TBMD

Details are what makes an outfit fun. The striped top and cap-toe shoes are bold and bright. Upon closer inspection, what I really love are the pom poms and twilly scarf. The pom poms came with the top, so it's not like I spent painstaking time sewing each one on. But the twilly scarf tied around the purse handle? Definitely an amateur job as I started over like five times... and parts still ended up lumpy. I really love how a patterned scarf easily tones down the formal-ness of the purse. Practice makes perfect, and I will be trying this look on other purses!

Up until today, I've lived by the motto: scarves in the winter are for warmth; scarves in the summer are purely decorative. Boy, was I wrong. I literally discovered Starbucks' London Fog Tea Latte yesterday, so decided the trek to Farbucks today (what everyone at my work calls the "far" Starbucks, ~0.5 miles away) was worth it in this sweltering humidity all for an iced cold, delicious drink that reminds me a bit of milk tea. What I didn't count on was how much of a sweaty mess my "purely decorative" scarf made me (and especially my neck). Once I made it back to my building, I'm sure I looked like a lunatic experiencing AC for the first time in my life.

I equally love and hate today's outfit. I don't particularly care for the suede pumps, aside from the bow. The color and material seem harsh for the summer. So why did I even bother?! I literally stood in front of my shoe shelf and went down the line. Nothing seemed "right", so I settled. But as the day wore on, the more I wished I had chosen plain nude pumps -- it is a classic for a reason.

Now the part of the outfit I loved: the windowpane blouse! No matter how many times I promise myself to stay away from final sale items, I... just... couldn't... resist. Well, I'm happy to report the blouse fits TTS and drapes beautifully. (For some reason I was expecting light cotton? Need to read the description more carefully). I left the last button undone and knotted the ends for a more casual take on office attire.

I swear it's completely unintentional that every time I wear this particular white blazer, I gravitate towards this same spot for photo ops (example 1, example 2). Perhaps my subconscious loves the way white pops against the bright green leaves...? What is deliberate is how much I choose to wear white this season! The color has always been a favorite of mine to wear, but lately I've been loving it in life too. Taking more care to keep white furniture at home clean. While developing a new UI feature at work, I'm paying more attention to the amount of used and unused white space. Those couple random thoughts may not seem like much, but I found myself stopping and smelling the roses, so to speak. And in my book, that's always a good thing.

With skirts that fall past the knee, I typically try to balance out the proportions by wearing a top that is tucked in (see exhibits: one, two, three, four). For today's outfit, I experimented with a slightly oversized, and definitely long-ish, double-breasted blazer. It took a few minutes for my eyes to get adjusted to the "stumpy" bottom half. But once it did, this look isn't half bad! What say you -- stick with tucked-in tops or keep the experiments coming?

Rounding out the month of April on a high note! 4 posts in the last week, with the majority featuring one of my favorite jackets ever. I don't know how much longer this in-between spring and summer weather is going to last, so just trying to prolong jacket season as long as I can.

When I was putting together today's outfit, I was aiming for classic and understated (in my simpleton mind, that's how I equate neutrals and office appropriate-wear). By the end of the day, I was blown away at how much the caramel-colored wide tortoise belt stole the show. Ladies at work stopped to inquire, and I was only too happy to share it's a recent purchase and still available. Another generalization example: no comments = fly under the radar = understated. How wrong was I?! Time to change this mindset of mine.

When I saw the forecast calling for spring temperatures this week, I knew I wanted to wear these pleated wide-leg cropped pants (the rest of the outfit TBD until the night before). The months-long wait was worth it! Unfortunately BR released the pants over the winter, so they are now sold out. Fingers crossed they will re-release in other colors.

The pants move like a dream. I was literally sashay-ing down the long hallway at work (just like the second photo below) when a coworker approaching from the other end stopped to say how she loved the movement and look of the pleated fabric. I enthusiastically and wholeheartedly agreed.

The pants aren't a perfect fit on me though. I hacked together this look by creating a paperbag effect with a belt to tighten the waist by a couple of inches -- all done without belt loops! I'm still undecided on whether I should ask my tailor to shorten the hem by one inch and also add in belt loops? Or simply add belt loops only? I keep waffling between the two depending on my mood. Feel free to leave me a comment if you have thoughts.

My initial reaction upon seeing myself in the mirror was, "Whoa, I look frumpier than what I had envisioned." (It's the pants! So used to wearing skinny jeans that trousers + flats throw me off)

But now after seeing the photos? I'm amending my earlier word choice to conservative. There's a time and place for looking prim and proper -- presentations, interviews, and endless meetings. Needless to say, this outfit won't make it into my regular rotation, but will definitely be pulled out when the occasion calls for me to be presentable.

There are some outfits where a color palette just works. The last time I wore this black sweater + leopard midi skirt combo (both items on sale!), I accessorized with more black and camel. This time around, I went with accessories that are shades in-between, in the brown family. Dark neutrals are just the perfect complement.

Everywhere you look, today's outfit is all about the small touches. Pearl collar against an otherwise plain black coat. Cable cardigan for added texture. A neutral, but dramatic peplum top. Leopard pumps to top it all off. There's something interesting to see from head to toe.

Long time no post! Been busy with life, work, and more life that I just needed a break from blogging. Hopefully with the holiday season upon us, work will slow down some and I can share more winter outfits. For now, I'm still going through a backlog of photos, so bear with me as it's still fall on the blog.

These white pants may have been part of the summer collection at LOFT, but I also love wearing it for fall. Sometimes it's just a tad too chilly to go bare-legged in the mornings. As for regular pants, I have all winter to wear them. I find these crepe pants to be the perfect in-between. I'm certainly not one to follow the no white after Labor Day rule.