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. 

Deep Thoughts on Jamberry Nails

Since I was confined to my bed with a sore throat and super stiff neck yesterday, I decided to pull out some Jamberry nails that super awesome reader Lindsay sent me.

It was actually really funny, because a couple of weeks ago, I was hanging out with some friends. We ordered in Thai food (pumpkin curry get in my belly) and everyone brought their Jamberry stuff to do nails while we ate and gossiped. And I'm always in for food and gossip, but I've never even bothered with Jamberry nails because I actually have no nails. Like, I have the hands of a small growth-stunted child. It's ridiculous. Also, I bite my nails when I drive, so there's that too.

So I told the girls that I'd come and eat and opt out of the nail stuff. And everyone was like "You should totally get some" and I was like "Guys, remember how I'm a child and can't be trusted with fancy things like nail wraps?" And I went home. Nailess.

But lo and behold, the very next day there was a big package of Jamberry nail stuff at my door and oh, the irony! Lindsay sent me the works: A few sheets of wraps, a heater, the manicure set, etc. And I decided I would try them, but I had to let my nails grow for a week.

So, fast-forward to yesterday, where I was working from my bed and binge-watching Scandal and feeling sorry for myself when I realized that my nails were probably long enough to bust out the Jamberry stuff. Here's what I started with:

I definitely had to YouTube an application video because I have tried to use nail stickers before and they SUCKED. Or maybe I SUCKED. 

Sally Hansen in 2013. Never forget.

But these are not the same. So, here's the gist: You push down your cuticles, try and find a good match from the nail sticker sheet and then peel it up. Then, you use a heat source (I had the fancy dancy heater) to warm up the wraps before you stick 'em on your nails.

There's a lot of rubbing.

That's what she said.

It took one episode of Scandal for me to do both hands, but I was going super slow so as not to screw the entire process up and make Lindsay disappointed in my abilities. 

Here's the finished product: 

Ignore my sleep-legging bedecked thigh in the background there. I can see the spots in this pic where I screwed up, but they're passable and I know what not to do next time. 

Some tips I learned from my hour-long foray into Jamberry nails:

• The video I watched said err on the side of smaller when you're choosing the wrap size and I wish I had listened. Instead I was like "Gurl whatchyou talkin' bout" and went too big and sure enough, those were the ones with ripples in them. Like my pointer finger up there. 
• Heating helps, so don't be bashful. I the wraps before I put them on, as soon as I got them on, and again while I was smoothing them out to make sure they really got the point. 
• I kind of wish I had chosen a non French tip pattern. These look cool, but because my nails are so disproportionate and weird, a couple of nails had a smaller strip of silver than the others and it drives. me. crazy. Next time I'll just buy a random pattern. I'm eyeing these right now. 
• They were really hard at first, but by the time I got to my right hand, the process was easy. Plus, Scandal was on so it was actually kind of enjoyable. I felt like a real, live girl who does her nails and watches dishy dramas with hot presidents (I don't know what's wrong with me, I've had a massive crush on Tony Goldwyn since he was the bad guy in Ghost and spent like, every casual scene just wandering around without a shirt on and he awakened feelings in my 14-year-old self I didn't know existed. 
• I'm super glad Lindsay sent me the whole manicure set, because the scissors and cuticle pusher backer thingy were lifesavers. I know you could probably skip the heater if you wanted, because all my friends used blowdryers. But I still thought the heater was super handy to have. 
• I really have no earthly idea how long they'll stay on. It's been 24 hours and I've clipped a few shorter to get rid of some excess but so far, so good. They stay on for two weeks, according to Jamberry, but I'm really hard on my hands so we'll see. I'll keep you updated. 
• Also, if you have creepy baby hands like myself, the kids' wraps will fit. Lindsay sent me these babies for Addison and I'm not gonna lie, I'm probably going to steal some for myself. 
• Each sheet is $15, but I only used the four smallest on the sheet (and probably shouldn't have used the big one on my pointer finger ugh) so I still have enough for two more applications. If you were really handy with the scissors you could totally cut up the big toe ones and use them on your fingers if you were so inclined. 

Aw baby mustaches and bows, you will be mine. 

All in all, my friends will probably say "I told you so" when I see them tonight. Because I was so against them and now I'm like "OK, I can see where these would be handy." 

Really, my only complaints would be 1) That I'm an idiot and didn't choose smaller wraps when I should have and 2) They're a little shinier than I would normally choose for my nails. I think using them only for a feature nail here or there would make more sense for someone like me.  But that's fairly subjective and coming from someone who maybe does her nails like, twice a year. 

If these stay on for longer than a week, I might have to reevaluate my choices in life. 

Therefore, if you're interested in these and don't want to do the whole home party scene (which gives me like, heart palpitations because sales pressure makes me very nervous), you can buy from my girl Lindsay. She will not give you heart palpitations. Unless the nail wrap you choose is named Heart Palpitations. But I checked and there's none named that, so it's a moot point.

This is how I actually talk, guys. I'm SO bad at staying on topic. Ask my husband: It took me 10 minutes to tell him my friend's husband is a cop, because I spent most of the time retracing my entire history with said friend and that she used to have an above-ground pool and lived near the grocery store in my hometown, you know the grocery store that has the lobsters? 

So sorry. Moral of the story, my experience with Jamberry was mostly positive and you absolutely will see me with mustaches on my nails in the near future. 

What to Wear: When You Don't Feel Like Getting Dressed

I was at the passport office yesterday and a woman wheeled her stroller in. Her 2-year-old was sick. Like, kind of looked like a zombie baby, red eyes, goopy face sick. And she proceeded to park his stroller beside my chair, where he coughed on me for 20 minutes.

I woke up sick this morning.

And, since I'm not a hypocrite, here's a repost of what I'm wearing today. Hint: It has an elastic waist.

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There's probably a solid three feet of snow on my lawn, but you know what? I don't care because I don't have a single place to go today and that is glorious. I actually purposely plan all of my week's stuff on one or two days. Tuesdays and Thursdays are always my busiest days, but that means I can relax a bit on the other days. And, since the roads are a mess, I'm absolutely taking advantage of that fact. I plan on hiding in my house, getting some work done and reading while my son naps.

What I'm saying in the most roundabout, least fashion bloggy way is that I'm not getting dressed today.

And guess what? Anyone who posts pictures of their outfits is probably showing off what they wear about an eighth of the time. Because mark my words, the rest of the time, they're in their sweats, hiding from their well-meaning neighbors like EVERYONE ELSE.

SO I'm not lying when I tell you that while I have a very extensive closet of cute clothes, I also have a HUGE collection of lounge clothes too. And I'm wearing some right now. And that's OK. Although I will say that even if I'm hanging out in the house all day, I'll wear something more than PJs to get through it. Because even if no one else is going to see me, if I stay in PJs all day, I'll undoubtedly start feeling gross and unproductive and unshowered all day. Simply changing into cute, well-fitting lounge stuff means I'm still totally comfortable, but I don't end up wallowing in self pity, Downton Abbey and poor food choices all day.

Here are some super cute options for getting dressed when there's no point in actually getting dressed.

Volcom pocket tee / Victoria's Secret vintage top / Knit shirt / Black tank top, $24 / Activewear pants / American Eagle Outfitters stripe pants / Accessorize button shoes / Pastry snakeskin shoes, $47 / Minnetonka bow shoes / Gap Logo Lounge Pants / Aero 87 Lace Full-Zip Yoga Hoodie

Fit is EVERYTHING. There's a huge difference between a cute pair of lounge pants and wearing your hubby's sweats. If your lounge clothes make you look like you and your hubby have roughly the same body shape, it's a problem. Hoodies and yoga pants are totally fine. When they fit. Also, a cute pair of slippers or house-approved shoes helps too. I have mukluks that I love, but I'll also wear moccasins and sneakers around. Just don't tell my Canadian parents, who think it's appalling when I wear shoes in my house.

And now, what not to wear.

Striped top / J.Crew flannel pajamas / Topman Heather Jersey Sweatpants / Supersoft Zebra Print Onesie, $31

Men's sweatpants, actual pajamas, that gross souvenir T-shirt that you wear when dyeing your hair and ONESIES. Do I really need to even say this? If you slept in it the night before, change out of it. UNLESS you're sick or just had a baby because those times don't count.

For the record, I'm hanging out in Calvin Klein yoga leggings and a Roots Canada half-zip sweater today. And that's pretty much how I'll stay all day.

And I'm thinking about eating the loaf of bread I bought my neighbor.

Also, I'm a horrible, awkward shell of a human being.

Alright, sock it to me. Are you a "get dolled up every day" type? Or are you more of a "Put on pants when I have to go to Wal-Mart" kinda gal?

What I Wore: Recharged

I had two loooong naps over the weekend and I can't lie: It was glorious. Now I'm ready to tackle the week. Until Wednesday, when I will become very tired and require more naps. Funny how that works, right?

Seriously though, there's something to be said for a recharging weekend like that. We went out to dinner, took the kids to the arcade, rented a movie. When I was like, 19, I would have thought it was boring. Now I'm like "Pleaaaase can we just stay inside and watch a movie?" Putting the kids to bed and watching 22 Jump Street is basically my dream date now.

Anyway, this is what I wore on Saturday, which was ideal for both napping and eating. 

Top: Calvin Klein (here) (I also have this one in black and love it.) 

Jacket: Stoosh via Nordstrom (no longer available. I can't tell if it sold out fast or this brand just rotates through product really quickly) (similar) (super obsessed with this one)

Jeans: Calvin Klein (here)

Boots: Ardene - Canada (similar) (similar)

Bag: Coach (here) After a few weeks with this bag, I can say I'm definitely a fan. It's massive inside, so I can carry things like my Kindle, my obscene lip gloss collection, and an old-school planner. Yaaas. 

In the spirit of full disclosure, I will say that I got rid of the boots and wore moccasins to the arcade because come on, who wears heels to the arcade? My children would be happy to report, however, that they each came home with a pair of fuzzy dice, a dinosaur model, and a recorder for the low, low price of $20, my sanity, and about a gallon of hand sanitizer in the car.

The arcade is gross.

I just bundled the kids off to the bus, so now it's all work and Pandora from here on out. (Right now I'm listening to an instrumental version of Hotel California.)

Mondays really aren't so bad sometimes.

Freaky Friday

Happy Friday, guys! I just got home from a workout and might want to die. Everything hurts and I'm ravenously hungry, so food and a nap it is!

After Freaky Friday, natch.

Attention everyone: New fashion rule!! No wearing harem pants unless you are in a legitimate harem. See, it's handy and it's not as confusing as the whole white after Labor Day thing. 

How many bathroom mats does it take to make a hideous Muppet shrug? 

This looks like something Effie would wear in Hunger Games. 

Also, I hate that Hanging Tree song because in the middle they play Jennifer Lawrence saying "You" over and over again and it sounds like she's saying "Ew" repeatedly. 

"Little House on the Prairie: The Artsy Discovery Years" 

I always had cats growing up and they had the unfortunate habit of barfing into backpacks and my brothers and I wouldn't realize it until we got to school.

This sweater is bringing up some seriously repressed memories for me. 

Maybe it's because I've been listening to the Game of Thrones soundtrack lately, but this tunic makes me want to like, grow some grain, marry a cousin, and start a peasant uprising. 

My, aren't we fancy in our pom-pom bedecked pantaloons? 

If Seasonal Affective Disorder were a pair of pants.

No, seriously, I'm going to shower so I can go grab something to eat. Gotta look nice for my chicken.