Own: Baggu in Leather!

Does anyone remember the jingle from the 90's- "Recycle, reduce, reuse and close the loop?"

Though recycling, reducing, and reusing shouldn't be things that we consider trendy, unfortunately that's what it has taken in order for people to really start doing it.  When going green really started up, a friend of mine gave me a reusable bag from Baggu.  I didn't really think too much about it.  I said thank you, and since then, I've been carrying this foldable bag in my purse in the event that I need to buy groceries on the way home or just tote something home from my office.  BUT, Baggu has now introduced leather into their mix of fabric options (read: Game changer).  As soon as I laid eyes on it, I decided that now, Baggu can be a piece of my regular wardrobe.  Every day.  Forever and ever.

Take a look at this:

It comes in black and gold as well as a smaller size.  I think this is a great bag!  It looks like just the right amount of slouch.  Price point-wise, it's also really affordable with the largest size being $150.  This apricot color is perfect for the spring.  If you don't like their color selection, you could always get this apricot color and take it to a place that restores and treats leathers and have them redye the leather for you in the color you prefer.  Either way, I think that this simple bag has huge potential.  Very, very ownable.

Own: Adorable necklaces from Etsy

I know I've been posting a lot of jewelry lately, but recently on etsy, I discovered a shop that does adorable little animal charms!  I'm totally a sucker for cute animal things (thanks to cuteoverlaod.com), but look at these smiley baubles by marymaryhandmade!  Do you think you can resist?

omgssss a MANATEE!

Love the way this little sloth is hanging from the chain

Adorable little turtle!

Besides animals, she has also created some necklaces of just normal things with happy faces that I would love to wear layered with other necklaces.  These are so cute!  Instant conversation starters, too.

a happy slice of pie!

BFF popsicles

The even better news is that all these necklaces are really affordable at around $40-$50 a piece.  They would make great birthday gifts as well!  Enjoy and happy Friday!

Ogle, Obsess and Own: Dreamy Knits

Now that the cold has officially arrived in NYC, I've really been excited for sweater weather.  You know, that slightly breezy, 60-degree, almost sun-less glaze that comes over the City in October and November?  Yeah, you know that one. I say that I love this weather now, but I'm sure I'll regret it later when I can't fall asleep because my heater is clanking and I have to start lugging a jacket around.  Before the regret sets in, I was going through some blogs and was heavily inspired by this photo from TurquoiseDove:

I want to be all angsty in my neon bra, too!  Angsty or not, she does look warm with that nice sun in the background and I do love her bra.  Anyway, I took to the internets and discovered that the range of prices for sweaters is quite vast.  I've categorized my picks here into the Ogle, Obsess and Own categories.

Ogle Sweaters which require a little more fashion finesse and a larger wallet to afford...

Check out this whimsically nubby YMC Sweater on Farfetch.com!  I would order this a size up and pair it with a pair of tight, black leather pants.

 This Avelon sweater has already got the whole over-sized thing down pat (available at Opening Ceremony).  I love it.  I have a sweater similar to this from Alexander Wang last fall and I love to pair it with a small black mini and thigh high boots.

 This is such a sweet Theory sweater.  The material looks so comfy and squishy.  

Obsess Sweaters are affordable with a normal wallet, but they might not be sweaters that you would feel like wearing just with a pair of jeans on a regular day.

I love this hip sweater by J. Crew.  It's got a unique pattern and it's something that could be dressed up with a chambray button down underneath or dressed down with a pair of skinny black jeans and oxfords

 This MinkPink sweater is like a mini version of the YMC sweater above.  It's cropped and will look cute over that summer maxi dress that you thought you might not wear for another 8 months.

Own sweaters are ones that you should just buy now because they'll probably become sweaters that you'll want to wear every day this fall and winter

This sweater is from the Gap and is very affordable. Get it today and get an extra 30% off with the code 48HOURS

Anthropologie is taking an extra 25% off this sweater making it less than $40.  Totally worth it.  Just buy it.  Do it now.

Comfy knits or not, this is a great selection of sweaters available now to keep you warm for the cold days to come.  I'm really digging the nubby sweaters!  That MinkPink cropped sweater might be leasing a space in my closet soon!

Own: Digital Bargain Bins

There are so many awesome bargain sites out there, but where do you start?  Some of them are hard to navigate, some don't have good inventory, some don't have free shipping...the list goes on for why some people don't like to shop these sites, but if you take a good look at some of them, they do have items that are worth the browsing time.  First though, there are a few guidelines that you have to consider when shopping these sites.

1) Don't expect to find this season's trendiest items.  Yeah, you know those adorable Miu Miu glitter pumps?  They'll probably never make it to these sites.

2) Don't shop labels.  This will severely limit the range of awesome things you could find.  Shopping by label alone usually means that you're looking for the trendier labels.  In that case, you can see the note above.  You're probably not going to find what you're looking for and if you do, it'll just be a case of sheer luck.

3) Search for coupon codes before you check out.  Do a google search!  A lot of these sites will offer coupon codes that can get you a little more of a discount or free shipping.  

4) Shop out of season.  If you see something that would be really cute for the summer, GET IT.  Don't worry that it's not 80 degrees outside or that you don't have a tropical getaway vacation planned.  Chances are, if you really like when it's too cold to wear it, you'll probably be happy you got it when the weather actually comes around.  Just stash it away until that weather arrives.

5) Check out the fine jewelry!  You're not going to find your future engagement ring on these sites, but if you are looking for a little diamond accented necklace or a little bling on a ring, these sites sometimes offer additional discounts on their fine jewelry that make these smaller pieces worth purchasing.  Not that they'll be your great investment pieces or anything, but they'll definitely be pieces that you can wear every day and not worry about ruining.

Now that we've see the rules, let's look at what I dug up:

Statement necklaces are huge this fall and this one from LastCall.com is a great buy at $150, about 50% off.  Also get free shipping with the code FRIEND50.

Simple dresses are great in the winter, especially ones that aren't too tight so that you don't get all those lines from leggings and stockings that you're wearing underneath. This knit dress is great to take you from fall to winter.

This dress from Inhabit was a deal on the Outnet at just $102.  No coupon codes here, but shipping is only $4.95.

This mini from the Outnet is pretty awesome, too.

Overstock is a site that I usually only frequent for bed linens and towels, but they have a surprisingly good selection of handbags. Like this really cute Salvatore Ferragamo bag.

And on the fine jewelry front, married or not, infinity bands are a beautiful treat for any hand!  Stack them or just wear them alone.

Moral of the story?  Don't pay full price for all your stuff.  There are great deals out there to be had, so have them!

Obsess: St. Kilda Lips

I've long since associated St. Kilda with delicate and gentle jewelry. St. Kilda was actually one of the many brands that influenced my dainty jewelry style along with Melissa Joy Manning, Mauri Pioppi, Jacquie Aiche, and Maya Brenner.  I've also drooled endlessly for Finn and Mociun jewlery. My first trip to Williamsburg brought me to the store Catbird and after that visit, my jewelry style was set in stone (haha! Pun intended!).

So, after a regular day's cruise around the web, I discovered this from Garance Doré's blog:

At first look, I knew I loved the bracelet, but after some digging, I realized that this amazing lips bracelet here is by St. Kilda! A quick Google search later, I discovered that the lips bracelet comes in an amazing variety of colors and is brilliant in every color it comes in. I'm OBSESSED with it!  Check out their facebook fan page here for this pic and more.

After a little more thought, I felt like these enamel lips looked really familiar.  I racked my brain thinking about where I might have possibly seen something similar. FINALLY, I remember that on several occasions when I was walking around on the upper east side in Manhattan, I had come across this ring in a store window:

These beautiful lips can be found in a variety of colors as well (unfortunately, the price point for this bauble definitely bumps this into the Ogle range...) at Solange Azagury Partridge or also at Net-a-Porter.  All very beautiful!

Yep, still drooling...