Vintage Fashion Journal Giveaway Entry

Hello Everybody!

Frivolous Mrs. D is giving away a beautiful vintage fashion journal at her blog and as all of you know, I am a sucker for all things book related. Books are just a sensory treat for me. I get completely caught up in the smell and feel of the paper. The words and illustrations are just dreamy to me. When I walk into a bookstore, don't even bother talking to me because I'm already lost in all the possibilities. I have a small but spectacular collection of journals that I use for multiple purposes and this journal would complement them beautifully!

Seriously, look at this thing...

Can we just play spot the things I love for a second? 

A Vintage Beauty? Check

Knitting? Check

Umbrella? Check

Glasses? Check

Teapots? Check

Anchors? Check

Fashion Odds and Ends? Check

This would be the ideal journal for jotting down my fashion and lifestyle blog ideas, as I am getting them and forgetting them constantly! 

Wish me luck!

More and More Tights!

Earlier this week I took the boys to the doctor's and I thought it was the perfect opportunity to try out some more tights! (I got lots of compliments from the nurses on this outfit)

Dress: Motherhood Maternity, Sweater: JCPenney's, Belt: Target, Tights: We Lover Colors, Bag: Target, Boots: Payless, Necklace: Gift (thanks Andy!)

Dress - Approx. $50 - approximate current cost per wear - $8.33

Sweater - $17 - accpw- $5.67

Belt - Approx. $15 - accpw - $0.06

Tights - $15 - accpw - $15

Boots - Approx. $18 - accpw - $2.14

Bag -  Approx. $15 - $0.04

Necklace - Gift- N/A

Outfit Total ACCPW - $31.24

I was very pleased with this outfit. This dress is actually a maternity dress that I purchased for my portfolio show at school. I only wore it twice while I was pregnant because, with a 7 month pregnant belly, it was just too short. After I had Hudson, I discovered how adorable the dress was belted at the waist and now it is a regular rotation in my closet. 

While I was out, I kept thinking about the yellow tights, and when I got home I thought it might be fun to do a side-by-side comparison to see which I like better.

Hudson is wearing embroidery hoops around his neck, just fyi.

I think both outfits have their merits. What do you think?

(a little teaser, there will be some DIY project posts coming up. I'm so excited to show you all what I have going on!)

To My Dearest Love...

(This post has a soundtrack. Please play this video while reading. Thanks)

Dear Fall,

My heart may take flight at the thought of beach days and lemonade. I might embrace the new life of budding trees, sprouting grass, and thunderstorms. I may even get nostalgic for waking up to a new, crystal blanket of snow on the world, hot cocoa, and Christmas. But you, Fall, I can't live without you. I wait with baited breath all year long for the turning of the leaves, the vibrant blue skies, the crisp air you can almost taste. I watch for the change in weather like a puppy watching for his master to come home. The first pumpkin I see makes the taste of pumpkin pie tease along my tongue. As soon as I feel that first chill, that first fall wind that glides along my skin and heralds the beginning of autumn, I feel like I have come home.

Your Admirer,

Noelle

Phew! I have been feeling so in love with fall, lately, I just had to get those overly romantic thoughts about fall out of my head.

So, just a quick photo of me and my oldest friend, Andy in our awesome fall outfits. We had a play date with the boys and our pants were almost the same color! Also, check out his chambray shirt, which he was inspired to wear by my holiday fancies outfit. (making waves, y'all!)

We Love Colors!

As fall settles in, let's discuss one of my favorite fall staples. Tights! As I was evaluating my wardrobe, I decided the most cost effective thing to do was pick up a few pairs of tights to wear with my spring/summer dresses and skirts. Unfortunately, I have had terrible luck with tights in the past, when buying them at random mall stores. I have spent upwards of $20 dollars on tights that only came in black and gray, and would rip the first or second wear. In addition, I have always lusted after brightly colored tights, but, I just couldn't find them anywhere. 

Enter, We Love Colors. I have heard great things about them and with 51 different colors of tights and leggings how could you not at least take a peek? They have multiple kinds of tights and leggings in all types of sizes that come in 51 colors! I had to mentally hold my self back from buying a hundred pairs. But, I thought about the colors of my dresses and skirts and trimmed it down to these four pairs; gold, maroon, gray, and brown.

Jacket, Forever 21, Dress, (similar) Old Navy, Tights, We Love Colors, Belt, (similar) Torrid, Flats, Steve Madden

From this point on, I am going to break down my outfits by the original cost of each piece, the estimated cost per wear of each piece, and the estimated cost per wear of the whole outfit. I am doing this to give myself, and everyone else, a better idea of what I save on and what I splurge on. The idea is, the less I spend on it, the more I wear it, the better I do!

Dress - $19.99 - Estimated current cost per wear - $3.33

Jacket - approx $23 (I used a discount code )- eccpw-$7.66

Belt - 3 pack at $24.50 - approx $8.16 - eccpw- $1.02

Tights - $15-eccpw-$15

Flats - $48.93 (with s&h) - eccpw - $3.26

Total - $30.28

I love this outfit to pieces. The denim jacket you have seen, but oh the dress! Chartreuse is one of those perfect colors to me. It's bright, and fun. Plus, it complements my skin tone very well. I just cannot get enough of it! I know a lot of people find it overwhelming, but not me! Although, I do have to laugh because the tag says "wash with like colors." But, back to the outfit! I wore this to the park with the boys and never worried once about snagging the tights. They are thick and warm and should definitely get me through the season. I can't wait to try out the gold!

Anyone else excited about tights this fall? What are your favorite colors to wear?

Style Imitating Art Entry

I recently stumbled across a blog collaboration called, Style Imitating Art, in which a few bloggers pick a piece of art and ask people to send in pictures of outfits inspired by the art. I think that this is just the greatest idea ever! When I get dressed in the morning I always follow inspirations from books, movies, music, or activities I will be doing that day. I often think of it as a costume I am donning to play a character. So, when I found this challenge I thought it would be amazing to stretch my creativity!

The art they had selected this time around was the Caves of Lascaux. I was immediately inspired by the cave paintings, which are said to be somewhere between 15,000 and 30,000 years old.

I immediately started going through my closet and this is what I came up with!

When I thought about the art, the words that came to mind were primitive, functional, and tone-on-tone. When putting my outfit together, I created something that was comfortable and combined form and function. I used different shades of browns and textures and materials that were reminiscent of the animals portrayed in the paintings. Then, of course, I had to add my dose of humor with the necklace. I wore this in my last post and dubbed it my "fruity pebbles necklace" which, is perfect for an outfit inspired by cave paintings!

Do any of you dress based on inspirations? What inspirations do you use?

Hudson's First Birthday!

Yesterday was my littlest love's first birthday! He had an awesome day. We had a small celebration for him with just our closest family and lots of birthday fun ensued! He devoured a cupcake and a scoop of ice cream and opened a ton of presents, which he knew exactly how to open. I did everything on a budget so I wanted to share a few of my tips with you!

Tip #1 that I learned from favorite teacher in college, "beg. borrow, and steal!"

My family and I were part of the Light the Night Walk, which is a fundraiser for blood cancers. The night of the walk was a week before Hudson's birthday and (as usual) the Mettilles were hanging out long after everyone else left. Lucky for me, the vendors started handing out the leftover food and I scooped up a box of cupcakes and froze them until Wednesday! I bought a cheap pack of cupcake toppers and wrappers and tada, birthday cupcakes!

Tip #2, everything can be re-purposed!

I made it my mission not to buy any wrapping paper. This is quite a feat for me since I am a huge sucker for good packaging. But, I researched cheap wrapping options and prepared ahead of time. I saved all the brown packing paper from any packages I had received, collected used tissue paper, stole a ball of twine from my mom (beg, borrow, and steal!), and pulled the sparkly, fuzzy string off an old, dollar store Christmas ornament. I just wrapped the presents in the packing paper, cut the tissue paper into strips and layered it under the twine and string bows to add a pop of color. I didn't pay a dime for this wrapping and it has all the right elements; color, texture, and shine!

I avoided using a ton of paper wrapping the puppet theater box by putting it together the night before and tying a huge bow on it with cellophane. I just happened to have a roll of cellophane laying around the house, but you could use anything really. Might I suggest bubble wrap? That would be totally awesome and the kid might like it more than the present!

Shirt, OneStopPlus.com, Sweater, (similar, but originally from Target) Ebay, Skirt, Old Navy, Belt, (similar) Target, Boots, (similar) Payless

I am a huge fan of what I call, "holiday fancies." Which, are what you wear on special occasions, such as, birthdays or holidays. I think it is important to convey the significance of an event through your clothes. Your appearance effects your attitude and your attitude effects your day. If you are wearing your cozies at Thanksgiving, it's gonna feel like any other crummy day. So, if it's a fancy day wear your fancy clothes!

 I L-O-V-E my chambray shirt. I wasn't a believer right away, but, after I saw how versatile they were, I knew I needed one in my closet. I layered it under a sweater vest and belted it with my faaaaaavorite belt (seriously, this belt goes with everything, and I love the vintage feel of it). I am not sure if I am thrilled with the fruity pebble necklace though. It's an antique and I love the colors so it should be a big win but it's short and chunky and so is my neck. So, when I am wearing it it looks like it's choking me. Boo. But, I liked the way it just peeked out from under the shirt. Plus, it was a special occasion so, I needed a little sparkle!

It eventually got to hot in the house though, so, I took off the sweater. Still cute.

Here's the birthday boy modeling his holiday fancies! I adore this fair isle sweater from Gap. I bought it on sale, and it was still a bit of a splurge, but the fabric is so soft!

OOTD--Going Out to Play

Blazer, (similar) Torrid, Jeans, Torrid, T-Shirt, Target, Boots, (similar) Payless

This is an outfit I put together to take my boys out to play. It was a little chilly so I tossed my blazer on over a t-shirt. I love blazers because they are comfortable and instantly add polish to any outfit. I especially love the pop of "barney" purple under the blazer because it adds just the right dose of fun. I paired it with my favorite pair of broken-in skinny jeans that I have worn to death. They were a dark denim once but have faded into a nice warm blue that I find works well with my comfortable and casual outfits.

Playing baseball!

Missed!

Sawyer is wearing an awesome motorcycle jacket that I found at a consignment shop. Everyone falls in love with the smiley face skull on the back. The label says Amy Coe, although I couldn't really find many places that actually carry her clothes. Also, he is totally rocking his nazy converse shoes, which he calls his "kicks."

Baby Hudson is wearing an adorable cardigan from Target and a pair of soft leather robeez. I bought them off Ebay for about a quarter of the price, and even though they are way too big, they work perfectly and I adore the tennis shoe look.










And can I just add...YAY FALL CLOTHES!

OOTD - Denim and Lace

I apologize right off the bat for the terrible pictures. It was already dark out so I had to use my flash, which never looks good. I attempted to snazz them up a little bit with a photo editor to help with the bad coloring. Also, I had my husband take them,which I knew might be regrettable. One time, I asked him to take pictures of Easter and I wound up with 20 crooked pictures of my dog's shadow on the lawn. But I don't think he did too bad with these.

Dress (similar) Torrid, Jacket, Forever 21, Shoes, Steve Madden, Bag, Target

This is a really great transitional outfit from summer to fall. I get tons of compliments on this lace maxi dress and it is currently one of my favorite pieces in my wardrobe. I am wearing it as much as possible before it gets too cold! I just got this cropped denim jacket from Forever 21 to wear over my summer dresses and it was a great deal. The cropped look is good for me since I am short and I have a classic case of "Mettille Torso." Which, means my legs are short and my torso is uncomfortably long. I'm really liking the maxi dress and cropped jacket combo because it makes my short frame look almost statuesque.

And the shoes...You might be seeing these shoes a lot because I tend not to buy a lot of shoes or jewelry. It's not that I don't love them, because I do, I just use up all my money on clothes before I get to accessories. I'm trying to work on it though! Anyway, these shoes are new and quite loverly. They are the perfect staple shoe I was looking for when starting my fall clothes shopping. I do have my eye on a few pairs of shoes with fun colors and prints though! Let's see if I can make that happen! I hope you liked my first OOTD!

Hello World!

This is my first attempt at a blog so please bear with me! I am a brand new stay-at-home with a love for everything beautiful. I love fashion. I love interior design. I love art. I love literature. I am constantly in battle with my bank account to keep my life full of the beautiful pieces that I feel define me. I want this blog to be about how I make it all work.

My children are very important to me and I have a background in Early Childhood Education so I would also love to share some of my thoughts on toys, children's clothes, and activities, as well. Some people overlook these things but they are all a part of my life and I try to keep everything meaningful, tasteful, and significant.

Right now, in my life, I am coming to grips with trying to put together a fall wardrobe without any money! I received my last paycheck on Friday and need a significant portion of it for my son's first birthday and Christmas. Because of these lack of funds, I have been doing a lot of window shopping and I have fallen in love with leather skirts. Let's be clear about this...I NEED ONE! Since, I am plus-sized, on trend pieces are very rare to find at a decent price. But I have found a place that custom makes leather skirts for under a hundred dollars! I am drooling over the petal skirt and the button up skirt. I love that you can get them in so many different colors. I am definitely contemplating the yellow. My husband is skeptical about this being a necessary expense, though, So for now I will just have to settle with dreaming.

Need Leather Skirt! by noelle-lynn-mettille featuring we love colors

rag & bone knit sweater / Neon top / Rebecca Taylor leather skirt / We Love Colors / Kelly & Katie black shoes