Thank god it's Friday night and I just juuust juuuuust, go paid!!!! Except I didn't, ha ha.  Anywayyy, what a week!  We had Monday off for President's Day and I spent the day with my Aunt, Uncle and cousin.  Then Tuesday - Thursday it was time for work.  As you can see, Operation Wear All My Blazers to Work is going quite well!  Five down, twelve to go!  So that means it will take me about a month longer, assuming I wear a blazer every day.

And, you Harry Potter fans out there should tune into Mugglenet's Harry Potter Oscars this Sunday from 1-4. You might see yours truly presenting an award. *wink wink*

Tuesday: Tee: Marc by Marc Jacobs (gift), Blazer: Darjoni (GoodWill), Jeans: Free People (Marshalls), Heels: Lanvin (Roundabout Resale), Watch: Michael Kors (Lord & Taylor)

Wednesday: Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls), Blazer: vintage (Good Will), Genetic Denim c/o Piperlime, Heels: Crown Vintage (DSW) Watch: Michael Kors (Lord & Taylor)

Thursday: Blazer: Elie Tahari (Coco's), Top: Marshalls, Jeans: Current/Elliott (Rue La La), Wedges: R2 (DSW), Necklace: Vanessa Mooney (giveaway), Watch: Michael Kors (Lord & Taylor)

In other exciting news, The Outnet is launching Oscar de la Renta for THE OUTNET – an exclusive, limited edition collection of 23 distinctive, ready-to-wear styles referencing classic silhouettes & iconic fabrics from Oscar de la Renta. The collection includes full skirts, wide leg pants, skirt suits and fifties-inspired dresses. Silk faille, boucle and irate feature in neutral hues, vibrant brights, floral prints and monochromatic graphic elements. Designed by Oscar de la Renta, the collection revisits memorable runway pieces and creates new fabric and shape combinations to offer a fresh interpretation of Oscar de la Renta's quintessential style. The collection launches on Tuesday February 26th with prices ranging $325 to $1,295. A fun promo video, starring Olivia Palermo, has been released by the website.

A couple weeks ago I did a post rounding up some of the ways I have styled my clothes to get the most bang for my buck.  Let's continue that post today, shall we?  As I stated in my first post, it is pointless to buy an item and not wear it often.  Cost per wear is one of the most important things I think about when buying an item.  For those of you that don't know what that is, here is a quick lesson: price of item ÷ by number of times worn = true cost

This philosophy doesn't always work, sometimes you need to spend more money for quality or a piece you really love (see: Chanel), but it is a great general rule of thumb.  Try to get the cost/wear as low as you can, if you make it under $1...AMAZING!  Thrifting is a great way to find items that will cost next to nothing in the long run. However, be careful not to be seduced by a really low price, if you won't wear it: don't buy it!

Song of the Day: Shake It Up by The Cars


The Piece: Alexander Wang 'Freja' Booties

The Piece: T. Babaton Snakeskin Sweater

The Piece: Theyskens' Theory Leather Jacket

The Piece: Marc Jacobs Velvet Polka Dot Blazer

The Piece: Inis Crafts Fishermans Sweater

The Piece: Free People Wide Leg Jeans
I think my best purchase to date has been my Marc by Marc Jacobs Baby Aidan purse (seen throughout the images above.) I bought it in July 2011 and it has rarely left my arm since.  It is my main work purse, so that's 5 days a week plus I use it a lot on weekends as well.  I do make sure to rotate my other bags in as well, but I use it 80% of the time.  My mom was shocked when I spent $320 on it, looks like the joke is on her now because I have probably gotten the cost down to at least 95¢ per wear ;)

Only three outfits this week because I worked from home yesterday. In the morning I headed back to my parents house until after Christmas! Yay for home cooking, so much better than just reheating Trader Joes chicken (which I LOVE) and eating chips instead of a real side dish.

My cousins arrived from Ohio and will be staying until Sunday morning. Then Sunday I'm going to see The Hobbit again with my brother, sister and her boyfriend! WAHOOO!

We also have our family Christmas movie traditions: It's a Wonderful Life yesterday, Holiday Inn today, White Christmas on the 22nd and Scrooge (with Albert Finney) on the 23rd!

Finally, we have Christmas Eve and Christmas, the best days!  I love seeing all my family over the course of a few days.  A lot of us only see each other every few months. (but we usually go to my Grandma's every Sunday so some of my cousins are there)

What are your holiday (or non-holiday) plans?!

Monday: Jeans: Rag & Bone (Shopbop), Tee: H&M $9, Sweater: Hollister $15 (really old),  Rain Boots: däv giveaway win, Watch: Michael Kors

Tuesday: Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls), Skirt: Made by Mom, Boots: vintage (eBay) $17, Watch: Michael Kors

Wednesday: Sweater: Madewell (Shopbop) gift card, Pants: Glo super old, Flats: vanEli (DSW) gift, Necklace: ShopNBC giveaway, Bracelets c/o 31 Bits, Watch: Michael Kors

So many outfit posts this week, you guys are getting spoiled! I wish Lydia could always take my pictures for me, it's more fun (see last photo) and far easier than using my tripod, ha ha. Not to mention, the photos come out 10x better.

This outfit made me feel like Marjorie Reynolds as Linda Mason in Holiday Inn (one of my favorite Christmas movies!) I have no idea why because it looks nothing like her outfits in the movie. I think it's mostly because of my boots and tights, because those are quite similar to ones she wears in a scene at the beginning of the film. Although she does wear skirts/dresses at a similar length and a big coat...

Song of the Day - White Christmas by Bing Crosby

Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls), Skirt: Made by Mom, Boots: vintage (eBay) $17, Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs (net-a-porter) gift card, Sunglasses: Ray-Ban 'Emma' (TJ Maxx) gift card

Here is my Thanksgiving outfit, I figured it was a good occasion to wear my inspired by Michael Kors look! It has a very Fall/Holiday feeling, don't you think?  The photos were taken at my Grandmother's house, well...actually her neighbors bridge because no one is there right now and it's pretty.

Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls) $30 gift, Skirt: Made by Mom $50 for fabric, Booties: No.704b  (DSW) $25, Watch: Michael Kors, Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs (Shopbop), Sunglasses: Ray Ban 'Emma' (TJ Maxx) gift card

It's about time I did a post on my Michael Kors inspired lace skirt.  When I saw the Michael Kors Fall 2012 collection I fell in love with the lace skirt and cream sweater combo [proof]. I had the sweater and similar shoes already, so all I needed was the skirt.  I waited impatiently for it to go on sale so I could learn more about the shape and materials.

Unfortunately the actual skirt retails for $6,995 (the sweater is $1295) so that was definitely not an option.  Thankfully my mom can sew so I asked if she would help me to recreate it! I found the fabric on etsy (buy here) and we used some old patterns to create our own.  It took a while to figure out how to get the high-low to work. In the end we had to get rid of the scalloped hem, I was a little disappointed, but the skirt still came out great.

We had some leftover fabric so my mom made another skirt, this time shorter and with the scalloped edge.  That version is going to be easier to wear but I am definitely going to get a few more wears out of the longer version, see the first time I wore it here. I'm thinking it's my Thanksgiving outfit!

Here are both complete looks, what do you think?!

Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls) $30 gift, Skirt: Made by Mom $50 for fabric, Sandals: Guess (Marshalls) $40
vs.
Michael Kors Sweater: $1295, Michael Kors Skirt: $6995, Michael Kors Shoes: $995 (they were sandals on the runway)

$120 vs. $9285 = savings of $9165  OR 98.7%

Next up I'll show you the Burberry-inspired Owl Tee I'm working on!

This past weekend my roommate and I headed to Jones Family Farm to get our pumpkins!  I have been going to Jones since I was REALLY little (some photos of me there are in my birthday post,) we also go there for our Christmas Tree.  This year it was a Wizard of Oz theme, which they've had a few times in the past, and is one of my favorites.

Sweater: Inis Crafts (Marshalls) gift, Jeans: Current/Elliott (Rue La La) $60, Boots: Vintage (eBay) $17, Sunglasses: Marc by Marc Jacobs (Shopbop) gift card

More photos! I had trouble narrowing them down, as usual.

The piggies say 'night night'