Spring Feathers

IMG_0922

With the arrival of spring, I have started wearing lighter blouses and am enjoying the translucent trend. The print on the blouse reminds me of peacock feathers, with tones of blue, yellow, green, turquoise, and white. It is fun to wear bright colors, such as these green skinny jeans. They seem to lighten up any outfit and bring it to life! Continue reading

No Worry Jeans

 

DSCN6836

Jeans are a staple item in my closet. I am enjoying the trend of colorful & print jeans. Initially, when skinny jeans were introduced (a few years ago), I hesitated to get them because I felt boot cut jeans were more flattering on my body type, and I had many of them. Now, I am embracing my curves, thighs and all, and wearing skinny jeans. I used to consider jeans an investment in my closet. The kind of clothing article I can wear for many years and used to spend hundreds of dollars on designer jeans. I still have those jeans in my closet, but am not wearing most of them currently because they are not skinny jeans or boy cut.

About a year ago, on a trip, I ventured into H&M and found out their skinny jeans are inexpensive ($10 – $30), of course I bought two. A few months later, while shopping with my sister, we went to Forever21 and they also sell inexpensive ($7 – $20) skinny jeans, I got two. The only disadvantage I find with these jeans is that they won’t last years because they tend to fade quicker with washes than designer jeans. But, depending on how often you wear them (& wash them), they can last up to a year or more. I still wear those skinny jeans from H&M around the house. The jeans from Forever21 faded less and are a bit higher on the hips, which is more comfortable for me (due to my curves). This November, I was out shopping with my niece and bought three skinny jeans at Forever 21, gray, black, and dark denim. I have worn them a ton and look forward to wearing them into the spring and summer….hopefully next fall as well. But, at $10 per jeans, I might just go buy another pair in the fall. I call these jeans “no worry jeans” the price is so inexpensive, making them accessible to buy….and a staple in my closet. I think I wear them at least once a week, if not more.

As with any jeans, you can dress them up or keep the look casual. On this occasion, I added a light top, with boots and accessorized it for a day out with my hubby. I have also worn this look to work on a casual Friday, just add a business jacket.

Do you have a favorite brand of jeans? Have you purchased jeans at Forever21 or H&M?

Hugs,

Paola

Photos & ESPAÑOL oprima en “Read More”. Continue reading

Favorite Outfit of the Season

 DSCN6979

Hi friends! Do you have a favorite outfit this season? Mine is this red jacket from Arden B. I bought it before the winter season began and have worn it many times this holiday season! It is warm, comfortable, and can be worn open or closed. I like it so much that I have worn it for work, casual outings, and on recent trips to San Francisco and Newport Beach (these pics were taken at South Coast Plaza in Newport). It was practical for traveling because it did not get wrinkled in my carry-on bag, always a plus. It can be dressed up with a skirt (or dress) and heels, or worn with jeans and boots – as I wear it here! I also purchased the jacket in a camel color, but have only worn that one twice. We have a few weeks of chilly weather left in Southern California (ok, our version of chilly weather), so I will try to wear this red jacket a few more times….I’ll stretch the season out and continue wearing the jacket as long as I can! I get compliments every time I wear it, which is always nice. Most importantly, I feel great…confident and stylish every time I wear it, you can’t beat that! For all these reasons, this is my favorite outfit of the season!

Which is your favorite outfit of the season?

Hugs,

Paola

PS – I wore my hair up to accentuate the high collar & ruffles the jacket has. I also applied red lipstick, this is my favorite Chanel tone for the season (a gift from my comadre Marissa, comadre = mother of my goddaughter).

 DSCN6966 DSCN6970 DSCN6969 DSCN6967 DSCN6973 DSCN6972

Jacket: Arden B. (ArdenB.com, purchased at Horton Plaza location); Pants: H&M; Tank Top: Banana Republic; Boots: Paolo (Paoloshoes.com, purchased in San Francisco, they are super comfortable, I wear them to work & for travel); Belt: purchased in San Francisco; Long Necklace: Target (Target.com); Lipstick: Chanel, Rouge Coco 36 Lune Rousse (Chanel.com, purchased at Nordstrom, Nordstrom.com); Cross Pendant Necklace: Vatican (purchased at the Vatican in Rome, found this site for the store vaticangift.com); Purse: Louis Vuitton (this is the purse I use daily, so you may see it in various posts, I love this purse.

Flowing Bronze

DSCN3795

This dress makes me want to sit in front of the beach sipping a fruity drink! The material flows easily, with a front criss-cross and high-low skirt. The bronze color makes my skin look tan, which is wonderful during summertime! Due to the color of the dress, I changed up my make-up to use bronze, gold, and earth tones. It must have been noticeable because I received compliments at work, which is always appreciated and makes us feel good! I bought it recently and have worn it twice – to a birthday party and this week to the Francis Ford Coppola Winery Dinner. Since the dinner was on a weeknight, I wore the dress to work with a fitted suit jacket and bone color wedge shoes. I like that it has stretchy material under the skirt in the same color (similar to a slip), this made it more comfortable to wear for work, particularly when I sat down due to the criss-cross skirt. It doesn’t come with a belt, for the Dinner I added a bronze color belt and for the birthday party I wore a dark brown leather belt (with a large red and dark brown necklace). For the Dinner, I changed into strappy heals and exchanged my jacket for a pashmina (which I didn’t wear after all). I will definitely be wearing the dress again! I can match it with white, brown, red, or gold shoes….and wear it into the fall with a cardigan sweater or leather jacket.

Do you have any bronze colored dresses? What do you think about these high-low skirts that are in style right now?

Hugs,

Paola

Tip: I have many belts that I use for pants that fall lower on the waist/hip and also use them with skirts and dresses, so I wrap the belt and use small clear hair bands to hold the belt in place. It works like a charm. Since the hair bands are very small, thin and clear, they aren’t really visible….but, in this pic you can see a bit of the hair band, so you get the idea. I usually add two bands, one close to the end of the belt and one in the middle between the buckle and the back of the belt. These head bands are easy to find at Target, Wal-Mart, or CVS. These bands last me through multiple wears – of a belt – and don’t damage it.

DSCN3787

DSCN3794

DSCN3792

 

DSCN3878

At the Francis Ford Coppola Winery Dinner.

Dress: Forever21; Shoes: Audrey Brooke, Nordstrom; Belt: Gift from my sister (it used to be hers, so it is a hand-me down ;)); Necklace: Lolita’s Creations (hand-made, natural stones, it was a gift from my bff Lola, her hobby is jewelry making); Bracelet: Forever21