The Cohabitating closet

If It Ain't Broke, Don't Fix It

2012-01-27T16:36:00.001-05:00

Dress: Loft / Cardigan & OBI Belt: Limited / Necklace: NY & CO / Shoes: Clarks

I'm sure I'm taunting the weather gods with this next statement, and we'll get a blizzard any day now, but I'll say it anyway - we've had an incredibly mild winter here in Chicago. It's snowed twice, and both times has melted within a couple of days, making way for warmer (like, 40 degrees!), sunny days. As a result, I haven't really had to dress for bitter cold winter weather just yet. My warm, lined dress pants are still packed away in my closet, because I've been able to get away with skirts and dresses. And in wearing dresses all the time, I've settled into a really easy, though perhaps boring, formula of dress + belt + cardigan. It's hard to mess with success. So here's a couple of those.

Meko looks on
Dress, Cardigan & Belt: Target / Shoes: Indigo by Clark / Necklace: Macy's

Jude hasn't forgotten how to take outfit photos

Jewelry / cute sweater pattern detail

New Year, New You

2012-01-05T15:30:00.001-05:00

Yay! I remembered how to take outfit photos!
Cardigan: Jones NY (gift from Fella's parents), Tank: Loft Outlet, Skirt & Tights: Target,
Shoes: Clarks, Necklace: The Limited

Happy 2012, Style Nation! How were your holidays? And how is your new year shaping up? I meant to pop in much sooner than this, but I just haven't been able to find the time (which is a shame since I have managed to snap a few outfit photos). And with the busy holiday season last month, I was only actually in my office about 10 times, so I didn't have a ton of outfits to showcase anyway.

Sometime around Thanksgiving
Cardigan & Tights: Target, Tank: Loft, Skirt: eShakti, Shoes: Born, Necklace: NY & Company

If you've been reading my blog, you might know that my focus has shifted away from style and onto my own personal health and fitness journey. While many people have resolved to be healthier starting on New Year's, I made that decision toward the end of November. Along with getting healthier, I set a goal of losing 60 pounds with no end date, and thus far I'm down 7. I started working with a personal trainer at my gym in early December, so exercise and healthy eating has taken up most of my time. I assume that the further along I get in this, the easier it will be and, thus, the less time I'll have to spend thinking about it, making my weekly gym schedule, logging my food, planning meals, finding new recipes, etc. Then I might be able to make a return to TCC, since I do miss style blogging. In the meantime, I am reading your blogs, even if I don't always get a chance to comment. Keep on looking great, Style Nation!

I Couldn't Stay Away

2011-11-18T09:42:00.001-05:00

And look, I've totally forgotten how to take a proper outfit photo after just a week off from style blogging! Just as I thought I had everything all figured out, I spotted this dress at Loft. It was half off, and with my $20 "rewards coupon" (which means I spend WAY too much of my money at Loft), it ended up being $20. Stylenation, you know I can't pass up a good deal.

I love the cute lace yolk styling on the neckline and the elastic waist that was just begging to be belted. And I thought that being 2 neutrals that are already pretty heavily represented in my wardrobe, it'd be easy to work into my rotation. The problem is the high neckline. I ended up pairing it with a black boyfriend cardigan that would accommodate the shape of the neckline. But that's the best I could do. And you know I need some more color than this. How would you style this dress?

Dress: Loft
Cardigan: Ann Taylor
Belt and tights: Target
Earrings and Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Born

Cheers for the memories

2011-11-10T16:00:00.001-05:00

Hello Style Nation. After Anne's very sweet "stepping back" post, I thought I'd say a few words before I sign off the style blogging world for now. Since I last posted many moons ago, I feel that my priorities have shifted towards new things. I still really love style and I read many blogs still (although my ability to comment has gone). But after some good long talks with the Blokey, accompanied by some money related goals, I've decided to basically stop buying clothes as much as possible, and not blogging helps a lot with that. I pretty much wear black, grey, and other neutrals all the time. Hopefully still in a stylish way. One of my grad students, who is a self-declared shopaholic, told me yesterday that I "dressed well." (I was flattered. The other students made fun of him).

(A pretty typical outfit lately. I also wore a knee length pencil skirt, black tights, and 3 year old black kitten heels)

But in addition, I've had lots of new, exciting things that I've been involved with. Surely you didn't think someone who calls themselves "Rad" would sit on the sidelines during Occupy Wall Street? This requires multiple, 3 hour (sometimes longer!) "participatory democracy" based meetings every week, in which everything is discussed, at length. (Did you see the video with Ketchup on Colbert Report? The hand signals are about right). In addition to my participation in a couple working groups, I've also recently become an "irregular correspondent" on a Chicago-based community radio program, This is Hell. Well, it's not official yet, but I agreed to it on air last weekend. This is all on top of this my usual teaching/research/service, as well as a running regimen. Lastly, Steven and I are in the midst of a key marital dispute over whether to get a dog (I say yes; he tries not to roll his eyes).

Hope all is well and I will continue to follow your blogs on Googlereader. I do not have plans for any additional blogs, but perhaps I'll have a political one in the future. In the meantime, happy November to all! If anyone comes to NYC, I'd love to meet up for some herbal tea (which is in the cup above) and many some Caribbean food.

Taking a Step Back

2011-11-10T10:05:00.000-05:00

I don't know how to say this aside from just coming out and saying it - I'm going to be stepping back a bit from this blog right now. It's not that I don't like sharing my office style with you all, but I just don't feel like I have a lot to actually write about here. Sartorially, I've gotten myself into a pretty good groove. Some may call it a rut, but what I've come to realize is that it's just my own personal style. I've found it, and since it's pretty consistent, there's less posts where I'm experimenting with new looks or seeking advice on how to wear things. I'm just happy and comfortable with the way I'm dressing, which is a pretty good place to reach. Now I have outfit photos just sitting on my desktop, waiting to be posted because I don't have much to say about them. I'll still be posting outfits, but probably not as often. Meanwhile, if you need your fill of me in the blogosphere, you're welcome to check out my photo blog, where I'm currently about halfway through my own 365 project. And because I really enjoy writing and clearly needed another blog, I recently started up a personal blog. So there you have it.

And who knows, maybe this opens the door for Rad to finally return to TCC :)

Cardigan: Target
Tank: Loft Outlet
Pants and Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Tsubo

Going the Distance

2011-11-07T10:20:00.001-05:00

Dress, cardigan and tights: Target
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Born

Happy Monday, all! How was your weekend? Mine was incredibly busy. Fella and I both had family visiting from out of town, so it was fun to catch up with everyone. And on top of all of the family time, we participated in the Hot Chocolate 5k and 15k. Fella and his friend ran the 15k, and I did the 5k with a few girlfriends. I did my first 5k back in May of 2010, but it had been so long, I forgot about how awesome it feels to actually finish one. I'm not generally a big runner, so I didn't train as much as I could have. I'm hoping to do another one later this year, and with some actual training, I'd like to knock about 3 minutes off my time. Anyway, the run was bright and early on Saturday morning. It was a perfect day to run through the streets of downtown Chicago, and our reward for finishing was - you guessed it - chocolate! We received Ghiradelli chocolate squares, hot chocolate and fondue. Totally worth running for.

Before the run, downtown Chicago at about 7:15am

Running along Michigan Avenue

The Chicago skyline at the post-race party

Me and Fella after the run

I Can't Stop Wearing This Dress

2011-11-03T10:32:00.000-04:00

I feel like I wear this dress a lot, so much so that I had considered making it take a little break. But apparently I haven't blogged it nearly as much as I've worn it, so at least you all won't get sick of it just yet. It's a great print in colors that are easy to style around, comfortable and flattering, so I can't help myself. What piece(s) do you have that you just can't stop wearing?

This close-up was intended to show you my brooch-wielding (or my necklace emboobening), but since I'm also sharing my puffy undereyes with the blogosphere, can we talk skin care for a moment? As in, can any of you recommend an eye cream that actually works? I've been using Clinique's All About Eyes Rich for a while, and though it feels nice, it hasn't done much for the puffiness. Before that, I tried Garnier's Skin-Renew Anti-Puff Eye Roller and a few others that I can't remember off-hand. Most recently, Fresh Lotus Eye Gel was recommended to me. But before I shell out $50 on another eye cream, I want another opinion.

Dress: Target (remixed, as above)
Cardigan: The Limited (remixed)
Necklace and brooch: New York & Company
Tights: Target
Boots: Eddie Bauer

Happy (belated) Halloween!

2011-11-01T09:03:00.002-04:00

And more importantly, happy November! How on earth did it get to be November already? I think I've said that at the start of every month this year. But really. Anyway, what did you all do to celebrate Halloween? Fella and I aren't big Halloween people. It's a fun holiday when you're a kid, and it's been fun seeing all of my friends' adorable kiddies all dressed up. And I may be hunting for dog Halloween costumes which should hopefully now be on sale (I've had my eye on this banana costume for Jude and cow costume for Meko). But dressing up as a grown-up? Eh, it's not for me. Though we did carve pumpkins and stock up on candy. On Saturday night, which was the big Halloween party night around here, we turned down an invitation to go out with our neighbors and stayed in and grilled and watched Crazy Heart (I know, we're SO behind on movies) instead. And above is my not festive work ensemble from yesterday.

Cardigan: Target
Tank: Loft
Pants: New York & Company
Necklace: The Limited
Shoes: Privo
Sunglasses: Loft

Happy Halloween from Meko & Jude pumpkins!

Can We Just Start Today Over?

2011-10-28T11:16:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday morning to y'all! Do you ever have mornings that you'd like to totally do over? Or avoid all together? Yeah, today was one of those. Cara over at City Girl Chicago posted her morning routine today, so I'm going to share mine. This is more or less how my morning goes on a typical office day.

5:30am: Alarm goes off. Fella pops out of bed, hits snooze. Jude snuggles up with us.
5:37am: Alarm goes off yet again. I very slowly get out of bed and grumble about the downstairs neighbor's dog keeping us up all night with his barking. Totally don't understand how my neighbor sleeps through this, or thinks that we don't hear it and doesn't think that it's just a bit rude to let your dog bark for 10 minutes at a time ALL NIGHT LONG (Can you tell I'm really annoyed?). Anyway.
5:40am: Start a pot of coffee. Both dogs run into the kitchen, thinking it might be time to go outside or eat something. It's not. Check email while waiting for coffee to finish. Pour a cup loaded with Bailey's toffee almond creamer, knowing it'll be just the temperature I like once I get out of the shower.
5:49am: Shower, moisturize, blow-dry bangs, suck down coffee.
6:10am: Get dressed in the dark since the sun is nowhere close to coming up this early anymore.
6:20am: Hair & make-up.
6:40am: Wake Fella up, get dogs ready to go on their walks. They don't generally walk very well together, so Fella and I take them on separate walks every morning. We're pretty dedicated dog owners.
7:00am: Feed dogs, make breakfast-to-go, pack lunch, computer, coffee travel mug in work bag. Take OOTD photos even though it's STILL dark out.
7:15am: Fly out the door to walk a mile to the train station.
7:37am: Catch Metra train up to the Northern 'burbs for the first 20 miles of my commute.
8:22am: Arrive at my stop. Proceed to wait for company-chartered shuttle bus to drive the last 9 miles to my office. Keep waiting...
8:45am: Bus finally arrives. It's cool, I didn't want to get to work on time today anyway. Think that maybe I should've driven to work, though that would be bad for the environment and the traffic coming home would make me regret that. Probably should've just worked from home.
9:10am: Finally sit down at my desk, nearly 2 hours after leaving the house and 3.5 hours after waking up. Ugh!

So yeah, I'm a big ball of sunshine today. I am, however, really looking forward to the weekend. We were so busy with house stuff last weekend that I didn't get much time for r&r. I don't have much planned, though we're heading to see Moneyball with a friend on Sunday, and having dinner with Fella's family. What are you guys up to? And what does your morning routine look like?

Tee: Loft
Scarf: Target
Jeans: Old Navy
Sneakers: Converse

Golden Autumn Day

2011-10-26T08:27:00.000-04:00

When I bought this dress back in August, I wondered about other ways to style it than just with some sandals. The weather has, indeed, cooled off, making way for a scarf and some boots. I think the dress works pretty well in a fall iteration. We had gorgeous 70 degree weather yesterday (though with some intermittent rain), but it's cooled back down today and sort of looking like rain. I kind of miss the warmer weather of August and I'm not looking forward to winter, but it's nice to have more options with my clothes than wearing as little as possible because it's really hot out. How about you? Do you prefer warm weather or cooler weather dressing?

Dress: New York & Company
Scarf and tights: Target
Boots: Eddie Bauer
Sunglasses: Loft

Leftovers

2011-10-24T13:10:00.001-04:00

Happy Monday, Stylenation! I'm working from home today, but here's an unblogged outfit I wore last week. Nothing too exciting to say about it - I was just keeping warm and cozy on a chilly fall day.

Cardigan: Old Navy (remixed)
Tank: Ann Taylor Factory Store (remixed)
Pants: New York & Company
Scarf: Embellish
Flats: born

How was your weekend? Mine was incredibly busy. Fella and I went out to celebrate friends' birthdays on Friday and Saturday night, and the rest of the weekend was spent being super domestic.

We finally painted our dining room. Here's what it looked like when we moved in. The room's makeover isn't quite finished yet, but here's what the new colors look like. The trim was a chocolate brown before, which was okay, but I wanted to go a little more bold. The top part of the walls are Dapper Tan by Glidden, and the bottom is Behr's Ruby Ring.

While not painting, I did a ton of cooking. Cooler fall weather always makes me want to be in the kitchen. I made chili and cornbread for dinner last night, and pumpkin pie cookies for dessert.

Giving In To... Oxfords

2011-10-21T08:35:00.000-04:00

Has there ever been a trend party that you've been super late to? My most notable one thus far has been leggings. I remember them being kind of big while I was growing up in the 80's, but it took me until just this year to finally snag a pair. And now I'm finally embracing oxfords. Rad has had a pretty sweet pair for a while now (so great, she even wore them to her wedding reception), but they never felt like my style. I even remember girls at my high school wearing heeled oxfords with their uniforms and again, I liked them, but didn't think they were for me. I've been seeing them all over the blogosphere this fall, and what finally did me in was Kristen of Low Fat Dressing's post devoted to her 3 awesome pairs of Franco Sarto oxford booties. I had to have a pair of oxfords, and I finally decided to treat myself. So after 15 years of admiring the style, I'm finally on board with a pair of my own. What trend have you spent half a lifetime warming up to?

Sweater & Necklace: The Limited
Skirt: Old Navy
Tights: Target
Shoes: Born

A Not-So-Summer Skirt

2011-10-20T08:56:00.001-04:00

The last time I wore this skirt, in a pretty similar color scheme in March, I noted that I was breaking the rules by wearing a warm weather skirt while it was still really cold out. I was such a rebel back then, wasn't I? The funny thing is, the skirt didn't get worn during the summer at all. It's one of the many skirts and dresses I have that are too short for summer's bare legs, but I'm totally fine with wearing when it's cool enough to sport some tights underneath.

Cardigan & Skirt: The Limited
Tank: Gap (it's got some cute detailing that you can kind of sort of see here)
Necklace: New York & Company
Headband: Loft
Tights and Sunnies: Target
Boots: Eddie Bauer

A Little Fancy for a Monday

2011-10-17T07:30:00.000-04:00

This outfit feels like it's way too nice for a Monday, like I'm totally wasting it by wearing it to work. Do you ever feel that way about what you're wearing? Nonetheless, I couldn't keep passing over this dress in my closet, hoping for something more fun than work to wear it for. I'm sure I'll get a chance soon, perhaps around the holidays, but in the meantime, it was just wrong to let this dress hang in my closet, unworn. It's a comfy wrap dress that isn't a neckline offender, though I've covered up the modest neckline with Meko's leopard print circle scarf. You can see the full dress here, since I didn't capture the detail too well. The hat didn't make it to work - I'm just sparing you all a bad hair day. Though sometimes I do wish hats were office-appropriate. That'd save me SO much time in the morning.

Dress: The Limited
Belt, hat and tights: Target
Scarf: The Limited
Boots: Eddie Bauer

Autumn Leaves are Brown, and the Sky is Gray

2011-10-14T09:23:00.000-04:00

I knew our awesome unseasonably warm and sunny fall weather had to come to an end soon, and it did yesterday. It rained pretty much all day, and this morning, although the sun is shining again, it's dropped below 50. But it's not snowing or freezing, so it could be worse.

I've been kind of bad about mentioning what item(s) is being rescued for No Repeats, but I have been digging through the depths of my closet and/or unpacked moving boxes. This sweater hasn't seen the blog since February 25th. I like the space-dyed pattern of it, but the color totally washes me out, so it needs to be paired with bright, bold colors to prevent that. Similar to how Kristen broke up her all-cream-on-top ensemble with a bold teal scarf. I bought this sweater before I had a good handle on which colors I should probably avoid, but tricks like this help me dress around that.

Cardigan: Gap Outlet
Tank: Target
Jeans: Old Navy
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Born

One More Day in Sandals

2011-10-12T11:56:00.000-04:00

Some days there's just not much to say about an outfit. Today is one of those days. I haven't been to the office since Thursday, so I was less than enthused this morning. I wanted to just throw on some jeans, but there's a client visit somewhere in my building at some point in time today, and whether or not I actually cross paths with them, there's no jeans allowed during client visits. A knit jersey dress is a nice back-up, and I'm glad these sandals are getting another wear before it gets too cold for them. And before I throw them out, since they're just about falling apart. It's sad how run into the ground these sandals are, but they've definitely been loved the past 2 summers.

Dress: Old Navy
Cardigan: Target
Belt, Necklace and Earrings: New York & Company
Sandals: Aerosoles
Sunglasses: Target

I {heart} Fall

2011-10-09T14:24:00.001-04:00

Have I ever mentioned how much I love fall? The only thing I love more is a fall with sunny, unseasonably warm weather, which allows me to go outside and enjoy the beauty of the season. And this weekend, I've done plenty of that.

This is a fairly simple outfit, totally copied from Rebecca's post on MinnChic the other day. The scarf was last seen on Meko. She totally wears it better, but thankfully, she was nice enough to let me borrow it.

Tee: Loft
Pants: Loft Outlet
Scarf: Limited
Shoes: Puma

Speaking of the dogs, one outdoor thing we did this weekend was give both the dogs a bath. There probably won't be many more weekends where it's warm enough to hose them down in the backyard, so Fella and I took advantage of the weather. They look happy here, but they were less than thrilled about baths.

I also went on 3 bike rides this weekend, logging close to 35 miles! Above, was a ride down to Montrose Habor on Friday.

Yesterday Fella and I took a 17 mile ride up to Evanston and back. Here he is above, in the International Friendship Garden in Evanston. It's just beautiful, though definitely a trek to get up there. We decided that, should we get another nice Saturday, we'll pack up some snacks and just ride as far north as we can. And probably take our bikes home on the train, since I don't know how much I can ride beyond 20 miles or so.

Here's some pretty flowers and plants in River Park on Chicago's north side. I don't think it's technically one of the city's prairie areas, but it reminds me a lot of what I've seen in prairie habitats around here.

And this morning I took a ride down to the lake, hoping to see some of the Chicago Marathon. The northern edge of the route is just west of where this picture was taken, but alas, I didn't see any marathon runners. I did, however, see a pretty, somewhat hazy city skyline.

How are you enjoying fall?

Plain and Simple

2011-10-06T18:33:00.003-04:00

What would the Midwest be without unseasonal weather? After a week of rain, cooler temps and gray skies, this week has been sunny, gorgeous and warm! I'm trying to fit in sandals and bare legs a few more times before it gets too cold for that. I have two pretty simple outfits here because I just haven't felt like putting a lot of effort into dressing for work this week. It happens. I bought some new tops at the outlet mall over the weekend, so I was eager to mix them in. And wouldn't you know, they go pretty easily with black bottoms.

Tee: Loft Outlet

Pants, Cami and Necklace: New York & Company

Sandals: Aerosoles

Cardigan: Ann Taylor Factory Store

Tank: Loft Outlet

Skirt: Target

Necklace: New York & Company

Shoes: Tsubo

Date Night and Girls Weekend

2011-10-03T23:50:00.000-04:00

Greetings, Stylenation. I've had a busy few days since my last post! On Friday (above), Fella and I had a date to see the Fleet Foxes play downtown at the Chicago Theater. They're one of my favorite bands, and they definitely didn't disappoint. If you haven't heard them before, they're described as "baroque pop," and have kind of a 60's vibe to me. They're a band for music nerds like me - their music incorporates things like tempo changes, key changes, complex harp-like vocal harmonies and themes borrowed from gospel and folk alike. So yeah, I'd recommend checking them out.

Top: Target
Cami and Earrings: New York & Company
Jeans: Old Navy
Scarf: Loft
Boots: Rampage

(more pictures from the show posted here)

On Saturday morning, I drove to Frankenmuth, MI, a small city known as "Michigan's Little Bavaria," to meet one of my girlfriends, who currently lives in Cleveland, for a girls weekend. We went to high school together and were roommates together when I first lived in Chicago, but now that we live 6 hours apart, we don't get to see each other too often, rarely without at least one of our boyfriends in tow. We enjoyed a weekend of spa time, good eats, adult beverages, dips in the hotel hot tub, beautiful fall weather and outlet mall shopping.

This is the Covered Bridge over the river. Next to the bridge is a shopping center, complete with a spa that we visited upon arriving to town to kick the trip off with some pampering.

The downtown tourist district, which lies along the Cass River, is laid out like a small German town, full of cute shops, markets and restaurants.

Getting cheesy. I remember this cheese block from trips to Frankenmuth as a kid (because most kids growing up in Northwestern Ohio go there at some point). And it's even older than me - my mom was able to drive up to Michigan to meet me for lunch today, and she told me about girls trips she and her sisters took to Frankenmuth before they were all married, and all of the goofy pictures they have with this block of cheese. So that mouse is pretty well preserved.

On Sunday, we took a wine and chocolate tasting cruise on the river. It was amazing! They paired 5 delicious locally made wines with all kinds of tasty treats. I may have come home with 4 bottles of wine and about a pound of fudge.

All in all, it was a pretty great weekend. And we're already looking forward to another girls trip next year.

Oktoberfesting

2011-09-30T12:22:00.002-04:00

This is what I wore to work yesterday. It was a pretty casual day, as we had our annual office Oktoberfest party in the afternoon. This space-dyed cowl tank, previously unseen on the blog, hasn't been worn since it's purchase at the end of August.

Meko wanted to come outside to help with my pictures, so we worked on looking to the side and staring off into space. She's a natural.

Cardigan: Limited
Tank: Loft
Jeans: Old Navy
Necklace: New York & Company
Flats: Born

Dressing Down a Party Dress

2011-09-28T10:43:00.000-04:00

It's - surprise - another rainy morning here in Chicago, and the gloomy darkness this morning caused the flash on my camera to fire. Hence the kind of odd lighting. Just once this week, it'd be nice to wake up and not hear rain pouring down. But that's neither here nor there. I'm back in my comfort zone, wearing some black, white (I know the dress looks black and gray, but it's black and white) and red. I last wore this dress to Rad's and my friend C's wedding in June. Before that, the only other time I wore it was out for my birthday this year. It's a cute dress, but I guess I considered it to be a little too dressy for work. But styled with a cami underneath (since it's a total neckline offender), tights and a cardi, it doesn't look so formal. The other reason it's been dormant is that it's a little shorter than I'd like with bare legs. But once it's tights weather, I don't mind showing a little knee.

Cardigan: Target (last worn August 10th)
Dress: New York & Company (last worn June 18th)
Cami, Necklace and (sort of hidden) Brooch: New York & Company
Tights: Target
Shoes: Naturalizer

Upon us all, a little rain must fall

2011-09-27T12:42:00.001-04:00

I think this blue and gray colored outfit conveys my feelings about our seemingly constant rain here. Blah. I love fall, but not so much when it rains everyday. But enough complaining about the weather. I really like the pattern and coloring of this skirt, and even managed to make it office-appropriate, but I think I'd like it more if I got it altered to be closer to knee-length. Thoughts?

The lost items for No Repeats are the cardigan, which apparently I haven't worn since last December! Or maybe I just haven't worn it on the blog since then. And the shoes haven't been worn since May, mostly because they're not very summery.

Cardigan: The Limited (last worn December 14th)
Tank: Target
Skirt: Old Navy
Belt: Target
Shoes: Tsubo (last worn May 6th)

Jeans for Work and Play

2011-09-25T13:07:00.001-04:00

Happy Sunday, Style Nation! How is your weekend going? Mine's been fairly busy, considering I'm supposed to be resting up with a sinus infection. Woops. Above is what I wore to work on Friday. Just my typical bottoms + tank + cardigan combo. But it's easy, and it works.

Tank: Loft
Cardigan: Target (last worn August 1st)
Jeans: Old Navy
Necklace: New York & Company
Flats: Born

Yesterday, Fella and I went to the Hideout Block Party here in Chicago. It was a gray, gloomy and rainy day until we left to head down there, but because of the weather (and the forecasted storms and hail), the Hideout had apparently scaled back on everything, not expecting a huge crowd. By about 8:00, they ran out of food, toilet paper, water for hand washing, and were rumored to be about out of beer. And speaking of beer, we waited in line for about 40 minutes for one! But despite all of that, it was really fun. We got to see Chicago blues singer Mavis Staples and Chicago's own Andrew Bird. That was our 5th time seeing him in the past 2 years, and he never disappoints.

Anyway, this is what I wore to be comfortable, warm and kind of fit in with the concert crowd. Have I mentioned before how tricky concert dressing is for me? I bought this peacoat-style sweatshirt jacket last year, and was very happy to find it while unpacking another box the other day. You can almost see the sequins on my t-shirt in this shot, but since I didn't actually take a picture of it, you can see it here. And my scarf has a giant hole in it because Meko thought it was a toy (I don't know how many times I have to tell my dogs that accessories, although fun, aren't toys!), but fortunately I was able to hide that and still wear it.

Jacket: Old Navy
Tee: Loft
Scarf: Target
Jeans: Old Navy
Sneakers: Converse (last seen on the blog on January 4th)

More Likely to Succeed?

2011-09-22T09:15:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I heard a report about a UK Study that found that women who wear skirts, rather than pants, to work make better first impressions and are ultimately more likely to succeed at work. The study does focus more on skirt suits than just skirts and dresses, but it suggests that "women can still dress in a feminine way yet still be perceived as confident and successful," so this made me think about skirts and dresses in general, not just skirt suits. I found this really interesting, especially when you look at women's professional fashion of past decades. In the 1980's especially, women's work wear was designed to look more like men's, as women worked to shatter the glass ceiling. Shoulder pads added to that perception, and were used as women "power dressed" for the office.

I've spent my entire career, a good part of the 'oughts, in a business casual office, so wearing a suit has never really been required for me. But I have kind of seen this shift. When I graduated college and started looking for jobs, I wouldn't dream of wearing anything but a pants suit to an interview (part of that may be that I couldn't afford another suit, but pants were still my first choice). If I ever had an important meeting, I'd always go with dress pants and a button-down. But something shifted over the past few years, and I know that now if I ever want to convey any kind of message like "please, take me seriously" or "pay attention to my presentation," I skirt up. But I wonder, why is that?

Do you think there's any truth to the notion that skirts make better first impressions and lead to more overall success? How do you dress when you want to make a good impression?

Cardigan: Limited
Dress: Target (last worn June 15th)
Belt and Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Naturalizer

Been Fabulous Daily

2011-09-21T08:22:00.000-04:00

If you guys didn't know already, Cynthia of Be Fabulous Daily and I are kind of style twins. Don't believe me? Here she is in this shirt's red and brown twin, just the other day. And that's so not the first time we've owned the same/similar items. What can I say, great minds think and dress alike. Today's neglected item for No Repeats isn't the shirt though, it's these flats by Privo, last worn on April 29th. They just fell victim to warm weather, because I know they're cute and comfortable, so I've just been waiting to bust them out again.

Jeans & Tank: Old Navy
Cardigan: Loft
Earrings & Necklace Set: Bridesmaid gift from my cousin, from South Korea
Shoes: Privo
Sunglasses: Loft

Pretty in Pink

2011-09-20T08:59:00.002-04:00

Today's (well, Monday's) neglected closet piece is this Target cardigan. Longtime readers may recall when I bought this sweater last fall, I claimed that it was so versatile, I could put together at least 12 outfits with it. I won't bother linking you, but yeah, I've probably gotten at least that many on the blog. Not to mention all the unblogged ones. I don't know why I haven't worn it in 3 months, since my office is usually chilly enough that I always need a cardigan, regardless of the weather outside.

And speaking of pink things, Mel from A Working Mom's Closet is once again organizing Blogging for Breast Cancer Awearness. The goal is to raise breast cancer awareness by wearing a pink item every day during the month of October (or for one week, or whatever you have time for). Check it out if you're interested. I participated last year for the entire month (or I tried at least). This year, I'll be devoting a week in October to pink, and you can bet you'll be seeing this cardigan again.

Cardigan: Target (last worn June 24th)
Tank, Skirt & Necklace: Target (remixed)
Flats: Charming Charlie (remixed)
Flower Pin: eShakti (remixed)

Sunday Morning, Rain is Falling

2011-09-18T23:37:00.002-04:00

Here's what I wore on this rainy Sunday. I had a super cute outfit for going out on Saturday night, but woops, forgot to snap a picture. Sunday was a pretty quiet, relaxing day. Fella watched football while I did a little closet cleaning/reorganizing and worked on some knitting. We had dinner at Fella's parents' house, so I didn't even have to cook yesterday. Score! I guess I'm following Cynthia's No Repeats plan, by wearing an item that hasn't been worn in at least 30 days. This tank top never saw the blog, but I wore it a few times over the summer, and then it just got lost somewhere in my closet. I need to work on that. The sneakers haven't been seen on the blog since May, so those definitely qualify as not being worn in 30 days.

Also new to me and the blog are these jeans. They're the Dreamer from Old Navy. I'm sure I've mentioned how many issues I've had finding good jeans in the past. I was a fan of the Gap Long & Lean for a while, but they stretch out a LOT just after being worn once, so I've decided to stop dropping $60-$70 for those, at least until Gap keeps putting so much stretch in their jeans. The reviews on these jeans were all really positive, so I gave them a chance. Old Navy sizing can be so hit or miss, but they fit me perfectly, don't stretch out and are oh-so-comfortable. Oh, and they were on sale, so with a 40% off coupon and a $10 gift card, they only cost me $5!

Cardigan & Jeans: Old Navy
Tank and Scarf: Loft
Shoes: Puma (last seen on May 12th)
Earrings: Alixandra Collections, gifted

Not Repeating

2011-09-16T07:15:00.000-04:00

I'm starting off the fall go-round of the No Repeats challenge with something I know I haven't worn in months - tights! It's been so long since it's been cool enough to wear tights, I totally forgot how great they are! They make even a denim skirt a little more polished, and I like the way my legs look when cloaked in black tights. After all, black is slimming. I say all of this now, but I'm a little sad at the thought of summer ending, and being resigned to things like pants and tights for the next 6 months or so.

I'm as excited about the weekend finally being here as the dogs are about... well, everything. But they were especially excited to hop into my photos. I have absolutely nothing going on this weekend, which will be nice. What are you up to?

Sweater: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Necklace: Hazel
Tights: Target
Flats: Privo
Watch: Fossil

Pants!

2011-09-15T09:11:00.000-04:00

A quick scroll through the Flickr shows that I haven't worn pants - not jeans or capris, but actual dress pants - to work since March 28th! MARCH! How on earth did I make it almost 6 months? Some of it was due to a little weight gain which caused none of my pants to fit, and I guess the rest would be due to a fairly hot summer. I have lost about 5 pounds since writing my wordy weight post, so I can finally fit into my "fat" pants. And as for the weather? It's 42 degrees as I write this, so pants are fairly appropriate. And when I pantsed up yesterday, it was only in the 50's. I swear, I'll never understand Midwest weather. It was almost 90 on Monday, and 2 days later it's dropped 40 degrees. But I digress. The point is, I've kind of missed dress pants. They can be so comfortable, and black pants just look so smooth and polished. You know, as long as you don't notice the dog fur all over them.

Thanks for all the photo tips and tricks in response to my post the other day! I took Kristen's advice, and set my camera to Portrait, and it ignored all the miscellaneous junk on my porch and focused on me. And it even knew to use the flash on the detail photo, so you could see the cute ruffles and shiny texture happening with this blouse. Oooh, shiny. It, in fact looks so cool that one of my co-workers asked if she could feel my shirt yesterday. Yep, we're a friendly bunch in my office.

Cardigan: Target
Blouse: The Limited
Pants and Necklace: New York & Company
Sandals: Aerosoles

Having Ish-shoes

2011-09-13T00:11:00.001-04:00

When I saw Cynthia's post about problems taking outfit photos with point & shoot cameras, I could totally relate. Look at this.

Clearly, I was having issues this morning. For starters, now that fall is approaching, the sun is coming up later, which is giving me new morning light to work with. I tried to adjust my camera location accordingly, but my camera decided to focus on the recycle bin on my porch (which I've cropped out) instead of me. Trying again...

Good light and focus here, but damn, where did my feet go? Okay, third time's a charm...

Feet! But wait, that's not right either. At this point in the morning, I was about 2 minutes away from flying out the door, so I had already changed into my Birkenstocks, since they're nice and supportive for the walk to the train. Of course, when I looked at the footless pictures on my camera and set it up to take one more round, I forgot I was wearing the wrong shoes. So I gave up.

And here's the shoes. They were totally the highlight of my otherwise very simple outfit. I picked these up while shopping on Chicago's Fashion's Night Out last week and couldn't wait to wear them! If it's possible, they're even cuter in person.

Speaking of things I'm copying from Cynthia, she and I are embarking on yet another No Repeats Challenge starting this Thursday, September 15th. I'm getting a bit bored with my work wardrobe as of late so that'll be my main focus. Unlike Cynthia, I only go to the office 3 days/week, so I won't be repeating any clothing items on office days (read: blogging days) during the challenge (shoes and accessories may be a little tough, but I'll try). I don't have as much casual clothing, so me sticking to that on weekends or work-from-home days isn't quite as practical for me (seriously, I don't have enough yoga pants to cover that). The point of this challenge, for me, is to be more creative with my office wear. If you'd like to join us, think about where your wardrobe could use a little sprucing up, and comment on Cynthia's post to let us know you'd like to participate. So yes, this is the least formal style blogger challenge ever. No, there's not really any set, specific rules. It's a challenge defined by you, for you. Make sense? Clear as mud?

Dress: Old Navy
Necklace, Earrings and Cami: New York & Company
Shoes: Charming Charlie

A Beautiful Weekend in the Neighborhood

2011-09-11T21:27:00.000-04:00

One thing that I absolutely love about my neighborhood is that there's so much to do within walking distance, you really don't ever have to leave. I haven't been out of my neighborhood since I was downtown on Thursday night. It's possible that I've mentioned this before, but Fella and I live in Chicago's German neighborhood. This weekend was German American Fest, the unofficial close of Chicago's summer festival season. Though I'm sad that this signals the end of summer, it's always a fun weekend.

Friday night we met some friends at the German Fest for a few steins of beer, some brats and plenty of polka. This is my German Fest summer-to-fall transition outfit. It was only a little chilly but raining on and off, which is always a pain to dress for.

Cardigan, Tank and Shoes: Target
Skirt: Old Navy
Scarf: Embellish Chicago
Hat: Kohl's (Fella's)

On Saturday we walked a whole 2 blocks down the street to attend the 46th Annual Von Stueben Day Parade.

Dress: New York & Company
Earrings: Alixandria
Bag: Coach
Sandals: Chaco
Sunglasses: Loft

The parade included plenty of marching bands. Above is a band made up of German members of the Chicago Police Department.

This is members of one of Chicago's many German societies riding down the street in a classic Ford (a Model T or A, I think).

And no German parade could be complete without an appearance by Chicago's own Polkaholics.

Tee: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Sandals: Chaco, as above
Bag: Coach
Bottle: Camelbak

On Sunday, I went on a walking tour through my neighborhood. The tour was of the neighborhood's many historic, beautiful churches, and concluded with a 09/11 memorial at St. Benedict's. St. Ben's also just completed a restoration project on their bell tower (you can see the scaffolding on the tower in the background if you look closely), so today was the first time the bells were rung in about 6 years. Above, I'm in the Coonley Rock Garden, with St. Ben's just over my shoulder. This is the first outfit photo that neither Fella nor my Gorillapod has taken for me, and I think the gal in my tour group who took this did a pretty good job. I should find more random people to take my picture when I go out. Or not.

Last but not least, since I'm totally becoming that person who dresses up her dogs, takes pictures and blogs about it, here's the dog sporting 2 new infinity scarves that I picked up this weekend. Jude's silver scarf is from Loft, and Meko's leopard print scarf is from Limited. Hopefully they'll let me wear them sometime too.

Remembering

2011-09-11T12:39:00.001-04:00

I have a post lined up for later today, but it felt weird and almost wrong to not acknowledge today's anniversary.

Similar to previous generations, who could easily tell you exactly where they were and what they were doing when JFK was shot, or the Challenger exploded, everyone I know can answer that question about 09/11. My friends and co-workers and I have been going over this the past few weeks, most of us noting what stupid, trivial things we were doing that morning.

I was in my third year at the University of Toledo during the fall of 2001. I was driving to my 9:00 class that morning, History of Jazz, the kind of class that everyone added to their schedules to fill a fine arts credit. I was listening to the radio right as the first tower was hit. They reported that a plane had crashed into the tower, but it was too early to know what had really happened, no one seemed concerned, so I didn't think much of it. I got to class and no one had even heard of that report. We had class as usual, but by the time that class ended, the vibe outside had totally changed. I will never forget what a crisp, beautiful fall morning it was. But even more so, how eerie it was that our usually bustling university campus was pretty much empty by 10am.

University of Toledo campus

We quickly learned what had happened and that all classes had been cancelled for the rest of the day. I went back home and, like most of us, was totally glued to the TV coverage. Although life kept going on for us in Ohio, I spent the next few weeks immersed in all of the stories of all of the people we'd lost. I waited in a 2 hour line at the Red Cross to donate blood on September 12th, attended memorials on campus, and wondered what this all meant for our country. Surely, things would never be the same. Our country would soon be at war for the next decade. Security would be heightened everywhere we go, all in defense against terrorists. Americans would no longer feel safe at home. People living in a country that boosts religious freedom would now be judged and even attacked for their religion and/or ethnicity because of the acts of some extremists. Ten years later, the day's first responders would still be fighting for health coverage to treat the ailments that they are suffering as a result of helping their fellow Americans. It's weird to me to think that my children and all of my friends' children will never know a pre-09/11 world. Our country having been attacked by terrorists will just always be part of their history, not nearly as shocking as it was to all of us.

I didn't lose anyone personally, but I do know people who did, and have friends who were in New York that day who can never forget what they saw. That fall morning will be on my mind today, and I will pray for those who were lost. My neighborhood is holding a memorial service this afternoon that I'm planning to attend. How will you remember the 10th anniversary today?

Chicago's Own Fashion's Night Out

2011-09-09T11:55:00.000-04:00

Fear not dear readers, we're back to our regularly scheduled outfit posts here at TCC after a wedding post diversion. Woo, exciting.

Here's what I wore to the office on Wednesday. Even with fall weather coming in, I still feel like I'm in a bit of a style rut, wearing the same skirt/tank/cardigan or dress/cardigan combos. I'm a little bored with work right now, so I suppose it'd make sense that I'm bored with my work wear.

Skirt and cardigan: Target
Tank: Loft
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Naturalizer

Last night, I ended up meeting Randi from Not Just MOM downtown for Chicago's Fashion's Night Out. It's not nearly as big here as in NYC, but it was still a lot of fun. We hung around The Shops at North Bridge, where there were plenty of happenings. Of course all the stores were open later, and some had deals, but there were also goodie bags, free cocktails and snacks at every turn, giveaways and a mall full of fashionable ladies.

Above, we're with the Flirty Cupcakes car at Nordstrom's. One of the Flirty Cupcakes gals actually asked to take our picture with their car because we looked so stylish. Um, that's never happened before. Awesome.

We both picked S'mores cupcakes. And they were awesome. Flirty Cupcakes drives around town during the week selling their tasty concoctions, so I'll definitely be stalking them to get more of these.

We did some shopping, got free makeovers from Smash Box, and finished the night off with beer and yet even more food at nearby Rock Bottom Brewery. It was a perfect way to spend a rainy Thursday night.

Tank, Cardigan and Necklace: Target
Skirt: eShakti
Belt: New York & Company
Flats: Born
Brooch: Loft
Hat which I didn't buy but perhaps should have: Nordstrom's

Wedding Weekend Fashions

2011-09-06T09:46:00.000-04:00

After a few days away, I'm back. For those of you in the US, did you enjoy your long weekend? I most of the weekend back in my hometown in Ohio, celebrating my cousin's wedding. I was her Maid of Honor, so the weekend was super busy. I had a great time catching up with my family, but as with all trips home, the weekend just flew by. No outfit post for me today, since I'm working from home (thank goodness, I'm so tired, there's no way I could've woken up at 5:30 to go into the office). Instead, here's a wedding recap.

My family's pretty casual, so I didn't really have to dress up for the rehearsal. I went with a skirt because it was 95 degrees out on Friday! This is me, my cousin (the bride), and her adorable 5 year old niece at the church. After the rehearsal, we went to the bride's brother's house for a dinner featuring pulled pork, lovingly smoked by Fella for 9 hours on Thursday, and his very own homemade Memphis-style BBQ sauce. Fella's kind of awesome when it comes to grilling and smoking things.

Rehearsal Outfit
Cardigan: Loft
Tank & Skirt: Target
Necklace: New York & Company
Flats: Born

My bridesmaid dress came from eShakti. I had the sleeves added, since I'm not always down with sleeveless dresses, and chose to have the skirt be knee-length (interestingly enough, the priest told me afterward that he appreciated my modest dress choice, since he sees lots of bridesmaids in short, strapless dresses). I don't think it looks overly bridesmaidey, so I could probably get away with wearing this again.

Wedding outfit
Dress: eShakti
Necklace: Satellite Paris, via hazel (birthday gift from Fella this year)
Shoes: Caparros, via PiperLime
Bag: Express

Fella's outfit
Shirt & tie: Macy's
Pants: Banana Republic
Belt: If I had to guess, I'd say Gap?
Shoes: Alamo Shoes, Chicago (bought at the last minute for our friend C's wedding in June, during a Rad visit)

I wasn't sure about how to do my hair since I just got it cut pretty short a couple weeks back, but when I told the stylist to do something with curls, she ran with it. This is the back of my hair about 10 hours after it was done, because I didn't think to take a picture sooner. It was super hot and humid that day, so I swear I had about a full can of hairspray on my hair to combat that. Seriously. We rode in the limo with the windows down after the ceremony, and my hair didn't budge. Sorry, ozone.

On Sunday after having breakfast with my grandma and aunt and visiting with the bride and groom a little more, Fella and I headed up to his parents' summer house in Michigan. That's where they had been staying with the dogs, and I wanted to make sure we got a little r&r time after the wedding craziness. What we hadn't planned on was that the temperature would drop to the upper 50's! We had to borrow warm clothes from Fella's parents, and Fella was especially amused by the moose sweatshirt I was sporting. I don't know, does this make us hipsters? But then, is there really anything ironic about wearing a sweatshirt or flannel because it's cold out?

Last but not least, here's the dogs hanging out on the lake. It was too cold for us to go swimming, but the dogs had no problem with it.

Not Enough Time in the Day

2011-08-31T09:40:00.000-04:00

Happy Wednesday, Style Nation! As a follow-up to Monday's post, my presentation at work went really well. It's either because I'm a good speaker, or because I passed out homemade chocolate chip cookies at the beginning of the presentation. Or possibly both. But more likely because of the cookies. Monday kicked off what's turning into a pretty busy week. I have like a million things to do before I leave for Ohio tomorrow morning, but meanwhile tonight I have a work dinner up by my office to celebrate a colleague's new position within the company. I decided to dress up one of my favorite dresses with a little pop of color (and look, I'm wearing black and white with something other than red!).

Dress & Belt: Target
Shoes: Naturalizer
Necklace: New York & Company

Now Presenting...

2011-08-29T08:12:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday, all! How was your weekend? If you're on the East coast, did you weather the storm okay? Today I'm giving my kind-of yearly presentation at work. Although I'm not a fan of public speaking, I've worked in the same group long enough, am really comfortable with my material, and I actually like a lot of the people I work with, so presenting to them isn't too bad. And once I get through today, I only have 2 more days until my long holiday weekend starts, so there's that to look forward to.

Cardigan and skirt: Target
Tank, necklace and flower pin: New York & Company
Flats: Born

Hello from Hurricane land (non-outfit post)

2011-08-27T18:57:00.001-04:00

Hello blogosphere. I know that I've been absent. And my outfits have been incredibly boring. I have been reading people's blogs, though. You are looking fabulous.
I did take pictures today (mostly for my mother-in-law, who frets over our safety from the Chicago area). Blokey and I live outside of the evacuation zone. In fact, we live close to a number of the evacuation centers in Brooklyn. I've not been in a hurricane since 1991, so I'm letting my crazy lady flag fly high.

The Mother in law requested that I buy some handiwipes. Also, thank goodness for the public library.

Oatmeal whole wheat chocolate chip cookies

A tiny representation of my water hoarding

"Health" bread- whole wheat sandwhich bread and a 2/3 whole wheat, 1/3 white flour baguette

What should be a hurricane tradition: giant potato, rosemary, green olive focaccia

8 hard boiled eggs (for when I need to climb down my inevitable carb high)

Not everyone here in TCC east is freaking out, as Buster demonstrates

Everyone in Irene's path, I hope you stay safe! Hope to "see" you all on the Blogosphere real soon.

TGIF

2011-08-26T09:30:00.000-04:00

Wow am I glad it's Friday! I've had a long week with work, so I could definitely use a break. And next week I'm only working 3 days before heading home to Ohio for a long weekend, so there's kind of an end in sight. This weekend is pretty much wide open, so I'm hoping to get in a bike ride or two, maybe some baking, and a little R&R.

I popped into Target to check out these cute red flats, but walked out with these purple loafers instead. The flats, though just as lovely in the store as online, weren't as comfortable. I've had my eye on these loafers for a while, but I'm glad I was able to satisfy the craving with a much cheaper, yet still comfortable and stylish option. What's funny is that before I started blogging, and certainly before I started taking a good look at the amount of money I was spending on things like clothes, shoes and jewelry, I would've just bought the red shoes and dealt with the fact that they pinched my toes and would almost surely give me blisters. I still bought something, but I went home with a pair of shoes that I'll actually enjoy wearing, rather than a pair that will just be painful. So even if I can't stop shopping, I can exercise a little bit of restraint. So there's hope for even the worst shopping problems.

Tank, Cardigan & Shoes: Target (okay, I might have a problem after all)
Pants: Loft
Necklace: Randolph Street Market

Rain and Sunshine

2011-08-24T09:48:00.001-04:00

I took a walk to the post office yesterday afternoon, sure that the rain we were having had passed, but instead got caught in it on my way home. I neither like pina coladas or getting caught in the rain. It's not as fun as it sounds. And of course within 5 minutes of returning home, the rain stopped and the sun came out. But I did stop into one of my favorite neighborhood boutiques to take shelter from the storm, and picked up this necklace. It's made by a mother-daughter duo who takes old findings, such as buttons and baubles, and turns them into jewelry. Super cool.

The rain has stayed away since yesterday afternoon, which allowed me to take a sunrise bike ride down to Lake Michigan this morning. Morning is such a beautiful time to be out. Below is a shot of the sun coming up over Osterman Beach (more commonly known as Hollywood Beach).

Dress: Old Navy
Cami: New York & Company
Sandals: Clarks
Belt: Target
Necklace: Embellish Chicago

Another Day in my Favorite Colors

2011-08-22T08:19:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday, all! Once again, I'm wearing my tried and true favorite color combination of black, white and red. It just works. And it's especially easy to throw together on a Monday morning. I must've woken up on the wrong side of the bed today, because I'm a little crabby. And it was dark when I woke up, for the first time since spring, so I guess I need to get used to that.

The weekend didn't go quite as planned. We didn't make it to the beer & bacon tasting because a friend we were going with sprained her foot on Saturday. Not to worry though, we've rescheduled for this weekend. But I did get my haircut! I hadn't planned on going so short, but I'm liking this. It's so easy and takes like no time to dry in the morning, so that's a nice change of pace.

I didn't take the dogs outside with me to take pictures this morning, but they still wanted to supervise.

Tank: New York & Company
Cardigan: Loft
Skirt: Target
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Born

Time for a Change

2011-08-19T11:20:00.000-04:00

Happy Friday, all! I'm working from home today, so this is an outfit from a couple weeks ago that I just never blogged. It's much nicer than the pajamas I'm currently wearing, or the gym clothes I'm going to change into shortly.

What are you all up to this weekend? Tomorrow Fella and I are going with a couple of friends to a beer and bacon tasting, which I'm pretty excited about. I mean, I love beer and I love bacon, so 5 pairings is going to be pretty cool. But even more exciting than that, I'm treating my hair to a very long overdue cut after work tonight. My hair has been driving me a little nuts lately, and I'm just due for a change. I was trying to hold out two more weeks so I could get my hair into an up-do for the wedding I'm in over Labor Day, but I just can't wait any longer. And I'm sure there's plenty of formal styles for short hair. I'm not sure if I'll go quite this short, though it was pretty manageable at that length.

Top & Flower pin: New York & Company
Skirt: Target
Flats: Born
Earrings: Loft

How Much Do I Love Black, White & Red?

2011-08-17T08:05:00.000-04:00

Today I'm sporting what has become one of my favorite color combinations ever. Black, white and red always seem to go together so well and look so polished. Why is that? Here is red playing accent to a black and white combo in accessory form (wow, the porch looks so empty!). And here, here and here a red cardigan is punching up a black and white ensemble. But in the case of today's outfit, I think red is the star, with black and white playing wonderfully supportive roles. What's your winning color combination?

Cardigan: Target (remixed)
Tee: New York & Company
Skirt: eShakti
Necklace: Ann Taylor (remixed)
Shoes: Naturalizer (last seen here)

A Dress for All Seasons

2011-08-15T08:30:00.000-04:00

I know some people are fans of hot weather, but it's been in the 70's here in Chicago the past couple of days, and I am LOVING it! Check this out - I'm wearing sleeves! I'm sure we'll have more of our typical hot and humid weather before summer ends, but I'm enjoying the fall-like weather for now.

I've been trying really hard to avoid excessive and unnecessary shopping, but when I saw this dress at New York & Company the other day, I had to try it on. And when I saw how it looked, I had to buy it. I like it with sandals now, and I can totally see it with a pair of leggings and flats in the fall, and even with tights and boots in the winter. So it's all-season, and it was on sale and I had a $20 coupon. The only thing I had trouble with was the neckline. It felt kind of odd not having a necklace, but now I'm thinking this would be better styled with some big earrings. Or, when it cools off, perhaps a bright, bold scarf?

Dress and Necklace: New York & Company
Sandals: Aerosoles

Saturday In the Park - er, Garden

2011-08-14T15:14:00.000-04:00

Yesterday Fella and I went to the Chicago Botanic Garden. If you live in the area and you haven't been up there, go there now. I'm a little embarrassed to say that I've lived here for 7 years and worked 20 minutes away for as long, and only got there for the first time this summer. It's an oasis of flowers, plants, trails, trees, ponds and lakes hiding on the north edge of Cook County.

To keep with the theme of this style blog, here's some outfit photos, courtesy of Fella. And after that, a bunch of flower pictures. Because they're pretty. And if that's not enough, I've posted even more pictures over on my photo blog.

Tank: Old Navy (remixed - wow, has it really been since March that I've worn this? Clearly, I have too many clothes)
Pants: Loft Outlet (remixed)
Sandals: Privo (remixed)
Necklace: Randolph Street Market (also worn on Friday, because I love it so much)
Bag: Coach, gift from Fella's parents
Umbrella: Gap Outlet

Lily pads

A waterfall (Look Kristen, they were on this time!)

Brown-eyed Susans

Pretty peach roses

Sunflower, soaking in the sun

This is about 5 minutes before it started POURING

Flowers in the English Garden after the rain

Flower in the English Meadow

Another Friday in a Denim Skirt

2011-08-12T19:21:00.000-04:00

Apologies for the late post today - I'm just finally getting around to posting. Eh, it happens. I love a casual Friday, but I just can't stand the thought of wearing jeans just yet, so a denim skirt is perfect. That explains why I wore one last Friday too. And the Friday before that. And probably lots of other Fridays. Oh well.

What are you up to this weekend? Fella and I are headed to the Chicago Botanic Gardens tomorrow. I went there for the first time with Kristen of Low Fat Dressing in June (oh my goodness, I'm even wearing a denim skirt in my garden wrap-up post!), and I'm excited to go back. A couple of our friends are going too, so that should be fun. Aside from that, we don't have a lot going on, which isn't bad. Hope you all have a good weekend!

Tank: Ann Taylor Outlet (remixed)
Skirt: Old Navy (remixed a few too many times)
Sandals: Born (remixed)
Necklace: Randolph Street Market (remixed)

Getting Back in Style

2011-08-10T08:14:00.002-04:00

It's taken me a while, but I think I'm finally starting to break out of my summer style rut. I'm really looking forward to fall fashion (it's my favorite time of year sartorially and otherwise), so I guess that's inspiring me. I wasn't sure about wearing this skirt to work since it's pretty casual, but I think belting it and throwing on a cardigan has helped. I know these are minor things, but it seems to have made a huge difference in the skirt compared to the last time I wore it.

Cardigan & Tank: Target
Skirt: Old Navy
Belt: New York & Company
Flower Pin: eShakti
Watch: Fossil
Earrings: Macy's
Shoes: Born

Summer Blues

2011-08-08T10:12:00.002-04:00

Dress: Target; Cardigan: Loft; Cami and necklace: NY & Co; Flats: Born

The other day, Kristen at Low Fat Dressing mentioned that she's seeing more blues this summer. I'd agree with that, although this dress is actually from last summer. So clearly I'm a little bit ahead of the trend here.

Jude's getting back into the swing of blogging

I do want to thank you all for your comments on Friday's post. I know I'm not the only one struggling with these issues, but it's still nice to have the support. Some days, like today, I'm totally fine with my weight and the way that I look, and others I'm just really frustrated by it. But I suppose that's normal, right? But while we're on the subject of things that are annoying me right now, let's talk hair. See how cute and neatly styled my hair looks in these pictures? That lasted for all of half an hour, just long enough for me to take pictures, pack up my work bag and walk to the train. After spending 15 minutes hustling to the train in some humidity, this is what it looks like.

Shh, I'm totally not taking my picture on the bus!

I don't hate it, but I wish it would just stay put after I dry it in the morning rather than flipping out once it gets outside. I already coat it with anti-humidity spray - before and after styling - but it feels like there's not enough anti-humidity hair products in the world. I know some of the problem is that I'm just overdue for a haircut (I'm waiting until after my cousin's wedding next month, since I'm MOH and getting my hair all done up for it), but still, it's a bit annoying. Does anyone have any tried and true strategies for getting your hair to cooperate in heat and humidity?

When Your Weight Sneaks Up On You

2011-08-05T10:57:00.001-04:00

I’m wearing a repeat outfit today, so I’m sharing something personal instead of an outfit post. I’ve talked about my weight here before, but I’m really going to get into it today. I started writing on the train this morning, and just kept going. You can read it all or not, but it’s good for me to get it out there. I finally unpacked our scale this week, and was a little shocked to discover that I’m at my absolute highest weight ever. I knew things had gotten bad, but I’m about 15 pounds higher than I was the last time I thought my weight problems had hit rock bottom. Clearly, this isn’t my first struggle with weight, and I’m starting to think it won’t be my last.

I was a chubby kid from about the time I turned 10, but it was never a real issue until I finished college. During my last semester and after graduating, I was living in Michigan, bored and depressed, and decided to join Weight Watchers on New Year’s Eve, 2003 on a whim. I was having a hard time finding a job and was in a bad relationship, so I devoted all of my energy to weight loss so that I’d have something else to focus on. I lost 60 pounds in about 5 months and reached my goal weight just in time for my 23rd birthday in May of 2004. Although Weight Watchers worked for me and was pretty easy (ah, to be 22 again!), I swore that I’d never make myself go through that again. The weight was off for good.

At my goal weight, June 2004

Two weeks later, I moved to Chicago. I gained a little weight upon moving here, mainly because my office used to have free food around the clock, 7 days a week. I was working crazy hours and didn’t have a lot of money, so I took advantage of said free food. But even eating lots of junky cafeteria food, snacking and having ice cream every day (seriously, they spoiled us back in those days), I only gained about 15 pounds back. I was doing WW on and off a lot for a while, so my weight managed to stay pretty much under control. By mid-2007, right around the time I met Fella, I had put a total of 40 pounds back on.

August 2007, leaving my office

I was still happy with the way I looked so I didn't do anything about it until early 2008, when I had gotten back to my original weight, and when Fella encouraged me to join his gym and exercise with him. A gym? I had used the Recreation Center in college, but hadn’t really exercised since. But I got into it and, once again, dedicated myself to weight loss. I lost about 40 pounds with exercise and Weight Watchers by the end of 2008. I kept that off for about 6 months.

Fella and I totally not looking at the camera in Colorado, 2009

I think I would’ve been okay at this point if life hadn’t taken a really unexpected turn. Fella started getting sick a lot in early 2009. Toward the middle of that year he was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, but the stress of it all – him being sick all the time and, for a while, not knowing what was wrong with him – totally knocked me off the wagon. He’d get sick suddenly, and he couldn’t eat when he was sick. I’d often have cooked dinner for the 2 of us and rather than just save the leftovers, I’d split his meals with Jude. Meanwhile Fella had been on medicine for his condition, but he kept getting worse. I stepped in, found him a new doctor since his old one seemed unconcerned, and she recommended we meet with a surgeon right away. In the end, Fella ended up having 2 major surgeries in early 2010. He needed a lot of care, so my boss let me work from home for about 3 months last year to take care of him. Fella had lost so much weight from being sick that he needed to be fattened up. I could’ve joined him in loading up on fats, but instead I constantly cooked 2 meals: one light meal for me, one not so light one for Fella. A new gym opened up around the corner from us at about that time, so I decided to join so I’d be able to get out of the house a little bit each day. Throughout 2010 I got into a really good exercise routine, and I started losing weight and slimming down again. I was still about 20 pounds overweight toward the end of the year, but I was so happy with the way I looked then.

November, 2010

I kept the routine up in the beginning of 2011, but once we started the process of buying a condo and moving, I no longer had time to go to the gym (which is ridiculous looking back – I didn’t have an hour? Really?). On top of that, we were so busy, we were eating out a lot because there just wasn’t time to cook, and frankly, I didn’t have the energy for it. I guess that’s how the weight all came back. And then some. I know waiting 2 months to even unpack the scale was a mistake, but I guess I didn’t want to know. I can’t even remember the last time I weighed myself before this week. I was weighed a couple times at doctors’ appointments this spring/summer, but I just assumed their scales were off. But how could I have missed this? I take my picture everyday for goodness sake, and none of my pants fit me right now. I guess I was in denial, or didn’t think it was so bad.

This isn’t a self-esteem thing. I love myself and know I’m awesome at any size. But I do know I could look a little better. In addition to appearance, I need to keep my weight under control for health reasons. My mom and her sister are both diabetic, my maternal grandfather died of a heart attack in his mid-40’s, my mom has high blood pressure, and my dad had an angioplasty at the age of 50. There seem to be a lot of conditions I have a predisposition for, and the risks get higher if you’re overweight. I do get my numbers checked every year, and so far they’ve been good, but I want to keep them that way.

I know I can lose weight because I’ve done it so many times before, but I still need to figure out how to maintain it. I mean, why do I keep doing this to myself? Why put myself through all the trouble just to gain the weight all back? I’m trying things a little differently this time. Rather than rejoin Weight Watchers for, I don’t know, like the tenth time, I joined a site called Spark People. There, I can track what I’m eating and how much exercise I’m getting, but without those pesky membership fees. It offers many of the same features I found on WW, but rather than tracking points, you’re watching calories, fat and carbs. Counting points was pretty easy for me, but logging my food was the real benefit of it for me. That helped me see what I was eating, and just how much it was impacting me. Spark also has a pretty big online community and is constantly running little challenges, so those resources may be helpful in motivating me and supporting my efforts. As for exercise, I made myself go back to the gym on Tuesday, and I went again yesterday, so I’m hoping to get back into a good routine there. My overall goal is to drop 50 pounds, and I’d like to do that by May, 2012. I'll probably update periodically, but I promise this will be the only novel I write about it :) I appreciate your reading this very, very long post.

Happy Birthday, Mr. President

2011-08-04T12:17:00.000-04:00

Fella and I waiting for the event to start

OK Go performing a song entirely on hand bells

Jennifer Hudson performing

Herbie Hancock, OK Go, Jennifer Hudson and Rahm Emanuel greeting the President

President Obama speaking

I mentioned in yesterday's post that Fella and I were attending Obama's Birthday party. Above are some pictures from the event. OK Go, Jennifer Hudson and Herbie Hancock performed before the President gave a speech. The last time I saw him speak was in Grant Park, right after he won the 2008 election. It was an amazing experience. His speech that night was so inspiring, so full of hope for the future of this country, and it energized the crowd. It's been a hard couple of years, and his addresses to the nation seem to have lost the luster that his campaign speeches had. The President was overdue for a break, and returning home to Chicago for his birthday seems like it was such a breath of fresh air for him. He was recharged last night, and it showed in his speech. He talked to a packed theater of his supporters about the progress his administration has made, and his hopes for the remainder of this term and beyond.

After Work

2011-08-03T10:40:00.002-04:00

This is what I had planned to wear to work today until Fella reminded me that we had plans right after work, so it'd be silly to commute in to the office only to leave at 2:30 or so. This afternoon we're going to President Obama's birthday party/fundraiser. I debated sharing this since some in the media have given him slack for daring to celebrate his 50th birthday, and because I grew up with a lot of folks that have become very conservative, close-minded and judgmental. But this is my co-blog, and I can be open about stuff like this. I don't talk about politics very much, but I'm a liberal. My parents are democrats who raised me to be open-minded and to help others, and I have a degree in a social justice-oriented field, so it just makes sense. Fella and I supported him in the 2008 election, and we attended his Election Night Rally in Grant Park to celebrate his victory. I'm not 100% happy with what his administration has done so far, but I certainly don't overlook how much has been accomplished, especially given the state of affairs when he took office. And I think, regardless of your political beliefs, he's still a person who has a birthday. Just like the rest of us.

Anyway, I'll get off my soap box and talk about the real matter at hand here - clothes. I think if I could wear a dress like this everyday, I would. It's light, comfortable, isn't a neckline offender and even skims my knees (I've been having a hard time finding dresses that go down to knee-length this summer - is it just me?). And it's so easy to put together and outfit with a great dress, I think I'm getting out of my rut. A little. I was a little bummed about not going to work since I had such a cute outfit lined up, but I'll be wearing this tonight. Like Fella said, if it's good enough for work, isn't it good enough for the President?

Dress: Old Navy (new to the blog)
Necklace: Loft (remixed)
Flats: Born (new to the blog)

Note to Self: Avoid Sunset Photos

2011-08-01T07:32:00.000-04:00

So you guys might already know this, but I do outfit photos the day before sometimes. This is one of those times. I snapped these pictures last night when Fella and I got home from his softball game, at about 6:30. The sun was going down, which is pretty, but makes for horrible lighting on my porch. Oh well. Let me reconstruct this outfit for you. I'm wearing this dress, this cardigan, this belt and these wedges. As for Meko, she's sporting a new collar from our friendly neighborhood pet boutique in this photo crash, since her old one kept loosening itself up and nearly falling off. I said last week that I was feeling a serious style rut because of the weather, and I guess because of my desire for fall dressing to return. Belting over a cardigan isn't that exciting, but it's still an improvement. What other little things can break the rut?

Dress, cardigan & belt: Target
Wedge sandals: Clarks

Stripes, Shoes and Blogging Space

2011-07-29T11:26:00.001-04:00

I'm sporting just another casual Friday outfit today. I feel like I'm in a bit of a style rut lately, but it's just so easy to get dressed in cotton knits and simple outfits in the summer.

I absolutely love these earrings. I picked them up at my favorite neighborhood boutique while popping in to buy a few birthday cards the other day. And while we're talking about accessories, you know those comfy black wedge sandals that I feel like I've worn all summer? See here, here and here. They're on sale for $25 today on the Aerosoles site! Just passing it on, since they're super comfortable and versatile, and they come in other colors. I'm considering ordering a pair in red because they're so great. You can see this link for details.

Tee: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Shoes: Puma
Earrings: Hazel

I'm not a regular participant in Friend Friday, but after seeing this week's over on MinnChic, it was hard to pass up. This is where I do my blogging. And my working from home, since I don't really have an office set up. I had wanted to get a desk to put out on our sun porch but eh, for now the couch works.

Been There, Done That

2011-07-27T09:36:00.000-04:00

Good morning, Stylenation! If this outfit looks familiar, it's because I wore most of the components together recently, here. No? Well, it's also a pretty close copy of this outfit. I was about to title this post "Same old, same old," but it turns out I've already written a post with that title. Wow, talk about creativity running dry! But really, once you find something that works, why not stick with it? I went out for an 8.5 mile bike ride this morning, so by the time I got back home and started getting ready for work, I guess I just didn't feel like thinking too hard about what to wear. Thank goodness for easy to put together outfits!

Tank: Target
Cardigan: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Necklace: Ann Taylor
Sandals: Privo

Fútbol Chic, Concert Fun and a Monday Outfit

2011-07-25T07:18:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday, all! It was another busy weekend here. What were you up to? On Saturday, Fella and I went with a couple of friends to watch the Chicago Fire play Manchester United. I got this jersey for free (so hard to pass up free!), but opted to let Fella wear it to the game because it's just not my style.

That, and Jude wore it so much better than me. I couldn't compete.

Last night, Fella and I went to see Bon Iver perform at the Chicago Theater. We've seen Bon Iver before, but only at outdoor music festivals, so it was really cool to see them at such a nice, historic venue as the Chicago Theater. And they were awesome! Here's what I wore:

Dress: Target (remixed)
Sandals: Born (remixed)
Bag: Coach, gifted (remixed)
Earrings: Bohm via Hazel (worn previously, but I can't find them...)

And here's what I saw while walking over the Chicago River. Isn't it gorgeous?

Unfortunately, the weekend had to come to an end, so here's what I'm wearing for work today. It's finally cooled off enough for sleeves again, which is a nice change. 80 is sooo much better than 95.

Tee: Loft
Skirt: Target (remixed)
Necklace: New York & Company (remixed)
Sandals: Aerosoles (remixed)

Last and not least, as if that wasn't enough, at the end of last week we formally adopted Kameko! She loves Jude, and Jude's getting used to having a sister, so we're all pretty happy (as you can see).

Unpacking Surprise

2011-07-22T10:55:00.001-04:00

This is not what I'm wearing today. Today, I'm sitting at home working from my couch, dealing with some annoying summer allergies. Could this year be any worse for allergies? Really? In any event, I wore this last night to go out to dinner with Fella, his mom and his cousin, who is visiting from Colorado. We went to one of my favorite restaurants here, a tasty Mediterranean place up in Andersonville. I love a weeknight dinner out, complete with pomegranate sangria, tasty food and a free box of homemade baklava.

This outfit is pretty plain, which is the norm for me in this weather, but I have to point out the shoes. I took a break from my work yesterday and finally got back to unpacking. We had a pretty big pile of boxes in our dining room, and there's about 6 or 7 boxes left in the guest bedroom, so I'm finally making a dent in those. I unpacked a box marked "Anne's old clothes and shoes" and stumbled upon these sandals. I completely forgot about them, even though it's only been a couple months since I boxed them up. Before that, it had been at least a year since I'd worn them. They're not the most comfortable shoes, so I remember why I haven't worn them, but aren't they cute?

And for your enjoyment, this is Jude photo-crashing and deciding he wants to go back inside.

Tee: Loft
Skirt: Target
Sandals: Naturalizer
Earrings: Alixandria Collections, gifted

Misty Morning

2011-07-20T09:13:00.001-04:00

It's mornings like this that I'm glad that I typically plan my outfits for work ahead of time. We had a big, loud thunderstorm in the middle of the night last night that knocked our power out. It came back on within a couple of hours, but I had a really hard time getting back to sleep. I'm used to being lulled to sleep by the sounds of our window a/c unit and the TV, and without those, there was nothing but silence. Like, deafening silence. That's hard to come by here in the city, which I've apparently gotten used to.

Anyway, I had some big post planned out last night about how I may need to do another No Repeats type challenge. I was going through my closet last night, and despite all of the clothes I gave away before we moved, I still have kind of an overload of them. It's overwhelming. I feel like I should start wearing more of them, and maybe weed out what I really don't wear. I'm still thinking about that, but honestly, all I can think about today is how awful the weather is supposed to be. It's supposed to be 98 today, and our humidity is at about 200%. That explains the fog in the picture above.

Dress: Loft Outlet (remixed)
Cardigan: Loft (remixed)
Sandals: Aerosoles (worn a gazillion times)
Necklace: Randolph Street Market (remixed)
Earrings: New York & Company (remixed)
Watch: Anne Klein (also worn way too many times to count)

Pitchfork 2011 Wrap-Up

2011-07-18T07:39:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday! As I mentioned in my post last week, this weekend Fella and I attended the Pitchfork Music Festival here in Chicago. What did I wear? All of this:

Friday

Tank: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Sandals: Birkenstock
Hat: Pitchfork 2010
Sunnies: Loft

Saturday

Tank: Target
Skirt: Old Navy
Sandals: Chaco
Sunnies: Loft

Sunday

Dress: Old Navy
Cami: New York & Company
Belt: Target
Sandals: Privo
Hat: San Diego Hat Co.
Earrings: New York & Company

Pitchfork is definitely a scene, style-wise. There's a broad age range there, from kids in their teens to middle-aged folks still keeping up with the latest music. And accordingly, lots of different styles were present. Although most people - like me - were dressing to stay cool in the heat (Sunday it got into the mid-90's), there were definitely some trends. Most notably, styles from the 80's are back in a big way. Bright bold prints, neon colors, bandanas, oxfords and pleated skirts abounded. Personally I wasn't a huge fan of 80's style the first time around (to be fair, when I wasn't in my school uniforms, my mom was dressing me in horrible matchy-matchy outfits during the 80's), but it's fun seeing how kids who weren't even alive during that decade interpret the style.

And the music? The music was awesome. We saw Tune-Yards, Thurston Moore, Das Racist, Guided by Voices, Neko Case, Animal Collective, No Age, Destroyer, The Dismemberment Plan, Fleet Foxes, Superchunk, Deerhunter, Cut Copy and TV on the Radio. Whew!

How was your weekend?

Neko Case, performing on Friday

Fleet Foxes from afar, performing on Saturday

Animal Collective, performing Friday

Why Is It So Hard to Think Up a Post Title?

2011-07-14T13:42:00.000-04:00

After a pretty good lull at work, I'm finally busy again. Actually being challenged by work seems to have sapped me of my usual creative, witty posting. I know, it's a bummer. The good news is that today is my Friday! Fella and I are both off tomorrow, and this weekend we'll be attending the Pitchfork Music Festival. This will be my 4th year going to Pitchfork, and although I'm not nearly as up on indie music as others (like Fella), I always have a great time. I'm especially looking forward to seeing Neko Case, the Fleet Foxes and Animal Collective, all groups I've seen at prior summer festivals.

In other news, the dogs seem to be getting along really well thus far. They were both eager to join in my photo shoot this morning, so it's good that Kameko is down with blogging.

Skirt: Target
Top: New York & Company
Sandals: Birkenstock
Jewelry: Alixandria Collections, gifted

Yellow, on the Side

2011-07-12T10:28:00.001-04:00

I'm sure I've mentioned before how envious I am of people who can wear yellow and wear it well. It just doesn't work with my coloring, and I've accepted that. But I'm still jumping on board with this round of Everybody, Everywhere and sporting the only yellow thing I own - my bag!

It's still pretty warm here, but we had a pretty nasty rain storm yesterday that took away a lot of the humidity. It's at about 50% now, which is a serious improvement over yesterday. Like, I'm not drenched just by walking outside. Said storm yesterday resulted in all kinds of power outages and trees/branches all over the streets in the Chicagoland area. It's weird how many of our storms this summer have been severe. The storm hit right as I was on the train on my way to work, so we stopped and sat on the tracks for about an hour. Ugh. A lot of the traffic lights were still out when I left work yesterday afternoon, which caused problems for the bus that I take to the train station. So all in all, I spent about 5 hours commuting to and from my office, which is 25 miles away. It totally sucked. Like, to the point that I was nearly in tears while sitting in traffic on the bus last night. The day would've been a total loss if it hadn't been for this new addition to our household last night:

This is Jude's new foster sister, Kameko! 3 years ago we adopted Jude from a wonderful 100% volunteer rescue group, New Leash on Life. I keep up with them on their Facebook page, and am always perusing their available dogs. I've wanted a second dog for a little while, and since we've moved, we actually have the space for 2 dogs. I spotted Kameko on their website and read her story and thought she and Jude would be a pretty good match. She's 6 years old and, like Jude, a rottweiler mix. She had a good home, but the guy who adopted her had to move overseas and couldn't take her with. She's been in day care for 3 weeks since he left, and Fella and I felt bad that she didn't have a home to stay in. We took Jude to meet her on Saturday, and they got along pretty well, so we offered to provide a foster home for her. We're seeing how things work out, but it's possible that we'll adopt her. I'd love to, but it depends on how Jude adjusts to all of this. They seem to like each other (here they are together), but it's a big change for Jude. Does anyone with multiple pets have any tips on integrating a new pet to the house?

Skirt & Tank: Old Navy
Cardigan: Loft
Sandals: Born
Yellow bag: Coach

Melting

2011-07-11T08:49:00.001-04:00

Happy Monday, Stylenation. How was your weekend? For the first time since early May, mine was not very busy, which was a pretty nice change of pace. We're having some hot and humid weather that seems pretty characteristic of a MIdwestern summer to me. And when I say humid, I mean steamy. I don't have numbers to back this up, but I'm pretty sure the humidity is at least 100% this morning. I'm writing this on the train, after a 15 minute walk seems to have totally cancelled out my shower, my hair is a giant frizzy poof, and my make-up feels like it's melted. I know, eiww. But I'll still take this over snow and cold. To combat the heat, I went with a light chambray dress. It's very breathable and airy, which helps in this heat.

Dress & Belt: Target
Necklace: Randolph Street Market
Earrings: New York & Company
Sandals: Clarks

No More Office Casual?

2011-07-08T11:17:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday all! I'm sure I've mentioned before that my office has had a "casual" dress code for the past 4 or 5 years. This has irked me at times, since people really push the limits on what is considered casual. In an office. But rumor has it that, as a result of our buy-out last year, our new company is going to restore the old business casual dress code. I know, business casual? Everyday? How can people possibly live like that? Really, all it means is that I can't wear jeans to work everyday (which I rarely did anyway), and that I won't have to see people walking around in track suits and tube tops anymore (none of this is actually permitted by the current dress code either - like I said, pushing the limits). But now that we may lose the casual dress code, I feel like I should get all of my office casual outfits out of my system. I kept the accessorizing at a minimum today, since the shirt has some embellishment.

How great is this photo crash? Jude and I had just returned from our morning walk, and he was confused as to why I wasn't rushing upstairs to feed him his breakfast immediately upon our return. And then decided to check out the delicious grass.

Speaking of walks with Jude, the other morning we took a long walk along the lake before work. There were all of 3 dogs at the usually crowded dog beach, so Jude had the lake mostly to himself.

Skirt: Old Navy
Tee: Gap
Sandals: Privo

Easy Summer Style

2011-07-06T07:45:00.003-04:00

After a week away, I'm finally back in the office. I don't want to jinx the weather, but it appears that summer is finally here to stay. Warm, humid weather makes me fall back on the easy summer combo of dress/skirt and sandals, so pardon the plain and simple nature of upcoming outfits. To distract you, check out how huge my plants have gotten! But back to the outfit - this dress at least has some cool detailing on the back:

Dress: Target
Necklace: New York & Company (remixed)
Sandals: Born (remixed)
Nail polish: Do You Lilac It? by OPI
Sunnies: Loft

How was everyone's weekend? If you're here in the US, did you have a fun time celebrating the 4th? We took a super long bike ride on Sunday along the Chicago River on the North Shore Channel Trail. I was so excited to have a bike again, I logged 30 miles over the weekend! I had to take a couple days off because my legs were basically dead, but we're due for another ride tonight after work.

Fella admiring a sculpture along the bike trail

Fella and I threw a BBQ - our first party at our new home - for some of our friends on Monday.

Jude getting ready for the BBQ

We walked up to a nearby park on Monday night to watch some official unofficial fireworks (or something like that). The show lasted well over an hour, but Jude was ready to go after about 45 minutes. Honestly, I'm impressed he made it that long.

Fireworks!

Wheels of Fire

2011-06-30T15:12:00.001-04:00

Remember this skirt? Yeah, it was so awesome, I couldn't help but get another one. And look! I can finally wear yellow! But that's not the coolest thing I've gotten lately. This is:

I got a bike! It's a Schwinn Cream 3 speed. I didn't totally splurge here. A couple weeks ago, our old landlord called and reminded me about the security deposit from our old apartment. I had totally forgotten about that. So once we got it back, I decided to finally buy myself a bike. I've wanted one for riding around town pretty much as long as I've lived in Chicago, but just never got around to it. Fella is currently getting ready for a race with biking, running and an obstacle course, so he just brought his bike out from his parents' house. So now I can ride with him.

I just got back from my first ride with Cream. I was a little shaky at first, since it's been years since I've actually been on a bike (the last bike I owned was a pink 10 speed with spokey dokes). Here she is in the neighborhood square (Rad may recognize this fountain as being near the gelato place and pastry cafe we were at last week).

And here she is at the park. One thing I didn't consider while getting dressed today was the logistics of biking in a skirt. I don't know how gals like Gracey do it. I think the entire neighborhood saw my off-brand Spanx this afternoon. But it's cool, I had fun anyway.

Tank: Target (remixed)
Skirt: Old Navy
Necklace: Gift
Sandals: Chaco
Sunnies: Loft
Bike: Schwinn

Staycationing

2011-06-28T15:38:00.000-04:00

I took the morning off today to head downtown with Fella's mom, aunt and a family friend to watch a live taping of Chicago's new local morning show, Windy City Live. Watching a live TV show was pretty cool! Fella's mom, a regular TCC reader, offered to snap some outfit photos of me on the set, which I couldn't pass up.

After the show, we went out for a quick lunch and did some browsing at the big Macy's (formerly Marshall Field's) downtown on State Street. Thanks to a surprise express train home, which passed my stop by a few, I enjoyed a long walk home, complete with a stroll through the neighborhood Farmer's Market and a stop for ice cream, on a beautiful summer day.

I love taking actual vacations, but I have to say, when summer rolls around here, I love me a staycation. Chicago's such a cool city anyway, but we have so many things going on in the summer. And taking some time to enjoy my city was just what I needed after a pretty busy couple of months. Moving, packing, unpacking, entertaining (welcome and totally wanted) out-of-town guests, friend's weddings and various parties have kept me busy since the beginning of May. But finally getting some time to window shop and walk around on a sunny day was awesome. Do you Staycation?

Cardigan: Target
Dress: Loft Outlet
Sandals: Unisa, via PiperLime
Earrings: Gift
Bag: Coach, gift

Rainy Days and Mondays

2011-06-27T10:54:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago, on a similarly rainy Monday, I wondered about the appropriateness of maxis in the office. I got more compliments on that maxi dress at work than I have on, well, pretty much anything I've ever worn, so apparently it was okay. Or at least cute. But what about a maxi skirt? I think the addition of a statement necklace, heels and a belt (which was riding up a bit too high in this shot) make the maxi skirt, which I'd previously only worn to bum around on the weekends, okay for work.

Skirt, top, belt & necklace: New York & Company (they send me tons of coupons in the mail, what can I say?)
Sandals: Aerosoles

In the Garden

2011-06-24T07:30:00.000-04:00

It's Friday! Yay! We had a pretty big rain storm here on Tuesday night, and ever since, it's been a bit chilly again. I don't know about having to wear a sweater in June, but more layers do seem to add a bit more interest to my outfits. Otherwise, I'm just relying on cute shoes and/or jewelry. But speaking of basic outfits, I disguised one of those on Wednesday with cute pictures of Jude. I mentioned that he spent most of our photo shoot eating grass. A-Dubs asked to see Jude's cow impression, and who am I to deny Stylenation that?

In addition to a Rad visit, dizzy spells and crazy weather, I also had a chance to meet the lovely Kristen of Low Fat Dressing this week! We met up at the Chicago Botanic Garden Wednesday night after work. If you're in the Chicago area and want to fit in as much of the gardens as you can in 2 hours, Kristen is your gal. She was an awesome tour guide! And though it was dark and gloomy and kind of chilly, this was a cool time to visit the garden because no one was there. Of course we didn't get a picture (blogger fail), but I did get a lot of cool garden pictures.

Cardigan: Target
Tank: Loft
Skirt: Old Navy
Sandals: Clarks
Unseen Earrings: Bohm

Well, We Tried...

2011-06-22T08:50:00.000-04:00

Last night after seeing Lydia's pictures with her dog Chloe over on Chic on the Cheap (and subsequently, Miles to Style), I thought to myself that obviously Jude and I could do that. We can't. We so can't.

We tried some pictures in the backyard after Jude's morning walk, which is so out of the normal routine that he was too confused to pose with me. I have like 12 pictures of only one of us looking at the camera, and a few of Jude eating grass in the background. We'll work on it.

Then I noticed that the sun coming up in the background was adding a misty halo, so I moved to another spot in the yard. Exciting.

The last shot, although not terribly flattering, is amusing. This is me not realizing there was still another shot left on my camera's timer, walking to pick up said camera, and looking upstairs to make sure my neighbors weren't watching and thinking I'm weird for taking pictures of myself. Duh, I'm taking pictures of myself and my dog.

Dress: Target
Tank & Necklace: New York & Company
Sandals: Born, via Zappo's

Rad Visit, a Wedding and More Condo Pictures

2011-06-20T10:29:00.001-04:00

I'm home sick with some serious vertigo today (has anyone ever had this? do I need to go see a doctor?), so no outfit post. But I do have lots of pictures from the weekend! We've had Rad and her blokey staying with us since Friday, which has been tons of fun.

On Saturday, Rad, Fella and I took Jude to the beach. Rad and I didn't plan to wear matching dresses to the beach. We're just that in-tune style-wise.

Anne's Dress: Target
Rad's Dress: H&M

Jude LOVES going to the beach.

Surprisingly, Rad and I didn't think to take any blog-like photos together at the wedding on Saturday night. But here we are with the bride, our friend C. (photo courtesy of our friend M.)

Anne's Dress: New York & Company
Necklace: Satellite Paris, birthday gift from Fella (via hazel)

And if you wondered what Fella ended up wearing after all of your input, he went with the checked shirt and the blue tie. So everyone won.

And as promised, here's the rest of our condo. This is the master bedroom, which is clearly Jude's bedroom. I'd like to get a little art on the walls in here eventually, but you get the picture. There's also a sun porch off the bedroom, but it's currently full of all the things we still need to unpack, so I'll spare you the picture.

This is our guest bedroom, which I got cleaned out just in time for Rad and blokey's visit. Our apartment had 2 bedrooms, but this is the first time we've actually had a functioning guest room.

Last but not least is the living room. Fella and I are both huge fans of the floor-to-ceiling windows in here. It gets so much light, and the windows let in a lot of the breeze too, which is great during the summer.

Shoe Malfunctions and Father Figures

2011-06-17T11:21:00.004-04:00

Yesterday after I had been in the office for about 2 hours, I noticed that the strap on my sandals had come loose and started fraying. I don't really care, since they were only $10, but I didn't want to walk around with a broken shoe all day. Being silver sandals, duct tape seemed like the obvious solution. I went to ask the head of my department if he had any, since he always has stuff like that on hand. He didn't, but he grabbed my shoe and stapled it back together for me. This goes way above and beyond his normal responsibilities. I remember having a similar shoe issue when I first started at my job, and he happened to have electrical tape in his desk to repair them with. These are small gestures, and obviously I could have stapled my shoe back together myself, but it reminds me how fortunate I am to work on such a small, close-knit team (there's only 5 of us). When not acting as my cobbler, my co-worker has given me tons of advice about gardening, car repair, and home maintenance. He reminds me of my dad in this way. And living a 4 hour drive from my dad, it's nice to have a stand-in sometimes.

All of this to say, this Father's Day, remember to tell the fathers in your life thanks for all the cool things they do. My dad was seriously my favorite person while I was growing up. We spent summers going on bike rides and listening to Ernie Harwell call Tigers games on the radio (while, of course, watching it on TV with the sound muted). I was my dad's helper when he was fixing things around the house, and it was my dad who taught me everything I know about rock & roll. Seriously, how many 8 year old kids know lyrics to Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin and Springsteen?

My first ballet recital, 1986

No one appreciates a good (bad) pun quite like my dad, and he's always in a good mood and laughing about something. He loves hearing about my job, and is one of the only people who even kind of understands what I do for a living. I can thank my dad for my sense of humor, slightly awkward social skills, sweet tooth, nerdiness, freckles, love of music and baseball and general fixing skills.

"C'mon Dad!" Crossing Lakeshore Drive during my first ever trip to Chicago, 1986

Millennium Park, Chicago, 2005 or so

Tank: Old Navy

Pants: Loft Outlet

Sandals: Aerosoles

Watch: Fossil

Earrings: Macy's

Sunglasses: Loft

Is it Friday Yet?

2011-06-16T08:09:00.000-04:00

This week seems to be dragging on, so I don't have a lot to say today. I'm trying to not shop very much right now, but I couldn't pass up this skirt. I mean, look at it! It's a comfy knit, yet heavy enough that it provides good coverage, it's not pencil-shaped, and it goes past my knees. It's seriously everything I've ever looked for in a skirt. Add in a cute, neutral chevron pattern, and it's perfect for summer. This outfit is a little bit outside of my normal range of work outfits. The skirt feels like it's got good casual outfit potential, but adding a sweater, metallic sandals and jewelry seems to make it office appropriate.

But enough about me... Fella and I are headed to our friend C's wedding this weekend (with Rad - yay!), and Fella needs help deciding between two shirts. I'm between an all black cocktail dress and a black and gray dress myself (it's downtown, so black feels appropriate), but I'll get that all sorted out. Keeping in mind that there won't be any tags hanging off, and Fella won't be wearing jeans, what do you guys think? And doesn't Fella need a man style blog?

Cardigan & sandals: Loft
Tank & Skirt: Old Navy
Necklace: Randolph Street Market
Watch: Fossil

When it Rains and Shines, It's Just a State of Mind

2011-06-15T09:37:00.000-04:00

We're having yet another string of rainy days here in Chicago, but it's not quite as cold as it was last week, so I can deal. Despite the rainy, 5:30am walk, I finally got myself back to the gym this morning. It felt so good to get back to exercising, and much to my surprise, I'm not nearly as out of shape as I worried I'd be. I'm guessing all of the trips up and down 3 flights of stairs while moving things the past couple of weeks helped.

I kept my accessorizing pretty simple today - just going with a leather flower belt and a small pair of red earrings (which I didn't get a picture of - woops). Sometimes less is more.

Dress & Cardigan: Target
Belt: New York & Company
Earrings: Macy's
Shoes: Kohl's

Office Maxi?

2011-06-13T10:13:00.001-04:00

So you know earlier this spring it was a big deal for me to try out a maxi dress for the first time in several years. Seriously, it's the biggest thing that's happened in my world lately. Anyway, today I took that daring sense of sartorial adventure one step further by *gasp* wearing a maxi dress to work! No one at the office actually cares what I wear, but the style still feels a little casual for an office setting. But I didn't have much of a choice. It's still a little chilly here today, so my knee-length skirts and dresses seemed not quite weather-appropriate. And I have yet to locate a pair of dress pants that fits. I'm sure there's a pair somewhere among all the boxes, but all of the pants that I packed in my "summer clothes" box are a bit snug. I'll blame that on a steady diet of eating out, snacking and beer coupled with not exercising over the past couple of months. I plan to finally get back to the gym tomorrow now that things have settled down a bit at home, so hopefully that pants thing will work itself out soon. Surprisingly, I feel just fine about the way I look now, but I'm always a bit annoyed at myself for working hard on diet and exercise, and then just totally throwing it all away, like I don't know how that will end up.

print & beading detail:

But I digress. How was your weekend? My parents visited from Ohio over the weekend. Although my mom and I did plant some flowers and I did a little bit more unpacking, it was nice to slow down and just relax after the past few weeks.

Dress: New York & Company (remixed)
Sweater: Ann Taylor
Flats: Born (or flat - where did my left foot go?)
Necklace: Target

More of the Same

2011-06-10T13:40:00.001-04:00

Well, when you find a formula that works, why not stick to it? We finally got our internet up and running last night (YAY!) so I'm working from home today. Yesterday I rocked navy and white stripes with a green necklace accent, jeans and sandals. And look, I'm doing the same today! But it's comfy, and it works.

Cardigan: Target (remixed)
Tank: Loft Outlet (remixed)
Capris: Loft Outlet (remixed)
Necklace: Hazel (remixed)
Sandals: Privo (remixed)

To make up for the boringness of this, I'm including a few pictures of the new condo. I'll get the rest of it up once we get all unpacked (or once I can get enough boxes out of pictures!).

This is the dining room. It's fancy chandelier pretty much sold me on the place. It's probably Jude's favorite room. He loves lying under the dining room table, and it's especially nice on hot days since there's a huge and powerful air conditioner in the window in here. Fella's not a fan of the curtains (they came with the place, and I don't mind them), and we plan on painting this room eventually, but you get the idea.

Obviously, this is the bathroom. Oddly enough, it was the room I was most excited about decorating. I guess because it's small and easy to fill up, but also because I've had a blue bathroom for the last 7 years, so I was excited for a change. The bathroom is the first room I painted last week, and the color is called Scotland Isle, though I'd describe more as pea soup. In a good way.

And here's the kitchen, which I'm pretty excited about. The color is called Lemon Pound Cake, and it's a bit brighter than it looks in photos. Fella and I picked this color in the course of 2 minutes before heading to Home Depot to buy paint. I think I was just in the mood for lemon cake. But it works.

This nifty pan rack came with the place, and it's a huge help since there's not a ton of cabinet space. But our worn old pans look kind of silly here, so shoot, we'll have to get a new set sometime soon.

Rainy Day Woman

2011-06-09T10:26:00.003-04:00

What is hiding in this flower pot that Jude seems to like so much? Hmmm.

I'm going to apologize now for the quality of these pictures. It's been storming pretty much non-stop since last night, so the lighting is a bit off. I couldn't find an appropriate camera setting for a dark porch with a motion-light that won't turn off, so I'll have to work on that. Or hope for less rainy days this summer. The good news is that it finally cooled off a bit, so cleaning the old apartment tonight (the keys need to be handed in on Saturday) won't be nearly as awful as it's been in 95+ degree weather.

Today is my fourth office day in a row! If I could work from home today, I totally would have to avoid going out in the rain. If nothing else, but to avoid my hair totally falling flat, frizzing up and flipping out. Seriously, it lasted for about 5 seconds once I started walking. I don't know why I bother with the blow dryer on days like this. But I got to see some pretty sweet lightning while waiting for my train, so that's not all bad.

Cardigan: Target (remixed)

Tank: Loft

Jeans: Gap (Long & Lean)

Sandals: Unisa (remixed)

Necklace: Randolph Street Market (remixed)

Watch: Fossil (worn a LOT)

We're Having a Heat Wave

2011-06-08T11:09:00.000-04:00

I'm not exaggerating when I say it is HOT here. Yesterday it was 98, with a heat index over 100, and today is looking like it'll be just as hot. This is the hottest weather we've had here in Chicago since August of 2006, and it's only been this hot in June six times since 1870 (uh yeah, I'm a bit of a weather nerd). But, being Chicago, it's going to rain tonight and the temperature will drop 30 or so degrees, which will be a nice break. Unpacking is a pain when it's this hot!

I've actually been in the office everyday this week, which is probably the first time that's happened in a few years, since I typically work from home two days a week. I don't mind coming in, but having to get dressed and be presentable everyday is tricky! I don't know how normal people do this all the time :)

Skirt, tank & cardigan: Target (wow!)
Shoes: Born
Necklace: New York & Company

Now and Then

2011-06-06T10:51:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday! I'm finally back to the office after a nearly 2 week hiatus and honestly, after all of the work I did over the weekend to clean, pack, unpack, etc., it's a welcome break. I wouldn't say I've missed the fluorescent lights, but spending a few hours in my comfy ergonomic desk chair isn't all bad. I have a little catching up to do from being off last week, but nothing too major. And since we don't have internet at the new condo just yet, I have a lot of catching up to do on your blogs! How was your weekend?

We're slowly getting settled in at the new place. If you wondered, Jude seems to be adapting really well. He's already figured out which building and yard is ours when we go for walks, and he seems to like his new home. Phew! We had a chance to meet our new neighbors yesterday, and they're very nice, which is always good. In fact, the flowers that Jude is sniffing above are a gift from said neighbors.

On a personal note, today marks 7 years since I moved to Chicago - my Chicagoversary! It's hard to believe it's already been that long, but I guess time flies when you're having fun. The picture above was taken by the Chicago River, about 3 weeks before I officially moved here. Chicago is the longest relationship I've ever had, and like all relationships, we've had our ups and downs, but it's safe to say that moving here was the smartest thing I've ever done.

Dress: Target
Cami: New York & Company
Sandals: Aerosoles
Necklace: Randolph Street Market

So Long, Farewell

2011-06-04T01:55:00.000-04:00

Tonight was our very last night of apartment living. After 7 years and just as many apartments, it's pretty awesome to stop paying rent. But it's a little weird to say goodbye to my home of the past 3 years. Fella and I had only been dating a year when we moved in, and we had only lived in our apartment - described on craigslist at the time as a sunny, charming vintage apartment on a quiet, tree-lined street - for a month when we adopted Jude. We've had a lot of good times here, had Rad and other fun visitors, hosted several parties and gone through all kinds of interesting life experiences. But as they say, onward and upward.

Don't let the pretty dress and fresh face fool you - I spent the day cleaning up the condo, after spending the better part of 12 hours on Thursday painting. I couldn't have gotten it all done without the tireless efforts of Fella's parents. We had dinner with them and Fella's godparents tonight, and it was nice to get out of my painting clothes and just relax for a while. But still, I'm exhausted from all the hard work! And yet so excited about the move tomorrow that I can't sleep. Am I rambling? I think I'm rambling. What are you up to this weekend?

Dress: eShakti
Sandals: Birkenstocks
Jade necklace: Randolph Street Market (purchased during this blogger outing)
Watch: Fossil
Bag: Coach, gift from Fella's parents

Closed!

2011-06-01T16:35:00.000-04:00

Today was our long-awaited closing. Fella and I are now homeowners! We're busy buying paint and getting the place ready to move in on Saturday. Here we are in front of our new front door, and that envelope I'm holding is full of the massive amount of paperwork we had to sign.

In addition to a lovely yard, there's all kinds of self-photo potential in the new place. Here's our attempt at a family portrait. If you couldn't tell, Jude's pretty stoked about the new place. Obviously we're re-painting these walls, since they totally wash me out. Blogging is an important consideration for decor, isn't it?

Tee: Gap
Skirt: target
Sandals: Birkenstock

To Market, To Market

2011-05-28T18:07:00.000-04:00

Happy Saturday, all! This is what I've been wearing today, on what has become a pretty busy Saturday. Technically Fella and I were supposed to spend the weekend packing, but I made plans to go to the Randolph Street Market this morning with fellow Chicago-area bloggers Randi from Not Just MOM and Julia from Polka Dot Biker Shorts. They are both lovely ladies, and we had a great time perusing the market today. Randi got a picture of the 3 of us, so that may appear on her blog sometime soon. Meanwhile, my brother was passing through town on his way to visit our parents in Ohio, so Fella and I went downtown for brunch with him this morning. The rare location shot above was taken (courtesy of Fella) while we waited for the train. And before I could salvage any hopes of getting some packing done today, our friend C. texted to see if we would be up for dinner and a movie tonight. Duh, of course. So thank goodness there's 2 more days left this weekend! What are you up to?

Jacket: Old Navy (remixed)
Dress: New York & Company
Sandals: Unisa (remixed)
Scarf: Target
Earrings: New York & Company (remixed)

Speaking of Floaty Skirts

2011-05-25T07:50:00.001-04:00

The other day, E-Jo posted about floaty skirts. And although I'm not a fan of mid-length skirts on me, I am a huge fan of floaty skirts! Sure, pencil skirts are pretty flattering for curvy, hourglass-ish figured ladies like myself, but floaty skirts are just so comfortable, and they always signal summer to me. Although my instinct is to pair a skirt like this with a t-shirt and flip flops, I dressed it up a bit for the office with flats and a cardigan.

Cardigan: Target (remixed)
Tank: Ann Taylor Factory Store (remixed)
Skirt: Gap Outlet
Flats: Loft (remixed)
Watch: Fossil (remixed)
Earrings & Necklace: Alixandra Collections (gifted)

On a random note of self-promotion, I decided to undertake my own Project 365 to celebrate turning 30 this year. The project involves taking and posting a picture each day for an entire year, and in addition to documenting your daily life for a year, it's also supposed to help build photography skills. It's a little weird toting my camera around with me all the time, but I'm sure I'll get used to it. In any event, this picture of Jude was one of my many leftovers yesterday. He hasn't been on the blog much lately, so I thought I'd share. And if you want to check out the rest of my pictures so far, you can visit my photoblog. That's all.

Fun with Accent Colors

2011-05-23T08:36:00.001-04:00

Happy Monday! How was your weekend? Thank you for all the birthday wishes on Friday's post. I had a great weekend, but it was of course way too short. I'm running a little late for work this morning, so this post will be brief. It's finally warm enough here to wear dresses and skirts pretty regularly, which is nice, but can also get kind of boring after a while. Today, to punch things up, I added bright blue and yellow accents to a black and white dress.

Dress: Target (remixed)
Flower pin & earrings: New York & Company
Shoes: Aerosoles (remixed)
Watch: Fossil
Bag: Coach, gifted

Personal Day

2011-05-20T07:15:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday, Style Nation! This is what I wore to work yesterday, since I'm taking a personal day today. I didn't have time to snap pictures in the morning, so the lighting is kind of wonky because I took pictures as the sun was starting to set. I haven't taken any outfit photos with the new camera in that kind of light, so it looks a bit... off. But since I'm sharing less than perfect pictures, here's one of me and Fella (in the background, on the couch) trying to get Jude to join in the photo shoot fun. Fella was getting ready to take him on a run, so Jude was less than enthused.

I'm taking a personal day today because tomorrow is my birthday! My 30th, to be exact. My 20's, although really fun, were pretty crazy. I graduated college, bought my first car and logged nearly 100,000 miles on it, moved to Detroit, got engaged, broke off said engagement, moved to Chicago, started working at my company, lived in 7 different apartments, met Fella, adopted Jude and started graduate school (hopefully I'll get back to that someday). Whew! I always take a day off work to celebrate my birthday, though usually I just take myself shopping. That's not really in the budget this year, so instead I'm going for a massage this morning (I'm cashing in a gift card, so not spending money!) and then heading downtown for a lunch and movie date with one of my girlfriends. We'll be seeing Bridesmaids. I'm pretty stoked, since there's not a lot of movies out there featuring funny women. After all of that, Fella and I have dinner reservations at one of my favorite neighborhood restaurants.

I wish you could see just how cute this ruffled floral tank is. It was an early birthday gift from Fella's parents. Does his mom know me or what?

I hope you all have a great weekend! I'll leave you with this gem, me celebrating my 5th birthday. At a boy scout meeting. In a romper!

Cardigan: Loft
Tank: Tommy Hilfiger from Macy's, gifted
Jeans: Gap
Necklace: Hazel (remixed)
Watch: Fossil
Sandals: Birkenstock via PiperLime (inspired by E-Jo's matching pair)

Lost and Found

2011-05-18T07:17:00.000-04:00

This weekend while combing through my many boxes of old clothes hanging out in my basement, I stumbled upon a few pieces that I can't for the life of me figure out why I would have packed away. This dress was one of them. I came upstairs with an armful of clothes that I was eager to try on and reacquaint myself with, and each time I would ask out loud why on earth I had made these clothes stay in the basement (Fella, amused with this, said he didn't even try to understand my thinking on stuff like this). But of course, I was asking Past Anne. Seriously, what was she thinking? This dress fits, is super comfy, pretty cute and even in line with my current color pallet. Yet it's been in the basement since we moved into this apartment in 2008, and I'm fairly certain I haven't worn it since at least 2007. I can't believe it, but I think this was purchased at a time that I wanted to wear dresses, but since they weren't in fashion quite as much, I didn't.

Things that I could easily work into my current clothing rotation were few and far between, and a majority of the clothes I had are being donated to various charities around town. However, there were a few special items that I want to find good homes for. Are you in the market for some cute stuff that is way too small for me now? If so, take a look at my closet and drop me a line. I'm really bad at shipping things in any sort of timely fashion, but I guarantee they'll be mailed before June 1st, because if I don't give them away here, they're being donated before we move.

Dress: New York & Company (c. 2006 or 2007)
Cami: New York & Company
Leggings and Necklace: Target
Shoes: Born

Tights In May? Of Course!

2011-05-16T07:26:00.000-04:00

Last week when it got really warm, I was a little annoyed at how hot my apartment was getting since we aren't putting our air conditioners in before the move. I spoke too soon - we've had nothing but cloudy, rainy 40 degree weather here the past few days. It feels a bit more like mid-March than mid-May. But I'm not letting this make me retreat back into winter dressing. Mainly because all of my winter things are packed away in boxes. Today's outfit is pretty simple, but dressed up with a bright scarf.

Cardigan, Skirt & Tights: Target
Tank: Ann Taylor Outlet
Scarf: New York & Company
Shoes: Born

Unable to Concentrate

2011-05-12T16:01:00.000-04:00

Do you ever have one of those days where you just can't concentrate? It's one thing when I can't concentrate because I don't feel like working or I have other things on my mind (okay, that's pretty much everyday for me), but today I haven't been able to concentrate on work because it's really damn loud here. The gas company has been working it's way through the neighborhood to install new gas lines, and they got to my block today. Since it's 80 degrees out and we don't have air conditioning, I've had no choice but to have the windows open all day. To add to all of the fun construction sounds, Jude's girlfriends downstairs have been barking at the workers pretty much non-stop all day. That, in turn, gets Jude all riled up. So yeah, construction and 3 loud dogs, awesome.

Sure, I could just pack up my laptop and work at any of a number of area cafes that have wi-fi. But my company's VPN is wonky, so I can't usually log in unless I'm at home. Ugh! Fortunately, I've gotten some non-work stuff done so as not to totally waste the day. I touched up my roots (I was more than due for that anyway), and did some cleaning this morning. And now I'm working out how to paint our new condo. We close on the 1st and move in on the 4th, so Fella's parents and I are spending the 2 days in between doing some serious painting.

The first color to be picked? The bedroom. Fella's parents gave us this bedding for an early housewarming gift (I've had my eye on it for months, so I'm excited). My first thought was that yellow would look good with green and white. But I went crazy on paint swatches at the store last night, and it turns out blue would probably work too. Meanwhile, Fella wants to stick with the green and paint the entire room green. A lighter green could work. So basically I don't know what to choose. After a while, they all look equally good. And all 20+ shades of yellow that I got look a lot alike too. Meanwhile, this is all just for 1 room - there's still plenty others to go! I feel like color mixing is so much easier with clothes, since I can change my mind.

Why yes, those are resting on top of a box of wine. Because staring at paint colors all day makes me want a drink.

Tee: Old Navy
Cropped Jeans: Loft Outlet
Shoes: Puma
Earrings: gift from Mom, via Hazel Chicago
Watch: Fossil
Paint swatches: The Home Depot

The Dress Stands Alone

2011-05-11T08:27:00.000-04:00

I've worn this dress a few times before (though I've only blogged it once), but I'm excited to finally be able to just wear it on its own. No tights, leggings, sweaters or scarves needed. We're having more warm weather today, though it's supposed to cool off again later this week. But I'm enjoying the chance to dress like it's summer while I can. I don't have anything interesting to say today. Everyone have a nice Wednesday!

Dress: Target
Belt: New York & Company
Necklace: Express
Headband: The Limited
Sandals: Aerosoles

Rebel in White

2011-05-10T12:17:00.002-04:00

We're having absolutely gorgeous weather here today, so it's a perfect time to break out some floral. Even better, because today is the day for florals over at Everybody, Everywhere. I have a ton of different floral things, but with a forecast of 80 and sunny today, I went with a knit sun dress. And - gasp! - white shoes before Memorial Day! I know, I do like to live life on the edge. I have some really great silver flat sandals that would've looked good with this dress (Rad may recall I wore these to a friend's wedding last summer), but sadly I packed them up last week, thinking there wouldn't be a lot of sandal weather between now and June. Oh well.

Cardigan: Target
Dress: Loft Outlet
Sandals: Unisa
Earrings: New York & Company

Emotional Attachments

2011-05-09T10:20:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday! Where do the weekends go? Mine sure flew by. Saturday was spent running errands, cooking for Mother's Day and continuing to pack. I started packing up our bookcases because I needed a break from sorting through old clothes. It's funny how many books of mine don't "fit" anymore, yet I'd never consider parting with them because they're part of my past. Will I ever read my third edition Classical Sociological Theory textbook again? Probably not, but it's a reminder of who I wanted to be in college. My old clothes serve similar reminders, but I just don't need them. That size 10 suit that I interviewed for my job in back in 2004? In addition to not fitting, it really serves no purpose, just a reminder of when I was a bit slimmer and more motivated to find a new job. So one of our errands on Saturday was to drop some of my old clothes off at a neighborhood resale shop whose proceeds go toward Howard Brown, a health center that serves local LGBT youths and adults.

Today's weather is a little odd, which made me completely change what I had planned to wear (hence the early morning sunshine photos). The forecast for the next week is rain, and when I was getting ready this morning, the hourly forecast called for rain as early as 6am. Here it is, 9am, and it's still bright and sunny. Maybe it'll rain later, but I didn't want to mess around with a dress or skirt, since rain also tends to mean cold here. Is it too much to just have a nice sunny day that will stay a nice sunny day?

Tank: Ann Taylor Outlet
Cardigan: Target
Pants: Loft Outlet
Sandals: Aerosoles
Necklace: New York & Company

Mom

2011-05-07T21:52:00.000-04:00

This is me with my lovely mom. It boggles my mind that in this picture, she's just one year older than I am now. Where would any of us be without our moms? My mom was always there to encourage me in school and my interests, and always had a shoulder for me to cry on. Although often playing the role of disciplinarian while my dad traveled for work, she always tried to make sure we had a good time. She planned fun family vacations for us, whether visiting the beach or following our favorite baseball teams around the country. There's not a lot of pictures of her while we were growing up since she was the family photographer, but she's always smiling and often laughing in the few pictures we do have. She put up with a lot from me when I was a teen and in college, but I hope that I've grown up into a young woman that she can be proud of. I've learned so much from her over the years.

Always say "please" and "thank you," respect your elders, how to tie my shoes, the lyrics to "My Favorite Things" (we would sing this a lot whenever I was having a bad day), how to make a house a home, the importance of family, the benefits of an occasional mental health day, how to bake cookies and cook dinner for our family, responsibility and accountability, never lie, don't take anyone's guff, how to plant flowers (which is, incidentally, what she was doing while waiting for my dad to come home and take her to the hospital so she could have me), be independent, always make time for friends, and live my own life before settling down and starting a family.

To all of you mothers who are constantly teaching, nurturing and encouraging, thank you for all you do. Happy Mother's Day!

Leg Baring

2011-05-06T09:20:00.003-04:00

I don't want to jinx this, but I think we might finally be getting a nice day here! It was almost 50 when I woke up this morning (compared to the upper 30's for the rest of the week), and the sun is shining. I just couldn't resist busting out a summer dress. And *gasp* bare legs! Is Chicago ready for these?

I don't generally talk prices here, but I do love a good deal. Since my birthday is in a couple of weeks, I've been getting a ton of coupons in the mail (similar to the Simpsons episode where Bart has 40-some birthday coupons to spend). I picked up this dress at Loft Outlet (did you even know there was a Loft Outlet store? I had no idea!) with 2 different coupons, so in the end it only cost $10!

It's been another busy week, so I'm really looking forward to a weekend free of travel and lots of plans. I'm hoping to make a bigger dent in the packing effort, and Sunday we'll be spending the day with Fella's family to celebrate Mother's Day and his mom's birthday. What are you up to this weekend?

Cardigan: Loft
Dress: Loft Outlet
Belt: Target
Shoes: Tsubo
Necklace: New York & Company

Springtime, are you out there?

2011-05-04T07:06:00.001-04:00

Can you believe it's May already? 4 days into May no less! I can't, mainly because of our crap weather here this week. It was 40 degrees yesterday, which is hardly what I remember May and spring to be like. Today our newspaper reports that we've only hit 70 degrees 3 days this spring, which is an all-time low in nearly 30 years.

Even if warm weather isn't coming soon enough, Fella and I are realizing that our big move is. We close on June 1st, and we're moving into the condo a month from today! Knowing how busy the coming month is for us, I've felt really overwhelmed by everything that needs to get done before June, but now that I'm getting started on it all I think we'll be okay. I packed up 5 boxes of clothes yesterday (including all of our winter stuff - hopefully it doesn't snow again!), and already have 3 big bags of things that I'll be donating to charity. I've talked about decluttering before, and how hard it's been for me to let go of a lot of things that I've been moving around from apartment to apartment with me over the years. But something about this new condo makes me finally feel ready to just let go and give my things a new life. I'm not using them, so someone should.

Cardigan: Target
Tank: Gap Outlet
Pants: Loft Outlet
Shoes: Eddie Bauer
Earrings: New York & Company
Sunglasses: Loft

Mayday Rant

2011-05-03T01:13:00.002-04:00

I'll be back with an outfit post later this week but I just wasn't feeling it today (Monday). Of course you all know the big news that came last night. I was in college in Ohio when 09/11 happened and I didn't know anyone who was involved, so I can't even begin to imagine how those who were there that day or those who lost someone that day felt upon learning that Osama bin Laden had been killed. Like most Americans, my heart broke for everyone suffering as a result of 09/11, and I know that our country and our feeling of security hasn't been the same since. I generally don't support war, but have accepted that the US has entered into 3 since 09/11 happened. I don't support capital punishment, but I can understand the feeling of justice being served. I'm glad that he was captured and that he no longer poses a threat to the US. But bin Laden being killed doesn't put us back to where we were prior to 2001, it doesn't remove us from war, and it doesn't bring any of the victims back. Air travel still frightens me as much now as it has over the past decade, and that probably won't change either. I love my country and feel so lucky to live here and have as many opportunities as I do. But all of that said, I don't understand the celebrations of bin Laden's death. As a friend noted in her blog today, it felt like people were celebrating their team winning the Super Bowl. And I hope I don't come off as ignorant about this. I just can't recall any other time in my life where the collective opinion has been to rejoice and celebrate someone's demise (perhaps Saddam Hussein comes close).

A lot of you may have seen the viral Martin Luther King, Jr. quote on Twitter and Facebook. Below is the full quotation from his speech:

"The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral,
begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy.
Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it.
Through violence you may murder the liar,
but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth.
Through violence you may murder the hater,
but you do not murder hate.
In fact, violence merely increases hate.
So it goes.
Returning violence for violence multiplies violence,
adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.
Darkness cannot drive out darkness:
only light can do that.
Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that."
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

I remember hearing this quote from the nuns who taught at my high school (which is, incidentally, where I developed all of my feelings against violence). I try not to get too political on social networking sites (and even on this blog - woops), but I didn't see much harm in quoting Dr. King. Unfortunately, I'm almost always wrong about this, and there's always some jackass from my hometown who is taking a break from commenting on Yahoo news stories to point out what a bleeding heart liberal I am. Sure, I get that we don't agree on things like health care, guns, abortion or our President's citizenship. But it's frustrating that someone can find fault in such a profound, insightful quote from a champion for peace.

This morning while getting ready for work, I was exhausted from the weekend and being up late to watch the news last night, and have been feeling a huge array of emotions about the events of the past couple of days. So you'll forgive me if I didn't really care what I was wearing.

No Rest for the Weary

2011-04-29T08:30:00.001-04:00

Happy Friday! Is it me, or has this week kind of flown by? This weekend, instead of relaxing and finally catching up on my sleep, or starting to pack for our move (which is just over a month away - yikes!), I'm headed to Ohio for a dear friend's baby shower, and to see my family. It's been since January, so it'll be nice to see everyone, but not waking up at 6am on Saturday would be nice too. Just saying.

What are you up to this weekend?

Cardigan: Loft
Tank: Ann Taylor Factory Store
Jeans: Gap
Shoes: Privo
Necklace: New York & Company

Trying Something New...ish

2011-04-28T13:24:00.001-04:00

A few weeks back when I saw everyone sporting their maxi best over at Everybody, Everywhere, I really admired the looks that I was seeing, but hadn't considered it for myself. I don't know why I've always had a thing against maxi skirts and dresses. I had a ton of long skirts and dresses back in the mid-to-late 90's when I think they were in (well, at least I thought they were in!), so maybe I got burnt out on those. And I've always heard that showing a little leg looks better than not. I stuck to all of that until I saw this dress while cashing in some store credits and coupons. The print was so pretty, I had to try it on. I think shorter dresses may still look better on me, but I honestly don't care - maxi dresses are so comfortable!

Dress, Earrings & Bracelet: New York & Company
Cardigan: Target
Sandals: Unisa, via Piperlime

Technical Difficulties

2011-04-26T08:15:00.001-04:00

I mentioned in my last post that one casualty of our vacation was my camera. Fella bought it for me for my birthday last year, and it was pretty great for being a handheld not so fancy point & shoot. I was pretty bummed when he returned from a hike at Yosemite and told me the camera had run up against a rock and was no longer working properly. He tried to fix it, but to no avail. So, just in time for another birthday, he bought me a brand new camera. It's an upgrade from the last one, and it's already taken some great pictures so far. In addition to the last half of our vacation photos, I snapped this one at the Arcade Fire concert on Sunday night.

Not too shabby for being up in the balcony (neither was the show - Arcade Fire are pretty awesome live!). The bad news though is that I'm still getting used to the new camera's settings and such for taking outfit photos. For example, pictures like this happened.

Poorly timed and blurry! So bear with me. And believe me when I say this outfit was even cuter than it photographed.

Skirt, Cardigan & Tights: Target
Tank: Ann Taylor Outlet
Necklace: New York & Company
Shoes: Sears (c 2005 I think?)

My Rumsfeld-esque experiment

2011-04-25T11:28:00.000-04:00

I don't know if this belongs our style blog, but it's a lifestyle issue, and my ability to wear the clothes I love is tied to my health and fitness. I visited Minneapolis (very short trip, and I wish I could have met some StyleNation members,* but it was for 48 hours and I had many academic meetings, all fun). One of my dearest former professors had a rigged standing desk set up in his office at school. He had a few boxes, some made of wood, and stacked books. I have been intrigued with the standing desk for a while. You've probably read by now that scientists believe that our sitting intensive lifestyles will kill all of us, no matter how much exercise we do when we're not sitting at a desk. As I've mentioned before, I am all torso height-wise, which is great for rocking a bikini but awful for sitting. Most chair and desk heights do not work for me, and like most I slump my shoulders forward. And I am fidgety and prefer standing most of the time (except in tall shoes), so today I took the plunge. Here's what I've done so far:

(yes there is a huge blue JOCKEY pamphlet in my junky file box. It's a coupon for future underwear purchases).
I've been standing a couple hours now and I notice that I can keep my shoulders back more easily. I sway a lot and fidget more. I walk away a bit easier to get water and go to the toilet and I can pace when I want to think. I will take some sitting breaks every so often. Oh, and I'm barefoot, although I am generally barefoot or at most be-socked in the home.

I will report back about my Donald Rumsfeld experiment later this week (I go in on Thursday to teach but I plan to park my feet here for the most part). He's not the only one: Benjamin Franklin and Ernest Hemingway also reported used standing desks.
Would you consider a standing desk? How do you feel about sitting? Do you have a great ergonomic set up and good habits or do you need something more?

I did have the pleasure of seeing Sal, as she works on campus, for an hour. It was fun and uplifting. We talked about bikes, real estate, urban living, style, families. She is so full of lightness and joy, and had the best shoes. I highly recommend this.

There's No Place Like Home

2011-04-24T16:05:00.001-04:00

Happy Easter, Stylenation! Fella and I got back from our trip to California last night. The trip was pretty great, save for a broken camera and some nasty food poisoning, and we saw a lot of really cool stuff. That said, it's good to be back in Chicago, sleep in my own bed again and most importantly, see Jude again! Here's a few pictures from the trip.

We spent the first part of the trip in Hollywood, where above, we went to Universal Studios. My new ride is bolted to the ground, though I'm sure it'd be fun riding along the winding roads and hills of Hollywood.

After leaving the LA area, we stopped at the Santa Monica Pier for some quality beach time.

We drove along the coast and saw some pretty beautiful sunsets over the Pacific. This one was just south of San Simeon.

We visited the Hearst Castle. It's a pretty amazing place, you know, if you're into giant mansions situated on the top of a hill, overlooking the ocean.

Continuing north, we traveled on Highway 1 along the central coast. It was gorgeous, but a little terrifying for this midwestern gal to drive on narrow, winding roads on cliffs above the Pacific Ocean.

We stopped in Carmel while visiting the Monterey Peninsula. It was a little too cold for swimming, but nice to walk along the beach.

Our next stop was Yosemite National Park. We got to see giant sequoias in Mariposa Grove. I mean seriously, these trees are huge!

Yosemite is also home to beautiful waterfalls, which are especially great to see in April because the snow on the mountains is beginning to melt.

After leaving Yosemite, we stopped in Napa to visit my brother and some wineries. Unfortunately for me, I was recovering from aforementioned food poisoning while in Napa, so I couldn't actually try any wine. But lucky for Fella, he had me to drive him around the region. The countryside there is just beautiful, but since our camera broke in Yosemite, we didn't get a ton of pictures in Napa. So shoot, we'll have to go back.

Our next stop was the Bay area. First we went to Oakland to see the first show of the first ever Railroad Revival Tour. The picture above is the sun setting over the Bay Bridge, as seen from Middle Harbor Shoreline Park.

We spent our last day of the trip in San Francisco. We walked the entire length of the Golden Gate Bridge, and drove across the bridge into Sausalito in Marin County. I was disappointed at the lack of Sausalito Cookies there, but the bridge was pretty cool anyway.

We also walked up and down Lombard Street. I have no idea how people in San Francisco deal with all of those hills on a daily basis - my calves definitely got a workout!

I'm slowly getting caught up on all of your blogs since I've had pretty limited internet access lately, but I hope you've all had a good couple of weeks!

Mojo

2011-04-14T09:43:00.001-04:00

Hello, Style Nation! While Anne is off enjoying sunny California, I thought I'd break my self-imposed sabbatical. I've had a crazy busy semester, but it's been productive and good. I finally feel like I'm reaching something like balance, and towards the end of my third year as a professor and a New Yorker, I feel more confident about my abilities and about belonging. Like other esteemed style colleagues, I am counting down the weeks until end of term, but we still have a while to go. In fact, my 13 day spring break starts tonight at 7:40. I have mountains of grading to do, but I am excited nonetheless. Please excuse my cranky face. I think I've lost my outfit taking mojo.
During my "sabbatical" as SFE called it, I spent a lot of time reading (for fun and for the career), writing, writing some more, and eating/cooking. I thought a lot about politics. I read Your Money or Your Life, and then Blokey and I set up clear financial goals. We donated some money to progressive causes/Japan. I re-united with graduate school friends in Montreal and networked with strangers (and didn't die of embarrassment). I made some good connections at another conference in Chicago. I go swept up in barefoot-style/forefoot strike running (then screwed up my knees, and now my foot, but I am still dedicated). I've now been on GAAD since mid July, and thrifted 4 times, a total of $80 (plus some shoes). I sat around thinking on planes and trains. It's been a good break.
I've been chatting with Anne about my future on this blog. (I've had the fortune to visit Chicago twice and we'll go once more in the summer). I think I will probably continue to blog, but my interest in my clothes has gone down. I apologize for my sporadic commenting, but I do still read all of your blogs on my Google Reader. I still like clothes and styles, and I still like looking at your blogs (so fun and so necessary to break up long teaching/writing days), but my participation in Style Nation will probably take a back seat to some of the other things on my plate.

Blazer: Esprit
Shirt: Macy's
Skirt: H&M
Tights: Target
Flats: Payless

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2011-04-13T08:15:00.008-04:00

Well Style Nation, I'm happy to report that my much-needed and long-awaited vacation is finally here! I don't know how much time I'll have for blogging while I'm traveling, but I can at least share my travel outfit. I didn't really plan to coordinate with my suitcase, it just sort of happened.

Favorite new green necklace detail

Jude has never been more excited to hop into a picture with me, which makes it all the more sad that he isn't going with us. Instead, he's hanging out with Fella's parents while we're gone, so I think he'll be okay.

I'll leave you with this, since I'm incapable of flying without thinking of this song. The Peter, Paul & Mary version is my favorite.

Jacket: Old Navy
Tee: Loft
Skirt: Target
Necklace: Hazel
Shoes: Privo
Suitcase: Going-out-of-business sale at some luggage store in the Chicago loop, c. 2006

Dressing Around a Sunburn

2011-04-12T08:42:00.000-04:00

Here's what I wore to work yesterday. I had a really hard time figuring out what to wear that would cover all of my sunburn, because I got burnt while wearing a v-neck, and a majority of my tops and dresses have some sort of v-neck to them. I decided a scarf would be the way to go, but of course I had to find a scarf that wouldn't be too itchy. I should probably just wear sunscreen at all times to prevent this. If you look, you can see the burn peeking out. I've been blasting it with Solarcaine to make it a little less red and obnoxious, which actually seems to be working.

I've never been a fan of leggings and flats underneath a dress on me before, but I couldn't stand to wear tights again after our 80 degree day on Sunday. It cooled down to 60 and windy, so I wasn't feeling bare legs either. Transitional weather is so tricky sometimes.

I mentioned the other day that I usually try to take my outfit pictures ahead of time. Mornings are just too busy and crowded around here. Fella didn't realize I was taking pictures and hopped into the shot to write a note to our dog walker.

And this is right as I'm telling Fella he's in the shot. Oh well. Have a nice Tuesday, everyone!

Cardigan, dress and leggings: Target
Scarf: Embellish
Flats: Born