#OOTD: Pleats To Meet You (Feat. StyleWe)

This past week I have been extremely busy due having the flu and missing a week of work, and not to mention having to get caught up on my articles here. Recently, all my life has consisted of is answering emails, going to meetings, and of course running errands--which is honestly a total drag when the weather is cold and grey. So, this weekend I decided to beat the winter blahs, and dress up while running more errands yesterday, and to be honest it really did the trick! Even though I was a bit cold for this outfit of the day shoot (trust me, when I wasn't in front of the camera I most definitely had on my long fur coat), it was totally worth it due to the fact I got to model this absolutely darling dress from my sponsor and affiliate, StyleWe.

Pleated Perfection

The reason I chose this dress to run my Saturday errands, was due to the fact it is very stylish and made for a great outfit choice to pop into some local shops that I was meeting with about upcoming collaborations for spring (Hint, hint: I'm trying to get it in order so I can begin featuring different local shops monthly on here!) as well as dressy enough to snag lunch at the Grand Concourse after a long day of meetings and photo shoots! Not to mention, I thought the pop of color from the pleats in this dress were a great way to add some color to the gloomy Pittsburgh scenery.

One thing that I am an absolute sucker for when it comes to clothing is detail. No matter how minute or huge the details maybe, I always love garments that have unique detailing, needless to say, this dress from StyleWe nails it! The reason I chose this dress was firstly because I loved the slit that included pleats that are every color of the rainbow, and because I thought the beaded detailing was a great touch. The craftsmanship of these details should also be noted due to the fact not a bead or pleat was out of place. I also loved this dress due to its soft and silky rayon material which made this piece very comfortable to wear all day.

I also have to say, the other thing I loved about this playful dress, is that it fit me just right and I thought it looked great on me! Though this dress is just a basic shift dress, it was incredibly fun to style due to its all of its colored pleats. So to style this dress, I chose to pair it with my embossed Prada bag from Tradesy, a gold cuff bracelet by Louis Vuitton, and lastly my new Hermes rodeo charm! The reason I chose to pair this dress with the purse charm, is smply because my Hermes charm is blue and pink, which matches perfectly with the core colors in this dress' pleats. And as we all know, I love to color coordinate.

One Last Look

What are some of your favorite outfits to wear for an eventful day full of running errands? Let's chat about it in the comments below or tweet me at @StarkRavingChic! Have a photo of one of your favorite ways to style to run errands? Feel free to tag me in a post or on your Instagram story at @StarkRavingChic. Later, dolls!

Xx, Bree

P.S. Psssssssst! Don't see the link you're looking for in this post? No worries! if you haven't heard, I am now an affiliate of rewardStyle, so to shop my look, all you need to do is head on up to my LIKEtoKNOW.it section to find all the products straight from my Instagram feed!

Eternal Elegance (Feat. Ritani + Styling by Karrie Hlista Designs)

When I was a little girl my favorite board game was "Pretty, Pretty Princess", you know the one where you moved your piece along the board and tried to collect as much plastic jewelry as possible. Six year old me just loved adorning herself with all of the necklaces, bracelets, and rings the board game had to offer-- and honestly, I generally didn't even play the game itself, but rather just played dress up with the jewelry. Needless to say, ever since I was a child, I have been infatuated with jewelry. However, now that I've grown older (as well as out of the plastic jewelry phase) I've developed an even deeper appreciation for lavish gold and shimmering gemstones. I don't know if it's because of the timelessness of these pieces or if it's the show stopping shine but jewelry is, and always has been, an absolute necessity in my wardrobe.

As many of my long time readers know, I frequently feature jewelry sets from my long time sponsor and affiliate Rocksbox, and have even went on to partner with local Pittsburgh companies such as Terry Jolo Brand and Boho Tribe Collection. By having these wonderful opportunities, I have to admit that I have also acquired quite the jewelry collection of my very own! However, much like with my overflowing wardrobe, there is always more room in my jewelry box for new pieces. And with that being said, I have to say I was absolutely thrilled when I had the opportunity to grow my collection even more and work with Ritani, when I became an affiliate of their's last month, and got a gorgeous diamond ring to pair with my Pandora stacking rings.

Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend

For those of you who have not heard of my new affiliate, Ritani, let me give you a little bit of history about the company: 

The first thing you should know is that Ritani is an online high-end jewelry brand that was founded in New York, in 1999, and ever since has been modernizing the way people shop for jewelry. Ritani has an extensive online selection of jewelry items ranging from loose diamonds, necklaces, bracelets, and earrings, but the most noted thing that Ritani is known for is their custom engagement rings. Another awesome thing about Ritani is that even if you design your custom creation online you can preview it at your local jeweler (That means us Pittsburgh girls, or guys, can check out our creation right here at Orr's Jewelers!) and if you love it you can pay and take it home with you, but if you are not a fan you can just simply walk away, no obligation and no pressure. 

If you follow me on Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook, you've probably seen the photograph I posted of my stunning Ritani ring as a teaser for this article recently. For the record, I am not engaged and don't plan on being so for a long time, if ever--Honestly, I just look at marriage as legally beneficial--but chose this gorgeous, emerald cut diamond ring to pair with some stacking rings I owned from Pandora, simply because my ring stack just needed a little extra sparkle, and since I am now an affiliate of Ritani, it just made sense to promote one of their stunning pieces! (Not to mention the wonderful Valentine's Day special that they are currently offering, but more on that later on in the article.)

Vintage Orr's Jewelers ring box compliments of Etsy. Flowers by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

As I mentioned earlier, I have always had a deep admiration for jewelry, and as I have gotten older I've grown even more fond of diamonds, and not just because they are my birthstone. Part of me feels the reason this is, is due to the fact when I was growing up, I was fortunate enough to have an aunt and uncle that ran their own jewelry business and they always gifted me with lovely diamond necklaces and earrings (some of which I still have today). I can always recall the joy I felt when my aunt would give me these pieces, due to the fact I always looked up to her, and the way that woman accessorized her jewelry could have given Elizabeth Taylor a run for her money. 

Flowers by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

The reason I chose this particular style of ring is because I adore the classic, Art Deco feel of an emerald cut stone, and love the simple elegance of the channel set band. I am also quite a fan of a delicate setting such as this one because though I do love bold outfits and the occasional over the top hairstyle, I do genuinely prefer more classic looks when it comes to accessories and makeup. Bottom line: when it comes to choosing jewelry I would much rather have something timeless than trendy, and what better way to do timeless than with an emerald cut diamond. However, I still had to put my own personal twist on this gorgeous classic, so I decided to pair it with some of my favorite stacking rings from Pandora, for a fresh, boho chic feel, and of course this required an outfit of the day shoot! 

Bohemian Beauty

Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

Additional midi rings can be purchased on Amazon. Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

The reason I chose to pair this diamond ring with stacking rings is due to the fact I did not want it to look like an engagement ring and simply because I love the recent boho trend so I figured why not combine the two? So the stacking rings I chose to pair my Ritani diamond with are Pandora's Intertwined, Infinite Shine, and Eternal Clouds bands.

Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. 

Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. 

To make this outfit stick to how I wanted to style my new Ritani ring, I chose to keep true to the bohemian chic vibe and wear this gorgeous skirt from my sponsor SheIn (that you might recognize from this post) as well as a white silk blouse from Banana Republic, and my ever trusty brown suede booties.

Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

Lastly to put the finishing touches on this outfit (as well as acquire flowers for the still-lives in this post), I was fortunate enough to work with the local, Pittsburgh florist, Karrie Hlista! For this post, Karrie made me these gorgeous floral crowns, and gave me great insight on what greenery and flowers I should use for this shoot to keep it true to its naturalistic and bohemian feel. Then to further accessorize these pieces, I chose to layer one of my necklaces from Banana Republic, along with my gorgeous Crystal Points necklace by SLATE (compliments of Rocksbox), and this gorgeous Antiqued Feather Necklace compliments of Boho Tribe Collection.

Valentine's Day Gift With Purchase

Now what most of you have probably been waiting for *drum roll* the special offer for Ritani customers! If you decide to buy yourself (or your sweetheart) something from Ritani this year for Valentine's day, with a qualifying purchase of $250 or over you can receive a limited edition Infinity Heart Pendant Necklace, which is a $195 value. Just use the code "LOVE2017" at check out, and note this code will only work now through Valentine's Day, so act quickly! (To read all the terms and conditions, just click here or the photo above.)

One Last Look

Flowers by Karrie Hlista Designs. Love the ring? Shop this design and more from Ritani.

Crown by Karrie Hlista Designs. 

What are some gemstones that you have a special connection with? Let's chat about it in the comment section below of you can tweet me at @StarkravingChic! Have a photo you'd like to show off of your Ritani beauty? Feel free to tag Ritani and I both on Instagram at @Ritani and @StarkRavingChic. Later, dolls!

Xx, Bree

#OOTD: Mad About Merch (Feat. SheIn + Rocksbox)

Music has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, then again growing up with a dad who is a musician (as well as a vinyl record hoarder) may have something to do with that. For those of you who don't know me personally, I am actually a musician myself and attended Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School my junior and senior year of high school and was accepted into the school for both piano and voice. Though as I got older my interests of study shifted to photography, journalism, and psychology, music is still very much a part of my life and always will be.

Queen, The Black Keys, Sublime, Underoath, Nirvana, The Beastie Boys, David Bowie, and Lana Del Rey. These names (and many more) are all names that you will come across while looking through my playlists, as well as when looking through my closet. Spoiler alert: I own a lot of band tees, which is why it is so surprising that I have never styled one on here before. Today though, I decided to break that cycle and show off one of my favorite ways to rock a band tee.

My Boyfriend's Band Tee

So the tee I chose to style isn't that of a new, wildly popular rock band or the likes of a vintage Led Zeppelin IV shirt, but instead one from a local Pittsburgh band, called Promise & Fiction. Haven't heard of them? Well honestly, neither had I until I started dating John, and then my roots with music just seemed to become even deeper. You see, John was actually the guitarist for the band Promise & Fiction as well as for the band Color Me Blind, meaning he has just as much of an appreciation and love for music as I do. And as I'm sure you have already guessed, this tee actually belongs to John and I stole it-- I mean borrowed it, from him on my last trip to Florida. Needless to say, this tee definitely holds a lot of sentimental value for me which is why I chose to style it for this post (and of course because I promised John that I would). 

For this outfit, I wanted to do a little more than just a basic band tee and jeans combination, (not to mention John's Promise & Fiction tee is a tank top, making it a bit hard to style in the winter) so I decided to go with a soft grunge look and dressed this band tee up a bit with a pleated skirt, as well as playing with some winter layering. To style the top half of this outfit, I chose to layer John's band tee with my mesh detailed blouse (you may remember it from this outfit of the day post), along with my army green bomber jacket that I received from SheIn last fall. The reason I chose these pairings was due to how well the army green complemented the gold in the band tee, and also because the mesh detailing on the blouse added some more depth to this outfit.

To further style the top part of this '90s look, I decided to pair this outfit with these killer shades from SheIn that my best friend McKenna got me for Christmas this year. The reason I love these sunnies so much is due to their glam rock vibe. I also love the cutout detailing on them because due to these details, the metal frame of these glasses is emphasized. I also chose to style my Aztec Bangle by House of Harlow 1960 and Flagstaff Earrings by Jenny Bird with this outfit due to their glam rock look and industrial edge.

Lastly, to finish off this outfit, I chose to pair my black pleated skirt with some fun tights by Vera Wang, to keep up the '90s grunge appearance, as well as to keep myself a bit warmer while being out in the cold winter weather. And my finishing touch for this outfit is my pair of metallic olive oxford shoes by White Mountain, and the reason I chose this pair of shoes is because I'm loving the metallic trend this season and their olive color went perfectly with my army green bomber jacket.

One Last Look

What are some of your favorite ways to dress up your band tees? Let's chat about it in the comments below or you can tweet me at @StarkRavingChic. Do you have a photo that you want to show off with your perfect band tee styling? Feel free to tag me in a post or in your Instagram story at @StarkRavingChic! Later dolls.

Xx, Bree

P.S. Pssssst! If you love the jewelry I styled in this post as much as I do, you can try Rocksbox for a whole month 100% free when you sign up using my promo code "starkravingchicxoxo". Don't know what Rocksbox is or how it works? You can learn more here!