Guy Style - feminine looks with a masculine edge

I recently found a tumbler site called Boy. Inspired and I love it. I have found myself liking the majority of the outfits on the site. This surprises me for some reason. I can't quite figure it out. I guess I have always thought of my style as feminine, but in taking a closer look I don't think that is always so. During the summer, I live in skirts and dresses, but when it is NOT hot outside I steer clear of the flowery billowing frocks for fear of draftiness. I hate to be cold, so I tend to go the pants route in any weather under 60 degrees. I also like clean lines, simple pieces, and solid colors...for the most part. It is fun to discover new and different style likes. With style being a way of expressing yourself, the sky is really the limit. So here are some of my new favorite boy-inspired looks:

 To start with, this is actually me. Some girlfriends and I threw a 'guys night' party a few years ago.

 All images, except the first, are via Boy. Inspired

Ellie-Style, Rooftop Drinks in San Francisco

Andy's cousin came to town on a business trip a few weeks ago, so we arranged to meet him one night. He was staying at a swanky hotel on top of Nob Hill in San Francisco, so that's where met him. When we got there, he told us he had heard mention of a rooftop bar with views of the city, so we jumped on the idea. We took the elevator as far UP as it would go. At the top, we were greeted by a live pianist playing on a baby grand. He was surrounded by numerous little tables with candles, and then magnificent floor to ceiling windows. We chose a table next to a window and admired the city views while we waited for our martinis to arrive. It was truly like something out of the movies. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like lugging my camera along (big mistake), so I don't have any photos of the night. The memory will have to suffice.

New hairstyle! I don't know if I like it, but it was fun to try.

Vintage jacket (from here), New York & Company top, CAbi skirt, TJ Max purse, Target tights, Korean boots

Green for St Patrick's Day

I am a huge fan of holidays! Especially those holidays that you can dress up for, which is most actually. I'll take any excuse to don a color that I don't usually wear, or a hat that would normally look out of place. In college there were all sorts of opportunities to dress up for theme parties etc. Since being out of college though, I have found a lack in those types of parties and events. Luckily, San Francisco is one colorful city where anything goes. There doesn't need to be a special reason to wear something out of the normal, like monochrome green. I love that! For those of you who don't live in the Bay Area though, here is a gathering of fun green items (all under $80) to help you celebrate this St. Patrick's Day. Oh, and make sure you drink some green beer too!

Information on individual pieces Here.

Green dress, $42 / Retro inspired dress / Green cotton dress / J.Crew sports shirt / H&M shirt, $23 / Short skirt / Old Navy / Skirt / Topshop / Old Navy top sider shoes / Michael Antonio colorful heels / Pieces leather shoulder bag / Anthropologie swarovski crystal jewelry / Charlotte Russe jewelry / Kate Spade / Sunglasses

Ellie-Style, Brunch

Andy and I recently went for brunch in Emeryville, Oakland and this is what I wore. (I'll write a brunch review of the place we went in a future post.) Our Oakland weekends lately have been sunny and warm, around 60 degrees. The flowers and blossoms are also starting to come out, which is fun. Having just moved here from Virginia, a March spring is very exciting! I am not used to this warm of weather or seeing signs of spring this early. It has definitely made my heart lighter and puts a spring in my step. I will be excited to start brunching outside more as the weeks progress. Yay for spring! And speaking of spring, this light blue sweater with rolled up jeans was a perfect color and style for the day.

TJ Max sunglasses, old Target sweater, TJ Max purse, Gap jeans, h&m flats

Ellie-Style Backpacking

This Ellie-Style post is a little different from most. Here in California (Bay Area to be exact) there are tons of outdoor things to do. It is impossible not to spend most of your free time out in nature. Between the beaches and the mountains, the outdoor possibilities are endless. It is good to have some staple clothing items for these adventures. While I love to look pretty, I also enjoy functionality. Being outside hiking most of the day requires more functionality than pretty...but it is possible to have both! At least in my opinion. I chose a girlie pink wicking top, so that not only would I look cute, but I would have the functionality of my top wicking away the sweat and keeping me dry as I hike. My pants are light and quick dry so if I hike through a stream and get wet, they will dry quickly. They also roll up and button, so if I decide to wade into the ocean they won't get in my way. Everything else is pretty basic for hiking. Despite how far out in the wilderness I may be though, I always try to keep a feminine touch, in this case my pink top, and my pearl earrings.

What are your go-to hiking pieces? Do you try to keep femininity while playing outside, or do you let it all go out the window for the sake of necessity?

Ellie-Style Rooftop

Like I always say, I don't claim to know anything about fashion, but I do like to feel good in my clothes while trying to look good. So here's a little piece of my style. Andy and I went to dinner with some friends a few nights ago and decided to snap some pictures before heading out. (We discovered our roof!!) I am so excited that it is already getting dark later. If Andy gets home at a decent time we still have a bit of light left. I am excited for lighter evenings and long strolls around Lake Merritt in the coming months.

  Jacket-Etsy vintage, Blouse(similar)-Forever 21, Jeans-Gap, Clutch-Etsy vintage, Shoes-Steve Madden

Ellie-Style, Restaurant Week SF

It has been quite a while since I've done an Ellie-Style post. Last weekend Andy and I headed into San Francisco for Restaurant Week, so I took the opportunity to snap some outfit pictures. Restaurant Week is a tradition of ours. It goes back to the years we lived in Washington DC. We had a wonderful, knowledgeable friend who always picked the restaurant for us. Twice a year when Restaurant Week was held we would all dress up and enjoy a wonderful 3-4 course meal together at a restaurant that we wouldn't normally go to. It was something I always looked forward to.

Now that we are living in the Bay Area we have decided to continue the tradition. Restaurant Week popped up on my radar so I started researching restaurants. Let me tell you, it was a chore! A fun chore, but a chore none the less. With so many restaurants to choose from in an area that I hard know, I had no direction. I decided to start with the neighborhood that we have visited a few times- The Mission. From there, Andy and I narrowed it down to the kind of food we wanted. We decided on California Fusion...whatever that is. When in California, eat the Californian food, right?

blazer (similar)-JCrew, dress-Target, tights-ModCloth, shoes-Target, belt-clothing swap, purse-Etsy Vintage

So we made reservations at Luna Park. The food was great, like melt in your mouth amazing! Unfortunately it was too dark in the restaurant to take pictures, so I didn't get to document the experience very well...next time. It was a fun first time doing restaurant week in San Francisco. I eagerly await the next time it happens.

 The only picture I have of dinner. We started with goat cheese fondue- amazing!

Ellie Style - Engagement Party

A little Ellie-Style engagement party post. (Not my engagement, I've been married for 3 whole years believe it or not.) These pictures are from over Christmas, but I got too busy to post them. Anyway, a good friend of ours just got engaged so we celebrated in a classy way. He's a Virginia winemaker, so we were sure to drink some good wine. Everyone was dressed in their fancies while we sipped wine, congratulated the couple, and socialized the night away. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of the actual engaged couple themselves.

 Scarf - Korea, blouse - TJ Max, clutch - Etsy vintage, jeans - Gap, shoes - Nine West 

...facial expression in the first picture - oh, don't mind me looking stoned. I need to learn to "smize" like Tyra.

I love gold right now! Just can't get enough. Nail polish, polka dots, spray paint...love it all!

 The venue for the party was beautiful! It was at our friend's parents house, who live on the vineyard where he makes wine. The house sits atop a hill, while the vineyard flows out from the house. During the day it is a beautiful Virginia country vineyard view. At night though, this was the best I could do picture wise. Still a beautiful place.

New Years Eve Getups

Andy and I are still on the road in hopes of arriving sometime today. We shall see about that...I'm keeping my fingers crossed for safe driving and clear roads. Anyway, I had some fun creating these New Years Eve outfits. I can't quite figure out which of these I would chose to wear if given the chance. If only New Years lasted a whole week long! Which one would you wear?

The Glam Rocker

The Boho Lady

The Sporty Chic Lady

The Art Deco Fashionista

Flying Comfortable

We have done a lot of flying this fall. Some to visit family and some to California both for Andy's new job and for making our living arrangements when we move. 1-2 hour flights are nothing. I feel like there is little to no preparation for that kind of traveling. Cross country flights of 5+ hours are a different story though.

For these longer flights I like to be comfortable. I feel like each time I fly I think of something different that I would do. Here are some solid things that I usually stick to:

• Flat slip on shoes for ease of going through security checks along with being comfortable. I see some ladies with high heeled lace-up boots and just wonder how they survive?!
• Yoga pants in a color like black or grey are perfect. They feel like sweat pants, but look so much classier for being in such a public busy place. Plus, if you have to jog to your connecting flight they allow you to move easily. (Been there, done that. Yoga pants for the win.)
• A comfortable sweater. Even in the summer months this is good to have because flights get cold no matter what the temperature is outside.
• A scarf. This is also something I wear to fly no matter the time of year. A scarf can be used for many things: a light blanket, a pillow, a neck warmer...etc.

  Happy traveling this holiday season! Hopefully you don't have too far to go.

Ellie Style - Apartment Hunting

Oh, just a little Ellie-Style... I don't claim to know fashion or even dress well, but I do love clothes, I like trying to look good while being comfortable, and I enjoy being photographed. So here's some of my style.

Sweater is from a clothing swap, scarf is from Korea, blouse is from TJ Max, jeans are from Gap, shoes are from Target, and my metallic shoulder bag is from TJ Max.

Andy snapped these pictures for me in between apartment hunting in California. The weather was sunny, 60 degrees, and perfect. I can't wait to ditch the East Coast winter coat and bask in the California weather after we move in a few weeks. On a side note...I love wearing color, but most young people I saw in Oakland were dressed in dark colors. I don't know if it's a local style thing, a winter thing, a Cali thing, or what. Either way, I don't plan on ditching color for local style anytime soon.

*An update on finding an apartment in CA. Last week I had written about the competitive apartment market in Oakland. We thought we had found something that we felt good about. Well...since then, we heard that we did not get the apartment. Meaning we would have NO apartment upon moving our life in a truck out to Cali. Then, just yesterday, the rental company told us the apartment was still open after all. Saying we could have it if we wanted it. So now we are in the process of trying to finalize that before we start driving our moving truck on Saturday. Life is crazy!