Friday Favorites: Ladylike Purses

TGIF! It's been a special week and even more special day because it's Ryan's 40th birthday! He was a young 26 when I met him and I can honestly say every day is a gift with him! We have celebrated with great gratitude throughout the week with fun as a family.

I never really understood the phrase 'attached at the hip' until I had Vivian. Gracious our little girl loves her Mamma and I'm soaking up all her admiration. While my side kick is my cutest accessory my purses are in a class all of their own.

I've never been a tote gal.  Probably because of my resistance to clutter.  I also have a petite frame and feel that hauling around a large bag is overwhelming.  I do have two totes and find them extremely useful when traveling, at meetings when I'm bringing my planner, books, computer or when I need to bring extra items for an outing.

I prefer ladylike shoulder, satchel and top handle bags.

Gals, there's just no need to be toting around everything but the kitchen sink every day!
It has to be heavy and down right uncomfortable. Not to mention unhealthy on your shoulders and back.

Tip:  Find a color or textured design such as quilting or croc that speaks to you.  This is how you let your personality shine through your style.

Here are some positively pretty purses that will carry you through beautifully ...

Lee Radziwell Frame Bag

Quilted Chain Bag

Classic Satchel

Colorful Satchel

Top Handle

Blue Croc

Croc Top Handle

Bucket Bag

Available in 10+ colors and textures 

Quilted Crossbody

Snake Embossed

Dress Beautifully in a Ladylike Purse

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Cozy & Comfy

Tis the day before Thanksgiving and everyone's excited for the feast ... except me.  I'm NOT a foodie and find it horrible to put such poor nutrition in your body.  Please don't go and defriend or stop reading this.  I'm just being honest.  I'm a complete anomaly when it comes to food.  I just don't find any joy in eating (Ryan says my taste sense is broken) and feel that food is for the purpose of fueling your body to do it's work and be strong.  I eat very clean and intentional. Sigh but I promised Ryan I'd try to relax and compromise a bit so that Vivian doesn't grow up to be quite as strange as her Mamma haha

What I am excited about is having two days with Ryan home with us, hosting my parents and sister, and enjoying all my blessings with a grateful heart! We are serving filet, grilled vegetables and I will make one of the 2 dishes I can prepare well, apple pie!

What are you going to wear tomorrow?  It's a gathering and you may see folks you don't see often and pictures will probably be taken.

This outfit is perfect for being comfortable and chic at home or for any day this season.  I've worn this sweater at least 10 times since I brought it home. It's technically a cardigan but I don't like cardigans so I wear it all buttoned up as a pull over. I love the chunkiness but that it's not oversized (I prefer my sweaters shorter in length and for the sleeves to be snug so that they don't overwhelm me)
It's so pretty with dressier pieces too like a skirt, trousers or on top of a dress!

Roomy distressed jeans are a staple in my wardrobe for being at home (yes I wear jeans while at home b/c leggings are NOT pants 💯) or running errands. If you want to add a chic touch pair with a little heel and a polished handbag.

Sweater | Jeans | Similar Pumps | Handbag - Similar | Earrings |

Dress Beautifully in Cozy & Comfy Pieces 

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Walk on the Wild & Bright Side

Animal prints are my favorite patterns to wear and leopard is my favorite of them (oh and snake) but I'm happy to show love to their safari friend, the zebra.  Pairing animal prints with neutrals is nice but take a walk on the bolder side and pair those wild spots and stripes with bright colors.

I prefer this zebra pattern design because it's in softer shades of ivory and tan as opposed to the sharp black and white found naturally.

Swap out your skinny trousers for a pair or three of wide legs crops.  They're so comfortable and the length is perfect for flats or heels.

This outfit will certain brighten your day at the office but since I'm currently out of the office I can still wear this look out and about (I will NEVER understand why motherhood means you have to wear loungewear) or more likely split the pieces up.  A tee with the pants and flats or the top with a pair of jeans.

Zebra Top | Red Crop Pants (comes in 6 more colors!) | 

Pumps & Similar | Handbag & Similar |

Dress Beautifully in Zebra Print and Bright Pants

XOXO Sarah-Louise

Pretty in Python

Happy Valentine's Day!!! I hope your day is filled with lots of love 💕

I truly meant to post this yesterday but my sister and niece came over to visit and our whole day was filled with fun watching the girls play and catching up because her family has had the flu :(.

Snakes are the scariest creatures ever! But I'm obsessed with the print of their skin. Odd I know!  I may even like it more than leopard - shocking!  I find snake print to be fierce, modern and just chic.  It's not as common as leopard and is typically lighter with more white tones (my favorite).

I have a handbag, a few pairs of shoes and garments in snake.  Probably plenty haha

I found this dress way outside my box.  I don't typically shop at this store but was walking through the wing of the mall I don't typically go to for a gift and saw a section of snake printed pieces and went it.  While I wouldn't call this dress a high quality piece it's better than I thought it would be.
It goes to prove you don't have to spend a lot of money to achieve the look and style that you want.

Now, I still stand by my belief that your closet should be quality over quantity and it's best to invest in forever/classic pieces.

I promise if you incorporate snake print into your wardrobe you will feel confident and look chic!

Note: this belt is not attached (something I prefer) but I didn't swap it out for this look like I normally do.  I didn't want to interrupt the print and since it's a midi dress I wanted to keep the long continuity of the vertical print in hopes to make me look longer.

Snake Dress & Here | Pumps & Similar | Earrings | Similar Handbag |

Dress Beautifully in Python Print

XOXO Sarah Louise

L is for Leopard

L is for leopard.  Gals, I read so many ABC books to baby Vivian Louise I practically recite them in my sleep.  I have 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' & 'Brown Bear' memorized.

This outfit, like an ABC book, is very simplistic; classic.  Outfits don't have to be outrageous or unexpected to be impactful.

I gravitated to this leopard blouse because of the necktie. I also liked the coloring and ikat style print.
I ended up getting a petite because the sleeves fit better.

Paired with high waisted black pants and cap toe pumps this look will never go out of style.
I added some major shine with these gold disc earrings.  They were a Black Friday gift to myself :)

Pair this blouse with jeans and a pair of flats or boots and it will transition you perfectly from the weekday to weekend.

Leopard Blouse | Black Pants | Similar Pumps | Similar Handbag | Earrings |

Dress Beautifully in Leopard

XOXO Sarah Louise

Highs & Lows

Hey gals! I hope you're having a great start to the week. I wore this dress to church yesterday and the ladies showered me with compliments and insisted that it make it on a post.  I also shared it on my Instagram stories (if you don't watch them you're missing out on a lot of cuteness from Vivian Louise).  Not only did I receive a lot of requests for links to this dress but a lot of happiness when they realized it's from Target and $35!

So we snapped a few pics right after church :)

Now that I'm a Mamma I'm at Target all the time! And all sorts of things end up in my cart, mostly for baby girl, but I tend to wonder the aisles and things I didn't even know I wanted make it home.

The trick to styling a garment from a big box store is accessorizing it with fancier items. So I paired it with a designer handbag, pumps and belt.

I always swap out dress sashes with belts. I love belts and always have. My favorites are vintage.
It also creates a feminine waistline.

Now I don't typically wear dark florals but I loved the lighter brighter colors against the black and the cut is super flattering! It's has buttons all the way down with ruffles! And the cap sleeves flatter the shoulders.
I added these fun tasseled earrings to pull from the lavender in the flowers.

Floral Dress | Pumps | Belt | Handbag | Earrings |

Dress Beautifully in a Mix of Splurge and Steal Pieces

XOXO Sarah Louise