Ana Luisa Jewelry Review

Well hello there, and happy Monday!  Did you have a nice weekend?  Up here in Grand Rapids, Michigan we enjoyed our first taste of fall weather.  Justin and I enjoyed the crisp air while wandering our local farmer's market (my new favorite Saturday morning activity).  We even purchased a couple of squashes, a sure sign that autumn is here!

For my first style post after my summer hiatus, I have a little something special to share!  A few months ago, Ana Luisa Jewelry reached-out and offered to send me a couple pieces of jewelry to review.  I'm so excited to show you what I picked today!

Before I tell you about the specific pieces, I want to share a bit more about Ana Luisa.  Ana Luisa Jewelry creates individually hand-crafted, designer pieces.  The aspect that I find most intriguing about their collections are that they are released in limited quantities.  The jewelry that you choose will truly be a special and unique piece that you won't see anyone else wearing.  How cool!

As soon as I saw the Julia Disc Earrings, I knew that I wanted to add them to my earring collection.  I'm not into huge, heavy earrings, but I do love a pair that make a statement.  These are perfect!  The neutral pallet make them easy to pair with just about everything and they earrings really add a pop when paired with your classic basics.

The second piece I chose is the beautiful Carmen Cuff Bracelet.  I think this is a timeless piece that will never go out of style.  It's simple enough to wear every day but also has a bit of sparkle that would add to a more formal look.

If you love these pieces as much as I do, make sure to sign-up (it's free) with Ana Luisa so that you have access to all of their limited-release collections!  I also have a coupon code for you.  Use WHITNEY15 to get $15 off of your order!  I've just taken a look at their New Release section and am pretty much in love with these earrings.

If you could have any piece from the collection, what would you choose?

Travel Capsule: Summertime in Europe- Outfits Thirteen, Fourteen and Fifteen

Wow, friends!  We've made it to the last post in my Travel Capsule: Summertime in Europe series!  Even though I took most of these pictures on my trip and had them ready to post, I've definitely struggled a bit to stay on top of this series.  Life can be so crazy sometimes!  Mine has been crazy in a good way lately but blogging has been hard to squeeze in.

Before we get to the last three, err two outfits (more on that later), let's recap what's happened so far:

Introduction and Outfits 1-3
Outfits 4-6
Outfits 7-9
Outfits 10-12

Outfit Thirteen

I think these pictures win the "best backdrop" award of the trip, don't you?  They were taken at the Magic Gardens in Philadelphia.  If you've never been, I highly recommend a visit!  And while we're on the topic of bests, I think this skirt is the best new purchase I made for this capsule.  I used mostly pieces that were already in my closet with a few new additions during my trip.  This skirt was so comfortable, feminine and easy to pair with my various tops!

Outfit Fourteen

You may notice that this background is decidedly less exciting.  Yep, this is real life!  My friend took this picture in her classroom yesterday morning.  I did wear this outfit when my boyfriend and I visited Niagara Falls.  But between the waterfalls and the rain, I was absolutely soaked before I had the chance to take pictures.  So here we are!

Outfit Fifteen or Lack There Of

Which brings me to my last outfit of the capsule...that I do not have pictures of.  I was so good at taking pictures throughout my two and a half week trip but it was a tad exhausting.  And once I ruined my streak in Niagara, I just couldn't bring myself to take pictures of the last outfit I wore while riding home to Michigan.  Plus I didn't even put make-up on or do my hair for the five hours spent in the car.  But there was an outfit fifteen!  It consisted of black leggings, the patterned shirt from outfit four and my Adidas!

And there you have it!  Fifteen outfits made of fifteen pieces for a summertime trip to Europe and the East Coast of the United States!  I'm planning to write a final post with tips and tricks for creating your own travel capsule but, truth be told, I don't yet have a date picked out for this post.  So please continue to let me know if you have any questions or requests for that post!

Summer Favorites with Pearl & Clasp

I am back with another installment of the Pick, Pair, Share Summer Style Series with The Blended Blog!  Today I'm featuring orange + lace + a skirt.  I definitely wouldn't have thought to put this outfit together without the help of the graphic below so I'm finding this series to be really helpful in stretching my closet this summer!

What have you been picking, pairing and sharing?  Make sure to link-up below or post your looks on Instagram!  But before we get there, I want to talk about a few of my favorite summer style items.

First of all, if you don't own a denim vest, please go buy one now!  It's so nice to make an outfit more interesting by layering without having to add sleeves.

My second summer favorite (or really just a favorite in general) are pearl earrings.  If you've been stopping by for awhile, you may have noticed that I wear my oversized (faux) pearl earrings all of the time.  Well, I have bad news.  One of them broke!  I am in the process of seeing if it can be salvaged (you guys, I LOVE these earrings) but in the meantime, serendipity struck!  TBB connected me with the ultimate pearl company, Pearl & Clasp!

Pearl & Clasp graciously sent me a beautiful pair of black freshwater pearl earrings.  These studs are so very pretty and iridescent.  I had a difficult time capturing their varied colors in my photos!  I just know that these will be staple earrings for me because they are classic yet stunning.  These same earrings come in white and pink as well, but Pearl & Clasp sells other pretty pearl pieces, too.   They even have a whole section of real pearl bridal pieces.   Please stop by and visit P&C and let me know what pearl pieces you're coveting!

The other cool service that Pearl & Clasp offers is pearl restringing.  Do you have an heirloom string of pearls that are in need of a little love?  P&C will put them back together for you!  I will have to tuck this bit of information in the pocket of my denim vest in case I need it someday!

Thanks for stopping by today and don't forget to link-up with TBB below!

Polka Dots and Leopard Print + Link-Up

Ahh, I had such a wonderful and relaxing weekend!  What about you?  On Friday I threw a monster-themed baby shower for one of my best friends.  The rest of the weekend I spent passing out Halloween candy and relaxing with my handsome guy.  My one complaint?  That the weekend isn't longer!  I'm not ready for it to be Monday just yet.

Although I suppose Monday feels a little better with the help of a cute outfit and some pattern mixing!  Do you have a better day when you feel really good about what you're wearing, too?

While my favorite pattern mixing combination is leopard print with stripes, this fun animal print paired with polka dots is a close second!  I think it's the ease with which these patterns come together that makes the combinations so great.  Especially when you're working with black and white stripes or polka dots, you don't even have to wonder if leopard print will go, it's a no-brainer (and let's face it, we all need those when we're getting ready for work on a Monday morning).

Are you interested in seeing a couple of other ways to pair polka dots with leopard print?  Head over to Carrie and Casey's blogs to see how they mixed their patterns today!

What I'm Wearing:

Shirt: Express (exact)

Cardigan: Target (similar)

Necklace: Amazon (exact)

Skirt: Land's End (similar, similar)

Tights: Nordstrom (exact)

Flats: LOFT (similar, similar)

And don't forget to link-up the remainder of your Create28: Fall Looks or anything else you want to show off below!

Blogging Besties: Popover Blouse

Ahhh, summer is officially here!  What have you been doing to celebrate lately?  I just returned from a relaxing vacation in Myrtle Beach (hence my slightly tanner than usual skin).

Last week Alex looked cute in her summer hues and Jack Roger (jealous!) sandals!

As I was contemplating what to pass-on from Alex's look, I found the perfect popover blouse in my most recent Le Tote (if you are curious about LT, check-out my review).

The top's colors are so fun and perfect for summer!  A pleated skirt and casual sandals completed an easy, breezy outfit for dinner with my favorite girls.

Wind + Hair = Strike a Pose!

In the name of summer vacation, Alex and I will be taking a short break from our Blogging Besties series.  We will still be blogging but won't be passing-on each other's looks until we return on August 7th.  In the meantime, please consider participating in my Create28: Lovely Summer Looks Challenge with Carrie and Casey.  Also, Alex has a really fun #poloroundup that you should check-out!

So, you can't pass anything on next week but your choices for our August 7th link-up are: a popover blouse, a (pleated) skirt, (flat) sandals, and something borrowed!  

What I'm Wearing:

Blouse: c/o Le Tote (exact)

Skirt: Land's End (similar, similar)

Necklace: Peach Jewel (exact)

Sandals: DSW (similar, similar)

Previous Editions of Blogging Besties

Featured On:

Whitney à la mode

Undergraduate Style

In the meantime, what did you pass-on from Alex's look last week?

An InLinkz Link-up