Legally Charming Style

 Happy Thursday, y'all!

So last weekend when I went to Texas and it was eleventy billion degrees, I also went back to school/fall work shopping because it was tax-free weekend. When I say I came home with a duffel full of new work clothes and sweaters...it's not an exaggeration. I feel like I should hide my head in shame a little.

What I'm not ashamed of is my choice to get this dress at Kohl's. Y'all. Y'all. Seriously. How amazing is this dress?? The contrast dot print. The handkerchief hem. It's light enough for summer wear with heels and a blazer, but will transition beautifully into fall with tights, a sweater, and booties. Plus it has POCKETS, which for me is a super-beyond perk.

Best part?? This dress is 80% off RIGHT NOW at Kohl's. I'm not joking. For the bargain basement price of $13.80, this dress can come home with you.

And since I again somehow overdid the theme thing, I totally wore my blue has-mesh-polka-dots shoes. And carried my has-round-perforations purse. Nope, not kidding. This is something only I would accidentally do. And after I looked at this wall for a minute, I realized it has dots too. I think I might need matchy-matchy therapy. (Is that a thing?)

xoxo

Carisa

Hi hi hi hi hi hi it's been too long.

Between family reunion, finishing up my paper, work, and meetings, I've actually not had a lot of time. I'm going to try not to make excuses and say I'll be updating more often (because I'm not sure if that's true), but I'm doing my very best to bring you new posts.

This outfit is quite literally fresh off my body--I wore it two days ago. It was Monday, I was tired, and my hair was scraped back off my face in a way that my mother hates (but, upon looking at these photos, that she was probably right about all along). I didn't feel like shaving, and I'm willing to tell you that because I am in fact a real person who lives a real life. So I slapped on some pants and grabbed this three-quarter sleeve top.

But since I wanted to make it fun, I decided to pop on an extra print with these pretty but classy leopard pumps. Mixing chain print with leopard? Crazy talk, especially for the office. Crazy talk, that is, unless you do it right.

So what are my tips for wearing mixed prints at the office?

1) No crazy competing prints. In other words, try not to do a giant floral with a crazy colored leopard or something. You're better off sticking to either two smaller prints, like I'm doing here, or one larger print and one smaller.

2) Keep them neutral. I did the navy and white here with the neutral leopard. One colorful print is fine, but if you're mixing them, I think it's better to keep them in the neutral family. Throw in a pop of color elsewhere (like with this coral/orange bag).

3) Break them up. I have done a few looks that I look back on and wince, and it's usually because I butted two prints side by side. I have few exceptions where I think this look works. Otherwise, it looks better to break it up with a dark neutral and not have them side by side.

4) Minimize your accessories. I did just earrings and a ring here. Piling on the jewelry will start looking obnoxious if you're also throwing on a gingham and leopard.

Give it a try and let me know how it goes!!

xoxo

Carisa

Hey howdy everybody! It's FRIDAY!

So a few months ago (okay, like January, stop pressuring me guys!!), I reached out via Instagram to see who would want to collaborate with me. I got two responses: one from my girl Emma of @whatemmawore (check out her Insta if you haven't yet) and one from my friend Vrishali. Emma and I did our collab, and then somehow Vrishali's email got lost in the shuffle and I didn't see it and then it was June and WHAT. I'm terrible.

But Vrishali decided to put me to a little challenge: dump out my bag and share the contents on my blog. So today I'm sharing it with you!

Welcome back, y'all!

After temporarily losing my camera, getting two parking tickets, and then temporarily losing my phone, last week was just NOT my killer week. The highlight of the whole thing was going to see Jaws at Flicks on the Hill and eating Swedish Fish while watching the giant killer shark make fake blood clouds everywhere.  (And before you ask, I know that great whites don't just go around eating people for sport. My ex gave me excellent shark education.)

Moving on to this look, and a true confessions of a sappy television junkie!

I love Hart of Dixie. I love, love, LOVE that show. It may be all love triangles and drama, but there's something about it that makes me laugh and cry and all the silly things you do with a show you're invested in completely. And please don't tell me what happens in Season Four, because I have yet to commit to paying for Hulu for this one show. But in my (repeated) watching of Seasons One-Three, I have come to love one character more than all the others, and that character is Annabeth Nass. Seriously, that girl is the bomb. Maybe it's because she's a redhead, maybe it's because she wears that killer glossy pink lipstick all through Season Three, maybe it's because she is just such a nice person (or maybe it's all of the above). And I think this outfit would be 100% Annabeth approved.

A fit and flare dress? Check. Bright color? Check. Pretty but not too spiky heel? Check. But while the pattern play here might be a bit too much for her, it's perfect for me. I love the mix of leopard and stripes, especially since the stripes are cobalt and black, a bit of a departure with the stripes + leopard combo. It also has the distinct capability to go from work to play. The modest neck and hemlines and the office-friendly color palette make it totally work appropriate. But the kick of the leopard shoe and a pink lip (like Annabeth would do) make it fun to go out on a dinner date or for drinks with friends. And while I usually hate the day to night trope, if I had to pick an outfit that would work for it, this would be it.

Who's your TV style inspiration? Do you love Hart of Dixie as much as I do? Share your feedback in the comments below!

xoxo

Carisa

Happy Tuesday!

Most of my law school friends and some of my family know that I run a fashion blog. They check it out and (mostly) love it. But there's one question I get from pretty much everyone.

"Who takes your photos?"

Really short answer: me. Unless otherwise noted (which has happened a few times), I shoot, edit, and post my own fashion posts. But what you don't often see behind the fun photos of cute clothes is the work that goes into it and how it's all done. It's been a bit of a hit-or-miss process so far. I could probably tell you a MILLION things I've learned so far, but today I'd like to share with you five tips and tricks that work for me to create really great shoots (in case your photographer has the cold or you're going it alone like me).

1) Location, location, location.




Choose your location wisely. This is for two reasons. First and foremost, you want to go to a place that is convenient for you so that you'll actually take the photos. Secondly, you want to choose a location that works with the outfit you're shooting. For instance, shooting a red dress against a red brick wall generally doesn't work (trust me from anecdotal experience). If you're shooting red, go opposite on the color wheel--choose green trees. If you're shooting a busy pattern, going for a busy wall behind you will compete. Pick a simple white wall or something similar. You get the idea.

2) Timing is everything.



Schedule your shoots, or know when you have time to go and shoot. Nothing's worse than forgetting to shoot a really cute outfit and not getting it posted because you didn't schedule time to do it. You can choose to either shoot outfits before you wear them, the day you wear them, or after you wear them. I typically post-shoot outfits because I'll be honest: being a full-time worker is tough and I usually despair at trying to shoot in heels after working in them all day, and I'm fickle with picking outfits so it'll usually change by the time I wear it (making pre-shooting obsolete).

Another issue with timing is lighting. Pick a time when the lighting is good. I typically shoot thirty minutes to an hour before sunset when I get home from work. Pre-sunset lighting is amazing and works wonders for your skin and the colors you're wearing. Just ask any of my recent shoots.

3) The right equipment makes a difference.


I absolutely love working with a real digital camera and a self-timer. I'm picky like that. Most of my pre-camera photos are pretty dreadful, either because they're too grainy, too dark, or just don't get that same quality. I use a point-and-shoot Fuji I got for Christmas like three years ago. It's not the best, but it does really great photos for being so old. If you like your iPhone, that's great, but you'll probably need some equipment to make sure you can set it up to take your photos.

I also use a tripod. I use a rinky-dink one from Amazon that I broke the first week but have rigged to work. Yes, seriously. It's not the perfect set up but it works pretty well for me. If you're using a phone, Amazon typically sells adapters that work with iPhones to put them on tripods. Just be careful-I had one for my iPad and it didn't work too well.

So today's post admittedly is a little less about the clothes and little more about my feelings on last week's Supreme Court decision. I know you're here for the clothes (well, most of you), so if you don't want to know what I think, then look at the pretty pictures  and I'll see you next time!

I expressed a little bit about what it meant to me the day the decision came down (check out my Instagram or Facebook pages if you missed that), but I'm not sure if I can ever fully express just what I feel about it. I'm a girl with two homes (Maryland and Texas), one of which was not an equality state at the time of Friday's decision. Growing up in Texas, I couldn't have expressed then what I know now about my sexual orientation (for a few reasons), but a part of me realizes looking back that it was always there. I lived a life of quiet, reserved naivete--there was only one way to be when I was growing up, and that was straight. Girls dated boys and only boys. I had crushes on boys, but when I reflect on it some of it seems very forced because it was what was expected. I didn't ever crush on someone who could have realistically liked me back. Do not misunderstand me-I have had crushes on many men in adulthood, and they have been (for the most part) real. But my sexual and romantic attraction to women is also real. Coming out was the single most difficult process I've been through. It hurt in some ways, and it challenged my very core. I had to decide that owning up to myself and those I loved was what was important. A lot of times I wished I could go back to repressing my feelings and pretending to only like men. But that would have been a lie, and contrary to the very person I am.

No court decision should ever be the thing that makes a person feel validated; no court decision should make a person feel like they're allowed to be themselves for the first time. And I certainly knew who I was before this all came down, and where I stood, and the very distinct possibility that I would marry someone of my own gender one day. But some days I have wanted something like this to make me feel like the world sees who I am and is okay with that. It's my people pleasing tendencies, I guess. Today, a week after the Supreme Court decided I finally could marry the person of my choosing, I feel fully free to make a choice about who and where I wed. The feeling that my right to love and wed who I choose (a long, long, LONG time from now) is something that really does give my life a different meaning than it had a week ago.

It's actually kind of funny that I had originally planned to go out to Club Hippo on Friday, a local gay bar, prior to the decision being handed down. I had all the more reason to let loose, and for the first time in a long time, I did. I went out, I danced, and I had an AMAZING time with some great people. I think this is the beginning of an exciting time in my life, where I allow myself to feel a little but more proud of who I am than I have before. I look forward to this new chapter of my life and where it will all lead.