for a girl's night out.

I was lucky enough to spend last night with three of my very favorite ladies at a charity event in Chicago. Getting dressed up for a cocktail event is way more fun than a regular night out. I wore this same outfit on New Year's and failed to take pictures, so I decided to take it for another spin. The ruffly dress is from Loft, purchased for $50 almost 2 years ago- pretty proud of the insanely low cost per wear of this piece. I also tried my best to do something different with my hair, per my resolution- what do you guys think?

dress: Ann Taylor Loft tights: J.Crew shoes: Kate Spade necklace: Kate Spade (similar)

to make a resolution.

Time to say good-bye to another wonderful year...hope everyone has a safe and happy night tonight!

In the spirit of New Year's resolutions, I decided to make a few for the ol' blog. Here they are:

1. Take better pictures. I got an awesome deal on a Canon Rebel from Target - the camera was reduced and I got another lens for $100! Now I just have to learn how to use it...
2. Get crafty.  I had so much fun sprucing up my American Apparel clutch; I definitely want to incorporate more DIY projects into my wardrobe.
3. Make myself up. I swear I wear make-up and blow dry my hair (most the of the time), but I end up looking very unmade up most of the time. This year, I want to make an effort to mix up my look with different hairstyles, eye make-up and lipstick.
4. Stick to structure. I love how magazines have consistent features and articles across their different issues (like "Her 10 Best Ever" in Instyle) and I think monthly or weekly features would be something fun to incorporate into my blog.
5. Invest in the classics. Looking back at my favorite outfits from this year, I noticed that I definitely go back to the same basic, well-made pieces time and again (I've worn most of the items from these outfits at least a dozen times!). I think I need to be more conscious of this fact when I go shopping, and make sure whatever I purchase is going to become a classic. Speaking of those favorite outfits...

 

to dress it down.

The weekend after our wedding (back in June), we had an event at Rick's country club. I obviously chose "country club wife" as my outfit theme and headed over to Kate Spade- the holy grail of preppy, chic, trendy and generally adorable clothing. I tried on every single dress in the store, no joke, and ended up with a black, pleated skirt number that had some awesome detailing on the neckline. Apparently, country club wives are a little saucy these days, and my friend and I ended up being the most conservatively dressed ladies at the dance (not to mention the youngest. My friend wore Lilly Pulitzer, by the way).

Anyway, I had every intention of wearing this dress again over the summer and I failed miserably. It waited patiently in its bright pink garment bag to be taken out to another party, but the cost per wear remained embarrassingly high. Last week, I decided to cut the poor thing some slack and take it out for a spin. I wore my trusty chambray button-down underneath and a casual skinny belt to dress it down.

dress: Kate Spade. shirt: J.Crew. belt: J.Crew. shoes: Cole Haan. bracelets: DY.

me & my handsome hubby at the party (ignore my red wine teeth and farmer's tan).

and finds a like-minded soul.

I was reading the editor's letter in the August issue of Lucky, and it was one of those moments where the sky should part, a glorious sun should shine through and hundreds of doves should fly out. The editor, Brandon Holley, put into words what I have been telling myself for basically my whole shopping career. And by telling myself, I mean justifying pretty much every purchase I've ever made. It's just three simple words...

COST PER WEAR.

One little formula, price / how many times you wear something, that could change the way you shop forever. I'm looking at my closet with pride right now, thinking that at this point, some of my clothes should probably be paying me (I'm looking at you, J.Crew turquoise pumps, and you, JBrand jeggings). Of course those are the ones that pop into my mind first, but there are plenty of things hanging out in there that have cost per wear's I'd be embarrassed to calculate. I'll go ahead and give myself an A for effort though.

I'm still working my way through the five lost & forgotten items, intent on reducing their cost per wear! Hope everyone had a great long weekend!