Time for a change...

Hello lovelies,

Long time, no blogging.  I know I haven't done the 30x30 challenge, but I found that to be really difficult with work and what not.  I work with some pretty fashionable people who don't ever seem to repeat outfits.  I'm not ruling out doing this challenge, but I think I'm going to push it back until summer, because this summer will be all about bright colors and maxi dresses! So, I think it will be much easier to actually follow and complete this challenge.

Ok, now onto more important matters.  I recently got my hair cut in January but I set up an appointment for April 11, just so I could touch up the haircut I got originally.  The cut was a little below my shoulder and has a lot of layers.  I loved this cut and the reason I scheduled an appointment so soon after was because I was contemplating going even shorter.

Well, after much thought I've decided to go even shorter than I originally anticipated.  A few months ago I found a picture on pinterest of this simply stunning lob (a long bob).  I've always envied people who look amazing with short hair, but unfortunately I have a round face that can't pull off super short hair.  I can however, pull off shoulder length hair.  Here are some ideas of the hairstyle I'm thinking of, all the pictures were found on pinterest or boxno216.com.  

I really want a shorter do for the summer and think this will be perfect.  My only issue with my hair is that it is only one blah color.  I have never dyed my hair or lightened it in any sort of way.  I think this haircut needs some added dimension.  So I think I'm going to get subtle highlights.  I've never been a fan of streaky highlights. I want my highlights to look as natural as possible and just give me a beachy look.  I'm thinking of doing something along these lines:

Let me know what you think.... I'll post a blog post about it once I get it done!

Please check out http://www.boxno216.com... they do some amazing work with color!!!

Instagrams as of lately....

SO I haven't been updating this lately, but I will post my instagram pics from the last month to update you on what I've been doing on my life.

Some of the great cards I've recieved this year!! I'm a huge fan of getting people cards so when I get some special ones I always save them.

Work outfit of the day.... heart blouse Loft, Cardigan Banana Republic, Jeans Gap, Shoes JCrew, Alex and Ani bracelets and Fossil watch

Banana Republic Cardigan, JCrew Shirt, Gap Jeans, Alex and Ani Bracelets, and Fossil Watch

Sunday Funday riding around on the scooter

Earle hunting his prey

JCrew Sweater, Gap white oxford, gap pants, JCrew flats, Fossil watch, alex and ani bracelets, and Kate Spade phone case

Tinks through the years.  My little precious angel celebrated her 20th birthday on Valentines Day!!!

Banana republic Sweater, Jcrew Sparkle top, Jcrew pencil skirt, michael kors watch, jcrew necklace, Hue tights, and Toms shoes

Frost on the window this morning

Me and my Tinks da Stinks

Read It: A Beautiful Disaster Review

Hello lovelies long time no blog.

I'm not even going to begin to apologize for my lack of posting but I'm back now so let's forgive me for this long overdue post!

So I just literally finished the book "Beautiful Disaster" by Jamie McGuire.  Holy smokes this book was Ahhhhh---Mazing.  I would easily give it 5/5 stars.  I purchased this book on Amazon for my Kindle for 7.59.  Now you may be thinking that's a bit pricey, and normally I'd agree, but this book is worth every penny! It's 404 pages long so you're getting WAY more than you paid for.  I'm going to run through a few of the things I LOVED about the book and some of the things I wasn't crazy about (I'm also writing this post because my friends and I decided the other day that we wanted to start a book club and this is the first book we'll be reading and i needed a place to jot down my notes).

Things I loved:

1. Abby and Travis's relationship.  Although to many they were a disaster, something about them just made you want to root for them.  It didn't matter if you knew that they physically could not be together, you were still somehow pulling for them.  For example, travis is known on campus for being the raining one-night-stand champ, yet once he meets Abby he's willing to completely change his life for her.  Even though at times Travis is a bit possessive and obsessive of Abby, I still somehow loved him and could only hope for a Travis Maddox of my own.
2. The writing: I loved how Jamie McGuire wrote this book.  I could not put this book down.  I'm normally someone who values their sleep and I was seriously considering pulling an all nighter because I wanted/needed to know how this book was going to end.  Even when I went to work today I couldn't stop talking about this book.  For me any book that you can't put down is easily a  5 star kind of book!
3. Conflict. Spoilers................................................................................. Even though you know every book has a point where something has to go wrong, this book had so many twists and turns you weren't sure what was going to be the breaking point for this relationship.  Just when I thought Travis couldn't do anything else to piss off Abby, he does it.  

Things I didn't love:

1. The typos.  The book had a decent amount of typos, which always annoys me.  I'm not perfect, but if you're charging someone to purchase a book, I would think that the publishers would have been able to pick up on some of those typos.  One of these days I'm going to highlight every typo in a book and send if back to the author, free of charge just to show how an average person can pick up on these mistakes.  I wouldn't mind if some of these authors would send me the manuscripts a head of time, just so I could help them!
2. The violence.  Travis is a bad boy who partakes in an underground fighting ring.  Clearly Travis has anger management issues, but he's always fighting someone and always beating their face into a bloody pulp.  Sometimes the violence seems justified, but other times not so much.

Like I mentioned about I loved this book.  I would definitely recommend it and would re-read it.  In April ,Jamie McGuire will be releasing the same story from Travis's perspective which I'm interested in reading called Walking Disaster.  I think the next book will be reading is 10 years later by Hoda Kotb

Until next time......

What I've Been Up To

Hello Lovelies...

Long time no talk. In my defense I've been away for the past week because I've been away for work since Monday.  This was the first trip that I didn't bring my laptop with me so that made blogging virtually impossible.  What also didn't help was the fact that I was working 4am-1pm (if not later) every single day.  Now, you maybe asking "Tori why did you have to work at 4am?" What a great question... I was working that early because I was helping the company I work for concept store with their Spring rollout.  A concept store for those who don't know if often the flagship store where everything is tried out before it goes national.  So in this store our job was to get all of the new product and set it on the floor.  It was a great experience because I got to work one on one with people from the corporate offices.  Although, I did not enjoy being at work at 4am everyday I did enjoy the time there and hope to do it again in the future.

Now, today I went to go see Silver Linings Playbook starring Jennifer Lawrence, Bradley Cooper and Robert De Niro.  I wasn't sure what to expect with this movie but I enjoyed every second of the movie.  It had a dark sense of humor to it but I actually enjoyed that.  The plot of the movie follows Pat (Bradley Cooper) who just recently spent the last couple of months in a mental institution after nearly beating a man to death.  Pat is struggling to come to terms with the fact that his marriage is crumbling and also struggling to come to grips that he is bipolar.  Honestly, I was hesitant because I wasn't sure if Bradley Cooper could pull off the seriousness that this role needed.  I will adamantly admit that he was      fantastic in this role, in fact at times I felt like he had a bipolar disorder.  I found myself rooting for him and would wince when he relapsed or would get in trouble because of his outburst.  One thing that was great about the movie was his optimism.  Throughout the whole movie he maintained the fact that everyone had a silver lining that they were destined to achieve but they needed to think positively to achieve it.  Robert De Niro was amazing in this movie even though he wasn't in it as much as other characters were.  Jennifer Lawrence played her role well and she does deserve some kind of recognition for this role as does Bradley Cooper.

I'm still considering doing the 30x30 challenge I just haven't had the time to really sit down and figure out what pieces I'd want to include.

Until next time!!!

Happy 2013

Hello Lovelies,

I hope everyone is having a great and safe new year.  I'm never one to make resolutions but I feel like now that I'm done with school I feel like I should start making some resolutions.  For me it is important to set realistic goals because I actually want to achieve what I'm setting out to accomplish. Ok, so I'm hoping 2013 is a year of discovery.  I want to discover who I really am! That may sound odd to you but I feel like I'm currently in a space of indecision.  I want to find a job that I'm passionate about and that supports me financially.  I also want to start making the beginning steps of venturing out on my own.

So what I hope to accomplish in 2013 is:

1. Find a full-time job. Whether this is in retail or in communications, I want to find a job that allows me the financial security I'm looking for.  I want benefits, vacation time and a lovely paycheck.  I know it's a tough market out there but there has to be a job for me somewhere.  My mission in 2013 is to find it!!!!!!!!!!
2. Start saving to purchase an apartment.  For me, it's important that I start establishing my independence and I honestly don't think I can fully do that until I move out.  I don't think 2013 will be the year I move out but it will be the year I start making financially sound decisions that will help support this goal.  As noted on this blog, I am a shopaholic.  I planning on only shopping for clothes 2-3 times a month.  I need to really analyze my purchases and not just buy because I feel like it's a good deal.  I have a million great deals in my closet that still have the tags on them, which makes them a bad deal because I haven't worn them.  Goal for 2012: Stop shopping and start saving!!!!!
3. TRY NEW FOODS. I make this a priority every year and every year I try a few new things a year. This year I re-introduced meat into my diet.  I've never been a huge fan of meats such as hamburgers, pork, steak, or ham but I've had 3 hamburgers this year and some turkey sausage that weren't terrible.  Honestly, I could live without meat but I realize if I'm in a pinch a hamburger won't kill me.  For 2013, I'm thinking of trying sushi (vegetable rolls, I don't do fish), and I want to introduce new proteins into my diet.
4. Improve/mend friendships and relationships.  I've realized over the years that sometimes I let the people I care most about slip away.  I want to make it a point to re-connect with lost friends and improve the friendships I have now! When I lost my grandma 2 years ago, I swore that I would tell the people that matter the most to me how much I really value them.  Although, I've done a decent job at that I want to keep doing that.


These are my new year resolutions that I hope to achieve in the coming year.  I also plan on working out more and eating healthy but I don't think those boring resolutions need there own bullet point. I'm also hoping to try new things in terms of my appearance.  I'm thinking of trying the 30 outfits challenge that Kendi Everyday did http://www.kendieveryday.com/p/30x30-remix.html). Click here to see the Pieces Kendi chose.  This is a way for me to stop shopping and to rediscover key pieces in my wardrobe.  It's also a way for me to update this blog more frequently!!!! Wish me luck!

Birthday Wishes and Christmas Dreams...

Hello all,

Long time no blogging but lately I haven't been very creative with my outfits so I haven't been posting.  Also, I was going to post about the horrific school shooting in Newton but I couldn't gather all my thoughts into coherent sentences.

So, today is Christmas Eve, which means tomorrow is my BIRTHDAY!!! Yes, I know, you think having a christmas birthday sucks and I would have to agree with you.  However, in all honestly I have never experienced what having a birthday on another day feels like.  The one thing I hate about having a Christmas birthday is I always get asked "Do you get less presents because your birthday is on Christmas?" Without fail within a few minutes of people knowing when my birthday is this is the first question I get asked.  To which I respond, "If anything I get way more presents then I deserve!"

When I first started this blog I talked about how I needed a new perspective and needed to make a change in my life.  I left my retail job for another retail job in hopes that it would be better.  When I graduated college I had zero desire to ever want to work in retail again but that was until I found my current job.  I work with people who are nice and I actually enjoy being around.  Also, the management team understands that I am interested in learning new aspects of the job and are willing to train me.  Today, after they bought me a delicious cake for my birthday, they gifted me with a lovely surprise.  They offered me an opportunity to expand my responsibilities within the store.  They understand what I want and are willing to invest in my future.  Although it's only been a few months there I've enjoyed every moment I've spent there and am thankful for the opportunity.  My only regret is that I didn't leave my previous job and come to this one sooner.


I want to wish everyone a happy and healthy Christmas or whatever holiday you may celebrate.  May Santa bring you everything you may want and need.

Image from: http://yummyplants.com/vegan-holidays/merry-christmas-welcome-santa-with-delicious-vegan-christmas-cookies/

 Clearly, I should look into becoming a mime.....

A Week in Review... outfits, movies, and shopping

Hello Lovelies,

Sorry again for the lack of posting.  I've been super busy at work since it's Christmas shopping time.  However, the only plus to working a lot is I get to put together some cute outfits.  This past week in NJ was unseasonable warm so I got to wear a few items that I would never imagine wearing in December.

So without further ado, let's get on with the outfits!!!

 The first outfit was a black and white plaid chiffon blouse from Old Navy paired under a black V-neck sweater.  I also chose to pair this outfit with my boyfriend fit pants from Gap and my J.Crew CeCe flats, which I absolutely adore.

Probably my favorite outfit of the week was the one I wore when it was 65 degrees this Tuesday.  I paired my skinny cropped navy polka dot pants, a lavender boyfriend fit shirt, and a navy crew neck sweater all of which came from the Gap.  I also work my favorite gold cece's from J.Crew and my bubble necklace, which has quickly become a staple for me.  

Although I mentioned above that the polka dot outfit was my favorite of the week, this Chevron outfits was a close second.  I love this blouse that I got at Nordstrom during their Anniversary Sale, and this is actually the first time I wore it.  I paired it with a pair of Black Rockstar skinny pants from Old Navy, which I took a chance on because they were only $15 and surprising I liked the fit.  I also decided to wear my pink CeCe's as my pop of color because I felt like this outfit needed something to spice it up.


So onto movies.... I just got back from seeing Playing for Keeps.  Overall, I say the movie was cute and heartfelt but by no means was it amazing.  My favorite part of the whole movie is that Gerald Butler has the sexiest Scottish accent ever.  Jessica Biel, on the other hand was a little annoying in the movie.  I love Jessica Biel and am considering dying my hair like hers but in the movie she has this dark hair that just washes her out.  Again, it was a cute movie but I definitely think it's one of those that you can wait to see on Redbox or OnDemand.

I also attempted to watch Rock of Love but I lost interest about 45 minutes in and don't think i'll ever be able to watch it again.

Until next time......