Hoodies and zip-ups are foolproof garments when it comes to warmth and comfort. However, sometimes it’s all too easy to look like you’re wearing sweats or gym clothes when you’re rocking a hoodie. Fortunately, there are lots of stylish ways to make hoodies work as part of a fashionable wardrobe – you just have to get a little creative.

Option 1: Layer, Layer, Layer

Layering is an easy way to make your hoodie look less athletic and more chic. If your sweatshirt is thin enough, it’s easy to layer it under a fabulous jacket to add just a hint of sporty chic to your ensemble. Read More »

It's so cozy!

Awww!  He lent you his sweatshirt!  It’s so comfy and cozy and it smells refreshingly like boy. It’s perfectly worn in, the lifeguard/lacrosse logo beginning to crack and fade at the edges. Sure, you would normally look ridiculous in such a shirt (anyone who knows you knows you aren’t a lacrosse…er…athletic kinda girl), but hey!  He’s a lifeguard!  It’s OK if it’s his!

You wear it home, letting the sleeves hang past your hands and relishing in the glory that only comes with wearing a sweatshirt of the boy you love. You wear it around your room for the rest of the day. And then, once you’ve finally removed it (because sleeping in it would be weird….right?), you fold the sweatshirt up and lay it on the floor. But what now?  What do you do with it?  Return it? Do you call him or does he call you? Should he come to get it? And, before he does, can you wear it again? What if it’s cold? Is that weird?

The ol’ sweatshirt exchange doesn’t seem like much, but there’s a whole lot of awkwardness that comes along with that XL perfectly worn-in pull-over. Don’t believe me? Allow me to lay out two very real (in that they happened to me) possibilities. Read More »

I have a love/hate relationship with Urban Outfitters. I fall madly in love with everything on the racks, but hate how much they charge for shirts, skirts and dresses that usually fall apart after a few go-rounds in the washing machine. But then I fall in love again when those trendy little Urban employees stock the sale racks with all that gorgeous goodness.

The Urban sale section might be one of the only ones I’m willing to elbow, shove and push my way through. They have some of the best deals around on some serious cuteness, much of it $19.99 or less! Here are some of my favorite pieces that are all under $20. The best part: you don’t even have to leave the comfort of your couch or tempt yourself with the rest of the overpriced items en route to the sale section. Read More »

Ok, so Delia*s may not seem like the best place to find some threads once you’re out of high school, but if you look in the right places, it’s a wardrobe gold mine. They have some great basics, even better accessories, and a lot of their stuff is trendy on the cheap (especially if you check out their seasonal clearance/sale). There really is a lot to choose from, but here are some of my absolute faves, all for under $20! Read More »

I’ve known for years that Wal-Mart was a great place to go to get cheap snacks, toiletries, electronics, etc., but I never thought I’d buy clothes there. There is only one big-box store whose dressing rooms I’ll enter and that is Tarjay. There is no way any K-Mart, Wal-Mart, or any other mart could produce fashion that would catch my eye.

But I think I judged too soon. I recently made a late-night run to Wal-Mart for some milk, batteries and a plant (don’t ask) and discovered that they have tons of cute clothes for super cheap.  I hate to admit it, but Miley Cyrus’ line (she collaborated with Max Azria) is adorable and beyond affordable, and they have tons of other cute stuff by brands that were totally cool when I was a kid (yet look great now), like OP, Sassoon, and Jordache, just to name a few.

Unfortunately, many of the pieces in Miley’s line are sold out online, but you can always check out a Wal-Mart near you to see if they still have some of the oh-so-cute pieces.  And without further ado, a few of my faves from Wal-Mart (I plan on stocking up for fall/winter!). Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 116

Mood: Startled

“Not many girls would jump up and down in the middle of the woods at ten at night.”

Justin and I were walking back through the dark path towards campus, my fingers occasionally grabbing onto his sweatshirt for support as we dodged shadowed roots and branches. I could have stayed in that starlit clearing with him forever, and probably would have, if Rebecca hadn’t called me, worried and wondering why I wasn’t back in our room.

Realizing we had been outside for over an hour, Justin decided it was time to go back. I wasn’t sure if he had been caught off guard by the quick passage of time like me, or if he just really wanted to get warm, but whatever the case, when he stood up and started back towards the dorms, I followed.

“You’re a good sport with putting up with my weirdness.” Stepping over a root, Justin reached out to help me do the same. “I usually don’t let people see how awkward I am until I know them really well.”

“Well, I’m perma-awkward, so you’re in good company.” I grabbed his hand and hopped over the root, but the contact of his skin against mine rattled my head so much I let go too soon and almost toppled over.

“Whoa, you okay?” Catching my arm, Justin stopped and waited until I was standing steady again.

“I told you, perma-awkward.” I laughed to cover my embarrassment and was glad the night hid my burning cheeks. “I can’t even walk right.”

Justin chuckled. We stood facing each other for a moment, one of the longer moments in my recent memory, until Justin let his eyes fall to the ground. Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 113

Mood: Smiling

“There’s a bench back here.”

I pushed the last couple of bare branches out of my way and walked into a man-made clearing in the back of the campus woods. Justin was sitting in the middle of the small space, sitting on the bench, his eyes on the stars.

The way his sweatshirt was pulled around his head, the way his mouth was slightly open in concentration, the way his eyes traced the clear night skyline above us, made it easy to see what he must have looked like as a boy. Skinny and sweet, adorable because he didn’t know it, innocent for longer than most other kids. Maybe I was making it all up, maybe the dark was making me seen things that weren’t there, but in the moment before he looked at me, I really thought I had seen all I needed to know about Justin.

“Come on over.” He smiled. “The stars are awesome.” Read More »

Days as a Freshman: 111

Mood: Cold and happy

“I didn’t know you knew Sammy.”

Justin and I walked away from the dorms, down a side path on the outskirts of campus, our breath grey against the dark shadows of the woods.

“I didn’t know you knew her.” The cold night air was scratching at my hands. I stuffed them into my pockets and gripped the fabric, flexing the ice out of my fingers. “You could have told me.”

“It never came up.” Justin pulled his sweatshirt hood over his head, jumping onto a small wooden bridge that led into the woods. “Wanna go down here for a bit? It might snow.”

“You sure nothing wild will eat me?” I joined him on the bridge. “I have finals tomorrow.”

“There’s nothing wild in these woods, kid. Believe me.”

Justin disappeared into the tall pines and I followed close behind, wishing I at least had a hat, and wondering just when I was going to go over my notes for the big English final on Monday.

Justin had knocked on Sammy’s door just to say hi, stopping dead in the doorway when he saw Rebecca and I. His eyes slid around the room, bouncing off our faces, his mouth trying to decide what exactly should come out first. Feeling the air pulling tight around everyone, I decided to do something I don’t normally do and spoke up. Read More »