A big THANK YOU! to all that took the time to vote for their most favorite outfit worn on M/W during Spring Semester 2013. So, without further ado, here is the winner:

This outfit won by a landslide!  In fact, everyone except for myself voted for this outfit.  Either that means that you all really liked it, or you really disliked your other choices!  Regardless, I do like this outfit.  It is so simple, yet appropriate.

Now that we have accomplished the easy task of selecting the least favorite and most favorite outfits for M/W of Spring 2013, it is time to turn our attention to T/TR outfits.  This is going to be considerably harder since there are twice as many choices.  Just like last time, I have taken the liberty of narrowing your choices down to 5 options and we will start with your LEAST FAVORITE outfit.  That means you are voting for the one that you dislike for this first round.

Click here to vote!  (Don’t delay, this poll will close in a few days.)

-Carla

Every week, my BF and I go through our work schedules and pick a night to be “date night.” For a long time, it was always the same night of the week and we never had to question or second-guess. But, then my work and school schedule changed and for a bit we lost our date night. This past Spring semester I usually had off two or three week nights and so date night could potentially be any one of them.

Generally, it was on Wednesday or Thursday–depending on which nights we were working out and I wanted to make dinner at home. But, this past week I worked on Friday morning instead of Friday night. That meant that my BF and I had the opportunity to go out on a Friday night! A real date night–just like other people.

We planned to go see The Great Gatsby movie and then have dinner afterwards. I was nervous about seeing the movie. As soon as I heard that they were making a movie I wanted to see it, hands down. But, then I discovered that Baz Luhrman was directing it and I got worried. I loved his treatment of Moulin Rouge, but I really wanted to love The Great Gatsby and I was just worried that he might take it somewhere that I wouldn’t want it to go.

But, I am so happy and relieved to say that I thoroughly enjoyed it. Afterwards, we went to dinner at Applebee’s. It wasn’t bad, but I would have liked to go somewhere else for out fancy date night. Oh well. I wanted to wear something that would be comfortable to watch a movie and have dinner, but I still wanted to get sort of dressed up to give proper due to our “real date night.”

Blue cardigan: Target. Printed tank top: Target. Blue and Gold earrings: Target. Dark jeans: JC Penney. Gold watch: Target. Gold necklace: JC Penney. Gold shoes: Payless.

This shirt is so comfortable! It is lightweight and feels so good against my skin. Plus, it has a lot of colors to draw from to help make outfits. And, I just love the subtle ruffle detail at the neckline. I’ve paired it with a royal blue short sleeve cardigan and my blue and gold earrings. I feel like I almost always wear these earrings with this shirt, but it makes me so happy that I almost don’t care! I thought about wearing my turquoise bubble necklace, but I decided not to. It’s hard for me to wear a necklace with this shirt because I feel as if it obscures the detail at the neckline. But, I forced myself to wear a long 3-strand gold necklace. I liked the way that the necklace pulled together the gold in the earrings, the watch, and the shoes.

I made my BF help me pick out shoes to wear with the outfit. I had also tried on nude patent leather wedges, brown strappy heels, and nude pumps. Because it was Friday Night Date Night I felt that I should do something special and wear some heels! Plus, I knew that we wouldn’t be doing much walking at the movie and I could wear some fancy shoes.

What do you think? Is this similar to something that you would wear on a date night? Do you have date night with your significant other? Leave me your comments below.

-Carla

This week I had to go to campus to meet with our Program Coordinator to talk over the details of some work that I am completing for her. We thought that I was going to work on setting up the template for the Summer online classes, but it turns out that we changed the book after summer last year. That means that she has to load all the information into her online class before I could do the setup she wanted me to.

Therefore, what I am actually going to do is some research for the department. She gave me a list of various items to find and read journal articles and then eventually upload them to our resource page so everyone can have access to them.

Even though we are allowed to wear jeans between teaching semesters, I opted not to. I was only going to campus for a an hour or so, and I figured that I could muster the energy to wear something a little nicer. After finding out how much I loved the sleeveless silk button up from Target last week, I went back to see if the shirt came in any other colors or patterns? Guess what? It did! It wasn’t on sale and so I debated whether or not I should purchase it.

As of right now, I may not be assigned to teach a Summer course. If that is the way of things, I have to be very diligent with managing my money. Ultimately, I decided to go ahead and purchase it.

Silk button up: Target. Black ankle pants: Wal-Mart. Silver watch: Fossil. Black ballet flats: unknown. Green earrings: Versona.

The same as last time, it was completely weather appropriate to wear the blouse without anything over top of it, but since I was going to “work” I wanted to be appropriate, and I get cold easily. Therefore, I grabbed my mustard cardigan to throw over top if necessary. I liked the colors together, but I wish that my mustard cardigan wasn’t a boyfriend style, sometimes.

If you haven’t already, take a moment to go here and vote on your FAVORITE outfit worn on M/W Spring 2013. This poll will close very soon and I’ll be adding another one!

-Carla

Thank you to everyone who voted in the poll for the least liked outfit worn on a M/W during Spring Semester 2013. Without further ado, the winner (loser?) is: Maxi with Blazer.

This would not have been my pick!  I thought that this was one of the more successful attempts at making a casual maxi dress both weather and office appropriate.  My vote went for the cream sweater and burgundy pants.  There was something about it that just felt too old for me.  I don’t know if it was the color combination, or what!

Now that we have decided on the least favorite for the semester, I’d like to ask you to get your poll finger ready once again and vote on your FAVORITE outfit worn on M/W during Spring Semester 2013.  I have taken the liberty of narrowing your choices down to 4 outfits.   Please take the poll and encourage all your friends to do so, also– I’d like to have a few more responses than the first poll!

Click HERE to be taken to the poll to vote!

-Carla

I would like to take a moment to wish all the moms out there a Happy Mother’s Day, especially my mom. We won’t be able to spend time together today because we both have to work, but in a few day’s time! In honor of Mother’s Day, this is a 2 for 1 post.

This week was a little out of the norm since it was Exam week. I wore more casual outfits this week than “office wear” and I wanted to share these two casual looks with you. The first one is an outfit that I wore to run some errands and then left on for dinner with my BF. Sometimes I change into yoga pants and a t-shirt when I get home, and every once in a while I try to stay dressed up for my BF!

Turquoise button up: Wal-Mart. Earrings: gift. Purple bubble necklace: Versona. Peacock ring: Dots. Skinny jeans: Target. Purple ballet flats: Target. Gold watch: Wal-Mart.

This is my first, successful, attempt at a “sock bun!”  I didn’t actually use a sock for this one, I used a “bun donut” that I bought at the store.  It works the same way as a sock, though.  I was a little unsure of the sock bun, but since I was just going to do some errands I thought that I would give it a go.  I was o.k. with it after a while.

My bun was starting to fall apart by the time I got home, though, and so I took it out for the evening.  This second outfit is borderline “office wear.” It is something that I could wear teaching, but it is not 100% office-appropriate. It all just depends on the dress code at your job. On Thursday, I had to stop by campus to drop off some papers for a student to pick up and tie up some loose ends.

White cardigan: Target. Purple earrings: gift. Silky printed shirt: Target. Purple pants: Target. Purple peep toe heels: Payless. Gold watch: Target.

This outfit is in the same color palette as the first outfit that I shared with you.  It wasn’t intentional, I guess I was just feeling the cool blues, teals, and purples.  I purchased this shirt a few weeks ago and never tried it on.  Finally, the other day when I straightened up the house I decided to try it on.  I instantly fell in love with this shirt.  The fabric feels amazing– light and ethereal.  And the print is gorgeous!  This is going to be a piece that I will wear often!

Later that night, I changed from the purple pants and heels to a pair of jeans and ballet flats.  The shoes and earrings were still lying about from the day before, so it was easy to just wear both of them again.

I really liked the way that the shirt looks without a completer piece, but I knew that I would be too cold and I wanted to be appropriate for the office.

What do you think of these two casual outfits? How would you style these pieces differently if they were in your wardrobe? And, don’t forget to vote on the first of many polls for assessing the Spring semester!

-Carla

Hi all! I haven’t posted in a few days, but I can assure you that no harm has come to me. I have been taking this week easy. Classes officially ended last week and this week is Exam Week. My students gave their speeches on Tuesday.

I knew that we were going to run over in time, but I didn’t think that we were going to go over by as much as we did and have to switch rooms and everything else. It was sort of a huge debacle and not the way that I wanted to end the semester!

I didn’t take any outfit pictures that day because I spilled coffee on my blouse and I was all sorts of aggravated. Plus, I came home after class to change and grab things that I needed for an afternoon meeting. I also tried to squeeze in a nap, but it didn’t quite work out the way that I had planned!

Anyway. It is time to assess the semester. This means taking an inventory of what I wore to see which pieces are earning their keep and which ones are under-utilized. But, I’d like your help. First, let’s focus on the least successful ensembles. If you take a look at my gallery, I have created 42 outfits. I’m going to do what I did last time and break up my two classes. Because my M/W class only lasted a short time, I only had 14 outfits for those days. I had 28 outfits for T/Tr.

Let’s do the “Worst of” contenders for M/W first. I have narrowed the 14 down to 4 and I would like you to vote!

M/W Least Favorites Poll

You can only vote once and the poll will close on May 14, 2013.  Thanks for your feedback.

-Carla

About a week ago, I updated you on the progress of my New Year’s Resolutions, and stated that I wanted to make some new goals. If you remember from the original post, I had some goals that were for the length of the year, but most of them were things that I wanted to concentrate heavily on for the first few months. I made some of my goals and others I didn’t quite reach. But, here I am with a new set of goals for the second quarter of the year, May-August.

Health, Fitness, and Beauty
Because I didn’t quite make the goal that I set for myself originally, I am making a new goal. I would like to lose the last 3 lbs. that I have been struggling with. I need to re-commit to my working out and diet regime. I was going strong, and then I backed off for a while, and I’ve never fully recommitted to the program.

I want to continue to make drinking water a focus of this health and fitness goal– I think that it helps tremendously. I also want to do something with running. I finished the C25K, and rewarded myself with new kicks, but then I feel like I went backwards. Somehow all the stamina and endurance that I built up vanished. Now, I struggle just to be able to run continuously for 10 minutes. This is not cool! I am thinking about looking for a new program that I can follow. One that allows me to run outside and take advantage of the summer.

And, it’s back to a stricter eating plan. I had upped my allowed calorie intake, but in addition to that I have been allowing myself too many treats and snacks! This is part of what keeps me from reaching my goal. So, this is a re-committment to the habits that will help me reach that weight loss goal. Now, I’m not going to allow myself 4 months to lose 3 lbs– that would be insane! I am going to figure a half pound a week, so I am setting a goal completion date of June 24, 2013. That’s 7 weeks from now.

I’ve been using my new facial brush and keeping you updated with the results. Although I don’t foresee posting updates as frequently, it is something that I want to vow to continue doing. I want to really try to stick to the goal of washing my face twice a day–morning and evening and using the facial brush for one of those cleanings. This is going to take a big effort on my part.

Hobbies
I am going to continue with the goal of reading 13 books by the end of the year, so that means that I need to read about a book a month. More would be fine, less would not be o.k. Before I had the vague goal of “improve this blog” but I never really defined what that meant. Now, I am going to put some qualifiers on that goal.

I want to make weekend posting a goal. I have found that so many bloggers take the weekend off and I think that I could benefit from taking the opposite approach and posting content on the weekend for you all to read. Also, I want to do some work on the “back-end,” so to speak. I need to look into file organization, photo tagging, and all that sort of stuff so that when I want to reference the other ways that I have styled a particular piece of clothing it is an easy task and not a difficult one!

In addition to reading and blogging, I also want to put my effort and energy towards other hobbies that help to make me an interesting person. I have chosen sewing!

Since I purchased my sewing machine several months ago, I have barely used it! That is not o.k. I spent a lot of money on a quality piece of machinery and I should be enjoying it. I have a few projects in mind– curtains for the office, a maxi dress and lace pencil skirt for myself, and perhaps I will finally make my BF the flannel pajama pants I owe him! Regardless of what it is, I want to actually use my sewing machine and find another outlet for my creativity!

Finances
Previously, I stated continue paying on my credit cards and student loans as my goal. But, now I am going to be more specific. I want to pay off 1 of my credit cards by the end of this 4 month period. I also want to continue paying on my other credit card in the process.

Secondly, I want to consolidate my student loans and find a better payment plan. In the meantime, I want to continue paying on them monthly. I have high hopes for paying off my debts so that I can start a savings fund for a wedding and house! EEK.

There they are– my new set of New Year’s Resolutions, or NYR’s Quarter 2. What do you think? Do you have similar goals? Do you make resolutions and then break them before February 1st and then never think about them until the next December 31? Let me know what you think– your comments make my day a little brighter.

Carla

Thursday was my last official class day for Spring 2013! Now all that’s left is an exam at 7:00 AM on Tuesday May 7. Instead of giving a pen and paper test during exam week, I have my students deliver their final speech. I’m not sure that it’s any easier than a pen and paper test, but it helps out with the scheduling for the semester.

Speaking of scheduling, Summer 2013 starts in 29 days. Someone posted a countdown timer on our school website. I don’t really know why, but I find it liberating and depressing at the same time! Summer is supposed to be a time of freedom and a break from school. However, my bills don’t take a summer vacation, so I don’t either!

On Thursday, there was a Spring Fling to celebrate the end of the semester. Since it was a day of celebration, faculty and staff were permitted to wear jeans. Do not adjust your computer monitor– this is not a causal day outfit, it is a teaching outfit!

Coral t-shirt: Target. Jeans: jcpenney. Brown belt: unknown. Tennis shoes: Asics. Silver watch: Fossil.

Here are some of my other “casual day” outfits for school:

Spring Semester 2012

Summer Semester 2012

Fall Semester 2012

There you have it!  I always receive comments from at least one of my students when they see me dressed down, and this semester was no different.  A student said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you wear jeans.”  And then I explained that our dress code prohibits jeans and that it was a special occasion.

-Carla

This article is part 5 of a series. You can read Part 1 here, Part 2 here, and Part 3 here, and Part 4 here.

Day 13 Friday
AM: facial brush as directed followed by Simple light moisturizer with SPF 15
PM: I didn’t quite wash my face, but I did at least take my eye makeup off with Almay Oil-Free eye makeup remover pads.  Then, I swiped my face with an exfoliating wet cleansing cloth.  While I admit that it is not as good as actually washing my face, it is better than nothing!  When I come home at 3 a.m. from working at the bar it can be really hard to take the time properly wash my face.  But, I am determined to work on it and get better!

Day 14 Saturday
AM: facial brush followed by Simple light moisturizer with SPF 15
PM: Ahhh, another late night means cheating at washing my face. Almay Oil-Free eye make remover pads and exfoliating wet cloth. It could be worse, right?

Day 15 Sunday
AM: facial brush followed by repairing lotion (generic version of Proactiv Repairing Treatment.)
PM: YIKES!  Three missed p.m. washes.  I have to put a stop to this and get back on track!  Tonight after work I didn’t even manage to make the measly attempt to take off my eye-makeup or use a cleansing cloth.  I just went to bed with the day’s dirt and oil on my face.

Day 16 Monday
AM: facial brush as directed, followed by Simple Light moisturizer with SPF 15 and a bit of generic Proactiv Repairing lotion on my cheek, nose, and left jaw line.

My face is so incredibly smooth after I use the facial brush–I almost think that it’s a downfall of the system because it’s hard for me to keep my hands off my face, lol!  I can’t believe that it has been 16 days since I started using this system.  I took a picture after I used it this morning, here it is:

And, here is Day 1 side-by-side with Day’s 8 and 16.  What do you think?

Day 17 Tuesday
AM: facial brush followed by Simple Light Moisturizer with SPF 15
PM: I keep vowing to get better at cleansing twice a day, but then I don’t.  Not too happy with myself!

I don’t know, I think that the Day 8 photo looks nearly identical to the Day 16 photo. The only difference that I see is just the healing process of time that blemishes go through. But, as some heal and clear up, they are replaced by others. I guess I just thought that by this point– a little over two weeks, that I would start to see and end to the cycle. I expected to clear up the current blemishes and prevent future ones. But, I think that I have the same amount, just new ones. Do you see anything different than me?

-Carla

Spring Semester 2013 is almost in the books! This is the last official week of classes. Next week is Exam Week and that will be it. I am lucky, this semester my exam is early in the week–Tuesday at 7 a.m. to be exact, and then I am done. I will have a week to calculate and submit final grades and attendance records.

As the semester draws to a close I find myself in a panic because I have so many outfit idea’s and items that I haven’t worn that I want to try to work in. But, I have more outfit idea’s than days of class left! And, on Thursday of this week is the end of the semester party and faculty is allowed to wear jeans. It’s one of the few days that we are allowed to wear jeans in the classroom, so I have a hard time passing up the perk. Plus, I think that it is nice for my students to be able to see me in a different light. I am still thinking about what I want to wear tomorrow. But, let’s not put the cart before the horse.

Yesterday, I wore a new dress that I recently scored at Wal-Mart. I am telling you, something great is going on with the person who buys their merchandise. I have seen a dramatic uptick in the fashionability of their clothes. Either that, or my taste in clothes is dwindling and none of you have had the decency to tell me.

Have you noticed that lace and eyelet is everywhere? It’s totally a 2013 Spring trend. But, you don’t have to take my word for it. Here’s someone else, with more authority, who concurs. Plus, its been all over the stores! My BF fell in love with a few white lace/eyelet dresses the last time I made him go to the mall with me. But, I don’t do white well. Thinking back, he also tried to talk me in to buying a white coat this past Winter–its like he doesn’t even know me!

I digress. I don’t do white well, but I can do orange-y, salmon. And, at $18 I could probably do all of the colors that they offered. But, I was frugal and only bought this one dress.

Black cardigan: Old Navy. Black flowered earrings: Wal-Mart. Orange eyelet dress and belt: Wal-Mart. Silver watch: Fossil. Black pumps: Payless. Silver and black necklace: (not pictured) unknown.

Oooooh!  And, I am doing bare legs.  I know, I know.  Hallelujah, Spring finally sprung here in Northeast Ohio.  I really like this dress.  I am not so sure about the black accessories, though.  I almost feel like it is too much of a contrast for a Spring frock.  I think that the next time I wear this I might try it with a tan belt and nude pumps, or no belt and brown strappy sandals.  Maybe even for a casual date with my BF I could pair it with nude patent wedges, brown ballet flats, or a bronze strappy sandal.  Either way, I have big plans for this dress in my wardrobe!

I do think that this outfit looks a lot like this one, though. Ooooh! I momentarily forgot about my leopard print pumps. Those could be an option for this sweet little dress, too. Sometimes, when you find a formula that works you just gotta stick with it— like dress + cardigan + belt + pumps. Who wants to reinvent the wheel in the last week of classes? Not this girl!

What do you think? Do you like this outfit as much as I do? Are these Wal-Mart clothes really stylish, or am I becoming delusional? Please let me know!

-Carla