Sources:

• Cardigan: Target
• Button down: thrifted
• Belt: thrifted
• Jeans: Old Navy Maternity
• Wedges: thrifted
• Pearl ring: swapped

End Notes:

I’m undertaking an experiment of sorts. You know how I did Kendi’s 30 for 30 last fall while in the midst of qualifying exams and prospectus-writing? The structure of limited options helped me get dressed every day without waffling for too long in front of my closet. I don’t even want to tell you everything that I have going on right now because it makes me a little crazy to list it out. Suffice to say, I could use some parameters again. So, in the spirit of the 30 for 30, I’m exploring a capsule maternity wardrobe for a work-from-home mom of a toddler.

So here we go:

I’m limiting myself to 15 items of clothing and planning to make at least 15 outfits, but I’m giving myself free range of accessories and shoes. (I’ll give you my full list of 15 over the weekend.) Let’s be frank. These outfits are not going to shake up the style blogosphere, but they’ll be colorful. And machine washable! And, most importantly, I’ll be clothed.

Now, let’s ignore the fact that I’m wearing a non-ironed cotton shirt (I prefer to think of it as “artfully rumpled”) and instead talk about how a little cropped cardigan in a punchy color, funny little sleeve bows, and a big cluster ring of faux pearls can add a dose of personality to an otherwise blank canvas of jeans and a white button-down. How do you add whimsy or interest to the classic button-down and denim pairing? (And mamas — or mamas-to-be — what items would you absolutely have to include in a maternity capsule wardrobe?)

Sources:

• Tunic: Forever 21, via consignment store
• Dress: Forever 21
• Belt: thrifted
• Sandals: Old Navy

End Notes:

I’m being told that the seventies are back, so I guess I’m being trendy though, quite frankly, comfort was foremost on my mind when assembling an outfit for a day spent driving. Yesterday little e. and I headed down south for husband N.’s sister’s graduation (got all that?), and I knew that seven plus hours in the car meant that anything with a waist band was out of the question. Enter the maxi dress worn as a skirt, layered undered a dolman tunic.

I’m loving this subtle analogous combination of smokey navy with rich purple (and yellow sandals thrown in for occasional peeks of fun). But since everything is jersey, it’s like wearing really sophisticated pajamas. I can get behind that.

(P.S. I’ve been traveling a lot this semester, both alone and with my family, and I’ll have a few tips on family packing over the weekend. Stay tuned…)

Red cardi – free from swap
Dress turned tunic – Old Navy
Jeggings – TJMaxx
Flats – Joseph Seibel
Necklace – Earring turned pendant
Bike (below) – 1969 Raleigh Sports

Endnotes:

I’ve been wearing a lot of Jeggings on weekends and on non-teaching days. I never thought an item composed of the words ‘leggings’ and ‘jeans’ would enter as frequently into my vocabulary as it has, but given the comfortable fit and forgiving waistline, it’s become a staple in my casual preggers wardrobe.

These pictures were taken last Friday, which is my one non-teaching day of the week. I spent the day first cycling to my midwife appointment, then wasting a bit more time enjoying the warm weather and biking around our downtown, until finally settling into a coffee shop for some dissertation chapter revisions. Jeggings were a perfect fit (literally and metaphorically) for the kind of day I had. I paired them with a summer dress turned pregnancy tunic and comfortable flats and was good to go.

Have you embraced leggings or jeggings as part of your wardrobe? I think it’s great that these items are making a comeback because I loved them as a kid in the 80s/90s and I love them yet again as an adult. But I do have to add that I would never wear them as an alternative to pants while teaching or doing anything that would require me to look professional and I also only wear them paired with tops long enough to cover my bum.

What’s your take on the leggings/jeggings trend? – S.

Sources:

• Coat: Banana Republic Factory
• Dress: Baja, via Beacon’s Closet
• Tights: Target
• Flats: Banana Republic

End Notes:

I actually wore this exact outfit, plus my new big green bag, when I was in New York a couple of weeks ago. To be precise, I wore this on March 17. While in midtown. Apparently, my head was so engaged in archival research that I neglected to realize that March 17 was St. Patrick’s Day and, well, let’s just say I was far from the only person wearing green and orange when I emerged from the subway on 5th Ave and 53rd. I received a lot of compliments on my outfit while wending my way towards the Museum of Modern Art, though, along with quite a few high fives from undergrads.

Angie, from You Look Fab, once posted about occasionally “surrendering the waistline”, that is, eschewing a nipped midsection in favor of purposefully drapey, flowy, or boxy silhouettes. One of my personal style goals for this pregnancy is to not become overly dependent on belting (at least until the end :), but to continue experimenting with silhouettes, even ones that are outside of my usual repertoire. I was tempted to belt this dress over the bump, but in the end I decided to be okay with letting the coat provide a hint of structure while I went waistless underneath. (I think this will be such a fun, mod dress post-preggers, though. Don’t you?)

Finally, my shoes. I love these embellished ballet flats, and every time I where them, I tell my husband that I feel like I have stars on my toes. I used to be so afraid of stud embellishments — probably because of bad seventh grade memories that involved a Bedazzler — but here I love them and they’re proving to be a great everyday flat.

So…happy belated St. Patrick’s Day, all. And here’s to you, New York, for letting me and my color seem at home for one day.

Before I say something about the outfit, I just wanted to note that I’ve loved the discussion on the background of Banana Republic’s name and the cultural nostalgia imbued in the company’s campaign. Thanks to my co-blogger E, I’ve learned a few new things myself this week. And thanks to those of you who chimed in with comments and further suggested readings on the topic!

In addition to questions regarding our collaboration with a large retailer this week, we’ve received several comments and emails expressing surprise at our decision to take on sponsorship. As sponsorship seems to function in different ways on different blogs, it might help if we clarify what it is that we’re looking to do so that those concerned about the future of academichic may find their questions answered. Readers who have expressed apprehension at the possibility of us changing our styles to reflect a company or sponsoring retailer may rest assured that this is not what we are looking to do. We’re simply looking for sponsorship in the form of a small ad (as seen with the sample on our sidebar) that would allow us to incure a bit of monthly income to offset some of the costs of this blog…our Pro Flickr account, the shipping on the almost weekly giveaways we host, and some of our camera equipment and accessories.

We love procurring our wardrobes through a variety of ways – sales, thrift stores, hand me downs, eBay, etc – and would never want to trade that in. (In fact, stay tuned for an upcoming Weekend Workshop that I’ve been working on regarding budget shopping tips!).

As long-time followers of academichic know, we’ve always accepted items for review that mesh with our style and aesthetic and we’re especially keen to do that when our readers benefit in the process; that’s how we are able to host those awesome giveaways.

We are especially happy to review and feature products that benefit a particular organization or project that funds causes we believe in and we also loved getting to collaborate with Banana Republic because we are all long-time fans of their quality-made and classically tailored items. We did not receive free items from Banana Republic for working with them but simply a limited time discount and the $50 gift card as a giveaway bonus to one of our readers. Since we already feature many items from this particular retailer on a regular basis in our daily outfit posts, we were delighted to explore their new Spring line and to be able to gift one of our readers a spending allowance at a store we love.

That, in a nutshell, is how we see our role in collaborating with companies and small businesses. Other than the small sidebar ads, our policies are same as they have always been.

And, lastly, I also want to add that it’s been nothing but encouraging to read all the comments and reactions to our sponsorship post because it’s shown us all how vested so many of our readers feel in the future of this site. It’s wonderful to see so many people care enough to comment or write in regarding the future of our blog. Thank you for that! We love working on academichic and we love seeing how many people care about the site enough to write in, comment, and engage in lively discussions week after week. We look forward to many more posts and conversations with you!

Ok, and now on to a few words on the outfit itself…

After showing you my two dress(y) looks, here come my casual outfits. I loved everything about this look because it’s one I could easily see myself wearing day in, day out. And can you believe I actually fit into a pair of Banana Republic’s jean leggings at almost 18 weeks pregnant? I did leave the top button undone and used the hair elastic trick but couldn’t believe how comfortable these pants were even in my preggers state. I would have definitely bought this pair if I weren’t quickly expanding and uncertain of what my post-preggers size will be.

I added this comfortable tunic and belted above the bump to give the outfit a bit more structure. Embellished flats pick up the dark neutrals of the rest of the outfit as does this silver and ribbon bracelet. And the best part? The awesome yellow bag that adds a pop of sunshine to an otherwise more somber look.

You can find the striped tunic here, the dark denim leggings here, the skinny belt here, the vintage -inspired stud earrings here, the bag here, and for the flats and bracelet, you’ll just have to go to the store.

23 October 2009 – Minimal, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Black sweater dress: Target
• Gray skinnies: thrifted, skinnied by me
• Gray suede wedges: Gap Outlet
• Turquoise earrings: vintage beads from a wee shop in Wheaton, IL

End Notes:

As simple as this outfit is, it’s really a stretch for me. Not only are my pants ankle length, but I am also wearing a fairly shapeless sweater dress-slash-tunic without a belt. I know, I know. I’m totally living on the edge.

Angie from You Look Fab calls this surrendering the waistline. And it really is. If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time you know that all three of us love to belt at the waist. Even when I was pregnant, I kept right on belting up to the bitter end. Letting this fairly shapeless sweater shift just hang out like this goes against my basic style instincts and the little Stacey and Clinton demons in my head.

Vintage Bead Earrings, originally uploaded by academichic.

And yet here I am. The skinnies add some needed edge and the wedges give some needed lift and length. What is really a basic outfit in terms of pieces and color becomes much more interesting because of the more unexpected play with proportion. And while it was tempting to figure out more accessories to add to the mix, I think this look achieves its greatest impact by embracing its inherent minimalism.

(And the better to show off my new-as-of-this-morning haircut, too!)

23 October 2009 – Minimal, originally uploaded by academichic.

20 June 2009 – Gallery Opening, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed.

• Black tunic: worn backwards, gift from brothers
• Gray skirt: Target
• Red wedges: Naturalizers, from DSW

End Notes:

A friend’s work was included in a local juried exhibition, and my husband and I went out to show our support at the Saturday evening opening. As I’ve mentioned before, choosing what to wear to an art opening is fraught for art history grad students. There is always a sea of all sorts of fabulousness at these events and I wanted to remain true to my own relatively understated style while still making a statement. I stuck with a classic black, gray, and red color palette, but rather than simply trying to gussy up my jersey pieces with lots of sparkly jewelry I wanted to play with interesting shapes and proportions that would make the whole look more appropriate for an evening out.

S. has worn some of her dresses backwards before and I wondered if I could do something similar with this black tunic. The pleated, scooped neckline became a sexier scooped back, and by unbuttoning the small row of buttons that created a keyhole in the official “back” of the top, I ended up with a new, split neckline. And, rather than wearing the tunic over pants or shorts, I tried it out over a skirt. This is a really unexpected proportion for me, but I love the kind of drop-waist flapper vibe it creates.

As the bump gets bigger, it seems like the ways I can wear items also grows increasingly limited. So I was thrilled to get a little bit of my experimental creativity out in this look and I’m encouraged to look at some of my other maternity gear in new ways. After all, with only four weeks or so left I might as well squeeze out all the wear I can, right?

20 June 2009 – Gallery Opening, originally uploaded by academichic.

20 May 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

All remixed:

• Black tunic – gift from brothers, from Ross, I think
• Bermudas - Liz Lange for Target jeans thrifted and cropped by me
• Black pointy toe flats – Target

End Notes:

This is a really new proportion for me — a long tunic over walking shorts — but I think it works with my 7 months worth of preggers bumpage. I’ve worn this tunic before, layered over a sweater or under a jacket, but this is the first time it’s been warm enough to wear it alone and show off the fun neckline and pleated detailing.

As for the shoes, I was skeptical of pointy-toe heels for a long time before becoming a convert to their leg-lengthening optical abilities. A pointy-toe flat functions in much the same way, but without having to negotiate a stiletto heel. I love how these pleated flats are a bit more edgy than a ballet slipper but are just as easy to run errands in, which is what I’m doing today.

Pointy Toe Flats, originally uploaded by academichic.

Finally, let me gush to you briefly about my new haircut. Every once in a while I convince myself that I should let my hair grow out a bit. This time, I got it into my head that the almost inevitable preggers face-bloat necessitated a longer haircut. But, really, I’m a short hair girl at heart and this stacked bob with a dramatic swing in front gives me far more confidence and spunk than a longer ‘do would. My mother-in-law has a wonderful stylist in Houston whom I adore and who understands and loves the texture of my Japanese hair. As he vigorously razored my locks yesterday he kept telling me, “I don’t mess around. You are going to remember me for four months.” Oh, Long, I will remember you. There is nothing like an awesome haircut to make a preggers woman feel hip and chic again. Whew.

20 May 2009 – Bumpage, originally uploaded by academichic.

30 March 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Green jacket – Dillards, maybe? Altered by me.
• Pale blue cami – Target
• Bright blue tunic – TJ Maxx
• Jeans – ON Maternity, old standby
• Metallic peep toe wedges – Target, new standby

End Notes:

I’m working from home today, trying to get ahead enough on required course readings in order to start drafting my term papers. The end of the semester is in sight now, and it makes me a little panicky about finishing everything and, oh, I don’t know, getting ready for the life changing event of having a child.

I think I subliminally matched my side yard in my outfit choice for the day. The tunic is the exact same color as my recycling container and the green jacket echoes the newly emerging hostas. And here is a style inspiration mantra to remember, folks. Never be too proud to match your recycling container, especially if it happens to be an awesome blue.

 

30 March 2009 – Hello Hostas, originally uploaded by academichic.

12 March 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Gray sweater – Forever 21, remixed
• Black tunic with pleated neckline – gift from my brothers, upon hearing I was pregnant
• Jeans – Old Navy maternity, remixed
• Pleated pointy-toe flats – Target, remixed

End Notes:

Because I have an eternally long torso, I’ve tended to avoid long tunic tops with pants. The combination frequently made me look like I possessed the world’s shortest pair of legs. But, two things have changed. First, I now have a growing baby bump that demands even more fabric for coverage. And second, I have been so inspired by the likes of wardrobe_remixers Archibald Maximillion and Mamichan, who both play with proportions in fun and oh-so-chic ways in their daily outfits.

Thanks to those lovely ladies in particular, I’ve been venturing out more into tunic-land. Today I’m keeping it simple with a monochrome palette and trying to draw attention up with a gray grosgrain ribbon and a little pleated neckline. The tunic look may woo me over yet.

I’ll be out of town again this weekend, attending a wedding in Colorado. But look for a special “packing post” from me over the next day or two! – e.

 

Neckline Detail, originally uploaded by academichic.