Category: Fashionista

Swoozie’s Blogger’s Event!

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On Wednesday, I attended my very first ‘blogger’s only’ event!  Those of you following along as I walk along two parallel paths in life – 1) the scientist/PhD/researcher path and the 2) fashion/lifestyle blogger path – know that this is the very first event I have attended as a ‘real blogger’!!  Wait, actually, I have a third path…motherhood/wifehood (wait, those are two paths, haha!)! 😛

Anyway, it was super cool to get the ‘blogger’s only’ for ‘Birmingham’s best bloggers’ invite!  Eeeep!!  I’m among the best!  Yay!!  This, of course, coming off the heels of my attendance at Birmingham Fashion Week as a blogger/press/media!  More on that to follow in an upcoming post!  Curious?  Check out this guest blog post I wrote for Lotus Boutique!

Anyhow, so this event.  In Birmingham, we have this store…Swoozie’s.  Cute name, right?!  So, Swoozie’s is a gift and social paper retailer in the Birmingham area.  There are 7 other locations, in Georgia, the Carolinas, Florida, Colorado and Texas!  They also have an online site.  So…this event.  Sorry, haha, I get easily distracted, apparently!!  Squirrel!!  Hahaha, okay, ENOUGH!

AN-Y-way…Swoozie’s!!  I arrived at the event having only had 15 minutes to get ready, so I went with basics.  Black harem pants, a red pleated top, animal print heels (because, really, WHO can tell the difference between cheetah and leopard prints?!!), a gold fringe necklace, Stella and Dot hoop earrings, and lots of bracelets!  You’re not a real fashion blogger if you don’t wear every bracelet you own, haha! Just kidding.  No but really, I was wearing like 6 altogether.  I also wore my usual top knot.  Anyone studying biostatistics could easily use me as an example for explaining what Bayesian statistics is all about, haha! You know…because I wear my hair in a bun almost everyday!! So, this is what I ended up wearing to the event!

My Photo Grid collageI arrived at the event, and was greated with my very first SWAG bag!!  Eeeeeep!! I was so excited!!  Check out the goodies I got!!

0430142034c-1Um, okay, so I may have added a napkin from the food table that I thought was cute, as well as new notebooks that I picked up at the event with my exclusive, ‘blogger’s only’ discount (both were not originally included in the swag bag, but they make the picture look cuter, right?!). 😀

NEXT, I made a beeline for the food table.  Check out the food table!!  If you know me well, you know that I do NOT pass up an opportunity to eat, so just know that I may or may not have eaten the crab cakes that are missing from this platter…oops!!  In my defense, it WAS dinner time.  Okay, maybe it wasn’t, but I hadn’t eaten dinner!!!  JUDGE ME! Hee hee!

0430141844The event was lots of fun!!  I met a variety of bloggers there!  Fashion, food, lifestyle, etc…a fun and diverse group!

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Krista Colin and Alicia Rohan from KC Projects, LLC, as well as other new blogger friends!

The event focused on giving us tips for becoming the ‘Hostess with the Mostest’, both socially as well as digitally.  I didn’t really capture too much of the digital hostess goods (e.g. business cards, personalized stationary and other items), but here are the social hostess items I thought were cute!

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ChewBeads!! Have you heard of these?? You wear them as jewelry, your baby chews on them while toting him/her on your arm, and then you throw them in the dishwasher and voila! You have a clean necklace to wear again!

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Cute decorative pieces like this one! SO relevant in our household, since our little one has YET to sleep through the night consistently! Oh woe is me!! :((

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Kate Spade…’nuff said. 

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Voluspa Candles…my FAVORITE!!

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TONS of baby things, including this super cute baby announcement for your front door or mailbox!

Omgosh, and SOOOOO many other goodies!!  For those living in the Birmingham area, Swoozies is having an event for YOU this coming Saturday, May 3rd, from 11am-2pm!!  They are also offering an exclusive 20% discount to all attending this fun event!!  I told you what’s on my wish list, so feel free to use your discount to get me something cute! 😉

Birmingham_HousewarmingI have to tell you, this blogging ‘thing’ has been such an amazing experience thus far!  I never thought I would have a hobby I loved, but I can honestly say that this is one of the most fun-filled experiences/hobbies, I have ever had!  I *may* now understand how my hubby feels about golf.  Maybe… 😉

Keep an eye out for my upcoming post on Birmingham Fashion Week (yes, I know, SOOOO overdue!!), as well as my post on staying ‘Chic in Academia’ while pregnant or nursing (ALSO WAY OVERDUE!!)!!!  I’ve got about a 1-week window before my grant writing takes over my life again, so look for these posts in the upcoming week!  In the meantime, follow along on Instagram and Twitter for daily workplace outfit inspirations, as well as my SALE ALERTS peppered throughout!

Thanks so much for reading and…Stay Chic!!

A Cinderella Moment with Lotus Boutique!!

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This past week, I attended Birmingham Fashion Week for the first time…as a blogger!!!  Last year I attended simply as a guest, and the experience was much different than it was this time.  I had so much fun this year; it was super exciting and so amazing!!  In preparation for Fashion Week, I wanted to make sure I planned fun outfits for each night.  Cue: Lotus Boutique!!

Lotus Boutique was amazingly gracious!  I was able to wear three looks from their current in-store collection!  It started out with a visit to the Lotus Boutique at the Summit to pick out some outfits. For those of you who haven’t been to the Lotus store at the Summit in a while, be aware that they are no longer located over by Sephora and Gus Mayer, but rather next to Gap, and in the same suite as the Halcyon Day Salon & Spa!

041714102304171410250417141025aSo, I got started! Selecting only three outfits was by no means an easy task!  There was so much to choose from!  Check out some of the cute things I saw:

0417141028b 0417141032a 0417141031 0417141030c 0417141030a 0417141029d 0417141029b 0417141029 0417141028 0417141027c 0417141026a 0417141026 0417141025b0417141033 0417141034 IMG_20140417_121939I made my choices based on uniqueness if you will.  I wanted pieces that people wouldn’t think to pair with a metallic jacket, or with a peplum top.  I also wanted pieces that spoke to my style, which is fun and feminine.  In the end, I selected a few things:

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All of the outfits were so fun to wear and fit so well!!  I am SOOOOO grateful to Lotus Boutique for making this experience such a memorable one!!  I had so much fun styling all three different looks!  Here are the three looks I put together with pieces from the Lotus collection:

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BFW – Night 2 (This outfit was also featured on al.com!!)

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BFW – Night 1 (LOVED this outfit…this dress is one of my all-time favorites. I’m planning to wear it ALL summer!!)

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BFW – Night 4 (Loved, loved, loved this skirt!! Loved that it was a stretchy pencil skirt, so very flattering for curvy-figures!

What do you think??  I could fill my closet with Lotus clothing and accessories!!  Couldn’t you??

Follow me on Instagram to see more outtakes from Birmingham Fashion Week, and my blog, Chic in Academia, for work-appropriate outfit inspirations, as well as tips on how to mix high and low fashion!

Stay Chic! 💋

Gus Mayer Hosts a Night Out with ‘Faces of Birmingham’!

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If you live in the Birmingham area, get ready to get your fashion fix on this Thursday evening!

Gus Mayer – an upscale women’s clothing and accessories boutique in Birmingham – will be celebrating a ‘Night Out’ with Style Blueprint’s ‘Faces of Birmingham’ on Thursday, April 10 from 4–8 pm.

Style Blueprint is an online magazine/newsletter, which features an influential woman from the Birmingham community in their Monday column, Faces of Birmingham. Featured women range from artists to business owners, fundraisers to community leaders. Each of these women will have the opportunity to raise money this Thursday for their charity of choice! You can help raise money as well by attending the Gus Mayer event, this Thursday, April 10th!  How cool is that!?

The ‘Face’ with the most supporters in attendance will receive a donation from Gus Mayer for their charity of their choice along with a prize package to include ‘Dinner for Two’ at FoodBar.

If you’ve ever been to Gus Mayer, you know that they carry amazing designer items from fashion houses all over the world!  That said, if you are on a budget (aka frugalista/bargainista), but still want to participate in the event and help a charity, you can still save a bit of money that day since every purchase will be TAX FREE!!

So, don’t let your frugal-ways stop you from attending this fun event! The event is free, there is no obligation to buy (unless of course you want to help raise money for a particular charity AND/OR take advantage of the TAX FREE incentive offered ALL DAY Thursday!), AND, all guests who attend will have a chance to register to win for prizes, which include jeans, clutches, cosmetics and gift cards!!  Yay!  Freebies!! 😀

Sounds like fun, right?!  I’ve been invited to cover the event, so come out and join me for a bit that day! Bring out the inner fashionista in you, plan a fun outfit and join me Thursday at ‘Faces of Birmingham’!  If you can’t make it, I’ll be posting updates on Instagram and Twitter, so follow along! 😉

Stay Chic!!

Faces of Birmingham

*The purchase price will be reduced by the tax amount. Does not apply to prior purchases, trunk shows, special orders, gift cards or services. Select shoe brands excluded. Other exclusions may apply. For more information on Gus Mayer, please contact Krista Conlin at 205.937.3777 or visit www.GusMayer.com.