slip and slide

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i've been seeing these in the stores for a long time now. never pulled the trigger on them last year because i was worried they'd be uncomfortable. 

but based on glowing reviews i've read, it looks like i was wrong. 

these would be cute with just about every spring outfit imaginable: casual dresses, shorts, jeans. also good for those days when it's not *quite* sandal weather. 

i'm taking a day off work to go to a nats game during opening week and i have my eye on those navy ones.

friday finds: xv

oh boy. this week. cheers to the freakin weekend.

if you're like me and your iphone battery loses steam toward the end of the day, this device holds enough juice for six (!!!) full charges. 

boots | charger | planter | ring | bottle | scarf

this is one of my favorite editions of friday finds. i really want all this stuff. that ring? need it. that scarf? yep.

i've been using my glass water bottle daily for a long time now and i love it so much more than plastic or metal versions. this isn't the one i have, but it's made by the same company and i can vouch for their quality.

we're off to charleston, sc to visit the fam for thanksgiving. i gotta remember to pack some maternity jeans aka the perfect feasting attire.

happy friday!

practically perfect

when you find a cut, style or fit that's flattering on you, you take it.

of all the sleeve lengths, this one that hits slightly above the elbow (too long to be called short sleeve, not long enough for 3/4 sleeve) is a winner for me. i love the boxy shape of these shirts too. it works well with skinny pants and pencil skirts.

here are a few i have my eye on.

top images: left | right
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since a lot of these tops are made with thicker fabric, they're great for fall weather. just throw a jacket on top and you'll be comfortable as the temperature swings from 50 to 70 during the day.

i'm having a hard time resisting that grey quilted one. oh boy.

friday finds: xiv

i felt fall creeping in this morning. i'm not grabbing any jackets yet, but it's coming for us.

j crew factory has a bunch of things on clearance right now. some good deals, some not at all (this is the SALE price?!) but i'm loving that short sleeved shirt. that beanie would also look cute with pretty much any color coat or jacket. score one for versatility.

travel-sized products | tote | hat | shirt | stationery | scarf

have a good weekend! the weather on sunday in dc is supposed to be amazing.

cool story bra

i'm coming to the end of my breastfeeding days. jake and i almost made it to a year, but for a lot of reasons (decreased supply mostly), i've started to wean. 

weaning is a whole different topic that i won't get into right now, but i wanted to share the nursing bras that i found worked the best for me. it should be noted that these are all wireless options. i know some nursing moms wear bras with an underwire, but i got scared out of doing that early (blocked ducts!) and had to go wire-free for the past year. 

it was a little difficult to find wireless options that offered support, but a few of these came close. here's my picks.

best overall: this was my daily bra throughout pregnancy and breastfeeding, and i don't think the picture is doing it any favors. it's a great nursing bra. i bought multiple ones in beige and black. my sister actually dragged me to motherhood maternity when i was six months pregnant (much stubborn, very poor) because i was resisting buying new bras even though my old ones clearly didn't work anymore. this bra gives a good shape in t-shirts as well as nicer work tops. you can wear something low cut or a shirt with a higher neckline and be fine. it also comes in a wide variety of sizes (34B-40F!)so you'll find one that works for you.

most comfortable: when i was on maternity leave, this was my daily wear. it doesn't offer near as much support as the previous bra, but it's super comfortable, easy to open/close with one hand and it's pretty. it's also cheap and available at target so there's that too.

best t-shirt*: i discovered this one way too late in the game. besides being awesome for wearing under thinner cotton t-shirts, this bra is super soft, stretchy and comfortable. it doesn't provide as much support as my pick for best overall, so that's the only reason it didn't win out for me. it comes in lots of colors and did i mention how comfy it is? 

best cami: i wore camis a lot over the winter so i didn't have to do the whole "lift up my t-shirt" bit to breastfeed. i'd wear this and a sweater cardigan with yoga pants and this was by far my favorite cami. the buttons and heather gray color are cute and god i miss those days sometimes.

best sleeping bra: these offer like negative support but they were my favorite bras to sleep in. i didn't like the sports bra-looking ones as much when i had to wear nursing pads overnight because they wouldn't stay in place and i'd end up leaking/soaking through (#momlyfe AMIRIGHT?!)since the pads would shift around while i slept. 

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my one negative review:

i read that people liked this bra a lot. i was a little skeptical but tried it anyways. i HATED it. it was cone boob central, super uncomfortable and offered little/no support. stay far, far away. 

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*it's only showing up in a light beige color online, but i have it in black and it's available in a lot of stores.

freaking cool

i go through stages with earrings. i used to be all about stud earrings (the bigger the better!) and then some dangly ones caught my eye. 

as i was getting dressed for work the other day, i realized that it might be time to add a few new ones to my collection. a lot of the ones i purchased from j crew have fallen apart (GREAT QUALITY GUYS!) and i've managed to lose a few pairs here and there. 

the earrings i have my eye on these days are the best of both (all?) worlds: large, clustery and a little bit funky. i especially like the ones that sit on the lobe in a different way.

see what you think, below. 

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OF COURSE the ones i like the best are the most expensive. 

but any one of these guys would be a welcome addition. 

friday finds: xiii

earlier this year, i bought these leggings from old navy and i was seriously impressed. super comfortable, definitely not too sheer and they even have a cool pattern. for working out in the summer though, i'm thinking i need a shorter pair (see below).

i'm also loving how comfortable and easy that striped midi dress looks. throw on some sandals and some easy gold jewelry, pull your hair up and you're done. SUMMER.

leggings | travel adapter | dress | screen wipes | beer holder/opener | cannister

those wipes are probably something i need to get my hands on too. no one likes a nasty phone.

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here's to a gorgeous weekend everyone. hope yours is awesome.   

circle circle dot dot

eyelet is made for spring. breezy, airy and a little flirty--i love it.

it's so versatile, you can make it work for the office, date night, cocktails, errand running.

here's some of my favorite ways to wear it.

pencil skirt | sweatshirt | striped top | dress | shoes | cream blouse | clutch | peplum top | scarf | dress

also, that item in the lower right corner might work better as a tank/tunic even though madewell is cute and calls it a dress. lolz.  

now and later

embellished tee
for now: vest | ponte pants | earrings | boots
for later: ring | ring | shorts | sandals

embellished tee
for work: blazer | shoes | pencil skirt | purse
for weekend: pants | wallet | purse | shoes | hair ties

this shirt* is so versatile and comfortable. i just bought something similar from the crew. it's gonna be perfect for these next few weeks/months when the temps can be anywhere from the upper 30s to the high 60s (maybe even 70s?!)

here's hoping anyways.

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*i made this collage about a week ago and never got around to posting it. the exact shirt is sold out, but i've linked to something really similar.

springy

what's worse?

everyone talking about they can't wait for fall? hashtag omg apple picking?

or the winter-weary masses who can't shut up about spring?

i've always found the fall lovers to be the more intense bunch. people are serious about their sweaters.

if you read this blog with any frequency, you know that i get more excited for spring. and since it's just around the corner, here's what i'll be focused on in the upcoming months.

jeans | shoes | dress | sunglasses | top | tote

and even though i said i can't get on board with going full on john lennon with my sunglasses yet, i like these semi-round ones.

i'm also still loving embellished clothes and i'm glad that trend is sticking around a bit longer. 

rhinestones! 

friday finds xii

this month is finally over. i have just never seen eye-to-eye with february. it's the worst.

but it's friday. and march is almost here.  and everything you see here is under $50. actually it's all under $35 today. just celebrate the end of this month.

bottle opener | shirt | planters | wipes | matches | dress

i love those wipes btw. i bought them as something to bring in my hospital bag when i had jake and ended up loving them so much they're a daily thing for me now. they eat waterproof mascara for breakfast. or maybe dinner since i use them at the end of the day.

anyways, here's to a great weekend.

spotted

chic diaper-bag-that's-not-a-diaper-bag alert.

it's $165 at banana republic right now. today they're offering 35% off your purchase, but i bet they do another 40% off promotion soon.

i saw this in person over the weekend and it seems to be a nice quality and has pockets inside as well. 

friday finds xi

i'm so glad it's friday.

the weather's gorgeous, the sun is out and i'm just feeling happy today.

if you want to pick up a little something this weekend, here's some wallet-friendly ways to do it.

water bottles | print | cards | top | necklace | shower curtain

that print would be adorable in the kitchen. and how comfy does that shirt look?

my shower curtain is getting a little old. this striped one is looking like the perfect replacement.

have a wonderful weekend!

sale time

shopbop added a bunch of things to their sale today.

if you can ignore the hundred pairs of underwear on there, you can find some pretty good deals on pieces that you can wear right through fall. everything here is less than $50.

jacket | cotton dress | bracelet | sunglasses | long-sleeved tee | faux leather dress | wallet

the faux leather cutout dress is probably the most expensive-looking of the bunch. i also love a striped long sleeved tee for the fall.

get it while it's still in stock. seems to be going pretty quickly.

friday finds x

i don't usually make the friday finds posts themed. i just kept finding a lot of black, white and gold stuff that i liked and that fit the under-fifty bill.

we make pizza at home a few times a month, and having a pizza peel has been a game changer since we use a stone. the crust has never been better. 

here's a few other items i liked this week.

shoes | pizza peel | clutch | dress | cuff | cups

if i wasn't almost 9 months pregnant, that dress would be mine. i love the abstract pattern.

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here's to another beautiful september weekend in dc. 70s and no humidity. ahhhh.

happy friday!

friday finds ix

right now, i'm in florida for one last vacation this summer. 

we've packed a lot of travel in this season, mostly because next summer our lives will be a lot different with a kid in tow.

anyways, i wanted to leave you with a few fun things you might wanna pick up. i've been eyeing that madewell ring all summer and now it's on sale. score.

cookbook | blouse | utensils | ring | tank | candleholders

if you're traveling for labor day, hope it goes well. if you're local and staying in town, get a croissant. 

i'll be back in town tuesday night so you won't be hearing from me until wednesday. 

have a great weekend!

faux show

there's a lot of cute, affordable faux leather things out right now.

can you believe that tan dress is from dress barn?

also, sizes seem to be limited, but that white leather cutout number from zara is super chic and marked down to twenty bucks. 

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i've never really been a leather kinda girl, but these subtle touches of faux leather have me considering buying a few things for fall.

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sidenote: i couldn't get this out of my head when i made the title for this post. 

friday finds viii

this series could be renamed "why did i start using roman freaking numerals?" 

oh well.

here's a few things i saw this week that caught my eye. that jacket is a great deal and it's something you could wear into the fall and winter too.

planter | jacket | batter bowl | salt cellar | bowls | flats

sometimes on the weekends, i like to make pancakes (see my fave recipe here) and a batter bowl with a pourable spout would be a nice tool to have.

i also included two things i really love in this week's post: a salt cellar and ankle strap flats. i use my salt cellar on a daily basis and i love it. it makes cooking and baking so convenient. i also bought a pair of flats similar to these ones last year and wore them to death. i need to retire mine now and these look awesome and have pretty good reviews too.

do you read reviews when shopping online? i always do.

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hope everyone's weekend is the best.

extra large

i've mentioned here how i prefer larger stud/post earrings instead of dainty ones.

turns out, even the ones i had in that post weren't large enough for my taste. i blame extremely deceptive imagery on their website. on the model's ears, they look huge. but in person, they're barely a half inch. 

rude.

either way, i'm still loving big, bold studs and these are some of my favorites. they all happen to be in the same gold, grey-ish and white color palette, but that's just by coincidence.

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i also couldn't find the measurements for two of the asos pair, but they appear to be larger than normal. so if you're really set on having gigantic earrings, i'd buy these with caution so you don't make the same mistake i did. 

and if those diamond earrings were around when i got married, they woulda been my wedding day pair (i wore these if you're curious.) 

just gorgeous. 

fall footwear

these are some of my favorite looks for the upcoming season. 

i've had my air conditioning off (!) for the past two days which is the perfect excuse to use that money for shopping. money in my pocket = more shoes to buy.

those riding boots are some of the best pair i've seen in a while. around this time every year, i go on the hunt for The Perfect Riding Boot (low heel, sturdy not slouchy, no obnoxious hardware, rounded toe, interesting detail, not $500). i didn't think it existed until i saw this pair. the price is right, too. 

row 1: nine west

row 2: zara | h&m | forever 21

row 3: zara | zara

row 4: zara | nine west

row 5: zara | h&m

row 6: target

i also did something i (almost) never do. i rounded some of these prices up. so $35 may really be $34.99, but you get the picture, right?

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leaf image from this post.