What I wore today: 07/23/2014 (Waistland)

I'm excited to share an outfit post for the first time in a while. With things so hectic in my life lately, I've been drawn to simple basics and classic outfits.

Though I love a good Canadian tuxedo, I think black denim might be the classiest way there is to wear chambray. It makes it less casual but still easy.

I'm obsessed with these shoes. I think they look like hooves. I've wanted something this style forever, and for some reason it didn't occur to me to look at Target until just recently. Target always has the best 20-dollar, design-inspired shoes.

I've worn my favorite vintage Moschino belt many times over many dresses, but this is actually the first time I've worn it with jeans. The benefits of high-waisted styles!

Bonus tip: if you're uncomfortable with the way high-waisted jeans make your butt look (flat, mommish, too 1996), try tucking in just the front of your top. It still gives you that retro-sexy silhouette, but without the dreaded mom butt.

Chambray tank - Cloth and Stone, Anthropologie

Sweater - Anthropologie

Black high-waisted skinny jeans - Paige Denim

Belt - vintage Moschino, eBay

"Kacie Peep Toe Booties" - Taget

What I wore today: 09/12/2013 (Not Over Neon)

I wore this last night to work our store's fashion show. We were instructed to wear our best Anthro, so I chose this superstar skirt from last summer. Though it's a bold color, I've found this skirt to be surprisingly versatile. I've worn in with chambray and black and white in the past, but decided to pair it with a simple white peplum top this time, accessorizing with a poppy neon necklace I painted with neon nail polish (tutorial here).

I don't know about you, but I'm not over neon yet. It feels especially appropriate in these last hot death-rattle days of summer, since I know all brights with give way to deep fall colors soon. 

Neon lace skirt - Anthropologie

White peplum top - Anthropologie

Vintage jellies - thrifted

Neon satchel - Target

Neon necklace - DIY
Dinosaur bone rib-cage cuff bracelet - nOir Jewelry

What I wore today: 09/02/2013 (Looking Like a Picnic)

I wore this gingham dress on Labor Day to celebrate the end of summer. The blue gingham always makes me think of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, but Ryan's reaction to the dress was that I looked like a picnic blanket. "But in a good way," he promised.

I just read Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates, which is this wonderful novel about Marilyn Monroe, and I think reading about her put me in the mood to wear a wiggle dress. Although my hourglass body type is best suited to sexy, fitted silhouettes, I am usually drawn to a more boyish, gamine look. But, on occasion, a girl still wants to get her wiggle on.

FIY, that's not a real tattoo; it's just something I drew on myself. I'm digging trying out temporary tattoos lately to get an idea of what a real tattoo would look like.

Blue gingham wiggle dress - Ruche

Leopard horsehair skinny belt - Anthropologie

Vintage jellies - thrifted

Our Day Trip to Columbus

Now that I work a regular 7-to-4-Monday-through-Friday schedule, Ryan and I are excited to spend lots of weekends exploring the other cities in our area.

We've got trips planned to Bloomington, Indiana and Louisville, Kentucky for the near future, and last Sunday we went to Columbus, Ohio. 

Some people like beach vacations, while others prefer the mountains; Ryan and I like to explore cities. Some of my favorite memories with him are of having long conversations while walking the streets of Paris, Stockholm, Chicago, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Indianapolis, and Las Vegas (not to mention the regular walks we take around our own beloved neighborhood here in Cincinnati). 

Even though Columbus is only a 2 hour drive away, neither Ryan nor I had spent much time there before. It inevitably came up as we brainstormed cities we could day trip to, and I was enthusiastic because I've wanted to go to a Jeni's Ice Cream Parlor since falling in love with her incredible creations a few years ago. 

We also spent some time at COSI, a science museum I have great memories of after spending an overnight field trip there when I was around 12, and we caught the movie The World's End, which was awesome. 

I'm definitely a fan of day trips; how about you? What cities can you day trip to from where you live? What do you think is the best way to take in a city in just a day? 

What I wore today: 08/25/2013 (Columbus Day Trip)

I love a classic piece with unique details, and this shirt definitely fits that bill. The drop-waist gathering and tuxedo tails in the back make me so happy. 

Ryan snapped these shots on a Columbus day trip (not to be confused with a Columbus Day trip) that we took on Sunday. More on our trip coming soon!

"Wiley Tunic" - Anthropologie

Gray "Stevie" Jeans - AG, Anthropologie

Quilted flats - Modcloth

Bag - ebay

What I wore today: 08/18/2013 (Petticoat Junction)

This dress has been in heavy rotation since I bought it years ago. (You can see it layered over a mint blouse here, under a blazer here, and styled simply waaaaaay back in the day here.) Last weekend, when I found myself turning to it once again, I wanted to do something new to mix it up a little, so I decided to layer my Carrie Bradshaw skirt underneath.

I love what a petticoat can do to an outfit in terms of adding texture and volume. And you don't have to own an official "petticoat" to get the look; you can just use a voluminous skirt or any skirt that has a built in petticoat. Simply layer the skirt under your top layer and voila!

Of course traditional petticoats are great too, and you can usually find them on eBay, in costume shops, and at flea markets. As a kid, I had a bright-orange flea-market petticoat that was my favorite piece in my dress-up chest. I wore it doubled over and safety-pinned at age six, and was still wearing it at age ten when it actually came closer to fitting me.

Petticoats are also a great solution for skirts that are a touch too short for the occasion. Let a bit of petticoat sticking out add an inch or two to the perceived hem-length of your dress and you are good to go.

With a petticoat, a pink rosebud print, and maiden braids, this outfit is pretty girly. I added my Jeffrey Campbell ankle boots to rough up the look just a touch (and because I cannot stop wearing them).

Black and pink rosebud-print open-back dress - Urban Outfitters

Pink tutu skirt - Target

Everly openwork ankle boots - Jeffrey Campbell

Green leather belt - Anthropologie

Metallic rose pouch clutch - Marc by Marc Jacobs for Target

Gold arrow necklace - Etsy