Busy!

Having a hectic Sunday although the weather improved!

Day:

Night:

Steamed!

The 96 degree temperature and 80% humidity means you are being steam cooked slowly. Light cotton dresses are your friends here. For the day:

 

That cardigan was used to ward of chills from AC-ed interiors!

For the night: 

Heat wave

Temperature was in mid 90s today, which meant something light and cool for the outside and a bit of layering for the blasting AC’s inside. My black maxi dress has been made for this weather and that little linen jacket provided a bit of warmth when it was needed.

During the day:

At night:

On a mission

The Mission in San Juan Capistrano is one of my favorite sights in our neck of the woods. Although spring is the best season to enjoy its beauty and the abundant of flowers, it is still charming in early summer as well.

This chambray dress from last year can easily be my ideal piece of clothing. It’s simple, structured, can be dressed up or down, is light and airy, the color is a gorgeous indigo and most importantly has pockets. And of course it’s from Anthropologie!

This little linen jack from Target goes perfectly with so many outfits that I’m amazed why it’s not sold out!

Geo print

What I had on today? These geo print pants spiced up with a jacket and a twinkly necklace.
Why this sudden interest in Forever21? Because when I want to experiment with a new trend or a clothing item, I start with the least expensive version I can find. If that trend showed staying power or that item could work with the rest of my wardrobe, I will start looking for its higher quality pricier versions.  I’ve found out this is the best approach for convincing my classic loving self to try new things.

White out

I think I've finally found an acceptable white tee. I should have bought more than one!

Finally Friday

Having a lunch and shopping date with my friend was the best way to spend my Friday.

Emerald dreams

To spend half a day with friends, overdose on tasty seafood and window-shop in Asian Garden Mall, I needed something light and airy and chic. This wonderful dress fitted perfectly.

Flowers and lace

or black and white.

Playing with those Ikat print pants gave me the confidence to try on the scariest item of clothing: the floral print pants. This pair is from Forever21 and I just received it in the mail today. I had to wear it this evening for my grocery and takeout run, had to…

On another note, what do you think of Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill? One opened in our neighborhood last month. I tried it and was not impressed. I think I stay faithful to Daphne’s. What about you?

Sweet summer afternoon

These days I tend to cherish my downtime after more than a year of hard work and being stressed. It’s hard to collect momentum in the morning but my motivation to leave the house is the gorgeous weather we are having. For an afternoon of walking and running errands:

How I (finally) wore printed pants:

Back in April when I was still writing the main chapters of my dissertation, one Sunday afternoon, I decided to take an hour break and go bra-shopping. I knew what I wanted, double checking the Victoria’s secret catalog and website, so figured it would be an in and out excursion (including the 40 minutes drive to and from). I got to the mall and parked at the entrance as close to VS as I could to minimize distraction and temptation. I went in, found the bra and stood in the cashier line to pay for it. What I kept seeing was PRINTED PANTS… everywhere. Three women standing in front of me had them on, a few others still browsing were wearing prints and when I finally came out… I was seeing printed pants on three out of five women passing me. Ten steps out of the store and I made a decision. I always associated printed pants with older ladies and have resisted trying them on these last couple of years although they have become trendy from 2011. Maybe it is time to give it a try, yes? I headed first to Ann Taylor and then to J. Crew to try on printed pants. These stores had lots and lots of options, none of which looked good on my hourglass short-legged figure. To convince myself of not leaving any stone unturned, I went into Forever21 and looked for a pair of cotton printed pants. Lo and behold, the Shopping Gods delivered. These black Ikat pants fitted me perfectly and beautifully and the pattern looked good on me. The price was so low that I decided to get them in taupe as well. It is so hard for me to find well-fitting pants that whenever I do, I try and stock up!

My quick shopping trip turned into a three and half hours workout and then I was back in my closet trying to match the pants with tops. I have been wearing these pants a couple of times per week for the last two months and have been happy with the outfit I put together. I always match them with solid tops and keep to a similar color combination. Also I prefer my tops on the longer side with these pants and wear heels most of the time to avoid looking short. These are a few of outfits I put together with these pants.

Teaching them softly!

A couple of other outfits I wore to teach that Adult-learners class back in November and December of 2012. That class was part of another university and their students are professionals pursuing a degree. Therefore, all look very concerned about appearances.

My other outfits for this course: here, here and here.

Rushed!

I have been busy with organizing the whole day. Just had time in the evening before stores closed to rush out and buy grocery, a storage box, take-out dinner and painkiller.

Long time, no see!

Hello darlings,

It has been a very long time since I’ve posted here. I have been working hard on my research, taking exams to complete my degree’s requirements, teaching in winter quarter, writing a couple of papers and submitting to the journals, writing my dissertation and finally defending my dissertation. Therefore I was conserving my writing energy and creative powers for my academic work, necessary albeit dull and boring.

Now the wait is finally over and I can start posting here. I will give the highlights of my last seven months in the form of outfits I had on for those occasions.

There is also going to be some talk about lifestyle changes, defining new goals, and the turns a person’s life takes while I’m figuring out my new life and adjusting to some pretty big changes. Please bear with me, I promise to make them entertaining!