Cheap and chic shopping lately...

There are few things I love more than an affordable product that looks and feels high-end. I’ve been really trying to curtail my shopping habits lately, focusing on replacing worn-out basics (goodbye, beloved Liberty London ballet flats from 2007!!) and spending my money on furnishing a new apartment instead (stay tuned!). Lately, though, I’ve found a few total wins for less than the price of a few pumpkin spice lattes…

• Target is smashing it out of the park lately in pretty much all departments…I’m particularly impressed, however, with their “A New Day” line. I got a beautiful, mid-weight olive-green belted sweater that I’m bringing to Italy with me for sure, along with a bunch of basic t-shirts. I usually stock up on J.Crew or J.Crew Factory t’s when they run those crazy sales over the summer, but I’ve been underwhelmed by the quality of their knits lately - it seems like the hems unravel or I get little holes along the seams after just a few washes/wears. Target’s t’s are a heavier weight (less see-through!) and, clocking in at around $10, I can’t complain.

• I do tend to love J.Crew Factory’s shoes, however. I’m notoriously hard on my footwear…I have narrow heels and high arches, so my stride is weird and I wear the heels of shoes out like nobody’s business. I’ve purchased and re-purchased Factory’s classic ballet flat for years - it’s polished, inoffensive and basic enough to pair with just about anything - but I recently bought a pair of their new leather loafers in light gray during a 40% off promo, just to shake things up a bit. They’re a gorgeous color, incredibly comfortable and versatile.

• I badly needed new workout gear - especially while moving, I realized that my leggings have absolutely passed their prime, and I’m getting really sick of the “oversized white V-neck Hanes cotton T” approach. I got rid of legitimately everything in my workout drawers and replaced it with Old Navy’s leggings - high rise, 7/8-crop, and full crop. I’ve been a long-time devotee of Target’s basic C9 sports bras, so I bought a rainbow assortment of those, and also purchased a few new yoga tops at both Target and Old Navy. To cap it all off, I had a promo code for Nike and got myself an utterly obnoxious pair of Frees - they’re the most heinous shade of neon coral, they’re comfortable as sin and they make me incredibly happy every time I wear them.

• Old Navy in particular has been running insane promos lately - in addition to totally redoing my gym gear, I also bought a couple fresh pairs of pants (all I wear to work, I swear, is their ankle-length Pixie pants in a variety of colors, usually with a buttondown and sweater layered up top because I am oh-so-boring.).

• Another entire category of clothes I sorely needed a refresh on was underwear, ooh OOH. Victoria’s Secret did a promo for buy 2, get 1 free bras, and 5 for $25 underwear, and yours truly literally threw out all her old undergarments and did a full refresh. And THAT is all you need to know about that, you creepers. ;)

• I don’t know if I can call it cheap, but Anthropologie just did an Anthro Day 25% off weekend and I went NUTS. I really love longer pullover sweaters, and this one is the perfect combo of cozy and lightweight (I bought it in the emerald green, because I’m currently obsessed with that color). I also treated myself to a gorgeous silk top for Tuscany, because, really, why not?

A couple of quick things...

A few different friends have shared this on Facebook lately and every time I see it it makes me positively cackle: 

I love that I have joined the "LOL"s after so many years of life in the "FUCK FUCK FUCK IT'S COLD"s! 

On a less profane note, I actually skipped the Golden Globes this year - in getting over being sick, I honestly completely forgot they were on and spent my Sunday afternoon/evening at Costco and cleaning our bathtub because #glamorous. That said, I loved the #TimesUp movement to wear black dresses on the red carpet. Primarily because black is my go-to for all formal events...oops? 

Favorites of the night included: 

Jessica Chastain's fabulous sparkly back (I have such an affinity for that neckline, too)...

Allison Janney's intricately detailed sleeves - almost figure-skating adjacent, which seems appropriate given her win for "I, Tonya!"

The endlessly elegant Nicole Kidman, who absolutely knocked it out of the park - she is so statuesque and beautiful, and gave such a lovely speech upon her win. 

And I actually adored Elisabeth Moss's chic little 50s-esque number - I would wear that to death. Completely up my alley. Bonus points for fabulous shoes, too!

And my misses...

Yikes, Caitriona Balfe - she's so pretty and this Chanel monstrosity looks like a weird combination of a harness and a garland on a barmaid in the Wild Wild West. 

Margot Robbie's dress, in my opinion, did nothing for her and the embellishment combined with the shoulder poufs and that massive deep V was kind of weird. Not that she isn't gorgeous, it's just way out there and weird for my taste.

And poor lovely Emma Watson - that Havisham-wannabe thing is swallowing her whole. Ancillary thought - are her shoes formal TOMs?

Anyway, I loved all the black because I am a fiend for black dresses and black clothing in general (as I type this, I'm wearing black pants with a white shell and a black sweater/scarf/earrings...eek!). And I thought the dialogue on the red carpet was interesting, although I'm not one to discount the meaningfulness of asking what designers celebs are wearing - those looks are spectacular, whether good or bad, and I think the designers deserve their moment in the spotlight too! 

Of course, couldn't talk about the Globes without a little love for America's apparent 2020 president-elect, Oprah...I'm kicking myself that I missed her speech live, but Youtubing it and reading the full transcript was almost as good. I have such an appreciation for truly eloquent orators - there's something to be said for a speaker, male or female, on any given topic, who truly knows how to work the room and to give a speech, not just to speak. Her delivery was impeccable, and the energy in the room listening to her looked electric. 

Looks like I need to get cracking on watching movies...Oscars are right around the corner, hooray!

You can take the girl out of Minnesota...

...but can't take the Target out of the Minnesota girl. 

East Palo Alto just opened a new Target store on Sunday, and naturally I had to check it out after work/the gym yesterday. Guys - I basically blacked out in a Target-y haze. They were fully stocked. They had everything. The store was pristine. I had SO MUCH FUN. 

Target's killing it currently with their Who What Wear collection, and I may or may not have found myself in a dressing room with legit fifteen things to try on. Ended up coming home with...

...this off-the-shoulder, bell-sleeved white wonder...perfect for refreshing my tired wardrobe of summer whites (and kind of adjacent to this fantastic Anthropologie top, which I just can't justify at that price)...

...and this dress, which I saw on a blogger I follow and was intrigued by to the point where I had to try it. Still not sure I'm keeping it, but we'll see. 

They are, however, sadly discontinuing their Merona and Mossimo lines to introduce twelve new brands, and I'm kind of sad. Merona had great work basics and Mossimo has produced most of my casual "idgaf" sundresses for the past several years. I justified an oh-so-trendy cold-shoulder, bell-sleeved top (that I cannot find ANYWHERE on their admittedly awful website!) because it's basically going to be a collector's item once Merona stops being produced...and also it's a super cheap way to try a trend that, I'm sure, will be out in about five minutes flat. (Plus, it's blue and white striped. I'm powerless.)

A few other quick Target faves:

I love the Sonia Kashuk lipstick, and have since Courtney surprised me with a few way back in 2014! I bought "Peach Passion" last night and it's an excellent subtle, not-neon coral for summer. 

One of the first things to get dropped in the face of a California budget was regular shellac manicures and pedicures. Instead, I'm embracing the art of the self-mani with basic nail polish. My problem, however, is that I'm incredibly hard on regular manicures, with most lasting just a day or two before I've bitten and scraped and cracked and smudged them beyond acceptability. So I picked up some Essie Gel Couture to try, in a nice, basic pale pink. I don't have high hopes - but we'll see! 

Also, I'm obsessed with L'Oreal Pure Clay masks. My mom and I bought a couple when she was here helping me move in June, and I do one at least once a week - I'm a huge fan of the charcoal Detoxify, but also love the Purify&Mattify. (Plus, seriously, they're sooo cheap. It's heavenly!)

A final item of note: Target's candle selection is absolutely bonkers, friends. And the best part is that a lot of their candles are manufactured by Illume, the same brand that produces ridiculously fragrant (and expensive) candles for Anthropologie, Patina, etc. I tend to find myself lost in the candle aisle most times I go to Target, but my favorite spot for absurdly cheap hidden gems is actually the dollar section right in the front of the store. You can thank me later! 

Today's noteworthy minutiae.

- Current highbrow music I'm obsessing over: Kevin Puts's "Millennium Canons." Current lowbrow music I'm obsessing over: Flo Rida's "Cake." Make of that combo what you will. 

- I stayed up entirely too late last night with Hal and Matt, neither of whom I had seen in weeks (closer to a month in Matt's case) despite the fact that I live with Hal. My alarm this morning went off mid-dream about Adele trying to perform in an opera. She was not very good, and Hal (in my dream) was not very pleased with her performance. 

- I'm really excited for the Netflix "Anne of Green Gables" series, primarily because I am utterly besotted with the Anne books always and forever. I remember being very young (second grade, probably) and checking them all out from the Lake Marion Elementary library. Because I was the kind of girl-child who judged books by their covers, I tried to start with "Rilla of Ingleside," as it had the prettiest cover...even though that's actually the last book in the series. Once I corrected that little error, I fell hard for Anne and all her adventures, and tend to re-read the series in its entirety every few years or so.

- I'm super ready for spring-like temperatures, as I was flu-stricken through last weekend's gorgeous weather. Last night I switched out my black purse for a hand-me-down hot pink Kate Spade courtesy of Mama, and today I'm wearing a delightfully neon scarf with my usual work uniform of black pants and a chambray. Of course that means that this morning it was in the thirties and I froze all the way into work. Fail. 

- "West Side Story" is on at the Ordway right now starring my favorite Twin Cities theater boy, Tyler Michaels, and I'm pretty sure I need to rush tickets soon. 

- Yesterday I had the most intense, visceral craving for a Ben's Cookie from London. I immediately texted Kaitlin, my Ben's Cookie partner in crime, and we ended up down a rabbit hole texty conversation about crab dip, cat GIFs, and save the dates. Gotta love bestie shorthand.

- PSA: Anthropologie has Volcano-scented hand lotion now (like the iconic candle), J.Crew is 30% off and my favorite striped t-shirt now comes in red (I bought it and my boss made a Where's Waldo joke), and Target has insanely cute shoes right now. You can all thank me later. 

Happy almost-weekend, campers! 

Lately I'm Loving

Things making me smile/on my mind/causing distraction these days: 

This video of the White Bear Mitsubishi polar bear mascot falling all over the ice trying to film a commercial. I have watched it legit two or three times a day, every day, and it hasn't stopped being funny yet. Gotta love hometown humor. 

Emily sent me this amazing video of Broadway stars Laura Osnes and Jeremy Jordan mashing up songs from two of my favorite musicals, "The Last Five Years" and "Cinderella." Fun fact: Laura is a Minnesota girl - she grew up less than 20 minutes from me and we saw her star in her high school production of "Peter Pan."

Last week Kels sent me a link to Run the Year 2017, a website where a team or individual can sign up to log running 2,017 miles in the calendar year. She and I have signed up together, with one of her co-workers joining us, and I'm super excited to be part of Team Run Like The Winded. This year I'm really focusing on re-setting my habits and setting healthy goals, and I've always wanted to be a runner. With three miles in the books today (which, honestly, was a combo of run-jog-shuffle-walk), I can't wait to push myself harder/better/faster/stronger (ha) tomorrow and in future weeks! 

Pretty sure I'm buying these "Hamilton" leggings to fuel said runs. I saw them on FB today and freaked out a little bit...the sheer variety of novelty leggings they have is enough to make me want to accept that leggings can in fact be worn as pants. EEK!

My mom and I have been committed season ticketholders to the Minnesota Orchestra for a few years now, because we both love classical music and my dad does NOT. When I saw this New Yorker article about what men think at the symphony, I couldn't stop laughing - out loud - at my desk. SO funny. 

And finally, I shamelessly watched "The Bachelor" instead of the first half of the National Championship last night because Alabama makes me crabby. #2013NationalChampionshipNeverForget. So thrilled that Clemson upset them...it's about time the Tide got rolled. In the Bachelor world, however...Corinne going after Nick all night was legitimately an offense worthy of the NCAA. Bitches be crazy, and this is going to be a totally fantastic season! 

Here's to beating the below-zero blues, campers. See you in February!