custom sandals from capri

Two weekends ago when I was in the Amalfi Coast, I was lucky enough to snag a pair of custom made sandals from Capri! If you're headed to Amalfi, I highly recommend it. I've seen plenty of custom sandal shops in Capri as well as a few in Positano. You choose your strap color and the jewels you want on the strap as well as the strap design. Then they make it right in front of you!

My sandals, on the left :)

  When I studied abroad two years ago, I went to Capri a week before I went back home. My budget only allowed for either a pair of custom sandals or a leather jacket - I chose the leather jacket last time, so this time around I made sure to go straight for the sandals! What I didn't know last time was that you can haggle the price. I got a 100+ euro pair for 75 euro. Better than nothing!

I know it's pretty much "fall," but since it's still warm, I'm getting as much use out of these sandals as I can get before I pack 'em away till spring. :)

xo-ally

current favorites: printed skirts

I'm loving printed skirts these days, and there are so many on the market to choose from. With either a solid or printed top, there are plenty of mix-and-match options, making multiple outfits out of one skirt. Here are my current favorite printed skirts for both day and night:

For day, left to right: River Island Printed Flippy Skirt ($42), Sail With Me Skirt ($44), Milly 'Combo' Print Miniskirt ($195)

For night, left to right: Born to Shimmer Skirt ($46), Sequin Embellished Miniskirt ($60), Embellished Miniskirt ($59-on sale!), Printed Sequin Embellished Skirt ($50)

My top pick of all of these has to be the red, white, and blue skirt by Milly (top right). I can't resist a red and blue combination!

The tribal printed sequin mini (second from the left, bottom row) was also worn by Desiree on this season of The Bachelorette. When I was watching that episode all I could think of was how cute that skirt was!

Side note -- who can't wait for the season finale of The Bachelorette?!

As for shoe pairings for the skirts, I could see strappy sandals working well for the picks for day. I like this pair and this pair for all three of them. A pair of Jack Rogers sandals would also look lovely with the Milly skirt. For the night skirt picks, this pair of neutral, ankle strap heels would look fabulous.

xo-ally

why you should shop the sales at j. crew

I mentioned last week that I was going to post about the amazing J. Crew sale happening right now. It was so great that I bought quite a few pieces (more than I normally get at once) and told everyone I knew. It was even so amazing that I had to write about it here!

Basically, J. Crew almost always has some type of sale going on. The best way to know which sale is happening is to get on their email list. The website usually says what sale is going on as well, but by getting emails, you know exactly which sales are happening right away.

The particular sale that occurred last week was 40% off sale items for final sale. So the items are already marked down, and then you get an extra 40% off. I got $500 worth of clothes for only $143! (I tweeted it was $600 worth by accident - I did the math wrong! Haha oops). But still, I saved a pretty decent sized chunk of change, which is why I often wait for the sales to happen and why you should shop the sales too!

The lovely items in my shopping bag:

 I've had my eye on this whale sweater for a while now (at least a month!) but waited until last week to get it. It'll be the perfect transition piece for fall. How cute are the little green whales?

 These pants are perfect for cool, summer days. The whimsical print will transition well into early fall as well.

 I love this striped top and the color blocking of the shades of red.

 So much sparkle. Couldn't resist.

 You can never go wrong with a classic, striped t-shirt.

Such a pretty lace skirt for almost 1/3 of the original price! The lighting makes it look off-white, but it is a true white.

Do you shop the J. Crew sales? Did you get anything recently? Aren't they simply amazing?!

xo-ally

PS - the winner of the project birthday giveaway is Shane! An email will be sent to you with all the info about receiving the gifts. Thank you ALL for participating :) I'm so glad I got to "meet" some lovely new bloggers and readers through the giveaway!

dress it up/dress it down

J. Crew top (currently on sale) | Rock & Republic shorts (similar) | Michael Kors watch | Swank bracelets | Longchamp bag

So I tried to get a full length shot of this outfit, but it was a ponytail day and I looked like a boy in every photo. Haha! What I do love about such a sparkly top, however, is that it is surprisingly versatile. This top can be worn with a skirt or a nice pair of pants (already have an outfit planned for this week) or with casual shorts, like how I wore it this weekend. Not only can a sparkly top such as this one be dressed up or down in the summer, any dose of sparkle can be factored in year-round with a huge variety of outfits. Is planning ahead to my New Year's party outfit too soon? ;)

xo-ally

army green & polka dot jeans

Nordstrom jacket (similar) | Nordstrom top (similar) | Michael Kors watch | Henri Bendel ring (slightly similar here) | Henri Bendel earrings | Nordstrom flats (similar here and here) | Articles of Society jeans | Nordstrom sunglasses

I'm loving colored denim and printed denim, but haven't gotten into the crazy prints quite yet. I've been keeping it more simple these subtle polka dot jeans, paired with a crochet top, army green jacket, and sparkly brown accessories.

Tonight Florida Georgia Line is having a concert on campus. I'm so excited! :D

xo-ally

my senior ball dress

Today I took a quick little trip to a local boutique in between classes. Little did I know that I would find the perfect dress for my senior ball! Every year Gonzaga has a formal dance called the Senior Ball for everyone to enjoy a nice dinner and night with the awesome class of 2013. I got a sleeved, black and gold dress. It is super sparkly (would I get anything less?) and it is pretty versatile year-round. It was on the cover of People Style Watch in November :)

[source]

This dress is formal but still young, and I feel like I will get a ton of use out of it in the future. Yay for sparkle!

I also got this necklace today. I had my mind on it a few weeks ago when I bought this necklace, but decided to wait. Luckily, they had one left today! When I got the dress I loved it right away, and with the necklace I had actually been thinking about it for a while - those moments are the ones where you know you will not experience buyer's remorse!

^Expect to see this in an outfit post soon ;)

xo-ally

PS - this is also my 100th post of the year! Which means it is the 100th day of 2013. WOW, does time fly! And, that's a lot of posts. Haha. Happy 100!

outfit inspired by blair waldorf's wedding dress

I was very pleased with the series finale of Gossip Girl. In my opinion, it was the perfect ending to my favorite show. (Read a recap of the finale here.) Gossip Girl has been known for its fashion ever since it first aired six years ago, and the finale did not disappoint! Below is an outfit inspired by Blair's Elie Saab wedding dress.

dress, headband, earrings, bracelet, shoes

I could see this outfit worn to a fun party! I wanted to bring in Upper East Side shopping by choosing a headband from Bendels and strappy heels from Bergdorfs. Oh, am I going to miss this show now that it's over! Good thing it's on Netflix. :)

xo-ally

PS - see costume designer Eric Dahman's favorite Blair outfits of all time here

top image photos from here and here

friday's fancies - costume prep

This week's Friday's Fancies theme with long distance loving is Costume Prep. I've been looking for ideas on what to wear this Halloween, and decided that I want to be a mermaid! A high-low skirt is easy to find these days since they're so trendy, and mimics the mermaid tail well. A sequined bandeau, wedges, and sea-inspired accessories would make this outfit complete and perfect for Halloween!

bandeau, skirt, starfish hair clip, shell necklace, wedges

xo-ally

pink & blue

Shirt: F21 Tank: Nordstrom Jeans: GJG Denim Ring: Swank Bracelets: New Look London Flats: Report

I am still waiting for spring to come to Spokane, so I wore pastels today! I wore the striped cozy shirt with the pink-coral colored jeans and added sparkly silver flats and accessories. The cheery colors helped wake me up in a tired daze after getting only a few hours of sleep. (Worth it for The Hunger Games midnight show!)

xo

these jeans are from high school

Scarf: Market in Florence Jacket, tanks, flats: Nordstrom Jeans: Hudson Watch: Michael Kors Bracelets: F21

Skinny jeans have become such a staple in our denim wardrobes these days that it is hard to remember a time when they weren't popular. For me, junior high and high school was the beginning of the skinny jean trend. It is crazy to think how much skinny jeans are now the "norm" with denim when the "norm" years back was boot-cut!

I got my first pair of skinny jeans six years ago - I remember being excited about tucking them into cowboy boots without the fabric bunching out the sides. (That was during the days of Jessica Simpson starring in the Daisy Duke movie. I still have those boots, by the way.) I'd wear boot-cut jeans more often in high school, with graphic tees and Abercrombie fur-lined hoodies. (Oh, the days when that was considered fashion...)

Now that wider-leg jeans are becoming trendy again, I thought I'd pull these back out. I feel like they're not as flattering as my beloved skinnies, but maybe it's because I haven't seen myself wearing boot-cut jeans in ages! I added colors on the top of the outfit, a side pony, and a splash of sparkle on the flats to complete the outfit.

xo

playing with proportions

Shirt: H&M Jeans: F21 Ankle boots: F21

Closeup of the bracelets:

Circle and chain bracelets: Tiffany & Co. Love, flower, and heart bracelets: New Look (London)

Today I decided to wear a baggy tee with skinnies for comfort to study at a coffee shop. It's actually my first blog post away from my desk at home! I am bedazzled to the max with the butterfly on my shirt, stack of bracelets, and glittery eyeliner (though you probably can't see the eyeliner in the photo.)

I just ate a mini pulled pork panini with provalone and shared a peanut butter cookie with my friends. Now it's time to get back to actual work and study!

xo