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Uptown-Downtown


What happens when I purchase a backless, sequined LBD at the thrift store?  Well...actually, it hangs in my closet for almost a year while I figure out how to style it.  But I finally did, and I feel that the wait was SO WORTH IT.

OH!  Self-timer, you caught me on my phone! ...not staged, I swear.  :-P


The whole super-dressy bottom/super-casual top thing has been a HUGE PHENOMENON recently.  During fashion weeks around the world, this combination filled the lenses of street style photographers.





I totally DIY-ed this collar.  :)  I cut it off an old shirt and put the studs on the tips.  I think it's too cute!!!  And cost me approximately $3.00 all told.

Whatcha think???
Sweatshirt: Target || Collar: DIY || Sequin Dress (used as skirt): thrifted || Sunglasses: Target || Shoes: thrifted || Bag: thrifted Nine West || Watch: old

Welcoming Fall


This is the coziest outfit ever!!!  I prettymuch love everything about it, too:

1.) the hat: I love this hat, but I don't get much opportunity to wear it because of its unique style.  I know what you're thinking: 'Caitlin. It's just a tan hat; how much more basic can you get?'  But, dear readers, I implore you to take a closer look!  It's a little bit fedora, a little bit sunhat, a little bit hoity-toity, and a little bit cowboy all at the same time.  That's just exhausting.
2.) the scarf: This is my actual favorite (warm) scarf.  It's my favorite colors and pattern (floral!).  And it's super-cozy wool that somehow manages to not be itchy (a minor miracle).
3.) the sweater: I finally get to wear green!!!  I know, this may sound silly, but wearing green turns my eyes green (I have what I call "changeling" eyes: they change color with my clothes or mood), which is my favorite color for them to be.  Unfortunately, I have--not brown, not yellow, not pink, not any NORMAL undertone to my skin--but a green undertone.  This makes wearing green challenging, but the tone of this sweater is a-OK.
4.) the boots: I adore my combat boots.  That is all.


filter via the mighty INSTAGRAMMMMM
kind of obsessed...follow me if you want to!  @spritzy88
 
Makin' a funny face, but I wanted to debut my new [thrifted] fur coat in all its glorious luxury!
My mommy was nice enough to snap these photos with my phone outside of a Restaurant which Shall Not be Named.  *coughcough shiftyeyes*


Is everybody else excited for Fall?  
The colors are changing around here already, and I keep catching myself driving like a grandma on country roads just so I can gape.

THANKS, as always, for reading!


Hat: Forever 21 || Scarf: thrifted || Sweater: Aerie || Tank: Old Navy || Shorts: DIY || Leggings: old || Boots: Wal*Mart || Rabbit Fur Coat: thrifted || Aviators: old

How's my tie?

I went to an outdoor wedding in the middle of September...It was lovely, but freezing!  And the invitation expressly forbade the wearing of heels.  :(

Puzzled, I thought for three days about how to dress for this affair...and came up with this at the last second.



I may have out-dressed the groom.  ;)  Just kidding!!!
I did receive lots of compliments, though. 
And the best part?  I was toasty warm!  I put on leggings and two pairs of knee socks underneath my slacks, and four shirts underneath my button-up shirt...heh heh.


This outfit was inspired by Ralph Lauren (my favorite).  They always use black, white, and gold; and their Fall 2012 campaign photo in circulation is a lady in a tophat:


Loooooooove itttttttttttt...
Of course, I'm no gorgeous blonde, but I had an awful lot of fun wearing my black, white, and gold outfit with my top(ish)hat, too.


Hat: little shop in Cedarburg || Blouse: thrifted || Blazer: MaxRave || Vest: thrifted || Tie: stolen from Hubby || Slacks: old || Shoes: thrifted || Watch: thrifted || Clutch: David's Bridal || Pin: hand-me-down

Wanna see what my hubby wore? 
He picked it out all by himself! 
Except for the hat...which he actually did wear!!!  I was amazed...
I think he looks smashing.


Thanks so much for reading!!!

the Denim Blues


Subtitled: 

...the Urban Cowgirl.
...the Canadian Tuxedo.

No matter what you call it (and my outfit got called all of those things by various friends and strangers), head-to-toe denim has been a big trend lately.  I can't really think of anything more American in flavor, so here's my version!


This may very well have been my farewell to Summer outfit, and I didn't even know it at the time! 
I wore these shorts this past weekend, it was warm and sunny...annnnd so far this whole week has been frigid and damp
I'm chilled to the bone sitting here typing, but looking at these sunshine-y photos makes me feel a little warmer.  :)


I adore this bag...
This was the first time I ever "two-strapped it" (regarding which, hubs and I were definitely quoting 21 Jump Street all day hahaha).  Usually I treat it more like a bucket bag, but I think the two-strapping is a success, eh? 
What do you guys think?
 A few friends and I went to a Wine & Harvest Festival in my hometown, and then out to a Brewers' game and tailgate party.  It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday.  :)


This is my friend, Jess.  Our two hubbies were nice enough to take our pictures, since it was Jess' first baseball game (she just moved here).  Troopers, aren't they?


Shirt: H&M || Shorts: Target || Boots: Charlotte Russe || Arm Party: thrifted || Bag: thrifted Louis Vuitton || Sunglasses: Boston Store


Mon Chapeau


How do you like my new hat and sweater?

This post goes back to what I do best.  Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week inspired me to dabble around a bit more in modern fashion, but vintage/classic style is always where I feel most safe and beautiful.


Instead of being my living room, can you join me, dear readers, in imagining my backdrop to instead be a charming Parisian alleyway?  That's the feeling I was trying to channel while I was taking these photos...just didn't have any charming Parisian alleyways available to me at the time.  ;)



My Marilyn Monroe pose...I didn't even know I had curves until I saw this photo.


Matte red lips, 
a loose chingon, 
satine gloves,
feathers, 
fur, and a 
breathtaking chapeau...

...It's the luxe life for me!


I should say that it's the luxe life ON THE CHEAP.  This whole outfit cost me less than $50.00, I think.  That's including my makeup.  I mean, really, I got the hat for $8.00--that's just crazy talk--and the faux fur wrap was a gift.  Ahhhh thrifting...

*Sidenote:  I think I figured out why that hat had been marked down to so cheap in the second-hand shop.  It's a vintage designer hat, but you need to wear it tipped on an angle.  My guess is that no-one ever figured that out when they were trying it on and just put it on straight.  It looks dreadful when you just set it straight on top of your head, but it's absolute magic when you tilt it a bit!

Before we part ways for the weekend, I want to share some big news:
I am (and what I mean by "I am" is mostly "my hat is") going to be FEATURED ON ANOTHER BLOG.  I'm am so excited/flattered/honored/generally PUMPED about the invitation (it's my first)!

Watch for my hat on Kathleen's blog, That's a Pretty Hat

While you're waiting anxiously for my cameo (heh heh), make sure you give her blog the good once over (at least)!  She is a lovely person with great style sense, and her blog is devoted to inspiring the wearing of hats, a message I fully endorse!   
Let's bring hats back, people!  Who's with me?


Hat: thrifted || Sweater: thrifted || Skirt: old || Pumps: thrifted || Faux Fur Wrap: gift || Gloves: gift

Thank you, Google Translate.    >_<;;;;    <--chagrin face.  I'm such a cheater.

NYFW Outfit Day 4


I had a tricky situation on hand this particular evening: I needed an outfit to go straight from church to drinks with friends at a casual pub.
Conclusion?  Skinnies and a blazer!  Works for everything.


Anna Dello Russo said: "There's nothing sexier than excess."  I decided to rock that vibe.  My outfit needed sprucing up since I went with all neutral colors, and I wanted to add some kind of trendiness to an otherwise classic look.

Rundown of the bling-bling:

Tiny angel on tip of lapel: gift (it's holding my birthstone) || All gold brooches: thrifted || Silver and Crystal brooch: handed down from my great-grandmother || Watch and Bangle: thrifted || Charm Bracelet: handed down from my grandmother




 Photo cred goes to my little brother.  He's always my best photographer!  :)  I gave him a hard time when he tilted the camera for the above shot, but look how cute it turned out!  Shows what I know, eh?  Thanks, boo!


Jewelry: see above || Skinnies: ELLE for Kohl's || Shoes: Dana Buchannan for Kohl's || Blazer: MaxRave || Scarf: thrifted || Clutch: thrifted || Sunglasses: Target


Thanks for reading!

Michael Kors Spring 2013


Obsessed obsessed OBSESSED with this collection!
It starts with a bang when the opener's shoe comes undone and she champions her walk anyway, ends with a bang when the one-and-only Karlie Kloss smolders up and down the runway like she does, and the collection itself is just FABULOUS!!!  Ladylike silhouettes with primary colors and retro fundamentals...so so so good.  And the menswear is drool-worthy, too!  If only my husband dressed crazy like I do...*le sigh*

Anyway: onto the look I wore for Day 4 of MBFW (And also to the mall...bought the best pants ever from H&M!  I have been looking for my perfect pair of patterned pants [say that 5 times fast...whew], and I finally found them!!!  Watch for them in the near future.).


Look!  SPORTY-CHIC! 
Never thought I'd be able to pull this off, but I think I did!  I got lots of compliments from strangers at the mall, anyway.  That's always the best!  :)  Makes a girl feel all glowy inside...


Also: you can kinda see my nailart in these photos...for a closer look follow me on Instagram (if you want to) and/or Twitter.  @spritzy88 
I'd love to connect with my readers on other levels, too!  I'd be flattered if you go and find me.


This look is one of the simplest I've worn in awhile...I just stole a t-shirt from my hubby's closet and added a detachable collar.  But I think it was the starkness that made it noticeable, you know?  Vast planes of color-blocking (also a fall trend) are pretty eye-catching.



Leave a comment letting me know your reaction to the video of the Michael Kors show that I posted!!!
 
Are you as in love/awe/lust as I am?

Shirt: American Eagle Outfitters || Collar: thrifted || Skirt: old || Shoes: thrifted || Bag: Forever 21 || Watch: Wal*Mart (yyyeah buddy)

Fashion Week Outfit Day 2


So I've noticed I wasn't the only non-New-Yorker celebrating Fashion Week.  :)  This makes me happy. 

It was so much fun to watch the live streaming runway shows...except for looking in the mirror afterwards and getting the rude reminder that not everybody's legs look like that.  *sigh*...hahaha  I may as well get used to it: my length is in my torso, not my legs.  I've got so many new Post-It's of inspiration and design drawings stuck everywhere in my apartment, it looks like an office-supply store exploded in there!  There are some shows I keep watching again and again...especially Tadashi Shoji and Zac Posen...*sigh* I'm in looooove...


Anyway, dear readers:
What trends did you notice for Spring?  

I noticed--more than anything else--the pin-straight hairDoes this mean I'll need to cook my hair with a flatiron again???  And I didn't see any bangs, but I'm keeping mine!  I don't care that much about trends.
Other things I noticed were: monochromatic outfits (especially in white), which I've always been a fan of, so you'll definitely be seeing me jump on that particular bandwagon (oh, hey! just look at this post!), and the comeback of the delicate dress of which I'm pretty sure many of my faithful readers are already well-aware of my fandom.


So, my Day 2 of Fashion Week Look.  :)
Kinda more city-slicker than I usually wear (except if I actually was walking around downtown NY I'm pretty sure I'd get a few blisters from these shoes).
This look combines my favorite color (I'll give you one guess as to which color it is), layers, menswear, and geometry: all of which are style fetishes of mine.  AND it's comfortable!  Almost too good to be true!


Finally, a photo that makes me look as tall as I am!  I'm 5'9", but I've
noticed it's hard to show that without a proper photographer.
You'll be seeing a post every day this week, because I've got a few MBFW outfits stockpiled.  :)  Hope you enjoy!


kisses goodbye (for now)
 Coat: an oldie but a goodie || Shirt: thrifted || Shorts: thrifted || Necklace: thrifted || Bag: thrifted || Shoes: thrifted || Sunnies: Target