Inspiration Monday: Olivia Munn

I'm not sure who Olivia Munn is but what I wore today is loosely inspired by her outfit.  I decided at the last minute this morning to participate in Inspiration Monday after checking out what a few other bloggers wore.

I decided to stick with a slouchy theme based off of her shirt and wore one of my only slouchy loose fitting tops with my wide leg incredibly soft jeans.  They may as well be pajamas they are so soft and stretchy!  I even slept in them the first night we stayed in our house because I hadn't moved any pajamas yet!  I can't really tell what Olivia's pants are like but I'm pretending she's super comfy too in yoga pants.

Jacket:Target: Red Fleece Jacket-Gift from Mom
Scarf-Wedding gift from family member
Top: Anthropologie- Mulitcolored slouchy shirt with beading on shoulders-$20
Pants: Nordstrom Rack-Worn Jeans-$15 (Previously worn here)

Inspiration Monday: Kelly Ripa style

I've gotta say, this woman knows how to dress. I'm really happy with how my interpretation of her outfit turned out.  Heels with longer jeans is a winning and slimming combination when paired with a blazer.  She looks long and lean and I think I do too!  

 In recent years, I've been hesitant to wear denim with denim.  In high school my "uniform" was a dark denim jacket I bought at the GAP and jeans of some sort. I wore that denim jacket to death...when I finally donated it, the jacket looked like it was purchased faded with whiskering but no, it was all naturally created.  My jeans today are a medium blue wash while the blazer is charcoal grey color and my shoes are a darker blue...yes, all three are denim!  I don't feel overloaded with denim since that colors are dissimilar.

Top:Ross-Purple Ruffle neck and sleeve top-$8
Belt: Stilettos and Diaper Bags Blog-Came with my yellow blazer-$10
Blazer: White Elephant Sale Oakland, CA-$3
Jeans: Macys-Levis Bold Curve ID jeans-$30
Shoes: Payless-Cork and Denim Heels-$12
Earings: Gift from my Masi (Mom's sister)
Approximate Total Cost~$63

Be sure to check out the other beautiful bloggers participating in Inspiration Monday over at Two Birds!  I also feel visible in my purple top and yellow belt and scarf so I'm going to link up to Visible Monday at Not Dead Yet Style for the first time!  Also, I'm starting a new job tomorrow so feeling visible this week is extra important for me!

Inspiration Monday: Pippa Middleton

I really liked Pippa Middleton's outfit and couldn't wait for Inspiration Monday!  I also played a little bit with my photos in Piknik because I looked a little washed out in the originals and decided to try the 60s filter.  What do think?  Really like Meagan's photos so I asked what she did, yes I copied.  Also, today you get views of my front yard instead of the back yard.  Trying to mix it up a little.

Dress: LOFT outlet-Black and White Print Dress-$15
Tank Top: Old Navy-Black Tank top with leaf shaped trim-$5
Tights: Macys-Brown Hue tights- too old to remember bought originally for ballet class
Boots: Ross-Aerosoles Black Boots-$20
Sweater: Francesca's Closet-Teal Cardigan-S4
Approximate Total Cost~$44

I was cold so I put a tank under my dress...kinda adds a little more visual interest to an otherwise boring neckline.

These last two I just wanted to show you the pretty flowers currently blooming.

Be sure to check out the rest of the lovely inspired ladies over at Two Birds! So many cute outfits resulting from this inspiration photo.

Chunky Monkey

Ever put on an outfit, look at yourself in the mirror and think you look alright only to photograph yourself and hate it.  That's today for me folks.  I decided to try two challenges at once and maybe that's where it started to go wrong.  Today's Inspiration Monday photo is of Sarah Jessica Parker and I tried to recreate her look while doing the Fashion Challenge of wearing leopard or snakeskin.

Sarah Jessica Parker

 I think my first problem was I only have two items that are leopard or snakeskin. The second is I only have two grey sweaters and no chunky sweaters at all.  And the third is the weather.  Yesterday was in the 80s here and today should be in the 70s...not exactly sweater weather.

So this is what I'm wearing...

Top: Hand me down from Tiny-FREE!
Pants: Clothing Swap find-FREE
Belt: Oakland White Elephant Sale-Snakeskin belt-$1
Shoes: REI-Brown Merrell Mary Janes-S24
Approximate Total Cost-S25

This weekend was full of DIY projects for my husband and I.  We powerwashed the deck, took down the bright orange plastic mesh from the back fence, planted some flowers, fixed two gates that were sagging, put up wire mesh on the back fence, and sealed the deck.  My husband also installed under cabinet lighting in my kitchen which shows off the pretty black granite countertops.  Its also highlights when the counters are dirty so I have a major incentive to keep my kitchen clean.  We also cleaned the kitchen, dinning room and living room from top to bottom cause I hate having a messy house when people are coming over.   No wonder I didn't want to get out of bed this morning....we accomplished a lot this weekend.   Oh and I got my haircut!

Inspiration Monday....on Wednesday

I keep finding new and cool fashion blog challenges, such as Inspiration Monday or Fashion Challenge!  So Monday's inspiration photo is of Elizabeth Olsen wearing a floral print pencil skirt, black top, owl necklace ( i think) and some black pumps.

And here's my interpretation...

Top:Target-Black V-neck tank-$5 (similar here)
Skirt:H&M-Floral Print(reviewed)-$20 (similar here)
Flower: San Jose Flea Market-$1
Shoes:Payless Shoe Source-Cream and Brown Peep Toe-Too old to remember...I think I got them in college (similar here)
Bracelet and Earrings: Gifts from someone and my husband respectively-FREE
Total Approximate Cost-$26

 I added the flower because it was just too much black for me. I needed a little pop of color.  I'm trying to wear more neutrals, especially black.  Bought this top just for that purpose. I loved it in purple but grabbed the black at the last minute.  Its really hard to wear a color more if you don't own it (also why I bought the skirt here) :P.  And speaking of shopping, I have decided to ban myself from buying new things until I wear everything in my closet that is new and never worn before.  It started with today's outfit both the top and skirt are new and previously unworn.  I've had the top since the end of August...shows you how much i like black.

Again, my failed attempts at twirling.  Three takes and I don't really like any of them...but they make for pretty good blooper shots :P.  The one on the right I was literally spinning around, got dizzy, stopped and  saw the crazy red blinking light and shutter go off. And that facial expression is totally channeling my dad.

Any tips on how to twirl better? Or capture a picture of said twirling?

Also Linked to Color Brigade