Making a spectacle of myself!

                

  If you know me, you know I love a good theme: a theme party, a theme vacation, a theme meal, and, yes, a theme outfit.  This outfit’s theme is book nerd. 

I love eye glasses: I use them for décor, in my outfits, and of course, for seeing.  I love all of the sweaters and shirts and prints out recently with animals wearing spectacles.  My family had to tell me to stop buying them, since I was in danger of only wearing those sweaters and shirts.  There are no animals on today’s outfit, just glasses. 

The dress is from eShakti, a website with both ready to wear and custom clothes.  I bought this ready to wear dress after swooning over the print.  It is the second piece of clothing I have bought from them and I find their clothes to run small on me.  I think next time I will go the custom route and actually give them my measurements so they can tailor the dress to fit me.  eShakti has a wide range of fun prints and I like that there is a retro vibe to some of their offerings. 

My cat eye glass bracelet may be one of my very favorite fashion accessories I own.  My best friend gave it to me as a Christmas present a couple of years ago and I wear it almost daily.  Kate Spade knows how to combine whimsy with elegance.  This is a conversation piece and it goes with so much of what I own, but it is particularly right for this dress.

The yellow cardi is from J Crew several years ago.  Sometimes a splurge from there, especially during a sale, is smart, since the clothes are well made and classic.  I rarely wear all black, so I like this pop of color with the black dress.

I don’t recall where I bought the shoes, but they are a nice, basic mary jane with a heel.  I love a good mary jane. 

The outfit is made complete with the leather book necklace, also given to me by my best friend.  It is from Anthropologie a few years back.  It was my friend’s but I kept longing for it and asking to borrow it so one day she gave it to me for keeps.  She’s pretty awesome that way.

Okay, so there is an animal in today’s outfit, but technically it isn’t part of the outfit.  This little owl is my fall/winter purse this year and it could not be more fun!  I literally get compliments on it every day from both men and women.  I got it deeply discounted from Kate Spade and it is one of those purchases that is so worth it.  It adds a touch of whimsy to my outfits everyday.

I made a spectacle of myself today and I'm okay with it. :)  Themed outfits may not be your thing, but may your day – and closet -  be filled with fashion that is fun and that inspires you.

Love always,

Rebecca

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What is saving my life right now?

I’m linking up with Modern Mrs. Darcy about what is saving my life right now.  The winter months can be tough, especially once the festivities of Christmas are over and the winter gloom sets in.  It has been a remarkably dry and warm winter in Portland, for which I’m grateful, but I’m looking out my window right now and it is mostly gray.   Here are the things that keep my heart full and my spirits up on gray days.

Tea in my London mug from Anthropologie 

 I’m on a weight loss program that is fairly restrictive: no sugar, carbs, alcohol, chocolate, pretty much all of my favorites.  This licorice spice tea from Stash keeps my sweet tooth satisfied. (Let’s be honest, it’s not chocolate, but it does have a sweet flavor).   I look forward to it as my treat at the end of the day.  Loving all things British like I do, the London mug was a must have for me.  The shape and sizes of mugs are important to me when drinking hot beverages, and this one is just right on both counts.

Run DMC, Katy Perry, and Taylor Swift. 

We have finally joined the 21^st century fifteen years in.  We got our first High Definition TV this weekend, and with it a sound bar that allows us to blue tooth our music.  I’m fairly certain most everyone else has been doing this for years, but for the Putnas, it is new and it is literally rockin’ our world.  I introduced Hannah to Run DMC this weekend and she now loves to dance to It’s Tricky with me.  We try to educate our girls right around here!  We’ve had Katy and Taylor on a continuous loop, too.  I’m not ashamed to say that Blank Space and Style are two of my favorite songs right now.  We pretty much adore Katy, and I love to belt out Unconditionally to my girls, much to their chagrin.  (On a side note, I loved her Super Bowl performance.  She is so talented and so much fun.  She was the game day picker for the Ole Miss and Alabama game and chose Ole Miss to win, and win we did.  She has gone on to say that she is an Ole Miss fan for life, which if I wasn’t already, I’m now a Katy Perry fan for life.  I saw some Ole Miss folks posting about how the sharks during the performance were Ole Miss Landsharks.  Love!)

Books

I’ve had a Kindle for years, so I buy fewer actual books than I used to, which makes my husband happy, since we were in danger of books taking over our home.  I could have lived with that…  Anyway, lately I’ve been enjoying reading from actual books again.  I will most likely continue to download novels I don’t plan to re-read, but for non-fiction and books to treasure, I like the real thing.  Seeing a stack of books waiting to be read, gives me something to anticipate.  Winter reading is probably the number one thing that makes my spirits soar besides family and friends.

Travel Plans

Right now it is cold, welt, and grey, and I need the hope that sunshine and warmth are in my future.  In Portland it can be cold until mid-July, so this southern girl needs something to look forward to besides months and months of cold and damp.  Planning trips big and small give me comfort and hope that this too shall pass.  Granted, our big trip of the year is to Whistler for a skiing trip, but the change of scenery will still be good for the soul.  Planning a trip with a friend to a sunny locale in April definitely gives me hope.  I will need to bottle up the sunshine when there.  May and June are often more difficult than the winter months for me here in Portland because by then I’m longing for warm, sunny days.  I’m taking the girls and a friend to Seattle over Memorial Day weekend.  Like Portland, you never can tell what the weather may be like in May in Seattle. It could be cold and wet or warm and dry.  Either way, again it’s a change of scenery in a city we love.  Our family has several camping trips planned this summer with other families.  It is always a fun time but it is a must to pack sweatshirts, coats, and rain gear, even in August.  I look forward to it, but not like I do a trip to Mississippi in the summer to see my family.  Besides enjoying time with grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, it will certainly be hot and I for one will bask in the knowledge that shorts and flip flops are required. 

Downton Abbey

It’s hard to wait a year for each season of Downton Abbey, but it is the one thing that actually makes me look forward to January.  Sunday nights at 9:00 are a great way to end the weekend and start the week.  Listening to the Dowager Countess and Lady Crawley  banter is always entertaining.  Each week it is like inviting friends into your home: posh, stylish, titled friends.  I would love to live in a time and place where we spoke English so artfully and formally.  For an hour on Sundays in January and February I get to.

What keeps your heart full and your spirits up in this winter months? 

With a warm heart,

Rebecca