What I Wore: Check-In

Hey everyone!

Thanks for your kind words and support from the last post. As usual, the entire month of February is kicking my butt, so we've been busy birthday-ing, taking a blink-and-you'll-miss-it getaway, and tons of other stuff. I still have another birthday this week. Help me.

But I still thought I'd check in. If you're not following on IG, please do, because I'm still posting outfits and weird stuff I find while shopping over there. And if you don't have IG, might I submit this opinion: While I learn to hate people on Facebook, I learn to love them on IG. It's so much nicer when people can't post and argue about politics and vaccines. It's just pretty pictures. Seriously, I resisted IG for so long and now it's my faaaaavorite.

I wore this yesterday: 

Top: H&M (here) I have this top in two different patterns and one solid and they are fantastic. Fit very true to size and just airy while still being a smidgen structured. Wrap tops 4 lyfe. 

Skirt c/o modbod eons ago (here's an uber cheap one) (textured like mine) (this one's also pretty)

Shoes: F21 and they hurt like a mother (here but you've been warned)

Rings: Coach (similar)

I had to leave church because I had a migraine so I ran home for some Imitrex and spent the rest of the time in a drug-induced fog. And yet, I still managed to stay upright in these shoes, which I feel like is a huge accomplishment. 

This was last week, where I decided that an all-lace dress was a little sweet. This oversized moto jacket has been, hands-down, one of my fave purchases of the year so far (YES I AM AWARE it's only February).

Dress: Dorothy Perkins (this one is super pretty) (and this would look so cute with a jacket too)

Jacket: Calvin Klein (here)

Boots: Dollhouse (here)

I also realized that I had a version of this dress when I was in high school. My mom told me I couldn't wear it to a dance because it was too short, so I packed it in my bag and changed at my friend Graham's house like I was on a friggin' episode of Full House. 

That's me in the white, obviously. And now I look at that dress and am like seriously how was that too short I mean honestly. 

Also, my friends are the most adorable. 

Besides taking pictures of myself and hosting birthday parties, we ran down to St. George for a couple of days to get warm. My relaxation level was at a 1000, clearly:

My cup of Crystal Light and my Kindle. That's all I'll ever need. 

I got through three books. My husband told me that my biggest problem is that to relax, I need to physically leave the house, otherwise I'll just work. 

Also, if you're looking for a recommendation and happen to be a massive Margaret Atwood fan like myself, Station Eleven was superb. Seriously, I'm not a post-apocalyptic doomsdayer AT ALL but I'm still thinking about it. 

While in St. George, I went shopping and found things like this, which made me wonder if I had stumbled upon a clown colony.  

On Saturday night, you could totally find me doing this. Because I could. 

I'll be playing catch up for another week or so, after which I might be able to return a pseudo normal posting schedule. I'm hoping that, at the very least, we sneak in an outfit post and a Freaky Friday each week. 

Again, you guys are the totally the best ever for putting up with me!

What I Wore: Meaning Business

You guys, I really feel like I mean business when I wear power dresses like this one. 

I saw this dress and had to have it, but couldn't bear to pay full price (it was around $100 and I don't wear dresses enough to justify that). So imagine my smugness when I realized it was on sale for $29 and only available in my size. 

That means you've been living your life right, my friends. 

Dress: Paper Dolls via Dorothy Perkins (Of course it's sold out now, but I have a few Paper Doll dresses and they are so fun. I totally love this one and this one and this amazingness for plus sizes. Pencil dresses with a sleeve are my jam/unicorn, so when I find a brand that does them consistently, I become a psychotic groupie. 

Shoes: Windsor and a gift from my husband who enables me (similar and so pretty) (similar)

Earrings: Seriously, from a TJ Maxx or something in San Diego. (similar) (pretty and cheap just the way I like it heh heh heh.

Speaking of meaning business, you guys, I have a conundrum here and looking for some input. 

I'm self-employed and work in what mostly amounts to marketing. I'm a marketing writer, and companies hire me to do things like blogs, press releases, ebooks, articles, and other things that make them look fancy. I just finished rewriting an entire company's onboarding manual, which sounds boring to other people, but fills me with actual glee. GLEE. I love using my writing skillz (yes, with a 'z') but still getting to be an active participant in the corporate world. 

I LOVE my job. Love like you would not believe. I meet the most amazing people and get to be part of really great, young, hip teams (I work with a lot of startups who aren't ready to hire a full-time creative writer) and so I'm never willing to scale back. I'm busy all the time and deadlines rule my life, and I love every second of it.

When I started freelancing for work, I had no idea how things would snowball from being a little hobby business that brought in a little side money to an actual, viable career that takes up most of my time and energy.

That being said, some things have to slide when my work schedule is packed. Honestly, I use a paper planner and have deadlines scheduled out two weeks in advance and you've probably noticed that my blog has suffered a little bit.

But here's the thing. This blog is a hobby. It's a vanity project. I put up pictures of myself and write funny things and everyone pats me on the head and believe me, that's definitely fun. But when I started this blog, it was a creative outlet for when I was working in another part of marketing and not getting to write as much as I do now. In fact, I was on the training side of things and had to be on-call and at my computer all the time, so sure, a blog was a no brainer. I was bored and in front of a screen all day. But nowadays, sometimes posting just feels like another item on my to-do list and that's kind of an icky feeling. 

I'm not saying I'm scrapping this thing altogether. I love the visitors that come to the site and those who comment frequently are like, the lifeblood of a little blog like this (and you know who you are!) I do, however, need to lighten up the posting schedule a little bit, though. From now on, I'll be posting when I actually have something to say, which might not be three times a week, you know?

You can't be too sad. There's eleventy billion other fashion bloggers who do it better than I do. 

Instead of posting as regularly as before to this blog, I'll be opening a fashion-only Instagram account @nomoremomjeans and upload pics, outfits, snippets, and snark over there. You can always follow me @jae.curtis, but that's my personal account and you're more liable to get pictures of my kids and dog as you are shoes. I never post outfit pics to my personal account, but plan on doing that over @nomoremomjeans. So it's a start, right?

What do you guys think? Good compromise from now? I feel like I'll be able to post waaaaay more on IG since it takes two seconds. Also, every time I'm out shopping and see ugly things I feel like I want to share that special moment with you. So this should work. 

Again, you guys are the best readers evaaaaaar and I plan on doin' what I do, just not as frequently. That was a weird sentence to type. 

xo,
Jae 

Sweatshirt Chic

My family in Toronto is digging out of a snowstorm and I feel awful because it's been beautiful here. Like, the high is 60 today. And I know that's freakish and we are going to be hearing nonstop about a drought come June, but for now I choose to enjoy it.

Yesterday I took my kids to the park to play a game of 500 and I was so glad that a) it was warm and b) that sweatshirts are kind of having a moment right now. My tomboy heart just loves that it's OK to wear warm sweatshirts all the time, so I was running around the park in my Creme de la Creme shirt and leopard sneakers and didn't feel horribly sloppy or way overdressed, either.

But, there's a huge difference between your husband's school sweatshirt and something presentable to wear outside of the house. This spring's sweatshirts are hoodless and super cute, so there's something for everyone. Here are some of my faves!

GIRLY: 

ONLY white sweat shirt, $40 / Vero Moda sweatshirts hoody, $29 / ONLY pink leopard print top, $23 / White pullover sweatshirt / Pattern sweatshirt / Sweatshirt crop top

I love that sweatshirts can be really girly. How friggin' cute are these floral ones? They would look crazy bananas adorable with a pair of flats and skinnies, right? Add a cute topknot and you're ready in five minutes. 

SOLIDS: 

MANGO sweat shirt / MANGO long sleeve top / Uniqlo sweat shirt / Lurex top / Esprit, $27

The trick to making solid sweatshirts look "on purpose" is to look for interesting colors and textures. When there's a change in texture, it just elevates the entire look. I love the idea of these with a pair of short booties while running errands for the day. If it's cold, add a military jacket. Ugh so cute. 

GRAPHIC:

Print sweatshirt / White pullover sweatshirt / Gray top / Mango sweatshirt / Boohoo pattern sweater

I actually LOVE a graphic sweatshirts, but they can look a little little kiddish if you're not careful. I like to stick with black and white or gray patterns, and go for bold stuff, like dots, stripes. I even love that little bat sweater because it's not cutesy. My son would think I was legit if I had that one. These with a pair of knee-high boots would be amazing. I would even tuck the front just a little to make sure the shape was on point, too. 

TOMBOY:

Uniqlo short sleeve sweat shirt / Tommy Hilfiger white sweat shirt / Boohoo sweatshirts hoody / Boohoo camo sweat shirt / NIKE gray shirt, $44

Finally, a tomboy sweatshirt is all about fit. It's OK to have masculine styling, like raglan or sports brands, but make sure that thing fits like a glove. I would totally wear these with cuffed jeans and my high tops. Seriously, I am crushing on all of these.

Time to sound off: How do you feel about sweatshirts as a trend? 

What I Wore: Something Old, Something New

I was looking at this outfit and I realized that all the pieces I'm wearing are very old – except for the jacket, which is a new addition. And I bought a small and when I got home I realized it was a little oversized, so I endured an internal struggle over whether or not to send it back for a smaller size, but in the end, I decided I actually loved the oversized fit. As one of my friends pointed out, it's very Tori from Saved by the Bell and I'm not hatin' it. 

I've been wearing it and pushing people into lockers evvvvvverywhere lately. 

The other stuff though? They're just basics that made it through my latest round of closet purging. 

Jacket: Calvin Klein (here and on sale!)

Tee: Abound (here and still my favorite basic v-necks)

Skirt: F21 many moons ago. I can't remember the last time I shopped there. (similar and super cheap) (this might be this season's incarnation of mine)

Shoes: Steve Madden (similar)

Necklace: Cara via Nordstrom (mine is sold out but here's a pretty close dupe) (cheaper)

I cycle through clothes pretty fast (I know, you're shocked) so it's nice to have some old favorites still making the cut. It makes me feel good about my clothes-buying abilities.