A Saturday spent with Dallas fashion bloggers? Yes please!

There are lots of adjectives I could use to describe myself: Eclectic. Introspective. Sarcastic. Scrappy. However, I do not consider myself a joiner. In high school I spent much of my time hiding in music practice rooms working on flute concertos, and exploring Manhattan with only my worn leather backpack and cup of coffee as accompaniment. While I cherish my time spent with friends, I'm not one of those women who needs to be with people all the time. I'm perfectly content shopping alone, or making a solo trip to a bar for a shot of whiskey (I must be the only person who nurses a drink while reading chick lit on their Kindle.) In addition, large group gatherings intimidate the crap out of me. Despite my tattoos, and bright red hair, I'm not as outgoing as you might think. I get crazy anxious before parties and events. I worry that I'm going to spill something in myself, be under-dressed, be over-dressed, talk too much, talk too little, or otherwise embarrass myself.

However, I squealed with delight when Kileen invited me to the DFW Blogger Meetup on Saturday. Despite my apparent social anxiety disorder, there was no way I was going to pass up the chance to socialize with other fashion and personal style bloggers in the Dallas area. I wasn't sure how many people were going to be there, but fifteen bloggers turned up! Thank God I changed 1423 times or I would indeed been painfully under-dressed.

Good lord is my hair red. I stuck out like a traffic light among all those gorgeous brunettes.

We began with brunch at Ristoranti Cibus in Northpark Center. Northpark is a fantastic place to spend a day, and even more so with fashion bloggers. Over brunch we introduced ourselves and described our bogs, exchanged business cards, discussed blogging techniques, and got to know one another over bottomless mimosas and bellinis. Brunch was absolutely delicious too - I dug into a plate of brioche with gravlox, capers and cream cheese. Yummo. As a relatively new blogger, it was really fun to be included in a group of such stylish, intelligent women. I learned so much and hopefully made friends I will keep in touch with for a long time.

I was too busy schmoozing to take many pictures, but here's a few from the day:

The epically stylish Angga of Reservade Fashion, wearing  a Forever 21 bag and spring's hottest color: coral! She drove all the way from Kansas to attend the meetup, and I was so excited to meet her.

Posting with Tina of T Minus T Plus, who gave me so many useful tips for promoting and tracking my blog. I really hope to stay in touch with her - she was so much fun to meet!

Posing In Northpark's courtyard in a thrifted J Crew blazer, Forever 21 top, thrifted J Brand jeans; Stuart Weitzman wedges, Forever black pyramid bracelet, and thrifted vintage bag

After brunch we attended a cosmetics consultation courtesy of Dior and Allure magazine. I was drooling over the color-rich, luxurious makeup available for us to try. We broke up into two groups and received lessons regarding moisturizers, primers and foundation, followed by instruction on eyeshadow blending and liner application. I'm a total make-up junkie - though most of my cosmetics come from Target (Loreal shadows are the bomb) - so this was a pretty amazing experience. It was like Christmas morning, my birthday, and a sorority road trip all mashed into one. But with better clothes.

Irene of Pink Hearted Princess served as the perfect model, though she was perfectly gorgeous before getting made up!

I had an absolutely fantastic time, and I'm really hopeful the other bloggers and I can organize regular monthly gatherings. It was a blast.

Would you ever attend a blogger meetup? Have you made any personal connections with other bloggers outside the internet?

Military service: Taking on cargo

If you read fashion blogs, celebrity websites, fashion or gossip magazines, or are an avid shopper like myself then you'll remember that this summer and fall ushered the return of the cargo pant. Largely responsible for initiating this trend was J Brand's Houlihan cargo. Made from a super-soft Japanese twill, this pant featured a slimmer cut leg than the traditional cargo, removing much of the bulk typically associated with this style. A low waist, aggressive moto stitching and long zippers at the ankles completed the look. The military pants were aptly named, too - after Hot Lips Houlihan of the movie and television series “M*A*S*H.”

I first learned of these cargos in May through DenimBlog.com. The  blog's author raved about the fit, calling them "pretty and feminine", with a "surprisingly flattering" fit on the butt. In the weeks that followed the popularity of these pants exploded. In a matter of a month they were sold out at Bloomingdales, Bergdorf's and Barneys New York. Celebrities adopted them as a uniform - Beyonce caught a flight in them, Rachel Bilson fetched coffee in them, Kate Bosworth wore them to walk her dog, and Gwen Stefani dressed in them to cavort with her son at the playground. These pants were everywhere. Other premium denim companies reinvented them in denim, cotton, and even leather. Hell, even the NY Times did a feature on them in their style section.

Hmmm, I thought. Maybe I should scoop up a pair of these cargos myself. I'm always looking for an alternative to my beloved jeans, and they seemed like the ideal replacement. Then I saw the price tag: $230. Bargain shopper that I am, there is no way I'd consider spending that much on a pair of freaking pants. I don't care who wore them. Unless they could make me dinner and dispense cash like an ATM, these cargos were a personal don't.

Flash forward to October. I was waltzing through The Gap outlet near my home when I saw a rack of cargos that looked suspiciously like Houlihans - same cut, same wash, even the same long zippers at the ankles. At 1/3 the price they enticed me even further. I tried them on at the store, decided I needed them, and brought them home.

Here's my review: They are very low-waisted. If I was wearing them in the summer with a tank or tee, they'd practically require a bikini wax. I'm not the biggest fan of exaggerated low-waisted pants. Such a cut can be very flattering for petite women, because they elongate the torso. However, I hate feeling like I have to tug on my clothes to keep them on, and that's the effect these pants had on me. Furthermore, they stretched out a bit more than I expected, resulting in the dreaded baggy butt. It's possible I bought a size too large, though.

They also created a bit of a shoe conundrum. There's no doubt that these are pants best worn with a heel. However, they seem too casual to be paired with a stiletto or pump. I went with flats, and they look kind of sloppy to me.

J Crew denim jacket; Forever 21 sweatshirt; thrifted Gap buttondown; Gap Outlet cargos; Juicy Couture ballet flats

Despite my smile, I am not happy with this outfit. I had to go through a lot of pics to find these three. I've decided to bring these pants back to the store and exchange them for a smaller size. Hopefully, that'll do the trick.