'Fall' in Love with Tommy

Hey Preps!

Penny loafers, corduroys, tweed... Hello Fall clothes! Although I am not partial to the wintry weather ahead, I do love fall.  I love the changing of leaves, Fall festivals, and (most importantly) Fall clothes!  As someone who tends to dress in classic wears, there is no better time of the year to express my style than right now!

Many of you know that I have a mild obsession with designer, Tommy Hilfiger.  Yesterday I was shopping with my sister and an iconic picture of Tommy was hanging from a Macy's ad.  I waved at him, like he was there.  Yes, that is right...I acknowledged a picture of Mr. Hilfiger like it was he himself present.  My sister lost it.  She thinks I'm crazy.

So, now you know how weird I am (if you didn't already) and that I love Tommy.  What you don't know is that I am in love with his 2011 Fall (Ready to Wear) Collection...

From cute cords, cropped blazers, perfectly preppy shoes, and chunky sweaters...Hilfiger has created a masterpiece for the lady preps to example this Fall:

The perfect balance found in the chunky sweater paired with

dainty knee socks, and adorable heeled loafers...boyfriend with a feminine twist.

An outfit that I will be adding to my 'school wears' inspiration.

I have a tweed blazer that is worn too frequently...the extra flare 

added with the plaid button-down.  I adore the dark skinny jeans...very flattering

Wool shorts are a fashion trend I have been dying to try.  The tights are

a great balance to the plaid pattern, and the belt worn is a great accessory.

As for the shoes...I DIE.

Loving the color combination here....olive, plumish, navy, pale blue?

Very creative, and it looks great! I love the skirt and how it is cinched with 

the same belt from above...I tend to wear skirts with oxford shirts on a weekly basis. 

Hi penny loafers!  They are my favorite shoe in the entire world.

I like how they are paired with an edgier pant like these paint distressed skinny jeans,

and the preppy wool blazer pulls together a classic look. 

This reminds me of what my mom would have dressed me in...

back in the day...pennies in the loafers and all.  I love the jacket!

This outfit is great, I currently am freezing, and she just

looks so toasty.  I have a jacket/blazer just like this, and I love pairing it 

with cords...this color of a cord is not traditional, but fits perfectly with

a classic wardrobe's color scheme!

For the Gents, Tommy has put together some creative wardrobe accents that I would love to see y'all in:

This chunky sweater reminds me of my childhood. 

I love the wintry patterns, and the fact that is a button-up.

It is a suave casual look when paired with the

 jeans and casual oxford shoes.

Not sure how I feel about this model...is he GIGGLING?

What is he doing? I keep laughing when I look at it, so I'm just gonna

scroll down and avoid it.  However, I do love the jacket he is modeling!

He is just so cute (on the contrary)! Love the combination

of patterns used in contrasting the underlaying button-down oxford 

with the adorable v-neck patterned sweater.  Do you know

any guys who cuff their jeans like this? Hook me up! (Pat don't read this)

Hello, we can get married now...only if you wear this

sweater to our wedding...

This sweater is like an ugly sweater party but it's not ugly?

I love that Tommy incorporated his Hounds into a sweater.  Adorable

What I really am fond of is those pants! Wowzers!

I love vests.  On guys.  Paired with this sweater,

perfect Tommy.  

Finally, my favorite of all...all you Gents;

MODEL AFTER THIS!

Casual classic.  I love the layering.

I love the blazer.

I love the jeans (cuffed again).

Shoes are an A+

Tommy, Tommy, Tommy.  I love you.

What do y'all think?

What I'm Jamming Wednesday

Hey Preps!

Today is a Train kinda day.  I came across this music video earlier, and thought I'd share it.  I love listening to Train when I'm studying.  They just have something that grabs me about their music and lyrics.  Anyways, this music video is the sweetest thing ever.  Don't you just wish you had someone singing this to you?  I think I'd probably melt.



There needs to be more bands like train.

Currently listening to them and writing a few other posts.  Enjoy!

What's So Funny?

Hey Preps!

Do you ever have those days where everything is funny?  Today I am in the most sarcastic mood.  I sit in class and silently crack up listening to my professors.  I have this one professor.  He's bald.  Technically he shaves his head, but I will call him Dr. Baldy for now.  He's my favorite professor ever.

Secretly he's a red head, but he tries to hide this by shaving his head.  Fail.  His eyebrows give his true ginger qualities away.  He smokes a cigar before every class, and though I disapprove of this unhealthy choice, I do love the aura of smells from the cigar that linger in our classroom.

While watching him today, I noticed something.  A hair.  On his head.  A single tiny strand protruding from the crown of his head.  Oh gosh, it got me.  All of class I just stared at that little tiny hair.  I wanted to get up and pluck it.

See what I mean?  I'm pretty delirious right now.  Already this week I have completed four tests, three papers, and still have two stinkin' lab reports to go.  Isn't senior year supposed to be the fun year?

Outfit of the Day:

Polo Ralph Lauren Oxford

J. Crew Corduroy Mini Skirt

L.L. Bean Coastal Skimmers

Vintage Dooney & Bourke Shoulder Bag

Only three more classes to go today!  Hope y'all are having funny weeks as well!  Stay tuned, I will be writing at work tonight!  Yep, writing on the job.  Woohoo!

Love Endures...Random Ponderings

Hey Preps!

Today at my work I had an older man come up to me.  I was typing up a paper for my philosophy class, and he interrupted asking, "Using that thing to talk to all your boyfriends?".  I laughed and stated the impossibilities of his presumption given the fact I only have one boyfriend.

Then he of course wanted to know how we met...I went on this painfully long and humorous story...and then he decided to tell me his.  He and his wife have been married for 60 years this October.  I haven't even been living for half as long as that, therefore it is hard for me to fathom what their love has had to endure over the course of those 60 years.

However, one thing is certain...they both are still so in love with each other as ever before.  I took a Marriage and the Family class to fulfill a Sociology core requirement my sophomore year of college.  The knowledge dispersed on me during this class was very worthwhile, and made me realize how many challenges there truly are in a marriage.  Finances, temptations, expectations...they all weigh so heavily into the less than 50% possibility that your marriage will last.

That is just so sad to me.  What makes love endure?  For me, I see people with a very twisted idea on what love is.  They see love as a feeling, as this emotion that makes your happiness peak.  Sure that is a type of love, but to me love is so much more than that.

Love is the decision to care for someone with all of your ability regardless of the circumstances.  When you truly love someone, you are committed to them...regardless of how hard things may be.  You put the other person before yourself.  Easier said than done.  Yet, in a deep love I feel like passion, friendship, and self-giving (the three loves Eros, Phileas, and Agape) are so closely entwined.  You cannot have love without all three.

I feel that is why so many relationships don't last.  They jump the gun.  They say "I love you" too quickly because of the passion they have for one another.  Yet what keeps the relationship together when things get tough? THAT is when you can tell whether someone truly loves you, THAT is when you see their true personality.  When you are struggling, does the other person just get up and leave in disregarding you and your needs?  Or do they stick it out?

If they leave...they aren't worth it.  I promise.  Every person deserves someone who loves them completely and looks after their best interest...yet it is also our part to look after the best interest of others' as well.

There are times in relationships where I think it is easy to get caught up in the faults of your significant other.  To see things negatively.  To let influences sway your decisions on that person.  That can fester into something so much greater, that can eventually lead to a struggle and an unhealthy relationship that you are not sure how to fix.

When is it time to walk away?

60 years of marriage is a long time.  I am positive they have dealt with loss, financial problems, negativity, temptations, influences...you name it.  Their love endured.  Not only do I see the commitment  love, but I also see how passionate they still are...at 80-something years old...for each other.  What a blessing to have that kind of long lasting love.  They sure do have it down, and it would be of my best interest to continue learning from such an amazing couple.

Today the older man stated, "I saw her dancing...and knew she was the one.  Did you know she's smarter than me?".

His wife replied, "Not very smart on our first date though...I had a Pink Lady (drink) for the very first and last time."

We all laughed...and I sat there and wondered where I will be in 60 years.  Will Pat and I ever have that shot?  What can I do for him that is more self-giving?  If there is a chance that a random guy I met on a cruise can turn into such a great influence on my life...there is a chance that maybe one day, I will be telling someone about how we met in 60 years.  This reminded me of a song I thought I'd share...

Let me share some quotes I have found true about love:

C.S. Lewis (The Four Loves):
[To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal. Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements. Lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket, safe, dark, motionless, airless, it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, and irredeemable. To love is to be vulnerable.]


Emily Giffin, Love the One You're With:
[But maybe that's what it all comes down to. Love, not as a surge of passion, but as a choice to commit to something, someone, no matter what obstacles or temptations stand in the way. And maybe making that choice, again and again, day in and day out, year after year, says more about love than never having a choice to make at all.]


Nicholas Sparks, The Rescue:
[In the end, it’s worked out because we both want it to. As long as you two have that, you’ll be able to make it through anything.]


Anthony Robins:
[Some of the biggest challenges in relationships come from the fact that most people enter a relationship in order to get something. They’re trying to find someone who’s going to make them feel good. In reality, the only way a relationship will last is if you see your relationship as a place that you go to give, and not a place that you go to take.]


Fireproof:
[Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it.]

There is always the chance, and love comes in unexpected ways...I found these two pictures on Tumblr.

One of the most famous American pictures, and they had never met before.

So today I am holding on to the fact that love endures...

and that Pat and I have that chance to endure.

God bless.  Love y'all.

P.S. Like Preppy in Pittsburgh's Facebook!

Blessed Blazers

Hey Preps!

Anyone else freezing?  I am already sleeping in sweats...and it is not even my birthday yet (September 24th).  I never have to sleep in sweats before then.  Why?

Today is my second day wearing a blazer to class for the convenient sake of warmth.  So, a few days ago I put together a Polyvore of blazers and jackets you might enjoy.

Blazers for the Collegiate Girl by pittsburghprep featuring a cordoroy jacket

J Crew cordoroy jacket
$88 - jcrew.com

Barbour diamond jacket
£75 - johnlewis.com

Pea coat
$40 - delias.com

McQ by Alexander McQueen blazer
$595 - net-a-porter.com

Miu Miu velvet jacket
£725 - net-a-porter.com

Barbour military fashion
barbour.com

Burberry Brit checkered jacket
$1,005 - stylebop.com

Chloé cordoroy jacket
$1,695 - net-a-porter.com

J Crew crew jacket
$230 - net-a-porter.com

Emilio Pucci double breasted jacket
$679 - mytheresa.com

J Crew wool herringbone jacket
$200 - net-a-porter.com

Polo Ralph Lauren canvas blazer
$589 - mytheresa.com

From double-breasted chunky boyfriend blazers to crisp and clean cut wool and tweed blazers, I am in love.  I have this thing, for blazers because they really can pull an outfit together.  For example, if I am in a button-down and chino pants, an blazer makes my effortless outfit look like I spent hours planning an outfit.

Today I am wearing a navy blazer paired with camel corduroy ankle chino pants, and a V-neck polo shirt.  I tucked in the V-neck and paired it with a navy and light yellow D-ring belt.  So simple.  Literally it took me twenty minutes to get out the door today, and I look polished.

Canary Cords and Coastal Skimmers by pittsburghprep featuring stretchy jeans

Cotton jacket
$295 - net-a-porter.com

Stretchy jeans
$15 - alloy.com

Vineyard Vines tote hand bag
$145 - vineyardvines.com

Denham White Base V-Neck T.Shirt
£35 - seasonsclothing.co.uk

Girls Grosgrain Ribbon Belt
$40 - ralphlauren.com

Easy. Go blazers!  I have to run to class, but I promise I will start writing like normal Kalyn very soon.

Hope y'all had great weekends!

Friday, Do you Exist?

Hey Preps!

Wowzers.  What a week it has been.  I forgot what an addiction to caffeine I form during the school year.  It is 10:30 in the morning and I already have had two cups of coffee, and am currently sipping on Chai tea. No motivation.  None.  I have class in an hour and I just don't even want to attend.  I am currently freezing, and I feel as if every time I write a post I complain now.  SORRY!

Just yawned.  Someone laughed at how huge my yawn was.  You want to know something?  When Pat and I first started dating I wouldn't let him see me yawn.  Nope.  I was embarrassed of it.  I still am, but now I just don't care.  However, I still have this tendency to hold it in until I can't even stand it anymore; letting out the largest yawn you have ever seen.  My dad always says that he's surprised I haven't swallowed any bugs because of them...  Thanks? Glad I haven't.

As you can see I have a ton of ADHD going on this morning.  I really am half alive.  So, I made a quick Polyvore showing you what I am wearing today.  It is chilly here today.  Boo.  I still am on the internal clockwork of the South where it shouldn't be this cold until late October (and this is as cold as it gets).  I really don't even want to think about snow or freezing temperatures.  Yet here I am, already wearing jeans and layers to class...

Why Is it Only Thursday? by pittsburghprep featuring a wool jacket

J Crew wool jacket
$200 - net-a-porter.com

Abercrombie & Fitch vintage jeans
$54 - abercrombie.com

Tory burch boots
$495 - net-a-porter.com

Longchamp tote bag
$145 - longchamp.com

MICHAEL Michael Kors crystal watch
$250 - nordstrom.com

Boys' Secret Wash shirt in jenson gingham
$40 - jcrew.com






First on the list you will see a wool blazer.  Mine is technically tweed but looks identical to this J.Crew one.  Please don't be ashamed of me when you see that next on the list are Jeggings...from Abercrombie. I have the hardest time finding jeans that fit my waste and don't sag too much in the butt.  I mean I want to look like I have a little bit of a booty, but I am not the type of person to be caught in anything skin tight.  I get made fun of for wearing "mom clothes".

Whatever.  I don't care, because I'd rather be a little more conservative than I need to be than show all of my goods to the whole college population.  I always have been that way.  So back to the Jeggings.  They are ridiculously comfy, stretchy, and are form fitting but not in the gross, "muffin top" way.  I love the dark wash of them.  I think it's a little more classic than traditional jeans.  Plus I have always been taught that darker jeans are more slimming.

I pair my Jeggings with the prize of my shoe collection; Tory Burch Boots.  They make me happy.  Yep, just looked at them.  They are just the best, and so comfy!  I love how classic they are, and the fact I can pair them with so many different outfits.

Next on the list, my large Longchamp bag.  I usually just carry it and my binder to classes on these days since I only have a small book for one of my classes.  The bag is big enough to throw the book, flashcards, my Lilly P. binder and whatever else in it.  I am obsessed with Longchamp bags.  Everytime I see someone on campus with one, I secretly give them a thumbs up in my head.  Then I think I'd probably be friends with them if I knew them...probably not though, because if they knew I was giving them "mind thumbs ups" they'd probably think I was the biggest weirdo.  Which I am.

Michael Kors is one of my favorite designers.  The next item on the list is a crystal watch he designed.  I always have to have a watch on, it may be my only jewelry of the day, but I go crazy if I don't know what time it is.  Some of the classrooms at my college have clocks, but most do not.  So it's nice to have a watch so I can glance at the time and count down the minutes until I am free.  Yet wearing a watch has also helped me stay timely throughout my college career.  I highly recommend you wear one!

Finally, Gingham is making a huge comeback this season.  Not sure how I feel when I see people misusing Gingham because it is supposed to be paired with a traditional wardrobe.  To each his own...I guess.  It took me a long time to find a Gingham shirt that I absolutely had to buy.  Lands End Canvas and J. Crew were the only two stores I found the blue Gingham I was in search of...and oh, I definitely purchased a men's shirt from J. Crew.  It was cheaper, and I liked the blue better than the women's shirt.  Don't judge!

So there you have it, my in depth post on what I am wearing.  Sure you are thrilled you read through this whole post of randomness!  Hope you all are staying warm and dry!  Happy Thursday...last night of studying before the weekend (where I will be heading to Colombia, SC to watch Navy take on the Gamecocks...so excited to be down South for a football game again)!

Hope y'all have a blessed day!

Polo...Ringing in Fall

Hey Preps!

Currently I am eating chicken fingers.  It's almost midnight, I just finished all my homework...and Pat would be so mad right now if he saw me sitting here, stuffing my face with breaded fattening chicken and getting crumbs everywhere.  Crumby sheets. Pretty gross... My excuse?  Commiserating over my three tests that I had today.  On the tenth day of school, how is it possible to already have tests?  Not to mention that my history professor decided to keep us twenty extra minutes today...to talk about pilgrims.

Okay lady, Thanksgiving is in November, bring up the pilgrims then because everything you said in the killer twenty you kept us was not recorded by anyone in the class.  However, we all dislike you now.  If you expect us to be timely to class, we expect you to be timely in letting us out of class?  Understand?

So yep, chicken fingers in bed is just hitting the spot right now.  Please don't try this at home.

On a positive note, this past weekend was a lot of fun.  Not so much academically productive, but worth the sacrifice I would have to say.  It involved eight midshipmen coming up to my house from Annapolis, four great friends, my family, food, alcohol, and...POLO.

Fall for me is always brought in with the early September event of Polo.  This year the Polo match was set up to sponsor the YMCA Kid's Scholarship Foundation that allows kids with less fortunate circumstances to enjoy the YMCA programs, sports, and day camps they offer.  What a great cause.

So do you wanna see pictures from the event??

The gents showing off their colorful chino pants!

Never a dull moment...

What a colorful group!

The two men in my life...my Daddy and my Boyfriend :)

"Stomping the divots" during halftime 

Some pictures from the match itself

Rolling Rock Hunt

Pat stomping more divots

Group photo!

So who's coming next year? Second weekend in September!

P.S.  Like my new Facebook page!