Utility Vest, Jacket and Get Yo’ Fitness On Week 4

I think I have an olive green utility vest/jacket obsession.  I recently decided I HAD TO HAVE both a utility vest and utility jacket.  Both in olive green.  So, off I went.  I hunted both down and now am the proud owner of both items, with not too big of a dip in my bank account!

The first item I found was the utility jacket.  I first saw it on my friend Sarah of ShopsSRJ.  She wore it so casually and described it as the perfect ‘throw on and go’ jacket that, well, I had to have it!  So, I searched and searched and found the one below on eBay for $8.

Utility jacket, http://chicinacademia.com

Details: Jacket, eBay, similar here and here; Dress, Gap, here; Shoes, Plato’s Closet, similar here; Necklace, Banana Republic, similar here; Bracelets, Forever 21, here; Bag, Louis Vuitton, buy used here.

I love the length, the slouchy sleeves, and the fact that it’s light enough to wear during the summer.  Layers are important during the summer, particularly when frequenting air-conditioned places.  This outfit I wore to a coffee date with girlfriends, followed by a little bit of shopping.  Notice I’m wearing slip-on shoes and clothing that is easily removed in case I need to try on clothes and shoes in a jiffy!  A girl’s gotta think ahead! 😉

Next, I hunted down the utility vest I could not get my mind off.  I found it during a grocery shopping trip to Target, because you know I can’t grocery shop at Target without perusing the clothing/shoes/accessories sections of the stores, haha.  So there is was, in its $30 glory.  They happened to have a $10 off coupon available that day, and I also used my Target Red Card, so in all, I saved $11.50.  Not too shabby!

Utility vest, http://chicinacademia.com

Utility vest, http://chicinacademia.com

Details: Dress, old from Target, similar here and here; Vest, Target, here; Necklace, Walmart, similar here and here; Shoes, Michael Kors via TJ Maxx, similar here and here; Bag, TJ Maxx, similar here and here; Belt, Altuzarra for Target, similar here and here.

I wore this outfit to the office and my office mates seemed to like it as much as I did!  I’ve pinned some other combinations on Pinterest in case you’re interested in buying and styling it other ways.  Find me on Pinterest here.

Finally, don’t forget to follow my workout updates for the Get Yo’ Fitness On 6-week challenge here on the blog!  Week 4’s workouts are as follows:

Summer Program_W4D1 Exercises

Summer Program_W4D1 Summary

Summer Program_W4D2 Exercises

Summer Program_W4D2 Summary

Summer Program_W4D3 Exercises

Summer Program_W4D3 Summary

If you’re just now learning about this challenge, then look up workouts in my search bar to the right above!  All 4 weeks will pop up in your search.

Hope everyone has a fantastic week!  If you are at all inspired by these outfits, follow along on Instagram for daily outfit posts, here.  Don’t forget to leave comments, suggestions, tips, etc below in the comments section.  I look forward to hearing from you all!

Until next time!  Stay ‘Chic’!

Getting old is for…ME??

Ugh.  I found grey hair on my head.  It used to just be the one or two.  I knew where they were.  I denied their existence and continued with my youthful life until one day about a month or two ago, I found them.  No longer the 1-2 weeds.  No.  This time, there was a FOREST.  A gaggle of them.  Hiding in the depths of my mane.

SATC Grey Hair Scene

Photo: Pinterest

So, I did what any other woman in my situation would do.  I cried.  No, really, I didn’t.  But it did make me feel quite sad.  For someone who has been confused with a 15-year old most of her life due to less than average stature, having grey hair pretty much eliminates any doubt about my age.  I’m old!  Cue sobs.  Loud ones.

Thankfully, my forest of greys is rooted on the right side of my head.  So for now, I just part my hair to the other side! 🙂  Always best to see the glass half full, right??  But, I know that won’t hold them off forever; them being the greys.  In fact, even when I try to style my hair in my default hairstyle – aka topknot/bun – the greys are evident.  So, I have found some temporary solutions that I thought some of you might find useful should you be in the same predicament I find myself in.  This is what I like to call ‘Operation Hide Greys’:

1) Mascara – Not just for tinting lashes.  This magic wand also covers greys!!  Yes!  In fact, when traveling last fall, I was caught off guard and noticed the patch of greys.  So I took the mascara brush and lightly brushed over the area that contained the grey hairs.  Voila!  Greys were masked!  Temporarily of course, but it gave me some peace of mind.  I only use Diorshow Blackout, pictured below, which on my hair, worked wonderfully.  If you have blonde hair, using mascara might not be the best solution.  So, read option 2 below.

diorshow

Photo:  Nordstrom.com

2) Root concealer – If mascara is not a great option for you, perhaps root concealer is!  Mascara is great, but I want to save it for my lashes and not waste it on my hair.  So, I looked for alternate solutions.  This time, I took to Sephora and found this Rita Hazzan Root Concealer spray.

Rita Hazan Root Spray // http://chicinacademia.comSephora Haul, http://chicinacademia.com

Photos: First (Sephora.com) and second (Chic in Academia)

As you can see, I also picked up some other goodies that day.  Let me know if you want my review on any of the other products pictured above.  I’ll plan a separate post for that if there is enough interest!  Anyway, the root concealing spray comes in a variety of shades, but I settled on the ‘Dark Brown/Black’ spray.  For me, it proved to be a perfect match!  The other shades include Light Brown, Red, Dark Blonde, and Blonde.

Rita Hazan Root Spray Shades // http://chicinacademia.comI realize that it’s probably not long before I’ll have to start dying my hair – if I choose to dye it at all – but for now, I’ll stick to these temporary fixes.  I’d love to hear about what tactics you use to hide your greys.  Please share them with me!!  Nobody seems to talk about this stuff, so someone like me is faced with fear and shock and denial and incompetence!  Help a sister out for goodness sake!   Share your secrets!!  Seriously though, in light of the fact that I am now a grey-concealing ninja, I also contemplated putting together a video to show you how I use these products.  Leave me a comment below if you think you might be interested in that at all.

Otherwise, I continue to enjoy keeping up with you on Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest!  Finally, if you happen to follow me on Pinterest, you know that I’m hosting a J Crew giveaway along with some other awesome bloggers.  Check it out!  You might just get lucky and win the pot!!

Until next time!  Stay chic!

Blogger Giveaway Loop

What Was In My Calypso St. Barth Pink Bag?!

Collage- sweaters

This week, I linked up with two other bloggers (see above) to show you how we style our favorite cozy sweaters. At the end of the post, you can read more about this link-up and how YOU can link-up as well to show us how you style your own favorite cozy sweater!

Previously, I mentioned that I had a Pink Bag moment at Calypso St. Barth.  I have since had a second Pink Bag Moment and so I’m finally sharing with you what I got during both those trips!!  My new favorite cozy sweater(s)!!  Calypso St. Barth is known for their amazing statement pieces, but they also carry super soft cashmere sweaters, which is what I ended up falling in love with.  One sweater in particular stole my heart.  The Uma Cashmere Cocoon Cardigan.  It is amazing.  Like wearing a cloud.  Walking around enveloped in a fluffy warmth.  Simply the best.

So, I got one in grey and one in black!  That’s how much I loved them.  Check out how they work during the day for a ‘playdate/mommy/time-with-the-kids’ outfit and later for ‘date-night/girl’s-night-out/evening’ outfit below.  By the way, my little 5-year old took my ‘Day’ photos and one or two of the ‘Night’ photos…I’m so proud of my little man.  He did quite a decent job!!  See for yourselves!  Many thanks to my hubby for taking most of the ‘Night’ look pics as well. xoxo

Casual Weekend ‘Day’ Look

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Photos:  My 5-year old

Girl’s Night Out/Date ‘Night’ Look

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Photos:  My 5-year old and my hubby

I promise you can’t go wrong with these sweaters.  They are simply the best.  Our local store sold out of many colors, but some are still available online!  Feel free to call Brittany Jones at the Summit in Birmingham to order yours, 205.262.2996.  She can ship it anywhere in the country!

Now for details on the link-up! Read the guidelines below to check out what sweaters my friends love, and link up your own fall sweater look!  I’m especially interested to hear about/see what Calypso St. Barth sweaters you love!

Calypso St. Barth is currently hosting a sweater trade-in promo to help you save some money on your sweater purchase.  Take a gently used sweater for donation to Clothes4Souls to receive 25% off * your full-price purchase.  Online, donate $5 or more in your shopping cart to receive 25% off * your full-price purchase.  Calypso will be donating all sweaters to Clothes 4 Souls as part of the #CalypsoCares promotion (ends Sunday, November 16, 2014).  Help to make a difference with Calypso St. Barth!

Stop by your nearest Calypso St. Barth store to try one one and/or purchase one, take a picture in your favorite sweater, and then link your look using the link below.

Link-up Guidelines:

  1. We kindly ask that you follow the two hosts: Elle from Living in Color Style on Bloglovin‘, Jacqueline from Stylin’ In St. Louis via Bloglovin’ and the guest host, Bertha of Chic in Academia via email (see below).
  2. Use the button provided on Elle or Jacqueline’s side bar or link back to the link-up on your blog.  To share on Chic in Academia, leave a link to the picture or blog post in the comments below.  I will add them to this blog post as you comment. 🙂
  3. Enjoy reading other blogs and make new blogger friends!