academichic

The winners of our second Friday Study Break Holiday Giveaway:

Thank you all for playing and for sharing your worst final look! Don’t forget to check back next Friday for another Study Break Holiday Giveaway!

Winners, please send us an email with your full name and address and we’ll get these scarves out to you ASAP.

16 November 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Striped Cardigan – J Crew, birthday gift from mom
• Long Black Tee – don’t remember
• Grey Long-sleeve Tee (not seen) – Gap
• Grey Cords – Banana Republic
• Brown Boots – Banana Republic, via ebay
• Scarf – China Town, NY
• Silver Hoops – Banana Republic

Endnotes:

Online shopping has long been one of  my favorite forms of procrastination.  Now, this online shopping rarely actually results in purchasing, but I do love to make mental wish lists, get ideas for how to style items I already own, and be reminded that there are things deep in my closet that are suddenly in style again.

I often clip photos of ensembles I like or new styling ideas I want to try out.  These images  most often come from J Crew — I think they offer really creative styling that I  wouldn’t think of myself, but can imagine recreating in some way.

Lately, I am also really liking Banana Republic styling too.  I loved this warm cozy layered look and decided I could recreate it with items I already own.  I swapped in my teal and grey floral scarf for the red plaid (although now I am pining for a large plaid scarf) and my brown boots for thee black (I wanted flats and my black boots have heels).

My cardigan is much thinner and shorter than the rather bulky sweater coat featured in the BR version and I  discovered that my bootleg grey cords are a little too bulky for tucking into boots, so now I may be adding skinny-leg cords to my Christmas wish list.

BR Inspiration, originally uploaded by academichic.

Stripes and Flowers, originally uploaded by academichic.

16 September 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed

• Purple Cardigan – Gap Outlet
• Grey Tee – Old Navy
• Black Cami – Banana Republic
• Black Skirt – Banana Republic
• Scarf (worn as belt) – H& M
• Black Flats – Urban Outfitters
• Yellow Bangles – Gap Outlet
• Earrings – Forever 21

Endnotes:

Today, I am continuing my experimentation with scarves and layered necklines to rejuvenate my summer wardrobe.  I wore this scarf as obi/belt this past winter and loved it and I think it works well here with the purple and grey and the little bit of a textured cami layered under the ruched v-neck.

Detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

15 September 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:
All remixed except skirt which is old

• Green Top – BR Outlet
• Scarf (worn as blouse) – gift from Kimberly
• Brown Skirt – Gap
• Woven Brown Belt – Forever 21
• Wedges – Kenneth Cole Reaction, via DSW
• Earrings – Banana Republic

Endnotes:

It is still much warmer here than I would like it to be and I am getting sick of my summer wardrobe!  One of the easiest ways to remix clothing is in the layering, but as I have mentioned before, this is more difficult to do in warmer weather.  Interesting color combinations are another great way to change the look of a remixed item.  Yesterday I paired blue-green and red-orange for a casual complimentary color scheme, but in the end it was my layered neckline that I liked best about the outfit.

This got me thinking about ways to creatively layer pieces and to bring more interest to the neckline of some of my go-to knits.  I love the pattern on this scarf, sent to me by the lovely Kimberly of Fab Finds Under $50, and have often thought how great it would be to have a skirt or blouse with this pattern on it.  So, partially inspired by E.’s scarf tacked to cardigan from several months ago, I tucked this long rectangular scarf around the neckline of my shirt and used the belt to hold the ends in place.  As I got dressed this morning, I was worried about the scarf slipping around all day, but so far, so good.

Neckline – Scarf Shirt, originally uploaded by academichic.

I am locked up in my office struggling to meet a writing deadline.  So, instead of showing off my tee-shirt and sweats, I thought I would procrastinate and answer a few reader questions:

Grey vs. Gray:
In response to my “Shades of Grey Post” yesterday, Clare asked “Do you spell it grey or gray? Any particular reason?”

A few of you pointed out that grey is a colour and gray is a color, as in the former is the British spelling and the latter the American spelling. I did a quick little study and found that Banana Republic, Gap, and J Crew all use grey and gray interchangeably in their online catalogues.   J Crew  tends to use terms like “dark charcoal”  “graphite” “slate” “heather cloud” and “mineral grey” – only proving my point that there are many wonderful shades of this color – whatever you call it!

Repeat Outfits:
After some very sweet comments about my J Crew Inspired outfit, ShopKim asked “in an effort to remix and keep the blog interesting, do you avoid duplicating outfits even though you loved it?”

The short answer is yes!  I loved this ensemble and plan to replicated it exactly, right down to the shade of lipstick!  I often wear similar combinations multiple times, but usually make at least a slight variation -  a different pair of shoes, different layering pieces, different jewelry, etc.  But, once in a while I manage to just hit the nail so perfectly on the head, the entire ensemble must be worn again.  When this has happened in the past, I just don’t post a picture for that day.  Thoughts on this?

The Summer Scarf:
Several of you asked me to report pack about how I felt wearing the scarf all day yesterday.

The scarf was great once I was inside the coffee shop, where air tends to be too high, and I needed to pull out a cardigan anyway.  I did, however, find it too warm for my time spent outdoors.  I love scarves and have a rather large collection of them.  I can honestly say that I can’t wait for real scarf weather when I can out all of my favorite scarves back into rotation.  But, I think until then, the will likely stay stored away.

We love getting your questions and suggestions.  We have received a few that need more time to tackle  and a large collaborative post from the Chics.  In the next few weeks look for  A Back to School Shopping Tutorial, What to Wear to A Beach Wedding, An Interview Style Workshop, and other reader-inspired posts.  Don’t hesitate to leave a comment or email us with your questions!

Finally, I leave you with this message from E.:

“Thank you all for your warm congratulations! We are doing well and I am just so delighted that baby e. is finally here. I’ll be slowly creeping back into the swing of things over the next few weeks, but right now I need to go stare at my beautiful son! -E”

- A

17 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Ruffle-Front Shirt Dress – Banana Republic
• Scarf as Belt – Gift from Kimberly!!
• Teal Shoes – Seychelles, via solestruck
• Earrings – Anthropologie

Endnotes:

This weekend my sister received her MA, so I took  a whirl wind trip to Washington, DC for two days.   While there I didn’t look at blogs or even check my email but I did spend my  plane rides preparing for the summer course I start teaching this week.

The graduation was in the morning and followed by a celebratory brunch.   I bought this dress because I loved the raisin color, the cut, and the ruffles  and have since worn it to a number of showers and other dressy day events.  I wanted to change the look up a bit for this special event (also my family has seen me in this dress many times).  Scarf-queen Kimberly sent me this beautiful flowered scarf a few weeks back and I have been saving it for when I could really let it be the star of the ensemble.  I am always amazed how  much you can change an outfit  with accessories and think all the touches of turquoise worked really well.   I’m sure I will wear this dress a few more times this summer and early fall to show you just what I mean.

Scarf, originally uploaded by

17 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

    

26 February 2009 – Shades of Blue, originally uploaded by academichic.

     

Blues detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Light blue tee – H&M 
• Blue long cardi – H&M, remixed 
• Blue skirt – Calvin Klein 
• Blue and white scarf as belt – thrifted
• Boots – Banana Republic, remixed

Endnotes:

I wonder if the people I work with are noticing a pattern this week, since I wore all pink on Tuesday, all green yesterday, and all blue today. I’m just being a good student and doing my homework this week. 

Picking one color and creating an outfit out of various shades of it has made getting dressed pretty easy, which is nice since I’m feeling a bit blue not just in outfit today. I have a cold and I’d rather be in bed or on the couch than on campus and teaching today. Sigh…. S.