Fashion Archives - 2 Cats and Chloe

Five on Friday: Working from home and cute specs!

May 1, 2015 by Susan 4 Comments

I’ve kept it no secret that I work from home. Some days I love it. Some days I dread it. The division of home life and work life is really tough with your home life is your work life. A lot of days I am totally jealous of my friends who clock out at the office to head home, relax and sip some wine without having work stare you in the face the rest of the evening. Then there are times when I’m in the middle of a conference call with top business executives and I’m painting my nails, in my yoga pants with unbrushed hair and I think - that working from the office concept is totally nutso!

So to all my friends who are pondering a life change - from the office to the home office - I wanted to share five things that help me survive working from home:

1 // You need yoga pants. Because let’s be real - even if you have to skype or facetime with people who are far, far away - unless your meeting includes a dance sesh, they probably won’t be seeing your pants. Ergo, anything with buttons, zippers, pleats, belt loops or even denim should not be worn. Staying comfy is key. Opt for the yoga pants.

2 // While having a desk is great, having a lap is even better. Especially when you work from home because you are not bound to your desk… My lap and office can be anywhere I want. Yes, the option is always there to sit at my desk. But so it my option to sit at the kitchen table, on the couch or even in my camper.

3 // Now that you are comfortable with your yoga pants, and you’re productively lounging with the laptop… you better be rocking your cute glasses. My eyes get so dry when I stare at my computer screen while wearing contacts all day. Firmoo.com reached out to me again, asking if I would share another cute pair of specs with y’all! I ended up with this super fun pair of pink and black glasses. Just because I’m working from home in comfy clothes doesn’t mean I can’t have fashionable and fun accessories!

4 // Co-Workers are a must for anyone who works from home. Yes, the can be remote. But you need to chat with people daily. Sometimes I feel like I am stuck on my own little island. After years of working from home, it hit me that I was going days without talking. Because who was I supposed to talk to?! And then I realized that my co-workers aren’t traditional co-workers. Instead of checking in on the guy in the cubicle next to me, I will pop in on my neighbor for a quick hello and a 5-minute work-break. You may think I’m crazy, but I also see my furbabes as co-workers some days! You know… those crazy co-workers who expect you to share your lunch break with them, every.single.day.

5 // Lastly, I’m slowly realizing that moving-breaks are crucial to surviving my work days. I recently got a fitness tracker watch, only to realize that I barely walk anywhere! (Apparently walking from my bed to my desk and then back to bed at the end of the day isn’t super healthy!) I have the perk of wearing yoga pants and making my own schedule - why in the world don’t I walk around the house a bit more! So in my very near future - walking, push-ups and lunges will be done every 30-ish minutes or so. I mean, my “co-workers” would love a quick jog around the block, I’m sure!

Many thanks to Firmoo.com for sending me my new awesome specs! If you haven’t had time to check out Firmoo yet, you really should! I will never buy glasses from a traditional store ever again. This is my second pair from Firmoo.com and I’m absolutely hooked. Their glasses are all very reasonably priced and the quality has been great. I love that my new specs are inexpensive enough that I can buy several pairs and use them as daily accessories, even if I am working from home!

2 cats & chloe: firmoo.com glasses review

Do you work from home? Is there anything that you recommend when it comes to surviving? Am I a crazy person for considering my pets to be my co-workers?

Today I’m linking up here!

Thanks again to Firmoo.com for giving me these new glasses. While they did give me new specs, the review of their company and this product was all my own.

NYE at the River: Comfortable with a Touch of Glitter

December 31, 2014 by Susan 6 Comments

Before this post starts - let me just say that I am a lifestyle blogger. Not a fashion blogger. I adore all of my fashion friends so much and I am constantly reaching out to y’alls blogs for inspiration when it comes to my wardrobe. However, when a girl needs inspiration for New Years Eve spent partying in the Middle-of-No-Where, NC… inspiration is minimal.

Here’s what I knew I wanted: comfy, warm, a touch of glam {but not too much… remember the setting… they would laugh at me if I came in wearing a LBD!} and something that I could rock leggings with when I get tired of wearing my jeans. Because let’s be real, the theme of the day is eating and drinking - elastic waist bands = winning.

And here’s what my closet threw up for me to wear:

2 cats & chloe: burgundy and glitter Don’t you just LOVE my new boots? I’m kinda obsessed with them. And when I say “kinda obsessed” I mean #OBSESSED!

Now go fill your glass with some sparklin’ champagne, surround yourself with friends and family - and eat that last bite of chocolate. The #2catsWhole30 starts tomorrow. Cheers and Love… Happy New Year Y’all!

OH! And for those of you who are feeling lucky this New Year’s Eve… I teamed up with a handful of lovely bloggers to bring you a Crate & Barrel Giveaway!

GIVEAWAY DETAILS

Prize: $100 Crate & Barrel Gift Card

Co-hosts: Miss Trend She • Jenn’s Blah Blah Blog • 2 Cats & Chloe • God’s Growing Garden

Giveaway organized by: Oh My Gosh Beck!

Rules: Use the Rafflecopter form to enter daily. Giveaway ends 1/14 and is open worldwide. Winner will be notified via email and can opt for a Crate & Barrel gift card or cash via Paypal.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Glasses as a Fashion Accessory!

October 15, 2014 by Susan 30 Comments

I am a nerd at heart. I work from home, most of the time, rocking my glasses and my dorky sweaters. I have spent this past week in Washington DC doing five days of meetings and work functions, for my during-the-week contracting job. Believe it or not, I have been rocking dresses and heels {Gasp! Yes, my knees have been holding up! Dare I say they are on the mend?!} But today is day four of no yoga pants and I am beyond exhausted… so how about a mini post while sporting jeans and sweater with my new glasses from firmoo.com.

Firmoo.com recently reached out to me, asking if I wanted to try a pair of their glasses. Of course I jumped at this opportunity because not only do I like to wear my prescription glasses when I cannot handle my contacts anymore… but I love having multiple pairs of glasses to use as cute, functional accessory pieces. Yes, these glasses are for seeing. No, I don’t just wear them for fun… although, you totally could! Unless you are my sister, because no one would ever be able to tell us apart.

I picked these fun frames for a couple of reasons. Yes, they are similar to frames I already have, but that’s what I liked about them! I knew they were frames that would fit my face. But if you are not sure what style you need, the Firmoo site has a “digital mirror” you can use to try glasses on your own picture!

I also loved these glasses for the simple the fact that they were multiple colors! {Hint, I like to mix things up as much as possible!} I went with the Purple/Brown option of the #F037 style.

Even Chloe gave them a shot!

I was shocked to see that along with my $35 glasses, they included a cleaning cloth and a tiny glasses screwdriver! Thanks firmoo!

This was my first time ordering glasses online. I am used to paying high dollar amounts for glasses from my eye doctor. While I will say, my older, traditionally purchased, glasses seem to be a bit more “sturdy” my new firmoo.com glasses are definitely a steal! It seems that the average cost of glasses from firmoo.com is around $35 {some including prescription lenses!} Yes, these are just a hard plastic frame, but they are so stinkin’ cute and do exactly what my other frames do: allow me to see!!

I highly recommend that you give firmoo.com a shot! Firmoo.com is offering any 2 cats readers, who has not purchased with them before, FREE FRAMES! With glasses this cheap, I will definitely be buying a few more pairs to wear as cute fashion accessories rather than just functional glasses. But first… lemme take a selfie:

Recreate this look:

Sweater // Target {New!}

Jeans // American Eagle

Boots {similar} // Rack Room Shoes

Glasses // Firmoo.com {Gifted!}

Thank you firmoo.com for giving me these awesome specs. While they were generous enough to gift these to me, this was my personal and honest review.

Today I am linking up with Random Wednesday, What I Wore, Oh Hey Girl, #WIWW, link up!

The last of my summer fashion…

September 16, 2014 by Susan 6 Comments

Guys, it’s the end of summer. Pumpkin spice everything is in the air. The evenings are getting cooler here in Virginia… and I’m a happy girl when I can sleep with my windows open. {I will be even happier when the open windows brings in an even colder, brisker air. I sleep so much better when I am cold and have a mountain of blankets on top of me!}

While I love summer, I seriously adore fall. I got dressed yesterday in my cute skinny jeans, a super light weight sweater, and my new fall ankle boots. I pranced around the house a bit. {Yup, I said prancing.} Then I realized that it is still officially summer. Fall {and then that dreaded season of snowmen and icicles} will be here soon enough. So why in the world am I rocking the jeans and boots when I still have warm days to sport some cute shorts, bright colors, and of course my signature hat.

Signs that it’s the end of summer? There are a few leaves on the ground and my toe nails are only half way painted. I’m in dire need of a pedicure but I’m having a hard time justifying it when I will be wearing hiking boots this coming weekend.

So let’s everyone raise our glasses of white wine or some fruity concoction, as we say our goodbyes to summer and our hellos to fall. If it is still warm enough in your part of the country, I say throw all rules out the window and spend the next few days wearing and loving your favorite summer outfits. Because before you know it… we will all be praying for Spring Break! Cheers y’all!

Comedy, Clothes and Belly Chuckles

May 10, 2014 by Susan 6 Comments

So on the absolute rarest of days, I leave my house. You see, I work from home. Which means I basically eat, breathe, and live in the same clothes I sleep, type, and lounge in. All. Week. Long. But every now and then I have a reason to brush my hair, do my makeup and put on something that doesn’t resemble high school gym shorts paired with an oversized t-shirt.

Surprisingly, it happened twice this past week! I’m not complaining.

Michael and I, along with my college roomie and her husband, bought tickets many moons ago to see one of our favorite comedians: Brian Regan. In college, every other sentence I said was either a direct quote or more typically an unnoticed reference to this man’s original CD. I listened to that disk so many times that I would proudly boast to folks (who could care less) that I wore out the cd. The fact that it wouldn’t play anymore really didn’t matter. I could quote the entire thing, start to finish. All 54:05 minutes of it.

With the excuse to cancel our normal friday night plans (i.e. Shark Tank at 9pm) in addition to the fact that it was a whopping 90 degrees out (way too hot for my norm: jeans and a nice shirt) I figured I really should put some thought into what I was going to wear. I also had not been shopping for anything other than groceries in what has felt like an eternity. Top it all off with the fact that on Thursday my mom repaid me for some Trader Joe’s almond butter with $50 cash. Cash that, if spent properly, would magically not be showing up on my husbands credit card bill…

So I went to Versonna. Of course.

I wish I had thought to put my hair up so you could see the back of this dress. It’s pretty fun with it’s semi-open back, but solid straps so you can still wear a normal bra. Hooray!

Due to many years of horrible knee issues, I am always a little hesitant to purchase a dress (or heck, even shorts) that are well above my knees like this one. Self conscious doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel about my legs. Also, I very rarely wear heels or even wedges. I usually prefer having the ability to walk the next day, than to looking fashionable. But with clean eating and more exercise, I decided to give these wedges a shot. It was a bit weird being almost as tall as my pretty tall husband for the evening.

What’s a fashion shoot before a comedy show without a sneak attack from Zoolander? Not something this girl want to be a part of… that’s what!

Photo credit goes to the hubs! Thankfully (after an hour and a half in tunnel traffic) we got to downtown Norfolk a bit early. The city worked as a better-background-option, as the few pictures he snapped of me in our front yard looked like I was getting ready for my mom’s annual “back to school” photos. You know, the ones that you were absolutely required to take, every year, no matter what, at 6AM as the school bus was heading your way. Even when your face was covered in zits or your braces were extra shiny.

We had dinner at Freemason Abbey, and I was especially thrilled that they have plenty of gluten free options for me and my ever so fickle digestive system. Sorry for the crappy iPhone images below… apparently I had the camera set to iBlur for the entire evening.

Climbing up to the top level of Chrysler Hall was not enjoyable with my wedges, but sitting front row of the balcony was pretty darn sweet! Extra room for our husbands’ long legs and there was not a soul in the way to block my view. The show was terrific — but to be quite frank, I think I prefer his older comedy a bit more. Or maybe deep down, I just wanted him to recite every hilarious crack that got me through my college years. It’s probably the latter. (And for the record, for anyone who was at the show: I was not the heckler.)

Y’all enjoy the rest of your Saturday! We are heading out to a cookout (thunderstorm permitting!) And just in case you have no clue who Brian Regan is and you are in dire need of a good belly chuckle - let me just refer you to this, this and this. You’re welcome.

Dress — Versonna Accessories ($29)

Belt — Versonna Accesories ($14)

Necklace — Versona Accessories ($14)

Bracelets — purchased years ago on vacation in SC

Shoes — Target (on sale now for $20!)

Purse — purchased about 15 years ago!

I’m linking up with the awesome gals over at Pumps and Pushups for Oh, Hey Girl!