Shopaholic in Alabama

Hello my friends! It's been a long time since I blogged regularly and I have really missed it! I've made the decision to blog again, likely 3-4 times per week. I sure hope some of you are still with me and will read!  What has everyone been up to? I left my job (which I really didn't enjoy) the day after Christmas 2014. Since that time, I have been blissfully unemployed and working on myself. I've been dieting and exercising and have lost some weight, and plan to lose a lot more! I have also been enjoying the summer with family and friends here at the beach. My plans for future posts: diet and exercise tips along with what has worked for me, healthy recipes (we'll start with Meatless Monday and my experiments), fashion finds including my favorite current Lilly Pulitzer pieces, and much much more!  Who is still with me? Take a moment to drop me a comment! Have a fantastic Tuesday, I'm off to Yoga. 

Hello Everyone! I guess you thought I dropped off the planet, huh? Sorry that I haven't blogged in so long - life has been crazy busy and that's really my only excuse. I seriously underestimated how my life would change when I went back to working a "real job"! Many of the changes have been great, and others - not so much! I am going to try blogging again on a limited basis, maybe 3-4 days per week at a maximum. I have really missed interacting with you all and hope you will be happy to see me back!  One of the things that has been keeping me busy as of late - my 25th High School Reunion. I know, I know...even I cannot believe I'm old enough to be out of high school for twenty-five years. It doesn't even seem real - but yet, it is. As an official member of our planning committee, I have been working on the reunion for months. Last weekend, it was finally time for our festivities and oh.my.goodness! What an amazing time we had! My class had both a 10 and ...

Hello, Shopaholics! Everyone knows it by now - I'm a lifelong lover of all things Lilly Pulitzer, and I prefer to buy from small, female owned stores. Have you heard of The Pink Silhouette? They are a Mother and Daughter owned boutique located in Bel Air, MD. Mom Susan is an interior designer and Daughter Christina has a business degree and brings her business expertise to the table. These ladies make The Pink Silhouette a pleasure to shop with, and you can feel their enthusiasm for the business in every interaction with their customers.  From now until March 30, they are offering a fun Lilly Pulitzer GWP promotion. With a $250 spend in Lilly, you receive a Lilly Pulitzer Easter Hat. See the pictures below for how they styled the hat with beautiful dresses from the Lilly Pulitzer Spring Collection. Don't we all NEED a little more Lilly Pulitzer in our lives - and a free Easter hat too? Sign me up! (Admission: you'll find me wearing my hat on the beach this summer...) ...

Who remembers my blog post about the Fall 2012 Lilly Pulitzer collection, and how fall was always one of my least favorite seasons? I'm hoping you forgot that I said I was DONE buying Lilly Pulitzer Fall, because guess what?!!?! Epic fail, as last week I caved and bought several new pieces! (Evidence of my September post HERE ).  As always, there's a sale to blame. It's really not my fault. I have to look put together at work, and my office is pretty conservative. And besides, my employer is a financial institution. As you can imagine, I'm usually one of the most colorful peeps in the building!  My friend Sarah over at Village Palm (website HERE , Facebook page HERE ) had lots of the Fall delivery on sale, so I picked up a few additional pieces. Here are some of them: Callie Wedges, $228. Of course I realize this shoe doesn't scream "Fall" to many of you - especially if you're in an area that gets really cold. Luckily, we don't receive a ton...

Well, it took a little over a month - but now I can finally confess my damages from the Lilly Pulitzer Endless Summer Sale. Most of us remember the details very well - the website crashed at the beginning of the sale, order status was uncertain, some customers received GWP's and others didn't, many people had cancelled orders...it was a mess. I felt really bad for the people who work at Lilly Pulitzer - honestly, we all know they want to take care of their customer. But the sale spiraled out of control, and it was really tough on the peeps at The Pink Palace.  When it was all said and done, I ordered twenty items for a total of $843. Full retail price on those items was $3432, so I saved 75% off retail. Of the original twenty items ordered, I only received sixteen of them because one of my orders was cancelled. (Those four items were sold out). Naturally, I was disappointed but I have to say - the Customer Service crew at Lilly Pulitzer made it right for me. I couldn...

Over the long weekend, I finally had a chance to try on some of the Lilly Pulitzer Fall collection pieces. As I have mentioned here before, Fall is generally my least favorite season for Lilly. Not because I don't love the clothes (of course I do) - but mainly because we don't have much cold weather here on the Alabama Gulf Coast. Plus it's really difficult for me to get into sweater dresses when it's 90-100 degrees outside.  First up: the Kinley Sweater Dress. I absolutely loved this dress on, and didn't feel like I was going to die from a heat stroke while wearing it. I purchased this one and plan to wear it early in the season on it's own, later with a Sherette Sweater Coat or some type of cardigan.  Second: the Hart Top in Tusk In The Sun. Sorry I didn't get a photo of me in this piece, not sure what I was thinking. Anyway - I loved this top, and of course the elephants were right up my alley. Hart now lives in my closet, and I've alrea...

Who else has wasted their precious time this morning trying to shop the Endless Summer Sale on Lilly Pulitzer's website? While I understand there are about a bazillion Lilly lovers trying to shop, it's highly frustrating that we can't get in and shop. Some people were lucky enough to have an order confirmation and were able to check out, before the site seemingly crashed for good.  I don't want to think about what all I could have done with the two hours of my life lost. What about you?

Who else was excited to see the Jumbo size agendas from Lilly Pulitzer by Lifeguard Press, new for 2012-2013? I was thrilled to see my favorite agenda offered in an 8.75" x 11.25" size. Call me silly, but I like my agendas, notebooks and books to "stack" properly and the smaller agendas just don't quite fit the bill.  Now - my only decision is which print to order! This Jumbo agenda only comes in two prints - pictured above is "Tiger Would". I love the pink and green color combination with the tigers, and personally believe you can never go wrong with pink and green!  The Jumbo size agenda is also available in the "Getaway Garden" print pictured above. Set on a navy background, this beautiful floral print would look fantastic year round. Both are priced at $33 retail, and include stickers for your calendar. (I always use any leftover stickers on packages that I ship out to friends, family, items sold online, etc. They make a plain pack...

What a way to start off a holiday week in style - by brightening your Monday with a few good sales! :-)  First off, Lilly Pulitzer Gifts & Home Accessories will be a featured boutique on Rue La La today. The madness begins at 10AM Central time - be quick, Lilly Pulitzer always sells out with lightning speed. If you need a free invite to Rue La La, use my link HERE .  "Prep for the Fourth" - Kiel James Patrick 4th of July celebration  This Fourth of July we are challenging our fellow Americans to dress to the nines in American-made products. To help spread the word to support locally made products we are offering Kiel James Patrick fans (heroes) a 20% discount for spreading the word to friends and family. Use the Trendyr to share your purchase on your Facebook and Twitter pages, and save 20%. Find Trendyr on the 'View Cart' page. Last but not least, Tracy Negoshian is featured on zulily. There are some fun styles, many of which I don't rem...

During the peak of spring and summer, I find myself wearing a ton of fashion jewelry. Some of my favorite brands include Kenneth Jay Lane, Amrita Singh, Meg Carter Designs and Lilly Pulitzer.  If you are a fan of these brands, you've probably noticed the recent trend of coral branch shaped jewelry and coral colored palettes. Not just for the beach girl, these pieces are also perfect statement items and will really get people talking! I have a particular fondness for the items shaped like coral branches... Just yesterday, I wore the Amrita Singh Coral Bib Necklace (pictured above) to work with a solid black top and a white linen skirt. Since I work in a fairly conservative environment (it's a financial institution, after all!) I try to keep my wardrobe moderately tame and have fun with accessories and shoes during the week. At work, I had at least a half dozen people comment on my necklace. They were all wondering - where did you get that? Who is the designer? After work...

Happy Summer! Even though our temperatures have been summer-ish for quite some time here on the Gulf Coast, today marks the official 1st Day of Summer!  This day is also known as National Wear Your Lilly Day.  So the question is this: are you wearing Lilly today? Many of our favorite Lilly Pulitzer stores are offering Gifts with purchase as a celebration of the day. Are you shopping today? For the record, I am wearing Lilly today - but I'm not shopping! Can you believe it? :-)  Tell me - what Lilly are you wearing? I'm kicking it old school style in my Newbury tunic in Speckle & Hyde...

And while you're at it, can you erase any card numbers stored in my memory? Heaven help me. Lilly Pulitzer will be a featured boutique on Rue La La today, starting at 10AM Central, 8AM Pacific. I have to admit, I've been a little disappointed in the past few Lilly Pulitzer events on Rue La La. However, you just never know what Rue La La has in store. My advice? Be there early, and use the "Quick Buy" feature if you "need" something. Chances are, if you want it, someone else does too! (your free invite to Rue La La is HERE , if you're not already a member). Side note: I love that RLL accepts Paypal!  As if this wasn't enough, the Trina Turk for Banana Republic collection is now online. I am dying over sooo many pieces in this collection, and trying to be reasonable about my purchases at the same time. Isn't that an oxymoron? HA! My plan is to limit purchases to items I can wear to work. (stop laughing now, please). I've narrowed my imm...