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Showing posts from March, 2013

Easter weekend.

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Finally the weekend came. Here in Italy we don't have Good Friday off, but we have Monday off. So today is the first of a three days weekend. I went to the farmers' market. While waiting in line to buy some prosciutto, the stand guy made me try a piece of delicious cheese. I liked it so much I bought a piece to bring to my mother in law, so that we can have it as an appetizer for tomorrow's lunch. Husband and I are going to her place, and she's been cooking Easter specialties since yesterday. I bought two Easter chocolate eggs after the market: we'll bring the hazelnut one tomorrow to the lunch, and the white one is a present for husband. I'll give it to him when he comes back from work later today. I am planning on doing some bread too, using the sourdough I got at the bread making class. If it comes out well, I'll bring it tomorrow to the lunch. The weather is a bit gloomy: it's windy and grey. At least we have another tulip to cheer us up!

Wensday outfit: fancy stripes.

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  Striped tee - Max Studio Cardigan - Lunatica Skirt - Oltre Jeans Tights - Project Boots - Manifattura Italiana Necklace - Particolari This outfit started different that it ended up being. I wanted to wear jeans, but since I had been wearing them on Monday and Tuesday, I decided to change a bit and wear my denim skirt instead. I wanted to wear this tee I haven't worn since last summer (!). I found it at TJMaxx in Buffalo, and liked its neckline and stripes. You can't really tell here, but the stripes take different directions on the torso... Plus, in the afternoon it gets hot in the lab, so I can take off the cardigan and wear short sleeves under my labcoat. I had planned to wear my tan boots, but these fit much better. All in all I am pretty satisfied, my only doubt is about the part of the tee that comes out of the cardi at the bottom. Would it look better with the tee tucked in the skirt?  

Happy Monday!

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  Here's to a happy (or at least serene) week. My weekend didn't start so well... I was extremely sick on Saturday, and was able to leave the bed only around 5 pm. At that point I was feeling much better, so I baked some cookies and helped husband prepare dinner. I love that he likes to cook, so when I don't feel like it he gets into action! Luckily I woke up bright and early on Sunday morning, feeling much better. The sun was shining and it was unseasonally warm. I took care of the laundry, baked some muffins (I wanted husband to have them ready when he'd wake up) and had coffee while reading my favourite blogs. Then we went to the farmers' market and bought fruits and veggies.  After a light lunch, we went to visit my parents - it's so much colder where they live! Then, it was dinner at Castel Gandolfo, a deal I had bought some weeks ago on Groupon. It was good, but I wasn't able to finish everything! The place is Arte e Vino , and if you

This weekend...

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... I just need to relax. I had a very tiring week, I was so tired I wasn't able to make to yoga class, and today I had a terrible headache. This weekend I am hoping to rest. I'll have to do something I'd much prefer not too, but it needs to be done soon. For the rest, I'll go to the farmers' market, I scheduled a facial, will go visit my mom and dad and have e nice dinner on Sunday evening. Here's to a relaxing weekend!

Thursday - go professional.

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Sweater - Express Shirt - Nara Camicie Trousers - NY&Co Booties - Geox Necklace - Conbipel For a first day of spring, this outfit was pretty dark, but I didin't really mind. I like these pinstriped trousers and my black shirt, and wanted to wear some more times before it gets too warm, By the way, this is my new haircut. It's not that different, but it's much easier to style in the morning. Today it was somehow a very exhausting day. After work, groceries. Then we went to play with the band, then we picked up some pizza for dinner, so that we didn't have to hurry up and cook. Now husband is at work, and I am relaxing on the couch. My days seem longer and longer, and my energy level gets lower by the day. I whish I knew why! Anyway, to celebrate the first day of spring, one of the tulips I brought back from the Netherlands decided to gift us  a flower!. I took some pictures this morning: Can't wait to see th

Red!

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  Sweater - Project Skirt - Oltre Jeans Tights - Project Boots - Nero Giardini Necklace - Present from a colleague Flower studs - Conbipel This is an example of a perfectly fine outfit, in theory, but something that I wouldn't wear as is again. I felt like there is something missing. Maybe it'd need a belt? Or I should have paired the red sweater with a black bottom, instead of jeans, since it looks a bit too casual to me. I can't pinpoint the problem, but I definitely felt like something was off.  On another note, I went to get a much needed haircut yesterday. I want to grow it a bit, so I asked not to cut too much but to give it a shape!

Black & white Monday.

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Sweater - Express Shirt - JCrew Jeans - OVS Necklace - Particolari Booties - Geox This is my "It's Monday, it's grey, it's rainy and I can't be bothered" outfit. Plus, husband and I had to go to Rome in the evening, and that always entails some walking, hence the comfortable booties. At least the polka dots on the shirt add some fun, and I put on a necklace!

A different Sunday.

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A couple of weeks ago husband informed me that some cooking classes would soon be held in the local pizzeria La Strana Coppia . I was so happy something like that was happening close to our place, that I started spreading the news among colleagues I thought would be interested, and called for info. So a colleague and I decided to go to the first class on bread making, held yesterday. Unfortunately husband couldn't join us, as he had to work, but I hope he'll make it to next classes (next class I am interested in will be in May). The teacher was lovely Sara Papa , who kept us from about 10 am until 2 pm talking about how the wheat seed is composed and how it should be milled, the importance of flour, proportions, yeast, and showed us some preparations beyond classic white, everyday bread. It was a lot of fun, and after the lesson we got to eat all the bread that was prepared, with cheese, salami, lard and Gaeta olives (a quite famous local kind of olives, very small and tasty

Outfit - pencil skirt fun!

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  Turtleneck - Tezenis Cardigan - OVS Belt - Conbipel Skirt - Oltre Jeans Tights - Tezenis Boots - Nero Giardini Necklace - Store in the Netherlands I started planning this outfit around a pencil skirt... not even this one, but my black one. Then I thought the black would be too formal, and switched to my jeans skirt. After deciding for this cardi and belt, which are the same color, I tought this turtleneck would look good with the rest of the outfit. And the long pink pearls would be a nice final touch. This outfit seemed to come to life by itself, and I am really happy about the result. 

My everyday makeup.

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I am not a beauty junkie, but I have a decent collection of nail polishes and quite a bit of makeup. I try to use everything I have, and never buy anything new unless it's a replacement for something else. I got a makeup set for Christmas from mother in law, and bought another small set right before Christmas, mainly because it contained colors I didn't have. But anyway, here are my basics, the stuff I always use. I start with my Essential liquid foundation . I buy it at the beauty salon, and it's one of the most expensive makeup I use (it's 35 €). I use the lightest shade. It gives a gentle coverage and it's never too obvious.   Then it's time for eye-liner. I use  L'Oréal Eyeliner Super Liner in noir. I have tried more expensive brands, but this is definitely my favourite:  For my lower lashline I use Lancome Le Crayon Kohl in noir. This too is quite expensive for my budget, but I try to buy it at duty free shops during my trips, plus it la

Colored skirt

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  Turtleneck - Tezenis Cardigan - Lunatica Skirt - Weekend by Max Mara Tights - Tezenis Boots - Manifattura Italiana Necklace - Conbipel Ear studs - Target Today it was colored skirt day - and my choice was obvious since this is the only colored winter skirt I own. It's a nice, heavy wool, so I don't think I am going to be able to wear it for much longer. I bought it last year on sale, and it's one of the few designer pièces I own. There is a store in my town which sells designers clothes, coats and accessories, and I can't wait for their sales every winter. At first sales are 30% off, top, after a couple of weeks they become 50% off, and that's the time to look for bargains. This year I bought a skirt there too, but I haven't worn it yet. By the way, it's the same store where husband bought his wedding outfit, and it's nice to remember when we went to choose it. This outfit doesn't excite me too much: it seems too severe, desp

Sunday outfit - casual and a scarf

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  Cardigan - Lwie Sweater - La Dolce Vita Tank top - Tezenis Jeans - Jane Norman Boots - Geox Scarf - OVS Earrings - Gift from cousin Today''s thème was "casual and a scarf". I pulled out this scarf I haven't used for a while (mainly because it's not very warm) because its colors match very well the rest of the outfit.  It was nothing special, but cute and comfortable. The earrings are quite unique, a gift from some ethnic store: This afternoon I went to have a coffee with my sister, brother in law and niece. Then we took a walk, got caught in the rain and had to run to a café. But at least I convinced them to send little niece to take a couple of cooking classes for children. Well, it wasn't so hard to convince them, I just had to inform them these classes existed! I am taking a cooking class too, on next Sunday. It'll be on bread making, I am really excited about it! And here's just a random shot at the mimo

Outfit: Spring colors.

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Sweater - OVS Cardigan - Lwie Jeans - Aéropostale Boots - Nero Giardini Belt - Conbipel Necklace - Particolari Pearl studs - Conbipel. Today's thème was "spring colors". It was not easy for two reasons: I have a winter wardrobe of black and dark colors, and the grey weather wasn't helping in selecting spring colors. I decided to wear the lightest colors I own for winter, and this outfit came out.  I knew I had reached my purpose when a colleague commented on how spring-y my clothes were, a nice contrast to the grey of the sky. I am not sick of winter yet, I actually quite like winter. And it's even more beareable now that days are getting longer. But I hate rainy, warm days such as today (we reached 16 °C around 2 pm!). It's the wind from Africa that brings rains. It should stoo in a few days, and I can't wait for the temperature to be a bit cooler.

Today's outfit: spring dress!

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Dress - OVS Turtleneck - Tezenis Tights - Project Boots - Nero Giardini Flower studs - Conbipel Today I challenged myself to wear a spring dress with winter boots. I picked this dress and "winterized" it with a black turtleneck and my Nero Giardini boots.  It was really satisfying to wear this dress, since it had been in need of some minor repair for about a year. So, a couple of weeks ago, I decided it was about time I'd do something about this , and repaired it. It was a shame to have it in the closet without using it. I love its 70s shape and pattern, and the little coral stripes add an interesting touch of color. I can't wait to style it in the warmer days with shoes and no turtleneck.

Outfit - wide belt and skirt

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Cardigan - Lunatica Shirt - Nara Camicie Skirt - Oltre jeans Belt -came with jeans Tights - Project Boots - Nero Giardini Necklace - Pacsun   This outfit was something different than I'd normally wear - it's part of my personal style challenge.  I don't use belts much, so this was the first time I used this wide belt  as an accessory. I chose this jacket since it's short enough to show the belt. This outfit is a nice blend of old and new: my necklace is almost 9 years old, and I don't even remember when I bought these tights! The skirt and belt were bought this season, and the rest of the outfit is 2-3 years old. It was a nice outcome for my little experiment.

Sunday reads!

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  Hi! How is everything going? It's march and spring is closer and closer. It's so nice to still see the light when I get out of work. It makes the day seem longer. Now, down to business: here some links I saved in the last weeks, that I really enjoyed. I found this interesting, in a stalk-y kind of way. A guide to perfect pant length ( amen to this!) and how to set your wardrobe budget - loved reading this. Basic makeup brushes everybody needs. Rose water: I love and use it every day. Check this out! And an opinion on the Yahoo's stop to telecommuting. Comments are interesting too! What do you think? Happy Sunday!