It's A Wrap

Today's post is in honor of my newest Instagram account! 

I've decided I want to do more fashion and OOTD posts and I thought, what better platform to post on than Instagram! Aside from it being my favorite form of social media, I also love it because you can be creative in the form of pictures which is right up my alley.

Today's post is the outfit I wore this Sunday to church on Mother's Day.

The dress is a plain cotton black maxi dress and sunglasses are from Francesca's Collections, the cardigan is old from gap, scarf is old from Lands End, sandals are Gold Jack Rogers, and the watch is from Micheal Kors.

So what do you guys think? Like these kind of posts? I will keep them up if you all want to see them, I thought that this was a fun thing to start and I actually enjoyed shooting these photos (with the help of my lovely brother, of course)

Also, check out my new Instagram - @bowsandarrowsx3

Until next time,

Casey Rose

A Night to Remember

I know you all are tired of hearing my apologies, but I am sincerely sorry. Blogging has been put off to the side for a little while simply because as school is coming to an end that means finals! I have been very busy studying for those as well as completing final projects and whatnot in all of my classes. But I promise to blog more during the summer when I have more free time!

I haven't done a Fashion Friday post in a while, but since school is coming to an end I figured I would finally post about my sororities formal that we had a couple of weeks ago!

The Dress

Let me tell you, finding this formal dress was a job in itself. I searched for the longest time to find a dress that was just right. I had been eyeing this one dress on Lulu's for a while but it was almost $200, which I simply could not justify spending for one event. So the search continued. It wasn't until my friend and I were shopping at one of my favorite malls in the area when we came across this prom store. Obviously being in college we had no need for a prom dress, but just for old times sake we decided to go in and look at the extravagant dresses. It wasn't until I wandered over to the sale rack and saw a couple gorgeous bridesmaid dresses. I just couldn't believe how simple and pretty they all were and most for under $100! So, being that the price was definitely right, I had to try them on. I liked them all but there was one that stole my heart. It was a long grey strapless number with a fake sash around the waist that tied in the back. It was beautiful and I couldn't have been happier with my choice, especially since it was only $75 (more than 1/2 of what my 'dream' dress would have cost). Also the color being a beautiful grey really complimented my pale skin tone.

The Accessories

This was probably the toughest part of my entire search after finding the perfect dress. What shoes and jewelry to wear. Given that my date was only slightly taller than me, I didn't feel completely comfortable wearing heels and towering over him. So I opted for my gold jacks. They were comfortable and you couldn't even see them under my dress anyways.

I wasn't sure at first on which jewelry I wanted to go with, given that the neckline of my dress definitely would have worked with a necklace. I decided to just go ahead and stick with earrings so that my dress could be the main attraction and nothing would distract from it. The earrings were difficult to decide on, but I ended up finding the perfect pair. They were a double teardrop mint color with gold hardware. Overall, I think it complimented the grey color very nicely and were perfect for a spring time formal!

(they are the earrings on the left from Francesca's)

The Night

Overall, I had a fabulous time with my date and my friends. It was the perfect ending to a great semester. Enjoy the following pictures from the evening!

 Until next time,

Casey Rose

Dance the Night Away

A few weeks ago we had my sorority's semi formal. It depends on where you go, but for my chapter girls normally wear short, fancy dresses. That really can be up to your interpretation. It can be a cute $20 dress you found from Forever21 or a couple hundred dollar dress from Nordstroms (my little wore her Jimmy Choo's that night if that tells you anything...). Either way girls love dressing up.

Since I ended up going with my ex-boyfriend I decided to buy a dress instead of borrowing one from one of my sisters closet. You've always got to look your best whenever you see an ex right? ;) So I decided to go out and search for something to wear.

My first stop was Francesca's. This is always where I go to first because of two reasons. One, I used to work there and the staff still knows me and my style and can pick out things that I would like without having to sift through all of the racks. Secondly, the shopping center where the store is located has a bunch of other boutiques in it that sell the exact same items. I'm not kidding. I remember one time I was on shift and we had this dress for sale that a customer came in and said she saw at another boutique in the center for double the price. So it is safe to say that Francesca's is one of the more wallet-friendly boutiques in the area.

I walked through the door and my old boss was working that day. I explained to her the event I was looking to find a dress for and she picked this number:

To say I instantly fell in love would be an understatement. It was just the right amount of sexy. It was a body-con dress, but it had a sheer overlay that hid the tight bottom of the dress. The overlay also had a slit that went all the way up to the waist of the dress to show the tight dress underneath. It also accentuated my favorite part of my body - my shoulders and arms. I was sold!

You can find the Benevento Maxi Dress at Francesca's for only $39.99

I decided to pair the dress with these heels. I got these for Christmas two years ago, my mom thought I was crazy to ask for them and that I would never wear them. I won't deny that they do not leave my closet that often, but they are beautiful and they do see daylight from time to time. For example, this night! It was the perfect pump. I love the thick heel because it makes the shoe easier to walk in and I always love to add something that 'pops' to my outfit. Since the dress was simple black and red, I figured I could spice it up with the heel.

  

The only place I found these Sarina Pumps from Steve Madden was on this site called Rakuten. The only size they have available is a 7. However, they appear from time to time on eBay; so if you are really in love, like I was, I would be patient and keep looking.

This picture is before the night when I got home and decided to try on the entire outfit together. You can't really tell from any of these pictures, but I decided to get some black teardrop earrings from Francesca's. I contemplated doing a necklace but decided I wanted to keep my neck clear and just accent the outfit with statement earrings.

I ended up strutting up and down the hall of my house showing everyone who was there exactly what I was going to be wearing that night. The overwhelming amount of approving declarations I received assured me that I had picked the right dress.

Here is my little and I at the venue!

And here we have my friends and I at the house before we left for the venue!

I ended up having a great night and got so many compliments on my dress! It really was worth going out and buying a new dress just for this occasion. And the great thing about this dress is that since it is State colors, I can wear it to just about anything formal I have to go to for my school.

So tell me, what is your perfect outfit for a 'night to remember'?

Until next time,

Casey Rose

High on Life

If someone asked me to describe my style in three words I would probably use girly, conservative, and preppy. But for whatever reason, I am always envying how these (as I like to call them) 'hipster' girls dress. You know the ones, that are so tall and skinny, wear high waisted shorts, cut off shirts, and combat boots. I love that style and even though I would probably never convert my closet to dress like that at all times, I think adding a little flair from people or trends that inspire you is completely fun and a great way to spice up your wardrobe while also staying a little bit in your comfort zone.

So today for Fashion Friday I will be talking about a recent purchase I just made from Urban Outfitters. Yes, I bought high waisted shorts. I had bought a pair from American Eagle years ago, loved them to death but unfortunately grew out of them and they also weren't as high waisted as I probably would have liked them to be (since I have a longer torso and high waisted to some is like barely scraping the bottom of my belly button). Anyways, I bought the shorts below from Urban Outfitters and immediately fell in love and knew I had to get them.

Now if you know me at all, if I were to get a pair of high waisted shorts - these would be them. But while I must say even though these might have been made for me, it took me a lot of pairs to be completely sure. I had tried on so many shorts, ones with fringe, ones without, different colored washes but these were the ones I kept coming back to. They were $60 and I almost didn't get them because they were $20 more than the exact same pair, the only difference was the lace on the side and I didn't really know if I could justify paying $20 for lace. However, I convinced myself and I am so happy that I did. These were the perfect length, again I am a little more conservative so I wasn't a huge fan of the shorts that were showing a little booty. And they also were high enough to cover my belly button, another huge plus! Also, the lace = girly...need I say more?

My advice to you if you are in the market for a good pair of high waisted jean shorts is try on as many as possible, in as many washes, lengths, and styles as possible. A good place to start would be Urban Outfitters just because they almost always have them and from there you can find ones you like and maybe find them for cheaper elsewhere, but at least you know what you want.

Now that I had my recently purchased shorts, of course I couldn't wait to go home and try them on and make as many outfits as possible! Here are a few of my favorites...

This first one I have actually already worn out to dinner with my friend. The shorts are BDG Erin High-Rise Denim Shorts from Urban Outfitters. The shirt is (old) from Urban Outfitters. And the necklace is (old) from a local boutique.

I loved this look because I feel like it is so nautical. This shirt I have owned for the longest time now and every time I put it on it just reminds me of summer, I don't know why but I love it.

The next look is kind of more casual. It is something I would probably wear with cowboy boots to a summer concert. I wore something like this when I saw Chiddy Bang, only I had on low rise jean shorts. I like this because since the shirt is a crop top, you don't see any of my stomach (which I am insecure about) and it high lights my favorite parts of my body - my arms and neckline.

The shorts again are from Urban Outfitters. The top is (old) from Forever 21. And the necklace is the Tinley Park Floral Necklace from Francesca's.

This last outfit isn't exactly my favorite, maybe because I didn't really try to make it look as nice as I could have, but the concept of it I love. This is a look I would probably wear to a party with wedges. I love these kinds of tops, I have two of them and one in a dress form...I'm also looking for a white one, yeas I realize I'm crazy. However like I said before it high lights my favorite part of my body - my upper body (shoulders, arms, neckline, etc.)

Again, shorts from Urban Outfitters. Top is from a local boutique and the necklace, again, is from Francesca's.

I hope you all enjoyed this Fashion Friday. I think this post kind of relates back to the first post I had ever written on here. It was about how even if a style is 'meant' for a certain body type, you can still rock it and make it your own for your body type. I certainly do not have the skinniest figure and I know I have some hips. Plus this whole high waisted shorts deal doesn't do wonders for your ass, sorry about it. But I am in love with these and I think I made them work for my body type :)

Until next time,

Casey Rose

Thank God for the Red, White, and Blue

Happy (day after) Independence Day everyone! Yesterday marked the 237th birthday of the USA! 'Merica.

So in honor of America's birthday I thought I'd show you my outfits of the day! (Yes outfits, as in multiple) I had an outfit that I wore to work as well as an outfit I wore to a friend's party. Enjoy!

This is the outfit I wore to work today. The dress is a 'ballet' style dress from Francesca's from a long time ago. Scarf is also from Francesca's, I've also seen a similar scarf from Free People. Belt is from TJ Maxx and shoes are flats from Steve Madden.

My arm candy of the day was my white watch from Michael Kors. The two bracelets are from Francesca's as well as the scarf in the background.

This is my party outfit. The top is old from Francesca's. The skirt is also old from J Crew but they have similar styles, not the same color, on the Factory website. And the shoes are the Silver Navajo's from Jack Rogers.

This is a PicStitch where we saw the fireworks last night. It was in Chapel Hill on the UNC football field. Even though I am a die hard NC State fan and it may have been a little uncomfortable being on Tar Heel stomping ground, it was a nice place to see fireworks.

I hope your Independence day was full of fun and friends! Happy Birthday America!

Until next time,

Casey Rose

Workin' Lady

This past Monday I had my first interview for an internship! So today for Fashion Friday's I decided to show you exactly how I styled my professional attire.

Good news is they are all still available!

La Dee Dot's top in Ivory from Francesca's for $38

Factory Pencil Skirt in Double-Serge Cotton in Brilliant Cobalt from J. Crew Factory for $44.50

Steve Madden Heaven Patent Flat in Taupe from Steve Madden found at DSW for $39.95 

The top pictured is kind of sheer, so I put a nude cami underneath and tucked it all into the pencil skirt (which is so comfortable by the way). The flats can absolutely be substituted with a heel, however I just didn't feel completely comfortable in the heels that I had.

Hope you enjoyed this week's Fashion Fridays!

Until next time,

Casey Rose

Back to Reality

...Oh there goes gravity...no one? Ok.

So my first day back to work was today and it was...work. I really wish there was such a job where I could just shop all day, wouldn't that be the dream life? It would also be a very expensive life. I did some shopping between when I got back from the beach on Tuesday to when I had to babysit that night and it really did some damage to my wallet. But every piece I bought was justified (sure it was...) so I didn't feel too guilty for buying them. The pieces posted below I believe will get a ton of use! They are clothing staples that will be in my wardrobe for years to come. The necklaces, however, were just because I want to build my jewelry collection...justified right?

This LBD is from a local boutique, it is the perfect jersey material that can be dressed up or dressed down. How could I pass it up?

This is how I styled it for work today with a new necklace as well.

The reason I bought this tank, aside from it being super cute, was because I really don't have a lot of yellow in my wardrobe and I decided that I needed a yellow shirt (my reasons are ridiculous...)

And here it is styled with one of my favorite necklaces from Francesca's

These two are shown styled above. Left from a local boutique and right from Francesca's.

(Coral alternate here, Mint alternate here)

These bad boys are my new babies. I have been eyeing them ever since we got them in at Francesca's. I wore them to work today and never had to take them off, they were so comfortable! These (here) are from Francesca's for $64 (I had a gift card and my employee discount, so of course it was justified), but I also found the exact same pair for $30 at Target (here).

Happy Shopping!

Till next time,

Casey Rose