Outfits of the week!

This week has been so incredibly hectic! In fact, the entire month of January has been - something I'm still not very used to after the lull and laziness of the holidays. As such, I haven't had a ton of time to take photos (read: I've had absolutely no time at all) so I'm taking a page out of Khatu's book and posting my outfits of the week via Instagram. You may have seen some - alright, most - of these if you follow me on Twitter, but I figure it'd be good to add these here all the same.

TUESDAY 
[H&M boucle skirt & button-down, Calvin Klein blouse, Topshop belt (similar)]

WEDNESDAY 

[ASOS cropped pants, H&M blazer, bangles from India (similar)] 

THURSDAY
[Topshop shirt (similar), thrifted wool skirt, H&M belt]

FRIDAY 

[wearing Topshop blouse (similar), American Eagle sweater (similar), MixIt necklace, Delia's jeans Sz 0]

I'm trying incredibly hard not to stray from my New Year's resolution to buy only items I need (since I've already epically failed at my other NY goals, namely, to eat healthier and go to the gym regularly). It's been tough! I caved and bought a pair of amazing wedge booties from Piperlime (see my image here) - but I don't think these count against me since I used a gift card ;) Have any of you been able to stick to your New Years' resolutions so far? 

Lusting after...spring pastels and LOFT new arrivals.

Snow hasn't even hit NYC yet (unless you count the freak snowfall on Halloween, which I would just like to erase from memory altogether...) but spring fashions have definitely hit the stores - and I'm loving the pastel colors that are everywhere this coming season! So much so that I just wanted to share a few items with you all that I'm dying to wear. Can't we just skip over February and March?

The other day, I stopped by a nearby LOFT to see what they had in stock (Twitter followers may have seen some of the items I Tweeted about when there). I fell in love with the Patch Pocket A-Line Skirt in Scuba in 00P. It doesn't seem to be available in petite/small sizes online, but there were several in-store. If you're interested in this skirt, I suggest you go check it out in person to see if it's available (or, of course, do a Stylefinder).

Graphic prints and polka dots.

I've always found mixing patterns to be a challenge. There are some people that are just so naturally good at it, and I honestly don't know how they manage - whenever I attempt to mix paisley with stripes, or stripes with plaid, or what-have-you, I feel like I just end up clashing.

But one of my (many) New Year's resolutions is to venture more outside of my sartorial comfort zone this year, and this is one goal I am absolutely determined to keep. One thing I've learned about trying out fashion trends you're intimidated by is to start off slowly...so that's exactly what I did.

Lusting after...ASOS 50% off sale!

I have a bit of down-time at work today - hurrah for the holiday lull! - enough for me to have thoroughly browsed through ASOS' 50% off sale which just started today. There are so many terrific items that have been reduced and which are still available in a whole range of sizes! I wanted to share my favorites with you all.

First is this cableknit sweater in navy that I've been eyeing since it first appeared on the site. I like both how cozy it looks, and how petite-friendly the length appears to be - this sweater appears to truly be cut short. It is currently retailing for $29.09, down from $63.63, and is still available in all sizes excluding size 1.

Shopping for the impossible: the office holiday party.

It's that time of year! Christmas lights blinking, carolers singing, store sales tempting, and its all leading to...the office holiday party! And lately, I've been hearing a lot of concern from my friends about what to wear (and maybe more importantly, what not to wear) to these events.

Work social events are inevitably awkward, something I've learned quickly since starting my first job. Not only are you trying to make small talk with the higher-ups for extended periods of time, but you're doing so while imbibing alcohol. Now, I don't know about you, but alcohol + me can make for awkward situations at the best of times, so the idea of that formula  working its magic in a professional environment is all kinds of terrifying.

From discussing work parties with friends, I know that finding dresses for such events is difficult for mostly everyone - so finding something that's conservative and cocktail-appropriate and also petite-friendly is almost nigh impossible. And, since I recently got my own invitation to our firm's annual holiday party, hunting down the perfect work-appropriate cocktail dress has been weighing heavily on my mind. A few other bloggers have posted about similar topics (namely, Jean from Extra Petite here and here, and Khatu here) but I thought I'd go ahead and share my own finds with you! I've ordered a few of these, and will hopefully be able to do a more comprehensive review soon.