the.B.Law

LA Fashion and Sad Noodles

I don’t know if it is something in the air or not, but lately (actually more last week when I started writing this) I have been a sad noodle. I didn’t know what that fabulous phrase was until my little sister told me she was a sad noodle and continued to explain she meant meh, like in a funk. Then my other little sister said she was feeling meh so I graced her vocabulary with sad noodle. Now the three of us are sad noodles together, because being a sad noodle is at least better with other sad noodles. Okay I think I have said sad noodle enough times for you to want to use it too. 

I am not entirely sure why I have been meh, but I think I might have an idea. I came to the realization the other day that I’m not in a state of feeling left out, but a constant state of feeling left behind. This all circles back to the comparison trap. So many of my friends and people I know are moving on with their lives, getting married, buying houses, while I am doing none of the above. WHICH IS OKAY. I have to remind myself I am not them. It is just something that gets you down every now and then you know? This week I feel much more neutral about the whole thing. I have noticed the sad noodle phase comes after a really fun weekend when the high is gone. I think I will go into this more later when I can gather my thoughts better.

ANYWAYS it has been so long since I have done a style post. I find myself missing it. Maybe that is something that will help get me out of this bowl of sad noods, actually writing for fun again. My girlfriend Maria and I went to LA a few weeks ago to just be general basics and it was so fun! I made sure I made an “LA style” outfit. By that I mean something I’d want to wear but am not brave enough to wear just around anywhere. I feel like LA is where you can try any fashion out and literally no one cares. 

So I put together what I thought was kind of dressy and kind of edgy (I really dig these kinds of looks right now). I paired my leopard midi-dress under a tied up graphic tee and white booties. I was strangely excited to wear this outfit, it was totally out of my norm and I relished in it. It made me remember how much I love dressing up and making new looks. I am really hoping to create some actual content soon, thank you for being patient with me. 

Until then, enjoy the look and find the links below! The top is older so I am linking a few other graphic tees (I am OBSESSED with graphic tees right now who am I?!) 

Outfit linked here: Leopard Dress | Tee Alternative #1, #2, #3 | Boots (similar) | Purse (similar) | Sunnies

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Bright Sweater Trend

Have you noticed the trend of bright sweaters this season? I have been all about it. I am usually a colorful dresser, despite the fact I have been enjoying dabbling in blacks and darker tones, but I am usually excited to embrace the fall color palette. I love olive and mustard, and this year I am especially loving shades of emerald and forest greens. But while browsing online and in stores, I have been seeing bright teals and pinks and I am loving it! I bought a bright pink sweater from Something Navy’s fall collection at Nordstrom and it is so fun! My sister bought a bright green cardigan from Vicidolls and the color suits her personality so much. I feel like bright colored sweaters are the perfect representation of fall in Southern California. It is technically fall but we still get some days in the 80’s. 

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Both of our sweaters are sold out, but I am linking a few other bright sweaters below. How do you feel about this trend? All about it or keep fall colors in fall and save the bright for summer?

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I know this one isn’t super bright but it is my current new obsession! Linked herehere!

 Links: Teal | Pink | Light Green  

Links: Blue | Red | Light Pink | Dark Pink

Links: Yellow | Light Pink | Dark Pink | Purple

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Shopping in the Desert!

Last Saturday I got the opportunity to head out to the Desert Hills Premium Outlets for a little shopping trip with my bffff and it was so fun! I know a lot of people know these outlets as Cabazon, but I have since learned their real name. I was advised that my parking would be covered by the shopping center but I did not know that I was getting a reserved parking spot! It was my most celebrity-ish moment. My bfffff and I just stared at each other when the parking attendant said “wait right here while I go move your cone.” Hold on, what?! He then directed me to the SECOND SPOT IN THE PLACE. If that isn’t luxury then I don’t know what is! Once we got over the high of having a reserved parking spot, you know it is the little things in life, we got out to shop.

Where do you even start in a shopping mall that has 180 stores? You start at Marc Jacobs duh! Well that is where we started because it’s the first store we saw that we knew. We made our way through the mall, or more the east side, and went into all the stores we know and love like Guess, Michael Kors, Kate Spade, and Steve Madden. There are such good deals here you won’t believe what I got. I’ve been wanting a Kate Spade bag for forever so of course we went in to look, but I didn’t expect to a actually buy one. They had a sale of 70% off with an extra 20% off on select styles. I ended up finding the style I’ve been dying to have ON THE BEST SALE EVER. It was originally $428-ish and was on sale for $87! WHAT?! I told the sales lady I would be back.

Next we hit Guess and my bffff bought a couple things, and then we went to our all time fave, Steve Madden (insert heart eyes). We both have a serious problem with shoes. Well we both agreed that the problem wasn’t having too many shoes but that we don’t have enough space for them. Of course the actual shoes are not the problem. Over at Steve (yes we are on a first name basis) they were having a BOGO half off sale. My bffff got two pairs of booties, FINALLY! I have been trying to get her to get booties for three years. I only ended up getting one pair of booties because I had a coupon and oh my goodness let me tell you, they are beyond fabulous! I finally gave into the snake skin trend and I am obsessed. Just look at how cute these are!

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Booties linked here!

After Steve we made our way through the rest of the east side and off to the west side. The west side is a little smaller but here we looked in Express, Forever 21, and Vans. Actually Forever 21 may have been right at the end of the east side… I cannot remember. Finally after 2.5 hours we had made it through the entire mall. Since we had seen everything we went back for my purse. I almost had a heart attack when we went in because I didn’t see my purse anymore! Finally I found two more and got in the extremely long line to buy it. Success! I had my shoes and my purse, I was a happy camper. We ended the day with celebratory churros (tbh they sucked. Maybe it was just a bad stand but I couldn’t even finish it because it was so hard and they hurt my braces. So disappointing).

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It was a really fun day, I really hope I get the chance to work with the Desert Hills Premium Outlets again, it is just such a nice mall! I am excited to go back when they have Christmas decorations up.

PS- this post was supposed to be a lot better and funnier but half of it deleted when I finished it last week. I didn’t want to waste half a good post sooo here you go, sorry. Check out our video of the day here.

Shop the look: Dress (comes in like 10 colors!) | Booties | Purse

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Pumpkin Patch Round Two

Sunday my sister, niece and I went to a huge pumpkin patch over in Yucaipa/Redlands. I took Dakota to this pumpkin patch last year and it was crazy then, but we were not prepared for the craziness this year. We got there later than we intended, 2pm, and just getting off on the exit was backed up. Parking was a joke, Nicole pulled into the first lot (a construction site not affiliated with the patch) and it was $20! Nicole didn’t want to drive farther so she just parked there. Once we got to the entrance of the pumpkin patch we were shocked yet again. The line to get into this place was insane! It was literally like getting into Disneyland. The line went through the entire parking lot and out of it FOR A PUMPKIN PATCH. Luckily it mostly moved fast. Once we were in we went to buy drinks because it was so hot and again WAITED IN LINE, like 45 minutes to buy bottled water. After water we finally got tickets and got Dakota on some rides and then the three of us went into the petting zoo. It was a day with a lot of waiting BUT it was still fun. Not going to lie though, I don’t know if I would want to go again next year if it is getting that crowded, I don’t know if it is worth it. Hopefully next month though we get to go to the apple orchard in Oak Glen because that is were I really wanted to go.

Now on to what is really important, my outfit for the pumpkin patch, DUH! I am just kidding, this outfit was nothing special but I do want to point out how amazing this v-neck is. I stalked and stalked this striped tee during the Nordstrom Anniversary sale until I found my size and I am so happy I prevailed in that mission. This has become my favorite casual top this season. It is super soft and light and goes with just about everything on the weekends. Whenever I do not know what to wear I just throw this on and either easy tuck it or tie a knot in the front or on the side and it is perfect. For the patch I paired it with my Adidas (also from the Nordstrom sale) and it was a comfy casual/athleisure outfit. I’m telling you, if you are looking for the perfect tee then check out this one, I will link below and it comes in 7 colors and is under $20!

Shop the look: Top | Jeans | Shoes | Sunnies

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New Flannel!

My oh my it is so easy to fall off the wagon. I got behind in blog planning and then wasn’t feeling well and then next thing I knew I was behind! I refuse to fall back into bad habits of being inconsistent. Ever since I got my calendar dedicated for blog content planning my world has changed! I try to plan for two weeks at a time. I think I will do a separate post on planning later. Anyways, I am back!

Now that is it FINALLY starting to feel like fall, despite it getting warmer again this week, I am finally breaking out the flannels! Even though I do not need anymore, every year I manage to buy at least one new flannel, I can’t help it! When I cleaned out my closet this past spring I ended up getting rid of like 5 flannels and still had 3 left over. Serious issues.

I usually get my flannels from Target, but so far this year I bought a new one from the Nordstrom Anniversary sale from BP. It is so soft! I love that it is thin, it makes it much easier to wear and layer in SoCal. I went for this one because I really wanted a black and white pattern. I always end up with colors which is fine, but I think this combo is much more versatile, plus I love being able to pair with olive and mustard sweaters or pants, or really any color sweater like the pink I added below.

Flannels are great in the fall and winter because they are so easy to look put together. You can wear it by itself, with a sweater/blazer/cardigan/leather jacket over it, or even as an add on and tie it around your waist. What is your favorite way to style a flannel?

Show the look here! Flannel | Similar Flannel | Cardigan | Jeans | Heels | Belt

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PSLs and SN!

I have two things of good news!

1 – I got my first PSL of the season. I personally refuse to get one until October starts. I also got it iced because Southern California. I do not even have to explain that. I have a confession though, I do like PSLs like any other basic BUT I am not in love with them. They are good but I usually cannot finish them. White chocolate mochas are more my jam AND YOU CAN BET I am all about peppermint white mochas during the holidays.

2 – MY SOMETHING NAVY STUFF CAME IN! For all of you who have been living under a rock, Arielle Charnas and her blog Something Navy launched her own clothing line at Nordstrom full of elevated basic goodness and practically broke the internet within minutes of her launch. I got everything I wanted except for one, the yellow sweater that was all over her insta. I got the pink though so it is okay.

The top I have on below I was ready to buy ever since I saw her style it on insta. Such a perfect fall piece and can be worn at work or casually. I will do a whole haul on my stories most likely tomorrow to show my other pieces. She already started doing sneak peeks of her November collection and I am already obsessed. How many sweaters can one girl really have? Because I am about to stock up and it is not even cold enough to wear them. My jeans below are also Something Navy and they are so cute. They are mid-rise and have a slit hem at the bottom. Sometimes simple details are the best ones. I will link both items below but it may not be there when you click it, just being honest! This stuff sold fast! There are however quite a few sizes left in the jeans. (Sizing note: this top is a small and I probably could have gone XS if I wanted. The jeans are a 4. I am generally a 2-4 but the 2’s were pretty tight. The blue jeans I will show you later though are bigger and I got a 2).

Shop the look: Top (other color here) | Jeans | Heels | Purse (similar)

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Blogger Cardi

I wasn’t sure what to call this post but when I sent my little sister the photos and asked which one she liked best, she responded, “THAT SWEATER. You are such a blogger!” Thanks for noticing Tab ;), thus we now have the blogger cardi, you know to go along with the dress I call the blogger dress (that has even caught on to all of my friends and sisters). But really, how cute is this long cardigan?! It is BP from Nordstrom and I am obsessed, it’s totally something I wouldn’t usually wear. It is a perfect addition to a fall wardrobe in Southern California because it isn’t thick. It still gives you the ability to layer without being too warm yet is still cozy.

So far I have only worn it over this gray dress, which is also so comfortable from Old Navy. It is the perfect dress that you can either dress up or down. What I really want to wear it with though is a black suede skirt but I haven’t found one I like yet. Or even with my black jeans, but I will probably wait until it gets a little cooler for that.

Shop the look: Cardigan | Dress | Heels

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Favorite Fall Color

What is your favorite fall color? As much as I love olive and the different shades of burgundy and magenta, my all time favorite is mustard yellow. It is just the perfect color pop for the season and can go with much more than some may think. Even if it doesn’t match completely there are still ways to tie it in, one of my faves is with navy.

I went through a period of thinking I couldn’t wear mustard anymore with red hair. I felt like I would be a walking ketchup and mustard combo. But finally I realized I totally could wear it, now I have moved on to feeling like I can’t wear bright pink.

I know I said one of my favorites is mustard with navy, but my all time favorite is mustard over black and white print. Whether it be black and white stripes, polka-dots or plaid (and yes I have all three), a mustard sweater or cardigan just looks so fall over it. Plus top the look off with camel tan boots, flats, or heels. Like I did here:

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These loafer mules by Madewell are such a great fall piece for work and for casual wear. The pinkish tan suede make them a very versatile staple. They go with almost everything yet the pink tones make them stand out. PS – they are on sale for 60% off! I will link them below. I am hopping it will be cool enough to take out the boots soon!

I got this mustard cardigan during the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale (and it is on sale again for 40% off! Linked below). I love the balloon sleeve detail and that the sleeves are actually long enough. I am long but usually wear a small so most times long sleeves are too short on me. This one is sooo soft too! So is this v-neck that I also got from the Nordstrom sale. Actually, this entire outfit is from the Nordstrom sale! It has just been too hot to wear all together.

All items are linked here: Sweater | V-Neck | Jeans | Mules

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Fall & the End of Summer

I am always so excited for fall for mostly obvious reasons like cooler weather (even though it takes forever to cool off in Southern California) and of course the fashion. Fall style is my absolute favorite because we can finally layer. Although, this year I was particularly excited for summer fashion. I think ever since Mexico last year I have just wanted to dress up in resort wear (even though I am not going anywhere…). I think my favorite thing about fall though is the feeling. The holidays are coming, all the fall decorations come out, 13 Nights of Halloween on TV (but this year on FreeForm they are doing 31 Nights of Halloween starting with Hocus Pocus on October 1st and I am SO EXCITED. Full 31 nights movie line up linked here!) I think the feelings may even be traced back as far as school days. School always starts in the fall and there was always a feeling of going back, especially in high school and college. You’re back to seeing all of your friends, football games every week, and mutual complaining about class. It is so exciting to be done with school but it is also a very nostalgic feeling, at least for me. I sometimes feel a longing to be back at school as if I missed out on so much and didn’t live it out to its full potential.

That is kind of how I feel at the end of every summer. I am so excited for fall yet I have this sort of sadness about summer being over. It goes by so quick and I feel like I didn’t get to do all of the things that I wanted to do. Every year I start off thinking it is going to be so epic and it plays out like a movie in my head at the start and it never quite looks like that at the end. How come as we get older the days go by so much faster? I know it gets hot super early but if you think of summer in calendar terms, June 21st-ish to September 22nd-ish, then there are really only 13ish weekends in summer. That means only 13 opportunities to plan fun. That may seem like a lot but count in birthdays, weddings (and all of their collective events like showers and bachelorette parties), and all other obligatory engagements we have to attend. Don’t get me wrong those are generally fun events and you get to see family or friends, but they are not events you planned for pure fun. Does that make sense? I guess I am just trying to say that we have limited weekends to jam all of our summer fun into and sometimes that can be hard at the end of summer to reflect on. Also having events every weekend makes the season go by even faster.

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I think it boils down to the seasons changing being bitter sweet. This change is so drastic. Fall is the lead into winter, spring is the lead into summer, winter to spring feels like a subtle change, but summer into fall seems so huge. It is almost like the end. I love this time of year but it may seem to go by even faster than summer all together. It is September and then all of a sudden it is back to back holidays and then a new year. One last thing and then I am done because I don’t even know if I know where I am going with this anymore. I think this summer to fall transition is harder for us in SoCal because it may be officially fall, but it is still over 90 degrees and feels like our calendar is confused. It is like we are stuck, whereas other states that actually get a real and proper fall are able to quickly hop over to the fall train and fully appreciate it.

I will get over this little funk, I think I just needed to talk it out. Maybe it all comes down to the fact that I have all of these fall clothes that I can’t wear yet and it really bums me out! It is okay. I will patiently wait for colder weather. At least my work feels like the arctic and I can wear sweaters there. Do any of you have similar feels to the summer to fall transition?

PS – Fall transition look linked here:

Tank | Shorts | Heels | Button Down (similar) | Sunnies | Belt (similar)

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White After Labor Day

We all know the old phrase, “don’t wear white after Labor Day,” but do we even know why that is or how that came about? I have heard the phrase many times but never paid much attention to is besides joking that I was wearing white after Labor Day. I also mentally excluded white tops from this rule, you know if I were to even follow it. To me I always assumed white pants and dresses were the only pieces that fell into under this strange fashion restriction.

I never actually looked up why we have this “rule” until this year. It apparently took me 28 years of ignoring it to be curious enough to want to know why.  Turns out, in my opinion, it is good most people ignore this very out of date way of thinking. An article from Marie Claire, “Can You Wear White After Labor Day?: A Consensus”, opened my eyes to this silly tradition. The article read:

The “you can’t wear white after Labor Day,” rule was created to separate the old money elitists from the new money group. “It [was] insiders trying to keep other people out,” according to Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, in an interview with Time, “and outsiders trying to climb in by proving they know the rules.” – Chelsea Peng, Marie Claire

The whole reason this “rule” was made was to separate classes, this seems ridiculous to me and very Gatsby-esq. This isn’t East and West Egg.

“For those who had money and could leave the city during warmer months, white was considered vacation attire.” Chelsea Peng, Marie Claire

When summer is over you would ideally come home from vacation and bust out your darker fall clothes to get back to school, work and life and pack away your “vacation” clothes. Such a silly rule about wearing a certain color. Glad it is 2018 and I can wear white whenever I want and not look like a social climbing, new money wannabe.

I finally got my favorite jeans in white and I love them! The Jamie from Topshop are my all time favorite jeans. They are the perfect high waist jeans and are so comfy and flattering. I have barely touched any of my other jeans since I got these and now I have blue, black, and white so I am pretty much set.

Funny story about these white ones. I wear a size 28×32 in these and Nordstrom only had a 28×30. I am tall so those would not work for me. They were on sale and said “price matched” so I figured that must mean they are on sale on the Topshop site. I was right and they had my size so I ordered them! They came in and were “sateen”… they were shiny space pants! I was so mad I did not read the description well enough. I returned them and decided I would just try on the the 30×32 at Nordstrom which were too big BUT turned out this Nordstrom had my size it just didn’t show online. So I finally got my white jeans… just in time for Labor Day! lol

I have never been one to wear white on white or off white on white (one, because I spill things, and two, I wasn’t sure if that even looked okay). I have seen a couple bloggers do it though and I really liked it! I gave it a try with my sprinkle tank and it was super cute. I also added this sweater in hopes it would make fall come sooner. I am still waiting but have a good feeling… stay tuned.

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I also added one of my favorite wedges because you cannot ruin a good look with bad shoes, duh.

Shop the look: Top (40% off!) | Jeans (50% off!) | Sweater | Wedges

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