I Heart Glee

So, just like everyone else, I absolutely ADORE Glee. If you haven't seen it or heard about it, then you must live under a rock because every week the songs are in the top 10 on iTunes and everyone watches it AND loves it. And if I'm facebook friends with any blog friends, my status is "I LOVE GLEE".

I also happen to understand that everyone LOVES Emma! Not to mention that we were all so happy when Schue worked up the courage to end the season the way he did--I don't want to ruin anyone's opportunities of Hulu-ing the episode since that's usually the only opportunity I have to watch it. I'm writing this post at 10:34 on Wednesday night and I'm sure by the time I get around to publishing it, at least 6 other bloggers will have beat me to the point I hope I'm able to make. If you've been dutifully following the season, you know that Emma's wedding was tonight.

I am in love with her wedding dress. I am a sucker for weddings as well. My roommate can attest to how much we watch "Say Yes to the Dress" and how I cried during Khloe Kardashian's wedding on "Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami". As soon as the episode of Glee was over I headed on over to trusty old Google and checked out where this beauty was from. Knowing ALL of Emma's wardrobe is from J. Crew, my guess that her wedding dress was as well. Well, I and everyone else who made this assumption, was correct. Her dress is the Silk gazar Nanami gown. And she looked ADORABLE! I cannot get over a) how cute she is, b) how much I covet her wardrobe, c) how the episode ended, d) what's going to happen next season, e) and what se-----als will be like (I don't want to give anything away again).

Here's the beauty's back from J. Crew! Emma looked DIVINE in this. It was the most adorable moment in the VFW hall! Ahhhh I'll have to download this episode to KEEP for sure from iTunes! I hope everyone's as GleeFUL as I am!

xxKatie

P.S. Read my post below this too, because it shows how excited I am to be home. I was very excited also to post about Glee. Probably too excited actually. But that's ok. I just did 2 very excited posts in 1 night. Clearly I haven't blogged recently.

Today's Outfit

So I've only polyvored once, so I figured I'd try again! Today's outfit was for chilly SC weather, but obviously not too cold! I was wearing my Lilly jeans, a green sweater from Old Navy (mine is long sleeved with a pink dragonfly where the edamame is), a white long sleeve t-shirt from J. Crew underneath, some fab leopard shoes from the one and only Target and my quilted Lilly coat which I adore! For accessories I went with the dailys of my Tiffany heart chain bracelet and Silver pearls, both were gifts from family! If this ends up being a good post more polyvores might continue!

October 16 by letsbepreppy featuring Old Navy

xxKatie

Get to J.Crew ASAP!

Today my mom and I went back to the Rehoboth Outlets today to get MORE J.Crew shorts. The first time I went this week I dropped $85 on 2 pairs of their Buttery Twill 5'' Inseam Chino shorts in navy and rose, 2 shirts, and a cute mid-length-sleeve sweater previously from madewell. I've already worn the blue ones twice. After deciding that these shorts were made for 6'0'' people, they coincidentally make the best "short-short" for the tall girls out there, we went back to get 2 more pairs in dark khaki and white. Two more very functional colors. I'm telling you GET A PAIR in every color functional for your wardrobe. You will not be surprised how durable, comfortable, and well fitting these shorts are. They also come in a 3'' version that had a bunch more colors but I'm still partial to the 5-ers.

*Not to mention they're all only $20 at your nearest J.Crew outlet. TWENTY DOLLARS THATS NUTS! Online they're $39.50, so go to your outlet!!!

Not only are they functional, but I feel like I'll be able to get a lot of use out of them in sunny South Carolina. This is really the first bit of stocking up that my mother and I have done for school, so does anyone else have any ideas? I'm really getting ready to start looking at packing and beginning shopping, so ideas are totally appreciated!

Two months from tomorrow I'm in Columbia, SC! Classes start 5 days later!!!

P.S. Today as the fam was getting dressed for Church, my mom and I were dressed IDENTICALLY. Now, matching is not abnormal for our clan, but my mom and I both had Lilly skorts both that had patchwork patterns on them, white polos, popped collars, and bright sweaters that matched our respective skirts. It was quite a sight to see, I'm sure, but then again, this crowd is the one who would appreciate a good unintended mommy-and-me look. Well mom, chalk it up to another matching day.

P.S.S. Just got an invite to RueLaLa! This is their standard message but it sums up what the site is about well: "I just found Rue La La, the destination for 2-day only boutiques, filled with designers we love at private sale prices. It's free, fabulous and invitation-only. Here's your invitation!" This is my link if you want to join the network: http://www.ruelala.com/invite/letsbepreppy if it doesn't work just copy-paste it into your browser! Enjoy shopping!

xxKatie

Since I temporarily fell off the face of the blogging earth...

This stinks. I haven't blogged in ages, but hey- its just like riding a bike, right? What a bummer, I feel like I've totally let everyone down. Well here's my attempt at redemption (again).

Since I last blogged, SO much has happened. WOW. First and foremost: prom. What a fun night! It happened to be the last day of school for seniors which was totally an added bonus! The theme was "Vegas" and there were mocktails (I had a mock cosmo!!) and mock gambling, but that was a bit over my head. Here are a few photos from prom:

This was how my date (Brad) asked me:HOW ADORABLE IS THAT? I know. My dad was like, "Am I allowed to eat one?". We loved them in my house!
This is my "group" and our dates, and it happens to be one of my mom's favorite photos from the night. I'm in the pink:
This was decidedly one of our favorite pictures, me, Brad (minus his crooked tie), and Grace my sister:

It ended up as a very fun night that I think most everyone enjoyed. Thank you to all the members of the class of 2010 who put it on!

Next, I came back from my Habitat for Humanity trip. (Click the link for the location we went to.) I LOVED IT. It was so much fun and I encourage everyone to do something like this, especially with a group of people you know. We all got very close to one another and it was really a great bonding trip for everyone who went.This is the entire group that went except one girl because she was at her sister's college graduation (Boston College!) and had to fly down to meet us later. We all had such a good time!

I've been working a ton and Lilly Summer 2009 rocks. Swimsuits, dresses, ahh its fabulous! The store is really picking up especially with the Navy graduation week and everything. What a good few weeks for the store!

Also, believe it or not, I'm gearing up for school. Its CRAZY. Taking placement tests, buying stuff here and there (I have positively the cutest bedding that my mom picked up for me. Photos will obviously follow.) I can't believe I head out August 14th! I guess first I technically have to graduate, which is June 6th. Woo-hoo! The night before my graduation is Baccalaureate, which is a big event (dressy) put on by students for students. There's a big reflection, and tons of people perform guitar or sing or make candid power points of us across the years, its generally a tear-jerker. This is the dress I'm wearing that I love from j.crew and now its on sale:Very cute! Unfortunately I had to take the hem down a little but it was totally worth it. Plus I can take it with me to SC!

I feel like so much is going on these days that I can't think of everything. Thankfully, I will be blogging regularly fairly soon so that will be good, I'll be able to keep up with stuff again. Miss you all and its really good to be back!

xxKatie

Packing Essentials: Warm Weather

Since I'm going to a hot weather destination, I figured I'd do a post about all the necessities of a beach vacation. I've never actually been on a cold vacay--no skiing or snowboarding for my family. We've been to beaches all over and I love all of our family vacations. I'm lucky enough to have parents who  have provided me with all the different experiences and I couldn't be more thankful!

Swimwear essentials:

Sorry for the awkward photo. I bought this bathing suit for this spring break after seeing a friend who had it. I've never worn a bandeau before, but I'm really excited to have this one from VS! Bandeaus are great because they minimize tan lines especially if you've got a great strapless dress to wear! Right now, this swimsuit is $29 all in. What a great price!

I also have this Lilly from a few years ago. It is very full coverage, so I usually wear this during my first few days in the sun. I actually was lucky enough to find this gem at a Marshall's in NY!

Sunscreen:

No-Ad sunscreen is the best you can buy. We use this sunscreen year after year and when we're saying at our beach house, we'll go to shop at places with No-Ad sunscreen specifically. It runs about $7 for a huge 36oz. bottle that will certainly last you awhile! No-Ad comes from their policy: no advertisements. Because of that, you may or may not have ever heard of it! 

This is my favorite after sun lotion. The rest of my family hates it actually though! It smells like a creamsicle and I believe they think it's too strong. I like it a lot and usually put it on before I go to bed! 

This is my second favorite after sun lotion, and the lotion is use most often. I have two bottles here at school with me and it is the best smelling, best working moisturizer out there. I found this lotion at a Walgreen's in Key West (I love any version of Walgreen's/CVS/Happy Harry's/etc.) when I got the very worst sunburn of my life. The skin on the back of my hands looked charred and my pores got so big. It actually changed the feeling of my hands to today. Yikes!! I learned my lesson for sure!!

Cover Ups:

I recently got this from VS too, and I posted it in another post. I cannot wait to wear it and I'll be sure to take a photo or two! I love how this feels and definitely recommend it!

I just got this cover up from Target the last time I went also. It is NOT this long though, it barely covers my tush! I got it more of a tunic than a dress for sure!

Clothing:

I always seem to almost forget socks/undies/undergarments/pj's! How bad!! For some reason, they're not pulled out of my dresser first, and by the time my bag is packed, THAT is when I realized I need to pack them!! SO SILLY!

Pack a dress or two (or a few...) for nights when you may want to dress up. This dress will be making the trip with moi and I can't wait to wear it for the first time! Bring a few nicer outfits in case you and your family or friends decide to go to a nicer restaurant or decide you just want to dress up one night! I plan to debut a few things that I got for Christmas on this vacation that are probably nicer than the usual. 

Pack comfy clothes that you can just throw on. I'm going to bring a few Lilly skorts and J. Crew t's so that I can be comfy if I have just gotten out of the sun and don't feel like getting all the way dressed up! A polo and a pair of 5'' chino shorts is always a great option too! All these packables are great options to have too in case the weather is a little variable! 

Shoes:

Jack Rogers!! These are a must have for tropical vacations! They look great with all types of outfits and I know I'll have mine with me. I think I'll be bringing my Platinum, Gold, and White ones with me but I haven't decided yet. I've spent the last week wearing them around campus so that I can break my feet into them...ouch! I was out with a friend Friday afternoon and got the nicest compliment on my gold Navajos!

Rainbows flip flops are also a great item to have in your bag. These extremely well made leather flip flops are guaranteed for life and can withstand just about everything. I have the thick women's in the traditional brown as seen in this picture and I love them. If you go to any high school or college campus in the spring, these will without a doubt be the shoe of choice. 

Miscellaneous:

Liquids: make sure to pack all your necessary beauty supplies while you follow all the rules for flying. I've become quite a seasoned flyer (haha-just kidding!!) since school started, but I always forget about my liquid. Two times my LP Beachy perfume was challenged by TSA officials because I forgot to pull it out of my big Vera Bradley bag. Now I always pack my perfume in the middle of my bag under my stuffed frog that I sleep with so that they are protected by soft items. Both times in the airport, my silly squished frog was pulled out in front of all the travelers!! Ahhh! A little embarrassing, BUT everyone slept with something when they were a kid (or college student...) so they can't really judge!

Always make sure you have all necessary technological items with you. This may include laptops/chargers, cell phones/chargers, iPods/chargers, speakers, clocks, cameras, other random cords, hair dryers/straighteners, or anything else with a cord! There is always that moment when you're in the plane on your way to your destination and you realize you forgot your ______ charger. All too frustrating!! 

Chances are I'll probably refer back to this post when I have to pack my own bag. That is what Wednesday will be devoted to completely!! I am getting SO excited about going if you couldn't tell! I'll be sure to take some photos if I can!!

xxKatie

Best Scarf Technique (EVER) Tutorial

First of all, please pardon the awkwardness of these photos. My roommate wasn't here, and so I had to take them myself haha! This technique of scarf-wearing is really nice because you get the look of threading it through a loop without it being so bulky and having a weird bulge around your neck. This way allows the scarf to sit much flatter against your neck so you can wear it over a t-shirt or cute sweater without it looking like it should be under a winter coat! I tried to do a vlog of this because that would be really easy, but I kept messing up and I really felt weird. Props to all your vloggers out there who can have enough composure to go all the way through a vlog!! My Lilly Pulitzer Murfee Scarf was perfect for this opportunity and the V-neck is a J. Crew white perfect fit top!

First, put a scarf around your shoulders like you were going to wear it normally with the loop on one side and the other two ends on the other side:

Next, thread ONE end through the hole, again, like you would normally, BUT ONLY ONE SIDE. That will leave the other end just laying on your shoulder:

(This photo really looks like I have a Lilly Murfee Scarf sling!!)

After you pull it through, make it as close to your neck as you can. There will be time for aesthetic adjustments at the end:

Then comes the hardest step to explain. Twist the loop so there's a figure 8 shape and a second hole for the other fringy end:

Unfortunately this picture is hard to see since my scarf got a little tangled while I was doing it. You can still pretty much see the figure 8 though, and the new loop where my hand is.

This is the step where you can adjust everything. It will still look a little sloppy until the very end. I promise it will come out great after this adjustment stage! You can just pull the two ends until you're comfortable with the length, size of the cross, etc: 

Voila! Here's the final product!! If you try it a few times yourself, you'll definitely get the hang of it and I swear you'll love it from this day on!!

Kudos to Kathryn W of to starve is to feast., Alina A. and Megan P. who all helped me perfect my look!! You guys are the best (and some of my most loyal readers!!)!!!

If you have any questions, please leave them here and if I need to re-address some of the directions I'll be sure to answer the questions tomorrow! Let me know if you like this new look too!!

xxKatie

Old Navy Finds!!

 Hey everyone, my apologies for not being a good blogger recently. I've been working on a campaign for a very good friend of mine who is running for the student body president! If any of you Twitter, you'll know my twitters are all about helping out this friend of mine! I'm the manager of his schedule so I have been emailing and contacting 24/7 (literally). I get back to my dorm and fall asleep rather quickly these days, which isn't behavior conducive to blogging! My dad is visiting me too this weekend which I am SO HAPPY about! The last time he was here was for MOVE-IN! Tonight he took me and 3 of my favorite people here at school out to dinner which was a great time! He finally got to meet all the people I talk about and my fabulous roommate for next year (oh hey Megan!)!! We all had a great time goofing off and eating more pizza than I'd like to think about!

But, recently however, I've ordered a few things from Old Navy that look like they could be from J. Crew which I was thrilled about! I'm really beginning to think that they use the same color palates or very similar ones and have very similar--but much more inexpensive--designs! I got a gift card to Banana Republic which can be redeemed at any of the 5 stores in the Gap/Old Navy/Banana Republic group for Christmas so I found some items that I couldn't pass up!! Here are a few of the things I've purchased for my spring wardrobe:

This color is so very J. Crew! With all their neutral colors, I couldn't help but snag one for myself!

                                  

I feel like this poppy color is very Crew too! They always have a vibrant orange, especially for spring. I also love the ruffle detail along the collar. I have some great 5'' chino shorts that this sweater will be perfect with! I also have this in the "Cream of Artichoke" color, a super pale green that will look great too!

                                  

I love this sweater! Of all of the ones posted here, this one is great! You have to touch it though to get the full package. Aside from my cashmere argyle sweater, hands down this is the softest sweater that I own! Not to mention, I'm ecstatic that the Gap/Old Navy/Banana Republic online shopping has a "TALL" option, because the cuts are great for me. The shoulders are wider, the arm holes are lower and the sleeves are longer. The sleeve problem is the worst problem I seem to face when trying to buy sweaters and cardi's because I end up having to buy a large or XL just so the arms are long enough!

I also grabbed two shirts from Gap. I rarely shop at Gap because I think their prices are too high for the quality sometimes (I think in the recent years their quality has gone down from what it used to be). I also have a very hard time finding my size in the store in my local mall at home, but I've been searching for a nice ruffled tank. I think they look SO pretty layered with sweaters. I found a great one at Gap.com and I found an online coupon code that got me 20% off full priced items online at Gap, so I decided to get this tank in the Oak color and in white:

                               

It was just what I was looking for, not to mention the length is SO perfect for me. A medium tall is great for a girl with my build!! I am so excited to bring this stuff with me for spring break...as far away as that is. It is fun though to think about what I can wear all these things with!! I hope that you are all dreaming of spring!

I promise that I'll be back and commenting away as soon as I find the time!!

xxKatie

Birthday Wrap-Up

So I had a wonderful birthday with my family and we celebrated last night! I had a lot of fun being home with them for my big day and I'm glad that my break worked out this way! I got a bunch of fun stuff for the big 1-9 yesterday:

I had picked this out when we were roaming through our local Nordy's, except my Longchamp is the next size up--Medium. I now have this pretty new pristine one to go with my (kind of gross) khaki one!

A Murfee!! This was a surprise that I was extremely excited about! Just about everyone I work with has one of these babies, and so I was thrilled to open up this surprise!

Glee Volume 1: Road to Sectionals

YES I DID GET THIS! I had no idea it was even out on DVD and I am SO EXCITED. My roommate and I made a point of clearing our Wednesday night schedules to watch Glee, and now I've got all 13 episodes plus backstage footage, music videos, and Dance Boot Camp!! Score one for Katie!

I also got a fab sweater from J. Crew that I can't find online along with this amazing black necklace from J. Crew too. I saw it at one J. Crew and decided that $65 was too much to pay, and ended up having MAJOR buyer's remorse. Then as my mom and I were shopping, we ran into it for $30 with an extra 30% off! I couldn't pass it up--not to mention, it was the only one left in the store--that is meant to be if you ask me!

For the rest of the day I'll be packing up all my stuff (which seems to have doubled since I got home...) and saying my goodbyes and then departing promptly tomorrow morning with a friend who lives kinda close to where I live to drive back to school with. I'm partly excited to go back, but I'm partly sad because I always get a little misty when I go back to school (my mom could tell you about it). However, I'm coming back in a few weeks for my sister's school play and then I'll be back a few weeks after that for Spring break. I can't believe I'm even talking about spring break right now!!!

xxKatie