Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

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November 12, 2021

In Honor of #FREEBRITNEY.

     Today (November 12th, 2021) is the day that Britney Spears's conservatorship is supposed to finally be dissolved in court. Everyone following the #FREEBRITNEY movement knows that this has been a very long time coming. Last month, I styled a Britney Spears concert t-shirt for the blog, and as soon as I remembered that her final conservatorship hearing was coming up, I decided to save these photos for today!

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April 5, 2021

Cropped Flare Jeans = Yes Please!

     What is it with this whole Gen Z vs. Millennials debate on skinny jeans lately? I'm personally a big fan of skinny jeans and have no plans to take them out of my wardrobe anytime soon... or ever? Haha! But with that said, I am always open to trying out other styles of jeans as well. Long bootcut jeans I don't think will ever be my favorite (they give me middle school flashbacks from before I had my first pair of skinny jeans... *shudder*), but there are some other types of styles I'm willing to give a try. I've been shocked this spring at how much I'm loving cropped flare jeans- I've worn this pair so much more than I thought I would since I got them!

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October 28, 2019

Midi Skirt with Sneakers: The 2019 Trend I'm On Board With.

     The older I get, I feel like the less likely I am to try certain trends. In high school and college, I was all about it. I knew that I loved wearing bright colors and fun prints, but I didn't have much of a sense of my personal style yet aside from that.  Now I'm pretty selective about trying new trends- I don't feel pressured anymore to try ones that aren't something I'd wear if they weren't "in." Today's post though features one big 2019 trend that I'm glad I have finally come around and embraced: midi skirts with sneakers!


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May 21, 2018

Tie-Waist Shirt + Neck Scarf = Two Spring Trends To Love!

     Finally sharing the last found of photos from an early spring shoot with Meredith- these were taken just a couple weeks after I moved to Virginia! I definitely saved the best for last, because I am low-key obsessed with two of the trends that I'm wearing in this outfit. 


Cute Preppy Spring Outfit

Virginia Fashion Blogger

How to Style a Neck Scarf

Classic Spring Style



Photography by Meredith Sledge


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     I'm clearly all about things that tie in today's outfit! Let's start with tie-front shirts. I started seeing this trend pop up in full force this winter, and I really wanted to get my hands on a white tie-waist shirt for spring and summer. I actually found the one that I'm wearing during my last shopping trip to Montreal before moving to Virginia, but this shirt is almost identical! It's not often that I purchase something that will match literally everything in my closet- but this shirt might be it. From casual jeans like I styled it here, to dress pants, shorts, skorts, and skirts- it coordinates with it all!


     A fun fashion discovery that I made last year: Zara is a great store to buy jeans at! They have some really unique denim styles, they're all so comfortable, and just about all of their denim is under $100. I also purchased the jeans I'm wearing here at Zara in Montreal, but I'm hoping this summer or fall to get to check out some of the Zara locations in the DC area. This pair of jeans is similar to the ones I'm wearing. And for the other spring trend that I'm loving: neck scarves! They are such a chic way to add a twist to an everyday outfit. The one I have here is also from Zara- this one is similar though!


     I hope that y'all had a great weekend. Mine was just the best! One of my dearest friends, Caroline, came to visit me from Charlotte. Longtime SBIT readers might recognize her name- Caroline is one of my best friends from college and we were suitemates during senior year! She also helped take a lot of my blog photos during senior year specifically (and has quite the eye for photography). I haven't seen her since when I moved away from Charlotte- and 13 months is too long to be away from one of your favorite friends. I'll be sharing more about what we did this weekend in Wednesday's post!







      God Bless,



      xoxo Annaliese 
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October 16, 2017

How I'm Wearing The Embroidery Trend + 4 Books I've Read This Month.

    Embroidery has been one of the biggest trends in 2017! In my traditional fashion, like with a lot of other fast fashion trends (off-the-shoulder, anyone?), I have ended up embracing it, but all in all in small doses, and it took me a little longer to do so than some other bloggers and trend lovers. Today's outfit shows a couple easy ways to incorporate embroidery into your fall looks! This casual outfit is also definitely something that I would wear to work! This summer I shared a "How a Radio Personality Dresses for Work" blog post, and today's outfit would be my fall version of that! 



Southern Belle in Training - Stowe Vermont

How To Wear the Embroidery Trend

Wearing Embroidery for Fall

Fall Style Stowe Vermont




Photography by Melissa Lynn Studios 



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      This top is definitely a trendy item, between the lace up detail and the embroidery. But I really ended up liking it! I never spend a lot of money on super trendy pieces, so the under $15 price point on it worked well for me!! You might notice if you frequent here a lot that I don't usually wear too much red. To be honest I'm not really sure why I don't wear a lot of red. I love to wear pink and wear all shades of it- everything from blush to fuchsia. But with red, I guess sometimes I shy away from how bold it is. Anyways, red is a great fall color, and I think the red color looks great in this top! Yay for trying new things. 😊


     These jeans were my splurge item in this year's Nordstrom sale, and they're still available (though sadly not on sale currently). They're the comfiest jeans ever, and I'm already looking forward to buying another pair in next year's sale! 



     After taking a little break from reading for fun during the end of summer due to the craziness at work, my schedule has finally settled down, and I've been on a reading frenzy for the past month or so! I've already made a dent in October's reading list, but here's the four books that I read in September:



     *Say Goodbye by Lisa Gardner: This was my second Lisa Gardner thriller- I read my first one back in July's book review post. Say Goodbye is a chilling story that involves a devoted FBI agent, disappearing prostitutes.... and spiders. Lots of spiders. If you are scared of spiders, this is probably not the book for you, haha. I enjoyed the story and the ending ended up being a lot more complex than I expected, but I think overall I liked the other Lisa Gardner book that I read this summer better than this one. I'd still like to read more of her books though! 


      *Under Her Skin by Susan Mallery: Under Her Skin is about as a-typical of a paperback romance novel as you can get.... but hey, sometimes we all need a light read like that! I've definitely read worse romance novels before, and this one actually had a plot that I enjoyed, not just unrealistic love scenes. This story follows Lexi Titan, a businesswoman from a powerful family in Texas, who becomes engaged as apart of a business deal. However when feelings end up developing for her fake fiance, things get complicated! You can probably guess how the story ends.... but like I said, I still enjoyed it as a light read, and I've definitely read worse romance novels.


      *Mr. Maybe by Jane Green: I have also reviewed a Jane Green book before in a past book review post, and wasn't that impressed by the past book that I read of hers! I decided to give Ms. Green another try though, and actually really liked this book! Mr. Maybe is what I would call the definition of a "beach read" - total chick lit, and kind of a fluff read. But it was really entertaining! This book centers around main character Libby, a late 20s PR professional living in London, who struggles with dating. Her heart is currently torn between pursuing a guy who she has great chemistry with, but who is unemployed, or chasing a wealthy and mature bachelor who she has little chemistry with. Even though Libby and I view dating pretty differently, I still found myself laughing at and relating to a lot in this book! This would be a great vacation read especially I think.


      *The Other Half by Sarah Raynor: This is the second novel set in Britain on today's reading list! The Other Half is about a cheating husband, and the story switches between the perspective of his wife, and his mistress. I found it to be an interesting read. I'm obviously super against unfaithfulness in relationships, but it was intriguing to read a book with so much of the perspective being from quite literally, "the other half." I would rate this book about the same as Mr. Maybe- a fun beach or vacation read, but not like life changing literature or anything!



     And that's September's books! I'll share October's after my next library visit. 




      



     Have a wonderful start to the week! I had such a fun day yesterday and I can't wait to share more about that with y'all soon.








      God Bless,



     xoxo Annaliese 



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July 27, 2017

Tassel Earrings Round-Up (And My Favorite Pair!).








     Tassel earrings- they are all.the.rage! Actually, even saying that is probably an understatement! I first remember seeing tassels starting to really pop up as a jewelry trend a few summers ago, right around the time that the infamous bubble necklace was beginning its slow death (#RIP). I thought that the tassel trend would be a quick fad, but it's lasted longer than I thought it would, and I'm glad it's stuck around! Tassel jewelry is fun to wear, especially in the summer months.

   
      This style of tassel earrings like the ones picture above are probably the most popular style from this jewelry trend. Since my LipSense review post from a couple week's ago was such a big hit, I thought it would be fun to do another review, but this time comparing and contrasting similar tassel earring styles from different jewelry brands! They're all at different price points, and I think y'all will be surprised as to which were my favorites! 


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     Baublebar is "famous" for this style of tassel earrings, and I think their Pinata earrings are partly responsible for launching this trend! Of course I had to try out these coveted earrings for myself. I actually bought these several months ago, with intent to wear them with the outfit I had picked out for the rehearsal dinner I had to attend for the wedding that I was in back in April. I also thought they would be practical earrings to wear year-round, since black shimmery earrings match lots of outfits.
   
      I was really disappointed when these arrived to me and I started wearing them to see two things. 1.) They're the HEAVIEST earrings that I've ever worn in my life! I went through quite a statement earring phase back in high school so I've worn some heavy jewelry before, but I really thought these were going to damage my earlobes. and 2.) They turned my earring holes strange colors! I'm not sure if part of that was due to the fact that these were the black tassel earrings so maybe the black coloring spreads more so then the other colors that they come in, but either way it was kind of disgusting, and something I didn't think should happen for the higher price point on these! I ended up not wearing them to the rehearsal dinner since I didn't want my ears to be sore or discolored for the wedding the next day. 

     I do own other Baublebar and SugarFix by Baublebar jewelry that I do really like and enjoy wearing, but I REALLY did not like these earrings and would not recommend them. At this point, there are so many dupes at other retailers for the Pinata earrings (two others reviewed in this post!), so I would recommend anything else pretty much over these. 







       This is Charming Charlie's version of this popular earring style. They're less then half of the price of the Baublebar earrings! In Charming Charlie's online store right now there is only one color showing up (which I have linked above), but in-store I know they are still selling these in multiple colors. Charming Charlie sent me these a couple months ago in this fun yellow and multicolored style, and I think they're really fun for summer!

     As I mentioned, these earrings are cheaper than the Baublebar ones, yet look almost identical. They are much lighter on the earlobes, and also didn't change my earring holes any strange colors- so that's a plus! I've been a longtime fan of Charming Charlie and am usually very pleased with their dupes of popular jewelry styles. 





Burlington Coat Factory Tassel Earrings ($5!!!)


     These are my favorite earrings out of all three! I bought these on a whim right before I moved out of Charlotte. I ran into a Burlington Coat Factory to look for a few things for my new apartment in Vermont (Burlington is another store we don't have in VT!), and I actually ended up buying some jewelry that caught my eye while I was there. They had a lot of cheap versions of popular statement earring styles, and I couldn't resist these coral tassel earrings. I was absolutely amazed at how much I loved them. They're so lightweight, don't discolor your ears (I really feel like I have to stress that now after the first pair from Baublebar- ha!), and they're such a pretty color. Burlington had tassel earrings in some fun, different shades that I didn't see carried at Baublebar or Charming Charlie. These earrings unfortunately aren't sold online so I can't link them, but at $5 (!!!), they're a must-buy if you live near a Burlington store!





     So out of all three, the Burlington Coat Factory tassel earrings are my favorites! And buy far the cheapest!! Charming Charlie's Shimmy earrings would be my second favorite. Below I have linked tassel earrings from even more retailers, and the dress I'm wearing in this post:








     Please let me know if you would like to continue seeing more review posts like this on SBIT!! I love hearing y'all's feedback. 😊



     God Bless,



     xoxo Annaliese (or Charlotte XO on the radio!)


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