Feliz Navidad

Well blogger friends, this is my last post before I take a break for the holidays. Mark and I, along with 8 other friends, have rented a house down on the Yucatan Peninsula and will be spending Christmas and New Year's Eve lounging in the sun, drinking margaritas, and eating ceviche. This is the third year straight that I've spent the holidays in Mexico, but this year I have extra cause for merriment since I get to spend it with Mark.

First let's have an end-of-the-year recap of what a fantastic boyfriend Mark is. I've previously established that in addition to being incredibly thoughtful and sweet, the boy is also very handsome and knows how to rock a hat, is talented at crafts and fixing things, and surprises me with gifts of shoes. His latest feat of amazing boyfriendness? Getting me exactly what I wanted for Christmas, which is... more shoes! A man who understands the importance of shoes to a woman's happiness is truly a keeper.

Were these Fly London booties made to go with the leather jacket I brought back from Paris, or what? They have the same buttery texture and rich purple color. They also make my feet look tiny. And since it has now been several months since the last time I got a new pair of shoes, they are all the more special to me. Curbing my clothes shopping for the last few months has had a lot of unexpected benefits, the most notable being that I've gotten a lot more finicky with what I'd even consider buying, and as a result I appreciate each new item much more.

Not surprisingly, this outfit was built to show off the new shoes. Since I wanted to wear them with a short skirt, I first added the leggings for warmth and the thick socks for a little contrast. Since the socks are olive green with teal stripes, that made the rest of the outfit straightforward to select, and was an easy way of being able to offset the bright teal of the skirt with the dark olive cardigan. The blue and green necklace further strengthens the color combination. There's a lot of color in this outfit, but the deep saturated shades make the overall effect appropriate for winter.

Jacket: Zadig & Voltaire
Cardigan: American Eagle Outfitters (a gift)
Top: thrifted
Necklace: ??
Skirt: Anthropologie
Tights, socks: Noa Noa
Shoes: Fly London

Whatever holiday you're observing this season, I hope it brings you everything your heart desires. I'd like to thank all my blog friends for taking the time to read my posts, and for all your wonderful support and comments. I'll see you again in 2009. In the meantime I'll get in the spirit for Mexico, and wish you all Feliz Navidad!