Class Cutie

It's that time of year again! Sadly, summer is soon to be gone, which means we must say goodbye to warm lazy days and hello to the fall chill....and the prospects of another school year. Whether you're high school or college bound, no one wants to face another year of early mornings, boring classes, and trying responsibilities. However, it will be much more fun to pass your days if you have the colorful world of fashion on your side. School has always been the perfect place to showcase your most stylish looks, and this year is no exception! I've been working on putting together some of the cutest outfits that are sure to turn heads this fall and not break the bank. All looks feature simple pieces which are easy for throwing on in a hurry when you need to get to class fast.

My first look below is a combination between girly and prepster. A striking floral skirt paired with a comfy cardigan and flower bud flats is sure to have you being watched on your way to class. To make the beautiful teal color of the look pop, keep things simple with a white v-neck on top. Finish off the look with a chic flower headpiece that dare I say is too cute for words. There's no way you can go unnoticed in this floral masterpiece - all under $70!

Headband Charlotte Russe $5.50 Skirt A'GACI $18.50 Cardigan Old Navy $26.50

V-Neck Wet Seal $6.50 Flats Urban Original $10.20

The next look below I like to designate as edgy glam. Tons of sparkle and sequins to make a major statement in class. The trick though is to keep things simple to make the shimmer stand out. Pair black jeggings with a comfy embellished tee to spice up the usual routine of jeans and a t-shirt. Rhinestone flats complete the look on the bottom and are perfect for weathering that long walk around campus. A simple sparkly headband on top is the perfect accessory that sticks with the sequin theme without going overboard. Also under $70.

Top Wet Seal $17.50 Flats Urban Original $17.20 Jegging JCPenney $25.99

Headband Forever21 $3.50

This last look is one I am most proud of and wish I had the honor of owning myself - the perfect laid-back outfit for school! A comfortable floral print dress paired with a denim jacket spells out the perfect calm & cool vibe on any of your busiest days. Accessories make the outfit with a wide belt at the center, lace-up boots, and fedora. You'll be sure to make the fashion grade this fall with this trendy blend of pieces! Under $100!

Fedora Charlotte Russe $6.50 Boots Urban Original $25.90 Jacket Aeropostale $29.75

Dress Forever21 $16.90 Belt Forever21 $4.50

Trend to Try: Military

Another great trend to try for fall is anything military inspired! Olive green, camo print, and button trim are all the rage right now! If your looking to spice up your style, military is certainly the way to go. It adds the perfect ounce of toughness to any look so everyone will know you're not playing around this fall. Military pieces I think look even better when paired with buckle strap heels like the ones featured below. They certainly complete the look, adding just the right amount of severity to make your look even more hard-core. But military doesn't have to be about looking rough either. For those of you afraid your style will come off too strong, you can find military pieces with subtle softer features, like the ruffle shirt featured below. It's the perfect mix of military and romantic in one piece so you can attempt the trend without coming off as harsh! Military is a trend that we seem to can't get enough, every season it seems we keep coming back for more! So soldier if your daring enough to attempt a military mission, you're sure to come out with the purple heart of fashion this fall! Check out the rest of some of my favorite military pieces below, all at a bargain price for you!

1: Shirt Dress $32 Charlotte Russe

2: *Skinny Jeans a.n.a for JCPenny

3: Ruffle Top $22.50 A'GACI

4: Booties $34.40 Urban Original

5: Faux Leather Jacket $36.50 Wet Seal

*Sorry about the lack of information on the skinny jeans, I found them yesterday on jcpenny's website and thought they were perfect, but then today it looks like they've been taken off the site! You should still try searching for them though if you really like them, who knows, you may have better luck than me!

LC's New Fall Collection

Lauren Conrad is one of my favorite style icons. Ever since first watching her on Laguna Beach and then the Hills, I have come to fall in love with her classy style and unique eye for fashion. This fall she certainly doesn't disappoint with the newest additions to her LC line for Kohl's. The tops prove to be highly graphic with detailed floral artwork, shimmering embellishments, and great pops of rich autumn color - the perfect wears to make you stand out from the crowd. The dresses follow suit with stylish ruffles and sophisticated designs that make a true artistic statement. Lauren even works denim, giving us her take on the highly sought after "jegging" and simple bootcut jean. And there's much more where that came from. All the pieces are certain to add a touch of elegance and glamour to any look being versatile enough to wear from day into night. So if your interested in grabbing a piece of LC's signature chic look, I recommend you take a look through her entire collection for fall. Below are some of my favorite pieces to try!

LC for Kohl's

1: Tunic $22.99

2: Motorcycle Jacket $53.99

3: Denim Legging $27.99

4: Ruffle Top $22.99

5: Stripped Dress $34.99

Web Alert: Makemechic.com

The other day I was reading through my Seventeen magazine, and as I was browsing through the fashion pages I came across an ad that caught my eye. The ad was for makemechic.com, an online clothing store that I had never heard of before. Usually, I don't pay much attention to magazine ads, but this one just stuck out to me. Looking back, I blame the cute girly outfit and the cutest pair of ruffle boots I have ever seen (featured in screen shot below). The selling point for me was that the boots were listed as only $24! I couldn't believe it, so I knew I had to check this site out - and it didn't disappoint! Let me tell you they sell some of the cutest trendy clothes on the web and all at prices that are sweet for a girl not looking to pay a fortune for her clothes. From what I can see, most of their items don't reach over $50 - an amazing conundrum as far as fashion stores go. Shipping is also free with a $50 purchase. Featuring quality clothing that's up on the latest trends, you can find a plethora of goodies to add to your closet from this site from tops and dresses to shoes and hot accessories. Make Me Chic truly has everything you could ever wish to look for! I, myself, just purchased the perfect boyfriend blazer from the site today. I've been holding out forever trying to find one a little less expensive, and with Make Me Chic I only had to spend $33 as opposed to $60. Trust me, they sell the best clothing that lives up to it's chic status and works to fit a range of different styles!

Make Me Chic

P.S. try joining their VIP mailing list to receive special offers by email.

Dream Out Loud in Fashion

My new favorite, inexpensive celebrity line to hit stores this fall is Dream Out Loud, a collection created by disney darling Selena Gomez. Having graced television now for 4 years with her crazy cute outfits as Alex Russo on The Wizards of Waverly Place, Gomez now delivers us clothing with her very own fashion touch to kmart stores. If her stunning red carpet looks aren't enough, this 18-year-old proves she knows a thing or two about style with a collection that is simply a closet must for fall. The clothes have a very laid-back, boho feel to them with a vibe that screams super cute and comfy. Most of the pieces feature cute little adornments like bows and flowers as well as a solitary flying dove, which stands as the logo for the whole line. Many of the pieces are great basics, perfect for creating a fall layered look with belted cardigans, cozy scarves, and knit hats. One of my personal favorite layered looks from the collection is featured below. Even greater, the collection is entirely eco-friendly and all pieces are $20 and under, great for a stylish girl on a budget! It seems keeping things simple this fall is the way to go!

Dream Out Loud

Trend to Try: Animal Print

The trends to pick from this year for fall are some of the best I've seen in a long while! There's something for almost every woman out there to try, no matter the style. My next favorite trend to watch out for - animal print. Now, I will admit animal print has always been a little bit out there, but even if you're not that fashion adventurous, there are ways to make this trend work for you. The key word here is making things SIMPLE. Animal print is already very bold on it's own, so you don't want to keep adding to it. The trick is to play it down with basic pieces. Solid black essentials are what you need when attempting to go animal print. Try pairing the leopard skirt below with a black tank or the leopard heels with skinny black jeans and a simple t-shirt. It's basic stuff like that that helps the trend to stand out more without going overboard and adds a certain sophistication to any animal print look. Animal print doesn't have to be tacky or even wild, it can now be molded to fit any style. It's certainly a great method for making a fashion statement this fall! All the pieces below are great places to start delving into this fall trend and all great bargains mostly under $30!

1: Dress $18.24 Forever 21

2: Heels $22.90 Urban Original

3: Top $19.50 Wet Seal

4: Skirt TopShop

5: Purse $33.99 Target

Everyone's A Material Girl

Can I just say that I love celebrity fashion lines? Every time I hear a new one is coming out, I make sure to check it out right away. I especially love the lines that are meant to be affordable for the average shopper. For once, it's a way of letting us all get to have a taste at having some star style. Some of Hollywood's biggest and brightest have put their fashion expertise to the test...and now you can finally add the queen of pop herself, Madonna, to that list. A style icon from the moment she stepped onto the scene with her lacy bustiers and cone shaped bras, Madonna has taken her signature edgy style and put it into a new low cost line for Macy's deemed fittingly as Material Girl. So now all of us can get a little bit of Madonna's rocker look. Her new line pays tribute to some of the trends of the past and present - a great mix of both the old and new. There's a tulle black skirt taking us back to true 80's style, plaid shirts lined with lace, and funky floral skirts. Then you have rhinestone tees, metallic bandeaus, exposed zipper jeans and a studded leather jacket. And there's plenty more where that came from. The entire collection perfectly reflects the style of the American pop idol to a T. Hardcore but with a touch of femininity, the Material Girl line adds the perfect touch for any girl looking to add some edge to her look. So if you think you have what it takes to take on the true Madonna style, visit Macy's to view and shop some of the other stylish looks from the collection. The whole of the collection doesn't even reach over $40!

Material Girl

Web Alert - Online Fashion Portals

Have you ever spent hours in a store searching for the perfect outfit only to come out later empty handed? Ever wish that for once you could just view the clothes before you go shopping so you can go in knowing exactly what you want? It would certainly make shopping go much smoother for us all. But how is this possible you ask? Look no further than online fashion portals. Some of your favorite fashion friendly sites have now developed their own virtual closets where you can put together outfits of your choosing using pieces from the store's current collection. One of my personal favorites is the H&M fashion studio pictured below.

H&M Fashion Studio

Everyone knows and loves the cute & affordable clothes put out by the brand, but now before going shopping you can take a spin through this virtual fashion closet to pick out that perfect outfit before hitting the store. You can try on everything within your heart's desire from tops, dresses, skirts, jeans, accessories and so much more. All you have to do is start by picking out your fashion model and then you can browse through your clothing options, it's that simple! The site also tells you the exact price of each item worn on the model, that way you know exactly how much your outfit is going to cost in the long run. You can even save the photo onto your computer to print off and take with you into the store to help you find what you're looking for! It's definitely a great way to shave some hours off store shopping time and save some money in your wallet!

Another cool online fashion world worth trying can be found on Wet Seal. It's very similar to the H&M's fashion studio, but with a few differences. First off, you have to make an account with Wet Seal before you can actually start making your own outfits, but it's well worth it. After you register with the site, you can start by browsing through the clothing categories seen from the homepage. Once you find an item you like, click on it's icon to take you to the item's viewing page. From that page, you must select a size for your item then you can click the button "Add To Closet" featured right underneath all the item's information. The item will then be added to your closet which is shown below.

The Wet Seal Fashion Community

From there, you just drag and drop all your selected items to the left to put together your very own outfit. Click on each item once it's dropped in to move it around. An arrow will also show up in the corner of the item for layering purposes. You can use everything from regular clothing to necklaces and handbags. This portal will also let you know exactly how much your entire outfit comes to so that you can be cost conscious. Just make sure to save your outfit when your done and it will be kept forever in your very own online boutique. Even better you can share your outfits with the rest of the fashion world! If your feeling confident you can publish your creation to the runway where tons of other people who visit the Wet Seal site can view and rate it. If you don't feel like sharing your outfit, then you can just browse through the creations of other Wet Seal users. However, the site does put on daily contests for styling, offering first, second and third place winners hefty giftcards and other high end prizes. It's totally worth taking a risk!