Wishlist Wednesday

Happy Wednesday!  The New York weather is finally nice (sunny, not too humid, no rain) and it's making me very optimistic about what the last month of summer holds. However before it got so nice I had plenty of time indoors to build up my already too long wishlist. I'm thinking about making this an every other week feature because all of this browsing for things to add to my wishlist probably isn't good for my wallet. 

1) Barbour Beadnell Jacket

I have been on the search for a new rain jacket all summer (my old one could not withstand the South Bend weather) and I think I've found the perfect one. Waterproof and water resistant, drawstrings at the waist so that it has shape, zip-in lining so it can be worn in all seasons, removable hood, hand warmer pockets (I'm extremely excited about these) and a classic shape. This jacket has everything...except a good price. Sigh. 

2) Vickers Bow in Twiggy

I recently got my first Vickers bow bracelet from Kiel James Patrick (styled here) and I am in love. They look kind of silly out of context, but they're adorable on your wrist and add a preppy touch to any outfit. They come in a variety of patterns, but I'm loving this soft pink and navy combo. 

3) Spirit Football Jersey

Normally I am completely content with Notre Dame not having a Greek system; in a lot of ways it makes things easier and we definitely still have fun. However I do get majorly jealous of all of the cute apparel and accessories my friends in sororities have! SFJ's are the number one item that I covet. It's so unfair that I can't I be one of these  or these girls. Luckily, aside from having some super cute sorority things, Southern Shirt Co. also carries SFJ's for us normal people in a variety of fun colors. The lavender is my favorite. 

4) Kate Spade All Wrapped Up necklace

Can you tell I've been on a bit of a bow trip lately? I love love love this necklace. I don't have any pearls of this length, and the bow keeps the long pearls from looking matronly. I've been on the verge of buying it on eBay a few times, but I can't seem to pull the trigger. I think what's getting me is that the pearls are fake yet the necklace is still (even on eBay) fairly expensive. I guess I can settle for just staring at it online. 

5) Lilly Pulitzer Shirt Dress

I already discussed my love of the new Lilly Pulitzer collection, and I spent a fair amount of time browsing it. I really fell in love with this navy shirt dress. It's so versatile; I could wear it in the summer but it would also transition easily to fall, and its long enough to wear to work but also out. 

What are your favorites from this week?

College: How To Make Space

When I asked for emails about college questions, I got a lot of questions in the "my room is tiny how do I fit everything?" category. I seriously feel your pain. Because the South Bend weather can change so quickly, I feel like I need to be ready for at least three out of the four seasons at any moment. An example of that: first semester my freshman year, I would go to my 8:30am class in jeans and a North Face, my 12:15 in the jeans and a t-shirt, and my 3pm in the t-shirt and shorts. My roommates and I were PROS at fitting everything into our room. Here's my advice for fitting all of your awesome clothes into your tiny room.

Major props if you can get your dorm to look like this (via Pinterest)

1) Cascading hangers are lifesavers

This is not an exaggeration. Cascading hangers have little hooks on them so that you can layer the hangers. This means that a closet of average depth can fit about 3 hangers in one space! I'm so happy to have found these. I hang pretty much all of my shirts...and I brought pretty much all of my shirts to college first semester...so these were hugely helpful. 

2) The space underneath your bed isn't just for monsters

Notre Dame had an unexpectedly large number of freshmen accept their spot at the university last fall, which meant that there was a minor shortage of housing. Some dorms (like mine) ended up having their study rooms converted into actual residential rooms. The regular rooms have tons of built in space for storage, but the study rooms had nothing. Guess which type I got? Without any built in shelves, the space under my bed became invaluable. I used clear boxes under my bed to store workout clothes, socks, and all the other random stuff that didn't deserve my precious closet space. I can't find the ones that I have online, but this one is super cute.

3) FOLD

I'm super organized, but I can sometimes be guilty of just tossing things into drawers if I don't think I have time to fold them. Seriously, take the time to fold. First of all, it prevents your clothes from being wrinkled (not attractive or classy), and it also saves soooo much space. Take a look at this video for some direction. 

4) Use everything

Windowsills, tops of cabinets, any nook or cranny can be used to store things. Planning is good, but rooms are often misinterpreted in promotional pictures. Be prepared with some items, but more importantly be prepared to look at everything in your room as something you can use for it's original use, but also as something else (does that make sense? I hope so...) For example, my closet had clothes in it and a TV on top of it so that we didn't have to use a TV stand and could therefore fit some shelves on the ground. We also stuck command hooks (the best!) everywhere so that we could hang up purses, scarves, etc. 

Also...

For packing suitcases (my specialty), roll the shirts. This is a backpacking trick. It saves a lot of room, and if you're careful the shirts won't get creased!

For purchasing storage items and other dorm essentials, I would definitely recommend a trip to Bed Bath & Beyond. They have this cool system which is similar to a bridal registry. You sign up, then go around the store scanning things that you want. You leave with a list of all the items that you scanned, and then you can pick them up at a BB&B near your school! This saves so much energy because you won't have to try to ship or fly with anything extra. 

DON'T buy these storage cubes. For some reason when I was at BB&B they were marketing them like crazy and they looked like a good idea...they suck.  My roommate and I both had them and they fell and dumped our clothes everywhere about 9 times. They're also pretty hard to rebuild (we made our friend who's an engineering major do it).

The aftermath of a fallen cube...don't let this be you!

Lilly Pulitzer Fall Arrivals!

The first pieces from the Lilly fall collection are online and in stores and ooooh my God I'm loving them. My favorite pieces are the shirt dresses...and the sweaters...and the blazers...Seriously someone needs to hide my credit card right now. I really like the color palette that they used; soft blues, magenta, and shades of cream with navy to bring it more into fall. Here are some of my favorite pieces!

Evelyn Dress/Beckett Dress

These are my two favorite dresses. The Evelyn is a great fall floral, and the fit-and-flare is so flattering on everyone. In general I love shirt dress. Its such an easy piece yet always looks polished and can easily be dressed up or down. The Beckett features two of my favorite patterns- stripes and polka dots!

Kate Sweater/Aurora Sweater

Navy and gold is one of my all time favorite combinations. This sweater is a good transitional piece because it can be worn as shown, but as it gets cooler I could layer a navy blazer over it and let the gold embellishment shine through. As a blonde, I could pretty much live in blue, and I adore the color of the Aurora sweater. I like how this is a less structured and very casual take on the sometimes overly formal peplum trend. 

 

Campbell Blazer/My Beau Belt

Blazers are a great substitute for your go-to sweatshirt in college. They easily add class to any outfit, even just a t-shirt and jeans! I like the unexpected color of the Campbell. I think it's a fun twist on a formal blazer, and pairs very well with the navy in this collection. Ahh, the bow belt. This belt is a more sturdy upgrade of Lilly's summer bow belt, and I think that it's perfect for fall (it would look great with the Beckett dress!). 

If I got to choose, I would purchase the Beckett dress, Aurora sweater, and My Beau belt. What are your picks from this collection? Are you excitedly waiting for fall like I am?

Fun Find

My roommate (who is the best and shares my love for all things preppy and monogrammed) showed me this website during a late night video chat. Technically, its for University of Georgia spirit wear, but it has all kinds of other preppy items (monograms, Lilly, sorority items, etc). They also make awesome Bid Day gift baskets! Below are some cute things from the website...and if you go to UGA and actually get to wear this spirit wear, I'm beyond jealous. 

  

  

1/2

3/4

5/6

*NOT A SPONSORED POST*

             

Friday Favorites

Happy last Friday of July! Here are my favorite things this week: 

  

1) Lilly Agendas

This is going to sound a little lame but I've legitimately been counting down the days until August since I got these agendas because I'm sooo excited to use them. I had one last year and sadly it got lost in the moving-out process, so I've been making due with a little blue one from CVS.  I miss using these so much! The prints are adorable and unique, and the large size is perfect. I have the Tusk In Sun and Tiger Lilly prints(one for classwork, one for meetings/hall council/student government/travel). 

(I only thought to take a pic right before I took it off, so it doesn't look perfect.)

2) Essie "Movers and Shakers"

I tend to shy away from pink nails because I feel like they can look a little "Barbie" and not-so-classy on blonde girls. However, I am happy to have been proven wrong with this color. It's a more melon-y pink, which makes it less bright and therefore less childish. It also went on very smoothly and stayed on my nails for a week and a half with minimal chipping, which is I was extremely impressed with. 

(via my Instagram)
3) Kate Spade bow ring

I just rediscovered this ring in my jewelry box, and I'm mad at myself for letting it sit there for so long!  It's too big for my middle or ring finger, but it fits perfectly on my index finger. I've gotten so many compliments on it. Unfortunately it's not on sale anymore, but you can probably find it on eBay or similar sites.

4) Keratin treatment
Before anyone gets up in arms, I do NOT get the treatment that has carcinogens in it. I've heard plenty of bloggers say that they have the worst hair ever and that no one else could possibly understand how bad it is. To them I would say I UNDERSTAND. My hair is truly the worst for so many reasons (frizzy, thick, straight in the front but curly in the back...don't know how that happens). This keratin treatment de-frizzes my hair without taking away all of the volume or wave.

That's all I've got this week...enjoy the weekend!

My Favorites From the New J. Crew Collection

Am I the only one who HATES that fall collections come out in the middle of summer? (Or that summer collections come out in the dead of South Bend winter?) They make me long for the changing seasons. I get extremely excited over new clothes, and am totally the girl who changes into her new shirt as soon as she gets back from the store. That makes this whole process even harder, because unless I want to melt I can't exactly stroll around NYC in fall clothing, no matter how much I want to. So, I'm going to have to settle for online "window shopping" at the moment. 

J. Crew has definitely been on the upswing the past year and a half (huge improvement from their teenage grunge phase), and this collection continues that trend. Although Lilly is my go-to in the summer, J. Crew is my favorite for pretty much every other season.I was very impressed by their lookbook as well-- it's a great example of transitioning summer pieces into fall. 

Toothpick jean

So much to love in this. Great pant length, polka dots, and the shoes. Did I mention I LOVE the polka dots?

Cashmere sweater

J. Crew cashmere is one of the biggest teases in fashion. It's so beautiful, well-fitting, and soft that I feel like I can't leave the store without it. Unfortunately I'd be leaving the store without wayyyy too much money for that to be feasible. A good tip if you're like me and love their cashmere: around the middle of the season there's always a promotion that will make buying your favorite sweater less stressful for your wallet. Also, be sure to check out the sale rack towards the end of the season for great deals. 

Lace-front sweatshirt

I love how effortless yet polished this look is, and it would be so easy to replicate for class. It's a little hard to tell in the picture, but the sweatshirt  has a lace from that gives it a nice vintage and more upscale touch. 

Silk contrast blouse

This is a perfect example of how to make shorts look polished and chic. The blouse is a great color for lots of skin tones (loving the pale model!), and the shorts are a good contrast to the light color. The impeccable tailoring and piping on the shorts make them very classy. 

J. Crew hit it out of the park with this one! Check out the rest of the collection here. Also, thank you to everyone who has emailed me so far about the college posts! I can't wait to answer your questions. 

Wishlist Wednesday

Happy Hump Day everyone! Anyone else think of the Geico commercial there? Here are this week's additions to the ever-growing wishlist. This one is pretty fall-centric because of all the beautiful fall collections that I've been browsing through this week.

1) Tory Burch Brita Riding Boot

I love this boot. The color is amazing for fall and I like that, unlike on so many Tory Burch shoes, the logo is subtle. These were on sale for $299 from $495 at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale, and I had a long internal debate about getting them. By the time my debate was over, all that was left was a size 5. Tragic. They're sold out in brown now but still available in black.

2) Marley Lilly Monogrammed Duffel

I love the classic look of this duffle. I travel a lot, and this would be the perfect replacement for my old suitcase. I think that everyone can agree that if you're going to monogram anything, it should be luggage, and I find this to be a very classy use the monogram.. 

3) J.Crew Jacket

 I know that it's the middle of summer, but I can't resist coveting this J. Crew piece. It would be perfect for fall, and be a good substitute to the North Face Denali jacket that I basically live in from October to December. 

4) Moon and Lola Acrylic Monogram Necklace

I like the heavier look of acrylic monograms for fall. I lean heavily on brown and gold accessories in the colder months, so I would get a tortoise-shell monogram and a gold chain. BTW, I have a friend whose monogram is actually KSM, the standard "example" monogram. How lucky is she?

(via @ginamadeit Instagram)

5) Bun Bow

I'm a fan of hair bows, but I have such thick hair that hair clips usually end up looking a little funny because they can't grasp a lot of hair. This bun bow is the solution; instead of a clip it has an elastic. This would hold much better in thick hair, and is also shown being worn on the wrist! I find this to be a perfect accessory. 

It's almost the weekend, preps! 

In Exactly One Month...

I will be flying over this...

The thriving metropolis of South Bend, IN (sarcasm)

...to drive up to this...

The most beautiful campus ever (no sarcasm)

...and I'm so excited!!!

My roommate and I video chatted for about 2 1/2 hours yesterday to discuss our room. There are going to be monograms (obviously). I'm looking forward to seeing my friends, going to football games, and getting back into my old school routine, but I think what I'm looking forward to most is what's going to be different this year. I'm much more involved with student government and hall council, and I'm finally taking classes that are going to be 100% applicable to my career. It's also going to be pretty awesome to know where I'm going and how everything works.

The Sadie Shop

In my excitement for the start of the new semester, I've been looking for some more ND accessories. The other day I stumbled upon this hair bow and there is no chance that I'm going to school without it. A bow will be the perfect girly accessory for football games, where everyone wears the same unisex shirt that is incredibly unflattering. How cute are those polka dots?
I found this by searching "Notre Dame" on Etsy. Every college girl should do this! You're sure to find lots of unique ways to show school spirit.
As there's only 4 weeks until I go back to school, I'm going to do one post a week with a college-related subject, so be sure to comment or email me at somethingpreppy [at] gmail [dot] com with any suggestions or questions!

What's In My Bag: Summer Weekend Edition

Happy Monday! I can't believe this is the beginning of the last week of June...crazy. 

This weekend my boyfriend took me on a lovely dinner date at the Rock Center Cafe in NYC. It was delicious, and I definitely recommend sitting outside if it's a nice day. As I was unpacking my bag when we got back, I decided to take a picture for this post. I'll probably be doing more "What's In My Bag" posts throughout the year. 

This is one of my favorite purses. I love it so much that I bring it to work almost every day. My favorite thing about it is that it doesn't look super huge but it holds a ton, making it the perfect bag for a commute. I bought it a few months ago from TJ Maxx. 

And here's everything that's in it! I didn't edit it at all but I moved the stuff around to look a little better for the picture. From left to right, here are the contents:

1) Train schedule. I always have one of these with me, especially during work.

2) Clean & Clear blotting sheets. These things are LIFESAVERS. New York gets incredibly humid during the summer so these are great for blotting off the results of the weather. In my opinion, these are the best blotting sheets because they really don't mess with your makeup at all. 

3) Planner. I write things down obsessively because if I don't write it down I'm most likely going to forget it. At the end of last semester, my Lilly Pulitzer agenda got lost in the moveout process, so I've been using this little blue one from CVS until I can use my new Lilly one because I can't live without a planner. 

4) My company umbrella. Like a train schedule, this is an NYC essential. Regardless of how clear the sky looks there's at least a 30% chance of rain almost every day. Let me tell you, getting caught in the rain without an umbrella seven blocks away from the subway is no fun.

5) EOS lip balm. If you don't have one of these, go get one immediately! These fun lip balms are super moisturizing and come in a wide variety of flavors, all of which are amazing. 

6) iPad. I carry this around to read on the train. See my post on the case here.

7) Coach wallet. I got this at a Coach outlet store in California several years ago, and it still looks as good as new. The shiny material is very durable and I like that bills or checks don't get folded when I put them in the wallet. 

8) Marc by Marc Jacobs sunglasses...in a Ray Ban case. I consider my gold aviators to be the perfect summer accessory, so they pretty much live in my purse for use throughout the day. 

9) J. Crew Mini-emergency Kit. I bought this on sale at J. Crew because I thought the pouch was cute, but it's come in handy numerous times. It contains important on-the-go items such as pain relievers, safety pins, band-aids, nail polish remover, and many others in one convenient place. 

10) Hand Food hand lotion. Hands down (pun not intended) the best hand cream I have ever used. It smells delicious and keeps my hands soft for hours...oh, and its only $5!
PS: Yes that carpet is leopard print.

Have a good week, everyone! I have some fun posts planned for this week, so be sure to check back!

Weekly OOTDs

Hi everyone! Here are my favorite outfits of this week.  I always post these on Instagram, so be sure to follow @something_preppy! If something isn't linked, that means I couldn't find it online. 

Dress: Theory (old)

Necklace: J. Crew Factory

Shoes: J. Crew - on sale!

Top: Theory (old)

Skirt: J. Crew

Shoes: Tory Burch

Bracelets: Kate Spade (1/2)

Dress: J. Crew

Necklace: J. Crew Factory - on sale!

Top: Lilly Pulitzer

Skirt: Lilly Pulitzer

Skirt: Lilly Pulitzer 

Top: Vineyard Vines

Shorts: J. Crew

Shoes: Jack Rogers

Bow: Kiel James Patrick

I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful summer day!