Affordable Lookalikes for Fan Favorites

July 11, 2018 by Virginia 15 Comments

Long time no chat, friends! I won’t even try to begin to explain why I dropped of the face of the Earth. Suffice it to say that I started this blog when I was 8 years into a curriculum at school and had little else going on. This year I was in the first year of a new school and two new classes that required curriculum creation, in addition to being quite involved in my local church. I just couldn’t hack it.

Lol, actually…I wasn’t doing much beauty maintenance either. This became clear when school ended two weeks ago and I came home from getting a much-needed haircut to my husband gawking at me like I was a different person. Ah well…I am now in the process of recovery from my year at the local high school and for the first time in a long time I feel like I needed to blog. Afterall, I have some good stuff to share!

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Affordable Lookalikes for Fan Favorites

Over the last few months I haven’t bought a lot but I have found a few affordable lookalikes for fan favorites. I own the Lush Roll-tab sleeve tunic in two colors, white and green. But the white one got so grungy (it is dry-clean only, after all) that I started looking for an alternative. The Nordstrom Anniversary sale starts tomorrow (!) and it will likely be on sale, but I’d like to suggest an alternative. I took a risk ordering this affordable lookalike of the fan favorite Lush Perfect Roll-Tab sleeve tunic and I was quite pleased with the result. It is a more crisp fabric than the flowy Lush tunic, but for less than 1/2 the price, it’s a great affordable lookalike for the fan favorite. It’s long, bright white and machine-washable!

Then, my other favorite find are my affordable lookalikes of the very popular Chanel CC earrings. I love the look of the Chanel earrings and I’m not embarrassed at all to wear a knock-off. If I can afford a real pair one day, that would be great. But in the meantime, I love the size of these and how simple but pretty they are. The ones I ordered are sold out, but there are more options on the seller’s Etsy page. I also came up with a lot of other options for Chanel inspired earrings on Etsy.

Today’s outfit isn’t fancy, but these are the kinds of simple basics that I find myself turning to over and over. And since I just mentioned simple basics, grab one of these tank tops the next time you’re at H&M. They’re only $5 and I wear them under everything because they are one of the few options I’ve found that aren’t low-cut. If there’s one thing you need as a teacher, it’s a great tank top to wear under low-cut blouses or button-ups that just don’t stay buttoned.

That’s it for today friends! I will be back before too long but I’m trying really hard to take my own advice and find some balance this summer. I will continue to post throughout the summer but it will likely not be on as regular a basis as I was posting before I took my long break. Until next time!

Thanks for staying with me 🙂

-Virginia

Get the Look:

Rolled Sleeve Curved Hem Blouse, Shein.
Skinny Jeans, American Eagle. (old) Similar Skinny Jeans.
White Tank, H&M.
Cognac Sandals, Ross. (old) Very similar Guess Cognac Sandals.
Affordable Lookalike Chanel Earrings, Etsy.
Baublebar Mason Ring, Nordstrom. (old)
Cable Cuffs, Zulily. Similar here and here.
MK Two-Tone Darci Watch, Areatrends
Marble Bracelet, Church fundraiser. Similar here and here.

Linking up with: Straight A Style | On the Daily Express | Pumps & Pushups | I do deClaire

White Skinny Jeans Teacher Outfit

March 19, 2018 by Virginia 25 Comments

Hello friends! Last week when I was trying to put together a cute teacher outfit I got pretty frustrated when I realized I had already worn my pair of white skinny jeans. At least once a week I put together a white skinny jeans teacher outfit. It’s one of the easiest ways to dress up my basic work wardrobe while staying comfortable. If you don’t have any, that would be my first recommendation for a Spring closet purchase.

First of all, white skinnies are great for work because you can get away with wearing jeans without having them look as casual as a regular pair of jeans. You get what I’m saying? (Somehow I feel like this is a fair way to get around the “no jeans except on Friday” rule without being “unprofessional,” but maybe I’m just fooling myself, lol) Second, as spring approaches, they are a great way to brighten up your fall or winter wardrobe pieces. This olive cardigan was one I picked up two years ago at the Nordstrom Anniversary sale (and still love). It’s definitely one of my “fall” items, but I love the way it looks with an all-white outfit. Pairing your dark tops with a pair of white skinny jeans brightens up the whole look.

Now, I will say that the hunt for the right pair of white skinny jeans can be somewhat daunting. It took me a long time to find the right pair and I’ve owned these for at least 3 years, maybe 4. For me the right pair of white skinny jeans are: ankle length perfect and a thick fabric. I find that ankle length jeans are perfect to pair with any shoe. I’ve worn these with booties for fall, with sandals for summer, and they don’t even bunch up under over-the-knee boots (see this post).

I recommend spending more on a pair of white skinny jeans just because a better quality jean is going to last and it won’t be as see-through. These were purchased from LOFT and I absolutely love the version they are carrying for spring this year with the cute double-fringe on the bottom. I tried them on in-store and they are the same nice thick fabric as the pair I own. Mine have survived the test of time and I would expect this pair to wear the same way. Sign up for LOFT emails and be ready for the next sale! They’re worth it! I’ve also rounded up some other good options of white jeans below.

White Skinny Jean Options:

Get the Look:

For a totally spring-time appropriate work outfit with white skinny jeans, also make sure to check out THIS OUTFIT.

Ok, time for me to get back to the work-week lesson-planning daily grind! Have a wonderful week! Check out more of my work outfits here!

-Virginia

Over-the-knee Boots for Work & Floral Top for Spring

March 12, 2018 by Virginia 11 Comments

Hello Friends! I’m really excited about today’s post for a few reasons: 1) I’m finally sharing my new suede over-the-knee boots for work (which I love and can’t wait to tell you about) and 2) I finally found some look-alikes of my favorite floral top for spring!

Over-the-knee boots for Work

One item I really wanted to get this winter was a new pair of over-the-knee boots that I could wear to work. When the Stuart Weitzman suede over-the-knee boots first became popular, I knew I wanted a look-alike pair. It took awhile for more affordable brands to come out with copycats so when I found a great pair of gray over-the-knee boots at Forever21 (featured here), I grabbed them. However, over the years they stretched out and would fall down my leg. Plus, the pointed heel just wasn’t realistic for my now more mobile job.

I went on a hunt for a new pair of over-the-knee boots for work. The great thing about buying a replacement pair is that there are so many options out there for an affordable over-the-knee boot. You can get them in flat versions and block heel versions, in a ton of different colors. My stipulations for over-the-knee boots for work were that they be wide enough for my calves (many options are made for skinny calves), a block heel (added comfort and traction for my long walks across campus), and a tie at the top that would keep the boot from falling down my leg even if it got stretched out. This Steve Madden pair from DSW fit the bill. Plus, I got them on sale (right after I featured them in this post)! They are still pretty tight on my calves and because of that, there is some bunching right at the ankle, making for a funny fit. But, I can’t even explain how comfortable they are and, for the price, I just couldn’t pass them up.

This is a great time to buy a pair of over-the-knee boots, as many retailers are starting to clear their stock to prepare for summer. You’ll get a great deal and still get quite a bit of wear out of them throughout the spring.

Floral Blouse for Spring

I bought this blouse from Shein ages ago but it’s still one of my favorite tops for work. It goes with jeans, pencil skirts, black pants (seen here), you name it! My favorite way to wear this floral top is with white skinny jeans, as pictured here. I haven’t featured it recently on the blog (even though I wear it all the time) because I don’t like featuring something that you can’t buy and doesn’t have a similar replacement. But Friday I was looking at new arrivals at H&M and found a ton of great options to get a similar look. I tried a bunch on in-store and have some size recommendations in the widget below. This version is a great, soft fabric and is on sale. Be aware that the sleeves run tight.

This is the perfect kind of spring look for me in the classroom. I feel bright and cheery and fashionable, yet comfortable. That’s a winning outfit combination! In fact, make sure to check out another way I wore these white skinny jeans in the classroom HERE.

Get the Look:

Have you tried floral blouses for work? Where did you find your favorite one? Let me know in the comments below!

Thanks so much for stopping by! Make sure to check out last week’s post on my Top 5 Favorite Teacher Shoes!

-Virginia

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