2016 Year in Review

Cheers to 2016! This year has been one of the toughest years for me yet, between balancing school, work, and extracurriculars my year has been nothing short of busy. But, it also brought many great times with friends and family. Here is a quick look back at my year in review through snapshots from my Instagram! 

In 2016 I finally turned 21! I had a fun day celebrating with family then the next weekend I went back to Ames to celebrate with friends. 

Summer 2016 was fun with friends and family. From trips to the city, to my internship at David James Group I had one fabulous summer. 

In June my boyfriend and I celebrated a year of dating! This month we celebrated a year and a half of dating. It's crazy how time flies by so quickly. 

This year I started consistently posting and working very hard on my blog, which you are reading now! Thank you to anyone who has supported Sew Cute Style and I throughout this year. 

This year marked my last year going to Iowa State football games and tailgates as an undergrad. Here is a shot from my last football tailgate of the season! 

For Halloween I dressed up as my favorite tasty pastry, a donut! Thank you to my boyfriend for helping me finish my DIY costume. 

In 2016 I moved into my first college apartment! I love living in an apartment with my own room and bathroom. I'm lucky to be able to live in an awesome property right near campus. 

In 2016 I continued to rep for some amazing brands including Rowdy Gentleman, Jadelynn Brooke, Fraternity Collection, Wanderer Bracelets, and Krass & Co.! 

Coupon codes: 

Use code MPISU16 for 15% off Jadelynn Brooke

Use code mirandapollitt16 for a discount on Fraternity Collection 

Use code MPOLLITT20 for 20% off Wanderer Bracelets 

For spring break 2016 I headed to Naples, Florida to spend the week with my boyfriend. Spring break was filled with a ton of sun, good food, time with friends, and much more. 

While on spring break my boyfriend lavilered me to his fraternity Triangle. For those who don't know, lavilering is a tradition where a fraternity man gives his girlfriend his letters. I was so honored and excited to become more connected with his brothers and to announce it to my sisters. 

2016 marked another year as a member of the Iowa Gamma chapter of Pi Beta Phi at Iowa State! 

In the spring I learned I would be interning as an Editorial Meredith Apprentice at Better Homes and Gardens my senior year! Working at Meredith has been one of the major highlights of my college career. 

For the first time my boyfriend and I went to each others formals! Clearly it was a very purple affair for both parties. 

During the summer my friend and I took our annual trip to the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago! It is one of our favorite summer traditions. 

This summer I also met my FAVORITE blogger The College Prepster, aka Carly. She was having a meet and greet at the vineyard vines in Chicago so I knew I had to meet her! 

Also, this summer I officially started to learn how to golf. As an anniversary present my boyfriend bought me my own set of golf clubs and everything. I can't wait to keep learning and working on my golf skills. 

2016 included a lot of fun little trips! I went to Florida for winter break and went to Disney World, went to Florida for Spring break, headed to Minnesota for Fourth of July, and went to Breckenridge for Thanksgiving Break. 

I hope everyone had a great 2016! Although my year had ups and downs, looking back I made a lot of great memories with friends and family. But, thank goodness it is almost 2017! In 2017 I will graduate college, hopefully get my first year job, and start a new chapter of my life. So, cheers to 2016 and hello 2017! 

XOXO 

Miranda 

Sew Cute Holiday: What I Got for Christmas 2016

I love seeing what people got for Christmas! My friends and I always text after presents to see what cute things everyone was gifted. 

DISCLAIMER: If you think these kinds of posts are bragging or you just don't care for them, please feel free to exit out! In no way do I want to brag about what I received. Christmas is about spending time with family and loved ones, and so much more. Gifts are simply an extra bonus, and I know I was very fortunate this year! But, I thought it would be fun to show a few of the gifts I received this year. 

This year was the year of the accessories for me! Each year I always ask for a lot of jewelry but this year I got a ton. KJP, Kendra Scott, and Kate Spade were major players. All three of these brands are my favorite for costume jewelry. 

I also got two blazers, a Lilly popover, and a Patagonia jacket. I've been loving wearing blazers recently so I am excited to add two to the collection! I also scored a J Crew flannel and some Aerie socks that are super soft. 

My main present of the year was my new Burberry wallet! It is the Brit Leather Lexi Wallet in case you are interested. I don't think it is available in stores, but I saw some on eBay and similar sites. 

My favorite gift I gifted was probably giving my mom a KJP pearl initial necklace. She ended up loving it! I also got her a Henri Bendel nutcracker ornament. She loves nutcrackers, ornaments, and Henri Bendel so it was kind of a win-win situation! 

What was your favorite gift you received or gave? Let me know in the comments! 

XOXO 

Miranda 

Sew Cute Holiday: Christmas Day OOTD

I hope everyone had a great Christmas! For Christmas Day we usually get together with my aunt and uncle and have my favorite meal of the year. We cook a prime rib roast, twice baked potatoes, and Yorkshire pudding. I look forward to it all year! 

For Christmas Dinner I wanted to wear this lace multi-colored dress. I've been saving it for a fun occasion and I thought the colors were super festive! Deep maroon, navy, and a forest green made up layers of lace in the dress. The dress also had a fun lace up detail in the back which was a super unique detail. 

For accessories I decked myself out in my new Kiel James Patrick Christmas items! I got the pearl necklace, the single pearl bracelet in gold, and a velvet pearl Vickers Bow bracelet. KJP is my favorite place to get accessories. All of the pieces are super classic and match everything I wear. Specifically, I love their pearl collection because it can go with anything in my wardrobe. Not to mention pearls are a classic look! 

On actual Christmas my family and I open our stockings and a few presents from Santa. We do most of our gift exchanges on Christmas Eve. Also, we open our ornaments from my parents on Christmas. Each year we always get ornaments. 

Our family is huge on ornaments! If you couldn't tell we have 3+ Christmas trees in my house. My brother and I decorate a large one with just our personal ornaments, I have a small purple metallic tree, then the tree behind me is my Mom's tree! Then we have some smaller decorative trees with just Disney ornaments then my mom's dated Lenox snowflakes. To say we like ornaments is an understatement! But, I love looking back at them and remembering who gave them to me. They all serve as little memories from each Christmas or year. 

Where it's from: 

Dress: Matilda Muse (local Des Moines boutique) 

Tights: Forever 21 

Necklace: Kiel James Patrick 

Bracelets: Kiel James Patrick, Alex and Ani 

Watch: Michele 

Shoes: Tory Burch 

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! 

XOXO
Miranda 

Sew Cute Holiday: Christmas Eve OOTD

Merry Christmas everyone! Today I'm sharing my family's Christmas Eve traditions plus what I wore to Christmas Eve dinner. 

For a while, every Christmas Eve we go out to a nice dinner with my immediate family and my Aunt. We have been going to a Brazilian steakhouse for a while and it is always so delicious! We dine on the endless salad bar (which is so good), yummy cheesey rolls, lots of steak and meats, plus some sides. It is one of my favorite meals of the whole year, second favorite to what we eat on Christmas day! We also got a pitcher of white sangria which was to die for. 

After dinner we come back to our house and open presents. We always change into our comfy Christmas pajamas to open presents. When we were growing up we would open presents from Mom and Dad on Christmas Eve, then presents from Santa on Christmas Day. It's fun because the excitement always lasted over the two full days. 

Once presents are over we usually watch a Christmas movie until we fall asleep. Some of my favorite Christmas movies include: Christmas Vacation, Home Alone, The Grinch, Charlie Brown Christmas, and White Christmas. 

As for my outfit, I have been saving this Altar'd State dress for a special occasion and I thought it would be adorable to wear for Christmas! I love the black lace and the overall silhouette of the dress. It fits like a glove, which is hard to come by, and is super flattering. The back has an interesting cut out design and the front has a v-neckline. 

To add a pop of color I paired the dress with a red maroon tight. I love brining color to a black look through colorful tights. For some sparkle I added my new glitter acrylic monogram necklace from Baublebar and a pair of glittery square studs from Kate Spade. To complete the look, of course, I wore a KJP Vickers Bow bracelet, Alex and Ani bangles, and my Daniel Wellington watch. My bag from Cambridge Satchel Company added an extra pop of red for even more holiday cheer. 

 Where it's from: 

Dress: Altar'd State 

Tights: Target

Shoes: Target 

Purse: Cambridge Satchel Company 

Keychains (on bag): Stoney Clover Lane, Longchamp 

Necklace: Baublebar 

Bracelets: Alex and Ani, KJP 

Watch: Daniel Wellington 

Earrings: Kate Spade

What are your holiday traditions? Let me know in the comments! I hope everyone had a great holiday filled with family, friends and love. Happy Holidays from Sew Cute Style!

XOXO 

Miranda 

Sew Cute Holiday: Christmas Outfit Idea

Christmas is tomorrow and I am in the holiday spirit. I decorated my tree (not pictured this is my mom's!), watched a few Christmas movies, and finalized my gifts for everyone. The holiday season is my favorite time of year so I've been loving prepping for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day this weekend! 

This is a fun festive look that is perfect for Christmas Eve or Day. I've been loving this sweater from Aerie recently. I've worn it numerous times since I picked it up from Black Friday. It's a little cropped but I can tuck it into a high waisted skirt for the perfect comfortable, but dressy Christmas look. 

I'm loving this subtle printed skirt from J Crew Factory. I always have good luck with skirts from there, if you are petite you should definitely give J Crew Factory a try! This subtle window pane print combines navy and green which is perfect for Christmas. I try and avoid overly green and red looks, but this look is still super festive without screaming cheesy Christmas. 

To say I'm obsessed with KJP's new items is an understatement. I've especially been loving this tortoise pearl necklace. It's great because I wear a lot of pieces that match brown. Brown is my favorite neutral so this piece matches practically everything I wear. 

These shoes from Target's Who What Wear collection are the definition of adorable! Velvet and bows make the perfect holiday combination. 

Where it's from: 

Sweater: Aerie 

Skirt: J Crew 

Tights: Forever 21 

Heels: Target 

Belt: vineyard vines 

Necklace: Kiel James Patrick

Bracelets: Alex and Ani, Kiel James Patrick 

Watch: Michele 

What are you wearing for Christmas Eve and Day? Any special plans for the holidays? Let me know in the comments! 

XOXO 

Miranda