OOTD: Mixing it Up

I've been noticing that some of my skirts feel loose on me lately....and I haven't really lost weight (at least I don't think so) but they seem to just not be as fitted as they used to be. While I'm happy my fitness is paying off and my body is getting more toned, I don't want to have to buy new skirts!  Maybe I can safety pin or clip them so they are a bit tighter at the waist.

I wore this outfit on Monday (I've been writing posts in advance which is why I'm a little behind on my days)

Top- Target
Skirt- LOFT
Cardigan- Zara
Shoes- Nine West
Necklace- F21
Watch: Michael Kors; Bracelet: Pandora

 

Hope you had a great day!

xoxo,

Veronika.

Shopping: Target, Zara, MAC

I usually post these on weekends, but we were so busy cleaning on Saturday and I didn't feel great Sunday so I decided to post this during the week.

I picked up a few things last Thursday when I went to the Galleria mall and a few things are from my wonderful mother in law.

Let's start with my lovely gifts from my mother in law. I was sad because I couldn't find either item below at my Target in the sizes I needed, and she was nice enough to check her Target for me and sure enough, they had em':

I also have this Mossimo top in a dark turquoise color. It fits lovely, has a racer style back and I love the little buttons and front pocket. Perfect for tucking into a skirt or wearing with skinny jeans.

This little romper from Target was too cute to resist but it was sold out everywhere in the smaller sizes, including online. My MIL was able to snag the last size small for me. It's so pretty and feminine. I believe she got in on the clearance rack, so check your local Target and you may have the same luck!

Next up, I visited Zara.  I bought a sweater and a dress---and I think it's the dress I will wear for my birthday this year:

I think the green dress is simple and pretty. I may even wear it to a beach wedding I'm going to in the fall.  Not sure yet, by then I may find something I like even more.  I'm actually on the hunt for a dressy maxi dress to wear to the wedding---since it's on the beach I think it could be lovely and I could just wear flat sandals and no one would even see my feet!

I also picked up this darling cardigan. I have been on the hunt for a neutral, oatmeal-colored cardigan for a good 3 months now. I've even bought and returned two of them that didn't quite meet the mark. This one is a keeper. I wore it on Friday and I absolutely love it.  The button detailing really adds a little something extra!}

I also picked up one of my favorite glosses at MAC---it's called "underage" and I've been wearing it for several years now. It's the perfect pinky-nude. I back-to-MAC'd this one so it was FREE!

Lastly, I picked up a pretty top from A'Gaci.  That store is a huge hit or miss for me, but this time, it was a HIT. I tried on several very cute items there---if you have one by you, definitely pay a visit to the store because they have REALLY cute summer tops, dresses, rompers etc in right now.  I was really impressed.  The shirt I got is from a higher end line they carry (a little pricier than their regular clothes) and I'm such a sucker for these peasant-style tops so when I find one this pretty I just can't resist!

I have no idea why I'm making this ugly scowl face, but here it is on, sort of:

So, that's the end of my little spree!  Hope you have a great night!

xoxo,

Veronika.

OOTD: The (Hot) Pink Skirt

It's nearly nine at night and I'm still awake after a grueling workout. It was one of those workouts that you almost didn't think you'd ever be able to finish without (gross) vomiting, but at the end of the workout I felt great (and I definitely ate some delicious dinner from Zoe's Kitchen which was awesome). I'm really enjoying the extra time my H and I get to spend together taking our workout class!

I finally broke out the Zara hot pink pencil skirt today. I'm a little sad because it's too big for me, but I think it looks okay. I may look into getting it altered so it fits a little better on my body because right now the waist is too big and so are the sides.

Top- Forever 21
Skirt- Zara
Cardigan- Express
Shoes- Jessica Simpson
Necklace- Forever 21
Bag- Tory Burch Reva Clutch

Aside from the sizing issue, I love this skirt because it's so different from any other skirt I own in both color and tailoring.

I hope everyone has a great night and a happy Friday! I will be out celebrating a friend's birthday tomorrow so probably no posts until the weekend.  Thanks so much for reading!

xoxo,

Veronika.

Weekend Shopping: The Pink Skirt

I started my Saturday right with an AM workout. It's so gross in Houston today---hot, sticky...yuck!  The Final Four is happening here and it's a shame the weather is so sticky when there are so many people in town.

I did a little shopping today, but sadly, I haven't found the perfect spring shoes yet. I am SO over shoe shopping right now that I think I need to move to online shoe shopping because I'm so frustrated going to stores and trying on shoe after shoe and not finding anything I love (plus, it's a miracle sometimes if they even have the shoe I want in the size I want.)

Today wasn't a complete fail though, and it was all because of one joyous skirt.

A few weeks ago, I saw an incredible HOT PINK skirt at Zara. I knew I had to have it.  The problem? It was too short---definitely could NOT wear it to work. I said a little prayer that day at Zara, hoping the skirt would one day come in a pencil skirt style. For weeks, I went back and nothing and the shorter pink skirt had long sold-out. The lovely Emily from Cupcakes & Cashmere even had THE pink skirt:

See Emily's Original Post-  Blending Brights on cupcakesandcashmere.com

At this point, I had sort of given up all hope for this skirt. It was gone...or so I thought.  Imagine my utter shock (and joy) today when I walked into Zara and saw ONE hot pink pencil skirt in the exact same color and fabric as the one above. Was it a mirage? Could it really be?

I picked it up...please be my size, please be my size, I thought. I turned around the tag and it was a Medium! I couldn't believe it. It was meant to be. I grabbed it and looked around me as if someone would come up behind me and snatch it away. Yes, I'm a little crazy. I couldn't actually believe that I had hoped the skirt would come out as a pencil skirt, and then it did, and I happened to be in the store when they had ONE left in MY size (okay, this reminds me of the time they had one pair of Cynthia Vincent for Target wedges in my size left in the entire store. Goodness gracious I'm a lucky gal!)

I tried it on, it fit, and to the register I went. There was just no way I could pass up it's awesome brightness.  For $79.90, it felt like a steal.

It has a slit at the front (don't worry, it doesn't show anything)

Does my new skirt remind you of anything (the colors are nearly identical in real life!)

Yes! It's just like my MbMJ handbag!  I can't wait to start carrying it again...I've just been hopelessly devoted to my Tory Burch bag lately because it's smaller and I've had a lot of events lately so it's easier for me to just bring the Tory bag.

That's all I got at the mall. When I stopped in at Target to pick up a few essentials I also got this pretty nightie.  It's by that Gilligan & O'Malley line:

It's super soft and comfy and the lace detail is very pretty!  It was $19.99 and I got a Medium.

Lastly, I stopped by Academy Sports today to pick up some shorts. I own some really cute Lululemon shorts, but they are too short for working out (I don't want to flash someone, if you know what I mean.)

Many people recommend the Nike Tempo Shorts, so I tried a few pairs on. I wasn't super-impressed with the fit (they just weren't that flattering, especially in the butt area where they just kind of bunched and sagged) but I was going to get a pair anyway because I needed longer shorts. My husband actually said "hey, why don't you try on a pair from the Under Armor brand?"  I'm so glad I did, because the Under Armors ended up being much more flattering of a fit and I just liked them better overall. They retail for $29.99 and I got a Medium.

I also picked up a foam roller for post-workout muscle rolling. It hurts so good.

Thanks for reading and for your patience. I know i didn't blog a lot last week because work and life just got very busy and I wanted to prioritize pushing myself back into my nightly workouts since I had skipped a week.  I'm pleased to say I went 5 days this week :)

Hope everyone is enjoying their weekend so far!

xoxo,

Veronika.

OOTD: Sunday Brunch

Since we missed Christmas with family this year, H and I invited his parents to Sunday brunch at this great local place where they've got everything from bacon and omelets to pastries and chocolate-covered strawberries.

I wore my favorite top from Target. I bought it right before our trip to Paris and I wore the heck out of it while we were gone (like kind of a gross amount of times).

I wore it to brunch today with boots and leggings. It's just the perfect top because it's super-long and so soft and comfy, but because it's fitted it looks chic instead of frumpy.

Wool Coat- Zara
Tunic Top- Target---buy it here---(thanks Sally for posting the link!)
Boots- Jessica Simpson (buy them here)
Tights- Lulu Lemon Wunder Under Pintuck

Hope everyone had a wonderful weekend!

xoxo,

Veronika.

PS--- check out Lulu opening his own Christmas present from his grammy and grampy!

Weekend Finds & Lauren Conrad Style Book Review

Happy Sunday everyone!  Today Kevin and I went to Rice Village to try and find a coat for him for our trip.  We didn't have any luck at any of the stores we checked out, so we'll probably have to try the Galleria next week. It's more difficult to find stylish, heavier coats here in Houston since it doesn't get that cold here, even in the winter.

Today it was SO hot out. I mean like you could lay out by the pool hot...and it's nearly November!

Banana Republic was having a 20% off everything in the store sale today so we got a few things there and Kev got a new sweater at Express.  Here's what I got:

Black dress from Zara- I actually bought this yesterday but forgot to include it.  It's a perfect length for work and very soft and comfy.

Bath and Body works Wallflowers.  I absolutely love these. They keep the house smelling awesome. They were on sale 2 packs for $20 plus I got 20% off of my purchase using a coupon.

GAP "always skinny" jeans.  I got black ones.  I got these in a 28 (size 6) I like the way they fit and love that they have the stretch in them because they are much comfier than my always skinny destroyed ones which are just a denim without stretch.  I used a GAP Groupon and a store credit so these technically only cost me $45.

I love this satin top from Banana Republic's Monogram Collection. It was on sale for $31.99 and I got an additional 30% off.  I love tops that have detailing at the neckline like this. It almost acts as an accessory, no necklace needed!

Yesterday at Sephora I tried on a bit of this glittery gold nailpolish and I thought- it's perfect for the holidays!  I like to do my nails Lorraine-style and just paint glitter on one nail (it is a PAIN to get off.)  So I picked this up today.  I also ordered some stuff online because Sephora is having their Friends & Family sale (20% off everything on the site, use code FF2010).

I stopped by at MAC and picked up a Mineralize skin finish natural in Medium-Plus. I have seen a lot of bloggers and YouTubers using these powders and although my MAC Studio Fix is my Holy Grail powder, I thought I'd give this a go. If I don't like it, I can return it (I was not aware MAC had a return policy like this.)

 
 Here is is compared to my Studio Fix in C3 (on the right). The C3 is definitely a bit more yellow. I tend to enjoy yellow-toned foundations because they give a brightness to my skin.

I will report back when I've had a chance to use it.

I snapped some shots of my favorite parts of Lauren Conrad's Style book and wanted to share them here.  While I didn't think the book provided any ground-breaking information, it did give me a few cute ideas. My favorite feature was the Little Black Dress five different ways: (click to enlarge)

 

I really love the black lace slip under the dress in the first photo (from the left) I have been trying to find one online ever since I saw it with no luck!  I think it's great to have that one fabulous black dress in your closet that can really be styled so many different ways.  Every woman needs one of those dresses!

Here are a few of my other favorite shots from the book:

 Ohh a PINK bag!

Her hair and makeup are always so pretty and I love how she sticks to a signature look.  I feel I'm the same way. I know how I like my hair and makeup to look, and I stick with a look that works for me.  It's nice to try different things, but my hair has been every color in the book and I've tried different hair lengths...I've finally found a look I love (my current) and I'm sticking to it!

Lauren shows how a dress goes from day (office) to night (dinner)

Dear gorgeous rosette dress, I am in love with you. That is all.

Bottom line- if you love Lauren Conrad, I think you will like this book. The information isn't ground-breaking or something you haven't heard before, but it has great photos and great tips on things like organizing your closet, shopping better and even packing. 

I hope everyone had a lovely weekend!

xoxo,

Veronika.

PS- did you miss Motivation Mondays this week?  Check it out HERE!

Lulu helping me blog!