polo.

First, I'd like to start by apologizing for not blogging more frequently. I intended to post over the weekend, but with my hectic schedule I ended up not having any spare time. In fact, this will be a short and quick post because I honestly don't have much time now either.

the polo shirt.

This simple wardrobe staple is often overlooked, but very practical for just wearing to school over a skirt. Having had to wear a uniform to school for most of my life, I can honestly say that I grew to hate polos. So this morning when I woke up and decided to pull out an old polo and pair it with a skirt - the same concept behind my old school uniform - I'm not really sure what I was thinking.

However, when you're not confined to the restrictions of having to wear it with an itchy navy polyester skirt and a matching sweater, it becomes a lot more fun.

I just layered my polo over a lacey cami, leaving it unbuttoned and paired it with a simple a-line mini.

I have to say switching from summer clothes to school clothes has been, and still is, a challenge, but after the first week of school the realization that summer really is over has set in.

How's everyone else's school outfits? Leave me a comment!

xo,

laura

After a Day of Shopping...

Today I set out on a mission: to find a dress for the first day of school. Simple enough. To make it just a bit more challenging, it had to be semi-casual, no shiny fabrics or glitter and sequins, and be around $30 or less. Instead, the first store I walked into I came out with a hat and no dress. However, I managed to get the angora hat for 5 bucks. Exciting!

I also got a pair of Tahari pumps. Unfortunately, they cost a bit more than my hat and were the most expensive thing I bought today at $40, but still not too bad, all things considered. I put them on and my feet were in heaven, probably the most comfortable heels I've ever had. They're a lot lower than most of my heels, and therefore perfect for walking around all day at school.

The dress I ended up settling on only set me back $11.50. I was expecting to see around a $20 pricetag so I was pleasantly surprised.

These shoes were another amazing find, only $7 and also very comfortable.

For this winter, I've decided I want to play more with tights. They make my short skirts look longer for school, and they're perfect for the cold weather. These pair just so happened to be argyle, and I think they're pretty fun, though I dislike how they make my legs look larger.

Goodbye short shorts and summer, hello tights and winter (err, fall/autumn). Unfortunately for me, my school starts next week and there's not much Summer left - but at least it means fun new fall clothes!

The Search for a New Bedroom

Yesterday (Yesterday?! It was yesterday?! The days are going by so slowly..) I went on a hunt for bedroom furniture. I've been wanting to re-design my bedroom for years, and a few years ago I even sketched some possible new layouts, but nothing ever happened. My bedroom is so plain and boring that I try to spend as little time in here as possible, and I want to change that.

So here's some photos from my furniture hunt :] (I forgot to mention - after my trip last week I forgot to re-charge my camera and I left my memory card in my laptop, so these photos were taken with my cell phone)

This was the first bed I saw - I hadn't seen that sort of border on a bed before and I actually really like it.

I love this bed. I really love this bed. This photo is awful and doesn't do the piece justice, but basically it's surrounded by that border all the way around, and the headboard is made out of two giant "cushions" that look like the back of a couch, they're movable, so that one that you see on the side there is actually part of the headboard. The only problem is that this bed is disproportionately large compared to my room.

This is another nice one, it's simple but still has a touch of originality. However, after seeing the previous one, it just felt like another boring bed.

Cute coffee table

In theory, I would like this bed. It's low to the ground and incredibly cushy. However I think the idea was implemented badly, as the border looks saggy and cheap. But that's very far from the truth - it was actually rather pricey, as was everything else in that store. Nice stuff, though

I love this bed. It's sleek and modern, and imported from Italy. It, unfortunately, also was from the same store as the previous bed and cost a fortune.

Okay so this isn't exactly furniture. But it was in the kids' room at the Ethan Allen showroom and I thought that was pretty cool. I'm definitely not a mac/apple girl, but I can appreciate that the apple II was one of the first personal computers.

Skipping Down the Streets of Rome

I know that one of the worst things you could do when starting a blog is to abandon it for a month - something that unfortunately it looks like I've done. Between being in Italy, going to a No Doubt concert (this was a big deal to me, because I've adored No Doubt since I was a little girl), and the NJCL convention I haven't had the time to post. But now I'm back, and yesterday I I spent the day resizing some of my photos from Rome so I could upload them to flickr - check out my photostream here. This is my first time experimenting with flickr, so I'm still figuring it out.

The photo you see above is the sign for Via Condotti - the most prestigious street for shopping in Rome. I spent hours browsing through the luxurious designer boutiques, drooling over the gorgeous shoes, handbags, and clothes. Especially the shoes. If you haven't noticed yet, I love shoes. Which brings me to showing you some of the exquisite shoes I saw in these amazing boutiques. This specific pair is from Valentino - I always knew them for their gorgeous gowns, but I never really stopped to look at their shoes, and I was pleasantly surprised.

Ooh, pretty! These are also from Valentino.

Versace slides on sale. For those of you, who like me, love expensive designer items, but aren't willing to pay full price, there are lots of 'outlets' around Rome. These are different than the outlets I'm used to in the States - they're not for a single brand like the Coach outlet, but they're also not like Nordstrom Rack or Saks off Fifth. The products come from lots of different stores, and they're from big brands. It's definitely an experience digging through all of the clothes attempting to find something spectacular for a reasonable price. However, be warned because the items are still pricey, though significantly cheaper than retail.

I do apologize for the bad angles and lighting in the photos, as I was trying to take them quickly before I was told to put my camera away, or the battery died. In fact, in the Gucci store I was told to put my camera away, and my battery did die before I got to Dolce & Gabanna.