Sunday was the big pregame event…
THE STORY
…The day kids (especially teenage girls) everywhere look forward to…It was the day my daughter and I chose as the back to school shopping extravaganza. The last couple of years we’ve pulled out the big guns and done our back to school shopping at Ross Park Mall in Pittsburgh. We align our shopping trip with the day I have to pick her up from a week of staying with my son who lives near Pittsburgh. My friends, it is a truly fabulous mall with two levels and so many cool stores to peruse. It’s always such a treat to shop there.
I love being able to actually visit stores that typically I can only shop online like Nordstrom, Altar’d State and Free People. The Nordstrom Sale was a major disappointment this year, but I did find a new bra that I love so yesterday we swung by and picked up a few more for both of us. If you happen to be looking for a new bra, the Natori Feathers bra is incredibly soft and comfortable…I picked up another one yesterday (it runs one cup size small, so keep that in mind). I also tried on and purchased the Natori Flora bra which is just as comfortable as the Feathers style. I got the light blue because it was so pretty and on clearance…it does run true to size.
Due to the stricter dress code at school, shopping for my girl has become more challenging; jeans with no distressing at all, no overt cleavage and skirts/shorts that are no shorter than the length of a note card above the knee. Yes, a 3×5 note card is the standard of measurement for length…I bet that’s a fashion rule you’ve never heard of!
My undying love for shredded jeans is no secret and even though ripped jeans aren’t everyone’s cup of tea do you have any idea how difficult it is to find denim with zero distressing? Trust me, it’s a challenge. Like me, my daughter is partial to American Eagle jeans because they just fit us both so well, they have a huge variety of sizes/lengths, and their sizing doesn’t seem to vary season by season like so many other brands. We got lucky and she found three pairs of jeans sans rips. I also picked up a pair of black skinny jeans/jeggings because I didn’t own any that weren’t distressed and wanted to be able to wear them to work.
The whole cleavage thing is pretty ambiguous so we erred on the side of caution and went with basically no cleavage at all in regard to tops. It’s also pretty tough to find shorts and skirts that cover all the girly bits…and why is that exactly? I’m pretty open-minded in regard to personal style, but I really don’t believe that the world should be able to see your ass cheeks and/or your barely covered hoo-hah. Maybe it’s just me, but dang, cover that stuff up. Fortunately my daughter is elfin-sized like me, so the length issue wasn’t as difficult to overcome as the no holes in the denim issue, although for a taller girl I think it would be challenging to find skirts/dresses/shorts that comply with the note card rule.
All in all the day was a success. We’re both ready for the new school year, and there’s nothing better than some quality uninterrupted mother/daughter time. That’s especially true because we really enjoy one another’s company and we both love shopping for clothes. Of course we ended our day like we always do if we happen to be at Ross Park…with a stop at Godiva for some chocolate truffles. Seriously, how could something involving chocolate truffles not be considered a success?
THE OUTFIT
Daenel always picks the most creative themes for our Ageless Style Link Ups and this month was no exception. She chose “Unexpected” which is open to so many fun and creative interpretations. The only downside to her creativity is that we take turns choosing the theme and we do so in alphabetical order which means I always follow her…talk about pressure…lol!
Initially I considered wearing something that I wouldn’t normally wear, which to me, was the obvious route to choose. After I thought about it, that really didn’t make sense to me because if I wouldn’t normally wear it, I wouldn’t feel like myself and probably wouldn’t wear it ever again. So…I decided to stick to my normal vibe, but do it differently.
Hence this gorgeous boho dress over a pair of skinny jeans. This is actually a dress as opposed to a tunic; I often wear tunics as dresses because since I’m tiny they are often long enough like this tunic I styled with over the knee boots. If a tunic isn’t quite long enough I simply layer it over a skirt extender and it’s good to go. I realize for some, wearing a dress over jeans, pants or leggings might not be unexepected. However I think that it’s one of those easy styling tricks that we sometimes overlook. If you’re like me and don’t always think outside of the box…a dress is a dress and pants are pants, they both have their own jobs and we don’t necessarily think of combining the two for a whole new look.
Last week I mentioned that all of the pieces Caite & Kyla gifted me with this season were incredibly beautiful. This gorgeous boho dress is no exception. It’s the Vivienne dress and it ticks off all the boxes; luscious fall colors, it fits perfectly, soft and flowy fabric and the bohemian vibes are definitely my jam. So when I decided that I wanted to do the dress over jeans look this was the first dress that popped into my head because I couldn’t wait to style it.
I chose skinny jeans over my usual looser fitting jeans because I just thought the proportions worked better. Since I was going for a transitional look I went with my peep toe booties…the booties that want to be sandals, but didn’t quite make the cut. Seriously, these used to baffle me. Are the boots? Are they sandals? WTH are they? Once I got over my initial confusion, I realized that peep toe booties are actually the perfect footwear for transitioning from either summer to fall or winter to spring; they give you coverage, but still allow for ventilation…lol.
THE TIP
Dressing for the change of seasons is tricky, especially for those of us who live in an area that actually has four distinct seasons. It might be cool in the morning and scorching hot by afternoon; the morning is warm and sunny and by afternoon a cold front has moved in; or maybe its warm-ish, but not quite warm enough…you get the picture.
I’ve lived in an area with four seasons my entire life so over the years I have some ideas that might be helpful in regard to getting dressed when the weather is confused. I’ve linked to examples for each:
- Layers are key. Whether it be a cardigan or blazer, something that you can easily put on and take off as needed yet still works with the outfit is necessary.
- Over the knee boots can be your BFF between seasons. If it’s a bit too warm for tights (or you’re sick of wearing them) yet to chilly for bare legs simply add a pair of over the knee boots and you get the best of both worlds.
- Style a dress/tunic over leggings, pants or jeans like I did today.
- Adding a tee and/or a denim jacket is a super easy way to style a slip dress or sundress no matter what the temperature.
- As I mentioned above, the time between seasons is perfect for peep toe booties. You can even add a cute pair of socks to keep your toes warm even though your legs are bare.
THE LINK UPS
Check out the weekly link ups I participate in for even more fashion and style ideas… BE SURE TO SCROLL DOWN AND LINK UP WITH MYSELF AND MY LOVELY CO-HOSTS FOR THIS MONTHS AGELESS STYLE LINK UP!!
Dress: c/o Caite & Kyla; Jeans: American Eagle (Similar); Booties: Similar
Daenel ~ Living outside the stacks blog, instagram, pinter
Debbie ~ Fashion Fairy Dust bloglovin, blog, instagra
Jennie ~ A Pocketful of Polka Dots blog, instagram, facebook
Jodie ~ Jodie’s Touch of Style blog, facebook, instagra
Julia ~ When the Girls Rule blog, facebook, instagram, pinterest,
Kellyann ~ This Blonde’s Shopping Bag blog, instagram, bloglovin
Lisa ~ Coast to Coast blog, facebook, instagra
Paula ~ Dimples on my What blog, facebook, pinterest
Shelly ~ The Queen in Between blog, instagram, blogl
Shugunna~ Nzuri N* Simplicity blog, instagram, pi
