Yes, I added yet another black dress to my collection. I have honestly lost count on how many I own, but the mesh detail on this dress was too unique to pass up. The slip in this black mesh dress has the perfect amount of stretch to wear comfortably all day, and the mesh overlay makes the dress a little more conservative while still fun. It fits true to size (wearing a small) and is so easy to dress up or down. It can be styled with mules and a moto jacket for a more casual look, or dressed up with pearls and heels like I did above. These strappy black heels are a few years old, but I have linked some similar styles below. To complete my look, I added my favorite Rebecca Minkoff clutch which comes in multiple colors and patterns, and a few strands of pearls. I am a total sucker for an all black outfit paired with pearls, especially when it can just as easily be dressed down. Shop this look and a few similar styles below! xoxo
I get a lot of questions about balancing a full time job, running a blog, and having any sort of social life. To be honest it is a daily struggle to juggle everything! While it might look as easy as posting an Instagram between meetings, it is extremely difficult to have a full time job and keep up with A Pearl Kind of Girl (hints, why I do not post some weeks). The pictures above make it look like I was just casually posing by a local urban wall, but here is a little glimpse into what that day was actually like.
I started my Tuesday at 5:30AM preparing for a busy day at work including quick deadlines and meetings with clients. My day was so full, I ended up skipping lunch, which is something I never do (trust me, I get hangry). After work, I was invited bydallasites101to attend a happy hour at HG Sply Co. for bloggers and creatives in the Dallas area. I was already a little frazzled with my day and hate going to events alone, so I pulled my friend Mel of My Everyday Lifestyle along. After sitting in rush hour traffic for an hour, we made it to HG Sply Co. with 15 minutes to spare. Naturally, we spent those 15 minutes in the alley behind HG Sply Co. shooting our outfits for the night (white tee and jeans above). I was so exhausted from the day I think I actually spent more time with a bowl of guacamole than networking with fellow creative minds. When I finally made it home, nothing sounded better than putting on my PJs and crawling under the covers. I obviously have not perfected the balance between work and my blog since it took me a whole week to edit and write this post, but it’s a work in progress.
It is so difficult to dress for busy days like my day described above, especially when you need to go from client meetings to happy hour. This blonde tee was a bit of an impulse purchase, but I couldn’t resist how easy and simple it looked with a pair of jeans. This tee fits a little loose (wearing a small) and runs longer. It is easy to style with leggings, sneakers, and a jacket, but on this particularly busy day, I chose to tuck it in to my high waisted Paige jeans. I recently went on an exhausting search for a pair of jeans that actually fit me well. After trying on every brand, cut, wash and style jean that Nordstrom carries, I was excited to find these Paige high waisted skinny ankle jeans. They fit true to size (wearing a 24) and have the perfect amount of stretch to them. I am comfortable wearing them to work all day without feeling like they are too stretched out by the end of the day. I added my favorite (and extremely comfortable) Marc Fisher heels to complete my work to dinner look. I have raved about these heels before, but they are seriously the best for a whole day on your feet and come in 26 colors and patterns. Shop this look and my favorite blonde tee (and brunette) below! xoxo
A few weeks ago I made one of my “quick lunch break trips” to Zara. These trips are never as quick as I plan, but this trip took especially long when I saw that half the store was covered in pearls. Everything I tried on had pearls on it. I’m talking tee shirts, dresses, jackets, sweaters, jeans, skirts, shoes, you name it!
One of my favorite things that I walked out with was this classic white pearl tee. A basic white tee is so easy to style and the pearls add just the right amount of excitement. This tee fits true to size (wearing a small), and is softer than most tees I have purchased from Zara. I have put it through the wash a few times, since it is white, and the pearls still look good as new. However, I would try to spot clean as much as possible. I paired the pearl tee with a pair of light wash, mid-rise jeans from J.Crew (wearing size 25 regular) and nude Marc Fisher heels. I love these Marc Fisher heels so much I am debating ordering them in all 26 colors. They fit true to size (wearing an 8), are comfortable enough to wear all day without blisters, and look great dressed up or down. Shop this look and a few more pearl tees below! xoxo
I always find myself drawn to dark colored clothes, and find it an accomplish to put together a head-to-toe black outfit. I rarely buy colorful clothes, and when I do, they tend to be muted tones and not very bright. My coworkers tend to wear similarly colored clothes as me (normalizing my obsession!), but many people associate my lack of color with grieving, depression, mystery and goth. I might be in the minority, but to me black represents just the opposite. When I see a well-made black dress or skinny black jeans, I think of power, elegance, and a chic sophistication that only Audrey Hepburn could convey.The Huffington Postactually found that a slimming black dress can boost a woman’s mood and increase her confidence. Personally, I find that I am most confident in a simple head-to-toe black outfit.
TheseRebecca Minkoff heels are perfect for summer and early fall. They fit true to size (wearing an 8), are comfortable enough to wear all day, and are best styled with a shorter dresses or skinny jeans. I paired them with a black mini dress that I found at Zara about a year ago. The dress I am wearing is out of stock, but I have linked a few similar options below. This dress (and the similar one) is great because it has built in shorts just like the skorts I use to wear in elementary school plus pockets. To complete my look, I added my favoriteblack Rebecca Minkoff clutch, lightweightGorjana earrings, and my go-toKaren Walker sunnies. Shop this look and similar black dresses below! xoxo
When I was little, I used to pick out my dresses based on the “twirl test”. I would stand in the middle of my room, and spin as fast as I could, to see how much wind my dress would catch. Every now and then I will try on a dress and catch myself spinning around in the fitting room. When I passed this floral maxi dress on a mannequin in Nordstrom, I just had to see how it would twirl!
This floral maxi dress fits true to size (wearing a small) and is the perfect length for almost any height. If you are shorter than 5’3″ you will probably need to have this dressed hemmed to keep it from over powering you. The chest area does run a little large, so you might want to try a size smaller if you have a smaller chest. I love the button detail down the back of the dress especially because you can put on the dress without having do undo a single button. There is a zipper (on the side) and hooks (in front) that make this dress easy to put on and take off. It also comes in a rust red color with darker flowers that is perfect for fall. Since there is so much material to this dress, it kind of speaks for itself and does not need to be over accessorized. This dress goes great with simple sandals or heels, so I paired it with my favorite strappy nude sandals (similar). I added a simple gold necklace, my favorite gold hoops (similar), and a woven clutch to complete the look. Shop this look below! xoxo
Towards the end of July, I took a trip with Alex’s family to their house in Pleasant Pond, Maine. Pleasant Pond is a small lake off the Kennebec River, just east of a small town called Caratunk. We spent the week hiking, kayaking, and enjoying the quietness of the secluded lake. Early in the week we all visited Moxie Falls, which is about 15 minutes north of Pleasant Pond. The trail to see the waterfall was about a mile long and was easy for everyone to walk. Towards the end of the week we hiked Pleasant Pond Mountain, which is part of the Appalachian trail and was much more difficult than I expected. The view from the top of Pleasant Pond Mountain made the trek worthwhile, but be sure to pack plenty of water.
In the middle of the week we took a day to explore Portland and Freeport, which are both about 2 hours from Pleasant Pond. In Portland I enjoyed my first whole lobster at the Dry Dock and sampled a few beers at Shipyard Brewery. They had a delicious tea beer that I will now be on the hunt for in Texas. We visited the Portland Head Lighthouse, but unfortunately the fog blocked most of our view. On our way back to Pleasant Pond we stopped in Freeport to visit the L.L.Bean outlet, and later down the road, had dinner the Old Mill Pub in Skowhegan. Freeport has a great selection of outlet stores and you could easily spend a whole day shopping there.
The rest of the week was spent relaxing on the porch, kayaking, sailing, water skiing, hiking, star gazing (yes you could see stars), and eating delicious blueberries from the front yard. We flew in and out of Boston, which is about a 4 hour drive from Pleasant Pond. On our way back to Boston, we stopped at Bob’s Clam Hut in Kittery for one last famous Maine lobster roll before heading home to Dallas. Shop all my outfits from Maine below! xoxo