Pay Attention to the Signs

Dress Macy's | Shoes Jennifer Le | Bag Target 

Hey everyone, 

"It's always up to you to find beauty in the ugliest days!" This quote was right on time for me! I have been one of those people that tries their best to "pay attention to the signs" whenever possible lately. For example, I saw this quote and really decided to dig deep.

In all honesty, I was really having a hard time adjusting to everything going on in the world right now. However, seeing this quote knocked my senses right back into place! I had been turned off completely from blogging during this pandemic. I was focused too much on what I "couldn't do" instead of the paying attention to the things right in front of me. "I can't even do this!" "I can't even do that!" I focused too much on the negative things going on instead of focusing on the positive things. 

I celebrated my 29th birthday two weeks ago after coming across this quote. Since I try to pay attention to the signs, I decided that I should write down the affirmations that my friends/family surprised me with as decorations. I copied them onto sticky notes and say them daily just to make sure "I'm finding beauty in these ugly days." Doing so made me feel a little more positive than I've felt during this time. See the affirmations below:

Birthday affirmations: 

1. I am worthy.

2. I am becoming more confident every day.

3. My possibilities are endless. 

4. I am proud of myself. 

5. I believe in myself everyday.

6. I am in love with myself and my body. 

7. I am doing my best.

8. I am brave bold and beautiful. 

9. I am talented and intelligent. 

10. I chose to be happy and love myself today. 

Let me know below if you state affirmations or the things you do to find beauty in the ugliest days? 

Xoxo, 

Courtney 

Valentine's Day Vibes

Hi loves!

Hope you are having a great start to your week! Some are dreading this week as they prepare for Valentine's Day, especially if you are a procrastinator. However, if you're anything like me you LOVE it! No matter how you celebrate it, you should always make sure you are celebrating in style!

Decisions, decisions...Do I want to go for red hot, pretty in pink or flirty floral???

Here's a few inspirations for anyone still trying to find something last minute.

Look #1: Pretty in Pink

For the girly, girl who wants to celebrate in pink, but also wants to keep it simple, any shade of pink in a top is perfect with a pair of black pants!

What I Wore: 

Top Target | Belt Express | Bracelets Aldo (old) | Bag Target | Pants BCBG | Booties Aldo 

Look #2: Flirty Floral 

For the girl who loves a good flower. Some of us enjoy florals so much that we wear them too! Floral prints on a wrap dress always makes a fun, flirty look.

What I Wore: 

Dress Target | Bracelets Aldo (old) | Bag Target | Boots DSW

Look #3: Lady in Red 

For the lady who wants to keep it classic, wear red! Nothing screams love like a nice red dress!  Red is always the solution for anyone looking to feel feminine and sexy.

What I Wore: 

Dress Target | Bag Target | Boots DSW 

Look #4 Red Hot or Hot Pink?

For the girl who can't decide, wear them both! Choose a vibrant shade of red and a vibrant shade of pink and throw them together! Be sure to wear neutrals to tone them down.

Celebrations are always an excuse to wear sequins! I paired this pink number with a red shirt and boom, you get this great match made in heaven!

What I Wore: 

Top New York & Co | Skirt eBay | Shoes Lola Shoetique 

Look #5 More Wine, Please! 

For the girl who doesn't always go with the "norm," wear your wine! Who said the shade has to be a bold red or a vibrant pink? Normal is boring anyway! Some say the more wine you have, the better your night will be. So why not wear more wine?! I'm one of the "go hard or go home" girls so I would wear this color as a monochrome look: more wine, please! Just add neutrals to complete the look.

What I Wore: 

Top Macy's | Bottom Target | Vest Bebe | Bag Louis Vuitton | Shoes Jennifer Le

What looks are you going for this year??

Xoxo, 

Courtney 

Where the Wild Things Are

Hi loves!

Does anyone love animal print as much as me?! I think NOT! 

I'm super obsessed with animal print, especially leopard. It's one of those things that will NEVER go out of style for me!

Sometimes we have to take our minds where they wild things are to dig a little deeper. I took myself to the jungle with this leopard print shirt that I wore for Thanksgiving.

Wearing this print is a reminder for me to stop looking at my spots as a weakness and use them as my strength. It's also a reminder to fight for everything I want out of life. It's rare that you will find a starving leopard because they put their fear to the side and fight for the food that they want.

"Inside of all of us is hope, fear and adventure; Inside of all of us is a wild thing."

 ~Where the Wild Things Are 

What I Wore:
Top BCBG | Vest Bebe | Bottoms Macy's | Bag Louis Vuitton | Shoes Lola Shoetique

How do you wear leopard?

XOXO,

Courtney 

Style Crush: Emily B - Silver Sparkles

Hi loves,

I hope you all love all things sparkly as much as I do! I mean really, who can resist a sparkly sequin skirt??? I'm especially obsessed because it can be worn so versatile and cheap (only $20)! I used to think of sequins or sparkly things only for a holiday party or fancy event.

I've had this skirt for over a year, but couldn't fit it at all when I first ordered it. I decided to try it on when I had less than an hour to get ready for dinner reservations and I literally died! There was no way that I could resist the skirt! I didn't have a great shirt to wear it with so I paired it with a grey t-shirt that I tied up to give a casual look.

"Charisma is a sparkle in people that money can't buy. It's an invisible energy with visible effects." 

~ Marianne Williamson 

What I Wore: 

Top Target | Skirt eBay | Bag Aldo | Shoes Target 

I can always appreciate Emily B's effortless looks. I brought the final look together with a little help from Emily B. I remember she wore a similar look last year. Emily has the same exact skirt! She also paired her sequin skirt with a grey top. 

She added icing on the cake to her somewhat casual look. She took her look step further and adding an additional layer, a jean jacket. I'm obsessed, but would've been entirely too hot in 90 degree weather :(

Xoxo, 

Courtney 

Celebrating Magic in Pink

Hi loves, 

It's been so long! I'm back :)

As I get older, my favorite season has become wedding season. It's just so good to be around love with great music and great people. It gives me so much to look forward to with my love life. 

The hardest part is always picking the right attire. I literally went to the mall for 2 hours and walked out with NOTHING. Of course it's my fault for waiting until the night before, but stillllll; how can you go to the mall and come out with nothing??  

I only found white dresses. I learned my lesson early after going to a wedding with my mother who NEVER explained the golden rules for ladies: NEVER WEAR WHITE!  In fact, she even took my picture for me after I got dressed. I have never been side-eyed so many times in my entire life. Put it this way, I'll never make that mistake again, EVER! White takes away from the bride.

I came home and decided to try on all the things I kept, hoping to one day be able to fit again. OMG this literally made my night! I was finally able to fit so many things again! Can you say happy girl??? 

This pink dress was one of the very few dresses I kept and boy was this a great decision. This was so perfect since I avoid black and white, fun and bold for the win! 

"The only magic I still believe in is love."

What I Wore:

Dress BCBG | Bag Aldo | Shoes Zara

 If you don't take away anything from this post, please remember to NEVER WEAR WHITE!!!!!

XOXO, 

Courtney :)

The Working Gal

"Everyday brings about a new opportunity and you owe it to yourself to meet that opportunity looking your absolute best."

Who doesn't love those super cute outfits with great colors and don't break your pocket???

Shirt $10, Necklace Thrifted (can't remember the price), Shoes $25 during a Black Friday sale and Skirt $27 from the Who What Wear collection at Target!

"Happiness comes from being who you are, not who people think you are. Don't apologize, don't explain."

What I Wore: 
Shirt +H&M | Skirt +Target | Shoes +Lord & Taylor 

Hi Loves! 

Hope everyone is having a great week so far. 

I keep getting the same question at work now... What are you doing, why are you glowing so much? It's something different about you!" and I always smile and reply, "I guess happy looks good on me." 

Tapping into who you really are brings such a joy in your every day life, especially at work. If I could give any advice to the younger me, it would be to love YOU and put YOU first! I was once the girl that put everybody else's happiness first. That only caused me to stunt my growth. Some of the very people you helped along the way are happy, growing and enjoying their lives (while you remain the same, very unhappy). Your negative thoughts will be replaced with positives ones so you never have to worry about many bad days ahead of you. For example, I used to be the type that went to work and absolutely hated being there. I hated dealing and interacting with so many different personalities. Since this new found happiness, I enjoy going to work and talking to different types of people because they have taught me so much about myself (and how to deal with people!). 

I learned to take in all the good and throw out the bad! Things will go wrong, people will be mad, but I must always remain the same. I also learned that you must determine the proper time to use the words "No" and "Yes." At one time I was ALWAYS using the word "yes" as a response to everything (then beat myself up later for it.) I learned the hard way that "no" MUST be added to your vocabulary without feeling guilty! I took these work lessons into other aspects in my life and the results are very rewarding!

I finally feel like it's my time to shine and I'm doing everything it takes to exceed my goals, all while looking and feeling my best :)

Xoxo, 

Courtney 

Rusty Mondays

Happy Monday! 

Lately, I've been working on living everyday like it's Friday. Making sure that every single day counts! Often times we are so excited for Friday because it's the closest place of freedom, forgetting to value the rest of the days. 

Thinking this way helped me a lot. Your life will never change if you don't change your vision! I changed the way I saw/thought about things and I received a lot of positive results. 

• If you see yourself as weak, you will get negative results
• If you see yourself as strong, you will be able to do so many things! 
• If you see yourself accomplishing your dreams, they will come true!
• If you see yourself as blessed, you will be blessed!

I took this aspect into my work style, especially on Mondays! After the weekend would come to an end, I dreaded Mondays! I would literally roll out of bed, brush my teeth, shower and put on anything! Now, I try to do simple make up, fix my hair and put on a nice outfit (daily). 

Today, I chose to wear this rust colored dress. Since it's such a bold color, I toned it down with black. This dress was a steal! It was originally $109.95 and you will never guess how much I got it for.... $25! I also added these fringed heels just because they are my favorites! 

 “Stop waiting for Friday, for summer, for someone to fall in love with you, for life. Happiness is achieved when you stop waiting for it and make the most of the moment you are in right now.” ~Unknown

What I Wore: 

Dress The Limited | Necklace Thrifted | Shoes Steve Madden 

Xoxo, 

Courtney :)

Style Crush: Jessica Alba- Who What Wear

Hi loves,

Since high school, I've been spending my Friday nights looking at sites like "Who What Wear" to look at stylish inspirations. They recently collaborated with Target. To see this collaboration transpire since then is really amazing!

I have NEVER anticipated something sooooooooo much before! I couldn't wait for January 31st, 2016 to arrive, just to head over to my favorite store for a new collection.

Their collection had all of the things I look for while shopping these days, including:

• bold looks
• great prices
• classic looks
• prints

The first person I saw sport an outfit from the collection was Jessica Alba, one of my style crushes. I was beyond impressed!

Just in case you haven't noticed, I love all things "Honey," including Jessica Alba. My love for her really began after that movie. She also has great style, often playing with color and prints (my personal favs). I can always count on her for a great ladylike style inspiration. I couldn't resist recreating one of my favorite looks that she did from Target/Who What Wear!

I loved that Jessica was able to mix a vintage look with a more modern look by adding bold, metallic heels, a mixed print and a moto jacket!

My favorite item from the collection happened to be this beautiful floral skirt.

Who does love stripes and floral?! #MatchMadeInHeaven

"Flowers always make people better, happier, and more helpful; they are sunshine, food and medicine for the soul."  

 ~Luther Burbank

I added a heavier jacket since I'm always super cold :(

I also added a metallic clutch to make the shoes come out a little more. 

What I Wore: 

Top Kohls | Skirt Target | Jacket BCBG | Shoes Target 

Xoxo,

Courtney :)

Wear it, Style it, Repeat: Denim on Denim

Hi Loves!

Who doesn't love a denim on denim look? This look will NEVER get old to me!

My favorite denim on denim outfit is a top I got from Nordstrom and jeggings that I ripped at the knee from Express.

Below I put together a few different ways to style this look.

Look #1: Denim and Mixed Prints

When you're obsessed with mixed prints and equally obsessed with denim on denim, it's a must that you pair them both together!

With this weather, I love getting cute scarves to add as accessories to my outfits.

 

What I Wore:

Scarf Target | Shoes Jessica Simpson

Look #2 Denim and Red

I have also been obsessed with wearing these shoes since messing up my ankle. I thought it would be appropriate for me to buy these since they are bright, stylish and comfy at the same time.

 

Why not pair them with one of my favorite looks, denim on denim??

 

 

What I Wore:

Shoes Nike Huaraches

Look #3 Denim and Black 

It's so easy to make a look super stylish by adding a hat and matching shoes.
 

For this look, I chose to wear this black hat and So Kates!
 

What I Wore:

Hat Aldo | Shoes Christian Louboutin

 

How do you style denim on denim??

 

Xoxo,

 

Courtney :)