Super Sale

What is UP, third-day hair and super sale shoes? 

I did not want to sludge my way through the entire hair doing process, so I just recurled some pieces. 

After the first week of my eighth year teaching, I decided to celebrate by taking a gander at what DSW had to offer. I happened upon these beauties in the clearance section. I always pick the 30% off pair, never the 70% off pair. UNTIL TODAY. The shoes were originally $100, marked down to $59.95, 70% off of that, and came to a total of $19.04. 

Boom. 

I came home, and we buried Saint Joseph in the garden because my Catholic co-teacher says he'll help us sell our home quickly. I'm not Catholic, but I'll take all the good juju I can get even if my Baptist grandfather is turning in his grave right now. It's okay, Pop Pop. A little love for and from everyone never hurt, right? Plus, he was in my purse when I found these shoes, so I'm feeling a little love for Saint Joseph, helper of house sellers and shoe buyers. 

 Anyway, I got dressed today. Today was Friday. I wore jeans to work. 

The Look:

Shirt: Marshall's

Jeans: Simply Vera via Kohl's

Shoes: Audrey Brooke via DSW

Necklace & Earrings: Boutique 

:)

The Details:

Occasion: Casual Friday at work

Where: Teaching and shoe shopping

When: allllll the live long day

Comfort Rating: 10

Comments: I considered half tucking the shirt (the pants are belted), but I wanted a looser look. It's been a long week, and I didn't want to fuss with a continually untucking shirt. I wore teal sandals all day, but I switched to these gold flats when I bought them after school. I obviously decided the flats were more worthy of pictures. 

Lace & a Flowy Skirt

Before I embark on the task of grading my AP students' work, I will grace the interwebs with my presence. And my second-day hair, which has been kicking butt since my stylist gave me some tips last week. It's taken 29 years for me to figure out how to style this mane, but better late than never? Now, I just need to take care of this whole acne and acne scarring issue, and all will be right with my world. My vain, vain little world.

Oh, and our house is officially on the market! After hours of painting, scrubbing, staging, and some bleeding, we are now in "people could come through the house at any moment, so we can't touch anything" mode. A wildly fun place to be.

Jeff is only happy to take pictures when he can direct me in my posing. He told me I had to be all "50s housewife" and pose with the Kitchen Aid mixer. Way to be progressive, husband.

The Look:

Top: The Limited

Skirt: LOFT

Shoes: Me Too via Marshall's (last summer)

Belt: NY & Co.

Necklace: Gift from my sister-in-law, both of my sisters-in-law have such great taste. I lucked out! 

The Details: 

Occasion: Work (I'm a teacher, by the way.)

When: end o' August (still in the 80s)

Where: Indoors all day (still pretty balmy in my room)

Comfort Rating: 9.5

Comments: I give it a 9.5 only because I had to resituate the belt a few times, but it was actually very comfortable. These heels are the perfect height and have enough cushion to make the soles of my feet not-so angry. I tried a new color combination with the cognac shoes/belt, and I liked it (not "I kissed a girl" kind of liked it, but I liked it.) Ordinarily, I'd choose a gold and be suuuuper matchy, but I was a big fan of this combination. Plus, I was pretty matchy matchy with my cognac purse ;) This shirt tucks REALLY well, and I didn't know that until today despite the fact that I've owned it for nearly a year. Good job, shirt. 

Jeff's doing the dishes and fixing dinner. Some 50s housewife I am. 

Seersucker and Fuchsia

Is "fuschia" not really a color? Because Safari's automatic spell checker is kirking out over here. Safari MUST be a dude.

EDIT: Apparently, half the world and I have been misspelling fuchsia as fuschia. Most annoying part? Autocorrect just NOW corrected it, but not the first time I fought with the spelling. English teacher fail.ure.

Wife: "Honey, is this more of a white or an ivory?"
Husband: "What's the difference?"

Crikey, I can't even get my husband to tell the difference between "husband, these already look awful, so they can be worn to change oil, catch a fish, or roll around in the grass" shorts and "husband, these are nice, unstained, and worth a pretty penny, so if you wear these, I will spritz lemon juice in your eyeballs" shorts. As if I could get him to tell the difference between colors. Unless it's the paint color for a Corvette. Or any vehicle.

I digress.

P.S. It's our two year wedding anniversary tomorrow. However, we've been together for a total of nine whopping years. Hot diggity dog.

I wore this outfit the other week to run errands, one of which involved a trip into Kohl's. Obviously.

Typically, I avoid shorts because they give me unnecessary wedgies. Not like any wedgie is actually necessary. Unless you ask my brother who hanged me by my pants on a doorknob...for two and a half hours. He felt that wedgie was necessary.

Whew, what a manhating post.

Look! A cute puppy!

As for the outfit, here 'tis.

The Look:

Seersucker Shorts: The Limited

Top: The Limited

Flats: Target

Belt: Target

The Details:

Occasion: Errand running (read: shopping)

When: Day time (so, casual it is)

Where: About town

Comfort Rating: Any outfit involving shorts automatically earns an 8 or less. These shorts are just the right length, so an 8 they earn. However, I should give the outfit a 7 only because trying to untuck a shirt and undo a belt in a dressing room is annoying because retucking and belting is sucky. Not an easy access outfit for the purpose of trying on other clothes. 

Note: Originally, I put on a white shirt with these shorts, a brown belt, and brown shoes. (I like the brown, white, and blue combo.) Buuuut, I decided to switch up the color combination a bit and choose fuschia instead. Is that okay? It's okay if you say no. I'll still like it. And you. 

Oh, and hoo-ray for the first day back for teachers. 

Gray Maxi Skirt

I'm a smidge sad that the Teacher Wardrobe Staple series (say that three times fast) came to an end yesterday, so I need to think about how I can revive it once a week/month. Or something like it. Maybe I'll do a Teacher Staples 30x30? That might just work.

I'm not wearing any shoes with this outfit because I felt like being a hippie for ten minutes. (Read: I was too lazy to put on my shoes before the pictures.)

The Look:

Jean Jacket: Old Navy (it's a bit bigger, so I chose to roll the sleeves for a different look.)

Maxi Skirt: American Eagle

Belt: I have NO idea! I think Target.

Shirt: Target

I wanted you to see my diva face...also known as "the wind is making me eat my hair" face. 

The Details:

Occasion: My birthday dinner! (A relaxed one with family, not a date night)

When: 4-bed time

Where: My parents' house with just my closest family members

Restyling Options: Clearly, I would put on shoes.  I actually did restyle this before I walked out of the door by putting on a white cardigan (didn't want to wear a jean jacket in my parents' house, but it was too chilly for short sleeves) and an aqua belt. I wore white, strappy sandals. 

I wore the wine-colored version of the skirt like this. 

How would you style this skirt?

Last day to enter Sam's Target card giveaway. 

I'm wearing items from Target in this outfit post, so it's meant to be.

Duh.

Teacher Wardrobe Staples: Part 4 [The Inspiration]

Again, if this is your first visit to the Teacher Wardrobe Staples series, I hope you find some inspiration for the next time you sluggishly make your way to your closet at 5 in the a.m., punch the light switch on, grumble your way through your I'll-organize-it-someday closet, and have a mini panic attack about whether or not you made copies for the day. Oh, that's just me? Oops. As a matter of fact, I pick out a "I want to look cute" outfit and an "I hate the world" outfit every night. Depending on how much of a troglodyte I am the next morning, I'll choose one of the two looks.

Here is the series breakdown:

Part 1: The Stores

Part 2: The Basics

Part 3: The Outfits

Part 4: The Inspiration (today's post)

For today's post, three lovely bloggers sent me their favorite teacher outfits, so I made a few collages for you! Underneath each collage, you'll find links to each one of the outfits on their blogs. Please visit them and say hello. I'm sure they'd love to hear your positive feedback :) They are worthy of being followed. True.

A Word About the Blogger:

Kate teaches at the college level, and she makes the collegiate world look fine.

Girlfriend knows how to add splashes of color and prints and choose the perfect fit (no too-tight or dowdy looks in this blogger's archives.) 

A Word About the Looks:

Kate's first look reminded me about layering a button-up under a sleeveless dress. It keeps the dress work appropriate (I always avoid anything without sleeves.) I love the color of this dress; it works for any season!

Find Look #1 here

I told myself I needed this polka dot cardigan, and my sister-in-law gave me a polka dot cardigan for my birthday yesterday. I think she read my mind. I don't have a button-up in the same color as Kate's, but I can turn her look into a formula for myself by wearing a printed cardigan with a bright top and neutral bottoms. I love the cut of these pants on her. They'll work well with flats or heels!

Find Look #2 here

I am absolutely in love with the color pallet of look #3. There is just something about navy and pink that makes me feel all throw-the-anchor-on-the-poop-deck-and-let's-set-sail. If you don't have these exact items, it's okay. You can use the look's "formula" to inspire you: try a structure blazer with a button-up and a colored skirt. Keep your heels neutral so that the skirt remains the focal point. 

Find Look #3 here

A Word About the Blogger:

In her e-mail to me, Brandy said that she is new to the blogging world. Be sure to visit her and give her some love! I am pretty excited she found me because she's a fellow English teacher of high school students and owns a lot of clothes from Kohl's. I'm glad you found me, Brandy! Brandy has mastered the art of styling a dress. I browsed through other looks on her blogs, and I love her color choices and necklace collection.

A Word About the Looks:

Look number 1 is my favorite because I keep drooling over the print of that dress. It's so pretty and colorful. I just want to pet it, but not while she's wearing it because THAT would be creepy, my friends. And even I have a limit to my creepiness. The neutral blazer really makes this look even more professional. If Brandy wanted to take the dress outside of the classroom, a jean jacket would be a fine substitute for the blazer. (Of course, I totally wear my blazers EVERYWHERE on the great, green Earth.)

Find Look #1 here

I like how the belt in look number 2 cinches Brandy's waist. It gives this shirt dress more structure. If she wanted to throw a colored blazer or cardigan over it, the outfit would totally allow for it. She owns an adorable pair of red wedges, and she could swap the flats for those if she was feeling particularly Jessica Rabbit one day. 

Find Look #2 here

I love that Brandy took this dress to a more professional level with the skinny belt and flats. And that necklace? Want it. I'd love to see it with a printed cardigan. Because I love me a printed cardigan. Or a printed button up tied in a knot.  

Find Look #3 here

A Word About the Blogger:

First of all, I've been a huge fan of Inge and her curly hair for a while now. I really like this post. She is so sweet. And worthy of applause. One, she is a special educator. (I've been working directly with special educators for seven years. The amount of paperwork in that department is ridiculous!) Two, she works at a middle school. I'm convinced there's a special place in heaven for middle school teachers. Anyway, I'm a huge fan of Inge's color combinations, Target and Old Navy finds, and sensibility (while still maintaining a personality.)  

A Word About the Look: 

Inge and Kate are making me realize I need a pencil skirt in this color, but, for now, I could recreate this look with my cobalt blue skirt instead of a pink one. Inge has this look totally right. 

Take her lead: neutral cardigan + striped top + bold skirt (or slacks) + neutral shoes. 

Find Inge's look here.

I hope you found some inspiration from these lovely ladies.

Please let me know if you would like for me to continue the series and what you'd like to see. 

I had a LOT of fun creating this series. 

Until I receive some feedback or an idea bomb explodes in my face, I'll return to my regularly scheduled outfit posts. Hope ya don't mind.

P.S. One more day to enter the lovely, FUNNY Sam's giveaway. Dude, if I ever break the law, I hope someone that witty and stylish defends me. (Note: I have no intention of breaking the law.)

Teacher Wardrobe Staples: Part 3 [The Outfits]

So, Mom brought over her real camera and her real skills to take this part of the series' photographs. HOLY AWESOMENESS. 

Happy Birthday to me.

I know I said I couldn't write this post today, but the birthday fairies granted me two hours of extra time to work it in :) 

In case you're new, I've started a Teacher Wardrobe Series.

Part 1: The Stores

Part 2: The Basics 

Today is Part 3: The Outfits. 

(Tomorrow is Part 4: The Inspiration, which features readers. You could be a part of it! See more information about it at the end of this post.)

First, I did not pull all of the items from Part 2 to create these looks.

(I'll also need to write a post that includes some considerations after having created outfits with the items. I'm realizing the holes I have in my closet!) 

I'm sorry, but that is a lot of picture taking, and what will I show you for the next month!?

Now, here are the staples I pulled together for this post:

Gingham shirt, blue oxford, striped shirt, yellow (and feminine) blouse,

cobalt blue blazer, khaki blazer, and black blazer

White cardigan, gray cardigan, khaki skirt, black skirt, 

black pants, khaki/brown pants, cobalt skirt, polka dot skirt

black dress, striped dress, cap toe flats, nude kitten heels, black heels, cobalt blue wedges

IMPORTANT NOTE #1: I did NOT create all of the outfits that I could have created because I started to get sweaty and tired. I think what I've provided here is plenty of inspiration, especially since I have some other lovely ladies' outfits to show you tomorrow! 

IMPORTANT NOTE #2: Except for belts, I did not accessorize. If you want to see the series to continue with a post on accessorizing, feel free to let me know. I like you, so I can make it happen.

So, here goes:

The striped dress is great with a blazer, a cardigan, heels, flats, belted, or not belted.

A look I did not include but would be cute is the blue oxford tied over top and knotted in the front.

 (Or a black blazer instead of a white cardigan)

I'm seeing so many more possibilities now that I'm reviewing the pictures.

A black dress works well with a button up, a blazer, or a cardigan. 

OR ANYTHING.

Mom did NOT take the last three pictures. They were in the archive. 

I wanted to include them because one look shows a printed skirt, another shows a printed dress, and the last shows a more casual Friday kind of look.

Your colored blazer does not have to be cobalt blue, but I bet you want one now! 

Who would've thought a little yellow blouse could cover so much sartorial ground?

I prefer it tucked in, but it looks great loose. 

I love the two skirt looks. 

LOOK! My husband came home during the photo shoot and matched one of my outfits. I made him pose with me. As you can see, he's excited. 

Obviously, I could include a bajillion outfits with the striped shirt, but I've already written a post on striped shirt inspiration. (Excuse some of the dead pictures. I need to figure out how to fix those! I didn't know some of them died until just now.)

In all of these looks, both shirts are interchangeable, which is why I included them on a collage together.

I think the khaki skirt look is my favorite. I'm excited to wear it to work! 

After writing this post, I am so game for a 30x30 challenge. Right here, I have 14 looks, and I could easily double them. And I only have 21 items here instead of 30. I might have inspired myself. 

What a cheeseball. And a narcissist. 

If you would like to see me write more posts like this one, I'd love to have your feedback. 

Don't forget to e-mail me a picture of you wearing your favorite teacher outfit. 

(You do NOT have to be a teacher; it can be a teacher-inspired ensemble.)

(You do NOT have to be a blogger either!)

If you ARE a blogger and the picture comes from a post on your blog, provide me with the link to the original content, please! If you're not a blogger, tell me how you'd prefer I credit you :) 

E-mail me at

teamwebchick@gmail.com

Aged Awesomeness & One Shirt Three Ways

I will be back with Part 3 of the Teacher Wardrobe Staples series (Part 1 and Part 2) tomorrow. Why, you ask? Well, first of all, today is my 29th birthday. Second of all, today, Momma dukes is actually taking pictures of me for Part 3! With a real camera, not my iPhone. Hot jeebus. I.have.arrived.

Instead of the series today, I do have one shirt worn three ways for you. Because my awesomeness just added another year to itself.

Every time I buy an item I'm a smidge unsure of, I physically try it on with at least three outfits in order to determine its lifespan in my closet. Sometimes, I'm on fire and can't stop trying it on with things. Aaaand, sometimes, it's a big, fat flop that I have to return. Luckily, this shirt is a winner.

I bought an army green shirt at Kohl's the other day, hoping it would work well in my closet. I'd say it does. I came up with these three looks:

It's not much, and the pictures are, um, awful. HOWEVER, you might find inspiration from them. If nothing else, you'll take your iPhone photos in a full-length mirror in better lighting. 

(The color is "true" in the middle picture.) 

I'd love to know how you would style this shirt. Tell me in the comments! :)

I had every intent of writing you a list of "29 Things of Awesomeness," but I lost steam after #7. 

I need a shower because I do not smell awesome.

So, I will leave you with this thought: I am not 29-years-old; I am 29 years of awesome. 

 Aged awesomeness, if you will.

That is all.

P.S. Be sure to enter the Target giveaway over at Sam's hilarious blog. 

She's one of those makes-you-pee-a-little-she's-so-funny kind of girls.