money-saving style | tiny sequins

i saved the best Top 10 Bag Trends for Spring/Summer 2012 for last. not based on the bag itself, but from the perspective of how i came about getting it. 

i almost overlooked this one all together. when you see it, you'll understand why. 

it was a birthday gift from The Girl a few years ago. i have a black one just like it from Kohl's that i bought to take to a wedding and she was adamant about getting this one for me:

this tiny gold sequin embellished purse (if you can even call it that!) measures 8¼ inches long from end to end and 2¼ inches from the top of the sequins to the bottom of the purse.

don't be fooled by the small size. you can actually get quite a bit of stuff in it:

mirror

dental floss

lip gloss
chap stick
tiny foundation brush (underneath keys)
id & cash can fit in small pocket on the left

carrying my phone along wouldn't be an option...i'd have to leave it in the car or walk around holding it. depending on where i'm going, the latter might not be the best option. 

i do get more use out of these miniature clutches than one would imagine. having said that, there's no need for me to buy another. 

have you taken inventory of your purses to see how many Top 10 trends you already have?! 

money-saving style | glistening gemstone ring

when i shared with you how to shop, i mentioned i have several metal rings and only a couple with color. red is pretty much non-existent in my entire wardrobe. for some reason, it's just not a color i'm drawn to so adding a red ring was a good place to start. 

ring | $5.80 (Forever 21)

i know you typically don't find style blogs showcasing a $6 accessory, but i want you to see that this is how i really do shop. i have a good idea of what i'm looking for and what i'm willing to pay for it before i leave the house. on this outing to Forever 21, i picked up this ring and a statement necklace - spending around $15.

i'm done with accessories for a while. 

money-saving style tip: to control spending and avoid buying more than you need, go on a shopping diet. set a limit and tell your girlfriends so you can be held accountable. 

how do you keep from going overboard when it comes to shopping?

money-saving style | foldover clutch

the second to the last in the Top 10 Bag Trends for Spring/Summer 2012 series and it's another freebie!

the first was a wristlet i won - worthy of a video and everything.

i'm gonna call this a criss-cross pattern. yes, that's what it is. a criss-cross foldover clutch. a steal from my neighbor's garage sale last summer. no, i didn't literally walk off with it. she gave it to me. thanks Joy!

i'm sure this is a remnant from the 80s. it has to be. don'tcha think?! 

regardless - it'll never go out of style in my book. 

we've got one more purse to cover in the series. the chain handle, large clutch, and wristlet (linked above) have been featured so far.

in my opinion, a classic foldover clutch is a must. do you have one?

personal style | traveling with boyfriends

i've seen girls in Texas wear scarves in the summer, but to me - it's just too damn hot!

after @BettyBuzz tweeted this picture of Jennifer Aniston, i decided to give it a try.

i'd initially planned to wear The Girl's aviator's she donated to me, however, my sister came to visit recently and that meant a trip to The Domain. her favorite spot for shopping.  i added "get sunglasses" to the to-do list and already knew where i was going to get them.

jeans | $9.99 (Aeropostale clearance two years ago)

tank | $5.00 (WalMart)

scarf | $7.99

flipflops | $10.00 (JC Penney clearance last summer)

sunglasses | $3.50 (Sasha)

TOTAL = $36.48

even with new sunglasses this celeb inspired recreation is less than $40! the total look for less by Betty Confidential is just under $170.

my boyfriend jeans were regularly somewhere in the range of $40+, per various online sellers like eBay that are selling them now. Zappos has a variety of styles ranging from $50 - $500. yes. that's not a typo. i said $500.

The Girl had a powder puff football game and this is what i wore. it was a bit cool that evening (summer hasn't officially arrived), so i didn't sweat to death. i actually ended up taking the scarf and wrapping it around me like a shawl. 

unlike Jen, i won't be traveling abroad anytime soon, but this is the perfect airport outfit in my opinion. 

do you prefer no-fuss travel style or are you the type to get all gussied up for your TSA pat-down?!

money-saving style | aztec infinity scarf

is it aztec or is it tribal or is it both?! 

i'm going with aztec. 

i've been wanting an infinity scarf for forever, but didn't like the heavier scarves i saw this fall/winter. it was love at first sight when i laid eyes on this one!

i really wanted to test drive the tribal trend, but could never find anything suited for my taste. everything i saw was geared toward a much younger demographic of shoppers. when i read Cheap Chica's post, it was refreshing to know i wasn't the only one who felt this way. 

to get me on board with a trend, it has to meet the following criteria:

• affordable. like dirt-cheap
• timeless
• practical

this $7.99 scarf from Rue 21 is just that. when the tribal trend is gone bye-bye, i can still wear it. no matter the pattern, a scarf is a wardrobe essential that will never go out of style. 

i'll be creating another celebrity inspired look with this so stay tuned!

have you drank the tribal trend Kool-Aid yet?!

money-saving style | wristlet clutch

continuing on with the Top 10 Bag Trends for Spring/Summer 2012, today we're taking a look at the wristlet.

i won this one in a Facebook fan give-away, courtesy of Bangle and Clutch. it was the first time i'd ever won anything from a social media contest.

you can't see the wristlet attachment because it's tucked inside the purse. at the time i started putting this series together, it still had the tags on it - brand new - never used. i've since carried it wearing an all white outfit to my BFFs birthday party in late March. i didn't get a chance to take photos, but i'll play dress-up at some point and show you the look. who knows...there might be another all white event to attend before the end of summer. 

click here to watch the video of when it came in the mail...everyone got a kick out of my reaction.

if you're just tuning in, be sure to check out the chain handle and large clutch trends.

this has got to be the funkiest clutch i own. i absolutely love it. it'll definitely take any night-time look up a notch. do you think i could get away with carrying it during the day? 

money-saving style tip: connect with your favorite brands on Facebook and twitter to get the scoop on giveaways and special promotions. don't miss a single opportunity to score free merchandise!

personal style | petals & snakes

i've gone back and forth with whether or not to feature inspirational outfit posts. particularly those sparked by something seen on a celeb. it seems like alot of fashion bloggers do it, and the struggle for me was figuring out how to do it differently. 

inspired outfits are subjective. they arise from personal tastes and opinions. having said that, no two bloggers could recreate the same look unless they used identical articles of clothing. thus, inspiration would cease to exist. 

and while i want this blog to offer a different, more meaningful experience from other blogs in the fashion/style genre, some things will inevitably be the same. 

i came across this photo of Beyonce while working on a different post. 

when i first looked at it i was like, "ok...not something i'd put together on my own, but i can dig it." 

i've only carried my purse a few times and pairing it with anything other than a solid color was unimaginable. 

the differences in Beyonce's floral print and mine are obvious, but both dresses share similarities in color. i've seen a few women around town wearing my $8.99 dress from Ross (bought a couple of summers ago). several styles were made with varying background colors - purple, yellow, and fuchsia to name a few. 

one of the key components for me to recreate an outfit depends upon the inspirational look moving me outside of my comfort zone - allowing me to try something i normally wouldn't. that's what this initial experiment did. i wore it on a Saturday while doing errands and i'm searching my closet for other patterns to accompany my faux python purse. 

how do you feel about inspired outfit posts? what can we do to add a different spin to them?

money-saving style | python replica

when i look at this or any other purse like it, i automatically think of winter. probably because of the lack of color. 

it's one of those back-of-the-wall clearance finds from New York & Co....ages ago. carried maybe twice. i dare not quote you an amount, but a number keeps popping in my head and if that's what i actually paid for it - it was highway robbery. 

@crossbodypurses follows me on twitter and when they tweeted their 'Splurge or Save' post featuring a designer style that costs close to $2,000 - i ran to the closet to look at mine. 

low and behold, it was similar enough and worth sharing with you. 

the main reason the 'Splurge or Save' item costs so much is because it's genuine python. no maam. not mine. but it still has a very rich look and feel to it, not to mention it's as light as a feather.

take a look at this one by Marc Jacobs:

image courtesy of endless.com

if the $300 price tag weren't an option, i'd still choose mine. 

are you into exotic leather - faux or otherwise?!

money-saving style | weekend look for less than $40

unless there's some kind of freak ice storm like the one we had in April 2007 - i'm officially done with fall/winter outfits.

this is MY season. a bit of spring with a whole lotta summer. you know what that means, right?!

endless strapless and backless tops and dresses mixed with bedazzled flip-flops and sandals!

it's not quite warm enough for those things just yet, but you can get by with sleeveless tops and strappy wedges. and in case you forgot, cargos are my denim alternatives.

sleeveless floral top | $5.99 (Forever 21)

purple-ish cami | $2.80 (Forever 21)

cargo pants | $4.99

 wedges | $17.99

TOTAL = $31.77

the cute little floral number was on clearance. i didn't jot down the regular price before trashing the tags...my bad. that's the original price of the cami peeping through underneath.

for the sake of keeping things simple, i'm referring to all bangles and cuffs as bracelets. period.
the ones i'm wearing are part of my stash and came from Body Central. they have a wide variety of accessories and always have sales.

where would i go in this outfit?

• get-together at a friend's house
• yes. happy hour of course
• dinner & a movie

this ensemble can take me right back into fall. all i have to do is throw on my old faithful corduroy jacket and a pair of flats or boots and i'm set. no shopping needed.

what's your favorite spring go-to pieces?