Late September

I made it to the UK in one piece! And got near-zero sleep on the plane as I was fighting discomfort and watching The Back-up Plan, Letters to Juliet, and the A-Team. I'm staying at a hotel in the Docklands area which is a newer (?) part of the city that I've never been to before - which is great for exploring. I met with a friend for dinner at Gaucho and wore the following:

Top: Lands' End Canvas gingham poplin (previously worn here and here - similar online here and here)

Jacket: J. Crew herringbone blazer (worn here before - kind of similar online here)

Jeans: Lands' End modern flare (similar online here)

Shoes: Guess Lawri wedge (worn here before - similar online here)

Bag: J. Crew tote

Scarf: kind of overkill for the fall weather

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I am still in partial sleep deprivation mode, but because I am in a fall state of mind and still kind of upset by the SE's lack of progress in joining the rest of the country in chilling weather, here is a fall OOTD I didn't really wear out (but want to and threw on for fun last week). I busted out these tights that I got on $5 super-sale earlier this year with this new cozy sweater dress also scored on sale (which is snuggle warm and not at all itchy).

Dress: Anthropologie Cordial Embrace by Sparrow
Top: Anthropologie Curated tee by Little Yellow Button (worn here before)
Belt: Anthropologie Infinity
Tights: Anthropologie Berry Bush in black (similar online here)
Shoes: Franco Sarto pumps (similar but pricey online here)

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I know the October new arrivals are the buzz of the Anthro-loving community today, and I wanted to share some of my new wishlist toppers. Cozy sweaters are definitely some of my new favorites for this year, which also includes the sweater dress in bright wintery colors.

What's on your Anthro wishlist for fall/winter? Have you noticed your tastes changing as you put together your needs list for each season?

Dressing Safe - and Being MIA

I'm sorry I've been a slacker this past week but work has been crazy and included an unplanned trip to Tampa (Tampa - your afternoon thunderstorms kill me. I don't think a single flight leaves your airport on time EVER and I think you secretly enjoy stacking up the delays to drive the passengers crazy). I will probably be a little MIA this coming week too, as I'll be headed to London tonight for a show, which essentially just means I'm going to get near-zero sleep (and this girl loves her sleep!) I promise I'll catch up with my posting (and reading your blogs) soon!

Here are some of my outfits from this past weekend:

Top: Lands' End Canvas poplin gingham (worn here and here before - similar here online)
Belt: Anthropologie Infinity (last few wears here, here and here)
Skirt: H&M drop pocket (worn here before - similar online here in blue or here in taupe)
Shoes: Kenneth Cole Reaction Pine-A-Colada (worn here, here and here before)

Top: Anthropologie Saturday/Sunday hand-tied (worn here before)
Tank: Banana Republic
Shorts: Banana Republic seersucker (similar online here)
Shoes: Mossimo by Target wedges (worn here, here and here before - similar online here)

And here's a terrible shot of me from one of my Tampa meetings - yes, super-boring-business-casual-ready-for-all-day-meetings-with-much-older-mostly-grumpe-ole-male-type-people Lisa. I don't know why, I always seem to revert direct back to safe dressing when it comes to traveling work situations - and how can you go wrong with black?

Dress: Ann Taylor Loft poplin striped (worn here and here before)
Jacket: Banana Republic cropped
Shoes: Bandolino nude patent peep-toe bow (similar here online)

What is your play-it-safe outfit?

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Lots of great deals going on this weekend! From now until Monday, Lands' End is having their Family and Friends sale, which means 25% off all regular-priced items and free shipping. Also applies to Canvas! Use code FAMILYSHARE and pin 9392.

Good until September 30, Old Navy is offering 20% off any purchase and free shipping for orders over $75. Use code ONSAVE20.

Ann Taylor Loft has their More is More sale - take 25% two full-priced items or 40% three or more full-priced items with code MORE. And get free shipping for orders over $125.

Get 12% off full price items plus free shipping at Boden with code WMAV. Discount expires December 9.

Other People's Blogs (the style blogger)

This week's version of cool stuff from other people's blogs is focused on some of the über style bloggers.

You know the ones - the hyper-chic gals whose faces are everywhere in the fashion blogee community (and on Forever 21) and who have enviable careers focused on fashion thanks to their blogs. While I don't read these daily, I like to browse these gals' sites like I would a fashion mag. Here are some of the ones I think are cool:

♠  The do-it-all girl who can seemingly do everything with style - Emily from Cupcakes and Cashmere:

♠  Easy edgy grunge - Rumi from Fashiontoast:

♠  British punk vintage - Karen from Where Did U Get That:

♠  The classic All-American version - Jessica from What I Wore:

♠  Retro meets street - Karla from Karla's Closet:

♠  Blinged out style and creative DIYs - Kelly from the glamourai:

♠  The high fashion prodigy - Jane from Sea of Shoes:

Do you have a favorite super style blogger?

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And of course, here are some of the lovely cool contests of the week:

♠  Kelly from Alterations Needed is giving away a long strand pearl necklace in celebration of her two-year blogiversary. Contest ends September 24.

♠  Melanie from Unravelled Threads is giving away some chic accessories from ShopTheLook.net. Contest ends September 25.

♠  Debbie from Dark Horse is giving away a medley of fit-for-fall goodies, including a Starbucks card, cozy scarf and chocolates, all contained in super-cute owl tote. Contest ends September 27.

♠  Kelly from Fashion Fuel DC is giving away a $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores. Contest ends September 27.

♠  Kaleigha from krameymartin is giving away a $25 gift card to Anthropologie if you can help her plan her wedding anniversary celebration. Contest ends September 27.

♠  Erica from Fashion Meets Food is giving away a medley of autumnal goodies including a Starbucks gift card, seasonal polishes and scents. Contest ends September 27.

♠  Kristin from BonBon Rose Girls is giving away a zippered pouch from Charm Design. Contest ends September 28.

♠  Spiffy from Where The Lights Are Bright is giving away a $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores. Contest ends September 30.

♠  Eunice from hey fancy pants is giving away a red rosette dress from Harah Designs to one of her Australian readers. Contest ends September 30.

♠  Elizabeth at making it fun is giving away a personalized necklace from LeksiDesigns worth up to $35. Contest ends September 30.

♠  PetiteLittleGirl is giving away a $40 gift certificate to CSN Stores. Contest ends October 1.

♠  Valerie from hair on the brain is giving away a $100 gift card to ShopBop.com. Contest ends October 14.

I thought I'd disappoint you all again this week and not have the time to get this feature out again, but what better thing to do when you can't go back to sleep at 4:42 a.m. and just need to get your mind off of work?

The Who

Top: Anthropologie Guinevere Naked Eye (thanks for the top name, Kim!)

Skirt: H&M high-waist pencil (now in-stores, or similar here and here)

Belt: J. Crew metallic skinny

Shoes: Nine West Temani patent wedges (worn here and here before)

Necklace: Anthropologie Nueva Granada (worn here, here and here before)

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I am a daughter, sister, girlfriend. I was born in Taiwan but grew up in the States so I'm Chinese-illiterate. I plan shows and events for a living. I like to eat, read, hike. I enjoy fashion, clothes, styling, blogging. I am learning to like going to the gym and playing racquetball. I am kind of klutzy, reserved, silly, geeky, wry, sarcastic. I like to cook, do yoga, watch trashy TV or play the Wii to de-stress. I don't have any pets but really want a dog. I don't know if I want kids. I have freckles and still kind of hate them. I like going to different places but hate getting there. I don't need to talk about every little thing. I'm probably mildly OCD. I can't decorate a house to save my life but I am still trying. I'm secretly cheap. I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.

  

I'm also a total kook, if you haven't already guessed it.

So that's me in a nutshell. Now your turn - who are you? What do you do aside from blog?

Dog Days

Dress: Anthropologie Maeve Slate Shifts (worn here and here before)
Sweater: J. Crew lightweight cardigan (worn here before)
Belt: Anthropologie City Safari (worn here, here and here before)
Shoes: Indigo by Clarks Edamame (worn here, here and here before)

Just like the rest of you gals, for the past few weeks I had been slowly compiling together my fall wishlist and going on the search for my coveted items. My list has been mercifully short, and two of the items that I thought would be great additions to my current wardrobe had been a pair of casual flat brown boots and black booties.

The brown boots had been difficult - after many weeks of searching and whining and then having purchased (and then returned) three different pairs of brown boots (why do things just look better when you're trying them on in-store?), I finally found my pair about two weeks ago. I haven't worn them yet - um, when is fall finally going to show itself in the SE? - but I am so excited about them. The shaft on these is kind of also too tall for a shortie like me, but the leather is so soft that it doesn't matter (bed stü Bullet).

As for my black booties, these were luckily almost a no brainer since I'm a big fan of Vince Camuto (and if you buy shoes direct from their site, shipping is free, there's no tax and they often have 20% off deals). These will sure-to-be another workhorse for fall (Vince Camuto Bronco) - now if the darn weather in the SE would just go ahead and get fall-like! What is up with these 90 degree+ days in late September?!

To top off my fall shopping, I'd love to get a cozy wool jacket in a gorgeous jewel tone. J. Crew used to be the master of the colorful fall tweed but so far they aren't offering any this year (disappointing, JC!). But a recent perusal through Old Navy online recently did had me stumble upon this cousin to JC's previously highly sought-after Bella blazer (which also comes in petite and tall sizing ... tempting!):

Old Navy Ruffle-Collar jacket ($69.50)

What's been your favorite purchase of the fall so far? What are the next big items on your wish list?

And the Winner of the Anthropologie Necklace is ...

Thanks to all your wonderful lovelies who participated in my giveaway! I appreciate you all having taken the time to enter this contest and I seriously cannot thank you all enough for reading my little blog.

Without further ado, using Random.org to select a number from 75 entries (74 in the giveaway post and 1 entry that was put in the comments from another post), here are the results.

And the winner of the lovely Grandma's Treasure Trove necklace from Anthropologie is:

Jamie from Thrifty Threads!

Please check out Jamie's blog if you haven't had a chance to yet! She's got an awesome sense of girlish style, is a fellow Anthro-lover and has a nose for great deals! Congrats, Jamie, an e-mail will be coming your way!

Thank you all again for your great support! Without the support from my beautiful blogee friends, 200+ posts on this little blog would have never happened.

Other People's Blogs (kind of)

I'm cheating today because I don't have a new cool things post for you all. This week has flown by (not really in a good way) and I didn't have the time to blog troll! However, here's a rundown of some of my fave sites from past posts:

♣  It's a good thing to remember to be thankful everyday for even the most ordinary activities, because that's what makes up a life - via Leah from THXTHXTHX.

♣  Body art is beautiful and a wonderful (albeit permanent) form of expression - via Tattoologist.

♣  A "Brave" new adventure cross-country is about to start for one girl and her vintage Winnebago - via Elizabeth from Delightfully Tacky.

♣  Life goes on, whimsically and beautifully, despite extraordinary circumstances - via Stephanie from NieNie Dialogues.

♣  Healthy lunches with spectacularly cute presentations - one of my new faves! via sherimiya from Happy Little Bento.

Art by Caitlin Shearer

Alix from the cherry blossom girl

(If any of you lovelies know of a particularly cool blog or post you'd like to share, drop me a line at respecttheshoes(at)live.com - thanks!)

One thing I did have time to do is keep track of some of the cool giveaways this week, because there are a lot of awesome ones going on:

♥  Like mine! Today is the last day to enter my giveaway for Anthropologie's Grandma's Treasure Trove necklace. Contest ends tonight!  ♥

♣  Erica from Fashion meets Food is giving away a $25 gift card to Sephora and a bunch of other fashion swag. Contest ends September 17.

♣  Simone LeBlanc is giving away a YSL Tribute Sandals block print from Anna See. Contest ends September 17.

♣  Megan and Kristin from BonBon Rose Girls is giving away a pendant from Hazel and Harlow. Contest ends September 18.

♣  Peggy from She Hath Done What She Could is giving away a pair of Petit Fleur earrings from Crystal B. Contest ends September 19.

♣  Roxy from Effortless Anthropologie is giving away a set of Les Khakis de Chanel nail polishes. Contest ends September 19.

♣  Funky Finds is giving away your choice of a Shabby Apple dress. Contest ends September 19.

♣  Huzzah! Vintage is giving away a $40 gift card to Mother Midnight Vintage. Contest ends September 19.

♣  Indiana from adored austin is giving away a $20 store credit to Smashion.com. Contest ends September 19.

♣  Aimee from all things aimee is giving away a beautiful brass poppy brooch from jewelry by natsuko. Contest ends September 20.

♣  Jentine from My Edit is giving away two jeweled bracelets. Contest ends September 20.

♣  Lisa from My Magnificent Obsession is giving away a Wen hair care system. Contest ends September 20.

♣  Kim from Anthroholic is giving away a gorgeous illustration from Mimi Galore done in support of Breast Cancer Awareness. As a bonus, the winner will also receive a $25 gift card to Anthropologie. Contest ends September 21.

♣  Chiara from The Blonde Salad is giving away a €400 gift certificate good to any of UNIQUE WAY's shops. Contest ends September 21.

♣  Tien from Adiaphane is giving away a $25 gift certificate to Truly Enchanted jewelry. Contest ends September 21.

♣  Lindsay from Laughing Lindsay is giving away a Conair Infiniti Pro hair dryer. Contest ends September 21.

♣  Elaine from Clothed Much is giving away a pair of Whooga ugg boots in the size and style of the winner's choosing. Contest ends September 22.

♣  Mommy's Sweet Things is giving away a $30 gift certificate to Playful Threads lingerie. Contest ends September 23.

♣  Lynzy from From Skirts to Skillets is giving away a cocktail ring from Gina Marie Vintage. Contest ends September 24.

♣  FL Mom from Is There A Bathroom On This Ship? is giving away a $45 store credit to CSN Stores. Contest ends September 24.

♣  Blair from Wild & Precious is giving away a pretty necklace from Bird in Flight. Contest ends September 26.

♣  Monique from Curves and Chaos is giving away a $25 credit to Stella & Dot jewelry. Contest ends September 26.

Understanding Evolution

Don't forget, my Anthropologie giveaway ends tomorrow night - enter HERE!

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Believe it or not, but I'm a fairly recent convert to style. I spent my earlier years and high school being a major tomboy who was into sports more than clothes, and I pretty much wore whatever. I got a little into the whole fashion thing when I went to college and got to spend every day immersed in Manhattan and the diversity of the people I got to meet, but I am pretty sure I was still hopelessly inadequate. I wore jeans most always and only broke out the ill-fitting skirt suits when it was career-planning time.

It wasn't really until my first forays into the working world where I really started caring about what I wore - I borrowed a lot from my big sis and perused the sales racks at Banana Republic like nobody's business.

Through the years my style has changed and I became unafraid to wear skirts or dresses or to look nice - but working in a corporate environment usually means you are left with a very corporate wardrobe - lots of J. Crew, Ann Taylor, Banana Republic, Zara. There was a red pump or leopard belt here or there, but on most days, one look at me defined me as a corporate white-collar office kind of gal.

It wasn't really until last year when I moved to Atlanta and got put into a more casual work environment that I started getting more creative with my ensembles and buying casual clothes - ballet flats, fun dresses, kooky belts, chunky necklaces. And then late last year when I discovered fashion blogs - Anthropologie, H&M and Forever 21 became shops I started frequenting, prints and color and pattern mixing became the norm. I became unafraid to experiment and try things I wouldn't normally even consider!

Being a latecomer to the whole style arena, I think of myself as still trying to develop my own sense of style. I don't even know what to consider myself as currently, but would love to evolve into one of those timelessly classic gals who can look chic in a simple tee and jeans (I guess like Molly Sims or a more colorful Caroline Bessette) and who seems to know their own style very well. Gah ... wouldn't it be embarassing to be prancing around a few years from and overhear some gals whispering about how my look is "so 2010."

Dress: Anthropologie Maeve Staysail (worn here and here before in black)

Belt: H&M (worn here before - similar online here)

Shoes: Kenneth Cole Reaction Swim n Fool (worn here and here before - similar online here or here)

Necklace: Anthropologie Grandma's Treasure Trove (worn here before)

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How has your style changed over the years? Is it still evolving? Where would you like to see yourself style-wise in the next few years?

Thanks to the beautiful Debbie for this great topic!

A Little Bit of Randomness: Come September

Spoiler alert! OK, not really, but while most of our significant others are disappearing into int the vast black hole of footballsville, it frees up some valuable time for us gals for guilty TV pleasure - all the yummy season premieres of our fave and soon-to-be fave shows, the cliffhangers for our summer yummies and pretty much all new episodes for almost every show abounds.

I'm an admitted TV addict and watch too much tube-age. Name almost any TV show brainy or trashy and I've watched at least one episode. Even the hideously plain-ole bad shows, I've seen it (Jerseylicious, Pretty Wild, My Antonio, Bad Girls Club, Kendra, Flavor of Love ... been there, done that, did gag a little). I've spent almost entire weekends with old re-run marathons of Top Chef, Project Runway, Real Housewives (any other season than DC - I cannot stand them!) on the TV in the background. And we recently upgraded our cable package and it now includes the HBO channels so I've been experiencing way too much sofa time this past week.

I guess I am a TV grazer though because my actual fave to-go shows that I try not to miss are few: No Reservations, Rachel Zoe Project, Jersey Shore (I know ... but I can't help it - they're hilarious. GTL, baby!) Everything else just gets scanned.

September TV has been a bad month so far for me, though, and I've spent too much time watching the randomness. My version of the rundown so far of the boob tube activities? Nikita fights the Division, Chuck is alive, Katherine kills Caroline (or does she?), Sookie floats off with some fairies, Bourdain eats up Madrid, maybe baby Dan, cheerleading rules, Nene's husband has done her wrong, Jackie boot camp, Angelo cough hack, Snooki and Paulie smooshed, Zoe's turkey is bananas, the class of 2000 is considered old now?!, Damon kinda kills Jeremy, cheerleading sucks, Jesus is a witch, Paris dunkage, sewing drama rama, The Situation eats a sammi, everything, everyone, everybody ... la, la, la ...

What are your favorite guilty TV pleasures? What have you thought about all the recent season openers and finales for your fave shows?

Muchos thank yous for the lovely E Hayes for the fabulous topic recommend!

The Antonym to Cognizant

So I've spent a good part of last night between True Blood, Gossip Girl and No Reservations trying to put together a blog post. I wasn't trying to be especially meaningful or witty - I was just trying to find one idea I could type together that would actually make some sense, but all I've got was a whole lot of nothing.

And I spent a better part of early this morning trying to put together that same post but I am at a throwing-my-hands-into-the-air-in-frustration-and-defeat phase. I know I shouldn't blog because I feel like I have to - and I don't feel like I have to, I really do want to - but all I've got at the moment is a bad case of blogger's block.

So as a cheap blog cop-out, I'm looking to you for help. Got any questions you would like for me to answer? Anything you would like to know about moi? What do you do when you're looking for blog inspiration?

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And in other "news," here are my OOTDs from the last few days:

Top: Target slub tee (similar here in white - Target sleepwear makes the best casual tees!)

Skirt: NY&Co. abstract print (worn here before - kind of similar online here)

Shoes: Vince Camuto (worn here, here and here before)

Belt: J. Crew skinny metallic

Necklace: Laila Rowe

Top: Anthropologie Iris & Navy Sweetheart sweatshirt (worn here before)

Shorts: Old Navy cotton pleated (worn here and here before)

Shoes: Mossimo by Target (worn here, here and here before - similar-ish online here)

Dress: J. Crew cotton (big sis hand-me-down which I think is a cast-off bridesmaid dress - do you think the color washes me out?)

Belt: Urban Outfitters Deena & Ozzy stretch (worn here and here before - similar online here)

Shoes: Kenneth Cole Reaction Pine-A-Colada (worn here, here and here before)

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FYI, I think Google proved my blog is cootie-free now - I no longer see "this site is potentially harmful" messages popping up. Yay for getting out of Google detention!