As much as I love getting dressed up, living the glam life I lead here in the Philly suburbs rarely offers the opportunity! The parties we get invited to involve barbecues and backyards, beer and burgers rather than champagne and caviar! So what to wear to these staples of summer in suburbia?
1. Day time party:
For something like this, obviously you don't want to get all decked out. But you obviously need to look cute, since that's always a given, right? I'd recommend maybe a casual dress (if you won't be playing volleyball or anything) or a simple shorts/shirt combo. I just love this outfit from Shade Clothing: a v-neck boyfriend t-shirt, a short sleeved cardigan and shorts. But for all the picnics I'll be attending this summer, my go-to outfit will be a cute tank top and bermuda shorts. And I love combining a cute, girly top with distressed denim.
The White Pant: I love the look of white pants. Having small kids and having a superhuman talent for spilling things myself, they rarely stay white so its not a look I often pull off.
But when I do, I have two staples that have been in my closet for years. A pair of white capri pants and a pair of loose, white trouser pants. I love the new white denim – I'd love a pair of white jeans! I love my current white pants, but they always look wrinkled and it drives me crazy.
Once again I am themeless this week for Fashion Friday, but I've found some adorable things I just need to share! Because spending your money is a favorite hobby of mine.
My three favorite dresses this week:
1. I just LOVE this dress! Being over the age of 19, I think this would be a mite short for me. But wouldn't this look great over a pair of skinny white capris?
Seeing as my Husband is getting an iPhone – the meanie – I'm seeing green this week.
Now personally, you will probably never see me in a bright green shirt, as that is generally not a good look for me. I can pull off sage, but that's about it! But I still love adding green to my look!
1. Green outerwear: Paisley Poem Blazer by J Crew is spring personified in a blazer! I love it! Or this Landmarks Jacket blazer from Anthropologie. How cute would this be with white capris or a jean skirt? This green trench coat is darling if you can pull off that color!
I love sandals. I love my boots – I do! But sandals are my favorite. I look forward to breaking out my sandals every spring!
1. Wedges. I wear them all the time! I just picked up these little cuties at Target: These are so cute with my rolled-up jeans and capris. And can I just tell you that they are super comfortable? And only $25? Sweet. My black wedges (sort of like these) are another go-to item for me, although they are not nearly as comfy as the other ones. Clarks has cute wedges on 6pm.com. For a more formal wedge look, try these gorgeous peep toe espadrille wedges from Banana Republic!
I haven't tried the gladiator sandal look yet. But if I do, I will probably do something like this one: I love how they subtly they follow the trend (and they're metallic! Another trend thrown in!) Something like this is a bit much for me! I also have a pair of Crocs ballet flats (kind of like these) that I wear often.
3. Flip flops: And the ultimate summer staple…. I LIVE in Old Navy flip-flops. How many colors do you have?
Well, we've talked about the swimsuit, but lets chat about the mom's best friend, the cover up! I love swim coverups so much that several of them have woven their way into my summer wardrobe. Really, they were that cute! A swim coverup is a great way to try something trendy that you might not normally try or to try a sundress that might be just a smidge too young for you. When its just thrown over your swimsuit, you can pull just about anything off! Here are my three favorite coverup looks:
Going sleek and modern with a maxi dress. This tube dress from Old Navy is classic. I have this maxi dress from Target and I wore it constantly all summer – not even as a cover up! It became one of my go-to outfits for summer and I constantly got compliments on it. The maxi dress is a prefect coverup –and feels so comfy to throw on after a long day at the beach. Personally, the tube top look is something I can only pull off as a coverup. Not a good look for me normally.
As the temperatures positively SOARED here in the Northeast this week (90 degrees? WHAT?!) spring is in the air! Between that and our rapidly approaching trip to Hawaii (HOLLA!) I am SO excited for warm weather!!! Of course – because this is New England – you know this 90 degree weather is totally going to transition back into snow or something.
So this week, we're going to tackle that annoying in-between weather. When its not really warm enough to wear your summer clothes, but you are so sick of bulky sweaters you could just scream.
1. Lightweight cardigans are prefect for any season. In summer you can layer them over a sleeveless top or strapless dress. In winter, layer over a ruffled blouse or even another light sweater. For an instant spring look, just punch it up with pastels! Corals, pinks, yellow or this gorgeous sky blue cardigan from Anthropologie: This Flower Applique Cardigan from Old Navy with three-quarter length sleeves and a lightweight weave is perfect for spring. Express has a Dreamweight Flyaway Cardigan in some adorable summer colors. The Chiffon Petal V-Neck Cardigan from LOFT just shouts spring.
2. I was NOT a fan of the whole lumberjack look that was creeping up over the winter, but there are some really adorable plaid shirts out there that would will look so cute tucked into jeans or open over a tank top instead of a cardigan. I just picked up this one from Old Navy: Its very lightweight, so it could even be a cute swimsuit cover up later this summer. OhmyWORD, I love this one from Gap. And this one. or a higher end shirt, look at these fabulous ones from Anthropologie and Free People. For another twist on this look, try a tunic!
3.Oh. My. Fluttering. Heart. Oh my. Look at this striped strapless dress. I can't get the picture, but click. You will NOT be sorry. I'm not sure how that fits into this post, but I had to share because its so stinkin' cute.
4. A twill blazer would quickly become one of the most versatile items in your closet – its light enough for spring or summer, but you could wear it all year.
What are your tricks from handling 'in-between' weather?
This spring, my color of choice is blue. Last year I bought everything in coral. Last fall, plum. What can I say… I have an obsessive personality.
1. The blue bag. I am just a little bit in love with this bag by Melie Bianco: Seriously, you could fit a small child in this thing! The studs are so trendy, but they're still subtle enough that the bag won't be outdated next season. AND it has a polka dot lining *eep!* And I would be remiss not to point your attention to this little beauty.But, we could talk about purses all day. So lets move on.
5. The blue dress. Head straight over to Shabby Apple. Do not pass go. They have several totally gorgeous, totally stylish, totally blue dresses. By the way, I'm so glad that the maxi dress is still around. I positively live in them during the smmer! They're so comfy and can be dressed down with a ponytail and flip flops or dressed up with some cute sandals and accessories. (How gorgeous is that necklace! And from Target!) Speaking of accessories…
The phrase "Bathing Suit Season" drives fear in the hearts of women everywhere. And its almost here. *collective sigh* Well, regardless of how ready we are, the swimsuits have hit the stores and we need to snatch them up now because if we wait to June all that we'll find are XXS bottoms, XL tops and Halloween costumes.
So let us begin.
The best swimsuit investment I ever made was buying a bunch of pieces from the same collection to mix and match. Mine is from Gap. I have a variety of pieces in black that I mix and match according to how skinny I feel, including the essential tankini top, essential halter bikini top, essential bikini bottom and swim skirt. I also have the essential one-piece halter suit. I purchased them over about 3 years, both from the store and from the outlet, I didn't pay full price for a single piece. I remember I picked up the one-piece at the outlet for about $12 last year. The skirt? $3. Awesome. Because they're all from Gap, the pieces are totally interchangeable. I know it seems like a lot, but if you purchase classics like these over a year or two, you'll be set for years!
Budget suits:
I've had good luck over the years with suits from Old Navy and Target.
I love this Navy Paisley tankini from Old Navy, if you're looking to liven things up with patterns.
If your tummy is your problem area, I highly recommend a tankini with a swing top, like this from J Crew. I bought a similar tankini from Target for my post-baby summer and it was so comfy, was easy to nurse in and hid my postpartum tummy nicely.
Perhaps you'd like to swim in a diaper? (Can I get a WHAT??!!)
I bought this dotted tankini for the summer. I wanted something strapless, so I wouldn't have tan lines to worry about for my sister's wedding this summer. And, while I always wear bikinis at the beach, I feel weird wearing a bikini to the little kiddie pool at the Y 🙂 So I almost always go with a tankini. I bought both pieces on sale, so for under $30, I got a super cute suit!
Investment suits: Unless you swim every single day, your swimsuit will probably last several years with proper care. So it might be worth investing in a really nice, classic suit that will last you awhile instead of buying a new suit every year.
Spanx has a line of swimwear now that not only is really cute, but slim you as well! I would get this Bandeau One Piece, since the ruffles would provide some interest in an area where I was not abundantly blessed: There are some really, really cute ones at Anthropologie, if you want a more unique look (since is it me or does every other mom at the pool have the Lands End Tankini?). This Mariana one-piece is fabulous! The polka dot pattern is fun and the shape mimics the wrap dress with its draping ruffle, which looks great on so many body types. For a similar look without the ruffle and polka dots, try this suit from J Crew. Athleta has gorgeous swimsuits that will last for years. The Batik flower swim series is really pretty, but I think the Indian Swirl Bowback Tankini is my favorite!
Every year, I swear I won't buy Easter clothing for my kids because 1) it almost always snows or is completely freezing, making the cute spring clothing inappropriate and 2) I always forget about SHOES to go with the cute dresses I picked out, so the girls end up wearing white dresses with their black or brown mary janes, which makes me twitch. But almost every year I cave and buy something. This year I can totally justify it, since we have so many events this summer that they will need to dress up for 😉 So here are a few little gems I found for you:
This dress on the left is the Easter dress that both of my girls wore last year – they were so adorable! They're still available at Target – for only $14! They still fit them, actually, but let's not let that stop us from shopping.
This plaid dress by Chaps is at Kohls for under $25. I love the colors – they turned a traditionally winter print into a bright spring one!
A suit? Sorry. I have to go lie down after all this cuteness. Its just too much for my system. And grieve the fact that there is probably NO WAY that Colin will ever let me put any of these cute outfits on him, seeing as I can barely convince him to wear clothes at all. SOB!
1. Day time party: 
2. Evening party:
