Outfit of the Day: Preppy Profesh Cropped Pants

I've written about my amazing steal of a deal blue blazer before and it's one of the BEST deals I ever got! I love my Ralph Lauren blazer and don't get to wear it as often as I should! While it's not exactly the same thing, there's a close Ralph Lauren knit match here!

I wore LOFT cropped pants for the first time too! My mom and I stocked up on business essentials and these cropped pants were part of the haul. They have the most comfortable wide band around the top with a secure button and hooks. They have a great amount of stretch and I know they'll keep their shape. The cream crepe top is LOFT as well!

For NYE, I snagged this pair of Jessica Simpson heels that I was wearing too! They are seriously the most comfortable nude heels I own and fellow Tweeters agreed. I look for every opportunity to wear these heels that I can! They're ~4 inches but you'd never know when they're on. They also have a great grippy rubber bottom that feels secure. HUGE plus, no toe cleavage. 

Awaiting me when I arrived back in South Carolina was my Bauble Bar necklace that I ordered as a birthday gift to myself. I LOVE the large monogram they offer! It's substantial feeling but they clasp is EXTREMELY difficult to do on your own--attempt at your own risk! I am also admittedly not good at putting necklaces on so I found it tough. The gold is shiny and not a gaudy shade. I've worn it a bunch and I've seen no turning color or showing of the inner material.

I wore this OOTD to a pre-party for TEDxColumbiaSC. Our city was lucky enough to have a group of individuals who were willing to organize a TEDx event for the city and I had the unique opportunity to attend the lecture. The pre-party was held in the lobby of an IT office who so graciously offered up their space and we gladly networked and chatted with the speakers. I'll do a full recap later this week of the big show, but all in all I was SO glad to have attended the lecture!

xxKatie

SwiMen

After giving it some thought, I haven't done a guy-foucused post in awhile! I just did the swimming post for us girls a few days ago, so I thought I'd show y'all some of my favorite swim trunks for the boys:

Lilly Pulitzer

Tommy Bahama

Brooks Brothers

Ralph Lauren

Mahi Gold

Vineyard Vines

Ralph Lauren: these seersucker trunks are one of my FAVES!

Chubbies: Have y'all heard of these yet?

Brooks Brothers

Ralph Lauren

Columbia PFG

Where does your guy like his swim trunks from? Does he do the short ones (like the Chubbies) or longer ones?

xxKatie

Wedges on Wedges on Wedges

Spring is right around the corner!

That means time for CUTE shoes, pedicures and fabulous outfits! I am happily looking forward to fun, flirty new shoes for spring. Here are a few of my favorites:

Lilly Pulitzer (I am IN LOVE WITH THESE!)

Via Spiga

Kate Spade

Toms (I'm like almost never a Toms fan, but these are pretty cute!)

Tommy Hilfiger

Ralph Lauren--these also come in gold! How amazing?

Where do you go to for wedges? Do you wear wedges or regular heels?

xxKatie

Outfit of the Day: Collegiate Stripes

October 4 by letsbepreppy featuring hair bow accessories

I have an old school Ralph Lauren rugby that I got a few years ago that I love! It's perfect for transitional days when it's chilly in the morning and warms up by the end of the day. And the weather here has been EXACTLY that, 40-46 in the morning and upper 70's in the evenings. I'm not quite sure how to deal with the weather and I'm looking forward to everything cooling off.

I also donned my Seven for All Mankind "Skinny Bootcut Jeans". Who's ever heard of that? They're kinda of like fusion jeggings, with a bootcut and very long inseam. I snagged them from Nordy's Rack for $39. I RARELY wear tight jeans and these were tight as far as my clothing choice goes and my friend Aly even noticed how out of the blue it was.

Also ideal for transitional weather, I picked my fabulous cowboy boots too. They're still great for fall and look good with any kind of jeans. I haven't tried wearing them under jeans yet, and have to find the perfect pair to rock that look with. I'm so excited to see what weather the fall brings us and I hope that the rain is in the rearview mirror!!

xxKatie

Shop It To Me!

One of my new favorite websites is called "Shop it to Me". You sign up and click all your favorite brands, stores, sizes, styles and everything. You then sign up for how many emails you want. How great is that? YOU control how often you hear from them! I chose a BUNCH of different brands and here are some of the SITM suggestions I've gotten recently:

Anthropologie

Kate Spade

Banana Republic

Ralph Lauren

Laundry by Shelli Segal

Kate Spade

Trina Turk

Definitely sign up for Shop It To Me if you like sales! It'll guide you to the stuff you actually like without harassing you with 8,000 emails per week! Win-win if you ask me!

xxKatie

New Fantasy Bedding

RL Lauren Bedding

This is my new fantasy bedding maybe for next year! I LOVE the oxford material and stripe that is featured on about half of the shams and blankets. It looks like light pink from far away, but close up looks like the stripe on everyone's favorite button down. I have all kinds of pink accessories that would match just fine and I plan on re-arranging my room anyway. I like my bedding now, but I just want a bit of a change of pace for my new room. This adorable bedding also comes in blue and white too!

I also love the little touch of flowers on the nightstand. Now my nightstand is a bookshelf that holds water, tissues, a few canvas boxes from Target full of odds and ends and frames with pictures of my family so they're not far from me! It sometimes gets a little messy with all the knickknacks that accumulate during the week but is the perfect height for me. I also have a real nightstand on the other side of my bed, but I sleep solely on the right side so I never put anything over there. The right side is my side even with friends who stay over in my room. I fall asleep faster and sleep better when I sleep on the right...no idea why. BACK to the flowers though, it's definitely something I'd like to add to my room for next year. My mom JUST sent me some silk daisies to "freshen" up our family room (they're white in a green holder--our whole family room is navy and lime/pea soup green). 

I also used to have Ralph Lauren bedding that I liked a lot. It was a white base with yellow, blue, green and pink stripes of all different sizes and number of stripes. I got it from the RL Outlet probably 7 or 8 years ago and now it serves as a duvet insert in our guest room! It was great bedding and the quality was long lasting, so I know it would be a good investment.

Anyone else know good bedding places? I'll be taking suggestions!!

xxKatie

Espadrille Picks

Espadrilles are totally making a comeback for sure! This trend of my childhood seems to be reappearing for the spring and summer! Totally fun for the beach and transition summery nights!

Mia $69

Tahari $105

Sam Edelman $130

Report $35

Clarks $95

My personal favorite:

Lauren by Ralph Lauren $69

Anyone gonna rock this trend this summer? I'm a fan!

xxKatie

Annapolis Heather

I was browsing the Ralph Lauren website over the weekend and I'm not sure if I've ever had such a big smile come across my face while online browsing. I was looking at a men's half zip (an essential in a boy's closet as I've been advised by the always sagacious Skyler) and one of the color options was "Annapolis Heather":

First of all, hello mister model. Second of all, how great is that color? Quintessential Annapolis summer sky right there in color.

Look at that WONDERFUL color choice! I was SO excited to see it!

All my Annapolitans out there have got to be just excited as me!! What a perfect color for a half zip too!

xxKatie

Top 10 in My Closet

I've been trying to write this post for awhile. I've been trying to narrow down the top 10 "things" (i.e. anything) in my closet. This includes but is not limited to clothes, shoes, accessories, bathing suits, and other miscellaneous items that are part of my wardrobe. My list isn't in any particular order, more about what I decide makes the list! Here we go:

1.  Lilly Pulitzer Worth Shift in the Not So Crabby print:

This is easily my favorite Lilly dress in my closet. I know that's a tough choice, but the print is SO me and I love a good shift. There's no doubt that this is my favorite choice for a summer dress!

2. Jack Rogers Navajo Sandals in Platinum:

The Platinum Jacks are by far the most worn, most popular, go-to shoe in my closet. I absolutely adore these shoes and they were the first pair of Jacks I ever got (and they show it...). They match EVERYTHING you can think of and you can dress them up or down. I have the best selling spiel when people are trying to decide what color JR's to get.

3. Ralph Lauren Slim Fit Oxford in White:

A white Ralph Lauren button-down is a must have in anyone's closet. There isn't a season you can't wear this in and it matches colored shorts, jeans, khakis, skirts, everything. It's about as versatile as a white T-Shirt.

4. J. Crew Jaquard Dress in Pink Dazzling Dots:

I had to sorta make up the name for this one, but this dress is my favorite J. Crew purchase of all time. I've worn it for a few very special events and it's a dress I really try to take care of. It looks great with silver accessories and was tailored to fit me!

5. CWD Kids Mommy and Me Madras Dress

I've had this dress for years and I love it! My mom got it for me from CWD and we had it tailored to fit me perfectly. I love wearing this during the summer because the madras material is so light and airy!

6. Bandolino Castalina Riding Boots in Cognac Leather

I get more compliments on this pair of shoes than any other pair that I own. They are a great winter color and the riding boot style is classic. The gold buckle is just enough to look nice. The heel is extremely functional and there's a little bit of elastic if you want to put them over jeans. I LOVE this pair of boots!

7. Patagonia Re-Tool Snap-T Pull on Fleece

This fleece is the ideal weight and can be layered or worn on top. I like they grey color because it matches a lot too!

8. Lilly Pulitzer Florida Shift in Classic White Beach Buns

I love this shift from Lilly! It was a teeny bit damaged at the dry cleaners, but the bows and pink and green combo is SO ME!

9. Gilligan and O'Malley (a la Target) Strapless Pluge Bra

Hands down, this strapless bra is BY FAR the best bra/undergarment that I own. It is less than $15 and easily better than any Victoria's Secret or more expensive bra that I've bought. It is the PERFECT fit for me and has a great rubber lining on all of the back straps so that the back and clasp doesn't slid down. I trust this strapless bra for all my important strapless dress occasions!

10. Lilly Pulitzer Jacqueline Ponte Knit Dress

I stole this off the Re-Lilly facebook group because I can't find it online anywhere! I have worn this dress many many times and it shows no wear. It seriously looks like the day I bought it. I even wore this to an interview last spring for my current position at the Visitor Center!

This post has taken me so long to write and decide upon. I really do LOVE all 10 of these items, but it was very tough to figure out my top 10! What are yours? Anything you couldn't live without??

xxKatie

Outfit of the Day: A Year in the Making

I know I've been blowing the blog up with OOTD posts, but I thought this was a funny coincidence. I looked back at my first polyvore set when I didn't really know what was going on...it just happened to be right around this time last year! Funnier than that, the weather was CLEARLY very different.

October 16, 2009:

October 16 by letsbepreppy featuring sterling silver bracelets

Notice I was wearing a quilted coat...I wouldn't dream of breaking this out yet. It was humid in fall yet again...sweaty Tervis Tumbler humid. GROSS. Instead of jeans and my Lilly quilted coat, I wore this on the 27th:

October 27 by letsbepreppy featuring sterling silver earrings

Obviously the weather was very different. It was hot, I was really much too hot in a long sleeve white tee shirt. I couldn't believe the difference. They're still calling for 70's through the weekend, so the whole fall thing in October...yeah kinda out the window...I'm still keeping my fingers crossed though.

Lucky for me though I guess is how I should be viewing it. I don't really own winter clothes, but instead wear summery things with sweaters. I'm BIG on polos/button downs and cable knits. I have 10 different colored RL button downs...excessive. Do they all get worn...easily. I stick with what I like and I treat it well so I don't have to worry too too much. I may invest in a new pair of jeans this season if Victoria's Secret puts them on a good sale and I get a good email coupon...we'll see about that though. I type this as I lay out my outfit for tomorrow...a shirtdress and Target Miss Trish of Capri flat seahorse sandals...craziness!! 

xxKatie

Outfit of the Day: Chilly Transition AND Advice Needed! HELP PLEASE!

Today was oddly cold in the morning so I had jeans on actually and had to wear closed-toe shoes for my Monday anatomy lab. After my lab final, I went back to my room to change and then I headed over to work. I finished the day with an exit-type interview since the year is wrapping up as well as renewing my contract for next year (Woo hoo! They're taking me back!!) so I was excited about that. I got to tell the full time staff members what I was thinking about the organization and I got to hear what they had to say about me. This was what I wore for today's endeavors:

April 19 by letsbepreppy

I was very comfortable for the outing and the day. Plus I wanted to look decent for my "interview". By no means did we have to dress up, but I certainly didn't want to be in a t-shirt or anything like that. I started out wearing a FAB madras belt, but changed because it kept untucking my shirt--oh no!

I do however have a banquet coming up on Wednesday and I need some help deciding what to wear. I have a few options for the night. It is definitely dressy and nicer than a typical jersey/cotton/knit dress. I think a cotton Lilly would be nice, but I have a feeling it is a little bit dressier even still. Here are a few options for what I'm thinking:

This pink dress from my Baccalaureate ceremony. I have great silver wedges to go with it too! It's from J. Crew and all the little jacquard dots are adorable and shiny. I wore this dress during rush and got so many compliments on it! It is on the dressier side, but I LOVE this dress!

I couldn't find a better photo of this dress, but this is my other option. I'd have to wear a cardigan or something with it until we sat down for dinner. This is a Lilly that I like too and it is pretty dressy. I'd wear this with gold Jacks and some gold jewelry to dress it up a little more.

I also have a few black dresses also, which have been stored in my closet since football season (garnet and black gameday anyone?!) and I have those as options, but I'd rather be summery for the banquet. Please tell me what you think about the dresses and which one I should wear!! Thank you!!

xxKatie

Lilly Pulitzer finds at TJMaxx and Marshalls!

Check out these shoes that I found at Marshall's last night! I was shopping with my friend Georgia and saw all these Lilly flats! They were ranging in price from $40-$60. The middle shoes had little beta fish on them and were adorable! (Sorry the photo quality kinda stinks...these pictures are from my cell phone!). All the shoes had smaller sizes, so I was out of luck but there were also a lot of selections from Kate Spade (two pairs of nude colored heels that were to die for! Too bad they were only in sizes 6-7.5!!)

I also spotted these gems at TJMaxx for 39.99! I loved the tunic one because of all the gold embroidery that was on the neck line as well as throughout the tunic itself! I was going through the racks and set these aside to snap the photo to realize that I was covering some Ralph Lauren PJ's too! 

Head on over to your Marshalls and TJMaxx asap to snatch up some of these fabulous deals while you can!! 

xxKatie