Let's Look At... Inside My Suitcase

Good morning and Happy Thursday friends! By this time tomorrow I will be in sunny, hot New Orleans, so I thought this would be the perfect time to share what's in my suitcase with Shay! 

I received my suitcase as a birthday present before a trip a few years ago. I love it because it's "official" carry-on size, it's hardshell (so no bulging sides!), and it's an upright spinner. I thought people with upright luggage were kind of bougie - like, who can't you just drag it behind you like everyone else?- until I had one. They are so much easier to roll around! Also pictured is Mopey Batman. He comes with us on all of our trips and partakes in our adventures with us. And my Starbucks, because the only time I buy Starbucks is when traveling- it's like an extra treat! 

So what's inside? The mesh side is the "top," where I keep my toiletries, jewelry, make-up, undergarments, and any other accessories, like belts or a small purse. The "bottom" has all of my regular clothes. I use the roll method of packing since I find it takes up so much less space. 

I pack by outfit and event. This trip will be 4 days, including travel time. Not pictured is what I'll be wearing on the flight, which include sneakers, jeans, a long sleeve tee and a hoodie. I wear my heaviest/bulkiest clothes on the plane since I'm always cold. 

The first outfit is simple jeans, tank and a cardigan (because as mentioned, I'm always cold). I'll probably wear this for our jazzy brunch and day of sightseeing/exploring. The one next to it is more of a casual evening outfit, for our evening ghost tour followed by some bar hopping. You can't tell form the picture, but those are capris. I'll probably be carrying either my hoodie or cardigan!

I'm not a big fan of shorts, but I love these bright floral ones from J Crew. They're elastic waist and SO comfy. We have one day that we're staying by the pool so these will be worn when we finally have to leave in search of food and wandering around. 

The last outfit is a 3/4 sleeve button down and khaki capris. I thought this would be perfect for the airboat swamp tour we're going on. 

Smaller things like chargers, gum, a few "in an emergency" type items like extra contacts and glasses are kept in my purse, along with my headphones and iPod (yes, I still love my iPod mini!). I'll probably bring a smaller paperback with me in there as well, but I have a lot of e-books on my phone too. And that's it! 

What are some of your travel necessities? 

Linking up with Shay!

TBB Asks: Shop Til You Drop Edition

Hello and Happy Monday! As you can see I'm off to a slow start today. My company had a delayed opening due to snow and of course I did not have this post up and ready to go. Clearly I've been off my blogging game lately, but I'm back with another edition of TBB Asks and this month's theme is shopping! Honestly, I used to shop (and actually liked going shopping) a lot more when I was younger. Back to school shopping was my favorite, and going to the mall with friends was a weekend hobby. However nowadays most of my shopping is done online and out of necessity. My self-described style would be comfy-classic, and not at all trendy, so I definitely get the most wears out of all of my clothing. Anyway, onto the questions! 

1. Top 3 Shops? Old Navy, TJMaxx, and Nordstrom Rack, though I love the heat-tech stuff from Uniqlo in winter. 

2. Where is the majority of your shopping done? Online! I usually find the best deals there, and can use coupons and cashback (like E-Bates!) 

3. Favorite thing to shop for? Graphic tees, especially punny ones! 

4. Least favorite thing to shop for? Riding boots! I can never find ones that don't leave a gap between my calf and the boot and it drives me nuts! 

5. Favorite clothing I ever bought? My North Face fleece. When I was in college, EVERYONE had a North Face fleece except me. It made me feel beneath them because mommy and daddy bought them everything and we just couldn't afford it at the time. As soon as I got my first job out of college I bought one (in boys size- because I could!). I still wear it all the time. 

My coworker and I in San Diego

6. Do you prefer to shop alone or with others? Alone! I often feel rushed when shopping with others. 

7. Best bargain? Probably my original tall Hunter boots that I found at Costco (like Sam's Club) for half price. Oooh, or my tweed Guess jacket that I found for $10 in a thrift shop! 

8. Do you like thrift store shopping? Yes! I haven't gone in awhile but I love combing the racks for that hidden gem. I guess now the online version would be Poshmark?! 

9. Best cities to shop in? I don't usually go shopping when I'm visiting other cities except for keepsakes like magnets or ornaments, so I honestly don't know! 

10. Who are your style icons? Reese Witherspoon, Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Aniston... my style is comfortable and classic, and these ladies embody that with pizzazz :) 

Do you like to shop? 

Linking up with The Blended Blog! 

October Purchases

Aeropostale
Seriously stretchy high-waisted jeggings: originally $36.50, on sale for $18.60
Prince and Fox navy stripe sweater: originally $39.50, on sale for $15.80
Prince and Fox maroon sweater (not pictured- similar): originally $44.50, on sale for $17.80

Target
Pink lace dress/ Halloween Costume: originally $28, on sale for $22.39
dv Jameson brown booties: originally $38,  on sale for $30.39
olive sweater dress: originally $28, on sale for $22.39

Amazon
fashion tube socks (not pictured): originally $13, on sale for $8
detachable Peter Pan collar: originally $13, on sale for $10
windbreaker: $12

Uniqlo
Heat-tech leggings and long sleeve tee: originally $19.90, on sale for $9.90ea


Payless
black and brown Karmen pumps: $25ea
black AE Clinton flats:  originally $25, on sale for $17
black satchel (no longer available): $40, on clearance for $10

$77- 20% off entire purchase= $61.60


Nordstrom Rack
Reef stardazed sandals: regularly $26,  purchased for $13
Speck Macbook Air hardshell case: regularly $50,  purchased for $10
Chicbuds Clutchette (4): regularly $50, purchased for $25ea
Merkury Innovations Apple MFi tassel cable keychain: regularly $25, purchased for $15


Weekend Getaway Purchases
leather gold chain purse: $15
wool newsboy cap: $15
black slingback heels: $40
wool plaid scarves (4) : $15ea

Monthly total: 386. 77

After last month's spending freeze I went a little crazy this month, but I'm not too mad about it. I had been keeping an eye out for sales and got away with a few really great steals, especially at Nordstrom Rack. I bought out all of their clutches because they have a battery pack in them so you can charge your phone while it's in your purse, and who wouldn't want that?! I also bought a bunch of plaid wool scarves because you can't beat $15 each before the holidays. Coupled with a few things I've bought throughout the year at miscellaneous sales and such, and minus one or two more things for Blue, I'd say my Christmas shopping is complete! 

Other than that, I found a Uniqlo sale on all of their Heat-tech underthings. I tried them for the first time last year and it's amazing, especially for layering. It's super thin, but uses some Japanese awesome technology to like, trap your body heat and keep you super warm. 

I needed shoes and was able to score a 20% off coupon from Blue who had made a purchase at Payless recently. Though the Target booties may have to go back, because while I was cleaning out my closet last night, I found a pair that apparently I bought last year and never wore (oops). The other Target and Amazon items were for my Eleven costume. 

Also, did you guys know that Aeropostale is going out of business? I used to shop there as a teen, and then stopped because the styles seemed a bit young/immature for me, but I recently found my way back there to stock up on basics like jeans and sweaters because everything is 50/70% off online AND in store! 

I have no excuse for the weekend getaway purchases. I found this awesome little thrift shop and couldn't help myself. The leather heels fit like a glove (and I love slingbacks in general), and the purse is made of the softest leather I've ever touched. And the wool items are like, the non-itchy, thick wool, not those flimsy wool things that are in stores now. (I know "flimsy wool" sounds like an oxymoron, but it's true!)

I'm pretty sure I'm going to have to go on a perma-spending freeze for the rest of the year now, but I don't even care because I finally feel like I have more than enough to make it through the winter. And I filled a second Thredup Cleanout bag and already need another one, so maybe that will help?!

Have you ever bought something and then lost it/forgot to wear it?

Just me? Ok then. 

Linking up with Franish Budgetting Bloggers. 

May Purchases

May Budget by lildesiqua featuring a jersey tank

H&M

Navy ankle pants: $30, on sale for $20

White/ beige / black /print/ palm (not pictured) tank tops: $13, on sale for $5/ea

Blue stripe swim cover-up: $10

Black/white stripe bikini top: $17

Teardrop necklace: $5

Blue polka dot button down shirt (below): $20

Total: $97- 20% off total purchase = $77.60

TJMaxx

Michael Kors sleeveless navy top with zippers: $20

Total Spending = $97.60 (but not really... read on!)

Obviously I need a different color comforter so you can actually see the stuff

On Mother's Day, my mom mentioned that she 1) saw a bunch of stuff that she put on hold at H&M on her lunch hour the day before and 2) wanted to "revamp" her image. I don't like shopping in general, but she insists it's a "bonding experience" and tries to drag me into stores almost every time I see her. Normally I resist all of her attempts, but how can you say no on Mother's Day? Plus, she had already put the stuff on hold, and she claimed it would be quick (it wasn't). Another perk of this particular shopping trip was that H&M has a deal whereby if you donate 3 items of clothing, you receive a coupon for 20% off your total purchase. Also shopping with my mom means she pays for everything, even though it was her day and I was supposed to be buying her gifts But she insists on buying and I don't like fighting in public, so I let her. I think I'm done buying things this season, except for a new blazer which I realized is necessary after my closet clean-out.

Speaking of the clean-out, I was finally able to send in my ThredUp bag, and earned $40.34! Woot woot! They accepted 71% of my Cleanout bag. I don't think I'll ever make that much from them again since I've gotten rid of most of my designer clothes/bags/shoes(from TJ Maxx and thrifting- ha!), but that was super cool! I also earned $62.37 from E-Bates in the last quarter by going through them to book my hotels for my last trip. I'm looking forward to getting that check this week. It really does pay to shop online! I've given up on Poshmark since I only made like $5 on it in the past year.

During my last budget check-in I stated that my annual clothing budget would be $250 quarterly/ $1,000 annual. I think I'm going to re-name this group as a clothing/beauty category since I've recently been spending more on beauty (which was non-existent before). So expect to see some beauty-related/cosmetic purchases included here in the future.

$780.50 - Annual remaining budget
$40.34 - ThredUp
62.37 - E-Bates
$883.21 - Maximum Budget available 

Do you budget? How do you categorize the non-essentials? 

Linking up with Franish for Budgeting Bloggers.