The Ballad of the Blonde

This song was quite easy for me. My school's color is Navy, so "Dark Blue" was an easy color to sport. I felt like doing dark shades but very romantic since the song is very romantic. And thus it was. Skirt, Buffalo Exchange Shirt, Banana Republic (on sale) Boots, Last Chance Tights, Kohls Bracelet, Cost Plus World Market Vest, home-made Earrings, Forever 21 Coat, Last Chance

Remember this ? And this ? And that ? Well, don't hold your breath, my sister and I are at it again: The Fourth Annual Music Playlist Challenge! We started this four years ago because I mentioned how specific songs inspired my wardrobe. So we decided we would assign each other a playlist and for each song we would come up with a new outfit. So without further adieu, here is the list she gave me: Poison & Wine - The Civil Wars Crazy in Love - Beyonce ft. Jay-Z The Story  - Brandi Carlile The A Team - Ed Sheeran Smile - Nat King Cole Dark Blue - Jack's Mannequin Love and Some Verses - Iron & Wine Where You Go - The Young Romans Come On Eileen - Dexys Midnight Runners Bad Moon Rising - Creedence Clearwater Revival Over You - Miranda Lambert Radioactive - Imagine Dragons

Dear January, You have absolutely stunning snow but you are terribly freezing! Love Your Child-of-the-Summer, Hillary

It must be school spirit or something because I am a junkie for navy blue and white nowadays. I found this fabulous maxi dress at Goodwill and I couldn't let it leave my sights for the wonderful thrift store price it was. So it came! Actually, all pieces except the bracelet were second-hand store products, that's pretty cool now that I'm thinking about it.  Dress, Goodwill Sweater, Buffalo Exchange Bracelet, Cost Plus World Market Camisole, borrowed Heels, Last Chance

I would say my white collared button-up shirt I got on major sale at a Banana Republic Outlet has been one of the best purchases I've ever made. Especially for my summer work wardrobe. But it's also fantastic for layering and has transitioned into colder seasons with me. I've used it for dates, concerts, weekend, etc... Thank you white shirt for all you do!

Our color scheme was yellow, blue, and red. With jeans. So I figured I would mix up the color a little bit by sporting some sweet red pants. Here's the result: Jeans, Old Navy White Button-Up, Banana Republic Outlet Necklace, Floating Markets in Thailand Heels, Last Chance

If these pictures taught me anything, it was how badly I need to get my bangs trimmed. I'm getting a headache just thinking about how much they look like they're poking my eyes...

Phew, here marks the halfway point to completing the 30 for 30 Style Challenge! I've got to confess, I've been avoiding posting because I didn't have enough time to document all 30 outfits I wore back in August when I declared to do this, so when I was ashamed I went back to my normal wardrobe quietly. So instead of being ashamed, I'm going to just maybe put the blogging part of this challenge on hiatus and focus on featuring my day-by-day outfits again and appreciating my whole wardrobe. I have learned two major things from this challenge though: (1) it's fantastic when you're moving apartments and living out of a suitcase in between, and (2) pick a few more exciting pieces and not just super versatile classics to make this challenge more interesting for both you and your readers. So, I have the sixteenth one coming your way soon but that will be it for a while, and I will do a halfway recap for all y'alls. I think we will all realize this was decision...

Yesterday was the first day of my last real semester in college - where has the time gone???? There's always something a bit exciting about throwing on some cute new clothes and feeling like you're trying to impress your new classmates that day - even though I walked into my capstone class and knew almost everybody there, including my professor. And not to mention you roam campus so much this day that sometimes you can go a whole day without seeing anybody out of the routine. But oh well, it was still very fun to put on a yellow shirt dress I bought at Buffalo Exchange that my mom completely altered so it would fit better. Also, I took this picture inside since it was 16 degrees outside and dark. The perks of winter!