snowflake leggings in the boboli gardens

Red Dress Boutique leggings | Longchamp bag | Corso Como boots | H&M coat | Free People shirt | Chanel sunglasses | J. Crew bracelet (similar)

Living in Italy, it is a little difficult to shop online at my favorite US boutiques due to international shipping. Don't get me wrong, the shopping here is amazing (but can get pretty expensive), though sometimes I enjoy looking at the styles from the stores back home. I got these adorable Christmas leggings from The Red Dress Boutique and shipped them to my parents' house, and then my dad brought them with when he visited for Christmas. I can finally wear them! Yay! I love the variety of snowflake prints and the bright colors. Since they're not in the typical red and green Christmas colors, I will definitely be wearing these throughout the rest of the winter season!

xo-ally

christmas gifts

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! I had a good day and celebrated here in Florence. My dad came out to Florence for the holidays and we have kept busy by seeing major Florence "to-dos," like going to the Ufizzi and Accademia museums and the Boboli gardens, Rome for a day, and of course, eating some delicious Italian food at my favorite restaurants.

A few of my Christmas gifts:

A new Longchamp to replace my old one. I had my old one for seven months and wore it almost every day. I often cleaned it, but then eventually, even cleaning it wasn't enough - it hit the point of no return. I got great use out of it, so it's nice to upgrade to a new one. The surface on this one has a beautiful gloss and the Longchamp pattern. It's black, too - hopefully it will disguise any dirt or marks!

 Europe also destroyed my riding boots, so I got a new pair of Italian leather ones from a shop in Florence. I love them! They're very comfortable and go with everything, and will be nice to wear especially now, before I take my riding boots into a cobbler.

Some new bracelets: the top one is from Stella & Dot and the other silver ones are from a Seattle boutique.

Happy holidays!

xo-ally

rugby stripes; at the vatican

Florence boutique sweater (similar) | Trouve leggings (similar) | Longchamp bag | Ray-Ban sunglasses | Tory Burch flats | Henri Bendel earrings

Merry Christmas EVE! I haven't posted an outfit in a while but I was out and about in Rome yesterday and decided to take a quick couple photos of this outfit. I wore my cozy new sweater and leggings, perfect for the train ride, complete with flats for walking around the huge city, in addition to sunglasses because of the sunny (!) weather. The Vatican is gorgeous, and while I've seen it before, it never disappoints. It is honestly the most elaborate, most gorgeous church I have ever been in. Photos of Rome to come soon!

Have a great day, can you believe it is almost Christmas?!

xo-ally

friday's fancies - sparkle & shine

This week's Friday's Fancies theme with Long Distance Loving is sparkle & shine. For the outfit, I went for a somewhat Americana look with the color scheme. The red dress acts as the focal point which is accented by navy sparkle heels and a sapphire necklace. The neutral bag (so obsessed with this Tory Burch mini crossbody) and gray coat finish off the outfit. This look is a sure stunner at any holiday gathering this year!

dress, bag, heels, coat, necklace

xo-ally

PS - I just realized this post went up a day late! Oops! Haha :) Happy Saturday!

friday's fancies - holiday party perfect

This week's Friday's Fancies theme with Long Distance Loving is holiday party perfect. I've been admiring that black Lilly dress for some time now - the draped lace and shiny beading on the bottom are holiday-perfect, yet the black color keeps it subdued. I did add plenty of color in the jewelry though - colors are fun and perfect for parties! Simple black heels and a quirky Kate Spade clutch complete the look.

dress, necklace, red bracelet, gold bracelets, clutch, heels

xo-ally

happy thanksgiving! "friendsgiving" and 80s night photos!

Happy Thanksgiving! We celebrated in Florence with a "friendsgiving" last night since we'll all be traveling tonight and going to different places. I'm definitely not blessed with culinary skills (maybe it's just being lazy about cooking, ha) so I helped with groceries...and that's about it. Oh, I helped eat it too. Does that count?

Sam and Mollie made the most delicious turkey:

We also had mashed potatoes (my favorite side dish), carrot souffle, green bean casserole, and apple pie.

There was also a store-bought cake that I jokingly told everyone I made from scratch. One of the guys believed me. The rest knew me too well. ;)

On Tuesday we hosted an 80s Rock party at one of the bars in Florence. It was a lot of fun to dress up and listen to the music.

I straightened Rory's massive curly hair! Cam drew on fake (and pretty funny) tattoos. The boys were wearing crazy printed leggings, a lot of denim, and wigs. So great.

Tonight I'm off to Prague for the weekend. There's been a lot of weekend trips lately. I'm excited because I haven't been to the Czech Republic yet and I've heard Prague is a beautiful city.

Hope you have an amazing Thanksgiving with family and friends!

xo-ally

happy march

I can't believe how fast February went by. I mean, I know it's a short month, but still!

A few things I love about March...

the first day of spring

March Madness and Gonzaga basketball

spring break

mid-March when midterms are over

phasing in warm weather clothes

st. patrick's day

cherry blossoms on the trees

What do you love about March?

xo-ally

TWENTY-ONEEE

I turned 21 years old this week! In America, that's a landmark year and calls for a big celebration. My lovely friends did indeed make me a sash, with shimmer puffy paint, just like I hinted :) we had a little party at a friend's house and then went to a bar at midnight. Pretty typical for a college 21-run, but seriously so much fun! It was great to see everyone who didn't stay on campus this summer to kick off the beginning of senior year.

More pics from the night:

Closeup of the sash and crown - my roomie also gave me nail polish and a necklace from Bauble Bar!

xo-ally

what to wear on 4th of july

Due to a request to do a Fourth of July themed post, I decided to create some outfits inspired by the holiday! These would be great for many festivities surrounding the fourth!

Swimsuit, Cover-up, Hat, Sunglasses, Bracelet, Sandals

I think of a nice evening on a boat when I see this outfit! I love this bright blue swimsuit, which would look cool peeking out underneath the crochet of the cover-up. [My friend has this exact cover-up and loves it! It looks really good on too.] Metallic accessories keep it neutral but classic, and the floppy hat adds some extra glam.

Chambray shirt, Shorts, Flip flops, Swimsuit, Sunglasses

I had to use this adorable flag bikini from a previous post - it is perfect for the fourth! This outfit is more casual and layers a chambray shirt over the swimsuit with denim shorts - what material is more American than denim? The pockets on the shorts have glittery stars sticking out the bottom (I couldn't resist) and I added some blue and white flip flops and red wayfarers to complete the look. Perfect for running around at a barbecue by the lake!

Tank, Shorts, Sunglasses, Watch, Nail Polish, Flip Flops

The red, sparkly nail polish inspired this whole outfit. It's like a firework on your nails! I matched the nail polish with a bright red tank and denim shorts and added classic accessories to not go overboard. I love the pearl and bow details on the flip flops and the leather band of the watch.

Let's celebrate the Fourth of July in style!

'merica

xo-ally

I think I dressed for the wrong holiday...?

wrong outfit AND awkward pose?!

Dress, belt: F21 Leggings: H&M Rain Boots: Sperry Charm Bracelet: Juicy Couture

So I might have leaped a month ahead to St. Patrick's Day in terms of my color scheme for today - I did not forget that it is Valentine's Day! I just wanted to wear this dress. It's new. Wearing new clothes is exciting. I wear pink all the time anyways.

I love the cutout details of this dress, though. The color and style make this dress perfect to wear with leggings and rain boots (it snowed today) or with wedges and a sun hat (for when it warms up).

Also, I know it's getting late, but I just found out that Ben & Jerry's is giving out one free scoop of Americone flavored ice cream today! So grab your date or some friends for a free treat!

I love anything free. Free my favorite price. Can you tell I'm a college kid?

xo

And the holiday season begins!

Today officially "marks" the beginning of the holiday season. I celebrate Christmas, and am so excited to see the touches of the holiday everywhere.

One of my favorite catalogs of the season is the Neiman Marcus Christmas Book:

It's exciting to see all the winter clothes, accessories, and especially the GIFTS! There are plenty of ideas for anyone, and makes for good gift-giving inspiration even if it's a little out of your price range.

xo