orange ya glad...

it's only a matter of time before all the big coats will be put away for summer... and all the shorts and flip-flops will take their place .  so, i'm trying to get in as much boot and coat time as i can before the snow melts.  don't get me wrong, i enjoy the sunshine and warm weather, i just, i don't know, i like an excuse to wear a big, cozy coat and a pair of tall, equestrian-inspired boots.  this orange coats is one of my favorites! i purchased it because it reminded me of this fabulous orange coat that Audrey Hepburn wears in Breakfast at Tiffany's {you can see a photo of it if you click here}

{orange coat and navy and orange striped top, Zara; jeans and leopard handbag, Juicy Couture; boots, Etienne Aigner}

{sunglasses, Marc by Marc Jacobs}

{vehicle in background, Polaris Ranger... can't live on a ranch in Montana without one!}

on the streets of Paris

{boots, Etienne Aigner; jeans, Juicy Couture; striped top, Gap; jacket and great big scarf, Urban Outfitters; gloves, TSE; cross-body bag, Ralph Lauren; sunglasses, RayBan}

while in Paris, we walked and walked and walked. once we got where we were going...we walked and walked and walked back! despite all the croissants and cappuccinos, macarons and melted cheese, the walking kept us fit!

a little sunshine

winter has {finally} arrived here in Montana! and while i'm quite happy about this, i still felt i needed a little sunshine today... so i wore yellow.
and contrary to what my friend Jody McBrayer, formerly of Avalon, may imagine {you can read his tweet to me here}, i do not wear Gucci boots to feed the horses, at least not in 2 feet of snow:)
what i DO wear on a winters day...or at least on this winters day... is:

hair in a sock bun....if you don't know what that is look up a how-to-video on youtube. i'm addicted.
yellow sweater...clearance rack at Target, seriously.
vintage Rolex.... gift from the husband about 10 years ago
orange bracelets... both from Target
Michael Kors handbag... just enough mix of country and city
Juicy Couture Jeans... pretty much every time i visit CA i hit the Juicy store @ Fashion Island. they always have a GREAT selection of sale items in the back
wedge boots... again, clearance Target item. they do surprisingly well in the snow

baby it's cold outside

{vintage fur, a Christmas gift several years ago; trusty Juicy leopard bag; Anthropologie  skirt}

oh how i love winter! as a girl growing up in southern California, i had no idea what winter was. until my family up and moved to Michigan.... i was terribly sad to see them go. (although honestly, i was SO happy i was not moving with them to, what seemed to me at the time, a foreign land). i got married and stayed behind in California.  i did, however,  make the initial trip with my family and helped with the unpacking of boxes....in the middle of January!!!! talk about a rude awakening! from sunny, so. cal. to wintry, snow covered, Michigan...the ultimate culture shock.

now here i am, living in Montana of all places (which my father finds hysterical after all my whining about Michigan winters). and, quite frankly, loving every below-freezing moment of it! one of the many lovely things i've found out about winter is that you must, you simply must, wear boots and coats and gloves and hats at all times.  and for me, any excuse to wear my vintage fur coat is a good one.  i often throw it on over jeans too, as truly dressing up in Montana isn't something that happens very often.

hi-lo

i maneuver better in heels. or tennies. but flip flops through me off. i took quite a tumble this past summer while running in flip flops:

{no, that rip was not there before}

this is why i sing in heels.  i realize that sounds completely crazy.... but there is just something about heels that MAKE you stand up straight and take care.

{Gap ballerina flats, Roberto Cavalli heels}

HOWEVER: i don't like to wear heels, like, all day long.  so, i {almost} always wear flats to where i'm going (or slippers...or uggs... in winter) and throw on my heels at the last minute.  it's a safety precaution.

boots

{vintage boots i purchased in Napa 8 years ago; Missoni for Target tote}

in many ways my life is a constant contradiction. i spend an enormous amount of time jumping between life on a ranch in Montana and life on the road visiting and singing in big cities. i might wear cowboy boots and jeans one day, and find myself in sky high heels and a dress the next.

this day, though, i decided to merge the two and sing in my boots.  i was much shorter than usual...but oh so comfortable!

end of summer

leopard cardigan; jeans, Juicy Couture; draped front green T, JCrew; flats, purchased a few years ago from a little shop in Sydney, Australia; handbag, L.A.M.B.; sunglasses, Ralph by Ralph Lauren (airport purchase!)

the end of summer is here. i have to just accept it.  but that doesn't mean i have to wear socks yet!
socks, no. sweater, yes. and my go to sweater for this time of year is this little leopard number. it doesn't have a tag inside, so i don't even know who makes it! that is not normally the case...

i have kept many things that i've purchased over the years and, thankfully, can still wear most of them! (that has not always been the case...click on the {health} tab for more on that...) and of the items i've kept, i'd say that the majority of the pieces mean something to me. they have been kept because they are significant.  i can usually remember where i purchased an item, why, even how much it cost!

this sweater is newer, i purchased it last year sometime... from a little off-the-beaten-path shop somewhere. it's not your typical cardigan, it's slightly drapey in the front, with no buttons. it's an easy thing to throw on over pretty much any T and jeans. or a dress. or skirt. it's one of my current favorite things...

the scoop

shopping last year in Paris;
{Lamb handbag; Banana Republic flats; True Religion jeans;  Ray Bans (99$ on Gilt.com);  Target pink/white striped scarf; jacket from Nordstrom Rack}

for my first post in this section/category of the blog, i thought i'd share the scoop. as in, tell you why i'm including this heading...{handbags and highheels}

i have been a fashion fan since my younger days.  i've learned a lot over the years about how and why to wear what.  there have been some seasons when i've had the means to buy some good stuff.  and some seasons where my purchases were not so fancy.  i hope i can, through this blog and the posts herein, inspire and encourage you to enjoy who you are, find good deals when the need arises, and be creative with what you have...

here's to clothes, fashion, creativity, and YOU!!