Tag Archives: baton rouge blogger

How To Wear The Utility Vest Now

Happy Friday everyone, if you’ve been following along with Haute Off The Rack for the past few years, then you know that I have a whole closet full of olive vests and jackets. However, I always only wear them in the fall and don’t think I’ve ever worn one during the summer. So when I recently came across this olive utility vest on ModCloth’s site I knew I had to have it, but didn’t want to wait all of the way until fall to wear it. I was determined to style it with a summer look, but I was going to wait for the right outfit. Finally, I decided to take it for a spin with a pair of black high waist shorts and a striped tank. I love the idea of wearing fitted, high waist shorts, but then once I’ve got them on I feel so exposed. In most cases, I would have just left my shirt untucked, but then it just really defeats the whole purpose of high waist shorts so the vest was the perfect solution. I get to show how cute the shorts are from the front, but then I don’t feel so exposed in the back.

Photos by: Lainey Reed Photography

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Outfit: Utility Vest (similar here) & Striped Tank (also available in this color) c/o ModCloth | Tan Wedges (love these wedges too)| Similar High Waist Black Shorts

If you love this utility vest, then you’ll love the jacket version—>Escape Into Nature Jacket

Check out my last posts with ModCloth—> Blue Floral Maxi Dress & Striped Tunic For Travel

This post is in partnership with ModCloth, a brand I love. All opinions and selections here are my own. Thank you for supporting the affiliate posts who make this blog possible.

Nordstrom Rack Baton Rouge Grand Opening!

October 11, 2015

Nordstrom Rack Baton Rouge is finally open and just in time for fall shopping. I scooped up this Bella Dahl plaid shirt and Paige Denim skinny jeans at their private shopping party just before the grand opening on October 1st. Their fall denim selection is on another level! I was super impressed with the variety of brands and styles like flares, skinny, cropped, textured and distressed. They pretty much have every type of jean you could want for fall. On top of denim, their plaid shirt game was on point. I live in Bella Dahl so I of course went for that brand, but they had plenty of other designers to choose from when it comes to fall basics like plaid shirts, sweaters, ponchos, cozy tops and outerwear.

Photos by: Kristina Britt Photography

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Outfit: Bella Dahl Plaid Shirt & Paige Skinny Jeans c/o Nordstrom Rack Baton Rouge | Ankle Boots | Cross Body Bag | Floppy Hat

Good Morning readers, I hope you all had a great weekend, but it’s still not over yet, which means there is still plenty of time to shop all of the Columbus Day Weekend sales. You can find all of them listed on my side bar!

Thank you to Nordstrom Rack for bringing you this post. All opinions are my own.

Discovering Your #socialnetworth With The LSU Sororities

October 2, 2015

Happy Friday everyone! Before we jump into the weekend, I want to share my most recent social media workshop experience with you. About two weeks ago, I had the pleasure of speaking to over 450 LSU sorority girls about the power of social media and how to use it both responsibly and strategically. We had such an amazing turn out that we even had girls sitting on the floor!

I was so excited when the LSU Tri Delta chapter president, Laurel Upton reached out to me about the opportunity. I immediately said yes and asked fashion blogger, Krystal of A Pinch of Lovely and local New Orleans beauty expert, Ashley Sievert to join me in sharing our personal experiences involving social media. We called the event ‘Discovering your #socialnetworth’ because we want all young women and girls to realize their individual worth on social media.

We made a play on words with social ‘net worth’ to ask the girls how they individually value themselves on social media. Obviously, we weren’t there to rate them. We wanted the students to rate themselves to help them decide if they need to re-eavaulate the type of the content their posting. This is vital to do because even if you aren’t seeking a career in social media, the photos and words you post online are still a reflection of who you are as a individual. The majority of employers scan your Facebook and Instagram before interviewing you because they want to see how you openly portray yourself online and if that correlates with the type of person they want representing their company.

Once we got that point across, we mostly focused on the positive aspects of social media and what amazing things it can lead to by using it responsibly and strategically. For example, without social media my business wouldn’t even exist. And all of the amazing opportunities that I’ve experienced over these past few years would have never been possible. I created my very own dream job just by sharing what I love through social media.

If you would have told me four years ago that one day I’d design my very own handbag with a huge company in New York or that I would be working for myself, attending New York Fashion Week and collaborating with big brand names like Old Navy, Kendra Scott, H&M, Yosi Samra, Chinese Laundry, World Market and GiGi New York, I would have never believed you.

Actually, I take that back, I might have believed you because I always knew that I’d never allow myself to have a normal job, but I had no idea that it would all stem from social media. It is truly incredible what social media outlets like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and now snapchat can empower you to do, and that’s why I like to share my story with young women to introduce the world of careers on social media.

Back to the designing bags part, as a way to show the girls all the wonderful things that can stem from social media, I partnered up with GiGi New York to giveaway a Jenn Bucket Bag that I designed with them last October. This was such a huge accomplishment for me so I wanted to share that with the girls by giving one away especially since the bag has already moved its way up to one of Gigi New York’s top sellers. (last styled here)