Comfortable

Dress (Kohls); Sweater (Banana Republic Outlet); Tights (Target); Shoes (Naturalizer);
Necklace (Consignment Shop); Sunglasses (Charming Charlie)
Nicole Lai Photography

I love a good pencil skirt or fun belt to cinch in a dress... but sometimes I just want to be comfortable.  I removed the belt that came with this dress and to add definition I added this cropped sweater. All day long it felt like I was walking around in my pajamas - and it was awesome.  In other news, apparently Rex is getting too comfortable... got word from the vet the other day that he is about a pound overweight (which is significant when you are all of 8 pounds total.  So it's a strict regime of exercise and diet for this pooch (I hope Rex's grandparents are reading this... that means no people food!).  Given his sad eyes in this picture, I think someone is sensitive about his weight ;)

Remodeled LBD

Dress (Limited); Blouse (Target); Watch (Michael Kors);
Earrings & Tights (Nordstrom); Shoes (Naturalizer)
Nicole Lai Photography

There is nothing wrong with a little black dress - it's simple, classic, and always chic.  Today I wanted more out of of my LBD... I wanted pattern and texture - and needed more warmth.  The addition of a blouse and patterned tights created an update to this dress worthy of a whole new outfit.  Updating a classic item can have the same impact as a good home remodel. While the integrity of the piece remains, the renovations can create an upgraded style with more visual interest... ultimately resulting in increased curb appeal ;)

  And right now my Dad is most definitely shaking his head at that analogy...

Modern Mad Men

Sweater (Loft); Skirt (Limited); Nylons (Nordstrom Rack); Necklace (Macy's)
Heels (Nine West); Sunglasses (Charming Charlie)
Nicole Lai Photography

Between the nylons, pearls, and sweater tucked into my pencil skirt - I'm feeling very modern day Mad Men.  After getting sucked into that show, I am so inspired by the style... fitted skirts and dresses, cinched in middles, and high waists.  In fact I pretty much want to be Joan Harris... and while I will never have her fabulous hair or curves, I can still put on a pencil skirt and sweater and pretend :)

#BloggerProblems

Dress (Limited); Vest (Eastside find at Marshalls); Tights & Necklace (Target);
Sunglasses (Charming Charlie); Shoes (Naturalizer)
Nicole Lai Photography

Most people have an outfit in mind for an occasion... a wedding date night, party, reunion, etc.  I wore this gray and brown combo specifically for the brightly colored wall, which makes zero sense since I didn't walk around with the graffiti wall as my backdrop all day. But when I saw all of the loud colors I thought it was so fun, and wanted a neutral outfit to compliment it.  Which again, sounds odd but it's the truth - and maybe admitting I have a problem is the first step to recovery? If you ever want to feel more normal about the random issues that bloggers have - go to twitter and search #bloggerproblems... I'm pretty sure dressing for a wall is one of them :)

Office Appropriate

Dress (Gap); Shirt (Target); Nylons (Kohls); Necklace (Ann Taylor); Shoes (Naturalizer)
Watch (Fossil); Glasses (gifted by Firmoo)
Nicole Lai Photography

This dress is lower cut and sleeveless - certainly not appropriate for navigating the cube maze at work.  However, tying a chambray shirt quickly converts this dress to work wear.  I wish this type of magic could be used on other things not work appropriate... like office cocktails during the day.  Maybe I've just been watching too much Mad Men, but I'd like to make the nomination for office cocktails as the universal method for improving corporate culture.  We can call it the Draper policy :)

Bundled

Dress (Taylor find at Marshalls); Jacket (Old Navy); Scarf (H&M); Tights & Socks (Kohls):
Boots (Guess find at Marshalls); Love ring (Etsy); Love bracelet (Windsorstore.com)
Nicole Lai Photography

So we can all agree that offices are generally freezing... but in this outfit I was actually too warm! Maybe it's the blanket scarf, or the long sleeve shirt under my dress, or the layers of tights, socks, and boots... but I found myself getting really uncomfortable.  And yes I know I could have taken off the scarf (which would have helped lower my body temp tremendously) - but this was a look that I was determined to keep together!  And was it worth it to basically spend the day in a constant hot flash?  Probably not :)

The Clash

Dress (Taylor find at Marshalls ); Shirt & Tights (Target); Socks (JCPenney);
Boots (Nine West); Necklace (Limited)
Nicole Lai Photography

I love dressing up plaid - it's fun and unexpected... and helps give this short sleeved dress a winter life.  And I LOVE pattern mixing... it forever eliminates any misguided fashion combinations (pretty genius if you ask me) ... what do you mean my shirt doesn't go with my dress?  I'm pattern mixing!

Tribal

Dress (Primp Boutique) Coat (Old Navy); Hat (Kohls);  Tights & Gloves  (Target);
Shoes (Nine West); Necklace (H&M)
Nicole Lai Photography

Tribal prints take me back to the 90's - specifically Fresh Prince and DJ Jazzy Jeff.  In fact, for $42 -you can buy the man in your life this beauty. With a name like "90s Abstract Tribal Fresh Prince Hip Hop Club Silk Print" - you know it's going to be super fly ;)  It took me awhile to embrace the tribal pattern again - but I'm so glad I did!  I'm loving the grown up glam version of this print, but the loudly colored over-sized silks shirts from the 90's will always have a very special place in my heart :)

Dress Remix

Blazer (Kohls); Sweater (Limited); Dress (Taylor: Marshalls); Shoes (Ellen Tracy: Marshalls);
Necklace (vintage); Earrings (Nordstrom)
Nicole Lai Photography

Looking fabulous for less isn't just about scoring great deals or shopping at places that won't break the bank... remixing pieces are a great to way to give new life to items you've always worn a certain way and get more longevity out of your closet.  It's sort of like finding an ex after some time and realizing there is still potential - although that never happens. Remixing old boyfriends is a bad idea... trust me :)

Other ways I've worn this dress below (I also remixed the "hand on hip" pose)

Cold Busters

Dress (H&M); Scarf & Tights (Target): Boots (Guess find at Marshalls)
Watch (Fossil): Earrings (Nordstrom)
Nicole Lai Photography

I'm a skeptic of those so called "cold busters" - like airborne or Emergen-C...  you are supposed to take them when you feel a cold coming on and it's supposed to prevent it from developing any further.  I caved and got a box of Emergen-C after feeling the dreaded pre-cold scratchy throat the other day. Admittedly, I didn't get a full blown cold...  Although I'm pretty certain that my bright yellow scarf is also chock full of vitamin C. And there's no evidence to suggest otherwise ;)

Stripes Squared

Shirt (Green Envelope - TJMaxx); Scarf (Loft); Skirt (Gap); Boots (Nine West);
Watch (Fossil); Earrings (Nordstrom)
Nicole Lai Photography

Stripes are such classic, timeless, and fun pattern...  so why not double down?  Adding stripes to stripes makes an already good thing even better. Sort of like a cute guy that can cook... or putting sweaters on Rex... or zumba'ing to Gangnam Style.  It just works :)