recap: september

[wearing]

full posts: one, two, and three.
Holy black dresses, Batman!  Sometimes I wonder if in five or ten years I'll pare my wardrobe down to ten awesome black dresses and just buy new shoes.  I'm not sure I could go without my grays though.

[buying]
just fab "quinna" flats: $16.  My collection of fun flats is definitely on the decline and these flats have a surprisingly well-padded footbed for the price.  And the straps are adorable.

j.crew "harper" scalloped flats: $96.  I've been waiting for these pretties to be included in a sale, so I jumped at 25% and ordered the most practical color.  They are quite pointy-toed and make a heel-like noise when you walk which makes them feel quite fancy.

victoria's secret strappy longline swimsuit top: $32.  We're going to the Left Coast next month and my random collection of Target clearance swimwear was looking a bit sad.  Now I'm just wondering why I didn't order the matching bottoms.

victoria's secret shawl-collar cardigan: $50.  The light gray version of this cardigan (seen here) is like wearing a socially-acceptable blanket, so the marled version was an obvious choice for my fall wardrobe this year.

september total: $194.
and get nosy with a bunch of other blogger's budgets over hurrrr.


[receiving]
sheinside white boyfriend ponte blazer: currently $26.  (worn here and here)  I've been wanting to replace my white blazer that is looking a bit dingy, so I picked out this slouchy one for a collaboration with sheinside.

vince cropped sweater via thredup: priced at $47.  I had a bunch of credit that was going to expire and this with-tags sweater popped up in my saved searches just in time.  It's quite cropped and has a slight 90s/Clueless vibe, but the soft light grayness might be enough to make up for that.

shoemint loafers via thredup: priced at $40.  These pinch my toes.  And smell kinda funny.  We'll see if they work with tights or not.

dotty, shuttle launches, and weekendness

[wearing]
jacket: michael michael kors
space shuttle sweatshirt: random japanese brand
jeans: joe's jeans
shoes: tom's
bag: marc by marc jacobs

[three things]
1. This awesome sweatshirt was too small for the boy, so it has joined Team Dotty.  I think that's what I'm going to call my closet from now on.

2. It's also really soft on the inside and I am a total sucker for brand new fleece fuzzies.

3. Did I mention the space shuttle launch depicted on this sweatshirt?  Okay, yyyyeah.  It's making me want to continue the trend by getting this hoodie with an astronaut panda on it.  Would that make my nieces and nephew think I was cool or the weirdest space nerd aunt ever?

dotty, black grids, and good days

[wearing]
dress: Y.A.S.
leather jacket: michael michael kors
jacket underneath: thrifted
giant bag: madewell
boots: forever21

[three things]
1. I wore this last week to work when I wanted to look especially cool.  I had my first performance review, so I wanted that favorite-new-dress confidence boost.  It went really well, so I really had nothing to worry about.

2. Boots, y'all.  It's definitely been feeling autumnal around here.

3. I used to be so totally against wearing all black because it seemed so boring, but now it just makes so much sense.  Also with the lack of color in my closet, it definitely happens much more often.

weekend wishlist: all the cardigans

one, two, three, four, five, and six.

dotty, tiny bits of red, and fair weather friends

[wearing]
blazer: c/o sheinside (exactly)
tank: club monaco
jeans: old navy (exactly)
loafers: gap (exactly)
bag: marc by marc jacobs (exactly)

[three things]
1. oh look, i'm wearing some red!  okay, so it's only teeny tiny bits of red.

2. slouchy blazers are pretty awesome.

3. gray plus gray!  my sunny day loafers are out and about finally! (light gray suede and mud puddles aren't a good mix.)

dotty, abstract leopards, and geometric prints

[wearing] 
cardigan: twelfth street by cynthia vincent (similar)
dress: madewell (similar)
flats: old navy (exactly)
bag: marc by marc jacobs (exactly)

creative: patterns!  two of them!  by lunchtime i was good with this bold(ish) mix of patterns.  on the way to the train in the morning i was still a bit wary of it.  co-worker compliments always help with this sort of situation.
young: trendy southwest-print leather-sleeved cardigan.  yeah, that covers it.
professional: neutrals, black flats...ya know, the usual suspects.

see more posts like this one over here.

dotty, the pants hunt, and fall jackets

[wearing]
jacket: michael michael kors (exactly)
sweater: rebecca taylor (exactly)
pants: madewell (exactly)
flats: old navy (exactly)
bag: marc by marc jacobs (exactly)

[three things]
1. i bought another pair of black pants in my attempt to replace my old favorite zara ones.  i'm on the fence about hemming these to bring in the leg opening a little bit.  even without tailoring i'm totally sold on their pajama-like softness and slouchy cut.  it also helps that i ordered them a size up and they have an elastic waist on the back (very popular amongst the young, old, and pajama enthusiasts).

2. the first day that it was a lil bit chilly in the morning i knew right away that i was going to wear this sweater.  it's got a lot of work to bring its cost-per-wear into my range, so expect to see a lot of it this fall.

3. in an effort to be slightly nicer to my hair, it's been curly a lot lately.  i'm not sure how i still haven't figured out the right combination of products after all these years, but i'm definitely getting closer.  at least i don't have my high school crispy curls anymore.

dotty, pommel horses, and horse jockeys

[wearing]
dress: j.crew (exactly)
hat: h&m
loafers: zara (similar)
bag: marc by marc jacobs (exactly)

[three things]
1. this dress.  it's been going everywhere with me this summer since it's got this chameleon-like quality of fitting into every dress code situation.  weddings, big meetings at work, and an afternoon at the racetrack in this case.

2. we've officially become those people that get all their friends to trek out to the suburbs for an afternoon at the horsie racing track.

3. at my old job i developed a habit of asking "would you rather" questions when conversations got too negative in order to lighten the mood and reset the conversation.  i've starting using them in social situations too when it's a group of people that are all just meeting each other.  anyway, my racetrack one this season goes like this "if you were a short person, would you rather be a world-class gymnast specializing in the pommel horse or a jockey at arlington international racetrack?"  most people pick gymnast.

dotty, fresh whites, and inclement weather

[wearing]
jacket: c/o sheinside (exactly)
tee: gapfit (similar)
jeans: old navy (exactly)
flats: old navy
tote: madewell (exactly)
necklace: lightinthebox

[three things]
1. rainy day ponytails.  my frizzy-curly/fake-straight hair doesn't fare so well in 97% humidity with 100% chance of thunderstorms.  i need to get my hair trimmed, but it's always a struggle between the perfect short length and being ponytail-able.  blergh.

2. after four summers, my old white jacket is ready for retirement.  this slouchy ponte version is ready to step in and kill it for the next few weeks of warm weather.

3. light gray jeans.  (i'm obviously a fan.)





[previously on] light gray jeans

dotty, grids, and black dresses

[wearing]
jacket: zara (similar)
dress: y.a.s. (similar)
tote: madewell (exactly)
flats: old navy (exactly)

creative: this dress has a mesh cutout at the top, but i layered a black tank underneath to make it work-ish.
young: the lattice on this dress is a bit trendtastic, but it's not neon, so i think i'm good.
professional: sometimes i find it funny how so many "creative" types just wear all black.