Currently Obsessed: Oversized Scarves

I don't know what it is, but I am all about the scarf, you guys. I'm like Hilary Duff. (I read somewhere that she doesn't leave the house without one on...I don't know.) It's the ultimate accessory that takes any outfit to the next level. Down here in Tejas there's like, 3 days a year where scarves are actually functional. The other days they just serve as the best outfit bringer-together evvva. Not only do I love a cute number draped around my neck, but I love even more when it's big and cozy and I can kind of hide my face in it. I wear caps when I don't wash my hair and chunky scarves when I don't wear my makeup. Ok not always...but ok sometimes. Maybe. Just the hat thing. Big scarves are for the days where I don't want to try TOO hard and maybe jewelry just isn't sounding like something I want to deal with...so I just throw a scarf on. It's like a "She didn't really care what she looked like today," type look, but then it's like a "Aw but she tried a little because she threw that cute scarf on.." Anyway. Scarves are the bomb diggity for a quick wardrobe pick-me-up. They also make for some fab gifts for your girlfriends.

Shop some of my favorites here:

ONE // TWO // THREE // FOUR // FIVE

What I Wore: Festive

So we had our divisional Christmas party at work on Monday. The theme was "tacky sweater", but I seemed to have misplaced my beaded, poinsettia-clad threads, so I just got festive instead. It's the holiday season, duh. When else can you wear metallics and flannels and sparkles and patent leather pumps all at once? I like to take full advantage of this special time of year. Some could argue that I still stuck to the "tacky" theme. I argue that those people are boring. Branch out y'all. Fashion is supposed to be fun and expressive.

Cheers to tacky sweaters..or lack thereof. In my case, cheers to wearing all of your favorite holiday getup all at once. There ain't nothin' wrong with feeling the festive holiday spirit, y'all. ONE WEEK UNTIL CHRISTMAS!

Top: Forever 21; Skirt: Banana Republic via Buffalo Exchange; Heels: Zara; Necklace: F21; Lips: NARS 'Heat Wave'

What I Wore: Bundled Up

 Didn't you hear? North Texas got some winter weather, you guys. We had four days straight of solid ice, not snow, which is 10 times more annoying and about 5,000 times more dangerous. It looks all wintery and pretty until you get out in it and you realize your car is glued shut under three inches of solid ice, and your trip out to your car was so slippery you have a minor breakdown and feel the urge to sit down and scoot your way back to your front door.

It was seriously cold around these parts too. Obviously. It's been a week and there's still massive patches of frozen disgustingness laying on roads and yards and rooftops. 

When our cabin fever became too much to handle, husband and I bundled up in 18 layers each and slowly ventured down the road to a little hole-in-the-wall Mexican food joint in our neighborhood.

Here are few pics we snapped before it got dark that night. I LOVE oversized cozy sweaters, leather leggings and fur trimmed things during the cold weather months, so I saw it as a good opportunity to do a little outfit post. I'm so thankful that I made this coat purchase because it has been SUCH a lifesaver in recent days! 

I haven't owned a puffer jacket since my freshman year of college. It was white and a cute little cropped number from A&F. Worked wonders during the cold months out in West Texas (before I joined the bandwagon and got a North Face fleece), until one day it was super icy and I was rushing to my English class and I stepped on some ice and BAM! Hit the ground. My little ZTA mug full of hot chocolate covered my white jacket. It was done for. Ruined. As was my morale and ego in that very moment. Falling on your face...LITERALLY on your face...isn't exactly the "cool" thing to do when you're a freshman on a college campus trying to blend in. The entire world stopped and stared. I was mortified. And for some reason, in a moment like that, all you really want is a friend there to burst out laughing and take your mind off of how much pain both your face and your pride are in. But I had no good friend with me. Just a bunch of people rushing to my aid asking me if I needed an ambulance. I'm tellin' y'all...this fall was one for the books...still haunts me.

Anywho. Lucky for me, I didn't bite it onto the ice this past weekend. Small victories.

All that being said, this jacket is the bomb diggity and totally worth every penny. It's from JCPenney and comes in four colors and is warm, cute and as flattering as a puffer jacket can be!

SHOP THE LOOK:

Jacket: JCPenney; Sweater: GAP (last year, similar here); Leggings: ASOS; Boots: Dolce Vita; Faux fur scarf: Target; 

Gold rings: H&M

A Last Minute Christmas Craft

So for the last 6 months or so, the door to our apartment has housed a lovely "house divided" themed wreath. Some Texas Tech AND Texas A&M colors and logos and a big fat foam football along with it. Now that college football season is basically over and the holidays are here (hello, two weeks y'all!) I've been wanting to make our door a little more festive. So, I hit up Hob Lob, aka my mothership, and grabbed a few knick-knacks at 50% off. I wanted a quick homemade wreath that wouldn't require a ton of supplies or prep time. 

Here's a quick look at how you too can make my easy little no-brainer Christmas door decor. 

What's it going to cost you, you ask? Less than $20. BOOM. 

First, you'll want to make yourself a big pretty bow. If you're like me then you know that bow making is really that of a talent. A very impressive talent. It's not anything like tying shoes type bows..no no. It takes practice and lots of ruined ribbon before you can really accomplish that of professional standards. Props to those sweet ladies who volunteer to gift wrap at department stores...it's no walk in the park, I tell ya. If you need some guidance, google it. There's about 8,000 "how to tie the perfect ribbon bow" videos out there on YouTube. Yes...I watched one. Four times.

Or, perhaps you're like my mother, and with a few quick whips and flips of the hand you've got this stunning, plush bow that sunlight gleams down upon and it makes all those professional gift wrappers pee their panties a little. If that's you then bravo. You're one of the few.


Here's my janky little JV version of a bow. It will have to work for now.

Next, grab that hot glue gun and start pasting away. You'll want to heavily glue your sprigs onto your wreath because they're a little heavy and there's not a ton of surface space for adhesion.

Match one side to the other and glue one on each side of the lower portions of the wreath frame. Be sure to be patient with the hot glue and give it plenty of time to set and harden.

Next, place your big fancy bow that you've now spent hours trying to master via YouTube (sorry), and glue that bat boy right in the middle of your two sprigs. Again, be sure to use lots of glue and give it time to cool and settle.

Here's what your finish product will look like:

Voila! I mean...it's nothing fancy you guys. I'm not claiming to be Martha Stewart here. Or my mom. But hey, it's easy and quick and festive and all of the things I love about Christmas decor.

Now, on to watch more ribbon bow tutorials...

Merry almost Christmas!

Some Changes

Surprise! So maybe it’s been a good minute since I last posted. But this life of mine has been preeeeetty busy lately. With a husband who works long hours during the months of August – November, I’m kind of out of a photographer to capture my outfits each time I like them enough to want them captured. By the time his season is over, the sun is setting at like, 5:30, and the daylight just isn’t available long enough for any type of photo sesh. Shucks. The life of a football coach’s wife, I tell ya. On top of that, maybe our camera was in the shop for a few weeks recently because it got a little shaken up on our trip to San Francisco a few months ago. It camped out in my backpack and endured lots of bike riding, walking, etc, and maybe sometimes I forgot that it was in there when I plopped my bag on the ground here and there. Not saying that’s what caused the malfunction, but there’s a good chance that it did. My husband made me solemnly swear that I would take good care of the camera when we purchased it earlier this year, but let’s be honest here. I’m not good with breakable items. I’m on my fifth iPhone in six years. I never lose anything, but you can bet I’ll break a few.

So, aside from all that mumbo jumbo, I’ve been doing some soul searching and meditating (OK that’s dramatic) but I HAVE been thinking about things recently and while I’ve LOVED the opportunities that this fashion blog has brought me over the last couple of years, I think it’s time for a fresh face and a new direction. There are so many things that I enjoy doing and while fashion has been a love of mine for a long time, this creative outlet has encouraged me to pursue and express my other passions. Art, design, photography, crafts…really anything of that nature. So moving forward, this site will no longer be me posting pictures of my outfits and shopping ideas, it will also include other aspects of my life. It’ll be more of a lifestyle blog and much more of an outlet for me to express and share all different parts of my life. With recent news of our upcoming addition to our family (helllllo June 11^th!), I also want a place for our families to come to find pictures and stories of our journey through this pregnancy and into parenthood.  

So, I hope you’ll continue following along in this new journey and direction I’m taking – and don’t worry! The fashion will go nowhere! I’m still going to keep that part of this blog strong, but you can definitely expect some other random, probably sometimes pointless entries about life, love, family, food, crafts, design, photography, my unhealthy obsession with Justin Timberlake and my dog, Parker….I mean anything goes, guys.

Also, maybe you’ve noticed the name has changed. The new direction just called for a name change, which is why this bad boy is now ‘Champagne and Sneakers”. A little bit of the fun, fancy things in life, and a little bit of the down-home, laid-back important things. Ain’t nothing wrong with enjoying a glass of champagne in your old sneaks, y’all. It’s probably what I’ll be doing in about 6 months or so.

So, come fly with me...come fly, let's fly awayyyyyyyyy...

I just heard Michael Buble belt that and it felt relevant for some reason. It isn't really, though. Hope you guys continue to follow along and enjoy the changes! Thank you for your continual support and kind words - it means more than you know!