with the sweet smell of success in the air.

As I mentioned in my last post, a bad shopping experience only throws me off my game for about 12 hours (this is what people would call an "addiction", whatever). That being said, I was back at it yesterday evening. I headed to the bigger, better J.Crew in Chicago because I had to get my wonderful sister a birthday present, and I saw a very adorable orange skirt online that I thought could be promising.

The skirt was calling my name as soon as I stepped in the store, and unlike my nemesis Zara, they had THREE of my size. Hmph. The color is beautiful and bright, and it fit perfectly. This is one I know I'll be wearing to shreds:

I was trying to find a fun pink or yellow top to go with it, but I ended up going with a comfy "boy" shirt in blue, chambray-ish color. I got one of their perfect fit tanks in a vibrant yellow color to layer under the button down, because it's a little see-through and this will add another pop of color. I'm going to finish the look off with the pink polka dot scarf I bought at Zara the other day. Let's hope the weather warms up a little so I wear this outfit in the next week or so...

Ok, so about the cost. The skirt was $75, the button down was $69.50 and the tank was $18. BUT, I had a 20% off coupon! So I only spent $130 at J.Crew. Combined with the $30 scarf and the $20 tank I bought at Target (which doesn't fit into this outfit, but I'm being honest...), I spent a total of $180. I know, I know...$20 over my budget, but I'm going to go ahead and call it a wash :)