Class to Work: Forest Green Blazer + DIY Inkblot Top

Class:

Thrifted forest green blazer with bold lapels // DIY inkblot top (Whit & Mal's tutorial) // 
H&M nude cami tank (underneath) //

Forever 21 skinny jeans // H&M black bow flats //
Chicwish gold spike chain necklace //

Work: 

Thrifted forest green blazer with bold lapels // DIY inkblot top //

Forever 21 grey and black roses pencil skirt // Payless black pumps //
Chicwish gold spike chain necklace //

Photography: Cassandra

Throwback time (8/13/12): I remember this was one of the first professional dress outfits I wore for medical school last year. The day was hot, the lecture room was cold, and I needed to switch from morning casuals for lecture to something dressier for afternoon clinical class. By swapping my skinnies for a pencil skirt and tucking in my top, this was a simple class-to-work transition. There's something about the sharp lapels on this blazer thrifted in San Fran that remind me of Romulan starships. Unfortunately, pencil skirts inevitably get shorter on my legs after walking anywhere so truly knee-length pieces are on my thrift list.

Looking back, I am grateful my hair is no longer that fried and this makes me miss summer badly - yesterday morning I trekked through a light layer of snow to get to my 8 AM clinical exam. Frigid winter is already upon us - hide yo wife, hide yo kids, hide yo fingers inside gloves!

VivaGambita Petite Jeans Review + Giveaway

H&M oxblood cableknit sweater // DL 1961 Toni Cropped Jean in Switch, size 26 (c/o VivaGambita) //

Firmoo round cat eye tortoiseshell glasses (c/o) // Zac & Zoe for Payless penny loafer pumps //

From China black and crystal detachable peter pan collar //

Photography: self; tripod and remote

Today the temperature took a dip into the nippy 50s and a lightweight cableknit sweater from the colder months still left me shivering. Today's outfit was inspired by the hipster librarian - cat eye tortoise shell glasses with a strong cat eye eyeliner, comfy sweater with a little sweet, comfy jeans and "mannish" shoes. I pulled on these fit-me-like-a-glove jeans that are the perfect length for 5'3" petite me and surprisingly stretchy to leave room for my thighs and acrobatics. Getting creative here, I wore my detachable peter pan collar backwards because of the more subtle rounded shape. Popped on some pennyloafer heels and we were good to start off another week of work.

I got lots of compliments on these glasses too and my classmates kept asking if they were new prescription glasses (they're not). Firmoo contacted me again for another collaboration and let me choose 2 pairs (the other one is quite unique - the frames are totally clear) to style and review. As you remember, they offer stylish frames and prescription glasses on the cheap. Whenever I pop on some cat eyes, my whole mood becomes surlier and cattier as the corners of the glasses are tugged past my eyebrows.

VivaGambita is a brand new petite clothing store that I am excited about. From their adorable mint and white logo to their curated inventory, their chief Caroline has it covered. This pair of petite denim came cuffed but when tried rolling it down, I was surprised to see that it was the perfect tailored length. While I can dish out a few bills and get all my pants rehemmed, the fit around the rest of my leg is much harder to manage. This dark wash pair does it all and from the lack of unsightly bunching lines and muffin top, they are finally a true "ready to wear" piece for us petite ladies. We are excited to give away a pair of VivaGambita's legit denim - enter via the Rafflecopter widget at the end of this post.

Click to see more pictures → → →

ProFRESHional

H&M beige boyfriend blazer (Euro 8) // Old Navy ruffle sleeve top (XS) // Forever 21 skinny jeans (26) // 

Aldo Ruesch nude pumps in Beige (35) (purchase here) (similar here)

Photography: JJ

Here is one epically old work outfit from early October 2010. Yeah, that's like half a year ago. Better late than never, right? I miss the lush green leaves of the Midwest in early fall and now I'm college-sick too. 5 days until I'm back in St. Louis and back to the grind. Speaking of which, my brother told me of a coffeeshop right down our street called "It's a Grind." Isn't that cute and punny? Just the way I like it. It's sad that I didn't notice this or much of anything in San Diego the whole two years I've been here. I'm determined to have a super productive med school application day tomorrow with a good cup of Joe. Life has been incomplete without coffee. 

A shoutout to a true fashionista and makeup artist, Alice. Her flattering paragraph to so many of our university's fashionable girls (and guys) made me laugh and smile. You should definitely, definitely keep blogging and share your chic fashion sense with the world. Congrats on graduating and we'll miss you! Hello and welcome to any WashU peeps reading this too : )

This boyfriend blazer at first seemed to large but when I recently tried it with the sleeves rolled up they didn't look too oversized on me anymore. However, in these photos I'm swimming in it (no wonder - it's a size 8). Also, it's not actually white like the exposure might suggest, but a light beige colour. I love throwing on a blazer for a more professional look but dressing down the look with jeans. I splurged at Aldo too in the fall on these nude pumps (mainly because I was ecstatic they had a size 5). The colour is very flattering but the almond toe shape squeezing my circulation is not. When I took it back to the store to get it fixed on their special leather-stretching machine for a few hours, nothing really fixed. The size 5 is slightly big on me and gaps at the heel, no surprise since recently I confirmed that I'm actually a size 4.5 in women's.

Believe it or not, I woke up at 8 AM today to run errands and let some beautiful sunshine hit my photoreceptors. Hopefully this will shift me from my incorrigible inclination towards nocturnalism. Still have a to-do list of fun left to turn into a to-done list, consisting of trips to the beach, zoo, mall, and possibly Sea World before I head back into the fray of tornadoes and thunderstorms. My heart goes out to those in Joplin, Oklahoma, Arkansas. Take shelter underground and wear your ruby red slippers for good luck in case you're whisked off to Oz!

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