Starting the new year off right, with pretty jewelry! Everyone could use a bit of sparkle during these long cold Winter days and Aurate New York has great options from necklaces and delicate huggie earrings to rings and bracelets. In my years of working with Aurate I have amassed quite the collection of beautiful pieces I continue to reach for when I'm accessorizing.
I wore this outfit for Christmas Eve with the family. I decided to wear a dress I haven't worn since Christmas 2015 - wowza! It's a knit silver and gold dress so I decided to accessorize mixing silver and gold. The silver came in with my sandals and the gold was all my jewelry! I also used the new Melie Bianco bag I won from Marijane Boutique last month! It's such a fun piece and is very similar to the new cult favorite Bottega Veneta Jodie bag but at a much lower price point. The woven (vegan) leather creates such a beautiful texture and makes the bag feel very fancy and the black makes it a classic that will never go out of style. But we all know that my crazy colorful bags also never go out of style, I'll wear them with anything!
I've only worn these sandals three other times since I bought them in 2017 (for my
cousin's wedding,) but I keep them around in case I want something very shiny, like I did here! They're the perfect splash of fun for the holidays. This sweater dress was a holiday staple for a couple years before it was basically retired for newer things. I wore it for various Thanksgivings and Christmases in the mid-2010s. I'm glad I was able to give it a new life when Lydia was done enjoying it and now bringing it back out again after 7 years, crazy!
I haven't taken the huggie earrings off since Christmas Eve, they're so comfortable and I don't even notice they're there. I like how close they are to my ear so I'm not afraid of them getting ripped off. I also wore two gold station necklaces from Aurate. One is Rose Quartz and the other Lavender Jade. The lavender gemstones I got were more blue than purple, but still pretty! I also got a pearl station necklace in rose gold that I can't wait to wear!
Dress: London Times metallic stripe dress (from Lydia)
Belt: Kenneth Cole Reaction (Marshalls)
Bag: Melie Bianco 'Drew' (Marijane Boutique giveaway)
Sandals: New Look Metallic Block Heel sandal (ASOS)
Jewelry: Endless Gemstone Station Necklaces, Skinny Gold Hinged Huggie Earrings c/o Aurate
Continuing on with our Throwback Thursday Disney hotel overviews! Today we've got another Disney Vacation Club stay. For our anniversary we finally stayed at one of my top bucket list hotels - Animal Kingdom Lodge! We rented DVC points and stayed in a Deluxe Studio Villa with a Savanna View at Jambo House (you can also stay at Kidani Village, a DVC section of the resort that's a short walk from the main building.)
Can't believe it's my last wardrobe update of 2022, wow! I did buy a couple things this month. One cheap, one not so much...
Christian and I took a walk through Marshalls while visiting his family in Missouri (I needed a taste of home, ha ha) and we each got a new Christmas sweater. They're both men's sweaters because I didn't like any of the women's options. Luckily they had a small for me! I wanted the same sweater as Christian, but they only had mediums.
I also finally visited Marijane Boutique in Guilford and splurged on a Burberry Brit coat. Earlier in the month I won an Instagram giveaway they held for a
vegan leather bag by Melie Bianco. It's a dead ringer for the Bottega Veneta Jodie bag that retails for $2650. (I had them ship it to me because I didn't know when I'd be able to get up there, turns out pretty soon, haha! Whoops.) Lydia works there so I've been meaning to stop by for a loooooong time! Christian and I were "just going to look" but of course I spotted this bright red coat and instantly had flashbacks of writing a dream outfit blog post in 2011 for going to the Christmas tree farm. It featured a Stella McCartney sweater (which I bought 2 years later on sale) and a coat very similar to this one. I'm also pretty sure when this coat originally was for sale I had it on various wish lists, but never bought it because of the price tag, even on sale. The 2022 version of the outfit came out pretty good!
Got a couple clothing gifts for Christmas too. A sweater to (hopefully) replace a super thin sweater I like to toss in my bag on Disney trips and other Summer destinations and a super fun coat from Anthropologie I've had on my wish list for over a year.
THE (modified) RULES
- Be mindful of purchases
- Quality over quantity
- Basics are best
MY PROGRESS
Clothes:
- Marc by Marc Jacobs cropped sweater ($12.50, retail $298, used ad money)
- J Brand Maria High Rise in Purple Velvet ($7.50, retail $228, used ad money)
- Current/Elliott "The Muscle" leopard print tank ($8, retail $75?, used ad money)
- *NEW!* Aspen Christmas Sweater in green via Marshalls ($7, retail $19.99 - similar sweater)
- *NEW!* Greylin Longline Shirt Jacket in purple via Anthropologie (Christmas gift, retail $178)
Basics:
- mīere the label "Frankie" knit sweater in Faded Black ($56.92, $32.15 if we omit shipping)
- Madewell Whisper Cotton V-Neck Tee in Spiced Plum ($2, retail $19.50, used ad money)
- Madewell Whisper Cotton V-Neck Tee in Sahara Sand ($2, retail $19.50, used ad money)
- *NEW!* Burberry Brit Wool Minstead Duffle Coat In Military Red via Marijane Boutique ($230, retail $995, used ad money)
- *NEW!* Everlane The Featherweight Alpaca Cardigan in Taupe Grey (Christmas gift, retail $80)
Shoes:
- Ancient Greek Sandals Kore of Berlin ($365, Shopbop gift cards + ad money + 15% off)
Handbags:
- *NEW!* Melie Bianco Drew Woven Bag in black via Marijane Boutique ($110 retail, giveaway win!)
Accessories:
- None yet
Activewear/Swimwear:
- Ryka "Belong" Walking Shoe in Plum Red/Burgundy via DSW ($26.58, $79.99 retail)
Gifted from Brands:
- Pearl and Gold Bar Duo Stud Earring - Rose Gold c/o Aurate
- Gold Bar Stud Earrings - Rose Gold c/o Aurate
- Gold Bar Stud Earrings - Yellow Gold c/o Aurate
- Janey Sport Sandal - Pewter c/o Aetrex
- Active Biker Short in Jungle c/o Dona Jo
- Adjustable Bra in Jungle c/o Dona Jo
- Urban Tank in Pitanga c/o Dona Jo
- Destination Aura Beaded Necklace in Marrakech c/o Aurate
- Endless Gemstone Station Necklace in Rose Quartz c/o Aurate
- Libby Comfort Clog - Tobacco c/o Aetrex
- Skinny Gold Hinged Huggie Earrings in yellow gold c/o Aurate
- Endless Pearl Station Necklace in rose gold c/o Aurate
- Lavender Jade Endless Gemstone Station Necklace in yellow gold c/o Aurate
Spent in December: $7
Spent in 2022: $90.50
Spent in 2022 - counting ad money: $717.42
I wore this the weekend before Christmas but pushed back the post since I had a couple "more Christmasy" outfits to share first. One of which features a coat I bought on this day! We hadn't done too many "Christmas" activities this year since we were in Missouri over Thanksgiving and the week after. I had been wanting to go to Strawberry Hollow Farm in Guilford for a while (it's supposed to be SUPER cute in Fall) so we made the trek up there to see what they had for Christmas. I ended up getting an adorable gourd moose.
After that we stopped at the Bishops Orchard farm market and bought some bagels and a Charlie Brown inspired Christmas Tree that was half off - can't beat $15! Since we were in Guilford I decided to finally stop by Marijane Boutique since I've been meaning to check it out for a long time. Lydia works there so it was fun to see her, the last time we saw each other was July....whoops! I ended up buying a gorgeous Burberry coat (that you saw last week!)
We finished our fun day by going to The Chowder Pot for lunch, one of our favorites - the honey butter bread is the BEST. On our way home we decided to do our grocery shopping too so we wouldn't have to leave the house again that weekend, haha!
I should have worn my sunglasses for these photos, the sun was RIGHT in my face. But I was trying to switch things up from my usual.
Vest: French Connection faux-fur vest (Marshalls)
Sweater: Everlane "The Wool-Cashmere Oversized Cable Turtleneck" in Surplus
High Waisted Jeans: J Brand 'Maria' High Rise in Supreme
Boots: Cordani (Roundabout)
Bag: Emm Kuo 'Calle Bahia' (Roundabout)
Coat: Burberry Brit Wool Minstead Duffle Coat In Military Red (Marijane Boutique)
Shop the post:
Some more photos from the day:
First, a backstory: Back in 2011 I did a "Dream Outfit" for what I'd wear to the Christmas Tree Farm for our Christmas Tree hunt. It featured a really fun Stella McCartney polar bear sweater, red coat, suede leggings and boots. Being a dream outfit, I never imagined I would own it. However, in 2013 I was able to buy the Stella McCartney sweater from The Outnet for $229 (vs $1145) in their Summer sale and it has been a holiday season staple ever since. I love that it will never really go out of style because it's a statement piece.
Fast forward to this past weekend and visiting Marijane Boutique in Guilford. Lydia works there so I've been meaning to visit for over a year - whoops! Christian and I decided to visit a little farm store in Guilford so I figured it would be smart to kill two birds with one stone and stop by after. The store is on a super cute street on the green and is filled with all types of treasures. As I was going through the coat rack I stumbled upon a holy grail - a Burberry wool coat! It was red and very similar to the coat I used in the dream outfit. I actually think I had this coat on my wish list years ago but never bought it because of the price tag. Based on my research it was either $795 or $995 retail, I snagged it for $230 at Marijane Boutique and it is in perfect condition!
Of course the first thing I paired my new bright red Burberry toggle coat with was the Stella McCartney polar bear sweater! Dreams really do come true, especially for those who wait. 11 years later and I was finally able to pull it off! I don't have a red hat yet, but maybe I'll find one. I decided to break out my beloved Chanel for the occasion. Why not feel super fancy for the day, right?! It's crazy to think that this bag has at least doubled in value since 2012 - yikes!
Coat: Burberry Brit Wool Minstead Duffle Coat In Military Red (Marijane Boutique)
Polar Bear Sweater: Stella McCartney 'Polar bear intarsia wool and alpaca-blend sweater' - similar version (The Outnet)
Leggings: old
Boots: Audrey Brooke 'Mirie' (DSW)
Sunglasses: Ray Ban 'Erika' c/o Shopbop
Bag: Chanel Classic 2.55 Double Flap (Madison Avenue Couture)
I love a good holiday themed sweater. When Christian and I were visiting his family in Missouri for a couple weeks I needed a bit of "home" so we ran into Marshalls for a quick walk-through one afternoon. We weren't intending on buying anything but the men's section had some great simple not-ugly Christmas sweaters. Christian got a half-zip one with polar bears and I got this one (the only one that they had in a small, haha!)
Funnily enough, the main pieces of this outfit are all from Marshall's. The bag and sunglasses are not. I haven't worn these boots in a while. Partly because I haven't really had an occasion and also because the insole is crumpled up so I feel the wrinkle on my foot, haha! I guess that's why they ended up at Marshalls years ago, a small but annoying glue defect. But I deal with it because they're gorgeous.
Sweater: Aspen reindeer Christmas sweater (Marshalls, men's department)
Jeans: Mother Denim 'The Rascal' c/o Marshalls
Boots: Gianvito Rossi 'Finlay' lace-up boot (Marshalls)
Bag: Emm Kuo 'Calle Bahia' (Roundabout)
Sunglasses: Ray Ban 'Erika' c/o Shopbop
