sweet sweet summertime

After a whirlwind summer of traveling all over the country, I'm excited to spend the last two weeks at home before school starts again. I have a few projects I want to finish around the house (I started making this pinboard today for our kitchen), bike rides to go on (after receiving a bike as a surprise present!), and hopefully finishing Breaking Bad (only two seasons to go). After a day of sleeping in, going for a swim, and making a delicious dinner, we capped off the night with a Starbucks date. The cooler temperatures meant I got to wear both jeans AND a long-sleeved shirt....so while I'm not excited for school to start, I am excited for FALL.

Please don't hate me for bringing up fall in the middle of July ;)

Top: ASOS [exact on sale w/ popback sizes!]

Jeans: Uniqlo [exact]

Necklace: c/o BaubleBar [exact]

Shoes: thrifted Tory Burch [current version]

Bag: Madewell [save - read Audrey's review here | exact]

Watch: Michael Kors [save | exact]

P.S. It seems that J.Crew is becoming the new Gap with their constant sales...and I'm not complaining. With their 40% off sale items, I picked up these adorable pants after seeing them on Kendi. I can't wait to wear them with all the red and cognac accessories ;)

best internet friends

Lindsay, Bri, and Katrina

Last year when I went to Seattle, one of my most favorite memories was going to dinner with some of the bloggers I admire most. Bri, Lindsay, Katrina, and Kimmie were all so welcoming and fun and energetic - I was so bummed that they all got to live together in Seattle while I was moving even further away! Bri made sure to organize another get together this year, this time with the very patient men in our lives in attendance as well. The boys spent time bonding over making fun of blogging and taking pictures of us, while the girls discussed blogging, shoes, careers, and med school. These girls all lead such interesting lives, and it was just so inspiring to hear about their jobs and lives. I am even more jealous now that they all get to hang out and do blogger events and go eat pie whenever their hearts' desire. It's that much more of a push to move here in three years ;)

So what does one wear when meeting up with a bunch of girls who blog about clothes? I received this stunner of a necklace a few weeks ago for the upcoming BaubleBar x Nordstrom collaboration, so I decided that there was no better time to debut it than a dinner with girls who really appreciate jewelry! When you first look at it, you may wonder how exactly to wear this giant necklace...and I'm here to tell you to wear it with everything - as a finishing piece for a striped dress, stacked with another jeweled necklace, or as the center piece with a simple jeans and blazer outfit. I love that blogging not only brings amazing women into my life, but it also sometimes makes me step outside of my comfort zone to discover pieces that will become staples in my closet. If this necklace is slightly too large for you, this smaller (slightly more discrete version) would be a good way to obtain a similar look!

my outfit:

Dress: Target [similar]

Necklace: c/o BaubleBar [exact]

Shoes: Banana Republic [exact]

Belt: Gap [exact on sale - finally a gold-clasped one!]

Lindsay's outfit here, Bri's here (2 people stopped her on the streets that day to ask her about her outfit), and Katrina's here. Thank you again for a wonderful evening ladies (and thank you to Lindsay for bringing along a real camera and letting us steal her photos!)