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! 

iPad Mini Case

This post is going to be a little different than a lot of my other clothing specific posts, so if that's what you're here for then keep on scrolling (no hard feelings, I swear). 

I LOVE reading. I can read and enjoy pretty much anything (except Aristotle-- puts me to sleep every time). Another thing to know about me is that my family vacations a lot. Whenever we traveled I would pack between 8-10 huge books for the trip. Not an exaggeration-- my backpack weighed around 30 pounds. Needless to say I was excited when electronic readers were created (I think I was about one vacation away from scoliosis). I have always had a Kindle, but when my most recent one broke I decided I'd try out an iPad mini. Thanks Mom and Dad for the early Christmas present!

Of course, the prospect of getting an iPad was made even better by the thought of the cute case that I would get for it. So many brands make cute iPad cases, so finding one for an iPad mini should be easy, right? Yeah...no. Turns out that most designers don't make iPad mini cases even if they make iPad cases. I searched for weeks but finally found the perfect case. 

The Kate Spade "le Pavillion" folio was exactly what I was looking for I really wanted something that would protect both the back and the screen, and without folds that would leave marks on the screen. My mom volunteered to take a trip to the local Kate Spade to see if they had my dream case. No luck. Resigning myself to ordering from the website and paying for shipping, I log onto Kate Spade and...it's not there. Nordstrom says it's backordered until September. There was no way that I was going to leave the iPad unprotected for that long.

Shopbop

So, I discover this case on Shopbop. I excitedly tracked the order. Finally it came, and it was a really beautiful, high quality case. A very beautiful, high quality case that did not fit my iPad at all. It was part leather, so maybe it would have stretched, but it was an expensive case and I didn't want to take the risk of it not fitting. That one got returned.
At this point, I was getting pretty frustrated. I was also getting nervous because my iPad had been without a case for about three weeks, and I felt like I was tempting fate by leaving it unprotected any longer. Eventually I decided I was going to have to just go to the Apple Store and settle for a less attractive case. Not the end of the world, but slightly disappointing.
I fell in love with this sleeve when I walked into the accessories section of the Apple Store. A sleeve wasn't what I originally wanted, because the iPad would only be protected when it's on, so I kept looking. The store didn't have any folio options, so I decided to combine some strategies.
I'm actually very happy with how this mini-ordeal (lol pun) turned out. The sleeve is really high quality and similar to what I had originally wanted, and the rubber case is lightweight. I also got a clear screen protector.

Does anyone else have an iPad mini (this is a serious question; the lack of cases available for it made me wonder how many people actually have one)? How did you choose to protect it?

Sorry for the long post, I had a lot of case-related venting to do. Thanks for reading!

PS: For those of you thinking that I'm OCD, yes, I am, but this is an expensive piece of technology and I don't want anything too happen to it!
PPS: After I got home I realized that the sleeve looked surprisingly similar to a case I already had. What can I say, Kate Spade does polka dots well.

Lunchtime Discoveries

It's days like today that I'm extra happy that I'm a girl. It's around 100 degrees outside right now (not an exaggeration), and I'm so thankful that I can wear a breezy shift dress instead of having to wear a hot suit. Today my fellow intern and I had to carry a bunch of gift bags to the conference that our company was having at a hotel about seven blocks away. Not that far under normal circumstances, but in this heat and with our extra baggage it felt very long. On the way back I quickly stopped into a giant Hallmark store to try to take advantage of their air conditioning. Probably my first time in a Hallmark store in two or three years.  

While I was pretending to browse, I noticed this notepad and quickly snatched it up. How cute!! I love the patterns and the pink and green combination. Its hard to see in this picture, but the back of the pad on the inside is green with aqua polka dots. And it was only $3! I looked for this online when I got back to the office, but couldn't find it. 

On the second leg of my journey back to the office, I walked by this amazing sandcastle. It's seriously huge and so intricate. I wish that I had walked this route more so that I could have seen it being built. 

Overall, it was a lunch break of fun discoveries. Enjoy the rest of the day and stay cool!

Wishlist Wednesday

Wow it's Wednesday already?! I feel like all of a sudden the summer is flying by...Anyways happy Wishlist Wednesday! Enjoy and be sure to tell me what you're wishing for this week!

1) Tory Burch umbrella

I've been using an umbrella with my company's logo on it this summer, which is unfortunately not as attractive as it is functional. This umbrella would be much better looking for when I go back to school.

2) Jonathan Adler sticky notes

I have a little obsession with sticky notes. My desk is always covered with them because I'm constantly writing down my random thoughts on them. I wouldn't mind having a desk covered in these adorable owl ones though!

3) Tory Burch cardigan
Can you tell I've been pursuing Tory Burch online? I have the "shrunken" version of this sweater, which I love for its warmth and style. I also like this longer version as well as this oatmeal color.

4) Frye boots

Fun fact about me: I am a cowgirl. No, for real. I've competed in rodeos and been trained in roping, bareback, gymkhana, you name it. Frye makes THE BEST cowboy boots. I've had mine for 6 years now (wow I'm old). In addition to wearing them on horseback, I like wearing Frye boots in the fall, and these have caught my eye. 

5) Kate Spade watch

I blogged about this watch the other day...and now I'm thinking about getting it. This is how blogging can be dangerous, folks.

6) Spray water bottle/fan

This is only a half serious item on my wishlist. When I was in elementary school, everyone had these spray bottles that misted you while fanning you at the same time, perfect for humid New York summers. I could seriously use one of these right now as it's going to be ONE HUNDRED degrees in NYC tomorrow (and probably about 29 degrees in my office). 

Stay cool, everyone!