#OOTD

It has been a while since I've done an Instagram roundup on the blog, and ever since I got this new app PicTapGo, I love the filters I'm getting. You can layer filters on top of each other, which gives a more unique look than the typical IG look. I love that you can save your favorite "recipes" for later. I have one for my OOTDs, for example, since I take them all in my room with basically the same lighting. Creating a consistency I love. Check the app out, you won't be sorry!!

Every time I do this, I realize that I stand in basically the same position, regardless of the setting. Hey, when you figure out something that works....

Shop my favorite pieces from these looks!!

Wedding Bells.

Last week I had the awesome opportunity to attend an alternative bridal show that quite honestly blew me away! The Big Fake Wedding is a small business, that loves to promote small businesses. What I did not realize, as a gal who is no where near walking down the aisle, unless its the wine aisle, is that I would connect with so many people! It was the perfect size for the bride who would like an intimate conversation with a particular vendor. 

Although the weather was less than stellar, my BLAH BLAH umbrella came in quite handy, the venue was nothing short of gorgeous. 

My date Skyler and I with the lady behind JLeslie Wedding Decor. Can you believe we all went to Europe together in high school?! Crazy how time flies!

My new bestie and one of the gals behind The Big Fake Wedding. Check out her adorable blog TopKnots & PolkaDots. Let's start planning the Charleston trip now! 

(Some photos via JLeslie Wedding Decor) 

The Big Fake Wedding crew thought of everything, from the swag bag to get goodies from the vendors after the ceremony, to actually coming around the event and making sure everyone was having a great time! It was such a personal show, which is a different take from the traditional bridal show.

The couple was a real life Savannah pair who were renewing their vows. How cool is that?! Once the ceremony was over, we had a little walk to the indoor wedding reception. Leopold's ice cream welcomed us in, with the sounds of a great DJ and we could at wander through the booths from all the vendors. A list of all the vendors can be found here. Everyone was so sweet and fun!

My date and one of my best friends and I decided to hit the tables, with wine in hand of course, which ended up being a good thing while visiting the Southern Ever After booth, see our silly snap above! We made our way to 32 Degrees North Jewelry, who had the most gorgeous one of a kind jewels, to our friend Jenna, from JLeslie Wedding Decor, and before we could finish, the smells of the most relish food came over us! We quickly grabbed a giant (no shame) plate of Southern Soul Barbecue, and a glass of sweet tea and found a gorgeously decorated table to chow down!  My kind of wedding!!

If you are a bride-to-be I would definitely check out this show! It was an absolute blast and one that made me wish I had a big rock on my finger to start planning a wedding! Well, almost.

The Most Perfect Floral Coat Ever.

Coat // Tee // Jeans // Shoes // Necklace // Ring (similar) // Earrings (similar) 

 It's March y'all! And that for me, officially marks the end of winter. I don't know what it is about this time of year, but it is almost like an alarm goes off when it hits March 1st, that makes my brain do away with winter. I feel like it should now be 75 degrees every day, sunny and full of floral prints, shorter hemlines and a bronzed glow. 

Which brings me to this coat. Which is the BOMB (dot) com. Like for reals though. H&M is one of those stores where you have to search for the gems. I'm a fan of a wardrobe made mostly of staple pieces, mixed with a healthy dose of trendier items that can give the style quotient. And an oversized pastel colored printed coat is the definition of my philosophy. I just love it, and its UNDER $50. 

As far as where I go to get my staple pieces for my closet, it should be zero surprise to y'all that I love a good J. Crew haul. Shop some of my favorite items from the newest spring collection. 

Photos by Marianne Lucille Photography

Another Year Bites The Dust

Top // Blazer // Jeans // Shoes // Necklace (Rocksbox) // Sunglasses

I debated what to do with this post for a couple weeks. Was I going to share all the fabulous knowledge I had acquired through the course of my twenty fifth year, or just make a list of all the outrageous gifts I wished I would receive. After much thought, and a couple PicMonkey collages of Tory Burch purses & an all black Michael Kors watch (not to drop hints on my wishlist), I decided to give y'all a little bit of who I am. 

I have had this blog for a little over a year, and while y'all see an awful lot of my face, my awkward laughing and sometimes outrageous outfit choices, there hasn't been a post really dedicated to getting to know me. And, obvi y'all are like totes interested. Insert wink face emoji. So without further adieu, here are 10 things you may or may not know about me. 

1. I absolutely hate coffee. Starting off on a negative one, but it really is gross. I love the way it smells, but I just can't imagine jolting my mornings with a cup of joe. So, if you ever see my Instagram with what looks like a Starbucks coffee, it is actually hot chocolate. My faux coffee. Since every blogger needs to have the classic, and perfectly IG-filtered foam latte shot. 

2. I collect fashion coffee table books. Ones by designers, style gurus, or filled with gorgeous and stylish images of women I aspire to be. I dream of one day having a bookshelf (or shelves) filled with fresh peonies, cute bookends I have made from figurines and spray painted metallic gold, via a Pinterest DIY and these books. My mom and I decided years ago, while she was in a panic to find Christmas presents for me, that I should start collecting something. I believe that was the year the double faced Mary-Kate & Ashley book came out, so the answer was obvious. 

3. I am terrible at communication with friends. I pride myself on being a great friend, always there to listen and try to help with any situation they might find themselves in. However, I can go weeks without talking to my best friends. Not out of care about them or their lives or that it doesn't pick up right where we left off, but just because I am just not that person. I can't stand constantly texting, probably because my life isn't all that exciting. But if they are reading, I hope they know that I am there, although I might not reach out as much as I should. Everyone has their flaws right?! 

4. I used to wear a full face of makeup, with no eyeliner. Let me preface this by saying that my full face of makeup was never like caked on and orange-tinted. In high school, on the weekends of course because what girl wears makeup to an all girls school, I used to do everything but eyeliner. I'm talking even for proms, dances or special events. ICK! I look back on and just cringe, why did no one tell me I looked absolutely ridiculous. In a fun twist of events, it is now my favorite product. And I only wear Shimmer Ivy Ink by Bobbi Brown. Not even a neutral. 

5. I get headaches if I go too long without sweet tea. I blame it on growing up in a house that always had two gallons of sweet tea in the fridge, as well as a pot on the stove ready to go. Chickfila is my favorite. 

6.  I was terrified to get in front of the camera for the blog.  I still am. I get very nervous in the beginning, hints the laughing. I didn't want to make it seem like I was trying to be a model, or have people think I was narcissistic. I just really enjoy fashion, and although I still think I am incredibly awkward in most of my photos, I have started to enjoy it. 

7. I hate cake. I still have no idea what I will do at my wedding. Thank goodness I love icing. 

8. I met my first love on a cruise I won in a raffle with my best friend from high school. I'll explain. My best friend and I split a raffle ticket for a 4 day cruise and WON! The guy who talked us into spending the $5 a piece for the ticket, did so by telling us this sob story about his illnesses and how our money would help his hospital bills. So we obvi had to enter, after we made sure it was actually legit. I found out via a phone call from my dad while at Gadzooks (throwback) a couple weeks after we entered. Fast forward to the second night of the cruise, while watching some really terrible karaoke, my friend and I saw this huge group of super cute guys making fun of this poor girl singing,  I called dibs on one. We met them later that night at the club on the ship. He grabbed me as I was leaving and asked me a bunch of questions like my name, where I was from and why I was leaving so soon. I can't remember what all I said and I completely forgot his name right after he told me, but figured I would never see him again. The next morning I hear my name while boarding the boat to the private island, coming from an adorable Alabama accent, and freaked. He ended up basically stalking me on the beach, in the most adorable way possible. And I mean, it ended up being pretty ok.... we did date on and off for about 4 years.  CRAZY. I haven't really been in love since. (not to get all downer on y'all)

9. My denim jacket is from sophomore year of high school. There are some items in your closet that you have an emotional attachment to, and that would be one of them. 

10. I am incredibly grateful for my loyal and fabulous readers! Whether you read every post, or just occasionally stop by. I really appreciate every comment, sweet word and friend I have made via the blog, and social media. I can't believe the connections that exist in the blogging world, and as I take year 26 straight on, I hope to continue to grow this world into something y'all continue to enjoy! 

Photos by Marianne Lucille Photography

THE One And Only Oscar.

Images via Marianne Lucille Photography

For y'all that don't know, I have now shared the same air as Anna Wintour. I mean, not the exact same air, since she was at the Oscar de la Renta exhibit at the SCAD Museum of Art a couple weeks before I was, but you indeed get the point. We walked the same floors, stood in the same room, placed our eyeballs on the same gorgeous gowns, therefore we are basically best friends. 

The other day, while eating pizza with my gal Marianne, a ritual we have for each blog shoot, we got the brilliant idea to shoot at this prestigious exhibit. As it is the first to showcase the art that Oscar was known for, since he left us to fend for our fashionable selves. To say that these gowns are breathtaking is an understatement. Curated by Andre Leon Talley, only the greatest are on display. Some loaned to the SCADMOA from the likes of several First Ladies, Oscar's wife and my girl Taylor Swift. 

If you are in the Savannah area, I definitely recommend you take some time to see this exhibit, it will be at the museum until May 3rd. 

What I decided to wear in the presence of Oscar's gowns, and believe me it was very thought out, will be on the blog MONDAY!! It features the most gorgeous coat!! 

The Big Fake Wedding

Hi ladies!! Today's post is all about weddings. Now, I will be the first to admit to y'all that I am no where near wedding bells. I am starting to believe I literally repel romantic relationships, almost as if "eternally single" is tattooed on my forehead with ink that only men can read.

However, I am in fact still a girl who gets excited about the idea of weddings, the union of two people who are so in love that they want to spend crazy amounts of money making sure everyone understands that. I love everything about them, from the flowers, to the dress, to the men in tailored suits, to the craziness that is just bound to happen. There is something gorgeously beautiful about the whole affair.

As I have been a bridesmaid in quite a few weddings, three just last year to be exact (photos above), I know there is a ton of planning that goes into making sure everything goes off without a hitch. Which is why the idea of the bridal show came into play, a way to make the choices easier, or perhaps harder with all the choices for the brides-to-be.

I am SUPER pumped to be invited to go to an alternative to the traditional bridal show in a couple weeks, The Big Fake Wedding. A show that lets the brides, and non-brides like myself, get immersed in a real life (but ultimately fake) wedding. That way they can see the vendors in action, not just at a booth with images of their work. Making the whole experience that much more real!

Mark your calendars ladies!! Use the code "HalfOffTheBFW" for 50% off your ticket and come be a guest to the most fabulous wedding of 2015! 

What are y'all's favorite part of a wedding?!