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Power Outfit

theclassyacademic

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On my second day of teaching, I wanted to make a statement. Like I said in a previous blog, Mike always says to wear your best/power outfit on the second day. I wanted to present myself as a professional, make an impression, and emit confidence.

So, I went with this amazing shirt from J. Crew (unfortunately I don’t think it is available anymore), and layered a navy blazer over it. I have a lot of navys and blues in my closet, but I think that those colors can be paired with most anything while achieving a classy look. I also paired it with a khaki pencil skirt (you don’t always have to match your blazer/jacket with your bottoms!). But, because I still wanted to keep it semi-casual, I rolled my sleeves up over my blazer to tone it down a bit. Also, because the shirt itself was my statement piece, I decided not to overload my outfit with a necklace–instead I just wore a pair of simple pearl stud earrings.

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3 Day Weekends and Donuts

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Donuts are the key to my heart, and I am so happy that a local donut shop has opened here in Tallahassee. I am ALL for local businesses, especially those with donuts! We have a 3-day weekend with MLK this week, so it’s always fun for me to head over to the donut shop and get some work done.

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Sweater: Banana Republic | Shirt: Express | Glasses: Warby Parker | Pants: J. Crew Factory
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Dress to Celebrate Success

theclassyacademic

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Today was my first day teaching a university course! In my doctoral program (and I’m sure this is the same for most), second year students are allowed to teach courses (given that they have taken all of the pre-reqs and such). I am beyond excited and nervous to start gaining experience in the classroom. It’s just another step and milestone closer to accomplishing my goal of getting my Ph.D. and starting my professional career. So, what better was to celebrate than by dressing up for the occasion?

Shop my outfit here.
Tote: Kate Spade | Cashmere Sweater: Macy’s | Shirt: Express | Skirt: Express | Shoes: J. Crew Factory | Pearl Necklace: Lauren Ralph Lauren | Pearl Earrings: Lauren Ralph Lauren | Bangle: Kate Spade

Everyone knows the saying, “dress for success” or “dress to impress”, but I think we should also dress to celebrate success! Achieving professional goals and milestones is such a rewarding feeling, and we should allow ourselves to be proud of our progress and accomplishments, no matter how big or small. Celebrating surface milestones–the goals that others can see–makes all of hard work and perseverance that others don’t see worthwhile. And just to make the day even better, Mike had a bouquet of lilies, champagne, and dinner waiting for me when I got home to celebrate this small marker in my career.

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When deciding on the outfit that I was going to wear my first day of teaching, there were a few factors that influenced my decision. My outfit needed to:

  • Be classy
  • Give me confidence
  • Be comfortable
  • Appropriate for the setting
  • Give a great first impression

So, I went with a classic look by layering a poplin button-up shirt underneath a crew neck sweater and pairing it with a high-waist pencil skirt. In my opinion, no outfit is complete without pearls–they’re the “pearl”fect touch of class!–and they really did help to bring my outfit together.

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I also feel that your outfit should have some sort of “pop”–an item that stands out. Kate Spade is by far my favorite designer because she always has a great selection of colors and designs for all of her products, while maintaining a classic-modern-chic style. This tote was the perfect “pop” for my outfit!

Most importantly, I had to save my best outfit for the second day of class. Mike always tells me that growing up he would save his best outfit for the second day of school. This makes a lot of sense! So, stay tuned for my day two outfit!

What is your go-to outfit for celebrating success or your first day at work? What is your “closet staple” that always completes an outfit? I’d really like to know your thoughts and opinions!

Cheers!

Kelly

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Southern Tide Giveaway Trip to the Army Navy Game

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At the beginning of the football season this year, Mike and I went to the highly anticipated Florida State vs Alabama game to cheer on the Noles and tailgate. While we were there, Southern Tide had a sponsored tailgate to promote their Tailgate Tour. We entered their contest (through Cotton’s Instagram account) for a chance to win tickets to the Army Navy game in Philadelphia. Normally, you just don’t win these types of things, but a month or so later, it turns out that we (well Cotton) won! We were SO excited (even though Cotton wasn’t so thrilled he wasn’t able to come along on the trip he had won for us!) and couldn’t wait to plan our trip!

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Shop Our Gameday Outifts Here
My Outfit: Sweater: Southern Tide | Shirt: Southern Tide | Pants: Southern Tide | Beanie: The North Face | Coat: Steve Madden | Boots: Frye | Hand Mitt: Southern Tide
Mike’s Outfit: Jacket: The North Face | Pants: Southern Tide | Beanie: American Eagle Outfitters | Boots: UGG

The day of the game, we took over Southern Tide’s Instagram (which was pretty cool!). Southern Tide outfitted us for the game, gave us tickets to the game (not to mention Club Level access), gift cards, and paid expenses. Although it was at a busy time during the semester for us, for a graduate and law student, this was a much needed trip!

Sweater: Southern Tide | Shirt: Southern Tide | Hat: Southern Tide | Vest: J. Crew Factory | Pearls: Lauren Ralph Lauren | Boots: Frye

We were SO excited to visit Philadelphia and check out all of the sites and history, like the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. Also, Mike has never seen snow before (he’s from Florida), and boy did he get a great first experience of snow because it seemed like a blizzard hit during the game! Which by the way, this Southern boy had only packed boat shoes from Kiel James Patrick for the trip so we had to swing by the mall to pick him up a pair of UGG boots to keep him warm!

The bar and food scene in Philly is incredible. There is a huge debate over which establishment has the best cheesesteak, and although we didn’t go to Pat’s or Geno’s, we did try out Jim’s on South Street, and man was that the best cheesesteak I have ever had in my life!

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We also stumbled upon this amazing candy store, only to find out it is the oldest confectionary in America. So, if you’re ever in Philadephia, be sure to check out Shane confectionary. The staff there is amazing, not to mention, the chocolate is to die for. They will even make custom chocolate boxes for you!

Although it snowed during our trip, I think it definitely added to the experience and made everything so dreamy! Not to mention we were able to take some pretty wonderful pics! I think my favorite place we stumbled upon was Elfreth’s Alley which is America’s oldest residential street! I’m so glad we took pictures there, but it was even dreamier after the snow!

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Vineyard Vines Whale of a Sale

theclassyacademic

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Christmas is my favorite time of the year, but I must say that after Christmas is a close second because of all of the after-Christmas sales! My absolute FAVORITE sale and store is Vineyard Vines’ Whale of a Sale–Use the Code: WHALE17

Right now it’s 30% off all sale items, but if you wait it out, it goes up to 50%! However, the scary part about waiting is that the items you want may be sold out or not in your size, so you have to be the best judge of when to pull the trigger!

Nevertheless, it’s still an amazing sale! Every year we always try to snag a Santa Whale shirt (it has kind of become a tradition). I’m (fortunately) small enough to fit into boys and girls XL, and this is great because the kids’ sizes are nearly half the price of the adults!

Girls Jolly Plaid Shep Shirt • Vineyard Vines • $44.99
Boys Long Sleeve Santa Whale Pocket T-Shirt • Vineyard Vines • $19.99
Boys Long-Sleeve Lights Logo Box Pocket T-Shirt • Vineyard Vines • $19.99
Boys Long-Sleeve Gingerbread Whale Pocket T-Shirt • Vineyard Vines • $19.99
Men’s Vineyard Vines Mr. Claus Whale Graphic Pocket T-Shirt • Vineyard Vines • $32.16

Continue reading “Vineyard Vines Whale of a Sale” →

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Welcome to The Classy Academic

theclassyacademic

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Hi! I’m Kelly, and welcome to my blog!

Novellus et Penicullus translates to “The Young and Stylish”, and my goal is to provide life, classy and preppy style, and travel tips and guides for the young professional.

I am currently a doctoral student at Florida State University pursuing my Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Sciences. I started this blog because I am surrounded by colleagues and future professionals in the college setting who love style or aren’t really sure how to style themselves in this day and age, and I wanted to provide insight, shed light, and start a conversation around how to dress classy and trendy for young professionals in the work environment.

I am happily married to my handsome husband, Mike who is finishing law school (it’s a race to the finish!). He may be a guy, but he does have a great sense of fashion, so I will also be sharing life and style posts for gentlemen, too!

When we are not busy with school, we share a wonderful life of adventures in the South with our absolutely crazy and loving German Shorthaired Pointer, Cotton (You’ll be reading about him quite frequently, I’m sure!). Cotton is more famous than I could ever hope to be, so I also have to manage his Instagram daily (@cotton_gsp). I also am co-owner of a dog accessory company, Prep on Point, that carries bows for the classy ladies and bow ties for the dapper gentlemen, be sure to check it out!

Not only am I busy with finishing school, teaching, being a wife, keeping up with Cotton, blogging, and running a small business, I absolutely love crafting, organizing, music, and traveling. I plan on sharing my projects and travels on my blog, too!

I am SO excited to start this new adventure with all of you!

Cheers!

Kelly