Summer wardrobe.

Quite a while ago, i got a suggestion on Formspring to do a post on my favorite summer clothing items, i quickly got to making a little list, but never took the time to actually take photos.  (Sorry girly!)  Well, i finally got around to doing so.

I didn't exactly pick out my 'favorite summer clothing items' to show you guys, but i wanted to kind of give a little insight into what kind of clothes i've been wearing during these warmer months.  So i split this post into categories based on trends or types of pieces (ie. crop tops, sheer tops, etc.) and picked pieces that i thought did well reflecting each category.  I didn't include accessories or shoes, i might do accessories in a different post, but i didn't do shoes because i've literally been faithful to one or two pairs of shoes & i just wear flip flops by the pool/at the beach!  I did include bags though, because i view those as an essential, just like a shirt or bottoms. :)

My style is generally kind of 'effortless' & not incredibly dressy or anything, so this summer is no different.  I do like to dress up a bit don't get me wrong, but i don't like to look like i've tried too hard.  I also just feel more comfortable in generally more casual clothes.

With that being said, here is a little glimpse of what i've been wearing this summer. ♥

Crop tops

I've been quite liking wearing crop tops this summer, particularly with print or typography on them.  I generally wear longer crop tops as i don't think i can pull off shorter ones!  I typically wear a little cami or tank top under them, like if i'm going to work or something, so my belly's not hanging out (haha, problem area :P).

They look great thrown on with a pair of denim shorts & sandals or flats.

birdcage & 'weekend warrior' tops - Forever 21, triangle print top - thrifted

 Sheer tops

I like wearing sheer tops year round really, but i think they look particularly appropriate during the warmer months.  There's just a romantic and effortless feel to them, making them really easy & comfortable to wear.  For the summer, i like to stick to lighter shades - they just feel more summery & also don't absorb as much light/heat!  Again, these look great with shorts or even with dark wash jeans for cooler days or at night.

Peach long sleeve top - H&M, floral two-layer top - New Look, white pussybow blouse - H&M

Color & patterns

Summer is the one time of year i can wear super bright colors & bold patterns without making a spectacle of myself.  And with the sun shining & no clouds in the sky, who wants to wear dark or boring clothes anyway? ;)  If i'm wearing a top with a bold color or pattern, i like to keep everything else fairly neutral so that piece really gets the focus & it's not too overwhelming.

Bright yellow top - Primark, tribal print top - Forever 21, hot pink pussybow blouse - Primark

Dresses & rompers

If i'm going somewhere that i wouldn't be able to wear something casual (like jean shorts) to or if i just feel like it, i'll throw on a dress or romper like the ones above (they're all dresses, but rompers like the one in this post!).  I love anything floral, but mixing it up with tie-dye or another pattern is always nice & summery as well!  I typically like my dresses to be cotton dresses (one on the right) or a flowy material (one in middle), i find they're more suitable for the weather.  Again, they're something you can just throw on & go!

Both floral dresses - New Look, tie-dye dress - thrifted

Shorts

I'm definitely more of a shorts person than a skirt person as i feel more comfortable in them.  I ordered about four pairs of shorts from Forever 21 but have only really worn two pairs of them because i'm quite picky about the fit of them!  I think everyone needs a pair of denim shorts in her wardrobe, they're super versatile and always in style.  (I've been wanting a pair of studded ones for months now!  So edgy & 'cool').  Just as with skirts, it's fun to play with patterns & colors of shorts. :)

Jean boyfriend shorts - H&M, tribal print shorts & pinky/khaki shorts - Forever 21

Crochet/lace vests

If i feel a bit exposed & just want to cover up a bit or want to add a nice detail to an outfit, i'll throw on one of these.  I think they're really cute & add a bit of texture and interest to an outfit.  I've just realized within the past couple weeks how important texture is in an outfit - if you have a outfit where every piece is solid & flat, it's a bit boring really, and trust me, i've had plenty of outfits like this but just couldn't figure out why they were so uninteresting!  These offer a bit of coverage without compromising style and without making you really warm.

Crochet vest - Kohl's, lace vest - thrifted

Denim jackets

I love love love myself a denim jacket!  Something about them just shouts 'badass' to me.  They're perfect for summer nights as they aren't incredibly, incredibly thick & cozy, but they still offer a bit of warmth.  I've acquired four denim jackets just in the past few months in different washes, but the two above are my faves.  Love light to medium washed jackets, that are also a bit cropped, but not too much, and of course with the sleeves rolled up.  These look awesome over literally everything, and i think as long as the washes aren't too similar, you can pull off wearing them with jeans (for example, i'd wear one of these jackets with dark wash jeans).

Medium wash jacket - thrifted, light wash - Primark

 Cross-body bags

No one wants to lug around a big, heavy shoulder bag during the summer (at least i don't....), so a cross-body or messenger style bag is definitely suitable.  They'll hold all (or at least most ;) of your 'stuff' and are lightweight so they won't drag you down.  Most of them are smaller as well, so it'll force you to only take the essentials.  Most of the time i'll take the fringe bag on the left - definitely one of my favorite bags i own, but if i'm going to work or generally have to take more things & bigger things with me, i'll opt for the satchel on the right which has a much bigger capacity.  Both are fantastic!

Fringe bag - Primark, satchel - Target

♥

What I've Been Up To...

Just a quick little post for you all, but wanted to get something for you lovely ladies.  I thought i'd share what i've been up to lately and what's been keeping me from blogging.  It is quite a long post, but you know me - i tend to ramble a bit.  Please bear with the fact that these were all taken with the camera on my phone, have just been too lazy to take photos on my Canon!  Yes, i know i just got it a few months ago, but i'm just too lazy i suppose! ♥

♥ Animal print top from H&M - i have been loving H&M lately!

♥ A little OOTD.  Can you tell i've been obsessed with that floaty floral top?  It's from New Look. <3 Bracelet, Primark; floaty sheer top on top, H&M; jeans, Old Navy.

♥ I had a little incident with my straightner... so the straightner i brought to London with me kind of blew up (voltage fail!), so when i came home i had to buy a new one.  I bought basically the cheapest one i could find that looked okay and since it was sans auto-shut off, this is what happened!  It burnt my carpet.  Lovely.  Needless to say that straightner went back and i got one with auto-shut off.  It's better anyway. :)

♥ Strawberry Pop-tarts om nom.

♥ Crazy hair ftw.

♥ Saw this shirt in the men's section at work and it made me laugh for some reason... don't even know who those men are!  Must've been overly tired...

♥ My sister's graduation from college.  So proud of her. :)  Didn't even get half the people in the audience in the photo!  Insane.

♥ Workkkkkkkkk.  I went through the sections of the store, went through every single item to find the ones with pink tags, took the items off their hangers, and put them in a cart.  We donate these items (the ones we don't sell in a certain amount of time) to charity. :)

♥ Feeling like a badass in my New Look varsity jacket... haha, don't judge me. ;P

&heart; Went to Six Flags with school.  I do love my roller coasters!  The one in the photo is part of Superman: Ultimate Flight, which is brillllliant.

♥ So, i forgot to put on sunscreen the day i went to Six Flags and as i result, i got some pretty sexy tanlines  bad sunburn. D:

♥ See, this is why i don't wear geek glasses!  Just had to pick them up when i was in Primark though. ;)

♥ The lighting in my house is quite lovely at times, especially in this part of the year. :)

♥ We have this thing at work where all the employees make a Barbie version of themselves, so that's what's on the wall to the left of me!  Our shop is known as that "place with all the Barbies on the walls", so it's just a cute little thing that we do.  Yes, it's a bit odd, but i don't even notice all the Barbies anymore.. haha.

♥ To go along with the story above, this is mine!  Yes, she is too tan and her hair is a bit too lustrous, but it was impossible to find a Barbie with my color hair, blue eyes, and pale skin.

-

Other little bits and bobs:

♥ Have been lacking the motivation to blog as of late.  I really want to actually, i'm just usually too lazy to take photos of the products/whatever i want to blog about, upload them to the computer, etc etc.  Will hopefully get around to blogging more once school ends!

♥ Bought tickets to see Bon Iver in July!  Justin Vernon is actually from my home state and i have some cousins up north where he's from. :)  It's just so cool to me that he's from my neck of the woods.  He seems so relatable and humble since he embraces where he's from and keeps that "small town" feeling in his music and.. yeah.  I'm a dork.  His music his beautiful as well, definitely check Bon Iver out if you haven't already. <3

♥ School ends on the 10th for me (that's the final day of exams) so that's been wrapping up.  Have so much to catch up on and so much to get done, i'm kind of drowning in my work, but the stress and anxiety hasn't hit me yet... Bring on the three month break, please!  Can't believe my peers & me will be seniors next year - the "top dogs" in high school, as it were. ;)  Haha.  WE'RE SO OLD.  As much as i hate high school, i kind of don't want to leave and move on with my life...

♥ Have been loving these Youtube ladies: Alexandra, Hannah, Zoe, and Barbara.

♥

Denim, waves, & floral print.

I find myself going through phases of liking my hair a certain way, or wearing a certain color or pattern excessively (such as black...ahem), etc. and i'm going through one of these phases at the mo!  I've really been loving denim jackets, beachy/wavy hair, and floral prints (in case you didn't catch the hint from the title of this post ;).  All three of these current faves are orientated around spring/summer, so i think these will be loves of mine for a while...

1. Denim jackets: The jacket i'm wearing in the photos in this post is from the beloved Primark.  It's crazy how many outfits you can put this over - dresses, dressier tops, more casual tops, the list goes onnnnnn.  It makes me feel a bit more put together and i don't know about you, but i just feel a bit 'cooler' wearing a jean jacket... maybe i'm just a dork. ;)  Many people may say you shouldn't wear denim-on-denim, but i think as long as you're not trying to match the washes of the denim, it's fine (as i display below with the jacket in question and some dark-wash skinny jeans).

Denim jackets are perfect for the spring and summer since they're light, but still provide a bit of warmth and coverage, and are versatile. :)

2. Beachy/wavy hair: I believe this current love of mine was sparked by the purchasing of Charles Worthington's Front Row Rough & Tough Salt Spray, which i got in Boots whilst in London.  It helps add a bit of texture to your hair and helps to bring out my natural waves.  My hair routine as of late has been as follows: shower at night, brush hair out with Tangle Teezer (that bright pink thing in the photo below), fishtail braid my hair, spritz it with hairspray and let it dry a bit overnight.  The next morning, i then take the braid out and it's still a bit damp, so i ruffle it a bit & scrunch it with my hands as well.  I spray the Salt Spray all over and with a diffuser, i blow dry my hair, scrunching more with my hands as i go.  Once it's dry, i hairspray it and if i want, i'll use my straightener to curl a few pieces of my hair.  I then finish off with a bit of Umberto Giannini's Backcomb in a Bottle. :)

Since i don't wash my hair everyday, i simply brush out my hair again with the Tangle Teezer before i go to bed (my hair still maintains a bit of the waves) and put my hair back in the fishtail braid to sleep.  Sometimes i add a bit more of the Salt Spray in the following morning and scrunch it, if not i just hairspray it and put more Backcomb in a Bottle in.

3. Floral print: I don't think i'll never not like myself a bit of floral print to be honest.  It makes me feel so girly and there are so many different ways to wear it... speaking of, i am really craving some floral shorts and floral sneakers at the moment, they would be so perfect for the summer!  The top i'm wearing in the photo above is another piece i got from London and it's from New Look.  It's so flowy, sheer, and gorgeous.  I'm obsessed.

What are you currently loving?

♥

Gosh & Sleek Loving.

Haven't done one of these 'face of the day' type of posts in a while, i'm sure you can see why. ;)  I feel a bit vain posting pictures of my mug up for the people of the internet to see to be honest, haha.  I figured i'd do one anyway to show some of the products i got from my trip actually put to use.

I've absolutely been loving the Gosh eyeliner and Sleek Contour Kit, they are both new staples in my collection.  The Gosh liner totally tops Urban Decay's famous 24/7 one in Zero like it's nobody's business.  If you can get your hands on it, definitely try it out!  And the contour kit was a total bargain, don't think i'll be able to live without it from now on!  Makes the skin look gaaaaaawgeous and hasn't broken me out, which many drugstore products seem to do *knocks on wood*.

The Two Faced 'Illuminating' Shadow Insurance in Candlelight is totally new to me, i hadn't heard of it until my sister gave it to me (i think she got it as a 500 point perk at Sephora).  I really do quite like it though!  It's not as opaque as the Urban Decay primers are (ie. Sin), which i actually prefer.  It's just as good as the original staying-power-wise and it does brighten up the eye area to help make it look like you actually got your 8+ hours of beauty sleep - hence the 'illuminating' bit - without making it look like you have packed a ton of product on your eyes (like i have below haha ;).  Mac's Shroom looks amazing over it btw. :)

Hope you're not too offended by this little 'mug face of the day'!

Said Sleek Contour Kit & Gosh Eyeliner

Eyes

Too Faced Shadow Insurance in Candlelight

Mac Shroom e/s all over lid and inner corner & brow bone highlight

Mac Satin Taupe e/s in crease

Barry M Dazzle Dust in Chocolate in the outer corner

L'Oreal Linear Intense in Black - winged out with a bit of Urban Decay's Oilslick e/s on top to set

Gosh Velvet Touch Eyeliner in Blank Ink

Clinique High Impact mascara

Face

Benefit Erase Paste under eyes

Mac Studio Finish concealer on blemishes

Bare Minerals Original Foundation

Sleek Contour Kit in Light

Clinique Pressed Powder blush in New Clover

Bare Minerals Mineral Veil to set

Lips

Carmex :)

Hair & outfit

Will do a little post on the hair at some point. :)

top - New Look, earrings - Primark

♥

Outfit: 5/6/11

Hello again. ;)  The other day i actually felt up to taking photos of what i wore to show you all (i usually just can't be bothered, they never turn out, something is always wrong in them to me :P).  Most of the pieces i'm wearing are things i bought while in London and from my new favorite store, Primark, nonetheless.  I tweeted about this the other day, but they NEED an online store.  I don't know what i'll do for clothes now that i'm Primarni obsessed!

I promise you i'll try to get that haul up with everything i got, i really want to show you guys!  I filmed a vloggy-type video with me talking about the trip, but it's so long and i don't know if that's something you'd all be interested in watching, but i'll edit it down when i have the time and see how i feel.

Onto the clothes!

dress - New Look

cardigan, floral & tribal bracelets, earrings, and ring - all Primark

silver cuff bracelet - Tudor bracelet from Shakespeare's Birthplace gift shop

watch - Anne Klein

nails - Barry M 318 Peach Melba

One of my go-to outfit combos is a dress and leggings, with a cardigan layered over top.  It's an easy way to be comfortable, yet still look put-together at the same time.  This specific cardigan has to be my absolute favorite that i own!  It got it two sizes too big (as it was the only size left really, besides like size six, which i suppose was fate!) than i am, which i quite like as it has a more casual look i suppose.  I usually wear my trusty black Old Navy cardigan, which i am slowly but surely getting sick of, but i've been into color and lighter fabrics this spring/summer, so this light grey is perfect.  It's also not to heavy and thick to wear during the warmer months.  I'm in love!

I really LOVE this dress as well.  I went kind of flower-crazy in New Look and bought three floral dresses and floral top... but they are all so lovely!  I think i've found my new favorite style of dress as well, with the waist defined where it is.  I used to think i couldn't wear this style of dress, but i've gotten a few comments from people irl that the cut is super flattering on me, quite a self-esteem boost & not a compliment i'm used to getting!

I wanted to wear my trusty fringe sandals with this outfit, but i had a bit of an accident that involved half of the nail on my big toe being ripped off (lovely image there, no?), and this problem cannot be solved with nail polish!  So i ended up wearing black flats with it, which i thought added a bit of a damper to the outfit, but the rest of the outfit looked quite nice i thought. :)

Hope you all have an amazing weekend & Mother's Day (if you live in America :)!

♥