Splendor And Folly

I wanted to show off pictures of my beautiful engagement ring! At first I couldn’t figure out how to get a good photograph up close, then I discovered the macro setting on my camera, its awesome!

So the story behind the title is that when viewed from the side, the ring resembles a crown. Jake asked me once or twice before actually giving me the ring ‘do you like crowns?’.  I’m sure I responded with ‘uuhhh, I guess soo…’ because at the time I had no idea what he was talking about! But as soon as I saw the ring, it all made sense :)

I love gazing at it and thinking how lucky I am to be loved so much! Of course I don’t need a diamond ring to feel loved, but it is a symbol of a pretty big commitment…

I must not have given up on Forever 21 completely, I did buy this top recently (which I love BTW!)  and still check their website from time to time. I like to check out their Love 21 line first because it is less overwhelming and often has cute items like these I spotted today:

Click through to see the dress on the model, it looks a lot cuter on:

I normally don’t like flutter sleeves, but I thought this print was really cute:

1. Classic Plaid Shirt (in Purple Combo)
2. Floral Chiffon Cami ( in Worn Indigo) – so cute, I still want this!
3. Studded Suede Flat (in Branch Brown) – only $19.95!
4. Artist Jeans (in Pure Dark)
5. Aerie Softest Cami (in Heather Lavender)

Have you ever heard of ASOS? I’ve recently come across this online retailer that seems to be out of the UK, but they do ship to US for flat rate of $6. I currently have these three items in my shopping cart, just for fun (uh, yeah, thats it) and all of it totals $80 with shipping! That’s crazy! They have soooo much stuff, I could probably spend hours just looking. My only reservation is the sizing, their clothes come in  UK sizes and I’m not sure which size would fit best on me. Hmmm….

you can click the pics to purchase

So lately, even though I haven’t been adding much to my wardrobe, I’m beginning to think I would like to switch gears.  I want to move more toward quality, investment pieces rather than cheapy throw-a-way items that start to unravel after the first wash (yes, I’m talking to you Forever 21). The only problem with this is my budget. Its really hard to justify spending hard earned dollars on clothes when there is always something more ‘practical’ to spend them on.

Thus I feel like I am having a Britney Spears moment. When it comes to shopping: “I’m not a girl, not yet a woman” (Please sing this in your head for the full effect). I’m kind of over Forever 21 and Charlotte Russe but can’t yet afford the offerings of Nordstrom, Shop Bop, and other higher-end stores and boutiques. I’m not saying I’m above shopping at certain stores now, I’m just going to try to buy only things I truly love. And if I’m buying less, I should be focusing more on quality.

Where do you like to shop? High-end? Low-end? Thrift? I’m ready to take suggestions and re-think my shopping just in time for spring!

 And with that, I’ll leave you with some gorgeous spring dresses on my ‘maybe someday’ list. They are by Shoshanna who I had never even heard of before today (see? I have a lot to learn!)

In keeping with my online shopping problem, I came across this adorable wire mesh rose ring on Ruche:

 

I don’t have very many rings, so if were to build up my collection here are my picks! All the below are from Kohl’s. They seem to have a great selection of rings for C-H-E-A-P! (You can click all the photos for links)