double uh oh...

Hmm...if Karmen broke her camera, and I STILL do not have possession of my own camera, however are we going to get our outfits uploaded to the blog?!

Don't worry - I'm going to Columbia this weekend so we will just have to make one of our dear friends be our picture slave until we get this catastrophe settled.

And I do owe my fellow bloggers a BIG apology for my complete and utter neglect of 20 Something the past few weeks. I suppose I could place blame on my lack of camera, the recovery process from surgery, jet-setting to Nantucket, having a mass amount of family in town, and having family in the hospital...but let's face it, no one likes to hear excuses. I PROMISE to have my 30 for 30 choices uploaded as soon as I have access to a tangible and working camera - don't give up on me!

missing you all terribly,

Mandy

uh oh..

i may or may not have dropped my camera while trying to take pictures of todays outfit…it was really cute. i promise.

looks like i'll be updating after i get this fixed. my bad!

-karmen

Third time's a charm

Express skirt, Urban shirt and gray heels, Venetian glass earrings found on my European trip in the back streets of Venice.

I wish I could say that I wore this outfit to work, or maybe on a hot date, or even to a nice lunch. I actually got all dressed up to go to Chic-fil-A for a spicy chicken sandwich and get my oil changed for the upcoming move. All the people serving me waffle fries and those at the auto shop thought I looked super cute though.

Sorry for the lack of updating but unfortunately I haven't a reason to get dressed up. Mandy came back this weekend and we all spent the entire 2 days in our swimsuits at the pool or on the slip and slide out back. I guess I'll have to start putting on clothes during the day if I'm ever going to finish this challenge…

All my best,

Karmen

Pizza Burgers

Today I drove out to Darlington to have lunch with my friend Jess. After an hour long drive listening to Nelly and TLC (straight up middle school, I know) I finally arrived in the small town of Darlington, South Carolina. We went to Joe's to get a delicious pizza burger and catch up on everything.

Tell me that doesn't look delicious.

Limited skirt, Forever 21 shirt, Delias belt, Ciao Bella ballet flats, and Ashley's awesome brown necklace from Charming Charlies (that I bought for her obvi)

I got Ashley to take my picture today. We were outside for a total of 3 minutes when Ashley started sweating and passing out of heat exhaustion thus giving up on a grand photo shoot. So that's why that second picture is so awkward…

Today I realized I will be moving back home soon. Did the summer really go by that fast? Anyways, this 30 for 30 challenge will have to move back home with me. Hopefully I can handle it so far away from everyone…

All my best,

Karmen

PS. Mandy is coming to visit this weekend!!!

A date with myself

Well it's summertime in Columbia. Which means it's impossibly hot and impossibly boring around this ghost of a town. With everyone else busy working and traveling it's been pretty lonely around the apartment. I decided to finally get out of my pajamas and off the couch and go on a date with myself. So I went shopping and went to lunch with no one else but my book. Maybe later tonight I'll take myself out to a movie…

As you know this is my first day of the 30 for 30 challenge. I put together a very simple outfit with a new dress I bought at the 40% off Ann Taylor sale (aka heaven). After working in the 100 degree blazing sun with the self timer I had broken into an intense sweat, so I settled for the best picture I could manage. Once Ashley gets home I'll have her take pictures of me…



Ann Taylor dress, vintage earrings, and Ariat boots

Until next time,
Karmen (& Mandy)

Finally picked my 30

Here we go ya'll, I've finally picked my 30 pieces for the 30 for 30 challenge. Wish me luck!







Now we just have to wait for Mandy to pick hers!

-Karmen

30 for 30 challenge

Okay okay. I'm bored. I have nothing to do. And Mandy is so far away!

So I've decided to start a little project inspired by the genius behind Kendi Everyday (http://kendieveryday.blogspot.com/) called 30 for 30.



The idea is simple. I choose 30 pieces and mix and match them for 30 different outfits for 30 days. Good idea for a poor unemployed college graduate right?

Okay well I'll be picking out my 30 pieces (probably all 5 Points wearable other than my pjs that I wear all day everyday now…) after this weekend. Until then I'm off to the lake for the 4th!

missing Mandy,
Karmen

PS. Happy 4th of July!
PPS. USC Gamecocks are NATIONAL CHAMPIONS! (in case you didn't already know…)

London to Rome

So as you all know, I recently returned from the trip of a lifetime around Europe. You guys want to hear my favorite part? Dressing up every day for sightseeing, dinners, and cocktails. Want to know my second favorite part? People watching.

Needless to say I over packed for this little trip. When we got to the airport my suitcase was a grand total of 51.5 pounds. Apparently the cutoff weight is 50 so I was forced to take out a pair of shoes (which coincidentally weighed exactly 1.5 pounds) and carry them in my already over stuffed carry on. If I had known I was going to wear the same pair of sandals almost everyday I wouldn't have packed so many cute shoes.

Anyways. About all the outfits I wore all over the Continent. (Please disregard the quality of pictures. Apparently my parents can't take a picture of me that includes my feet so there was little to work with…love you momma) I have most of my day outfits documented, but for whatever reason I chose not to take pictures of my evening outfits (which were much more interesting and were paired with actual accessories and beautiful heels) so please forgive me.



Walking down the Champs Elysees in Paris. I'm wearing a jean pencil skirt found at a small boutique in Charleston, ruffled shirt from Ann Taylor, the infamous silver sandal I wore everywhere by Giani Bernini, my "hey I'm a tourist" purse found at Marshall's, and Jess' silver earrings from Francesca's. Jess is wearing…an outfit ya'll have already seen. Pardon the awkward pose, we had to stop to quickly take this picture. People walk like madmen in Paris!



After climbing to the top of Mount Stanserhorn in Switzerland I wore Express jeans with an Ann Taylor off the shoulder red sweater (that I'm sure my friends agree I wear way too much), Nine West sunglasses, turquoise necklace from XXI, and "the purse."



Sitting atop the capital of a fallen Corinthian column at the Colosseum in Rome. This day I wore the Vatican dress code approved dress from Express.



So I'm in my map…(Friend's reference anyone?) At Buckingham Palace wearing a Gap dress worn with Target sandals and the recurring belt from Delia's.



At the upside down pyramid at the Louvre in Paris. I wore a cami from Express with a grey silk skirt from Ann Taylor, long pearls from Charlotte Russe, and a (fake) Coach cross body purse. Jess wore a shirt from Ann Taylor, skirt from Express and carried a (fake) Coach purse as well.



Shopping in the Island of Murano, Italy wearing a dress from Gap, "the purse," Delias belt, and flats found at Marshall's appropriately named Ciao Bella.



Making a wish in the Trevi fountain wearing a dress from Express and Jess' gold bracelet from Hand Picked.

I would share my pictures of the sights I saw but ya'll can just Google image London, Paris, Lucerne, Venice, Florence, Rome and see for yourself.

All my best,
Karmen (still missing Mandy)

Hair hair hair

Okay guys, I'm back. For 10 days I travelled all over Europe with my roommate Jess and my parents as a graduation trip to London, Paris, Lucerne, Venice, Florence and Rome. It was easily the best 10 days of my life.

One thing when traveling abroad to remember: hair appliances will blow up and not work. Even with my converter, my blow dryer and straightener scared me by blowing up the very first day of our trip. Europe was forced to see me with fuzzy awkwardly wavy hair though out our stay. When it came time to our fancy dinner out in Paris I didn't know what to do with the hot mess that was my hair after a day of sight seeing around the city. Clearly an up do was necessary. Many bobby pins and some fresh flowers from the garden later…



Voila! Worn with a dress from Target, earrings from Ben Bridge, and pearls from Charlotte Russe.

More on the trip later. Now I'll work on that jet lag by taking a nice nap…

-Karmen (missing Mandy)

A Post-Op Post

If you haven't noticed, Mandy has been a little M.I.A. around the world of 20 Something Couture lately and there is a reason for this. On May 21st, Mandy had an open heart surgery to remove some nasty muscles blocking her heart. She is in recovery, home, and doing very well. While the recovery from heart surgery is anything but glamorous, it does give one a lot of time to lay in bed and fantasize about outfits to wear once walking and moving in general are bearable again.

That time has finally come! In small doses, at least. Today was one of those days when lounging around the house was no longer an option. You can imagine how difficult it is to "take it easy" for someone who gets cabin fever quicker than you can say it. So Mandy accompanied her mom to the movies to see the much anticipated Sex and the City 2. And of course, it is highly unacceptable to attend such a movie without a cute outfit to match the beloved Carrie Bradshaw.

It was a bit of challenge to arrange a summery outfit that suitably covered the still-healing wicked scar left from the surgery, but all things are possible when you put your mind to it - even in the world of fashion.



shirt: American Eagle; skirt: Lauren Conrad's line for Kohls; shoes: Target; belt: New York & Co.

Apologies for the poor picture quality. This photo was taken via Mandy's iPhone, as she stupidly left her digital camera in Columbia.

Until next time,
-Mandy & Karmen

And so begins our separation

It's happening. We're growing up. Karmen is staying in Columbia sending out resumes and going to job interviews while Mandy is home in Myrtle Beach working for the summer. And so begins our separation for the summer…

With summertime comes long hot days wasted by the pool, laying on the couch watching reruns of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, the occasional job interview, and occasional night out with friends.

The other night Karmen went out on the town with her two roommates Jess and Ashley. We know we're not walking the runways at New York Fashion Week or taking pictures on a red carpet in Los Angeles, but to us the dirty college bar streets of Five Points here in Columbia are our runway and red carpet. Here's what we wore:



Karmen wore a dress from Express, Steve Madden heels, and gifted jewelry from her mom.



Jess wore a top and skirt from Forever 21, Ashley's brown heels, Karmen's gold earrings from Charlotte Russe, and a gold men's watch from Target.



Ashley wore a sequined top from Express, skirt from Urban Outfitters, random jewelry of Jess and Karmen's, and Jess's favorite orange suede heels from Urban.

As you can see, roommates share everything. From milk and bread to jewelry, dresses, and shoes. Just another perk of being a 20 something girl.

In one week (is it really that soon?) Karmen and Jess are going to Europe for two weeks. Both have been running around town buying things for this trip. Expect a post soon about packing for overseas!

-Karmen & Mandy

An all about us and only a little about fashion post

We've finally done it. We are now officially alumni of the University of South Carolina. College has been the best four years of our lives and has flown by so fast. We both are excited and totally terrified to enter the next chapter in our lives. We have met the most amazing friends here in Columbia so leaving them feels like complete torture. We know that our friendship is strong enough to reach over many many miles, so wherever jobs and graduate school take us we will still be best friends.

Okay enough with the sappiness. You wanna see what we wore to graduation? Well we wore really big black robes and a sweet mortar board hat. What really matters are the shoes you wear:



Shown with her two roommates, Karmen wore brown heels by BCBG (to compliment her ugly brown tassel), Jess wore black suede heels by Kristen Davis.

Unfortunately our graduations were at different times so we never got to take a picture together. Here's one of Mandy and her roommate Avery to prove she too graduated:



You can't see them but Mandy was wearing awesome shoes as well.

The next step in our lives: FIND A JOB. Expect more fashion driven posts about what to wear to interviews, etc.

All our best,
Mandy & Karmen

spring has sprung

Spring is in full bloom here in Columbia! And we have been doing all we can to soak up the refreshing warm weather. This past weekend was The Carolina Cup, which is an annual horse race held in South Carolina - or in our eyes, a reason to dress up and tailgate all day. Traditional Carolina Cup wear for girls is a colorful spring dress accompanied by an obnoxiously large hat. Boys put on their best button ups with a bright, fancy bow tie. Most people partake a little too heavily in "cup festivities" and miss the horse race entirely...but we made sure to grab a front row seat!

Here is a picture with all of our friends from The Carolina Cup:



Since it is spring, we finally have the opportunity to break out our spring clothes, and it feels amazing! One piece we really love to adorn any outfit with right now is belts. We find that throwing them on over any outfit adds a chic flare, and shows off our (as in all girls) fabulous curves! Tonight, we grabbed one of our favorite belts, threw it over our outfits, and headed out to enjoy some delicious sushi. On our way home, we passed by an interesting rock that was decorated with Egyptian hieroglyphics. We couldn't help but pull the car over and take some quick photos by it.









Karmen wore - shirt: American Eagle; skirt: a small boutique in Charleston, SC; belt: Francesca's; jewelry: from China Town in Houston; heels: Michael Kors






Mandy wore - shirt: Target; skirt: Forever 21; headband: Target; belt: Delia's; jewelry: vintage; shoes: Sophia Max;

-Karmen & Mandy

Remember us?

After a wonderful, relaxing week in paradise, coming back to Columbia and going back to school seems only a little less than pure torture. And on top of forcing ourselves back into the grind of reality, we both have multiple tests and papers to complete during the next week. This explains our lack of blogging over the past few days...and why we have to make this blog short and sweet. We promise to have a more detailed blog as soon as we (hopefully) survive this week - in the meantime, here is what we wore to school today:


Karmen wore Lacoste jeans, shirt from Forever 21, Banana Republic blazer, Jess's Kenneth Cole sandals, and jewelry from Charlotte Russe.




Mandy wore a shirt from Forever 21, cardigan from Target, vintage belt, ring, and necklace, jeans from Delia's, and Steve Madden boots.





-Mandy & Karmen

Well hello, Florida

photo cred: shehitpausestudios

It is 2:39 pm in the afternoon and we are well on the way to Key West! With 8 girls and 2 cars, we are nearly half way through the giant state of Florida. As you can imagine, we have both cars loaded down to the max with just about everything a girl needs for a fabulous, beachy spring break. Our top five essentials that we could not make this trip without include:

• the perfect sunglasses to combat that intense Florida sun (Karmen is sporting Michael Kors, and Mandy is sporting Rayban Wayfarers)
• several bathing suits which can be mixed and matched to make a new ensemble each day out on the beach
• an iPod full of upbeat and nostalgic music to make the long drive that much more of an adventure
• a camera to capture all of our memories and breathtaking sites we are about to encounter
• all of our gorgeous best friends to make this spring break that much more amazing

We will be stopping in Miami for the night before we finish the long trek through the Keys to Key West. We will keep you posted on exciting happenings throughout our trip! Now let's just hope we can find a hotel with vacancy for tonight...

- Karmen and Mandy

Friday Shopping

Today we did some last minute shopping before Key West. This is what we wore:



Karmen wore an Express dress, Gap jacket (courtesy of Katie's closet) and tights, Ariat cowboy boots, Michael Kors sunglasses, and jewelry from Charlotte Russe.




Mandy wore tights and dress from Target, sweater from Gap, vintage jewelry, and Antonio Milani heels.



Our friend Jess came with us. She wore Express jeans, American Eagle shirt, Gap cardigan, Karmen's Delia's belt, Nine West flats, and ring from Forever 21.

Last night was our friend's 21st birthday. Jess and Karmen went out to celebrate. Here's what we wore:



Karmen wore Ann Taylor shirt and skirt, belt from Delia's, vintage earrings, and BCBG heels.


Jess wore Express jeans, shirt, and belt, J. Crew cardigan, Kristen Davis heels, and jewelry from Handpicked.

Tomorrow we're driving to Key West for our last Spring Break! Anyone going anywhere cool this week?

-Mandy & Karmen

Getting over the gloom

It has been a cold and gloomy week here in South Carolina. Last night it snowed, which is a rare sighting in the South, and especially rare so late into the season. Luckily, our spring break is next week and we are headed south (all the way south in fact) to Key West. Though we are only three days away from paradise, this week has been full of papers, midterms, (as if our professors would let us have a relaxing week to get mentally prepared for spring break debauchery) and packing for the big trip. Needless to say, we needed a break from the stress of it all, so we grabbed a bite to eat downtown…here's what we wore:



Karmen is pictured here wearing: boyfriend jeans and leather jacket from Gap, sweater from Ann Taylor, scarf from Charming Charlie's, owl necklace and ring from Charlotte Russe, and Michael Kors heels.









Mandy is pictured here wearing: dress, cardigan, tights, and shoes from Target, belt from Delia's, vintage necklace and ring.







[Right now, we must shop on a college student's budget — but as you can see, you don't necessarily have to splurge to put together a good outfit!]

Now we must get back to packing for Key West. Expect another post soon about all the essentials we feel are needed for a fabulous spring break vacation!

-Mandy & Karmen