Style Seven: Prints for Fall

Must have prints for fall: 

1. Plaid

I absolutely adore plaid. I put this print first in my list because it is almost exclusive to the fall and winter months. Whether it be on a scarf, a flannel, or a vest, you can't go wrong adding plaid to any cold weather outfit.

2. Herringbone

One of my favorite prints for fall is herringbone. I love herringbone blazers for men in the cold months. Also, who can forget the oh so classic and popular J. Crew herringbone vest? 

[ill can't find a picture of me wearing herringbone but will correct this soon 🙈)

3. Houndstooth 

Houndstooth is a lot like herringbone because it's traditionally in a white and black color way. Not only is houndstooth school spirited, looking at you Alabama, but it's a great neutral print. I love this print especially in a statement coat. Also it's great on a scarf or other statement piece. 

4. Leopard 

"As far as I'm concerned leopard is a neutral." Right now, leopard is my favorite animal print. Because leopard is an animal print it can walk the line between lady and lady of the night (the exotic dancing kind). Leopard can easily make you look cheap. But wear it the right way and you'll receive a lot of compliments. Your inner wild is calling. Will you answer it? 

5. Stripes 

Can you go wrong with stripes? I love it when blazer or bag linings have a classic stripe print. It's a classic print and I think I wear something striped everyday. Also, stripes are to me the easiest to mix with other prints because it's so basic and geometric. (I'll write an entire post about mixing prints soon). 

6. Polka Dots

Overall, polka dots are probably my favorite print of all time. If anything (especially dish wear) has a polka dot print then I want to buy it. Polka dot details are so feminine to me. Kate Spade has shown us the many different uses for polka dots, and I love her for it! 

7. Floral 

I almost didn't include this on my fall list because it's not very fall or winter friendly. But there are some floral prints that work great in fall. Steer away from overall bright colors and pick prints with more neutrals. Anything with browns or golds will easily match your fall clothes. Black and white floral is a great option as well. 

Ciao for now! 

J

TerraMae: Brunching with Jackie O

Jordan and I live four hours away from each other but we make an effort to spend as many weekends as possible together. One of our favorite rituals is to go to Sunday Brunch. We have traveled a lot this year and have brunched in quite a few different cities. I am going to start documenting our more memorable brunches in my blog. 

Below is my first installment:

TerraMae

Appalachian Bistro 

Downtown Chattanooga

TerraMae is located on the first floor of the StoneFort Inn. This boutique inn is over 100 years old and was built on the old stone fort which existed during the civil war. Chattanooga has a lot of antebellum history and Jordan has a fascination with most things military so this restaurant seemed right up our alley! 

TerraMae is located in downtown Chattanooga on East 10th Street. I think this may be our first time going to brunch downtown (we usually stick to NorthShore). The restaurant seemed fairly busy but we were able to be seated without a reservation. We were seated by right the kitchen so next time I will probably make a reservation.

The decorations and atmosphere were great! I would describe it as Southern Chic.

We started our meal with a mimosa for me and an americano coffee for Jordan. Jordan blindly ordered an americano and learned that he prefers lattes and cappuccinos.  That was his fault, not the restaurant's. My mimosa was very good. You may ask "how can you mess up a mimosa?' But we have been unpleasantly surprised with the quality of orange juice used in mimosas in most restaurants (usually tastes like Minute Maid). TerraMae doesn't cut any corners on mimosas and uses freshly squeezed orange juice. Oh, and they have bottomless mimosas for $10. 

I decided to order the Heavenly Hash which is coffee and spice rubbed beef tips, caramelized potatoes (sweet and regular) and sunny side-up eggs. Jordan decided to order the frog legs appetizer as his main. 

My meal was amazing. The eggs were cooked perfectly and the beef was extremely tender and flavorful. I would definitely order this again.

 Jordan's meal was good but too potent for hit palate. He wanted to try the frog legs out of curiosity, but lesson learned: Jordan hates frog legs. Jordan is an extremely picky eater but he likes trying new things... this usually results in him eating my meal or him not eating much at all. 

Since we essentially split my entree, we decided to get dessert. We ordered the bread pudding. It was amazing. The dish consisted of three bread pieces a dark chocolate garnish and a scoop of pumpkin spice ice cream. This dish was divine and we could have eaten two more servings if our stomachs would have allowed. 

So far, I would rate TerraMae as our favorite Chattanooga brunch spot.

<> <> <> <> four diamonds 

Ciao for Now,

Jaclyn

Never Again

I, Jaclyn, hereby solemnly swear to not get white gel nail polish again until next summer. 

My mother is in charge of infection control for a local medical practice. She cannot have gel nail polish because it absorbs germs / bacteria / icky things. Therefore, I knew that gel polish wasn't very... ahem... clean. After getting white gel polish, I have visually experienced the dirt and grim that the polish absorbs. 

For the first few days, I LOVED the polish. 

It was classic. 

It was chic. 

It was stark white. 

Then... it turned icky. My bronzer turned the tips of my nails orange. I looked like I had a messy halloween / creamsicle manicure. Very unforgiving. I would only recommend getting white for a particular event and then getting them redone within the week. 

As for my nails, I will stick to pinks, purples, and reds in the future. 

Like most painful yet beautiful experiences in life, I will probably only abstain from white temporarily. 

I just wish that someone had warned me. 

So here I am, warning you.

Ciao for Now! 

Jac

Let Them Eat King Cake

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday so Rachel and I decided to partake in some Mardi Gras fun.

Here are pictures of the King Cake which I decorated as well as some snapshots of the festivities.

 

We couldn't find the baby in our pieces so we decided to cut the cake until we found it. Overall our "Pardi Gras" celebration was an adventure and my fingers may be stained yellow, green, and purple for a few days.  

Let them eat king cake! 

Hope your Fat Tuesday was as delicious as ours! 

Fashion of the Academy

Ever since I was a little girl, I've watched the Academy Awards with my mother and sister. After the awards, we would watch Joan Rivers talk about the fashion. The best dresses and the worst dresses, I couldn't wait to see them all.

The link below will take you to a blog with an infographic of the dresses of every winner of Best Actress since 1929. Definitely a link you want to check out!

http://www.mediarundigital.co.uk/blog/oscar-dresses-infographic-2014-version/

I think we can all agree that Cate Blanchett looked stunning!

Furocious Deal

In Georgia, we just got over a cold front and it has been pretty rainy and muggy. Today it was actually sunny which made me, and my hair, very happy. Here are a few pictures of my outfit today. I scored this cute brown coat from Forever 21 for only $11. Yes, ladies, $11. They are having a great sale on clearance items! 50% off already marked down items! I love a good deal (in this case it felt more like a steal) and I am extremely happy with the weight and fit of this coat. Plus, it's fur and I am loving the fur trend this season. This is a great piece to be on trend but not blend in with the masses in fur vests. I accessoried my outfit today with presents from some of the people in my life which are close to my heart which made it even more special! 

Close up of the cute pockets! 

Necklace from J Crew (Christmas present from my boss) 

Bow bracelet from Kate Spade (birthday present from my dear friend Rachel) 

Earrings from J Crew (Christmas present from my sister) 

Finally a picture of the coat from Forever 21! This was my inspiration behind today's look! 

Did any of y'all shop end of season sales? Did you find success like I did? 

#TeamStud

I love accessories. My first job in retail was in an accessory store in the mall, Charming Charlie. After working there for 6 months, I aquired lots of necklaces, bracelets, purses, scarves, and mostly: stud earrings.

I haven't worn dangly earrings since high school and here are 5 reasons why:

1. Studs look cute with all hairstyles. 

2. You can style your hair while wearing studs and not be in pain. (I have almost ripped a hole in my earlobe countless times from getting my earrings stuck in my hair while styling it. Also have you ever worn metal dangly earrings while blow drying your hair? Don't, it's painful and will burn you!) 

3. You can wear a statement necklace and studs at the same time and not look overaccessorized. 

4. Unless you are wearing 80s prom queen studs, they are lightweight and will not wreck your earlobe. 

5. You can buy a pair of stud earrings to match any theme imaginable and not look tacky.  (Examples: Kate Spade wedding studs, sports team mascots, and holiday shapes like a Christmas tree or pumpkin) 

Here is my personal collection of my favorite studs. My most worn earrings are my David Yurman pearl cookie earrings. They go with EVERYTHING. 

Here are some studs which I would like to add to my collection: 

Jac's helpful fashion hint: 

A little hint about stud earrings is the type of back that you wear with them. 

If you wear these backs: 

Then your earrings will look sad and hang off your earlobe strange. The bigger the stud, the more it will droop. 

But if you use these backs: 

Then your studs will be perky and happy just like the fabulous girl wearing them. 

You can buy a pack of these from Amazon and replace your backs on all your studs that have the other kind. Or you can just use these backs from another pair of earrings with your studs that came with lame backs. 

The clear ring adds support and makes for a much more comfortable experience as well as keeps the earring perky! 

What are your favorite studs? Do you share my stud-love? Are you #teamhoop or #teamdangle? Let me know!