Playing with Stripes and Polka-Dots

Stripes and polka-dots are everywhere now. I never thought about matching these two patterns till I got inspired from other fashion bloggers. I am personally a huge fan of nautical stripes and have been going on a spending spree for clothing items with the pattern.

P.S. Please bear with my awkward poses. I was trying my best to look presentable and natural. Unfortunately, my posture still came out stiff.

Dress: ELLE Polka-Dot dress from Kohl's Sweater: Striped Mesh Dolman Sweater in Navy from Express (similar) Jewelry:  Gold Chain Pendant Necklace from Ann Taylor Factory Store, bangle from Banana Republic Factory Store Shoes: Aerosoles Beckon Ballet Flats  Bag: Dooney & Bourke Satchel (Similar) Sunglasses: Prada

My Best Friend's Wedding

I was the maid of honor for my best friend's wedding this past summer. For the Tea Ceremony dress in the morning, my best friend decided to have all the bridesmaids wear different styles in various shades of red. This way, it would allow the girls to have more freedom in choosing what looked best and save some money. It was extremely hard for me to find an affordable yet still bridesmaid-appropriate red dress. I browsed a lot of online shops because the selection at the mall or boutiques were either too expensive or failed to have an extensive selection of dresses in the color red. After much hunting and deliberation, I finally decided on a red One Strap Shoulder Dress with a black contrast belt from the UK online retailer ASOS. I'm usually rather hesitant to buy things online unless I know the retailer offers free shipping and returns. However, this "red"dress actually looked more like orange red than the "red" my friend was aiming. Fortunately, all the bridesmaid red shades regardless of the cool or warm tones looked amazing good together in photos. My friend was very HAPPY the results of our dresess.

The dress on the ASOS model...

Casual Comfort

Top: old lace printed cami from Macy's Bottom: Macy's American Rag jeans Cardigan: Express (Similar) Shoes: Steve Madden pumps

A Day at the Safari Park

Top: Kohl's Lauren Conrad Pleated Polka Dot Shirt (similar here) Bottom: Kohl's Lauren Conrad Ankle Jeans Belt: Kohl's Apt. 9 Cardigan: Navy Cardigan from Zara (old) Bag: Dooney and Bourke Satchel with shoulder strap (similar here, here)


Nature's Two Inseparable Friends: Anatolian Shepherd Dog and Cheetah
After visiting the zoo, I learned that zoologists would use dogs to keep orphaned cheetahs from feeling mentally bored and lonely. These two very different creatures from the animal kingdom do EVERYTHING together: sleep, travel, eat,etc. During the cheetah run show, the dog took a whooping 8 seconds to run 100 meters across the lawn while the cheetah sprinted the same distance in less than 4 seconds. It was quite amazing to watch the cheetah accelerate to its maximum speed in just mere seconds ... and chase after its favorite squeaky toy.