Cheers to the {Kate Spade} weekend

The wait is over. Kate Spade NY began marketing their new line, Kate Spade Saturday, last fall, and now the time has officially come, as it was launched yesterday! The label, named after everyone's favorite day of the week, is more affordable than their regular line so more women can afford the brand. I love many KSNY pieces, but obviously cannot afford the $400 price tag for a dress (honestly, how many people can?!) 

I am kind of loving the rompers and shift dresses. The prints are bold, and the prices are a little easier on the wallet. What do you think of the new line?

{All items can be found here}

Mara Hoffman

I have long been a fan of Mara Hoffman's designs since I saw this dress a couple of years ago.

Unfortunately the dress cannot be found anywhere, but luckily for the rest of us fans, everything from her collection looks about the same. With the bright, intense colors and unique tribal-looking designs, I love the originality of her prints. You just want to buy a couple of pieces and set off to a beautiful, warm island to wear it all. Besides the dresses and cute bikinis, the line has some pretty amazing one-piece swimsuits. If you're looking for one that's out of the ordinary, Mara Hoffman is a good bet.

Washington-bound

First of all, I want to apologize for being nearly non-existent for the past week. Even before then, my posts have changed from daily to a couple of times a week. I can blame most of this on my hectic schedule as of late, because I was in the process of interviewing for a job in Washington, DC and I found out last week that I got it! If you've been following for a couple of months, I've been wanting to return to the nation's capital for a job for a while now, and I'm so glad I waited for this opportunity because it is a great stepping stone in my career path. I can honestly say, good things come to those who wait! I'm looking forward to sharing more adventures here on A Pop of Style, and once I get settled in my new place I can promise more posts.

xxo

Menswear Wednesday: Current picks

I thought I'd use this week's Menswear Wednesday post to post some of my favorite looks that are among my favorites for this in-between seasons kind of weather we've been having. I don't know about you, but in Cleveland it seems like one day it seems like spring and the next we're back to winter weather! For now, here's a few things to tide the guys over until the warm weather is here to stay.

{Esprit hoodie} {Twisted hooded sweater} {Nigel Knox socks}

Spring fever

With all of the spring clothes in stores, I've had a hard time resisting the urge to buy everything I know I don't really need. I guess after Easter comes we can bring out the white attire and spring dresses, something I've been waiting for since January! Until then, here are a few of my favorite spring looks. 

Apple walnut salad with champagne vinaigrette dressing

Since I posted the recipe for champagne vinaigrette salad dressing, I thought I'd follow up with a recipe for an amazing salad to go with it. If you're a fan of adding fruit to your salads, then this one will easily be a favorite. It's perfect for an entire meal, or as a side salad with whatever you're serving. Honestly, I've eaten this as my lunch (and possibly dinner) for the past couple of nights, and I'm still not tired of it!

Apple walnut salad with champagne vinaigrette dressing (makes enough for one)

- 2 1/2 cups of mixed greens

- 1/4 cup of Granny Smith apples, diced

- 1 T of parmesan cheese, grated

- 1/3 cup grilled/breaded chicken, sliced thinly

- 1/4 cup of candied walnuts (recipe here)

- champagne vinaigrette dressing 

Work deskspace design

Since I've moved into my new building at work, I've been wanting to do a post that shows my deskspace and the ways in which I've personalized it. To give you an idea of what I do, I work in PR and media relations for a global diversified industrial manufacturing company, writing external pieces (such as news releases), and dealing with the company's social media outlets.

While what the company does isn't exactly glamorous (i.e. the words industrial and manufacturing) I have tried to make my personal space reflect my knack for style, decor and inspiration. With the use of a few DIY tricks and a good printer, I was able to do everything with almost no cost. For example, the fashion prints were just printed out from here. Enjoy!

Fashion prints: When I saw I had a bulletin board as a part of my workspace, I knew I wanted to "glam it up" with fashion prints I'd collected on one of my Pinterest boards. It brought color and a little bit of my interests to work.

Quote board: For Christmas, one of my bosses got me a daily Presidential Quote Calendar because he knows how much I love politics and anything dealing with Washington, DC. I've taken a few of my favorites and pinned them to my board.

Gold desk accessories: This was the easiest DIY idea, because I already had the metal desktop accessories, I just wanted to change them up from the boring old typical black color. A couple of layers of gold spray paint later, and voila! 

Duo trashcan: How neat is this? I had to take a picture and include it-- one side for recycling, and the other for trash! I love it.

Champagne vinegar salad dressing

I think my friends would seriously make fun of me if they knew I made my own salad dressing from scratch instead of buying the storebought stuff. Mostly it's because I hate a lot of salad dressings in general (I use oil + vinegar 95 percent of the time), but there's something about throwing together your own salad dressings that just seems healthier. 

This recipe is from the Nordstrom cafe menu, one of my favorite places to eat out. Sounds weird that Nordstrom has a restaurant, but they have the best food. This dressing is sweet but still light, so it's great on a salad of mixed greens and fruit. Stay tuned for a salad recipe early next week that goes perfectly with this!

xxo

Champagne Vinegarette Salad Dressing (Makes 2 cups)

- 1 tablespoon chopped shallot
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 cup champagne vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups salad oil
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon white pepper (I used black pepper, which is fine)

Combine all ingredients--except for the salad oil-- in a food processor and mix until well blended. Pour into a mason jar (or any sort of jar with a lid) and add oil. Shake well. Keep refrigerated.

Menswear Wednesday: Khaki + tan sport coats

Khaki is the perfect neutral for a men’s wardrobe, but its presence in 20-something’s closets is understated. I’ve always had the feeling that most guys—especially former private schoolgoers who donned the color nearly every day for their pre-college life—have left their khaki and tan attire in the backs of their closets, opting for lighter shades of greys and seersucker for the start of the spring months. However, the great thing about khakis and tans are that they can be used as a neutral tone to anchor any color(s) brought into the fold.

There’s still a bit of time before we all break out the post-Easter wardrobe, so before you do I thought I’d offer up a few tips for wearing a khaki or tan sport coat.

Pairing with patterns

Because the color is a neutral one, donning a khaki sports coat over a patterned shirt is a must. My favorite look is ginham shirts (especially oranges, blues and greens), but plaids are a go as well. If you’re feeling really bold, go for a polkadotted shirt as well.

Pastels

Pastels are what first come to mind when I think of spring fashion. In terms of matching a pastel shirt with khaki or tan, think green, blue or pink pastels… forget the yellow pastels, because it’s too close in color to the khaki and tan.

Darks

Dark army greens and chambray shirts are good contrasts to the lighter color of your sport coat. If you don’t want to opt for a dark shirt, pair a dark navy tie with a crisp, white button down.

How to: DIY card book

For years I've stockpiled old birthday and graduation cards. I'm not a pack-rat by any stretch, but I can never really bring myself to throw out cards with personal notes inside, especially the handmade cards! Since I've had these stashed away in a box for the past [nearly] seven years, I decided to a good DIY idea to use and made a "card book" using three book rings. With a hole punch and the book rings, it only took me about 20 minutes to finish, and it's a great way to keep them organized!

xxo 

Quite possibly one of the best handmade cards by my best friend Rachael. (We were obsessed with The OC!)

Tray Chic

Like many other bloggers out there, I've been on the "interior design trays" kick since I saw Olivia Palermo's orange Hermes round tray in a feature on the socialite's gorgeous Tribeca Apartment. The tray instantly turned her ottoman into a coffee table, and was a simple way to dress up a living room with a touch of glam. 

Besides storage for a neat stack of coffee table books and a vase of your favorite fresh flowers, trays are also a chic way to clear up clutter. Whether vintage, white lacquer or lucite, use it as storage for your car keys and sunglasses, or toss your everyday jewelry in a small glass bowl and place it atop the tray with a candle and other trinkets. Below are a few of my favorite ways to style a tray, followed by the best places to purchase one-- hopefully you can find a little bit of inspiration to make your own.

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An arm and a leg for a shoe

I'm not usually one to spend a crazy amount of money on one particular item. For one, I'm barely 23 and just started paying off my student loans. Secondly, I don't have an incredibly high-paying job for a recent graduate. Third, I think it's completely outrageous to spend $200 on a pair of Tory Burch flats because you're essentially buying the insignia. I don't talk down about those who do (to each his own!), I'm just saying I would never do that myself. However, I am being a little hypocritical, because I'm about to confess the biggest of my shoe spending sins: I spent $298 on a pair of black flats. 

I'm crazy. I spent nearly half my week's pay on shoes.  I must be insane, right?

Not exactly. 

Before this purchase, I had been wearing my $29.95 pair of black American Eagle Outfitters flats I'd had since my junior year of high school (very gross, I know). A lot of girls I knew were buying Tory Burch, J.Crew and other popular brands, but everything I tried on, I found something wrong with. I wanted something simple, but something very comfortable. I grew frustrated every time I made an effort to go shopping for a pair, and all but gave up when my mom recommended I look into Attilio Giusti Leombruni flats, or "AGL's." I laughed when she told me they would set me back $300, thinking it was beyond unrealistic. But when I actually tried them on at Nordstrom, I was pretty much sold.

Here's the thing: My American Eagle flats were cheap, but they weren't half as comfortable as the AGLs I purchased back in August. I will have these flats for at least five years (how long I had my American Eagle ones). I wear them every day, and never, ever have my feet felt sore by the day's end. Yes they were very expensive, but with black flats-- something that you get more use out of than other shoes --you can think of them as an "investment piece," such as a nice blazer or an LBD.

For any of you looking for a great pair of flats (black or not!), I highly recommend AGL. You'll cringe when you hand over your credit card, but you'll never regret your purchase. :)

xxo

{Find all AGLs at Nordstrom here}