Dressing Up While Dressing Down

Once again, I owe you, dear reader. a little fashion show. As you see, the title of this post is "Dressing Up While Dressing Down" which simply translates to looking pretty without trying too hard. I swear if I could live in a dress, I would. I love wearing dresses and skirts, but the tricky part is changing something casual into something dressed up, like something you would wear to a quick lunch with friends to something you would wear for a night out. Usually, I add make up and pretty accessories to dress up an outfit. Both of these outfits work both ways; however, I wore each of these for day events this summer.

{I wore this outfit for a family Sunday lunch. This is a Wet Seal cropped top, and Michael Kors handbag. In addition, I wore pearl earrings, a white watch, and a pearl bracelet, which are not shown in this picture.}

{I wore this outfit for my brother's graduation followed by a family lunch at Olive Garden. This is a Shasa little black dress, H&M pumps, ALDO handbag, Forever21 necklace, Fossil watch, and vintage earrings (which are not shown in the picture).}

Shoes, Bags, and Books

When a pair of high heels or a hand bag catches my eye, I can't contain myself. Being the only daughter in my family, people think I should be influenced by the manly environment my brothers give. However, my mom did a pretty good job of raising me into a girly and preppy young lady. Now, don't think I'm a spoiled brat. I'm pretty much the complete opposite. I work and save up money to buy the things I want, and I also search for deals and bargains wherever I go. When you find a sale that's at least 50% or more of the original price, it's so exciting! I bought all of the pieces below on pretty amazing deals. This was my first time purchasing a Kate Spade bag which I am completely enamored with. If you haven't noticed, I am so obsessed with Michael Kors as well. Finally, fashion and accessories are nothing without a little brains, hence the books. 

{The cutest Kate Spade handbag found on sale at the Premium Outlet Chesterfield Mall in St. Louis, Missouri. I can already picture myself wearing this on a night out with friends when I don't want to carry much with me.}  

{A beautiful navy blue Michael Kors handbag I bought at Marshalls in St. Louis, Missouri}

{Being the book worm that I am, most of my baggage consisted of books.}

10,000 Cupcakes Barnes and Noble

If I Stay Wal-Mart

The Alchemist Barnes and Noble

The Book Thief Barnes and Noble

Four (A Divergent Collection) Wal-Mart

{Gorgeous high heel booties in a beige/creamish color. I bought these on 45% sale at ALDO at West County Mall in St. Louis, Missouri.}

{Small gray Michael Kors clutch. I bought this on sale at Marshalls in St. Louis, Missouri. This is perfect to fit credit cars, some money, your phone, and a lip balm on a quick grocery trip or frozen yogurt stop.}

{Last, but not least, my gorgeous pink, beige, and gold pink clutch I bought on sale at ALDO at West County Mall in St. Louis, Missouri.}

Catching Up Special

Parties, dinners, "cuchumbos" (Secret Santa), oh my! The Christmas season has definitely begun. Lately, school has been so hectic that Christmas just seemed so far away. Finally, though, I can smell Christmas right around the corner. 

 I wore this outfit for one of my lifetime friend's sixteenth birthday party. I literally pulled it out two seconds before the party (it was a Friday night and I slept through the whole afternoon after school). I bought this romper in Forever21, paired it with a gold belt, gold accessories, and a pair of nude pumps. I had so much fun, letting lose of all of the stress school causes. As a result, my feet were in a way ripped open (okay maybe I'm exagerating). Next time, I know I have to bring a pair of flats along just in case. 

{Forever21 romper and bracelet, H&M belt, Michael Kors clutch, ALDO nude pumps, LOFT earrings}

Secret Santa has been a tradition for the past two years for me and my friends. "Cuchumbos" is the typical Honduran way to say Secret Santa. For our annual Secret Santa dinner, we all get dolled up and enjoy a taste of a Christmas inspired dinner. This year, we decided to only include girls in the Secret Santa because of previous problems with guys not taking the whole thing seriously. Nevertheless, it was a hilarious Christmas dinner. I honestly think my gift was the best gift ever. One of my friends (which we've been classmates only once in sixth grade) gave me this whole baking kit that included a bowl, a whisk, cookie cutters, and more! Following the "cuchumbo," we had turkey-ish chicken with stuffing, potato salad, and green salad for dinner. For desert, one of my friends baked these mouth-watering mini key lime pies that were definitely the highlight of the night.

{Forever21 skirt, Zara blouse, Express clutch}

{Forever21 Mary Jane heels}

{Forever21 bracelet and necklace, Jewelry store earrings}

Sixteen Going on Seventeen

Once again, turning sixteen seemed like a VERY long way ahead. Now that I finally turned sixteen, I can literally say nothing has changed, except the fact that I am aging slowly. In spite of all the eagerness to turn sixteen, I picked out a pretty romantic yet casual floral dress for my birthday dinner. I made it even more casual by paring  the dress with a jean jacket and a pair of beige flats. It was a night filled with little favorite pleasures and lots of love, gifts, and hugs. (For more details on my sixteenth birthday, read my last Little Things post.)

{Urban Outfitters dress, H&M jean jacket, ALDO shoes}

{Forever21 bracelets, Fossil watch, Vintage earrings and infinity ring}

Preppy and Pink

{Forever21 bracelets, and LOFT earrings}

Fridays are without a doubt the reason behind my motivation to end every week on the right foot. After a long, stressful, tedious, tiresome, long, monotonous, long, and-did I mention long?-week has passed, the best way to finish the week is by going out and acting like the teenager that I am. As a bonus, this Friday was a day off from school, and I was invited to two different events-a quinceañera (15th birthday) party and a "congratulations you graduated and have to face the tough reality of life, but, oh, I'm glad you're home" celebration. Don't get me wrong, I had a blast at both events and I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Finding an outfit that matched both occasions was a little challenging, but as I was hastily searching for something to wear through my closet, I encountered this gorgeous dress that I haven't worn in a while. I bought it at a small boutique at the mall and it is definitely one of my favorite components in my wardrobe. I decided to pair this dress with nude platform heels, a sparkling necklace, a nude handbag, jingling bracelets, and a simple night-time make-up look.  

{Da'Lila (a boutique in Honduras) dress, ALDO shoes, Louis Vuitton handbag}

{Forever21 collar necklace}

{Make-up: foundation, blush, purple eye-liner, mascara, liquid liner, and lilac eye-shadow}

Casually Polished

Being a sophomore and turning sixteen seemed like decades away. Now, sophomore year has begun and so has the birthday season. One of my life-long guy friends turned sixteen a couple weekends ago and I decided to wear this outfit. The weather was the perfect excuse to dress down my girly outfit with a classic denim jacket. I still can't grasp the fact that in a few weeks I'm gonna be the next new sixteen year-old sophomore. 

{Maybelline The Falsies mascara, LANCOME foundation and lipstick, L'OREAL True Match neutral blush and Espresso-colored eye-liner}

{Forever 21 tank top, skirt, and bracelets, H&M jean jacket, ALDO heels and necklace, ZARA handbag, vintage earrings}