Wearing Lately 2 - Take the Time

After not taking (or at least not posting) outfit photos for all of August, I am renewing my effort to take a few moments everyday to myself and take a couple shots. This summer has been busier than intended, which has taken a toll on my energy level. As the play I've been working on is about to open, I see the light at the end of the tunnel and that's making me renew my effort to take a few moments everyday to snap some photos.

It's funny how when we get busy, we tend to put all of the things that make us feel like humans (eating well, spending time with the human/s we live with, anything that doesn't involve being mindless in front of a screen) on the back burner. That strategy only serves to make me more tired, so as I entered this week, the last big stressful week before things calm down for me, I dedicated myself to taking a little bit of time everyday to take outfit photos. They are probably going to all be in my living room (gonna use that end of summer light while I have it), but it's still going to feel good to slow down for a few moments.

Thursday

Details: Top and pants old Forever 21, belt and shoes thrifted

 Monday

 Details: Turtleneck old H&M, Boots and leggins old Walmart, dress and cardigan thrifted

 

 Tuesday

 Details: Turtleneck old H&M, leggings and socks old Walmart, skirt thrifted

One thing that has been keeping me going through this crazy (and often really great) summer has been therapy. I waited about ten years too long to get started and while I wish I hadn't taken so long, I've found the perfect fit and am so grateful. I think therapy is one of the best ways to practice true self care. Partly because it's a lot easier to say "sorry I can't come, I have an appointment" than "sorry I can't come I need to organize my bedroom in order to sleep better tonight." It's really easy to give away our time and not prioritize the things that would make our lives easier/better/more calm and, for me, having an appointment on the books gives me a "legitimate" excuse. 

I hope you all are finding ways to prioritize your time in a way that is meaningful and having crisp and happy early fall. 

The Great Outdoors

I've lived nearly my whole life in rural Vermont, surrounded by trees and grass and freshly manured fields. I love all of it and until about a year and a half ago, I always lived somewhere with accompanying outdoor space. Last Spring, I moved into my current apartment, which I love wholeheartedly. It doesn't, however, have any accompanying outdoor space (unless you count the parking lot where my neighbors like to hang out). This hasn't bothered me too much since there is a little park and a river within walking distance. But yesterday, while I was taking these pictures and listening to the sounds of nature, I realized just how much I miss spending alone time in the great outdoors.

 When I got home I decided to take a walk in order to spend a little more time outside. I typically stick to the sidewalk and make a loop around the block (much longer than a city block) to my apartment, but this time I decided to walk to the town rec fields instead and made an awesome discovery. Hidden alongside one of the ball fields was a little sign announcing the town labyrinth. Currently it's just a circle mowed out of the a bunch of tall grass, but it is shady and secluded and no one bothered me when I sat down to listen to a podcast and play with the grass. I was thrilled with this discovery and even more thrilled when I found a freshly mowed field, surrounded by trees that also seems to be owned by the town. 

I plan on taking serious advantage of my new found outdoor spaces by taking nightly walks. I'm stoked to have a place so nearby where I can be alone in nature, something I took for granted for many years. 

 Outfit Details: Jeans: Old Forever 21 | Button Up: Old A.N.A. | Vans: Second hand |

 Duster: Thrifted | Sunglasses: Old from a boutique in my home town

Summer 10x10

I was scrolling through instagram two weeks ago and saw a post by Lee of Style Bee reminding all that the Summer 10x10 would be coming up. Since I've felt less than successful after the last couple 10x10's and didn't think I was going to participate, I didn't pay too much attention to the details and kept scrolling. Then on the weekend, I happened to have some time on my hands and was playing with my clothes, when I started to realize that I was making a bunch of great outfits out of the same few pieces. That's when I decided to go ahead and participate. What I didn't realize was that the challenge isn't supposed to start until the end of July. I decided to dive in early, so read on to see the pieces I picked and find out what my plan of attack is this time.

Since I'm ahead of the game this summer, I decided to properly photograph all of the pieces I chose and make a nifty little graphic with them. It took quite a few hours (and an entire season of Pioneer Quest), but I have now learned how to take the background out of a picture in Photoshop and I'm pretty proud of myself. This new skill has already come in handy for non-blog related things, so I'm happy I got my butt in gear and learned. 

The Plan

As I mentioned above, I haven't been very successful with the last few 10x10's. I get excited in the beginning, but crazy schedules, wonky weather, and boredom always get in the way of me finishing. Since I know that a straight ten days of the same pieces doesn't typically work for me, I've decided to take a new approach. This time around I'm making ten outfits and I will wear them all, but throughout the course of the month, rather than over the same ten days. For me, this challenge is more about being creative with a limited number of items than about wearing those items all in a row. I'll do my best to take pictures of the outfits as I wear them. 

9 + 1?

You might notice that there are only nine pieces in the top picture and that is because I've only got nine items in my summer 10x10. I wasn't paying too close attention to the numbers as I was making outfits, just grabbing the clothes I was loving most at the moment, and ended up not immediately needing a tenth piece. I'm leaving my options open and might end up adding in some sort of top layer or another shirt. For now, I'm excited to wear these pieces (I've already started) and see where they take me :)

Wearing Lately #1

Despite my very best intentions, I have not been able to keep up with a regular posting schedule. I would love to, but I'm gonna cut myself some slack, knowing that life is busy and this is a hobby.
I was able to snap a few outfit shots over the last few weeks that I wanted to share. I managed to find a few good spots to shoot and am getting more comfortable in front of the camera :)

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Outfit 1

 

This is my favorite outfit of the bunch. I saw a similar outfit on Karen (from Truncation) and knew that I wanted to recreate it. I'm always cold, so a cardigan was necessary. I loved the way the outfit turned out and even got a compliment from my 14yo brother (the neck scarf really got him). My little sister snapped this picture of me in front of some beautiful lilac bushes that matched my outfit; I couldn't have asked for a better day. 

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Outfit 2

 

You will notice that black jeans are a theme in all of these outfits. I am a creature of habits and black jeans are my go to. This day was warm and sunny, so I wore this blue top that is one of my favorites for summer. It is billowy, has sleeves that can still fit in a sweater, and has pockets! It's truly a gem and I'm really glad I thrifted it. This picture was taken in a cemetery a few towns over from where I work. I've discovered that cemeteries are my favorite places to shoot, due to the fact that there are few (live) people around and the grounds are typically so beautiful. This one is right near my therapist's office, so, when weather permits, I plan to spend my waiting time here rather than in my car. 

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Outfit 3

 

The day I wore this outfit was super full. Work followed by a cookout to celebrate the last night of youth group, then a trip to Burlington for a get together arranged by the Pride Center of Vermont. This outfit served me well through all of it, though I did need to untie my sleeves while wearing a jacket. I thrifted this top last summer in order to try the off the shoulder trend and didn't end up wearing it very often. I want to change that this summer, because it really is a great shirt. I wore it covering my shoulders at work and off the shoulder at night.

While the outfit was great, what I'm most excited about is this location. It is behind a little church that I drive by everyday on my way to work. I finally decided to stop one day last week and try taking pictures. The first set didn't come out well because I was rushing and stood in the direct sunlight. These pictures are from the next day and came out so well that I had a hard time narrowing down which ones to include. In addition to cemeteries, country churches are great places to take photos. 

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That's it for outfit photos. I spent last night figuring out what I'm packing for vacation, which was a ton of fun. If only unpacking could be as enjoyable... I'm hoping to put together a post with what I packed and my thought process, so stay tuned!

Outfits of the Week #1

 

 

While I only managed to capture a few outfits this week, I'm glad I got my butt in gear and made this pictures happen. 

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Wednesday

Details: Ken's shirt, thrifted pants and belt, old Forever 21 boots

On Wednesday I had a grant interview (oh the non-profit life), so I wanted to look a bit put together. I saw this shirt of Ken's on our bedroom floor while I was getting ready and tried it on just for the heck of it. I ended up loving the way it looked. 

This is my first attempt at taking pictures of myself outside of my apartment and I'd say it was a success. While my apartment works just fine for taking outfit photos, I want to venture outside more. 

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Thursday

Details: Thrifted shirt, pants, and shoes, old jacket from Kohls

Thursday morning I kicked my put into gear and got out of the house on time to take a few pictures in the local park. It was my first time using the self timer (I usually use the voice commands, but the falls were too loud) and it worked, but it was a bit annoying to have to go back to my phone after every shot. On the upside, my hair looked great all day and I had a hot coco date with a new friend.

 

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Saturday

Details: Old shirt, Old Forever21 sweater, Thrifted jeans, belt, and shoes

On Saturday I ventured to meet up with my younger brother to see A Quiet Place. We attempted to go last weekend, but miscommunicated and ended up at two different theaters and there was a raging ice/wind storm happening. This time we made it to the same theater and greatly enjoyed the movie. This was the first time in six months (not exaggerating) my ankles had seen the light of day, which is pretty evident by ghostly white I am in this picture. I would also like to note that the angle of this picture is making my feet look very tiny. In real life, my feet a proportionate to the rest of my body.

 

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That's it for last week. I'm working on a post about my social media and blog goals that I should be publishing this week. One of my hopes is to do weekly OOTW posts, so I should be back at it this weekend or next Monday with more outfits.

Winter 10x10

If you spend any time reading style blogs with a sustainable or capsule wardrobe focus, you might be familiar with the 10x10 Challenge. It was created by Lee Vosburgh of Style Bee and the idea is that you choose ten items and create ten outfits with them. You then wear those outfits for ten days. I participated last spring and had a lot of fun, so when the Winter 10x10 rolled around I knew I wanted to participate again. I've been mulling around the idea of starting up a blog for a while now and I thought the 10x10 challenge would be a good way to get the ball rolling.

Goals:

1) Add more color into the mix.

The first time I participated I stuck to a very small color pallet of black and gray. This time I wanted to have a bit more color.

2) Get creative with pairings.

I wanted to try some new ways of pairing pieces and accessorize more. 

3) Document.

I wanted to at least take a mirror selfie of every outfit I wore. 

Included:

• Green Button Up: A piece I was obsessed with two summers ago, but haven't worn a lot lately. It layers well and is dressy enough for days when I'm in court for work.

• Gray Turtleneck: I've been wearing turtlenecks constantly this winter and knew I would need one as a warm layer during this challenge.

• Bright Red Sweater: This is one of my favorite sweaters. It's comfortable, but the bright color makes it anything but boring. I wore it constantly last year and it's still in heavy rotation this winter.

• Burnt Red Sweater: Two red sweaters might seem excessive for a ten piece collection, but this one is another of my favorites. The more muted color and boxy shape give it a totally different look.

• Denim Pinafore Dress: I thrifted this dress in early December and it has been on heavy rotation. It's roomy enough that I can layer sweaters under it, which has been ideal for this cold winter.

• Black Jeans: I hadn't worn my black jeans in quite some time (mostly because I'm bad at keeping up with laundry), but they were the turning point for this collection. I originally had a pair of straight leg dress pants, but everything clicked when I switched them out for black jeans.

• Black and White Wide Leg Pants: I included these babies for a couple reasons. First, the wide leg makes me feel elegant, but also like a total boss (there's something great about taking up space). Second, they are roomy enough to fit a pair of leggings underneath, which makes them warm without adding a lot of bulk.

• Green Army Jacket: This jacket made the cut because it is warm, but thin enough that I can treat it like a sweater and layer it under my winter coats. I think it makes most outfits look more pulled together.

• Black Ankle Booties: I wear these boots at least four out of seven days a week, so they had to be included.

• Black Lace Up Boots: I recently bought these second hand and was dying to wear them. I like that they have a platform, which makes me taller without the making them uncomfortable.

What Happened

I went into this challenge with a lot of enthusiasm and a great batch of clothes. The ten days, however, did not go as planned. It was both the best and worst time for me to be doing this challenge. Eight out of my ten days were extremely busy and on days nine and ten I was seriously burned out. This meant I almost completely lost track of which outfits I'd warn, didn't take daily pictures, and was too rushed to do much accessorizing. It also meant that getting dressed in the morning was, for the most part, really easy. I didn't have to think too much about what I was going to wear.

What I Learned

• I was successful in adding color to the clothes I chose, but by the end of the ten days, I was craving more black. I've been trying to expand out of my black and gray comfort zone over the last year and I've been pretty successful. This challenge reminded me that it is great to expand, but it's also ok to stick with what you love.
• I had gotten it into my head that no one should see me wearing the same piece of clothing twice in one week (even if it was my favorite) and the 10x10 really helped snap me out of that. Now my coworkers can expect to see me in the same things over and over.
• I'm leaving this challenge with a desire to edit my wardrobe a bit. The ease of getting dressed during the challenge has me thinking about how I can edit or organize my wardrobe in a way that carries that ease into everyday. 
• Going ten eight days wearing the same ten items of clothing made me crave the rest of my closet. Styling outfits is my favorite past time and this little break has made me more enthusiastic than ever to play dress up. 

So the challenge may not have gone the way I had expected and I may have met only one of my three goals, but I did get this cute picture with my cat.

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