Trenching through Thursdays

I have been eyeing a trench coat for over the past year or two while the weather continues to warm in Michigan. While shopping with my mom at Dress Barn, I came across a simple, tan trench coat. I fell in love with it, especially with the price of the coat. I am all for shopping on a budget, as a "poor" college student.
This coat is such a spring collection item while it looks great with bright spring clothes. It is a very light weight coat, that goes longer than my knees. I paired this trench coat with my J.Crew toothpick jeans, Jack Rogers sandals, a striped long sleeve and an Old Navy neck scarf. 

More blog post are to come as my first semester of summer classes are coming to an end. More projects and final exams are underway this upcoming week. I would love to share more ideas about tips on taking summer classes. 

National Stripe Day

This is probably one of my favorite days within the fashion world. My closet consist of shirts with the stripe patterns in all different colors. My mom calls me obsessed with stripes, when I go shopping my eyes are drawn to this pattern. If you went through my closet, you would see over twenty striped shirts that are either short or long sleeve. This pattern is definitely one where you can combine with other patterns and still be fashionably accepted. Realizing that J.Crew has certainly supplied a lot of the striped shirts that are in my closet, literally. I causally will almost always wear any striped tee with my favorite J.Crew toothpick jeans and any type of shoes whether those are loafers, Converses or riding boots.
This holiday is my favorite as for someone who inspires their fashion outfits around stripes, I live for this day. In my closet, there are tons of different clothing materials that I have worn on a daily bases. 

Happy National Stripes Day! 

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

This weekend was one for the books and was amazing. I have never been to such a large mall as in three levels high, then it crossed over the road and had a second side to the mall with another two level on the other side. I would definitely say that walking into Gucci was a moment that I will definitely not forget. We don't have stores like that around the Grand Rapids area at all. Yes, I definitely touched Gucci loafers and took a picture of them to add onto my wish-list. The Somerset Mall is a two building complex where one building has a three story level of stores and the other building is only two story. As you cross over the Skywalk (which reminds me of being in an airport), you go to the more expensive side. Vineyard Vines, Lilly Pulitzer, Gucci, Versace, Tory Burch, and other amazing stores are found in the second building. I have never been in a Nordstrom quite like that one in the mall. I was in love, literally. 

We finished the night with dinner at P.F Chang's and then headed back to our hotel for the night. The next morning, we enjoyed breakfast at the hotel and then we were on our way to Target and Old Navy. We enjoyed lunch at Panera then we were on our way home for the weekend. 

I can't wait to share all of my goodies that I bought over the weekend within upcoming blog post. Spring is definitely near and I can't wait to break out miniskirts and pastels. Enjoy! 

 This Spring Break was definitely one for the books as I really don't want to go back to school but know that there is only eight more weeks until summer. I am ready for warm weather and sunshine. 

What's In My Bag?

I'm not exaggerating when I tell you that a women's bag can hold over half of their life in one bag. As women we carry our bags in and out of buildings, walking throughout the city, they sit on our laps while we travel on any type of transportation. Now you can see why it's so important to not only have that perfect bag that we can carry day in and day out. The necessities that women need could go on forever, but each of the fun items have a purpose. Today, I'm sharing all the things that I carry in my bag as well as the purse that I am still obsessing over and currently using. 

I am always bouncing back and forth between different handbags as I have always been the kind of girl that loves to use cross-body and satchels. My current favorite purse is the Longchamp Tote bag. This tote literally holds my textbooks, charging cords, makeup bags and wallet. It is very easy to throw al the major items that I need for the bag and not have to worry about it falling out. 

I try my absolute best to keep the handbag clean and organized (it becomes a challenge). I continue to carry around what I absolutely need for the day!

THE Winter Coat Must Have

A lot of people ask me how I survive Michigan weather since the weather itself has a mind of its own and I say the love of my North Face parka. It's called Women's Metropolis Parka II. I have never recommend a coat than this one. It is my go to winter accessory that keeps me warm through the craziness of Michigan's weather. The quality of this parka is AMAZING, by when I say this I mean it. I have had this coat for over five years. Also the warranty of the coat is perfect, if you have any issue with the coat, North Face will promptly care of those issues. I had a slight cut on the sleeve on my arm (near the shoulder) then I sent into North Face and they fixed it with no charge and repaired the sleeve completely. I have all but good things to say about this parka. 

I cannot stress enough about how much I love this coat. It is definitely worth the money! I can't wait to share more of my closet favorites this spring and summer! I would love to know what other clothing pieces you would like me to share on Simply Emily Elizabeth. 

Think Pink with Vineyard Vines

One of my favorite skirt is from Vineyard Vines that I only got for eighteen dollars with tags still attached. It is a size 8 and it fits like a glove. I found it at a local consignment shop in Grand Rapids and I love the way that the color is a strong, bold pink. On Saturday, my sister and I traveled into a snow storm to eat macrons at Le Bon Macrons. This café was a perfect stop between photo shoots while getting out of the snow.  Pairing this skirt with a black tissue turtleneck from J.Crew, black tall Hunter Boots and light pink Sugarfix by BaubleBar Triad Ball Drop Earrings. These earrings have a large selections on earrings on clearance at Target. I love how lightweight these earrings are and they come in fabulous colors. 
Valentine's Day is right around the corner and I can't wait to continue to share more outfits and gift ideas. Enjoy!

 This second semester is really kicking my butt with my crazy schedule of full time being an athlete and student. I am trying to keep a consistent schedule with the blog while working part-time, being a student athlete and attempting to have a social life. Thank you for being so patience while I continue to figure out my schedule. New content is on it's way for the spring time.

My J.Crew Buys

J.Crew has had a wonderful after Christmas/New Year's sale, where majorly of the final sale items are fifty percent off! Each day I reload my page to see if more and more items are added to the sale. I already have a second round of clothing in my cart on J.Crew's website that I am ready to purchase more items. I am very excited to share my items that I have purchased from this amazing sale. Enjoy! 

Ruffle-Front Wrap Bodysuit
At first, I was very nervous when purchasing a bodysuit to begin with as I never thought that I would love this one as much as I do. It is super comfortable and very versatile to wear. So far I have worn it to a holiday party, a date night and simply shopping around town. The V neckline is not super deep but gives enough coverage around the boob area. I am wanting to buy another one similar to this one but in navy blue. I went with a size Medium as there was enough room in the length of the arms and around the butt area. I highly recommend this item to anyone that wants to try a bodysuit. Plus it is only $7!! 

Merino V-neck Sweater with Drawstring Sleeves
This sweater fits amazingly as while being the perfect layering piece for the fall or winter season. I bought this sweater originally in a cream color but changed my mind for a navy blue color. It has slits on the sides of the sweater to get rid of a tight feel. With the sleeves, you can tighten the drawstrings for a looser or cinched look. I love the cinched look as it gives a similar look of a mini-bell sleeve. I went with a Medium in this sweater as I do like to layer majority of my sweaters with a button down. The V-neckline is not too deep to wear a tank top with it but generally could be worn without one. 

Excursion Quilted Down Vest
As many people know I am obsessed with vest. I have been waiting and keeping my eyes looking for the right moment to purchase a vest from J.Crew. I highly recommend this vest to anyone who wants a simple, versatile vest. It is perfect to wear in the fall, winter and spring season. I usually wear a size Medium with my vest as I like to layer up generally in those seasons. It is very lightweight but still warm enough for any type of weather.  

Club Collar Perfect Shirt in Black Watch Plaid
I have been wishing for this shirt to go on sale since the beginning of the sale. I love the dark plaid pattern within this shirt. It would be very easy to match this shirt with black skinny pants and loafers. It is a very slimming shirt so I do recommend in sizing up as I typically wear a size 8. This shirt is perfect for the holiday season, especially around Christmas and New Year's. 

I am very excited to share more content with y'all this upcoming spring. These are just some of my new purchases from J.Crew as I am hoping for a second haul of new clothes for the spring. This semester has been kicking my butt which is why I have been MIA the last couple days on social media. More content is on its way! 

Loving The Longchamp

I was never a large purse type of girl, but since my freshman year of college I have found a new aspiration towards them. For Christmas this year, Santa brought me a Longchamp Le Pliage Medium size purse, in the color black and I am obsessed! This particular purse has a multi-purpose storage room to store large components. I can easily store clothing and my agenda while having enough room for my wallet, winter essentials and other miscellaneous items. The Longchamp purses also has a secret compartment near the top of the zipper that can hold jewelry, memory cards, or even lipstick. I highly recommend this purses as I was surprised that it will continually hold its shape while in use. While I do believe people have their limits, I think true handbag lovers will continue to buy this bag. Enjoy!

Overall, this is one of my favorite and handy purses that I would highly recommend a Longchamp to anyone! I am very impressed with the amount of items this purse can handle! Spring Semester is so far off to a great start and now soccer is full go with postseason workouts and practices. 

Explore the Eastside

A day in the wonderful town of East Grand Rapids, it was amazing to explore the newly remodeled Breton Village, we shopped in Lululemon, Anthropologie, JB and Me, and a couple other stores. For lunch, we enjoyed the wonderful Anne's House and then quickly shot a couple photoshoots before the crazy snow storm began. I was in my Downtown Field Jacket from J.Crew, a cute cream top from Loft, black Pixie pants from Old. Navy and brown boat shoes from Sperry's. A comfortable outfit on a cold winter afternoon was a way to go! Enjoy

Spring semester has just started as I can't wait to express the joys and triumphs that it brings. I will be doing a blog post soon about it within the first couple weeks of school. I hope everyone had a wonderful first day back to the routine.