Lifestyle

Happy New Year!

January 1, 2012January 10, 2019

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I saw this on Pinterest and just HAD to share!

I hope you all had a safe and wonderful New Years Eve. Here's to a fabulous 2012!

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Weekend Reads #298 (& The Best Labor Day Weekend Sales)

The most interesting reads this week plus the absolute best sales and my personal picks from each retailer.

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Weekend Reads #292

Weekend Reads Eyes wide opened. (Swamp) Taraji P. Henson made Project 2025 the talk of the BET Awards. (MSNBC) How Taraji P. Henson spotlighted Black designers at the BET Awards. (Vogue) FEUDS JUNE 11, 2024 Martha-Ann Alito is beefing. (The Cut) And the original 2006 article by Robin Givhan. (Washington Post – gift link) How I…

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The New Ann Taylor – Event w/ Washingtonian at Lost Society DC

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Me Time with Pepperidge Farm® Milano®

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A couple years ago I attended a blog event; I had to meet fellow bloggers at a boutique and take a party bus to the venue. Typical Alison, I am either early or late so I was early. Super early. Early enough to leisurely window shop all the boutiques up and down the street. I…

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My Saturday

Got my hair did Got my nails did Felt the love Yesterday was my 37th birthday. I treated myself to a much-needed cut and color, then my sister took me and my best friend for pedicures (Tangerine Tango!) and I got a brow grooming. Came home to my husband and three more friends at our…

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@wardrobe_oxygen on Instagram:

Our schedules aligned, and I had breakfast and a great catch-up with three friends this morning. This is what I wore:
Coat & sweater: @anntaylor
Jeans: @ruti
Glasses: Prada via @lenscrafters
Sneakers: @adidas (I find the superstar style roomy enough for insoles)
Nail bracelet: @electricpicks
Everything else is old, vintage, inherited, but I did find similar options!

Comment LINK and I’ll send you a DM with all the deets!

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Our schedules aligned, and I had breakfast and a great catch-up with three friends this morning. This is what I wore:
Coat & sweater: @anntaylor
Jeans: @ruti
Glasses: Prada via @lenscrafters
Sneakers: @adidas (I find the superstar style roomy enough for insoles)
Nail bracelet: @electricpicks
Everything else is old, vintage, inherited, but I did find similar options!

Comment LINK and I’ll send you a DM with all the deets!

For over 20 years, I’ve been providing real-life style advice for grown-ass women at Wardrobe Oxygen. And considering life right now, you may be wondering how to style your graphic t-shirts in a more elevated manner for work, school, town halls, city council meetings, and press events. I hope these sample outfits offer inspiration. For more tips and details to shop these collages comment LINK and I’ll send you a DM of my article that delves into this further. 💪

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For over 20 years, I’ve been providing real-life style advice for grown-ass women at Wardrobe Oxygen. And considering life right now, you may be wondering how to style your graphic t-shirts in a more elevated manner for work, school, town halls, city council meetings, and press events. I hope these sample outfits offer inspiration. For more tips and details to shop these collages comment LINK and I’ll send you a DM of my article that delves into this further. 💪

Since December 2017, I have been a full-time influencer and content creator, as well as the sole breadwinner for my family. I do not come from money, neither my husband nor I have parents alive to support us. For the past decade, I’ve been speaking out about injustice in our country, and am still able to support my family financially.

I have lost brand partnerships, and I have chosen to end some due to my beliefs. But for every brand that doesn’t wish to rock the boat, there is one that wants to be on the right side of history. And when you speak your truth, you find your community and your community will support you.

I’ve been blogging for over 20 years and continue to be successful because I pride myself on being honest and transparent with my audience. And because I have always been honest and transparent with them, I rarely lose followers when I share my beliefs because they know who I am and support that.

If I owned a coffee shop, I would hang a sign in my window and share my beliefs on my social platforms as I continued to keep my doors open, serving my customers, making a living. As an influencer, I do the same. I may have sponsored posts, I may share my outfits and beauty routine, but I will continue to keep my doors open, serving my customers, making a living.

I vote with my wallet, choosing to support businesses with ethics. I am an influencer, but I also am a consumer of social media and influencer content. And I vote with my follows, supporting those who have ethics and aren’t afraid to share them.

You as a follower have immense power. Follows, likes, and shares are currency in the influencer world. Companies partner with influencers they believe will increase sales and positive brand recognition. When you support an influencer who is in a brand campaign, you extend their reach… and their message. You, the audience, determine all of this.

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I saw we were sharing photos from 2016? It was my 11th year as a blogger and creator and I had really hit my stride. In fact, the following year I quit my job to go full time. I look through these photos and remember these outfits. So many I’d still wear (and many pieces I still own!).

As I scrolled through the archives of Wardrobe Oxygen, I saw 2016 was when my family did a cross-country road trip, when I was in an infomercial for a fashion brand, and when I began making regular capsule wardrobes.

I saw in 2016 I shared a lot of political content. I featured a different nonprofit each Friday of the holiday season, offered tips on how to donate anonymously, and that look with the gray ruana at the lake was the day after the election, when I shared my concerns with the future of our country.

So much has changed in a decade, yet so much is still the same. This exercise reminded me of how we creators have platforms and can be financially successful when we use them to speak out. I’ve been a full time content creator and the sole breadwinner of my household for almost a decade and have never shied from speaking up. I may not have the biggest following or make millions, but I do well while also sleeping well at night (or as well as can be had with this government and perimenopause).

#2016 Alison taught me to not be afraid of speaking up and the most fun closet pieces are actually the most timeless. 🧡 #wo2tbt

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I was searching music for a song with ducks in it to go with my @rachelantonoff cardigan and autocorrect gonna autocorrect…

What I wore this weekend to attend a local clothing swap and run errands. A good mix of comfort and joy for this midsize over 40 person!

Comment LINK for a DM with details to shop this look and use code ALISON15 for 15% off this sweater!

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I was searching music for a song with ducks in it to go with my @rachelantonoff cardigan and autocorrect gonna autocorrect…

What I wore this weekend to attend a local clothing swap and run errands. A good mix of comfort and joy for this midsize over 40 person!

Comment LINK for a DM with details to shop this look and use code ALISON15 for 15% off this sweater!

Where I went in 2025 and what I wore:

January: Girls’ long weekend in @vegas for my 50th birthday in an @anntaylor sequined dress.
February: One of many protests this year wearing an old @universalstandard coat.
March: Chaperoning a Girl Scout troop trip to Bethany Beach in @landsend jeans. That same month was an election judge for a @experiencepgc special election wearing a @universalstandard ponte tracksuit.
April: Hosted an event at @mmlafleur wearing the label; that same month another protest wearing a hat from @shopsocialgoods
May: On the @oceancitymaryland boardwalk in an old Target jumpsuit; that same month went camping with the @girlscouts in @carhartt overalls.
June: Celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary in a custom @paripassushop gown
July: A family road trip to both sides of Niagara Falls, various places in Upstate New York, and Western Massachusetts wearing a @talbotsofficial shirtdress, @landsend swimsuit, and @spanx shorts with a @theshirt_rochellebehrens
August: Annual trip to @visitrehoboth in a @freyalingerie swimsuit, a concert at @wolf_trap in an @mmlafleur dress, and one of many outfits from a @virginvoyages cruise: this was an old dress from @cosstores
September: the @greenbeltlabordayfestival in a @universalstandard linen dress and @americanhatmakers hat
October: @umdterrapins game in a DIYed school tee and @gap jeans, that same year DIYed a Rocky Horror outfit to see the film at @greenbeltcinema
November: Dinner out in an @anntaylor satin suit and vintage faux fur collar
December: Gala at the Italian Embassy in the same @paripassushop dress from June

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Where I went in 2025 and what I wore:

January: Girls’ long weekend in @vegas for my 50th birthday in an @anntaylor sequined dress.
February: One of many protests this year wearing an old @universalstandard coat.
March: Chaperoning a Girl Scout troop trip to Bethany Beach in @landsend jeans. That same month was an election judge for a @experiencepgc special election wearing a @universalstandard ponte tracksuit.
April: Hosted an event at @mmlafleur wearing the label; that same month another protest wearing a hat from @shopsocialgoods
May: On the @oceancitymaryland boardwalk in an old Target jumpsuit; that same month went camping with the @girlscouts in @carhartt overalls.
June: Celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary in a custom @paripassushop gown
July: A family road trip to both sides of Niagara Falls, various places in Upstate New York, and Western Massachusetts wearing a @talbotsofficial shirtdress, @landsend swimsuit, and @spanx shorts with a @theshirt_rochellebehrens
August: Annual trip to @visitrehoboth in a @freyalingerie swimsuit, a concert at @wolf_trap in an @mmlafleur dress, and one of many outfits from a @virginvoyages cruise: this was an old dress from @cosstores
September: the @greenbeltlabordayfestival in a @universalstandard linen dress and @americanhatmakers hat
October: @umdterrapins game in a DIYed school tee and @gap jeans, that same year DIYed a Rocky Horror outfit to see the film at @greenbeltcinema
November: Dinner out in an @anntaylor satin suit and vintage faux fur collar
December: Gala at the Italian Embassy in the same @paripassushop dress from June

Me reading your DMs

(and essentially what I’ll be wearing now through 12/31)

And because y’all may ask and I my be slow to respond this week:
Pajamas: old @showmeyourmumu tailored to fit my 5’3” self
Sofa: @albanyparkhome
Rug: @ruggable
Phone case: @velvetcaviar with @popsockets grip

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Me reading your DMs

(and essentially what I’ll be wearing now through 12/31)

And because y’all may ask and I my be slow to respond this week:
Pajamas: old @showmeyourmumu tailored to fit my 5’3” self
Sofa: @albanyparkhome
Rug: @ruggable
Phone case: @velvetcaviar with @popsockets grip

Recapping Christmas and of course, what I wore…

Christmas Eve day started with a community carol sing-a-long at @thenewdealcafe where I wore an @adidas track suit I’ve had for years and my most festive jewelry (including the necklace my mom wore every Christmas).

Christmas Eve the family dressed up for a lovely dinner at my sister’s; I wore a red sequined set I got last year from @anntaylor (fun fact, wore the same skirt last Christmas Eve with a black cashmere turtleneck and tall boots). After, wore the same look to our friends’ holiday party. The sneakers kept us comfy and perfect when we ran to try to catch Santa riding around town on a @cityofgreenbelt fire truck!

Christmas morning, opened presents with the family wearing a pair of satin pajamas from @showmeyourmumu I got a few years ago and have worn before for Christmas! I glammed it up with my @swarovski lucent hoops which were a Christmas gift from my husband a few years ago. This year he got me this badass ring from @alexisbittar!

Then Christmas evening, us three Ashpes Girls went to @greenbeltcinema to see a movie together (Marty Supreme). I wore a @landsend holiday sweater with @ruti barrel jeans.

It was a beautiful holiday with loved ones. Wishing all of you peace and health through this holiday season and into the new year! ❤️

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Recapping Christmas and of course, what I wore…

Christmas Eve day started with a community carol sing-a-long at @thenewdealcafe where I wore an @adidas track suit I’ve had for years and my most festive jewelry (including the necklace my mom wore every Christmas).

Christmas Eve the family dressed up for a lovely dinner at my sister’s; I wore a red sequined set I got last year from @anntaylor (fun fact, wore the same skirt last Christmas Eve with a black cashmere turtleneck and tall boots). After, wore the same look to our friends’ holiday party. The sneakers kept us comfy and perfect when we ran to try to catch Santa riding around town on a @cityofgreenbelt fire truck!

Christmas morning, opened presents with the family wearing a pair of satin pajamas from @showmeyourmumu I got a few years ago and have worn before for Christmas! I glammed it up with my @swarovski lucent hoops which were a Christmas gift from my husband a few years ago. This year he got me this badass ring from @alexisbittar!

Then Christmas evening, us three Ashpes Girls went to @greenbeltcinema to see a movie together (Marty Supreme). I wore a @landsend holiday sweater with @ruti barrel jeans.

It was a beautiful holiday with loved ones. Wishing all of you peace and health through this holiday season and into the new year! ❤️

I didn’t think the boots were going to work but Bowser hates having his feet wet or cold. Once he got the hang of them he seemed to appreciate them and enjoyed a longer walk! Oscar on the other hand doesn’t mind the snow and would rather be naked rolling in it. 🐾

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I didn’t think the boots were going to work but Bowser hates having his feet wet or cold. Once he got the hang of them he seemed to appreciate them and enjoyed a longer walk! Oscar on the other hand doesn’t mind the snow and would rather be naked rolling in it. 🐾

In a room of black gowns, be a rainbow 🌈

Attended a black tie gala with friends, decided to dress not for the male gaze but for the 20-somethings to let them know getting older can be pretty effing awesome.

Dress: custom @paripassushop (rip)
Shoes: years old @vincecamuto
Bag: years old @jcrew
Earrings: @swarovski
Glasses: @zeelool
Rings: one was my dad’s wedding band from his first marriage, the other was a cocktail ring I bought when I worked at @express in the late ‘90s. Folks, store your costume jewelry in ziploc bags and they will last much longer!

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In a room of black gowns, be a rainbow 🌈

Attended a black tie gala with friends, decided to dress not for the male gaze but for the 20-somethings to let them know getting older can be pretty effing awesome.

Dress: custom @paripassushop (rip)
Shoes: years old @vincecamuto
Bag: years old @jcrew
Earrings: @swarovski
Glasses: @zeelool
Rings: one was my dad’s wedding band from his first marriage, the other was a cocktail ring I bought when I worked at @express in the late ‘90s. Folks, store your costume jewelry in ziploc bags and they will last much longer!

Since 2018 I’ve been wearing this @talbotsofficial polka dot ball skirt to host Thanksgiving. There’s no need for a new look for every occasion; if you shop slowly and thoughtfully you can create signature looks that are perfect time and time again.

(We took off 2023 and 2024 due to the passing of my mom; this is our first year back at it)

A long skirt is great when hosting; you don’t have to worry about cute shoes, you’re covered up if you have to crawl under the table to grab a napkin or spill, and hello deep pockets!

I’m thrilled Talbots came out with a very similar skirt this year with the same fun polka dots; comment LINK and I’ll send you the deets (it’s 50% off today and comes in Misses, Petite, Plus, and Plus Petite!)

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Since 2018 I’ve been wearing this @talbotsofficial polka dot ball skirt to host Thanksgiving. There’s no need for a new look for every occasion; if you shop slowly and thoughtfully you can create signature looks that are perfect time and time again.

(We took off 2023 and 2024 due to the passing of my mom; this is our first year back at it)

A long skirt is great when hosting; you don’t have to worry about cute shoes, you’re covered up if you have to crawl under the table to grab a napkin or spill, and hello deep pockets!

I’m thrilled Talbots came out with a very similar skirt this year with the same fun polka dots; comment LINK and I’ll send you the deets (it’s 50% off today and comes in Misses, Petite, Plus, and Plus Petite!)

It’s not stylish or financially savvy to buy a new look for every occasion or every holiday season. I believe in creating a holiday capsule wardrobe of separates you can mix and match for a range of events, wear beyond the season, and look forward to pulling out again next year. Don’t call it wearing the same thing over and over, it’s creating signature style and that is incredibly chic!

This capsule collection is now on sale and from a range of retailers offering quality and reasonable price points. Everything is available up to at least size 18, with much also available in plus size and petite lengths!

Comment LINK and I’ll send the article I wrote about this capsule that has not only the ways to shop this look but also styling tips so you too can have big style with a smaller closet!

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It’s not stylish or financially savvy to buy a new look for every occasion or every holiday season. I believe in creating a holiday capsule wardrobe of separates you can mix and match for a range of events, wear beyond the season, and look forward to pulling out again next year. Don’t call it wearing the same thing over and over, it’s creating signature style and that is incredibly chic!

This capsule collection is now on sale and from a range of retailers offering quality and reasonable price points. Everything is available up to at least size 18, with much also available in plus size and petite lengths!

Comment LINK and I’ll send the article I wrote about this capsule that has not only the ways to shop this look but also styling tips so you too can have big style with a smaller closet!

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