One Piece Three Ways: Denim Jacket

For some of us, the denim jacket is a (casual) wardrobe staple, and it’s certainly easy to sing its praises if you’ve a convert to its magical ability to go with absolutely everything. I wasn’t always, but I became one as soon as I found a denim jacket that fit me properly (not always an easy task). The thing about a denim jacket is that it works with different styles … and different seasons. That was the rationale, anyway, behind Cassie’s and my idea for this blog collaboration: transitioning the denim jacket from summer to fall, times two. Two different blogger’s closets, that is. Oh, and since we had so much fun coming up with outfits, we decided to each show you 3 ways to wear the denim jacket: summer, early fall, and late fall.

Up first, of course, the summer look. I love Cassie’s take on it, and wish I could find a pair of white jeans of my own to pull off a similar look – perfect for casual Fridays (or casual offices any time of the week), or the weekend. My take is a little more casual. I wear my denim jacket with just about everything whenever the weather calls for a topper; it hasn’t happened as often this summer in Edmonton, but there is still time! I decided to go with shorts for this outfit, because I’ve been basically living in shorts on weekends this summer.

denim jacket, Tommy Hilfiger Factory; t-shirt, Old Navy; shorts & sandals, J. Crew Factory
denim jacket, Tommy Hilfiger Factory; t-shirt, Old Navy; shorts & sandals, J. Crew Factory
easy breezy ... you know the drill
easy breezy … you know the drill

There is nothing ground-breaking about this outfit, but the blue-white-black palette is clean and classic, and the denim jacket gives a bit of structure that makes the whole thing look more polished and put together. And it’s easy, breezy – which is all we really want on a beautiful summer day.

the mom-niform
the mom-niform
denim blues (and white, and black)
denim blues (and white, and black)

Don’t forget to check back on Wednesday and Friday for two more denim jacket looks! And don’t forget to check out Cassie’s blog, The Minuteglass, as well!

Vacation Style: Print Mixing Encore

Dress, RACHEL Rachel Roy (thrifted); top, J. Crew; shoes, J. Crew Factory; bag, Longchamps
Dress, RACHEL Rachel Roy (thrifted); top, J. Crew; shoes, J. Crew Factory; bag, Longchamps

Why, yes – I am determined to wear this J. Crew sweatshirt with EVERY. Single. Damn. Thing in my closet. I hope that’s cool with you. This iteration was one of my fave vacation OOTDs; paired with a thrifted Rachel Roy bird-print dress, it was perfect for one of the chillier days we got in Vancouver. For the most part, it was hot and sunny (the only upside of the terrible drought), so the dress turned out to be a smart buy – it’s light and airy on its own, but layers very well. I rock the whole travel capsule thing when I put the least amount of effort into it. There is a moral in that, I’m sure.

hello, pockets!
hello, pockets!
the details - birds and flowers
the details – birds and flowers

Birds and flowers go together, right? Yasss!

the cat-ate-the-canary smile :)
the cat-ate-the-canary smile 🙂

Vacation Style: Thrift Edition

Dress, Anthropologie (thrifted); top, J. Crew; shoes, Old Navy; bag, Longchamps
Dress, Anthropologie (thrifted); top, J. Crew; shoes, Old Navy; bag, Longchamps

I thrifted this Meadow Rue dress … thingie right before my vacation to Vancouver, so I had to bring it with me, of course. Wait to wear a new frock? Pshaw! Besides, it’s perfect for kid-wrangling. The linen blend fabric is pretty much indestructible (it survived a close encounter with peanut butter – long and not terribly entertaining story) and those ginormous pockets are perfect for carrying all sorts of vacation ephemera. I can probably smuggle a ferret or other small furry animal in there. Not that I want to, or have needed to. Thankfully. Yet.

the new potato sack of glory?
the new potato sack of glory?
got potato sack, will travel
got potato sack, will travel

Potato sack dresses are not the height of style, especially when they’re a size or two too big, but comfort is also never overrated in my books. For $10, this dress delivers all the potato sack-y comfort and then some.

my, what big pockets you've got there ...
my, what big pockets you’ve got there …

This dress is also pretty versatile, in the sense that it goes well with a lot of different tops. Here’s another way that I wore it in Van (and a peek at the cute cross strap detail in the back):

top, H&M; shoes, J. Crew Factory; necklace, J. Crew
top, H&M; shoes, J. Crew Factory; necklace, J. Crew