Dinner Date

Happy Sunday! I hope you all had a great weekend and are rested up for the week ahead.  I had an excellent weekend!  My boyfriend and I are typically extremely busy all week long.  However, Saturday we were able to go out for our weekly date night!  

For our date night, I decided to were my black, cable knit poncho I bought in Barcelona, Spain.  In my opinion, you can never go wrong with black.  Especially if you are out and about for a night in the city.  That night, I felt sleek and stylish in my all black ensemble.  

I love this black poncho because it is long and comfortable.  A rule of thumb I have when wearing leggings as pants, is that my top needs to cover my bottom.  This poncho does that, and falls at a perfect length.  

I am in love with my scuba side panel leggings because they are just the right amount of style and comfort.  The side panel of (minus the) leather, that Express offers, adds just enough to dress up any outfit.  I suggest these for anyone who likes the leather look, but does not feel comfortable in full leather leggings.

I chose to wear a black and white stripe shirt so I could add the perfect amount of color to my outfit.  I did not want to bring too much color to my outfit, because I was going out in the city.

Striped top: Forever 21.  Similar tops: Here.  Poncho: Purchased in Barcelona, Spain.  Similar poncho: Here & Here.  Scuba Side Panel Leggings: Express.  Similar leggings: Here.  The only difference between my leggings and these are that the leggings are now textured.  Leather Lace-up Booties: Boemos/Marshalls.

One Dress, Four Fall Looks

In my previous post, Outfit Inspiration: Dress & Poncho, I styled my Side Slit Striped Mini Sheath Dress with a black poncho.  I loved this fall look, that was inspired by my mother!  A key aspect of this dress, is how versatile it is.  The length makes it perfect for work, and the v-shaped slit at the left hem makes it trendy.  Here are a few different ways you can style this dress, and any other basic dress.

Dress and Poncho

As one could probably tell by now, I love a good poncho.  When the weather is chilly it is the perfect time to wear a poncho, especially for us nannies and sales associates.  You get the warmth of a sweater, but you can move around more freely with no sleeves.

Dress and Blanket Scarf

As I have mentioned before, a blanket scarf is perfect for the colder seasons!  This blanket scarf is warmer than the poncho.  The deep red coloring is great for fall.  I also loved this outfit because I did pattern play (mixing prints: plaid and stripes).

My Side Slit Striped Mini Sheath Dress is from Express.  My brown leather riding boots are from G.H. Bass & Co.  They do not sell this pair at the moment, however, they do sell other Riding Boots.  My blanket scarf is from The Paper Store.  They do not sell this specific scarf anymore.  They do have a new selection this year.

Dress and Statement Necklace

This look is also very simple and does not cost a lot of money, just like the previous ones.  I simply took a black and white outfit and added a splash of color through my statement necklace.  I then added a colorful bag so the necklace would not be on it's own. 

My black leather lace-up boots are Boemos.  My necklace is from Nigeria.  My purse is from Olivia + Joy.  They are not currently selling this purse.  However, I am selling this purse, and others, on my Ebay account.

Dress and Scarf

My last look has this dress with a scarf layered over it.  I chose a printed scarf, with a different print, instead of a solid color.  While choosing this pattern play item, I knew that it needed to have a more compact pattern than that of my striped dress.  The scarf also needed to have similar colors as the dress.  This one was full of grays and black, with a hint of gold.  I brought out the gold by stacking gold bangles together.  Then, I wore a large ring on my other hand to even out the jewelry.  My cognac leather booties helped even out the coloring of the scarf and dress, making the outfit look more pulled together.  These ankle booties are extremely comfortable!  I am able to wear them at Express for a six hour shift and still feel fine by the end of the night!!

My scarf was from Marshalls.  My Leather Rabalais Booties are from Aldo, I own the the cognac color.  They also come in black suede, taupe, and bordeaux suede.  My gold bangles are from Forever 21.  They do not sell these specific ones, however, they do have a large selection of Gold Bangles.  I bought my ring at a Lia Sophia party.  There is a Lia Sophia Outlet website and they sell this ring: Tulipa.  

I hope that you enjoyed these looks that I styled!  All are very simple and do not cost a lot of money.  You do not need a striped dress to pull off these looks.  They work with any basic dress!  I hope that you all have a great week!  Check in Wednesday to see how my Denim Challenge went.  

Until next time, thank you for stopping by Cute Teachings!

Sunday at Express

Happy Sunday, everyone! I hope that you all had a fun weekend, and were able to relax today! It is important to take a breather from your busy life and enjoy some of your hobbies and interests. With this in mind, I made sure to have time to go on walks/runs with my German Shepherd and boyfriend this weekend. I had so much fun getting some fresh (almost fall) air and quality time. Hopefully you all were able to do what you enjoy, as well! Working two jobs makes my rest time so important and valuable but it is often scarce. Thankfully I love both my jobs and enjoy what I do. 

Today, I had a six hour shift at Express. It began at 9 AM and, with three cups of Nespresso, I was ready to go! I made sure to wear sandals in the earlier half of my shift because I would be doing mark downs. I spent the first three hours of my shift marking down clearance items that were on the floor and in the stock room. It was relaxing to have some "down time" to get work done, and converse with my fellow co-workers. That is one of the reasons why I enjoy working at Express, everyone is so nice! 

Later on in my shift, once I switched to selling, I changed into my lace-up leather boots. This made my outfit a little more dressy and pulled it together. I absolutely loved the extreme hi-lo tee that I wore today! It is unique and I always get compliments on it. In my opinion, the best part about this tee is that it flows behind you as you walk. It definitely leaves people staring. I decided to offset my basic black tee with crazy patterned leggings! They made my outfit fun on this misty day. It was the right amount of pop that I was looking to add.

My Black One Eleven Long Sleeve Extreme Hi-Lo Tee is from Express. My black and white patterned leggings were sold at H&M. Although they do not sell these exact pair anymore, they do have other Black & White Patterned Leggings. My sandals are made by Nine West but were purchased at Marshalls. My leather lace up boots were also purchased at Marshalls but are made by Boemos. My black tote was sold at Aldo, but is no longer available. I am a huge fan of their Handbags & Purses. I can always find something I like there! Finally, my necklace was passed down to me from my grandmother.

I hope that you all have a great start to the week tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by Cute Teachings!