Friday's Fancies: St. Patrick's Day Style

Pants | Sweater | Earrings | Necklace | Shoes

One of the fun things about Friday's Fancies is putting together things that I haven't tried in real life or have avoided because I didn't think I could pull them off. Today I did that with two things: colored skinny jeans and mixing prints.

I don't even think I've tried on a pair of skinny jeans, and colored jeans just aren't my thing. But for some reason this green pair spoke to me. It's such a lovely spring-y shade and perfect for an Irish celebration. Since I certainly don't think you should go green overboard, I turned to navy, one of my favorite green pairing colors, for the top. This striped cardigan from J. Crew is very traditional prep and a great pairing with the pants. It comes complete with anchor buttons and a name Mrs. Kennedy herself would approve of: The Jackie Cardigan.

Even though mixing prints terrifies me in real life, when I saw these shoes I couldn't resist pairing them with this outfit! In high school I went on a big Ked's kick and loved my solid navy pair. But these polka dots with the tan rims seem a step in a more stylish and sophisticated direction. Basically: I'm in love. Serious love. Like I may need to go try some on this weekend love.

The gold earrings and anchor necklace--couldn't be nautical prep without it--round out the look.

How are you celebrating St. Patrick's Day? And better yet, what will you be wearing?

Friday's Fancies: Etsy Bling Edition

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

I love jewelry. I probably love jewelry more than clothes, having started my extensive earring collection when I got my ears pierced in 4th grade. This week's Bling Friday's Fancies theme was therefore right up my alley.

Since getting my Etsy account I've been hoarding jewelry in my favorites, so it was easy to throw together some beautiful and fun picks. My personal favorite is probably the "Write" necklace, though that's certainly not shocking! Can't wait to see what some of the other picks are this week. I'll try to keep myself from buying anything new...

Friday's Fancies: The Red Carpet

Dress | Bracelet | Shoes | Earrings

It's the Oscars weekend, and while I won't be walking the red carpet anytime soon--maybe once I get that screenplay finished--it's fun to think about what you'd wear if you were going to be brushing shoulders with Anne and the Jennifers (let's face it--there are a lot of them).

When I was thinking about this week's red carpet themed Friday's Fancies I couldn't help but think about the devastatingly gorgeous dress Rose wore in the Downton Abbey finale--the one her mother couldn't stand. While most of the fashion on the show is beautiful, that blue-ish teal dress made a grand entrance. I couldn't find a similar look, but I did find some other 1920s-inspired glitz and glam, including this lovely dress. The champagne color certainly screams romantic antique, and I love the bead work. The bracelet pulls in the soft pink while adding gold and black, also picked up on the earrings and shoes.

Anyone else loving the 1920s right now?

Friday's Fancies: To the Slopes

I've never been skiing, and in full honestly the non-athletic person in me has no desire to ever try. So when I found out about this Friday's Fancies topic from Long Distance Loving I skipped the whole concept of me actually skiing. What I could go for is a snowy escape in a cozy ski lodge or in the winter landscape of Vermont. And what do you wear when you want to be warm and fuzzy in the winter? Sweaters.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6

I've recently been crazy for orange and coral, so I'm just a little obsessed with this first sweater and the classic chic pattern (though it sadly appears to be sold out). I don't have many sweaters with prints, but these all just screamed snowy winter getaway for me, especially #2 and #3. The last sweater is something totally different than anything I would normally wear, but I love the color combo. So fun, and feels a little 90s to me, which I admit I kind of dig.

Friday's Fancies: Black & White

When I saw this week's Friday's Fancies topic I couldn't help but think about dresses. My favorite formal dress from my sorority girl days was probably a simple black and white dress that had a very glamorous 1960s feel to it. Too bad the date was a dud and there aren't any great pictures of me in the actual dress.

When it came time to choose looks for this week, I channeled the feeling of that dress to put together these evening options:

Dress | Dress | Bag | Heels (Similar) | Gold & Ivory Earrings | Black & White Earrings

The neckline of the first dress is very similar to my formal dress, and I love the unique top and sleeves of the second dress.

But let's be honest: how often do you really get to dress up these days? I'm always looking for a great reason to wear a gorgeous dress, but those opportunities don't come around often. Which led me to put together another round of options for everyday wear:

Pants | Blouse | Polka Dot Wristlet | Studs | Shirt | Black & White Wristlet | TOMS

Lately I've really been wanting a gingham blouse like this J. Crew option, and I like the simplicity of this striped long sleeved shirt that pairs khaki with the white and black mix. Both of these wristlets are adorable (though I tend to carry a GIANT bag on most days), and the studs and TOMS (I'm a TOMS addict) would pair well with any combo of these options.

Are you also seeing things in black & white?

Friday's Fancies: Outfit Crush

Image Via Kendi Everyday

This week's Friday's Fancies is all about the crush--the style crush. We were asked to pick a look from Pinterest and recreate it with our own spin. This gorgeous pic has been on my style board since my early days of pinning and I thought it would be the perfect choice to recreate for today's challenge.

1) Gibson Velvet Trim Blazer, Nordstrom; 2) Collette by Collette Dinnigan, Matches; 3) Blythe Blouse in Polka Dot, J. Crew; 4) Thanks for the Tiptoe Flat, ModCloth; 5) Chunky Knit Cowl in Luxury Blue, Easy123 on Etsy; 6) Gumdrop Stud Earrings, Banana Republic

Finding just the right jacket was challenging, but I thought this blazer from Nordstrom did the trick. For the top I decided to go with a classic print instead of a solid and pull in basic black and white. I couldn't decide between these two chic choices, both timeless and cozy looking. I traded in the gold scarf for this beautiful shade of blue, pulling in the gold for earrings and flats. 

Now I'm dreaming of wearing this outfit for a lovely Saturday out. 

Friday's Fancies: Emerald City

Last month I ran across the fun little blog Long Distance Loving, written by the lovely Alison, a fellow native Hoosier who is now living in Rhode Island.

Every Friday Alison invites fellow bloggers to take part in her Friday's Fancies fashion link-up party, where they create looks inspired by established themes of the week.

This week celebrates Pantone's color of the year: Emerald. I couldn't help but think of Ireland and romantic flowing dresses, which led to this:

 1) Enchanting Moment Dress, ModCloth.com; 2) Filigree Earrings, Forever 21; 3) Cashmere Shawl, Michael by Michael Kors; 4) Starlight Drive April bag, Kate Spade; 5) Et Cetera Idiom Bangle, Kate Spade; 6) This is the Year Idiom Bangle, Kate Spade, 7) Uma Flats, Rebecca Minkoff, 8) Velvet Love Tub, Oliver Bonas

This dress certainly fits the bill! It does, however, feel a little more appropriate for summer, leading me to pull in a flowing black cardigan to take care of the winter months. Gold filigree earrings seemed the perfect fit, as did the gold bangles, bag, and flats to play up the accent belt on the dress.

As for the furniture piece--well, doesn't every romantic lady need a gorgeous place to sit? I saw it and couldn't resist adding it into the mix.

Can't wait to check out the other bloggers' picks!