behind the blog: coast with me

For this week's Behind the Blog we have Rita from Coast with Me. Rita has legs that were made for skinny jeans, a closet with pieces I want so bad, and a style sense that I'm pinning constantly. I'm so happy to hear all about her blogging experiences. 

Tell us what motivated you to start blogging. Were you following a lot of personal style/fashion blogs before you started blogging?

I needed a creative outlet to express myself, so I started a blog. It was also one of my 2012 New Year’s Resolutions. I was not following any blogs at the time, but I most definitely am now!

Which blogs do you read every day? 

So many....too many to name...and I would hate to forget or leave a blog out. I follow mostly fashion and baking/cooking blogs. I would say Blair Eadie from Atlantic-Pacific is my main source of inspiration. I think she is the blogging queen!

Who takes your pictures? What camera and lens do you use? Have you ever been caught in the act of taking these?

Haha...my mama takes my pictures:). I do not use a professional camera. The one I have is a Canon SX260. I have not been caught in the act of taking my pics (yet)...probably because most of my pics are not taken in public.

Do people in real life know about your blog? What were their reactions when they found out about your blog?

Yes, my parents, sisters, extended family, friends....they were happy for me:).

How do you balance your growing blog and your “real” life?

That’s a tough question. It’s hard to find balance. I definitely need help in this area. I try to limit my blogging time to a few hours before bed. I have the same issue with my real job since it’s not a regular 9-5.

Many fashion bloggers hop from one trend to the next. How do you manage to stay on trend without breaking the bank and just blindly following each trend?

Well, when it’s a fad...I try to limit the amount of $$ I spend on an item. If I don’t love a trend...I’m not even going to bother with it. And I try to stick to more classic pieces that won’t go out of style quickly. There are two quotes that I love, “Trends fade, but style is eternal” and “trends come and go, but great style is timeless.”

Putting yourself on the internet comes with the expectation that not everyone will always love what you are wearing and writing. Have you encountered any of these criticisms, and if so, how do you handle it?

I’ve had a few negative comments. Everyone is entitled to their own opinions and I respect that. You may not like an outfit I’m wearing one day...and that’s okay. OR....You may not like me, my writing style, or my fashion sense in general....and that’s okay too. I can’t please everyone. As long as I’m staying true to myself and doing what makes me happy...that’s all that matters. Having said that....I’m always open to constructive criticism. As for the negative comments....of course they hurt, but I try to look at the bigger picture. Maybe that person was having a bad day, is unhappy, etc. Who knows what’s going on behind closed doors. My motto is to always be kind...even when people are unkind to you. 

What has been the best thing to come out of blogging?

Building relationships, meeting wonderful people, and being able to express my creativity.

When it comes to promotion of your blog, what methods do you use? Do you spend a lot of time commenting on other blogs, pinning your looks, doing link ups?

I pin my looks, but I’ve seen such a change over this past year (less traffic). I use chicisimo, chictopia, fabsugar, and lucky. I post on twitter and facebook sometimes (trying to do more often). I don’t use instagram (definitely need to start). I comment on blogs. That’s about it.

What tips or suggestions do you have for your fellow bloggers?

I’ve been doing this for about a year now...but I still feel like such a newbie. There is so much I’m yet to learn about the blogging business. Some suggestions.......I would say blog because you love it and everything else will follow. Let your personality shine through. Find your niche. And of course, when it comes to promoting...use as many social media outlets as possible and comment on as many blogs as possible.  

Thank you Rita! I totally agree with your notes about blog criticisms - we all have things we can improve on but we can't take it all too seriously. Please go check out Coast with Me and then come back next week to hear from Marion from Marionberry Style.

save | spend | splurge: chambray popover

In recent months I've come to the realization that I really prefer pop-over button ups over traditional button ups. They are slightly more casual, there's less chance of button gaping, and I think they look better in layers. While I like my normal chambray button up, I would really like to add a popover version to my closet. I ordered the Old Navy version (in a tall like I usually do at ON) today in hopes that with a few washings and a button change it'll look just like the J.Crew version. 

 $17.50                                                                $78.00                                                                    $135

                 
edit: for a review of these, and more chambray shirts, click here!

they can't put anything on the internet that isn't true

For those of you who don't know anyone who has ever applied to medical school, let me tell you - all applicants are crazy. The whole process is nerve-wrecking and terrifying and exciting and awful all at once. To compound all of this, there's a website where all of us crazies can get together and discuss the crazy. The student doc forums can either help you prepare for the process, or make you go completely mad.

Anyway, I was reading the forum for my school yesterday and about passed out when one of the kids on there said we had 14 days to get our deposits in to secure our spots. I was certain it was 30 days! OMG I'M NOT GOING TO GET TO GO TO SCHOOL, WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE HOW COULD I MESS THIS UP.

Turns out we do have 30 days. Don't trust everything you read on the internet.

uuuh...bonjour!

Sweater: Target  {exact}
Blouse: Forever 21  {save | splurge}
Jeans: American Eagle  {exact}
Belt: Old Navy
Shoes: Tory Burch  {exact}
Watch: Fossil  {exact}
Bracelet: J. Crew  {save | same style}
Earrings: Tiffany & Co. {exact}
Nails: Essie Lapiz of Luxury & No Place Like Chrome

cheater cheater.  at least I only technically choose to re-wear these shoes once for TOPIO.










linking up with the pleated poppy.

wasted

No, I am not drunk in these pictures as the title may suggest. About 2 hours after I took these pictures, I started to feel really really sick at work. I was having hot flashes and shaking and felt sick to my stomach, so I went home and laid in bed all day in hopes that puppy cuddles would cure me. I do feel a lot better now, but putting clothes on for 3 hours is such a waste of an outfit!

Blazer: LC Lauren Conrad  {save | splurge}
Tee: Banana Republic
Jeans: Joe's Jeans  {similar}
Scarf: Victoria's Secret
Pin: DIY by my mom
Shoes: Tory Burch  {similar}
Watch: Boccia
Nails: Essie Lapiz of Luxury & No Place Like Chrome

On Friday it was snowing pretty hard during the time I would normally take pictures, so an instagram selfie was used to document my oh so interesting and innovative outfit. I can't cheat on TOPIO! Here are all of the ladies partaking in Sarah's challenge.





Linking up with Style Elixir

twisted vlogging

So you ladies know I love a good scarf, so what's better than one? Two! Whitney from Along the Lines of Style gave me the floral scarf in December after I complimented her on it and she said she doesn't wear it - too bad we don't live closer so I can tell her I like her stuff all the time! It's a thinner scarf so I've been waiting to wear it until it warmed up but I just doubled it up with another thinner scarf and ta-da, winter scarf.

A few people have asked how I tied this scarf so I figured I'd take a note from Lynette and make a little video about it. I promise I'm as awkward in person as I am on film:

< is that the most flattering still you've ever seen? I thought so too. Maybe the next time I tape myself I won't do on a whim on a day where I have 4 day bun hair and minimal makeup on.

via Instagram

Sweater: Gap  {save | splurge}
Shirt: J. Crew  {exact on sale for $20 in stores}
Scarves: Forever 21 {similar}, gift from Whitney
Jeans: American Eagle  {exact on sale}
Shoes: Tory Burch  {exact}
Earrings: Tiffany & Co.  {exact}
Watch: Fossil  {similar}

The last week of TOPIO! Did you participate this month? If not...there's still this week to do it! #peerpressure #thisisnttwitter #hashtagallthethings

february budget

1. Burberry Jacket, thrifted: $8
2. Barbour Vest, thrifted: $4
3. Ralph Lauren Oxford, thrifted: $4, $0 with Goodwill points
4. Forever 21 Lace Tee (seen here): $22
5. Nicole Boots via DSW (seen here): $110
6. J.Crew Tee (seen here): originally $45, $20 on sale
7. Blazer, thrifted & DIY altered (seen here): $8
8. Urban Outfitters Jeans: $40 with coupon code + $8 alterations
9. Christian Dior Blazer, thrifted: $8 + $25 alterations
10. Nine West Flats (seen here): $18, $0 with a Christmas giftcard from my girl Hannah

= $252

Well. I did not do that great this month. Even if I take the $25 "leftover" from last month, and the $25 I made from selling two things on eBay, I'm still about $50 over my self-established budget of $150. I do feel guilty about that because although I purchased some of these items before I found out I got into school, I didn't really try that hard to stick to my budget afterwards. My new boots are largely at fault - they're 2/3 of my entire month's budget! Besides that purchase though, I feel I found some really great deals. I found a Burberry jacket for $8, a Christian Dior Blazer for $8 (it needs to be altered around the sleeves though, so that jacks the end price up), and a Barbour vest (although I'm debating selling it on eBay as they go for around $60 on there) while thrifting. I also added ribbon piping and a new button to another thrifted blazer, so it was like a craft project/entertainment and a new clothing piece in one ;). I ordered the high-rise Urban Outfitters cigarette jeans in a size longer than my last pair so I can get them hemmed to the perfect length, so I'm really excited to have black skinny jeans again.

So in the end, I did fill a few holes in my closet with the boots and the jeans and I found some once in a lifetime thrifting finds. Like I mentioned, I'm really going to work towards saving money the next ~4 months while I'm still working. I am allowing myself $250 (around 10%) from my tax return (the rest is going straight into DO NOT TOUCH savings) to shop next weekend in Chicago. There are so many stores down there that we obviously don't have in Madison, so my goal is to find some of the following items:

- dark wash boot cut jeans, hopefully at Nordstrom Rack (like this pair, this pair, or this pair)
- tweed/boucle blazer (like this one, this one, or this one)
- Hunter rain boots (this color, this color, or this color?)
- bright floral scarf (like this, this, or this beauty)

I think having a list of things will curb my "throw money at all the stores and buy all the unneeded things" feelings I will have having that "free" money in my wallet. Hopefully I'll find a few things I'll really get some use out of. Of course, none of those items are actually necessary in the sense that food and water, and only having one pair of pants is necessary, but they are items I am hoping to add to my closet as I know I would get a lot of wear out of them, unlike some of my impulse buys in the past have.

So how did you do this month? Better than I did? Just as horrible and guilty? Link up below with budgetting bloggers! Please make sure you link back so your readers can discover and be inspired by all of the other bloggers who budget (even if they fail at it ha)



P.S. Linking up with Thrifters Anonymous, Random Wednesday, and Penniless Socialite.

wash | wear

I read somewhere once that only poor people wear the clothes they just bought right away. So rich people must either have a lot of clothes, or a lot of restraint because when I buy something new, I want to wear it right away, like my new shirt I just bought. I don't even wash most things (besides underwear and tank tops) before I wear them

...that's kind of gross actually.

So spill. Do you wash everything you buy right away, or do you wear it first? Do you have a closet full of clothes with the tags attached? Am I the only one who wants to wear a new purchase the next day?

Shirt: J. Crew  {$20 in stores!}

Blouse: H&M

Necklace: Forever 21  {exact}

Jeans: Gap  {exact}

Boots: Nicole  {exact | splurge}

Watch: Fossil  {similar}

Bracelet: Tiffany & Co.  {save | exact}

P.S. Next weekend I get to spend 36 hours with one of my favorite ladies Sam. We're meeting in Chicago for day-drinking, tipsy shopping, and deep dish eating. If you are in the Chicago area and want to meet up for dinner with us, LET US KNOW! Let's hang out. We're fun, I promise.










Linking up with Plane Pretty!

behind the blog: lynette marie

Lynette is relatively new to blogging, but has hit the ground running with her adorable blog and style. Combine the pictures her new husband takes of her pretty face with her classic but youthful style, and you've got yourself new blog to follow. Plus she's funny, so...ok, I'll stop gushing. I'm excited to have her here this week on Behind the Blog!

Tell us what motivate you to start blogging. Were youfollowing a lot of personal style/fashion blogs before you started blogging?

I was motivated to start blogging because I’ve always hada passion for style, photography and writing, even as a young girl. I’ve beenfollowing a couple dozen life & style blogs for the last two or three yearsand always had the desire to start one myself. I just always felt like I didn’thave the means necessary (whether it was time or motivation or style or money)to really make the blog what I wanted it to be. I’m easily discouraged and I don’t like starting things I’m not sure I can “finish”, whatever that means fora blog! But my husband has been telling me for forever to “just start onealready” because he saw that I really wanted to. So with his encouragement, Ifinally started one at the end of November. It all seems very silly now becauseit’s just a blog, but it’s a tough blogosphere out there! No one wants to start something that might flop! 

Which blogs do you read every day? 

Kendi Everyday, Sidewalk Ready, The Small Things Blog, Franish (you!), Sam Ipsa Loquitur, My New Favorite Outfit, and See Mo Go are a few of the ones I make sure to visit daily. I love the girls I’ve been kind of “meeting” by being a blogger!

Who takes your pictures? What camera and lens do you use? Have you ever been caught in the act of taking these?

My husband takes my pictures. He uses my old camera, which is a Pentax K200D, and switches betweena 50mm lens and an 18-35 lens. Though we literally take our photos outside ofour apartment, we’ve yet to really be “caught”, other than the occasional person getting out of their car and spotting us. However, it is the dead of winter up here in the frozen north, and we live right on a lake, so I’m sure that come spring, we’ll have a bunch of friends joining us for our photoshoots. And by friends I mean strangers, and by joining I mean photo bombing. I anticipate every bit of awkwardness.

Do people in real life know about your blog? What were their reactions when they found out about your blog?

Obviously, my husband knows. I have never actually said to any of my personal friends "Hey, I have a blog now you know!" but when I make an entry that's relevant to my personal life, I may or may not post something about it on my personal Facebook. So I'm sure the curious ones know, but thankfully I've yet to hear any snide remarks from anyone! I did tell my parents, but my dad was like, "People make blogs about what they wear?" and my mom was like, "What is a blog?", so that's about where their reactions start and end, ha!

And just recently, news about my blog got out at work. Thankfully, I think it’s only reached about two people. I’m trying to keep the numbers down. Lord knows that last thing I want people to know is that the receptionist takes photos of her outfits and posts them on the Internet!

You work in a real estate office – what restrictions doyou have at work, and how do you manage to keep your outfits fun while still professional?

Actually, I don’t have too many restrictions for what I wear at work. Basically as long as I’m not wearing jeans, or showing up naked, I’m fine. Except for Fridays, in which jeans are okay. And on Sundays, showing up naked is okay. Just kidding, we’re not that type of office. :)

Since I don’t have many restrictions, I get to wear what I want. Which means lots of colorand skirts! I love skirts and dressier outfits anyway, so working there gives me an opportunity to not be in yoga pants every day of the week. Which is my staple outside of the office. And not blog-worthy. And looks terrible with heels. Most of what you see in my blog is what I wear to the office. I figure I must be doing something right, because I get complimented on my outfits a lot at work, from men and women alike. Sometimes even backhanded ones, such as when an agent at work told me I dressed nice… but over the top. But a compliment is a compliment in my book, and I’ll take what I can get. :)

Many fashion bloggers hop from one trend to the next. How do you manage to stay on trend without breaking the bank and just blindly following each trend?

I try not to get too caught up in what I see popping up everywhere, and just join in on the trends that I like (and that flatter my body!). Infinity scarves? Brilliant. Peplum? Beautiful. Fox graphic sweaters? Turns out it's only cute the first time you wear it to work, and then everyone's looking at you like "Oh... you were serious. Huh." After that, people just try to name the fox on your sweater, and ask if it comes in a men’s size XXXL.

My goal with my closet is to find as many classic, timeless pieces as I can and spend the money on those items (such as blazers and pencil skirts) and just find a couple of trends that I really like each season and spend a little less on them, depending on how much I like them andhow long I think they will be trendy.

Putting yourself on the Internet comes with the expectation that not everyone will always love what you are wearing and writing. Have you encountered any of these criticisms, and if so, how do you handle it?

Thankfully I’ve only received positive feedback by sweet, loving readers! I am grateful for that, but I know that as more traffic comes, so will the haters. And haters gon' hate, right? I'm trying to prepare myself now for the fact that someone will eventually think I'm fat, that my hair color is wrong, that I am an idiot, or that my shoes look stupid. In the past, I've dealt with self-esteem issues repeatedly, but I have definitely come into a place of being okay with me. Even if you think I'm an idiot and you hate my shoes.

What has been the best thing to come out of blogging? 

The community I've been immersed in, and the creative outlet I’ve formed! I've had so many sweet comments and e-mails from such lovely gals. I love love love every comment, every e-mail from every reader, because I just love connecting with other people. Especially people who share my same passion!

Also, I'm truly an artist at heart. I hung up my professional camera a few years back and haven'treally had a consistent creative outlet for myself, and blogging gives that back to me. It helps me play with two of my greatest passions: style and photography. And to have my husband be such a large part of it is all that more rewarding!

And lastly: I don’t know about anyone else, but just in the last month or so that I’ve been blogging, I feel like my style has already improved and my eye for fashion has gotten sharper. Gotta love that!

When it comes to promotion of your blog, what methods do you use? Do you spend a lot of time commenting on other blogs, pinning your looks, doing link ups?

Right now I really just comment on other blogs that I like. I don’t ever find myself just blog hopping and leaving comments for the sake of leaving comments. I’m not against that at all, and I know it’s one of the only ways to really promote your blog… I’ve just never really done it. If I like your blog, I’ll comment. Also, it helps when you post about current fashion & beauty topics or products that are up-and-coming. I’ve had literally hundreds of people sent to my blog from Google because they were searching for a new Revlon foundation review. If you haven’t submitted your blog to search engines, do it! It helps!

I also have a Pinterest board, a blog Instagram account and have a link up in the works with another blogger, so we’ll see what happens! Social media is one of the greatest promotion tools!

What tips or suggestions do you have for your fellow bloggers? 

Create the blog you want to read. What do you love about your favorite blogs? The great photography? The overload of helpful resources and information? The daily updates? The wit and sincerity of the author? Be true to yourself in your blog,but also create the blog you love to read! Because that means that someone elseout there probably wants to read it too. : )

See, I told you that you would love Lynette. Go show her some love and then come back next week to read about Coast With Me.

not disqusing

Thank you everyone for your feedback about installing Disqus on my blog. You guys had a lot of interesting insight - many of you like the ability to receive notifications when someone responds to your comment, but many said that Disqus either spam-lists not spam comments, takes too long to load, or doesn't load at all (especially on iPads).

The majority has spoken so I'm not going to install Disqus. Although I like that you would receive an email for every replied comment, I don't want certain people not be able to comment. I do often want to reply directly to your comments though, so please make sure you aren't a no-reply commenter (it's really really easy to fix that - see instructions here). You won't receive a notification if I reply in line (on the actual blog post) but I can email you directly.

Thank you for taking the time to help me make this decision. You guys are the reason I keep up this silly hobby :)

taxed

Are you guys sick of me talking about school starting in 5 months? Me either...

But...with school starting and only working for another 4.5 months, I am really working on tucking money away. I'm putting my entire work bonus, a certain percentage of each paycheck, and the money I make from this blog into savings. I am also putting all but $250 of my tax return into savings. With those $250 I was planning on purchasing a few items from "the list". Last Friday I ordered this blazer as it was a color I was looking for, I wear my blue version all the time, and I knew what size I thought I needed. Well I received it today and it just didn't work - it was a little too tight in the shoulders and it felt too short. I think the 2% spandex in my blue version makes enough of a difference in fit that it just wasn't worth the money to keep.

So while I was returning the blazer, the sales associate convinced me I needed to look at the sale section (it took a bunch of convincing...). Another one of my items on my list is a pencil skirt. They had a lot of the black #2 pencil skirts on sale, so I tried a few on. I tried on my normal skirt/pants size, but it didn't even close. I went up one size, and it still didn't look right. Several ladies said that they sometimes have to size up two sizes. I think that's important to remember - it's not about the number on the tag but how it fits. I walked away without a skirt even though the price was good because the size they had in store wasn't going to work. I don't think I'm ready to put a bunch of money down on something I can't wear right now anyway.

What I can wear right now and in the future is this cute striped shirt, so it did come home with me :)

Shirt: Gap*

Blouse: J. Crew Factory {save | exact}

Jeans: Gap  {similar}

Scarf: c/o The Posh'mina

Boots: Steve Madden  {save | splurge}

Watch: Boccia

*I found this shirt hiding in my closet this weekend. I'm certain the last time I wore this shirt was in this picture, taken at a house party my sophomore year of college. so classy.

Linking up with wiww and Bri's Third Thursday Threads (POLKA DOTS!)

20ish days in, and no one has realized that I'm re-wearing something every day. Either I'm really good at TOPIO (not as likely) or people at work aren't paying attention (most likely).

double dots

Man, are my eyes staring straight into your soul or what?

OK, I'm going to be honest and say this isn't my favorite outfit of all time. This cardigan...is just is not working on me I think. I really love the idea of it, but it always looks like I gained 20 lbs when I wear it (which may be true after this weekend - making a carrot cake for Chris means I'm obligated to eat half of it - that's how that works, right?), and it's just a smidgen too short. I think I'm going to hang on to it in hopes that it will look better with skirts than with pants though. 

Although I'm not moving for another 4.5 months I am starting the slow process of packing, starting with my closet. Moving is the perfect opportunity to get rid of everything I don't really use -  I'm only going to take items with me that I truly wear. I started the process yesterday and realized I have 4 (FOUR) pairs of colored skinny jeans and I wear none of them because they all don't fit me. Talk about jumping on a trend even though it's not right for you, right? I love the colors, just not the fit. They, along with lots of other random pieces, will be listed on my new poshmark account. Feel free to look around and let me know if you have any questions/offers. I'll be updating periodically through the clean-up. Looking through the clothes I've purchased over the past five years, and what mistakes I've made, has been pretty humbling. It just feels like a lot of wasted money for items that aren't me, or don't fit my body. I think, for me at least, it really only reinforces the need to stick to a list of items while shopping, and hammering in that it's quality over quantity. Gahhhh, but sometimes it's just more fun to buy a bunch of shiny sparkly shirts than to save for those perfectly fitting trousers, ya know?

Blouse: J. Crew Factory  {save | exact}
Sweater: Forever 21  {similar}
Pants: Urban Outfitters*  {exact}
Watch: c/o Daniel Wellington  {exact}
Shoes: Marc by Marc Jacobs  {exact}







*um yes, these are still my old pants. I really wanted to wear them Saturday night so I willed them to stay together at the seam with some help from patches and some not so neat stitching. I'm afraid to even wash them because I'm afraid they'll just fall apart. Those new pants need to really get here soon.

10 days left of TOPIO! I'm definitely enjoying the challenge of having to think about outfits around certain pieces but at the same time it'll be nice to just wear whatever I feel like that morning...although an outfit around simple shoes isn't exactly rocket science.









Linking up with Style Elixir and Marionberry Style!