Monday

This God awful heat is doing nothing for me, I tell you, nothing! It was ok for a day or two, but after four days of temperatures not going down below 30 degrees Celsius even during the night, I've had enough. The scorching atmosphere is conducive to nothing - sleeping, getting dressed up, making an effort, styling your hair, just nothing. The only advantage is that it is not conducive to eating either - small blessings ;)

My brain is working though, even if in a heat-induced stupor. There are issues to ponder, important stuff you know, like - after having decided on the bottoms (trousers and skirts), as well as dresses, for my back-to-school wardrobe, I realized that the one category of clothing sourly missing from my closet is tops! Yes people, tops! And I think I know why: after spending a few years buying any t-shirt, shirt, blouse that I stumbled upon at the sales, and after these have all pilled, sagged or just become ill-fitting (if they ever fitted me properly in the first place), I decided I didn't have the skills requisite for purchasing proper tops and I gave up. 

What that left me with are a few mariniere style shirts with both 3/4 and short sleeves, a bunch of tatty t-shirts and several cotton Zara tops, in navy, peach and dusty pink. Another thing - my body changed a lot after my first pregnancy, going from 'I can't fit any of my clothes', to 'this is soooo big I can hide a horse and a cart underneath' and all the stages in between. That meant that I stuck stubbornly to some of the pre-pregnancy pieces that I liked but that never really worked after the baby, especially in the boobs department.

Tops are almost like an accessory part of the outfit to me. I like simple bottoms. Whether it's a skirt or a pant, simple cuts, basic colors and no frills materials appeal to me. With the tops, however, I like to see them pack a punch, either with color or an intricate pattern. The real problem is - I don't like tops to cost much! I feel like good trousers or an elegant jacket are a much better investment since they pull an outfit together and make you look more polished. Tops - they are there for the fun of it, they usually don't last more than a couple of seasons, thus - I cannot justify an exorbitant price tag for what is essentially a glorified t-shirt. 

And now we come to the real issue here - if I don't want to blow my budget, what I'm offered is either cotton tops, which just don't wear well and get saggy quickly and have to be washed after each wear, or I have to settle for polyester! God forbid, if you ask me! Risking sounding too snobby, I just don't do synthetics. It itches, it creates static, it goes on my nerves and I don't like the feel of it.

Difficult much? Yes and no. I am definitely not splurging for silk or fine knits this year, so I got down to business and scoured the net and the sales in search of something acceptable. Here's what I've come up with:

1. A patterned, viscose blouse which ticks all the boxes for me - fun details, a flattering cut, color that go with much of my wardrobe.

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2. A two-tone cotton t-shirt with an interesting pattern and a powerful color.

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3. A basic shirt, in cream, communicates timeless, summer style.

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4. Teal and flowers - one of my favorite combinations.

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5. Again, a pattern with an amazing combination of colors - white, rust, ochre, teal.

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5. This is an afterthought, but I couldn't skip it - a perfect, striped cardigan:

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Now I just need to get to the stores and star trying stuff out - I used to be a hit-and-run shopper, just mindlessly racing to the register with anything that caught my fancy, without bothering to enter the changing rooms and have a proper look at myself. Not any more - no money to burn, thank you very much. Will report back with the results.

No Sugar Coating It!

New jacket
Monsoon
Courtesy of mom
Birthdays are a lot of fun ;)

 A very pregnant me - watch out, that belly button is popping out ;)

 I love the flare in the back and the pleating - i don't know if it's visible on the picture (blurry shots from the office bathroom, not the nicest outfit shooting environment, I know), but that's the main thing that won me over.

Chunky necklace, wood, organic, the right combination if you ask me, it's all carefree and boho chic of sorts.

I love the lining in a different pattern and color - details, it's all about details!















It's a useful addition to my wardrobe and it will work post pregnancy as well. Given that I have not put a lot of weight around my boobs/arms/upper body except for the very protruding belly, I chose a size smaller than I would need now. It fits my shoulders and the rest well and I hope it will continue to fit well after the eye-popping belly is gone. I love the colorway, navy, mustard, red and green - goes with so many things in my wardrobe and it's a nice, lightweight jacket that can make a plain outfit instantly more pulled together if need be, so suitable for where I spend most of my days when I'm not a prego lady/baby mommy - in the office ;) It can work with the casual style as well, I can envision slim dark jeans, flats and the jacket carrying me through the play dates, kids birthdays and the like. Do I make it sound like i LOVE it?

Marine Faring

As promised, here is the styling for the Ralph Laurent striped tee I gushed about several posts ago. It's rather mundane I would say - a marine themed bracelet and a clashing print scarf, but in a similar color way. The drab colors of the morning didn't inspire me to aim for more experimentation. I'm pleased overall, although I have to think of more ways to style the tee in a more attractive manner.

The VAT has gone up, the prices are sky-high and I sense an interesting winter coming up full of recycling, up-cycling and general belt-tightening activities ;-)

XOXO
Mimi

Color

I like color. In fact, I think I would be seriously endangered if I was ever made to look at the world in black and white. My emotions have colors, my days have colors, and I wear copious amount of color.

Since this spring I've been in love with orange. But combining orange and light blue with brown accents - I don't think there's more people like me out there. Sometimes I feel so alone in my color combos, and yet sometimes while looking at the fashion mags they seem so plain and pedestrian compared to some of the antics ongoing among the fashionista crowd.

Take my outfit of the day today:

This 3/4 sleeve tee is one of my wardrobe staples ever since I bought it a few months ago. The light blue pencil skirt was tailor-made from some leftover fabric my mom has been safe keeping for years ;-)













These shoes are easily my favorite ones ever! If you ask me - they go with everything!

The necklace is big wooden beads and is a gift from a dear friend.















Despite a few odd looks from people around the office, i think this works. This kind of skirt-tee/shirt-flats with a print combination has become a sort of a uniform in my case.

Lots of good news from several friends today and I feel all hopeful and joyous, hence the colors are totally appropriate!

XOXO
Mimi

Autumn fashion in transition

There is a word 'style' in the title of this blog, did you think I was going to let you off easy on that one? I made a quick snap of my favorite scarf that is getting plenty of wear these days as the weather is getting chilly and I need more layers, especially in the morning.

I love the gray and those rusty nuances combined with gold accents make it a warm and cold combination all at once and it complement my skin tone. It's very soft, a nice cotton blend, so it will get a lot of wear. My little owl earring is pictured also as I really like the quirky accessorizing and I'm bang on trend with the animal theme, right?

Next up is a new purchase - a Ralph Lauren long-sleeved tee, all striped and navy and with a nice detail on one of the sleeves - I could not resist getting it.

I'm not big on brands etc., but the quality of this one is awesome.

Will post pictures of me wearing it once I get round to it.

XOXO

Mimi

p.s. also, I need to figure out why blogger keeps messing with my pictures?!?!