academichic

12 June 2009 – Curves, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Brown dress: Ross, remixed and adored
• Leaf pendant: Polli, mother’s day gift from my husband, remixed
• Green bracelet: gift from S. from San Francisco Chinatown!
• Silver slippers: Random store in Queens
• Turquoise scarf: no idea

End Notes:

I’ve hit the stage in pregnancy where dresses are starting to look rather tent-like. My idea of a stylish outfit generally excludes circus references but, oh, I love a good dress in the summer! The dilemma was solved by belting my favorite brown dress below the bump, adding shape and a good pop of summery turquoise.

This brown dress has been through quite a lot with me. I purchased it in college for $15, and during the 6 years since I’ve worn it through several style and life changes. Since we’ve been blogging, it’s appeared under a chunky sweater, as a skirt under a blousy top, and layered with a light cardigan. I fear that I may be stretching it past recovery by wearing it into Month 8 of being preggers, but if it helps me show off all my new curves this well then I’m thinking it will be worth the sacrifice.

I’m a little scared of trying to find a replacement for this old standby post-baby. It just does what it does so well! Do you ever find that replacing a “basic” is sometimes a lot harder than retiring and replacing a statement piece? Do you have a strategy when shopping to update those simple-but-essential pieces in your wardrobe?

5 June 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed except the shoes!

• Cardigan – BR
• Ruffle-front Tank – Gap
• Pinstripe Skirt – J Crew
• Skinny Belt- Ann Taylor
• Earrings- BR
• Shoes – Off Broadway

Endnotes:

Today was the last day of the intense summer course I was teaching.  They had their last quiz, I said some final words, they filled out evaluations, and then we went to the museum together.

This outfit was very much built around my new shoes.  I found these on super clearance a few weeks ago but then with our flats challenge, followed by our lab-appropriate challenge, I haven’t really had a chance to premier them until today.  I don’t usually like peep-toes on myself.  I always like the idea of them, but then I try them on and it’s all over.  These, however, have a very small peep, so just a bit of my pink polish shows through, which I love.  Despite being a good three inches, they are incredibly comfortable too!

I’m hoping this look only added to my student’s evaluation of my level of professionalism, knowledge,  and class preparedness.  If only there was a question about the instructor’s sense of style!

New Shoes!, originally uploaded by academichic.

This morning I am beginning the several-day-long process of vacuuming out my basement. Just imagine a very pregnant woman in shorts, a maternity top, sneakers, and a head scarf and you have my outfit for the day.

But since this week we have been trying to help our colleagues in the sciences find creative, stylish ways to dress that still meet their lab dress-code, I present to you a brief rumination on an item of clothing that I am still uncertain about: the maxi skirt. Now, I know that some labs ban skirts altogether, but a few dress codes that I’ve read also say that skirts are a-okay as long as they reach the ankle. Now, I am only a fairly recent convert to the maxi dress and while I love their cool, flowy nature I definitely feel like I need to find my inner hippie every time I don one. I don’t think that I would ever wear one when teaching or attending an important meeting.

And I’m not sure about maxi skirts, either. For me, floor length skirts in general conjure up competing images of hippies, Little House on the Prairie specials, a really bad broomstick skirt I owned in 8th grade, and bridesmaid separates. Quite a mix, huh? But this past year Lucky Magazine included a floor length skirt as one of their items in their always-impressive “A Month of Outfits” feature and, I have to admit, I’m being forced to do some reconsidering.  Behold:

These looks are obviously more on the bohemian and very casual side, but I do love the pattern mixing in the look on the left and the chunky belt on the right. For more polished looks, Lucky offered up these:

And this one:

They all look lovely on the model, but I’m just not completely sold on the idea. So what do you all think? Can maxi skirts be polished enough for a day at an office (albeit a casual one)? Do you, like me, have strange misgivings and associations with floor length skirts that make this look difficult to embrace?

- E.

      

21 May 2009 – T’s Birthday!, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

On S:

• Black jersey dress – Old Navy, remixed 
• Purple tank – Old Navy 
• Purple beads and bracelet – Yves Rocher 
• Damask flats – Old Navy, remixed many many times
• Purse – XOXO 
• Sunglasses – H&M, remixed

On T:

• Yellow tee – souvenir from Salzburg 
• Blue polo – Banana Republic 
• Charcoal cords – Calvin Klein 
• Shoes – Sketchers 

Endnotes:

Happy Birthday, T! Today is my fiance’s birthday and since he left for a weekend camping trip with his friends earlier today, we celebrated with an early morning breakfast date. It was warm and sunny by 7 am already, so we took his MG for the drive to the restaurant. Incidentally, T’s 1979 MGB LE (a restored historic British car) shares his birth-year, so it’s celebrating a milestone year as well! Happy Birthday, you two cuties!

     

21 May 2009 – Happy Birthday, T!, originally uploaded by academichic.

Since it was a breakfast date, we both dressed pretty casually and I opted for this simple jersey dress that’s a great day-time LBD. I spruced it up with some pretty purple beads and matching bracelet and, in keeping with this week’s challenge, finished the look with a pair of patterned flats. And, of course a pair of oversized sunglasses, which are as essential to a ride in a convertible as is sunscreen and the ability to quickly and efficiently restyle your hair every time you reach your destination (knowing that with each additional trip you get closer to having a rat’s nest on your head rather than an actual hair style…but it’s well worth it!) S.

    

21 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

    

Necklace detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

    

Detail – shoes, originally uploaded by academichic.

     

20 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Blue polo – Old Navy 
• Orange-red cardi – Zara, remixed endlessly 
• Fuschia cord skirt – Gap, remixed 
• Blue sandals – Birkenstock 
• Fuschia and black cord bag – Old Navy 
• Bike – “Nerp”

Endnotes:

Check this out! I am such a nerd and coffee fiend. I decided I wouldn’t spend money on decking out my bike until I spend the summer using it enough to justify the upgrades (like fenders, a chain guard, etc), but I just couldn’t help myself with this one and I got a “coffee cup holder” to attach to my handle bars. Now I can still get my coffee to go and enjoy it on my bike. T. made fun and said that I was “yuppie-fying” my bike, but I’ve come to terms with that and have no qualms with it while I’m sipping my delicious coffee on the go.

    

Blue Birkies, originally uploaded by academichic.

As for today’s flats – these little blue Birkies were a gift from a friend in Germany last summer. I would have never picked these out for myself, yet found myself loving them! If you’ve ever owned a pair of Birkenstocks, you know how comfortable and foot-friendly they are. Traditional Birkies were always rather plain, but nowadays the company makes such cool designs and has such fun colors, that comfortable is no longer synonymous with boring. 

On a somewhat related note, we’ve received several reader comments and emails from those of you in the Sciences, noting that while you may be in academia, our outfits do not always translate well to a lab setting. We would like to experiment (get it, experiment?) with this challenge next week and create a sampling of outfits that are both stylish and lab-friendly. So to prepare for that, we need your help! Since different labs have varying dress codes, we would like you to tell us what your dress restrictions are. We’re looking forward to your input! S. 

  

20 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Post Script: After T. took my picture this morning, he insisted that I wear my helmet since I was riding to a farther away coffee shop than my usual neighborhood one and this ride would involve some more high-traffic roads. So I did, for his sake. A. and I have had several bike helmet conversations lately since we both have tenuous relationships with our hair and I’ve been wondering how I feel about the whole helmet thing. But I think I will continue to wear mine as I did today, since a little hair damage is probably better than head damage. And really, I’m at the coffee shop now and it can’t look that bad because no one’s pointed and laughed yet. (Do all of you who bike commute wear helmets?)

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.

   

12 May 2009 , originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Lace trim cami – Ann Taylor, remixed 
• Red-orange top – Zara 
• Green skirt – Old Navy, remixed 
• Green loafers – Anne Klein, remixed a lot lately 
• Tiny flower brooch – thrifted 
• Bike – we named it “Nerp” last night

Endnotes:

As it turns out, this week is Bike to Work week all around the US (or is this an international phenomenon?). So I’m very timely with my experiment of commuting by bike. Yesterday, after leaving the coffee shop,  I ran some errands such as going to the post office and the grocery store on my bike and found that wearing a backpack may not be the best way to transport my books, laptop, and few purchases. I got home with the back of my shirt completely soaked! So I’m now in the market for a bike basket or a pannier… stay tuned for its debut!

Following my continued exploration of inspiring bike-chic blogs, I present you with a few more links today: This is the Sartorialist on bike and so far my favorite street-wear-meets-bike-chic blog: Copenhagencyclechic. I also enjoyed perusing London Cycle Chic,  the San Francisco based Vélo Vogue, and the lovely Toronto Bike Chic site.  

In terms of personal blogs, I’m really enjoying reading about Dottie and Trisha’s bike commuting adventures, especially since their start-up stories make me feel like I can do this too. 

Today I’m taking a cue from all this reading I’ve been doing and biking in a skirt. My main hesitation (other than sucking at biking) has been style-concerned when it came to embracing a bike-commuter life style. Yes, I know it’s shallow, but I know I’m not alone in this. I want to be able to wear the same outfits and shoes I would wear commuting by car, foot, or public transport when traveling by bike. So I’m trying it out today with a skirt. To come later – once I’m a bit more practiced – wedges and heels!

 

Skirt detail, originally uploaded by academichic.Tiny brooch, originally uploaded by academichic.

And on the subject of heels, I just wanted to draw your attention to some new categories we’ve added. Based on several reader comments and questions, we’ve retro-organized all of our pictures under these three new categories: Beltless, Reaching New Heights, and Our Best Flatware. We’ve already embraced a week without belting to respond to a reader challenge and we will soon do the same with a week without heels. For now, if you’re interested in all our flat-footwared-looks thus far, check out Our Best Flatware, and if you love a good platform, see Reaching New Heights! S.

       

8 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed but newly thrifted skirt:

• Purple top – Old Navy 
• Forest green cami - Banana Republic
• Green cord skirt – thrifted 
• Red espadrilles – Banana Republic Outlet
• Red button pendant - Brookberrys on Etsy

Endnotes:

It’s Day Five of our reader inspired belt-less challenge and although I’ve been tempted by some belts and ties in my closet, I have to say that it hasn’t been that difficult for me to build outfits of the belt-free variety. 

I attribute this to the fact that I only started belting recently, about the time that we started blogging, so this return to a belt-less state feels familiar and routine to me. I embraced the use of belts because I realized the difference in waist-creating it can make for me, but lived long enough without the appearance of a waistline that I don’t feel that put out without one. Incidentally, a reader just asked me how I felt about this challenge (presumably because it was me who talked about wanting to create a waist in our Proportions unit), and you can read my very longwinded reply here. 

But to sum it up: I appreciate this challenge for reminding me that I once wore outfits that were not routinely finished off with a tie of some sort looped around my midsection and that they still looked fine in their loose and flowey state. BUT, my style has changed over time and now I do love the use of a strategic little belt or ribbon to create a waistline. I believe in style being fluid and flexible and reserve the right to obsess over one ‘look’ and then to move on to another, although I am glad for this challenge because it reminded me that a bit of balance when it comes to dressing (not just lifestyle) is good too!  So, thank you, Nisha! 

So on to today’s outfit – not having been inspired by a belt or a desired shape, it was driven by color instead. I love purple and green together and found red to be the perfect finishing touch to this color mix. Additionally, I lengthened my red pendant necklace with a little trick I picked up from E!

      

Pendant detail, originally uploaded by academichic.

I strung two silver necklaces together to make one longer chain for my red pendant. I’ve seen E. do this quite a few times, and not just with simple silver chains but also with the use of one (extension-purposed) silver chain and her orange statement necklace. What an easy way to get more looks out of one jewelry item!  Brilliant! S. 

    

24 March 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.13 February 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

6 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

• Pink Ruffle Shirt – Borrowed form E.’s pre-pregnancy closet
• Black Skirt – BR Outlet, remixed
• Black Sandals – H & M
• Teal Paisley Earrings – Forever 21

Endnotes:

As part of this belt-less week challenge, E. has challenged me to not just wear shirts with seams or cuts that do the work of a belt, that is shirts that emphasize my waist. When I retorted that I didn’t own anything of the sort – she volunteered her closet.

I loved this shirt on E. last summer so was willing to give it a try. I knew I couldn’t wear it out and billowy the way it was likely meant to be worn so tucked it in and bloused it out from my favorite black skirt. I love the color on me but am not sue about all the ruffles or the way my waist is completely lost here. I think I look rather boxey. I’m looking forward to a belt or two next week!

This photo also reminds me how badly I need a haircut! Any suggestions?

6 May 2009 – Needing a belt!, originally uploaded by academichic.