Last month, I showed you how I wear a basic uniform during the week, changing things up a little with accessories and blouses. Now that it’s officially summer at our house and the temperature is creeping close to triple digits, I’m reaching for skirts and shorts to stay cool. To be honest, I’ve never felt confident wearing shorts in public, and I’ve always worn them privately at home. But chasing after two little boys makes me sweat, and since I’m already wearing them to the park, it seems okay to venture other places in shorts, too, as long as I feel dressed up otherwise. So I’m slowly adding one pair to my outfits, and I feel inspired by this post on shorts by Wardrobe Oxygen. I’ll never rock Daisy Dukes at the grocery store, but a structured pair of bermuda shorts in a dark wash is basically the same look as a denim skirt.
Here’s what I wore last week while going about my days. As with the last set of outfits I featured, all of these photos were taken with my phone, right before I walked out the door. But I now have a longer mirror, and I got a little creative propping it up on a book basket. You’ll also notice repeats of previously worn blouses, because I wear my things over and over again, especially if I feel comfortable in them.
(On my way to renew my driver’s license.)
I’ll admit to putting some thought into this outfit, since I knew I was having my picture taken for my license, and I wanted to wear a top that was simple, but fun. The lady who helped me at the DPS office loved horses, so she loved this top from Anthropologie, previously worn here. I paired it with a black broomstick skirt from Anthropologie, which I wore to Alt last winter, and I just threw on my favorite ivory flats. I feel very casual-chic in this outfit, and it’s comfortable, too.
(Celebrating the first day of summer at our house.)
Last Thursday marked the boys’ first official day off from school, and it rained off and on throughout the day. We celebrated summer by making a trip to Walgreen’s and then eating lunch at their favorite place, Dairy Queen. Where else? I wore a comfy striped shirt featured in the uniform post, and a new denim skirt from Old Navy. I love simple denim skirts, and I’ve been on the hunt for one recently. (In my research into fair trade and ethical clothing practices, I’ve discovered that Gap, Inc., which owns Old Navy, is working to improve their relationship with clothing manufacturers overseas, and they are consistently rated among the world’s most ethical companies. That’s a start, and though I rarely shop the Gap brands, I feel a little better about it than I did years ago.) I also added my favorite recycled beads and my trusty ivory flats, again.
(On my way to the boys’ gymnastics playtime.)
I’ve signed James and Rhys up for a summer gymnastics program, and Friday morning, we headed out for an hour of free play. I have to chase the boys around a large gym while we are barefoot, so I felt really comfortable wearing a pair of dark denim shorts and a comfortable top, also worn in the uniform post. Normally, I’d accessorize with a chunky necklace or bracelet, but I kept it simple for our hour of playtime. And the ivory flats are perfect for slipping off and on before and after class. As you can see, there’s not much difference in the silhouette between the denim skirt and shorts, and I think the modest length makes me feel comfortable wearing shorts in public.
(Going to an accessories swap.)
Saturday, I attended an accessories swap hosted by my blogger friend, Miss Donna, and it was incredibly hot that afternoon. I dressed things up a little with a lace print skirt, bought at a small boutique in San Antonio last year, and a very old black top that pairs well with so many things. I believe the blouse is from Kohl’s, and though it’s hard to tell in the picture, it has a row of rivets beaded across the scoop neck, which gives it a bit of edginess. I felt cool and comfortable in this outfit, and my trusty old ivory flats work well with the skirt, too.
(Heading out to Marble Falls.)
Sunday, we took a drive out to Marble Falls, Texas, to eat at Dairy Queen and enjoy the local park. I anticipated a long car ride and the heat, so I chose shorts for the trip. I was feeling a bit vintage-y that day, so I wore another version of the Anthropologie tee, also from the uniform post, and pinned my hair back to stay cool. I also wore a pair of very old bronze wedges that are incredibly comfortable and give me a bit of height. Ryan said I looked like a Bomb Girl, so I guess my vintage style was successful. The weather was actually very mild after an early-morning storm, and I felt cool and comfortable all day long. Even though I wore shorts, I felt dressy with my vintage style, and I think I’ll wear this look a lot this summer.
You can tell that I still favor a uniform, and I really just swap out basic pieces for others, depending on the occasion. I tend to wear the same shoes all the time, until I find a new favorite, so I’m shopping my closet and adding other pairs for interest. These are some of my basics for summer, and I hope to share more variations with you soon.
(Geranium (Monsonia sp) with roots and a detail of a section, Robert Jacob Gordon via the Rijksmuseum.)
I prefer to use my own photographs in my blog posts, and on the rare occasion when I feature an image that is not mine, I go to great lengths to give it proper credit. I know sourcing images is a delicate topic in the blogging world, and I only want to share what works for me. I also realize I’m incredibly pedantic when it comes to crediting the photography of others, but it’s just something I prefer to do. Blame it on the English teacher in me.
Here are a couple of techniques I use regularly to make sure I’m properly featuring the images and photographs of others on my blog. I also do this purely as a hobby, so it’s totally for fun!
If I decide to write a post about a fashion line, like the Claire Pettibone wedding dress collection, I will actively seek out and email the designer’s PR representative. Most consumer sites have “Press” or “Contact” icons somewhere on their landing page, and it’s easy to get in touch with someone representing the company. For the Pettibone post, I just mentioned that I loved the dresses and hoped to write a blog post about them, and I asked if it would be possible to use a few photographs on my blog. Soon after sending the email, I received a very nice response and an entire folder of photographs from the most recent collection. It was more than I had hoped for, and I spent several hours pouring over the beautiful creations by Claire Pettibone.
I’ve also contacted PR representatives and never received a response, and that is just par for the course, too. In those cases, I try to be a bit creative and, if I own the product I plan to feature, then it’s easy to take my own photographs. No harm done. In my experience, most of the people I’ve contacted (illustrators and designers) have been incredibly helpful to work with and are excited to share their work.
When I decided to write about Isabella Blow recently, I purposely sought out a public domain image and found one, which had been released by the photographer himself. That was a wonderful surprise for me, and I felt relieved to easily feature a photograph of a famous person. Alt Summit’s blog recently mentioned Vintage Printable as an amazing source for public domain images, and I’ve had a blast searching their archives over the past few weeks, even using a couple images in my blog posts.
And last week, Karina from Pugly Pixel wrote about another awesome source for high-resolution art images. The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam is now featuring a large number of their pieces online, to download and adapt into new projects. The museum has created a new online community, called Rijksstudio, which allows you to save your favorite pieces and arrange them into sets. It’s a wonderful way to enjoy the works you love, and you are free to adapt them to your own artistic needs and desires, too. The museum even encourages you to share your new creations online. I love the idea of using classic works of art in new and modern ways!
These are the main techniques I utilize to feature images that are not my own, and I hope you’ll feel free to suggest other ways, too.
I realized this week that Shayla and I have been working on this collaboration for four months now, and we are still going strong! If you would like us to cover different topics, I hope you’ll feel free to suggest them.
Today’s question is: Have You Met Other Bloggers in Real Life?
If you read my blog regularly, then you know my answer is YES! One of the reasons I started blogging was to make connections with other bloggers, and I’ve been fortunate to meet quite a few since last summer. I jumped in with both feet and attended Alt Summit in January, so I got to rub elbows with literally hundreds of other bloggers in real life. I finally got to meet Sandra from Raincoast Creative Salon (formerly Raincoast Cottage), who was literally my ticket to the conference. Once she was tapped as a speaker, she sold me her conference ticket and I was on my way! I also ran into Bethany of The Glamorous Housewife, a blogger role model of mine, as well as dozens of other wonderful bloggers.
Locally, I’ve become friends with Miss Donna of Discount Thief and The Unemployed Entrepreneur, and Lindsay from Black & Blonde. Both Donna and Lindsay are fellow Blog Trends members, and when Lindsay was planning a move to Austin, we became Twitter friends and chatted secretly for months. I was thrilled when she finally moved here, and the three of us live close enough to call each other neighbors! Both ladies attended my blogger and creative get-together, and I also invited Tara from Musical Soup Eaters. Blogging really makes the world smaller, and I discovered that I actually knew Tara from years ago.
I’ve also attended a couple of store events at Anthropologie and met a few fellow bloggers there, too. Things have been busy for my family lately, and I’ve been unable to host or attend any events, but I always look forward to meeting new bloggers around town.
Of course, the blogger I’m most excited to meet one of these days is Shayla, but I know I’ll have to wait a while. She’s gearing up to meet her first baby this fall, but one day, we’ll make it happen! I still need to figure out what town is halfway between Austin and Sioux Lookout.
Be sure to check out Shayla’s response this week, and let us know if you’ve met other bloggers in real life, too!
