GFS Series: She's A Friend in My Head

Do you know someone that just gets it right every time? You see them and literally want to skin them alive because you want every single piece of clothing they are wearing? (Maybe that's just me)

Blair from Atlantic-Pacific is that chick. Her style is inspiring to say the least. You know what I love about her? It's that she doesn't look like  she is trying too hard. It all looks natural. Enjoy the latest in the GFS series "She's A Friend In My Head." She is worth it. And her style is to be worshipped. Period. The End. Amen.

If you are new to GFS...please know that I am nosey a person. I want to know the things you REALLY want to know. You've been warned:)

P.S...note her use of accessories...It is NOT a game.

1. How would your friends describe your style?

I would say my outfits vary on my mood, but I always try to have a touch of femininity and sophistication in every look!

2. Your friend wants to borrow your favorite dress. But you KNOW she can't fit it. She's bigger than you? What do you do?

I let her borrow it. A dress is far easier to replace than a friendship. Plus I have ruined plenty of my best friend’s belongings and so they deserve to ruin a few of mine!

3. You have a coworker who appreciates your style but their personal fashion choices are unfortunate. They keep announcing when they’ve just bought something new because they want you to acknowledge their efforts…what do you do? Do you give them an empty compliment? Ignore them? Or finally scream “I hate your clothes the most!”

I think fashion is all about expressing yourself and taking a risk- so I appreciate anyone who embraces fashion and expresses their point of view, even if it is not my favorite. I am sure there are plenty of people who don’t appreciate my style- and to be honest I would rather not hear about it, so I would pay that same respect anyone else.

4. Share a style secret that never fails you.

Be yourself. I, like many others, can get caught up in a trend or look that is totally not me. That is when I fail. In order to have a true and unique sense of style you have to stick to what makes your style yours, and try not to dabble in every new trend. My other secret would be accessorize every look .

5. What style trend do you wish would go away forever? (For me, it would be distressed leggings complete with strategic holes up the thighs)

I personally never got into clogs. I would say while it looks really adorable on many bloggers, I would not be sad to never see them again!

6. Your bf/hubby calls you and says you have ten minutes to get dressed for a surprise date. All he says is to wear heels. What do you wear?

Something girly! I would most likely put on a DVF or Tibi dress with some heels that pop and a chunky necklace. I love prints and I have a number of printed, mod shaped dresses I love. They are easy to throw on, flattering and perfect for a date.

7. You see an attractive man in the car next to you in a store parking lot. He gets out of the car and notices that he is wearing black socks with SANDALS. Do you snicker to yourself or laugh out loud?

Well my dad rocks that look all the time, so I would have to say that I wouldn’t laugh out loud, but it would for sure put a smile on my face. Men can be so lost sometimes…I love this question!

8. What style/fashion item would you never leave home without wearing? (I put on my earrings before I even get out of bed)

I always wear a watch- which pulls double duty. It is both fashionable as well as useful. I have a lot of meetings during the day and feel completely naked if I don’t wear one! I also have a couple staple pieces of jewelry I throw on, but I do tend to rotate these.

9. Have you always been "style confident?" Do you even consider yourself "style confident?"

I have always had ‘my own sense of style’and I have always tended to take fashion risks…which has resulted in the good, the bad and the ugly. I have made a lot of mistakes along the way, but that is partially what is about. If I didn’t take risks to see what worked and what didn’t I would not be on the path I am on now to find my own sense of style!

10. There is a fire. You have two minutes to grab three favorite items out of your closet. What do you grab?

My black Chanel bag, My YSL bag and my Zara Leopard Jacket. What can I say? I love my purses!

Bonus question: This should prove that I worship your blog. How do you achieve that perfect looking bun as a hairstyle? My friend and I have stared at the pics and we are convinced that you comb the hair forward instead of backward. Are we right?

You are too funny! I put my hair into a very tight pony tail, tease the pony tail and then fold it backwards and pin it. It essentially is not actually a true bun. I have thought about putting together a you tube video, but to be honest I am extremely technology challenged and would not have the slightest idea of where to even begin!

(All photos courtesy of Atlantic-Pacific)

It's working for your Blair! Thank you so much. I'm not sure how you have mastered the art of rocking pearls and looking chic. I look like Harriet Tubman when I do it. Not that Harriet Tubman wore pearls ...or even owned any...awww forget it! You do it well!

Visit Blair and tell her GFS sent you!

GFS Series: She's A Friend In My Head

I haven't done a GFS interview in a while. I think I got bored....but along came ZARNA! ZARNA! ZARNA!

Zarna single handedly revived the need for another "She's a Friend In My Head" interview. Zarna's Runway is giving me what I need in the best way! The shoes...the hair...the edge.  I love it all!

She was brave kind enough to answer a few questions for me and I am so glad to share her style with you. For the newcomers of GFS, if you haven't figure it out...I'm a little "left" in my thinking so take no offense to my questions. I think some people take style/fashion/blogs too seriously and I am so not that person.

Enjoy and visit Zarna's Runway for more inspiration!

1. How would your friends describe your style?

My friends would say my style is crazy and over-the-top - they always laugh at me because I wear six-inch heels to the grocery store or a tutu to the park. I like to be different and have fun with fashion!

2. Your friend wants to borrow your favorite dress. But you KNOW she can't fit it. She's bigger than you? What do you do?

Just because it looks like a dress doesn't mean she can't wear it as a tunic with her favorite pair of jeans! If that doesn't fit I'd just offer her something else from my closet - no big deal :)

3. If you like something on a stranger...let's say her shoes or blouse....Do you go to her and ask where she got it from? Or do you just roll your eyes at them?

I always ask people where they get their clothes from! I love learning about different boutiques/websites and it's also a good way to strike up a conversation with a fabulously dressed person!

4. I obviously covet your style. I went into your archives and noticed that you once rocked long hair. Do you think your new haircut changed your "style game" so to speak?

 Short hair makes everything look slightly edgier (in my opinion) - and it also saves soooooo much time in the morning. In regards to my "style game", I think it's definitely made me more bold in my dressing and I also make a point to incorporate feminine pieces to my outfits.

5. What style trend do you absolutely REFUSE to support? (For me, it would be any Juicy Couture item with words spelled across my bottom. Never!)

I totally agree with you! The style trend I hate most - Juicy Couture tracksuits with Uggs. I think it's the worst look ever! Why not just wear a pair of trousers, a tee, and some oxfords? It's just as comfortable!

6. Your friend calls and begs you to come spy on her "blind date"...and by spy, I mean take a camera phone pic of the guy and write down his license plate number. You have ten minutes to throw on something...what do you wear?

Dark denim skinny jeans, a white tee, leather jacket, and a bold shoe. It's my go-to outfit!

7. Share one of your style secrets.

 Just because a piece is supposed to be worn a certain way doesn't mean you have to wear it that way! For example if a V-neck shirt is too low, I wear it backwards and let there be a plunging back and a conservative front. Also, if a skirt is too long why not make it a tube dress? It's all about having fun and being creative with your clothing!

8. You have a dear friend whose style clearly sucks. You die every single time you and the friend go out together because of her fashion/style choices. How do you handle that situation? Do you tell her? Do you offer advice or do you ride it out and just limit your hang out spots to dark alleys and movies?

I usually get ready with my friends at my house, so I'd just offer her some tips - but only if she was interested!!

9. Have you always been "style confident?" Do you even consider yourself "style confident?"

I'm proud to say I'm "style confident" - the only thing that makes a fabulous outfit look lackluster is if you don't have the confidence to pull it off! I would say I've always been "style confident", even when I was younger and wore strange things.

10. There is a fire. You have two minutes to grab three favorite items out of your closet. What do you grab?
My vintage raybans (they were my grandfathers), my grandmother's ring, and my favorite pair of heels :)

Bonus question:
 How likely will it be for you to send me those Jessica Simpson "Gusla" wedges to me? As a "Hi, I don't know you but I feel sorry that you don't own these shoes and can't find these shoes or even knew they even existed before reading my blog" kind of gift? It doesn't matter what size shoe you wear? I can fit them:)

Hahaha I wish I had an extra pair! I totally would!

(all photos courtesy of Zarna's Runway)

Zarna...you're selfish!
But I would be too. I wouldn't part with those babies either!

Thank you for being the first GFS interview of 2011!

Ultimate Style Crush

I was cruising my favorite blogs and stopped in my tracks and dropped my jaws (and I do have big jaws too) at this look.

YES YES YES...YES!!!!!!!!!!

(photos from B.Jones Style)

P.S....Her shirt, jacket, and pants were all thrifted:)

Let me tell THEE all of thy places I shall go if I had rocked this outfit...

1. To work so all of the hater teachers can talk about me behind my back and then run home to their closets to try to pull the look off...then get sad because they can't and come back to work and spread rumors that I'm a man...well because they are haters:)

2.  To stand in line at Starbucks to buy coffee...even though I don't drink coffee but I would go because I would want the young girls and guys standing in line to wonder who I am:)

3. To a parent/teacher conference for one of my students so the parent can be so distracted by the patterns yet flyness that is moi'.

4. To church...yes church...just so I can make the deacons of the church jealous of my rocking plaid pants and stripes better than them.

5. To the UPS store where my new blackberry is waiting after I called Sprint and screamed (politely) in the phone that their Blackberry with the "pearl" button SUCKS and demanded that I deserved the NEW Blackberry free of charge (he he he...true story)

(Go to B.Jones Style)

Oh you think it's a fluke? Here she is again! I am singing lullabies and hymns just at the inspiration these looks give me!

GFS Series: She's A Friend in My Head

Since I've been slacking in the outfit post department, I thought it was time to break out the big guns in my next edition of "She's A Friend in My Head." Chances are Love, Maegan is already on your blogroll and you already heart her style. She's the Cali girl who is the queen of DIY's and just might have one the baddest shoe games in blogland. That's all fine and good but let me tell  you why I really "love" Maegan. She did a post a few months back on how she makes her bacon...she bakes it in the oven...just like me! I thought only thick girls from the South did that. That's when I officially forged a friendship in my head.

Before I even knew what blog meant, I stumbled upon hers a few years ago and have been  dedicated every since. Love, Maegan is one of my top five fave blogs of all time and I always look forward to a new post.  She doesn't know this but we became "best friends" in my head when an anonymous commenter left a hater message on one of her posts and she specifically called them out and told them where to go. You gotta love a bacon loving, shoe game high priestess who calls a sucka out!

She was gracious enough to partake in my little series of questions and I couldn't be happier. If you follow my blog,  you know I'm gonna ask what you really want to know and not what you've already heard! Enjoy!

1. How would your friends describe your style?

Um ....I'm not sure really. Maybe I should call one and ask.

2. The lady behind you in a check out line keeps making hissing noises at you because you have to wait for a price check. You notice she has lipstick on her teeth. What do you do?

I'd have no choice but to tell her ...well, I guess if she was ridiculously annoying, I'd just let her go on about her day unknowingly.

3. What makes you give a person the “side eye” in terms of style pet peeves?

When women wear clothes that are sized too small. It's not about the size, it's about the fit.

4. You share a lot of DIY’s on designer trends. Have you ever been contacted by an employee of a design house who got fired because you managed to do it yourself for a lot less?

LOL ...no

5. What is a trend that you wish would go away?

Socks with clogs ....socks with certain shoes, even heels work ...but something about the socks with clogs and especially clog sandals just makes me say "Why?" when I look at it.

6. Your friend calls you and begs you to meet her at a restaurant to secretly check out her blind date. What do you put on?

Ooh, good question. Most likely my favorite Paige Premium jeans or my J Brand Houlihan's, a white t-shirt out of my husband's closet, heels {of course} and a few easy chain necklaces. Oh and sunglasses. I never leave the house without them.

7. Share a style secret.

Splurge on items that are timeless, classic and therefore, always in style. Save up for a Burberry trench, a Louis Vuitton Speedy, etc. {or ask everyone to pitch in for one as a holiday gift}. Also, instead of buying inexpensive jewelry and accessories, check the jewelry counters at thrift shops. Older costume jewelry is made better than the new stuff and often looks more luxurious because of it ...and you'll likely be the only one with it!

8. You have a friend (not the same friend on the blind date), who is notorious for not returning borrowed clothes. She calls you at the last minute to ask for your favorite pair of heels…for a funeral. What do you do?

I have actually had this happen in a way ...she returned my stuff but it always came back with a stain or a rip or a ding in the shoes and finally, the next time she asked I had to be blunt and say "I'm sorry but those are my favorites and last time you borrowed my shoes you gave them back to me all beaten up ...but how about these?" {offering another pair}. By that time, she felt bad and didn't even want the alternate.

9. You have only $5 in your hand. Do you save it, buy a fashion magazine or $5 worth of Peach Rings?

Bahahaha! I'd buy BOTH! Because Peach Rings are 2/for a $1

10. Painful but pretty heels or comfy Crocs?

You know the answer. I don't even own Crocs.

Bonus Question from my friend: Do you work out? Because you rock bikinis and we never read about a gym membership!

I don't go to the gym. I hate it. I try to stay active though ...walking, riding bikes with the husband, stretching at night. I'm blessed with a very muscular build that I hated as a teen but have come to appreciate in my old age. However, I'm at the point now that I have to really start a regular/daily activity because everything is beginning to droop and I can see more cellulite every time the sun hits my legs ...and I don't like it one bit ;)

(All photos from Love, Maegan)

Thank you Maegan for taking the time out to do this and *side eye" at no working out. SIDE EYE MAEGAN!

The next blogger to be featured is this person but she doesn't know it yet:)

GFS Series: She's A Friend In My Head

Don't act like you don't do it? You go to your favorite blogger's site everyday to see if there is a new post or if you have missed an update. You get to know them and start hating them for either stealing your style from your head or being able to pull off something you never could. You get to the point where you go out shopping and think _______ of ________ 's blog would so wear this!

Today I want to share with you Kyla from Blue Collar Catwalk. You will love her. She is the girl next door but with better legs than most. She wears stuff that you wouldn't think to put together but when she does, you slap yourself for not doing it first.  Somehow, she became a friend in my head and then via email. We both agreed that meeting is a necessity one day!  So, keep reading so she can become a friend in your head too:)  You know by now that I'm a little different, so I ask the questions that you really want to ask. I'm kinda like Wendy Williams in that way...except I'm shorter and a little quiter:)

1. What do you like most about your own style? (Don’t be modest!)

I like that it feels like me. The older I get, the fewer concessions I make for my style. That means it's comfy, fits properly and I feel good wearing it. I especially love the days when my outfit feels like a direct expression of what's going on in my mind. Seamless days like those can be few and far between, so I cherish them when they come around. Ultimately though, it's my style, less and less influence by of-the-moment trends and more and more influenced by me.

2. Fill in the blank: A woman of style should always hold her head high.

3. Name a current trend you wish would go away?

I don't really wish anything away, I just choose not to subscribe to everything out there. One thing I could do without is the acid wash denim trying to make a comeback. Been there. Done that.

4. What makes you give a person the "side eye" in terms of style pet peeves?

Uggs + leggings + over-sized sweatshirts. I'd like to think I'm pretty open to others' style philosophies, as I'd like people to be open to mine, but come on, at least try!

5. What style rule do you constantly break?

I think most style rules that I break have to do with my height more than anything else. Like skinny jeans on a short, curvy girl or not wearing super high heels with long pants. Rules are meant to be broken though. If I look at an outfit in the mirror and it flows together and just feels right, then I'm going to wear it. Rules be damned.

6. Name a character from a movie that you would love to play based on the wardrobe alone. (You can substititue a movie for a reality show...no judgement:)

Seriously, give me a hard one. Carrie Bradshaw, no if's, and's or but's about it. SATC can probably be credited for my voracious style appetite.

7. What's the best song to play while getting dressed to go out with the girls or a date?

Oh, dear. I don't usually listen to music while I'm getting dressed. Lame, I know, but our stereo is downstairs. I do, however, tend to rock out in the car on the way there. For a long time, Justin Timberlake was our (and my our, I mean my husband's) choice of music on the way to our favorite bar.

8. You have only five dollars in your hand. Do you save it? Buy a fashion magazine? Buy a specialized coffee?

Ooh, that's a toughie. How about this: I buy a special coffee, save the the change and then go to the library and read their fashion magazines!

9. Painful but pretty heels or comfy Crocs?

Okay, that's just not fair. I've made a pretty big deal about not being able to wear heels anymore. I've even sold all of mine. However, no way, no how is anyone getting a pair of Crocs on me! Is barefoot an option?

Yes, Kyla, whenever Crocs are involved...barefeet are acceptable. I just wanted to see how far you would take that whole "no heels" thing.  Oh, one thing I forgot to mention...KYLA does NOT believe in paying full price for clothes. My GIRL! Thank you so much Kyla! DIMPLE GIRL POWER!!

The next GFS Series: She's a Friend in My Head...I have a treat:)



P.S...this is what I wore to say hi to the Lord on Sunday...I'm too lazy to do a separate post:)