"Fun" Friday

At my school we do jeans with a school shirt on Fridays thus Fridays are always a struggle for me- I don't like wearing hoodies and sneakers at work because I don't wear hoodies and sneakers in real life. But that seems to be the trend on Fridays for most teachers. So "Fun" Friday is not very fun.

I've been trying to elevate my Fun Friday style by adding some more interesting pieces with my school shirts (which are not included in my capsule). Today I wore the vintage sweatshirt my lead teacher lent me, it's super cute alone but it was real cold today so I layered a scarf. I also love wearing high-waisted jeans with my school shirts, it adds something a little more detail into the mix. And they're so darn flattering.

 

Vintage school sweatshirt, Target scarf (similar), Gap jeans, Zara boots (similar)

Here are some other looks for "Fun" Friday:

Sporty with sneakers and a bomber jacket

Nordstrom Rack bomber jacket (similar), Gap jeans, Target shoes

Preppy layering a button up

Mango button up, Gap jeans, Gap ankle boots (similar)

Adding some sparkle with a statement necklace

Target cardigan (similar), Gap jeans, Gap ankle boots, Target necklace (similar)

Stacking up a scarf to keep it cozy

Gap jeans, Gap ankle boots, scarf was a gift from two beautiful friends!

Professional with a blazer

Lauren Conrad blazer (similar), Gap jeans, Gap loafers (similar), 

Ebay necklace (this is the necklace, I painted it to be blue instead of orange)

This is what I would wear on a Friday I knew I'd have a walk-through... Its like "Yes its Friday, look at my school spirit, but man I am so professional I just have to rock this blazer."

The problem with capsules...

The problem with capsule wardrobes is not an actually issue about capsules. The capsule so far is great! The problem I discovered has to do with how the capsules are split up.

As I usually do in the midst of winter, I was daydreaming about the beautiful (read: ungodly hot and unreasonably bright) summer months ahead. I imagined me frolicking in the Texas sun, lathering sunscreen on my pasty arms and legs and inconveniently forgetting that corner of my forehead that always seems to be more freckled than the rest...

As I reminisced about lovely days in shorts and sandals, I began to wonder when these long, hot days will begin. Last year it was super hot (read: anything over 85°) starting in mid-May and lasting until the last breath of October (see diagram below). I've always preferred hot to cold, so it's a good thing I ended up in Texas. But as I began to think about the implications of this persistent heat and general unpredictability on the contents of my future capsules, I got a little nervous. How am I supposed to predict Texas' bizarre weather choices? Or really any states',  I know Texas doesn't have a monopoly on wacky weather.

If I follow the schedule prescribed by my capsule wardrobe guru Caroline at Unfancy, then my summer wardrobe will be worn from July to the end of September. While this might reflect the weather generally in Texas, it poses a huge problem for a teacher. Everyone knows that as soon as summer vacation opens its welcoming arms, teachers shed their cardigans, slacks, and flats for a real person wardrobe of cut off shorts and tank tops. Many a former student has been startled by this transformation as they stumble upon their teacher a week after school gets out and they've gone from buttoned up matron to sunburnt beach bum. Or at least a sunburnt teacher in shorts. So I was sad that it seemed that I would have to keep my slacks in my capsule year round. Don't ask me why slacks depress me, thats pretty much self-explanatory. I just don't want my capsules to have items that I will only wear for half of the three months. I only get 37 items (give or take) for the whole season, so I want them to be wearable.

Naturally, in order to orient my understanding of how the seasons work, I made a diagram.

I hope this makes clear how confused I was. Capsules say the seasons are one way, society tells us they're another, and Texas is just Texas. You'll note I had to make a new season for Texas, what I called Autumnal Summer, because the calendar says fall and the temperature says "Don't make me laugh!"

I decided, after examining my diagram and comparing it to the schedule I follow for the academic school year, that it makes the most sense for me to follow the traditional description of the seasons, as follows:
Winter: December, January, February
Spring: March, April, May
Summer: June, July, August
Fall: September, October, November

There are two implications of changing my own capsule wardrobe schedule:

• I'll be off of the schedule of the rest of the capsule wearers, but I also get to change out my clothes earlier!
• I change out my spring capsule for summer when it makes sense to, and will have only two weeks of overlap with summer and the fall semester beginning. But I will still suffer through 2 months of a fall closet that in no way resembles the fall clothes of the rest of the country. But we get like three months of what other people call fall and we call winter, so I'm good on boots and sweaters regardless. 

Clearly I think way too much about the weather, but ever since I found this quote, I've begun to really consider the temperature when making my clothing decisions. 

Food for thought! Look for my posts on my spring capsule inspiration and purchases in the next few days!

Thrifted Favorites, Part One: The Tale of the Amazing Camel Leather Riding Boots

I've mentioned before that some of the pieces in my wardrobe are thrifted. What I did not mention is that thrifting may or may not be my biggest hobby. There is something so rewarding about digging through racks and racks of weird 90s cropped sweaters and brightly colored capris and finding a gem that adds a little extra oomph to your closet. Some of my favorite items are thrifted, and I want to share my all-stars with you to give you an idea of why thrifting can be a killer way to spend an hour or two. Or four, if you're me.

The Tale of the Amazing Camel Leather Riding Boots

I found these at a Salvation Army in Wichita, where there was nothing good on the racks. I turned to leave, then I spotted their enormous shoe display. Usually thrift stores don't have a plentiful supply of shoes that can fit my obnoxiously large feet (I wear size 10, which for someone who thrifts is annoying because all the shoes seem to be size 7). I rarely check out the shoes for this reason, as well as its slightly gross to think of someone else's foot sweat touching your feet.

But then I saw these. Two thoughts came to mind- they're not my size, and they're not real leather. I pulled them out of the rubble of nasty kitten heels with peeling soles and tried them on, my eyes only slightly popping when I found that not only could I zip them over my heel, but they were essentially brand new and therefore not grossly sweaty. These beauties were in pristine condition, and even though the material was questionable, I gladly paid all $14 dollars and took them home to wear as I pranced through fall leaves and sipped tea wearing gloves. 

Since buying these boots, which was quite early in my career as a thrifter, I feel like my style was really kicked up a notch. I have always considered shoes one of the most important parts of an outfit; they say so much about the person's idea of style and comfort. If you put two people in the same outfit in front of me, one in well-cared for suede loafers and the other in Champion sneakers (athletic brand from Target), I can tell a lot about how they perceive themselves and want to be perceived by others. I loved these boots immediately because they made it seem like I had put thought into a more expensive purchase rather than the Target flats and sneakers I had been running around in. They also made me feel way more polished and grown up. Thus started my love for good shoes.

An extra bonus is that, after much research, testing, and speculation between E and I ((Full disclosure: I just googled the brand)), the boots turned out to be real leather. I thought they must be real because the Thrift Gods were smiling on me that day. Regardless, for the last 3 years I've worn these boot so much that last winter I had to get the heel replaced because I had worn through the rubber and could hear the click of the nails every time I stepped.

I don't know how fashionable riding boots are these days, everyone seems to be exclusively wearing ankle boots, but I'll always love them because darn it, they keep my legs warm. I love styling them with black skinny jeans and an oversized sweater, or with button up layered with a sweater so I look like I'm about to go play polo with the lads at the club. They're a fall staple for me because that camel color sings bright leaves and jackets, despite the fact that now they're significantly more scuffed up that I would like. However, I'll probably wear them I find another pair of perfect brand new riding boots from Salvation Army. So I'll wear them forever.

Head to toe thrifted: similar scarf and dress

Forever 21 shirt (similar), Gap jeans

Target sweater (similar on sale!), Mango button up (similar), Gap jeans, 

Apartment 9 necklace (similar)

Can't thrift your own? Here are some similar options:
Lauren Ralph Lauren at DSW
Zigi Soho at DSW
Loeffler Randall Marit amazing perfect boots that are ungodly expensive!

Discussing "Basics"

The past few days I've had a series of excellent conversations with my dear friend M, who is also a university student developing her own personal and professional style. We've mostly been talking about what piece you need in your wardrobe to get started- your basics. I searched Pinterest for an embarrassingly long time for a list of basics that would actually be helpful but I kept running into the same problem. One list would have almost everything that I thought was necessary and then throw in something like a pair of stilettos. As a future elementary school teacher- probably one dealing with young enough children that I will sit criss-cross apple sauce more often than in my desk chair- I have zero interest in stilettos. Or any heel, regardless of the thickness. I then thought of M, who I've never seen in heels. I then thought of about 20 other women I see regularly in flats.

This made me realize that, even if I did think that stilettos were for me, they certainly wouldn't be for everyone. Then I began to question the entire institution of "basics." I can easily describe my own basics- neutral colored button downs, black skinny jeans, a pair of ankle boots, and an oversized sweater. That's what I consider my uniform. I could wear it every day and be happy. But what about M? She doesn't wear skinny jeans- so my own list of basics isn't 100% useful.

At the risk of continuing on describing the pitfalls of basics lists, let me just say this. One of the most important things I've realized about fashion is that what we do every day getting ready for the day isn't actually fashion- its style. Fashion seems to be the institution of creating new ideas for clothing, while style is the personal application of clothing.

Instead of looking for other people's ideas of basics, we could be looking at the things in our closets that we love wearing, that make us feel excited and confident and ourselves, regardless of whether or not that fit of jeans or style of jacket is fashionable at the moment. If we know what we love to wear, that will guide our future style choices and help us shop smarter. Here are some questions that might help you decide what your basics are.

• What does your perfect (shirt, pants, shoes, jacket) look like? How does it feel?
• Think of the people whose style you most admire. Why do admire them? Do you like what they're wearing, or how they wear it?
• Think of your daily life- your profession, hobbies, family life. What is practical for you to wear? Could you function in heels and dresses? Is it work appropriate to wear jeans every day?
• Look in your closet. What items do you have a lot of? If you have a lot of colorful dresses or muted t-shirts, that you actually wear and love, then that item should be on your list of basics.

Here is my own list of basics, both for work and play.

Neutral button ups

Loft utility blouse

Loft tunic blouse

Skinny jeans

Gap skinny jeans, black

Gap skinny jeans

Oversized sweater

Target turtleneck pullover

Nordstrom Chunky Sweater

Ankle boots

Gap ankle boots, sold out (similar)

Reasonable flats

Mercanti Fiorentini Darlene Flats

Steve Madden Hiko Flats

Moto jacket

Black moto jacket

((Full disclosure: my own jacket is faux leather from a teeny bopper shop in Kansas City. However, this one is a much better alternative.))

Men's watch

Bulova Watch

These basics work for winter and most of fall and spring, but come summer I replace jackets and boots with sandals and tank tops. But the formula stays the same, generally neutral colors with skinnies and flat shoes. I know that where ever I go, that will keep me comfortable, functional, and confident!