tweedy

scarf - import shop in Copenhagen / tweed wool blazer - vintage, mom's / striped shirt - thrifted / overdyed skinnies - Zara / purse - custom, valhallabrooklyn via etsy / woven flats - UO

Just a few photos from a lovely fall walk in our new neighborhood. We got the keys to our new place just over three weeks ago, and since then we have been working on it non-stop - from fixing broken doors to caulking windows, replacing our refrigerator, painting our six (six! seven if you count the vestibule! but of course, they're all tiny) rooms to putting up shelves and negotiating turn-of-the-century closets that aren't even deep enough to put a hanger in straight. I haven't bothered with nail polish or makeup in weeks, and it isn't unusual these days for me to find paint on my elbows in the middle of the workday.

Still, it's been fun rediscovering some old favorites as I slooooowly unpack my clothes. Case in point, this herringbone tweed blazer, definitely one of the nicest vintage pieces I own. It was part of a suit my Mom wore as she was just beginning her professional career, and I now love pairing it with more casual outfits to give them some classic texture and shape. It's also been the perfect outer layer for the fabulous weather we've been having lately, and I've been trying to get out and enjoy it as much as I can in between our many home improvement projects.

rusty

jacket - Forever 21 / striped sweater - Madewell / necklace - Clyde's Rebirth / bracelets - vintage, gift from boyfriend / purse - Athens tourist shop / skirt - Zara / boots - vintage Nine West via etsy

Well, once again, it's been a little while since I blogged. My apologies if this post seems a little rusty (har har). I hadn't planned to go on this little blogging hiatus, but these last few weeks have been absolutely packed - and while I have been wearing clothes every day (which, I'll admit, sometimes feels like an accomplishment), between the limited number of work-appropriate options currently stuffed in my suitcase and the inevitable Sophie's choice of weekday mornings ('Brush my hair, or wolf down some cereal?'), regular photos have lately faded to a fond memory. We managed to snap these on Saturday after checking out the Halloween Dog Parade in the East Village - there were some pretty terrific costumes (Lady Gaga dog! Shark Taco dog!), but I think my favorite was the couple that came dressed as Paul Bunyan, with their pug dyed blue as Babe the Blue Ox!

While the change of season has made my limited wardrobe feel even smaller, I have definitely been enjoying the opportunity to piles on lots of comfy layers. I picked up this oversized striped sweater a couple of weeks ago and it's become a fast favorite. It gives my lightweight jackets just the right amount of warmth, and I love how perfectly it matches my rust-colored skirt.

thoughtless

jean jacket - LOFT, thrifted / necklace - clyde's rebirth / striped dress - Old Navy / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / purse - Athens tourist shop / woven flats - UO

It will probably come as no particular surprise to regular readers of this blog that, if I had my druthers, I'd be happy to just wear this outfit every single day. In fact, up until these last few days,* I'd been creeping dangerously close to doing just that. Although we've only been here a week, I've somehow already grown bored with everything in my suitcase (didn't I used to have a lot of clothes in there?), but fortunately this dress and jacket combo still manages to make me feel great on days when I'm not up for thinking about what to wear.

*When New York decided to belatedly welcome us by approximating the interior climate of a steam room.

birthday suit

brass whistle necklace - vintage via etsy / fox-print tank - Forever 21 / belt - vintage, thrifted / wood & brass bangle - vintage, thrifted / linen skirt - vintage, thrifted / purse - Athens tourist shop / woven flats - UO

Thank you all for the well-wishes on my birthday, both here and on Twitter, I had a great, fairly low-key day. Chris and I have been scoping out potential neighborhoods all week (we're in a short-term place for now), so we spent most of the day on a long walk all the way up to Williamsburg and back. We decided we're definitely too old and uncool to live there, but we'll still visit for the abundant taco trucks and flea markets. On our way I got an extra-lovely birthday surprise - a job! I hadn't expected to get something so quickly, so I'm absolutely thrilled - and now we can actually start apartment-shopping in earnest. We went out for a double-celebration dinner in Park Slope, then ended the night drinking wine on this lady's fire escape.

black magic

jean jacket - LOFT, thrifted / necklace - clyde's rebirth / v-neck - Old Navy / friendship bracelet - gift from high school boyfriend / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / pleated skirt - vintage Liz Claiborne, thrifted / clogs - Target

Both this jacket and skirt were scored on an incredibly fruitful thrifting trip with Tania last week. I've worn the jacket nearly every day since, but this pleated skirt felt like the real 'find' of the day. I've been itching for a longer sheer black skirt for a long time, and for just $2.50, this one really fit the bill. The pleated chiffon feels so dreamy and perfectly floaty, I'm afraid these photos really don't do this magic skirt justice. For a day spent birthday shopping with my mom (tomorrow I'll hit the big 2-7), I loved it with high platforms and this amazing wood and brass necklace I recently bought from Merl, and I'm looking forward to pairing it with tights and cozy sweaters as the weather continues to cool off.

And just in case you haven't seen it yet, yesterday Elaine of Clothed Much featured me in her 'Blog Crush' series! Hers was one of the very first style blogs I ever read, so I'm quite flattered. You can read the whole interview here.

alexalike

brass whistle necklace - vintage via etsy / fox-print tank - Forever 21 / braided belt - vintage, thrifted / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / wide leg jeans - Gap

After months of inertia and indecision, last week I finally printed out a handful of my hair-pins from Pinterest (Alexa Chung and La Klum featured prominently in my ersatz collage) and headed in for my first proper haircut in two years. In some ways, what one chooses to wear to a haircut seems pretty important to me, as it's one of the best ways you can give a new hairdresser some sense of your personal style. I like to think of my style as generally rather 'cute, but low-key,' so I went with a fun printed top, wide leg jeans, and my favorite go-to accessories. I didn't end up going for anything too revolutionary, just a long-ish bob, but my hair feels so much nicer now without all my old straggly ends. Now I'm looking forward to experimenting more with styling it - and of course, if all else fails, it's still long enough for a sock-bun.

secondhander

jacket - thrifted / dress - vintage via etsy / belt - vintage, thrifted / wood & brass bangle - vintage, thrifted / boots - Peter Kaiser, vintage via rummage sale

I didn't realize until putting together this post that everything I wore today is second-hand. It's silly, but wearing outfits that are entirely made up of items that are homemade or second-hand always gives me a little sense of satisfaction.

Today it was lovely and cool (and, ahem, seriously rainy - hence the porch photos), so I jumped at the chance to bring my favorite boots out of storage. I went to a rummage sale in Princeton* last summer with the way-too-specific-to-ever-work-out hope of finding a pair of vintage, cognac leather boots with a low heel and some kind of detail at the ankle, and immediately fished this pair of mint-condition boots made in West (!) Germany out of a rubber bin filled with shoes. They were my size, and they were.... $2. This is what dreams are made of, my friends.

*For any NJ readers, it was the annual White Elephant sale at the hospital - seriously, do not miss it!

tee sea be

brass whistle necklace - vintage via etsy / striped shirt - thrifted / belt - vintage, thrifted / skirt - homemade from a dress, Old Navy (tutorial here!) / sandals - Stockholm tourist shop

After a long night of uploading trouble, template snafus, and the usual last-minute-before-a-deadline frustrations, my stinkin' portfolio is done! Nothing to do but wait for it to be printed and delivered. Now, let us never speak of this again.

Yesterday's outfit was entirely made up of the tried-and-true - I'm still loving my new black floral skirt and my Hasbeens-esque sandals from Sweden, and just added a recently thrifted shirt to the mix. I never met a striped, bateau-neck, 3/4 sleeve shirt I didn't like, and I'm reasonably certain one can never have too many of them. (My boyfriend might contest this last claim.) Now if you'll excuse me, I have a little celebratory breakfast-and-thrifting to do.

again

brass whistle necklace - vintage via etsy / cat print blouse - Zara / wide leg jeans - Gap / watch - Arkanoplatz flea market, Berlin / ring - Amsterdam shop / brogues - Primark

Stockholm waterfront again (as seen from a different island), hair down again (which, BTW, thank you all so much for your sweet comments about the hair yesterday! I am already feeling more comfortable with it.), and what is essentially the same outfit as this one, again. I am getting to that stage of traveling where I'm feeling a little uninspired by everything in my suitcase - I may have petulantly cried, 'I don't know how to get dressed anymore!' this morning (talk about your first world problems). Fortunately, this favorite image seems to be making the rounds on Pinterest again, and since both this blouse and my wide leg jeans were clean, I decided to pair them up and call it an outfit (again). I think I prefer the earlier version just slightly due to the darker denim, but for another day of walking (and more walking), this look proved highly adequate.

Happy weekend!