Not As Casual Friday

Too Warm for Denim--Friday, 8/14/15

Focal item: black and beige geometric print knit top

Time for another...dun dun DUN...Reverse Inspiration!  I really like the plaid shirt she's wearing and how the maroon is echoed in the shoes.  She definitely took this idea in a somewhat more colorful direction.

From forsevenseasons.wordpress.com

I love this kind of knit top--it has a pleated neckline from which the fabric drapes nicely.  And since a pleated neckline is a form of dart rotation--a way to allow ample room at the bustline while removing this extra volume elsewhere--it is helps with fit issues as well.  I wish I had more tops in this style (and I know my Mom wants some too).  I need to keep a look-out for them.  I've gotten a couple at the thrift store, including this one.  (It's too bad this photo does not show it off very well but this was the best of the lot--I was standing pretty goofy during this photo shoot.)

Beige/black geometric print knit top (thrifted, Kohls), $2.00/wear+
*Black chambray pencil skirt (thrifted, Larry Levine), $3.99/wear+
Tan and black captoe flats by Clarks, $4.17/wear
Floral mixed metals necklace (Kohls), $5.00/wear+

Outfit total: $15.16/wear

I struggled to think of what to wear this top with except for black pants (already did that) or a black pencil skirt.  But I recently found this somewhat more interesting black chambray pencil skirt at the thrift store, and I think it works nicely with the geometric print in the top.  Maybe next time I'll try with a random vivid color like bright pink, teal, or kelly green, which is sort of my modus operandi.

I was very impressed this morning when I saw that my decision not to wear denim on Friday influenced Robert to have taken both pairs of beige pants to the dry cleaners earlier in the week so that he had to wear grey pants today instead...and Robert always wears beige pants on Friday.  My powers continue to grow.  Of course, after taking a vacation day yesterday (and in my case, being home sick on Wednesday), today feels as much like a Monday as it does a Friday, so maybe this all makes a certain kind of sense.

But in the present instance I am just following the lead of this female gibbon in keeping things simple and neutral by wearing beige and black and a bit of white.

In other news...Speaking of shirts with gathered necklines, a bit after my parents' visit a couple weeks ago, I sent my mom a large envelope marked "You left this" on the outside.  Because I had told my parents during their visit the embarrassing/hilarious story of how teenaged Tam once had a (boy)friend mail her an unopened tampon after her visit one time, my mom was primed for the package to contain something embarrassing like a pair of underwear.  But instead, I had sent her the aqua/white ikat knit top that she had tried on and liked a lot when she visited.  It was Robert's devious idea to mark the package "You left this" and we all had a lot of fun with the result.

At the baseball game yesterday, Robert pointed out that we both were freckling up quite a bit on our arms.  This morning, I found a small (thumbnail sized) bright pink patch on my arm next to my watch--a reminder of what would have happened had I not been wearing sunscreen!

This latest in a recent rash of articles about the flourishing of a different kind of political correctness--here called (rather brilliantly, I think) "vindictive protectiveness"--on college campuses is an excellent read.  I know, it's easy to attribute this kind of thing to a cheaply dismissive "kids today" attitude, but when you read the specific instances in the article...well, some of the goofy shit on Community starts to have a ripped-from-the-headlines kind of feel to it.  (And am I the only one having a sort of, "Simply, grow up" reaction to these kids with their obsession with their own, easily-hurt feelings?)