Perception

This was one of those outfits where I felt like I looked about a hundred times cooler than I actually do in these photos. I like my curvy hips, but this sweater made them look comically large. And to think - I would have been convinced this was an awesome outfit all day long if it weren't for these photos. Sometimes having this blog ruins my perception of my outfits :)

White sweater: thrifted

Jeans: Levi's

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Leopard print hat: Albertus Swanepoel for Target

Pink scarf: Fred Meyer

Necklace: free from my aunt

Covered

There's just something about cold weather that makes me want to wear maxi skirts. It's not like this skirt was particularly warm (unlike Friday's maxi skirt), but being covered head-to-toe with fabric feels appropriate for winter weather. I just randomly felt like trying the slouchy-all-over look, so I threw on the oversized sweater coat (pictured below). It made me look a bit like a hobo, but hey, that's the beauty of fashion - you can experiment with an odd look one day, and switch back to normal the next day if it doesn't work out.

Brown turtleneck: Kohl's

Blue maxi dress: Forever 21

Beige jacket: vintage

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Leopard print hat: Albertus Swanepoel for Target

Blue necklace: made by my aunt

Brown belt: thrifted

Vintage Pendleton

I was in the mood for a weird outfit on Thursday, and this is what happened. (I realize now that it kind of looks like I'm wearing PJ's. Next time I wear this skirt I'll try to class it up a bit with a turtleneck or something.) Five years ago my mom and I traveled to Denmark, and one of the places we visited was the little island of Ærø, which is where I bought this t-shirt. The skirt is vintage Pendleton, which I found for only $20 (I know) at an antique show a few weeks ago. It's so warm that I wore it without tights on a day with bitter cold winds, and felt toasty warm every time I went outside.

Red t-shirt: gift shop on Ærø, Denmark

Red plaid skirt: vintage Pendleton, from an antique show

Black leather jacket: MICHAEL Michael Kors from Nordstrom Rack

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Bracelet: In Pink

Brown, beige and bright

Here's my outfit from yesterday. I'm not sure it "worked" - I don't love the look of the brown tights between the beige skirt and beige boots. What do you think? I am, however, still madly in love with this weird skirt, and I love the strange necklace that my aunt didn't want anymore. (In case you didn't notice, I get a LOT of free jewelry from my aunts. Some of them probably have jewelry from the 70's hiding in their homes somewhere, which I hope they give me eventually!)

After my class last night, Josh and I spent about four hours glued to our computer screen watching the live stream of the election results. It felt a bit like watching a football match - we supported different candidates, so there was cheering whenever someone pulled ahead by a few electoral votes.

And I promise, that's the last time I'll mention the election this year :)

Orange shirt: Target

Chair skirt: Anthropologie

Brown tights: Forever 21

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Necklace: free from my aunt

Gold leaf bracelet: In Pink

Election day

It's been unseasonably warm here lately, so I was actually slightly too hot in this outfit. I'm okay with that. If summer wants to hang on through November, I don't mind. It's winter lingering through June that bugs me.

Today is election day here in America, as most of you know. Don't worry, I won't get into my political views, but I do hope that all of you who are American vote today. I learned that this is the 100-year anniversary of Oregon women winning the right to vote. I feel proud when I think of all those women a hundred years ago, demanding a right that should have been theirs all along. There aren't many things that get me fired up, but women's rights is a topic I'm incredibly passionate about, especially when I consider the fact that my great-great-grandmother wasn't allowed to vote. I'm not sure where I'm going with this - I guess I just wanted to say that I'm grateful for all those suffragettes who stood up for themselves and insisted that they were the equals of men.

Striped blouse: Forever 21

Black maxi skirt: TJ Maxx

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Red necklace: free from my aunt

Bracelet: gift from my mom, from Yosemite

Procrastination

I don't even know how to classify this outfit. It felt like an odd mash-up of pieces, but I was satisfied with the result. I wore it on Saturday when Josh and I took a walk to Starbucks for a salted caramel mocha (which is heaven in a cup, by the way). That was really the only thing we did on Saturday, other than vote (and watch TV). Well, Josh voted. I'll probably fill out my ballot tonight and drop it off at the library tomorrow - my motto is "why do something now when you can put it off until later?" (Just to be clear, though - I am going to vote. I promise I won't procrastinate until it's too late.)

Striped top: H&M

Crocheted vest: free from my aunt

Red corduroy pants: Anthropologie

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Mah jongg tile earrings: free from my aunt

Spider necklace: Bauble Bar

Bracelet: Fred Meyer

Blue gingham

Lately I've been trying to veer a bit more towards office appropriate outfits, just so I can get some practice for the job I will hopefully be starting in January. I think I'd wear the top and skirt to a business casual office. I'd probably wear different shoes - I'm not sure if you're allowed to wear boots even in a business casual setting. I think I'll probably need to do some research before I start this job (and quiz my fellow female employees) just so I don't show up to work in anything totally inappropriate. In case you can't tell, it's been a long time since I've worked in an office.

Blue gingham top: J. Crew

Brown leather skirt: thrifted from Goodwill (Target brand)

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Scarf: thrifted

Bracelet: gift, from Italy

Also, wow....

Sometimes I can't believe I get to live in such a beautiful place.

Sweater dress

I miss the warm weather already, but the trade-off is that I love being able to wear outfits like this one. There's nothing like a sundress and sandals during the summer, but I just feel cooler when I wear things like boots and sweaters. This is only the second time I've worn this sweater dress (the first time was here), and now I'm kicking myself for not making it my go-to dress last fall. It's the perfect shade, and fall is really the only time of year I can tolerate wearing 3/4-length sleeves on a heavy sweater. So I'm going to try and wear it more this season, although I may not feature it on the blog much because there seems to be a limited number of ways I can wear it, and I don't want to bore you guys :)

Sweater dress: Fred Meyer

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Belt: thrifted

Bracelet: gift

Purse: Eva messenger bag from Ellington Handbags

People need to stop staring at me

Last night I took the midterm for my tax class. It went okay - I got 88%, which isn't good as I had hoped for, but it's better than failing, right? Anyway, my brain was so exhausted after that that I just couldn't think of a title for this post, so I made Josh do it, and "People need to stop staring at me" is what he came up with, because that's what I kept saying the whole time he was taking these photos. Seriously, though. Just because someone is taking a few pictures of me outside doesn't mean that every person who walks by needs to stop and watch.

Shirt: Anthropologie

Black skirt: H&M

Blazer: thrifted

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Necklace: Urban Outfitters
Bracelet: Fred Meyer

Frolicking

Josh and I spent Saturday frolicking around in fields, in case you couldn't tell from these photos. Okay, not really, but we did walk out into a field and take some photos at his sister's farm. They have fifty acres of grassy fields, blackberry bushes (yum!), a barn, a lake, an old overgrown train track, and lots of little kids who think we're super cool. We like going there :)

It's hard to see, but in these photos I'm wearing the Jeffrey Campbell boots from this post. Everyone always looks at me like I'm crazy when I say any of my shoes with heels are comfortable, but I swear: these are so comfortable. I tramped around for an hour in their fields in these four inch heels, and my feet were just fine the whole time. (So were my boots - it hasn't rained here for like two months, so there wasn't any mud.)

My handsome husband!

Orange shirt: Target

Brown striped sweater: Cynthia Rowley from TJ Maxx

Brown leather skirt: thrifted from Goodwill (Target brand)

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Sunglasses: Oscar de la Renta from TJ Maxx

Gold necklace: Evidence Jewelry

Brown belt: thrifted

Bracelet: gift from my mom, from Belize

Neutral

New boots! Yay! I've had a slight obsession with Jeffrey Campbell shoes ever since I discovered them a few years ago. I know they're too outrageous for most people, but that's why I love them. Yet somehow, the only two pairs I own are actually fairly normal (for JC's, that is): these red wedge sandals, and the beige boots pictured here. For 4-inch heels, these boots are incredibly comfortable. I bet I could walk around downtown for hours in them. The ankles are a bit more fitted than I would like, but they're not uncomfortable.

And true to form, I didn't even pay full price for these. I found a discount code, so I got them for $139 instead of $155, and then I had $80 in rewards from my credit card, so I only paid $59 of my own money. I always feel a little proud of myself when I buy something I've been wanting for a long time for a discounted price.

Gray sweater: free from my aunt

Denim skirt: Gap

Beige boots: Jeffrey Campbell (Rumble boots) from Urban Outfitters

Gold necklace: Dress Barn

Brown belt: thrifted

Brown bracelet: gift, from Italy