Grounded

Old Navy jacket, Old Navy top from Labels consignment, Pacsun jeans, vintage Ferragamo shoes from Buffalo Exchange

There is so much color in this outfit, I might have to wear all black for a week to recover. Somehow the neutrality of the denim jacket made me feel better about the whole thing, even though it was too hot to wear it at work and went most of the day without it.

Wishful dressing

UO t-shirt and skirt, vintage belt, Steve Madden boots

Here is my attempt at willing fall weather to come faster by wearing boots. It did not work. 

Two for one

secondhand AE cardigan, Buffalo Exchange dress, Bass sandals

Gap sweater from Labels consignment, self-cutoff AE shorts, LL Bean boat shoes from Value Village

So summer is ending and I can maybe wear pants again sometime soon without getting heat stroke at work. Meanwhile, here are a couple of tips on making the transition into fall a bit smoother. 

1. Get a Slurpee while you can. They are available year-round, but let's be honest, they're never better than in warm weather. Make sure you layer at least 3 flavors, beginning and ending always with Coke.

2. SWEATERS. Put them over shorts, flowy skirts, minidresses, and very soon skinny jeans with a great pair of boots. Find at least one really comfy, versatile sweater to add to your wardrobe and make it your signature piece. I got lucky with the one in the second photo, it's a lovely fit and sooooo soft it makes me want to pet myself.

Punky in Pink

Gap sweater from Lables, UO skirt, Steve Madden from Nordstrom Rack sandals

Want people to be happy when they see you? Wear a pink sweater. It's a compliment magnet. People love pink, okay? It's not usually my thing, but I admit it felt cute and fun. I tried it on at my favorite consignment shop thinking it would be a bit much (I mean, so PINK), but it fit perfectly and the price was right (5 bucks). But wait, there's more. The girl at the register rang up my stuff and then informed me she only charged half price since it had been in the store since April. Fashion was clearly rewarding me for stepping out of my style box. Then I overcompensated for the girliness of the sweater but adding a pleather miniskirt with a sheer underlay and metal-accented sandals. 

Giving a new meaning to shirtdress

J Crew sweater, H&M dress, Gap Kids shorts, Aldo shoes

So we moved into a new place, and it's got this thing called a yard, with grass, and sunshine, and (unfortunately) spiders that like to come inside and chill in our bathtub. 

And if you notice in the caption that I identify this yellow button up as a dress, that is not a typo. It was probably 6-9 inches longer AT LEAST when I bought it. Washed a couple of times in cold water on the delicate cycle, hung to dry, shrunk to high heaven. Can't even button the thing across my chest anymore. This is one reason I like buying clothes secondhand...they are usually already shrunk as much as they ever will. 

Strawberry summer

Macy's cardigan, UO dress, vintage sandals

Nothing says summer like a cotton strawberry-print dress and espadrilles. Also, everyone should have a shrunken red cardi like this, I wear it all the time, all year round, and it goes with so much stuff. Don't fear red accents, they are fun and cute and make people happy. 

I can live in this

UO t-shirt, Macy's necklace, UO via Buffalo Exchange skirt, Nine West via Ross wedges

Somebody send me a giant box of flowy, floral-print skirts, soft, loose-but-not-baggy plain scoop-neck t-shirts and strappy sandals next summer. That will be my uniform.