Outfit Crush: Gwen Stefani

If there were one woman I had to chose as my favorite style icon over the last two decades, and for many more years to come, it'd be Gwen Stefani. I don't always love what she wears on a day-to-day basis, but it always makes me take a second look. She pushes the limits. And her stage outfits are always spot on. The signature plaid pants and the ska influences - I wish the normal person (me!) could rock that look on the regular.

I feel like her outfit below, which she wore to an airport Labor Day weekend of this year, is a mix of ska and British rock and I.adore.it. Truly. I would wear this in a heartbeat.

In an attempt to recreate her look, I came up with this outfit. If only I could find that amazing blazer!

Gwen Stefani Style by leeannm 

On a side note, I've been listening to No Doubt's new album Push and Shove on repeat but am not diggin' it. There are a few catchy songs but overall it's not the No Doubt I love and remember. Anyone else have any thoughts on the new release?

For more outfit crushes, visit Long Distance Loving for Friday's Fancies and get in on the action!

And I hope you'll stop by on Monday for Weekend Update. If you haven't yet joined the blog hop, it's a great way to make new friends!

Photo collage created by me, photo credits from: Just Jared

Root Canal Hell

Sorry in advance for not having anything exciting to blog about today. AND sorry for not returning comments and visiting blogs regularly. Unfortunately I had TWO root canals on Thursday. That's what happens when you're afraid to go to the dentist. A simple procedure gets complex and way more painful. Today I go back to get temporary crowns. I'm still sore, so let's hope it's not as traumatizing.

Needless to say I did a whole lotta nothing this weekend. Aside from a quick trip to AAA to try to get Australia travel deals, which was a bust, I watched a lot of movies and football.

On that note, I want to live vicariously through all of you! What did you do this weekend? Link up with my co-hosts Sami of Sami's Shenanigans, Dana of five30three, and me and tell us all about it. We just ask that you follow these rules:

1. Blog about your weekend.

2. Add the badge (below) to your post.

3. Add the blog post link to the linkup below.

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I Rep The Saints

Victoria's Secret metallic top / Victoria's Secret v neck graphic tee / Victoria's Secret racer back tank / Victoria's Secret victoria secret pants / Victoria's Secret metallic shorts / Victoria's Secret lace boyshorts panty / Victoria's Secret lace boyshorts panty

Football fans: have you seen the adorable items of Victoria's Secret Pink NFL Collection?! So many cute football pieces! The line makes supporting your team in style a possibility. Gone are the days of wearing bulky men's T-shirts. I'm pretty sure I'm going to cave in and buy that racer back tank. It may be THE CUTEST NFL tank I've ever seen in.my.life. My team may be 0-2 and off to a rough start but win or lose I'd rep The Saints in this gear.

I'm so proud of Victoria's Secret and Old Navy (did you see my post last week?) for offering so many options for women football fans! Now go check out your team's gear at VS! And for more football goodness head over to Long Distance Loving for Friday's Fancies.

Now go have a great weekend and come back Monday to link up for Weekend Update!

I'm going to Australia!

Source: etsy.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Yup, my work is sending me down under for two weeks and I'm extending my stay for an extra week! I'm a mixture of excited and nervous. Thrilled to have the opportunity to see Perth, Melbourne, and Sydney (see map below ;), along with some friends that live there, but nervous for that 15 1/2 hour flight I'll be making by myself. Oh yeah, and I have to still book a hotel, figure out my suitcase situation, and make cell phone arrangements...all in less than a month.

Source: lonelyplanet.com via Leeann on Pinterest

But when I start stressing out, I just need to think about how gorgeous it's going to be. I mean, look at these amazing landscapes!

Perth

Source: wallpaperstock.net via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: bing.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: google.ca via Leeann on Pinterest

Melbourne

Source: twistedsifter.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: zonetourismworld.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: media-cdn.tripadvisor.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Sydney

Source: destination360.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: willgoto.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: onebigphoto.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Of course as a tourist who has never been to Australia, kangaroos and koalas are on my must-see list!

Source: chicagotribune.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Source: inhabitat.com via Leeann on Pinterest

Anyone been to Perth, Melbourne or Sydney and have suggestions/tips? I'd love to hear them!

Old Navy Cardis

beige / dalmatian

Old Navy does it yet again. Affordable + adorable.

I recently bought, and love, these Old Navy cardigans. The beige one is a bit over-sized and super comfy, while the dalmatian print is designed to fit and adds a touch of trendy to an outfit. If you're looking for some affordable additions to your fall wardrobe, I suggest these two pieces!

A Lake Mead Getaway

Mondays are hard after vacations. Especially the relaxing kind of vacation where you get in a routine of not doing much, and that is exactly how I spent my extra ling weekend starting Wednesday. Each year I head to Arizona and Lake Mead for a family vacation. I love going mid-September because the temps are cooler and the people on the lake sparse. The two days we were out on the water we saw a total of 6 boats. Insanity. And perfection.

See that picture above? That's the south rim of the Grand Canyon. We take the boat out in the same area as the Grand Canyon Skywalk (which I would NEVER actually visit because I am terrified of heights).

And because my weekend was extra awesome, on Sunday I finally got to meet one of my fav bloggers, Christina of Easily Entertained! We've been wanting to meet up for at least a year and it finally happened! She's visiting San Diego so I made the trip down south and picked up my IRL friend Tiffany of Polka Dotted Cats and we all had a great time talking over brunch.

Tiffany, me and my greasy hair (I was a bit hungover), and Christina!

What did you do this weekend? Link up and tell us all about it. We just ask that you follow these rules:

1. Blog about your weekend.

2. Add the badge (below) to your post.

3. Add the blog post link to the linkup below.

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Fall Lust

Fall Lust List by leeannm

Let's take a second to pretend that fall in Southern California is like the fall most of the country experiences. In this dream, leaves change into vibrant hues of orange and yellow and the air is crisp. Sadly that's not typical here. I think our winters are more like the normal fall. For the most part I don't really need to wear a peacoat during autumn. But I manage to as often as possible just because I love fall outfits so much. And you best believe I'll be wearing riding boots on a daily basis as soon as it drops below 80 degrees. When it does dip down to a chilly 70 degrees, probably in about November, the above outfit would be perfection!

What would your ideal fall outfit look like? Link up with av of Long Distance Loving and create a look! And come back Monday and link up for Weekend Update if your blogging about how you spent your weekend.

Show Your Team Spirit

Check out these Old Navy T-shirts that display your team pride. Awesome right? I happened to have been sporting my Saints shirt last weekend for the first game of the season...which didn't help them win...but that's OK becuase I looked cute!

Head on over to Old Navy to see the Superfan Nation T-shirts and grab one in your team of choice.

Delta Zeta Days {Guest Post by Shop.School.Sleep.}

Hi Join the Gossip readers!! I'm Kathrin, or "Kat" as most people call me, and I blog over at Shop.School.Sleep. Leeann asked for guest posters and I volunteered to share some stories. When Leeann told me I could post today (9/12/12) I told her I had the perfect idea for a post because today is 11 years to the day that we found out we rushed the same sorority.

Leeann and I have been real life friends for...a long time. We went to elementary school, junior high, and high school together. We found out late our senior year that we would also be going to the same college. Our freshman year, we basically had the same schedule and carpooled from our hometown, Chino, to Cal State Fullerton (which is about 20-30 minutes away, depending on traffic). I managed to convince Leeann and another friend of ours to rush sorority, didn't think I would actually succeed in persuading her to do so, but I did!! So not only did we grow up together and go to the same school pretty much our whole lives, but in the end we joined the same sorority, Delta Zeta.

We rushed Fall of 2001. We spent the weekend meeting all the houses on campus and then on the tragic day of Sept. 11, 2001, we were suppose to have our bid day and find out what sorority we got into. Of course things were postponed and the next day we were told which sorority we joined and had a mini "bid day". A week later we had our official bid day.

our bid 

I was a little more "active" from the start. Always held positions, helped with the different activities, partied was social, etc. I basically lived at the house a good part of the week. Even though we had the same school schedule and attended sorority meetings together, Leeann was with her high school boyfriend and was not very active during our first year. Slowly but surely I dragged her to more parties, social events and sisterhood outings. We lasted all 4 years (actually we both went 5th year alums because we needed to focus on school) and they were great!!

Our official bid day, a week later

Out of order, but us 2 years after we joined...at a meeting or something

1st spring formal. The theme was red, white and blue, but I really wanted tot wear this dress!!

I dragged her to Spring Break San Felipe, Mexico

Our "gangster" sign....upside down v... a bad joke with a fraternity boy

Roomies!!

The girl on the left and I were "loft girls" because we lived in the upstairs loft and
Leeann lived downstairs in one of the rooms, but she was always up in the loft with us.
We made her an honorary loft girl :)

Our Fall Pack the DZ house "social event"

Down in Leeann's room getting ready...she had a floor length mirror, one of the best places to get ready

I have no clue what she was doing hahaha

On our way to San Diego for a fraternity party and we get a flat tire...and it was raining..
.and I was wearing the shortest skirt ever

A spring formal with our dates, all Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity boys...see any one familiar?
Yep, Leeann's best bud Anthony!!

At our "DZ Crush Party". This was before the days of digital camera
(pretty sure this was taken on a disposable) my eyes were closed :(

Our last bid day

Leeann, Anthony and me at our last Fall Formal

Another Spring Formal

L: My 21st bday at TGIFriday's
R: Leeann's 21st a month later, in Vegas

Our 2nd spring formal...we wore the same color dress

So there you have it our sorority days in pictures. There are TONS more, but didn't feel like scanning 50 pictures. These are the gist of our college experience...formals, parties,spring break and living at the sorority house....ah can we go back?

Thanks for taking a trip down memory lane with me :)