Blue Eyelet Dress

Dress: H&M (Similar) / Shoes: Vince Camuto (Similar)
Watch: Movado / Earrings: Givenchy / Crossbody Purse: Tory Burch

I hope everyone had a good weekend! Over the weekend I was up in Connecticut visiting my parents and celebrating Mother’s Day with my momma! Since it was raining over the weekend, we went out to brunch Saturday (to beat the Sunday crowds) and then a movie. Then on Mother's Day Sunday we made brunch for her. I love spending time with my family and the older you get you learn to cherish these moments and memories more and more!

Today’s look is this beautiful blue eyelet dress. I also like that the dress comes with a tie so you can wear it as loose or as tight as you want. It's honestly soo comfortable and I can think of so many ways to wear it. I can’t wait to pair this dress with a pair of white sneakers and a jean jacket – it’ll be perfect for vacation next week!

I linked a few other of my favorite eyelet dresses in the widget below!

Striped Wrap Blouse and SheIn Clothing Review

Wrap Blouse: SheIn (c/o) / Jeans: JCrew / Sandals: Vince Camuto (Similar)
Crossbody Purse: Tory Burch / Necklace: Kate Spade
Watch: Movado / Sunglasses: Sperry (Similar)

Today I am giving you another look from SheIn specifically this pretty black and white striped wrap blouse. I can’t wait to pair this top with some white pants or shorts for the summer! I also like the tie and wrap detail of the blouse. I am wearing a size small for sizing reference.

SheIn Clothing Review - Is it too good to be true?

When you see a $20 shirt that’s much cheaper than something you saw for $50 at the store – you start to question if the website is legit! Well I'm here to put all your fears aside. I am one of those individuals that get nervous ordering from websites that aren’t name brand. After my floral dress post went up on Tuesday (you can view the post HERE) I received many questions and messages on Instagram regarding SheIn clothing and my experience with them.

As someone that has been working with SheIn I've personally had a good experience with them and my thoughts are as follows (Please note that I would NEVER share any products with my readers that I did not like or have a good experience with. All opinions are my own).

Quality of Clothing

SheIn is an awesome website for trendy pieces for less. With the pricepoint of SheIn clothing don't expect to get a luxury item (or cashmere, silk, etc. - you get the point!). I’ve gotten several pieces from SheIn and have not been disappointed in the quality. This dress that I wore on Tuesday is a dupe of a Zara dress that I own (view that look HERE and HERE) and what’s funny is that I like the SheIn dress so much more! It's primarily due to the fact that the SheIn dress comes with an adjustable slip whereas the Zara dress does not. Even the wrap blouse I am wearing in today's post the material is nice and thick.

Sizing of Clothing

My best word of advice when it comes to sizing is do not only rely on the store’s pictures! Most of the clothing have reviews and a lot of times girls will even upload their photo to show how it looks on them. I find these photos sooo helpful so you can see how the clothing fits on a real person. Most of the clothing I received from SheIn for dresses and blouses are a size small (I'm 5'7" for reference).

Shipping + Returns

I have not had any issues receiving SheIn pieces and everything has arrived on time (or faster than expected!). SheIn offers free shipping and returns which is awesome. Their return policy is as follows "Use our return label to postmark your first return within 40 days from the purchase date, we’ll cover the cost of your first return shipping." 

Overall, SheIn is a great website to find trendy items at an affordable price so you don't spend a fortune on the “hottest” new trend for the season. Most trendy items will be out by the time next season or next year rolls around so SheIn is a great place to find those items!

Floral Midi Dress

Dress: SheIn (c/o) / Heels: Sam Edelman
Clutch: Valentino / Earrings: Bauble Bar

One thing I love is finding a dress with an amazing print just like this dress from SheIn! I would have to say this dress is so pretty and feminine - it's seriously giving me all the spring vibes. I also love the long sleeves which is perfect for those chilly spring evenings. There is also a slip under the dress so it's not see through and I also like the fact that the slip has adjustable straps. I am wearing a size small for sizing reference. This dress is on sale for just under $30 which I think is a great price point!

One thing I get asked frequently are the quality of SheIn clothing. I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the dress. It's very similar to a dress from Zara that I own and honestly for the price point I would go with this one from SheIn anyday!

Pastel Midi Pleated Skirt

Pleated Skirt: H&M / Crewneck Shirt: GAP / Denim Jacket: H&M (Similar)
Heels: Sam Edelman / Crossbody: Tory Burch Robinson
Watch: Movado / Sunglasses: Sperry (Similar)

Happy Thursday everyone! I’m happy to say that spring is FINALLY here and as you can see I'm all about spring fashion! The temperatures have been in the 80’s here in Philadelphia and I’m loving it! I can finally say that I am ready to put away my winter clothes and do a spring cleaning! Who else does a wardrobe switch-out each season? I usually try to do it twice a year – once in the fall and once in the spring. The way it works is that I take out all my clothes for the season and create three files - toss, donate, and keep. It honestly feels so good afterwards when your closet is clean and organized!

I'm also happy to say that pleated skirts are back for spring but updated for the season with pretty pastel colors! One of my new editions to my spring wardrobe is this beautiful mint colored midi pleated skirt. When I put it on my husband was like wow “I love that color and skirt on you!” It’s honestly perfect for spring and it’s under $50! I paired this look with heels to keep the look dressy for the evening but this pleated skirt would also be super cute paired with white sneakers!

I’ve linked a few other of my favorite pastel pleated skirts in the widget below.

The Blog Connect Conference 2018

This past weekend was the third annual Blog Connect Conference #theblogconnect hosted by PHL Bloggers. PHL Bloggers is an amazing community of bloggers and small business owners from the Philadelphia area. The conference was held at the lovely Saxby’s Headquarters at 2300 Chestnut Street. As the event was located at the Saxby’s Headquarters there was free tea and coffee all day long (including latte, espresso, etc. in any size)!

Once you arrived and checked in, you could get your headshot taken by Julia Dent (which I definitely got taken!). Breakfast which was provided by Saxby's consisted of bagels and cream cheese, fruit, and pastries. There was a chance to mingle and get settled in before the conference started promptly at 9:00AM. As this was my second year attending the conference it was so nice to see both familiar and new faces!

This year’s blog theme was: Find Your Roots. It’s all about going deeper into the skills you already have, developing good habits and creating content. There were many wonderful speakers and sessions all day long!

Listing of Speakers:

Emcee

Andy Shaw // Instafather

Keynotes

Sarah Von Bargen // Yes and Yes

Tara Gentile // CoCommercial

Speakers

AK Brown & Diamond Hudson // Just Bloggers: No Explanation

Len Markidan // Podia

Antoinette Minor // The Young Professionalist

Michelle Conron // Cashman & Associates

Judy Freedman // A Boomer's Life After 50

Amber Burns // Space on Third

Panelists

Jessica Lawlor Jessica Lawlor / Melissa Alam Femme & Fortune/ Sarah DeGeorge Socially Dedicated

After the morning speakers, we had lunch catered by Snap Kitchen. Snap Kitchen provides fresh, prepared meals using high quality ingredients. After lunch came the afternoon session with more speakers and breakout session. There was also a mid-afternoon snack break with Federal Donuts (seriously they are SO yummy!).

Here are the FIVE biggest takeaways which I took from the conference:

Morning keynote speaker, Sarah Von Bargen from Yes and Yes made us think What does blogging success look like to you? Success looks and feels different for everyone. In order to reach your version of success, you need to create habits which set you up for success. Those habits can be daily, weekly, monthly, etc - whatever it looks like to you. Success is not measured in how many likes you might get on Instagram or how many followers you have (which is SO important especially in today's world!). It's what makes YOU feel successful.

Len Markidan from Podia did a great presentation on How to earn a living from blogging without sponsors, advertisers, and affiliates. He discussed useful tools and steps in order to come up with a profitable course idea and using Google.com and Reddit.com to do your research in order to find a topic worth teaching. I thought was very informative and this got me thinking how I can apply this to my blog.

Judy Freedman from A Baby Boomer Woman's Life After 50 discussed How to avoid blogger burnout. And YES blogger burnout is a real concept! Judy spoke about mindfulness and certain techniques we can use everyday. One of my favorite techniques she taught us was
STOP – BREATHE – BE.

Antoinette Minor from The Young Professionalist spoke about What to post and how to post on social media. She suggests posting 1x day on Instagram, 2x - 1x day on Facebook, and 3x - 5x on Twitter. I have to admit I never gave much thought into how often or how less I was posting on these social media websites and it's so helpful to have a guide!

Michelle Conron from Cashman & Associates gave us insight into How PR agencies work with Influencers and Clients. Michelle gave us tips on what they look for when vetting through bloggers and influencers. It's also important for bloggers to have consistency among social media platforms (for instance when it comes to branding) and be able to back up your numbers.

Overall Thoughts

Overall, if you ever have the chance to attend a blogging conference I highly suggest it! It may seem intimidating but it’s really great to get out there, network and to meet new people! You honestly never know who you may meet and what new things you may learn. It’s also awesome to be in a room full of individuals who have similar interests with you!