long week

H&M button down; Gap sweater; Vintage necklaces; Target skirt; Minnetonka Moccasin moccasins

 Gotta love having three different pairs of moccasins...especially when the sole of your right brown one literally starts to disconnect itself from the rest of shoe (on a side note does that keep me from wearing them? Of course not). So this is my outfit yesterday, and I think it worked well despite the gale-force winds that kept me in perpetual fear of flashing passerby on my way to class. That being said, who doesn't love a good pleated skirt? The throwback to high school always makes me nostalgic.

I would love to write bore you more with stories of my life, but I have a Comparative Political Systems midterm and paper due tomorrow, and they may be the death of me... so good night, send positive vibes to Washington DC tomorrow afternoon!

new (old) skirt

So, here's one of my cute vintage purchases from the other day! I would show you the cardigan, but my mom just pointed out that the shiny gold buttons look kind of cheap and that I should replace them, perhaps with some cute tortoiseshell ones. So when I put it on all I could see were the buttons and now that I've noticed them I don't think I can wear the cardigan until they're gone. Thanks mom.

J. Crew sweater

Banana Republic tank top

Pendant from a street fair

Vintage skirt

Aldo boots

You guys remember my crazy, tribal-esque blazer? I'm thinking it will look great with this skirt. I'll wear them together, then pick up the small dog in a Navajo blanket I saw walking down the street the other day, and I will be perfect. Hope you guys were all as scared as my family was when you heard that idea.

I don't even know why I put close-ups of this necklace anymore, anyone who has read my blog more than once please tell me that some of you have has already seen it way too much. Well, at least you can see the skirt pattern up close and observe that it does, in fact, practically perfectly match my blazer. Get excited. (Would it be too ridiculous if I did a joke post of the aforementioned skirt and blazer look? No? Good.)

Merry Christmas Eve everyone! I don't know about you, but today has been all about last-minute present shopping (which I will never do again, by the way, it's much too stressful) and watching my mom and Natalie bake Christmas cookies. Not helping, just observing and eating - compared to the two of them, I really shouldn't be allowed in the kitchen. It's the sad truth. But now I have lots of cookies to eat! Eating, that's really my job in this household...

I'm quite a fan of large sweaters

If you haven't noticed, I do seem to have a thing for oversized tops, especially if they used to belong to my dad and are cashmere... Yesterday he saw me in this one and asked if I'd stolen it, apparently he kind of likes it - oops? Promise I didn't steal it! Or if I did, I wouldn't be stupid enough to wear it at home...

vintage necklace

Dad's old sweater

target dress

aldo boots

 The sweater just goes with everything though! And coziness is always appreciated when you live in Minnesota, even if there's apparently no snow for Christmas... First time showing off my Target zipper dress in an outfit post though! Still sad I didn't show you the last time I wore it, it was really outfit perfection.

Isn't he cute? Mom got him awhile ago on Goodwill.com I think but then figured he would be too crazy for me to wear - because I never wear anything crazy? (see tribal-print blazer...) I mean he's huge, way too fun to play with and fiddle with, and has crystal eyes. I mean he takes a certain outfit to work with, but clearly I'm in love. 

Just noticed Tilly's tail in the bottom of this last photo - she just loves our photo shoots! Still trying to find a good place in this house for photos, the whole house is just filled with little corners that you think would be cute for photos but are actually just awkward with bad lighting. Oh, for the days when I could go out on the back porch and take self-timer photos for myself.

It's almost Christmas, get excited everyone! And have a lovely day :)

odds and ends

Why is everyone leaving/studying for finals/taking finals and not here to take my pictures?! Leave me alone and this is what you end up with...

 My lovely new Minnetonka Moccasin boots - if I wear them with a dress they don't make my legs look as stubby! Quite the ringing endorsement, right?

My pendant and close-up of the pattern of my vintage dress. And yes, below is a camera-in-front-of-the-mirror photo. Yes, I did just die a little inside. But I'm dressed so nicely for finals and wanted everyone to see! Actually I'm not really dressed for finals, since today I did no studying whatsoever. Turned in my papers and now I have a break until Saturday! Which would be exciting if, I don't know, I could spend that break at home? But no, no going there until Tuesday...

One more random thing, don't think I've shown you this -  it's actually another one of my purchases from my Columbus Day weekend in New York? Yes I know I'm behind. It's actually pretty light, perfect for the 50's and 40's we're having right now (I know. Not real December) if I want to be a little nicer than my Northface.

Less than two weeks until Christmas! Can you believe how quickly this year went by? I'm slowly starting to realize that I'm halfway done with my second year of college, and kind of starting to freak out... Regardless, have a lovely evening everyone!

finals have begun

Less than two weeks until I go home! Last day of classes was Wednesday, and now the studying begins (or, at least, I'm trying really hard to make it begin). My first test is Russian on Tuesday, then a couple of papers due Wednesday - so I'm trying really hard to get the papers done by the end of this weekend. And with the help of some muffins and copious lattes, I may succeed! This morning Jess and I went to a free yoga class and I think sweat half my body weight off... so needless to say I'm not really put together yet for today! But here are pictures of yesterday's outfit, I think I looked pretty cute for a day at the library

rachel rachel roy dress

vintage necklace

gap sweater

hue (maybe?) socks

target boots

 First time out in my other Black Friday purchase! My thought process pretty much went as follows when picking this outfit out: It's not raining anymore. Therefore I'm not going to wear tights. Or a jacket. Yes. Logical, right? I honestly still don't understand how this is considered December weather right now. I mean, I just wore flip flops to yoga. Let me repeat that: I wore flip flops. In December. This is so wrong.

Work just really doesn't sound like much fun right now. Thankfully, me and the other girls of Harmony are going to sing at the Study Abroad Christmas party in a bit, so I can I avoid it for a bit longer. But considering that I got up, dressed and got ready just in time for noon yoga, there should probably be some work getting done some time soon. Oh well, tonight I will just hole up in my room and research International Relations until I cry. Or just watch a movie. Maybe both? Who knows... Have a lovely Friday afternoon all!

serendipity

So normally I don't do life-related posts (I generally just keep it to clothing) but since I failed at taking photos of my outfit for dinner last night, and it was a good outfit, you get to see it via random photos of me and all of my friends! We went to Serendipity as a late celebration of my roommate Nicole's birthday - so here you go!

loft button down

forever21 skirt

street market pendant

target boots

So when our friend Jess made the reservations, we were told that we had to wear pink, to fit in with the decor of the restaurant (which was absolutely adorable by the way - besides the dessert, it was the only thing I really liked about that restaurant, unfortunately). But then when we all met up, Nicole and I were the only ones in pink! And do you know how difficult it was for me to find a pink outfit? You are actually looking at just about everything pink I own.  Though I must say I like the juxtaposition of the red skirt and the pale pink blouse.

And here's an adorable group shot of (almost) everyone in front of the John Carroll statue at Georgetown - just ignore the giant dog stuffed animal.

 thegeorgetowndish.com

 And since I failed at taking photos of the interior myself, here is a picture of one of the rooms inside the restaurant - don't you love all the pretty lamps? The room we were in also had a chair hanging from the ceiling, and all of these pretty gilt  mirrors.

I have to say, the food wasn't my favorite, and they lost our reservation (and were completely unapologetic about it). But its an adorable place, the desserts are fantastic, and it was so lovely to be out with all of my friends - we rarely get all together like this, it's so hard to schedule time when everyone is free. As in, we literally made a doodle poll to see when this would work. So it's been a great weekend so far, hope you all agree!

happy december to all

.... And to all a good night. I really wish I could go to bed right now. Honestly, I've been so tired lately! On Tuesday, I took two naps. Worrisome, right? I have a capella in 30 minutes or so though, so no bed for Alison quite yet.

aran island sweater

street market pendant

gap jeans

minnetonka moccasins

 So, here is the only usable - a slightly relative term, looking at it now - one of the photos Nicole and I just took outside before my camera died and she had to run to play intramural basketball (if you knew her, you would find that just as funny as I do). Regardless, I love my sweater - we got it on our family trip to Ireland about 4 years ago, and its the only piece of wool clothing I can wear. I'm sure you all remember my rants on my wool, but for some reason this sweater doesn't bother me! Maybe if I wear it every day for a month or so, I'll be able to handle other wool, and a whole new world of fall/winter clothing will open for me!

And here are the lovely two dresses I picked up while Black Friday shopping! The top one is Rachel Rachel Roy from Macys, and though it came with a belt, I chose not to include it - it actually didn't have a belt when I found it, and when I asked where its belt was they pulled out some long piece of brown leather and said that's what it was! Brown leather with black zippers? I tried it on and felt like Robbin Hood. In fact, I may be Robbin Hood for Halloween next year now. The one below was cheapie from Target, and I'll probably wear it tomorrow, if I can find some combination of layering pieces that makes it possible to wear in this horrible weather...

So that's it for this random amalgam of a post. Tomorrow Harmony (my a capella group) is singing at the Christmas Tree Lighting and I can't wait! Christmas music is seriously the best thing ever. Sometimes I miss the days of high school choir, when I would lose my voice I sang so many concerts in the month of December... and for some of them, we were paid in food, it was lovely. But speaking of music, I'm off to practice, hope you have all had a great week so far!

perfect fall afternoon

Today I wore my suede boots and my dad's old cashmere sweater, got a pumpkin cupcake and a latte, and had a beautiful walk in the fall leaves - to paraphrase from my facebook status from today. But it's true! It was one of those beautiful, sunny, and crisp days of the fall, and my midterms are over! Things just might be looking up. And I looked adorable, in my own, self-centered opionion...

dads sweater

hanes tshirt

jcrew skirt

street fair pendant

target boots

 Once again, sorry for all the awkwardly sized photos, its what happens when we take indoor photos and I have to attempt to crop out as much of the messiness as possible. Also, want to hear a funny anecdote about how these indoor photos are taken? With the lights off. Why? Because taking them in the dark with a flash is preferable to the horrid-ness of fluorescent lights. It is the most ridiculous process ever.

Thought I'd take off the sweater and show you the look with the tshirt as well, as it was actually so nice today that I didn't really even need the sweater! Can I make a suggestion to all of you out there? Yes? Ok (I feel like I'm on Dora the Explorer). Buy men's Hanes tshirts. Wash and dry them and they shrink to just the perfect comfy but not too loose size. And they're like 6 for $5. It's perfection.

So the awkward thing about this skirt (which my mom so lovingly sent me in a care package last week by the way. Made my day) is that its a silk underskirt with a lace overlay, and the whole time I was walking, I kept feeling like the underskirt was riding up! And that would not even be the first time I walked around with my skirt accidentally pushed up to my hip - don't judge me, I was wearing tights. And my bookbags always seem to push my skirts to places I would prefer they weren't when I'm not paying attention. It happens.

I can't believe it! My midterms are over, and I survived! Now it's nothing but regularly scheduled readings and homework assignments until finals in the beginning of December. And I go home for the first time since coming back to school in exactly two weeks. I'm one of those dorky college students that actually loves hanging out with their family way too much, and I really can't wait. Hope you all had a great Wednesday!

new clothing

Where are these new purchases from, you may ask? Would it be that trip that I took, oh, about 2 weeks ago? Yes, yes it would - clearly I'm really good at posting what I say I will post. I've actually worn all of these pieces before but, being the awesome forgetful blogger that I am, haven't managed to get pictures of them up yet - and they've been some cute outfits!

My cute little burgundy bow-blouse! Many adjectives and no commas... Wore this last weekend to work with my black skinnies and pseud-moto boots - basically felt like a model. It was fun, and made being unable to walk by the end of the day slightly more bearable. 

It's a blazer. It's oversized. It's tribal print. Beth may have tried to talk me out of buying it, but I couldn't help it! Wore it yesterday and, despite all the looks I got from the other, much preppier students around campus, quite enjoyed myself. 

Cardigan/blouse/thing with a really cute print! Wore it on the bus back from New York, and it looks nice layered over a basic tank and some jeans. Also, I really like the detailing around the neck.

Necklaces! The turquoise one you saw in yesterday's post, and the other pendant was in an outfit post from New York. Love them both, and we all know I need more pendants like I need a hole in the head...

As I sit here I realized that I didn't even take pictures of everything I bought! These are just the purchases from my new favorite store (that I don't live in the correct city for. Sadness.) There's also a cute little dress and a new winter coat! I guess I'll just do those later? It's me, so I'm making no promises as to when that will be... But guess what? Now the week is over, and we can all enjoy the weekend! (Except me, since this is a scheduled post and I'm currently at work for an 8-hour shift... but such is life) Happy Friday all!

 

common room outfit post?

Upon seeing one of the photos she took for me in our quick little photo shoot tonight (literally taken like 10 minutes ago and shot in about, oh 1 minute) Nicole said, "You should totally make that your profile picture!" To which I replied - "Except... it's me posing in the common room." And that would make my life look sad... Fun story, right? Ok, on to today's outfit, which I quite liked:

urban outfitters cardigan and dress

street fair necklace

target boots

 I got this dress while I was home last fall due to my lovely foot injury - sidenote, being in the Mall of America on a foot scooter? Very interesting experience. Anyways, you can't tell in the photos, but the dress is quite fuzzy, and therefore inappropriate for the lovely spring weather I was going to return to. So I left it at home, to be brought back to school this fall. And here it is! Slightly shorter than I remember, to be honest... And it was quite windy today. There were some sketchy moments.

Yay for one of the pretty things I got in New York! This was $3 at the random street fair Beth and I walked through for a bit, and I've been wearing it wayyyy to much lately. But it just pulls everything together in that indescribable but perfect way! You know what I mean? Probably I just sound crazy, but what's new.

And finally I get to wear my suede boots again! Darn these rainy East Coast falls, they make dressing quite a hassle. Not only can I not wear my suede boots without obsessively checking the weather forecast, but I also have to plan my outfits around the ability to pair them with my green rainboots, or how they will hold up getting wet etc. Complain, complain, complain. I'm done now.

On another note, I'm working a crazy amount this weekend, once again. And it's homecoming weekend! Might be starting to rethink this whole "I want a job so that I can have extra spending shopping money" thing. We shall see. But now I'm going to bed, get some sleep before my Russian midterm tomorrow - wish me luck! Hope you all had a lovely weekend :)