Sweater dress

I miss the warm weather already, but the trade-off is that I love being able to wear outfits like this one. There's nothing like a sundress and sandals during the summer, but I just feel cooler when I wear things like boots and sweaters. This is only the second time I've worn this sweater dress (the first time was here), and now I'm kicking myself for not making it my go-to dress last fall. It's the perfect shade, and fall is really the only time of year I can tolerate wearing 3/4-length sleeves on a heavy sweater. So I'm going to try and wear it more this season, although I may not feature it on the blog much because there seems to be a limited number of ways I can wear it, and I don't want to bore you guys :)

Sweater dress: Fred Meyer

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Belt: thrifted

Bracelet: gift

Purse: Eva messenger bag from Ellington Handbags

Island Cafe

On Saturday Josh and I took a trip to Island Cafe with some of my family members. It's a restaurant floating in the marina off Hayden Island (which is on the Columbia River), and it's only open during the warm months of the year. What I love about it, apart from the great food (and the excellent mango margaritas, and the pleasant experience of sitting in the sunshine next to the river), is that you can take your boat or kayak or paddle board right up to the restaurant and enter via the water. You can also look over the railing and see ducks swimming around in the water, and sometimes they hop up on the deck and wander around under the tables.

This is what I wore to the restaurant, and at the last minute I stuck on the hat because I figured we'd be sitting out in the sun. Until Saturday I forgot I had this belt, and I'm so glad I rediscovered it. I may have worn it backwards, but I liked it best that way.

Green patterned dress: vintage

Green sandals: Blowfish Shoes

Green hat: vintage, gift from my dad

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Brown belt: thrifted

Gold bracelet: gift from my mom, from Yosemite

Brown bag: Eva Messenger Bag from Ellington Handbags

Copycat

First off, I should give all the credit for this outfit to the lovely Rebecca from Winnipeg Style - her version of this outfit was so good that I couldn't resist copying. Plus, in the two years that I've owned it, I've worn this skirt only a handful of times because I've found it nearly impossible to style, so I'll take any inspiration I can get. Also, I love finding an opportunity to wear my Switchfoot t-shirt with something other than jeans. This was a bit of an oddball outfit, but that is my favorite kind of style! I know that someday I'm going to have an office job again and will have to tone down the kooky-ness, so I'm embracing it while I still can.

Switchfoot t-shirt: purchased at a concert

Pink lace skirt: Forever 21

Brown heels: Macy's

Brown bag: Eva messenger bag from Ellington Handbags

Embroidered bracelet: thrifted from Village Merchants

Lucas Salon

Yesterday I got my hair re-colored. In the past I haven't invested much time or money into my hair. I've never put any fancy products into it. I only learned how to use a curling iron this year. I own a blow-dryer, but it's been broken for two years. And for about ten years, I dyed my hair with the stuff you get in a box at the grocery store. (Except for six months where I had black and blonde hair, which I definitely could not have done on my own.)

But earlier this year, I just got tired of the way my hair looked, so armed with a recommendation from my friend Lauren for a great new salon in Portland, I headed to Lucas Salon to get my hair cut and colored. The owner, Taylor Lucas, cut and colored my hair back in April before a friend's wedding, and it turned out so beautifully that I'm hooked on nice haircuts and hair color now. I went back yesterday to get my roots and my rose gold highlights touched up, and had the red deepened a bit. I'm immensely satisfied with the results, and wholeheartedly recommend Lucas Salon to anyone in the Portland area looking for a good stylist. If you're used to getting $20 haircuts and dyeing your hair from a box, the prices might seem a bit steep ($60 for a haircut and $85 for highlights) - but trust me (and this is coming from someone who typically spends next to nothing on beauty products), it's worth it.

I couldn't resist showing a close-up of my hair - I hope it doesn't sound vain of me to say that I think it looks awesome!

Paisley dress: from an antique show

Jean jacket: thrifted from Rerun

Brown sandals: Nordstrom Rack

Brown bag: Eva Messenger Bag from Ellington Handbags

Brown belt: thrifted

Bracelet: vintage, gift

And here are some photos of the fabulous Lucas Salon!

Slouchy

Normally with my outfits I try to define my waist since I'm so curvy, but last night we went out for drinks with some of Josh's co-workers, and I wanted something a bit less restricting in the waist since I knew I'd be having a few beers. I liked the slouchy look of this outfit, even though it wasn't the most flattering.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend! Josh and I are planning on going swimming in my parents' pool tomorrow, since it's supposed to be 95 degrees here, and then I might turn domestic and can some honey-soaked plums. The next few months will be filled with my canning projects - I plan on canning dozens of quarts of peaches, tomatoes, pears, pickles, and applesauce. (That actually sounds disgusting when you list them in that order, but they're really very tasty!)

I keep holding my fingers like this whenever we take close-up shots of my bracelets, and then it looks like I'm missing half my fingers. I need to work on that...

White blouse: from an antique show

Hot pink skirt: Zara

Brown heels: Macy's

Brown scalloped-brim hat: Asos

Purse: Eva Messenger Bag from Ellington Handbags

Necklace: can't remember

Embroidered bracelet: thrifted from Village Merchants

Pink bracelet: H&M

New bag

This was my Sunday afternoon outfit, worn for running errands (I bought thread and some extra bobbins, because dangit, I am going to make a dent in my sewing pile) and having afternoon coffee with my grandma and aunts.

This beautiful bag is my new purse, from the Portland company Ellington Handbags. I've been wanting one of their bags for years, but the cheapie in me just couldn't pay that much for a purse. But recently I was thinking that there's probably a reason why all my $30 purses have fallen apart so quickly over the years, and it's probably because the quality is proportionate to the price. So a week ago, after making some extra money at a side job, I bought this bag. Since I've only had it for a week I can't attest to its longevity, but I will say that the quality is superb, and boy does it feel nice. I know a lot of people think it's wasteful to spend that much on a bag, but I fully intend to get years of use out of it (and it will probably look even better with age since it's leather), and I think I've reached a point where I would much rather buy one expensive bag every five years than one cheap bag every year. How do you guys feel about pricey bags? Worth it, or wasteful?

[I feel compelled to include this side note: I hope no one thinks I sounded braggy talking about my expensive new bag. That was certainly not my intent. Since I probably won't buy anything that expensive for years to come, I felt like the anomalous nature of this purchase made it worth mentioning. I'm a budget shopper by nature - I really hate paying full price for anything - but sometimes it's worth it to splurge.]

Blue shirt: gift, from Macy's

Green skirt: thrifted from Crossroads Trading Co.

Brown sandals: Nordstrom Rack

Purse: Eva Messenger Bag from Ellington Handbags

Blue ear cuff: free from my aunt

Green earrings: B. Lee Designs, gift from my parents

Necklace: purchased in China

Silver bracelet: won in a giveaway