Category: Fashion

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Fashion Lifestyle Shopping

Steve Madden Snakeskin Boots / Nordstrom Sale

This post may contain affiliate links which means I will get a commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you.

If you follow me on Instagram you may have seen my latest caption talking about how Adam says I’ve been looking homeless lately and he’s not wrong! My Summer work from home outfit has been Nike Pro shorts and an oversized shirt or tank top, so when I got a chance to wear these new Steve Madden thigh high boots to date night I took it!

I actually bought these boots off from Nordstrom Rack on sale for $50! They took a month to get them with all the postal delays so I almost forgot about them! I checked the site and they’re sold out now, but you can get still get them on the Steve Madden site for $60 if you enter code SPRING50! They do have other colors too, but sizes are limited. You can shop my entire look below, too:

Today marks the official start of the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale! They opened it up to card members and anyone who has early access a few weeks ago, but I am one of the peasants who have to wait for the official open. Which was probably a good thing otherwise I would’ve spent a LOT more! These are all the things I ended up buying from the sale:

One of my favorite pairs of Quay Sunglasses – The Reina is on sale for $35! I have the white/gold, but these are blush/black so I thought it’d be fun to have different pair. I thought these Karl Lagerfeld Cieone Sandals were really cute and would be a great black sandal staple. They got really good reviews so I’m hoping these are comfortable but if not, I can always return them. I actually bought the Regular Spanx Faux Leather Leggings last year and I love them! I didn’t know they came in a petite fit so I ordered a pair of the petites to try them out. If you can’t tell, I love having staples in my closet that’ll survive me wearing them over and over again!

The last thing that I got was kind of a splurge, but another thing that I would use for a long time, the T3 Cura Ionic Hair Dryer. I know, I know, $150 is steep for a hair dryer, but hear me out. When I was in college, circa 2008, I tried out the Hana Air Hair Dryer which cost $100+. (They don’t sell this hair dryer anymore.) I thought it was kind of ridiculous to use a hair dryer that cost that much but with my thick, long hair, it literally changed my life! My hair is well past my waist now and I can dry my whole head in 10 – 15 minutes! But the thing crapped out on me in the last few months – it won’t turn on when I plug it in anymore! 12 years with that hair dryer is pretty impressive though, so I figured there is something to these high quality dryers and I thought I’d try out this T3. Hopefully this lasts me another 12 years! The T3 Cura is on Amazon for $235 so hopefully it’s even better than my old Hana!

Did you get anything good from the Nordstrom sale?

Categories
Fashion Lifestyle

Honest Review: Tory Burch Miller Sandals

This post may contain affiliate links which means I will get a commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you.


Growing up in Hawai’i, I rarely ever wore shoes – it was always slippahs or sandals. My sister still tells me I look weird with covered shoes on! The Tory Burch Miller Sandals are the ultimate basic sandals – every fashion blogger and her mom has a pair or two! But with good reason, because I love them and I would buy them in every color if I could! The only problem is the price tag – these babies range from $$198 – $225 a pair at full price! I bought my first pair a few years ago in black patent leather and I loved it, but I lost them and didn’t get them replaced until recently.

click through the pic to shop this look

The Miller Sandals go on sale every year, but you have to catch them ’cause they sell out really quick. I found a pair of these dark brown leather Tory Burch Millers on sale at Nordstrom Rack for $138!

I want to say it’s all hype, but I think they are worth the hype! My shopping has evolved from cheap, trendy Forever 21 style to more classic, quality products so I’m willing to pay for better quality if I know it’ll last. Don’t get me wrong, I still love me some Target shoes and I’ll still browse around Forever 21, but I’m willing to splurge on some classic items. Tory Burch Millers are laser cut leather sandals that come in all colors and prints, sometimes the logo is made out of metal instead of leather. They’re constantly coming out with different prints, the latest I’ve seen are these cork sandals:

The sandals are super cute, go with practically everything, and are nice enough to dress up or down. The first pair I bought, I had for a few years before I lost it and they held up really well. They do crease around the area the ball of your feet sits on, but otherwise didn’t show other signs of wear. I found that my old Tory Burch Reva flats wear much more quickly than these. My only gripe with the Miller sandals is there isn’t a lot of support (I mean they are flip flops!) so if you walk around all day, you’ll definitely feel it. If you need more arch support, these are not for you, but I normally only wear them for a few hours at a time. Either way, I’ll totally buy more pairs in different colors! I finally replaced my old pair of black patent leather Millers when I saw them on sale at Saks Fifth Avenue!

Like I mentioned, the sales come and go really quickly but I found these pairs for less than $160! Some reviews say sizing run smalls, but it’s true to size for me. I’m a true 8.5 and sizing up to 9 too big for me.

Overall, I think the Tory Burch Miller sandals are worth the hype and are a classic staple in any closet. Do you have a pair? Which ones do you have?

Categories
Fashion Lifestyle Reviews

MM LaFleur Review

I tried my first MM.LaFleur Bento Box 3-4 months ago and I loved the concept of getting quality, fashionable work clothes delivered to me without having to deal with the hassle of going to the mall, browsing racks, trying on clothes, and standing in line. I know, I know, what girl doesn’t want to go shopping?! It’s funny, cause I used to be a pretty bad shopaholic, but as I’ve gotten older and progressed in my career, I have less and less patience for shopping. Don’t get me wrong, I still get the itch from time to time, but these days I avoid malls like the plague.

 

So what is MM.LaFleur? The brand was launched in 2013 by Sarah LaFleur, Miyako Nakamura, and Narie Foster. Designed for the professional, working woman in mind, their Bento Box has the same concept as other monthly subscription boxes with the option to purchase all, one, or none of the items in the box. Each box is filled by a stylist with several high quality workwear pieces and an accessory meant to fit your style.

 




 

TL;DR

MM.LaFleur has awesome customer service and each piece is really high quality. The killer was the super high price point – the cheapest piece of clothing in my Bento Box was $145; the scarf was $65.

 

PROS

  • High quality items
  • Awesome customer service
  • Most items fit great
  • Fast shipping
  • Convenience
  • Decent size range (0 – 22W)
  • Only receive boxes when requested

 

CONS

  • High price point ($110 – $325 for clothing items)
  • Charge for Bento Box even if you don’t buy an item

 

HOW IT WORKS

After signing up for an account on MM.LaFleur, you fill out a survey on your fashion preferences, choose the day you’d like to receive your items, and enter your payment information. A stylist will pick out items for your Bento Box and the box gets shipped to you. You have 4 days to try everything on, keep whatever you want, and send the rest back. Shipping is free both ways and you’re only charged for the items you keep. Your first box is free, but subsequent boxes are $25 regardless of whether you purchase or not. You only receive Bento Boxes when requested, unlike other subscription services which send you a box and charge you monthly.

 

IN MY BENTO BOX

These were the items in my first box:

 

Sant Ambroeus Jardigan
 

I wear cardigans all the time at work, so I actually really loved this cardigan. It fit well, was super comfortable, and I loved that it didn’t have buttons. I couldn’t justify the $195 pricetag, though.

 

The Tory 2.0 Dress
 

I didn’t care too much for this dress. It was comfortable and the pockets are super cute, but it just wasn’t very flattering on. It kind of made me feel like I was dressing like my mom’s friend.

 


Greenpoint Skirt
Deneuve 3.0 Top
 

I didn’t care too much for either of these pieces. I’m really short (5’2″), have wide hips and no boobs so things have to fit right to look good on me. The skirt overall fit okay, but the slit in the front didn’t work for me. The top was comfortable, but just not my style.

 Rachel Dress

 

I LOVED this dress. This was my favorite item in the box – it fit amazing (Look at the back!), the color was pretty, it wasn’t super tight, and the material was really nice. If I was going to keep anything, it would’ve been this dress, but again – it was so expensive. I just can’t justify $240 for a dress.

 

Herringbone Scarf
 

Herringbone Scarf over the Rachel Dress
 

Awkward turtle face

 

I’m not much of a scarf person, mostly because I don’t know how to wear them and also because in Dallas the weather is bipolar and mostly warm so there isn’t that much of a need for them. The Herringbone Scarf is a wool-cotton blend and it was huge! (See it wrapped around me as a blanket in the ‘awkward turtle face.’) This actually might be good for someone who gets cold in the office. I loved the color and feel of it, but like all the other items, $65 was a deal breaker.

 

As much as I loved that Rachel dress, I ended up sending back all the items. I love nice things and I’m all for investing in classic pieces I’ll wear all the time, but I just couldn’t justify spending $150+ for one item. For reference, I’m definitely an Express / J. Crew / Banana Republic type of girl but I could get 2-3 items on sale for the price of one MM.LaFleur item.

 

Overall, MM.LaFleur delivers on high quality items and great customer service. It’s definitely catered to the professional, working woman and if I had the budget, I wouldn’t think twice, but deep down I still have my cheap Asian tendencies and had to pass. As you can see from my pros and cons list, I didn’t find anything bad about it, but costs trumps everything for me. If they lowered their price point more, I would probably try it again, but otherwise I’ll stick to my twice a year stops to the mall on sale weekends.

Categories
Fashion Fitness Lifestyle Reviews

Pop Fit FREE Leggings! – Olivia Review

A few months ago, a friend of mine told me about this POP Fit promo for free leggings and my first thoughts were – free workout clothes? I’m in. But as they say, nothing is ever free, free. I got to pick which leggings I wanted but the catch was I had to pay $11.99 for shipping. I’m not super big into shopping anymore – I think I have too many clothes I don’t use – but I don’t think twice about buying new workout clothes because I really put them to use.


Olivia Leggings

I ended up choosing these black/green Olivia leggings and I think if you click the picture link, you might be able to snag them for free yourself. I’m pretty picky about my workout wear – it needs to be drifit-ish material and the bottoms need to fit snug and comfortably but still flattering. I’m pretty loyal to my Nike capris and full length leggings and have yet to find anything that compares, but $11.99 didn’t hurt.

Some claims from the POP Fit website:

  • Thick waistband that “hits your hip & tummy area in exactly the perfect place”
  • Leggings stay perfectly in place
  • Heavier more durable fabric

TL;DR

I wouldn’t buy them again. They weren’t a complete loss, but not worth the full price IMO.

PROS

  • Comfortable and waistband does sit in a flattering area
  • Does stay in place (for the most part) while working out
  • Designs are pretty cute
  • Not terribly expensive

CONS

  • The waistband shrinks and gets warped when you put it in the dryer
  • Material is decent, but feels like will deteriorate after excessive use
  • Holds onto moisture more than I’d like

Leggings in action at the gym

I do think the style of these are really cute. I know a lot of women who love sporting the athleisure look and these definitely fit the bill. The mesh is soft but seemingly durable, but these are more for athleisure than they are for working out. I like the material for the most part and they’re super comfortable, but it holds moisture more than I’d like.

I rotate my workouts between weight lifting, hot yoga, and HIIT cardio workouts PLUS I sweat a lot, so I need something that’s comfortable and durable, but still flattering. The moisture thing isn’t so bad with lifting and HIIT, but when I’m in hot yoga, I notice it more because I’m sweating a lot more. In class, I’m used to wiping my sweaty hands on my leggings to get a better grip during poses, but when I used these leggings, it felt like I was just rubbing a wet towel.

I’ve had these for a few months now and I workout pretty regularly during the week so these were definitely put to the test. My biggest gripe is after so many washes, the waist band shrinks and gets pretty warped. Maybe I’m supposed to air dry these? I honestly don’t read instructions, but I don’t have time to air dry all my leggings. I’ve had some pairs of Nike leggings for years (circa 2013) and they’ve held up really well – I don’t see these lasting as long.

If you’re looking for something more casual and not for workout use, these might be for you, but I probably won’t be purchasing any more. If these were $11.99 regular price, I’d might reconsider, but the Olivia Leggings I got was $37 full price and I could get my favorite Nike Pro Leggings for the same price.

If you wanna try these leggings for yourself, I did find these other styles that are free (+ S&H):

POP Fit Heather Leggings
Heather Leggings


Mandy Leggings

Have you tried POP Fit Leggings? Do you have other favorite brands?
Let me know in the comments below!