Firecracker's Blog

I was going to wear my old, old formula of shorts, tee, and cardigan today. And just for good measure, I was going to wear some comfort sandals that are several years old, too. A throwback to my pre-YLF dressing.

Well, it's not as if my pre-YLF self was much different than my current self. But I did decide to wear a new cardi and current shoes to update the shorts look. The cardigan is a birthday present I bought myself with gift money from my parents. Pre-YLF I would have worn a Land's End or Eddie Bauer or J.Jill smooth-knit classic cardigan, in a soft color. Not much different from now, but I do try to add current cuts and silhouettes, as much as I can.

I have to clean out my sewing room, to prepare for delivery of new sewing
furniture this week! I have been procrastinating all day.

The outfit (worn for a day off, and the important work of procrastination):
Dark brown shorts (Eddie Bauer); not seen--cream tee with neutral petal-design applique on front (Eddie Bauer); taupe and cream chunky handknit cardi with taupe and cream buttons (Amy Brill), gray leather sneakers (Josef Seibel, Caspian); taupe-gray shoulder bag (Aunts & Uncles); concentric-ring earrings in brass and silver (Marjorie Baer); purple-framed specs.

Sometimes I hang on to things for so long that they seem to come back in style. I get confused as to what's in and what's out. How about you?

Thoughts and suggestions welcome!

Today's outfit continues the linen theme. Yesterday a stone-colored linen skirt, today the stone-colored linen pants. I thought about wearing this top with the skirt yesterday, in fact.

The outfit (worn to work): linen trousers (NYDJ, Wylie, in sand dollar); navy and ivory shredded-stripe boxy tee (made by me); cream belt; ivory platform sandals (Naot); brass and silver earrings (Marjorie Baer); navy and tan satchel (Dooney & Bourke).

Sorry about the blurry second photo. It's the only one I got with the bag, so I included it.

Thanks for looking! Thoughts and suggestions are always welcome. You all help me learn a lot!

Today I wore the linen skirt that I kind of copied from Eileen Fisher (see finds below). I tried it on in the store and liked it, but even on sale I didn't really want to spend the money on it. Especially when I wanted a slightly different shade of beige that would coordinate better with my wardrobe. In the end, I probably spent about 2/3 of the sale price on the fabric alone, so sewing doesn't really pay off (once I count my time), but I did get the color I want. And I like the skirt.

Of course now that I have it, I'm hard pressed for what to wear it with. Here's how I wore it today, for work.

The outfit:
1-2 (as I wore it to work): Stone linen 8-paneled skirt with interior ties to draw up the hem, lined in cotton voile (made by me); taupe sweater with snap closures (AllSaints, Elgar); ivory layering tank (Shimera); brass and silver necklace and earrings (Marjorie Baer); taupe lace-up sandals (P. Monjo).

3-4: same outfit, but with different footwear. I tried it with my ivory platform sandals (Naot).

I do have some other ideas of how to style the skirt, but I didn't have time to try them out. And it's too hot now to do try-ons. I'm open to your suggestions!

 Angie's outfit post today had me thinking about wearing my olive and cream shirt-like-dress with my Josef Seibel gray leather sneakers (they have a greenish cast that even blends well with olive). But I didn't really want to go that casual, so I opted for my sling-back Mary Janes, which are getting a lot of wear this summer, because they are probably my most comfortable shoes.
Then when I got home, I realized I could have tried Angie's other version, with the Munro loafers, which I have in black! (Smacks forehead) Ah, next time.

A couple of other outfits are shown here, worn earlier in the week.

The outfits:

1-2 (worn to work today): olive and cream print low-waist dress (Halogen); olive 3/4-sleeved cardigan (Halogen); black sling-back Mary Janes (Think!); crystal-studded disk bracelet with pewter leather strap; silver pave disc earrings (Lucky); taupe-gray leather hobo bag (Aunts & Uncles).

3 (worn Wednesday for morning off): gray chino shorts (Eddie Bauer); denim blues tank with print mesh knit trim (made by me); jean jacket (AG, Robyn); gray and cream belt (Annette Goertz); gray wedge sandals (DV by Dolce Vita)

4-5 (worn Wednesday afternoon to teach sewing class): layered denim skirt (Tribal); denim blues tank (made by me); stone hemp jacket (Layers Squared); gray wedge sandals (DV by Dolce Vita); taupe-gray leather bag (Aunts & Uncles)

6-7 (worn Tuesday for a day off and piano lesson): gray chino shorts (Eddie Bauer); cream and gray-blues floral tee (made by me); cream belt; ivory sandals with antique gold ring detail (Naot); taupe-gray leather bag (Aunts & Uncles)

Thanks for looking! Your thoughts and suggestions are always welcome.