J'adore Dior (and this dress)

Dress: CAbi (old, but similar here) Sunglasses: (Rayban) Handbag: Dior (old) Shoes: (Kate Spade)

This is my family (my parents and my grandmother) and the little dancer herself!!  

Hi there dearest reader! I hope your weekend was wonderful- mine sure was! It was my daughter's very first dance recital on Saturday and it was so fun! I grew up  dancing and there is something so...touching maybe?...about being in what is a very familiar environment to me with the stage and the music and sharing it with her. I sort of sobbed my way through it, like I do with most of the events involving her.  As a mother, your heart is filled to bursting when your child is happy and for me, that equates to embarrassing tears at least once a week! We went to The Ranch in Anaheim for dinner later that night -- anyone tried that? I had been before with clients but on Saturday we took my parents and grandmother too and it's really good. I am a picky picky eater and I dont eat red meat and even I liked it (mostly due to a nice bowl of Butternut Squash soup and a Milky Way ice cream dessert-yee yum!) 

So my dress... It's from CAbi last season and I love it. I adore the ease and the look of wrap dresses but not the wrap. I inevitably fuss with the tie all day long.  I am a pretty modest person and even showing a little cleavage is out of my comfort zone but a dress that looks like a wrap but isn't? Yes, please! This is made out of really soft material that feels like cashmere and is so cozy!  And my bag... Okay, confession time. I really love Gucci but Dior is a close second.  I could write posts and posts about the waiting lists I have been on for these crazy purses. I think investing in good handbags is totally worth it, not only because you really can use them for years (if you choose the right design) but it ends up saving money (kind of) if you avoid the interim, trendy type bags and focus on really cultivating your style.  You won't buy things that will just sit in your closet after a few months, never again to see the light of day!  Actually, I can pretty much justify any purchase. These are just things I tell myself. I also take more expensive bags and divide them by how many years I think I will keep them (20 at least) and then figure out how much it is a month. When I do this, it seems totally, totally reasonable. Cheap even!! I have even been known to share this philosophy with my husband, who does NOT agree that it is fiscally responsible to buy purses. Men! Okay, you. Happy, happy day wishes and thank you for stopping by! Xx Michelle 🍭

A Pop of Color and a Pompom

Oh my goodness, how I love this bag!! I have always had an obsession with pompoms. When I was decorating my daughter's nursery, we had drapes and throw pillows made in pink and white toile and I added little pompoms to the edge of everything. Which my mom freaked out about because obviously,  the baby is going to climb up the wall to get at the drapes and eat one of those pompoms and choke. Totally valid fear....um....wait...:)  Anyway, those pompoms are EVERYWHERE this summer and I love all of them. If it has a pompom, (or a fringe, or a feather or maybe even a fur collar)-- I NEED it in my life.   This bag is so cute and it comes in multiple colorful patterns that are all on a black background.  Which is perfect for me, a person who wears black pretty much as a uniform.  When I first saw it at Swirls in San Clemente, I bought two (one for my friend) and I should have purchased 10!!  And I love these little scalloped shorts with this top (its on sale at Banana Republic right now- I linked it for you below). It easy and still a little conservative ( I'm sort of a like-to-be-covered up kind of gal) and these heels! From the Nordstrom sale! So comfy and perfect for summa time! I am also hoping to wear these to the office while the weather stays nice with a pants suit- I think it would totally work.

What are you doing this weekend? Do you have any fun plans in the works?  I sure hope so! We are cramming in a date night, a trip to the Fair and a concert (my daughter's first real concert-- she will probably last 10 minutes, but still. We are calling it a milestone!), a swim party, and a trip to the beach.  Holy To-Do List Batman. I was actually thinking (side note here) that it would be nice to have a Saturday where we played in the sprinklers, had popsicles and just hung around (my bestie calls it a 1980's summer day)...easy peasy. Right?   I need to put one of those on the list too!  Happy weekend to you, beauties! Sending you so much love! xxoo Michelle

Bag | Swirl Boutique  Heels |(They are sold out on-line so I linked a pair that looks close) here Shirt| here  Shorts | (similar) here Bracelets | (I am wearing 2 sets) here

Under $40 + The Luckiest Girl Alive {Fashion + Brains}

Hi all! Didn't it feel like it was a really, really short weekend? Why is this? Monday and Tuesday don't fly by especially fast, but Saturday and Sunday sure do.  Maybe because I try to squeeze in so many activities in two short days (and a Friday night)--why? I made this list at the start of the summer of all the things we were going to do (yeah, I know. Don't we all start out with such aspirations? :) and summer is half-over! I need to get on it! Ok, so today I want to tell you all about (1) this dress (2) this bag and more importantly (3) a great book I read! So lets get to it!  

{Fashion Under $40}: You guys will not believe this! So, there is a mall really close to my house and I am there kind of a lot.  Last weekend (the rainy humid one)  I was at the mall to grab something and I walked by Forever 21 and this dress and this bag were right in front and on sale--$19 each. I almost had a heart attack! How can this be?  So crazy cheap! Of course I had to buy them both!  (funny side note:  I had this bag out in that weird rain later that day and I was so worried about keeping it dry because I was convinced the color was going to run right off of it. It was only $20 for crying out loud!! My husband was hysterical over me putting my coat over this little guy and running.  Guess what? It held up just fine!) 

{Brains: The Luckiest  Girl Alive} So for my book club, I suggested The Luckiest Girl Alive by Jessica Knoll. I didn't know anything about it but it was getting some buzz so I thought we'd give it a whirl.  And then, I hopped on a plane to Denver to take depositions and I got stuck in that wacky United airline glitch a few weeks back and basically, I read this in around 3 hours. And it was a doozy!  It is sharply written and witty and it takes you someplace so unexpected. I don't want to spoil anything but it's basically a story about a woman who on the surface seems to have it all-- everything she believed would make her happy- -the clothes and the job and the fiance- -and yet she is unraveling. And little by little, mainly in flashbacks, you learn why. I read it and was like "Wow. This is what this book is about?" Its shocking and hard to read at times but good. I think if you liked Gone Girl or Girl on the Train, you will like this one too.  Do any of you belong to book clubs? What are you all reading?  Happy Tuesday loves and thank you so much for stopping by! Xx Michelle

Seeing Red? ❤️🇺🇸















Lets just pretend that I have on a beautiful shade of red lipstick, or a red bag or maybe even nice shiny red patent heels and if you can do that, then isnt this just a perfect outfit for the holiday week? Yes, yes it is!! (Whoops. I will get it together next year.)

This blazer is from my recent Zara spree and it is right at home in my closet. I am a very simple, classic dresser. I typically wear black, more black, and then something black. :) Navy blue is a color I also gravitate to and when I saw this blazer I just fell in love! I think I will get so much use out of it. And can you see the gold buttons? I just love it. I took this dress from banana republic out of the closet (it's from last summer) and they just look so cute together. The structured blazer makes the summery type dress a little more appropriate for the office. And like everyone's office, mine is fa fa freezing and there is just no way I would ever wear sleeveless.  And do I ever love nude shoes. The ones I am wearing (Gucci) have the slightest hint of blush to them. If I could find a pair of not ridiculous looking navy blue high heeled loafers, that would be perfect (do these even exist?) but in the meantime, these heels are just fine. (I think you could also pair dark leather heels with this outfit and it would be cute too.) Hope everyone is having an amazing week and as always, I sure appreciate you stopping by! Xx Michelle