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30 April 2009 – Husbandly Advice, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Checkered button down – husband’s, thrifted
• Corduroy jacket – Ross
• Jeans – ON maternity
• Pointy toe pumps – Target

End Notes:

Today’s challenge actually comes from S., who told me that I needed to wear something checkered or plaid. It shortly came out, however, that what she really wanted to see was if I could figure out how to steal something from my husband N.’s closet and make it work with my bump. Now, I know that there is some disagreement over whether or not purloining from a man’s closet during pregnancy is course of action to be praised or condemned. I think — much like simply “buying up” several sizes instead of just buying maternity — that there are a lot of contingencies and no hard rules can really apply.

I wore this shirt of N.’s earlier in the year, back when my pants were getting tight but the bump was barely visible to the naked eye. I liked it then — and still like it today — because it has a softer drape than most of his other shirts, thus allowing for my shape to be evident. I felt like I needed some structure on top of it today, and N. actually suggested that I wear a blazer that would let the sleeves “poof” at the cuff. He approved of the shoe choice, too.

In other news, my end of the semester panic has temporarily lifted as I finished my third of four papers yesterday and found out that I passed my glucose tolerance test. This whole “getting dressed for not going to campus” business is working out pretty well thus far!

 

29 April 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Yellow cardi – Ann Taylor Outlet, remixed
• Lace cami – BR
• Woven belt – F21, remixed
• Flower pin – jerry-rigged by me
• Denim skirt – ON Maternity!
• Floral flats – Target, remixed

End Notes:

So our challenge from A. today is to wear floral. At first I told her I didn’t have anything floral that fits anymore. Then I got all delusional and thought that this shirt might still fit. It doesn’t, really, so I switched to these flats as my floral for the day and then, because I felt bad, added a lace cami (with flowers) and jerry-rigged a little broach together (with flowers). I had a run-in with a cabbage rose print Laura Ashley dress when I was younger and I think that was enough to make me skeptical for flowery florals and more drawn to Asian-inspired or stylized prints.

I love the conversation that S. and A. have gotten started about who you dress for, when it’s okay for style to fall by the wayside, and how you make working from home productive. Like A. said, I’m entering a new and sometimes overwhelming phase of being both mother and grad student. I’ll also be taking a year off teaching, first to focus on my little one and then to more expeditiously finish off the last of my coursework. Although I’ll get to officially take the fall off — and will definitely take a hard-earned mini break! — I do want to be aware of how routines and habits I set then can be conducive to the elusive work-life balance later.

I know that my style will certainly morph with a wee one around, and I’m okay with that. I don’t think that my love of color-mixing will evaporate, and I’ll pull the pencil skirts and big jewelry out when I don’t need to sit on the floor or worry about being clutched at. But I would love to hear from stay-at-home moms about the challenges (or fun parts?) of maintaining style. I’m especially curious if you draw a connection — as Stacy and Clinton of What Not to Wear fame often do — between looking put-together and modeling self-respect for your child or children. Even if a four month old can’t appreciate that, is it important to set the pattern early?

 

29 April 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

 

24 April 2009 – Evening, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Fluttery gray chiffon top – Target, a few sizes up
• Jeans – ON Maternity, remixed
• Pointy toe flats – Target, remixed
• Silver bangles – gifts

End Notes:

The end of the semester brings a slew of student-related art show openings at galleries across town. Last night I helped out with the opening night reception for an MFA student showing in a local alternative gallery space. Dressing for art events is always a little tricky. There are unspoken codes about who dresses how: curators tend to wear artful layers of black or gray, MFA students can usually be spotted by their edgier shapes, brighter colors, or wild pattern mixing, and donors often appear in more elegant evening attire. There’s little consensus over how art historians — particularly contemporary art historians, like A. and myself — should dress.

But, when I saw this spread in the most recent issue of Lucky Magazine, I immediately flagged it as art opening inspiration.

 

Arty Top + Skinny Jeans, originally uploaded by academichic.

I bought this floaty, layered top off the clearance rack at Target a few sizes bigger than usual. Digression: I do need to be really careful about just “buying up” for maternity wear since I gaining girth only in a very particular spot; sometimes large shirts just look awful because of the excess fabric at the chest or back or the droopy arm holes. This particular top works, however, because it’s meant to be drapey. My straight leg maternity jeans are too long to wear without heels, so I decided to chance it and cuff them. To mitigate the break in my leg line, I opted for pointy toe flats that help counteract that break while enabling me to stay on my feet all night. Finally, to make the cuffs look even more intentional, I eschewed fancier, “evening” jewelry in favor of funkier silver bangles and dangling leaf earrings.

I know, I know, it sounds like I completely over-thought this outfit. In reality, though, I just kept swapping things around — cuffed or not cuffed, heels or flats, chandelier or leaf earrings — until things looked “right.” And that’s when I knew I had made Lucky’s super trendy look fit me, bump and all.

 

24 April 2009 – Evening, originally uploaded by academichic.

         

24 April 2009 , originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• White top – bought in Romania years ago
•  Walking shorts – Gap 
• Red espadrilles – BR Outlet, remixed

Endnotes:

I realize that this is not a new trend (like the Safari or Grecian inspired looks for Spring), but this is new to me: Walking shorts + Heels.

     

24 April 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Yes. It’s simple and you’d think I’d have caught on to this one sooner, but while I wore my walking shorts every other day last summer, I played it safe with flats or flip-flops. Today, however, I’m boldly marching on to campus in walking shorts and my red espadrilles. I love the long lines and instant height of this look, and I’m finally at eye level with E. and A. in these!  S.

 

    

Gathered sleeve and embroidery detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

Last week, S. made a list of her wardrobe essentials, the glue that holds her wardrobe together. I’ve been thinking a lot about wardrobe foundations since being pregnant. How does one, exactly, put a wardrobe together from scratch? My list of essentials at 6 months pregnant is of course strongly influenced by my pre-preggers style that I’ve tried to maintain, with some tweaking, as my bump has grown. And actually, compiling this list — a mix of extendable existing garments and new maternity purchases — revealed a couple of holes in my preggers wardrobe that I need to try and remedy shortly!

While S.’s and my lists overlap quite a bit, you’ll of course notice that the particular shapes and colors we use as our “essentials” are different and influenced by our personal style and our body types. You may also notice the big gaping absence of a white button down in my list. Anathema! But I rarely wore button downs pre-preggers (being long-waisted and thin made that difficult) so I felt no compunction at all to add it to my list of preggers essentials. I need a bumper sticker that says, “One person’s white button down is my magenta cardigan.”

Click through the jump for the full list…

» Read the rest of this entry «

   

13 April 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed but dress:

• Brown top – American Eagle 
• Blue shift dress – Banana Republic 
• Boots – Dillards 
• Silver circle necklace – J.Jill 
• Brown ring – souvenir from New Orleans, gifted by fiance 

Endnotes:

This week we’re thinking about, showcasing, and discussing our best features. This is a worthwhile exercise to do on a regular basis, since we tend to hone in so much more on what we don’t like, rather than remembering what makes us smile about our appearance. I’ve loved reading all your comments and lists on our post on this topic ! 

As for my list, I’ll start with one feature today and will keep thinking about more things to add as the week progresses. I have relatively narrow hips and one of my favorite styles is the shift dress! The shift dress works great with my shape because it’s all about being up and down with no attention paid to the waist! I know that narrow hips is not something that first comes to mind when thinking of “your best”, but it’s something that I’ve always been aware of with my body and have worked to my advantage. 

  

Ring detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

Ok, to now shift gears entirely – I just finished “It sucked and then I cried” by Heather Armstrong, fellow blogger over at dooce.com. (And yes, I use the term “fellow” loosely, since she’s in the Oprah realm of blogging…) I loved it! It provides a hilarious, frightening, sobering, yet inspiring account of parenting – I give it the S. two thumbs up.  Care to share any good books you’ve come across lately? S.

 

31 March 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Red-orange cardi, blue pleated top, bangle, and gray suede wedges: all remixed.
• Gray skirt: Mimi Maternity via eBay

End Notes:

Being pregnant has reinvigorated my belief in the necessity of having strong, classic pieces at the core of a wardrobe. While I love having special “statement” pieces, I simply can’t deny the ease, polish, and security that certain simple basics give me.

As I’ve tried to cobble together a small, efficient, and stylish wardrobe for this pregnancy, I knew that one thing that I needed to have was a slim gray skirt with a great fit. It sounds like that would be easy enough to find, but it took a good month and a half of scouring eBay every day until I found this wonderful charcoal skirt from Mimi Maternity and hustled it away for $15, including shipping.

And I love it.

It hugs my bump, it sits higher on my torso than most maternity skirts, mitigating the danger of stumpiness, it’s soft, and it has the perfect shape. So, interwebs, prepare yourselves. You will be seeing me a lot in this skirt. Let’s be honest, it will probably make an appearance again before the week is out!

 

31 March 2009 – Bumpy, originally uploaded by academichic.

    

Triad – Blue, Yellow, Red, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources: 

• Yellow top – thrifted 
• Blue cardigan – H&M 
• Red belt – Gap 
• Black Jeans – DKNY, thrifted, remixed 
• Black flats – Clarks, remixed

Endnotes:

Like E.,  I felt a little experimental trying to create a triadic outfit for this week’s Fashion 101 module.  I kept pulling our different red, yellow, and blue pieces out of my closet but all the combinations just made me feel like a walking version of the Romanian flag. I am Romanian, but my patriotism only goes so far. Finally, I did come across this combination and actually felt very pleased with it. I love how the triadic combination does make all three colors pop equally against each other, but by keeping the red to a minimum with just the belt, I feel less like a walking advertisement for my native country and more like a graduate student. -S.

About a month ago I posted our first “Call for Papers,” wondering if the blogosphere could point me towards any pregnant style bloggers who could provide help and inspiration in the upcoming days of my burgeoning belly. I’m glad I asked, because you all introduced me to:

Allie over at My Wardrobe Today cataloged her truly impressive range of pregnant office-ready looks. She works the basics so well and provides a fantastic example of how accessories can extend a maternity wardrobe.

Madam0wl also shared her set of pregnancy style photos over on Flickr. This woman can layer. I am also a big fan of these subtle plaid pants. So many maternity style websites insist on you buying basics, but madam0wl has convinced me that I need a patterned trouser of some kind in my preggers wardrobe.

Finally, the super-fabulous midoritsuru also has a fantastic pregnancy style set on Flickr. She layers, she mixes patterns, and she rocks wonderful color combinations. I love this funky mama look!

Thank you to those who suggested sources! We’ll have another CFP up soon and will follow each one with a recap featuring your responses.

See the original CFP after the jump:

» Read the rest of this entry «

 

13 February 2009 – With Coat, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Orange fleece coat: Forever 21
• Gray sweater: Forever 21, remixed
• Jean skirt: Old Navy, remixed
• Orange bauble necklace: Forever 21, lengthened and remixed
• Sweater tights: Target
• Boots!: Steve Madden, via eBay, remixed

End Notes:

In the latest issue of Lucky Magazine, the editors were raving about orange-and-gray as an unexpected take on neutrals with a pop. While I clearly love gray and I have several orange pieces that I adore, I really have never paired them together as the foundation of an outfit. And then I saw Jean C’est Quoi’s fantastic outfit earlier this week and I was completely sold. Orange and gray. I’m in.

My favorite bit in this outfit is my orange bauble necklace, a bargain treasure from Forever 21. I added an extra necklace chain to lengthen it for today and I love how it completely changes the entire shape.

Tangentially, my bangs look like another pop of orange here. I wish they wouldn’t.

 

13 February 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.