I have a favorite pair of shoes. They’re from Target, and I’ve had them for about seven years now. They’re a shade in between black and brown that goes with everything, they have low heels so they’re comfortable to walk in, and they have a pointed toe that looks polished but doesn’t pinch. Perfection! Except for the fact that the heels have been completely ground down over the years, leaving only the head of a nail poking out. I’ve tried to replace them with a similar pair several times, but never found a fit or look I loved.

Eventually, it occurred to me that I might be able to have the heels replaced. I wasn’t even sure if cobblers still existed (turns out they do), and I thought that even if they did, they’d probably think I was crazy for wanting to fix a beat up pair of Target shoes, but I figured it was worth a shot. A quick search on Yelp turned up a highly-rated shop (H&H in Cameron Village, for my local peeps). I explained to the man behind the counter what I wanted, and he promised they’d be ready in three days. And they were! I picked them up the next week, and for $11.30, I had a greatly improved pair of heels. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still seven-year-old shoes, but I’m no longer embarrassed when I flash the soles, and I don’t go clickety clack whenever I walk.

Fixing something I already own and love instead of spending time and money searching for something I might love less? That’s a major win in my book. Have y’all ever visited a cobbler? Do you have a seven-year-old pair of shoes you adore?

P.S. The next shoe adventure in store? I really want to dye my white wedding shoes black, but am clueless on where to start.

Pinch me! We are leaving for the island of Nevis in less than two weeks!! With all of our house craziness, we haven’t been focusing on our upcoming trip too much, which is a shame, because it’s definitely deserving of some hype. It’s not too often that we get to go to a Caribbean paradise for a week of honeymoon relaxation!

In the last few days we have gotten around to making final reservations and prepping our packing lists, so I thought it would be fun to share a few of my must-takes here!

A. Jack Rogers Navajo sandals in platinum. Pretty much the only shoes I wear in the summer. Casual enough for the beach and stylish enough for dinner.

B. Boscia B.B. Cream. Just enough for beach days. I use this every day and really like it.

C. Josie Maran Argan Daily Moisturizer SPF 40. Joanna wrote about this sunscreen here and I’m intrigued. We haven’t purchased any sunscreen yet this year, and I’m considering picking this up.

D. Striped maxi dress. $15 – can’t beat it! I like that it’s not too precious to wear to the beach but is easy and acceptable to throw on for an inside dinner. A note: unlike the photo on the website, mine is wayyyy long, so I’m getting it hemmed!

E. Favorite sunglasses.

F. Monogram tote. I’ll just be bringing a tote I already own for the beach, but this one is so cute! And reasonably priced.

G. Bathing suits! I love this emerald one I picked up from Target last year (I wrote about it here!)

H. Cameras. In addition to our iPhones, we’ll be bringing our digital camera and our film camera. (Don’t worry, we won’t be lugging all three around all the time!) The digital is great for video, and you can’t beat the look of the film for nature + detail shots.

I. My passport! With how expensive it was to update this thing after my name change, I’m glad I get to use it so soon.

J. Madras shorts. I picked these up when everything was 50% off J.Crew Factory last weekend.

K. Essie Really Red. This is the only color I paint my toe nails. I’ve considered branching out, but it’s just so perfect!

L. Laura Mercier Lip Balm in Crimson. I picked this up last year on a recommendation from Jenny, and I love it!

M. I bought a wide-brimmed black sun hat a few years ago, and I never go to the beach without it. Perfect for reading, sun protecting, and being stylish! :)

N. Lots of reading material is a must for any beach vacation of mine. Considering bringing Heft and Gone Girl, but open to your recommendations!

What do you bring on a beach vacation? Has anyone ever been to Nevis? Has anyone ever heard of it? :)

My friend Nancy just posted a great challenge on her blog. You should go check it out for yourself, but the gist is that participants will give up shopping for clothes, accessories, household decor, and “stuff” in the months of April, May, and June.

My initial instinct was to enthusiastically join in, because unsurprisingly I love a good budget challenge. But then, I thought about a few things:

Point one: So far, I have spent $0 of my clothing budget for 2013. No accessories, either. I’ve effectively been holding my own one-person challenge for the first quarter of the year.
Point two: In the whole of 2012, I spent $182.15 on clothing and accessories, not counting the dress I bought for our rehearsal dinner and a dress I bought for a work event. The exact items: 1 yellow striped shirt, 1 bathing suit, 1 belt, 1 scarf, 1 pink tunic, 1 pink blouse, 1 pair of earrings, and $20 of my cowboy boots (the rest was in gift cards!).
Point three: I realized last weekend that I wore shirts with holes in them for three days in a row.

Now, I’m certainly not saying that I’m destitute, and I’m obviously not asking for pity — I have what many consider to be a full closet, and it’s not that we don’t necessarily have the money to spend, it’s just that we choose to spend it on (or save it for) other things.

But, it’s gotten to the point where I’m so used to NOT spending money on clothing that’s it’s become very difficult to pull the trigger. Which is a good thing, of course, but I now seem to be incapable of spending even gift cards: for example, I currently have a $40 Nordstrom gift card and almost $200 in J.Crew gift cards that have been sitting in my wallet for months. Ridiculous! So, with spring (hopefully?) around the corner, and our honeymoon coming up, I’ve decided it’s time to spend… just a little :) Here are a few of the pieces I’m eyeing:

1. Cross-back sundress in sunshine ($56) | 2. One-shoulder dress in soft fuchsia ($35) | 3. Short-sleeve dress in emerald ($34) | 4. Striped maxi dress ($98) | 5. Striped top in green ($15) | 6. Striped dress in coral ($28) | 7, 8, 10. Chino shorts in neon azalea, bright spearmint, and cerise ($28) | 9. Girls’ patent tortoise belt ($10) | 11. Skinny jeans in spearmint ($50) | 12. Gingham shirt ($44) | 13. Neon pink studs ($15) | 14. Sophia studs in clover ($32) | 15. Leather sandals ($50)

Any favorites?

Hello, friends! Happy Monday! I’m excited for the short week, and to be celebrating with my family soon! In the meantime, I wanted to take a minute and tell you a little bit about my outfit for the Southern Weddings V5 launch party, because I received lots of questions about it and a few compliments on it!

The directive was to wear something gold and/or glittery, which meant there was one obvious place to turn: Forever 21 (even though I hadn’t stepped foot inside in ages). I tried on several (very not work appropriate) options before coming across a little number with a pleated skirt. It didn’t fit perfectly in the dressing room, but I took it home anyway, and even after paying for alterations, the total was just $55!! Can’t beat that, especially when I had several people ask me if it was from Kate Spade. Score!

I love that its muted gold color and tank style top stretch its usefulness far beyond that of something more obviously glittery, and that I’ll be able to wear it for lots of holiday parties and church services in the future!

For this particular event, though, I did want to punch up the glitter quotient a bit, and thought a belt would be just the thing. I originally fell in love with this one, but there was NO way I was paying $98. In a totally serendipitous move, I stumbled across a very similar belt (sans bow) at a J. Crew outlet store for just $14 (with tax!). The catch? It was in the Crew Cuts section. The reason it worked — and, I think, would work for most of you — is that I was wearing it around my waist, not my hips. I don’t know about y’all, but usually when I try to wear a normal-sized belt around my waist, I always get this long tail past the buckle, and/or end up having to punch extra holes in the belt. The girls’ size one fit perfectly!

My Factory belt isn’t available on the website, but I did find this one and this one (with bow!!) for $22 and $28, respectively. SO much better that it’s worth a try, wouldn’t you say?

The sad part about this post is that if you happen to like my dress, it actually doesn’t seem to be available anymore — at least not on the F21 site. (Worth checking in stores, though!) If you do happen to visit the stores, here’s a tip I just learned: Look for the Love 21 label, which this dress was under. The prices are a tad higher (though still super reasonable!), but the construction is supposed to be better, the styles more sophisticated, and the cuts less suited for teeny boppers (basically, longer hems).

I didn’t get a great shot of the dress in action, but at least you can see the top half here, and a bit of the belt!

I have to say, this find makes me want to shop at Forever 21 more often! Have any of y’all had good luck there recently?