Sister Style: Christmas Eve

It has been a long time tradition in our family to dress up for the Christmas Eve church service.  Our great grandfather would give us our Christmas gift early-- $50 to purchase a new Christmas outfit.   We would usually have something in mind (one year I was SET on finding a baby doll style dress with bell sleeves.  That was 1993. btw I found it and it was divine...).  Often times we'd coordinate our outfits (like the year we both got velvet v-neck tops with 3/4 sleeves from Gap.  Mine was black and I wore it with an iridescent pencil skirt.  Amanda's was pale blue and she wore it with a black mini).  This year we both opted for vintage dresses, pulled from the Miskabelle shop!  Sorry gals, you snooze you lose!  ; )

...and I must share this photo of our little fashion bloggers in the makings!  Aurora and Lyla (with their hands on their hips).

Today is back to the same old.... just with more toys laying around the house and shedding tree that needs undecorated.  Oh well, it was fun while it lasted! Hope you had a great holiday too!

xo

A&J

Sister Style: Party Attire

Here's a little look at what we wore to our mom's surprise birthday party.  Since she was in the dark about what was going on, we knew she'd show up in casual attire...so we dressed accordingly!  Totally unintentional, but we both ended up wearing skinnies, boots, a graphic shirt with a layering piece on top (Amanda-a leopard print cardigan, Jayme- a denim vest) and a long necklace.  Our hair is super similar in these photos too, both in color and length (and side swept bangs)!  

top-UO (thrifted), leopard cardigan-(thrifted), black skinnies-Gap, suede boots-Aldo (Thrifted!), necklace c/o Blue Nile

vest:  Free People (formerly a jacket), shirt:  Gap, jeans: Gap, boots: Candies

We were running around, cooking, putting up decorations, etc. so we were both pretty thankful to be casual/comfortable--but with a little bit of dressy style thrown in.

Also (Amanda): I liked the outfit in person, but the shirt is wide/cropped, so I needed something to nip in at the waist more:  Lesson learned...I may be passing this top on to the teenage stepdaughters (or Jayme, if she wants it!). Oh well.

And I think that's the last of the birthday posts for now!  Holiday season is on its way and we have SO MANY fun blogs coming your way...

xo,

J&A

Outfit Post: Sister Style, Vol. 2

Hello, everyone! It's the second edition of our Sister Style series, featuring an exclusive sneak peek of brand new baubles from Blue Nile.

I (Amanda) spent a fun long weekend in Philadelphia with Q and Aurora, staying at my sister-in-law's beautiful home.  I couldn't resist taking some shots around her porch.  There is so much gorgeous architecture in Philly--it made me sad to come back to DC!  And if you're wondering, I'd like to say my bare feet were an aesthetic choice, but the truth is, I forgot to pack my shoes!  At least my pedicure was pretty...

Jayme got really creative with her look with some DIY's:  the sock bun and a vintage top that she cropped and sewed herself!  We used to do a lot more vintage re-styling (especially with basics and 80s clothes that needed a lift), and with Jayme's renewed passion for the sewing machine, we might consider trying again for the fall!

On Jayme:  top- vintage redesigned (t-shirt blouse turned crop top), skirt- Miskabelle vintage (buy it HERE!), shoes- Candies, purse- vintage, bracelets- Forever 21, rings- vintage, earrings- white agate gold vermeil drop earrings, c/o Blue Nile

On Amanda: dress-F21, purse-Whiting & Davis/vintage, brooch-vintage/Great Grandmother's, carnelian and amethyst  bracelet, c/o Blue Nile, watch-vintage, earrings- carnelian and amethyst gold vermeil drop earrings, c/o Blue Nile

We have both has our ears pierced since before we started kindergarten, so we have always been big fans of earrings. These lovely drops from Blue Nile are best displayed with an updo (go try that sock bun! It's amazing!).  Everyone knows that the cost of gold is monstrous currently, but these gold vermeil pieces are extremely affordable. And they won't make any part of your skin turn green.

Speaking of gold, I have to brag a little about that cute Whiting and Davis purse (circa 1920/1930) that I found at my thrift...in the kids' section.  Yes, it does pay to look EVERYWHERE at a thrift store.  That's why it's called the hunt!  And if you're wondering, yes, it was also priced for a kid too.  I squealed a little.

Hope you are having a great week--stay tuned for more Sister Style next week!

xo,
Amanda

Outfit Post: Sister Style

I feel like lately, Amanda and I have each been really hitting our strides in terms of personal style.  Throughout high school and college, I think we both often jumped on trends and tried to wear what was "cool" (even if that meant bib overalls or matching sweater sets, ick).  But with age, and I'll even say motherhood, you start to learn to be yourself.  You wear what you are comfortable in and what looks good on you.  I don't really care if anyone else considers my clothes "stylish", I just want to be my own person.  And I think Amanda would certainly say the same.  Our styles are certainly different from one another but we can still take inspiration from the same things....

We have extra special inspiration for this set of posts, as we are so excited to be working with Blue Nile to dress up and review some of their newest samples (which are not even available online yet!). This is an EXCLUSIVE SNEAK PEEK for fashion bloggers, and we feel so lucky to be part of it!

Most of you probably know Blue Nile from their diamonds (just admit you played with the app and sent a link to your honey), but they also have a lot of other beautiful jewelry.  Here is a look from each of us, wearing a gold chain and gemstone necklace in varying colors, but executed in our own ways:

Amanda

on Amanda:  dress- Cynthia Rowley (thrifted!), heels-Michael Kors via DSW, amethyst and carnelian neckace- c/o Blue Nile, studded bracelet-old/random, purse-vintage

Jayme

on Jayme:  headband=leather string+vintage feather brooch, white dress- old/unknown (probably Ross?), cowboy boots-  vintage, smoky quartz and white agate neckace- c/o Blue Nile, multi-tonal beaded necklace- Silpada, gold chain and gemstone bracelet- c/o Blue Nile, rings- vintage

We come from a family of jewelers (as we probably mentioned before) and have always loved accessorizing. While we each have some nice family heirloom jewelry, we tend to wear a lot of cheap costume jewelry. We almost forgot what real jewelry was like!  When we received these beautiful pieces from Blue Nile in the mail, it was easy to see the difference.  They really sparkle, and the craftsmanship is obvious, down to the pretty toggle clasp.  The gemstones are clear and perfectly cut.  Simply put:  we were both in love! 

We have a few more posts to come in this series, with more pretty sister looks and more pretty baubles from Blue Nile!

xo,

J&A

>>>This is a style up/review of Blue Nile jewelry.  Blue Nile sent us several pieces each to blog about and share with you.  Our review is our honest opinion, which we have not been paid for. Blue Nile has provided us each with one beautiful piece of jewelry to keep in return for this style series.<<<

Featured in: luri & wilma magazine

We were so excited when luri & wilma magazine (DC's eco-chic emagazine) asked to do a feature on us and our two different business/creative styles. Check us out over on the luri & wilma site, and while you're there, be sure to check out their gorgeous travel issue!

We feel honored to be a luri and a wilma because they are creative, fashionable, smart women who are changing the world!  And that's what we aspire to as well.

xo,
Amanda & Jayme

West Virginia Weekend (image heavy)

Here are a few a ton of pictures from our weekend in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia (which just so happens to be the exact middle point between Amanda's Virginia town and my Central Pennsylvania home!).  We pretty much spent the weekend walking around town, eating lots of food and swimming a bit at the lake.

We always have to find the local thrift store wherever we visit!  We found lots of vintage good-ness that will make its way into the shop in the weeks to come.

The babies were decked out in vintage-- Lyla, a 1970s handmade sunsuit and Aurora wore a tie back tank from the 1970s or 1980s.  I pretty much died when we asked Aurora to say cheese and she put her hands on her hips to pose for the photo!  Wonder where she got that idea? ; )

This is Lyla's best "blogger" pose.  Not as amazing as Aurora's hands-on-hips...but she's got the white backdrop going for her and her vintage playsuit and sandals (Saltwater knock-offs!) are pretty snazzy.

All the girlies, minus Lyla, had black and white bathing suits.  I love this picture!

Probably the best part of the trip was watching these two play and interact.  Here they're wearing vintage Mexican sundresses (!).


If you've made it this far....Thanks for taking a peek at our vacation!  We were thankful for the sister time and of course had business chat throughout the weekend.  Lots of exciting things going on around here!  Hope you stick around to see.  : )

xo
Jayme