chambray another way

A lot changed from Saturday to Sunday, but my love for chambray never wavered.

Change #1: Why yes, thanks for noticing! I finally trimmed my shaggy fringe.

Change #2: I bought new spring shoes!

(I may or may not have quite literally pounced on the display pair of these shoes and maybe, just maybe, glanced furtively around while trying to shield them from the general population... as if some savagely selfish Kohl's shopper would have the nerve to whisk them out from under me. I couldn't help it! They were exactly what I've been looking for! Vera Wang, you have done it again: you've made a young girl's dreams come true two spring seasons in a row [see yesterday's post for my favorite last-summer shoes, also a Vera Wang creation]).

The socks were also purchased in that frenzied trip to Kohl's.

And then... I did just one more bad thing, as evidenced by the photos below:

I bought a bag. But it was yellow! And satchel-esque! (There were a few other bad things, including another bag, a jacket, two more pairs of shoes, ill-fitting leggings [I didn't try them on, assuming that leggings couldn't possibly be too big], and a 60%-off comforter set). I will probably be promptly returning several of those items in an attempt to nurse my credit back to health.

(chambray shirt: Walmart; skirt: vintage; belt/scarf: thrifted; shoes/socks/bag: Kohl's)


PS: For the record, I did indeed wear this shirt two days in a row. However, I was only out of the house for approximately 4-5 hours each day, after which I would change into cozy pajamas and watch movies and drink wine and eat chocolate. Therefore, I really only wore the shirt for a single day-like period. Does that make it right? That was hypothetical--don't answer.


PPS: My Sunday shopping spree resulted in a picnic-ky plaid romper and two belts (to replace the sad belt I wore the day before). It was a much more reasonable outing.

a love affair: the chambray story

This weekend, I fell in love.

It's only natural. I mean, K was out of town (in Maine, visiting his grandfather).

So, I'll admit it. I cheated on him with this lovely chambray shirt. We spent some quality time on the town, shopping together until my credit cards hurt. And in that time I discovered that, well, we just fit.

So I fell. Hard. Can you blame me?

(chambray shirt: Walmart, $10; skirt: UO; belt: thrifted; shoes: Kohl's; socks: Walmart)

I am rather ashamed to admit that we (chambray and I) met at Walmart. (I'm even more ashamed to admit that Miley Cyrus was apparently somehow involved in the design and/or production of this particular shirt. I chose to overlook that fact.) K and I went in to find some cheap bookcases and I walked out with a shirt, socks, and hangers (no bookcases... yet). I'm a sucker for a bargain! I am not a sucker for supporting child labor in third world countries, which is why I try to avoid places like Walmart until I realllllly reallllly need something cheap.

I also wore this shirt on Sunday. To go shopping. Again. You'll have to wait until tomorrow to see how I styled it :)

Happy Monday!

stripes and straps

Man, I'm getting good! This morning I went for a long run and took outfit photos! I didn't think I would be able to do that... ever. Slowly slowly the tectonic plates that make up my earthly existence are shifting into place (sadly the same cannot be said for China... when will it end??)

K and I have been super-busy and productive this week! We haven't even had time to eat dinner until late at night, which is unusual for me because I'm usually ravenous when I burst out of the office at the end of the day. Still, there is something satisfying about slipping into bed with a vodka&grapefruit, a chocolate orange to share, and an episode of 90210 after a long, crazed day. Last night it was particularly pleasant because I bought a bistro table at Christmas Tree Shops on a whim (we were really only supposed to be grocery shopping) and it looked so cute sitting by the bedroom window (which, thanks to K's spontaneous purchase, looks out over an adorable little bird feeder for our feathered friends).

Funny story: there is a flower shop and garden store below our apartment, and the owner has an identical bistro set! I thought it was so precious that I went inside to ask where she got it, and when she said she bought it years ago and neglected to tell me where, I let it go. Surprise! I guess CTS lets their inventory roll over :)

In other news, walking up these stairs...

... in these shoes ...

... is a feat for my feet.

in the back with the bricks

Sooo I had one of my first awkward blogger photo-taking interruption interactions this morning. Getting used to this "living in a public place" thing is going to take some time... one of the men who works in an office below our apartment came strolling up the alleyway and seemed a little bit confused about what I could possibly be taking pictures of at such an early hour. At some point I may end up having to explain myself, but I don't necessarily want all of my neighbors (who inevitably would not understand) thinking I'm a narcissist.

But here you have it. This is what I was photographing:

I'm kind of loving the shabby-chic industrial-style scenery behind my apartment. It's quite a change from the country landscape behind my previous accomodations.

Oh, PS: the orange couch = fantastically retro. I'm in love. I'll post photos of the new apartment when it starts to fill in and clean out. Right now it looks rather wretched.

(dress: Old Navy; scarf: thrifted; bangle: flea market; tights: HUE; moccasins: Minnetonka)

life, or something like it

Hi everyone! Life is still a blur... somehow the weekend happened. Where did it go? Oh yeah, K spent all of yesterday crafting a desk and bookcase in my parents' garage while I caught up on all of my mother's back issues of Vogue (the 'rents are in Paris, ces chiens chanceux) and watched really, really bad reality television while drinking white wine spritzers.

The gorgeous, summery, sunny weather that sky-rocketed my spirits (via a chocolate-vanilla twist creemee with rainbow sprinkles, scored with scavenged change from the creemee window right outside my front door) last weekend has been lost in rain and fog for the past week. It's still a sunny day, but I made the mistake of not wearing a coat... and Mr. Sun was only teasing. I did go for a long run this morning (bravo to me, a cowardly soul when it comes to the weather) and the fog was so thick it was as if I were running on a mountain top.

The other big news? The promotion is mine! I got the news last week and have been very pleased ever since... I got a phone and everything! It will be more work, more responsibility and probably more stress (and most importantly--more money for clothes!!) but I feel pretty good about the fact that I've steadily moved up through the ranks since day one (this is the second promotion in a year and a half)... and I'm not done yet!

(shirt/tights: TJMaxx; skirt: AE; belt: thrifted; shoes: Target; bracelet: gift from K; ring: gift from mom; necklace: gift from grammy Flood; headband: ShopRuche)

Tonight K and I are going to look at (and hopefully buy) a couch!! (Yes, we've been living for two weeks without a couch--what of it?) I'm getting really excited about decorating the new place but it's definitely not as easy (or cheap) as I dreamed it would be. Here's hoping--it's rust orange, so how can we go wrong?

my resurrection day

Wow. If Blogging were a class I would be failing. Apologies for my absence lately, but there has been a madness in my mind (my head feels a bit like this). I'm still trying to work out my new schedule because I actually have to commute to work now (twenty minutes, boo-hoo, I know), which has made my morning photoshoots... well, not happen. And because I haven't quite figured out how to feel rested/not rushed/on time to work in the morning, my new running shoes have only hit the pavement once in the past week. I think I may have officially (as of today) given up on the idea of AM runs... I'd probably be better off just jogging when I get home from work.

That said, I am a bit behind. This is what I wore for a beautiful Easter Sunday in Portland, CT, where we drank some nice chilled wine, played some serious "Jarts" (I'd never heard of such a thing, but apparently my mom used to play it all the time as a kid--it's probably just another one of those activities that she deemed "too dangerous" or "too traumatizing" [like watching 'Bambi'] for her own brood) and ate some delicious potatoes au gratin, cabbage and rolls (ham and lasagne for those who eat meat), followed by sensationally sweet lemon meringue pie. It has been gloriously sunny&warm for the past few days (it's just starting to cloud over again, but I'm crossing my fingers that it will stay beautiful... I'm so ready for summer!)

I bought this dress on etsy about a year ago and knew that I wanted to wear it for Easter. It's just so spring and pastel and floral... and a little too dressy for everyday use. It is a lovely satin material, which also makes it feel a bit like pajamas.

(dress: SnapVintage on etsy; slip dress: UO; boots: ALDO; socks: TJMaxx; belt: antique; sunglasses: UO; crystal beads: Grammy Flood; ring: mom)

PS: Yeah, yeah. I realize now that I was wearing the ring on the wrong finger.

PPS: Another little news tidbit... as of late Sunday night, I no longer have a nose ring. It is very sad indeed, and I currently look like an ugly troll with a huge wart/pimple/mole on my nose where the ring once was. The swelling is slowly going down, but I left that thing in for far, far too long and it just never healed :(

PPPS: K and I are finally finished with our old apartment and will be gradually filling our new (huge) space. I'm so so so happy with it. Everything is sunny and bright right now (in my life) and I couldn't be more pleased :)

PPPPS: K, thank you for taking these Easter photos, even though I was kind of being frantic &fussy about getting out of the house on time.


I've missed you guys!