academichic

Sources:

Gray jersey dress – Target
Navy shirt dress – Motherhood Maternity, via consignment shop
Belt – Gap Outlet
Flats – thrifted
Necklace – gift from Costa Rica
Bangle – J.Crew, thrifted

Endnotes:

It seems a little funny to be talking about an outfit in light of today’s (or rather, last night’s) ground breaking events. I’m sure that all of you have heard the President’s speech by now and are following things on NPR or whatever your choice of news provider is. But in case you are stopping by the site today for some lighter topics, here is my Monday post showing last week’s outfit on my last day of teaching. Not just my last day for this semester, but my last day for quite a while. I just found out that I received the dissertation fellowship for which I had applied, meaning that I will be on fellowship all of the coming academic year while I finish my dissertation and prepare to defend next May. I’m thrilled about the break from teaching as it will allow me to focus on my writing and meet my May 2012 graduation date, but I’m also a little sad to be stepping out of the classroom for so long.

Teaching is one of my favorite things about being in this profession and I was especially lucky to have some really amazing students this past year. I enjoyed waking up and going to my classes each morning and I didn’t even mind that on some days I had to be on my feet and in front of a class for three courses in a row. Because the students made it worth it. So I know that while this break from teaching will be great for my research and writing progress (and I get to be at home with little C. her first year of life!), I leave campus and my office with mixed feelings and a bit of sadness at having to say goodbye to something I really enjoy doing.

So here’s a glance at what I wore on the last day of classes. It’s nothing that spectacular as I was once more trying to get out the door quickly. I grabbed this navy maternity shirt dress and paired it with my newly thrifted flat sandals. And then, to mix things up from how I’ve previously worn this dress, I layered a gray jersey dress underneath and left the shirt dress unbuttoned and belted.

For a pop of color, I added a red-orange belt and this colorful necklace that was a gift from Costa Rica.

Like I said the last time I posted, I’ve been running a little low in outfit inspiration and I blame it on the changing weather as well as my constantly changing body and the need to busy myself with so many other projects and tasks that fashion has taken a back seat. As I’m now facing motherhood and a year out of the office, I’m anticipating even more challenges to my getting ready and looking ‘fashionable’ each day. And to be honest, I’m not sure that I mind. So we’ll see what the coming months and adventures will bring.

Sources:

Endnotes:

This is what I wore to a Jewish Baby Naming Ceremony this past Saturday. I had never attended one before and so I actually googled “what to wear to a jewish baby naming ceremony” and found a couple of answers to my questions. They all came down to this: make sure your shoulders are covered in Synagogue. Well, yeah, in February that should be no problem.

I thought back to previous visits to the Synagogue with friends and also pulled on my knowledge from having visited various churches growing up and came up with this outfit. It turned out to be sufficiently dressy, sufficiently modest, and sufficiently practical for February temperatures. And the ceremony was beautiful! So joyous and festive and moving (I confess I cried a bit).

Now, since we’re dedicating this week to Jewelry Week here on academichic, let me tell you a bit about the bling I wore…

You may have noticed that I’ve developed a penchant for bolder and bigger necklances lately. I’m also a huge fan of brooches. (I’m really happy to see Emma Pillsbury bringing brooches back on Glee.) But I rarely combine the two. I have, however, in a moment of spontenaity, once combined two layered necklaces with a big flower pin for an outfit for the opera. And I loved the results. So I did something of the sort again this weekend with this tiered gold and pearls necklace and a this vintage birds brooch on my lapel. (And I pictured Emma Pillsbury looking at my reflection in the mirror from her vantage point behind me and nodding with approval. So I went with it.)

On a side note, I used to be able to button this dress when I first purchased it. It was a snug fit, but a fit nonetheless. My expanding waistline has made buttoning this dress impossible but it’s given me incentive to experiment with all kinds of dress layering using the shirt dresses in my closet. Even when I could still button this dress, I loved layering it and wearing it partially open, which is what all the fun is about with a shirt dress anyway. So here’s the first incarnation of my experiment of shirt dresses and maternity induced layering. ~ S.

PS: Last year in February, we dedicated a whole month to scarves. Yes, we like the theme thing especially when winter blahs are setting in. Look here for all our scarf wearing entries and here for our scarf tying bibliography, pulling together a plethora of ‘how-to’ tutorials on tying and wearing scarves. And check back all of this week for jewelry themed posts and a jewelry themed giveaway!

Sources:

• Gray sweater – Gap
• Dark green jersey dress – Gap
• Navy blue jersey dress – Gap Outlet
• Black wool skirt (unseen) – free from sister-in-law
• Boots – Banana Republic
• Wooden hoop earrings – Wet Seal

End Notes: It’s chilly today, but I have a secret layering strategy: two dresses, a skirt, and a cozy sweater. The layers are thin enough that they add warmth without bulk. I’m running between three back-to-back classes, so comfortable riding boots are a necessity.