Brrr

Winter is here. This became painfully evident to me last night as I walked to my bus in what felt like 20-degree wind gusts. I immediately was filled with ALL THE REGRET about not wearing fleece tights and a hat. This is my first winter with short hair too - so I feel like I'm at a bit of a learning curve over here. Hats and scarves every day from now on!

This scarf is handmade by a local DC designer, Betsy, CEO and founder of Zophia. I love the frayed edges yet classic pattern is has. Betsy is MAD talented when it comes to designing clothing. She designed the tropical crop top I’m wearing here and here. Who knew that such a statement top would be such a staple in my closet?!

Most times when I’m getting dressed, I plan it around a certain item and then use the process of elimination to help decide the rest. I wore my favorite navy shift dress from another local designer, Erika Schrieber (you can find her stuff at the Sophie Blake Pop Up in Mosaic District) and my FAVORITE marble sneakers from Anthom.

I wore this out for a lunch date with Betsy at my go-to spot, Malmaison in Georgetown. If you haven’t been (see photos here!), I highly recommend it!!

Wearing Zophia scarf, Erika Schrieber dress, Halogen leather jacket, Veja sneakers via Anthom
Photos by Betsy

The Mango Tree

Happy Friday!! Ending the week on a little wanderlust from our trip to St. Lucia. Because we wanted both the exotic mountain and luxury beach experience, we stayed in two different hotels on our trip! We spent the first few days at the rustic Stonefield Resort and the last few  days at the luxurious Sugar Beach resort.

The thing I didn't realize about St. Lucia is that you honestly and truly have to take a taxi everywhere you go. Forget walking around town to find a great place. You better have somewhere in mind ahead of time and be prepared for a fairly expensive taxi.

Luckily, there was a great restaurant on-site at Stonefield called The Mango Tree. The food was much pricier than I'm used to, but we found that's pretty common for the area. Oh well, YOLO. 

I wanted to wear something super special for our last night at Stonefield, so I wore my custom Zophia blouse (named the Julien Top!) My good friend Betsy designed the shirt and I knew St. Lucia would be the perfect occasion to rock it. I love that this piece was totally tailored to me, giving it the perfect fit. Oh, and did I mention it's on sale right now?! 

I paired this with a pretty Elizabeth and James skirt that I initially tried on the top with. It was my first fitting and we met at Intermix so Betsy could show me how versatile the top was. I tried it with this skirt and WOW it fit like a dream...but the price tag left me feeling very, very sad. $265 was a bit much for a summer skirt, so I sadly said goodbye and vowed to snag it as soon as it went on sale. WHICH IT DID 3 months later!! Yes, it's a summer skirt, but you know full well I am going to try to do everything in my power to make this work for fall. Challenge accepted.

I also brought along this gorgeous clutch from Jeffrey Levinson. I've never felt leather so soft in my life. It's an investment piece for sure, but in the few weeks I've had it, it's garnished more compliments than any other bag I own. Not to mention Olivia Palermo has one of his bags and so does Diane Guerrero (from OITNB!) 

I finished off the look with some jewelry from my favorite local jewelry gals...the cutest Rachelle Celine midi rings and rose gold necklace from my babe Sophie Blake. Stay tuned for more St. Lucia goodness next week!

Wearing Elizabeth and James skirt, “The Julien Top” via Zophia (on sale!), Jeffrey Levinson clutch, J.Crew mules, Sophie Blake necklace in rose gold and Rachelle Celine midi rings.

The Julien Top

GUESS WHAT GUYS?! - It’s my birthday! And I’m gonna party like it’s my birthday. 

Just kidding. I’m going to work then eating something yummy with the hubs after. Adulting is hard.

BUT on a super awesome note, I have something really fun and awesome to share! After trying on a sample of this gorgeous custom Zophia top, I loved it so much that the founder, Betsy, decided to name it The Julien Top! 

I love The Julien Top for a million reasons. First of all, this pattern is everything. It’s giving me all the happy beach vibe feels and it’ll be the first thing I pack for my trip to St. Lucia next month. Second, I love the juxtaposition between the crop top and the bell sleeves. Bring me all the 70s goodness, please. And I’m in love with this lightweight fabric. Even though it’s long sleeves, there’s plenty of air getting through. This top truly embodies everything I aim to be...effortlessly chic, breezy and fun!

If you love this top as much as me, Zophia is offering It’s Julien readers a $50 discount on all her custom tops and skirts! Just use code: friendsofjulien (and be sure to sign up for her newsletter, where she frequently offers even more discounts!)

AND if you missed last year’s birthday, be sure to catch my post on “26 Things You Didn’t Know About Julien.” 

On Julien: The Julien Top from Zophia, Express skirt, Via Spiga booties, Hanuel necklace and earrings.