A Unique Valentine's Day Gift + Giveaway

Valentine's Day is just around the corner and I am so excited! This is actually one of my favorite holidays whether I am in or out of a relationship. I love everything from the idea of celebrating a positive emotion/feeling to all of the candy and cute gifts. I know that finding the perfect Valentine's day gift can be hard though since you want it to summarize how you feel about the person you are gifting it to. That is why I was so excited when Jord Watches reached out to me since it is the perfect gift idea for you or that special person. If I have learned anything from post-college life, it is that you need a good watch. I used to wear a cheap digital watch as a kid and then as cell phones became a constant accessory, I ditched my watch in favor of just checking my phone for the time. Now that I am working full time though, I cannot always be checking and carrying around my phone which is why a watch is a definite necessity.

The great thing about Jord Watches is how unique they are! Lets be real, how many people do you know with a wooden watch?? There is also the option to customize the gift with an engraving on the backside of the watch (only certain styles) or on the wooden box. You can add a cute message, the person's name, an anniversary date, or even the location where you met! 

All Jord watches are 100% natural wood, splash-proof and are made with sapphire crystal glass. My watch is from the Fieldcrest series and is made with zebrawood and maple. I prefer slightly larger watch faces and so this 39mm case width is perfect. I love how the wood is a great neutral colors since one problem I've run into with metal watches is how to match my silver, gold and sometimes rose gold jewelry. Lucky for me, all of those metals work with the color of my watch.

You can shop my specific watch here

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GIVEAWAY TIME - GIVEAWAY ENDED 2/18/18

The giveaway has now closed and the winner has been notified. Thank you to everyone who entered my first giveaway!

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JORD WATCHES WEBSITE: 

MEN'S WATCHES: http://www.jordwatches.com/shop/men/#velvetandsequins

WOMEN'S WATCHES: http://www.jordwatches.com/shop/women/#velvetandsequins

MY WATCH: http://www.jordwatches.com/series/fieldcrest/zebrawood-and-maple/#velvetandsequins

JORD WATCHES INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/jordwatches/?hl=en

Luxury Wooden Watch

{Disclaimer: This blog post and giveaway is sponsored but all opinions and photos are my own}

Incorporate Your Summer Jumpsuit into Your Fall Wardrobe

THE JUMPSUIT: A GREAT VERSATILE PIECE FOR SUMMER TO AUTUMN

Although October in Portland has actually been quite sunny and warm, it is still getting a bit too cold for those sundresses, shorts and summer jumpsuits. Just because the weather is changing, does not mean you have to buy an entirely new closet! As someone who is really into affordable fashion pieces and trying to save money when it comes to staying on trends, I am always trying to find new items that I can combine with items I already own. This past summer I finally jumped onto the jumpsuit bandwagon and added some great pieces to my wardrobe. It is now officially autumn but I still want to wear them! I started playing around with the other items in my closet and came up with the following combinations to pair with your summer jumpsuit to make it suitable for colder weather. I'll be using one of my favorite jumpsuits from this summer to show these different outfit combinations. (All outfit details are mentioned at the bottom on the post)

LAYER OVER A LONG SLEEVE

Jumpsuits are actually a great transition piece since they have long pants already. The first combination I tried reminded me of what I used to wear back in middle school which was tank tops layered over shirts. I've been really into turtlenecks so I paired this gingham jumpsuit with one of my basic black turtleneck shirts. You can also layer your jumpsuit over a short sleeve shirt, blouse and even sweater for a similar look. This outfit best works with The one flaw with spaghetti strap jumpsuits although I have seen people layer strapless and halter jumpsuits over shirts as well.

THROW ON A JACKET

This look is honestly probably the easiest since most people already own a jacket and if you get too hot, you can easily take the jacket off. Here I paired my jumpsuit with a pink faux leather moto jacket which is great for when it is not too cold outside but you just need a light layer. The great thing about this look is that it will work with any jumpsuit whether it has sleeves or not!

 

PUT ON A SWEATER

This is one of my favorite ways to warm up my summer jumpsuit. Fall is the perfect season for sweater weather so not only will you be warm and cozy, you can also easily add new colors to the pant portion of your jumpsuit. I have been loving chenille sweaters this season so I paired this pullover chenille sweater with my jumpsuit for the above look. You can also throw on a cropped sweater or a turtleneck sweater. If it is extra chilly, pairing a jacket over your sweater can be a great way to add an additional layer.

 

PAIR WITH A CROP TOP

In the back of my dresser, I found several crop tops that I have not worn in a while since I no longer like showing my midriff. The great thing about layering these crop tops over my jumpsuit is that my stomach is still covered even when I raise my arms! By layering different crop tops over the same jumpsuit, you can acquire many different looks. The style of crop top you use does depend on your style of jumpsuit. For example, if the top of your jumpsuit has embellishments or is really loose and flowy, you probably want to stay away from tight crop tops since all of that extra fabric might look a bit bumpy under a tight shirt. You can definitely pair your jumpsuit with any sleeve length of crop top as well. I personally don't own any long sleeve crop tops so I had to settle for this fun fall colored short sleeve top.

The waist of your jumpsuit also plays an important part when deciding what hemline you want. A top that hangs past your waistline can look good depending on the length but be careful when wearing a top that ends higher than the waist of your jumpsuit. You want a shirt that hits at the same spot or maybe a little higher like mine does in this outfit. That way it will look more like a shirt and pant outfit with a clear definition of where your waist is. It was also chilly when I wore this so I added a longer cardigan for a little extra warmth but you could also add more layers by wearing it with a jacket or a scarf and hat.

Please let me know if you have any comments or questions on ways to wear your jumpsuit in colder weather. Thanks for reading!

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OUTFIT DETAILS

Romper - Honey Punch Relaxed Cami Jumpsuit in Gingham

Turtleneck - Forever21 Ribbed Turtleneck Sweater in Black

Clogs - Lotta from Stockholm Highwood Clog in Black Natural 

      You can also purchase from their website directly here

Faux Leather Jacket - BLANKNYC (Very similar version can be found here and on sale!)

Sweater - Mossimo Cropped Chenille Pullover in Gray

Mules - BP Milo Loafer Mule in Black

Crop Top - Forever21

Cardigan - BP by Nordstrom

Sandals - Salt Water Sandals by Hoy in White

PDX Collective Sale

This morning I attended the bi-annual PDX Collective Sale at The Cleaners. Even though the sale didn't open until 10am, people were waiting in line outside of the doors ready to shop once it opened. Although this sale is occurs twice a year, this was the first year I had heard about it or even attended. For those of you who are in the same boat as me, here is everything you need to know! The sale continues tomorrow and the boutiques will all be restocking beforehand so don't worry about everything good being gone!

What it is: 

This sale is a bi-annual event put on by PDX Collective where 11 boutiques from the Portland area come together to showcase some of their products most of which are on sale. The following boutiques are participating today and tomorrow:

Adorn
Parts + Labour
Gild Shoes
EcoVibe
Cosube
Radish Underground
Mercantile
Lizard Lounge
Bridge & Burn
Lille Boutique
Perican Bing

Where/When:

The sale is located at The Cleaners which is owned by Ace Hotel but is technically in a different location. The address is 403 SW 10th Avenue in Portland, OR. It runs Saturday thru Sunday (9/23-9/24). Today it was open from 10am-5pm and tomorrow it is open from 11am-5pm

What you need to know:

- They take cards

- Since it is multiple boutique shops in one shared room, you still buy each item from the respective boutique. 

- There is a fitting room but it is one communal room that everyone changes in with some mirrors places around the walls. Definitely wear something that is easy for trying clothing on. If you are not comfortable changing around other people, this may not be the sale for you (unless you are okay purchasing without trying first)

- Many of the items are final sale so make sure you read signs

- Get there early. Although the boutiques do restock, it gets really busy really fast so it is nice to be able to see all the product before people start buying, trying on, and carrying around all of the good stuff

What I wore:

For those of you who are interested, here are the deets for what I wore. Like I mentioned before, make sure to wear something that you can easily take on and off for trying merchandise on. A dress was actually really helpful since I mostly tried on other dresses but it can also be great for trying on pants as well. Socks can also be beneficial if you plan on looking at shoes.

Shirt Dress - Forever21 (Although my exact dress is sold out, you can find almost identical items here and here)

OTK Boots - Halogen Scarlett Over the Knee Boots in grey suede

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For more information:

To learn more you can check out the Facebook event page here as well as PDX Collective's Facebook page here.

Thanks for reading! Let me know if you have any questions and if you attend, what kind of cute stuff you find!

Independence Day Outfits

As far as holiday outfits go, Fourth of July is by far my favorite. There are always so many ways to dress festive while still looking cute. With three colors to work with, there are honestly endless possibilities but here are three of my favorite! Unfortunately some of the pieces I am wearing are no longer available so underneath each outfit I have linked some other similar items.

outfit 1:

My first outfit option is a white, off the shoulder top paired with a high-waisted denim skirt. You can add a touch of red with either some red lip stick or a fun, red neck scarf. In the photos below, I decided to go with both because why not! You can also switch around the colors of each piece by wearing a white denim skirt with a blue top or a red shirt, white skirt and blue bandana.

Top - Brandy Melville Maura Top in White

Skirt - Forever21

Scarf - Red Bandana

Hat - Urban Outfitters

outfit 2:

For the second outfit, I went with a similar color scheme but this time paired a plain white button up shirt with some high-waisted, American flag patterned shorts. For a more classic look, I added oversized avaiators and my white high top Converse. You could also tweak this look by adding different white sneakers or even an American flag patterned skirt instead of shorts.

Top - Forever21

Shorts - American Apparel

Sunglasses - Forever21

Shoes - Converse Chuck Taylor High Top Sneaker

outfit 3:

This outfit is probably the easiest since it only requires a red skater dress. I actually wore this look last Fourth of July as you can see in the photo right below. To dress down this outfit, I paired it with my Adidas sneakers since the red dress is definitely meant to be the focus of this look.

Dress - American Apparel

Shoes - Adidas Superstar Sneaker

white summer romper

My favorite type of shopping is online shopping and this post focuses on my latest mail delivery. BUT before I dive into how awesome this romper is, I first need to share the bit of backstory that goes along with it...

Originally I had seen the maxi version of this overlay lace romper featured on someone else's blog and immediately fell in love! The one that she was wearing was in Ivory and sold at Nordstrom by the brand Socialite. For a while the ivory color kept going in and out of stock until one night when I was doing my nightly online shopping, there was one small left! I couldn't quite decide whether I was a small or xs but since xs was not an option, I went with the larger size (that's one thing that can be hard about ordering online since it is hard to know what size to get without being able to try it on. Thank god for customer reviews and free returns though!)

[image taken from Nordstrom.com]

When the maxi lace romper came in the mail it fit like a glove except for the length. Similar to this shorter romper, the bottom had a natural scalloped look and so the only way to shorten it would have been to undo the waist and resew it with a shorter skirt. I tried a handful of heels on including my tallest, five inch ones with no luck. Honestly it can be really hard to find maxi dresses when you are short (I'm 5'3") and I usually have to get them altered which over time definitely adds up especially if you factor in all of the jeans and pants I have to get hemmed as well! I SO wanted to love the maxi romper but after trying it on every day for five days straight, I had to face reality and had to return it or else it would spend the rest of its life just hanging in my closet. After facing this sad truth, I started to do some research and found that the brand Honey Punch makes the exact same maxi romper AND makes it in a shorter version. After comparing online prices I found this white romper on the website of an online boutique based in Napa, California called 2weeksnotice.

To my luck, this shorter romper ended up being the perfect compromise since I am able to achieve the same look with the same beautiful lace but at a length that suits my short frame much better! The only difference I noticed between the Socialite maxi romper and this Honey Punch shorter romper is that the v-neck is a lot lower on the later one. Although I have a pretty small bust, I still felt more comfortable with a higher neckline so I took my sewing kit out and sewed up part of the v-neck as you can see in the picture to the right

For those of you interested, this romper is now on sale for $45 from 2weeksnotice boutique in the color white but it is going fast (shop it here)! Click on the following websites to view the romper in other colors as well as the maxi version for you taller babes!

Nordstrom

2weeksnotice

Tobi

ASOS

Dolls Kill

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outfit details

Romper - Free Spirit Lace Romper from 2WN in color "white"

Shoes - B.P. Decker Lace-Up Sandals from Nordstrom in color "nude faux leather"

Necklace - Layered Beaded Choker from Forever21 in "pink/gold"