Pre Heels Review

I love shoes, but I can't stand the pain that comes from blisters on the back of my ankles and the sides of my toes. Facebook advertised this to me and I thought it was a dream come true. I headed on over to amazon and ordered a travel size bottle for myself. 

Here are the shoes in question.  Some loafers that I love, patent leather and shiny and so cute. They are basically like wearing rocks. They always rub on the back of my ankles and as a result I don't wear them. 

Give the bottle a shake and spray liberally on the back of your ankles. Let it dry and then apply again. It smells like finger nail polish. I think it must be the bonding agent in the spray.

I dropped it into my purse and brought it to work so that I could reapply.

I wanted this to work so badly. In fact I gave it a few trys but it did not work. I can honestly say don't waste $15 dollars on this product. Thankfully Amazon is an amazing company, they ship this product as a third party so they could only give me credit, which was kind of them. I contacted preheels and they were able to give me a refund. I took that money and bought an espresso machine. Moral of the story is only buy shoes that are comfortable and don't rub or wear socks. Save your money to fuel you caffeine addiction. 

Book of the Month Review #3- September

I am a little late getting this post out, but I was so engrossed with my Book of the Month box this September.

I didn't like the selection as much this month expect for one stand out book, The Couple Next Door, written by Shari Lapeña. I loved Gone Girl and found the description was kind of chilling and haunting and I was right. I read this book in two sittings and stayed up way too late finishing it. A Couple goes to a dinner party next door, they leave their infant child in the crib next door. They take the baby monitor and check in every 30 minutes. They return from the party and the baby is missing. I kept pace with this book and loved all of the different perspectives the story was told from. This book is on its way to my best friend!  Share what you love.

I also added two books to this box, because they can be added for $10. I am still not over what a great deal this box is. $15 a month for a hardcover book, and add another book for $10, I got 3 books for the price of one at Barnes and Noble. I am part way through another of my books about an eastern european immigrant woman who did some secret work during WWII.

Have I sold you on this yet? Follow my link to get half off a 3 month trial. Use this Link and Thanks for reading. 

Warby Parker Home Try On Review

I wear contacts but some days just call for glasses and having a pair that is both durable and cute is hugely important and hugely challenging to find. I am 25 and my nice grown up job has eye insurance, but like everything involving insurance it is complicated. As a kid my mom dealt with all of this and we had a great local eye guy that would get the most out of my Mom's insurance company. It is not currently the case, I found a place with good reviews, saw the doctor ,went in and paid my co-pay. It was great until I asked which frames would be what my insurance cover. The woman said most were pretty close to what my insurance would cover. Cool. I chose some frames and then she told me they were $220 plus extra for shaping and lens coating and all this other stuff. I left very overwhelmed! And without glasses. One of my favorite podcasts Lore has Warby Parker as a sponsor. They are the answer to the question that I didn't know to ask.

 For $1 they send you five pairs of glasses of your choice and you can try them on at home. It is so much less pressure than having a salesperson stand behind you. I got the frames in two days and I was able to spend an hour or so sitting in my closet. Once I decide, I just upload a PDF of my prescription and they send me the new glasses. Best part, frames and lens total $95. Less than half of the frames that I liked at the shop.

The Welty Plum

Sullivan Woodgrain

Chelsea Violet 

 Laurel Peacock

Daisy Molasses

They send you this little card to fill out with your thoughts. Like a wine tasting but for glasses! You can even email them or connect via social media and they will give you some style advice.

Let me know which pair you like best in the comments below!

Creating a Curated Closet

I am sure you have read the articles and seen the Kon Mari quotes on how to simplify your life, live with 30 pieces in your closet. I love love love the idea, but I also love shopping and i love clothes and I love things. So how can me, and my bank account, find a balance? I am certainly not a horder, I do a closet clean out every three months or so and get rid of tons of stuff.  When I moved from Portland to the midwest I had a huge purge, but no matter what I always seem to have a closet so full of things I don't wear and I can't seem to define my style in any meaningful way.

So for September:

• I am banning myself from shopping.  No purses, no shoes, no clothes. I am going to keep a list of things I wish I had and evaluate at the end of the month to see if I need them. I did one cheat and bought two sweaters from J crew that we on sale 65% off, I did need two for layering this winter/fall. That is it though I am cutting myself off. 
• A real deep closet clean out. I looked at everything and tried it all on, if It doesn't fit ,gone. I took photos of the tags of things I wish still fit in case I decide I need/ want them after September. I think it helped me let go of things I wish still fit.

 

• Be very thorough, do I wear it often? Do I love it? Does it suit what I want out of this closet? Does it suit the style I am going for? ( a lot of soul searching as to what exactly this is and who I am) I put it all in a plastic tote. I feel like the die hard closet curators might be judging me right now, but I am not ready to let go of all of it yet. For the month, I am really focusing on what I have, using it, being grateful for it. I am allowing myself to take anything out of the box I want. When I wear something, I am going to think about it honestly, do I like this, why don't I wear it more, do I feel awesome in it? If the YES isn't there, then I put it in the box. 

• October, I will evaluate add a few things back to my wardrobe if need be and hopefully I add a lot more things to the box. It is a work in progress and I am still working on what I want this to be for me. I know I want to own less, and I know that I want to share or sell some of things in my closet.  I want to focus on being less of a consumer, and keep things simpler and easier, where my "what to wear "decisions are easy because I love everything I own.

Here is my closet now! Looking better all the time.

Tradlands Shirt Review #2

After I ordered my first Tradlands shirt I was so impressed by the quality and the timeless style. It inspired me to not only order two more shirts immediately but to also start thinking about a curated closet. I already owned the Elms, the white oxford button up. I heavyweight non sheer shirt of such sturdy fabric that I imagine my kids will be borrowing it down the line. It was truly the first shirt I ever bought thinking about the years and decades I would own it not just the months or couple of wears. I ordered two more shirts to round out my closet and they came in last week!

The packaging on this order didn't hold together as well as my first package, but I think it was the fault of the post office not Tradlands.

 I ordered the Edith and the Waverly in Charcoal. The Edith is my lightest weight shirt. It is also the most breathable and the softest. The fabric felt amazing right out of the package and I couldn't wait to put it on! It is also on sale right now for $159, Instead of the normal $167. The collar and shape have still been holding up great despite the softness. The only not I will make is that it is slightly sheerer than my other Tradlands shirt. So wear a neutral bra with this one, my neon lounge bra glowed!

 The second shirt is the Waverly. It comes in three colors. This charcoal, slate and a cardinal red. It is a mid weight chambray and I haven't worn it yet, but will post a picture as soon as I do. That is me below in literally the most comfortable outfit ever. Black leggings, the Edith, slip on sneakers and a pop of lip color!

One last plug for how much I love these shirts. They fit like nothing you have ever worn before. If you have ever for even a moment been jealous of the fabric or cut of a men's shirt but could button it over your boobs these are for you. Their made for her inspired by him way of thinking was so perfectly executed. There is no boob gap at all, ever. period. If that doesn't send you out to buy a shirt I then I don't know what will. And don't worry I am 5'2" with DDs I know the boob gap. The sizing also makes sense to me. I am a medium mostly but every store is different, you can take your measurements as I did the first time because I was so nervous, but if you are a medium then you are a medium here. Lastly I know these babies are pricey, I put the most recent two on a credit card and will take the month to pay them off after bills, you will wear these for years, you won't have to buy another button up for years. Let that sink in. And if you leave a comment below I will send you a code to get $25 off your first purchase. For me that made all the difference.