What I Wore | Mister Robot

WhatIWore: For the past few days I’ve been digging around through my archives to find examples of how I’ve worn one piece multiple ways. In the process, it gave me some new ideas too! Or at least, old ideas to dust off and try out again with a baby bump! Today’s look came from this oldie but goodie. It was my first type to style this investment blazer from Theory and I also wore it with polka dots. 

The main difference in my eye is how I buttoned up this maternity blouse (a gift from Séraphine, cheers!) under the blazer (and maternity jeans, obviously!) As a tangent - have any of you seen Mr. Robot? It’s one of the best shows on TV (season two just ended) and the buttoned up plus blazer look reminds me of Angela’s styling in season two. All business, right? Well, the cuffed jeans and spike necklace definitely take me into casual territory, but it’s a bit of a different look for me and I like it. You never know until you try! 

When: October 5, 2016

What:
Shades: Karen Walker ‘Northern Lights’
Blouse: gift of Séraphine
Blazer: Theyskens’ Theory (older style, similar here)
Jeans: Jeans: AG ‘Stilt’, (non maternity here)
Booties: gift of Rockport from last winter

Where: Coffee Shop

See Also: How I’ve styled a blazer, polka dot top and jeans two ways (one and two) Plus a lot more ways I’ve worn the blazer in my 2012 gallery. 

What I Wore | Artistic Type

WhatIWore: A long time ago, I remember watching a backstage interview with Marc Jacobs talking about a collection. He said his muse was a 1970s art teacher and for some reason, that vision has stuck with me ever since! Every time I wear black with a bold necklace (and people, this is bold for me, I hardly ever wear jewelry!) or this color palette (black, burgundy, cognac brown), I feel like that woman! 

Believe it or not, I taught two semesters of fashion illustration at IU a few years back and part of me hopes that when my own kids are off at school I might have a chance to get back into it. I even started illustrating a fashion coloring book last winter, but you know, life, so it was never completed.  These days all of my projects are things to wear (like this or this) or for Baby Girl (I’m making her a quilt now!)

When: October 4, 2016

What:
Shades: Karen Walker ‘Super Duper’
Dress: ASOS Maternity (regular sizes here)
Jacket: Thrifted, altered (more options here)
Necklace: Madewell 
Bag: Coach (similar here)
Scarf: Vintage, Dior
Boots: gift of Rockport from last winter

Where: Coffee Shop

I’ve also got to talk about this jacket and scarf. Between my freshman and sophomore years in college, I worked in a factory over the summer and if I remember correctly, made about $8/hr, which back then, was like gold! For the first time in my life, I had some real spending money, so where did I go? Goodwill! I was juuuuust starting to get into vintage clothing and I remember the day I found this jacket. It used to be long (seen here) and has such a bad ass 70s vibe. I feel like I should be an undercover cop (or maybe aforementioned art teacher?) wearing it. The scarf is also from Goodwill and it’s Christian Dior (here’s how I wore it in 2008) . When I found it in a bin or old scarves, panty hose and underwear (why do they put them all together like that?!) I had this moment of oh god, don’t let anyone else realize what I’ve found! I FOUND A CHRISTIAN DIOR SCARF!!! Shopping second hand gives a thrill like no other!

And finally, for whatever it’s worth, Felix picked out my shoes today. Red. Boots! he demanded. Ok little man, burgundy boots will work. 

See Also: Two other ways I’ve styled this jacket (with a little white dress here or a black maxi here) 

What I Wore | Hey Shortie!

WhatIWore: Good (foggy!) morning to you! It sure feels like October when you wake up to a day like this. I didn’t realize how chilly it was outside when I picked out this outfit, but luckily it’s the kind of day that warms up perfectly by noon. I hope? 

When I pulled this dress out of the package, I thought whoa! that’s short! But upon trying it on, I think it might be my favorite maternity dress yet! It’s kind of crazy to say something meant to accommodate a growing belly could be so slimming, but this frock somehow does it! Nice!

It’s from a British company, Séraphine (a gift! cheers guys!) that I hadn’t heard of until I asked you all for recommendations on shops you liked for your own maternity clothes. I don’t have a lot of pieces from the UK, but when I wear them, I try to channel a style icon from across the pond. So in thinking what to pair with this, I thought what would Alexa Chung wear?! Over the knee boots? Ok! I like how there’s only a small amount of skin showing between the top of the boot and the hem, which keeps it from looking too young or sexy. Just a cute outfit to start the week! 

When: October 3, 2016

What:
Shades: Karen Walker
Bag: Coach (older style, similar here)
Dress: gift of Séraphine
Boots: Halogen from Nordstrom

Where: Coffee Shop

See Also: More ways I’ve styled these boots here and here. 

This outfit also kind of reminds me of what I wore years ago back when I was a single girl in Brooklyn and really getting into taking daily outfit photos. I mean, way way back. As in.. 947 pages back into my blog (from 2008!)

What I Wore | Cool Mom

WhatIWore: Confession: I’ve never felt like I could live up to the role of cool girl. You know the type of girl that loves football, doesn’t wait around staring at her phone for a boy to call and that has confidence to spare? I’d rather watch PBS on Netflix, I can’t play mind games and I envy women that don’t give a hoot about what other people think. 

When I had Felix, I went through what could delicately be called an identity crisis. Paired with PPD, it took me many months before I felt like myself or at least a new version of myself as a mom. Pregnancy was hard, the birth and recovery were hard and then being hospitalized with more surgery was… yup. Hard. The year I became pregnant and a new mother were the toughest both physically and mentally of my life. 

This time around has been so different. Minus some struggles (read: morning sickness and mood swings) in my first trimester, I’ve had a much better experience with this pregnancy. I feel more confident about what my body is doing, how my baby is growing and how I’ll handle two kids. I also feel better about the way I look. I’ve had a slower and more steady weight gain, I feel so strong (lifting a 33.5 lb toddler up and down all day will do that for ya!) and I’ve been wearing clothes that give me more self confidence. 

Speaking of clothes…

When: September 29, 2016

What:
Shades: Prada (thrifted for $30!)
Necklace: J.Crew (more great costume jewelry here)
Jacket: BB Dakota, a gift of A Pea in the Pod
Tee Shirt: a gift of A Pea in the Pod
Jeans: AG legging (one size down), gift of A Pea in the Pod
Boots: Clarks

Where: Coffee Shop

So, speaking of clothes, this is a new outfit! I feel like such a cool mom and maybe… just maybe, a cool girl!? Cool woman? I feel good. Last week I posted about these jeans and my experiment to try a size down from the other items I previously purchased (verdict: the smaller size stretches to the perfect fit for me!). A Pea in the Pod generously offered to complete the outfit, so many thanks to them for their gift (I chose the items myself)! I will absolutely be wearing the jacket beyond pregnancy (it’s got the texture and feel of a sweatshirt, but the asymmetrical zip makes it feel fashion forward to me!). I’m also nearing the point of no return to regular length tee shirts. So far they’ve been long enough to cover the bump and not reveal the stretchy belly panel on my jeans, but specifically made maternity tees fit and flatter much better now. 

And I’ve gotta mention the boots too. On my recent assignment for Clarks I fell in love with these boots too, so I ponied up and bought them for myself. I love the super stacked high heel and buckle detail. There are still some sizes left in the black, and there’s also a brown version.