{Empire Dress: c/o Ronen Chen. Necklace: Ebay. Shoes: Steve Madden.}

My obsession with this Oscar de la Renta black and white maxi dress started earlier this season. And since then, I haven’t been able to get it off the brain. But pining for things isn’t my style. If I like it enough, I’ll find something to satisfy the craving without breaking the bank. Besides, in reality, where would I wear that? This option from Ronen Chen is a much more practical, yet still completely stunning. Throw on heels and it’s an eventful dress. Slip on sandals and it’s a casual maxi. But don’t take my word for it. You have a chance to win a Ronen Chen dress of your own. Be it this one or another one of its many options, which you can find here. Enter here by filling in your e-mail address for your chance to win at $150 gift card to shop the site. Good luck. And happy shopping.

Photographed by David Marc Harris.

{Bag: c/o Hayden-Harnett Pieced Out Dome Satchel. Shoes: c/o Mia Limited Edition Vixen. Dress: Vintage slip. Bracelet: Vintage.}

Fact: I will never be one of those girls who can just up and leave the house with a bag the size of a coin purse. Why? Because in addition to normal stuff, like a phone, Altoids and 14 extra lip glosses, I’ve got weird carry-on items like Disney princess dominos, fabric swatches from my curtains and couch, a tape measure, a Tide stick, paper tape, my camera and a teddy bear named Pinky. (Don’t ask.) I need something that’s got space. And lots of it. Case in point, my Hayden-Harnett Pieced Out Dome Satchel. Not only is it buttery soft (and such a pretty shade of fuchsia), it fits the sun, moon, stars and a small pink bear. And it matches my Mia Shoes to a T. That whole thing about your bag and shoes matching is something I’m 100 percent invested in. Not as law, but from time to time. It has a retro sense of class to it that I love.

Photographed by DMH.

{Floral Jeans: c/o Tractr. Shirt: Vintage. Necklace: c/o Birks Muse Collection. Shoes: Target. Bracelet: Vintage.}

Floral patterns, like my pink blooming jeans, are everywhere right now. Why? Because April showers bring May flowers. And May Flowers bring pilgrims. I know, that’s so bad, right? I heard on the radio the other day. Turns out, my people very well date back to the Mayflower. A friend came over for dinner not so long ago and we started messing around on Ancestry.com. I entered some info about my grandmother and boom, my family tree dating back to the 1500s popped up within minutes. Everyone in the room was shocked. Someone took the time to do a load of research and I got a major glimpse into my own history. Turns out, my peeps come from England. We arrived in Virginia and eventually moved to the Midwest, where yours truly was born. There were even pics. Those hardworking first Americans were far from royalty. Mostly famers who settled this land—literally. But they made it here, tried something new and have left generations of us in their wake. Pretty cool to get some perspective about your genes and jeans—Mayflower, May flowers or otherwise.

Photographed by David Marc Harris.

Join me, won’t you? As I host the Swarovski Master Class event Thursday, May 16 from 6-8 p.m. Stop in for champagne, cupcakes and macaroons and stay for deets on how to turn that bland look into a blinging good time, courtesy of me and Swarovski’s master stylists. Plus, in a rare instance, Swarovski will be discounting trunk products by 15 percent off, as well as everything in the store during the event. That includes SS13 Atelier products. The best part? We’ll be doing giveaways all night. Yes, I see some beautiful baubles in your future. But enough talking about it, spy these pics below to see what you can scoop up Thursday night.

{Necklace: Top Shelf Jewelry, available at Touch Boutique. Lipgloss: Chanel Glossimer in Daydream 174.}

A little birdie, like this handmade blue bird necklace from Top Shelf Jewelry, told me there are new lipgloss for spring/summer out and about. Chanel recently introduced new hues to its line of Glossimers. My current fave: Daydream. It’s a hot pink with a whopping punch of shimmer. But also in the lineup are Ocean Shimmer 171, which is a clear gloss with iridescent shine (perfect for summer days when it’s so hot you think your makeup is going to melt off your face—and yes, those days will be here sooner than later— as well as Crushed Cherry 176, which seems like the outcast of the bunch because it’s such a deep, saturated color. But, it’s actually a great option for evening and definitely something to tweet about.

Thanks to David Marc Harris for the top pic.

{Top: H&M. Pants: H&M. Shoes: Zara. Necklace: Vintage Locket. Bracelets: Vintage. Lipstick: c/o Maite in Senorita. Polish: c/o Chanel in Suspicious.}

Do I have on crop top? Yes, I do. When I purchased said top I told myself I would only wear it with high-waisted things. I am, after all, a 35-year-old mom. And 35 year old moms don’t wear crop tops. But why the hell not? If you’re 45, 55, 65 and want to wear a crop top and feel good about it, go for it. The best part of fashion is doing things that aren’t expected. And owning it. Turns out TJ Maxx did a whole study on the subject. Apparently, Dr. Hazel Clark, the research chair at Parsons the New School for Design, discovered the 87 percent of women say they are not controlled by fashion, but that they control fashion themselves and use it as a tool to express their personality (that’d be 77 percent) and individuality (that’d be 74 percent).  So what am I expressing here in my crop top? A) It was cute and I wanted to wear it. B) I do a hell of a lot of yoga to try to keep things in place. C) 35 is the new 25. OK, so maybe C is a bit of a fib. But it makes me feel better saying otherwise. So here’s to crop tops. And thongs on the beach. Kidding about that last one. Some things are simply at best a fashion don’t.

{Watch: c/o Rapp in Pink Naples.}

What has a twinge of pink, a hint of copper and is quickly making its mark as my go-to metal? Rose gold. I’ve always considered myself a silver over gold kind of girl, but lately, there’s just something about rose gold that’s caught my eye. My first foray was the bejeweled bracelets above. Then I got the cuff, which was fun to mix with gold and silver for a metal mash-up. And now I’m adding this Rapp watch to my arm party for a complete rose gold get-together. A little FYI about the watch, it’s a Miami/L.A. created timepiece and it comes in as many colors as you can think of. But these days, it’s all about my obsession with rose gold. Add a white band and we’re golden—rose golden that is.

{On Me: Bikini: c/o Toxie Sadie. Sunnies: American Apparel vintage dead stock. Necklace: c/o By Boe. On Kid: Tankini: Circo. Sunnies: Target.}

When all else fails, throw on a bikini, grab a flotation device, hit the pool and just float. It’s one of my remedies to cure what ails you. Another is the swingset. If every stressed out adult would just take a time out in a pink inner tube or the swings at the park, chances are, we’d all be a little less neurotic. There’s something about the redundant motion of the swing and letting the water guide you that just leaves it all behind. Of course, having my partner in crime, Milly, along for the ride doesn’t hurt either. Oh to be 5 again.

Something to keep in mind the next time you need to let go.

Photographed by David Marc Harris.

{Peplum dress: Vintage. Sandals: Vintage. Bracelet: Espiritutara.}

Last week I enticed you with Bib + Tuck. And you’re still putting off spring cleaning? Here’s even more motivation: What if for every item you got rid of you could replace with something for free? It’s entirely possible if you host your own clothing swap. I scored this awesome vintage dress at a swap a few years back. And it cost me big, fat nothing—except newfound space in my closet. Winning.

Here’s a few steps to putting together your own swap:

First: Clean out your closet. If you haven’t worn it in a year, get rid of it. If you haven’t tried it on in six months, try it on. See how it fits. Don’t just hold on to things because you like the “idea” of how they look. Not everything is ideal as you’d think.

Second: Encourage your friends to do exactly what you just accomplished above. Just make sure everyone has a size buddy to insure they go home with something.

Third: Set a date, bust out the champagne and invite the girls over for a swap. You’ll need clothing racks and tables to display the clothes, a mirror and a place to try things on.

Lastly: Leave with a new bag of goods to restock that freshly cleaned closet. Yes, it really is that simple.

P.S. I have a whole bag of clothes in the closet just waiting to find a new home. (Hint hint, invite me, too!).

Photographed by David Marc Harris.

{Dress:Ramona LaRue Belt: Alexis. Jewelry: Vintage. Shoes: Jimmy Choo}

So, if you happen over to Bib + Tuck today, you can read about my obsession with clothes and shop my closet. From Jill Stuart dresses and frilly vintage pieces to chunky L.A.M.B platforms, it’s all up for grabs. Foot not the same size as mine? There are still a ton of closets you can peruse. You can even clean out your own and list your items on the site. Sell enough and you can use your credits to refill what you clean out. Keep it high-end though. No Forever 21-ness. Since we’re friends and all, I’ll share my super secret special shopping code with you so you can join and start tucking my stuff, selling yours, whateves. It’s “electricblogarella.” You can also click this link and like magic, you’re in.

Happy tucking.

Thanks to Emma del Rey for the awesome shots.