dotty, a quick hello, and gratuitous vacation photos

[oh hi!]
*tap, tap* Is this still on?  It is?  Okay, great.
It's been awhile, eh?  The job monster swallowed me alive for the last few months and while we managed to throw an unprecedented amount of parties, I've been mostly focused on un-photogenic career-ish things.  (And finding the perfect ice bucket.)  As a result, I have been wearing a lot of simple, blacked out outfits.
But then, all of sudden, things got much, much sunnier and much, much warmer.  Because we finally took one of those vacation things.  Eeep!  And just like that, Bruce (our camera) re-appeared and I took a break from wearing the same three black pairs of pants on repeat.
So, if you're in a winter snowderland right now, then I apologize for the inundation of palm trees to follow.  I feel you though, we're headed to the mitten state for Thanksgiving this week...where we are guaranteed all-you-can-eat gloomy weather.  (And pie.  Lots of pie.)

[wearing]
cardigan: twelfth street by cynthia vincent
dress: madewell
flops: lc lauren conrad
sunnies: amazon

dotty, easy peasy, and summer outfits

[wearing]
dress: cos
heels: charles by charles david
bag: madewell
necklace: forever21

[three things]
1. I had a big bruise on my calf last week from a run-in with a very heavy suitcase of material samples and couldn't wear dresses.  Putting together pants outfits when it's hot out is way harder, but this bruise was seriously icky-looking and I didn't really want to explain that I'm not capable of getting myself to meetings without my luggage injuring me.  #grownupfail  #dressesfolife

2. In the past I've tended to belt this bag-like dress, but lately I've just been wearing heels with it and ignoring the shapelessness.

3. Whoa hey, August is almost here.  How did that happen?  #sneakybugger

 

[previously on] cos knit dress

weekend wishlist: creamy gray

one
two
three
and four.

dotty, black pants, and stapling

[wearing]
jacket: banana republic
tank: old navy
pants: banana republic
flats: justfab
bag: madewell

[three things]
1. My next desk neighbor at work bought this same jacket last week.  This could get awkward.  Or just like a grownup twin day.

2. Comfy black dress pants are definitely the foundation of my whole work wardrobe.  And my weekend wardrobe too.  Funny how that works.

3. We spent our weekend Pitchfork-ing, so the transition back to desk life is extra tough.  Blergh.

dotty, a not so fancy dress, and sneaky cuffs

[wearing]
dress: suzi chin
necklace: h&m
heels: vince camuto
clutch: marc jacobs target collab
cuff: h&m

[three things] 
1. I was going through my fancy dresses to find something to wear to a fancy-ish work event and came across this amazing sack dress (with pockets!) from a few years ago.  (There's a blog post where it's hanging out with a vest back here.)  The advantage to being at my job for just a year is that I haven't used up my stash of fancy dresses for events yet!

2. I opted for buying a new necklace rather than trying to find the perfect dress in the week before the event.  Somehow that never works for me because I always have something very particular in mind.

3. And I even counted all my mingling and dancing steps by hiding my Fitbit under a giant bronze cuff.

dotty, whitewashed, and monochromisity

[wearing]
dress: rachel rachel roy
jacket: banana republic
heels: charles by charles david
bag: banana republic

creative: All white instead of my typical all black.  (Monochrome still wins though.)

young: This dress is a smidge short for work, but for a day with no big meetings it's fine.  As long as I stay away from spaghetti and paintball guns.

professional: This is definitely a more pretty than professional combination, but it's Summer and I found two off-white pieces in my closet that work well together!

recap: junebug

+
Oh hiiii!  I was pretty much missing from the internet in June and I am a-okay with that.  It was huge month at work for all sorts of reasons and as I eluded to in one of the only things I posted this month, I was in a wardrobe rut.  I just needed a lil bit of shopping to get things back on track.  Really, just a big Navy Banana (that's oldnavygapbananarepublic) to make everything better.  Some black pants, a white jacket, and some patterned fun later I am feeling much better about the mix-and-match ability of my wardrobe.




[buying] 
1. old navy patterned soft pants in black diamond.  
Loungey, soft, and leave-the-house-able.  $18 via oldnavy.com

2. old navy relaxed slub knit tank.
Summer.  Yes.  $12 via oldnavy.com

3. banana republic biker blazer.
I've had to retire a few of my jackets I bought two-ish years ago when I discovered my love of tailored jackets to dress comfy clothes up for work.  $83 via bananarepublic.com

4. banana republic black soft pants.
That little dolphin hem sold me on these.  And they might just be getting me out of my work clothes rut.  Yay!  I might have my eye on the patterned version too. $36 via bananarepublic.com

5. 3.1 phillip lim orchid gold knot dress.
The boy's office has a giant fancy party every July, so I ordered these next two dresses in preparation.  This one I have dubbed the "Goldman Sach."  Har, har, har.  $78 via thredup.com (but I used a bunch of credits I had been hoarding.)

6. michael michael kors black ruched dress.
If I chicken out and don't wear that amazing gold dress, I'll probably show up in this safety net dress.  $28 via thredup.com (also purchased with credits.)

June total: $149.

dotty, triangles, and comfy pants

[wearing]
pants: old navy
top: vince
scarf: marc jacobs target collab
flats: justfab
clutch: marc jacobs target collab

[three things]
1. Weekend brunches are pretty amazing.  And brunches with our friends and their babies are just the bestest. #babieswhobrunch

2. I bought these as light lounge pants for the summer, but um...yeah, they've started leaving the house with me too.

3. If I wear a silk top with comfy pants do the two even each other out?

dotty, linen stripes, and casual days

[wearing] 
tunic: old navy
jeans: vince
heels: charles by charles david
bag: banana republic

[three things]
1. Things have been a little quiet for the interwebs version of me because the work version of me has been super busy the last few weeks with all sorts of (v. boring) midwestern travel and (v. exciting) Neocon festivities.  So yeah, hello again!

2. I'm also in the middle of some sort of wardrobe identity crisis.  Ugh.  I've been shopping less the last few months (which is good!) but I've been very unfocused in what I have been buying.  And it's been mostly super casual pieces.  Which totally doesn't work with the fact that I need to be dressing more professional-ish for work.  You can see where this disconnect would cause some problems!  Having a closet full of comfy/casual pieces is great for the weekend, but not so much when Monday morning rolls around.

3. In other news, I am loving this light neutrals color palette of grays, whites, blushes, and tans.  Now I just need to figure out a version of this outfit for meetings days.
    

dotty, tall day, and fun shoes

[wearing]
dress: cos
wedges: target
bracelets: j.crew factory, forever21, fitbit
necklace: forever21

[three things]
1. So tall.  Like really tall today.  Like I had to adjust the standing height memory on my desk to accommodate my tallness.  #sittostandproblemz

2. My Fitbit bracelet has paint on it...it might be due for replacement.

3. Comfy dress, tall shoes, and a pile of bracelets.  I am ready for you this year, Summer.

recap: may

+ 
Welp, I didn't end up finding either of the workish pieces that I mentioned last month, but I ended up with a random assortment of semi-fun pieces.  My goal for the next few months is to really focus on the professional pieces that my closet is lacking.  Less comfy clothes, more tailored things.

1. old navy striped cotton tunic. Summer, stripes, and yes.  $12 online.

2. j.crew factory jodphur gigi pants.  I already have a pair of these, so when I spotted them on super sale I decided to stock up.  $19 online.

3. j.crew factory print sheath dress.  I've already worn this dress to work a few times and is definitely one of those amazingly easy-to-style summer pieces.  $56 online.

4. old navy patterned espadrilles.  Fun print, but not comfy yet.  We'll see if breaking them in helps.    $11 online.

5. franco sarto heath flats.  I've been leaving a pair of black flats at work, so I wanted a second pair for when I'm not at work.  This leather pair was an easy lunchtime shopping decision.  $50 via nordstrom rack.

6. (not pictured, but worn here and here.) vince camuto cam shoes.  I almost forgot about these guys because I bought them at the end of last month, but they are ridiculously comfortable and make me feel much cooler than I actually am.  $99 via DSW.

Total: $248.

dotty, smidges, and stretchy pants

[wearing]
dress: rachel rachel roy
pants: j.crew factory
heels: vince camuto
bag: madewell
necklace: forever21

[three things]
1. I work with some very stylish designers, so I can't take any credit for this dress+skinny pants+heels combination.  This dress is just a smidge too short for work, but makes a great tunic-ish top.

2. I feel like this tote can work with any outfit because it matches the ends of my hair where old highlights have gone awry.  I'm just going to pretend I'm in on that ombre craze.

3. Word to the mother: Look, our floors totally look blue sometimes!





[previously on] cream dress

dotty, elmo's world, and diamonds

[wearing]
dress: j.crew factory
muppet sweater: h&m
heels: vince camuto
bag: banana republic

creative: This dress is just the right amount of pattern for me.

young: Elmo sweater!  Can you tell that this sweater is approximate furryness of a muppet?  If it was bright red it would be much more obvious, but with the dark color in flies under the radar.

professional: Heels, a whole stack of bracelets, and a shift dress.  Done and done.
  
Find more posts like this one over here.

dotty, fronds, and big cardigans

[wearing]
cardigan: twelfth street by cynthia vincent
dress: joie
crop top: forever21

[three things]
1. It's about time to put away this cardigan for the summer.  With leather sleeves, it's definitely not a year-round piece.  Also, a serious vegan I work with touched the sleeve by accident once and totally freaked out.  #leathahproblemz

2. With that said, it's definitely going out with a great borderline-too-cray-cray pattern mix.  Palm fronds and geometric lines?  Oh yyyyeah.

3. Hey there, holiday weekend!  We're off on a bit of an adventure starting today.  Hooray for teeny tiny vacations!
    



[previously on] geometric cardigan

dotty, accessorizing, and an otherwise very boring outfit

[wearing] 
top: day birger et mikkelsen
pants: j.crew factory
heels: vince camuto
scarf: loft
bag: banana republic

creative: I'm wearing my industry's official uniform: black and black.  But I'm wearing fun shoes and a patterned scarf too!

young: Hmm.  Pink bag?

professional: The skinny pants+tunic top combination can look pretty casual and weekendish, but dressing it up helps a bit.

Find more posts like this one over here.

weekend wishlist: summer dresses

one, two, three, four, and five.
+
We stopped at Barney's this weekend and now I just want all.  the.  dresses.
Oh, dear.  #sooutofmypricerange