2013. blackout.

ralph lauren sweater dress. italian scarf. merona tights. pour la victoire boots. pendleton canyonville tote.

if you peruse the blog archive, you’ll notice that i rarely wear black. my wardrobe is mostly blues, neutrals, and brights here and there.

before christmas, i found myself craving a simple black sweater dress. it had to be dark black (not charcoal), long (not short), and cute (not un-cute). my dream came true a few weeks ago when i snagged this dress at tj maxx.

have you ever gotten a good deal on an item from your wish list?

the look | similar dress | similar scarf | similar boots | bag

2013. two girls.

maison scotch sweater. silk striped tee by j.crew. skyline skinny skinnies by paige. pour la victoire boots.

see that chubby puggy? she turned five this month. michael says she can go to kindergarten in the fall. i wish!

sophie is a funny creature. she’s perpetually hungry, fiercely loyal, and always affectionate. she can detect the UPS truck from a few blocks away. she sheds hair like crazy (almost all fawn pugs do) and our vacuum cleaner fills up with her fur. but we love her anyway.

happy birthday sophie! thanks for being so gosh darn cute and making a cameo occasionally.

the look | sweater | similar blouse | similar pants | similar boots

2013. brown hare.

stitched cardigan by madewell. joie rancher tee. verdugo leggings by paige. rebecca minkoff doll boots and bombe bag.

the older i get, the more comfortable i am wearing what i want and what i deem beautiful. i know this cardigan is sort of oversized and kind of shapeless; its color resembles beatrix potter’s bunny family. at some angles, it makes the upper half of my body look huge.

but i like it. at thirteen, i worshipped fashion magazines and wanted to resemble the models. at thirty-one, i understand there are rules and trends but you don’t have to follow or adopt any of them. if i wake up one morning and want to dress like a brown hare, more power and more carrots to me.

really— more carrots. this was my grocery shopping outfit.

the look | similar sweater | tee | similar jeans | similar boots

2013. rose red.

express tricot sweater (thrifted). joe’s skinny jeans. rebecca minkoff doll boots. missibaba tote.

hello again! i didn’t mean to take a small break from the blog; last week was one of those weeks where i planned outfits but changed them at the last minute. then i didn’t like anything and changed again— oy vey. on the brightside, i earned an extra jean day every week because a coworker and i run a school club. i was so excited! nothing can make a teacher smile quite like the promise of denim.

on saturday, i wore this snow white and rose red (or rose red-orange) combination to dinner for a friend’s birthday. happy birthday dina! it was my first time pairing the booties with colored pants, and i liked it. i thought michael would give me the deer in the headlights look i.e. you’re wearing that? but he didn’t.

you won’t catch him wearing red pants though. our j.crew shopper already tried.

the look | similar sweater | similar jeans | similar boots

2013. cross my heart.

cynthia rowley cardigan. silk dotty sunshade top by madewell. joe’s ponte skinnies. pour la victoire boots. pendleton canyonville tote.

i wore this outfit twice before winter break, and i wore it again on monday because it matched my bag perfectly. i like the cheerful pop of red against the grey, black, and brown. i could even swap out the red sweater for a yellow one. a good outfit lives on and on and on… at least until laundry day.

a lot of my friends have been asking about our wedding plans. they’re coming along (albeit tortoise-ly rather than hare-ly). i have my dress (it’s from j.crew of course), and we will likely pick out michael’s suit from there, too. i’m designing our wedding paper. the other details are up in the air, but i’ll share more soon. cross my heart.

the look | similar sweater | similar top | similar pants | similar boots | bag

2013. joie de vivre.

soft joie tee. high rise jeggings by paige. pour la victoire boots. pendleton canyonville tote.

oh, hello! welcome back to our regular scheduled programming (or blogramming). after spending most of my vacation using all the tissues in our house, i was ready to take on the world. i got a haircut, sang along to my favorite pandora stations, cleaned the house, and felt great. i wore this outfit yesterday to the grocery store.

santa brought me a B.A.B. (big awesome bag). you know i love pendleton and patterns. i guess he does, too. :o)

the look | similar tee | similar jeans | similar boots | bag

2012. slouchy cool.

dolman sleeved sweatshirt by j.crew. la la leaves dress by marc jacobs. merona tights. pour la victoire boots.

some days i like tailored clothing, and other days i like slouchy stuff. i wore this easygoing outfit on thursday.

i also wear sweatshirts at home, oftentimes over leggings. lately i love to spend evenings near the fireplace and read a book (or cut things out for school). it’s a nice, old fashioned sort of feeling.

i am currently reading a practical wedding by meg keene. what are you reading?

the look | similar sweater | similar dress | similar boots

2012. a penny saved.

cavorting canines dress by maeve. skyline skinny skinnies by paige. italian scarf. pour la victoire boots.

this is what i look like when i find a long forgotten dollar in one of my pockets. if i write anymore, i feel as if i will ruin the priceless photo. that’s all for today. :o)

the look | similar dress | similar pants | similar scarf | similar boots

2012. wool blends.

betsy sweater by j.crew. free people tunic tank. skyline skinny skinnies by paige. pour la victoire boots. missibaba tote from etcetera, etc.

howdy! old man winter decided to visit this week with highs in the 50’s-60’s and lows in the 30’s-40’s. we’re not sure how long he will stick around, but i’ll take cold weather while it lasts. yesterday i wore the outfit to school along with my green j.crew coat. michael said i resembled our christmas tree.

speaking of christmas trees, i didn’t realize that real trees are so thirsty. we water our tree every other day. it keeps almost all of its needles, and sophie has no interest in it whatsoever. i feel fortunate because we have friends who “gate” their tree from pets. so far, so good, sophie. :o)

the look | similar sweater | similar tank |  similar pants | similar boots

2012. pep in my step.

polka dot peplum tee from target. high-rise jeggings by paige. pour la victoire boots. rebecca minkoff bombe bag.

i usually stay away from peplum tops because they look awkward on my body (height + long torso + shortened blouse = odd), but as you can see, i haven’t given up on the trend altogether. i found the adorable shirt while shopping for advent calendar goodies for michael. a cute fiancée counts as a present, right?

when michael was little, his mom bought him advent calendars with chocolates behind the doors. i came home from target and told him that he could not, better not, under any circumstances come into the dining room while i assembled his calendar. after i packed up everything, i realized that i created a countdown (numbers backwards) instead of a traditional advent. that’s what i get for being bossy.

the look | tee | similar jeans | similar boots

2012. comfy cozy.

express tricot sweater (thrifted). skyline skinny skinnies by paige. frye boots.

every fall and winter, i find an outfit that i can wear several days in a row simply because it’s comfy cozy and i’m comfy lazy. a few weeks ago, i threw away my old leggings and bought two pairs of ponte knit pants on sale at nordstrom rack. i chose paige and joe’s— both pairs fit like a dream. they feel like j.crew’s pixie pants but have longer inseams (good for tall girls).

i found the sweater at the thrift store. i used to own this sweater— well, not this exact sweater because some lady wrote her name on the tag, so it’s definitely not mine. the year was 1992, middle school monopolized my days, and express churned out chunky cotton sweaters in solids and stripes. my mom bought me three of them, and i wore them constantly.

then i remember seeing one of the science teachers at school in my sweater. i thought, oh my god, a teacher has the same sweater as me, and oh my god, do teachers go to the mall?!

what was the best sweater from your youth?

the look | similar sweater | similar pants | boots

2012. melloween.

plaid shirt by DVF. verdugo leggings by paige. vintage coach belt. rebecca minkoff doll boots.

M and i don’t usually dress up for halloween, but our house does. i like putting pumpkins and mums on the porch and votives in glass jars on the table.

this year, we decided to go out instead of hand out candy. the constant doorbell ringing and appearance of strangers turns our sweet pug into a rowdy monster. we scheduled a double date with tanvi and her husband, closed the blinds, and turned off the living room lights.

when we left the house, we drove by trick-or-treating princesses, robots, and super heroes, and i felt a little guilty. but by the time dinner ended, i was happy and full (with spicy food and good conversation). there’s nothing wrong with having a very mellow halloween.

p.s. thanks to hunt.gather.style for the plaid shirt!

the look | similar blouse | similar jeans | similar boots

2012. hot hot pink.

pink chiffon blouse from tj maxx. high-rise jeggings by paige. calvin klein scarf. rebecca minkoff doll boots.

every monday, i want to write, i’m back! i haven’t been neglecting the blog on purpose or going through that dreaded “blogger burnout.” i love little tin soldier, and i have grand plans to make it a lifestyle blog. my sporadic posts can be attributed to school; it really keeps me on my toes this time of year. sometimes i’m on my toes so much that i come home, eat popcorn, and put up my little piggies. i know i’m not the only one who’s guilty of eating an entire bag… oops!

over the weekend, this little piggy wore a barbie pink shirt, this little piggy snuggled with M, this little piggy chased a pug, this little piggy donned boots, and this little piggy felt well rested. i’m ready to take on a new week; hope you are, too.

p.s. don’t forget to enter my southward giveaway! it ends wednesday.

the look | similar blouse | similar jeans | similar scarf | similar boots

2012. southern hospitality.

southern belle tee by southward. verdugo leggings by paige. rebecca minkoff doll boots. allibelle mohawk clutch.

i grew up and went to college in virginia, making me an official east coaster by texas standards but a southern girl by east coast standards. my cousins from philadelphia referred to our house as “the country”— once i wore overalls to visit them at christmas time and never heard the end of it.

when i got older, i realized that being “southern” involved more than saying “y’all” or living near rustic farms or old plantations. southern-ness meant being polite to strangers, friendly to friends, and overly adoring to your family. that’s not so much country as it is simply hospitality.

speaking of hospitality, would you be interested in seeing more home/food/garden/life posts on the blog? an inquiring pug wants to know. :o)

the look | tee | similar jeans | similar boots