rained out

sweater - H&M / t-shirt - Target / jeans - UO / ring - H&M / shoes - Target

...or in, I should say. Those of you familiar with Berlin will immediately recognize that this is not Berlin. Today was a thoroughly enjoyable rainy, indoors, laundromat-going, chili-making, documentary-watching (NOVA & History Channel specials on Venice) and book-reading (finally finished Eating Animals, started Atonement) kind of day, and in all that we completely failed to take any outfit pictures. Fortunately, I'd worn the exact same thing (save swapping the gray tee for a pink one and the ring for my watch) a little over a month ago on a day trip to Ghent, so my rainy day outfit needn't go wholly undocumented. I love this sweater for days like this, it's perfectly soft and cozy, and I can skip any kind of makeup or accessories and just let my sequins do the work.

white out

necklace - Forever 21 / silk blouse - mommed / tote - German convention freebie / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / jeans - UO / brogues - Primark  

I'm absolutely worn out from a long day of Major Life Decisions (MLD(tm)), checking out multiple art supply stores, and maybe (just maybe) staying up a little too late watching TMNT II: Secret of the Ooze (Best line? 'Babies! They're BABIES!'), so I'm afraid I don't have much to say about these photos.  After discovering to my surprise just how much I liked occasionally wearing my shirt untucked a couple of weeks ago, today I thought I'd try out the oh-so-casual half-tucked look; I don't hate it, but the results didn't really wow me. Hard to say if it's me, or just this particular blouse. I also started out wearing my white linen blazer with this outfit, but tucked it away in my tote bag after a particularly warm U-Bahn ride. I'll have to give that pairing another shot once the weather cools down a bit.

I'm also hideously behind on answering emails and comments from the last week or so - I'll be tackling those tomorrow, but in the meantime, my apologies if you've been waiting for a response from me!

miesian

sunglasses - Nasty Gal / necklace - boutique in Montmartre, Paris / v-neck top - Anthropologie / braided belt - vintage, thrifted / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / skirt - altered from a dress, UO / sandals - Target, thrifted 

It's funny to me how much noteworthy architecture pops up on in my outfit posts. I started this blog as an outlet for some of my non-professional interests, and yet my academic background just keeps popping up in the background. Given the kind of sightseeing we do, it shouldn't be altogether surprising - today it was the Bauhaus Archive, the Nordic Embassy complex, and, seen here, Mies' Neue Nationalgalerie - but I still think it's a little funny that my ostensible 'fashion blog' posts could also serve as flashcards for a course on modern architecture.

double jeopardy

necklace - vintage, great grandmother's / blouse - thrifted / tote - Forever 21 / belt - vintage, thrifted / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / shorts - vintage, thrifted & hemmed / woven flats - UO

Ever since pinning this outfit of Tania's a few weeks ago, I've had this vibrant blue and yellow color combination on the brain. I've been daydreaming more than I ought to admit about pairing this incredible blue knife-pleated dress Emily sent me right before our return to Europe with a pair of marigold heels I have in storage (the perfect outfit for an upcoming birthday?), and when I stumbled across this bright blue blouse during my rainy day trip to the thrift store last week, I was all too happy to pay three euros for it. It's pretty big (I actually had to watch out that the hem didn't peek out below the edge of my shorts!), but I love the way the color looks with just about everything I own, and I think it will transition nicely into fall.

Unfortunately I think these shorts may be known as 'the bee sting shorts' forevermore - I got stung the last time I wore them, and today our afternoon picnic was plagued by bees! Despite their inexplicable interest in my face (why, oh why must they always hover right by my face?) I managed to escape uninjured, but Chris was stung in the leg. Fortunately he seems to exhibiting even less of an allergic reaction than I did.

tied up

sunglasses - Nasty Gal / earrings - handmade by Carie of Pretty Little Mountains, won in giveaway / chambray shirt - Banana Republic, thrifted / wood & brass bangle - vintage, thrifted / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / maxi skirt - Target / sandals - Target, thrifted 

I should probably send this shirt a thank-you note, as it makes me feel great every time I wear it. I've been an admirer of the tied-shirt trend that's been popping up all over the place this summer, but always from afar because I'm not much of an exposed-midriff girl myself; fortunately I figured out that it works just as well over a matching tank and maxi skirt. Super easy, and a nice change of pace from my regular arsenal of belts.

We took these pictures on an evening visit to the Reichstag dome over the weekend; the sunset view over the Tiergarten was fantastic, so we lingered as long as we could up on the roof. I've been growing more and more aware of the impending end of our travels, and of our return to the 'real world,' and while I've enjoyed the ways in which blogging has made me more sartorially creative, I think I am even more appreciative of the record this blog has become of our everyday activities. It will be such a fun way to look back on our trip (and on the various life changes that will succeed it) and to remember not just the museums and monuments, but the lazy afternoons spent in parks or exploring unknown neighborhoods.

happiness

striped linen top - vintage, thrifted / cream silk blouse - mommed / pink silk blouse - thrifted / orange ombre blouse - thrifted / yellow silk top - Mango / olive blouse - Target / blue blouse - thrifted / cat print blouse - Zara

...is a blouse rainbow in your closet.

moldy

necklace - Forever 21 / silk top - Mango / belt - thrifted / skirt - homemade / ring - Amsterdam shop / sandals - Target, thrifted

Today I had that greatest of all blogger misfortunes, worse than Flickr pervs, worse than Blogger blackouts, worse even than leaving your (boyfriend's) camera's memory card in a state 400 miles away - I had a good hair day and a cute outfit, and I didn't get to take pictures. While my stateside friends and family are sweating it out in an epic heatwave, I am stuck indoors with a few days of cold, steady rain. There isn't much of a spot in our teeny apartment suitable for taking photos, so I brushed off a set of old ones from nearly a week ago that never made it on the blog. I believe outfit pictures are still good for at least a week beyond their sell-by date, but please forgive me if these are a little moldy around the edges.

ombre

necklace - vintage, Brooklyn flea market / ombre blouse - thrifted/ bracelet - gift from another Emily / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / overdyed skinnies - Zara / brogues - Primark

This is not what I'd originally planned to wear for today's special thrift edition of EBEW - I'd had an awesome, 100% thrifted outfit in mind for about a week now. Unfortunately, the weather was not interested in cooperating with my plans (which included shorts, again), and this morning all I wanted to put on were some jeans and a sweater - and somehow, despite the fact that about a third of my current wardrobe is second-hand, all of my jeans and sweaters were purchased new. Suddenly, my cold, rainy day seemed like the perfect time to go check out the massive second-hand store down the street from our apartment (how I'd resisted its gravitational pull 'til now, I'll never know). Suffice to say, I hit the jackpot, and it took enormous willpower not to bring home more than might reasonably fit in my suitcase for the rest of our trip.

This sheer, ombre blouse was one of my finds of the day - I love finding trendier items like this while thrifting, because it lets me try out the trend with very little financial investment, and once I'm over it, I can always re-donate. For now, I'm looking forward to trying out some more daring ways to wear this blouse, along with my other purchases. (Just wait 'til you see you the crazy printed pants I bought - hello, Man Repeller!)

If you'd like to see some of my favorite thrifted looks, click here, here or here, and to see all my outfits incorporating thrifted items, click here. Also, be sure to head over to Everybody Everywear today to see how other bloggers styled up their favorite thrifted items.