Wah Wah Watusi // Daily Outfit + Eshakti Review

Being the tallish gal that I am makes it difficult to find dresses that are actually, you know - long enough! So when Lauren posted Eshakti, I knew I wanted to try it! Of course, wanting to and doing are two different things, and I just never got around to it. So of course I jumped at the chance when Jane from Eshakti contacted me about doing a review.

Selection

There were so many lovely dresses that at first I wasn't sure how in the world I was going to pick just one, but in the end I realized that I kept coming back to this same, swingy, 1950's inspired frock with the embroidered owls on the skirt. Very Owl City, amirite?

Sizing

I went with Eshakti's standard sizing because I'm terribly picky about the fitting of my dresses, and I chose a knee length because there is nothing worse than ordering a dress you think will be long enough, only to find out that it is - in all actuality - too short. So I figured I'd better be on the safe side. The dress is actually a little longer than I expected (I probably could have chosen the "above knee length option since they take your height with the order - duh!), and when I first tried it on I was actually worried that I would be uncomfortable in it since I usually wear shorter dresses, but I ended up loving it! I felt like such a doo wop babe all day.

Quality

And the dress itself is really good quality. The fabric is really nice - you can tell it's good quality, but it's thin enough that it won't be too hot in the summer - and even with picking a custom dress and ordering it the day before Christmas eve, I still received it within two weeks (with Christmas Eve, Christmas and New Years Eve and Day I wasn't expecting it to come for several more days).

Odds and Ends

I think that's everything I wanted to to cover - oh, except that it has a lovely cut out in the back. It's really nice and not too low that I'd be uncomfortable with it, but I didn't get a photo of it because my bra strap showed and I'm not sure what to do about that so I just wore a black tank top under it. If any of you have any suggestions as to how to hide the unsightly band I'd love to hear them, because I'd love to wear it without a tank in the summer - it's just so pretty! ♥

Have any of you tried Eshakti before? What did you think of it?

P.S. Can you believe I'm wearing a dress without tights in the middle of January!? We had a sudden "heat" wave on Friday and it was nearly 50 degrees!

♥ ♥ ♥       

dress: c/o Eshakti
shoes: Urbanog

belt: Thrifted

jacket: Top Shop

necklace: Stitch Fix

purse: Jo Totes

lipstick: Kat Von D Painted Love in Underage Red

title: Wah Wah Watusi by The Orlons

Disclosure: the dress featured in this post was provided to me from Eshakti for review. All thoughts + opinions are my own. 

La La Land // Daily Outfit

No, the title of this post has nothing to do with those Lalaloopsy dolls (although, now that I think of it, this outfit does slightly resemble something they would wear...). It's the title of one of my favorite songs by Demi Lovato, and whenever I wear a leather jacket I always think of her, since she was a huge style icon for me when she was working with Disney. (Am I the only one who misses Sonny with a Chance??) I still draw inspiration from her style back then.

Speaking of stylish ladies, I actually bought this dress for the lovely Kaelah of Little Chief Honeybee. I fell in love with it the minute I saw it on her Instagram closet sale and I am so glad I snapped it up! It fits like a dream and is the most perfect party dress ever - and I just love how awesome it looks with my matching Lita knock offs! I wore this outfit when I went shopping with my girl friend, Emily and her boy friend and I got so many compliments on my shoes/outfit. One really nice employee at TopShop even told me that "the Litas made the outfit." Is it vain of me to love getting compliments on my outfit when I go out? I just love putting together outfits so much! Someday I want to own my own indie clothing boutique where I'll sell gorgeous party dresses and serve tea all day long. ♥

♥ ♥ ♥

dress: Kaelah Bee's Instagram closet sale

JC knock offs (one day I will own the real thing!): UrbanOg

necklace: ModCloth

tights: c/o We Love Colors

jacket: TopShop

 bag: ModCloth 

sun glasses: Modcloth

The Sands of Time // Daily Oufit

Sometimes I just cannot believe how this year has gone so far! In just ten months I've gotten my drivers license, graduated high school, got a job, lost some of my best friends, made new ones, and generally just got a new lease on life.

Sometimes when I look at recent photos of me I have this "holy cow! That's not a little girl in that photo anymore!" moment. Sometimes I can't believe that I'm already eighteen - and then instantly I'm like "I'm only eighteen!?" I feel at least twenty...

But I guess that just makes my life a little less rushed - like waking up in the morning and thinking you'd better get ready for work when you realize that you still have another two hours till you have to get up. I know, odd example but you get the idea.

Also, I have a bunch of shopping planned for the next two weeks, so hopefully there'll be more regular outfit posts on here soon. Here's hoping!

Hope all of yours weeks are going well so far!

♥ ♥ ♥       

blouse: my mom's

jeans: Forever 21

shoes: Urban Og

necklace + key: Kane County Flea Market

jeans: Forever 21

Blossoms Filled the Room // Daily Outfit

I feel as if I'm finally getting used to the new "normal." I'm wearing skirts to work, and actually making new friends. I feel like I'm finally coming out of of my shell, and it feels amazing! I also think it's really good for me. I think that I need to be on my own more and start making more of my own friends - not just friends of the family.

It can be so tempting, sometimes, to put up a bad situation because it's so hard/scary to try a new, different situation. But let's face it - that's no way to live. Anything worth having is worth fighting for and often times requires it. I want to feel alive and to that I have to go through both the dreams and the disasters - so so be it! I'd rather live and be hurt and tell my children and grandchildren the story of it than go through life without having really ever lived. So here's to life's little disasters. ♥

In other news this outfit reminded me of a 1950's house dress with the high neckline, button-down top, wide belt and full skirt. Am I the only one who sees the resemblance?

♥ ♥ ♥       

blouse: Rue 21

skirt: made by me

shoes: Urban Og

belt: thrifted

bag: ModCloth

Dreams and Disasters // Daily Outfit

Tuesday I went directly from work out to dinner with my friend Emily + some of her friends to celebrate her 21st birthday. It was a ton of fun, but required me to wear my out-to-dinner clothes to work. Not sure why the idea of wearing a skirt to work has been so nerve wracking to me considering I did it for baby sitting all the time and my new job isn't anymore Marilyn-moment-inducing than baby sitting, but for some reason I just hated the idea of it. I guess jeans are just a comfort zone thing...

Anyway, I got through the day in a skirt totally fine and had a blast at dinner afterwards. Sometimes being a grown up is just the bomb!

♥ ♥ ♥       

tank: Target

skirt : Etsy

cardigan: Charlotte Russe

shoes: Urban Og

belt: thrifted

necklace + bag: ModCloth

leggings: Forever 21

lipstick: MAC in "Lickable"

Shine No Matter Where You Are // Daily Outfit

This is what I wore on Mother's day. This dress is one of my favorites, but the material is so silky that I'm often stumped at how I can dress it down - especially when pairing it with such bold shoes! I figured that a denim jacket dressed everything down, so that's what I did. I have to admit, I really love the way it turned out.

Tomorrow I am going to get my hair cut - just a few inches off the bottom and trim up my layers and bangs. I'm getting my senior portraits taken on Monday and I decided that my hair is a bit too "bushman" to get them taken like this. lol!

Speaking of my graduation photos, would "y'all" mind helping me with something? I need to decide on 5-6 outfits to bring to the photo shoot - so we'll have options - and so far I only two that I for sure bringing. Eep! So if you all wouldn't mind commenting and tell me your favorite dress/outfit you've seen here on le blog it would be much appreciated!

Hope you all are having a lovely day! ♥

      ♥ ♥ ♥        

dress: ModCloth

shoes: Urbanog

jacket: Ebay

bag: Etsy

flowerclip: H&M

sun glasses: Delia*s

Red Hot Love // Daily Outfit

{dress//The Red Dress Shoppe :: skirt//thrifted :: tights//Merona :: belt//thrifted :: shoes//UrbanOg :: sunglasses//Delia's via my little sister :: head band//D.I.Y :: jacket//Wet Seal}

I actually wore this outfit several weeks ago, but I wanted to post it before I get into all the holiday posts. 

My big sis, Jack, helped me plot out this outfit after I got my red ballet flats and needed something to wear with them. Red is one of my favorite colors - very recently, too. I just can't get enough of it! Red shoes, red headbands, red cardigans, red flowers in floral dresses and I'm hoping to get a pair of red tights and red coat this winter! It just makes me feel so pretty and confident whenever I wear it.

Do you have a favorite color to wear? One that makes you feel great whenever you put it on? What is it? Comment and tell me!

The Way You Love Me // Daily Outfit + Honest to Blog

{dress//ModCloth :: jeans//Old Navy :: shoes//UrbanOg :: cardigan//thrifted :: belt//thrifted :: necklace//ModCloth :: headband//D.I.Y}

"There's no one else who can love me,
 Quite like the way that you love me,
No, there's no one else."
~ No One Else by Breanne Duren
This is outfit is almost entirely composed of some of my favorite pieces of clothing and make up. ModCloth dress? Check. Indie shoes? Check. Bright fuchsia lipstick? Check. Bright blue cardigan, Peter Pan colar, DIY headband and (awesome) gold rockabilly car necklace? Check! I have an inkling that this outfit probably shouldn't work, but I don't really care. It's me and I like it. ♥
A couple years ago I had a friend that with low self esteem. She had to be the best and smartest at everything, and if I didn't agree with her then I had to be the one who was wrong. I know she didn't mean to be mean, because she's really a sweet girl, but I had low self esteem and being around her made me question myself. I felt like somehow I just wasn't quite as good as she was. She didn't except me as I was, and I wanted her to like me so much I changed who I was to fit in with her. I often wonder how far I would have followed her if I hadn't met my big sister shortly after. 
But this year has been awesome. I've made a lot of new friends (yes, Amber, I'm looking at you!) who love me and except me completely as I am - which is pretty crazy as the first picture clearly shows - and my confidence has grown in leaps and bounds.

Earlier this week I was telling one of my afore mentioned new friends about how irritated I am at not posting on my blog more often. I summed it up to my laziness, and half joking/half not reprimanded myself with an exclamation of "bad, Katie!" But what my friend said next caught me by surprise. He told me quite bluntly that he didn't think I was lazy and bad, but "sweet and good." I'm not going to lie: that totally made my day! I'm definitely a "words of affirmation" kind of girl, so hearing something like that -especially completely unasked for - pretty much sent my confidence soaring sky high, and if it wasn't for that I probably wouldn't have had the guts to post that first picture.