Outfit of the Day: Upcycling

I posted this picture on Instagram about a week ago and included my upcycling project!

If you can see the tunic top that I'm wearing, believe it or not, it humbly started out as a Minnie's size 14 shift dress! My mom and I found it in a consignment store in Rehoboth, Delaware (just down the road from where I am now!) for $40! Springing at the chance for a little DIY project, she told me to get it and we would figure out how to make it work! I'm lucky because I'm small chested and this top has NO darts or extra material in the chest, but I was able to get into it!

We took the dress home and to the tailor that we trust with our favorite things. She vented the sides up about 7 or 7.5 inches to make it a much better tunic fit. She also removed the bows from the shift and voila it was a tunic for me! It's a little hard to see, but there's this rocking square neckline that's so much fun. 

An upcycling project just goes to show that you CAN very easily transition a fun piece with very little work! We transformed this dress to a tunic in a matter of days with just a teensy bit of assistance, but you could TOTALLY tackle this project on your own! Keep your eyes out for girls' dresses that you can do this to yourself!

Have you ever done a project like this? Have you transformed (upcycled) a piece of clothing to a new, fresh piece?

Happy upcycling!

xxKatie

(Bathing) SUIT UP!

I'm a HUGE "How I Met Your Mother Fan" so I like to throw in any kind of HIMYM pun whenever I can.

Anywho, I'm headed to the beach today! Best. Feeling. Ever.

What's a must have at the beach? Bathing suits of course!

My absolute go-to for swimwear is TARGET! Y'all might laugh, but I swear they have ones that LAST, clean well, and fit great! Whoever they've got working on their suits they need to keep!

This one really has  Victoria's Secret look to it! The sheen adds a little bit extra to it as well!

Are you a mixer-and-matcher? Target has TONS of options for mixing and matching swimwear too! Integrate swimsuit pieces you already have with new ones for a fresh update!

I LOVE this one! It has a chevron-y look to it without being exactly horizontal. Plus you could push the strings down and wear it bandeau style as well!

Coral is so on trend these days! I love the delicate ruffle at the top. Try a tankini if you don't want to go full blast bikini but still want color!

One word: OBSESSED! Plus right now, pieces are only $10 each online!

If one-pieces are more your speed, this one looks straight out of J. Crew! I love thew blue jewel tone this one dons!

Do y'all have a place that you can rely on for bathing suits? Do you frequently visit Target like me?

xxKatie

Summer Staples

Summer is in FULL swing and I love it! I have a few things during the summer that I cannot live without:

Tervis Tumbler

Y'all knew this was coming! I love my TT's and they go everywhere with me. You'll find a few in my room, one in the bathroom, one in my car, one next to my pool bag, they're everywhere!

Platinum Jack Rogers

Duh, the shoe that goes with EVERYTHING. Dresses, shorts and a t-shirt, my bathingsuit, and I have no problem if they get wet!

Seersucker

It's cool, looks good, and matches most everything. All of those are perfect for summer. I love seersucker and have versions in pink, blue, and white! Khaki is definitely next on my list!

Ocean Potion Baby 50

I can't use a lot of face products with all my acne lotions, so I have to use the gentlest, most protective sunscreen. AKA Baby sunscreen. I take this everywhere in my purse and I always have it when I go to the beach! I forgot to put it on one day when I went to the pool and I'm still regretting it!

Bare Minerals

With the heat and humidity of South Carolina, I can't really use liquid makeup. It gets sticky and wipes off on sunglasses, clothes, and everything else. YUCK. I've stuck with Bare Minerals for over a year now and I don't see a big change happening in the foreseeable future! I love it!

Swimsuits

What's summer without a good swimsuit? For Christmas I was given a Vineyard Vines gift card and spent it a few months ago on this Vineyard Vines bathing suit! It is super cute and I am excited to wear it!

At any given time during the summer, chances are I'm wearing or using most of these! What are you summer staples?

xxKatie

BBTS: Beachin' by the Sea

I'm off to la playa today! AND I'M OFFICIALLY DONE WITH SUMMER CLASSES! I have 4 weeks and 3 days of freedom until school starts for the fall semester! REAL SUMMER here I come! Well equipped with this big floppy guy:

I picked up this fun hat at Target (new neighbor Sara had this for Carolina Cup and looked SO cute!) since my new skin medicine makes me really sensitive. It's probably a little bit of overkill, but I'm channeling my inner SATC a la this guacamole scene:

I also love her fiery red nails! But my new hat and I will be promptly off to the beach and I cannot wait! BBTS is also the nickname of our beach house: Bancroft by the Sea! It's a little tradition for all the beach houses to have fun, personalized names. All the beach house families went to the Naval Academy and for anyone who's unfamiliar with Navy, Bancroft is the massive residence hall where all the mids live!

Here is the famed BBTS! I will be parked right in front come about 8pm tonight! Daddy and I are headed out the MINUTE I finish work and I'll be out there for my first REAL summer vacation since my Roadtrip LAAAAST summer. For the first time in over a year my schooling is BACK ON TRACK!

Here's for an awesome 4 weeks and 3 days left of summer full of the beach, the cape, roadtripping, working, shopping, grilling, baking, brideday-ing, you name it but NO MORE SCHOOL! Clearly this girl is quite excited!

xxKatie

Weekly Gratitude

I barely even remember this week. Flew by SO fast...I guess that's a good thing but maybe not for the summer!

1. I am thankful for my parents and how much they listen to me when I need venting time, advice or just to chat. They've been especially awesome recently.
2. I am thankful for Saturday night "New Country" on my local station. Any Annapolitans listen to 93.1? Shows how cool my summer is...blogging on Saturday nights
3. I am thankful (more like SO unbelievably, ridiculously, kiss-the-ground thankful) that my summer classes end this week! Thursday is my LAST DAY OF SCHOOL UNTIL I'M BACK AT USC! #4weeksofFreedom
4. I am thankful for a tall lady who came into the store on Sunday and mentioned CAbi clothing. Apparently the owner is rumored to be 6' tall! Tall girls gotta stick together! We gabbed about jeans, how we never hem stuff and how we're always dropping hems! She was so great. (Now all I have to do is find someone hosting a party!!)

5. I am thankful for my Jack Rogers. I just realized my Platinum pair toe part is ripping big time. Care of the above night, my Jacks were "flat-tire"-ed one night when we we all out. I had duct tape in my purse...yeah...and was able to repair them. I didn't realize though, was how stretched the toe became. If these little guys men make it through the summer I will be STUNNED. (Sorry to anyone who was sent this message--the original version--in picture message form from Sara's birthday...)
6. I am thankful for the BEST manicure I've ever had in my life that I got on Saturday. If anyone in Annapolis needs an acrylic manicure, go to Fiona at Bella Salon by the Annapolis Mall.
7. I am thankful for getting the power back in Annapolis. That was a mess!
8. I am thankful for all the quotes I find on Pinterest. The one at the top of the post is from Pinterest. It's chock-full of bit of wisdom put to wonderful typography. Very cool.
9. I am thankful for the couch in my room that serves as a wonderful place to store clothes. As my mom reads this she's going to cringe.
10. I am thankful for everything that's on it's way in the next few weeks. I think it'll be a lot more of the summer I had planned! I'm ready for freedom, ready for a break, and ready for Bethany Beach in a few days!!

xxKatie

Beach Bound: The Best Company in the World

When traveling to the beach, you think of all  your packable essentials: Costas, toothbrush, phone, sunscreen, phone charger, iPod, books, towel, hat, bathing suit--if you forgot everything else, you'd still be in good shape! However, another essential isn't packable. You GOTTA surround yourself with fabulous beach buddies in order to properly enjoy the beach. Although today is our last day of our Bethany Beach vacation, my dad and I are headed home. For the first time in awhile, this trip to the beach was just me and the fam, naturally I surrounded myself with the best beach buddies out there!

Like I said, Dad and I had to pop home because I have to go back to school and work and he's a workin' man too. Today ALLLLSO just so happens to be Father's Day! So happy Father's Day Daddyo! (PS: This is among my favorite pictures of us--matching in our favorite crab-wear!)

I wish we were staying later but it's back to the real world for us! In our place, my mom and my sister will get to spend time in the beach house with my grandmother and one of my mom's sister's so they'll still be in absolutely wonderful beach company! We've even nicknamed the perch atop our 3rd floor of the house Nan's perch so it's only necessary that she's returning up there!

I'm a big fan of taking friends to the beach too! Just over 2 months ago, as y'all know, I went to the beach with a big group of friends for a fraternity event:

Here was our house! And what a fun group we were! I've brought out many different friends to our house in Bethany through the years and they've certainly enjoyed the break!

A HUGE part of a good beach trip is the company you surround yourself with. A funny beach sign I've seen says, "You never know how many friends you have until you own a beach house!" 

xxKatie

Beach Bound: Books, Nooks, and Everything in Between!

Books are an absolute must have for me while I'm at the beach! Like I said a few days ago, I tend to get a little bored along the coastline because I'm not a good beach napper. There is decent people watching and I always laugh when the lifeguards signal each other from stand to stand. A million years ago when I was a little kid, we joked around that they were all putting in their lunch orders!

"I'll take a cheesburger, no mustard!"

Anyway since I like to hang out on the beach and manage my tan, I enjoy bringing books with me on my trips! I currently am reading 2 books (which is rare. I always read one and go onto the next one after I finish completely!) but they're very different. One is all about economics and why people make some of the decisions they make while the other is about a woman in South Carolina beginning to re-evaluate her life upon the arrival of her 46th birthday.

Nudge is my economics book that I mentioned. I'm about halfway through, but the information is pretty dense so it's not exactly pleasure reading. I'm learning SO much from it and I really enjoy econ. If you're interested in business/economics/reading as an undergrad, my professor from the spring semester made sure to tell us to check it out!

Lowcountry Summer is the second book I talked about! I knew I was going like this book when they said that the son in the novel went to the University of South Carolina along with his cousin! Obviously it's going to be a good read. I'm only twenty-some pages into this guy, but I'm excited to see what other SC references are in it!

Now I haven't quite jumped on the bandwagon of e-readers, but I'd definitely suggest these two books for download as well as The Art of Racing in the Rain, which I read earlier this summer. That was an easy read and would make a good beach book for sure! 

What summer reading have you done? Anything I have to add to my lists? Do you like to read on the beach or are you a napper? Let me know!

xxKatie

Beach Bound: Goin' Costa!

In the words of the beach doctor himself, Kenny Chesney, I'm goin' coastal! About two weeks ago, one of my absolute favorite brands out there, Costa del Mar contacted me about their new line of sunglasses for ladies! Here are their newest 4 pairs:

As y'all know, I'm a huge fan of Costa del Mar! I have a pair of their larger sunglasses (I wish I known all these ones were coming out!) called "Isabela" in a tortoise frame! I'm LOVING those Hammock ones...I think Costa is channeling their inner Jackie O., right?! All these new glasses feature a bigger eye, a lightweight nylon frame and UV protection embedded in the lens. 

The "Little Harbor" mentioned above even has a design for Kenny Chesney--our man of the hour!

Good, UV blocking, polarized sunglasses are a MUST when heading to the beach! They make it easier to see, easier to read and just more pleasant to sit around and relax with! I'll be taking two pairs of glasses with me on my trip (and they typically travel in every bag with me too!):

My brand new Harpoon 580G on my fabulous new Lilly croakies!

My tried-and-true Isabela 400P glasses that I adore! This is a great pair for girls to check out if you're in the market for fashionable and great quality sunglasses! You can see how many times I've used them in my Polyvore sets--too many for Polyvore to show on one page! They live on a pair of pink Chums with teeny tiny palmetto trees on it!

Case in point, don't leave your house to go to the beach without great new sunglasses! Give my friends over at Costa some love! 

What are your favorite sunglasses? Do you have any Costa's that you recommend?

xxKatie

Beach Bound: Tunage

An iPod is useless if your music isn't organized neatly into playlists. Without them you could be shuffling for days (or weeks for some of my musically inclined friends...) and hoping to hear the songs your JUST downloaded or want to listen to! I currently have 20 playlists (that might sound like a lot) that all have different flavors! I'm about to make my 21st FULL of perfect beach tunes. These songs have to have a lot: fun beats, summery lyrics, a warmth-inducing feel...they have a lot to live up to! Here are my picks for summer songs:

1. For Once in My Life by Scotty McCreary: LOVE HIM! This song has become my recent obsession! My sister played this once when we were driving in her car and now whenever I say "Play Scotty!" she knows exactly what song I'm talking about!
2. Love Done Gone by Billy Currington: So summery! This was in my last big download set from iTunes!
3. Here for a Good Time by George Strait: I heard this in "New Country" on the radio and my first thought was "THIS would make SUCH a fun shagging song!" I am loving the 89th single released by Mr. Strait. He sure does know what he's doing!
4. Kiss Me in the Dark by the Randy Rogers Band: I've been jammin' out to this song recently so it's made its way onto the list!
5. Come Back Song by Darius Rucker: I still stand by the notion that this CD is one of the best I've ever bought. I could come up with a playlist of all Darius songs...I may or may not have one called "Darius and Taylor" (Swift) for long car rides! It's a good one...Anyway, I had to add a classic to the list!
6. Only Wanna Be with You by Hootie and the Blowfish: On that note, I'm going to throw some Hootie into the mix. "I'm such a baby cause dolphins make me cry..." #summer
7. Good Ride Cowboy by Garth Brooks: Now y'all had to know I was gonna include Garth in here someway. Wouldn't this make a good Tush Push song? Yeah, Colleen that really has to happen...I miss shagging!
8. Stand by Me by Ben King: You can have a beach playlist without a beach song or two!
9. Erase Me by Kid Cudi: My list can't all be country. That's just not fair! I absolutely LOVE this Kid Cudi song. Blastin' it level 40 in Little has happened before.
10. Love in a College Town by Luke Bryan: Because I've been missin' MY COLLEGE TOWN like crazy recently. And y'all know I can't get enough of this song!
11. Coastal by Kenny Chesney: What says the beach better than this? I'm goin' COASTAL! His "Hemingway's Whiskey" CD is great! I've enjoyed every single that I've downloaded from it!
12. Where the Boat Leaves From by the Zac Brown Band: They're such a beachy band! Breezy, fun, light-hearted and aren't they just the words you want to describe your vacation? Yes, please!
13. Shark in the Water by V.V. Brown: I've featured this a lot on here, but this is so fun for the beach and by the water...however I hope it doesn't hold true for us...I'm more about Darius Rucker's dolphin idea.
14. Glory Days by Bruce Springsteen: beach + summer + off from work and school = GLORY DAYS!
15. Seven by Dave Matthews Band: "Red is the color of the sun with my eyes closed..."(Megan here's your shoutout! She's been the DMB influence in my life--got hooked on this song when we used to go to ESJ and SYB my freshman year! It was on the SYB cd!!)

What are you summer songs? Any on my list?

xxKatie

NYE at the Beach!

Happy New Years Eve everyone! I'll be relaxing lazily at the beach for tonight's festivities!

I haven't been out to the house in months (maybe even a year?!) so I cannot wait to go!!

xxKatie

J. Crew Jewelry

Today I wore the J. Crew Symphony Crystal necklace and received so many compliments on it!

I wore a simple black tank (from Wal Mart actually) and a white J. Crew basic skirt with white Jacks. I haven't had a reaction like all the comments I got today in a very long time! People LOVED this necklace. It ties in the back and it hung very well with the neckline of my tank. I was thinking about wearing gold Jacks with it, but this morning I got up and couldn't seem to find them (curse you 8am classes everyday!) anywhere in my closet or around my room. 

My mom actually gave me this necklace for my birthday after we went shopping one day in a MASSIVE outlet mall about half and hour away from my house. I really liked the necklace when I first saw it in the store, but it was something ridiculous like $65 initially. Around my birthday, it went on sale for $30 with an extra 30% off at the outlet. I think the J. Crew outlet is great and I tend to buy more from the outlet than the regular store. Given, all the clothes you do really need to try on, but the accessories are great. Just this summer, I got a great pair of starfish pave earrings that are so much fun:

In my house, we're pretty big on starfish. I think all us girls have at least two pairs of starfish earrings (accrued over the years...my sister found the first pair in Rehoboth Beach, then my mom got a pair at a store here, and I followed suit with my Fornash earrings, then we all got these and recently my mom got a Fornash starfish pearl bracelet...yep I told you, we enjoy starfish). I think these earrings were $20 with an extra 30% off and we even grabbed up more to give as gifts.

Anyone else have any J. Crew jewelry? I clearly love mine!

xxKatie

Beach Inspired Makeup Line by MAC

I was looking at the Kate Spade contest on Polyvore, and included in one of the entries was this ADORABLE powder blush:

Intrigued, I followed a slew of links that finally took me to the online MAC counter at Nordy's online. I pretty much love beach-themed anything. I'm a sucker for starfish, I swoon for seahorses, and I could really go on with about six more of the corny aquatic alliterations. The beachy-fabulousness continues:

Starfish Lipglass! I find that some MAC Lipglass-es can be too tacky (especially if you were actually going to wear this on the beach) but I do love the pale pink shimmer. This is just too cute!

I don't ever wear bronzer because I can't seem to find a good color. I like a little bit of sparkle (I had a friend Taylor, during my freshman year of high school and I was always jealous of her bronzer. She looked SO pretty. She ended up switching to a big rival school of ours and I never got a chance to ask her!). I would definitely trust a beach themed bronzer to give me that beachy look...either that or I'm just a huge gimmick girl. There's also a creme version:

So far that shell is one of my faves!

 

I don't do lip pencil, nor do I ever intend on doing so, but the coral detailing on this pencil is to die for! I would love some cloth material on that. How cute!!!

I also don't wear lipstick but I had to post this because the color is called "Funbathing". Yes, please. (Funny story: two of my friends this summer didn't have jobs. One just graduated and another got laid off after her camp realized they had too many workers and they were calling their lifestyle "funemployed". That's a keeper.)

I haven't the slightest what "lustre drops" are, but it sounds quite fabulous. I'd like to feel a little lustre-y now, so maybe I'll pile on the LD's. I don't even know where you'd put them let alone what they do, so if you do know anything about them, please fill me in.

I'm LOVING this beach inspired line from MAC. Between their Lillylovers line and this beach theme, they're on my list. Kudos MAC!

xxKatie

Smoochin' Seahorses!

After perusing my DailyCandy email a few days ago, they had a special on this brand: Seaton. I couldn't help myself with such a cute icon like they have!! This was the adorable cashmere cardigan that really got me:

Pink + Seahorses + Smooches = Adorable. I almost can't deal with all the cuteness in one!!

Flashback: I wore these shoes to my High School graduation and they were a hit! Imagine the combo of the Seaton Smoochin' Seahorses (I think they should adopt that as a new name for the concept!) and these fab Kate Spade shoes!? However, the adorable designs don't stop there:

How pretty is this blue with the seahorses?

LOVE the khaki and hot pink combo! I mean how classic: a boyfriend cardigan with a great accoutrement on the back!!

 

Any starfish lovers out there? Pair this with a crisp white T-shirt and white shorts! It's the perfect outfit for a night at the beach!

xxKatie

Vacation Lovin'

So as I write this post, most of my family is sitting comfortably, relaxing at the beach while I'm at home working all weekend! I'm pretty jealous, but then again I can't complain since I love my job and I'll be off for a week of personal vacation/roadtrip (hmm, this is probably the 8,000th time I've talked about that trip) on Tuesday! As I was thinking about Vacation, I was also doing some online browsing and look what I came up on:

The Essie Resort Collection! How great are these colors?!

As most of you all know, I went to Turks and Caicos for Spring Break with my fam, so I was automatically a fan of Turquoise and Caicos! I've only met a few people who have even heard of T&C, so I was thrilled to see the naming people over at Essie were creative enough to use that! I also LOVE the Splash of Grenadine color since I've always been a Shirley Temple fan. Also how great is that bird brooch? So fabulous, with all the collection colors!

I also have Essie's "Sandy Beach" color which I love! It's a great neutral for fingernails during the summer when you need a color to go with everything. On my toes I'm currently wearing "I Need a Vacation" (which is very ironic...apparently when I bought that one and did my nails a week ago, my subconscious was trying to tell me something):

It looks great on and I really like the color for  my toes. I also bought the Essie To Dry For, which is their quick-drying top coat. I like it, but I still really had to be careful about what I did with my nails after I did it. It isn't a hardening top-coat, so although the top layer was dry, it was still very malleable and my fingerprints and sheets made a mark. What I probably needed to buy was the Instant Dry Oil instead. But hey, I can't complain since my Ulta had a promotion that was buy 2 Essie nail polishes, get 1 free! 

I'm totally becoming an Essie lover and I don't see myself going back to other stuff any time soon. A few of my friends are OPI users, but I really think Essie's got the top notch stuff!

What are you favorite brands/colors? (I LOVE the names, so please let me know!!)

xxKatie

Summer Tote Choices

So there are tons of occasions during the summer for travel: Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends, beach trips, the Fourth of July, going out at night, and just bags to have! Here are my "go-to" bags for summer time:

Longchamp:

The "Tote bag" Longchamp Le Pliage bag is great for everyday stuff. I use my Rosalie one all the time and it goes with most everything I own. I also have this same bag in khaki and that one has gotten its fair wear and tear (nice rhyme!) so I prefer the pink one. They are surprisingly roomy and this one has even fit my MacBook Pro laptop in the past!

Vineyard Vines:

The VV bag is great for extended days, you know the days when you know you can't go home after running errands so you tuck everything you could need during the day in your purse. I used mine as a schoolbag that also fit my laptop easily as well as my HUGE 1000 page anatomy textbook. I also love all the pockets that this one has to store pens/pencils/hair accessories/snacks or whatever you want.

Victoria's Secret:

This is THE BEST beach bag that I have! It is a heavy canvas material that is covered in plastic on the outside so that it is virtually waterproof. It has a more canvas-y inside that you can easily shake the sand out of. I used this all during our trip to Turks and Caicos and the best part was: it was super packable! I could fold it up and stick it inside another bag so that I wasn't using massive amounts of space! Also great, I didn't pay for it since it came free if you used the right coupon code!

Eddie Bauer/LL Bean:

I just picked up this HUGE tote a few weeks ago with a gift card that I had from Christmas! I can't wait to slap a big garnet monogram on the side of it and use it for whatever I need! I took it to a friend's house early last week and was able to just toss in all the different things that I was bringing. These big, durable totes are great for taking to the beach or putting towels in to take to the pool.

Vera Bradley:

I really tend to shy away from Vera Bradley these days since I feel like I've grown out of the brand. I do admit though, that my Large Duffel gets a lot of use. It is currently packed full of my winter boots from school. It is a great size to take for 3 or 4 days on a little trip when you don't need too much stuff. I often take mine to the beach when we head there and end up needing lots more space by the time we head home!!

Target:

I totally rock this Hobo knockoff from Target and it's a great wallet. It's big enough to hold all my customer loyalty cards, important cards, and change and money as well. It also has a great slot that has easy access for a license or college campus card.

Do you have any go-to bags? What do you use as a purse everyday?

xxKatie