Outfit 911

November 6, 2009 by

My husband, being the fireman that he is, answers 911 calls for a living.  Fires, heart attacks, you name it… well, there are some emergencies that just don’t fall under his realm of expertise. That is when I step in, Outfit 911. You need me.. I’m here. What are your fashion emergencies?  On a budget for a wedding or a hot date? Got a special event planned and you have no idea what to pick from your over-exploding closet full of options? Send me the deets and I’ll be your personal Stacey London and Clinton Kelly.

My good ole’ bud AK approached me with a style dilemma just the other day… an after wedding casual event with friends with a budget of $25.00 for anything new and an abundance of options from her existing and already fabulous wardrobe.

This is the email that I received from AK:

ak-outfit 911

Ok, I need some opinions…I have the J. Crew Jackie cardigan in black, turquoise, coral, orange, bright green, and a light brown.  The boots are from left to right: wine, black/red, camel/pink/navy (but the pink/navy won’t show).  And I’ll be wearing jeans.

Tell me what you think in terms of a top….I had been thinking maybe something like this??? http://www.forever21.com/product.asp?catalog_name=FOREVER21&category_name=top_casual&product_id=2063568501&Page=4#

so then jewelry….tell me your thoughts. -AK

So I set out on a mission. I browsed the forever21 site of all things incredibly cheap and most of the time uber cute and found an adorably delicious bow tie top that just was beckoning to be bought and put under a lovely cardigan.

Lovely Top (Summer Bow Tank, $15.80) :

ak-outfit 911c

I suggested that AK go with  turquoise earrings and she showed me her options at home:

ak-outfit 911a
My eyes were immediately drawn to the ORANGE on the bottom right… orange will be a lovely compliment to the green cardi. So.. here we have it folks. AK will be cute, casual and chic in the outfit we selected!

ak-outfit 911b

When I received this email.. it dawned on me… I get a lot of these emails: My sister looking for help planning her college graduation dress and accessories, friends asking for advice on what to wear to an upcoming shower or wedding. I like helping people find the right options for that special occasion and I would love to help you out too…. send your emails to me at der AT tipsysociety DOT com. I’ll be waiting to put your fashion fires out!

Filed Under: der, outfit 911 Tagged With: , , ,

Big Little Boy Clothing

November 5, 2009 by

I owe all the credit to this post to my one and only babyson Austin (7 yr old).  He assisted in the creation of  his wish list of clothing items.  We already scooped up the Keen’s, so #5 is already being worn!

  1. Tony Hawk® Mock-Layer Screamer Tee
  2. Old Navy Boys Marvel™ Super Heroes Hoodies
  3. Boys Boot-Cut Jeans
  4. Tony Hawk® Microfiber Convertible Cargo Pants
  5. Keen Youth Skyline WP

As its getting colder, the clothes are getting even cooler!

Filed Under: court, kids Tagged With: , ,

Budget-Friendly Wall Art

November 5, 2009 by

Like most young couples, my husband and I got married and bought a house all within about a year of each other. Needless to say, money was a little tight, BUT I still wanted to decorate my house super-cute…so I figured out a GREAT solution: frame pictures that you take with your own camera!

sk-house pics

Above are pictures from my home where I have done this very thing. I’ve started actually taking pictures from our vacations, blowing them up, putting them in gallery frames, and hanging them on the wall. So then, not only do I have budget-friendly wall art, but I also have an AWESOME souvenir that I can look at daily! (BTW, I took these pictures with a small point and shoot camera, not a big fancy one.)

sk-house pic ny

AK showed this wall art idea to me last week and I felt like I had to share it with everyone else! Here, Lisa Mahar featured her rather amazing home on the New York Social Diary, and her headboard in her master bedroom consists of a gallery of personal photos that all combine into a great piece of art.

I don’t know about you, but I’m putting this idea to work in my own home STAT. All I will need are more of my own great pictures and a trip to Ikea for some awesome, simple, and cheap frames!

Filed Under: home, sk Tagged With: , , , ,

Otomi, Suzani…What? Nevermind, It’s Pretty!!

November 5, 2009 by

Are you stuck in an all neutral, taupes, beiges rut?  Snap out of it!  Throw a splash of color in there STAT!  Don’t want to commit to an entire Suzani chair?  For God’s sake throw a colorful pillow in there..PLEASE!

  1. Viva Terra, Pom Pom Collection
  2. Viva Terra, Hand-Embroidered Organic Cotton Rabbit Bag
  3. Design*Sponge, diy video: grace’s upholstered otomi headboard
  4. Viva Terra, Hand-Embroidered Rabbit Pillow
  5. Material Recovery Etsy Shop, Colorful Red Suzani Upholstered Armchair
  6. Decorative Instincts Etsy Shop, Suzani Apron
Filed Under: ak, home Tagged With: , ,

Hump Day Happy Hour: It’ll Give You Wings!

November 4, 2009 by

A LOT of you have tried a vodka and red bull…BUT have you tried grape, lemon or cherry vodka and red bull… UM PROBABLY NOT. And you should… because it’s awesome squared.

Filed Under: der, hump day happy hour Tagged With: ,

Lugging Around An Ugly Black Laptop Bag?

November 4, 2009 by

This is an intervention…I repeat, this is an intervention.  Stop carrying that ugly black laptop bag, or even worse..your old backpack from college???  Stop, just stop, it’s making my eyes bleed to look at that thing.  Feast your eyes on the color people!

  1. Kolobags, re-bagz white rose laptop case
  2. Kolobags, brenthaven 15.4″ metrolite laptop case
  3. Kolobags, re-bagz multi-colored laptop case
  4. Kolobags, abbi new york mina slim laptop case
  5. Kolobags, mcklein lake forest laptop case
  6. Kolobags, abbi new york 15.4″ satin slim laptop case
  7. Kolobags, casauri laptop brief 15.4″
Filed Under: ak, business, laptop Tagged With: , , , , ,

CrafTee Tutorial

November 4, 2009 by

I am a pretty regular participant in The Working Closet flickr pool and an avid reader of The Working Closet blog. The gist is that you post your everyday looks, so you can inspire others and gain inspirations for what to wear daily. I enjoy it and think its a great way to make you think about shopping your own closet.

Last week I posted a tee that I wore and happened to have made myself.

This is the tee that started it all:

orig

The wonderful Susan of The Working Closet  and Friday Playdate asked me kindly to create a tutorial of how I made my tees. They are a great way to make new of your old tiresome things and extend your wardrobe, thus saving money on shopping sprees.

Here is a step by step tutorial on a double ruffle neck tee:

supplies

Supplies: a tee (any neck will do), approximately 2 yards of ruffled or pleated ribbon or blanket/quilt binding, pins, and a needle and thread (you could definitely do this on a sewing machine as well)

step 1

Step 1:  Pin your ribbon right along the edge of the neck band on the tee. Pin all the way around the entire band.

step 2

Step 2:  Stitch along the top area of the ribbon

step 3

Step 3:  Continue your stitching under the neck band all the way around the tee, including the back. Then cut your ribbon off once you have made it all the way around.

step 4

Step 4:  Lay the next layer of ribbon right at the top of the neck band and pin all the way around.

step 5

Step 5:  Stitch this layer of ruffle the exact same way you did before, being a little more cautious since this layer will not be covered with another layer. Cut your ribbon off once you have made it all the way around.

admire 1

Step 6:  Step back and admire your work

admire 2

Here I am modeling the tee… it is so easy and such a cute way to update a plain tshirt in a very inexpensive way.

complete

Filed Under: der, diy Tagged With:

Do You Know What Today Is?

November 3, 2009 by

So my hubby bought this necklace for me for Mother’s Day this year.  My calendar necklace from dalla nonna is the month of October and has my son’s birthday along with my wedding anniversary because they happened the same month 3 years apart!  FTW!

Girls, drop the hint–its a super elegantly simple everyday necklace that your guy should totally buy you for an anniversary or your wedding or your first child.  And guys (if any guys read this site) that means–if you are getting married, already are married or if your wife birthed your child from her very own loins either after hours and hours of painstaking labor or via scalpel because of a c-section, then you totally owe her.

And DUDE, they totally have bracelets now!

Filed Under: ak, jewelry Tagged With:

Top Weightloss Foods

November 3, 2009 by

My now husband proposed to me in late 2007 after having dated for over 6 years. Imagine how THRILLED I was to finally get that rock on my finger! Then I saw a pic of me + 6 chins from the night of our engagement… thrill over, well sorta.  Good news: Fiance loves me and all my chins. Bad news: I have GOT to get rid of this shit before I walk down that aisle!  Over the next 6 months, I lost about 50 pounds.  Here were my staple weightloss foods for those of you who are looking to lose a couple chins yourselves.

der-diet food

  1. Smart Ones Baked Ziti-The perfect lunch. The cheese ratio is ultra high, so this is a cheese lover’s delight.
  2. Nature’s Own Wheat Light-Toast, sammiches, you name it… 40 calories a slice and good.
  3. HoneyCrisp Apples-As sweet as candy, but not candy and therefore a good choice.
  4. McDonald’s Ice Cream Cone-150 calories is a small price to pay for the deliciousness that is this treat. I am decently sure that I drained majority of my local Mickey D’s of all ice cream inventory during 2008.
  5. Frigo Cheese Head Light String Cheese-50% less fat than other cheese and still cheese, so perfect.
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My son was M.J. for Halloween…

November 3, 2009 by

What was yours?

All items for costume we either hand made or non-Halloween-Costume-Store finds (silver glove with sequins glued on, black wind pants, white tank, used white button down, borrowed black curly wig, black dress shoes).

Filed Under: court, holiday Tagged With: