Friday's Fancies: The best of ...

First, I want to send huge kudos to Alison over at {long distance loving} for celebrating her 150th Friday's Fancies link-up today! That's almost three years of fashion-related posts every Friday! For this special anniversary, I decided to pick my five favorite fashionable creations from the past and reshare them here. You can click on any image to see the original post. Enjoy!

This was the second outfit I ever created for Friday's Fancies, back in February 2012.
I would definitely wear this now!

Friday's Fancies: Short Story

I usually gravitate more toward skirts and pants than shorts (unless, of course, it's a pair of my beloved Norts, a.k.a. Nike shorts), but I've had my eye on this pretty mint pair from Target for a while. I couldn't pick just one outfit, but I knew I wanted a sleeveless chiffon blouse and a fun statement necklace to dress the shorts up while keeping the color palette light and summery. You can find links to all the items below in my Polyvore set.

What's your favorite combination of the above items? Do you like wearing shorts?

Spring into Chevron

When I first started linking up with {av} for Friday's Fancies last January, I had no style. I have since developed minimal style, and I'm proud to say I could put together a very similar outfit to the one below from my current wardrobe, except for the skirt. I am definitely on the hunt for some flirty skirts for this spring!

Spring into Chevron by mcszr3

The best part? Each of these items (except the watch) costs less than $50!

How did you celebrate the first day of spring? Personally, I snowshoed up a small mountain in Vermont with some Alpha Delta Pi sisters from UVM. It was beautiful and I wouldn't have had it any other way!

P.S. — Check back on Tuesday for my spring wish list with Jen from Live Beautifully!

Fall Friday: The Footwear (Friday's Fancies: Week 14)

I had been planning a footwear-themed post for this Fall Friday post anyway, then I saw {av}'s Friday's Fancies theme this week was autumn-inspired, so I decided to combine them (again)! I know this Friday's Fancies is technically supposed to be inspired by a fall treat, but {av} always encourages us to post about anything we want, so I'm going to pretend like riding boots are my "treat." :)

Fall Friday: Friday's Fancies (Week 13)

I know I just did a fall fashion post last Friday, but {av} is hosting a "Leaf Love" Friday's Fancies link-up this week, and I thought it might be fun to play along. Plus, I keep finding great autumn outfits on Pinterest that I want to share:

1 | 2 | 3 | 4

I originally created an outfit centered around this fabulous sweater, but then I decided I should let the colors of the fall leaves inspire me, as {av}'s theme suggests. I also threw in hints of navy, just because I like it, and a little beanie that I would never be brave enough to wear. Is it just me, or does anyone else feel silly in hats? Anyway, this is the final product:

Leaf Love by mcszr3

Click the button below to see what other leaf-inspired outfits bloggers created this week:

Friday's Fancies: Week 12

This week's Friday's Fancies theme from {av} was just too good to pass up. I'm sure I'm one of a gajillion people who are crushing on coral today, but I used it anyway. It wasn't hard to find inspiration, either, considering how much coral I already had on my Pinterest. Here are some of my favorite finds. Enjoy!

Left column: dress / blazer / dress / watch

Right column: outfit / shorts + clutch / flat / skirt

What color are you crushing on this summer?

Friday's Fancies: Week 11

Hi there! I know it's been a while, but I've decided to participate in {av}'s Friday's Fancies link-up again this week. The theme is Date Night, but I'm going to put a little spin on that.

I've already designed some (hopefully) date-worthy outfits for Friday's Fancies (like this and this), so I decided to step away from clothes today and try something different. I'm in a long-distance relationship, so I don't get to go on a lot of dates. Instead, my boyfriend and I exchange a lot of care packages. In fact, I sent him a pretty rad one two weeks ago (at least, I thought it was pretty cool!). Today, I wanted to share the contents of my perfect care package, in lieu of a date outfit, because that's what I get more often:

1. Starburst jelly beans. I love these little morsels of happiness.

2. A cute card. It can be handmade or store bought, I don't have a preference, but I have to admit: I get a little sad when I open a package and there isn't a handwritten note inside. It's the writer in me, I guess.

3. I found these little puzzle books in a local bookstore a while ago and fell in love. I flip through them every time I go in. They would be a perfect addition to my carry-on for long plane trips! I like the logic games the best; I was that girl who thought the practice LSAT was fun. (Then again, I never took the real one, so I'm probably biased.)

4. Amazon gift card to stock up my Kindle! Obviously.

5. Mmm, Lacey cookies! My dad always gets these for Christmas from his administrative staff, and I can't get enough.

6. Stamps, so I can send you a thank you card, of course! :)

Also, I will never turn down a bag of Lifesaver Mints. I love them. I thought about this after I finished the graphic, and I was too lazy to add it, so here you go:

Photo via Drugstore.com

Other items that would make me happy: movie tickets (because that's something fun I can do on my own, but I ain't paying $10.50 to do it!), pistachios (yum! but so expensive...), Starbucks gift cards, iTunes gift cards ... any gift card, really! And, of course, if someone is taking the time out of their day to send me a package or snail mail, I'll appreciate it no matter what's inside ... as long as it's not Anthrax or something equally as cruel and unfunny.

What are your ideal care package items? Do you send packages often? Happy Friday!

Friday's Fancies: Week 10

I am so excited for this week's theme! I mean, who doesn't love a little rain? ;)

Source: pasipesticla.deviantart.com via Tessa on Pinterest

I have to say, it wasn't as hard as I thought it would be to find some cute and functional pieces. I would probably add knee-high gray socks to complete the look, and I realize a $1,400 raincoat is ridiculous, but that's why it's Friday's Fancies, right? :) Also, I think the braided headband look would be the perfect defense against any troublesome wind or water.

umbrella | braid | coat | dress | boots

P.S. — Of course, right after I finished writing this post on Wednesday (I was so on top of it this week!), Capitol Hill Style posted about Anthropologie's adorable rain flats. Would you wear rain flats instead of boots in warmer weather?

P.P.S. — Semi-Charmed Kind of Life is on Facebook! If your blog has a Facebook page, please like me from that account so I can return the favor. :) 

Friday's Fancies: Week 9

This week's Friday's Fancies is a little painful for me. It was a great idea, {av}, but it would be a lot more fun if my team were still in the tournament. *sigh* I even thought of skipping this week or doing a different theme because I was so heartbroken over Mizzou's first-round (and very unexpected) loss last Friday, but then I remembered this:

Even if the Big Dance didn't go quite as we had planned, I still love my Tigers, and I'm still proud to be a Mizzou student alum (I almost forgot)! (As evidenced by the fact that I wore my Mizzou headband on the slopes the day after our loss, despite seeing quite a few Jayhawk beanies.) As much as I wish I were getting ready to watch my boys play Marquette tonight instead of Florida, I will be a Tiger fan until the day I die! Plus, we're taking that Big 12 championship with us to the SEC ... and no one can ever take it back!

P.S. — I pinned quite a few Mizzou items on Polyvore when I was creating this outfit, so if you're a future/current/former Tiger — knock yourself out!

Friday's Fancies: Week 8

Welcome to another edition of Friday's Fancies! I created an Ireland-themed outfit a few weeks ago for {av}'s "Let's Fly Away" link-up, for which I found these awesome green jeans. Of course I had to use them again for a St. Patrick's Day outfit! This time, I decided to do a one piece, two ways post (a la my Valentine's Day outfit), so here's two different ways to wear green jeans this weekend during your St. Paddy's Day partying:

For each outfit, I picked a fun spring purse/clutch because I was afraid the sweaters I chose made the outfits seem too autumn-y. I'm also a sucker for tacky holiday jewelry, hence the shamrock earrings on the left. I picked a gold Claddagh ring this week to match the earrings, and I chose some more costume-y pieces for the evening jewelry. Finally, I went with flats for the evening because—let's be real—you're going to want to be as close to the ground as possible.

See more details about each piece below: