LOFT Dress Review

For my birthday this year, my mother-in-law gave me a LOFT gift card!  LOFT is one of my all-time favorite stores to shop in.  I usually wait for a sale and really rack up on some good quality items!  This means that most of my clothes are "last season" but that doesn't really bother me.  I choose outfits that are timeless so that they can transition from season to season year after year.  With the gift card, I thought about spending it two ways: either keep my frugal mindset and get a lot of things on sale, or spend it on some items I wouldn't normally buy for myself.  I chose the latter. 

I have been seeking some good quality dresses to wear to school once I have a job, and I knew LOFT would not disappoint.  I searched "dresses" in the search bar and came across an unadvertised dress sale on the site!  I was able to get three dresses and a mixed media top with my gift card!  Here is what I picked out:

The mixed media top:

Mixed media tops are so fun!  From the front, it looks like a normal sweater or shirt, and from the back it's a surprising pattern!  I have another similar top from LOFT, but it wasn't long enough in the torso for me to render it usable after too many washings.  This top, though, is a much longer style and will be so perfect for this fall and winter!

This eyelet dress:

I had to find a dark dress to "harmonize" with the graduation regalia of my Master's graduation ceremony, and this one was the right color scheme and had a little something extra with the eyelet pattern to make it different from the average little black dress.  It's a ponte material, which is kind of like thick cotton/ neoprene feeling.  It's sturdy, which helps it keep it's A-line shape in the skirt.  For all of these dresses, I chose to get them in the regular length rather than the petite length, which guaranteed they'd be long enough for me to wear to teach in.  This dress washes and dries well (I lay it flat to dry) and has been wrinkle-resistant thus far!  It was a fantastic graduation dress.

This puff sleeve dress:

I love floral patterns, but hesitate to buy too many floral things for fear of looking matronly.  This pattern was small enough to complement my frame, and it was different from the typical colors that comprise the popular floral patterns of today.  The colors used in this dress include a citron and a teal which were just a little bit outside of the box for me and made me want to try this dress all the more.  The neckline is similar to a T-shirt style, so I knew it would be modest enough for school.  The sleeve boasts a slight twist and a puff which again makes it stand out a bit from common swing dresses.  The swing dress style is a favorite of mine because I can belt it if I want a bit of shape, or I can leave it plain which is a good disguise of a midsection that isn't so rock hard. 

This navy floral dress:

I wasn't sure how I would like the bright pop of yellow embroidered flowers on this dress, but I decided to give it a try anyway.  I liked the idea of a jersey-material for the swing dress.  When this dress arrived, it was pretty low-cut, so I paired it with a black tank, which is how I'll continue to wear it.  The V-neck also is reflected in the back of the dress, so the tank helps add in some layering there too. Overall, this dress is very lightweight and a good addition to my work wardrobe!

Until Next Time, 

Much love, Reba

Denim Jacket

I'm probably the last to jump aboard the denim jacket campaign, but better late than never!  This spring, I am completing my internship at a high school and wear business or business casual clothes everyday. The classroom I'm in can fluctuate in temperature several times during a class period and I learned early on to always wear a sweater. However, my only sweaters are a deep pink color and a printed blue sweater. These color combos only go so far.

Since the weather down here in the South is flirting with summer temperatures, I have shopped my closet to find dresses to wear to school.  To be school appropriate, the dress cannot rise more than 6 inches above my knee-- with short legs, this is fairly simple to abide by.  So most of my dresses are long enough for the dress code, but they are sleeveless.  These dresses also don't go very well with a pink or blue sweater. I searched for a while for a denim jacket to help out with this.  I have a very tight budget right now since the internship is unpaid, so I couldn't shell out $70 for a jacket.

I turned to my budget friendly places like Target and Walmart. Although I found options at both, I ended up ordering this jacket online from Walmart. It was the color scheme I wanted (normal denim blue as opposed to light or dark wash), it wasn't cropped or distressed, it didn't have weird silhouettes on the buttons, and it was under $20!

I chose the "ship to store" option, and it arrived to the store in 2 days with no shipping charge. I downloaded the Walmart app so I could alert them when I was en route, and they had the jacket ready for me when I arrived.

If I just hold up the jacket, it feels heavy, but it doesn't feel heavy when I'm actually wearing it. It has a bit of stretch in it which I appreciate in a jacket.  It's not stiff, which is also a major plus.  I roll the sleeves once to create a 3/4 sleeve and it's perfect for keeping me warm in class and also providing a great neutral cover up for my sleeveless dresses!

Today, I even wore it with a blue blouse and printed maxi skirt. It serves the purpose of adding an extra later to my outfits while bringing in a slightly casual element to my clothes. I'm really glad I finally jumped on the denim jacket trend!

Until Next Time,
Much love, Reba

Work Appropriate Outfits

I started keeping track of my work outfits around the second week of February as a way to remind myself of outfit combinations.  Early in February, I ordered two pairs of pants from Aeropostale because I previously owned a pair of their "uniform" pants and remembered how soft they were.

I ordered a pair of their classic fit uniform pants in navy. These have a slight flare and are so soft! I also ordered a pair of the skinny leg uniform pants in black. These offer a nice alternative to my black linen pants which are more wide-leg style.

I also have had some shoe adjustments this month. My older black flats started to really wear out and once I came to terms with the fact that I had owned them for 7 years (I got them when I was pregnant with Michael), I could give myself permission to buy new black flats. The ones I had previously were Dr. Scholls and were so comfy. I wanted to find something similar, but for a way less price tag since we're on a strict budget here. I found a pair at Wal-Mart of all places. Now, I don't typically shop at Wal-Mart, but I do when my kids meed shoes. Here's a mom tip: always check Wal-Mart for kids shoes since they almost always have pairs for under $10, which is paramount to me since kids' feet grow so fast and I can't justify a higher price tag on kid shoes. So I went searching for shoes for myself and walked away with two pairs- one pair of nice black flats with comfy insoles for $12, and one impulse $5 buy of neutral colored laser-cut pattern suede flats. I'm so happy with these purchases!

Yesterday, my mom went shopping at Kohls and found a pair of flats in my size for $5 so she grabbed them and gave them to me as an early birthday gift. They're pointy toed navy suede with military-influenced gold buttons. I am wearing them today with a pair of dark khaki pants and a blue & green blouse.

Here's my collection of teacher-appropriate outfits. Enjoy!

Until next time,
Love, Reba