If you know me in the workplace, you know that I tend to come across as reserved, polite, and PC. This may even come through in my blog posts as well. Some might even label me as boring, unless I open up and we start talking about my hobbies or vacations. But even then, my personality comes across as… vanilla. It’s really no surprise that I’m like this – besides being an introvert, my dad is the epitome of politeness, and I was raised to be concerned about what others thought (early personal branding??) I have thrown some of that concern aside with my taste in music and clothes, neither of which can be considered to be mainstream. But overall, you can be sure that I will not give anyone the impression that I’m anything but a nice person and overall good citizen. I've even gone to the extreme of running to the other side of a grocery store when I saw a colleague on a Sunday morning… because I was hurting bad from a large number of cocktails the evening before.

However, I do have a different side that I don’t really let shine outside my circle of friends and family. It’s kind of weird, being so straight-and-narrow at work and then letting loose at night and on the weekends. Don’t misunderstand – the reserved, PC side of me is authentic. I just do a better job of balancing the niceness with the sarcastic jokes when with friends.

Since I started supporting the sales team, I’ve realized it’s important for the team to get to know the real me – not because they care (some might), but because they want to know that I’m human, that I make mistakes like them, and overall so they can trust me. So, I’m trying to be more comfortable being my authentic self while at work. I’m more open about my personal plans on weekends, I’m not shy about ordering an adult beverage while at a work dinner, I’m letting my snarky side make appearances as appropriate, and I’ve let a few curses slip here and there (fact: I actually have a really bad potty mouth!)

But I am sure to draw the line somewhere – which is what originally inspired this post. I often haul ass out of the parking lot at the end of the day, music blasting. I have to keep reminding myself to tone down my typical aggressive NJ driving near the office, because it would be pretty embarrassing if I got caught cutting off a co-worker!

Me & D, just hanging

Wow you guys, I can't believe Summer 2011 is over already!  Things on this end have been a bit less stressful since I last checked in... I'm settling into my new role, and I think finally, finally I'm back to normal working hours (FINALLY!)  Which means I am trying to find more balance in my life... The Husband and I have taken a couple weekend trips and I'm working out more regularly.  I've also cut out coffee and replaced it with green tea (too many coffee/stress tummy aches) and working on eating better.  Not really easy when you're a nomad as we eat dinner out way, way more than we used to.  But I'm trying!

But the best part... I think it's finally safe to announce that we got a house!!!  After many months of searching, and a couple more months of bringing this deal to fruition, we're due to close near the end of October :)  I cannot even begin to emphasize how stressful buying a house is... once you find THE ONE, then there's the mortgage to deal with, along with the home inspection.... oh, and not to mention the scare of Hurricane Irene putting a tree through the roof or water in the basement or both (The House was fine).  But mostly the mortgage process.  It's like bearing your financial soul for all to see... ick.  Well, we finally got our mortgage commitment tonight, and things seem to be moving along!

I've also tried to take some time and put all this nonsense in perspective, and really I cannot complain.  There could be worst things than a lot of stress in your life.  And throughout it all, I know that my readers have been there for me.  Thank you for all your comments - I will reply back to them soon!  And I am really excited to take on a few new sponsors as well, which means giveaways for you :)  So stay tuned, I have a feeling that this autumn is going to be awesome!

This is her escape tactic ;)

Hey guys, remember me? My name is Nicole and I used run Employed Panache on a regular basis. If you’re a regular reader, you've probably noticed that my posts have been lacking lately… as in I have not posted anything in a full month. And for a couple months prior, posts were spotty at best. You might be asking yourself what happened… well guys, real life happened, and it happened hard and unexpectedly.

I have been avoiding a post like this because I work hard to stick to the Employed Panache brand of office appropriate work wear with a smattering of posts on professional topics. I felt that writing about anything outside of the 9-5 would not be appropriate. I also thought that it would be a short blip, and that I’d be up and blogging again quickly. Well, that was clearly not the case… and then I read several “transparency and credibility” posts by Ashley of Consciously Corporate. Ashley put herself out there for all of the internet to read, knowing that her friends, family, and maybe co-workers will be reading her thoughts. The first post must have gone over well, because Ashley wrote at least 2-3 more transparent posts afterwards!

While what I am about to discuss/vent may not be directly related to outfits to wear to work, HR, careers, or any other office or professional matters, this is all about work-life balance and knowing what your healthy limits are. So here it goes… in-your-face real life that I’ve been dealing with over the past 4 or so months:

Reality Check #1
In April, I moved into a different role at The Day Job. This was a very good thing… it wasn’t a promotion, but I needed a change. New projects, new characters, new challenges. As they say, beware what you wish for… when I started the role, my new team was in the middle of transitioning a newly acquired company into the function while at the same time reorganizing the current structure. Oh, and interns had to be recruited and on-boarded within the following 2 months – tasks that were 100% my responsibility. Let’s just say that ratio of work-life balance quickly shifted so that work was winning out most days. During this time, I was still kinda blogging… taking pictures in the morning was still an easy part of my routine, but my free time in the evening was less. And whatever time outside of The Day Job I did have went right to…….

Reality Check #2
House hunting! The Husband and I decided it was the right time to make a move into a house, so we began extensive research when we got home from work. On top of that, a couple nights a week plus a full weekend day went towards looking at houses. Sounds time consuming but fun, right? Well, let’s just say that the fun wore out real quick. Because it’s a “buyer’s market,” we have a lot of competition and in 4 months we’ve lost 4 deals. Also, I never expected house hunting to be so damn emotional. But we are looking for our forever home, the place where we’ll raise kids one day… so yes, tears were shed on multiple occasions. Despite this, we are still looking and going strong. If anything, we’re becoming very efficient at knowing immediately whether a house will work for us. And in the end, I am a bit tougher as a result.

Reality Check #3
I've realized that I have to stick by the grown-up decisions I make. I won’t go into a ton of details, but essentially The Hubby and I subletted our condo before finding a house. Don’t ask, it does make sense (to some degree) given our situation and who we have as a tenant. But this all adds up to moving our stuff into storage and living with friends and family for several months on top of everything else. This reality, among all of them, is probably what has gotten me closest to a major meltdown.

Reality Check #4
Throughout all this, I quickly learned that my energy is not unlimited. Gone are the days I can abuse my body with junk food, tons of coffee, little sleep, and no exercise. I don’t know if my body is just used to me taking better care of it (vs. the college years) or if I’m *gasp!* getting older. Either way, I am often tired and unmotivated once I get home. And instead of pushing myself to exhaustion and the brink of my sanity, I give in when I need to take a run, watch tv, read a book, see friends, hike with my dog, etc. instead of blogging.

Soo this is my life currently. I hope this post didn’t come off as me whining, because I recognize that I have a TON to be grateful for! But dear readers, you deserve to know what’s going on. I’m slightly more settled now that I’m out of my condo and staying in one place for the next month or so, so I do hope to blog a bit during this time! Please hang in there with me for the time being :)


PS: I honestly wasn’t sure if anyone would notice my absence. Well, you did notice, thank you for the kind notes! Its awesome readers like YOU that motivate me to get back on the horse (as they say :)

shirt: Old Navy ($25) ~ sweater: F21 ($24) ~ skirt: Gap Outlet ($19) ~ shoes: Pink via Daffy's ($26) ~ earrings: gift

Date: April 18, 2011
Ensemble message: I didn't plan on it, but my color scheme matches my mood today.  I think I've mentioned this before, but The Hubby and I have been house hunting recently, and on Saturday we saw The House.  It was perfect.  We made an offer, got as close to being in a bidding war as I ever want to get, and then found out this morning that we didn't get the house :(


Some tears, lots of pouting, a great support group of friends and family, and 45 minutes on the treadmill later, I'm ready to move on.  So here we are, today's outfit being an unfortunate reflection of today's events.  Weird how these things happen, right??

Oh!  And file this under Bad Blogger....... here are the winners of the Crocs shoe giveaway!!!



Congratulations Annasaur, SarahO, and Sarah!  You will hear from the giveaway organizer shortly.

blazer: BCBG via Macy's ($55) ~ blouse: F21 ($12ish) ~ pants: Banana Republic (old - not sure!) ~ shoes: BCBG (gift)

Date: March 14, 2011
Ensemble message: Hey everyone, sorry again for the sudden break last week.  It was a bittersweet week, both mentally and emotionally.  First, I got a new role at The Day Job, which is really great news accompanied by lots of stress as I transition roles.  But then a few days after getting this news, I found out that my grandfather had passed away.  He's been pretty sick, so I was kind of prepared for it... but of course dealing with a death is never, ever easy.  My emotions were a roller coaster last week and I just felt numb.  When I wasn't numb, I was definitely sad or super cranky (sorry Husband).  Not sure if you noticed, but I'm purposely looking down a lot in last Monday's photos because I just didn't feel like smiling.  So I took a cue from myself, and took the week off.

But, now I'm back!  I've changed my head and ready to show off my goofy grin again in outfit photos.  After all, life goes on and I'd much rather celebrate the rich life my grandfather had instead of mourning his loss.  I know that's what he would want as well :)

Hi everyone!  I wanted to let you know that I'll be taking the rest of the week off from blogging.  Some family time and personal time is needed right now.  Normally I'd push myself to be back in a couple days, but I've felt just so off this week that I'm giving myself some extra time to re-center.

In the meantime, check out my other haunts... Facebook will have some outtakes added soon for your viewing pleasure.  Also, be sure to follow me through Twitter!  I may not be tweeting a lot of original content this week, but I will retweet links that I like.

Thanks for understanding you guys, and I'll see you soon :)

We are just 4 days into 2011 and by now, a ton of other bloggers have already posted their New Year's resolutions.  Heck, some started stating their resolutions last week, when it was still 2010!!  Well, here's a tidbit about me: I am a shameless planner who won't feel right until all details are carefully and thoroughly evaluated.  Every. Single. Detail.  So of course I wanted to see what other people wrote and then took some time to think through mine!  The fact that I'm able to write down my resolutions just 4 days after the start of the new year is actually pretty darn good... but onto what I am determined to do this year, broken out by category, of course.  (See what I mean?  Love them details! ;)

Blogging Resolutions:

• Set goals and stick to them.  I have a ton of ideas for Employed Panache, and I usually write scribble them down in a notebook that's usually with me.  While this is great for brainstorming and spontaneous moments of inspiration, it doesn't necessarily mean anything else happens with these ideas.  So this year, I am going to get more organized and even write out a timeline of what I want to post and when.  For now, this will be done in an Excel or Word document... but if any of you have other suggestions, please let me know!
• Network more.  When I first started blogging, I read a lot about how building your network is key gaining both readers and knowledge.  Since I'm pretty shy, even behind the computer screen, it took me awhile to really venture out there.  Now that I have, I am so lucky to have my little community!  And in 2011 I will expand my blogger family by meeting more of you, virtually or in real life.

Personal Resolutions:

• Treat my body right, especially on the weekends.  I am pretty healthy, especially if I'm in my routine during the weekdays.  However, it doesn't take much for me to bend and this really rings true for the weekends.  Some people have a splurge meal or splurge day... mine goes from 5pm on Friday until Monday morning!  This year, I will consistently make healthier choices, which includes better choices when eating out and actually working out on the weekend.
• Get my condo on the market.  So The Husband and I have been ready to move for a little while now, but our condominium is not yet listed.  Why?  We've been procrastinating in order to tidy things up a bit, and also because the housing market is pretty darn scary right now.  But we just have to get it out there and see what happens.  Sooo... anyone want to purchase a nice condo in Northern NJ? ;)

Cross-Over Resolution:

• Be aggressive, be be aggressive!  This is a very special resolution because it applies to both blogging and my personal/professional life... as I mentioned above, I tend to mull information around in my head for awhile before taking action - probably definitely longer than necessary.  And, I'm a natural introvert.  In 2011, I am going to push myself outside of my comfort zone and be more aggressive and take more risks.  This could apply to finding/working with sponsors to speaking up more at the Day Job to wearing something I normally wouldn't (check back tomorrow for my first attempt at this!)  

Happy Friday!  To shake things up, I did a video post this week for Friend Friday.  This week, we are talking about the frequency at which you shower and if you use organic products.  No really, I talk about my shower habits... I dare you to hit play! ;)



Products I Use:

Degree Clinical Protection, $6.99

Dove Gentle Exfoliating Bar Soap, $11.99 for 8

Suave Naturals Body Wash, $3.49

Tigi Eco Awesome Shampoo, $19.99

"Green & Natural" Products Found on Drugstore.com*:

Kiss My Face Liquid Rock Deo, $1.49

Tom's of Maine Long Lasting Deo, $4.99

Kirk's Original Coco Castile Bar Soap, $1.19

Tom's of Maine Natural Moisturizing Body Wash, $6.49

de-lux Shampoo Rosemary Mint, $4.79

Organix Shampoo Revitalizing Pomegranate Green Tea, $4.99

* Not a sponsor but rather a resource.


The Friend Friday project by Modly Chic is a way for fashion bloggers to share more about themselves and create a friendly connection with other bloggers. Join the conversation by joining the Fashion Beauty Friend Friday Google Group.

top as dress: F21 ($20) ~ long sleeve t: Old Navy ($8) ~ skirt: Gap Outlet ($20) ~ jacket: Target ($35) ~ tights: Ralph Lauren (gift) ~ shoes: ?? via Macy's (so old... I think this was my first "professional shoe" purchase after college!) ~ necklace: gift

Date: October 6, 2010
Message ensemble: I had this outfit put together in my closet since Sunday night - when I partake in my favorite activity: planning outfits for the week ;)  If you remember back to this other rainy day post, the "top" is actually a dress.  I've seen so many other bloggers putting skirts over the bottoms of dresses or shirts over the top of them... what a great way to extend your wardrobe!
I also wanted to address something that's been on my mind.  A friend seemed a bit surprised that I referred to my stomach as a "buddha belly."  Please trust that I didn't say it to get attention or confidence boosters from your comments.  I was just being honest on how I view my body.  I know that I'm not fat, but even though I post pictures of myself online, I have insecurities too.  Just as soon as I admire a girl's flat belly, she's jealous of another girl's toned butt.  And great butt girl is wishing she had toned arms, and... well, you get the point.  Either way, I just hope I didn't accidentally alienate any of my readers!
Just curious though... what do you guys think about bloggers talking about their insecurities??

shirt: Anthroplogie ($35) ~ pants: Fossil ($65) ~ shoes: Pink via Daffy's ($26) ~ watch: Fossil (gift) ~ earrings: gift ~ bracelets: via Wear Your Music ($10 each)

Date: October 4, 2010
Ensemble message: I knew today would be cold and wet and dreary.  Again.  Autumn doesn't seem to like us much this year... too much rain and too cold too quickly.  For once I didn't feel like wearing a skirt, so instead I pulled out my favorite tweed pants.  I like them because of the stitched seam up the front and the brown/orange pattern.  Not too dark and not too light!
On a more personal note, today is my second wedding anniversary! :)  The Husband and I started out as friends in high school, but then started dating after our sophomore year in college.  So while we've been married just 2 years, we've known each other for what feels like a lifetime already.  He's truly my best friend - always has and always will be.  Ok enough gushing, here's some pics from our wedding day!

Honeymoon in Chile ~ the most un-panache week of my life, yet the BEST week of my life! :)

shirt: Limited (gift) ~ t-shirt: Target ($15) ~ skirt: Necessary Objects via Century 21 ($20) ~ shoes: Nine West Outlet ($27) ~ watch: Fossil (gift) ~ bangles: thrifted ($8), NY&Co ($20) ~ earrings: little shop in Arizona ($7)

Kayaking on July 6th:
This is kayak style!  (with my friend Monica :)