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A guide on how to dress for any occasion – from first impressions to religious events.
A dad sends his son’s favorite toy to space. Cute video!
Switzerland tourism commercials are great. So creative! If you have time, check out more of MySwitzerland’s videos. Iceland has some creative, crazy tourism videos, too. Obviously I want to travel.
How to Relish Autumn, a silly illustration.
An October desktop wallpaper from Ruche.
This looks like a fun job.
I didn’t get home until after dark yesterday, so I couldn’t really take pictures outside. Thus the lousy indoor pictures. At least there’s still some greenery. This is the first time I’ve ever worn this shirt with a skirt. I definitely think I prefer it to the other ways I’ve worn it. It’s kind of cropped so it works better with skirts since skirts rest higher on my waist than most pants.
top: secondhand Check and Stripe
Skirt: secondhand New York and Company
belt: secondhand
shoes: secondhand Minnetonka
bracelets: (1) handmade friendship bracelet, (2) Original Good fair trade
earrings: secondhand
I LOVE finding new blogs to follow (even though my Bloglovin’ account is overflowing with unread posts). Particularly with fashion blogs, everyone has something they are good at, their niche. So today I’m going to share some of my favorites and why I like them. Some are newer finds and some I’ve been faithful to awhile. Hopefully you’ll find someone new to follow from my suggestions! And these are in no particular order.
Kayley is great at feminine and classic looks. Her styles are very achievable, as most of them are composed of pretty basic pieces. She pairs things together creatively, though, and always looks super put together and classy. She’s a great resource if you’re looking for inspiration on how to creatively mix and match classic pieces that most women probably own some variation of.
This is one I just recently discovered and I love it. Elizabeth is a pro with pattern mixing and layering. A “natural maximist” she calls herself. Her style is quirky, fun, and floral. She makes me want to be more risky with mixing and not-matching. I also envy her hair. Check her out if you need help in the pattern mixing department or if your closet is overflowing with florals that your not sure how to wear.
Tieka’s style is funky, a bit edgy, and also girly. Yeah – all those things. I get the vibe that she’s a “dresses and skirts most of the time” type of girl. I love her taste in colors and color mixing, and all of her pictures are an adventure. She makes me want to just go exploring…all the time. Follow her if you’re a dress-wearing girl (who loves fall and all of its beautiful colors).
Veronika’s style is exactly what you’d expect – vintage. She’s great at not only finding beautiful vintage pieces, but wearing them. She’s really the perfect mix of modern and vintage. She makes me want to give vintage a try, which is one realm of secondhand I have yet to be brave enough to dive into. She’s great if you like feminine and fun fashion that hints at decades past.
5. Others
Some other blogs that I follow are Sincerely, Kinsey, Hummingbird Girls, Threads and Buttons, Feathers and Freckles, and Wendy’s Lookbook. A couple older blogs that are no longer active but are still great for their archives are What Would a Nerd Wear and Sunday Crossbow.
Have fun browsing these sites, and I hope you discover a gem. Do you have any favorite fashion blogs you follow? Please share!!!
Weekend links are late this week…sorry. But it’s still the weekend, right?
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Try Real Simple’s Finish the Look fashion game. I was on a roll at first, but it got a little tricker in subsequent rounds. Or maybe it just got more subjective?
So remember that poll I posted to help me choose an iPhone case? Well, I just decided to design my own. I ordered it…and you can too! It’s here on Society6. You can also get prints and stationary.
Burgundy is supposed to be big this fall.
Check out this folding chair makeover tutorial! I’m working on doing this to a folding stool. I’ll post pictures of the result this coming week.
I made these green tea cupcakes for my mom’s birthday a few weeks ago. We left off the strawberry custard and frosting, but they were still delicious!
Take a look through Anthropologie’s and Ruche’s fall lookbooks for some style inspiration.
Hope you had a great weekend!
Look at that crazy hair. Actually, it was a lot crazier a few weeks ago. The length it was a few weeks ago was too short for my natural curls to manifest themselves but also too short to straighten easily, so it just threw a headband on most days and said who cares. Now that it’s a bit longer, it’ll curl nicely on most days, and I can straighten it pretty easily if it doesn’t. I’m actually alright with it the way it is in these pictures. Growing it out is going to be a long and exhausting process! Oi.
I’m so happy it’s finally consitently cool enough here to wear clothes like these! Mmmmm, I love fall weather. Be sure to take the time to admire those lovely fig trees behind me. 
top: secondhand Express
jeans: secondhand J. Crew
shoes: secondhand Missoni for Target
earrings: secondhand
Well, I’m not actually telling you a million ways you can wear a chambray blouse, but simply that you CAN wear it a million ways. But here are a few of my favorite ways you can sport this timeless, useful piece. I just ordered one (Yes, I gave in and ordered one new. BUT it was on sale AND I had a 30% off coupon), so I’m excited to try out all these ways of wearing it. All images are linked to where I found them.
1. Yes, you can wear your chambray blouse with jeans. In fact, you should! Just go for a denim on bottom that’s a different shade from your top. And I like how this gal added some color with the bright belt.
2. Wear it with colored pants. Jeans or cords would look great. It’s just like wearing a colored top with blue jeans…except backwards.
3. Wear it under a sweater. Kayley here wore hers under a pullover sweater, but cardigans look great layered over chambray, too. I like how she dressed it up with that necklace under the collar and the ruffled skirt.
4. Pair it with a skirt. Any skirt. I like how it dresses down an accordion pleated skirt (I already have an outfit of my own planned).
5. tie it over a dress. This is a great way to bring those sleeveless dresses into fall. Just leave it unbuttoned and tie a knot.
6. Wear it to go hot air ballooning.
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How to roll your sleeves…properly, and other fashion tips from a J. Crew stylist.
More tips from that same stylist.
A guide on how to do a seasonal closet switch.
Amazing photos from the insides of musical instruments.
A blogger I just discovered who is amazing (and daring) at mixing patterns and textures.
Lastly, another silly, adorable dog. (did you see the one I posted last week?)
Have a great weekend!
This is one of my favorite tops. Check out how I styled it here…and surprisingly, that’s the only other time I’ve worn it on this blog.
Today was a cool, rainy day. My favorite. I love that the weather here is finally starting to stay under 85 degrees fahrenheit. Are you as excited about fall as I am? I also just spelled fahrenheit correctly without looking it up. I’m so proud of myself. (These pictures, once again, are from late July. No, we don’t have bright pink flowers blooming on our trees here in September.)
This is what happens when my sister tells me how to pose:
top: secondhand 21
belt: secondhand
jeans: secondhand Gap
shoes: secondhand Bare Traps
earrings: secondhand
hat: J. Crew sale
After looking at magazines and browsing the internet, it looks like stripes are going to be big this fall (no surprise there – aren’t stripes kind of timeless?) So I gathered up some of my favorite looks with stripes and put together this little how-to on wearing them. Sure, you could just throw on a striped tee and jeans, but why do that when you can be creative? I hope these tips and pictures will inspire you to make the most of your stripes! (click the pictures to get to their original sources)
1. Wear stripes as an accessory. Scarf, purse, socks, belt, bracelet… pair striped accessories with anything. I like how Madewell paired bold black and white stripes with a monochromatic, polka-dotted, bright red dress.
2. Wear tiny stripes as a solid. If you have to look really close to tell they’re stripes or if it looks solid when you blur your eyes, use it as a solid. For example, this blazer has thin black stripes, but it works as a solid grey. Wear it with other patterns freely. The only thing I would avoid is wearing it with a piece that has similar tiny stripes. If you want to wear stripes with stripes, stick to contrasting stripe sizes, like the second picture.
3. Wear bold stripes with another bold pattern. This is one I would be careful with because if you go wrong, you’ll just look like you got dressed in the dark. Stick to similar, limited color palettes or patterns that complement each other for best results. This is a hard one to give guidance for. Really your best bet is to use your judgement…and maybe a friend’s as well, just to be safe. I would personally avoid wearing multicolored stripes with other patterns because all that color would be crazy enough on its own (a rainbow striped sweater with a polka dotted skirt would scream circus, I’m afraid). I actually really like this pairing. I think this was a case of the stylist(s) trusting their instincts. Also, alpacas make great accessories.
4. Pair stripes with animal prints or florals. I like the really wide stripes used in the first picture …they’re a nice contrast to the smaller zebra-ish pattern on the shirt. They also stuck to similar colors (greys and blacks) so it all “matches.” Also notice the leopard belt (THREE different patterns done so well). The second picture works well because the patterns are similar sizes (small stripes with small flowers) and share a common color.
5. Wear stripes with tweed. In this case, use the tweed as the solid. I like how it’s done here. It makes this stiff, business-y outfit a bit more fun.
6. Wear stripes on the bottom instead of the top. Most of the time when you see stripes, it’s a tee or sweater or cardigan. A striped skirt or pair of pants, no matter how plain the pieces you pair it with, will be more interesting.
7. Wear your stripes from top to bottom – vertically, that is. Wearing horizontal stripes is the norm, so try some vertical stripes if you can find them. They’ll make you look taller rather than wider, and they’re a little more interesting simply because you don’t see people wearing them as often. Also give diagonal stripes a whirl. (and I don’t recommend wearing them as they are presented in the following picture. You MAY get strange looks. Though if that’s what you’re after, go for it. )
Galway, Ireland © Maggie J. 2012
The image above was tiltshifted with Tiltshift Maker. It may be cheating (no, I’m not buying a $1000 lens any time soon), but it’s still cool!
Boots for fall – here are the trends to look out for.
A cute and super easy DIY necklace.
A practical style shopping list for fall. Review it for your next consignment/thrift shopping outing!
How do you feel about this socks trend? I’m not feeling it. Maybe #2 (print) on this list of how to wear them, but the others I think are just kind of silly-looking. But to each his own.
Pretty and simple desktop wallpapers.
And…drum roll…the Pantone Fall 2012 color report.
If you’re serious about runway fashion, check out the 15 biggest fall trends from the runways. If you’re of the belief that runway fashion is a little unrealistic and over-the-top, check out these rules from the fall runways if you missed my link on Monday.
And I’ll end your adventure on my blog with this ADORABLE video.
Have a great weekend and I’ll be back on Monday!
Hey! I'm Maggie, a graphic designer, crafter, devoted secondhand shopper, Doctor Who fanatic, and dog-lover. Stick around and explore!
