Hey friends, I hope you’re all staying well! I know this time can be difficult, but I’m starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel and I hope you all can as well.
One way for me to look forward and get excited for the summer is sundress shopping! They’re the perfect piece to throw on when you need to look good but you don’t have a lot of time. I found this sundress in an American Eagle store right before Michigan announced it’s stay-at-home order. Thankfully, it’s still available online!
Personally, I’m a huge fan of halter top dresses and this one is so comfy! You can adjust the neck however you need to, and the dress doesn’t feel like it’s uncomfortably short. It fluffs out a little at the bottom to give it some shape which I love. Not to mention, this color looks good on LITERALLY any skin tone. WIN WIN WIN.
The shoes really piece this simple outfit together. I’ve been looking for white mule heels since the Fall and didn’t have much luck. Lucky for me, I was on Nordstrom Rack’s website and found a selection of cute mule heels! These ones are from Marc Fisher and they are fun they were originally $160 but I bought them for $70 (56% off!). Although Nordstrom Rack doesn’t carry this shoe anymore, I found similar and very cute options on DSW.
I hope you’re inspired to look for some bright and fresh summer styles for this season. We have so much to look forward to! Stay safe and healthy!
I love blogging…of course. I love finding fashion pieces to take pictures of, I enjoy thrifting, and more importantly, sharing my heart with others! But here’s the thing: there’s so much more to my line of interests than just blogging.
The performing arts has been a part of my life way before I discovered my passion for blogging. I started singing and acting at age 10, and dancing at age 11. I attended an Arts Academy for Musical Theatre, graduated from college with a BA in Dance and Theatre, and I’m still pursuing the performing arts along with my blogging.
Photo by Ben Douma
When I first started to blog, I always felt like I had to choose between blogging and performing. I’ve tried to keep my dance and theatre photos separate from my fashion photos… I’ve listened to podcasts and read articles from other bloggers who stress the importance of sticking to one interest for your blog. Picking and choosing what to share about has been so taxing. Not only does that allow me to share a small portion of my interests, but it feels so stressful to pick only one thing. What if I just combined it all?
Photo by Jonathan Underwood
I’ve been told to have my own performing website, Instagram handles, and more… but what if I brought all of my interests together to create one big platform of creativity? As a newer blogger, it’s been difficult to figure out how to brand myself. I have so many interests and it’s been a struggle to combine them. I finally realized I was hindering my own creative growth by separating the two. So here’s the real question: how do I put them together?
Photo by Jonathan Underwood
I’ve started off by using my passion for dance in my blogging photos. I was trying so hard to make photos I took more pedestrian and ‘fashion blogger’ (whatever that means). I finally realized that taking with movement and dance is something that helps me stand out as a blogger, and a way that I can mesh my passions together! Duh, why didn’t I think of this before?! Now I’ve been working on adding movement to my pictures and incorporating my knowledge from the dance world into my blogging photos.
I’ve also been posting more of my performing arts endeavors on my Instagram stories. I used to keep little aspects of my life such as going to auditions and taking classes separate, but why not? It’s my day-to-day life and something that I constantly pursue, so I might as well show my day in the life!
Photo by Seth Kacel
If you are struggling to figure out how to incorporate multiple passions into your blog, I know how you feel! If you don’t know where to start, begin with simply talking about your other passion. Post a picture or an Instagram story of you talking about your passion and why you love it. If you play the piano, show one of the newest songs you’ve been practicing. If you enjoy cooking, share a recipe that you’re currently making. We are all multidimensional people and it would be impossible for each of us to only enjoy one thing. Sharing multiple parts of your life is what allows others to connect with you!
Bottom line: keep doing what you love, and don’t be afraid to share it! When you have passions outside of the blogging world, it makes your brand unique instead of getting lost in the crowd of other bloggers in your focus. You are a beautiful, multi-passionate human being! Keep shining in your pursuits!
So I’m a little late to the Galentine’s Day party… But I’m so ready to serve a little lady power before this V-Day! Nothing screams boldness more than a leather jacket and red pant combo, am I right?
First, I started off with this cute faux leather jacket from Zara. It’s a little thinner but has enough room to layer thin sweaters and shirts under it. I like the ruffles at the bottom that give it a little more shape, but doesn’t take away from how rebellious it makes you feel!
I thrifted this graphic tee, but it’s originally from Forever 21! I loved the print and colors, and I’m pretty sure it cost less than $3. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: you can find so many cute graphic tees when you thrift! I always start there first.
My pants are from TJ Maxx, and they’re the brand Joie. This pair also comes in French Blue which you can find online, and there are definitely more of my red pair in stores. I linked a pink/red pair of similar pants from the Joie website below.
Last but not least, I got my shoes last season from Nordstrom Rack and they are the brand Sam Edelman. They have such a fun and funky variety of shoes, and they’re all so comfortable. You can get them for a very reasonable discount at Nordstrom Rack. I’ve linked a couple pairs below that are almost the exact pair I have from the Nordstrom Rack website (and many of them are on sale!)
I hope you had fun with your ladies this weekend, ate a lot of sugar, and felt confident. I cannot wait to see how you take your Galentine’s Day fashion into the future! (Make sure to click on the pictures below to get the website links.)
Hey everyone! I am so excited because February is the month of LOVE! I don’t know about you, but I’ve started looking for my date night outfits for the coming week! If you’re looking to find unique, chic, and classy outfit pieces, dottie+jo has everything you need for your date night this v-day!
The vision behind dottie+jo is a group of powerhouse women! They’re a female, family based team who named their amazing online boutique after their grandmas. The heart behind their business is so apparent, and they also have a large variety of funky, chic clothes! For this Valentine’s Day outfit, I styled their Cecilia Fay top with a pair of their Wild+Free boots.
My goal for this Valentine’s Day look was to move away from the ‘traditional’ Valentine’s colors of pink and red. The Cecelia Fay top is still a neutral, but has beautiful, funky embroidery which makes the top stand out! I love the fray on the edges for some added texture. It’s easy to dress up or down, depending on how fancy your date night is.
In addition, the Wild+Free boots give a nice pop of color to a darker outfit. Even though the Cecelia Fay top and the Wild+Free boots have a lot of pattern, they work together well because they’re both neutrals! It’s an unexpected, but fun combination of pattern!
If you like the outfit I styled today, I have good news for you! You can use the code XOXOBRYNNE for 20% off your entire order for the month of February. Not only is this cute outfit available, but there are so many stunning dresses, jumpsuits, sweaters, and more to choose from!
I hope I’ve inspired you for your date night! I cannot wait to see what dottie+jo has in store for your date night outfits!
Look, I’m no Marie Kondo, but I’ve been itching to clean out my life! This winter, I’ve felt so disorganized, unproductive, and all around dysfunctional… It’s a challenge to feel organized when you have so much cluttering up your day to day life! I’m going to go through some tips that have helped me declutter my life lately.
1. Clean out your backpack/purse/travel bag: My bags that I travel with on the day to day can get so messy! You’re always rushing around with them and barely have time to think before you’re stuffing in receipts, an old napkin, or spare change from the coffee shop. Take 10 minutes to go through your travel bags and see what you can throw out. You’ll be able to find your keys easier when you’re in a panic. 😉
2. Clean Out Your Car: The amount of old candy wrappers, granola bars, water bottles, chipotle receipts, and more that I fail to take out of my car is incredible! Try to clean out trash you don’t need, and vacuum your car! It will feel brand new!
3. Sell/Donate Old Clothes: This was a game changer for me… I love clothes, but have so many of them! Over Christmas, I went through my closet in my childhood room along with extra clothes that I took to move to Michigan, and I found so many that I haven’t worn in years! I have been very successful in my clothing endeavors by utilizing my College’s online garage sale and selling things for very cheap. If you don’t have access to an online facebook group, make a Poshmark or Depop! You can sell clothes you don’t wear anymore. Extra clothing that wouldn’t do as well being sold can be donated to your local thrift store or shelter.
4. Clean Your Room: I don’t mean just picking the clothes off your floor and throwing them in the laundry basket because you’re lazy….I talk from experience. Go through what’s under you’re bed, reorganize the clothes you’ve stuffed in your dresser, and even go through your desk papers and throw out what you don’t need. We tend to keep a lot of things we don’t need because we forget about them.
5. Make Your Bed. This is probably the easiest one of them all. Since my bed takes up 50% of my room, making my bed is the main aspect that makes my room look clean. It takes 10 minutes or less every day to make you feel a little put together.
I feel much more relaxed and confident when my day-to-day spaces are clean. It’s easier for me to focus, I spend less time running around, and I can plan ahead a little better. These organization tips might seem obvious, but it’s crazy how easily we forget about these things when we get busy!
I hope this helped you stay a little more organized so you can enjoy the rest of your week!
When the oversized T-shirt fad came upon us, I wasn’t ready to jump on board right away. I felt like I would look awkward, and it’s hard to find oversized things that don’t drown me when I try to be a part of the ‘oversized’ trend. Finally, I found a way to style an oversized tee and feel stylish while doing so!
I thrifted my t-shirt for $3. I strongly believe anyone can find a similar tee at a thrift store; there’s no use buying a $20 shirt in a normal store (unless you’re in love with it). I’m convinced there are TONS of big tees out in the thrifting world that you can find for nothing!
I paired my leather jacket with my tee because it gave me a little shape. Alas, I bartered for that jacket at a vintage market (and got it for a steal) but I found a similar jacket from Zara that I would buy in a heartbeat if I didn’t have this one!
I layered my tee with a thin long sleeve from Forever 21. I use this shirt for SO MANY OUTFITS. If I could recommend anything, it would be to buy a bunch of neutral, form-fitting shirts to layer other pieces you find. Then, you can wear ‘summer’ clothes even when it’s freezing!
I gave my outfit a little bling with some silver hoop earrings I found at Target. They’re very affordable and comfortable! I’m a big fan of silver jewelry, and these add the perfect detail without taking attention away from the outfit.
My skinnies are from American Eagle. I still can’t recommend the quality of American Eagle jeans enough. They last for a long time and they’re super comfortable. In addition, they’re always affordable, especially since AE has jean sales frequently.
My boots were found at TJ Maxx, but I found a pair from DSW that are almost exactly the same and have a cute detail by the heel! I’m in LOVE with this pair.
Overall, I never thought this combination would work out, but it gave me a rebellious, sassy look that I’m not usually capable of! I had a lot of fun styling this outfit and it’s such a simple look!
Good luck with your oversized outfit endeavors! You got this!
From the birth of Instagram, hashtags have existed along with it. Honestly, they have a bad rep… unless you know how to use them.
Yes, we all know how annoying it is when someone takes a picture of their latte and hashtags: #workinggirl #coffeequeen #ootd #sundayfunday or other words that are otherwise infuriating to scroll through. But guess what? It doesn’t have to be like that.
Hashtags are incredibly important for growing your audience. You can be widely successful with them if you understand how they work. Here are some tips to growing your audience on the gram.
Start Local. If you’re a small business, an artist, or another form of entrapeneur, throwing around hashtags such as #business, #boutique or #theatreartist are not going to help you. There are thousands to millions of pictures with these hashtags! You can easily narrow down who sees your posts by making it local. For example #Tulsabusiness #BostonBoutique #DetroitTheatreArtist. Each of these hashtags have MUCH smaller posts attached to them, but the people who you want seeing your posts will be able to find you! Otherwise, your posts will get lost with the other people who claim to be an #actor, #businessowner, or #marketingstrategist.
Be Specific to the Post you Make. If you took a picture of yourself at the beach, would putting the hashtag #catstagram be an ideal choice? I don’t think so. Take this photo below for example! I’m not just on a beach, I’m in Carmel, California, on part of the California State Route 1 drive. That’s so specific, right? Some hashtags I could use here are #carmelcalifornia #californiastateroute1 #californiaroadtrip #carmelbeaches, etc. If I was trying to focus my hashtags on the fashion aspect of this picture, I could include brand names such as #americaneagle #springsweet, etc.
Don’t Use General Hashtags. If I was at the beach, I wouldn’t use #beach or #sun. Again, where are you? Are you on vacation? Can you hashtag a brand of the swimsuit you’re wearing? The more specific, the better! Millions of people have already used #beach and it takes even more work to be found with general hashtags. In addition, many of the #basic #hashtags have many spam accounts attached to them who copy and paste comments on to your post. As a fashion blogger, I used to get tons of comments asking me to collaborate with brands or asking if I wanted a discount on their products which is the most frustrating thing in the world. Be less general to avoid spam! Since I’ve stopped using those general hashtags, I have received barely any spam comments.
Search for Hashtags in Your Niche. You can use the Instagram search bar to see how many posts have used a certain hashtag. I highly recommend doing this as you can see if your post will get lost or not. Now, popular hashtags aren’t all bad. But if you mix up your hashtags with ones that have millions of posts to ones that only have a thousand or a couple hundred, it will widen your chances of your post being seen.
Mix Up Your Hashtags. I had this bad habit of finding some of my favorite hashtags, making a note on my phone, and copy and pasting the same ones to every post… Bad News. If you use the same hashtags for every post you make, Instagram shadow bans you. Shadow banning is when Instagram senses an account is a spam account and hides your posts on the hashtags you’re making. Therefore, all that research you did was for nothing! I suggest making multiple, RELEVANT hashtag groups and switching them up every time you post. This also gives your post the chance to be seen by more people.
You Don’t Need To Use the Maximum. Instagram allows you to use 30 hashtags per post. You don’t have to use all 30! Again, sometimes using all of them just for the sake of using them is not as helpful as using 10 powerful hashtags for your page. Switch up the amount of hashtags you’re using in protection of being shadow banned.
Put Hashtags in the Caption. When you post hashtags in the caption, the hashtags will be just as fresh as the post is. Sometimes hashtags aren’t as useful when you post them in the comment section because your post has already been live for as long as it took you to write the hashtags. If you don’t want your hashtags to be as seen on your post, find a way to put them at the bottom and add a symbol so they are separated between your caption and your hashtag section.
I hope this post was helpful for those who are wondering how the heck to use hashtags! I started as the most ANNOYING hashtagger and after doing my research, hashtags have helped be get up to 45% of my audience engagement from a singular post, none of which followed me at the time. If you’re trying to expand your audience, do the work! I can guarantee it has been so helpful to my growth as blogger.
Christmas may have come, the New Year is definitely amongst us, but that doesn’t mean the snow is going away no matter how much you wish it was gone! Sometimes I struggle with the desire to dress well in the winter because I’m almost always wearing a parka and no one will see my outfit. But guess what?! You can dress warm and still show that cute outfit you’ve been dying to wear!
First of all, this sweater is probably my favorite in my winter wardrobe as of now! Chartreuse is one of my favorite colors to wear and it’s so unique! I found it at H&M for $30, which is a great price for an item that is so well made. Not to mention, it’s environmentally conscious.
Next up, I found my jeans at Nordstrom Rack. The dark wash makes the sweater pop and the jeans are so comfortable and stretchy!
My over-the-knee boots are from DSW. I like these ones because they don’t have the crazy heel and I can wear them as day-to-day attire. They’re also super comfortable and spice up the outfit in a fun way!
Last but not least, my hat is from Gliks! It’s so warm and comfortable because the inside is lined with a fuzzy fabric. Also the big pom pom is such a nice touch! This hat definitely tops of the outfit to make it feel more like winter, and I can wear it with just about anything!
You can find each of these pieces in their links throughout this blog! I am so excited for you to check it out because you can order any of these pieces online. As always, I am SO thankful for you and so happy you checked out my blog!
I’m convinced that 75% of my winter wardrobe is mock turtlenecks… I think I have a problem. (A good problem!)
I got this adorable mock turtleneck from Madewell. Of course, we all know the quality is incredible! It’s so warm, not itchy, and the tortoise-shell buttons are such a cute detail for the sides! Sadly they don’t have this color left on the website, but they may still have them in stores. If not, I would definitely check out these close cousins of my sweater from Free People, Forever 21, and the navy blue version of my sweater from Madewell.
My jeans are from Free People! They are super stretchy and comfortable, and I love the high waist. Free People’s denim is high quality and always keeps its shape. My Urban Found earrings are a perfect detail to add on and give the outfit a nice, metallic flare!
Last but not least, I’m in LOVE with these boots! They’re from Mango, which is now probably one of my favorite companies to buy shoes from. They’re high quality leather and so comfortable for their height. Sadly they sold out of the boots I’m wearing, but I found a very close replica of them on Sam Edelman, which is another one of my favorite shoe brands! They always have extremely comfortable shoes that are funky and high quality.
Because it’s after Christmas, all of these companies are having their after Christmas sales! I would highly recommend swinging by these websites to check out what they have on sale.
I don’t know about you, but I’m gonna go spend some time with my fam and eat some home-made cheesecake! Christmastime is for being with family, am I right??? I hope you’re having a wonderful Christmas season and as always, thank you for reading!
TWO DAYS BEFORE CHRISTMAS? Time is flying by this month!
As a brunette, I’ve never been keen on wearing brown as a staple in my outfits, but this is one of the few times I’ve found a brown top that I love wearing!
I really enjoy the silky quality of the top, and the white polka dots help give it some contrast. The trumpet sleeves also give the shirt shape even though it has a lot of flow to it. The buttons are a simple detail that top off the shirt.
Everyone needs a solid, dark pair of skinny jeans as a staple in their wardrobe. These high waisted dark skinnies are super comfortable and make my top pop in comparison to the dark wash.
Once again, statement earrings are the key to a fun wardrobe! It’s so easy to use them and make the overall outfit so much more interesting! I love the tassels mixed with the gold colored metal in the earrings. They pair so well with the silky top! I also love adding a little bit of accessory flare with the stone-patterned beaded bracelet!
This whole outfit was styled with pieces from Urban Found! If you are in need of getting some last minute presents before Christmas, Urban Found is the cutest place with affordable clothing/accessories. They have three locations in West Michigan: Holland, South Haven, and Saugatuck.
Created with RNI Films app
Overall, taking these pictures in this greenhouse was so magical! Little would you know that it was 20 degrees outside when I was nice and warm in here! When it’s two days before Christmas, you don’t really mind the cold weather as much since it puts you in good spirits…
As always, thank you for reading and have a very Merry Christmas Eve Eve!
