Here a Kitty, There a Kitty

    You already know I'm a cat lady of the completely sane variety, so it shouldn't be a surprise that three little kittens have joined our home.  They're siblings that we adopted from a family very relieved to have found a home that would keep them together.  That brings cat total to four and like the other cat, these will live outside once they're grown.  They're oh so sweet and cuddly and very playful of course.  I was expecting to have my hands full, but they've been very well behaved and no trouble at all. 
    I've never had kittens be such snuggle bugs before.  The minute I make eye contact with them they're in my lap.  In honor of these little purr factories, I'm re-introducing my With Love Cat Portrait Necklace.  I've worn it at least once or twice for blog photos in the last year or two and will definitely be featuring it more often.

Outfit Info:

With Love.  Cat Portrait Necklace $18 from my Etsy shop.

Have Bike; Will Travel

Paris Green Bicycle Photo, Chalk Art Bicycle, Vintage Floral Bicycle, and Peach Blossom Print on Etsy.com

  The peach tree survived the frost and is in full bloom now.  I decided to get one more set of photos

with it and since I just got this completely adorable Bicycle Print Dress from The Other Sparrows it was an easy choice for what of wear.  

    This dress has the most amusing print of anything I own, but it's also very sweet and subtle and I love that about it.  At a glance you'll see blue bicycles on an ivory background, but if you look closer you'll see a couple of riders having a bad day.  It's so funny and sweet, I had to have it.  

    If I haven't mentioned this already, The Other Sparrows has just rolled out their new spring styles.  This dress is just one of several that I purchased and the others will feature soon in their own posts as soon as they arrive.

Shop the Look:

Bicycle Print Dress from The Other Sparrows

Bell Flats by Report

Coral Necklace from ModCloth

Vintage Italian Ring

Bolero Shrug is old

Peach Blossoms: ootd

Peach Blossom Print,  Ampersand Blossoms, Washi Tape available at Etsy.com

    All the silly trees are trying so hard to blossom and frost after frost keeps killing them off.  I missed out on taking photos of our pear tree before the frost killed those snowy blossoms, so I was determined today to catch our nectarine tree before it too gave up the ghost to frost.  It seemed like the perfect opportunity to wear this pastel cornucopia by Lauren Conrad LC.  I am so ready for light fabrics and pastel colors.  This dress is by far my favorite LC purchase, though I have just bought a couple of LC blouses at Kohls which I know I'm going to love.  I pulled out the double layer cameo necklace and a couple of chunky rings, but everything says spring and this outfit is entirely handmade or second hand except for the purse.  

Shop the Look:

LC Lauren Conrad Dress and Red V Heels from ThredUp

Use this link to sign up and save $20 off your first order

American Eagle Cardi is old

Nila Anthony From the Round Up Purse from ModCloth

Use this link to sign up and save $20 off your first purchase

Rings are available in my etsy shop BlueSunEmporium.etsy.com

Fresh water pearl earrings available from Pearlland88.etsy.com

Eiffel Dreams: ootd

Pink Paris Print, Paris Photograph, Pink Eiffel Printable from Etsy.com

Ahhh, Paris in the springtime.  I'll never forget my visit there and I still love all things Eiffel.  I picked up this skirt at Chicwish about a year ago and to be honest it hasn't gotten much wear (see my other outfit with this skirt here), but I fully intend to change that.  Get ready to see a number of outfits involving this skirt over the next few months.  Life has changed a lot since coming back to the States and I foresee plenty of occasions to wear this skirt.  This evening I'm just out for a stroll, enjoying this gorgeous warm day while it lasts.     

 I decided to wear my new Every Step you Take mint flats from ModCloth.  I love the ankle strap and I absolutely adore the color.  I plan on pairing them with a mint dress from Meadow Rue that I wore in this post. They rubbed a bit, so next time I'll have to wear some slipper socks with them.  Since it was a rather warm day, I just wore this basic style of lace tank that I wear under pretty much everything and brought a long my awesome cropped leather jacket from ThredUp.  Since it was sunset I took along my new cat glasses from Romwe.  They're much bigger than I expected, so I may have to go back and try a smaller size, but they are unique and I like that.

Shop the look:

Skirt from ChicWish

Every Step You Take Flats from ModCloth

JouJou Jacket from ThredUp

Cat glasses from Romwe

S is For Sweater

    It seems like sweater season is almost over and spring is on the way.  Everywhere I look there are early signs of spring.  The trees a full of green buds and clusters of daffodils are popping up in random fields.  But, Nature likes to fool us sometimes.  After several days so warm I broke a sweat and switched to flip flops, I woke up shivering this morning and hoping my garden hasn't been killed by frost.  Spring is putting up a pretty good fight, but Winter has a few more rounds left in her, I think.  That's ok by me.  I love the warmer weather, but with most of my wardrobe in transit for so many weeks, I've missed out on wearing some of my favorite sweaters this year.  One of those favorites is this monogram sweater form Old Navy.  They came out with these sweaters a couple of years ago and as always seems to happen the sweaters that had my initials were all colors I hated.  I loved this one though, so I decided to buy it anyway and if asked what the S stands for I'll answer "S is for Sweater, of course."

Shop the Look:

Sweater from Old Navy

Potluck Hostess Skirt and Red Heels from ModCloth

Make Up Review

Make Up Print Trio, Glass Make Up Holders, & Lipstick Print Available on Etsy.com 

       I've never done a make-up review on this site and the reason is very simple:  I've been using the same brand and colors for over a decade.  In the past every time I visited a make-up counter or a sales rep came to my house, they inevitably recommended the exact same color palette.  So, I chose a reputable brand with the only foundation that truly matches my skin tone and moisturizer that doesn't cause breakouts from being too oily or dryness from being too...I don't know, whatever causes dry skin.  Lately, I've begun to realize I'm in need of a few extras like primer and concealer.  These are the products I tried and the ones I decided to ditch or keep.

    I started by looking for a primer to help with my fine lines.  I liked that this e.l.f primer also has a green tint to correct redness.  After using this product for a b out a month, I had to call it quits.  It feels very oily.  I don't normally suffer from acne, but I had constant breakouts while using this product.  I ditched it and decided to move on.

    From there I went to this Master Prime by Maybelline.  Now this product, I love!  No oily feeling and no breakouts.  Although, I can't tell that it actually makes my make up look better, it definitely helps the foundation to go on smoother than without it.  I bought this product in white and green and can't tell much difference between the two.  There's so little difference in fact that I decided to buy a separate concealer for redness and one for dark circles.  After browsing the entire make-up aisle, I landed on this all-in-one palette by Hard Candy.

    I bought a little pot of yellow concealer years ago during the baby days to help counter act all the sleeplessness and late night feedings.  It's dry and cakey now and in need of replacement.  My favorite thing about this palette is that it has all the concealer colors plus a variety of skin tone colors.  If I buy a light concealer in the winter, it won't work in mid-summer, because no matter how much sunscreen I slather on I'm going to tan.  So, it's nice to have some options to play around with to find the right shade for my skin tone and season.
    In case you're a make up novice and don't remember anything from those grade school art classes, let me give you a little refresher.  This is a color wheel:

    On the color wheel there are color pairs that are directly opposite of each other are called complimentary colors.  When placed side by side in an outfit at the same intensity they tend to create a very harsh contrast so we rarely pair in the fashion world although you'll see them paired in nature all the time (ie: red berries on green trees and purple and yellow pansies, etc.), but when it comes to make up we can use complimentary colors to help cancel each other out.  The pairs run as follows:  Red & green, blue & orange, yellow & purple.  So, for example, to combat redness use a green concealer.  For purple under-eye circles, use a yellow concealer.  Simple, right?  I don't really like to take a big financial risk on make-up because it's so individual.
    I loved the brush that came with the palette.  It's my first time applying concealer with a brush and it was so much better than just gobbing it on with a cotton swab or my fingers.  It does take time for the concealer to set up.  I usually apply it after my primer and then brush my teeth while I wait for it to set up.  If I don't, it smudges off when I apply my foundation, so it's worth the wait and I can really see the difference when I use these concealers.  
    So, if you're like me and wanting to try out some new concealers and primers, I can say that they're inexpensive, and for me the Hard Candy palette and Master Primer by Maybelline were effective.  I can't get behind the E.L.F. primer and so far haven't had great success with any product by that brand.  But, I don't want to end this article on a low note, so here's one last inexpensive new thing I tried and loved:

    This nude Lasting Finish lipstick by Kate Moss has become my go-to for daily wear.  I've never been a fan of lipstick, so when I do wear it it's either bright red or nude.  I don't know why I go between extremes like that but, there it is and this is my new favorite shade of nude.  So, that wraps up my first and possibly only make-up review.  As for where to buy all these things, they're all run of the mill find them in any shop kinds of products.  I hope this has been helpful and happy hunting :)

Worth the Wait: ootd

    

I have trouble letting go and I tend to hold on to silly things longer than I should like crushes, sentimental souvenirs, and, yes, the occasional grudge.  One crush that wouldn't fade was for this Two Wheeler Anthropologie dress by Porridge, but I missed it in stores and even years later it was absurdly expensive on the resale sites ($125 for a used cotton dress?  Pass!)  

    It was a wonderful consolation that right about the same time that I began pining for that dress ModCloth started carrying their Bake Shop Browsing dress, so I bought it on sale and have worn it proudly for several years.  (you can see one of the outfits I put together with it here)  Every now and then I'd scan the resale sites for Porridge's version.  I came very close a couple of times, but kept missing the dress by mere hours or pennies.  

    Last week, I happened to catch sight of it in my size on PoshMark just after it had been listed and at only $40.  What was the catch?  Well, the dress was missing three buttons down the front.  Was it still worth it?  Utterly and completely!  The seller was even nice enough to send a lovely note and a little packet that contained one of the original buttons and several more that she thought would be nice replacements.  How thoughtful was that?!  You can see why I love PoshMark .   Not only do they make my fashion dreams come true on the cheap, but the people are the best :D

    Along with this lovely dress, I wore my new Come Ballet With Me flats from ModCloth and my Nila Anthony bag which I use to carry all my camera gear.  I love the flats, the faux suede ribbon in particular makes them very feminine and I've never had a problem with them coming untied, though they are a half size too roomy.  My bag has lasted for several years of constant and sometimes rather rough use, so I'd recommend it should you happen to find it out there on the web.  It has served me well.

Shop the Look:

Two Wheeler Dress by Porridge on PoshMark

Come Ballet With Me Flats from ModCloth

Keystone Nila Anthony Bag from ModCloth