A grey tube dress is the height of minimalism, yes? Of course, being me, I am going to add a bunch of accessories, but considering the restrained colour palette, I think we can still call this a minimalist look. Work with me here, people!

I have been thinking about this outfit since my trip to Van, where I picked up the hat, shoes and necklace, but decided to pass on the dress. In my mind’s eye, these pieces went together well, but I hesitated over the dress because I wasn’t sure if it was versatile enough to merit the price ($29 at Joe Fresh). A style like this can be too body-con for my taste, and I hate having to wear shapewear for anything less than the most special of occasions. But I kept thinking about the dress, and after seeing it on a co-worker, I decided to take the plunge. I bought a size up from my usual (I’m wearing a Medium) so I wouldn’t (hopefully) have to worry about sucking in, but still enjoy the streamlined cut of the dress. And you know what? It’s such a nice blank canvas, you guys. I have a ton of ideas for how I can wear it, and the heathered grey is a perfect dark neutral without being as stark as black. [As you know, I struggle with black dresses.]

Looking at these photos, I realize that these Zara flats make my (already big) feet look ginormous, but … I kinda don’t care? They’re sort of almost ugly in an interesting, high fashion way – which, come to think of it, is a good way to describe a lot of the stuff sold at Zara. That sort of thing is usually too “advanced style” for me, but I think it, well, sort of works in this case. Yes? Yes!

But, to be on the safe side, I’ve been experimenting with other footwear options too. To wit:

My peeps on Insta loved this outfit, which … I mean, don’t get me wrong, I’m always thrilled to get compliments, but sometimes they also make me go “hmmm”. See, I wouldn’t say that this is a very “Adina” outfit. It’s more of a “who Adina would like to be, maybe, one day, when she grows up” kind of outfit. The real current me is thinking “how can I sneak another print/colour up in here?” But the more people like an outfit like this, the more I question if I dare wear another one of my typical loud looks the next time. The head pats, they are addictive, friends.

Basically, this is the definition of #bloggerproblems.

Moving on. All kidding aside, this outfit is a good example of looking put together without much effort, and in a way that’s compatible with the requirements of kid wrangling. In other words, perfect for weekend outings with the family.

July was kind of a blur and, to be honest, I’m still a little bit in denial about the fact that it’s already August. It was a busy month (as usual), not least because my little guy turned 4 (where did that time go?) and I proceeded to freak out a little bit more about my 35th birthday, which followed shortly. I tried to rationalize my (irrational?) reaction for what seemed like an eternity but, in the end, I just accepted that this birthday was going to hit me in the feels no matter what, and just went with it. I am now officially closer to my 40s than my 20s, y’all. Watch out for falling skies.

Any-navelgazing-way.

For some reason, I only have 18 outfits to show you for July, but they’re not a bad bunch. See?

Outfit-wise, it was a good month, yeah? I liked most of these a lot, though my favourites were probably #1, #7, #8, #16 and #17. Least favourites were #3 (blah) and #10 (too buttoned up for summer). I got a bunch of new pieces this month that I adore, including the white linen blazer and print pants from J. Crew Factory (outfit #17) and the Tibi dress (outfit #14). Other recent pieces that made their appearance this month are the floral J. Crew skirt and blouse, and the Liberty print blazer. As you can see, the blush Topshop blazer is still going strong as well.

I know we’re getting to that time of year when a lot of bloggers are squealing over all things OMGFall but I, for one, am super pumped for another month of summer (and, hopefully, a really warm September too). First and foremost because #WinterIsComing (and don’t you forget it), but also because I want another few opportunities to wear some of my fave summer pieces. Who’s with me?