Keeping Up With The Joneses
Good morning everyone! I am in such a happy mood this morning, because it has finally quit raining. It has rained so long, I’ve been looking for the animals to start pairing up. haha All kidding aside, the weather does play havoc with my moods. I wanted to stay home today and just lay around. But, I finally got up off my lazy tail and picked out an outfit. This outfit, and all my others, are picked out spur of the moment style. Try as I might, I just can not pick out outfits the night before. If I do pick one out, I will usually change my mind in the morning. Even when I go on my woman’s club trips, I wait till the morning I am leaving to even pack. Procrastination is not my middle name, instead I think it is sorriness.
I love this vest. I bought it at the craft fair we had from one of the boutique shops. I really like that it is reversible to a leopard print. I will get to show that side on another post in the future. Here is a similar vest, but I have never bought anything form this site, so I can’t vouch for them. The berry color really goes great with the camel cowl neck shirt. If I wear camel another day this week, I make have to check my back to see if I am growing a hump. The tunic is from Target, and was actually pretty thick material. I like buying accessories from Target, but I have never bought very much clothing or shoes from them. If you’ve purchased clothing from them before, maybe you can let me know about your experience.
Oh, the necklace. I promise these pictures do not do it justice. It is from Premier Jewelry and is called Kaleidoscope. That link is to an ebay auction, but if you know of a Premier consultant, I am sure they would order it for you. I like that you can wear it in several different configurations.
This lucite leopard cuff is from the vintage fashion show that I went to in Atlanta. It was a whole $5.00! I am telling you, you need to look in antique shops, thrift stores, and of course yard sales, because you never know what little treasure you will find. 
I am still wearing my By the Book bracelets that I also got in Atlanta. This is two of them together. I am really needing to remember these verses right now, so I like keeping them handy for me to see. Proverbs 3:5, and Jeremiah 29:11
How do you like these boots? I bought these last year when I went to visit my sister in Atlanta at a little boutique called Glitzy Chicks. They are not leather, but the monogramming won me over. I think they were like 24.99 plus the monogram charge. Now I will always know that these boots are mine. LOL
Now for the part about keeping up with the Joneses. I have found myself thinking that I am less than adequate, especially when I look at other blogs. Nordstrom, Macys, Bloomingdale, etc. are not exactly my go to stores. Kate Spade and Tory Burch do not reside in my closet. Talbots is about at high-end as I get. I of course want NICE things, but I like a bargain, and refuse to pay 500.00 for an outfit. I have to keep repeating the wise old words from Popeye, “I yam what I yam”. I hope you enjoy my blog, and you at least shouldn’t have too much trouble keeping up with the Stephenses.
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Linking up with Katherines Corner for Thursday’s Favorite Things, A Labour of Life, East Coast Chic, Happiness at Mid Life, Mix & Match Fashions, High Latitude Style, and Doused in Pink for Thursday Fashion Files. Be sure to check these ladies out.
Hello Tania! One of the things I love most about your blog is that you wear affordable clothes. It is so frustrating when a blogger wears such expensive clothing on a regular basis. The average person just cannot afford them. But when you show an average person, the middle class gal, how to look great using a basic tank from Walmart & cute pants from Old Navy & jacket from Target, you are really helping us! I can work w that! I just turned 50, wear plus sizes, & just don’t have the income to spend on expensive clothes. I have 2 teenagers that all my extra income goes to. I only shop sales, & am regularly at the thrift store. So thank you very much being obtainable. Thank you for not keeping up w the Jones. Thank you for being real!
who cares that you don’t spend a lot on your clothes? Not me! I shop everywhere, cuz , ya know, the cute stuff is everywhere.
Tania, I am new to your blog and also appreciate that you have a thrifty side. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on clothes either. I have other ideas for my money! So thanks for styling in a reasonable fashion for those of us that don’t shop and buy all the time. You show how fabulously stylish a gal can look!
Tania, I just found your blog two days ago. I enjoy seeing how others put pieces together tastefully, and you do well in that area. Keep up the good work.
Welcome Pamela! Thanks for visiting, and I hope you come back????
I agree, you are on point and I love your style. You look as though you shop the high $ stores.
What a great vest, I love things that are reversible. I always feel like I got 2 for the price of 1!
Thank you for being a part of TBT Fashion link up and hope to see you soon!
Alice
http://www.happinessatmidlife.com
Thanks for linking up to Top of the World Style
I follow two other blogs which I also love but one of them has recently started to put some much pricier things in outfits. I love all the outfits they post but I do not think it is such a good idea to entice with things that might be regularly achievable to some but at too steep a cost to others. Something else comes along soon enough anyway! I think that I appreciate your blog more because the beauty of it is -You actually wear and style what is in your closet! I have a closet full of clothes but I need to know how to wear them- that is where you come in. I don’t always need something new, I need to use what I already have and the ways you put things together is wonderful inspiration to me. You are not afraid to take chances, you are confident because you know your style and that is part of the reason your followers come back! We want to learn our to be confident as well! Many, if not all, of the most desirable pieces you have shown are actually reasonable but also stylish and chic. Do not sell yourself short and keep it up. You might be a fashion blogger but you make me laugh everyday when I read your posts because you are also a comedian! You are fashionable,funny and self deprecating and the kind of person I would pick as a friend!
Debbie, just because we don’t live close, doesn’t mean we can’t be friends???? We ALL need help, love, and encouragement from each other. Thank you so much for following along with my crazy life. BTW, my sister has emailed word press to see what is the problem with the emails. She signed up, but doesn’t appear on my list, and she is not getting the notifications either. Hopefully, they will get back in touch with me soon. Thanks for your patience.
I found you again! I must have read your entire blog one evening and forgot to bookmark it! Well, tonight, I was reading Jo-Lynne Shane’s blog and found you in her Friday’s Favorites. I enjoy your style and commentary, Tania. You are bookmarked now! I, too, am happy the sun is shining again. Happy weekend!
Yeah, Terry! I am glad you are back:)
I just stumbled on your blog today and I love it!! I’m 38 but your fashion style is totally my look too. I’m with you….I like a good bargain. I think you can look great without spending a fortune!!!
Thanks, Melanie! I am glad you stumbled onto my blog!
Your outfit today is grea. I too love the vest!
FYI- I buy clothes fairly often at Target and have pretty good luck. One of my favorite summer dresses is from Target and i wore it all summer and it held up well. Sometimes their shirts are a bit thin so I avoid those or wear a cami underneath.
Love all your fashion ideas. Keep up the good work!
Just found you from the Friday Favorites link up and I’m with ya! It’s so hard to not want the $150 Nordstrom jeans, but I just can’t justify it. I love buying from thrift stores!
Sing it, sister! I am riding on your train!
Love love the vest! I have tried to sign up for emails several times with no luck. Any suggestions? Love your blog.
Pam, I don’t have a clue what is wrong with the emails. I do know that they send a confirmation. Did you get that? If not, try looking in your spam or promotions folders.
I absolutely LOVE your blog!! I found you a few weeks ago through a link on Jo-Lynne Shanes blog. I was hooked immediately. I stayed up late that night because I couldn’t stop reading your posts. I wanted to see ALL of your super cute outfits, and I did! I read every one of your posts that night. Tania, I (and I bet lots of your readers) love you and your blog for who YOU are! You are a beautiful, funny woman with a really cool style. I honestly have loved every single one of your outfits, and you always look amazing in them. Please don’t feel you are less than adequate because you’re great! Love you, love your blog, love your style. Please keep doing what you do because you’re doing a great job.
Lori, that is humbling to say the least. I thank you deeply for your kind words. It is incredibly hard to put yourself out there for everybody to see. Thank you for the encouragement!
Love the outfit! And I loved that necklace so much I just bought it!
I found your blog last week and I can’t get enough! I look for blogs like your’s and they are hard to come by. I love a good bargain and you have inspired me so much already seeing how stylish I can look without breaking the bank. Keep on keepin’ on, love, love, love!
Thanks Amy!!! I am so glad you stopped by. I have to admit that I am a sucker for a bargain.
I really enjoy your blog! I recently discovered blogs about style after 50, and find inspiration for my transition from going to the office every day to working part time from home. Keep up the style inspiration.
I agree with you! Not everyone can afford clothes from Nordstrom and those other high end stores. I also live in a small town. I love fashion and also want to look good without spending a fortune!
I am so glad to hear most of you agree that you can still look good, without breaking the bank. If you didn’t agree, then you kept quite. Haha
I look forward to reading your blog and seeing your beautiful outfit choices every day, so please keep on blogging!! I don’t like to spend a mint on outfits either as you will see from visiting my stylin’ posts!! But, I don’t think you need to spend a mint to look classy and beautiful either! Love your posts!!
Just echoing what everyone else has said…love your blog. Please keep posting and inspiring. Take care, Dani Foster Herring
The vest!! I love it. So beautiful. The inside-print detail is subtle and perfect. Love how you styled the whole look.
Mary
http://www.marymurnane.com
Your great sense of style and stewardship of the resources God gives you are the reasons I check your blog daily. Keep doing what you are doing! 🙂
Oh gosh.. the sun the sun the sun! I am loving that we can see it today, throw open the curtains and let it shine in. Enough with the rain!! Your vest is simply da bomb and I think it’s gorgeous. You put it all together so nicely too!
I ditto what Carol said!!!!! Love your sense of style and ability to put cute outfits together without spending your kids’ inheritance 😉
Your outfit is fabulous! Love the vest and every gal needs monogrammed boots. You have great style no matter where you buy your clothes and accessories. Put your own stamp on an outfit instead of a company logo!
I love your style and am really glad that you feature affordable clothing. Those high end stores are not within my budget and I, too, love a bargain. Thrift stores are my favorite. Keep up the good work! By the way, I was really excited the other day when I seen that you started following me on Pinterest!!
Fashion should be fun and not about the price, so good for you! How is your “goal” to keep weight off this holiday season going? Keep inspiring the rest of us. Seems like cookies are everywhere. Well, the outfit would be great for shopping but it still looks put together. I don’t get why people go ANYWHERE in public looking like they don’t care. We are sending powerful messages about ourselves with the way we dress!
Just wanted to say how much I love your blog and your style! I stumbled across it a couple weeks ago and am so glad I did! I’ve signed up for the emails and am looking forward to following your posts on a regular basis.????
Well, I think you always look great. I live in a small town too and the only store we have is Belk. There is a rumor Belk will close at the end of the year and we just lost Cato. Even if we had those high end stores, I would not go. I buy a lot from ebay and other consignment type sites. You are proof (and I hope I am too) that one can dress nice on a budget!
Tania,
I love your blog. Very few average income people can afford to shop high end stores. Also, most people do not live in an area that has those options available. It is refreshing to see someone wear “real everyday clothing” and do it with style! You don’t have to keep up with the Joneses because you are great just the way you are! I enjoy reading other blogs but I just can’t relate those people. Keep doing exactly what you’re doing.
Found your blog en route to looking up other things and I absolutely love it. Your clothes are awesome and have inspired me to try to put together outfits instead of just throwing something on. The reason why so many blogs feature Nordstrom and the like is because their blogging is sort of a business venture with them, and clothes are gifted or sponsored. Having a few high end things is great but it is very hard to have a whole closetful unless you get some “help”. Anyway looking forward to adding your blog to what I read daily. Oh and your hair is gorgeous!
Ladies, you ALL are so wonderful! These kind comments really brought tears to my eyes. Thank you so much for all the encouragement.
Your blog is my favorite because it’s reasonably priced items. I love your blog and can’t wait to read it daily! Please don’t ever stop blogging!
Can I just say that I don’t care if your clothes come from a trash bin, your style is on point! I am crushing over those monogrammed boots…..and the leopard lined vest……love love love.
I love that your blog DOESN’T try to keep up with the Joneses. I cannot afford Kate Spade or Tory Burch either. But that is why I like your style,because it looks great and does not require a second mortgage to clothe yourself! Fashion doesn’t have to be expensive to look fabulous. And the thrill is in the hunt, is it not???!!!
What a mess! Too much going on in one outfit, and you have no idea how to dress for your body type. A short, chubby neck is made larger by ten tons of crap wrap around it; the boots make you look shorter and make your legs look like stumpy sausages. Too many accessories in too many different styles. Your hair is the same–too much going on there. You look like a confused teenager instead of a self-assured, elegant adult. Tone it all down, girl!
Thank you so much for your encouraging words.
Tania, your so classy – even in your response to bitter Tara. I’m so embarrassed for her. Nothing of what she said is true. Your blog inspires me and you’re a breath of fresh air. I wish I knew you personally. Thanks for your posts and for sharing Christian thoughts too. xoxo
Why??? Why would you leave a comment like this? There is enough bad in the world today without this. This is just mean and thoughtless!!
I have to disagree with you Tara. I think Tania looks fabulous and I honestly haven’t seen a picture of her where she doesn’t look fabulous.
Tara, I’m not sure why you would leave such a comment in the first place. If you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything at all.
Tania, I love your style and I also love that you pull it all together as inexpensively as possible. I am new to your blog, but you have inspired me to find my style and start pulling in more accessories. Thank you!
Thanks so much Anna?