Gift Guides - for the bestie & men

Gift for your bestie? Your mom? Friend from college? Favorite co-worker? We've got you covered! We're all about comfort and warmth here..

Your bestie will LOVE this top because its a comfortable sweatshirt but can be paired with a dress skirt and easily dressed up!

LOFT petite top  

I LOVE my sleep shirts. So comfortable to sleep in :) 

Aerie sleep shirt  

Bling bling. Need I say more?! 

Forever 21 gemstone necklace 

For all the nights of going out and little purses, Kate has us covered...with glitter ;)

 Kate Spade accessory 

Keep her warm!

LOFT mitten glove 

Cake for breakfast? Okay.

Kate Spade drinkware 

This is the cutest scarf ever! Who doesn't LOVE reindeer?! 

Reindeer Scarf | Loft 

Fabulously cheerful.

Merry Christmas Light Up Acrylic Double Wall Tumbler

Looking for some good ideas for the men in your life? These fun gifts are great for brothers, boyfriends, and dads!

**Every man likes to smell good. Check this out - its amazing. 

 Euphoria Men by Calvin Klein Eau de Toilette

**As much as men say they're not cold, sometimes even THEY need gloves. These 'etip' one have a light to keep your techy boys happy. 

The North Face 'eTip' Gloves 

**Beautiful? Yes. Professional? Yes. Good price? Oh my goodness!

 21 MENS Faux Leather-Strap Watch 

**Have a blind man?  Check out these funny contact cases :) 

21 MENS Contact Key Case  

**Naughty? Maybe a little. But so very funny. 

American Eagle Outfitters / 

**For the athletic man in your life... he'll be thanking you forever.

GoFit 'Triggerball2' Therapeutic Double Ball Massager 

**How neat is this phone charger?! 

FOREVER 21 dci Holiday Lights Phone Charger

All I want for Christmas...

Its the day after Thanksgiving and its official. It is now socially acceptable for me to be the Christmas song singing music teacher that I am! Not only can we get a tree, decorate the house, and constantly bake cookies, but its also time to start thinking about Christmas gifts. After doing a little online shopping, I have created a few GIFT GUIDES for the various people in your life. To start off, here are my top 6 things for this Christmas.

Stay tuned for more gift guides!

Good luck shopping and welcome to the Christmas season!
Dear Santa,

Eddie Bauer parka coat / Collar jacket / Kate spade crossbody / Kate Spade holiday jewelry / Isaac Mizrahi tech accessory / Blanket

Thanksgiving Day Outfits

Its thanksgiving morning. The parade is on, the smell of good food is filling the house. OH and you must decide what to wear for the special day. Here are my three recommended outfits for your Thanksgiving Day!

Outfit #1- Dressed Up

This is my pick for this Thanksgiving. This is great for someone who really like to dress up or has a more formal get together. Pair a dress with a nice collared shirt for a classy look. Add some tights and heels and you're done!

Outfit #2- Girly Flair

I love this look. Pair one of your favorite blouses with a big sweater. When pairing these, look for similar color schemes so they mix well. I love this blouse from Charming Charlie's because it has fun details in the arms -- little bows! Add a necklace for a little sparkle. 

Old Navy Blue Sweater         AE High-Rise Jeggings

Outfit #3- Casual

If you have a more casual Thanksgiving environment, look for something with jewel tones. Alongside a good pair of jeans, you can dress this look up a bit with some good jewelry. 

AE High-Rise Jeggings           Boxy Crop Top

I hope you all have a filling (with food and love) day & you can truly reflect on your life. BUT remember! Don't forget to reflect on your life and be thankful all year round :)

Happy Thanksgiving friends! 

Buffalo Check & Pearls

 This past weekend, Tony and I met his sister and family to have a mini photo shoot in the snow since I got a new camera about a month ago (could you tell?! :)) The air was very cold but gosh I am most definitely ready for winter now that I've seen wonderful midwestern snow. Ask me again in January and I might not have the same answer... Regardless, we got some great pictures and I think they represent us perfectly (see the old school house?!)

   Opposites attract. This is the best way I can describe this look from this past weekend. When thinking about red plaid, I have always thought lumberjack. But now this pattern is a strong player on the fashion scene for this fall and winter and I love it! Pairing this pattern with feminine touches such as pearls soften the look up a bit.  Next time, I might add some sparkly necklaces instead!

Charlotte Russe Top             Old Navy Leggings       

Three Years

    What a crazy but wonderful weekend! Tony and I celebrated our 3 year anniversary of dating so we took a little trip to Galena. We had a wonderful meal, tasty wine, sweet dessert, some shopping, and SNOW! The romantic night became even better when it started to snow while we were shopping downtown. It was a short but great trip to reflect upon the last three years of being together.

   Not to get all mushy gushy, but I am very thankful to have Tony in my life. He has always been at my side and he's the best friend a girl could ask for. He's sweet, funny, motivated, and kind. If you are reading this, know that I love you very much.

    Okay thank you for still reading. Now, back to clothes! Knowing it was going to be cold, I wore my MK dress coat, AE jeggings, Gap gray sweater, and my self made buffalo checked scarf!

Embrace the cold and break out those winter sweaters everyone. Stay warm my friends!

Falling for Fall: Stripes & Ponchos

Happy Saturday! This weekend is off to a good start with a fabulous Friday night out.  I got to meet some of my boyfriend Tony's friends so we went into town to have a few drinks. After an exciting time last night and today being so chilly, a warm sweater was necessary for today.

Forever 21 pretty much was pretty much the entirety of this outfit. Poncho and turtleneck were from Forever with leggings from Old Navy. What can I say? I love good fashion but on a budget!

Heres a peak at my look from today :)

Falling for Fall: Full Skirts

Hello all! So my recent obsession has been about full circle skirts lately. I have been searching for one online for forever but can't get myself to spend that much money on a skirt ($80 and up!) After my boyfriend's niece wore hers from Express, I knew I just HAD to have one. She was very gracious to let me look at it and after that, I decided to just make one myself!

So I pulled out my sewing machine, got the closest fabric that I could and started sewing! It turned out great and I am very proud of myself. Needless to say, its something that is a MUST this season. 

My not so secret secret is that I LOVE wearing tights. I know many people don't but I think a black opaque tight is great because it can extend dresses and skirts into the winter months, it makes your legs appear smaller, and they keep you warm! Pair them with a black pair of heels and your legs will seem miles long.

I paired mine with a delicate lace top and sparkly details. Enjoy!

Falling in Love - Dressing for FALL Weddings

                                         Graphic Design cred to Lauren Verplaetse. Check her out at laurenverplaetse.com :)

This is such an exciting point in my life. I am finally old enough that the word "wedding" is now frequently used in my vocabulary. Not only am I going to weddings, but they are my best friends who are MY age! Weddings are no longer a time in the far future but a present time. 

Because of my little wedding experience, I have only experienced summer weddings. This year, I had the joy of attending my beautiful cousin's fall wedding. I was so excited to see her and her wonderful fiance since I grew up alongside her & I look up to her so much.

Although in the back of my mind, I have always thought... What am I going to wear?! So I did some brainstroming and this is what I came up with. I hope you enjoy and find that this is something you can use this fall.

When picking out a dress, color is the biggest thing. For me, I wanted a color that would match all the deep rich colors of fall that would be displayed at the wedding. I found this dress at my favorite store, Francescas Collections. I loved the rich emerald green color with the knitted texture. This dress was a perfect fit because its something I can easily dress up or down. Its something I can wear and teach in comfortably!

I decided to dress appropriately for the weather and wore black tights to keep my legs warm. I then dressed up my look by adding clear/gold jewelry& my black Michael Kors heels. I also got to use my new favorite bag from target that I also doubled as a camera bag that day!

When thinking about buying a dress for a fall wedding, get something that you can wear again. Depending on how casual or formal the wedding is, you may be able to get away with using the dress to create many different styles! 

Look for COLOR. Jewel tones look are great for fall because they compliment so many of the colors of the season. Make a statement with a green, purple, or red dress that will make you dance the night away in confidence. And as always, get a dress you feel great in! 

Model cred to my little brother: Aaron Bruck

Jazz up your look by having fun with sweaters, jackets, and coats that can add layers of warmth and beauty to the look! REMEMBER: Fall is ALL about layers. This counts for weddings too!

Thanks for reading and we'll talk soon!