2013. easy does it.

james perse tee. parisienne storyteller scarf by madewell. max studio skirt. gloria wedges by bed stu. rebecca minkoff cupid satchel.

back in 2010, i owned two striped knit skirts (one in black, one in navy) but they somehow got misplaced when we moved into our house along with several pairs of pants. i probably took the bag to goodwill by mistake. however striped skirts are omnipresent, and i made a new friend in no time.

i wore this outfit to the grocery store on sunday, and michael remarked that i was too dressed up. i replied, “but i might meet a cute guy and he might buy groceries for me.” and you know what? i did. but here’s the weird thing: we have the same address.

the look | similar tee | scarf | similar skirt | similar wedges

2013. two girls.

maison scotch sweater. silk striped tee by j.crew. skyline skinny skinnies by paige. pour la victoire boots.

see that chubby puggy? she turned five this month. michael says she can go to kindergarten in the fall. i wish!

sophie is a funny creature. she’s perpetually hungry, fiercely loyal, and always affectionate. she can detect the UPS truck from a few blocks away. she sheds hair like crazy (almost all fawn pugs do) and our vacuum cleaner fills up with her fur. but we love her anyway.

happy birthday sophie! thanks for being so gosh darn cute and making a cameo occasionally.

the look | sweater | similar blouse | similar pants | similar boots

2012. the mondays.

striped crochet jacket by zara. silk striped tank by j.crew (thrifted). skinny skinny ankle corduroys by madewell. nine west wedges.

i can’t say that i’ve ever experienced a prolonged case of the mondays. sure, i’m sleepy and slightly tired, but i also like returning to a structured routine. i try to start mondays with a good outfit and set the tone for the rest of the week.

school has kept me busy— i’m finishing up conferences and progress reports and looking forward to friday! tomorrow, tomorrow, i love you tomorrow, you’re always a day away…

the look | similar jacket | similar top | pants | wedges

2012. port of call.

cardigan by halogen. striped villa dress by j.crew. vintage embellished nautical belt. nine west wedges.

whenever i go thrifting, i check out dresses and skirts first and bags and belts second. i spotted the belt from the end of the rack and patiently waited for two teenagers to move down the line before quickly claiming it. be gone, young thrifters… this belt is mine.

i wore the belt on thursday as a subtle layering of stripes on stripes (one of my beloved combinations). i’ve said it before, but the villa dress is just plain fantastic! i hope mickey and jenna bring it back in tons of colors (daffodil yellow please) and patterns (foxes or giant dots). they can send my royalty check to texas. :o)

the look | similar cardigan | dress | wedges

2012. bon chance.

silk striped tee by j.crew. velveteen verdugo leggings by paige. vintage shawl (worn as scarf). bronx flats (thrifted). rebecca minkoff baby belle bag.

i wore this outfit to school on wednesday and sported it again on saturday for errands. last year, i sold my skinny j brand jeans on smashion and switched to paige jeans. needless to say, i love paige verdugos, and the velvet style is perfect for cooler weather.

i’ve been a tortoise of a blogger because of the rain! we’ve had quite a bit of rainfall in the evenings, putting a damper on our routine photo sessions. in the meantime, we’ve been working on the house (the hole in the wall is fixed), watching football, and going to bed early. oh, sophie wants to add: eating lots of watermelon.

hope you had a great weekend (rain or shine)!

the look | similar blouse | pants | similar flats

2012. here’s waldo!

c&c california tee. verdugo leggings by paige. vintage straw clutch. acrobatic wedges from anthropologie.

do you know waldo? he likes red and white striped shirts and goes missing a lot. during our vacation, M and i popped into an independent bookstore for airplane reading material. M bought two books, and i got a picture book (i want my hat back by jon klassen). the store owner told us it was waldo’s birthday, and she gave me a handful of where’s waldo? buttons for my treasure box at school.

waldo is twenty-five years old! he’s almost as old as i am (i’m twenty-six obviously thirty-one). in honor of waldo, i broke out some red stripes, and my hair stayed up in a bun, providing a good ending for a book series with no plot line.

p.s. thank you for your sweet comments, tweets, and insta-loves on yesterday’s post. we’re overjoyed and excited— how could i keep it from you?

the look | similar tee | jeans | similar clutch | similar wedges

2012. model citizen.

maritime dress by j.crew. hervé chapelier mini bag. sinclair frames by warby parker. dolce vita sandals.

style blogging is difficult to explain to our friends and family. M brushes it off as “linda’s hobby”, leaving me to awkwardly outline what we do. it’s generally equated to modeling… for myself… for free… for everyone to see.

i never “modeled” until i started the blog; i’m a mediocre one at best. have you seen jentine? she always looks like she’s on a break from filming a scene with ryan gosling; the woman is fab. i study lookbooks on style.com and bring a mental cheat-sheet of poses to our favorite locations (ex. the glamorous driveway, neighbor’s attractive yard). i also trust my photographer. when M says, “do something different. take your hand off your hip. you already did that,” i listen.

foremost, i remember the best moments get captured when you’re not thinking about it too much. M and i banter back and forth, and i often erupt in laughter. i love him for that.

now i want you to channel your inner tyra banks— share some tips that work for you!

the look | similar dress | bag | frames | similar sandals

2012. twin cities.

equipment brett blouse. striped high-rise shorts from UO. cameleon satchel c/o olivia + joy. wanted sandals.

i love striped shorts. my tory burch achima shorts are my favorites, but these guys are sweet, too. urban outfitters really wanted to get rid of them, so i also rescued an orange pair from the clearance rack.

with the arrival of the striped twins, i begrudgingly set aside most of my thrifted shorts from last summer. i’m trying to shop smarter by purchasing items that fit nicely from the start and donating or swapping anything that’s too big or small. then i’m not hanging out in the closet throwing a tantrum or sitting in the dressing room negotiating with a waistline.

so when the salesgirl says, “how did they work out?” i’m replying less with “i’ll take them” and more with “thank you, but they’re not quite what i wanted.”

the look | blouse | similar shorts | bag | sandals

2012. festive.

silk striped elodie blouse by j.crew. vintage fiesta print skirt. acrobatic wedges from anthropologie.

as much as i love thrifting, i dislike altering. the thought of cutting up a beautiful, professionally-made garment frightens me. my sewing skills are decent (i make simple skirts and dresses), but i mostly worry about messing up the fabric or shape with a wayward cut or sloppy stitch.

every once in awhile i put my fears aside and do it. i thrifted the ankle-length, designer-esque skirt last thursday morning; by the time M got home, the skirt was washed, dried, measured, cut, ironed, hemmed, and ironed again. boom! it turned out quite well considering i misplaced my tape measure and resorted to laying another wrap skirt over it to estimate the length.

with my confidence on cloud nine, i embarked on another alteration. but i’m not sure if cutting sleeves off a blouse counts as being a seamstress.

the look | similar blouse | similar skirt | similar wedges

2012. castaway.

rachel pally tee. joe’s skinny jeans. leanne wedges by ugg australia. rebecca minkoff steady satchel in sterling.

i wear stripes year round, but summer stripes truly strike my fancy, especially in patriotic colors and especially on sale. i know i’m not alone with those feelings. really, i know i’m not alone— on friday, i saw another woman in the same outfit (except she wore a striped sweater) in a parking lot while running errands. i felt a twinge of awkwardness before thinking, linda, you aren’t sixteen. this isn’t the homecoming dance. it’s cool.

M and i devoured several great meals in the last few days— roasted shrimp with feta and peppers on friday night, dinner with his mom at feast on saturday, and a terribly filling deep-dish pizza on sunday. to counter the calories, i worked in the yard, planting multicolor zinnias and clearing out a thorny patch of cactus and lantana without getting hurt (thanks to advice from jentine). i called my dad to wish him happy father’s day, only to hear from my mom that he was busy in their garden and i could call back later. my parents are funny.

what did you wear/eat/plant this weekend?

the look | tee | jeans | similar wedges

2012. red hots.

blythe blouse by j.crew. tory burch achima shorts. william rast sunglasses. missibaba tote from etcetera, etc. splendid sandals.

hello! i’m back (and i mean it this time). the past few days whizzed by— the school year ended on thursday, i packed up my room on friday, and i took a two-hour power nap on saturday. i’ll miss my munchkins, but summer is officially here.

on saturday night, M and i drove out to the hill country and ate dinner at one of our favorite low-key restaurants. i wore red, white, and blue because most of my hot weather wardrobe happens to be those colors. our high-school-age host called me “m’aam”, an exchange that tickled M.

then he called M “an old fogey.” alright, i made that part up, but it would have been awesome.

the look | similar blouse | similar shorts | similar sunglasses | sandals

2012. villanelle.

striped villa dress by j.crew. vintage braided belt. gloria wedges by bed stu.

when i first spotted the dress in the j.crew catalog, i thought, that would be a cute school dress. to me “school dress” or “school skirt” or “school pants” means work clothes, and work clothes with stripes are even better. i also like the dress because it’s easy to style; i’ve worn it with a mustard cardigan, jean jacket, and alone. that’s already three birds in my hand. or three pigs in a blanket. you know what i mean.

it’s teacher appreciation week at school. today one of my little girls brought me a bag full of haribo gummy bears. i don’t give grades in kindergarten (besides excellent, satisfactory, etc.) but i think she deserves an A+, don’t you?

the look | dress | wedges

2012. jonquil.

michael kors dress. western style belt (thrifted). leanne wedges by ugg australia.

i wore this outfit on monday, and my children told me, “you look like the sun.” i thought that was a pretty good compliment.

i’ll keep the post short and sweet because i’m finishing a project tonight for me and holly’s clutch party! if you’re participating, please send me an email or link to share your handbag.

the look | similar dress | similar wedges

2012. surf’s up.

equipment signature blouse. striped linen shorts by jones new york (thrifted). acrobatic wedges from anthropologie. rebecca minkoff steady satchel in sterling.

in high school, i went through a phase of being enamored with california skate and surf culture. i loved graphic design from girl/chocolate and birdhouse (skate companies) and clothes from roxy by quiksilver. of course, i couldn’t skate or surf, but when you’re sixteen, looking the part was enough.

when i found these shorts at the thrift store, i immediately thought: surfer girl shorts! i bought them for nostalgia, and i bought them for awesomeness. cowabunga!

the look | blouse | similar shorts | similar wedges