A Month of Holiday Outfits: Inspiration - Saddleback Leather Co.

This post includes a review of Saddleback Leather Co. I was gifted the bag for a review of their product and appropriate links in the post. No money was exchanged for this review.

I decided to create this holiday outfit around a small bucket bag I was gifted by Saddleback Leather Co. I thought it would be the perfect piece to build an outfit around that might include some Christmas shopping or lunch with my hubby or a girlfriend. It also made me think about the idea that not everyone wants to look overly festive. Many women (and men) would rather not be known as the ugly Christmas sweater winners at their holiday work parties, and like a more understated, classic look revolving around winter shades and textures.

Let’s start with the bag, since that is the focus of this holiday outfit. Saddleback Leather Co. has a very interesting story, and you would be remiss if you didn’t hop on over to their website and read it. Click on the link here. I always enjoy hearing about how these companies get started, and what keeps them going. There motto is “They’ll Fight Over it When You’re Dead”.

Leather is expensive, there is no way around it, and quality leather goods are even more expensive, but leather is also beautiful, durable, long lasting, and it smells so good, especially when you first take it out of the package, or walk into a leather store!

This cute, mini bucket bag is the perfect size for those days when you just need a few items. I can easily fit my wallet, keys, a small notebook and a few other odds and ends like tissues, hand sanitizer, and lip gloss. This bag has a sturdy drawstring to cinch in the top, so things don’t spill out, a back pocket that would be perfect for your phone, and an adjustable strap that clips on with stout clips that won’t break or slip off. The only thing I would like added is a snap or magnet to keep the flap secure. Overall, this is a durable, stylish bag that works perfectly as a cross body type, keeping it close and keeping your hands free.

I chose my outfit based on the bag color. The website calls this color Chestnut, but to me it has a bit of a burgundy vibe. I chose my burgundy, corduroy, cropped vest that was a last holiday season purchase from Maurices.

I really like gray with burgundy, so I opted for this a.n.a. tunic button down from JC Penney that is a few years old.

To add just a tiny bit of holiday pizzazz I added this short Christmas colored neck scarf. This was a second hand find.

My skinny jeans are a thrifted Lane Bryant pair. Don’t judge me for wearing skinny jeans. I still love them best for tucking in to tall boots.

My SO suede boots were a hand-me-over from my oldest daughter.

I hope you enjoyed this outfit and this introduction to Saddleback Leather Co. In addition to the amazing bags they carry, that have other leather products as well. They are also involved in a ministry called Love 41. You can read more about that by clicking on the link. If you are looking for quality leather products that come with a 100 year warranty, for that special someone who has everything check out Saddleback.

Have a great week!

A Month of Holiday Outfits: Inspiration - Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

I thought it would be fun to style a few outfits around a few specific Christmas themed points of inspiration like movies, books, music or even colors. Today’s outfit revolves around a sweatshirt I found recently and couldn’t wait to style.

Home Alone is a series of movies revolving around Kevin McCallister played by Macaulay Culkin. Kevin has the misfortune of being left at home alone in the first movie while his family flies to France, not realizing he isn’t with them. While they are gone Kevin must defend his home agains two bumbling, but mean robbers who are trying to steal from all the homes left empty over the holidays. In the second movie, the family, once again, get separated from Kevin at the airport, where he unwittingly boards a flight for New York City instead of the proper flight to Florida. As in the first movie, chaos ensues when Kevin runs into the same two robbers, who have escaped from jail and are looking to steal from a unique toy store that is giving their profits to a local orphanage. I love both movies.

The quote on this sweatshirt was from an old black and white movie Kevin is watching in the hotel room he gets on his dad’s credit card. The movie wasn’t a real film, but was specifically created for the Home Alone 2 movie. Here is the scene containing the quote.

I think this is one of the funnier scenes from the movie and Tim Curry, does such a great job looking mortified and terrified.

I decided to pair the bright red Holiday Time sweatshirt with this Lu La Roe skirt that was gifted to me a number of years ago. I thought the bright red in the skirt went well with the bright red sweatshirt. I have a few of these pieces in my closet, but have not purchased any more. They no longer really suit my style, but I kept a few of the ones I liked, this skirt being one of them.

To keep this look more my style, I added the fuzzy, faux fur bomber. This No Boundaries jacket was a Christmas gift from my spouse a few years ago. It is a warm, classy piece and can either dress up or dress down a look.

I love the contrast of feminine and masculine, girly with and edge, so I also added my second hand Guess moto boots, and grabbed my sparkly Cosmopolitan clutch

I kept my accessories very simple with a silver cross necklace and a recently thrifted cross charm bracelet.

What do you think of this outfit? Do you like the Home Alone movies? Do you like to wear red and green at Christmas time?

I hope you enjoyed this post and that it gets you thinking differently about items in your own closet. What pieces could you put together to create a similar look, but still keep it true to your own style?

I’m including a few sweatshirts and long sleeve tees for some holiday inspiration. These are affiliate shopping links. All opinions are my own. Enjoy and have a great week.

November Styles - Fair Isle, Corduroy and Suede

For today’s outfit I looked again at my list of what was trending for Fall 2025. It is hard to even think about fall, as for many of us the leaves are already off the trees, we have had a ground covering snowfall, and we are barreling towards Christmas. However, it is still fall and I won’t pull out my Christmas tees and sweaters until the day after Thanksgiving. Ha, ha.

One of the trends that popped up for this fall was unusual color combinations. Think pink with red, mint with brown, or light blue with purple. They all sound like lovely combinations to me, but not necessarily everyone’s cup of tea. I decided to try an unusual pairing that is understated rather than bold, and combine it with a neutral gray and an earthy brown. Say hello to rust and red.

Fair Isle seems to be back on the radar as far as retailers go. I saw a number of pretty pieces at Kohl’s when I visited recently. I found this red number at a thrift shop and grabbed it straight away. I love Fair Isle patterns, though I personally can’t wear wool, so my pieces are a mix of man made fabrics. This sweater is a brand called Original Weatherproof Vintage. It is so soft and a little oversized, so very comfy.

Corduroy material is also on the docket this fall, and as far as I am concerned should be a fall and winter staple. It is a lovely fabric that adds extra warmth due to the waling. A narrow wale will give a more luxurious look, while a wide wale is more casual. I found these last year on Black Friday at JCPenney. I love the color and the fit. These are St. John’s Bay brand.

My gray jacket is a beautiful J.Jill piece that I found thrifting a few years back. I don’t wear it a lot, but once in a while it is just the right piece for the occasion. It has a beautiful printed lining. It could also be worn as a fully lined, longer style blazer. It has a velvety feel and can be dressed up or down. I linked a few velvet style blazers below.

The color brown has also seen an uptick for this fall, especially in suede accessories like shoes and bags. I chose my Nine West ankle boots from Kohl’s and my thrifted corduroy bag as a nod to this particular trend.

The only thing I added to this look was the large, wooden circle bead necklace, which I thought tied the whole vibe together.

What do you think of this outfit? This is an outfit I would wear for Thanksgiving day, whether visiting or working in the kitchen. I think it also makes a cozy, work wear look, or a great outfit for a casual night out to dinner and the movies.

I hope you enjoyed this post. Let me know your thoughts on this or on other things you have seen trending for this fall? I hope you are having a great week.

I have included a few shopping links for you to look over. These are affiliate links which are brought to you at no extra cost. If you click on a link and purchase an item through it, I get a tiny commission. I appreciate everything you do to support this little blog.

Happy Tuesday!

Styling into the Holidays - Part 3: Dressed Up

I couldn’t finish this series without a shout out to those of you who have fancier events to attend at the holidays, especially New Years. While today’s outfit is not black tie attire, I think it would do well for an evening out for dinner and a show, like the Christmas ballet, The Nutcracker. Many years ago, my mother, and father-in-law got my husband and I, along with his sister and her husband tickets to this holiday ballet. I think I would have enjoyed it more if it had just been my sister-in-law and I. Ha, ha. My spouse does not appreciate ballet anymore than the color pink. He’s such a goof, but I love him.

I was helping my hubby pick out a shirt for the university December graduation ceremony that he was attending this morning, and while he is donned in his regalia, he still likes to look presentable under the robe. He was wearing black pants and asked if I would pick out a shirt for him. I ended up giving him a navy button down.

“Is it okay to wear black with navy,” he questioned.

I assured him any color can be worn with any other color and it also served as the inspiration for today’s outfit. I already had the blouse on, as I was using it as part of my Instagram outfit. It is one of the dressiest blouses I own. With that beginning I began looking through my skirts and settled on this beautiful navy, velvet piece with pleats. This was a Kohl’s clearance purchase a few year ago and is Chaps brand.

In my opinion pleated skirts never go out of style, nor does velvet, making it the perfect choice for fancier attire. An added bonus is that this skirt is warm, which is helpful on a chilly winter night.

The combination of this thrifted Jaclyn Smith satin blouse and the vest gives the outfit a classy academic vibe, and also adds more of an hour glass silhouette. This Rachel Zoe vest was a recent TJ Maxx clearance purchase. I have been looking for a waistcoat of this sort since they were trending back in the spring. I had all but decided they were only intended for the slender folk to wear, so low and behold when I saw this, tried it on and it fit I was super excited. It is definitely going to be used all year round.

You can also see my delicate gold jewelry, chosen for its association with the Silver and Gold song sung by Burl Ives. Ha, ha.

The black, faux fur, No Boundaries bomber was a gift a few years ago from my hubby for Christmas. I never think to pull it out once the temperatures plummet, but when I was taking these pictures I was totally cozy with it on. The draw back is that it is short and in the cold weather I like my bum and thighs to be covered. That is exactly why it is perfect for an outfit like this where you will be mostly in and out and not standing outside for a long time.

Style Tip: Fabrics like velvet, fur and silk or satin will add panache to any outfit, whether you are wearing jeans or tweed. If you are attending a function, but don’t want to go the whole gambit of a dress or skirt, try a dark wash pair of dress jeans with a silk blouse, and heels. You will look like a million bucks!

My Steve Madden, velvet, heeled ankle boots were a thrift find. Who knew they would work beautifully with the velvet skirt? A classy, heeled ankle boot is a great alternative to regular heels in the cold weather.

My sparkly clutch typically makes an appearance on the blog when I am showing off an outfit that is more dressed up. It was a good purchase all those years back. In the photo below you can’t really notice the sparkles. Ha, ha.

I hope you enjoyed seeing this more dressed up outfit. It was fun to put together, and afterwards I showed the pictures to my spouse and said, “You need to give me an excuse to get dressed up like this more often.” Ha, ha. I’m not subtle at all.

I interspersed shopping links throughout the article. You can just click on a picture to find out more about the piece as far as brand, store and pricing. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

There will be no fashion posts for the week of Christmas and New Years as I am going to take a little break and hope to get back to see my mom and other friends and family in NY between Christmas and New Years.

Have a wonderful Christmas and a very happy New Year!

Styling into the Holidays - Part 2: Holiday Work Party

It’s been five years since I lost my job at the university bookstore. As an assistant manager I was lucky to be able to wear business casual attire and sometimes went to work wearing a sweatshirt and jeans, especially if I was going to be book slamming - unpacking and shelving textbooks. However, once in a while I liked to get more dressed up to at least give the appearance that I was the second in command. Ha, ha. Today’s look is one that I might have worn during our holiday sales events.

When I was getting ready for my little photo shoot I decided to put volumizing powder in my hair. Unfortunately, I ended up putting too much in and I couldn’t even get a brush through my hair without nearly pulling my head off. Ha, ha, ha! I tell you what, us girls go through such feats to look beautiful. I tried to add some waves, but even the straight iron couldn’t make headway with my mess. So silly. There are times I really do feel like Lucille Ball. Ha, ha.

My thrifted, plaid Requirements blazer has been styled on the blog before. You can see that post here. It is a great piece, but doesn’t get as much love as it should since I only use it during the holiday season, which is very short. That is exactly why I pulled it out for this post. I really should try to wear it after the holidays. What do you think? Would you wear this before or after the Christmas season?

Denim skirts are trending right now, so I was glad to have another opportunity to wear this thrifted St. John’s Bay piece. This is a great pencil maxi whether you dress it up or down. My belt was also a thrift find.

I love this black turtleneck top that I found second hand. It is a brand called united.states.sweaters. It is soft and stretchy. A basic black turtleneck can be very flattering and can be dressed up or down. Just add gold or silver jewelry or a bright colored scarf and you take your outfit up a notch without really trying.

For my accessories I chose black for bag and boots and gold for my jewelry. My blag top handle hobo bag was a thrifted piece and a brand called Scarleton. You can find this brand on Amazon and they are very reasonably priced.

My black boots were a Black Friday purchase last year from Kohl’s and are Journee brand.

These gold tone jewelry pieces have been around for years, but always seem to keep their shine.

What do you think of this outfit? Would you have worn something like this to a holiday office party? What would you do with the pieces in your closet?

I hope you enjoyed this post and that it provided a little inspiration for your holiday get togethers, or just gave you an excuse to get dressed up to go to the mall or out to lunch with a friend. I have provided a few shopping links for similar items and I try to keep the price points more reasonable. These are for you to shop or to just draw inspiration from. These are affiliate links, brought to you at no extra cost. If you purchase something through one of my links I get a little kickback. I appreciate all of your support.

Leave me a comment or two. I always love to hear from you!