Think Pink

I wore this outfit on Friday, and if you follow me on Instagram, then I already spoiled this surprise for you. Sorry about that. I would have taken pictures this weekend of the outfits I have planned for this week, but we finally moved everything still left in the apartment over to the house. I now have a living room filled with odds and ends.

You know what? I cannot force myself to care right now. I just finished my 37th letter of recommendation, which means I finally finished all of the letters due by November 1st, and I'm several days ahead of the game. I still have five left, but they aren't due until December or January; I think I earned a little break. I also have to make up my graduate final exam tomorrow night, and I have another graduate project due on Tuesday night. The odds and ends can wait, especially since we finally (pretty much) finished painting our blue bedroom. Now that I do not have to wake up in an aquarium, I can learn to live with the rest of the chaos for a few weeks.

Speaking of chaos, I came up with my motto for this school year: Don't get mad; get manic. Turn anger/frustration into craziness. It's working so far.  I am certifiable.


Oh, if you want to join my colleagues and me for our next few Trendy Tuesdays, here they are:

Tomorrow, October 28th: Think Pink (wear pink in honor of breast cancer awareness)

Wednesday, November 5th (we are off on the 4th for election day, so we moved our trendy day): Diamonds (A male colleague picked this gem! He suggested argyle, actual diamonds, sequins, or sparkles. All of these qualify for our theme. Isn't it a fun idea? I think so.)

Tuesday, November 11th: Invested (yes, that means wear a vest of some sort--this theme was chosen by a different male colleague of mine. Don't I work with the coolest people? I think so.)

Nailed it.

Do you ever start off on your trip down Pinterest lane and think, "I shall wear that"? However, when the time actually arrives to wear that, you botch it something terrible and hope the original pinner never sees the monstrosity that you have created in their name? Or, conversely, you take a pin and nail that sucker to the wall and say, "haha! In Style would say I totally wore it better"? Yesterday, I think I created the latter of the two outfits (the masterpiece, not the monstrosity).

I began with this pin. (I wish I was not allergic to wool so that I could own this beautifully colored blazer that Jessica has on, but I must settle for the cotton cardigan version instead.) I thought I would wear my striped skirt (not dress) with my camel-colored cardigan (not blazer) and brown boots. However, I somehow landed on this new burgundy-colored cardigan from Target (thanks to one of those alluring Cartwheel coupons--curse you, Cartwheel). Based on how many students and teachers complimented today's outfit, I decided to pat myself on the back and say, "job well done, self."

I considered calling myself a narcissist just now, but you know what? No. I told one of my former students who needed a pep talk to repeat the following self-affirmation every day while looking in the mirror: "I am beautiful, and I write well." Perhaps, I should take my own advice and remind myself, "I do not always botch my pinspirations. In fact, I am beautiful, and I dress well." Ladies, affirm yourselves today. (I considered deleting that last sentence because of its seemingly perverted undertones. Instead, I decided to point out its weirdness and leave it be.)

If you follow me on Instagram, you already saw the outfit, but it kind of deserves a blog post. (Here I am, tooting my horn.) And something other than a shameless mirror selfie. However, I can only do so much.

The Look:

Cardigan: Target (exact on sale for $15!)

Top: Target

Belt and Skirt: NY & Co. (skirt: 1 / 2 / 3)

Boots: Ralph Lauren via DSW (brown and cognac option for $70)

I also wore the skirt these ways:

Reverse 30x30: Please Help My Khaki Pants. And me.

I have a confession to make. I pulled together this outfit, but khaki pants still leave me utterly confused. Well, not all khaki pants. That one pair of dark khaki skinnies blends into my closet, and they've earned their keep. But, these khaki pants? What is it about them? Maybe it's the years I spent waiting tables while donning a dark green polo and light khaki pants (possibly these...I think I blocked the memories after that one early morning I ripped my front bumper off on the bumper of my neighbor's stupid illegally parked truck. Still went to work that day. With a grill that looked twenty shades of pissed off.) I feel like I'm one shirt change away from serving customers at Target. I love Target, but do I want everyone to think of it when they see me? 

Is my perception of these pants absolutely skewed? Do I need to set the sewing machine on them and make the bottoms more tapered/cropped? Is it the fabric? Is the khaki too light? AM I TOO CRAZY FOR WORDS? (That last one is rhetorical.)

* See, this pin shows more cropped khaki pants. I think they work.

* These pants have polka dots on them, but the khaki is the same color, and they're skinnified (not a word, which is totally fine). I like the look of them. 

* I love this combination, but the bottom of the pants look different. (I'm completely amused by the commenter who said she wasn't sure about the pants.)

I don't want to get rid of these pants because I like that I can wear wide belts with them, I love the pockets (not those stupid, you-can-fit-half-of-your-thumb-in-me pockets), and I do like the color. However, I think it's the bottom of them that perplexes me. I feel weird in flats (sort of bunches). I'm not entirely sold on the booties here. Regular boots won't go over the pant legs without causing serious leg wrinkles. I tried the khaki exact stretch pants from The Limited (have them in maroon, brown, and navy), but I didn't like the shade or the look of the khaki ones, which is odd since I have them in three other colors. 

What would you do if you were me? (Aside from the obvious, which is to scold yourself for writing so many sentences about one pair of pants.)  

Help. me.

(This is my "what am I doing outside in the cold without a coat on and, Mom, why aren't you stopping me from this madness" look. I tell you only to explain why I felt compelled to grab my scarf. My hands inherently search for warmth.)

The Look:

Cardigan (reversed item 1): Target (gift!)

Shirt: Target

Belt: Ummm...so old I couldn't tell you with complete honesty

Scarf: Calvin Klein via DSW

Booties: hand-me-downs from Momma

(I'm laughing right now because I said these are not I-can-fit-half-a-thumb-in-them pockets, and I'm totally sticking only half of my thumb in the pockets. However, the previous picture is a full-hand-in-pocket pose. This post just keeps getting more and more awkward.) 

Feel free to rebuke me for my trivialities.

Momma, Oooo ooo ooo ooo *cue Queen instrumentals*

One of my juniors had never heard "Bohemian Rhapsody," so I had to rectify that little situation for a whole six minutes. Total teachable moment, no?

So, one of the many reasons I love fall and winter? I have a pretty awesome boot collection. 

Today's pair of boots is compliments of my Momma. 

As you can see, her taste in footwear kicks ass. 

She buys shoes (usually boots) that she really likes but finds out they disagree with her ankle, so I adopt a new pair of shoes. Considering I love her taste in shoes (especially boots), I will never pass up an opportunity to take on another pair of hand-me-down shoes.

People kept stopping me to compliment my boots, and I obviously told them that Momma gave them to me, to which one person responded, "Your MOM picked those out? She has good taste in shoes. Those are sexy."

Thanks, Momma! 

The Outfit:

Boots: From Momma :)

Cardigan: LOFT

Blouse: Old Navy

Pants: Simply Vera via Kohl's

Necklace: Can't remember

P.S. Third-day hair? WHAT IS UP? I am killing it with the third day hair.

Meet Blue. He barks at all things. Including leaves. And rocks. And perhaps his own shadow.

This shot is for Momma, who took these photos, by the way :)

The Details:

Occasion: Casual day teaching

Comments: I love this color combination. I love this outfit. I felt a little edgy. And I'm down with edgy. Maybe I could have belted something or whatever, but I thought loose up top was better with skinny jeans. Right? 

What article of clothing makes you most excited for fall/winter? Do tell! 

I'm so smart I scare myself.

So, I wore this open cardigan this way last December. This time around, creativity tipped its hat to me, so I [brilliantly] decided to wrap it around me and belt it. My Uncle David always said this line to me: "I'm so smart I scare myself." Obviously, I scared him sometimes, too. He also refers to things as being "beautimous." Not sure if anyone else ever says this word, but good ol' Uncle David does. Look at that: my beautimous outfit is so smart I scare me. I kindly thank you, fashion blogs, for inspiring me to rethink my wardrobe. 

I need you to know that these boots are the most comfortable boots to ever grace my feet. Holy cannoli. They're b.o.c. brand, and I bought them on SUPER sale at DSW. Sometimes, that store just blows me giant, sloppy kisses with its awesome finds like this one and these awesome gold flats. I was going to wear these really cute black booties from my mom (she always gives me shoes she realizes she can't wear--hooray for being the same size!), but they looked weird with the jeans. I already turned out all of the lights upstairs; I wasn't about to rethink my pant situation.  

The Outfit:

Cardigan: Urban Outfitters

Belt: Pac Sun

Jeans: The Limited

Boots: b.o.c. via DSW

Earrings: Target

The Details:

Occasion: Forty of the students and a handful of the teachers participated in what's called Safe School Ambassador program. It was an all-day, informal setting in our school's media center. (Such an enriching experience. Truly.) The media center is usually one of the cooler parts of the building, so I dressed for the venue. I could move around comfortably, and I wasn't too hot. 

Comments: The students loved this sweater, and I especially loved it styled this way. When I snuck into the hallway for a bathroom break, one of my previous students informed me that I was going to take her shopping. I agreed that I will take her shopping when she graduates next year; she seemed quite satisfied, and I am a woman of my word. Let it be known that I felt a *smidge* like a high schooler because I was sporting clothing from both UO and Pac Sun. 

Participating in the boots & booties link-up here and here. 

Luna Lovegood

Apparently, I need to catch up on my Harry Potter books/movies. 

A student I've never taught told me I look like Luna Lovegood, and you can imagine my joy upon finding that she's a good character and kinda cute. 

Anyway, meet my third-day hair because I set my alarm clock to some weird static sound, which did not wake me up but rather induced loopy dreams. There may or may not have been some yet-to-exist animal frolicking in sparkly fields. Husband decided not to wake me up until 30 minutes later. 

Gee. Thanks. 

The Outfit:

Cardigan: Target

Pants: The Limited (in exact stretch straight leg)

Heels: Aerosoles via Marshall's

Top: The Limited 

Belt: NY & Co.

The Details:

Wore to: work

Comfort Rating: 9 (heels started to tug juuust a smidge at the very end of the day)

Comments: These pants are so comfortable, and they hit at the perfect length (and height...no plumber's crack for me.) I decided to try this color combination on for size. I've already done the cognac, white, and black thing, and I loved it. I threw some maroon/wine/burgundy/whatever color it's called now into the mix, along with some leopard, and I'm a fan. 

Tweed-y Bird

Nothing about this outfit screams "BIRD!" However, when I thought of the title, I giggled, so I kept it. 

Some lady at the mall actually yelled to me in the mall because she wanted to know where I bought my tights. I'm not entirely sure, but I went with Target. That answer seemed right and safe. You can never be too safe around people who hunt you down in the mall. 

The lady at Naturalizer spent several minutes oohing and ahhing over my black booties. She was quite surprised to learn that I bought them at Boscov's. 

When I told the ladies at Banana Republic my husband's pant size, they told me that I need to feed him more. Who says stuff like that? 

The lady at Francesca's thought my necklace was from there. Nope, NY & Co. Woot woot.

I realized that I hate shopping at the mall. I like outlet malls because they allow me to breathe fresh air in between my visit to each store, but I hate "regular" malls. I feel so claustrophobic when I reach the center. It's like I'm standing in the belly of the beast. 

What is wrong with me? 

Outfit Deets:

Blazer: Express

Shirt: Marshall's

Skirt: The Limited (last year's find)

Tights: Let's go with Target

Booties: Boscov's

I wish the lighting wasn't so craptastic. My apologies, folks.