Voila!

What I Wore: [Skirt: American Apparel, Top: Old Navy, Shoes: Lucky Brand, Belt: Francesca's - old]

I've had this glittery belt in my closet for over a year and I've never worn it, do you ever buy something thinking it's going to become a staple and then you just forget about it? That is how I feel about this belt. Today was different though - I felt like glitter and some purple eyeliner were the only things that were going to be able to push me through the day, and I was right! The main reason I dress the way I do is because it makes me feel better about nearly anything - a new dress or my favorite pair of shoes improves my day no matter what way it was going before. And I think that's great. It's so important to do whatever you can to make the most of every day, even if it's as simple as the clothes you wear. For me, today, it was the glittery belt that the world forgot about.  

Early Autumn

What I Wore: [Top: Old Navy, Skirt: old Nordstrom - similar, Shoes: old Zara - similar, Lipstick: Bite Beauty "Zin"]

I know I am not alone in saying this but, I love Autumn. Crunchy leaves under my boot clad feet, warm drinks in my hands, and that crisp cool morning air that just makes you feel good - there just isn't a better time of year! In Portland, we're just starting to get some signs of the seasons changing. Although it's still forecasted to be 90 degrees this weekend (kill me, please) every time I see a slightly orange leaf in the trees on my way to class I get a little bit happier. This outfit, I feel, is very "early autumn" appropriate. The skirt is tweed - obviously one of the most Autumnal fabrics, and I've broken out the lightest of my berry lipsticks - yet I'm still able to walk around without tights or any sort of sweater of jacket.  I know that I'll be wearing both the top and the skirt into the later weeks and months as things get cooler and I begin to layer, but for now I am enjoying sitting in the warm sunshine between classes and drinking iced coffee without my hands freezing off.

My "Back To School" Stack

Since it is basically the middle of August and my countdown to my return to Portland has begun I have decided it is finally time to start talking about one of my favorite subjects.....back to school shopping. Unlike when I was 10 and would purchase the entirety of Limited Too in preparation to take on the new school year my current "back to school wardrobe" shopping strategy is usually just to get a few key pieces to refresh what I already have. Although it should probably be noted that I still do the whole "I'm not even going to touch this or take the tags off of it until school starts" thing to make things feel even more exciting and special. I don't know what it is, but even at 20 years old there is nothing that excites me quite the same way going back to school and the beginning of autumn does. 

Alright, let's talk about clothes. Like I said, my shopping strategy is to get things that will work well with the rest of my wardrobe so I gravitate towards classic styles and patterns that are still current and somewhat trendy. Let's take a peek and what I've collected.....

Tops: I snagged this striped top with fluttery sleeves from Anthropologie (currently on sale!), a light-weight striped popover from Old Navy, a chambray top with an embellished collar from LOFT, and a neutral crew neck sweater from The Gap outlet, similar. None of these tops were purchased for any particular reasons other than "this is cute and I want it", because sometimes you just have to live life that way. 

Dresses: The only dress I've picked up for the up-coming season is a chambray (I really can't get enough of chambray) shirt/shift dress from J. Crew Factory Store. I had been eyeing it online for quite some time and when it went on sale I thought it was as good as time as ever to replace the chambray dress I had been previously wearing to death. Said moment of weakness brought to you by trying to stretch out my lunch break at work. 

Bottoms:  I am not a big pants wearer in general but when I do they either have to be dark dark dark blue or black and I for some reason didn't have a pair of plain black skinny jeans, so to remedy that issue I picked up a pair of super comfortable ones from Old Navy. The one new skirt that I did get (my skirt collection is getting a little out of hand these days) is from J. Crew. I got it on sale for only $20 and I really cannot wait to wear it, it's probably one of the most flattering pieces of clothing I own - it's still available in a few colors and sizes! 

Outerwear: My two outerwear purchases are very "Portland Friendly" i.e. one has a hood and one is a fleece pull over. My reasons behind getting both of them were fairly practical - the fleece, from Mountain Hardware, is intended to be worn during runs/hikes when the weather gets cooler and pretty much any other day I want to wear bright turquoise fleece, and the sage colored utility jacket will be perfect for layering over everything I wear during the majority of those low 50's, dreary, overcast Portland days that I have become so fond of.

Shoes: I'm at a point in my life wear it is just not physically possible for me to house all of the shoes I want to own, so for back to school this year I just got one new pair of shoes because that was honestly all I knew I'd be able to fit in my suitcase/tiny apartment. They are part of black D'Orsay flats from Lucky Brand and they are perfect. Just trendy enough to make me feel cool but still very classic and I know I'll be getting my money's worth out of them. 

And that's about it! It's more than likely I'll be picking up a few new things here and there before I leave but I'm already worried about packing all of my stuff up to take back to Portland, it's always so overwhelming.

Let me know if you liked this style of post, it was a fun one for me to write (i.e. finding a way to justify all of my purchases). Until next time,

Eva

Sunflares

What I Wore: [Top: Target, Shorts: Old Navy, Sandals: Boss via DSW, Necklace: old from Francesca's - similar, Lips: Clinique Chubby Stick in "Chunky Cherry"]

Another day, another attempt at trying to take outfit photos by myself (today I had about a medium level of success). Anyway, even if I don't totally love the way the photos turned out I really do love this outfit. It is so dang comfy! I am so into this trend of "clothes, mainly pants/shorts, that feel like pajamas but only kind of look like them" which these shorts definitely are. I picked up both the top and shorts while wandering around the mall and trying not to buy anything last week (they were both on sale so it was okay!) and already know they are going to be in heavy rotation this summer. So many of the things I have in my closet back home are the clothing items that I didn't like enough to bring to college, i.e skintight graphic v-necks with stupid sayings on them and six too many peasant tops, so whenever I get something new I want to wear it way more than I should. It's the same with these sandals, I have a feeling they are going to be featured in about 80% of my posts during this summer. 

Anyway, that's what I wore. I'll probably wear it again soon. Thanks for stopping by! 

Eva