WIW 08.28 [sporty + hard]

While it's definitely cooling down, I'm still on my mini mission to give my summer faves one last hurrah. But this morning I was at a total blank for what that piece should be -- we've had a far warmer and longer than usual summer and, for once, I feel like I got all the wear from my summer clothes that I wanted! So today I pulled out a sleeveless top that seems to only get worn in the fall due to its dark and moody coloring, and paired it with my silk slouchy cargo crops. The top feels extra sporty here, though I've never thought of it as a sporty top; I think it's a combination of being fitted, jersery, and black+brights.

After yesterday's sweet-tough outfit I was feeling like a sporty/hard mix so I popped on some older charcoal booties. This outfit is a bit harder-edge than I usually go these days, though I used to dress more like this in the past so it's not at all uncomfortable. Hair up and small triangle studs to play into the sporty vibe. Then to counter the sportiness/hardness, I chose a soft pink lipstick and a new watercolor print clutch. A bit of a jarring juxtaposition, but I like that about it; in a softer way it also picks up on the print in the top, which has a more discrete painterly vibe.

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.27 [sweet utility]

Another hot day, and probably the last of the truly hot for us. *sob* So today I pulled out a linen-cotton blend summer dress, and brought it closer to fall with an old olive utility vest.

Over the past few years, I've passed on all of my military/utility inspired clothing save for a few pieces, although they don't much get worn. I've had this utility vest for several years (LA Shoptoberfest fabbers may recognize it), but haven't worn it in the past two. Not sure I'm ready to bring it back into rotation but for today I enjoyed pairing it with the sweet dress (plus my hair is extra wild today so I thought it was fitting ^^). Yes it would be more traditionally flattering with the drawstrings tightened up, but I rather liked the very voluminous and long lines this way. It actually looked pretty fun zipped up too, though it's waaaay too warm out for that.

Initially I put my olive oxfords on, but felt they skewed the look too utility for me so I swapped to gold slipper flats; lower contrast, and a bit prettier but still tomboyish. Added a little cream snakeskin belt for a touch of safari (with the buckle swiveled around for a cleaner look; also, it's sparkly!), and giant gold hoops plus a few dainty rings for a touch of glam. Kept it semi-tonal with a taupe clutch, and a swipe of cherry pink lipstick for a sort-of-sweet-sort-of-retro finish -- the light pink I tried first was too sweet, the plum I tried next was too dark.

This dress didn't end up getting worn as much as I'd expected this summer. Despite the high linen content, the weave is really tight and thus not nearly breathable enough for a truly hot day (which is what I wanted it for) although I did wear it on a few of those. And that is how I came to this conclusion ;) I think for our normal, milder summer temperatures it's quite perfect. It's also thick enough (and self lined) that I can wear it through fall, which is great for extending it's wardrobe usage.

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.26 [navy, emerald, and cognac]

In the spirit of giving my favorite summer items one last whirl while we have warm temps, today I pulled out a combo that I kept wanting to wear that felt too autumnal but now feels just right as we inch closer to cool weather. (The top is actually darker than photographed.) Would you believe I ironed these linen shorts not 10 minutes before snapping photos? Guess I should've used steam!

These shorts are a higher rise than I normally wear, which unfortunately makes semi-tucking never quite look right. So I usually go either fully tucked or just untucked. After reading Angie's neater partial-tuck technique (tucking the front and back and leaving the sides loose) I've been wanting to give it a try and this was the perfect outfit for it. Most of the benefits of a full tuck, with some of the slouch from a semi-tuck! I'll definitely be doing this again.

Buttoned to the top and accented in cognac (belt, shoes), gold (earrings), and orange (lipstick) to give it a more transitional feel. And worn with more open shoes (versus oxfords which was my first thought) and a white purse to keep it skewed more summer than not.

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

(PS: Angie, I still don't like how I feel in navy even though, objectively, the photos always look just fine -_- I don't mind it today, though. Not sure why.)

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WIW 08.22 [back to basics]

After a rather experimental and particularly slouchy week, today I just wanted something simple and a bit pretty. Of course nearly everything in my closet has slouch to it these days, so this is still plenty slouchy ^^

An end-of-summer interpretation of an old tried and true standby formula for me: sweater + skinnies + pumps. Summerized with the semi-open-weave short sleeved sweater and also rolling up the pant hems. I like this particular length best with heels so even though my first shoe thought, dalmatian ankle strap flats, would be a trendier option I chose my black pointy pumps for the extra lengthening (plus they're on-trend enough). To keep the look on the urban end as well as to counter the pretty just a bit, I put my hair up in my pomp-pony and wore two pairs of little pyramid stud earrings (one copper, one gold). Went with retro sunnies for the pretty factor, and a swipe of sheer neon orange lipstick along with the bright hard clutch for a little extra touch of sun.

We're getting to that part of summer when I realize the warm days are numbered, and I want to try to sneak in extra wears of my favorite warm-weather things while I still can! So that's my plan for the next couple of weeks :)

Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.21 [sporty slouchy, bordering sloppy]

Ok so this is essentially a dressy, more fashion conscious version of a sweatshirt + gym shorts + sneakers outfit. I don't know how sloppy this actually looks (versus how soft it feels) but I think this probably borders into the unknown for anyone not into/aware of trendy fashion. Very unstructured, rather unconventional-bordering-frumpy proportions. I'd guess it could read equally as fashion-in-the-know and fashion-out-of-the-loop ;) I promise I do have several more structured outfit ideas for these culottes, but they're all for cooler weather. For now I'm enjoying wearing them in a very soft and oversized way.

The few points of structure in this outfit are enough for me, but only on a day that I was up for it like today: a little at the neck, forearms, a wee bit of calf, and "streamlined" sneakers. The structured clutch also helps, and I chose it because of how opposing its rigid structure and print looked against the very soft clothing. Tucking or semi-tucking the top would add a good deal more structure, but I was going for the sweats look so I left it untucked and long. Keeping with the sporty vibe I added giant gold hoops (which also gets me that bit of glam I need), and a better-than-nude peachy lip tint. While hair up would add to the sporty side, I left it down to play with the slouchy side.

As seems to often be the case with oversized and slouchy clothing, the photographs don't show nearly as much as there is in person. Not at all sure what the reaction to this outfit will be; I liked it, but I am curious to hear all of your thoughts on it ^^

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.20 [something different - all black (insp by SarahTheWhite)]

Those of you who've been here a while (and probably even those who haven't) know that I generally don't enjoy wearing black. And rarer still will I wear all black. However when I saw SarahTheWhite's lovely faux jumpsuit outfit yesterday, I felt compelled to try something similar! Of course, not having a lot of black items made this more difficult than I'd expected. I tried this with all of my black tops ("all" *cough* four of them) and only this one had the right the vibe, although my black PJs tee worked pretty well too ;)

There are several reasons this outfit feels great for me, even though I'm wearing so much black:

- First off, LOTS of skin. Between the deep v-neck, exposed forearms, exposed calves, and low vamp shoes I feel like I've got more than enough lightness to counter the heavy feeling I get when I wear black.

- Secondly, not wearing black shoes. The addition of the snakeskin and tan also help lighten the look, plus the tan adds just a touch of extra color interest. I think I'd also like the look with my dalmatian ankle flats as well.

- And the third is two fold: a mix of very soft (fabrications, hair) and glam (sequins, deep red lipstick, double-coated mascara) keeps this feeling like me. I had originally thought I'd put my hair up, and if I'd done that I'd have sported a soft pink lipstick instead of the deep red; that hair adds glam and lipstick adds soft, so the balance is kept.

Yes black works well for me (both in color and style), and yes I'll don it here and there but it's soooo much more work to make it feel right. This one totally hits the spot, so thanks for the wonderful inspiration SarahTheWhite! And for fun, a copycat tree pose as well ^^

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.19 [going for gold, AKA more is more]

Sometimes a gal just needs something extra dramatic! Peplum+flowy high-low skirt? Check. Statement earrings+statment necklace? Check. Midi skirt+ankle strap pumps? Check. Sequins just for fun? Check!

This outfit started with the skirt and the thought that perhaps a peplum would work with it. I'm not sure how I feel about the combo, but I think it at least looks alright. This particular peplum top was one I had to purchase for a wedding outfit last spring, and it's not "my perfect peplum" if you know what I mean -- I'd rather it be lace instead of plain stretch ponte, and cream instead of white -- so it rarely gets worn. One thing I do like about it, though, is that the waist seam is ~1" below my natural waist; since I'm short waisted and IT, I feel like that helps balance out my torso proportions a bit (if I'm highlighting my waist, it's almost always a point a little lower than my natural waist).

Kept with the yellow theme and accessorized with gold and lots of it: giant hoop earrings, cream/gold droplet necklace, and sequined clutch. Plus a few slightly-off-from-yellow things: rose gold watch, peachy sunnies, and soft orange lip gloss. I chose my gray suede pumps to add some extra color interest (it picks up a bit on the lavender in the skirt), and left my hair down for extra drama and contrast.

Have to say that even though it's a bit much, I really did enjoy the hoop/necklace combo ^^

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW backlog - BF jeans

Been working on my backlogged outfits from the past two months, finally ready to post some! I normally go week-to-week, but this time I thought it'd be fun to link back to some of Angie's blog posts. It has been interesting looking at my outfits as variations on a theme, since week-to-week and day-to-day they vary quite a bit. So! Here are a few recent outfits I've worn featuring various BF jeans. Clearly the semi-tuck reigns supreme.

#2/3, 06.25 (work). This blush linen baseball tee and destructed ultra-faded BF jeans are extra slouchy and slubby together, so all of my usual structural points: exposed skin (neck, arms, feet), refined pumps, and semi-tucked with a belt. I think this would've been a bit more urban feeling with my hair up but I was in a soft mood so I left it down. After wearing that crossbody bag a day or two, I re-realized that I don't like shoulder/xbody bags (after buying two, bah) and have since shortened the strap and relegated it to hand/clutch mode only.

#4/5, 07.07 (work). If this outfit looks familiar, that's because I loved it so much I wore it again just 10 days later to meet Shevia ^^ This version is more casual with the sandals (thanks Mo!), and glam in a different way with the giant crystal earrings and pomp-pony. All kinds of metals mixed in here: silver, rose gold, bronze -- the only thing missing is plain ol' gold ;)

#6/7, 07.22 (work). I had noticed that I was working my new purchases much more heavily than other things in my wardrobe, so for this outfit I pulled all older pieces except for the shoes and clutch. This base is a combo that I have worn several times, and it's always a favorite. Mixed textures (silk, large knit, denim, leather, sequins) and mixed critters (zebra, snake); I almost wore peacock earrings to add an additional critter but at the last minute swapped ^^ Changed things up by donning a plum lippie instead of my more usual summer go-tos (pink, orange, or red).

#8/9, 08.08 (work). Another outfit working older favorites, this time except shoes and belt. Was in a more boho mood so left the hair extra soft and curly, and popped on my longest earrings ^^ Last year I wore my white pumps with this outfit, this year I am enjoying the additional color and texture depth these gray suede pumps add (plus there's still plenty of white with the belt and clutch). One of these days I'll try something else, but for now I'm still happy with my usual lip color when I wear this violet sweater: orange. At least this day I went bright (bordering neon, even if it doesn't really show in the photos), versus the softer shade I'd usually wear.

#10/11, 08.17 (weekend). I had expected that both this linen sweater and these faded BF jeans would get a lot of wear this summer, but we've had such a wonderfully warm summer that neither have come out much at all! Can't complain too much about that ;) I definitely skew gold with my metals, but for this day I went (nearly) all silver with the belt, earrings, and shoes. Since the outfit is a bit grungy I chose soft hair and a light pink tinted lip balm.

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW 08.12 [big volume culottes]

After reading Angie's post this morning and realizing that I wear all of those not-yet-mainstream trends, I couldn't decide which of them I should wear today... then decided to go with a fringier one, culottes, and style them in an also fringier way, volume-on-volume.

I'm sure it's no surprise to many of you here that I LOVE culottes! I've been waiting and waiting for them to filter down, and this season there are finally some good non high end options that appeal to me (low rise, wide hem opening). I'm hoping to add a winter weight pair this fall, too. Super excited to finally be able to sport a silhouette I've been after for several years. We've got a brief period of cooler weather this week, so I thought this would be the perfect time to debut a pair that I bought recently at one of the Seattle meetups (we'll have plenty of cool weather coming soon, so I've been taking advantage of short-shorts weather while it's here!). Lots of ideas are swirling in my head, but for a muggy and warm day like today, pairing with oversized linen was the way to go.

So. This is a very voluminous and slouchy look (even more than comes across in the photos), probably further unhelped by the fact that I didn't iron these culottes before wearing, oops! Will sort that out for next wear. It's also not classically flattering proportionally, although the culottes length is perfect. That all said I feel perfectly happy and at-home in this: the fabrics all feel divine, I love the swooshy feeling from all the softness, and of course the big 70s appeal. As far as structure there's more than enough for my own comfort level -- bare skin (arms, legs, neckline), semi-tuck, and refined pumps. I could add an additional structure element by putting my hair up, but I was going for soft so down it is. Very simple accessorizing today, oversized white hoops and rose gold watch with better-than-nude peachy lip color.

Ridiculously high happiness factor with this one, though I know it won't be to everyone's taste :D Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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WIW for various YLF meetups

Over the last month I was lucky enough to be part of four different YLF meetups! Trying to settle on an outfit for one is hard enough, especially if shopping is in order; I like to dress much more simply for shopping, hair down, and always with pants -- all of which limit how clever an outfit can be -- and of course, there will be lots of walking. This used to be a tall order for me but, between having been to several meetups so I know what to expect and working hard to convert the bulk of my shoes to walking shoes over the past two years, I was happy with all of the outfits I came up with. And I was so thrilled to be able to meet so many forum members :D

#2/3, 06.28 [other posts: 1 | 2 | 3]
Seattle Meetup (brunch + shopping downtown)
Considerations: Shopping, lots of (fast paced) walking, possibility of rain.
This outfit started with the shoes (good for walking) and jeans (a requirement for clothes shopping). Chose the breezy linen baseball tee because it would help keep me cool while I dashed around the shops. Semi-tucked with a white perforated belt to play up the sporty vibe, and accessorized with lots of gold (earrings, rings, clutch) and cherry pink lip gloss.

#4/5, 07.16 [other posts: 1 | 2]
Hanging out with Diana, then dinner with Anna and Jenava
Considerations: Lots of walking, spending time outside on a very hot day.
The temperature was the primary driving force behind this. Initially I had an outfit planned similar to this one, but changed my mind that morning and instead went with a hybrid of these two [1 | 2] outfits. And we did end up spending nearly the entire day outside so I was sooooo glad to have gone with loose, breezy, and lots of skin! Without any shopping planned, I put my hair up and did the front extra big especially for Anna ^^ Better-than-nude lip balm so that I wouldn't have to worry about reapplying often.

#6/7, 07.18 [other posts: 1]
Meeting Shevia (coffee + Pike Place/waterfront stroll)
Considerations: Moderate amount of walking.
Jaime and I hadn't finalized our plans and would only have a couple hours, so I decided to wear something slouchy and texture rich in honor of her fabulous style -- a breezy open-weave sweater and linen pants for slouch, and silver belt and shoes for structure. It was a delight to see her walk into the coffee shop where we met donning the same shoes! Styled my hair extra soft and curly, and accessorized with mixed metals (gold earrings, silver fox ring, rose gold watch) along with a swipe of sheer red lip color to keep the whole look from being too sandy.

#8, 07.19 [other posts: 1 | 2]
Seattle Mini-Meetup (breakfast + shopping downtown)
Considerations: Shopping, lots of (fast paced) walking.
I wasn't feeling my best this day, but a cute outfit can sure help. So can giant gold hoops ^^ This one was actually a lot more unstructured feeling than I expected, and it took me a while to adjust to the feeling; I think it's the pants, after wearing them a few more times since then. It ended up being a bit too warm for the day, and I'm sure I surprised some of the gals by wearing flats ;)

Available items collected below. Comments, critiques, thoughts and questions welcome.

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