Tag Archives: OOTD

Classic Breton Stripes

I have recently become obsessed with Breton stripes. I completely understand that there are more well-known images of stars in this classic look, like Audrey Hepburn, Bridget Bardot, Jean Seberg, Edie Sedgewick and Marilyn Monroe. But my favorite images of celebrities wearing what I consider a wardrobe “must have” come more from my era, like Meg Ryan in French Kiss and Madonna in Papa Don’t Preach. The look is so simple and fresh, and so French. The history of the Breton stripe shirt dates back to the French navy’s official uniform, but has been in fashion most notably through Coco Chanel and Jean Paul Gaultier. In fact, I really do have a history of this type of shirt through one of Gaultier’s own designs with Target in an outfit post (here). I guess my love for this look runs deeper than I thought!

I had been hunting for an affordable version of the marinière, and found it at J Crew, complete with a slightly different detail: a fringed hem. Already a steal at $39.50, I bought it at the Fashion Valley location for an additional 25% off! I purchased it in a large to get that loose-look as worn by Meg Ryan, but styled it with a leather jacket like Madonna. I was going to wear my trusty Stan Smiths with them (which I already have because this shirt has rotated twice through my wardrobe in the last week), but opted to give my outfit more of an edge with a pair of rocker shoes by Miista.

Outfit: Striped boatneck t-shirt with fringe by J Crew; “Collin” shoes by Miista (no longer available); “Trigger” satchel by Botkier; BCBGeneration leather moto jacket; Old Navy mid-rise cropped flare jeans; “Simone” glasses by Warby Parker in Blue Coral; Topshop hat & belt (no longer available); Leather Depeche Mode wrap bracelet by Little Treasures by Mir; WendyB Rings by Wendy Brandes

(All outfit photos by Rholnna Jiao; movie images searched on Google)

Kick Out the Style, Bring Back the Jam

I’m so excited that it’s finally Fall, and I can wear sweaters, coats, boots and more importantly: LAYERS! Although the weather was a bit up and down throughout October, I still wore a sweater to see one of my favorite bands from the 80’s, Tears for Fears. My sister and I have been waiting for them to tour again, because we just seem to keep missing them. Thank goodness they decided to end their tour with two dates in the San Diego area, and we were lucky to get tickets to their sold out Saturday October 8th show at Pechanga Theater.

I have been wearing more and more comfortable clothing to concerts because it just makes the night so much easier to handle, especially since I really like to stay standing and dance my heart out! Overall, this is a very basic outfit consisting of a sweater, leggings and sneakers. The criss-cross on the sweater meant I didn’t need a necklace, but I still added a few other details to keep my outfit stylish, like a fedora, bold ring and cute purse. Although comfy, I still like to feel dressed up enough because you never know who you’ll meet…like maybe one of the band members after the show!

Outfit: Lush sweater & ring (c/o) from Wysh Boutique (original post here); Girlfriend Collective leggings; Rebecca Minkoff purse; Stan Smith by Adidas with cork soles from Size.co.uk; Lookmatic glasses; Unknown brand fedora

Yes, that would be me, my sister and Rob, all meeting Curt Smith after the show! He autographed my records (below). Unfortunately, we did not get that same chance with Roland Orzabal. Maybe next time?

“Head Over Heels”

(Outfit photos by Rholnna Jiao. All other photos & video by me. Post title: Lyrics from “Sowing The Seeds of Love” by Tears for Fears)

Edit this setlist | More Tears for Fears setlists

What I Wore to Fashion Week San Diego 2016

Earlier this month, I attended a couple of days of Fashion Week San Diego. Because I’m still going through and editing the Saturday runway and Sunday trunk show pictures, I thought I would share the outfits I wore on those days. For the Saturday runway show, I tapped into my inner-rock star and wore sleek pleather leggings, a sheer trench coat and a Sex Pistols t-shirt with the sleeves cut off, along with my MIISTA “Eva” pumps. For both days, I carried one of my favorite purses, which is an “oldie but goodie”: the Bodhi safety-pin clutch. I fell in love with it when Kelly Framel of The Glamourai wore it oh-so-long-ago (my post about it here, and one of her posts here).

For the trunk show, I wore jewelry made by one of my favorite designers of Fashion Week San Diego, Pashn by Survi. I met Survi at last years FWSD trunk show and purchased the gorgeous pendant and ring, pictured below. I was so excited to see her expand to clothing and to then chat with her again at the trunk show. I feel a sense of pride knowing independent designers who I’ve connected with are growing their brand and showcasing their talent!

I also knew I would be walking around at the trunk shows, shopping and meeting all of the talented designers. While my shorts and shirt felt dressy, wearing flats kept me from having tired feet. Additionally, I’m so excited that it’s cold enough to wear tights! I wore these Berkshire Sheer Diamonds tights to really dress up my shorts and to also add some extra texture to my outfit. They have a control top for extra support, so these tights would not only feel comfortable, but also look great with any skirt.

I’ll be featuring other patterns of Berkshire tights in future posts. If you like what you see, Berkshire is offering Any Second Now readers a 15% discount on all of their products until 12/16/16 by using blogger15 at check out on their site at eberkshire.com!

(Photo 1 taken by Nihan of Style with Nihan; Photo 4 taken by Deon Chen)

FTC Disclosure: I received product in exchange for a product review for Berkshire. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

Pour Some Sugar On Me

When I went to KAABOO, I wanted my outfit to be comfortable, easy, but still put together. I decided on a simple black & white palette. I wore my Stan Smith sneaks, although I was a bit apprehensive because it was an outdoor festival. I was surprised at how well they held up, and even with the crowds, they didn’t even catch a single stain (although someone did spill some beer on the right shoe, which wiped right off). With the weather so unpredictable (like high temperatures in mid-September), I opted for shorts and a light long-sleeved shirt.

How amazing is my Sugarzuly cross-body purse? It was absolutely perfect for a festival setting to hold my essentials, and it provided some color through the Huipil fabric.

Our Bags are made out of 100% Huipil and Upcycle Huipil. A “Huipil” is a cotton weaved fabric wore by the Maya women in my country and Central America . Many women today still wear this outfit as a tradition to their Maya descendant. As they have hand-woven their clothing on a back strap loom for centuries and pass along the tradition through the years. – Sugarzuly

Outfit: Downeast Basics shirt; Ann Taylor LOFT Scallop Jacquard Riviera Shorts; adidas Originals Stan Smith Luxe Cork shoes from Size.co.uk; Cross-body purse c/o Sugarzuly; Bonlook “Keiko” prescription sunglasses; unknown brand fedora & choker

FTC Disclosure: I received product in exchange for a product review. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

(Photos 2 & 3 taken by Janice Gutana)

I was introduced to Sugarzuly at one of my favorite stores in Carlsbad, Wysh Boutique. They are having a little in-store celebration tomorrow to ring in the Fall season! Be sure to stop by because they have adorable clothing, jewelry, home decor and they carry a variety of Sugarzuly bags!

Wysh Boutique

300 Carlsbad Village Dr #117, Carlsbad CA 92008

Grayscale

I’ve finally come to accept the style of “tonal” dressing. I think I used to worry about matching shades of colors perfectly, but that is quite an impossible task since even blacks come in degrees of darkness. But with gray, it seems easier to pull off and I find that it also mixes well with taupe and beige.

Although it’s been quite the scorcher lately in San Diego, I will always find an excuse to wear a cape!

Cape Coat c/o Fashion Mia (no longer available); Polished Casual Blouse by Downeast Basics (I got them in two colors, see my haul below from their Henderson location); Old Navy cropped flares; Christian Louboutin heeled sandals from The Real Real (close up below); Rebecca Minkoff purse; Necklace, earrings and ring “rented” from Rocksbox; Warby Parker “Simon” glasses in Tea Rose Fade

(Outfit photos by Rholnna Jiao)

FTC Disclosure: I received product in exchange for a product review. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

Kelly Cardenas San Diego Celebrates 1 Year!

Happy 1 year anniversary to the Kelly Cardenas Salon in Hillcrest! Can you believe I’ve been going there for a little over a year (posts here and here)? I practically celebrated with them throughout the day by first getting my hair styled and colored earlier in the morning (by Salvador of course), then going their anniversary party that night.

Congratulations to everyone at Kelly Cardenas, and cheers to many more years to come!

My haircut and color from earlier that day. Back to purple!

(Wearing “Keiko” Bon Look prescription sunglasses; Forever 21 dress; Zara long bomber jacket; La Vidriola Cassette necklace)

With my hubby at the anniversary party

With the stylist who works all of his magic on my hair, Salvador!

I got to pose with Kelly himself!

The Kelly Cardenas staff, from all of their locations: San Diego, Carlsbad, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and Chicago

My outfit for the evening: Lucy Paris jacket (bought second hand at Lost & Found for $20!); Forever 21 shirt; SOHO Apparel leggings; BCBGeneration shoes; Kate Spade bracelet and clutch; La Vidriola Cassette earrings; Lookmatic glasses

(Pictures 1, 3, 4 and 5 courtesy of the Kelly Cardenas Instagram and Facebook pages)

Moto Mania

I have been on the hunt for a classic moto jacket for the better part of a year now. I didn’t want anything fancy, just a simple moto jacket like the ones Depeche Mode used to wear (check out Alan Wilder’s in the picture below). I had a great faux leather one (post here and here), but my search began after it started to wear in the shoulder area. I was deciding between a more affordable faux leather one and a real leather one, but I didn’t want to keep replacing the faux one due to possible wear. Imagine my delight when my husband surprised me at Christmas with this wonderful, absolutely classic real leather moto jacket by BCBGeneration. I searched for months to find what he found in one evening, simply by chance. But it’s definitely no accident that my husband’s years in retail have helped in finding exactly what I wanted!

Check out Alan Wilder’s jacket; classic, no? (Photo courtesy of The Place)

I’ve always loved black paired with navy blue. It’s almost monochromatic, but with just a slight bit of contrast.

Outfit: BCBGenerations Moto Jacket (no longer available); Forever 21 houndstooth sweater; Madewell jeans; Naughty Monkey suede boots; Warby Parker “Simone” glasses in Blue Coral; Tahari scarf; Beret from Paris; Love Tatum Rings; “Adelaide” crossbody purse c/o Kipling (Fashion Valley)

Thank you SO much to Kayde and the fantastic folks at Kipling in Fashion Valley for my lovely Christmas present!

(Outfit photos by Deon Chen)

My First Fashion Subscription: Rocksbox!

I must say, I’m very new to this fashion subscription box game. I’ve seen reviews from my blogger friends on beauty boxes, and I even know an actual fashion box stylist. But this is my first time trying it out, and what better way than through Rocksbox! I’m a sucker for a great accessory, and with Rocksbox, I can review three pieces of jewelry and decide to purchase them or send them back for another three pieces as curated by my stylist.

Here’s how it works: I became a Shine Insider by filling out a survey to help the stylist who will be assigned to me to determine my style and jewelry preference. I can also choose items for my “Wish List” that could be added to my box. Soon after, I received my first box with the Urban Gem necklace I chose, along with a set built around my necklace by my stylist, Eleanor: adorable Gorjana earrings and amazing rings by CC Skye. I have to tell you, I have been getting a lot of use from my Rocksbox pieces, wearing them altogether as a set or with jewelry I already own (the CC Sky ring paired perfectly with my Love Tatum one). If I absolutely love a piece, I simply keep it and purchase it on my account page, and then return the rest of the pieces!

I can’t believe I haven’t tried this before because it really is very easy and so convenient! First of all, I really enjoyed the personalized touch. Upon opening the box, I was immediately greeted with my name on the card with the description of the contents of the box. Each piece was carefully wrapped in its own individual jewelry bag. Very explicit instructions are included on not only how to return the jewelry with the packaging and shipping label provided, but also on how to care for the jewelry, just in case you want to return the items you don’t want.

I actually purchased the Gorjana “Cress Shimmer Studs” that Eleanor chose for me, and used my Shine Spend, which brought the price of the earrings down to $20! I then returned the rest of the jewelry in the original packaging, with the shipping label provided. I’m excited to see what Eleanor has planned for me next, especially since I made some additions to my “Wish List”.

Would you like to try out Rocksbox, courtesy of moi? Any Second Now readers can use code any2ndnowxoxo when prompted on the Rockbox site to try it out for one month! If you love it, then it’s just $19 a month thereafter to get unlimited access to rent some great jewelry!

FTC Disclosure: I received a complementary 3 month subscription to try out Rocksbox. Although I did receive a complementary subscription, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

New Dress, New Year!

It’s the first week of the New Year, so why not start with an outfit post? During the Thanksgiving break, my mother-in-law treated me to a fabulous afternoon tea at The Tea Lounge in the Mandarin Oriental Las Vegas. I’ll detail the tea itself in a separate post, but I felt the occasion warranted me to wear this dress from Voodoo Vixen’s latest Fall/Winter 2015 line. It has a wonderful flocked houndstooth print (one of my favorite prints), with a lovely open collar, giving it a completely retro feel. Since it’s a bit chilly in Las Vegas, I finally got to use my faux fur tippet, which worked well with this vintage inspired dress.

Guess what? If you like what you see on Voodoo Vixen’s site, Any Second Now readers can use code any2nd20 to get 20% off your purchase!

I also had to take a picture of my nails because they are my new favorite “go-to” nails in a pinch: I did my nails in under 15 minutes! They’re the latest by Kiss, and I purchased them the day before at CVS, but you can’t tell that I just glued them on a short time before we headed out the door. What I really love is that they come in a new shorter length, so they’re pretty and practical.

Outfit: Tiger Lily Flocked Flare Dress c/o Voodoo Vixen; Enzo Angiolini Coadi Houndstooth Pumps; Oasis Faux Fur Tippet; Kate Spade necklace, earrings and bracelet; “Tippi” glasses by Lookmatic (no longer available in black)

(Pictures 1 & 2 taken by Diana Chen-Rhodes)

FTC Disclosure: I received product in exchange for a product review. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.

Ja-Vie: A Comfy, Stylish & Practical Pair of Ballet Flats

As a blogger, I’m finding out more and more that Instagram is a great place to not only connect with other people, but to discover new and emerging brands. I discovered Ja-Vie ballet flats through a like on my Instagram, and decided to look into these very innovative, yet stylish flats. I’m a sucker for anything houndstooth, so I was excited to see this lovely ivory & black pair.

Ja-Vie ballet flats differ from any other flat I’ve come across. They are made with a jelly outsole, leather cushioned insoles providing comfort and support, and a knit “sock” lining. The leather insole can be removed and the whole shoe can be machine washed (just make sure to use a mesh laundry bag to protect them)! Plus, the price point of $68 is great for any budget. The result: practical comfort and style, which is great for a mom on the go, like myself!

For my outfit, I decided to really play up the 80’s factor, because I have loved houndstooth since I was a teen. I remember I had a houndstooth skirt from The Limited and houndstooth leggings from Express that I wore over and over with everything. I had a hat just like the Topshop version I’m wearing with this outfit, and I also had a leather moto-jacket back then as well. I guess my love for the 80’s doesn’t just stop at music!

Outfit: Topshop hat; Forever 21 faux leather jacket (old); Madewell jeans; Milly purse; Love Tatum necklace (bought on sale at Simply Local); Wendy Brandes rings; Depeche Mode 5 icons sterling silver & leather handmade wrapping bracelet by Little Treasure by Mir; “Mona” glasses in Fuchsia Sunset c/o Spy Optic; Flower Design bracelet in Steel Silver c/o Bittersweet; Ivory/Black Houndstooth flats c/o Ja-Vie

(Outfit photos by Rholnna Jiao)

My latest hair color: “Oil Slick” by Salvador at Kelly Cardenas Salon in Hillcrest. It’s the brunette’s answer to Unicorn Hair! I think this is my favorite color so far!

FTC Disclosure: I received product in exchange for a product review. Although I did receive product, the opinions in this post are strictly my own.