Fall/Winter Must Haves

I am currently undergoing a massive closet switch; summer stuff up to the attic and winter stuff down to my "studio." This is all fine and well if it wasn't for my serious lack of appropriate winter wear. I had to throw out an absurd amount of torn, moldy and beer infested forever 21 gear that was my frat uniform and stored my bright paisley Vera Bradley luggage. Moving on from college has been hard and this in between stage has been a lesson in life kicking my ass, so somehow to deal with this all... my mind of course travels to my closet.

Being a nomad between my house and the city I learned quickly that my large obnoxious pink and green vera open tote is just not working. I ordered a large LL Bean Boat and Tote bag in Brown because it's cheap, classic and holds a shizz-ton.

Now that I don't need to worry about trudging through six inches of frat juice I can finally get some decent quality shoes, the only problem is I can't exactly afford said decent quality shoes. Booties are MUST have for this season and I recently picked up a great pair from H&M for only 50 bucks. During this little H&M spree I also picked up a $50 leather motorcycle jacket that I've been getting a lot of compliments on and a 30 dollar black sequined skirt. (I wore all three with a plain white tank one night.) Another item that I have been lusting over are these amazing Tory Burch boots.

Tall and over the knee boots are major for this season but I'm having trouble finding a pair that I can afford and I like. I really want an over the knee black suede boot with a stacked heel and a flat pair of brown boots. Dream big, Katz.

Leather leggings are high on my list. Last season I bought a pair from American Apparel but wore them once and can't find them ANYWHERE, which may be a blessing in disghuise because they really weren't as authentic as I would like. When looking for leather leggings I suggest trying them on rather than ordering them online; I don't know about you but tight pleather and body heat instantly sends me back to that episode of Friend's where Ross wears the leather pants and he can't get them back up. Not so hot. Designers are also showing some great leggings in velvet and sequins.

I am waiting for the right moment (and 5 more pounds to leave) to order these sequined leggings from express, which are under $100. For New Years I want to pair them with a man's tuxedo shirt and see if I can fashion a headband out of a bowtie for a cutesy take on the menswear look we are seeing a lot of.
Plaid is everywhere this season and luckily it's east to get the look on the cheap. I bought a great black and white buffalo check from Forever that I pair with gobs of girly bangles, skinny jeans and flats so as to not look butchalicious.

Fur and animal prints jackets are also big this season and I a lot of retailers are making some really cute options for some good prices. H&M has a fur coat, which I walked around the store wearing for a good 40 minutes.

Here is a sample going out look using some of the trends mentioned above.