The Long Day Dress

  

At first I debated sharing these photos.  I wasn't able to take them until late in the day when the sun was setting, so the quality isn't the best.  However, I was so impressed with this dress that I had to share!  Banana Republic advertises it as "wrinkle free" and it really is.  I went through a long day of work and college football and somehow this dress stayed intact!  It's also a great blend of a class button down with a little something funky.  However, this dress does run short.  I'm average height and bought it in a tall for a little modesty.

Another thing... how great are these shoes?  Lace-up flats are my favorite trend of fall and these ones are such a great deal--three colors for under $50!

dress // purse // lace-up flats

Labor Day Sales

My must-haves for fall?  A red lip, bows, and leopard print!

Holidays that celebrate America always seem to have the best sales.  I took this opportunity to finally invest in a good camera--please wish me luck, because I'll need it!

Aerie // Buy one, get one 50% off, free selfie stick with $75 purchase

Amazon // 20% off qualifying items with code LABORDAY20

Ann Taylor // 50% off fall styles with code HAPPY50

Anthropologie // 30% off sale items with code EXTRA30

Banana Republic // 40% off entire site with code BRFALL 

J. Crew Factory // 50% off entire site, no code needed

J. Crew // 30% off order of $125 or more with code GETSHOPPING 

Kate Spade // 25% off sale items with code DELIGHT

LOFT // 30% off fall items, 50% off summer sale items

Madewell // 30% off fall items, extra 30% off sale items with code YESANDYES

Nordstrom // Up to additional 40% off sale items

Nordstrom Rack // 25% off clearance items 

Healthy Turkey Chili

I love food.  Eating is by far my favorite thing to do.  However, I also live at the beach and find myself in bikinis fairly often.  Because of this, I've managed to reach a compromise and try and cook healthy, guilt-free food.  Earlier this week, I made my first crock pot chili of autumn.  It's delicious, easy, and good for you! The most important thing is to check the sodium levels of all the groceries you're buying.  Just about everything has options where sodium isn't added.  If you aren't careful, your meal can turn into one big salt-fest and end up being rather unhealthy.

Ingredients
1 lb ground turkey
1 white onion, diced
2 (14 oz) no sodium added diced tomatoes
1 (8 oz) can no sodium tomato sauce
1/4 cup no sugar added ketchup or chili sauce (if you want it spicy!)
1/4 cup water
1 (15 oz) can dark red no sodium added kidney beans
1 packet Mrs. Dash's chili seasoning mix
4 stalks celery, chopped
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

Directions
Brown ground turkey with chopped onion.  While they are browning, combine all other ingredients in your crock pot.  Stir them together.  When turkey and onion are browned, stir together in crock pot with other ingredients.  Cook all day on low or on high for 3-4 hours.  Top with shredded skim-milk cheddar cheese and greek yogurt.  (I promise, greek yogurt tastes exactly the same as sour cream!  You can't tell the difference!) 

Two Fashion Documentaries to Watch Right Now

This weekend was really productive for me.  After realizing that Hilton Head wouldn't be hit by a hurricane, I opened a bottle of wine, read the September issues, and watched some fashion documentaries.  Though very different, (one condemns the fashion industry while the other celebrates it) they're both worth taking a look at.

The True Cost concentrates on the negative side effects of "fast fashion," or stores like H&M, Forever 21, etc. where we can all get on-trend clothing for super cheap.  Though at times it loses me--like when it goes into some deeply unsubstantiated claims on cotton growth, it's overall a very in-depth and excellent look at the ripple effect that fast fashion has on the rest of the world. 

If you know me in real life, you probably know how disappointed I am with this year's Vogue September issue.  Seriously.  Beyonce is on the cover despite never actually being interviewed and there only being four pictures of her in the entire magazine.  Normally however, Vogue is awesome and this documentary demonstrates why.  It really makes you appreciate the effort that goes into making all those fashion shots appear effortless.