fall fashion

life lately (in fashion)

| The Fashion Huntress

Well, it’s the holidays, so the usual increase in tasks and work has arrived again! I still managed to snap a few pics of life lately (aka what I was wearing lately). The top photo is my debut of my new arm tights from Spanx. They are fabulous and are helping me transition my spring and summer wardrobe into my winter wardrobe. I have my eye on the black metallic pair next! And bottom photo- I checked out the new line at target “A New Day.” Super cute line- and perfect for the price. Happy Thanksgiving to all who celebrate!

happy halloween!

| The Fashion Huntress

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“tonight the Great Pumpkin will rise out of the pumpkin patch.” -Linus

Coat: Banana Republic via thrift ($1)

Sweater: Gap ($10 marked down from approx $70)

Button down: Gap ($9 marked down from approx $60)

Jeans: Articles of Society via Nordstrom Rack ($36 marked down from approx $68)

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I also had some questions about my felted animals that I’ve been working on as some #selfcare #crafternoon activity. A photo of my creations is above!

And, lastly, for this month’s #monthlymani: it’s a Pumpkin Spice theme! I chose Leggy Legend by Essie as the perfect pumpkin spice color with a little maroon on top to add some depth. Be sure to head over to Kristi to check out her fall themed #monthlymani!

 

calm & centered (leave your tip!)

| The Fashion Huntress

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Readers, I’ve been taking blogging a bit easy lately, since I’ve been extra focused on work and finding a sense of balance in my day to day ebb and flow. Things have a way of getting out of balance quickly and I find it’s a constant effort to feel like I’ve got everything calm and centered. Some of the ways I try to stay grounded are below. Please share your grounded, centered, and calming tips in the comments section below! I would love new ideas! 

  1. Connecting with friends and family; talk about a taking a village, am I right? Even just a quick text to share in a moment feels like a wonderfully balanced act.
  2. Alone time; most people are shocked to know I’m a massive introvert. I really only recharge being completely by myself and I’ve implemented “task free days” where I just CHILL and do whatever I want. So liberating!! Those days, I’m often thrifting, at the library, or catching up on a few of my favorite shows.
  3. Creating! I LOVE to craft just about anything. These days, I’ve been working on felted wool animals. Yep. It’s so relaxing and calming!
  4. Yoga, mindfulness, and running. Enough said!

What about you, readers? Share your “ommm” strategies below! 

everything embroidered

| The Fashion Huntress

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It’s hard to nail down my favorite fashion trends lately because there’s so many fun and creative options! In this look, I’m embracing the embroidery trend. I love the texture and custom feel embroidery adds to items like shoes, coats, and dresses. As a side note, I’ve gotten a lot of questions about how I style my top knots and hair braids (as seen in these photos). I have my top knot tutorial here, but stay tuned for a hair braid tutorial next. Honestly, it’s as easy as my top knot. I’m all about low maintenance (though my husband might disagree 🙂 HA!). Have a good rest of your week, readers!

Top: J Crew ($40 marked down from $60)

Jeans: Articles of Society via Nordstrom Rack ($36 marked down from approx $68)

Coat: Rosegal ($30)

Shoes: Jessica Simpson via DSW (approx $50 marked down from $90) available here

Head scarf: Coach (approx $20 marked down from approx $65)

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It’s that time again! #monthlymani time! We went with a pirate theme this month to change it up a bit :)! I mixed Sparkle Aplenty from Revlon with Indi-glow from Sally Hansen to have a festive pirate theme. Be sure to head over to Kristi to check out her pirate themed #monthlymani! Aarrgh! (I couldn’t resist)

glitter and ruffles galore

| The Fashion Huntress

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Glitter and ruffles. Sigh. I’m always sold on glitter and ruffles. I took these photos before I left for our honeymoon, but we are very fortunate it’s still remained quite warm in Chicago, so the look still applies. Fingers crossed fall continues to last…

Top: J Crew ($40 marked down from $60) on sale here

Pants: J Crew (approx $30 marked down from approx $100)

Glitter heels: Ann Taylor Loft ($20 marked down from approx $120)

Cuff: Hermes (gift)

Photos above are life lately! I’ve been eyeing the Kate Spade glitter posts for over a year, so I decided to finally get them- I happily wear them all the time. There are also more fall photos, because I just can’t get enough!

“No spring nor summer beauty hath such grace as I have seen in one autumnal face.”
― John Donne, The Complete Poetry and Selected Prose

golden haze days (+giveaway entry 4 days left!)

| The Fashion Huntress

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The days are really flying by lately…I can’t believe we are a month away from Christmas already! Still, Autumn is in the air and the leaves are crisp below my (high heeled) feet. I’m holding on to the golden haze days- and trekking out in the woods in my heels and jumpsuit to enjoy them.

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Jumpsuit: Ann Taylor Loft ($5 marked down from approx $98)

Necklace: thrift ($5, retails for $40)

Shoes: Banana Republic ($75 marked down from $130)

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Fashion Huntress tips:

1) Personally, I find that if you’re going to wear a jumpsuit, you want to consider pairing it with a shoe with a heel or a wedge. I know that I would legit look like I was wearing some sort of costume if I did not have my jumpsuit styled with my pumps and accessories- so I’m guessing the same goes for most people. However, I am always open to hearing more about how to style jumpsuits! My Pinterest board “Oh la la” has a lot of jumpsuit inspiration, you can find it here.

2) Oh, Ann Taylor Loft, you are tricky! Sometimes there is a very clear “FINAL SALE” rack- for items that are under $10. However, sometimes I find that the final sale items are mixed in with the other sale items. The trick is to ask a sales rep when you arrive in the store if there are “final sale” items in the sale section or elsewhere. Obviously if the final sale rack is around the store, it’s much easier to go through one rack than to dig through all of the sale racks to find the final sale items, but at least you will know where to look!

There’s still 4 days to enter the Alex and Ani giveaway!  To enter, click on the Rafflecopter link below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Anyone else have jumpsuit styling tips? Still loving fall weather and looks? Thanks so much for stopping by, readers! I appreciate it so very much!

bright brocade

| The Fashion Huntress

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There’s a few styles of fabric and prints that have my heart (denim, toile, houndstooth, to name a few). Brocade has always been one of my favorites, but I rarely find brocade prints and fabric, let alone in metallic! So, I was, of course, super excited to find this skirt at BCBG over the summer. It hung in my closet, just waiting for the perfect fall day to make its debut- which was yesterday. I even got to pull out my first pair of fall tights. Sigh. I’m a happy camper. Bright brocade for a bright day.

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Blouse: L.K. Bennett via thrift ($1, retails for $300)

Cape: Nordstrom Rack ($25 marked down from $50)

Skirt: BCBG Max Azria ($40 marked down from $195)

Shoes: Vince Camuto Signature via Saks Off 5th ($50 marked down from $300)

Necklace: House of Harlow via Saks off Fifth ($15 marked down from $50)

Tights: Simply Vera, Vera Wang for Kohl’s ($7 marked down from $14)

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Fashion Huntress tips:

1) There’s always a few pieces that become somewhat surprising staples. I definitely feel that way about my Nordstrom Rack cape/blanket from last season. As soon as the cool weather hit, my cape was back in action. There are so many capes around these days, you can easily find one for around $20. I actually saw this same cape at Saks off Fifth a few weeks ago. So, clearly, they are widely distributed. I personally like that this is a piece you can wear indoors and out, versus a coat, which is a bit more limited in terms of being worn indoors. Below are pictures of how I’ve style this cape in the past. 

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2) Cream tights. You would think they look a little juvenile, but I’ve found my cream patterned tights to be quite versatile. However, I strongly recommend wearing cream tights with very “grown-up” clothes- such as with heels, dresses, and very clearly mature pieces, to avoid the risk of looking like a little girl. Unless, of course, you are a little girl, in which case, you go! My 4 year old niece looks fab in white tights without the worry of styling them properly :).

Anyone else loving capes or cream tights this season? Thanks so much for stopping by, readers! I appreciate it so very much!

ombre with a vintage vibe

| The Fashion Huntress

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So there I was at my local thrift shop, looking for some vases, when I saw this gem of a dress. I swear, I wasn’t even clothing thrifting but this dress was just calling my name. I couldn’t believe it: a vintage ombre dress! I was so excited to try it out! Despite the fact that it’s still summer in Chicago…I’ve decided to embrace our current lack of fall and embrace the sunny days with colorful dresses. I’ve got all my tights and sweaters on stand-by in the meantime. This is my ombre (summer) dress with a vintage vibe.

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 Dress: vintage via thrift (Saver’s) ($10)
Shoes: Derek Lam via TJ Maxx ($60 marked down from $350)
Belt: Urban Outfitters ($5 marked down from $25)
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Fashion Huntress tips:

1) The dress is definitely big in the top half, but fits well in the bottom half. You know my easiest solution for a baggy top on a dress, readers: a belt! I belted the dress and called it a day. Yes, I could alter it, but honestly, it’s probably more trouble than what it’s worth; a belt on a baggy/bigger top half of a dress is almost always most easily solved with a belt. My recommendation is not to shy away from dresses that you can belt. If you are in a thrift shop and aren’t sure, go grab a belt and try on the dress with the belt! If you’re like me, you have a few belts at home that will already work.
2) Sheer dresses pretty much always call for slips, in my book. I have one slip that is a dress slip and I wear it ALL the time. This dress is lined, but the lining on the top is a little low cut for work, so with the slip dress, I felt a lot more comfortable. You really don’t need more than 2-3 slips. My recommendations are as follows: one “dress” slip (cream colored), one short slip that is a skirt, one long skirt slip. My favorite places to find them are Nordstrom Rack, Marshall’s and TJ Maxx.
It’s also time for Monthly Manis again!
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These are my pure glitter and autumn nails!
Check out the other manis this month!
Kristi from Delightfully Krist
Jacki and Lesli from Sistas from Cali
Thanks for stopping by, readers! I appreciate it so very much!

time flies (and fun ahead)!

| The Fashion Huntress

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WHOA, September! Between getting married in five more weeks, changing jobs, and opening a business, time is FLYING! …and The Fashion Huntress again takes a back seat. But I am here, readers! And I appreciate so very much all of your support! This is an exciting time, and I love being able to share it, and even manage to squeeze a few photo shoots in with my trusty tripod and remote. Happy (albeit early) Autumn, readers!

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Jacket: Banana Republic (gift)

Denim blazer: thrift ($4)

Jumpsuit: Corey Lynn Calter for Anthropologie ($17 marked down from $170)

Belt: thrift ($6)

Shoes: Coach via DSW ($45 marked down from $345)

Ring: Tory Burch via Nordstrom Rack ($10 marked down from $100)

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Fashion Huntress tips:

1) I last featured this jumpsuit during some warmer weather (photo below). I featured a smaller belt, mint heels, and lightweight short sleeve blazer for indoors. I also added layered bracelets and accessories when I last wore it. For this look, I kept it simple by wearing a bigger belt, but keeping the rest of the accessories minimal. Despite it being the same jumpsuit, the looks seem quite different to me solely by changing out accessories, layers and shoes. You can do the same with your own jumpsuits, dresses, etc!

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2) I was quite surprised to find the Coach mules featured on this post at DSW. And, even more surprising, they were marked down quite a bit, and then on extra sale! I didn’t find them in the clearance section, where I normally start my shoe search (and find most of the best markdowns). DSW sneaks a few additional markdown clearance items along with the other shoes (not in the clearance section in the back of the store). So, I recommend a quick scan for the colored signs (normally green or blue) in the main part of the store to ensure not missing some great clearance finds.

Anyone else loving this fall weather? Pulling out their layers? I hope everyone has a great day! Thanks so much for stopping by readers! I appreciate it so very much!