The Bachelor Season 20: Episode 9

I am taking us back two weeks today for two reasons. First. I didn't get it done last week. Embrace it, move on. Second. The Women Tell All was just a bunch of girls being mean and bratty and I don't feel like that episode validated a post from me because basically what I would say is Leah is mean and the twins are mean and the whole night was eyes rolling and calling people out. That pretty much summed it up. So let's go all the way back to when there was an episode that wasn't a bunch of pretty women sitting around trash talking.

Ben and Chris enjoying the calm before the storm. Because a serious crap storm is about to come Ben's way. And then it gets to be relived as we all watch the episode at home. And then relived at Women Tell All. And then relived through every blog post, tweet, and rewatch... Sorry Ben. I am contributing.

First date goes to Caila. Once again, I can remember basically nothing from their date. I am sure it was a lot of awkwardness because I feel like that is how every date is with them, and yet somehow he selects her again every time. Caila said she loved him. They utilized the fantasy suite. The end. I don't have much else to say about their date.

Next up is Lauren. And Ben wearing shorty shorts. Is that a thing now? I don't get it. Their date started with a little service project. They are so cute always out there doing good for the world. They went to help baby turtles on their journey to the ocean. Baby turtles are probably the cutest thing in the world. And I am in love with them forever. But okay. Back to their date. After service and canoodling they went to dinner and Lauren told Ben she loved him. And PLOT TWIST - not really, because ABC already basically told us - Ben said it back. And in my mind I am like wait what? I thought that was against the rules. And then they went off to the fantasy suite. And Ben said I love you back to Lauren a billion more times.

Next up was Jojo's date. They started with a trip to the waterfalls. And somehoe Jojo's itty bitty swimming suit did not fall off when jumping into the water. Did she have that thing super-glued on or what? After some swimming and making out in the water they sit down to chat. And PLOT TWIST - Jojo told Ben she loved him. And PLOT TWIST - not really, because ABC already basically told us - Ben said it back. And in my mind I am like wait what? I thought that was against the rules. Yes. I said the same thing twice because I thought it both times. And now I am furious because Ben just told two women he loved them. Then Jojo and Ben hit the fantasy suite.

Now Ben is all alone at his very scenic hotel room and has to contemplate what he just did. He told two women he loved them and America hates him for it. The thing that makes me mad is now both of these women - not knowing what happened to the other - thinks that it is in the bag. And that they will be marrying Ben because he said I love you. And you don't just say I love you to two people at one time. A storm is a brewing.

Oh yeah.... what about Caila? She is still in this thing and decided she wanted to see Ben one more time because she just loves him so much and misses him. She did have the very first date after all. She is so excited to surprise Ben while he is contemplating what he should do because he loves two women - one not being Caila. And all of America cringes as she tries to sneak up and be so cute. All of America is also probably wondering when swimsuits became acceptable outing apparel.

And once again, just like Leah, the woman regrets surprising Ben. Because he sends her home. He says he just couldn't say I love you back and that was it. Just kidding. That wasn't it. Caila stops the car driving her away to get out and demand an explanation from Ben. Which is more emotion than I have seen from her all season. This might be the first night I actually like her. Okay - side note. Did you hear she was going to be the Bachelorette? I am not sure I am pumped about that. I hope it is just a rumor and not fact. Thoughts?

Now it is time for the two women to go to the rose ceremony - not realizing one was already shipped away. Chris Harrison is looped in that both women got an "I love you" back from Ben. And to which I can only imagine he is thinking, "That is breaking contract... and they both told me. Awkward." What do you think his face is saying?

From there Jojo and Lauren wait for Ben. And both of them are probably thinking "He called me first because he loves me," or "He called me second because he loves me." And they are both looking at the other thinking this poor girl doesn't know what he even said to me. But then it cuts away to interviews and I think Lauren B has a much more realistic grasp on things as she shares he might have said that to Jojo. Cue the most awkward hug and champagne toast of my life.

The world's most awkward hug. And then there were two. However, we know Ben loves them both and we know Ben selected on and is happily engaged. Even after she sees all the crap he pulled in the last episode. So who do you think it will be? Most of the world is saying Jojo - but I am saying Lauren. Excited to hear your thoughts after tonight!

Styled by 5: NoVae Clothing

We are nearing the halfway point in March - okay four more days, but still! Yesterday was Christmas... wasn't it? Whatever the case it is time for March's Styled by 5. This month we are sharing a twisted top from NoVae Clothing. I originally fell in love with NoVae for all the cute clothing she posted, but I stayed because her feed is always making my giggle. She is one of the only business owners I know that posts funny things to engage with her readers as much as her product. I love that about NoVae.

The day I picked up my top from Nickelle, the owner of NoVae, I made sure to wear it that night. I LOVED it. It was the perfect amount of comfort and dressy for my busy schedule. I prefer to look for items that look dressed up but are so comfortable that I can wear them all day – that seems to be a theme around here. I actually threw it on for the dance competition I was attending that night and was so happy with the look that it is what I ended up sharing today! I wanted a minimal undershirt so I put on my basic nude – one of the models on NoVae wore the pink with a pink undershirt and I really liked that look – and then to tie in the nude I wore my nude pumps. Since it was going to be a long day at the dance competition I threw on my boyfriend jeans. The day of the dance competition I wore my light wash and in this post I wore my dark wash. Looking back, I think I preferred the lightwash for this look – you can see what I am talking about on Instagram. Overall the top is a win in my book and in the last month I have worn it four times.

Top: NoVae Clothing

Jeans: NoVae Clothing

Undershirt: Downeast Basics

Shoes: Payless

Since we are all sharing the same piece on a different body type here is a reminder of my sizing – I am 5’9″ and I generally wear a 10/12 – 10 on a good day, 12 on a not good day… you understand, right? So I ordered this top in a large. Since it is a looser top I probably could have gone up or down depending on how baggy I wanted it – but overall I liked the fit of the large on me. I love sharing my style with you, but I also want you to see clothing I style in other body types so you can find what is best for you. So feel free to check out how Kaylynn, Bethany, Jacque, and Alexis styled this outfit as well! And watch for a new piece of clothing styled by 5 every month.

Tee Shirt Shift Dress-ed Down

Tee shirt dresses are my new favorite. The reason being? They are incredibly comfortable and I can wear them all day without regretting putting it on halfway through. You know what I am talking about, right? When you put something on that you love and then about halfway through the day you realize it was a mistake and you with you hadn't thrown that on for the long day you have ahead of you. Maybe that is just me - it usually happens when I wear a pencil skirt or pants. Something about the constriction of it all... but whatever. Tee shirt dresses.

The one tricky thing with tee shirt shift dresses is finding one of excellent quality. So often they end up being really light, but also super see through. Which I am not a fan of. I don't want to feel like I have to wear a slip or an undershirt with a tee dress just to keep my privates private. So when I go tee shirt shift dress hunting I always look for a high quality one with a good material. I have finally found not just one - but TWO amazingly made tee shirt shift dresses. And I am sharing it in two versions - a dressed up and a dressed down, because we all know how I like versatile clothing. Today I am starting with the dressed down version.

Dress: Shabby Apple

Chambray: Downeast

Sneakers: Converse Outlet

The one bummer deal about shift dresses is that sometimes they take away all the shape we have and make you look more boxy. Take away my shape and take away any height without heels, I needed to create some shape back into the outfit. So I started this look by tying a chambray around my waistline for a little body definition. I am a huge chambray fan - because they are the perfect item to change the look and feel of an outfit while also being functional if for some reason - and in Idaho it always happens - the weather changes mid outing. Since I was going the dressed down route with this one I decided to go not only with flats over heels, but sneaks over ballet flats. And there you have it! A Shabby Apple fave dressed down for a day of errands and appointments. Make sure to swing by tomorrow to see another tee shirt shift dress styled in a more dressy way!

Spring Break Guide: Swim Zip

Three swimsuits in and I decided it is time to mix things up. When you head out on Spring Break or any warm vacation for that fact the first thing you think is, "What swimsuit should I get?" And usually the cover up is an after thought, if it is a thought at all! If you are like me you get to your destination and as you are getting ready to go swim you realize you don't have anything specific to wear over the top - so if you are just walking downstairs you just run down in your suit or if it is a day long thing you throw on shorts and a tee over the top. The only problem with that is then later in the week you are down a shirt if anything gets on your "cover up" while out doing your water activities. You know what I am talking about, right? Okay... so now that we have that whole scenario in your head - let's talk cover ups. Today I am styling one from Swim Zip.

Cover up: Swim Zip

Swimsuit: Rad Swim

Sandals: Target

Not only is this cover up helpful for looking stylish while not showing your suit - it doubles as cover from the sun. Swim zip makes their cover ups out of the highest rated UPF 50+ sun protection fabric which blocks 98% of UVA and UVB rays. If you are pale with a lack of ability to tan like me - that is a selling point all in it's own! That is one thing that is always the worst, when you get burned while just hanging out or walking around. The fabric is very light and breathable plus it dries quick. So to me - this cover up dress is a win, win, win. Oh wait - one final win. This cover up comes with thumb holes, which I really love because I prefer my sleeves to hang long, ya dig?

Sizing reminders! I am generally a size 10 or 12. I ordered my Swim Zip cover up in a size large and it fit snug right over the top of my suit, but with the ruching on the sides it still felt super comfortable and flattering. You can tell how snug it was on the closer shot of my body - I am wearing a ruched one piece and you can see some of that detailing through the cover up. I really love this cover up and give it fifty billion thumbs up.

Don't forget to swing by Swim Zip to see how Kaylynn's littles are rocking Swim Zip suits! And I will see you back here on Tuesday for suit that totally pushed me outside of my comfort zone!

Tee Shirt Shift Dress-ed Up

Remember yesterday how I shared a tee shirt shift dress dressed down? Well today I am sharing my other favorite comfy dress all dressed up! Once again I will start by saying how important it has been for me to find a tee dress that is not only cute but was high quality. I am not about to spend money on something that will be come see through after a wash or two, I am not a huge fan of undershirts with dresses. I was so happy to find two dresses that met all the requirements I have for a tee dress. And today I am sharing a way fun one from Brass Button Clothing.

Dress: Brass Button Clothing

Tights: Costco

Heels: Famous Footwear

Earrings: Nickel and Suede

This dress has some fun flare all on it's own. The whole front is a pretty navy color and the entire back is a solid heather grey. I loved it. The way the two materials are cut together add a slimming illusion too. I decided to bring a little more grey to the front with my metallic silver earrings. Then I paired the dress with some black tights and black heels to bring a little dimension. It is a simplistic and sophisticated take on a tee shirt shift dress. I have worn this outfit to work and church already and I am sure it will remain in my regular closet rotation for awhile. And as simple as that I have take a shift dress and dressed it up. Now that you have seen both dressed up and dressed down I want to know, which do you like best? How would you style your tee shirt dress?

How We Wore It: Spring Stripes

It has been a few months since I shared a How We Wore It , but that is because there was a change in collaboration ownership - if you can call it owning, more like runnership - and if you missed the announcement... I am running the monthly How We Wore It series now! The fact that Brooke trusted me to take this one over is one of the most flattering things. She really built up the collaboration and I hope to keep it alive and well. In case you need a refresher, this is how it works. All of us were given the same “inspiration outfit” and we were asked to create our own take on it once we let our creative juices flow. Any outfit can be inspired by the colors, the patterns, the pieces, or the textures is fine. So our how we wore it is coming from the inspiration side – with things we already have! Because not many people have the luxury to just go buy a new outfit based on what they see on Pinterest, so you have to work with what you have. First up is the look we used for our inspiration.

via Mint Arrow

When I was looking for a photo for the month I wanted to find something that was casually styled while still adding elements that could be exciting for the women to be inspired from. When I came across this outfit on Mint arrow I was sold. The simplicity of the dress paired with sneakers and an olive jacket - which I learned olive is a spring color, who knew - seemed like the way to go. Hopefully all the ladies were as excited as me to style this one. Here is my take on this Mint Arrow look.

Dress: Downeast Basics

Jacket: Pink Blush

Shoes: Converse

Bag: Lily Jade

I went for every similar item in my closet to put this look together. The first things I grabbed were easy - for the sneakers I went with my basic white Converse and for the jacket I grabbed my all time fave olive jacket. From there I had a hard time selecting a skirt and a bag to pair it with. Originally I had planned on going with something a little more flowy like Mint Arrow's, but a solid jade color instead of strips - but then I decided that stripes was the reason I loved this look in the first place so I decided to add that pattern in with my Downeast shift dress. Similar pattern, different dress shape. The bag was a toss up between my two Lily Jades, but ultimately I went with the richer Brandy colored back instead of my camel colored one. The thing I love most about this look is that it works for any spring weather that gets tossed your way - a little windy, leave on the jacket, bright and sunny take the jacket off and tie it around your waist or toss it over the bag. What would you use to style an outfit inspired by Mint Arrow? What direction would you take?

Want to see more Mint Arrow inspired outfits? Check out how all these babes styled their look - Katelyn at The Suitcase Blonde / Elise at Sparkle and Slippers / Amy at Harris inc. / Madeline at CaseyLand / Rachel at Rachel Sayumi / Amber at Amber Nicole Blogs / Brooke at Silver Lining / Berkley at Here in the Now / Kyla at FordOlogy / Robin at Penn & Quill / Ashley at Absolutely Ashley / Autumn at Stay gold Autumn / Aubrey at Aubrey Zaruba / Sierra at Sierra's View / Alyssa at Impractical Composition / Justine at Little Dove Creations / Bekah at These Are The Days / Kylie at Love Always, Kylie. Want to be one of the 15 How We Wore It stylists next month? Don't forget to sign up!

Spring Break Guide: Rad Swim

Week two of Spring Break suits. And lucky you, I am sharing my other favorite suit of the batch! This swimsuit taught me a very valuable lesson. I know what you are thinking, a swimsuit taught you a lesson? Weird. But seriously! It did. Originally when looking for suits to share I was drawn to this one piece a few different times while shopping around but passed it up for a few reasons like one pieces sometimes prove to be less than fitting on my long bod and while metallic is fun it can also be terrifying. I am going to let you take a look at today's Rad Swim styling before I tell you the lesson I learned from the suit.

Swimsuit: Rad Swim

Cover Up: Pink Blush

Sandals: Target

Hat: Cents of Style

Like I said, I had passed up on this one and actually put it at the bottom of my list because I didn't think the metallic would flatter me the way I wanted. Well surprise... it flattered me perfectly. The mix of metallic and ruching plus a tie top was the perfect mix to make me feel like a boss on the beach. So what is the lesson this suit taught me? It taught me to go with my gut feeling! I know my body and I know what works when styling, so I can't pass up on items just because I think it wont be flattering. The worst that can happen is I try it on and my fear are confirmed, but the best that can happen is I feel incredibly confident and comfortable in my skin and in my outfit. Just because the world says metallic isn't flattering doesn't mean it can't be! You just have to find the right one for you. So thank you Rad Swim, for teaching me to go with my styling gut now that I know what works with my bod.

Sizing reminder - I am generally a size 10 or 12. Which usually translates to a size large, but at Rad Swim she said her suits run a little smaller so I should try going with an XL. And I am glad that I did. The XL fit me spot on and I know that I would have felt self conscious in a large. There isn't much else to say about sizing - my only advice with Rad is if you are on the fence go a size up, and you will for sure be happier.

Don't forget to go check out Kaylynn's look on Among the Young - today we are styling the exact same swimsuit, which is a fun change! We both felt like the Rad flattered our bodies best so you get to see it two ways. Winning! And don't forget to swing back her Thursday for a swim suit cover up.