Happy THURSDAY, friends! Dropping in today to A some Q’s I’ve gotten lately that I figured would be helpful to A for all. 🙂 Also sharing this fun fall outfit, since right now – woo! Snakeskin is SO hot this season, and this skirt is a fun way to make it happen in your own closet in a way that can be dressed up OR down.

ANYHOO. Answering everything from my most frequently asked Q maybe ever, to thoughts on Olivia and daycare, to tall fall boots under $50 and how I find “lookalikes” for things – ENJOY.

Where are your shoe shelves from?!?!

I swear this is the MOST frequently asked question I get – probably at least every other day. Ha! My shoe shelves in my office are just individual shelving units from Lowe’s that I stacked on top of one another!

 

Super random question — how do you find lookalikes for things?!! Do you literally search “item name lookalike”? There is an Athleta tunic sweater I’m dying to own but I can’t justify the $$$!

GREAT Q, and really…it just depends! Which is a horrible answer, I know. But hear me out. 😉

It depends on the product. For really popular brands/products, you can sometimes just search just like you said, because if they’re popular enough and others are searching for the same thing on Google, chances are, other retailers + brands are trying to capitalize on the popularity. (This is especially the case for more popular designer items – I’ve got this post of designer lookalikes and this post of Amazon designer lookalikes, too!)

If it’s a lesser-known brand or product, it can be a bit trickier and you might need to research more to see if anyone has specifically called something out as a lookalike (like your favorite blogger 😉 ) based on personal experience trying out products! That’s how I found the under $25 leggings that are alternatives for the Lululemon Align pant – I own both myself and was able to speak to everything about each firsthand.

Alternatively, think bigger picture. For example, if you lovelovelove the quilted of a classic Chanel bag and can’t justify the cost (or realistically, ain’t nobody got the cash for a $5,000 bag – ha!), search for product characteristics that might be important to have in a “lookalike.” So, I’d start by searching “black quilted bag.” In doing that search myself right now on Google, I found this and this , both of which clearly trump a $5,000 price point but still look the part.

So for something like an Athleta tunic sweater, I’m not sure exactly which one you’re referring to of course, but I just Googled “Athleta tunic sweater lookalike” and found   that’s half the cost. Alternatively, search product details like I mentioned above, or even search for materials for pieces where the fabric is really important! (I looked into that when searching my Lululemon Align pant lookalikes, which is why I went into such detail in that blog post about the material makeup since everyone loveloveloves the butter-feel of Lulus!)

I hope that helps!

Hey! Random work/baby question. Does Liv ever go to daycare or do you have someone in house to help, or do you only work during naps?

Up to this point, it’s just been me working at home with Olivia – so really, it’s been a #struggle. Especially the older (read: more mobile) she gets. I try to only work during naptime, but that isn’t always possible, so honestly it’s a constant internal AND external struggle of feeling guilty if I have my phone out, or guilty if I’m neglecting my work responsibilities. Of course, family comes first, but I’m essentially juggling two full-time jobs right now: everything with Coming Up Roses, and mommyhood.

Since I do try hard though to be present fully with her when she’s awake, that means I’m often finishing up work once J is home while he gets dedicated 1:1 time with her, and/or I’m working much earlier than a “normal” workday might begin to get a head start on the day’s to-do’s.

We ARE, though, looking into help. Because really, it’s just necessary at this point.

We’re looking to have a nanny at home for maybe two days a week so that I can have two SOLID crunch days to get as much work done as humanly possible. That would seemingly be ideal for me since I would a.) still have access to her if I get a quick moment to hang out and play, and b.) have help with random household things that I might not get to tackle during a workday either (WHAT A BLESSING, BLESS UP). Another option we might look into is a sortof educational “daycare” so that she’s getting learning time AND social time, too (because girlfriend is a social butterfly, let me tell you…). That’s less ideal in my mind right now since I’m attached at the hip and am with her all of the time now, and I bawled my eyes out at dinner when J brought that option up. HA. So probably help at home is first priority option at this point, but TBD based on whatever works out. I’ll keep y’all posted!

 

Hey girl! Is your discount code for Tula still valid I’m not able to get it to work. Not sure if I’m entering it incorrectly…?

YES, my is absolutely valid! (It’s COMINGUPROSES) With any of their discount codes, the issue is that their system only allows it to be used once per email address (frustrating, I know!). To get around it, just checkout using a different email address!

 

OKAY GIRL. I need your recs. I’m looking for tall fall boots, ideally black or brown, that will hold up and not break the bank. I went to three stores and they didn’t have any so naturally I’m out. Can you help?!

Of course I can! So I know prices of boots vary greatly, which can definitely contribute to how well they hold up – especially season-to-season. I’m including the most affordable ones I can find below, BUT if I don’t have them myself I obviously can’t speak to their durability firsthand.

One to note, though, that I CAN speak to personally are . They’re not the cheapest out there, BUT I will say they are SO worth every penny because they hold up FABULOUSLY. I bought my first pair last year and was just SO impressed that I bought another pair this year in another color (I have for fall!). They’re weatherproof boots, which I lovelovelove being in the Northeast since we experience actual winters with freezing rain, sleet, snow, etc. But even if you don’t have weatherall conditions, the fact that they ARE weatherall speaks to how well they hold up!

In terms of holding up, good leather is always something to look for! (It’s why people rave about ). Especially over something like a suede fabric that can be more affected by conditions like precipitation, etc.

These options are all under $50:

And then some I found through TJMaxx that are over $50 BUT FABULOUS deals given their brands and what their original prices were…

• – they’re under $100 still and Franco Sarto makes fabulous boots/shoes in general that hold up well!
• This for under $70 – they’re steel grey and BEAUTIFUL.
• is half price and selling FAST – I don’t own FRYE yet but I’ve heard *incredible* things

P.S. My snakeskin midi skirt is here currently ! Runs TTS. 🙂

Do you have any Q’s at all for a future #AskE post?

LET ME KNOW.