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Tall Tropical Vibes

Good news y’all. By the time you read this, we’ll have had a 40 degree temperature increase. That is no typo, but I’m sure a lot of you are feeling our pain with these extreme temps. Didn’t see myself saying the words, “I’m really glad it will be 20 degrees out” this winter, but here we are.

Also, I may be alone in saying this, but here it goes. I am glad we haven’t taken down our Christmas Tree yet. It makes our living room feel cozier in this terrible weather! We went to a friends last week, and they hadn’t take theirs down yet either. It definitely made me feel better about our slowness. I think it makes the energy of putting it up worth it, because once I take it down our house will feel stark and empty. It’s a little too soon to put up Easter decor, since we have zero chance of seeing anything green outdoors anytime soon. I only say that because Easter seems synonymous with Spring.

We’re looking ahead on our calendars, and we’re excited at where we’re headed. It feels like we’re hitting our stride, and at the same time trying to elevate to continuously improve. We’ll have some fun Valentine’s Day looks for you next week, so stay tuned!

Now seems like as good a time as any to virtually warm up and relive some of our looks from our vacation. If you remember, we headed down to Mexico last week for a family trip! We stayed at Secrets Playa Mujeres which is just north of Cancun. The resort was very cool because it incorporated the natural habitat/foliage better than I’ve seen another resort do. The beach was also gorgeous, unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to use it much because it was pretty windy while we were there.

We ended up doing some last second shopping, to snag some rock bottom prices on warm weather dresses and jumpsuits. Asos to the rescue, as Caitlin has the 2-day shipping. It’s a blessing and curse y’all. The plan was to just not buy anything beyond our hats for the trip, but once the browsing started.. It was over. We ended up buying several options each, and sent back several. We’re really working on only keeping items that we truly love and will get good use out of!

We’ve looked at this jumpsuit several times and just couldn’t decide if it would work out well. As you can see, it is super flattering. Plus, if you’re curvy, it still drapes beautifully and highlights Caitlin’s small waist. The loose flowy fit is super comfortable, and allows you to enjoy that “all-inclusive” dinner where you can sample everything off the menu.

The tropical print is one we haven’t dabbled in often, but we loved that it’s basically a jumpsuit version of the party shirts we love to wear. The super gaudy, delightfully tacky, shirts that originated with the Hawaiian shirts, have long been loved by our Dad. So of course we had to adopt the trend as a family, and now we cruise around the lake in the summer in our “party shirts.” We have since found other excuses to wear them in the off months, like visiting a Tiki bar for my birthday, and aforementioned vacations to tropical destinations!

Caitlin paired her jumpsuit with her nude sandals she found on Amazon. They are inexpensive, and have held up really nicely. They are linked here. Unfortunately they only go up to size 11. They are comfortable on her foot, which she sometimes struggles to find regular sized shoes that are wide enough. Plus, the heel height gives you just enough boost without making it impossible to walk and be comfortable! She also paired it with this H&M purse she received from our dear friend Emily (She helped us build our blog! Shameless shout out).

Tell us below, are you planning any trips this frigid winter? Are you getting cabin fever yet?

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Leopard Print Lovin’

Here we are, mistakenly thinking we were going to get away with a mild winter in Wisconsin. Jokes on us, caught in the middle of the polar vortex. We’re scurrying to and from our cars with our heads down, and as much of our person covered as we can still have mobility in. I even grabbed for a pair of mukluks yesterday to wear to gym. They weren’t that warm, but they sure kept me dry! I did have a heavy foot on the gas/brake pedals consequently, but no regrets!

As I write this, I’m sitting in three layers. Not like the cute, I just threw this together look. More like an old fisherman’s wife. Warmth wins out today. I went mom mode this morning making sure my husband wore gloves out the door, by literally putting them on his hands. We’re accustomed to a certain level of cold in Wisconsin, but this isn’t weather you mess around with. You (hopefully) won’t see any memes circulating of “meanwhile in Wisconsin..” with a guy wearing shorts and a shirt this week.

I know the rest of the country is suffering in varying forms with us. Stay warm, friends! Also, be safe on the roads. Alright, I’ll cut it out with the mom stuff now. It feels like we’re in the middle of shopping no-man’s land. Where you don’t really want to buy ANOTHER sweater, but you can’t fathom the idea of buying Spring clothing.

We did a little bit of shopping before our trip down to Mexico, and y’all there are deals to be had! If you check out Asos sale (which we will link below), they have some rock bottom prices on dresses. It was a great moment to test out some of the items we had forever in our saved items. Stay tuned for some of our vacation looks!

We mentioned that we found a couple of hat wins for our large heads in this post, here. Unfortunately my one hat blew off my head into the pool, and now it’s still wearable but it’s slightly misshapen because it got fully soaked. We couldn’t take full advantage of wearing our hats all the time because it was pretty windy, but we’re going to get a ton of wear this spring and summer!

Onto the outfit of the day, another tall blouse for the win. A favorite of mine via Asos has been Fashion Union’s brand. They seem like have consistent sizing, and it’s been generous enough for my 6’4 frame in length. A brand I seem to struggle with, is Missguided via Asos. As much as I’d love to be able to wear their “tall” pieces, they just aren’t long enough or wide enough in the shoulder.

This leopard print called my name and Caitlin knew right away I had to have it. The timing was perfect, as it dropped in November. I was on the hunt for the perfect birthday blouse, for my surprise weekend celebration. We recapped that fabulous weekend here! I snatched this blouse up, and was super excited to find how well fitting it is! I love a good ruffle detail, and the shoulders of this blouse give it a little something extra. Like I said about, Fashion Union is consistent in sizing, so go with your normal size.

As for the jeans, they are an older pair from Asos. I found that they don’t have as much stretch as the other jeans I’ve bought from Asos, but what I do love is the length. I bought these in 38’ inch length and they are fabulous. They are the only pair of jeans that bunch at the ankle for me and can be tucked under. Tall girl win! Plus Asos denim is pretty inexpensive, which is always appreciated.

One shoe brand we’ve always loved is Sam Edelman. The hesitation with his shoes has always been price/budget for both of us. We can bite the bullet sporadically on a pair of boots  especially tall boots, because if they’re leather they will last as long as you take care of them. When I discovered these booties though, I felt like I hit the jackpot. They are Circus by Sam Edelman, and they are usually priced way below his normal offerings. So you better believe I snatched them up in Nordstrom Rack as soon as I noticed them. The block heel is the perfect height to still be comfortable and cute.

Tell us below, have you been all about the animal prints like us? We last posted about leopard in this post here, we can’t get enough!

Asos Sale Link

Final Clearance! New lines added. Up to 70% off! Valid 1/28-2/1 8am GMT.

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It’s a Cardi Party

I couldn’t bring myself to mispell party in the title, but I’ll do it in the post once. Ain’t no pardy like a Nordy cardi pardy. Admittedly, that’s a stretch even for me. There might be a lot of parties like cardi parties, and if so that’s a party we want to be at. Being that we started the blog towards the end of last winter, we didn’t really share any cardigans with you last year.

If you know us, you know we’re all about cardigans especially the ultra cozy variety. Wisconsin life keeps us seeking any way we can to stay warm. But when this cardigan popped up in the Nordstrom Anniversary sale in August, we just weren’t interested. Despite everyone talking about the “oversized” fit, we assumed that meant sizing up for it to equate to actual oversized on us!

On top of that, we hold out for some actual cold weather to pull out our sweaters! We know we’ll be reaching for them for the next sixish months, so don’t talk to me about buying sweaters in August! So while we admired the chunky knit on every blogger and their mother, we would not be partaking.

Fast forward to months later, and we’re firmly entrenched in cold weather. Although to be fair, we haven’t seen much snow, and for that we’re thankful! Caitlin spotted this sweater marked down for winter sale and snatched up the pretty pink color, that you might remember from this post here.

Same old story, once I saw Caitlin in this cardigan I was in love. Many people worry about buying sweaters that might overheat them. I do NOT have that problem. My hands are perpetual icicles all winter long (my husband can attest to that). Plus I was super impressed with the sleeve length on her.

All of a sudden, they dropped/restocked with all of these amazing colors. I was smitten with the mustard yellow, because I don’t have any other sweaters that color. So in keeping with mindful shopping, I thought about the different ways I would wear it and if it would fit with other items in my closet. With all that said and done, I snatched it up.

Of course, Caitlin was in these discussions with me! Once she was in the middle of advising me and confirming what color I should get, she decided she had to have another color as well. She ended up with this gorgeous forest/emerald green. Our mom actually took these pictures of us and ended up deciding to order a navy colored cardi for herself! The influencing goes on and on.

All tongue in cheek of course, we don’t take ourselves too seriously around here. The hope is to make y’all laugh a little at our antics. We took these pictures down in Lake Geneva, and we were staying at the Grand Geneva. Because we had other things going on, we didn’t end up taking pictures until closer to midday, and we struggled to find the proper lighting. We’re always learning and growing!

As for the rest of the outfits, this has got to be my new favorite pair of jeans. Ever since Caitlin picked up a pair of button front jeans, I’ve been patiently waiting for the perfect pair to snatch up! This pair from Gap is ridiculously comfortable. They actually remind me of my other favorite pair from Madewell, that I wore here. They are both lighter wash too, but the button detail is perfect.

The turtleneck is also from Gap, and is the best layering option I have for winter. I don’t know why they didn’t bring back their heat tech clothing this year, but I’m hoping they will for next winter. It’s a tall and the sleeves and body are amazingly long. I get a ton of use out of them, as I have it in black as well. My booties are from Nordstrom Rack, although I couldn’t find the exact link, they are up to size 13. If you haven’t checked out the Rack online, you are missing out!

Caitlin grabbed one of her favorite Gap basics as well; one of their plain tall crew necks, the jeans that I mentioned above also with the button detail and her favorite Loafers. And if you ask her, no outfit is complete without a good pair of sunnies!

Hope y’all had a great week, we’ll be returning from vacation tomorrow!

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One(sto) of a Kind Brunch

As we’re lying on the beach wrapping up our vacation, it’s easy to picture Wisconsin winter fondly, mainly because I’m not experiencing it currently. Don’t get me wrong, I know I complain a lot about the cold! Wisconsinites and midwesterners in particular, are a special hearty group of people. You notice it especially when you come down to the Caribbean for vacation. They are always the people you notice right away, because they’re the friendliest.

No matter what resort you end up at, it feels like you’ll always meet at least one other Wisconsinite. It’s probably because we all need to escape the cold once a winter! We can always count on meeting some Canadians too, I think I have a collection of Facebook friends I’ve met every time I travel. It’s fun to connect with other people while far away from home. You find small things to bond over and it makes the resort feel more familiar.

When we’re back at home, we’ve had many similar experiences with the warm hearted people of Wisconsin. People say nice things about southern hospitality, but Wisconsin is no slouch! You walk into a bar/public place, and you can find your new best friend for the afternoon. Caitlin and I experienced some wonderful hospitality at Onesto when we met our friend Katherine for some appetizers/happy hour. Sidebar, but Katherine is the founder of Lake Effect! We featured some of her designs last here! The bartender, Michael, was an absolute MASTER at hospitality.

We had an amazing experience and left a glowing review, and we were invited back to try their new brunch! With the rustic wood decor, and the cream city brick, this restaurant has perfect decor. We are always down to try a new place for brunch, and so we tied it in with our staycation at Brewhouse Inn & Suites. We wrote a post about our experience here. Y’all this was unlike any brunch I’ve had before!

We looked online at their menu and our eyes were immediately drawn to the lavender blue drink. It’s made with Blueberry lavender shrub, seltzer, homemade limoncello, and peach brizard. It sounded incredible, and it lived up to it and more! It’s always fun to stick with mimosas or even bloody mary’s, but I think we found a new favorite brunch drink.

As we scanned the menu for the food offerings, we spotted a chocolate croissant. There was no way we were going to pass that up, so we called it an appetizer and ordered two for the table! Hearing how they’re made in house by turning 500 times was fascinating, and I think it made it taste even better.

For the main event, we all ended up trying completely new to us dishes. Mine was a Wild Mushroom Ragu, and it was wonderful. It was so unlike anything I’ve ordered for brunch, but it was perfect for the chilly day spent walking the Third Ward. Caitlin tried Carbonara (it’s worth noting their pasta is all homemade as well) with poached eggs, and Sarah had the Seared Polenta.

Dressing for brunch was super easy for me. I knew I wanted to be warm, comfortable, and have a cohesive layered look. I threw on this sweater from H&M that isn’t tall, but is under $20 and the sleeves are a perfect length. Both Caitlin and our mom last wore it here! You know if one of us has it, the other two are far behind!

There’s no sign of me lately without this teddy coat from Long Tall Sally. It has been my favorite coat, hands down. A lot of times when you buy a trendier coat, you run the risk of being cold while wearing it. Definitely not the case with this lovely coat. Plus having this tan colored coat inspired me to grab this scarf from Asos. It is out of stock now, but I loved the bright pink pop to tie it together. You can see some other ones we are still lusting after that are in stock below.

You’re going to be seeing a lot of these button front skinny jeans from Gap. I do have to say, they give my Madewell pair a run for their money. Y’all know Madewell isn’t the cheapest place to shop, so when Gap showed up with this pair for a fraction of the price, I was INTERESTED. They have the front flap technology to help suck you in more, while still being super comfortable. They are true to size, if you’re between sizes like me, you could size down if you prefer them tighter.

Lastly, I grabbed for my favorite loafers. These are old from Franco Sarto, which you can find stocked in a variety of places, and the brand is great for covering up to size 13! Y’all know we have to stick together on where to find good shoes. Also if Caitlin’s brunch outfit looks familiar you can see her outfit details here!

Hope y’all have a great weekend, we’ll be finishing up our vacation and heading home tomorrow.

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Green With Envy

The title of this post might strike a nerve with Jenilee. However, it’s just another reality we both have to swallow sometimes. Which is that you can’t always own everything. Sometimes you just have to be happy enough that someone who you can share a wardrobe with, owns it for you to borrow.

Not only is this coming from a budget standpoint where we both make it a priority to live well within our means; but also comes from a place of living more simply, shopping intentionally, and making smart purchases. I know we have kind of been harping on this a lot lately. It helps hold us accountable and can hopefully also help you not get sucked into the consumerism of today’s society.

Let me also be the first one to tell you that we are not perfect at following our own wisdom. Just yesterday I was browsing the ASOS sale and somehow had a shopping blackout and Jenilee and I had both purchased a handful of sale dresses for Cancun. Did I need 5 new dresses? No. But were they all a phenomenal price? Definitely. By the time you read this hopefully I will have decided not to keep some of them. Instead I can choose older items that I already own to pack. That darn consumer lifestyle and always wanting to look good, different, and on trend in social media can bite us just as hard, as I am sure it bites some of you sometimes.

I also have to continue on this tangent for just a moment more. So obviously Jenilee and I love to shop. Some might even say (I say) we live for it. Fashion is what we are passionate about and those closest to us have kind of gathered that. So while we were both already down our ASOS hole (hah) our brother texted us about needing help to find some swimsuits.

Say no more fam. It took me seconds, and I mean seconds(!) to light up my shopping basket and our group text. To which Jenilee also responded within minutes saying love them all, and boom, ordered. This is such a common occurrence for us lately with our brother, mom, friends, each other, etc. With all of that being said, if you are ever looking for something in particular drop us a line and we would be happy to put our speed shopping to work for you too!

Okay, back to the reason I started this post-this beautiful green skirt. I got this emerald beauty from my parents for Christmas and I could not have been more pleased. I may have picked it out but it was still just as exciting to receive it. Our parents have always been so incredibly fair with opportunities, gifts, trips, etc. that that is the reason I got this skirt. Jenilee didn’t know she was receiving this amazing duffel (that will last her a lifetime!) so my mom said she needed something else to get me!

We both loved it from the moment they dropped it. However we had other priorities that took precedence. As much as our style can differ at times, we tend to usually be on the same page. Sometimes I think Jenilee is just a few chapters ahead with trends and boldness. Cue her hopefully loving this book pun. In reality, I can’t tell you how many times she got on board with trends before I could accept them (I’m looking at you bodysuits.)

I have worn this skirt so many ways already, and find myself wishing it was more acceptable to wear the same green skirt to work weekly. Unfortunately for myself I don’t like to re-wear outfits to work within the same month. So I see this moving to Jenilee’s house for a few weeks, hopefully in exchange for something else! There is nothing like shopping your mom/sister’s closet. It’s free, immediate gratification and helps me feel like my wardrobe is triple the size.

The look you are seeing here is probably my favorite thus far. This is an old cami from Nordstrom, but you can see a nearly identical one below. You have seen this leather jacket make appearances here and here. And of course I am still rocking my Long Tall Sally booties, and a fun necklace I got a few years ago for Jenilee’s Bachelorette party.

So my question for you, after talking so much about sharing our wardrobes is – Do posts where we each put our flare on a specific piece interest you? AKA would you like seeing this skirt (or other pieces) shown on Jenilee also, but styled differently?

And just for some giggles-when the skirt comes off….

Outfit Details

Similar linked skirts

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