So I creep.... yeah.

Remember the good old days? When I had a lovely porch and fun back alley and even an indoor location where I could take some perfectly lighted outfit photos before anyone else got to work?

When I got my new job, my photoshoot locations suffered. To get an outdoor shot, I have to wait for a weekend and a willing photographer (ahem, husband, ahem).

Well, today as I was walking to the mailbox to send off some belated Christmas cards, I saw this alley. It's a little creepy, but also well lit at four o'clock in the afternoon. There was even a band practicing somewhere in one of the buildings off of the alleyway, so I felt like I had my own photoshoot theme music.

I didn't stay long, but I did manage to find a ledge on which to prop the point-and-shoot to take some quick timed shots. I think I'll be back.

On another note, I'm listening to the Civil Wars right now and I'm digging them so much. If you have Spotify, listen to their album, Barton Hollow, here: The Civil Wars – Barton Hollow

That's another Christmas present from me to you! I'm on a roll!

Gap top, jeans and belt, Old Navy vest (hubs thinks it looks like baby puke), boots and bag, gifted scarf

P.S. Did you notice I brought the rounded edges back? No? Oh, well. I like 'em.

Faster than a bumblebee.

January's issue of Wired Magazine features an entire section all about speed. No, not the drug or the movie, but the scalar quantity.

One of my favorite features in the speed section was on the world record setter for fastest guitar playing: a 28-year-old named John Taylor. Apparently, in order to set the record or beat the current record, you have to play "Flight of the Bumblebee" because the judges were sick of people just playing one note over and over again.

Well, I just had to see his 600 bpm rendition of the song myself, so I mosied on over to YouTube and found it. It's pretty amazing.

So Merry (early) Christmas to you, reader!

My pants say, "Merry Christmas!"

I know what you're thinking: "Pants can't talk!"

And you might be right. But I still stand my my holiday-esque assessment of these pants.

I went to Old Navy the other day to pick up a replacement pair of black Rock Star jeans. I wear mine so often that they're getting a bit thin. When the store didn't have a pair in black, I decided to hit up the Gap. 

I realize these jeggings aren't black, but I couldn't resist they're cranberry color or cozy fit. I'll be getting another pair, for sure. Maybe this time in black.

These photos are from Saturday (you know I only get myself together enough to take pictures outside on the weekend), when the hubs and I were out and about shopping and helping a friend of his get a whole new wardrobe. Let me tell you, helping someone else spend their money is fun. Especially when your opinion is wanted.

I carried around this fun San Francisco tote all day. Hubs got it from his secret Santa at work, but since he doesn't carry tote bags (surprise!), he passed it on to me. Thanks, Santa!

Gap jeggings, gifted top, belt, bag & scarf, Banana Republic shoes, F21 bangle

I'm so ready for the holidays, despite being a couple of gifts behind in my shopping. The husband keeps bragging about how awesome his gift for me is, so I'm dying to know what he's come up with.

I hope it's not a San Francisco tote. I already have one of those.

What are you wishing for this Christmas?

How much did you spend on clothes this year?

I wanted to write a riveting data-filled post about how much I spent on clothing during 2011 and how I would try to curb my crazy spending ways. After all, I write about personal finance on a daily basis; why not on my own personal blog?

So I crunched the numbers: I tallied up each and every clothing and accessory purchase for the year (so far) and averaged it out by month. I thought for sure I'd find it an appalling number. I would be horrified with myself.

"Bethy!" I'd say (out loud). "How could you spend so much money on clothes?!" Then, I would have a small fainting spell before coming to and vowing to fast from shopping for a year.

You know what I actually found out? I spent an average of $140.38 each month on clothing and accessories. That's it. When you look at the 11-month total of $1,544.15, it seems like a lot. But $140.38 per month for someone who loves clothing as much as I do is surprising.

To give you a couple more fun numbers (because that's what I do!), my spendiest month was May, with $202.94 in clothing and accessories. I'm not sure what I bought that month, but I know that there were several trips to Old Navy and Gap and one big trip to Target involved.

My thriftiest month was March with $40.89 total spent on clothing and accessories. I must've been saving my cash for my trip back home that month.

So what does this all tell me? Not a whole lot, to be honest. Until I took a look at individual purchases. Basically, it follows along the same lines as what I wrote on my work blog last week: I buy clothing like I'm buying lots of cheap cheese. Instead of saving to indulge in one high-quality item (a.k.a. Manchego cheese or designer denim), I buy a lot of little things, just because they're on sale (like cheddar cheese or sale tops at the Gap). You get it? No? Well, read the blog post, then maybe you will.

Bottom line is that I keep forgetting what I really want as soon as I'm in front of a sale rack. The madness has got to stop. So maybe that's one thing I'll work on in the new year. Instead of setting myself a budget (I already have one of those), I'll set myself some savings goals. Now, what to save for first?

If you were me (let's pretend!), what would you save for?

P.S. Don't forget about the Blogiversary & Holiday Giveaway!

Gap top, Old Navy cardigan, jeans and flats, F21 bangels

Blogiversary & Holiday Giveaway! (Closed)

Nearly one year ago, I kicked off this blog, full of wide-eyed wonder at the world of style blogs.

I've had fun, and I have some plans for the next year of the blog. (Oh! Exciting!) But for now, I have something to share with you, awesome readers: a giveaway!

I'm giving away the bottle of BADgal lash mascara from Benefit that I scored at a charity event a few weeks ago.* I've been using my own bottle of the mascara since then, and I'm digging it.

How to enter: Easy peasy. Just follow Style Aesthetic with Google or Bloglovin and leave a comment below!

The giveaway closes on Dec. 20 at 6pm PST. I'll draw a random winner next Wednesday, December 21.

Good luck!

*This giveaway isn't sponsored or endorsed by Benefit, I just wanted to spread the makeup love with you wonderful people!

Crafty: Pyramid Advent Calendar

My first December craft was inspired by this Advent calendar. Now, mine may not have come out as fancy as that one, but I like how it turned out.

Here's how I did it.

Step 1: Gather your supplies. Stuff like lots of cardstock paper, markers (mine are fancy scrapbooking ones!), ribbon (for the hangin'), tape, garland, a ruler and scissors. Oh, and don't forget the YouTube video instructions on how to make a paper pyramid. That about sums it up.

Step 2: Light some seasonal candles. Thanks for the holiday cheer, Ikea!

Step 3: Put something festive on the tube. I chose Futurama's Christmas special, of course.

Step 4: Cut out a square and a corresponding triangle. The dimensions are up to you, but a 2" square worked well in my case. (Give the triangle a 2" base as well. Duh.)

Step 5: Cut out your pyramid origami using your square and triangle as guides. A la the YouTube instructions. Make sure to add tabs at the base of the square and base of the topmost triangle.

Step 6: Cut out lots of pyramid origami. You know, 25.

Step 7: Decorate and fold! Don't forget to add a looped ribbon (to hang on your garland) before you tape your pyramid closed.

Step 8: Add somethin' inside. I chose Advent Bible verses.

Step 9: Keep on making your pyramids. All 25 of 'em. Decorate as you see fit.

Step 10: String up your pyramids along some garland. Marvel at their prettiness, and enjoy!

 

Contribute

Well, hello there!

In order to further expand my online writing horizons, I've been looking for places to contribute in my spare time. Well, I found the easiest one: the Yahoo! Contributor Network. My understanding is that you contribute original content, following Yahoo's guidelines, and wait for it to be reviewed and, hopefully, published.

For my first article, I decided just to claim a "story assignment" and get to writing. My post, "8 Low-Maintenance Winter Beauty Tips," was published yesterday! I'm excited, even though this contributor network is kind of like a black hole for content. It's at least out there, and it didn't take me long to create. It's something else to add to my portfolio, and something besides credit and personal finance (not that I don't love writing on those topics).

I'm still researching and looking for other places to write, but for now, it's a start.

And I promised a giveaway this week, didn't I?

Don't worry, there's one a-comin'. Its just been a bit delayed, thanks to a busy birthday week. (By the way, 29 feels eerily similar to 28.)

Well, I'm off to a Christmas party!

Gap sweater, Old Navy tee, vest, pants and boots, gifted scarf, H&M bracelet

Wish List

My birthday is tomorrow and Christmas is just a few weeks away, so I put together a list of things I'm currently craving. At the very least, I have something to save for.

Accessorize & Apparel-ize:

* Some boots to replace these cowboy-style boots that have served me well for the past 3ish years. I'm drooling over the Steven Intyce boots, but there might be others out there better suited to my aesthetic.

* A satchel bag. Something quirky like this fluorescent one from Bohemia or a calmer, more classic style like this one from Modcloth.

* Colored denim. Digging this red legging jean from Gap.

* Black pumps. My neutral Banana Republic pumps have been one of the best shoe investments I've made. 

Beautify:

* A bright or deep red lipstick, like one of the last two pictured here. And the guts to wear it.

* A gift certificate to Sephora. I'd love an opportunity to go crazy in there and not freak out at the prices. 

* Bare Escentuals eye makeup brushes. Yeah, I've been using a concealer brush to apply my eye shadow. Whatevs.

Digitize:

* An iPad. A girl can dream can't she?

* A digital SLR camera. It'll be either this or the iPad that comes from my SmartyPig savings.

Kitchenize:

* New oven mitts. (How practical of me!)

* An immersion blender.

* A Le Creuset dutch oven. Those things are fancy!

* A Vitamix. (Ha!)

* A new set of knives.

(Basically, I just want to upgrade all of my kitchen stuff. Except for my dishes. Hubs and I have awesome dishes.)

Banana Republic sweater, Old Navy scarf and coat, Steven boots, F21 bag

December: Do one thing.

I did not finish my novel for NaNoWriMo. Phew! Glad I got that off my chest.

I won't make any excuses. I could have finished, but I didn't. The good news is I have a story. With characters and a plot and all that good stuff. I even know--mostly--how it's going to end. Right now, I'm at 28,000 words, which I think is still awesome. And I'll probably finish it one of these days. But if I don't, that's OK, too.

And now it's December, and time for me to choose another thing to do. This month, I'm getting crafty.

No, seriously, I'm going to do several crafty things and then tell you about them. I've already finished one (what?), so just you wait.

My friend and I threw a crafting party last week, and I guess it just got me motivated to explore my crafty side. I'm no Martha Stewart, but I enjoy having a project. We'll see what I come up with this December.

Are you crafty? I'd love to hear about any fun crafts you've done, or any projects you'd like to do.

Target sweater dress, H&M scarf, Gap socks, Old Navy boots, F21 belt, Banana Republic jacket