Couple of Crumbs

Summer Lovin’: Claudia Chic - a BSC Approved Guide to Summer Style

Anni is a twentysomething fledgling photographer with a serious case of wanderlust, a tiny Chicago apartment she shares with her wonderful fiance (and whole slew of pets), and a serious affinity for fashion, food, and wine. She blogs about a little bit of everything - including plenty of BSC references - here and you can keep up with her photography here. If you held a gun to her head, she’d admit to being a Stacey more than anything, except for the math part. 

I was so excited when Red Velvet and Funfetti asked me to be a part of their summer series, and even more so when they wooed me with the suggestion of a BSC-themed post. Regular readers of my blog will remember that everything I know about fashion, I learned from Claudia and Stacey. I’m not joking when I say that I had all the Babysitter’s Club books, Super Editions and Mysteries included. I didn’t buy the Little Sister ones (what was up with those anyway? Karen was so annoying!) but I did read the California Diaries when they came out, even though I was far too old to be reading kids’ books at that point.

Stacey, Claudia, Kristy, Mary Anne, Dawn, Mallory, and Jessi taught me a lot about life. For instance, I knew the difference between Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes waaaaay before anyone else in the second grade. And I’m fairly certain that I can blame my love for upper-end department stores on Stacey. Bloomingdale’s is a gateway store, I’m telling you. I desperately wanted to be artsy like Claudia, but I had to settle for our mutual love of Nancy Drew. And Mallory - well, she was a fellow horse crazy girl and writer. If only she had access to the Saddle Club books like I did, I think she would have been a lot less angsty.

Lest you think I’m joking, I’ve done a fair amount of prep work leading up to this post. It’s a hard life, doing research for a fashion-oriented guest post on the BSC, but someone had to do it. A note: if you’re going to re-read your favorite childhood books, it’s best to have a glass (er, bottle) of wine and someone to read aloud particularly hilarious descriptions to and laugh with about the careful way Ann M. Martin presents such politically correct gems as “I guess another thing you should know about the Walkers is that they’re black. There aren’t too many black families in our building. You know what’s funny, though? When I’m with the Walkers I don’t think of them as black, just as people.” Deep thoughts from city girl Stacey!

So, the first holy grail of BSC fashion? When accessorizing, go big or go home. Subtlety is NOT your friend here. Take this flower pin via Emerson Made:

The dress is all Stacey, aka Miss Sophistication, but that flower is pure Claudia. Bright, big, impossible to miss. If it screams look at me, you’re probably good to go. Because what’s fashion if you’re not taking a risk?

Next rule? Tights and/or leggings can and should go under almost anything. Bonus points if they’re neon! But if you want to work a little BSC in your life and neon’s not your scene, feel free to prep it up a little. A get-up like this would even get the seal of approval from Stacey’s New York best friend, Laine.

Of course, when choosing an outfit, the brighter the better. This can be applied to colors, patterns, and the general boldness of an outfit. Anyone remember Claudia wearing her dad’s shirts with funky get-ups? Well, Rag and Bone totally stole that. I’m sure Claudia thought up boyfriend jeans, too. Except in PG Stoneybrook, they would have been dad jeans. But unlike mom jeans, they still would have been totally rad, because Claudia would have taken a pair of scissors to them, or maybe just ripped them in some way that Urban Outfitters was years from figuring out. So, if you think about it, all those celebrities should be thanking Claudia. Something to think about, Reese.

But seriously, back to accessories. Dangly earrings are a MUST. Even Dawn, with her California Cool style, knew this. Come to think of it, Dawn probably would have been all over boyfriend jeans and shirts, too. She was always wearing all that chambray. If she waited long enough, she could have modeled for J. Crew. But back to the accessorizing - nothing says free-spirited like a good pair of really oversized earrings. You can find these pretty much anywhere, but bonus points if you find a really cool, unique pair. My favorite go-to is Gabrielle Zwick, who designed these:

Last but not least, when in doubt do as the Kishi would: throw your hair in a side ponytail. You, too, can look this awesome.

That concludes my nuggets of wonderfully funky-yet-sophisticated fashion wisdom from the world of the BSC. I hope you read the books, too, otherwise this probably made me come across just a little bit crazy. I have to say, it was a lot of fun revisiting my childhood faves. Some of my fondest memories from childhood were centered around entire days spent buried under piles of books that were hand-me-downs from family friends, or scored from a garage sale. I think I eventually ended up with the entire collection, although I have no idea where they are now. A big thank you to Funfetti for lending me a few of hers! Any other diehard BSC fans out there

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Claudia Chic - a BSC Approved Guide to Summer Style is part of our Summer Series.

Crumbistas: Reading with Style

By: Funfetti

I could easily sit here and write about how many dresses I own, or my go-to accessories but I thought of something better – the bone I have to pick with most magazines. They always seem to advertise for individuals in a higher price bracket. It’s completely annoying when I find myself eyeing an accessory or a blouse, and it’s basically my entire monthly paycheck. So I’ve basically given up reading magazines – you can read all the celebrity interviews online anyway – and started following some blogs in order to find clothes an average-sized person can wear AND afford. Crazy, I know.

Here are few of my daily stops:

J’s Everyday Fashion is one of the most down-to-earth blogs I have come across. J is on a budget per month; she takes her own pictures and she finds styles in magazines and somehow, finds a way to make the ensemble affordable and live in reality. Plus this girl loves a belt. Her accessories are always on par, she can dress for any occasion, and she’s always around to help her readers with their own fashion conundrums.

• Check out her April Budget!

I just started following Lindsay Living and I love it. First of all, she loves the Loft almost as much as I do and she has the cutest blunt bangs. She’s doing something I desperately need to get in the habit of doing. Finding those clothing items in the back of her closet and making use of them. She’s also an elementary school teacher – how adorable is that?! (Better dressed than any of my teachers… let me tell you. I had one who used to wear shirts with fish all over them. She also used to be a model. Scary.)

What I Wore is another one of my favorites.  I love all the bright colors Jessica wears, not to mention she was the one who made Modcloth.com a daily stop for me (Mr. FF, you can blame her!). She shops for bargains, talks about investment pieces, and even makes her own clothing. It’s pretty remarkable. This lady has her own book coming out in July, which is so exciting. You can pre-order her book here on Amazon! It comes out in about a month. P.S. Her wedding also provided some fun posts. Check it out!

Latte Love is the cutest thing! I’ve been a reader of her newlywed/life blog for awhile, and she recently started this style Tumblr as an extension of her growing love of clothing creations. I love her smile, and she has such a fab bob – this girl looks like she has FUN getting dressed every day. She mixes some vintage finds with clothes from stores we all know and love. Can’t forget to spotlight this particular blog when she wears her dress backwards all day - read it here!

Miss Melissa is a Vancouver girl with the most perfect hair I have ever seen. I’m always amazed how her bangs fall so perfectly across her forehead. (Teach me your ways!) This is another blogger who works hard to re-wear what she already has in her closet plus she’s a huge fan of Modcloth, has the cutest clutches, and posts some mean recipes once in awhile. I actually first stumbled upon her blog when she had started a Health & Fitness feature last winter. It’s so worth checking out.

Possessionista is another new find for me. Dana is pretty genius. She finds the clothes that are similar to the ones your favorite characters from Glee or The Bachelorette are wearing, and posts them. It’s pretty awesome. Plus she hosts giveaways and has a mean sense of humor – love it! You can read about the birth of her blog in this recent article.

Alyson of The Average Girl’s Guide is excited by affordable fashion and her enthusiasm just jumps off the screen. I love her “5 Must Haves of the Moment” feature – the idea is pretty self-explanatory but these bloggers also include chocolate and frappuccinos on their lists. Love it! I love Alyson’s honesty and her crafty shopping skills (Target finds, people!). Check out this recent blog on weight. A total bonus - this girl is social savvy and loves to chat with her readers via Twitter. That’s even more awesome if you ask me!

Last but not least, BudgetBabe.com is an awesome resource for finding affordable fashion in SO many different places. Some of my favorite posts are when she goes to Old Navy or Target and takes pictures of herself in certain ensembles so readers can see just how these pieces fit. (If I’ve learned anything over the years, TRYING THINGS ON is a big one.) Another fun feature is her “Dress By Number” blogs, when she breaks down a celebrity’s outfit with comparable, affordable items.

And that’s that.

What style blogs do you read? I’m always on the lookout for more!

Crumbistas: I’m a Bagaholic

By: Red Velvet

Our fashion series wouldn’t feel complete if I didn’t write about my love of bags.  I’m obsessed with them (in case you need a refresher!) and everyone who knows me can tell you that.  But I’ve been working on my impulse buying (no really, I have) and my bag addiction is definitely more under control these days.  Now, instead of just buying any bag I like (even if it’s an inexpensive one from Forever 21), I try to only buy bags I really want.  
 
So what do I look for in a bag?

• Something that can hold all my essentials (phone, wallet, ipod, lotion, lip balm/gloss, compact, gum and bonus points if I can fit a book too).  
• Easy to throw over my shoulder (loving cross-bodies right now!).  I occasionally buy bags that I have to carry on the crook of my arm but not too often.
• Fits me (sounds weird but given my small frame, really big bags look funny on me).  
• Color! For the longest time, I would only buy bags in neutral colors like black and brown because they go with everything.  But now I have bags in purple, red, cognac, green, blue, metallic.  
• Lightweight.  I see a lot of bags with big chains and/or a lot of metal going on and they’re cute (sometimes), but they’re not for me. I tend to carry a lot so I don’t need the extra weight on my shoulder.  I like light, soft bags that are easy to schlep around, especially in the city.  

A lot of the bags that I use on a regular basis lately happen to be designer ones but honestly - I don’t discriminate! I could walk into Forever 21, H&M, Old Navy or even Target and more often than not, something cute will catch my eye (I just try to walk away).  But I also think that if you want a quality bag (especially soft leather which I am a fan of), that involves a little (or a lot more) investing.  My favorite “affordable designers” are Coach, Dooney & Burke and Longchamp.  If I wanted to go more expensive, Kate Spade and Cole Haan.  If I wanted to go super duper expensive, Louis Vuitton (I only like the checkered print), Rebecca Minkoff (I only get her bags at sample sales) and Chanel (dream bag! I don’t own one yet).  But the most important thing is finding a bag YOU like - regardless of brand.  

A big factor with buying a bag, that I have yet to mention in detail, is price.  I’ve gotten a good portion of my bags through some sort of sale.  I’m on the Kate Spade and Saavy & Co mailing lists (they send out emails about sample sales).  I check out Gilt Groupe and Swirl for their online sample sales.  Then being a fairly regular shopper as Coach has earned me 25% coupons at least a few times a year.  And of course, there’s department store sales at Macy’s, Lord & Taylor’s and Bloomingdale’s.  But sometimes I just luck out and stumble upon a good deal - which is always nice too!

Here are the bags I use most:

(L-R, top-bottom)

1.  Coach Mia Leather Convertible Shoulder
2.  Hello Kitty I Heart Nerds Tote Bag (couldn’t find on Sanrio.com)
3.  Forever 21 Quilted Bag (not available anymore)
4.  Cole Haan Vintage Valise Claire Mini Satchel
5.  Jessica Simpson Collection Katie Satchel
6.  L.A.M.B. Crimson Leather Vane satchel
7.  Longchamp Le Pliage tote
8.  Louis Vuitton Damier Ebene Neverfull PM (my biggest bag splurge ever)
9.  Rebecca Minkoff Morning After Mini (got this at an amazing sample sale for a great price!)

Crumbistas: Funfetti’s Closet

One of my favorite parts about opening a new Baby-Sitter’s Club book was the description of each of the character’s style. Even fifteen years or so after I started reading them, I can’t forget Kristy’s jeans + t-shirt uniform, along with Stacey’s city-sophistication or Claudia’s adventurous and crafty wardrobe. Dawn in her California casual, Mary Anne is her conservative style and Mallory and Jessi who always dressed like eleven year olds (whatever that meant). I thought of this immediately when Red Velvet and I decided to conquer a fashion series. In fact, I haven’t been able to get it out of my head so I decided to concoct some Funfetti “uniforms”.
 
It’s hard to give a name to my style. I like to be comfortable but I also take a certain pride in looking good. I love to wear patterns and mix them up with different color solids. I wear a lot of necklaces and bracelets. I also own a lot of shoes. It’s important for me to find pieces I can wear to work and on the weekends. And also pieces I know will get more use than a few months (I learned that the hard way.) So what do you call that exactly? Comfy-fun-basic? Com-fun-bas. There we go.
 
Before I break my work and weekend clothing choices down, here’s a shot of my closet, a drawer of my dresser, and my shoe closet. Since I moved in with Mr. FF, I’ve had to SHARE a closet. Dreadful, I know. Especially since the entire closet is smaller than what I had at my old house. Sadness. So I converted the linen closet into a shoe and accessory closet. We also have some additional storage in our basement for other dresses, and seasonal clothes. (Thank God.) Get excited because I cleaned my closet and drawers just to impress you.

Now for the fun part.

My job doesn’t enforce much of a dress code. It’s business casual, emphasis on the casual. But I’m much happier wearing a skirt or dress rather than dress pants. So that’s what I do. On Fridays, though, we can wear jeans and I never turn down that opportunity. (In my future life, I’d love to work at an establishment like Red Velvet’s. Jeans and flats are AWESOME.) Anyway, I’ve given up wearing heels because I walk to my job and I really despise changing shoes. Maybe once the weather is consistently nicer I’ll feel more inclined to make use of my heels. Who knows? This is a typical Funfetti work outfit:

1. Top from Ann Taylor Loft
2. Skirt from Gap
3. Flats from Gap
4. Necklace from Ann Taylor Loft

Not much to explain. But what I love about this outfit is that I would most likely wear this shirt on a weekend too. Plus, you can mix and watch your top colors to go with a black and white skirt. I have so much black in my closet. Classic!

Now for the weekend. Like anyone else, I like to be comfortable on the weekends. If I’m not spending most of it in my pajamas, I mostly wear t-shirts, tanks, jeans, sandals, sneakers, etc. It all depends on the weather. This outfit is something I’d wear in the spring. (In a month or so, I would exchange the sneakers for flip flops.)

1. Shirt from Forever 21
2. Cropped Jeans from Ann Taylor Loft
3. Sneakers from Roxy

Unfortunately, the only item from this collection that may pull double duty for work and play would be the cropped jeans for a casual Friday. Oh well, can’t win them all.

If it’s not obvious enough, I do most of my shopping at Ann Taylor Loft and the Gap. I do have both their credit cards (scary!) and they have a lot of rewards and sales, hence the reason why I stick to these two. Once and awhile, I get lucky at Express (they have some great sales too if you sign up for their email) but I’ve noticed their clothes have gotten super club-trendy and very unlike me. So that’s generally a turn-off. I do like Forever 21 and H&M but in the past, I’ve gotten so caught up into stocking up because EVERYTHING WAS SO CHEAP AND TRENDY and sadly, realized a lot of these pieces do not have a long life. I’ve learned too become more choosy about what I buy from these two stores.

As far as accessories, I love to buy jewelry from shoe stores like Aldo. The prices are really reasonable and they always have the cutest things (their shoes not so comfy though). For shoes, I love the flats from Gap, and have found a lot of my favorites at Nine West, DSW, and Payless. I may be somewhat of a compulsive shopper at times… I’ve been working on that …but I try NOT to shop when I don’t have some sort of coupon or incentive. (For online purchases, I check out eBates.com before I buy anything and mostly, get cash back.) I also tend to forget about department stores! Most recently, I’ve found some great stuff at Macys (American Rag) and JCPenney (I Heart Ronson). Be sure to check their websites before you go shopping because there are always coupons to print out. (Or better yet, sign up for their emails.)

So there it is. My shopping philosophies. Now I just have to control myself from buying those sample outfits I just put together. I love them! (And the Gap skirt is on sale!!!)

Crumbistas: Red Velvet’s Closet

 
It’s easy to see my closet is overflowing with clothes.  There’s dresses, tops, cardigans, skirts, jeans, hoodies and bags (don’t even get me started on those) but somehow, I still find myself thinking - I don’t know what to wear! Luckily, my office is pretty laid-back so this is how I get ready in the morning.  Shower, 15 minutes for makeup, 30 minutes to straighten my hair.. and 5 minutes to get dressed before I rush out of the house to catch the bus.  Yup, I basically just throw open my closet door, put on a pair of jeans, a cute top, a cardigan, slip on some flats and I’m good to go.  Actually that’s pretty much what I wear in general (until summer time and then I can finally break out my many dresses).  
 
So here are some of my favorite things (new and old) to wear these days:

(L-R, clockwise)

• The blue ruffled tiered top from Express (mine is fuschia) is one of my favorite tops that I’ve worn almost all year round.  I wear it by itself when it’s hot or with varying cardigans depending on how cold it is.  I just love the bright color plus the fit is extremely flattering (thanks to the ruffles!).
• The red tunic from Anthropologie (mine is black) is another favorite top.  Again, it’s flattering and comfortable plus I can pair it with a lot of different things.  I’ve used it alone, with a brown thin belt, with a wide black belt, a green long-sleeve cardigan, a bright blue short-sleeve one.  Plus always, always with a pair of skinny jeans (I tried leggings but the top is a bit too sheer for that).  
• My Beatles t-shirt… I love the band, I love the shirt.  It’s just so worn in and comfy.  I have a ton of band tees but this is by far the one I wear the most.
• The cropped sleeve sweatshirt from Aerie is so comfortable that I own two of them - in navy and light gray.  I like the cropped sleeves especially because I’m petite so long sleeves are always too long.  But these are perfect.  I like to pair them with a fun shirt underneath - like a red tee or a purple striped tee.  Or even a simple white tank will do.  It’s one of my go-to tops on the weekends.
• My gray suede flats from Nine West are my most comfortable pair of flats (in case you haven’t noticed yet, I like comfortable!) but so, so cute.  I love all the little beading which gives it something extra.  And for me, the gray is nice departure from all my pairs of black shoes.
• I’m gonna group the jeans together - one is a pair of black skinny jeans from Banana Republic and the other is the Diva skinny jean from Old Navy.  It’s really hard for me to find pants that fit well and as soon as I put these on, they felt (and looked) good.  Of course I still had to get them shortened (that’s what happens when you’re under 5”) but everything else was perfect!
• This cardigan from the Loft is the one cardigan I put over almost everything (and it matches with everything too).  But I’ve used it over tank tops, shirts, dresses.  It just fits really well and again, love the cropped sleeves.  
• I love my purple converses.  I mean, they’re purple! (Note: my favorite color.)
• I just got this Juicy Couture recently hoodie but I’ve been wearing it A LOT.  It stood out to me because it was different from the hoodies I’m used to seeing in that store.  It’s still velour but has ruffles at the bottom, it’s a lil’ more loose fitting, slightly cropped and has puffed sleeves. It’s so cute!

Most of the time you can find me shopping at Forever 21, LOFT, H&M, Urban Outfitters, Old Navy, Anthropologie (can’t always afford their prices but I do love their store) and Nine West. Ppretty much all the places my favorite items are from.  Like anybody else, I’m all for the good deals and prices, but for something I really like, I don’t mind spending a lil’ extra.  But most importantly, I just want to feel comfortable in what I’m wearing and look good too!