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Middle of Somewhere

An Albuquerque Fashion & Lifestyle Blog

Summer Vibes + A 1K Giveaway

Remember when I said in one of my posts last week that it was one of my favorite outfits to date? I think this one may be giving the white jeans/stripes/utility vest a run for it’s money. Insider tip: you can always tell the outfits I love the most by how many pictures are in a post. I wore this outfit out to dinner with my family over the weekend. And yes, I wore jeans despite it being 100 degrees out because I am crazy like that. I wanted this adorable White Plum blouse to stand out, and in my mind there is no better way to do that than to pair a fun top with dark denim. I just love the Southwest flair and pom-pom details on the sleeves of this top. If you follow me on Instagram (@lindsayrutland), you will know that I had a fantastic mail week last week, so I couldn’t wait to pile on my new goodies. This was the maiden voyage of my Love Always nameplate necklace and I know it is going to be an everyday staple for me from now on. You can get your own name plate from Love Always, or any other pieces from their jewelry line for 15% off with the code MOS at check out. 
Wearing:
What a Gem Blouse c/o White Plum (now on sale!)
Gap Always Skinny Jeans
Kohls Wedges (old, loving these and these)
Target Crossbody (would love to splurge on this one)
Free People Sunglasses
BTB Earrings
Love Always Triangle Bangle
Love Always Cursive Nameplate Necklace (only $85 with the discount code MOS)
China Glaze Nailpolish in ‘Re-Fresh Mint’
Linking Up With: Stylish Tuesday, Trend Spin Link Up, Style Sessions, Mix It Mondays, Let It Shine, Spotlight Weekly Link Up, Simply Just Lovely, Summer Style, Style Confessions, Fab Favorites
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Now for the fun part… I recently reached 1,000 Instagram followers and wanted to offer a little giveaway to my readers. When I found BTB (@BTBjewelry) on Instagram, I fell in love with their shop and especially the earrings I am wearing in this post. I wanted to give one lucky winner a few of my favorite things, including the Blinging Beauty Earrings from BTB Jewelry, an Essie nailpolish in the shade Go Ginza, and a $10 Starbucks gift card. The giveaway will begin at 12am on July 30th and will end at 12am on August 8th. I will verify all entries, so please be honest. The winner will be contacted within 48 hours after the contest has ended. Good luck and thank you for participating!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Stripes 3 Ways: Part 3

And so we begin another week. I am a firm believer that we should all have a better balance between weekdays and weekends. 5 days on and 2 days off does not seem fair, now does it? Well, given that it is Monday, I am here with another post and excited to share my third and final outfit from my Stripes Three Ways series. Last Friday, these looks were shared on The Village, which was a really fun article for me to write. In today’s outfit, I wanted to dress up my Le Breton top a little bit more, and I knew that this gorgeous Luxe Statements necklace would do the trick. If you are looking for a great statement piece, you have to check out Lilia’s shop. Not only does she offer beautiful and affordable jewelry, she is so sweet and wonderful to work with! And all I have to say about this skirt is… POCKETS! Such an unexpected surprise that I love on skirts and dresses. I have had this skirt for about 5 years now, and am so glad I held on to it! Like a striped tee, it is the perfect basic that can be worn so many different ways and is one of the more flattering skirts I have found for my body type. I am usually intimidated by and generally stray away from skirts because the length can be tricky (either too long or too short for me), and I have a hard time finding tops I like enough to pair them with. Anyone else have this problem? It’s always nice to know you’re not the only one with a certain fashion related problem. Hope you all have a great start to your week. Don’t forget to check out my previous post to enter to win a $250 gift card to ASOS.
Wearing:
Le Breton Tee c/o Pop Basic
Elle Skirt (old; similar here & loving this floral version)
Forever 21 Blazer (great options here & here, or splurge on this)
Mimi Necklace c/o Luxe Statements
Express Heels (old; cute options here, here, and here)
Linking Up With: Tremendous Tuesday
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Stripes 3 Ways: Part 2

Happy Wednesday! I feel like this week’s posts are a bunch of firsts for me… Monday I wore shorts in my post (which is actually pretty shocking if you know me because, as previously mentioned, my legs are not my strong suit!). Today, I am wearing WHITE jeans. I always used to give my best friend a hard time for her love of white jeans, shorts, etc. and look at me now (hi Melinda if you’re reading this!). This is honestly the first pair of white jeans/pants I have ever owned. Two years ago I bought a pair of white jeans from Gap. Immediately after the purchase my mom, sister, and husband convinced me that I wouldn’t make it a day in white pants without getting some kind of stain on them… graceful, I know. Ever since I returned those jeans, finding a good pair of white pants have been on my mind. Enter, once again: Gap. These boyfriend jeans have the perfect amount of distressing on them and are so versatile! I am surprised how comfortable I feel in them, and don’t have to worry about every little bump and imperfection showing through the material. They are on sale right now, so if you’re looking for a pair of white denim make sure to check these bad boys out. I hope you all are enjoying my three part series, as I had a lot of fun styling this tee in different ways. On an unrelated note, I recently reached 1,000 Instagram followers, which I am clearly really excited about! I am going to be posting a 1K giveaway soon, as well as a giveaway tomorrow to ASOS with some other fabulous bloggers. 
Wearing:
Le Breton Tee c/o Pop Basic
Gap Boyfriend Jeans
Old Navy Vest
Kohls Sandals
Ban.do Sequin Heart
Michael Kors ‘Bradshaw’ Watch
Stella & Dot Necklace
Benevolent Jewels Initial Necklace
Ash & Willow Double V Ring (use code BARutland for 10% off your order!)
Warby Parker ‘Crosby’ Glasses
Linking Up With: What I Wore Wednesday, Weekly Favorites, Spotlight Weekly Link Up, Simply Just Lovely, Summer Style, Tres Chic Fashion Thursday, Friday Frills Link Up, Fab Favorites
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Stripes 3 Ways: Part 1

Monday again… I am off to a late start on this post and I hope that is not a sign for how the week to come will go. I find it even harder to get back into the swing of things when I have had a great weekend, and I’m sure I’m not alone in that. This week, I am really excited to share a three part series with you! I was asked to be a guest writer for the Fashion section of The Village, which will go live on Friday. Being such a new blogger, I am honored and thrilled to be asked to be a part of such a cool online community. I decided to showcase one of my new favorite tops three different ways, and of course wanted to give you guys a preview leading up to my article. Madeline from Pop Basic was kind enough to send me this long sleeve tee and let me tell you, it is the softest and most comfortable shirt I have come across in a long time. It is light weight enough to wear throughout the year, and I am looking forward to wearing it even more often (read: probably once a week) as the weather cools down. I apologize for the squinty eyes in these photos, the weather was being very New Mexico… cloudy, yet sunny, and pretending like it was going to rain. I was obviously not prepared for this! Anyway, stay tuned for Part 2 on Wednesday!
Wearing:
Le Breton Tee c/o Pop Basic
a.n.a. Cut Off Shorts
Simply Vera Vera Wang Slip Ons (runs big, I went down a half size)
Benevolent Jewels Earrings
Shy by Sydney Evan ‘Love’ Necklace
NARS Lipstick in ‘Heat Wave’
Linking Up With: Style To Inspire, Stylish Tuesday, Style Sessions Link Up, The Creative Closet, On Your Heart
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Stripes & Brights

In the famous words of Mr. Usher Raymond, these are my confessions: If you would have told me a year ago that I would 1) be blogging, 2) be wearing a horizontal striped pencil skirt, or 3) be posting pictures on my blog of me wearing said pencil skirt, I would have laughed in your face. These are two things that I always loved, but never thought I could actually do or pull off. I know, I know… we are not “supposed” to compare ourselves to others, but let’s face it, we all do at one point in time or another. On the day that I saw this skirt at Kohl’s, I was feeling particularly adventurous and decided to try it on to make up my mind once and for all about this trend. I am so glad that I did! I am also glad I picked up this top because I love the unexpected pattern on the back! As with pretty much every other item of clothing I own, I am looking forward to styling this super comfortable skirt a few different ways. In other words, please be prepared to see this again at some point on here. So now it’s your turn to spill…. are there any trends that you love seeing on others, but are hesitant to try yourself?
Wearing:
Apt. 9 Geometric Tank
Apt. 9 Striped Pencil Skirt
Gold Ring (also love this and this)
Baublebar Pendant Necklace
Shy by Sydney Evan ‘Love’ Necklace
Forever 21 Mirrored Aviators (splurge on these) 
Target Wedges
MAC Lipstick in ‘Vegas Volt’
Linking Up With: Spotlight Weekly Link Up, Simply Just Lovely, Summer Style Weekly Link Up, Friday Frills Link Up, Trend Spin Link Up
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Return of the Flares

I’ll be honest, when I first bought these jeans from Gap I did not think they would remind me so much of the oh-so-coveted L.E.I. jeans I wore in middle school. Please tell me I am not the only one who couldn’t wait to go to JCPenney to get a new pair and wear them out until they were practically falling apart. The Long & Lean cut from Gap are a great grown up replacement: they have the perfect amount of flare to them, are fitted in all the right places, and have just enough give without having to worry about them stretching out a size or two after you wear them for a few hours. OK, OK… enough about the jeans, can we talk about this view? My husband and I always have so much fun on the weekends trying to find a different place to take pictures that show off our beautiful city and state. I absolutely love this view of the mountains! In my experience, when people think of New Mexico, the first thing they tend to associate it with is a place that is out in the middle of nowhere. Living in Albuquerque for almost my entire life, among all of the natural beauty it has to offer, I have to say I truly live in the middle of somewhere… and this somewhere is like nothing else in the world! I hope you all have a great week and thanks for stopping by! Also, congratulations to Mercy Schwisow for winning the $25 Pink Blush e-gift card! You should be receiving an email shortly to have your account credited. Stay tuned for future giveaways, including a special 1K giveaway on Instagram when I reach 1,000 followers.
Wearing:
Gap Long & Lean Jeans
Kohls Blouse
Kohls Bow Wedges
House of Harlow Inspired Sunglasses (spluge on the real thing here, also loving these)
Baublebar Bar Bracelet
Baublebar Block Monogram
Baublebar Triple Letter Monogram
Baublebar Love Ring
Essie Nailpolish in ‘Blanc’ and ‘Too Taboo’
Linking Up With: Style To Inspire, Trend Spin Link Up, Style Sessions, Stylish Tuesday, Let It Shine Monday, What I Wore Wednesday
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