Tuesday, December 31, 2013

13 in 13 {Linky Party}

I'm joining The Colorful Apple and several other teacher bloggers for this fun little 2013 wrap-up linky party...better late than never!!




Crud!  This is going to be a lot harder than I thought.  Favorite. Article. Of. Clothing. 2013. Got it!  I fell in love with wearing button up blouses this past year, mostly to work, but in general...you will find a lot of button up blouses with sleeves, without sleeves, embellished collars (see my above Instagram photo), plain collars, high-low in my closet. You name it!  I actually just bought 2 new ones for my return to work after vacation.  There's something about wearing new clothes out after Christmas that I've always loved.  Weird.  I know.


My hubby and I have been chatting about this for the last couple days actually.  We are movie buffs and always have been, so we always see a lot of movies each year.  But this one, by far, was both of our favorites.  We saw it in 3-D, so I don't even know if it will be as amazing when it comes out on Blu-Ray.  It was a nail-biter and a major tear jerker.  Fantastic!


We just started watching Big Bang this year...I know, I know.  Yes, I have been living under a rock.  But, we (my hubby and I) are GIGANTIC fans and were since the first minute of the very first episode.  My favorite is Sheldon of course...must I even explain why?  Have you seen my shirt I got recently (it's a bit of a combo with Grumpy Cat too).


One would think this would be a hard choice for me. I'm a Yelp elite, so I like to try all sorts of different restaurants around town, especially homegrown varieties.  LOLOLOL.  I'm fairly certain my Chicagoan friend would agree when I say my favorite restaurant I discovered this year would be...Portillo's.  It's not exactly a restaurant, but it works and I'm obsessed with it!  I have never been to Chicago (have always wanted to go though), so being able to have the real deal Chicago-style dog and a few other bites that are famous there is seriously awesome!  I've already been 3 times and it's more than a 30 minute drive from my house.  It's soooooooo worth it.


Hmmmmmm...this is a tricky one.  I would have to say my outing for my birthday this year to Art of Merlot (in Scottsdale, Arizona) with a large group of really good friends was something new and it was definitely fun.  Apparently, I can paint when someone else tells me how to do it and gives me the basics of what I need to paint.  Ha!  Yeah right.  Have you tried one of these types of places before?  You get to bring your own wine and they basically give you the supplies and step-by-step directions on how to paint your own canvas.


Oh goodness.  My favorite gifts were those that I didn't ask for.  This Christmas, even though I did a wish list for fun, my husband and family got me things that weren't on the list.  I especially loved that my hubby took some things he remembered me mentioning during the year or already knew I liked and grabbed those up for me.  He even went to Charming Charlie's and picked out a necklace he thought I would like since he knows my favorite color and that I like statement necklaces.  I don't have pictures loaded from the holiday yet, but there are two Instagram shots (above) that show slippers that I really love and the game my hubby got me on his own accord.  I loooooooove any sort of dancing game.

I couldn't even begin to tell you, but my LOLOLOL board is one of my favorites.  Here it is in case you'd like to look at the pins and grab them up yourself...for a good laugh!


Well, since I technically just started up a blog again (after several years of not keeping one), I don't have a ton of posts quite yet.  But it seems my most popular on the Internet is my first Stitch Fix post here...it's kind of crazy to see how many views it has received.  It even made its way on to the official Stitch Fix review blog.  On the other hand, I really love my blog post from the Day In The Life linky party where I got to take pictures of my typical day at work and post them.  What's cool is, I used those photos I took to enter myself in to a Stitch Fix contest...and I won a runner up prize!  I cashed in my $50 credit last week on my 2nd fix (that post will be up soon).


Well, by far would be my shining moment of completing and fully submitting my National Board Certification portfolios and assessment center exercises.  While I missed it by 6 teeny tiny points...it was a HUGE accomplishment to even take on the process and to complete it as well.  I am retaking this year and hope to make up those 6 points through a retake of 1 entry and 2 assessment center exercises.


Along with my National Boards journey, I got some really amazing pictures as I documented my 2-year process.  But this one, which I took during a weekend working retreat was by far my favorite picture of the year.  It is one of those pictures that shows clarity in more ways than one.  It was taken in Tubac, Arizona.

Oh my.  This is way too hard.  2013 was an insanely memorable year.  But then again, so is every single year.  There is no way I can pinpoint a single memory except to say that a lot of the above mentioned and show pictures tell a lot about it.  I had a lot of really amazing moments with friends and family this year, so there isn't really one thing I could choose.  Sorry...I'm chickening out on this one.


Hmmmmm...I would say I want to definitely get healthier and I actually want to participate in the 52 week money saving challenge!  By the end of the year, it will be nice to have an extra $1,300 saved up.

Relax.

Easier said than done.  But with having to do my retake for Boards and dealing with one of my hardest and trying group of students, I am being way more mindful of relaxing in my work life and home life.  It's something that takes a lot of work though, so it will be tough.

So, how was your 2013?  What is your favorite memory?  Pick one of the categories and let me know what your answer would be.  I'd love to hear from you!


Saturday, December 14, 2013

Showing Our Love for Sandy Hook


As educators, we remember and honor our fallen colleagues and their students from Sandy Hook School.  We honor them each day in our classrooms in which we continue their dream of teaching our children.  We honor their memory with our service.  Join with teachers everywhere in committing random acts of kindness to show our love for Sandy Hook.

Monday, December 9, 2013

R.A.C.K. In Our Classroom | Day 1

So today I introduced Random Acts of Christmas Kindness to my students.  We had a quick little share-out about the Sandy Hook events last year.  They were all extremely open to embracing this R.A.C.K. opportunity to support the Sandy Hook community....so we were off with a bang this morning.  In case you missed my blog post from yesterday, I linked up to What the Teacher Wants blog post and Teachers Pay Teachers product here.

I chose today's R.A.C.K. and it happened to be for our administrators.  We have 3 on our campus and we love them!  So, the kids had an absolute ball getting their first R.A.C.K. ready for them.  Part of this one was secretly delivering it to the ladies who take care of us on our campus.  We sealed their finished products up in 3 envelopes and included the anonymous "You've Been R.A.C.K.ed" cards to the envelopes.  I sneakily dropped them off outside their office doors.  It made me giddy doing so and the kids were way ecstatic when I came back to the classroom and told them I was successful in not being discovered.



At the end of the day, I reminded them they would be able to deliver another Random Act of Kindness and they actually cheered!  I looooooove it!  I'd say this is already a GIGANTIC success.

Random Acts of Kindness in Support of Sandy Hook

Image from What the Teacher Wants | Click image to visit her post
The community of Sandy Hook is asking the nation to remember those precious lives lost almost one year ago by giving through random acts of kindness.  I don't know about others, but this was something I took especially to heart last year when I stood in front of my students and imagined what I would have done if this had happened at our school.  I can't imagine the sadness and loss the community members of Sandy Hook felt.  But we did our best from our side of the country to show them we supported them and what they were going through by making and sending them handmade paper snowflakes for when the students returned to school.


How Can You Show Your Support Today?

With the approaching one year anniversary of such a tragedy, I want to make sure we take the opportunity to make the random acts of kindness part of our school life and in turn help my students see how they can pass it on outside of our school walls.  With the help of What the Teacher Wants R.A.C.K. product sold on TPT and 4th Grade Frolic's blog post (where I found out about this request from Sandy Hook)...we will be kicking off RACK in our classroom the rest of these 2 weeks leading up to our winter break.  We would like you to join in with us, whether you purchase the pack from TPT or come up with your own way to show random acts of kindness, please take this opportunity to remember and honor those 26 precious lives lost and the community who continues to heal.

On sale at TPT for $3.00 via Rachelle @ What the Teacher Wants | Click on image

Do you plan on using Random Acts of Kindness in your classroom or at home?  Let me know.  I'd love to hear how you spread the support and kindness.  

Wednesday, December 4, 2013

What I Read Wednesday: Of the Soul Variety

I really need to get my rear in gear!  I still have about 8 books I need to read by December 31st to meet my Goodreads reading goal for the year.  It's kind of sad seeing that I have not even read 75 books when my goal the last 2 years was over 100.  That whole National Boards thing definitely is the culprit.  In this case...I can't wait for winter break so I can read all kinds of books I've had on my to-reads list for ages (I had a load of fun doing that during my fall break).

In the meantime, I've only read one book since the last WIRW post.  Whoops!

Unwholly by Neal Shusterman

Oh how I wish this sequel was as good as the first.  Since Unwind, the first in the series, was all about how unwanted teens are unwound for organ donation purposes, this one had to somehow follow-up with the immorality behind it.  Imagine taking parts from a ton of Unwinds and putting them all together to make a new human.  What happens to the soul?  Will it have one?

Depending on what you might believe yourself, you might really love or hate what begins to develop in this human project one "company" attempts.  

Meanwhile, the characters from Unwind are struggling with what happened to them at the end of the last book.  They all survived but seem to be more damaged or lost than before.  One is battling with an arm he was given while unconscious as well as his past anger issues, another is battling with her choice to not be given an unwound part to help her live fully, and the other is battling with his choice to be a Clapper.  

I really cannot seem to put my finger on why I didn't quite enjoy this one as much as Unwind.  It certainly covers the kind of topic so many people argue over today (just like the first book).  But Shusterman did not spend as much time on the "Frankenstein" character as much as I had hoped he would.  Also, I hate Nelson.  That is all.  Let me know if you agree after reading it or if you already have read Unwholly.  Here's hoping the 3rd installment pick sup the pace a bit and brings in all the political issues the first one had.  

My rating:  3 out of 5 stars ||  Goodreads average:  4.29 stars

Please feel free to add me on Goodreads or follow my reviews there.  I absolutely love discovering new and interesting books that I may not have found otherwise.  

I'd love to know what you have been reading or have read lately!  Care to share?


Link up with Amy (last week's) to share your latest reads or what you are reading right now.  

Sunday, December 1, 2013

December Currently

It's December 1, which means I can officially start celebrating Christmas.  I already tuned my car radio to the 24/7 Christmas music station.  The Christmas tree has been put up (not finished though...I'll get to that down below).  My girlfriends and I had our favorites party today too.  Thank goodness!  I'm sick of covering my ears and eyes when I walk into stores who have been playing and putting out stuff since the beginning of October.  Yeah!  You probably think I'm a scrooge now...but I'm really not...in fact, I'm quite the obsessed Christmas fan.  After all, it is my favorite holiday!

The spread from our favorites party earlier today...my favorites is at the bottom of this photo.  I brought my favorite pampering items (Freeman's masks, nail polish, and cupcakes from my favorite local bakery)

Listening:  

Nope, I'm not afraid to admit that I am a fan of RHOA, or reality television in general.  Actually, my favorite set of housewives are the Beverly Hills ladies.  But I absolutely love Nene and can't get enough.  I could easily do without Kenya though as she is quite irritating.  For those who are fans...what do you think of Candy's mom being incredibly crazy and psychopath-like with Todd.  She's a bit overbearing and up in her business?  Trainwreck!

Loving:

Technically, I didn't actually score fantastic deals...unless you include the 3 or 4 Blu-Rays we found at Target for $4 each.  It was just nice to go out with my husband and do a little fun shopping together.  I cheated and bought the pair of black boots I just put on my Christmas wishlist the other day  (see picture below...and check out the best part on the back of the boot).  Whoops!  The thing is, I didn't want to miss out since I wear a pretty typical size shoe.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it.  So, I also scored myself the 2 seriously gorgeous Essie nail polishes from their winter 2013 line.  Check 'em out!  Need. To. Wear. Soon!

Image from Pinterest - Target

Thinking:

The 5-day break I am just finishing up here was a really nice relaxing one.  I was able to get cleaning done along with some shopping and lounging as well.  Not to mention, I got to hang out with friends and enjoy some time without worrying about work or my classroom.  So, I am dreading these next 3 weeks because they are sure to drag even though 3 weeks sounds like such a short amount of time.  In fact, the 3rd week is our 2nd quarter district benchmark testing week and that means testing all day long in a silent testing environment...think state testing.  Yep!  Dreading it.

Wanting:

I was really looking forward to getting my tree put up along with some of my many many many decorations.  We have one of those fake trees that comes in what seems like a million pieces, so it takes almost 2 hours to put up!  That is without even putting on the lights or decorations.  Okay, so I actually got it up in a record amount of time and when I plugged in the 2 strings of lights, I remembered that one of them has an entire color that is burnt out.  Of course, this happened last year, but I was too lazy to toss it and buy a new set.  I went out to Target to grab a new string, got home, plugged it in, started to wind it around the tree, and what happens?  It is too short!!  Gah!  Luckily, my nice hubby grabbed another string while he was out on his dinner break.  



Needing:

We always get our performance check (for passing the state test the year before) about 2 weeks before Christmas.  In the past, I have lovingly used this to buy my family their gifts.  My favorite part of Christmas is being able to put in some creative thought to find the perfect gift for everyone.  So, I relish that check and always chomp at the bit waiting for it to be passed out.  It needs to happen soon!!  My palms are itching.

Favorite Tradition:

Since this is my favorite holiday, I tend to have quite a few favorite traditions.  I'll probably have to do a whole other blog post on this.  But I'd say the newest tradition is something my husband and I started doing last year.  We each stuffed the other's stocking with goodies and then before our family comes over for Christmas morning festivities, we sit down in our Christmas pajamas and open them up.  It's even more fun than opening up our regular gifts!  I couldn't believe all the little items he stuffed in there. Plus, it was a ball being able to stuff his stocking with little gadgets and man-cave type stuff.

Link up with the many other teachers on Farley's blog.  What are you currently up to?

Thursday, November 28, 2013

Wishin' and Hopin' - My Christmas Wish List

I remember when my little brother and I were kids and our mom would hand us the Sears catalog around this time of year.  She let us flip through the toy section and have a good ol' time dog-ear marking the pages or toys we were wishing for.  Somehow Santa also found these pages and knew what we wanted.  Those were the good ol' days weren't they?  Did anyone else "shop" for their wishlist like this when they were a kid?

Nowadays, I just swoon over the things I can't always afford but really want to get myself eventually. I'm a simple girl...I don't need designer clothes or shoes or even fancy jewelry.  But being a teacher doesn't exactly give me the luxury of buying everything I want and when I want it.  So, it's always fun to wish for those fun items around this time of year and hope that they will end up under the tree.  And if they don't?  Well, I just go out and try to buy them for myself the day after Christmas during those NICE sales!

**Whoops...I sort of went out and bought the knee-high riding boots today.  I couldn't pass up the sale and worry about them selling out in my size between now and Christmas.  So?...an early Christmas present to myself it is!  Oh and my mom mentioned she already got me the polish set I want.  Yeah!**


Here's what I'm wishing for this year...
1. CHECK!   The Twenty-Two - Formula X nail polish set at Sephora - $55
What can I say?  There's something about nail polish and painting my nails that makes me feel pampered and frankly, helps me relax.  Apparently, these new polishes are amazing and have one of the best formulas around.  Since I don't quite want to spend the $10.50 - $12.50 price for one bottle, this set of minis has all their main colors, textures, and finishes!  Nice!  I've already "cheated" and asked my mom to gift this one to me.

2.  Lorac PRO Palette - $42
I'm a major Urban Decay Naked Palette fan and have been coveting looks from mine the last 2 years. But this palette is all the rage on beauty blogs and with YT beauty gurus.  I like that the colors are still natural but there are a few with a nice neutral pop as well.  They are said to be very pigmented and buttery as well.  Here's hoping my hubby gets me this!

3.  CHECK! Mossimo Kayce Black Tall Boots with Studs - $39.99 (on sale now for $31.99)
My black boots I've had the last 2 years are going downhill.  Plus, these are seriously hot and worthy of replacing them.  Click on the link and check out the back of them.  Um hello?  Yes please!  Just in case...I wear a size 7 or a 7.5.  All I know is...if someone doesn't gift these to me this year, I will be going out and buying them.

4.  Mossimo Black Kody Studded Combat Boot - $39.99 (on sale now for $31.99)
You may have noticed these are on my fall wish list blog post.  I have my fox sweater and I found myself a nice black crossbody purse too, so this is the only item I haven't found yet.  But thankfully, I found these perfectly done boots.  Oh and again, I wear a size 7 or 7.5.  I have to make sure I am specific since I plan to send this to my family members.  :-)  A Target giftcard would do me just fine too.

5.  ASOS Heart Elbow Patch Sweater - $39.40
Basically, I've been pining over an elbow patch sweater for the last year.  And this one...with its heart-shaped patches is super cute.  Plus, it's red...my favorite color!  Size 4 please.

6.  Amazon Kindle Books Giftcard - any amount
Now that I have a new (to me) iPad, I absolutely love reading books on my Kindle App more than through my nook.  It is so much easier to borrow books from my library through it now.  And since I have something like 500 books I want to read on my Goodreads list...I have a lot of reading to do!

7.  Baublebar Statement Necklaces (crystal or navy/plumeria) - $46-$48
Just another accessory I've been pining over for a couple years now.  You can find them everywhere nowadays.  Even though I love J.Crew's the most, I refuse to pay almost $100 for something that is really costume jewelry and not diamonds or pure gold.  Who doesn't want to add something so fun and colorful to their wardrobe?!

8.  Insomnia Cozy Plush Polka-Dot Robe - $24.99
Now that it is finally cooling down around here, I am starting to freeze a little with my tiny little lightweight robe.  It would be seriously nice to have something this cozy to wear around the house in the mornings and at night when I'm lounging.

9.  Bohemian Tribal Ear Cuff Chain on Etsy - $14
If you've seen Catching Fire, you may have noticed Joana wearing a cuff like this before the Quarter Quell.  Or maybe you didn't, because you were actually paying attention to the movie.  Not me!  I saw her wearing one like this (hers was a little longer) and immediately wanted one too.  Even better? Finding one on Etsy and supporting a home-grown designer.

Okay, so while I feel totally greedy and snarky having to write about my wish list...it was still really fun to put it together.  And granted, I can actually send the link to it to my family members and hopefully make it much easier to help them decide...I wish all my family-members would send me something like this to make it easier for me to shop too.

How about you?  What are you wishing for?  


Wednesday, November 20, 2013

What I Read Wednesday: Mystery Meh

It seems reading has slowed way down for me.  Thankfully, I had my book club to save me.  This one has been on my to-read list for quite awhile and I wish I could have enjoyed it more....especially since it's the only book I've finished in the last 2 weeks or so.

Before I Go To Sleep by S.J. Watson | Ever watched 50 First Dates with Drew Barrymore?  Or have you ever watched Groundhog Day with Bill Murray?  Perhaps you have seen The Vow with Rachel McAdams?  Answered yes to any or all of those? Well, then, you have pretty much seen a movie that is this book.

From Goodreads:  'As I sleep, my mind will erase everything I did today. I will wake up tomorrow as I did this morning. Thinking I'm still a child. Thinking I have a whole lifetime of choice ahead of me ...' Memories define us. So what if you lost yours every time you went to sleep? Your name, your identity, your past, even the people you love—all forgotten overnight. And the one person you trust may only be telling you half the story. Welcome to Christine's life.

If only this book would have just moved on already. Part III really saved this one as I couldn't put it down! Christine wakes up every morning not knowing anything about where she is and who the man sleeping next to her is. So, each day her husband, Ben, has to give her a rundown before he runs off to work. But by Part II, we are introduced to the journal she is keeping and recording memories in. Slowly, we begin to learn more about what may have actually happened to her and why she feels so uncomfortable in her life as an amnesiac.

I won't say much more than that, because even though this is an extremely slow-moving book, Part III is most definitely a good payoff.  I thought I had figured out the ending about halfway through, but I was completely wrong!  

My rating:  3 out of 5 stars || Goodreads Average:  3.82 stars

Monday, November 18, 2013

Getting My Fix with Stitch Fix!

So many of my friends and followers really wanted to know about my Stitch Fix experience.  What else could be better than having someone else buy you some super cute and trendy clothes? Since I can't afford to do that on a teacher's salary and I do quite enjoy shopping and finding great pieces to add to my wardrobe year-round...I just found and tried out the next best thing!

Stitch Fix is an online personal shopping experience and a seriously neat little way to feel pampered.  You don't have to be a fan of fashion or someone who is necessarily any good at picking out clothes for yourself.  You can let the stylists do the work for you!!  All you have to do is complete a style quiz which includes some information about your sizing, body type, types of cuts and pieces you have in your closet already, and what you hope to get through getting your Fix. Check out more information on that in my other blog post here (towards the bottom) where I show you a little bit of the quiz.   They also ask you to select how much you would like to spend on certain items.  I chose to be sent the least expensive options...this is a die-hard Forever 21 and JCPenney's shopper here you know.

Schedule your Fix for whenever you'd like (they do seem to be booking up fast) or choose to have a Fix sent to you every month.  It's all completely up to you.  You pay a $20 styling fee for each Fix. Then, sit back and be impatient as you wait for your 5 specially selected items to come to your door in what will seem like a nicely-wrapped Christmas present.   If you choose to keep all 5 items, you get 25% off your total and the $20 styling fee is applied as well.  They send you a prepaid envelope so you can send back things you don't want to keep.  Easy peasy!

My First Stitch Fix




One of the other high points of Stitch Fix's service?  They give you 2 styled looks you can use as inspiration for each item your stylist picks out for you.  If you don't have these types of pieces in your wardrobe, you can always find them on your own or use them to pair your items with things that are similar...which you'll see is what I did with the 5 pieces I received.  

As soon as I opened that box I thought...score!  My stylist was spot on and pegged me to a T.  Now a bit of an FYI I figured out by doing some research online from other Stitch Fix reviews?  You can provide a link to your Pinterest board in your Style Quiz.  If you create an actual Stitch Fix Style Board and pin a bunch of items you like from their board or anywhere...your stylist will use it to get to know you.  I HUGELY attribute this to the success of my Fix!  

Here is what happened next when I had myself a little bit of a private fashion show...awkwardly...by myself.  Ugh.




1.  Kensie Dexter Faux Leather Sleeve Jacket: I have 3 suit type jackets that I love to wear, so finding this in my box was definitely a high point.  Usually, jackets with leather solely on the sleeves annoy me.  But the details of the buttons, the diagonal cut cuffs, the little leather strap closure, and the unique long front with the shorter back had me excited.  As you can see, it looked much better open, which wasn't so nice since I really like the closure detail.  I tried to show the back with the sleeve shape and the shorter back.  While I had high hopes for this one, it just didn't flatter me well enough to keep it. Meh.  
Status:  Sent Back | $78



2. 41Hawthorn Milo Bird Print Pleated Detail Skirt:  Blech!  I could not get this one off fast enough. While I seriously fell in love with the print when I first opened the box, I just could not see myself ever wearing this.  You can see here how it fits me in a strange way. It hangs down in the front because my rear end and hips are broader.  The waistband is too narrow. I felt like I need to add a belt or something, but that would have been too much.  The material was very soft and the quality was very good...but this just did not fit right at all.  Granted, I wouldn't pair this with my black booties next time, but I was trying to style it the way I saw in the card and was in a hurry to get my little fashion show over with since I was sweating like crazy (I hate you Arizona falls).  So many people tell me how annoying it is that everything looks good on me, but here is a strong case to show that is far from the truth...I just have become very good at buying clothes that fit my body type.  That is why this one had to be sent back!  
Status:  Sent Back | $48



3.  Renee C. Albertson Chambray Henley Blouse:  Waaaaaah!  Oh how I wanted to really love this piece.  The chambray material was so uber soft.  It is also a high-low top, which I really love to wear.  You can see in the left picture that I am wearing it as is and it looks a little too baggy.  So, I did my whole half tuck in the front to see if that took some of the bulk away. It did, but this piece still did not speak to me.  There are tabs on the sleeves so you can roll them up or leave them down at about a 3/4 length.  Also?  I wish it was one shade lighter as well.  I paired it with my dark blue skinnies (that I seriously need to get the length tailored on), a colorful scarf, and some heeled booties just as I saw in the style card.  It was just okay and that meant I needed to send it back for the price .  Darn it!  Again, the quality of this piece was exceptional though.
 Status:  Sent Back | $68






4.  Fiancee Wilam Zig-Zag Print Top:  This was the first piece I saw when I opened up my box and it seriously sang to me!  I should have known that meant this one would fit me so well.  Look at the fun print!  Can you say chevron?!  It is a navy and blue print with a neat little mini-capped sleeve. What I didn't get a picture of was the back and I wish I had because there is a neat little seam detail at the top of it and it has a high-low cut to it as well.  The material is similar to what the skirt was made of and it is very breathable.  I loooooooove it!!  I'm always looking for more patterned pieces to add to my wardrobe and this is a print that is NOT in my closet at all.  Score!  You can see how much more flattering it is to my body shape versus the other pieces I sent back above.  It was made for me I'd say.
Status:  Kept. | $44





5.  Collective Concepts Pascarelli Embellished Collar Blouse:  Boy oh boy did I ever want to love this top.  I have a THING for embellished collars and totally dig sporting them in the fall and winter on my button up blouses.  Not only that, but I really like the Peter Pan collar and the zipper detail in the back.  It is a chic and simple top with a pop.  You can see the beading has some green pops as well.  But, the length was a tad too short for me and my broader hips.  The price was a bit too steep for me as the top is a tiny bit plain (outside of the collar).  I tried to pair with a colored pair of heels to add some zing to it, but it just wasn't swaying me enough to keep it.  Then, I threw on my gray skinnies to see if that helped it stand out...you can see it did, but that also showed how short it is.  Darn it!
Status:  Sent Back. | $68

Overall, I really did love my first Stitch Fix.  At first glance, I was in love with all of it and honestly thought I'd be in trouble when it came to deciding on just one or two items to keep.   The cost of my box surprised me a little since I opted for the least expensive items to be sent.  I do know another friend whose box only totaled up to $150 and mine was $214.50 (with the $20 credit and 25% off). I'm really hoping my next Fix is a lot less expensive.

I've already scheduled my next Fix for December 26th!  It will be a late Christmas gift to myself.

Visit Stitch Fix to complete your own style quiz and schedule your first Fix today!

Have you tried Stitch Fix?  How did you like your Fix?