My birthday

Who: J

When: 12/5/11

Where: Traveling to San Antonio

What: *Mustache beanie- made by my sister (if you want to buy one or have her custom make pretty much any design, go to  her Crow-chet Away page on facebook) *Green plaid scarf- made by my mom *Black hooded sweater- Walmart, $16 *Black El Paso tee- gift from in-laws *Tights- Walmart, $4 *Charm bracelet- gift from in-laws *Sweater boots- Walmart in Merrillville, IN *Cross-body bag- Union Bay, Beall's Outlet in Willcox, AZ

Snow!!! Yay!!! For my birthday, we went to San Antonio for a little get-away. It was so much fun! On the 8 hour drive, we even ran into some snow. Texas hill country is beautiful! I'll post more pics from our trip over the next couple of days. Please excuse the fuzziness of the full- length picture- I was in a hurry to get on the road and didn't really take the time to take proper outfit pictures that day.

Don't you love my mustache beanie? My sister has a business, Crow-chet Away, making and selling beanies. She has "stock" items she makes, but she can also custom design about anything. There's a link to her fb page above- you should check it out! Anyway, I asked her to make a mustache beanie for me & this is what she came up with- isn't it awesome? I love it! 

Sequins and Sparkles

Who: J

When: 12/12/11

Where: Ladies' Christmas party at church

What: *Sparkly beret- Walmart *Pin on beret- Beall's Outlet in Willcox, AZ (they are a great place to get cheap, beautiful jewelry!) *Turquoise sweater- Walmart *Purple top- I can't remember! *Dark wash denim skirt- Jessica London *Sparkly scarf- Claire's in Mishawaka, IN, on sale for $2! *Tights- Walmart *Black boots- Sears

Some of you may be wondering why you haven't seen M on here for a while... I promise that everything is ok! She's just been super busy (she lives with 18 girls at an orphanage in Mexico, after all!) and hasn't had time to breathe, let alone post anything. So, for a little bit anyway, you're stuck with me! But, M will be on vacation soon and will have more time to post things again. 

Last night, I went to the ladies' Christmas party at our church. which I thought called for some extra sparkle (plus, I knew that the Everybody Everywear sequins and sparkles challenge was today). I don't usually do a whole lot of sequins or "bling" (there's nothing wrong with that, it's just not my thing), but I feel like the sequins on my scarf or the sparklies on my beret turned out to be just the right amount. And even thought it's not a traditional Christmas color combination, the turquoise and purple felt very festive. It was a fun night!

Christmas Cantata (Holiday Hair Challenge #2)

Who: J
When: 12/11/11
Where: Church, singing in the Christmas cantata
What: *Red ruffly sweater- Target (2009), approx. $30 (?) *Red satiny top- Cato (2010), $15 *Black belt- Walmart, $8 *Black skirt- Old Navy, shortened by me *Shoes- Walmart, I can't remember when or for how much *Black velvet clutch- Mary Kay hostess gift *Musical note scarf on clutch- gift from friend *Necklace- Kohl's somewhere in Florida- $9 *Black headband- I can't remember...

This last Sunday, our church choir sang a Christmas cantata entitled "O Holy Night." It was a beautiful cantata- very moving and a great reminder of what we're truly celebrating! The ladies in the choir were supposed to wear red (or white) tops and black skirts. I had an outfit all planned in my head and thought I was totally covered until I actually tried the whole outfit on Friday night. Panic ensued! I didn't like how the shirt looked, the skirt didn't fit like I remembered, etc. etc. You get the picture.... So, I decided to shorten the skirt by cutting the drawstring waist off the top and sewing in an elastic waist. The top got tucked in and a matching sweater (it kind of matches, anyway) thrown over it.  A belt was added. In the end, I like how the outfit turned out! Wearing this sweater and top together was kind of stepping outside of the box for me  because the sweater and blouse weren't exactly the same, but they weren't totally different, either (I know, that's silly, but I'm still working on my outfit OCD). But I like how they look together! I might even wear them  together again...
I'm counting this as #2 in my holiday hair challenge. I have all these headbands that I never wear, but I gave myself a challenge to try new things, so I wore this ribbon flower headband. What do you think? And yes, I am aware that I have one strand of hair that is being rebellious and escaping from the rest of my hairdo.

Twist and Shout (Holiday Hair Challenge 1)

Who: J
When: 12/9/11
Where: Grocery shopping, running errands, sewing Christmas presents
What: *Green tee- Walmart *Denim skirt- thrifted and shortened *Striped tights- Walmart, $4 *Sweater boots (one of my favorite things!)- Old Navy outlet in San Marcos, TX, $15 *White ruffly scarf- gift from sister *Charm bracelet- birthday gift from my in-laws

I decided to jump right into the holiday hair challenge I gave myself. I like how the twists turned out. In my original post, I said that I thought that this hairstyle would be an easy one to do at home, but I ended up obsessing over if I had the right amount pulled back, if the right amount of twist was hidden under the rest of my hair, etc. I kind of forgot it doesn't have to be a literal copy... Eh, that's my perfectionist side coming out. Here's the original picture- see how my interpretation compares:

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In other news... I received this bracelet as a birthday gift from my in-laws. I have never seen anything like this! Apparently, there are tons of charms you can choose from and have placed in a clear sided locket. I just love it! The charms they picked out for me are a "C", an American flag, the US Army seal, and a piano (I play the piano). Very cool! I've worn in almost every day since I got it. 

The rest of this outfit is pretty simple. I'm trying to wear festive outfits to go along with the season, so I chose green and white... and denim... I also chose the green because, for some reason, I feel self-conscious with all my hair pulled back from my face so I wanted my eye color to pop. AND... I wanted to wear my new boots!!! So comfy & warm. I seriously love them... like I might sleep in them.... probably not, though, because as you see, we have snow in our backyard so my boots are all muddy now. But they're still seriously comfortable!

Holiday Hair

Does anyone else feel like they get stuck in a hair rut? I feel like I pretty much have "my look" figured out when it comes to my hair, and it's a look I really like, but sometimes I do feel like I get stuck in a rut. The holidays seem like the best time to try a little something different because there's lots of parties and events that might call for a little extra razzle dazzle. To be perfectly honest, I don't have any such events on my calender, but there are a couple of things coming up that I could fancy up the usual for. Plus, who says you can't wear an updo to the grocery store?
I am addicted to Pinterest (check out my boards) and have compiled a collection of some of my favorite "fancy do's" for inspiration. I plan to try each of these, or my version of these, this Christmas season. And because I know I'm a procrastinator, I'll give myself a deadline of before January 2nd. I'll post pics to let you guys know how it goes!

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I love this half up/ half down look. My problem is that whenever I try this hairstyle, the weight of my hair pulls the height down. Maybe with enough hairspray....

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I have several headbands with bows or flowers, but I seldom wear them. I always have the best intentions, but then I feel silly when I look in the mirror. M always pulls them off so well! I will find a way to style a headband into one of my holiday outfits, though, I swear!

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I did already try this hairstyle with this outfit, but I want to try it again when I can really get my hair this big and not worry about people being able to see around me.

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I love just this simple twist back. I'm not sure what it looks like from the front, but I'm pretty sure this will be a fairly simple hairstyle to recreate. 

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The main thing that I like about this picture is the big flower tucked into her hair. I've tried this in the past and didn't like how it looked, but I'll make it work this Christmas season!

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The little braid on the side really adds something to this low bun... Again, something I think I can handle.

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Of course, no list of fabulous hair ideas would be complete without Jennifer Aniston... I may have a (tiny... ok... HUGE!) hair crush on her! I have naturally wavy hair, and work to get my waves to look like hers. So, I'll be sporting this look this Christmas season, too.

I hope you found some ideas to inspire you if you're in a hair rut like me. I know that all of these looks are for longer hair, so if you have shorter hair and want some ideas, get on Pinterest and check out what other people have found (just don't say I didn't warn you... it's very addictive!)

I'm trying to think of a clever way to sign off using the word "hair" in some sort of holiday greeting, but all I can think of is "Hairy Christmas" and that sounds more gross than festive... oh well ;)

                                                                                                          -J

New Favorite

Who: J
When: 12/3/11
Where: Grocery shopping, Krispy Kreme run with N, decorating the house for Christmas
What: *Camo scarf- Kmart, $2 *Grey sweater- Mossimo, thrifted, $4.75 *Black top (underneath sweater)- some store at the mall (?), $5 *Denim skirt- thrifted & shortened, $5 *Socks- I think Target, maybe $4 *Sweater boots- Walmart in Merillville, IN *Cross- body bag- Union Bay, Beall's Outlet, $3 *White beaded ring- Beall's Outlet, Black Friday sale for $1

This sweater is my new favorite! It's so comfy and warm and I feel like it fits me really well. I've seriously worn it like 5 or 6 times since I bought it 2 weeks ago... is that bad? In these pictures, I'm still recovering from my "surgery" so I was looking for something comfy and warm. Even though most of the colors in this outfit (or I guess all the colors, really) are kind of dark and neutral, I still like that the camo scarf  and the white beaded ring add a little something. And I'm still loving this bag!

A few of my favorite things by J

A few of my favorite things

From the upper left corner: 
Cozy Cable-Knit Throws from Pottery Barn- definitely on my "want" list. 
MacIntosh from Yankee Candle- these make my whole house smell like fresh apples. 
Pumpkin Patch Candles- just smells like home to me. 
Joe Nichols Traditional Christmas- one of my favorite Christmas CDs- just Christmas songs simply sung. 
Peppermint Mocha and Caramel Brulee Latte- do I really need to say more? 
How the Grinch Stole Christmas- nothing beats this old-school favorite!
Lisa Leonard's sweetheart tree necklace- so beautiful! She has a ton of different beautiful jewelry. I won a gift certificate from her a while back and this is the necklace I ordered.
Poppy Tartan Glam Coach handbag- Plaid at its best.
Fair Isle sweater boots from Old Navy- to keep my toes toasty!
Burberry scarf- at $375, I'm not holding my breath, but a girl can dream, right? Or at least look for cheap knock-off versions.
Old Navy sequined Fair Isle knit scarf- much cheaper and just as cozy.
Southwest wrap cardigan- I used to have a sweater similar to this that belonged to my Great- Grandpa and I got rid of it... I could kick myself! It was vintage London Fog!
Celtic Woman Christmas Celebration- the haunting Celtic melodies just say Christmas to me.
White Christmas- this should be mandatory every year!
Josh Groban Noel- I listen to this CD over and over.

Don't you just love this time of year? I thought I'd share some of my favorite things with you. These are things that remind me of Christmas, or things that I found while Christmas shopping... things that I own... or things I'd love to have! I created this set using Polyvore, and you can find the whole set on my Polyvore page. Have you tried Polyvore yet? It's awesome! Like paper dolls for grown-ups! Very cool!                                                            -J