I find it rather ironic that my two most favorite times of the year, summer and fall, are also my two least favorite for one simple reason…
THE STORY
…Insects. Yes, insects. I freakin’ hate them. They are creepy, crawly, stealthy little terrorists. And don’t even get me started on the specimens with the ability to fly. Just. No. I’ve had a major phobia since I was little and got attacked (literally) by a roving gang of really angry wasps. And to make matters worse insects (and arachnids) of all varieties have a strange and overwhelming affinity for me. Think I’m exaggerating? Ask my family…it’s become a running joke over the years that every damn insect in the vicinity will track me down and terrorize me.
It doesn’t matter if I’m wearing fragrance or not, the color of my clothes isn’t relevant; they will find me and terrorize me no matter what. It’s some sort of twisted insect law of attraction. I’ve been standing perfectly still listening to a conversation and had a hornet fly out of nowhere sting my face and immediately take off…leaving me with hurt feelings and a black eye…I kid you not.
Unbeknownst to me, I once ran over a ground bee nest with the mower and while I do know they are wildly aggressive what they did to me was overkill…a small swarm of their finest ninja attack bees for real chased me onto my front porch, screaming like a maniac while stripping off my shirt, and yes, we do have neighbors. I ran in the front door, through the house, and out the back door screaming and tearing off the rest of my clothes…AND THEY KEPT CHASING ME…THROUGH THE HOUSE…I literally had to shut myself in the garage in nothing but my underwear. It’s okay, you can laugh…everyone else does.
Summer is a problem for obvious reasons; bugs are in their glory when the sun is shining and they rule the great outdoors with their tiny iron fists. Fall is a different story though. That’s when they really bring the fight to my turf. If you live in a four season climate then you know what I’m sayin’. It’s getting cold in their domain so they all flock into mine, as if I’m going to be okay with that.
In the last two weeks alone I have had three different super-sized black ants crawl up my side of the couch (not my husband’s side mind you, MY SIDE) and actually get on me before I realized it. Just ew, ew, ew. Now every time I feel a hair on my neck I’m certain it’s some sort of insect violation. In that same two week period I’ve had a stink bug fly into my hair and last week I picked up my Starbucks Toasted Mocha Frappucino off the end table and as I’m sipping see a stink bug crawling up the dome lid onto the straw…I was airborne over the ottoman squealing like a little girl in under a second. Of course my husband rolled his eyes and scooped it off the cup with his bare hand…um, yuck.
And tonight, the quintessence of insect terrorism…I went to the kitchen to take some ibuprofen. I tossed it in my mouth, picked up my water bottle (side note: I did not turn on the kitchen light), and come on…you know where this is going don’t you? I threw back some water andddd…boom, stink bug. In. My. Mouth. I cannot tell you how far I spit…there was water, ibuprofen, and stink bug flying everywhere. I proceeded to throw handful after handful of steaming hot tap water in my mouth to kill all of the stink bug cooties…between copious amounts of swearing of course. After that trauma I am now absolutely convinced that somewhere the insects of the world have a top ten list of humans to terrorize and I’m firmly in the number one spot.
THE OUTFIT
The last time I hit you with some super shredded denim, which of course is my favorite kind of denim, was way back in early October when I paired it with flannel and velvet. This time I went with my rust moto jacket, a cable knit sweater and my sweet new fur lined booties I received c/o White Mountain Shoes. I’ve already worn them a bunch of times since the weather cooled off. The soft faux fur lining makes them just as warm and dare I say, almost as comfortable as my favorite winter boots.
Can I just tell you how excited I was when I found this particular pair of distressed Tomgirl jeans at American Eagle? Why the excitement? Well, the problem with distressed jeans is in the winter, ventilation is the last thing you need in your jeans. So when it’s cold out I have to layer them over leggings or tights which looks cute, but sometimes feels a little bulky. Sure, I could wear fully intact jeans, but what’s the fun in that? I used to have a pair of distressed jeans with patches under all of the holes. Unfortunately they got too big on me so I had to part with them and never found replacements. Enter the excitement when I discovered these at American Eagle which was a bonus because I love AE jeans.
I’m a huge fan of cozy sweaters once the weather turns cool and this chunky cable knit is a favorite. I layered a tee underneath to keep things interesting, and since it was a tad too chilly to be jacket free I added the rust moto jacket over top to finish it off. Moto jackets are my hands down favorite fall/early winter topper. They are typically warm on their own, but look super cute layered over a denim jacket or a hoodie. A standard black moto is a staple for me, but I also own one in pink and blue in addition to the rust moto jacket I’m wearing today.
THE TIP
A moto jacket is an easy way to add a little bit of edge to any look. They obviously work well with denim, but are even more fun when paired with the unexpected; think velvet, satin and sequins. Black is a good starter color, but if that’s too edgy for you, there are so many fun options to choose from in a wide range of colors and styles.
THE LINK UPS
Check out the weekly link ups I participate in for even more fashion and style ideas..
Boots: c/o White Mountain Shoes; Jacket: Similar; Jeans: American Eagle; Sweater: JCPenney (Similar)
