Welcome the newest member of my closet - the Saint Laurent patchwork blouse! Here's a quick recap on how it came to be in my possession:  I bought a pair of boots in Net-a-Porter's End of Season sale but they didn't fit and I had to return them.  After returning them I got a notification from eBay that an item I've wanted for months was relisted! It was listed for $599.99 but I got the seller to go down to $350! I had $25 in my PayPal account, $80 from a dress I returned at Christmas AND  some Christmas money from my Grandma that I used to cover the rest. According to Lyst, it retailed for $2390 at Saks, and that is possibly a sale price! So I think I got a pretty good deal!

I promised you the "full story" on this Saint Laurent blouse in my wardrobe update, so here we go!  I first came upon this top while searching street style blogs and seeing this photo of Barbara Martelo from April 2015. A dress version was on the Summer 2015 Men's collection runway and is equally beautiful but a little too flowy for me. The shirt version is the perfect way to inject some 1970's to your wardrobe without going full on hippie.

You may be thinking to yourself, that is an insanely printed shirt for someone who likes basic pieces. And you would be correct. But, the thing is, I've found that I love quirky basics. One of my favorite tops is very similar; a "basic" button up by Equipment, but it's bright pink and in a crazy print. Those of you who know me will be aware of the fact that I really don't like pink. But for some reason I love it. Sometimes you just can't explain attraction.  Since this blouse is also sheer, and in a crazy print, I think we have a bright future ahead!

(Equipment blouse seen here, here, here, here and many more)

image source

Another day, another last minute outfit photo shoot! Although this time it worked out in my favor. We were literally the last people in Diagon Alley apart from security and the cleaning crew.  We were there for the night event during the Celebration of Harry Potter so naturally we had to stay until the last possible second.  I really love Universal during these night time events. There are far less people, obviously and you usually get something free (ice cream and butterbeer in this case!)

Cardigan:  Max Studio (gift from Lydia), Crop Top: Zara (ON SALE!), Jeans: J Brand 'high rise Maria' (Gilt), Sandals: Ancient Greek Sandals 'Alethea' (bought in Santorini)

I was a bit of a slacker for outfit posts on this vacation so I only have 2 more to share. I also kept forgetting during the day, while it was bright out, so the quality of pictures isn't the best. These photos were taken inside Magical Menagerie, the namesake of my Harry Potter fan site!

Jacket: Elie Tahari x Design Nation c/o Kohl's, Sweater:  T.Babaton c/o Aritzia, Jeans: J Brand 'high rise Maria' (Gilt), Sandals: Ancient Greek Sandals 'Alethea' (bought in Santorini)

Aaaand as per usual here are a bunch of random photos from my trip that I know you all don't REALLLLLLY care about, but I want to share anyway! This trip I actually did a few new things - Star Tours and just being at Hollywood Studios in general. And then of course there were press events for the Celebration of Harry Potter. (for those wondering - I DID get a chance to chat with Matt Lewis, but I didn't ask for a picture. Next time ;) )

On the plane!

STAR TOURSSSSSSS

Lamp in Morocco

Pearl and Sheldon :)

Darth Vader Chicken & Waffles

Hi Miss Dragon (yes, it's a girl)

Evanna Lynch, Rupert Grint, Matthew Lewis, Katie Leung and Bonnie Wright at the press exclusive Q&A

Pretending to drink some butterbeer...I don't actually like it! *gasp*

The new sweet shop that opened the week before we arrived!

The most magical number

An empty Diagon Alley (except security and cleanup crew)

Katie Leung surprising a fan at the Scholastic booth

A friend and I matched our ICEEs to our plates!

Home.

Pretty sky

Homeward bound

Well I'm back to blogging after a very interesting week! I got home last Wednesday night and was expecting to have a post up on Friday but I got super sick on Sunday night and spent my last 3 days of vacation in bed. Talk about a bad way to end a trip! But the trip started off well enough. We spent Wednesday night and Thursday at Disney (Hollywood Studios and EPCOT.) My outfit wasn't the most exciting so I didn't take any "real" outfit pictures, but here are a few that show off the outfit, and some fun Star Wars and Fantasia characters.

Top: French Connection c/o Marshalls, Jeans: FRAME 'Le Skinny de Jeanne Jeans' (Shopbop), Sandals: Ancient Greek Sandals 'Alethea' (bought in Santorini)

I haven't done a dream outfit in a while and I figured while I'm away on vacation it's the perfect time since I don't have any outfits! I saw this black dress on The Outnet a couple weeks ago and it spoke to me. It is a perfect shape, not too tight but not frumpy. I styled it for Winter, but it would be amazing paired with some sandals come Summertime! I may take the plunge and buy it, but I haven't decided yet (probably won't and then I'll regret it.)

I chose a long sleeve turtleneck bodysuit instead of a regular sweater for the bottom layer to avoid unnecessary bunching because who wants that? To add even more warmth I included a coat, tights and a pair of awesome (PURPLE!) over-the-knee boots. I picked a brighter coat than I would normally wear to offset the darkness of the look. But I bet I would just wear it with a leopard print coat or something crazy like that!

I created this post a couple weeks ago while preparing for vacation and afterwards I HAD to buy the Brian Atwood heels. They were 80% off so I paid $439 instead of 2,195...but in my defense I had some money in PayPal, money from returning a dress from Christmas AND Christmas money from my Grandmother. Unfortunately it was all for nothing, they overwhelmed my short frame and I had to return them.

L'Agence Crepe dress, Tibi Stretch-jersey turtleneck bodysuit, Brian Atwood Orage suede thigh boots, Commando Matte Opaque Tights, serefina Layered Moon Coin Necklace, Rebecca Minkoff Sam leather-trimmed faux shearling coat

 

A super quick post today since I'm still on vacation, but I had to share these amazing Lanvin sandals! They were added to Net-a-Porter a couple weeks ago and I immediately added them to my wishlist.  The color combination is perfection and I love the gold detailing on the heel. I always enjoy NAP's product descriptions, here is the description for these:

Lanvin's sandals are crafted from supple suede in earthy tones of brown, army-green and storm-blue. Detailed with gunmetal studs, this slingback pair has an effortless block heel topped by a light-catching gold panel. Wear yours with a blouse and flared jeans.

Fingers crossed they are in the Summer End of Season Sale! Must.Have.Them.

Normally my wardrobe updates get wiped clean between Winter and Spring but I think for this year I'll keep it full until 2017. That way I can really keep an eye on what I'm adding to my closet all year. It's easy to get carried away when you only show 6 months of purchases at a time. So we're starting with a clean slate for January's update rather than keeping September - December as well.

Anywhooooo....on to this month's new buy(s)! I ended up not buying anything in Net-a-Porter's End of Season Sale. But not for a lack of trying. I ordered a gorgeous pair of thigh high boots and unfortunately they didn't fit (aka I'm too short for super tall boots) so I had to return them.

After I returned the boots I got a notification from eBay that an item I've been wanting for quite some time was relisted! The Saint Laurent patchwork blouse! It was listed for $599.99 but I got the seller to go down to $350! I had $25 in my PayPal account, $80 from a dress I returned at Christmas AND some Christmas money from my Grandma for the rest. So, technically, it's a Christmas gift, but it's still hard to see the money leave my bank account. (I'll share the full story in a feature post, unless it doesn't fit! It was supposed to arrive on Monday but the snowstorm ruined that so it will be waiting for me when I get home from my vacation.)

I also got a sweater from J.Crew at the outlets, but I used a gift card so it doesn't really count. *wink*




THE (modified) RULES

1. Be mindful of purchases
2. Quality over quantity
3. Basics are best

MY PROGRESS 

Clothes:

1. *NEW!* Saint Laurent Multicolor Silk Patchwork Blouse ($350 via eBay, used Christmas money)

Basics:

1. *NEW!* J.Crew Factory colorblock sweater ($24, used gift card)

Shoes:

1.  None

Accessories:

1.  None

Gifted from Brands:

1.  None

Same jeans two Throwback Thursdays in a row! But I had to wear this now because it's been almost exactly 4 years since it's original appearance! Amazing how time flies! This outfit is complete except the shoes. I finally got rid of them over the Summer because I stopped wearing them even though they were super fun.

Blazer: The Extreme Collection (Second Time Around), Turtleneck Sweater: Willi Smith (TJ Maxx), Jeans: Free People (Marshalls), Boots: Chloe (Roundabout Resale), Bag: Marc by Marc Jacobs (Shopbop), Watch: Michael Kors



Original:

I call this my lazy luxe look! I wore this two weekends ago (as you can tell by the lack of snow) when I wasn't really in the mood to force an outfit but didn't want to wear jeans. The easy solution? All burgundy, everywhere! Leather pants: check. Cashmere sweater: check. Matching bag & shoes: check.  And the funny thing is - this is just as comfortable as my pajamas.

Cashmere Sweater: Everlane, Leather Pants: Madewell, unphotographed Bag: Etienne Aigner (thrifted), Loafers: Etienne Aigner (thrifted), Necklace: Geoclassics