Family Dinner Out

I still haven't come up with a great name for my husband (all the fabulous bloggers I read have the best names for their significant others, I am a tad ashamed that I am not so creative) and I know I should get on that, but I haven't!

Top:  Lapis

Jeans: Vince via HauteLook

Shoes: Manolo Blahnik Sedaraby

Purse: Tory Burch Reva

Earrings: Old Beaded Earrings

Bracelet: Monet

Necklace: DIY via ...Love Maegan

We sometimes struggle with our work/home life balance and competing home, work, charity and kid's school schedules.  Not this week! The kids have been very well behaved, hubby hasn't been traveling for work and miraculously there are no boy scout or band events!  We decided to take the kids out for dinner to try a new neighborhood restaurant.

The restaurant won't be mentioned because we aren't going back.  The service was okay, the food mediocre and the ambience left a lot to be desired.  But, at least my hubby thought I looked great!  I recruited a 10 year old to take these photos. I should be ashamed, but I am not...

It's not easy to look casual AND put together! Accessorizing is definitely a talent that I need to cultivate because I still either play it way safe or else I am way out there!  For a casual dinner, I wanted to wear jeans and I don't really like the faded denim trend.  I tend to stick to dark denim in general because I really like how it looks and I love these Vince jeans.  The tiered top works to disguise some of my not so cute tummy troubles and I always get compliments when I wear it.  The gold necklace is a DIY project that I learned from one of my favorite sites, ... Love, Maegan. She has a whole DIY tutorial section and my favorite is that I am not crafty, but these are all super easy and even I can make them!

Lastly, I wanted to punch up the outfit a little so I added a nice handbag and shoes.  This Tory Burch clutch has turned into one of my favorite bags because it seems to go with so much! And the Manolo Blahnik Sedaraby shoes are so comfy, I couldn't resist.  Plus, I think the black suede kept the look from overdosing on gold.