Mid-Month Shopping Review...and an OOTD

At the beginning of December I posted my Anthro wish list of 12 items (well, 11 items and one to be determined) that I was going to try to mainly stick to this month when it came to my personal shopping. If any of the 12 items went on sale I was allowing myself to bite. Here we are 18 days into the month and would you believe not a single thing off my wish list has hit sale yet?! My goodness Anthro, grant a girl a wish already! I did decide what my 12th item was going to be last week and never posted it...#12 is this:

Peppered and Striped Skirt



I have seen this little gem on many bloggers and have fallen in love with it. It's a piece that would fit nicely into my wardrobe...I already have quite a few things in my closet that would work well with it. I have my Seychelles Passport Pumps in the mustard yellow color, grey pumps, red pumps, a variety of tops that would match well...it just seems like an obvious choice for #12. When I decided this would be my #12 I noticed that it was sold out online and that many people in the Anthro community are frantically searching one out for themselves. This prompted me to take action. I located one all the way across the country in NC and the lovely sales associate whom I spoke to was nice enough to ship it to me for free. In fact, she told me that her store in Durham ALWAYS ships charge sends for free. I'll definitely be calling them again! So it's on it's way to me...at full price...in hopes that it will hit sale in the next 14 days. If it doesn't, I should probably return it. I like sale prices much better than full prices. I hope it fits..I've never tried it on. I had to order by going off the reviews I read online.

So besides that have I stuck to my plan? Well, kinda. I have done MUCH better than in the past, that's for sure! I have picked up a few things here and there but have only actually kept two other things this month. It's been a month of returns. I sadly will be returning THIS because it looks AWFUL on me(I actually bought this in November so it doesn't really count). The ruffle just widens me in all the wrong places. I will also be returning the Boucle vest (no longer online) from Gap...I like the idea of it and it looks cute with some things in my closet but the store I bought it at (with a 45% off coupon) only had a small and I really needed an XS I've now decided. In the store it looked ok on but when I got it home and paired it with what I would really be wearing it with I looked like I was drowning in it. Back it goes. It wasn't really LOVE anyways..I was just mad I didn't get to use my coupon on my son's hoodie I went to purchase (it magically went on sale that day and the coupon could only be used on full-prices items that day) so I stomped off to the women's side to find something to use the coupon on for myself. All well.

So what am I keeping?? The first item I bought and kept was a necklace from J Crew Outlet I got when I was there picking up a Christmas present. It was on sale for $41 down from $70. It's a cute mixed media muti-strand with chains, pearls, crystals, etc...it's a short necklace and will dress up the right outfit perfectly. It's a piece that will be in style for years to come. I'll be wearing it with my outfit to church tomorrow so you'll see it soon! The second keeper item is a sweater that Kim from Anthroholic actually just featured on her blog yesterday (great minds think alike). See her post with the sweater HERE. The sweater is from the "Twelve by Twelve" line from Forever 21 and is so cute! I love the bow detailing! You can buy it in black online but only the store has the pink/blush color that I picked up. I saw it about a week ago in the store on a mannequin and wanted to try it on but couldn't find it anywhere (shocker). The store was closing so I figured I'd just look a for it the next time I came back. I headed to the mall yesterday to make a return and finally found it and made it mine for $32. The "Twelve by Twelve" line is a tad more pricey than the typical Forever 21 items but you can tell that the quality is better too. I was actually pretty impressed.

So that's my mid-month shopping review/confessional. Three items...one off the wish list, two random out of the blue finds. That leaves a lot of things on my wish list!!! I'm crossing my fingers for a HUGE sale next week at Anthro...the gift card I received from my in laws for Christmas is burning a hole in my pocket (do you love that I'm like a little kid and can't wait to spend it until after Christmas? I'm just as bad as my kids who beg me to open their presents under the tree at least three times a day). I took a look at my wish list of 12 yesterday and in my head have done a little editing...I've narrowed it down to a handful that I really want now. The Refined Cord Shirtdress may have gotten the boot because of this:

West Coast Swing Dress from Shabby Apple



So here's the story on this...I picked up two Groupons for Shabby Apple back in the summer and finally got around to using the second one last month. The dress I ordered didn't fit right so I sent it back hoping to exchange it for a different size. A week or so went by and I got an email from Shabby Apple stating they were now out of the size I wanted. They asked if there was anything else I'd want instead...nope, not really! I searched through their website for the millionth time and finally came across this cute red number. It's on it's way to me and if it works out the Refined Cord Shirtdress will be cut from my list. I certainly don't need two red dresses! We'll see how the Shabby Apple dress works out.

So the other items I'm really hoping hit sale next week are The Easy Keeper skirt, the Volante Tee and the Field Skirt. Of course if others off my wish list hit sale (such as the Alluring Sway skirt, Anticipation heels or the Glowing Leaf skirt) I'll have to decide if I really have a place for them in my closet. I would love to know what day this big tag sale is supposed to be so I can plan to go to the store! I live 45 minutes away from the nearest store so it takes a little planning. If anyone hears anything let me know!!

I have deemed tonight gift wrapping night. I've been avoiding it for too long. After the kids go to bed I'll head out into the garage to find all the hidden gifts and separate them into "From Santa" and "From mom and dad" piles. It'll be a late night. I'll just pop in a movie and get going on it. This is the first year that I've put wrapping off this long...usually I have it done early. I have wrapped some gifts already--my mom's, dad's and grandma's are done. Of course it's the kid's gifts that are the bulk of it though.

I'll leave you with my outfit from today...we hung out at home all day and then went to our ward Christmas party/dinner at church tonight. The kids got to see Santa so they were stoked about that. I decided to break out this red shirt I hadn't worn yet for the occasion...I was trying to be festive. =)



Details:
-Headwaters Tee-Anthropologie
-Cardigan-Old Navy (scored this for $14 this fall)
-Ultimate Skinny Jeans-Banana Republic
-Report(R2) Clogs-Famous Footwear
-Necklace-Fossil
-Earrings-Old Navy
-Ring-Target

Did you notice I wore heels?? HEELS! My ankle is feeling much better these days. Still not 100% but I'm back to running and am loving having the option of wearing heels again.

Alrighty, let the wrapping party commence!