Here in the middle of December, daylight hours are at a premium. In the summer at 5 p.m. it would feel like the night was young, and now, if I'm not in my pajamas by 5, I start to get cranky. The sunsets, brilliant as they may be, are brief, and then the question of how one can convince themselves to be productive after the last bit of daylight fades away arises.
I don't feel like I can properly color correct my photos in the artificial light, so editing gets delayed. Then as the evening progresses, my ability to string sentences together diminishes. So I'm left with drafting posts (everything but the copy) which then sit and linger as drafts, since the days fly by and before I know it, another week has gone by.
Which is why photos taken the first week of November are just appearing now, and I will continue to tell myself that somehow I will learn how to function through the rest of these short winter days.
Before the pandemic and the stay at home recommendations and my fit of add to cart madness, I was planning on joining Courtney in her spring wardrobe challenge. The rules are simple, no new clothes, wear as much of my existing spring wardrobe as possible, decide what should stay and what is just taking up closet space.
Clearly the no shopping portion of the challenge was pretty significant, and I definitely failed there - however - the important thing to do is just reset and try again, rather than continuing down the path of more shopping. This weekend every time I wanted to make a purchase, I added the piece to a Pinterest board instead. If I'm still obsessing come June 20th (and they are still in stock) then I can buy them.
The second component of the challenge I approached with more gusto, pulling out this Madewell silk wrap top that was purchased December of 2018, and to the best of my recollection, was still yet to be worn; along with this houndstooth print coat, which I've had for over a decade, but hasn't been worn in a few years.
The verdict - I think both pieces can stay. Would you agree?
Now I just need to get out of my lounge wear and put the rest of my spring wardrobe to the test, even if it's for no other reason than to take photos and decide if the pieces should stay or go.
The Rundown Silk Cropped Wrap Blouse Madewell similar White JeansGap Houndstooth Coat Kohl's similar Pointed FlatsRothy's Bucket Bag"Johnny"Danse Lente Simple Pearl Necklace c/o AUrate Midi Stackable Diamond Ring c/o AUrate New York Thin Gold RingEtsyvia Ellyn Blue Jewelry Sunglasses "Meteor"Ray-Ban c/o TJMaxx
I can't believe I haven't posted in three weeks, though in my defense, the last two have been a blur with the world turned to panic over the corona virus pandemic. Remember back at the beginning of the month when life was normal and the virus seemed like a problem far, far, away? Apparently just a few miles from me a party was taking place actively spreading the virus in my state.
My month of fun blogger gatherings has been canceled, though rare, I actually had something for every weekend, and each passing Saturday has felt just a little more sad, thinking about the life being missed out on as we remain tucked away at home.
As my only income at the moment is dog walking with Wag!, naturally the more people are staying home with their pups, they less they need me. I was grateful to have a couple clients this week, I assume their moms have essential jobs they can't stay home from, thus making my job essential. That's how I look at it anyway - I don't think there is much risk in going into a house empty of people as long as I regularly use hand sanitizer. I soaked in every moment of my walks this week, trying to cling to the sense of purposefulness I had at that moment, and the joy of spending time with a dog.
The days at home lead to boredom, which lead to shopping, and now I feel like I can't even scroll through two posts on Instagram without being sucked into a vortex of shopping temptation. Despite my sudden drop in income, there seems to be a disconnect with the logical part of my brain that should be telling me not to click 'add to cart'. In my weakest defense, realtors desperate to keep operations going are serving up some good sales.
I want to try and get back to normal blog posts, try to FaceTime more with my friends who I now haven't seen in weeks, and try to find some creativity in myself. I've been missing it for a long time now, and this housebound situation is making me acutely aware of it.
Of all the disasters that keep us stuck at home, at least we get power and internet access for this one. Silver lining, right?
I know February is nearly over and spring is within sight, but winter still feels hard to get through. Clearly my solution of buying more sweaters hasn't been helping to lift my mood, and the days seem to blur together in a mess of grey clouds and rain, making those moments when the sun does come out difficult to recall.
The days are getting longer, but I haven't noticed, it still feels like it's dark by 4 p.m. and my desire to spend more hours in bed than out in the world hasn't decreased during my first Connecticut winter where instead of being in front of a computer at an office job, I'm out in the elements walking dogs. I thought trading my sedentary existence for a more active one would give me more energy, but that is clearly not happening. At least my stamina has increased, a year ago three consecutive walks would crush me, now I can handle five and continue functioning for the remainder of the day. Still, the moment I arrive home, done for the day, bed beckons.
Back in November I got to meet one of my oldest blogging friends Cee, for the very first time. Cee spends as much time traveling as she possibly can, and over the years I've thought about the times our paths almost could have crossed. When she mentioned that she'd impulsively booked a trip to New York, my first thought was, "We could meet up!"
Several weeks and email exchanges later we'd made plans for Sunday brunch at Augustine. It's been quite some time since a 6 a.m. alarm excited me, but that morning I woke before it chimed and excitedly headed to the train station before the sun had barely risen.
When we met outside the restaurant, the first order of business was outfit photos, of course. I admit, I attempted to pull off Cee's signature subtle smile, and massively failed. My grin was a far better reflection of my mood anyway, and we had the most wonderful afternoon together, dining, talking, shopping, and enjoying New York.
Whenever I ask myself why I'm still blogging after all these years, the answer is always the same; the wonderful connections and relationships with other bloggers we've created together.
The Rundown Cream Mock Neck SweaterAnn Taylor Black Faux Leather PantsAnn Taylor Leopard Fur Coat Loft Sock Booties"Neola"Naturalizer Bucket Bag"Johnny"Danse Lente Gold Twist Hoops Thrifted similar Thin Gold RingEtsyvia Ellyn Blue Jewelry
Thanksgiving is done, December is here; it decided to bring the first snowfall of the year with it, but it turned to rain last night and no trace of white remains this morning.
I wish I could say I had the resolve to not partake in the Black Friday shopping frenzy, but that would have only been possible if I'd turned off my phone and computer all weekend. Instead, more packages are en-route to my door - at least a few are Christmas gifts!
This year I attended my first Friendsgiving with the New England Blogger Babes, and had such an enjoyable afternoon. I can see why this tradition has caught on - no one person is responsible for preparing a huge meal, which means that everyone, even the host, can relax a bit. We drank, we ate, we played games. No one argued about sweet potatoes. (I know it seems ridiculous, but somehow this side dish has become a point of contention at my family's Thanksgiving.)
I kept my outfit relatively casual for the occasion, pulling out some old pieces that haven't been worn in a while, including my grandmother's faux fur coat and this floral blouse I purchased for Thanksgiving in 2016. The velvet mules however, had just arrived from Loft and I was anxious for their first outing before it gets to cold for them to make any sense at all. Ah yes, making irrational shoe choices since 2008.
The Rundown Floral Blouse Old Navy similar JeansSecond Denim Navy Faux Fur Coat Vintage similar
Velvet Bow Mules Loft Bucket Bag"Johnny"Danse Lente Necklace Thrifted Thin Gold RingEtsyvia Ellyn Blue Jewelry
Earlier this year when I was smitten with a cardigan from Musier Paris, save for its plunging neckline, I thought I might get a similar cardigan and swap the standard brown buttons it came with for faux pearl buttons.
Even the simplest of DIY projects are known to take me ages to complete, but I was feeling motivated a few weekends ago and finally tackled my to-do pile, which included hemming two pairs of pants and of course changing the buttons on the cardigan.
While I was pleased with how it came out, when I started searching for similar items to link for this post I discovered that not only does Forever 21 have a perfect dupe of the original cardigan with a slightly higher neckline, but at only $25 it would ring in even less than my DIY. And don't even get me started on the cropped wide leg houndstooth pants I spotted at Zara, now that I finally took the time to hem the pair I got at H&M.
The Rundown White Cardigan Nordstrom Rack similar Black Wide Leg PantsAnn Taylor Mules Charles David via TJMaxx Bucket Bag"Johnny"Danse Lente Gold Ball EarringsKohl's Gold Rectangle Chain NecklaceEtsy SunglassesRay-Ban via TJMaxx
