Casual Chic with NEWBELLA

Three jobs, taking classes, and still being mom to kids who need a ride or a shoulder to cry on now and then.  More often than not, I fall into bed exhausted, and wake up again long before I feel rested.  But, this is the season we're in and there is no getting around it, just getting through it as best as I can.  Now more than ever, I rely on simple, chic pieces in my wardrobe that work with everything and really that make everything look polished and chic.

Classic black ballet flats have been a staple in my wardrobe since 2011 when I bought my very first pair and realized that this was something that had been missing from my style for far too long.  I wore them until they literally fell apart and since then, I've always had a pair of black flats in my closet, but never before have I had flats with such sparkle as these MOUSSE Rhinestone Pointed Toe Flats from NEWBELLA.  Use my code, BLEU, to save 18% off your purchase at NEWBELLA.

I have more outfits planned with all my NEWBELLA shoes from our collaboration, because the possibilities are endless, and especially now, when I have to go casual for one of my jobs, I love that I can dress up jeans and a button down shirt with these flats and suddenly the compliments start rolling in.  They're perfect and I cannot wait to show you all the ways I am wearing them!

Shopping Info:  MOUSSE Rhinestone Pointed Toe Slip On Flats-$42 from NEWBELLA Use code BLEU to save 18% off your purchase

Princess Shoes with NEWBELLA

Oh, for a princess dress!  You know how much I love my princess dresses, but I do admit that when they drag the ground, something has to give: either the dress has to get shorter or I have to get taller. Naturally, I'm done growing, so it only makes sense to get a little taller with a nice platform shoe.  Since this JessaKae dress is completely stunning, and it would be almost a crime for it to sit in the closet, I decided to don my highest shoes and wear it anyway.  I chose these Endless Holiday espadrille wedges from NEWBELLA.  These mirror pieces down the front make them a perfect pairing with a princess dress. 

For my collaboration with NEWBELLA you can save an extra 18% with my code BLEU and get some great summer sandals that also work perfectly with your princess dresses.  A little height, a little sparkle, and a lot of style.  Made of soft faux suede, these Endless Holiday Wedges, (I love that name, by the way!) are comfortable and surprisingly easy to wear despite the height thanks to the wide base of the wedge design.

Never let your best things sit in the closet.  Instead find the right pairings so that you get the most enjoyment from your clothes.  My collaboration with NEWBELLA continues with one more very classically stylish pair of flats, so join me right back here on Sunday for the final installment in this collab.

Shopping Info:  ENDLESS HOLIDAY Ankle Strap Espadrille Wedge Sandals from NEWBELLA. Use code BLEU to save 18% off your purchase. Violette Dress in Pink-$250 from JessaKae.

Classic Prints with NewBella

There is something to be said for basics.  They're called basics, not because they're, well, basic or boring, but because they're the foundations everyone should have to build their wardrobe around.  Such is the case with a Little Black Dress.  Little Black Dresses are always in style and appropriate for everything except weddings, and even then as long as you're not purposely giving funeral vibes, you can probably pull it off.

The great thing about a LBD is that once you have that foundation, you can do virtually anything with it, including throw in some prints and textures.  For this post, I am collaborating with NEWBELLA, who sent me these darling houndstooth print flats with an apricot & black print and you can save 18% off your purchase with my code BLEU.  This whole look is giving me Audrey Hepburn vibes for sure!  

Combining these print flats with gold chain detail around the bows for that little extra flare, a vintage style textured cardigan and some great accessories like my favorite bow headband, makes this outfit anything but basic.  Quite the contrary, with a solid foundation and the right accessories, you're only limited by your imagination. 

Let me just say of these flats, J'dore!  They are so stylish and chic and they came with heel guards to protect against blisters which I definitely need because I am on my feet a lot.  They are comfortable with a nice cushion, but really for me the selling point is all in the style because I love them so much.  I do feel that these ran a big larger than the other two pairs of shoes I tried from NEWBELLA, so pay close attention to sizing.  

I will be reviewing two more pairs of shoes in this collaboration with NEWBELLA, so meet me right back here on Saturday for the second installment, or if you just can't wait that long, check out my YouTube review to see what other little lovelies I chose for this collab.

Shopping Info:  Mousse Fit Retro Bow Tie Flat Shoes-$59 from NEWBELLA, USE CODE BLEU to save 18% at NEWBELLA.  Girls From Savoy Dress from ThredUp, YeMak Textured Cardigan-$37, SheIn Bow Headband, Unlogical Poem Doll Ring

The Season of Summer

There is a fine line between just enough and too much.  It's a line I've been walking for a while now and I think it's safe to say that it's finally been crossed.  I don't know why I always assume that summer time will bring us rest; it never does.  Just the opposite, as soon as the weather warms up and the shackles of a school schedule are cast off, our lives fill up faster than I can manage.

Summer is the time when everyone takes their vacations and I end up covering for them.  Summer is also the time when everyone expects entertainment and I end either hosting or shuttling.  So, by the time summer is all said and done, I'm desperately looking forward to the excuse, Sorry, can't, the kids have school.

This summer though, I feel like I am just about to reach my breaking point on all the activities and something has got to give.  Then again, I remind myself that with one child already graduated and another soon to follow, all this busyness is temporary and all too soon I will likely have nothing but time  on my hands and an empty house that perpetually stays clean. 

So, for yet another summer, I will put my big girl pants on do all the things to help other people have a wonderful, exciting, eventful summer and remind myself that much like summer itself, this time in my life is just a season that will be over all too soon.

Shopping Info:  Dress from Zjoan, Shoes from VIVAIA

Fairest of Them All with JessaKae

Sometimes when you take a risk, you lose.  In fact, I think slightly more often than not when you take a risk, you lose, which is why so many people are afraid to take risks and try something new.  I'm not going to say that I'm an avid risk-taker, rather I am an avid battle-chooser.  I don't usually jump right in, I watch and wait and then make an informed decision about trying something new. 

I still get burned occasionally, but not so often that I am afraid to take a risk on a new brand.  I've been watching JessaKae for the past year or more and contemplating making a purchase.  Everything I have seen about them online has been positive, so when the time was right, meaning when they released three back-to-back collections with dresses I loved, I decided to take a risk.

If you can't tell just by looking at this dress, I am so glad that I did try this brand because the dresses I purchased are beyond stunning, more practical, and waaaaay cheaper than the brand I've been hung up on for over a year now.  This Fairest of Them All Dress is from the Royal Collection.  It features navy swiss dot tulle and red and green smocked bodice and apple embroidery, Snow White style.  

Since I'm new to the brand, I sized up, but I think I could have gone true to size and been just fine.  This dress is heavenly and I've already worn it out and gotten lots of compliments.  I wore it with these red storybook flats and my apple purse of course.  Ok, maybe it's silly, but outfits like this make me happy in a way that nothing else does.

My full YouTube review featuring all three dresses I purchased from JessaKae will be posted shortly, but in the meantime, you can just trust me that this brand is worth it!!

Shopping Info:  Fairest of Them All Dress-$195 from JessaKae

Honey Bee with JessaKae

It's funny how you can get stuck in a rut for so long without realizing it and then suddenly everything changes.  I've been so hung up on a single brand for so long, I didn't realize how monotonous my blog and my wardrobe had really become.  Then, one day, the owner of said brand said something really ugly and the spell was broken.

It's like those ugly words were a magic kiss that woke me up from a very long sleep.  I finally started looking around and realizing that the whole purpose of this blog was to experiment and share my results, not to follow around one shop like a lovesick puppy all the time.  So, now I am awake and trying a brand I've been looking at for a year or more:  JessaKae.

While I have admired their dresses for many months, the most recent three collections are what convinced me to it was time to take the plunge.  This Honey Bee dress is from the Garden Party Collection and as soon as I saw those bees on the front, I knew I was absolutely going to buy this dress.

Since I've never shopped with JessaKae before, I read the size chart and bought one size up from my usual as it looked like XXS would be an inch too small and XS would be an inch too big.  It is indeed one inch too big, but I don't mind a tiny bit of extra room at all, especially on these warm summer days when being comfortable is more important than ever.

I have a full YouTube review on the way, but for now, just trust me when I say this dress is beyond lovely and there are so many design elements that are like a breath of fresh air after the same old problems from the same old brand over the past year.  You can definitely expect to see more lovelies from JessaKae

Shopping Info:  Honey Bee Dress-$158 from JessaKae

All the Colors, All the Time

The subject of having a signature color recently came up in a conversation between myself and my youngest child.  I explained that the concept is a bit foreign to Americans, but quite common in France and other countries.  The first person I knew of who had a signature color was a dear friend I met while studying in Switzerland.

My friend's signature color was lavender and she truly wore it well.  The only other person I've known in-person with a signature color is my maternal grandmother.  Her color is also a shade of purple that she uses for perfume, pens, and high end track suits.  It also suits her well even though she has the opposite complexion of my European friend in every way.  It leads me to speculate that Lavender looks good on everyone.

In the early days of the internet I followed an independent French artist who said her signature color was seafoam green and oh how she wore it well.  I absolutely adored her for a few years until she unexpectedly disappeared and I have never found out what became of her.

I have known a number of people who said black was their color.  With Johnny Cash being the one and only exception, I could never really believe that this is anyone's signature color.  Black is a neutral and neutrals cannot be any kind of color, but rather the items we pair with signature colors.

So, the conversation naturally progressed to my daughter asking if I had ever had a signature color.  Believe me when I say that I have tried.  I so wanted for a number of years to have a signature color, and I tried more than anything during my time of admiring that French artist.  I even tried to make seafoam green my color too, but alas, it did not love me as much as I loved it.  

After that I moved to a signature color palette instead of a signature color but found that palettes are so trendy and seasonal it was difficult to find things in those shades for very long.  So, eventually I decided to just embrace all the colors and wear the rainbow year round, all the colors all the time, and it suits me far better than one single color ever could.

The bottom line is that if you are a signature color kind of girl, then my hat's off to you and your classic sensibilities.  If you're more like me and you have enough love in your heart and room in your closet for all the colors then kudos to you as well.  Be who you are and wear what you like.

A Nightcap and a Day Dress

I've always been a sucker for a style and print.  If a certain style looks good on me, I'll get one in every color.  Likewise, if a certain print steals my heart, I'll buy it in everything available.  I've never been sure if these are good thing or not, but I am certain that I'm not alone.  I know many, many men and women alike, who have half a dozen of the same style and wear it all the time like a uniform, but no one really notices because it just looks good on them.

Of course I do the same with styles, which is why I pretty much exclusively buy day dresses from Selkie.  Day dresses are the only style which really looks good on me.  But when I find a print I love, I tend to get as much of it as I can.  If you recall the Mucha print from 2022 and how many dresses I bought in that style, you know exactly what I mean.

So, when this Nightcap print released, I immediately loved it and bought it in the only cotton style available, the Beach Day Dress.  Now, while that style is cute, I've had more than one person think I'm pregnant because of that poofy skirt and it's made me a little self conscious about wearing them.  Also, a strange thing happens to women in their 40s, it's called saggy knees, and unfortunately I now have it, so I am starting to shy away from short dresses too.

Thankfully this print had a re-release in a day dress style and I jumped at the chance to have this stunning print in a style that is not only becoming "my style" by default because I have so many Day dresses, but because this style checks all my boxes: Fitted waist, flattering neckline, flared skirt.

My time with Selkie is coming to an end, I feel, but I am so glad I got this dark beauty before we part ways.  It really is a lovely style and the perfect print.

Shopping Info:  Nightcap Day Dress-$249 from Selkie

Wedding Season Begins

I rarely begin posts by showing the back of a dress, but this particular beauty really has a stunning backline that demands top billing.  So, I'm breaking out of the routine and starting with the back of the dress.

Ah, June, the wedding season is upon us.  If you're a bride or a bridesmaid on a budget you may be scrambling to find a special dress before the big day arrives that will suit your style and colors for an affordable price.  Look no further.  (You can save an extra 15% with my code CH15 )  Available in 30 colors and in sizes US0-US30 with free custom sizing, YeLure is ideal for finding the perfect dress.

This is my second collaboration with YeLure and this dress is ever so stunning in just the perfect pastel green.  With a tasteful, understated design that guarantees a timeless look that doesn't compete with the bride, c'mon brides, you know that's something you look for.  

The gently draped neckline that leads into this dramatic back is so chic.  The bodice is lined and padded so that you don't need to worry about finding a bra to accommodate the open back.  And, this fitted top and full sweeping skirt are flattering on all body types.

Shopping Info:  Cowl Neck Chiffon A Line Bridesmaid Dress-$109 from YeLure.com  Use code CH15 to save 15% off your order.