top three [05.07.2015]

can't stop won't stop with my denim jacket

medicine

• For many of us, dealing with the chicken pox was a rite of passage in our childhood. Unfortunately for us, that sneaky little virus now lays dormant in our nerves and can come back to haunt us when we are older as shingles. Shingles appears in a dermatomal pattern (where that specific nerve lies), and appear as painful and itchy vesicles. If they are in the nerve around your eye, it can even lead to blindness. 
• Going camping or hiking this summer? Whatever you do, don't drink the water out there! Giardia is fairly cute under the microscope, but will lead to awful smelling, violent diarrhea. That'll ruin a vacation real quick. 
• During fetal development, your kidneys actually start deep down in your pelvis rather than where they are currently located. They ascend during development, which normally causes no problems - unless you have a horseshoe kidney. A horseshoe kidney happens when the two kidneys are fused. During ascent, they may become stuck on the inferior mesenteric artery, which may eventually cause abdominal pain and various other complications. 

on the internet

• I love love LOVE when my blogging friends and I have the same items, because it takes all the work out of getting dressed - I just copy one of them! Here's 5 ways to wear my favorite black dress - there are just a few sizes left of my specific dress, but this one is very similar. 
• Katie and I could probably twin for over a week in all the clothes we have that are the same. I love her in this embroidered top and wish we could twin some more!
• Bri is dressing for the job she wants (and has! get it girl) and looking amazing while doing it. Also, I want her front (and back) yard please. 

spotted

• Full short sleeves, black + white, and stripes? This dress has my name written all over it. 
• These espadrilles are seriously the prettiest pair I have ever seen (bonus that they are also on sale!)
• Have any short trips planned this summer (or just a light packer? teach me your ways)? How awesome is this weekender bag from Target? It's seriously the cutest. 

on franish

• On the blog: part one on how to build a cohesive wardrobe
• On the instagram: this white coat looks awful snazzy, huh? 
• On the pinterest: next cheat day's cheat? YUM. 

notable sales

• Ann Taylor: 30% off summer favorites
• If you need a dress for a wedding, this lace number would be perfect (and so easily re-worn with different accessories!)
• And if accessorizing isn't your favorite, this cut out blouse does the work for you!
• Madewell: 25% off tops
• You and me both need this shirt so we can be twins (RIGHT?!)
• Not a particular sale, but if you are looking for some high knee boots, Shopbop currently has several cute ones available - think all three styles of the most popular Hunter pairs. We've had storms on and off for a week now, so my Hunter boots have been worn more than I thought they would be in June!

personal

• Officially completed week one of rotations, and lived to tell you all about it. I'm really exaggerating - my week was super easy. The longest day I worked was 7 hours. CR, who is on surgery this month, had a 19 hour day though, so...yikes. But mine was great! Lots of the same things every family med clinic sees - hypertension, bad cholesterol, and diabetes. There were a few interesting cases though, and ones that I helped "diagnose" (aka the doctor or nurse practitioner lead me in the right direction). 
• Since our place is getting new carpet in the next few weeks, we aren't putting half of our furniture up and it's making me all itchy to start decorating since I currently can't. I love the idea of having a large H, like this light up version, somewhere in the house (since both of our last names start with an H). My bff Caitlin gave me the idea of getting succulent holders (like these ones) to hang in the window, which is a wonderful idea since our little devil cat will eat any other live plant in the house that she can reach. We still need to find an appropriate headboard (not to girly...of course), but I know that this duvet cover is definitely going to be on the bed. I just love them!
• After a month of not having the time to be at home to cook, we are officially back on the Four Hour Body. It feels so good to eat with purpose again, and to just over all feel better every day. There are of course times I just want all the sugar (like hi, national donut day!) but I know that I just feel better when I cut it out. I attended my first (and second and third!) pure barre classes this week, and I really enjoyed them! I have one month of unlimited classes, so I'm trying to really take advantage of the free time I have right now and get as many classes in as possible. I'm excited to see some of the results! I also have been wearing my fitbit religiously, and it really has pushed me to get out and go for walks because although I'm on my feet all day in the clinic, we rarely walk more than 10 steps at a time. June is going to be a great month, I can feel it :)

building a cohesive wardrobe: the closet clean out

In my early twenties, I loved nothing more than to go shopping (okay, now that I'm in my late twenties, not much has changed). The problem was that I didn't have a lot of money, and I didn't have a plan. If I found something I liked at Forever 21 or H&M, I would buy it. Then I would wear it one time, realize that I hated it on me, and stuck it in the back of my closet. This was also the time that blogs started to become popular, so I kind of was running after the trends I saw on them - think colored jeans, arm parties, and lots of layering.

I never felt secure in these clothes, and I always felt like I had nothing to wear. When I was accepted to medical school, it hit me that in 4 months time, I was going to move 600 miles away, in just my little car. I was not going to drag all those clothes with me to my new home/life. So I started the long closet clean out, and the eventual building up of my closet.

In this multi-post topic of building a cohesive wardrobe, the first, and most important step, is doing a closet clean out. It's also the hardest. It's difficult to get rid of things you've paid money for - it feels like throwing money away. But I promise, once you only have clothes in your closet that you actually like to wear, you will never ever miss those old items again.

So. The following were (and still are!) my guidelines when I clean out my closet. I just did another round of this over the last few weeks while moving, and it really did help narrow down what to keep and what to get rid of. Here is my process:

95% love, 5% DIY

I'm in the process of writing a few posts on how to build a cohesive wardrobe (I'm hoping to have the first post done by the end of the week!) so I've been thinking a lot about what I've learned over the past few years, from the beginning of doing a closet clean out to buying those finishing pieces. One of my biggest rules over the years has been to only buy items you 100% love - or else, why spend money on it? 

A few weeks ago, I feel in love with this top from Anthropologie. On the model it looks light and airy, but on me, I felt it was too airy. The shirt sleeves actually don't really close all the way around the arms - they are open down half way the sides. I felt it made me look wider than I am because there was no waist definition, as you can see on the picture below. Besides that though, I really really liked it. The more I looked at the top, I wondered if there wasn't a way to fix it - the fabric lines up perfectly enough to sew shut along the sides. So the night after my board exam, I spent an hour sewing the sides closed and now it's so much better on me. It's still light and airy and perfect for summer, but now it's perfect for me too.

Listen learned? Sometimes a little DIY turns a no into a hell yes.

Blouse: Anthropologie [exact]

Denim Jacket: Paige c/o Nordstrom [very similar]

Jeans: Paige c/o Zappos [exact]

Bag: Madewell [save | exact]

Shoes: Banana Republic [exact]

Lipstick: Nars [exact]

i have no idea what i'm doing

Today was the first day of my third year of medical school - that's crazy! I still feel like I'm supposed to say I'm a first year, when I'm really a third year who supposedly knows things now.

My first month of rotations is in family medicine. I'm in a one doctor clinic, and so far (...one day), it's been really great. All of my shadowing experience was in family practice, so it was the one rotation I knew what to expect. I spent the day following the doctor and the nurse practitioner around. I got to feel some hernias, help with an EKG, and gave someone a shot. All around, I think it was the perfect way to start all of this off.

And since this is a style blog and all, this is what I wore. I wanted to go in pretty conservative as I wanted to make a good impression and I didn't know how the atmosphere would be. Bootleg slacks, my new "watch", and a flower blouse that buttons high enough - can't really go wrong! Turns out they are super relaxed there, so I can play around a bit more with outfits than I will be able to when I'm on surgery for my second and third rotation ;)

For you med students out there - any reading material suggestions for family med? I don't even know where to start.

Blouse: Loft [very similar on sale]

Pants: The Limited [exact]

Bag: Madewell [save | exact]

Shoes: Banana Republic [exact]

Belt: Gap 

via instagram

top three [05.31.2015]

a few wedding looks from the past years

on the internet

• Maya killed it with this simple leather in the summer look. I NEED that purse!
• I love how bright and cherry Jess looks in this dress - plus I just love those cognac leathers with it! 
• Lindsay may be one of of the prettiest people I have ever met. Look how stunning she looks here!

spotted

• While technically a beach coverup, I kind of love the idea of this pom pom tunic with skinny jeans and pretty flats. 
• I'm fairly obsessed with my current phone cover (it's this one from the Rifle Paper Company) but the rose gold lines on this new cover is calling my name. Thoughts?
• I hattteeeeee summer clothes, and the only thing that gets me through is dresses. Madewell's newest blue + white embroidered dress is seriously my dream dress (with a belt, of course!)

on franish

• on the blog: this month's budget + answering some of your $$$ questions!
• on the instagram: my parents brought us the best housewarming gift :)
• on the pinterest: we are starting back up with the four hour body this week after taking the last month off due to no time to cook, and I'm so excited to find new recipes to try out

notable sales

• It's the last day of the Nordstrom sale - I recommend this Skagen watch as I prefer my watches as masculine as possible ;)
• J.Crew is offering 30% off sale items. If you need a white dress for any occasion, seriously get this one because it is gorgeous. 
• Loft currently has 40% off all their tops. How fun is this eyelet top? Make sure you wear sunscreen though, as it could leave some interesting tan lines ;)

personal

• CR and I moved in together this week! Our place is slowly coming together and I'm so excited about it. We are getting new carpets soon-ish, so we really only have our bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen set up, but it's so cute. Once our carpet is put in, and our couch comes, I'll be sure to do a house tour. I'm just excited that we are finally in one place together that is all our own. We are going to have so much fun :)
• My parents and youngest sister came to visit us this weekend! I haven't seen them since Thanksgiving, so it was definitely time to see each other again. We ate lots of cheese, drank lots of beer, did a lot of furniture shopping, and went on plenty of walks. I'm hoping I can make it back to Wisconsin this month, so hopefully we won't have too much time apart! 
• My first rotation starts tomorrow! I start on family medicine, so it's a nice way to transition into clinical rotations. I'm so nervous! The last time I was in a clinic was when I was shadowing, and I obviously didn't know anything about anything, so I'm excited to see how it feels now that I know a little bit of medicine. Wish me luck!

love is in the air

This past weekend, CR and I attended our first wedding of the season - two of his college friends were getting married in upstate New York. We had so much fun! He was in the wedding party, so I got to tag along to all the rehearsal dinners and so on, and it was just so nice to spend more time with some of his best friends.

For the wedding itself, I wore this beautiful dress from Nordstrom. I had actually ordered about four different dresses (free returns, duh), and this was the winner for me. I love that it has a slightly different shape from what I normally wear. It was perfect for dancing...and eating ;)

Dress: Halogen c/o Nordstrom [exact]

Belt: The Limited [similar]

Clutch: Lauren Merkin c/o Shopbop [exact]

Heels: Missoni for Target 

There are only a few days left for Nordstrom's Half-Yearly sale. Below are a few dresses (all under $100) that would be perfect for any wedding you have this summer, plus a few accessories (under $150) to go with it. My pick for dresses is this pretty blush dress - I wish I had seen it when I was putting my order in, because I would have definitely ordered it. 

one | two | three | four

five | six | seven | eight

one | two (comes in 4 colors) | three | four

Thank you to ShopStyle for sponsoring this post!

may budget + budget FAQ

Loft blouse: originally $44, on sale for $31
Birkenstocks: originally $100, with credit: $0
Anthropologie top: $88

May total: $119  ($381 left for June and July)


So not a ton of shopping this month, which is not surprising. My favorite purchase of the month is this top from Anthropologie. It's so pretty! The sleeves are a bit looser than I had hoped, but I actually did a little DIY fix that made it exactly what I wanted - I'll share more next week! The Birks were purchased using a Modcloth credit I've had for yeeeeeaaarrrs. While slightly bulky and hideous, they are very comfortable and will be perfect for a few of the concerts we are going to this summer!

No real big plans for June except to find a pair of comfortable black ballet flats - my first rotation is family medicine, so I'll be in dress clothes all month. While I love my TB Revas, they aren't broken in enough yet to wear for full days at work. I'm thinking something like these from Naturalizer, but I would love to hear any of your suggestions for comfortable and supportive black flats!

This month I received the following from my sponsors - a pretty black dress from Nordstrom for the wedding I went to last weekend, the perfect pair of white jeans (seen here), a striped dress that will double as a swim cover up that's currently on sale (seen here), and a beautiful floral skirt from Kohl's (seen here). Thank you for supporting those who support me :)

I had a bunch of budget questions during my recent survey, so I figured this would be a good time to answer some of them!