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Express-ing Myself with Swimsuits

Today is not the Monday-est Monday to ever Monday, mainly because we don’t have to work today. Thank you to all of our Presidents for that perk! We hoped to take advantage and get our hair done today, as we like to schedule our appointments together. Unfortunately we waited a little too long to schedule. It’s probably for the best, because this winter is really taking  a toll on drying my scalp out. So maybe by the time we go in, it will be much improved!

Plus we just got hit with another heavy blast of snow. I’m so grateful to be tucked in at home, instead of trekking it into work. If any of y’all are on the roads today, stay safe! We ended up venturing out for some sushi last night, and the roads were so bad. The sushi was all worth it though, especially all you can eat for $25. Any of my sushi lovers out there, know that is unbeatable!

The upside to this snow, is taking advantage of the winter weather activities. Caitlin was able to get up north and do some snowmobiling with our parents. The trails have been much improved over the last couple of years! In fact, the men in our family are all headed back up next weekend to do a snowmobiling weekend. Caitlin and I are hanging out and working on blog projects.

Is there anything you’re looking for more on from us, as we continue to plot and plan for the future? We have several new to the blog retailers we’ll be sharing in the near future, because we feel you on not being sure about trying new brands, so we’re doing it for you!

We asked and y’all answered in regards to swimsuits on Instagram! Ever since Victoria’s Secret took away their swimwear, we’ve been stumbling around trying to fill the void. Asos has filled in the gap here and there for us, because they have EVERYTHING. Another go-to for me a bit more than Caitlin, has been Express. Peep Caitlin’s last swimsuit from Asos here, if you missed it on Friday.

Obviously we can’t really roll with the one pieces at Express, but we’re still holding out hope they will come to their senses and actually cover us tall women, since they’re supposedly size inclusive. Nothing is worse than seeing in big bold font, “WE’RE SIZE INCLUSIVE,” and tall women are still excluded.

But, they do have short sleeve blouses that have good length in the body. Let’s just catch up with the long sleeves and jackets and we’ll be super thrilled over here. Plus; as I said above,  I can roll with their swimsuits. You last saw me in my version of khaki green swimwear last summer, in this post. That is also still available in many colors on their site.

I think the quality is there, and the price can’t be beat. There is usually some sort of coupon code or sale happening. Y’all should NOT be spending full price on a swimsuit at Express. $30 for me is right on the money, especially when we like a heavy rotation of different options for the summer. My Ray Bans were an easy match with this swimsuit, because they’re bright blue, they’re lightweight and sporty for running around on the beach!

We’ll leave you with this gem, because this is an indication of how windy it was on the beach. It had us laughing so hard, and we just rolled with it! Hope your week is off to a solid start, go slay the day!

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New Neutrals

As you scroll past the highlight picture and see something olive combined with the title of this post, I am sure you are already thinking blah, blah, blah, here we go with the olive green again. But seriously, I can’t help how passionate I am about this color. I think it is 100% safe to say that this color is now absolutely considered a neutral. That’s right. Olive is sitting pretty with black, white, cream, gray, and as you know, we are here for it.

I definitely have a bias, and I think we all know that. I think it is the most flattering color on anyone. It could be because I think it looks killer with denim, as well as cream, or even black without being too flashy. I can’t exactly pinpoint when my love affair with this color began, but it definitely got out of hand very quickly. This isn’t stated lightly. I think I am slowly transitioning everything in my life to this color. My winter jacket was the first update,  followed by my phone case, nail polish, so many shirts, and even work pants.

So it was inevitable that I ended up with an olive green swimsuit, right? I definitely ordered this one half expecting it not to work out. They had the regular suit listed, but also listed a bustier option available that sold out pretty quickly. Jenilee warned that it may be a bit too flashy, but I had to try it and it was shockingly perfect. I LOVE that there is no clasp so when you are laying on a lawn chair you don’t feel the tie or clasp digging in. I have also noticed that I am slowly converting to only swimsuit tops that aren’t halter. If you are a little bit bustier you may feel my pain, literally. I have been in pain after wearing a halter suit all day.

The other win with this suit is that the bottom is a perfect rise. I can’t handle the low rise, hip hugger, cheeky trend so anything that has full coverage is okay by me. We all love to play beach games and be active, so a comfortable suit that stays put is a must. I don’t typically plan out “swimsuit” outfits but I love the color of this denim, olive, and the straw hat together. I think if I had to create a palette to stick to forever, this just may be it. These shorts are from Gap last year, but I will link some comparable options this year!

If you want to read about why we were both loving this hat, you can read about it in this post and this post. All the people with big noggins rejoice!  You have also seen these sunnies pop up a few times already and they will keep on keepin’ on as we roll into Spring (if we’re lucky), and Summer. They are the New Wayfarer and I love the fit! You have also seen this necklace featured many times including in our Midwest Gift Guide here. The company is a Chicago local, Vo Yourself and I love the horn trend. Unfortunately I think my skin might be starting to react to this one but it’s too cute!

Before Jenilee and I started packing for this trip, I got a sudden urge to buy a new beach bag because mine isn’t cute enough. As I was thinking of the aesthetic of our Instagram pictures I knew that my dirty, dingy thirty-one bag wouldn’t be super appealing. However, I just couldn’t get past how much I love the utility bag. I can put all of my sunscreen, lip balm, sunglasses, etc around the outside for easy access and organization is unbeatable. With that being said-at some point I will likely try to upgrade to a cleaner bag.

My question for you is: Where do you buy cute, reasonable, organizer friendly beach bags? Or did I already figure it out and I should just stick to my guns?


Enjoy the reality of most of our pictures with this one

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Valentine’s Day Round Two

Another one! Said in my best DJ Khalid voice… but yes, we are bring you another Valentine’s Day look. Let’s call this one the official tall looks. Mainly because most of the pieces are actually “talls.” Whereas the last round of looks were mainly just tall friendly mainline finds. Check out the last post here, if you missed it!

Valentines Day will be here within the week. I know everyone is counting down the days like we are. Ok, I’ll stop with the snark for now. Lets just call Valentine’s Day what it is. It’s an excuse to dress up really cute, and maybe a bit more dressy than we all do typically. We look for these excuses high and low! I’m forever bemoaning the fact that my life isn’t more glamorous. But I’m speaking it into existence now!

With that being said, y’all know I’m all about some red. People have complimented me on it enough that I feel confident in reaching for it regularly. Especially as a lip color. Nothing will brighten up your look easier than a perfect toned red. If you aren’t sure, go play around at the beauty counters and test them out! Just this last weekend I stopped into Riley Rose for the first time and did a little too well finding some new lip shades. Thankfully they were only $4!

What better time of the year to brighten up your wardrobe with some red than Valentine’s Day? I grabbed this John Zack tall jumpsuit via Asos and was super glad I did. I don’t know about y’all, but when a new retailer gets added to Asos Tall line options, I’m always a little hesitant to believe that they truly get what being tall means. I’ve been burned before, and I’m looking at you Missguided “Tall.” So I felt like I was taking a shot in the dark on this jumpsuit, and thankfully I was rewarded!

Remember me saying in the last Valentine’s Day post that Caitlin found her sandals for a steal at Nordstrom Rack? Well Chicago Rack’s always have the hook up, because I found these gorgeous black strappy sandals at the same time. I have a variation of this pair in nude, and when I saw black, I didn’t hesitate. When you find well-fitting sandal heels for cheap, you just have to grab them! Especially for wedding season, these will take me far!

Y’all might think there isn’t a limit on how many skirts we can own, but in fact there is one. We both really liked this red midi skirt, but held back on purchasing because we’ve prioritized other colors and fits. But that all changed when Caitlin found this River Island (via Asos) lip print cami. We realize that the colors couldn’t possibly match better, and she snapped up both. Talk about a ridiculously cute Valentine’s Day look. It’s whimsical, it’s a little sassy, it’s practically perfect in every way (thanks Mary Poppins).

When we try to explain to y’all that we really do wear our clothes repeatedly, you might not fully understand or believe us. It’s always easier to illustrate the point! That’s what you’ll see over and over with this pair of heels from Amazon! We just talked about them last week, but they’re an amazing find and very reasonable. Caitlin has continued to wear them in so many different contexts. That’s what we love to find in our items.

Tell us below, which Valentines Day look is more your vibe? Today’s post or the last post, or maybe neither if you’re staying in and cozy!

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Valentine’s Day

Ahh Valentines Day. A day of love. A day some of us love to hate. I guess where we stand on it, is mainly indifference. Neither of us appreciate a day where you’re told to share your love, and you’re bad if you don’t make some grand gesture. Call me delusional, I’d prefer it to be a bit more organic in occurrence. Plus buying some $6 card is not my idea of romance.

The funniest story I have about Valentine’s Day was two years ago, when Tim bought me a little succulent plant. As far as he knew, he thought he was buying me a live plant (which is definitely my love language).  I watered that thing for the longest time, until I thought I had discovered it was fake. I stopped watering it for a very, very long time and nothing happened. It must have been months before the little leaves started turning brown on the tips! It’s still trying to make a full recovery currently. Trial and error over here!

While we may not value all the consumerism that accompanies the “romantic” gestures of Valentines Day, we definitely still appreciate the outfits that invariably pop up around this time of the year. We don’t need any coaxing to wear some fun themed outfits. Especially when they involve red and pink.

We had a chance to do a themed mini shoot with a local Milwaukee Photographer Colleen Kubiak for Valentines Day, and we were all in! She takes some incredible pictures. We met her and experienced it firsthand with a DryBar collaboration we were lucky enough to be a part of a couple of weeks ago. We showed up and found the cutest little set up, all Valentines Day inspired.

Being a little nervous to work with someone new was an inevitability; but Colleen made us feel so at ease! We had some laughs and got some great shots of our Valentines’ inspired looks. This was the first look, which was definitely more of a girls night out inspiration.

Caitlin snagged this neon pleated midi skirt from Asos mainline range. Like we’ve said before, they have SO many more good skirt options. Don’t limit yourself to the tall section on their site, especially for the pleated selection. You may notice a bigger difference in the cut of the pencil skirt options, but all that you have to worry about for pleats is if the waist fits you!

She paired it with the CUTEST Valentines t-shirt, which is also from Asos but their tall range. It’s an awesome option because it’s low-key Valentines Day. It can be worn all year because it’s also subtle. Plus tall range graphic t-shirts? We are always on the hunt for good ones! She’s been getting great use out of these black heels she found on major sale at Nordstrom Rack. If you aren’t a girly girl or someone who is wild about pink we think this graphic Tee would be perfect with some jeans and a leather jacket for a dark Valentines outfit!

My look was a no brainer, as I had my eye on this midi skirt, also from Asos mainline range for awhile. I was drawn to the hot pink color and the subtle snakeskin print sheen. It’s not necessarily a work skirt, so less versatility than I prefer. However; sometimes you have to go with the statement piece for a fun night out. This was an easy option too because mini skirts have been letting us down lately. Plus, with Wisconsin winters being cold, it’s not conducive to running around chilled the whole night.

To make it casual and a little edgy, I paired it with a v neck t-shirt I snagged years ago from Nordstrom Rack. I topped it off with my favorite faux leather jacket from Asos tall range. That keeps me plenty warm in the winter! For the booties, I threw on my Circus by Sam Edelman ankle boots. They are an easy grab because they pair with practically everything.

Tell us below, what are your Valentines Day plans? Staying in, going out? Girls night, romantic dinner with your significant other, or just another day?

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An Abstract Amazon Find

As someone pointed out to me this week, we’ve been having terrible weather in Wisconsin since we’ve returned from Mexico. While I can’t take all the credit, I told them I would return to Mexico in hopes of resetting us. The groundhog did say we should have an early spring though. So here’s to holding out hope for that!

In the meantime, we’ll keep either getting you ready for your upcoming vacation, or just looking forward to buying warm weather clothing items. Y’all already know they’ve hit some rock bottom prices on everything. It’s no-man’s land out there in this sludgy weather. I kid about heading back to Mexico, but seriously Wisconsin, just throw some sun our way and I’ll shut up!

The only thing keeping us from sliding into our beds and hibernating until Spring, is all the new stuff we are excited about and planning to shoot for the blog! We’ve long talked about our need to explore more tall brands. It feels like we’re taking a firm step towards that goal. Hopefully it’s as exciting to you as well! We took advantage of some ridiculously good sales to test some items out. Stay tuned, we can’t wait to try them all on and share them with y’all.

Back to the outfit at hand though. Kimono’s or cover ups, have always felt tricky to me. It probably has everything to do with the fact that buying a cover up while I was in high school basically meant that it wasn’t actually going to “cover” anything. While Caitlin was just squeaking by with it covering her butt, I was just stuck wearing shorts and a tank top and pretending it didn’t matter to me. Are any of my tall sisters guilty of this?

For the longest time, I was indifferent to fashion and dressing myself well. I figured, what was the point? It was quite literally, a stretch to make something work. Thankfully I grew up past that attitude and started paying much more attention to styles that A. I could make work from mainline, and B. discovering new to me tall brands that would actually fit.

When I ordered this fabulous large headed hat (per Caitlin’s rock star find at Nordstrom), I added on a cover up. I knew it probably wasn’t going to work on me. It was on sale though, and apparently I’m a glutton for punishment. Trying it on took me back to my high school days of bemoaning that nothing cute comes in my size. Instead of wallowing in self pity or deciding to keep an ill-fitting garment, I just returned it.

Instead, I hopped on trusty Amazon to find something a little better fitting and possibly a bit lower priced. Amazon is never hurting for choice! You have to be discerning though, to make sure you’re picking something that isn’t both cheap in price and style. After scrolling through for an hour, I added a couple to my cart and called for Caitlin’s opinion.

I could caution anyone worried about shopping Amazon –  just to make to use Prime, so that you have the option to return items, and it’s free. It takes any concern off the table associated with online shopping. PLUS, always read the reviews. If you scroll down to find them, some people are even nice enough to show a picture of them wearing the garment. This is always helpful, especially if they talk about height, which a lot do mention!

So I picked the print I liked most and was pleasantly surprised to find how well it fit. Especially considering it was a one size fits most. I love that it came with a waist tie, it came in handy especially with the windiness we experienced in Mexico! You can snag this print or another, here. I wore a tall one piece suit from Asos that Caitlin and I bought in a two-pack last year. The high cut of the suit is very flattering on our long legs!

I will probably try to style this over an actual outfit as well, to maximize usage. I’m picturing it with some white jeans for a crisp summer look! We’ve linked some other cover up options below, if you’re not into shopping at Amazon yet.

Check this out for an accurate depiction of the wind!

How do you choose your cover-ups? Tell us below!

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