back out to the grill they go. Yes, we made a TON of pizzas. The dough recipe Ben used ended up making 7 of these smallish pizzas. We froze the leftovers so we can just pop one in the oven for a quick lunch or for when we are short on time for dinner.

Grilled to perfection


Finished product - So delicious!

A hell of a skirt (and some pretty awesome shoes too)!

I started my day with a great yoga class. The Saturday class I like to go to starts at 9:00 and I have missed it the last few weeks because I slept in too late. Today however, the dogs were up and about earlier than normal so I was up in time for class. I'm so glad I went. It feels good to start the weekend with yoga. From there, I went to pick up my "little sister" (through the Big Brothers/Big Sisters program). We decided to have a craft day. We had a lot of fun making valentines cards! When I got home, the mail lady was walking up to my house with an anthro box in tow. I could not wait to try on the Hellebore sweater skirt! Here it is - soft, warm, cozy, and beautiful!

Top: Anthropologie

Cardigan: J. Crew
Skirt: Anthropologie
Shoes: Chie Mihara (Loti)

This is one of my favorite pairs of shoes. This post from Goldenmeans first brought these shoes to my attention. I went back to them over and over, drooling over their beauty. Unfortunately, my size wasn't available from Ped shoes at the time. I emailed them, only to find out that they were not planning on restocking. I can't say enough good things about the Ped shoes customer service team because MONTHS later, I received an email letting me know that they did in fact get another shipment and my size was available! They are perfect!

Zander

Top: Anthropologie
Cardigan: J. Crew
Skirt: Anthropologie
Tights: Hue
Shoes: Dansko
Necklace: Botanical Bird (via Etsy)

Meet Zander (and Talus - you can kind of see his head)! He is a German shepherd mix. We adopted him from the humane society about 3 years ago. He was the perfect addition to our family, although having 3 dogs is a bit challenging (to say the least). He is sweet, gentle, curious, anxious, and sometimes a little bit crazy (which I love about him)!

My very first OOTD post!

Top: J. Crew
Dress: J. Crew (given to me by one of my very best friends)
Tights: Hue
Shoes: Dansko

I work in a somewhat conservative office. Depending on what I have going on during the day, I can sometimes push the limits, but today was not one of those days. I love the ruffle along the bottom of the dress. I think it takes the outfit up a notch and makes me feel a little more like myself.

Hellebore

I am so excited that the Hellebore sweater skirt finally made it to the sale section today at Anthro! I've had my eye on it for quite some time. Now that it is on it's way to me, I am dreaming up some beautiful outfits to feature this lovely skirt in.

It's Love

Chie Mihara is one of my most favorite shoe designers. I love the "Quintana" from her fall/winter line. So gorgeous! I have been lucky enough to score 3 pairs of Chie's in the past year, all of which I love dearly. As we all know, great shoes can really make an outfit and Chie Mihara knows how to do it right.

Costa Rica

I love to travel! Last year, Ben and I went to Costa Rica. It was a great trip - a perfect mixture of leisure and adventure. From relaxing in the hammock to zip lining through the forest, it was fabulous! Here are a couple pictures from our trip.

Inspiration