Half a Herd of Elephants

This top came with a coordinating skirt, but the herd of elephants when the two pieces are combined can be a little overwhelming.  I like the tiered look of the top when paired with a long dress.

 

Elephant shirt, thrifted; dress, thrifted; shoes, Payless Shoes; earrings, etsy; bracelet, purchased in India; middle-finger ring, handmade by me; ring-finger ring, gifted (Thanks Mom!).

 

Since the top was made in India (though purchased at Goodwill) I added a bracelet from my trip to Pune.

 

I interpreted it as a sign that this semi-permanent hair color was on clearance for $3.  I think the darker hair makes the blue of my eyes stand out.  Red shoes provide a splash of color to an otherwise fairly staid color palette.

I Be Jeweled... And You Can Be Too

Coral and pearls and lions, oh my!  My   Here's what I've been working on the past week or so.

 

The red dragon set I wore Wednesday is now available on the So & So etsy shop, along with a whimsical necklace with coin pearls and a two-sided brass rabbit pendant.  One side of the rabbit has a coin pearl embedded on its side.  The other side is a plain rabbit.  It's amazing.

Also listed are a two-strand mother of pearl necklace and earring set and a leopard-print shell bead bracelet and earring set.

I don't want to sell everything I've made, so here are the pieces I'm keeping for myself for now.

I found the "lucky" charms I used for these earrings below on my trip to Oregon.  Beads and jewelry components are some of my favorite souvenirs because I can create something personal and memorable that will last for years to come.

 

The set on the left has wishbones and horseshoes.  The set on the right has horseshoes and four-leaf clovers.

Shameless Promotion: Tell 'Em What They've Won!

I've made contact with all the winners of my last giveaway, and their prizes are in the mail.

Thank you to those who entered and those who promoted the contest through Facebook or other means.

Beth won a mixed-media memory wire bracelet
with glass, stone, and wood beads.

Barb won the dyed variscite necklace.

Emily won the tree of life necklace with
amazonite beads.

Watch out for future giveaways and shameless promotions for the So & So etsy site!

Shameless Promotion: Everyone's a Winner

Well, I didn't have many entries for my jewelry giveaway, so I've decided that everyone who entered is a winner.  I'll email Barb, Kate, Emily, and Beth tomorrow with what they have won.  Congratulations, ladies!

If you didn't get your entry in, you can still use the coupon code THANKSGIVING to get 25% off any item in the So & So Etsy Shop.  Necklaces start at just $9 with the coupon code.

Shameless Promotion: Etsy & A Giveaway!

Last week I listed a couple of my beaded creations on Chenille's So & So etsy site, and today I listed a few more.

Turquoise and Coral Indian Set
For Sale for $25

Three-Strand Stone & Glass Necklace
For Sale for $25 

I've had a great few weeks with my recent travel and fun reviews, so I'd like to share my good fortune with you.  If you'd like to win one of the two necklaces shown below, please check out the So & So site and leave a comment below telling me which of the pieces listed there is your favorite or email me at idreamofjeanneblog at gmail dot com with the same.  To get an extra entry, mention my blog on your blog or share it on Facebook, and then submit a second comment or email telling me you did.  Make sure you send me a way to contact you if you win.

This contest is only valid for readers in the United States.  Sorry.  There's a limit to how much postage I'm willing to pay.  The contest will go through midnight next Friday, November 16.  I will draw winners at random.

Amazonite "Tree of Life" Necklace
You can win this necklace!

Dyed Variscite Necklace
You can win this necklace!

As an extra incentive to check out the etsy site, all of my pieces listed there are on sale through November 22.   Use the coupon code THANKSGIVING for 25 percent off your purchase (excluding shipping).

Happy Friday!

In the Trenches (Part II)

Don't forget to comment on this post for a chance to win beautiful handmade jewelry!

See Part I of this review here.

Who among us hasn't gone shopping with money in our pockets and left empty-handed because nothing fit the way it should?  It is frustrating, time-consuming, and demoralizing.  EShakti.com solves that dilemma for sizes 0-36.  That is the biggest reason I was over the moon to do a review for them.  Every woman should be able to look gorgeous in clothes that fit perfectly, and eShakti's selection comes very close.  With dresses in the $50-$100 range, most of us can fit these clothes in our budgets occasionally.

Image Credit: eShakti.com
You can get your dress with long sleeve...

Image Credit: eShakti.com
Or sleeveless.. Or somewhere in between.

EShakti makes it easy to customize clothes to your size, but size is only the beginning.  You can customize the length, neckline, sleeve length, and more until you have a dress, skirt, jacket, or top that is exactly the way you want it.

EShakti does not stock sizes, so each piece, whether standard or custom-sized, is made to order.  Even if you order a standard-sized item, you submit your height for a truer fit than you would find in a department store.  You can expect to receive your finished garment within two weeks.  I ordered my jacket on October 24 and received it on November 5.

If you haven't ordered from eShakti before, you can get $25 off your first purchase (for a limited time.  

Puggy photo bomber

Doubleweave belted trench, c/o eShakti.com; sweater dress, Victoria's Secret; boots, Target; necklace, etsy; earrings, handmade by me.

Yesterday I wore the Doubleweave Belted Trench from eShakti.com with a casual denim skirt.  In today's video I pair it with two more dresses to show how versatile the trench really is.

* I received the Doubleweave Belted Trench from eShakti.com at no cost.  All opinions are my own.

Self-Promotion: Etsy Edition

This is the necklace of the tiger's eye
set for available for purchase now!

I've finally taken the leap and listed two of my handmade pieces of jewelry on the beautiful Chenille's etsy shop, So & So.  I listed pieces made with semi-precious stones: a tiger's eye necklace and earrings set and a color-blocked pearl and coral necklace.

Please bear with me as I learn the ins and outs of photographing for etsy, and please give me feedback on pricing, etc.

As a reward for sticking with me as I figure things out, I'm having a jewelry giveaway next week!

Happy Friday!

Pretty

It's interesting how clothing and mood/self-perception are intertwined.  Today's outfit just makes me feel pretty.  Cue the West Side Story soundtrack.

Commence twirling.  I also like how that song connects feeling pretty with being out of one's mind.  That's the kind of clothing I want in my closet- things that help me see the best in myself rather than focusing on my worst.

 

Dress, Apt. 9, thrifted; belt, Walmart; boots, Merona, Target; cicada earrings, Christine Domanic, etsy; chainmaille necklace, Trinkets By M, etsy.

 

I tempered the super-sweetness of the lace dress with the boots and jewelry.  Cicada earrings go with everything, right?  

The photo bomber strikes again.  He wanted to know
what I was doing.

Internet Hair

The internet is a strange and mysterious place, and sometimes I leads me in wonderfully un-searched-for directions.  Recently I somehow landed on the hair tutorial below, and I was highly intrigued.  Hair styling is really not my thing.  Mostly my hair can be either up, down, or half up.  Sometimes I blow dry it.  Sometimes I even flat iron it.  The tutorial is based on pony tails.  I can do pony tails.

So here is my first attempt at this pony tail faux hawk.

My hair is not nearly as long as that of the girl in the video, but I think it turned out pretty well!  It stayed in place all day even though I didn't use hair spray, and Stephen even commented that my hair looked nice.  He was probably shocked that I had done something with it.

Dress, Jacquelyn Smith, thrifted; earrings, etsy; sandals, Mossimo, Target.

I like how the hair style plays with the retro vibe of the dress.  It's a combination for a happy day!

Fit to Travel

This jewelry is coming to India with me.  I'm only bringing a few pieces of jewelry, and I love this orchid set.  Actually, the whole outfit will probably make the trip.  The skirt is flowy and comfortable.  The top is a little more interesting than the average t-shirt because it has a crocheted panel in the back (forgot to photograph it).

T-shirt, Younkers; skirt, thrifted; necklace and earrings, etsy.

 

It's not my favorite outfit ever, but it fits the requirements of this trip because it's comfortable, covered-up, and easily packable.  I'm not sure if this outfit would warrant the return trip to the US.  It will all depend on how tight my luggage is.

Side note: my feet look ginormous in these photos.  Probably because they are.

Everybody, Everywear: Blogger's Block

Sorry for the ginormous photo.  EBEW didn't let me link to a smaller one.

I had blogger's block when I started to put together this outfit.  I knew I wanted to wear these sky-high cobalt sandals, but I wasn't sure where to go from there.

I like the bold red and cobalt blue together, and of course I love these shoes.  They are a recent acquisition from Target (clearance, bien sur).

This may not be the best color blocking I've ever done, but I am so happy to be back to participating in Everybody, Everywear!

Today is also my first attempt at using the remote with my new camera.  It will take practice to look subtle as I'm pressing the remote button, but it was cool to not have to reset the self-timer every time.

Leopard nails: still looking pretty good.

 

Sweater, Sweater Project, Younkers; dress, George, Walmart; belt, thrifted; shoes, Mossimo, Target; earrings, etsy, So & So; necklace, handmade by me.

Love these long button earrings from
So & So.

 



The shoes are the main event for this outfit.  I am thrilled to add them to the list for my Summer Shoe Challenge.

I <3 these shoes.  

 


Thanks for visiting!