The Deep End

20th Century Fox was filming the pilot of a new TV show about young attorneys today in downtown Dallas. It's called The Deep End and stars Billy Zane. We could see the crews setting up outside our office window - they were filming our building. I will of course be looking for it on TV, just so I can see my office building. On a side note, it made me a little nostalgic for when I used to work in the film industry.

What I Wore While Reminiscing About Making Movies:

• maroon skirt (Lane Bryant)
• maroon shirt (Old Navy)
• blue/white striped cardi (Target)
• blue earrings (no clue, but they are pretty cheap)
• maroon suede pumps w/ fur poofs (J. Renee)
• flamingo pin (Goodwill)
• button ring (Etsy fair, unknown vendor)

What I Ate During a Very Stressful Day:

I tried to talk myself out of the garbage that I was craving for breakfast (stress makes me have really strong food cravings - I need to break that association of food as a solution to stress). I did pretty good for the first hour of work. Then the craving just got stronger and stronger, and here is the kicker - I was the only one at work. I still have that urget to hide my eating, so "if noone sees me eat it, it doesn't count." WRONG! But I still feel that way from time to time. I decided to go for a walk instead of eating stuff, but then I ducked into 7-11 at the end of my walk and loaded up on a pile of crap food. Ugh.

The good thing? I didn't let it turn into a Free-for-all day like I would have done last year. So that's progress anyway.

• breakfast: french vanilla cappucino, cheese danish, apple tart, sausage (7-11)
• lunch: too full and too stressed to eat
• snack: Honest bar, small banana
• dinner: healthy taco salad

Exercise:

More hula hooping in the office. It breifly made my stress level decrease, which was nice. I also went on two 1/2 mile walks at work, so 1 mile total. It's slowly getting better. Maybe I'll even workout for real soon.

This Post is in Honor of Erin

I have a shirt just like Erin's and I had been thinking that I needed to take a pic getting my head squished while wearing it - just like her! I haven't worn that shirt yet and I hadn't said anything about it to my photographer, but look what was in my camera when I downloaded pictures.


So Erin, this one is for you! Hope you are having a good day!

Copycat - Keiko Lynn

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: "That looks like a doily. That's a doily shirt."


Coincidentally, the same day that I bought this shirt at Goodwill, I saw Keiko Lynn's post. Her dress inspired me to pair the shirt with a full skirt.


What I Wore While Copying Keiko Lynn:

• black embroidered skirt (Lane Bryant)
• white lace shirt (thrifted, Goodwill)
• black sequin screwback earrings (thrifted, Goodwill)
• cotton strand bracelet (made by Maria)
• black ribbon heels (Nine West via 6pm)

What I Ate That Was Actually Healthy ALL DAY LONG:

• breakfast: cheesy egg, alternative bagel, 2 cuties
• lunch: chicken sandwich, 2 carrots, apple, cheesestick
• dinner: vegetarian "chicken" parmesan, spaghetti squash, garlic toast, red wine

Exercise:

I brought my hula hoop to work b/c there is a ton of open space and I don't really have room to do it at home. Almost all of my coworkers took a turn. I hooped for about 5 minutes. And I went on one 1/2 mile walk at work.

Challenge: A Week Without a Belt?

A coworker commented to me that I wear a belt every day and that she's never known anyone else who wears belts so much. I must admit that I really rely on them to put a finishing touch on an outfit. And, since I have big hips and a large chest, the cinching effect at my waist keeps me from looking like a linebacker. So here's the question? Can I go a whole week without wearing a belt and still feel like I look polished? I think that the girls at Academichic did a similar challenge at the beginning of summer.

What I Wore Without a Belt:

• brown skirt (Lane Bryant)
• aqua/brown sheer peasant blouse (Lane Bryant, Goodwill)
• aqua satin belt/scarf (via Ross??)
• leaf brooch (Goodwill)
• aqua earrings (vis Ross??)
• razor blade bracelet (from fabulous Erin's Etsy Shop LoveErinDesigns)
• brown tweed mules (I forgot to look - they are really old)
• purse (Target)

What I Ate that Was Halfway Decent:

• breakfast: chai tea, cheesy egg, alternative bagel, 2 cuties
• lunch: buddig sammie, 2 carrots, apple, cheesestick, water
• snack: carrot (b/c the banana was bad inside), thinkOrganic bar
• dinner: chinese food

Exercise:

One 1/2 mile walk at work and a tiny bit of hula hooping, while showing my coworkers how to use it.

Superior Scribbler

I just wanted to send a warm thank you to Struggler of Struggling to be Stylish who honored me with an award.

Thank you so much!! I am touched!

Parade Time

I only worked a half day on Friday. Rand came downtown to meet me for lunch. It just so happened that there was a parade and a small street fair. So we watched it for a bit. As we wer leaving I noticed that this women had brought her cat downtown and was forcing it to watch the parade. And Rand calls me a crazy cat lady.

What I Wore While Watching a Parade:

• jeans (Gap)
• white tennies (Target)
• blue T (Old Navy)
• white grommet belt (thrifted new, Goodwill)
• teal blue scarf (Goodwill)
• aqua earrings (via ROss?)
• silver circles necklace (via Macy's)

• 
  

Copycat - Kasmira

I took a different route to work today. As a result I got to see so great art on the street corner. It's this ----> huge metal sculpture of a musician. I love it!

Today I finally got a chance to wear an outfit that I've been planning ever since I saw Kasmira's post. Thanks for the inspiration, Kasmira!

What I Wore While Copying Kasmira:

• brown/cream skirt (Target)
• red silk ruffle shell (M Studio)
• brown scroll belt (Dots)
• light brown short sleeve jacket (thrifted, Goodwill)
• multicolor leaf earrings (Plato's Closet)
• eagle pin (Goodwill)
• brown purse (Target)

Don't Look at My Zipper!

This was a rough day with this skirt. After I got to work I realized that the seam for the zipper in the back had blown a pretty big hole. This was esp bad since I wasn't just sitting down at work all day. I had another 4 hr seminar with hundreds of Dallas attorneys after work. So I got to show my slip to lots of colleagues and other people that I really wouldn't want to see me like that. Plus I noticed that it had really gotten quite faded, so I didn't look as polished as I would have liked. More on that later.

What I Wore While Trying to Hide a Blown Zipper:

• green v-neck T (Target)
• black skirt (Lane Bryant) *
• grey sweater jacket (Nine West, thrifted Goodwill)
• black cut-out pumps (Circa by Joan & David)
• emerald earrings (gift)
• green glass ring (borrowed from Maria)
• gold/black/rhinestone brooch (borrowed from Maria)
• SMU Law School pin (gift from school)

* When I got home, I dropped this skirt in the washing machine along with two pairs of pants and a slip and redyed them all. (the slip was originally white, but everything else was faded black. I can't wait until they've dried to see if they look new again.

What I Ate That Made Me Ask Rand to Start Questioning Me About My Food:

• breakfast: McGriddle sandwich, chicken sandwich, hash browns, mocha (McDonalds)
• lunch: turkey & veggie sub, Sun Chips, Izze soda (Jimmy Johns)
• snack: Star Crunch (Little Debbie)
• dinner: taco salad, chips & queso, 2 oatmeal raisin cookies

So, for the last 2 days after work, a coworker and I have been attending a family law seminar. She and I both have contract jobs, so we are both looking for real employment with lawfirms. So appearance is important right now when we are in front of the Dallas legal community. She didn't want anyone wondering what was going on when I took a picture of my dinner, so she forbid me from doing it. I honestly didn't think anyone would notice, but I completely understood. So you don't have a picture of my really gross and overpriced dinner.

Speaking of gross, I feel gross. Rand feels gross. We have spent way too much money lately, eating too few veggies and too much grease. We have both commented on how we feel icky now. And my skin has just turned into a dull, zit-filled, puffy mess. So I asked Rand to check in on me so that I don't sneak off and buy fast food at lunch. Accountability! And we are going to the grocery ASAP.

Wonder Girl to the Fashion Rescue!

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: Rand came into the closet while all I had on was my underthings. "You look like Wonder Girl." And he was right. I looked in the mirror and just giggled at myself. And then after I finished getting dressed, "Is this your frumpy lawyer disguise that you will rip off and expose your super hero costume?" Rand hates cardigans, so anything with a cardi is immediately frumpy to him.

What I Wore While in Disguise:

• blue/cream dress (Target)
• orange crochet tank (Old Navy)
• orange cardi (Clothes Horse consignment store)
• ostrich heels (via DSW)
• bag (Old Navy)
• belt (Dots)
• citron glass earrings (borrowed from Maria)
• brooch (Bren's Gemstone Jewelry Etsy shop)

I swear my boobs didn't look that schlumpy in real life. But by the time I got home from work followed by a four hour family law seminar I was tired and rumpled.

Clothing Swap Date Picked

Mark your calendars!

The date for the Dallas clothing swap is

Saturday, October 24th

We'll post the specifics of where, when, etc soon. But in the mean time, go through your closets and start culling gently worn items to swap. We will be swapping clothing, shoes, and accessories, so don't forget to go through your jewelry box, your pile of scarves, and your purses.

Patriotic Picnic

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: "Is it some sort of patriotic holiday that I don't know about? Why are you wearing a flag pin?" My grandfather gave it to me, and I've never worn it since I am not a veteran, but it matched so I thought I would wear it in honor of him. "Well you look like a Fourth of July picnic." Fair enough. I really kinda do. "That's a lot of gingham. I can't believe you were just trying to convince me to put on that shirt to go out to dinner." - without even realizing it, when I was suggesting a shirt for him to put on as we ran out the door to dinner, I suggest a blue gingham shirt. We would have looked like twins. Freaky-matching-engaged twins.

What I Wore Trying to Get The Last Bit of Fun Out of My Summer Clothes:

• blue wool skirt (thrifted, Goodwill)
• red tank (CAbi, thrifted Goodwill)
• blue gingham blouse (Gap)
• red gingham scarf (thrifted new, Goodwill)
• red patent belt (Target)
• red suede heels (Jessica Simpson, thrifted Goodwill)
• red screwback earrings (borrowed from Maria)
• veteran's pin (hand-me-down from Grandpa)

What I Ate While Trying Desperately NOT To Eat the Entire World:

• breakfast: peanut butter, chocolate, apple oatmeal with quinoa
• lunch: chicken buddig sandwich, side salad, apple, cheese crackers
• snack: cheesestick, thinkOrganic bar, 2 large carrots, more cheese crackers
• dinner: too much bad sushi, seaweed salad, and edamame

What I Did With Sarah Again This Weekend:

We had our second hula hooping class on Sunday. This one was even more fun. We learned some tricks! And as you can see, there was blindfolded hooping. Exciting!

Sleeping Beauty?

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: "It's curtains. That's a curtain skirt."

So this is the aftermath of only getting 2 1/2 hrs of sleep. By the time I got home from work (4 hours early, BTW) I was basically sleepwalking. Rand snapped this pic of me when I laid down to rest for a second before we took my daily photos. How could I not use it? Look at how neatly my clothes are laid out on the bed. If this had been after the photo was taken, I would have been wallowing, but here I was trying to prevent pre-pic wrinkles. Ah vanity, thy name is Tina.

What I Wore While Being a Sleep Zombie:

• skirt (thrifted Goodwill)
• aqua faux wrap shirt (Target)
• silvertone belt (?)
• magenta heels (Steve Madden)
• silver bead necklace (Ralph Lauren)
• silvertone brooch (thrifted, Goodwill)

Just so you have an idea what the outfit looked like when I wasn't passed out --->

Mayor of Caffeine Town

I don't drink a lot of caffeine, and sometimes I forget that I need to be careful when I do. Usually I just have trouble sleeping when I overdo it, or when I drink caffeine in the afternoon. Well today I really did a number on myself. I got some free energy shot things from CVS, and I had one at 7 am b/c one of my lovely cats decided to wake me up at 4 a.m. And then at 8:30 a.m., I had a craving for a pumpkin spice latte b/c it's still cold and rainy here in Dallas. Mistake!! I was so wired that I felt like my hair was crawling all over my head. I was still wide awake at bedtime. In fact, I only slept for about 3 hours before I woke up again - wide awake, which is why I am updating the blog at 2 am.

What I Wore While My Hair Crawled:

Today Coco was my outfit twin

• brown slacks (Lane Bryant)*
• blue blouse (Old Navy)
• silk scarf (thrifted, Goodwill)**
• brown/green earrings (street vendor in Austin)
• green stone ring (borrowed from Maria)
• sand dollar necklace (thrifted Goodwill)

*clearly these are way too big now. I hate shopping for pants.

** I've tried wearing this scarf this way before and it always ends up wrinkley. I need to remember that in the future.

Guest Bloggers Unite!

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: "You look like you are going to church. That's a church dress." What makes it a church dress? "It's got no cleavage." Not everything can have cleve, Rand. "I rest my case - church dress." I was laughing so hard. Sure, I wear my see-through*, bright red dress to church. Yeah, right. Sheesh.

* I had to dye a slip red specifically to wear under this dress, b/c it is completely sheer.

I got an email today from prior guest blogger Brooke. She and prior guest blogger Coco have struck out on their own and now have a daily fashion blog called The B/C Changeover. I was just getting ready to ask these lovely ladies if either of them wanted to do some fall guest blogging for me, but clearly the time for guest blogging has passed. They are all grown up and on their own. I am so proud. hehe. Seriously, go check them out.

What I Wore While Admiring The B/C Changeover:

• red dress (handmade, Goodwill)
• black beaded belt (Ninewest?)*
• black/silver bead deco heels (Newport News)
• black bead earrings (Ross?)
• black ribbon necklace (Target)

* sadly the leather on the belt gave way in the middle of the day. I'm trying to decide if it's worth it to have it repaired or if I should just use the buckle and make my own belt with fabric or ribbon.

What I've Been Eating Confession Time:

I've been eating everything in sight. Fastfood, Little Debbies, random snacks, and dinner out every night for the last week. I told myself when I started this blog that I would document the good moments and the bad. And I haven't been trying to hide what I've been eating, but since I haven't been thinking about what I've been eating, I haven't been thinking about taking photos. And I've been eating so quickly that when I do remember that I should take a pic, I've already shoved it all down my gullet. It has not been good. And I feel gross. I miss veggies. So send good produce-filled thoughts my way. I'm hopinh to get it all back under control tomorrow.

Hula Hoop Strikes Back

It's been raining for 5 straight days here in Dallas. Everything is dreary, dark, and damp. And you know what? I love it. I really enjoy a good rain storm. The only downfall? My clothes get limp and my hair gets huge and frizzy.

What I Wore While Trying to Control Frizz:

• orange shirt (via Kohls)
• black and white geometric skirt (thrifted, Goodwill)
• black satin flats (via Kohls)
• black skinny belt (Target)
• silver earrings (borrowed from Maria)*
• silver-tone and black chain necklace (thrifted, Ladies of Charity)
• button ring (Etsy Fair)

* I went over to Maria's house to hang out and have some good girly time. When I got there, she was working on a custom purse hook order. And that meant that her giant trunk full of vintage jewelry (that she uses to make her purse hooks) was OPEN. And that meant that I was up to my elbows in her fab jewelry, pulling out things I wanted to wear. So this week is going to heavily feature my borrowed stash.

What I Did For Exercise On The Weekend:

(Sarah, me, and Sarah again learning a trick from instructor Jen Rose)

Beginners' Hula Hoop Class!!!

First things first: Hula Hoop Fashion! I had to select my hoop when I arrive for the first class. Since I had managed to show up in an outfit that was already matchy matchy (my tennis shoes are silver and the same color of green as my shirt), clearly I need to take this matchiness to an extreme so I selected a silver and green hoop. I look like I was on some team. ha!

Class was a ton of fun. My friend Sarah joined me and we spent the entire class laughing at ourselves and each other as we tried to learn the basics of hooping and even a couple of tricks. Let's see...the instructor hit an overhead light, Sarah tried to take out the fire extinguisher with her hoop, and I managed to throw my hoop backwards out the door and down the hall AND I hit the assistant with my hoop later. It was a blast and judging by my thighs, a bit of a workout too. It's a 4 week class. I'm excited to go back again next Sunday. Although, Sarah told me she's already been practicing, so I need to get on it if I don't want to feel like a loser at the next class.

Battlestar Galactica

Tonight we had drinks while we started the Battlestar Galactica series. I couldn't handle the vodka gibsons we made the other day, so this time I had a dirty martini. Much better. And yes, I love sci-fi.

What I Wore While Drinking Martinis:

• skirt, shortened (thrifted Goodwill)
• white tank (Target)
• white wrap shirt (Lane Bryant)
• red belt (Target)
• red flats (the name has rubbed off and I don't remember)
• earrings (Lane Bryant)
• brooch worn as a necklace (Goodwill)

What I Ate While Being Ditched For Lunch:

• breakfast: cheesy egg, bagel, pear
• lunch: gyro, chips, Coke Zero
• dinner: quesadilla explosion salad (Chili's), martini

A Confession & Some Planning

Sorry for the major delay in posting. At my very core I am a lazy lazy girl. And on Wednesday, I met Erin for dinner and a clothing swap planning session. So I got home a little later than usual, and I just didn't get around to it. Let me just say, you know a couple of daily fashion bloggers are getting together when the deciding factor on whether dinner was over was the light outside. We both had to rush home and take pics before it went away completely. ha! Anyway, as always I had a ton of fun with Erin. And we've got plans set up for the Dallas Clothing Swap. We're thinking the late-middle of October, but more on that soon.

What I Wore While Being Unzipped:

• grey plaid wiggle dress (Merona, thrifted new Goodwill)*
• grey vest (Lane Bryant)
• black patent belt (Nine West via Ross)
• grey patent pumps (Steve Madden via Ross)
• turquoise earrings (Ross?)
• turquoise necklace, extended by me (Lane Bryant)
• aqua bead bracelet (TJ Maxx?)
• blue rafia purse, redyed by me (thrifted, St. Vincent DePaul)

* confession time: I had to have this dress. HAD TO. I adore it and I've been looking for something like it. It fits perfectly in the waist and skirt. BUT it's way too small in the bust. Major pancake boobage. And I could tell that even with a minimzing bra and even with some major weight loss, it was never going to fit in the chest. But I bought it anyway. I told myself that I would cut it off and make a great skirt out of it. And I might do that. But first, I had to find a way to wear it as a dress. So...uh...it's totally unzipped from the waist up and that is hidden by the vest. I wish I could figure out a way to wear it as a dress without covering it up. Anyone think I can get away with turning the zipper into a ribbon/corset type thing? LOL

What I Ate While Planning with Erin:

(my stuff is the two plates this side of my water glass)

• breakfast: cheesy egg, bagel, pear
• lunch: leftover beef stroganoff, leftover mexican veggies
• snack: cheese stick, thinkOrganic bar, apple
• dinner: 1/2 c. calamari, 3 cheese croquettes, 2 glasses sparkling sangria (Sangria)

See Erin's planning notes on in the dinner pic? It was totally official business, even if there was sangria and tapas involved!

Dallas Clothing Swap

I'm meeting Erin after work today so that we can discuss the Dallas clothing swap. One thing we're going to decide is if we have enough participants in various sizes for this to work. So if anyone else that hasn't already let me know is interested, leave a comment!

Vodka Gibsons

Rand requested vodka gibsons to keep in the spirit of the show while we watched Mad Men tonight. Wow that's a strong drink. We stuck with just one over the course of the hour.



What I Wore While Using My Bartending Skills:

• dress (thrifted Goodwill)
• silver/gold/white belt (thrifted new Goodwill)
• teal suede peeptoes (NY&Co.)
• green purse (Lancome)
• green dual tone multi-strand necklace (thrifted Goodwill)
• cream floral brooch (Ross)
• faux pearl earrings (??)

What I Ate While Forcing Myself to Eat At Home:

• breakfast: cheesy egg, alternative bagel, bartlet pear
• lunch: chicken buddig sandwich, 2 carrots, small apple, yellow grape toms
• snack: thinkOrganic bar, cheese stick
• dinner: chicken quesadilla, corn/brocolli/onion/black beans
• dessert: Mojo bar, vodka gibson

Total for the Day: 29.5 points, 1.5 miles walking

Disco Diva

No fashion today. I had a quick interview so I had to throw on my interview suit, which you've seen before. But I did get some non-walking exercise, so you know I have to talk about that!

What I Did Thanks To Cranky Fitness:

I won a workout DVD from a giveaway on Cranky Fitness. If you are interested in fitness, you have to got to read this blog. It's written by two hilarious, well-informed women: Crabby McSlacker (best name EVA!) and Merry. I love them and so will you. So I finally got off my butt to try out one of the two DVDs they sent me. Both of them are So You Think You Can Dance workout DVDs. I selected the Cardio Funk. I did the warm-up (10 minutes) and then I selected the the Disco workout (as if you couldn't tell from my lovely pose above).

Here's what I like:

• nice long warm up
• very clear instruction
• everyone on the video actually seems like they're having fun and it makes you want to enjoy it too.

Here's what I don't like:

• most of the video is the instruction part (10 minutes per dance type) and that part isn't really a workout
• the only real workout part is only 5 minutes per dance
• I didn't really break a sweat

I'll do this video again, but it's really geared more for people who want to dance than people who want to get in a good sweaty workout.

Bring Us Bevo!

Today was a little interesting at work. A little background for those of you not from Texas or Oklahoma - there is a huge college football game here in Dallas every year in October. It's called Texas/OU weekend aka The Red River Shootout, and it's a Big Deal. A coworker of mine received a package that he had ordered in preparation of the big event. This is an 8 foot inflatable Bevo in honor of his (and my) alma mater. Can you name this realty TV star with Bevo?

What I Wore While Watching Bevo Inflate:

• black slacks, getting too baggy in the butt (Lane Bryant)
• grey stretch shell (it's from the 90s)
• floral cardigan (Target, thrifted new from Goodwill)
• black silk scarf (?)
• silvertone/black flower brooch (thrifted Goodwill)
• grey earrings (Target, thrifted new Goodwill)
• silver bracelet (gift from a friend - Thanks, Magnolia!!!)
• black flats (Simply Vera)

What I Ate While Resisting All-You-Can-Eat Pizza:

• breakfast: granola, peanut butter, yogurt, blueberries
• lunch: chicken Buddig sandwich, cantaloupe, snow peas, carrot
• snack: apple, cheese stick, Cliff Z bar
• dinner: beef stroganoff, roasted zucchini

Total for the Day: 32.5 points, 1/2 mile walking

I Love Futurama

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: "I love this dress on you. It does...uh...such nice things to your curves."

What I Wore While Watching a Futurama Movie:

• purple dress (Old Navy)
• animal print belt (Dots)
• patent pumps (Payless)
• silver-tone necklace (via Ross)
• silver-tone mother of pearl earrings (inherited from grandma)

What I Ate While Rand Visited Me Downtown

• breakfast: flax granola, blueberries, greek yogurt, Wonder peanut butter
• lunch: gyro, greek salad, Coke Zero
• snack: none
• dinner: crockpot mexican chicken, potato, corn, avocado, non-fat sour cream, 2% cheese, side salad
• dessert: none

Exercise:

I went on 4 work walks today. Two with my normal walking budddy, one with a coworker, adn one with Rand while he was there for lunch. I'm pretty consistently walking at least twice at work every day, but I'm having a hard time getting any other exercise in.

Total for the Day: 32.5 points, 2 miles of walking

Model Pose

Rand's Daily Outfit Assessment: Contrary to his prior statement about this skirt, he said "You look good, Baby. Not as sexy as yesterday, but I still like it."

The original Neiman Marcus is only a block from my office and they update the window display on a regular basis. After seeing this new one, I decided that clearly I needed to emulate this oh so realistic pose. Ha.

What I Wore While Looking Like a Neiman Marcus Mannequin:

• pink skirt (Goodwill)
• multi colored blouse (via Kohls)
• pink belt (Walmart)
• pink heels (Nine West)
• miniture rose necklace (vintage store in NYC)
• yellow and brown bead hoops (Goodwill)

What I Ate While Watching The Prophecy:

• breakfast: flax granola, blueberries, greek yogurt, Wonder peanute butter
• lunch: corned beef Buddig sandwich, carrot, snow peas, cantaloupe
• snack: apple, cheese stick, CLiff Z
• dinner: veggie pizza
• dessert: WW english toffee crunch

Weekly Weigh In:

2.6 pounds lost! yay!!

Total for the Day: 28.5 points, 1 mile walking, 2.6 pounds lost