A brief break from the series of outerwear outfits that I started up last week, because (1) it's one item, two ways style week with Dana so I've got a black cardigan to showcase, and (2) we're doubling down on quarentimes, and sometimes a girl just needs to wallow a little in not going out and thusly giving up actual pants.
The cozy black cardigan is a great wardrobe staple, since you can throw it on over pretty much anything and be both cute and warm. I've worn it with jeans, of course, and if it were actually a time for dressing up, it could be really cute over a flowy patterned dress with tights too. But for now, I love this long version for wearing with leggings. Looking forward to seeing how Dana styles her cropped version today though, to see how this similar item might manage to be altogether different!
As for the leggings, I'm back to the "I could do yoga at any time!" style because that's how the schedule is looking these days with Hendrik finishing up his 2-week quarantine after exposure to a covid-positive classmate (happy and lucky to report that we still have had no symptoms here), a 5-day Thanksgiving break at home coming up, and then Monday not being the return to school that we expected as the elementary schools in our district will be going to all-virtual for at least 10 days after the break. Back to juggling the virtual school + regular job + popping onto the Peloton app in my little studio for a physical/sanity break when the opportunity arises. Thus being ready to whip off the cardigan and be in workout clothes at a moment's notice!
For this month's twinsies post, Dana and I decided to style some tan ballet flats. Which I wear so often that I was tempted to recycle some photos and turn this into a 50 ways post, but I decided to stay on-brand with our series and managed to pull together yet another new outfit with these beloved shoes.
Okay, it's not that hard to make an outfit with these flats, because they go with pretty much everything. And I really do wear them all the time (see the last 3 out of 5 outfit posts!). Real closet life here - what I wear is what you see.
I actually have reduced my shoe collection in the last few years and have just 3 pairs of flats now: one black loafers, one fun patterned ankle-strap pair for when I want to make a statement, and then this cognac ballet pair. They clearly have earned their place in a curated closet thanks to their versatility, and their durability. I think I've had them 3 years now.
The sweater (more sizes here) is a newer closet addition though - and how very 2020 is it that when I was having trouble deciding which of the colors I liked best, I went with the one that matches my favorite mask? I love the warmth and fit so much though it's kind of tempting to order another of the colors while it's included in the Madewell Black Friday sneak peek at 40% off until the end of the day...
While I'm pondering that, go check out how Dana is wearing her flats today!
We're nearing the end of the month, which means: checking over my month's TBR goals, getting itchy to see what might show up soon on Book of the Month, prepping my next Currently linkup, and of course, going with Dana into the wardrobe twin section of our closets for our next blogger style post. This month we're both styling leopard print tops.
Appropriate to my work-from-home life, the leopard wear in my closet is a sweatshirt, but there are so many cute cardigans and sweaters and sweater blazers out there for any wardrobe style, if you have anywhere to wear it these days... For now in the transitional weather I'm wearing it on its own with jeans, but I've got plenty of layering + booties plans for down the road! Also as usual might have to copy whatever version Dana came up with - go check it out here.
Oh, and PSA: the jeans that have been showing up over and over around here are now available in a darker wash, perfect for transitioning to fall... so now you know what I'll be posting every week from this point!
It's blogger style day, and this month Dana and I are going super versatile and easy: white sneakers. And I'm keeping it easy breezy with a striped swing dress for my version. Wonder how Dana will wear hers? Let's go check it out!
Sneakers + dresses are a go-to easy uniform for me, solidly in the "my style" category of the my style/not my style lists that I laid out last week. Almost any dress is cute with a crisp white pair of sneakers, adding a bit of a sporty vibe or a fancy/casual juxtaposition that makes an outfit more interesting. (I have to admit: this particular version is so easy it's kinda cheating... I got the dress from a pile of a few things that my mom handed off for me to list on Poshmark. Ha! And there's one in another size if you want to snag a great deal on this little number!)
As for the sneakers, I have worn through several pairs in my day, but this leather look pair from Toms has lasted me a solid year by now, still looking pretty darn good (nice that stuff mostly wipes off the leather, vs. a canvas shoe), and still comfy as ever. But I must admit that I'm already eyeing my replacement pair for someday, now that Rothy's has a lace-up version. Cute, sustainably made, and machine washable to boot - yes!
Back with Everlane for this month's installment of Dana and my long-running blogger style series, we're both styling this very reasonably priced and very worth buying midi t-shirt dress.
This dress has been on repeat for me this summer, as seen before, and I basically wear it the same way every time - I mean, it's cute on its own, and though it might be even cuter with a denim jacket, who has cool enough weather for that?! But then recently I remembered this little belt bag that I had ordered in anticipation of the spring-break-that-wasn't, because I thought it would be so perfect for touring around Savannah, to carry just the basics without weighing me down (and if you don't carry a big bag, the boys you're traveling with can't ask you to carry anything for them - ha!). The belt makes it into a bit of a different outfit - and the leather totally makes it count as a "belt" rather than a "fanny pack" which I am kind of scared of - plus it turns a no-pockets dress into one that has a perfect pocket for carrying the strolling around town essentials: a phone + our masks.
I feel lucky that we have plenty of open sidewalks, plus a whole college campus that is full of shady paths and currently no people, that we can walk and scooter ride without worrying about getting too close to anyone else - so that we can do it comfortably without needing masks. But I always feel better when I have it handy should the need arise!
Admittedly, Dana and I were both feeling a bit uninspired when it came to picking an item we share in our wardrobes in order to do this month's blogger style post. When you're not really going out and are therefore pretty much wearing the same thing every day for convenience, any outfit posts feel a bit meh (hence sometimes I just skip them lately). But in the end we landed the idea of an inexpensive but excellent J.Crew Factory t-shirt dress, always the perfect thing for a casual and comfortable hot summer day outfit, along with our masks - which should of course be part of any going out outfit right now - and I was quite pleased for this outfit excuse, I felt so good once it was on!
While much of my outdoor time is in exercise-type clothes, I do try to eventually get dressed in something - often in jeans or denim shorts, but if it's *really* an occasion (such as picking up takeout dinner versus picking up curbside groceries!), it's nice to rifle through the easy-but-cute dresses section of my closet - one of my favorite wardrobe sections, really. And as always, any little nip in the air has me reaching for my denim jacket to put with it, because denim jackets + dresses for life.
Dana and I also styled up our t-shirt dresses with masks partly because at first it was some dark corona-times humor between us, but then I also really felt I wanted a little soapbox time here. Covid cases are going up nearly everywhere in the US. The situation is far worse than it was in March, when many of us were on lockdown - and now we've got people out and about. Pretending it's not a thing is clearly not going to work, and mask-wearing needs to be normalized. Masks + distancing are effective and super important especially where we're not on official lockdown, and it's a personal responsibility for all of us to keep each other safe by containing our germs this way - extra necessary given how much asymptomatic infection there is with this virus, and how long the pre-symptomatic period is, in which you would have no idea you're sick (and even would test negative), but could still infect others. Though I don't really have contact with anyone outside of my family - and I recognize my privilege in always being able to work from home, and not have to report to a job site - I always wear a mask when I'm picking up curbside stuff, and Hendrik does too. It's not that hard to do, and it's for the good of everyone. (Note that we don't wear them when out on walks/bike rides because we keep distance from others, and also it seems there is good evidence that very limited exposure, outdoors is not a major risk.)
We know how to slow the spread of the coronavirus. I know it doesn’t always seem that way. And, yes, there is still a great deal we don’t know about the virus. But there is also a consistent set of lessons, from around the world, about how to reduce the number of new cases sharply. You should wear a mask if you’re going to spend time near anybody who is not part of your household. You should minimize your time in indoor spaces with multiple people. You should move as many activities as possible outdoors. You should wash your hands frequently. And you should stay home, away from even your own family members, if you feel sick....The past six months have repeatedly shown the value of these steps.... Over the last few weeks, however, the virus has begun spreading across the southern and western U.S., as well as in some other countries. And there’s no real mystery about why. Many people have stopped following public-health guidance. They have gathered in restaurants, bars, churches, gyms and workplaces (sometimes because their employers pressured them to do so).
As Americans weigh the risks of attending protests, rallies, birthday parties, dinners, and all of the social gatherings that make up normal life, they will have to contend with the uncertainty that a negative test result does not rule out infection. “If they go do a risky contact, they can’t get a ‘Get out of jail free’ card. They can’t just get tested and feel fine,” A. Marm Kilpatrick, a disease ecologist at UC Santa Cruz, says.
Also, research shows that 6-foot distancing is important too - so combine them both for best results! And finally, an unsurprising news story I saw the other day: 8 wineries/restaurants in one small area of northern Michigan had to contact patrons after a group of visitors tested positive for coronavirus and were not practicing any distancing/mask wearing while bar and restaurant hopping. I mean...yeah. You never know what potential exposure you're sitting next to. So: you may have a different risk tolerance than I do for going out and about. But no matter what that personal risk tolerance is, people should still wear masks.
By this point, there's no excuses - if you can't make one yourself (or have a mom who makes them, like the cute patterned one I'm wearing), you can support an Etsy maker by ordering one there, or you can even tack one on to your order from a favorite retailer, as everyone from Madewell to Gap has them available now. So many options, you can find one to go with any outfit, for sure.
And you can go check out how Dana wore one with her outfit for even more inspiration.
p.s. this article has some really useful language around risk tolerance and ways to safely expand social circles.
At the end of last summer I happened upon some fun platform espadrilles on super clearance at Target and brought them home with me, envisioning how fun they would be for spring break travels or for summer date nights out. Fast forward to corona era, with canceled trips and no restaurant dining in sight... but then I realized I totally have an occasion to dress for: it's blogger style day with Dana!
This month we decided to showcase the humble yet versatile navy crewneck t-shirt. Perfect for right now as it's very much jeans and tee weather here, and of course it's casual weather all the time right now. This tee can go dressed up when tucked in to a skirt, nautical/preppy when worn with white jeans, and here thanks to the platform sandals, stovepipe style jeans, and knot I tied at the hem, it's going the boho route today. Not my usual style, but I think I'm digging it for something a little different!
Speaking of different, let's see if Dana was any more creative than jeans + a tee. Ha! Check out her navy t-shirt post here.
The phrase "all dressed up with nowhere to go" has taken on different meaning in the last 6 weeks, I'd say... because now it applies to putting on jeans. It's amazing how fancy a pair can feel if you're spending most of your day in leggings. Luckily I had an excuse to get "dressed up" - the next installment of Dana and my blogger style series!
We decided to show off a particular favorite type of jean for me - the button-front style. I first saw these from Madewell (and their jeans just work for me, so that's the only place I buy mine these days), but since have seen them at several other retailers at a variety of price points - Old Navy, Everlane, etc. Wearing these is as straightforward as wearing any jean, of course, but I especially like to pair them with a cropped-length or tie-front top so that the buttons show.
Here I picked a cropped-length drapey button down and added the front-tuck for good measure. Paired with who knows how many day-old unwashed hair that was curled to mask its state, some comfy flats, and a cute barrette, I was all set for going somewhere without actually leaving my house - a Zoom happy hour! And you better believe they noticed how fancy I was looking.
Not exactly the kind of thing we'd want to anticipate, but it turns out Dana and I made the perfect selection for this month's item to style two ways: black leggings. Now that most of us are staying home pretty much full time, the time is right for outfit ideas that fit the times but still give us a little sense of our cute selves...
While last week I tried to make my leggings outfit look a bit more professional on top (one of my tried-and-true techniques that I can pass along to those who are now joining me in the land of Zoom meetings!), this week I'm going for full-on comfortable but still feeling cute. And also warm because it's still in the 40s here - actually had to switch to boots to go for a walk, but this is how I envision having this outfit on repeat when it the temperature is more consistently spring-like.
This adorable jacket (and an equally pretty purse) are probably going to wind up being the only wardrobe purchases of my spring... I fell in love with them a month ago in the Madewell Insiders sale and was envisioning how cute they'd be for our spring break trip. Well, the trip is canceled of course, but I just couldn't cancel this jacket in my life, I love it so much. Still perfect worn as a cardigan indoors, still makes me happy, so it's still mine. (And the purse isn't going anywhere anytime soon, but I'm still holding on to it for better days to come - even if I am a little bummed to see that now it's even more on sale than when I bought it!)
But other than that, I'm personally a little weirded out right now by seeing regular email campaigns/ads from clothing companies. Of course, they're just trying to stay in business, and some people might find it soothing to still look at things like this, but much as I like to shop myself I can hardly think about new clothes when who knows when I'm going to leave the house again?! And then seeing a mailer with Easter outfits show up in my mailbox? It just kinda feels wrong, Easter services already being canceled and all. These times are just so weird.
Anyway. Are you wearing leggings more often these days too? Go check out Dana's post if you need another cute idea for this age of staying home!
Time for another installment in the closet twin series with Dana. This time we're both sporting a pair of sporty cute camel colored suede high-top sneakers slash ankle boots. (If a shoe-bootie hybrid is called a shootie, maybe these sneaker-booties are called snooties??)
My pair is from Sorel, and this was an extremely worthwhile purchase that I made last fall, because I have been wearing them all. the. time. Thus I was feeling slightly uninspired how to show them here, because basically all I wear right now is jeans + a sweater + these on my feet. It's nothing that feels super "blog worthy" (or if it is, like this outfit, I have then just repeated the outfit many times in real life), but at least I can report that they're very versatile, comfortable, and appropriate for everyday life. In this particular case, on a sunny day that was "warm" enough to switch from my butt-covering parka to a shorter quilted coat. Woo!
There are other cute options out there that skew a little more sneaker that I'm also totally into - but my version is the kind for a person who lives in a climate where waterproofness and traction are important... Check them out below, and then go check out Dana's look too!
