Work

Office Holiday Party

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Black Princess Coat Steve Madden | Red Sweater Alexander McQueen | Demask Black Pants Alice + Olivia | Ring Forever 21 | Black Scarf Marc Jacobs x Target | Suede Black Booties Nine WestI wore this outfit to our office’s holiday party which happened 2 days before I left to Japan. I found/thrifted both the red Alexander McQueen sweater and demask print Alice + Olivia Pants at Crossroads Trading Co. I won the festive, Christmas headband at a holiday event the week before and knew I had to wear it to my office’s holiday party. We had it at a restaurant down the street from our office at the end of the work day, so I tried to dress festive but still be work appropriate.
It’s amazing to me how quickly the month and my trip went by. I’ve been absent from blogging not only because of the travel back to the U.S. and then to my hometown, but also because of some unfortunate tragedies that occurred while I was gone. To start, Armando’s car was broken into and his bike, his alternate mode of transportation, was stolen. That bummed me out to hear when I returned back because although he wasn’t hurt physically, I could tell he was affected by it as evident as the broken window of the car. As we cleaned the glass out of the car it made me reflect on how lucky we have been these past years together. Bad things happen sometimes, but we have each other and are lucky that we are okay physically.
The worst thing that occurred while I was in Japan was learning that someone from our office had passed away. It was completely unexpected and I am still in disbelief over the news. He was fairly young, about 39, and I had made cupcakes for his wedding in June of a vegetable garden. He was also part of the paintball team. My office environment is like a big, extended family and since I have been out of the office I can only imagine how devastating a blow this been to everyone who heard the news firsthand. It feels only fitting that this post is also one of those memories of him because I vividly remember him trying to convince others to “steal” his white elephant gift at our holiday party. 
His sudden and unexpected death has made me very aware of how short life is and that tomorrow is not guaranteed. I spent the holidays with my family and I can honestly say that I treasured just being able to be with them. 
I hope you had a Merry Christmas surrounded by family or close friends. With that in mind, please also send your thoughts or prayers to the family and friends of my beloved coworker and friend, Steve Maranzana.

Brandy
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Falling for Fall Deals

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Black Pea Coat and Lace Gloves Forever 21 | Scarf Marc Jacobs Neiman Marcus x Target  | Sweater Top Diane Von Furstenberg | Pants The Factory Label | Metra Booties Nine West (here) | Cross Body Bag Marc by Marc Jacobs (here)Ahh Fall! My favorite Salted Caramal drinks are in season at Starbucks and the air carries a sweet hint of sales to come. Case in point: these Nine West Metra Booties were purchased recently at DSW on sale and I did some damage at The Factory Label Blowout Sale earlier this month and bought these gorgeous pants! I bought some other gorgeous pieces, but some might be put into storage since they are more appropriate for warmer weather. It gets really cold in the Bay Area thanks to the Bay, but on this day it wasn’t too bad. (I mean I wore the lace gloves because they looked cool and they are definitely not keeping my hands warm!) I adore the booties and in the process of buying them bought 2 other pairs of shoes at DSW Sports Event last month thanks to Chandameer of Pancake Stacker. (You can read about the event here.)  I’ve worn these booties like 5 times since the event and love how comfortable and versatile they are!
I made quite a few purchases this month and all of that shopping kind of needs to come down a notch (or 2). I made so much progress making space in my apartment, but at the end of the day I want somewhere bigger with a separate bedroom and living space, and quite frankly, a bigger closet! I have enough stuff to fill a walk-in, but with no storage space in my living room/ bedroom its not as nice seeing your precious clothes crammed in a shared closet. I am still in the process of listing more items for sales on Poshmark to remedy the space issue, but I’ve created a budget and now need to really grow up and stick to it! I think I might use my Tumblr page as a way to make me more conscious of what is coming in and going out of my closet. (We’ll see if that goes through). At the beginning of the year I know I wanted to be more sustainable with clothing and it seems like all the shiny, new items I see from boutiques and stores have completely blinded me of that initial goal. I guess falling off the wagon happens, but I am ready to get back on and be better about my personal finances. 
So serious I know, but don’t worry, I’ll be silly in my next post!
Talk to you soon!Brandy

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Victorian Gentleman

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Coat and Ring Forever 21 | Ruffle Blouse Chelsea & Theodore | Vest and Pants Diane Von Furstenberg | Zeda Boots Madden Girl | Nail Polish: Faded and Dimepiece by FlossglossThe time change has really thrown me off. These photos were taken at a BART station after Armando and I attended a celebration for Birchbox Man’s 1 year anniversary. Armando got some swag from the event that he can use. 
In honor of the event I decided to wear some menswear inspired items. I was going for either an equestrian look, but then added the cameo ring since it matched my manicure and I felt it gave off a hint of Victorian style thanks to the ruffle blouse. At work I was told I looked like a caterer, but clearly a fancy caterer. I was also told I looked like a teacher and a waitress. *sigh* This was an outfit I wore 2 days before Halloween so it might have been mistaken for a costume. What do you think of the look? 
I am thinking with all the events I attend it might be best to upload photos to my Facebook page and share the link here. What do you think? I think it might just me being lazy and not wanting to write a post on every single event but then again its better than me blogging about it a month later! 
Also, I’ve been busy for the past few days with updating my Poshmark closet. If you’ve been following since September you’ll know my sister moved to Japan for the year to study abroad. What you didn’t know is that she decided to do a thorough closet clean-out letting go of things she never wore or would not wear again and left me with the clothes to sell or donate. Thanks to Poshmark I’ve sold enough to send her her first care package! And now the app is available on Android so it provides extra incentive for me to list more of her (and my) stuff. You can shop our items here.Thanks in advance if you buy anything. I have been sending her some funds to help her while she is abroad but it would also be nice to head back over during the winter and pay her, and Japan, a visit with some extra spending money thanks to sales I’ve made in my closet =].
I made monumental progress today by not only taking photos of everything I want to list, but I also was able to take down one of the extra clothing racks in our apartment! Armando could not be happier! I’ll admit it was an eyesore but I am glad it served its purpose and that I was able to put it away. Now only one clothing rack remains and I am hoping it stays that way until we move out to a place with my dream closet. I’ve stored my extra clothes in suitcases and now need to decide how long I’ll keep things before donating my unsold items. Maybe until the end of the year so I can start off with a clean slate? We’ll see…
Talk to you soon! 
Brandy
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Veterans Day

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Blue Geometric Wrap Dress Diane Von Furstenberg | Bone Color Heels Christian Louboutin | Red Quilted Gold Coast Bag Kate Spade (similar here | Gold Necklace St. John | Photos by Bethann WagnerHappy Veterans Day! If you, or someone close to you, has served in the military, I am thankful for the service you’ve provided to our country.

I thought it’d be fitting to share this outfit post today because of the red, blue and off-white patriotic colors represented in this outfit. I wore this to the iFabbo Social Media Conference last month and felt very put together for both the professional aspect of the conference during the day and as something that could also easily work for the night time cocktail party that followed. I learned a lot of useful tips, met a lot of new bloggers, hung out with my favorite bay area bloggers and received an amazing goodie bag full of beauty products. I am thinking Will Bake for Shoes needs a beauty section devoted to reviewing products (both beauty and apps) now I have things to work with. I am slowly discovering the world of Beauty. (The red lips I am sporting in this post is thank to the Neo Noir lipstick by Marc Jacobs’ beauty line I splurged on early in October.) Look out for some posts featuring some new beauty products and services.

A special thanks to +Bethann Wagner of Bethanimalprint for taking these amazing photos during a break at the iFabbo Social Media Conference! <3

Until next time,

Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK |  INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER | 

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Spumoni Ice Cream Flavor

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Shrunken Blazer H&M | Pleated Top Alice + Olivia, Belt Vintage | Pleated Tri-Color Skirt LE TOTE | Bangles Forever 21 | Ulltra Nude Pumps Steve Madden | Nude Satchel c/o JustFab!I threw this outfit on earlier this month while the weather was still nice and warm. I was actually a little unsure of it since I felt I had too many different shades of nude. I worked around the skirt and surprisingly a lot of people responded positively to this outfit. Sometimes I just want to experiment with my closet, but it is nice to know when you have a hit. 
The skirt was what stood out to people and I would mention it was a rental from LE TOTE. I sent it back since Fall was just around the corner and my closet is overflowing with unworn purchases, but something tells me I should have kept the skirt. It stood out from all the black skirts I have hanging in my closet and loved how girly the skirt made me feel! The colors were also very unique and I tried to imitate the shades with my bracelets from Forever 21. (The entire outfit reminded me of Spumoni ice cream on a cone, which might explain why people liked my outfit!)
I am going to miss wearing all my summer clothes, but I am excited for Fall and being able to wear boots and coats again! Don’t start feeling the winter blues just yet! I have a few more outfits I need to share since the weather was a lot warmer at the beginning of the month so look forward to that.
Until next time,Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK |  INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER | 

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Back to Fall

Posted on by Brandy Saldana

Grey Pinstripe School Boy Blazer Wet Seal | Color Block Dress rented via LE TOTE | Gold Chain Necklace St. John | Black Patent Pumps Christian Louboutin 
September and October has been all about catching up for me. I wanted to give everyone a look at what I did during my trip to Japan and it was hard to blog without internet and without much time to focus on it. It amazes me that every other blogger I know welcomed Fall and is talking about it yet I posted Hawaiian Theme cupcakes just a few days ago. It’s almost like I am disconnected from what’s going on in the real world when the opposite is true!
Once I returned from vacation, there was a lot to catch up with and a bunch of events kept popping up that I just had to attend! (I will work on sharing outfits soon from the iFabbo Blogger Conference I attended and a store opening event)
I like that blogging has allowed me to meet so many amazing people but on the flip side it means I spend less time in front of a computer screen to share my day-to-day life. Case in point, this outfit is from last month from my first box with LE TOTE. The color palette felt appropriate to me to welcome Fall. I like how easy it is to plan an outfit around an item that they send me. Somehow my stylist just knows my closet really well because of how easily I was able to style everything in my box.
Thank you for sticking around as I get back into the rhythm of blogging more frequently. 
Until next time,Brandy| BLOGLOVIN | FACEBOOK |  INSTAGRAM |TUMBLR | TWITTER | 

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