Layered

Sometimes I think the fashion world tries to be innovative by adding a lot of layers. I mean, seriously, J. Crew - is anyone really going to wear a button-up shirt, a sweater, and a jacket with shorts? (Except for Blair from Atlantic-Pacific. She may look cute, but I don't imagine that she's ever really comfortable.) The problem with layers on top and bare legs on bottom is that you're pretty much guaranteed to have one half of your body be either too warm or too cold. In the case of this outfit, I was too warm on top. But at least I felt cute, and I eventually got some ice cream to cool down. (From Salt & Straw, of course.)

Lace dress: H&M

Chambray shirt: Sears

Blue and green wedges: Nine West from Nordstrom Rack

Purse: Michael Kors, thrifted from Salvation Army

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Blue and green necklace: purchased in Florence, Italy

White bracelet: H&M

White belt: Forever 21

Today I'm linking this post up to Monday Mingle and Visible Monday.

Stripes and circles

I love stripes and I love this skirt, so it's no surprise that I've worn a couple iterations of this outfit in the past (here and here), and will probably wear it again in the future.

I'm keeping it brief today because I'm still having headaches every time I sit at the computer. Ugh. I guess it's time for another visit to the eye doctor...

Striped top: thrifted

Color blocked skirt: Forever 21, thrifted from Crossroads Trading Co.

Black flats: Kathy flats from ShoeMint
Black purse: thrifted from Salvation Army

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Gold necklace: Forever 21

Gold bracelet: In Pink

Summer fling

Spring has finally returned to Oregon after our brief fling with summertime; temperatures are cooling, the sky isn't clear blue anymore, and my plants have stopped withering on my windowsill. It felt nice to be able to wear jeans again, though if the hot weather returns I won't object.

On the plus side, cooler weather makes me feel less guilty about staying inside and watching TV - when it's hot out I feel like every moment not spent outside is wasted. But now, I can catch up on the season finales of all my favorite shows. (Like NCIS - I just watched the finale yesterday. So good. Normally I don't like cliffhangers, but this one was excellent.)

Floral peplum top: H&M

Pink cardigan: gift from a family member

Jeans: Levi's from Urban Outfitters

Blue and green wedges: Nine West from Nordstrom Rack

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Green necklace: purchased in Hong Kong

Green bracelet: thrifted from Village Merchants

Salt & Straw

I think choosing outfits would be a lot easier if I didn't have this blog. Instead of just throwing on whatever is comfortable for an evening stroll with Josh, I spend twenty minutes agonizing over my outfit, trying to find something that is Totally Innovative and Never Seen Before By My Blog Readers. The other evening, though, I got so tired of trying to be creative that I just threw on what I really wanted to wear, which was this.

And on our walk we stopped at a new ice cream shop that opened in our area called Salt & Straw. Oh. My. Goodness. I've never had better ice cream in my life. It was so good I wanted to cry. If you're ever in the Portland area, you really should try it. We shared the sea salt ice cream with caramel ribbons - the salt was, surprisingly, the perfect touch. If I could, I'd eat that flavor every day for the rest of my life.

Floral shirt: Marshall's

Jean shorts: free from a family member

Red wedges: Jeffrey Campbell from Lulu's

Gold necklace: Evidence Jewelry, won in a giveaway

Gold cuff bracelet: In Pink

"S" pin: vintage, gift from my mom

I took this photo on our walk; lately I've been obsessed with photographing flowers with the evening light shining through them...

Blending in

Josh said this cardigan makes me look normal. Any of you who have read this blog for more than a few weeks should know that I would generally much rather look interesting than normal, but lately I've been wanting to add more neutral clothes to my wardrobe. When all your cardigans are colors like hot pink and bright blue, it's kind of hard to work them into a variety of outfits. I found this gray cardigan at Gap last week for $8, after Danica was nice enough to let me know that the store near my house was closing and having some killer sales. And you know, I really liked how this cardigan mellowed out this enthusiastic dress. A hot pink cardigan may make me feel like a teenager - which is fun - but a gray cardigan makes me feel like an adult.

Floral dress: Target

Gray cardigan: Gap

Beige flats: Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Necklace: gift from a friend

Pink belt: Gap

Pink bracelets: In Pink

White bracelet: H&M

Floral striped dress

Normally I'm not a fan of polyester (although if something cute is made of polyester, I'll wear it anyway), but this dress is made of polyester and it feels fabulous. It's lightweight, and the best part is that even though it looks like a dry-clean-only dress, I can wash it by hand.

I think this was one of my favorite outfits ever - and I do mean ever, not just in blog history. It was weather-appropriate, pretty, comfortable, and coordinated without being too matchy-matchy. Plus, a girl at church yesterday came up to me and introduced herself because she loved these shoes. Fact: you will instantly become my friend if you compliment my shoes.

Dress: Anthropologie
Mint green cardigan: Old Navy

Blue and green wedges: Nine West from Nordstrom Rack

Green hat: free from my aunt

Pink necklace: gift from my grandma

Green bracelet: thrifted from Village Merchants

Today I'm linking up this post at Monday Mingle and Visible Monday.

Vivid hues

I don't mean to brag, but here in Portland we've been having superb weather lately. The temperatures have been ascending into the 70's and 80's, the skies have been clear, and the evenings are slightly warm and full of beautiful, soft light. Some days I spend hours outside, wandering around the streets and taking photos of the flowers. (Like the photo at the very bottom - I took that yesterday in Northwest Portland.)

I loved this outfit - color-blocking is still one of my favorite things to do with my clothes. It always surprises me how much attention these vivid hues draw when I walk outside. In the fashion blogging world this color combination would be considered fun but not out of place; but Portland, which is known for its weirdness, is not known for having people dress in neon colors. So even though the cut of this outfit was tame, the colors were unusual for the streets of Portland.

At first I liked this photo, but now I'm starting to think I look bug-eyed in it. Oh well, I'm keeping it because it's the only one that shows my purse.

 

Purple top: thrifted from Crossroads Trading Co.

Pink pleated skirt: H&M

White wedges: Sam Edelman (Kendall wedges) from Piperlime

White purse: free from my aunt

White pearl necklace: gift from a friend

Silver bracelet: won in a giveaway

White bracelet: H&M