Patterned Posies: forever 21

Showing posts with label forever 21. Show all posts

keep it simple

Sometimes, ya just gotta throw on jeans and a white shirt. It's a classic...and after all, a classic never dies, right? Besides, I think the pleated shirt adds an extra element of sass (or class), and sometimes simple combinations like this can be a great transitioning outfit for Fall.

Everyone keeps talking about how Summer is ending, and I'd like to pretend that I can relate, but let's be honest-in Phoenix, it's going to be Summer until Nov/Dec. In other words....it's hot as hell, always. So forgive me for the perpetual Summer outfits that I'll probably be bombarding you with once you all start piling on the sweaters and coats; it's simultaneously a blessing and a curse. (Just to clarify-I'm not exactly wishing cold weather on myself, but I would like to have a reason to wear this freaking coat I've been dying for ever since I saw it in this post. Ughhhhh. #dead)

Are you all looking forward to Fall? Or wishing that Summer was longer?

xo, grace - @thegracemattei

top/F21 (similar), jeans/UO, shoes/UO (similar here & here), bag/Botkier via Nordstrom (similar)

The Perfect Combination

Lately I've been struggling at finding things that I really love, or feel like are "my style" without question...but when I saw this romper at Marshalls it just jumped right off the rack at me. Don't you love when that happens? It makes the decision easy; I love this, it's coming home with me right now! No muss, no fuss. Besides, it's like the trifecta of perfection: comfortable, flattering, and cheap! And it's floral. Can't beat it, right?

Bonus, I really love the outfit with this background too! Phoenix isn't exactly as pretty and picturesque as Palm Beach (where we used to live), so sometimes we really have to get creative in where we shoot. However, when we drove past this spot, it jumped right out at me-just like the romper! A match made in heaven. I think it might become a regular shooting spot; what do you think?

Do any of you have a favorite place to take your blog pics at?

xo, grace

romper/Marshalls (similar), blazer/Nordstrom (similar), sandals/Sam Edelman, necklace/F21 (similar)

Linking up here, here, and here this week!

Fat Days (And Shopping Secrets)

When Schmoo and I took these pictures, I was having a total fat day. You know the ones I'm talking about...where you just feel like an amorphous blob and nothing fits you comfortably except your trusty ol' sweats. So what did I grab to wear? Well, the obvious choice: a loose, boxy dress that wouldn't cling to my body at all! I'm really loving loose casual Summer dresses lately...probably because it's currently so hot in Phoenix that you never want anything touching you, so they're basically the next best alternative to being naked all the time! Which could potentially be really awk.

In other news, the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale ended today. It seems like every blog in the world has been talking about what their wish list is and all the great deals there are...but you know what? I have a secret. The deals really weren't that great at all. Say what?

So I'm sure you've all heard of Nordstrom Rack, right? Well here in Phoenix, there is a tier of Nordstrom that comes AFTER Nordstrom Rack...and it's called Last Chance. Last Chance is basically a crazy ass ratchet mess that is always as busy as Black Friday, but for good reason-you can get the Sam Edelman shoes that I'm wearing for 19 dollars. Oh, and brand new Chloe boots for 100 bucks (true story). Dolce Vitas for 19 bucks. Cole Haans for 50. And the list goes on and on. This place is crazy. I'm telling you...it's like thrifting on CRACK (complete with crazy people that probably actually ARE on crack). Forget the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale. Forget Nordstrom Rack, even. If you ever find yourself in Phoenix, AZ, go to Last Chance. Hell, I will go with you, and personally convert you to a crazy bargain shopper...because it's just that good. In case you still don't believe me, I got 4 sweaters this past week for 2.50 each. That's cheaper than a Starbucks coffee! Guys, I'm obsessed.

Anyway, I digress. Basically, don't shop the Nordstrom anniversary sale...you will probably save more money buying a plane ticket to Phoenix and shopping at Last Chance. Ha! So everybody come visit Phoenix and I'll take you to Last Chance with me. Deal?

So what about all you guys; what's the best deal you've ever gotten?!

Cheers,

Grace

dress/F21(similar), hat/Target(similar), necklace/F21(similar), shoes/Sam Edelman via Nordstrom (similar)

Friday Faves: Coachella Edition

1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10

Happy Friday, friends! Since so many of you are jetting off to Coachella this weekend, I figured that I would make a few inspired posts since I'm unfortunately unable to be there myself (even though I'm only a mere 3 hours away!!).

Obviously I had to share some of my Coachella inspired outfit faves...those moccasins are seriously to die for. If I was going I would hope that I would be donning at least a couple of the items on my list...but then again who needs excuses like music festivals to buy things? Certainly not me. ;)

I also made a little Coachella inspired playlist to share with you all on ~~Spotify~~ Grooveshark (had a few compaints that the Spotify playlist wasn't working! :/ )...after all, for those of you who are driving, good road trip music will set the tone for the whole weekend! I picked some of my favorites from some artists who are actually in the lineup, and then threw in a few goodies of my own. ;) I'll probably be adding some more music to it over the next couple weeks of the festival, so if you want to follow along just search "Grace Mattei" on Spotify and follow my Coachella playlist! {UPDATE: Even though the playlist now embedded on this page is hosted by Grooveshark, you should still be able to follow my playlist on Spotify. Happy listening!}

Hope you all had a fantastic week...are there any you out there who are actually going to Coachella? If so, who are you most excited to see? Any essential outfit pieces that you picked up before you headed out? I'd love to hear...maybe next year I'll be there with you all!

xoxo,

grace

Girly Twirly

Hi friends! Last week, ModCloth held a contest for who could submit the best/most creative picture of them caught in a twirl. The rules were pretty straightforward, and you didn't even have to be wearing anything from ModCloth in order to enter!

Unfortunately, I wasn't one of the two winners (shucks, could've used that sweeeeet gift card), but my consolation prize is that it gave Daniel and I an interesting photography challenge and also provided me with some fun pictures to share with you all! Here are some of my favorites that we captured. :)

^Coussie looks absolutely terrified in this picture..it makes me laugh every time! Poor thing.^

So the reason that I chose this as the backdrop for my twirling pictures is because one of the rules was to try to take your pictures either a.) near a local landmark or b.) at a favorite hangout to let them know where you are in the world. Since Phoenix doesn't exactly have any well known local landmarks (at least not that I know of, and I wasn't about to drive 4 hours to the Grand Canyon), I decided that the next best thing would be their amazing art scene. Daniel and I live downtown, and while it isn't the best city I've lived in, they certainly rank as far as incredible murals go! Almost every building has one.

These bottom four pictures ended up being my absolute faves because they were completely candid. I actually ended up using one of them for my entry in the contest, because I thought they were so hilarious! Clearly I was having so much fun that Coussie decided he wanted to get in on it too. That's right...I was officially photobombed by my dog. What a little attention hog! Just look at that smirk...he's clearly pleased with himself.

So there you have it! Some of my nerdy twirling pictures...I'm seriously geeking out over the last four. I'm genuinely so entertained by them (I hope you are too...)!

Did anyone else enter this fun contest? Or did you have any favorites that you saw (you can look up #modtwirl on Instagram and see the entries)? I'd love to hear! Oh, and if you have any pet photobombing stories, I want to hear those too...