So...summer happened.

So...I blinked. And then it was August.

So many things have been going on this summer that I haven't even thought about taking a moment to write a post. I'm so bad at this blogger thing. 

But don't fret, my friends! Soon I will be back at it and have glorious things to post about! 

But in case you've missed me..here is what I have been up to this last month. 

1. End-o-June: I went on a family vacation with the BF, his brother, sister-in-law, nephew, and the pups. It was wonderful! I had such an amazing time with them and am so thankful to have a family in New England since I can't be with my family back home in Indiana as often as I'd like. 
2. Bachelorette Extravaganza #1: FINALLY I was reunited with my college loves!! My bestie from college is getting married in September and our friend, Pooja, throw the ultimate Bachelorette weekend for us in Chicago. The theme "LBD" while the Bride wore white, and it was fabulous! Family style dinner, followed by drinks and catching up, then brunch on saturday, and trolly around the city Saturday night, and a tearful goodbye on Sunday morning. You never know how much you miss/need your girlfriends until you have to say goodbye. But it will be Hello again in September and I can't wait!
3. Bachelorette/Shower Extravaganza #2: Not only is my bestie from college getting married, but my BEST BEST friend from childhood is ALSO getting married in September, and I am her Maid-of-I-Couldn't-Be-More-Honored! I threw her a Bridal Brunch (which my great friend, Katie, was kind enough to catch on camera) and I could not have been happier with the results! Complete with mini-pancakes, mini quiche, and mimosas. What more could you want? Cupcakes?! Oh yeah...we had those too, as parting favors! I was just so pleased. From their we packed up and headed down to Louisville, KY for a fun filled night on 4th Street. If you haven't been to 4th Street, you're missing out. We had such an awesome time...and a few of us rode the mechanical bull....in dresses....not the classiest thing we've ever done, but we got a free round of drinks out of it! So chalk that up for a bachelorette success! 
4. New Beginnings:  A lot has been changing for me in the past month...a lot of great things...stressful things...exciting things! Things that I think will really launch me into a better place in my career, and my life (and my life with the BF). I can't wait to share more...but I will wait...for now. Stay tuned for the latest! It's coming....I promise.

**have fun**   **drink responsibly**   **look stylish**

Hint for whats to come
"Take Pride in Your Beer"

YSL, no longer.

FASHION NEWS!

The iconic label Yves Saint Laurent has dropped the Yves. Goodbye, YSL...Hello...SL?

If there were Facebook buttons on real life situations, I would dislike this. {side note} Facebook needs a dislike button. Sure there are plenty of things to like on Facebook, but trust me, there are plenty of things to dislike also. Point made.

WWD confirmed this morning that new YSL Creative Director, Hedi Slimane, has in fact decided to change the iconic Yves Saint Laurent name to Saint Laurent Paris. Slimane stated that the brand needed to re-brand itself, and along with that re-branding a new, more contemporary name was in order. As reported, the fashion house will not eliminate the known YSL logo completely. The logo will still be visible and present on shoe soles, cosmetic cases, and various other products. However, I can't help but wonder, if the idea is to re-brand the fashion house, why keep the iconic logo? Is this because the company knows that many products are purchased solely on the fact that they are YSL? Why not try to phase out the old logo? Perhaps brand products as YSL for Saint Laurent Paris? 

Whatever their reasoning my be, I would still like to dislike this decision. When Karl Lagerfeld leaves Chanel do you think they are going to let the new creative director come in and say, "we need a re-branding, let's try a name change." Absolutely not. 

There are reasons that these fashion houses have been around for as long as they have, and though they must be at the leading end of fashion, it doesn't mean they have to lose what they have always been known for, or known as. Chanel, Dior, Givenchy, and now Saint Laurent Paris? Just don't roll off the tongue quite as nicely as (que terrible French accent) Yves Saint Laurent.

Back to Basics

Hello All! I know I've been M.I.A for a couple of weeks, and I can feel myself falling into a pattern. Write a few blogs, forget about it for a while...Whoops! Realize I haven't written in a week or two....write a few blogs, forget about it for a while....you get the picture.

Anyway, to get back into the swing of things, I thought I would share with you all my revelation from the weekend. 

Is it just me, or does the fashion world seem to be more "trendy" now than ever? And I don't mean, "Oh shoot, that girl is so trendy!" I mean...there are so many trends...too many really. Prints, neons, cropped shirts, colored denim,  color blocking, tribal prints, pastels, floral prints.....is your head spinning yet?!

As I was cleaning out my closet this weekend (which was very eye opening by the way) I realized that all of these "trends" don't make for a substantial wardrobe. I mean, next summer am I really going to wear tribal print jean sorts? Probably not. Cropped tee's and tanks? I'm not sure why this is a trend in the first place, but you are more than likely not going to be caught dead in that next year when the hem lines are long again. So why are we spending all of this money on these trendy, one season, trying-to-be-something-we're-not, fashions? 

What happened to building a wardrobe around the "basics" and getting creative with those items? Where did the good ole' days of dressing up with your accessories go? As I rummaged through my disaster of a closet, I realized that I was about to take hundreds of dollars of "last years trends" to Goodwill....and my bank account cried.

Let's get back to basics people! Start building a better wardrobe. I'm not saying give up on all trends entirely, but have the basics to back it up! If you want to buy neon pink denim, go for it! But make sure you have the perfect plain white tee to pair with it and a great leather jacket to carry them into the fall! All I'm saying is, if we spent more money on buying basic, quality clothing, we would get much more bank for our buck!

Here's a checklist to get you started....

** you can get the original PDF by visiting InStyle **

so roll up the sleeves on your sheer button-down, oversized pocket, high-low hem line blouse, and start purging all of your too-trendy clothes. Let's face it, as much as we would all like to live at Coachella 24/7, 365, it's just not going to happen. And even though Pinterest does provide an abundance of inspiration for us to pretend we are fashion icons, the truth is that, the sexiest look is a simple v-neck tee and the perfect fitting jeans.

**have fun**  **drink responsibly**  **look stylish**

Rain, Rain, Go Away

Weather Forecast: Massachusetts

Saturday: Rain

Sunday: Rain

Monday: Rain

Tuesday: Rain

Wednesday: Rain

WTF, New England?! How am I supposed to get as tan as a Mexican on the weekends when there is nothing but rain? (no offense to anyone of Mexican decent here...I honestly admire your skin tone.) I enjoy a nice afternoon shower every now and again, but 5 straight days of rain?! Please tell me that this whole global warming business hasn't pulled a fast one on us and exchanged our weather with Seattle! I will undoubtedly fall into a rain induced depression as fast as Kim Kardashian moved on from Kris Humphreys.

To avoid the rainy day depression, break out your best rainy day fashion essentials. Rain is one of the best ways to show how creative you can be with your wardrobe and accessories. You shouldn't have to match your wardrobe to the colors outside.... taupe, grey, beige. Be colorful! If you've got a caramel colored rain coat (like myself), then wear bright, vibrant, rain boots. Add a pop of color to your outerwear to brighten the world around you. Or use a large yellow umbrella for an awesome color pop in your accessories.

And don't forget about your hair. We work so hard to polish our look but with the rain, polished hair seems to be impossible. Embrace messy hair!! With the right products and the right amount of effort (or lack there of) you can accomplish the perfect messy hair. And with messy buns and pony tails all the rage right now, you can pull off this look for work or play.

{sorry blondes, I'm partial to brunettes}

What is your favorite rainy day look? With the next few days of rain, I could use some suggestions.

**have fun**  **drink responsibly**  **look stylish**

Fail.

Once again I have failed on my attempt to capture memories via photos.

And I had a great Memorial weekend full of fun to share with you guys!

Fail.

And now it is Friday, and it's time for another fun filled weekend, and I've neglected to post anything all week. 

Double Fail. 

Sorry about that. 

Memorial Day weekend was perfect....well aside from me over overindulging on {vodka tonics}on Sunday night...triple fail. The weather was beautiful. Highs in the mid to upper 80's and the hot sun against the cool breezes from the lake...*sigh*...perfection.

We drove up to Lake Winni Friday evening after work looking forward to a fun trip, but no one had more fun than our precious pup. He loves short car rides, but long rides are his favorite. There is nothing like sticking your head out the window and smelling the sweet exhaust from all of the passing cars on the highway. 

Saturday we spent the morning on the Lake and braved the cold waters as we reached one of the many sandbars. It was nice and relaxing and just enough "lake time" before we had to head out to the boyfriend's cousin's graduation party. This is where I really failed at taking pictures. 

The boyfriend and I looked very nautical with his striped seersucker shorts and boat shoes, and my white and navy chevron maxi skirt. Our afternoon (and into the evening) was spent on his Aunt and Uncle's large deck overlooking NH mountains while a fully stocked bar and homemade margaritas were at our discretion. But what was even better than the margaritas was the full wine tasting right there on the patio. If you live in Kansas, make sure you check out Prairie Fire Winery. Currently they only sell locally in Kansas, but the wines are delicious! It's a family owned business right in the heart of Kansas (and they use some Indiana grapes which I'm a huge fan of). As we sipped the night away there were smiles, and laughs, and poking fun at one of the girls who had gotten a little too friendly with the tequila. All the things I love. 

The rest of the weekend was spent on the lake, enjoying the boat, and using plenty of sunscreen. Here are a couple of pictures that I was able to capture from the weekend. 

Instragram was able to show me what I would look like with lighter hair...hmm..maybe for the summer?

Uncle and Nephew.

I will try not to neglect you all again this weekend and week. And I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend and have big plans for this weekend as well. 

**have fun**  **drink responsibly**  **look stylish**

Happy Friday!

Happy Friday to All!! 

If you're anything like myself,  you have been counting the minutes until 5pm since you stepped foot in the office this morning. There is so much anticipation about the long weekend ahead that I find it hard to concentrate on work! 

I am so excited to kick off summer this weekend with the boyfriend and my East Coast family. The weather is predicted to be perfect, the boat is in the water, and we have beer to stock the refrigerator. What more could you ask for? 

After what we hope to be a nice drive (but is likely to take longer than anticipated as we are heading to the Lakes Region of NH with about 3/4 of New England) we will unpack and relax with a few nice wines and select cheeses. I will make sure to snap a few pictures for you all as it has been some time since my last edition of Fresh Bottle Fridays. 

But until the clock strikes 5pm, it is here I will sit at my little cubical day dreaming for tomorrow. Saturday morning...the first morning of the long weekend...the first unofficial Saturday morning of Summer....{ahhh bliss}. 

And to make sure we are all current in the news...

Happy Memorial Day! 

**remember to thank a veteran**

**have fun**  **drink responsibly**  **look stylish**

LBD...is there a new meaning?

May is almost over, which means June is right around the corner (you know, in case you don't know the order in which our months occur). And as any romantic comedy has taught us, June is the "unofficial" official {wedding month}. 

A month of love and joy, crazy Aunts and Uncles, and open bars. But before we go squeezing ourselves into our bridesmaids dresses that we ordered a size too small because "we have so much time to lose the weight," there is one night of pure drunken debauchery....the bachelorette party. 

"The Last Fling Before the Ring." 

"The Bride's Final At Bat." 

(for those baseball fans out there)

"Give her the kisses before she becomes the Mrs."

A night when the bride and her girlfriends head out on the town for a night of body shots, strippers, and funny penis shaped objects. A night for us all to remember...or forget...but then recall again the next morning after reviewing our vast collection of Instagram pics. 

But what are we wearing in those pictures? Much like the trend of a June wedding, the LBD is always a go-to when it comes to bachelorette attire. It's classy and sophisticated. It's very Aubrey Hepburn. Or in some cases it can be very risque and revealing. But in any case, the LBD is a staple in most women's wardrobes. In fact, most have more than one. One for a night out at a nice dinner, another for a work event, and another for a night out with your girlfriends when you want to "shake what your momma gave ya." The LBD, the go-to, the safe, and the easy.

But does LBD strictly have to mean "Little Black Dress?" Black is so......dark. When you're out for a bachelorette party you want to stand out! You want to walk into the club with a statement....like "We're here, bitches!" and watch as the eligible bachelor's form a line to get in on the bachelorette action. And let's be honest, even the most hideous male can join in on the fun....for one shot...only one! And then he must be on his way.  

Ladies, are we going to surrender to the LBD and what it has always stood for? I say no! Now is the time to redefine the LBD. Let's change the meaning to the Little BRIGHT Dress. We, as bachelorette attendees, have an obligation to the bride to make this the best night of her single life, and we will not do so if we are blending in with the walls and couches. Let's embrace the color! Stand out in neons and bold prints and patterns!

Or why not the Little BLING Dress? What says "buy me a drink" more than glitter and sequins? Your VIP table will certainly sparkle after a few Red Bull Vodkas while the DJ blasts "Call Me Maybe." Whatever your party decides when it comes to wardrobe, just remember...

*have fun*  *drink responsibly*  *look stylish*