It's Pinspired Friday {Look for Less #2}

It's Pinspired Friday! TGIF!

Taylor Swift seems to be able to pull off just about any look, especially those highly polished, preppy and pretty looks. This one popped up on my Pinterest feed, and I was inspired to find the look for less. :)

The site the image came from didn't come with the price tag for that outfit, but it's safe to say it's probably not under $100. My version just happens to be! Of course, take it with a grain of salt - my prices don't include shipping, taxes, etc. Get Taylor Swift's look for only $71.99.

Look for Less #2 by hargrovk featuring black sunglasses

Black dress
genuine-people.com - $17

City Classified black shoes
lulus.com - $18

ALDO black purse
aldoshoes.com - $25

Black sunglasses
lucluc.com - $8.99

Moisturizing lipstick
eyeslipsface.com - $3

It's Pinspired Friday {Look for Less}

Ever since I joined Pinterest, I've had a "My Style Board." I've pinned a lot of different looks, and it's been fun to work with what I got to switch up my style. I've learned new ways to wear things, and it's definitely helped me get outside my comfort zone and try patterns and styles I may not have tried before.

I've had this look pinned for 2 years, according to Pinterest (wow!) and yes, it's Kim Kardashian. There is very few things that she wears that I would wear, but this look looked so comfortable and easy to dress up and down, that I knew I had to pin it. It also gives me a new way to wear army green without looking like I joined the army.

I looked through a few places online to gather the pieces for this outfit, and I tried to stick to places that were easily accessible and most of all, affordable. The best part about this outfit is that you probably already have a few of the pieces!

Forever 21 short sleeve tee
forever21.com - $3.80

Charlotte Russe ankle strap shoes
charlotterusse.com - $24.50

Charlotte Russe zip pouch
charlotterusse.com - $29.99

Charlotte russe
charlotterusse.com - $1.99

Stoosh One-Button Long-Sleeve Blazer - jcpenney
jcpenney.com - $24.99

jcp™ Cropped Pants - jcpenney
jcpenney.com - $19.99

Amazon.com: Fashion Jewelry - KNIT BALL FRINGE RUFFLE SCARF- By...
amazon.com - $27.00



Before shipping, taxes, and all of that good stuff, you can get the entire look for $132.26! And you can't beat those aviators for $1.99... :) I think I might have to give this look a try soon!

Got a look you want for less? Send it to me or leave it in a comment and I'll find it for you!

It's Pinspired Friday! {A New Style}

TGIPF! It's Pinspired Friday!

So, I have a relatively large announcement regarding life outside of the blog... I've accepted my first full-time job with a local advertising agency. I am SO happy. I went to school for and graduated with a B.S. in Advertising and it's been a lifelong dream to work in an agency. Needless to say, I'm on cloud nine. 

So what does that mean for this blog?

I have no plans to abandon the blog! Will I still have time to do every Friday still and a post sometime earlier in the week? I'm not sure yet. You may just start seeing many more crockpot meals and recipes. ;)

---------------------------------------------------

So in light of the recent development in my career, today I am touching on office attire. I definitely have some dressy clothes in my closet, but I thought I would share what I'm slowly grasping:

You need basics.

Who would have guessed, eh? I have this fantastic ability to purchase shirts and forget about my bottom half because it's boring. So I have a wonderful selection of bright shirts or "exciting" shirts, but very few cardigans, pants or skirts that are just basic. Is basic boring? I am learning it doesn't have to be. And people prefer if you wear pants in public, so...

I have a collection on my "My Style Pinboard" on Pinterest that I've been collecting forever, it seems, and a lot of my styles I've "collected" have the following basics:

Patterned Skirt	Black Skirt
From Outfitposts.blogspot.com	From Cleo.Ca
Grey/Dark Grey Skirt	Navy Skirt
From Outfitposts.blogspot.com	From Hello-Gorgeous-Blog
Khaki Skirt	Bright Colored Skirt
From Polyvore	From Hello-Gorgeous-Blog

So now that we've got six basic colored skirts, we'll want the same in dress pants. You can start to see in even just those five images, if you've got the basics, you can change around the tops easily to make them work with the other colored skirts too! It's worth noting having basic shoes: black pumps, tan/brown pumps, black flats and camel/brown flats go with everything too. You can throw some sandals or sandal heels in there too.

So now we need pants:

Navy Pants	Grey Pants
From Simplyme091909	From outfitposts.blogspot.com
Colored Pants	Black Pants
The Streetstyle Tumblr	Unknown Source
NICE Jeans	Khaki Pants
From SimplyMe091909	From Polyvore

Get the idea? I finally am. I need basics and the rest will come. Grab a cardigan using the same basic formula (black + tan + navy + patterned + colorful + grey) and you can easily layer and make a great looking outfit.

Next, you need accessories.

Some offices may be more or less stringent on what is appropriate. I always tend to stick with more traditional styles when it comes to accessories like purses so that it matches with everything, but I may have more exciting earrings or necklaces. If you can balance a more traditional accessory like a purse with crazy shiny earrings, you'll look more put together and avoid my biggest fear - look like you're trying TOO hard to love every trend.

Basic Semi-Exciting Studs	More Exciting Earrings
From Anthropologie	From FashionDivaDesign
More Traditional Necklace	More Exciting Necklace
From MaxandChloe.com	From Luulaa
More Traditional Purse	More Exciting Purse
From Toryburch.com	From JustFab.com

So there are just a few tips and tricks that I am learning! I am excited to have the chance to wear more office appropriate attire and of course, to be an asset to a company that does what I've always wanted to do.

Have any tricks or tips when it comes to office attire, or heading into a new position? Thanks for reading! Have a great weekend!

It's Pinspired Friday! {Sweet Potato Shepherd's Pie}

Happy Friday all! It's Pinspired Friday!

Let's talk about healthy dinners today. Dinners are one of those things that can be completely based on mood. You know what is nice sometimes? Getting your cooking out of the way so that tomorrow, you can reheat and still have an awesome meal that doesn't taste reheated. In fact, I completely recommend that you make this one a day before you want to eat it and then don't touch it until tomorrow. It's kind of like a pan of lasgana - better the next day, as it gives all of the flavors time to settle and come together (or so they tell me, I hate lasgana. haha!) But really. Make this one today and eat it tomorrow. When it comes time to figure out what to make tomorrow for dinner... you'll thank me. ;)

It all started when I ran across this recipe from Skinnytaste.com.

http://www.skinnytaste.com/2012/11/sweet-potato-turkey-shepards-pie.html

I was able to modify her original recipe to get rid of all of the dairy, and also to modify it more with what I usually have in the pantry and freezer (I can't say I ever have parsnips!), and it still tastes great!

So let's gather our ingredients. This will make plenty for two people.

• 2 small sweet potatoes/yams
• 3 tablespoons of minced garlic - I use the kind that is in a jar, it saves a bit of time.
• 1 3/4 cup of chicken broth
• 1 lb of ground turkey
• 1 tsp of olive oil
• Onion powder
• 10 oz of mixed vegetables. I use the green bean, corn, carrot, and pea mix from Meijer.
• 2 tbsp of flour
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 tsp rosemary
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Optional: paprika

Preheat your oven to 400.

Get a pot of salted water going until boiling, you'll want enough water to completely cover your sweet potato chunks. Add 1/4 cup of chicken broth to the water and 1 1/2 tablespoons of minced garlic. Peel and chop your sweet potatoes, and add the sweet potatoes to the boiling water. Cook until soft, about 20-25 minutes. Drain and mash. Sprinkle a little salt and pepper over your sweet potato mash, set aside. I usually mash right in the colander and let it sit in there until it's needed again.

This is the garlic I use!

In the same pan you used for the sweet potatoes, cook your ground turkey until browned, season with salt and pepper. Once cooked, drain and set aside on plate.

In that same pot, add your olive oil and saute the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoon of minced garlic with a generous amount of onion powder. Saute for a few minutes, until some garlic pieces brown. Add your flour, salt and pepper (yes, this recipe takes quite a bit of both), remaining 1 1/2 cup of chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce, and rosemary. Mix well. Add your frozen vegetables and cooked turkey, mix. Let simmer for 5-7 minutes.

While the mixture is simmering, spray a 2.5L glass dish with cooking spray or oil of your choice. After the mixture has simmered, add the mixture to the bottom of the dish, and top it with the sweet potatoes.

You can add paprika here if you want, but I leave it out. Bake for 15 minutes. Let it cool for 10 minutes or so, then put tinfoil on top of the entire pan and put it in the refrigerator. Enjoy... tomorrow! :) You can eat it the same day, but I prefer the taste the next day.

I hope you enjoyed this recipe! :) It's nice to be able to modify something to your tastes and what you have in your pantry, AND have it taste great.

Share it with your friends! Thank you for following along and have a great weekend!

It's Pinspired Friday! {"Heaven is a Little Closer in a Home by the Lake" Quote Pillow Tutorial}

I've got an easy decor piece for you today! It's Pinspired Friday!

My in-laws came over last weekend to visit and my mother-in-law and I went over to the local store to grab a few things. One of the things we ran across was this super cute pillow in a beautiful french ticking fabric with a great quote on it:

From Uptowncountryhome.com - Not the exact one (the one I saw was about 10" x  10" and had blue ticking) but close

And I was smitten - until I just about fell over from the price tag... $24.99! So I quickly put (really quickly, haha) it back down and walked away. It hit me a few days later... I could really easily make something just like that! And you can too! :)

So while the pillow wasn't "Pinspired", I wasn't sure how to cleanly get a quote on fabric without painting or using a stencil... so off to Pinterest I went. A lot of sites said that using paper, spray adhesive, and an inkjet printer was the way to go... but I didn't have any spray adhesive. Then in the comments section of one of the sites, someone mentioned that using freezer paper was a better method... and that I did have. Because I already had the fabric, freezer paper, inkjet printer, and sewing machine, the cost for this project was free. Much better than $24.99 for something very similar!

Want to make your own? You'll need:
• Freezer paper (not wax paper)
• Fabric (if you're making a small pillow like mine, you'll need two pieces at 8.5"x11" each.)
• Polyfiber or other pillow filler

You'll also want:
• An inkjet printer (not laser)
• A sewing machine
• An iron

If you're making your own quote, you'll want to download the font "Bebas Neue" from Dafont.com.
If you want my quote, I'm sharing it in .PDF format with you lovelies :) (but please do not abuse this and use for profit... please only use for your personal use.) Document Here

A quick rundown if you're making your own quote:
• Change the layout to "landscape" so the paper is horizontal.

• You'll want to set your margins to 1" all around.
• Change your font to Bebas Neue
• Center your quote on the page


• Play with the spacing on your quote until you find what you think looks best. Mine was a combination, line by line spacing so the quote would have that block quote look. I believe it ranged from 10 pts to 16 pts.
• My font size was 77. You may need to adjust yours according to how long your font is.

Now back to if you're going to use the quote I provided...
Open the quote .PDF in Adobe Reader or other similar program. Get your inkjet hooked up if it's not already.

Pick out your fabrics. Each piece has to be 8.5"x11". You may find that tracing a piece of paper is helpful.

Cut out your freezer paper to 8.5"x11". You'll have one side that feels "sticky" or waxy, and the other side will feel like paper.

Iron your fabric out so it's not wrinkly, and after the fabric is smooth, place the freezer paper waxy side down on the fabric. Iron the paper side, which will activate the waxy part and stick to your fabric.

Cut around the fabric around the freezer paper. Try not to fray the fabric as you don't want it to get stuck in your printer. Leave your iron on (but don't forget about it! :) because you'll need it later.

Your setup might be different, of course, but load your fabric/freezer paper into your inkjet. Mine loads up top and shoots out the bottom. Once again, yours might be different, but I had the fabric facing out towards me and it printed right on the fabric. If it accidentally prints on the paper and not the fabric, reload the other way and try again.

Let it sit for about ten minutes before touching it. Luckily, my inkjet dries pretty fast, but I wanted it to have enough time to cure. While this is going on, iron your back of the pillow fabric if you have not already done so.

I love how crisp the lettering looks on the fabric!

Now that your quote is dry, and your back fabric ironed, trace your top fabric onto your back fabric so you have two same sized pieces if you have not already cut both pieces ahead of time.

If your back fabric has a right side and a wrong side, make sure your right sides are facing in (the side you'd want to see when the pillow is turned inside out after sewing the sides) and pin.

I used the zipper foot so I could get a 1/4" seam allowance. Sew the two long sides and one of the short sides. Trim your two corners.

Turn your pillow inside out. Flip the open edges under about 1/4" and iron the entire pillow (I ironed over the letters with no problem). Head back to your sewing machine...

Top stitch around the three sides again, leaving the pressed under side open. Stuff your pillow with polyfiber and then pin it closed so that you can topstitch that open side, so don't overstuff your pillow as it will make the quote hard to read and it will be a pain to try and close that side with the machine. Top stitch the open side to close the pillow and...

You've got a very cute quote pillow! The finished size is about 7.5" x 10", so not very large but a nice little decorative piece. And yes, it's easier to read in real life... the picture distorted it a little, haha. I imagine you could probably do something similar with an 11"x17" piece too!

And here is the back!

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial. Do you have a special quote you're going to use? Tell me all about it! I'd love  to see what you create. See you next week, have a great weekend!

I'm linking up to these linky parties!

The Brambleberry Cottage Linky Party  French Country Cottage Linky Party