August 2017 – Page 3 – L'ensemble du jour

August 1, 2017 – Socks Make Everything More Fun (OOTD #79)

Published on August 8, 2017 by lensembledujour6 Comments

I love the thigh-high sock trend.

It's been around since 2013, probably, and I've been into it since then. I remember sitting in my freshman Biology class, scrolling through Pinterest (what, you think I actually paid attention while Mrs. Smith played the same episodes of Bill Nye over and over?), and pinning dozens of outfit pictures to my fashion board of black thigh socks and how to wear them.

At the time, I didn't own any thigh-high socks, but I did have knee socks, which I would pull up over my knees and tape in place to create the look. I probably paired them with skater skirts and utility jacket – the height of 2013 fashion.

I hope I don't become one of those people who lives in the past and refuses to update her wardrobe 10 years down the line, but I'm still happy to wear the thigh socks trend even though it may be getting just the slightest bit dated. I feel like they make any outfit a little edgier, which is just what this plain floral shift dress needs.

In other news (I sure use that transition quite a lot, don't I?), my sunglasses have been missing for a few days now. You'll notice, I've worn my Fossil aviators and not my Ray Bans in the last few posts, and that's because I can't for the life of me find my dumb Ray Bans. I know they're in the house somewhere, but I've got no idea where.

I know they'll turn up, it's just a matter of when. Wish me luck hunting them down, yeah?

I’ll see you in the next one! Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Dress: Abercrombie

Socks: Hot Topic…maybe? Or perhaps Target? Lol I don't remember

Sunglasses: Not Ray Ban

Saturday Musings + Coffee – Taking Photos in a Mall Starbucks

Published on August 5, 2017 by lensembledujour5 Comments

My friend, Jane, giggled at me the whole time I was taking the photos for today's blog.

I've gotten used to taking photos in public – you put on your sunglasses so you don't have to make eye contact with anyone, and then pretend no one's judging you. It was weird at first, and I used to purposefully avoid public places for my photos, but I'm immune to the embarrassment now.

So it's funny when I hang out with friends who aren't used to my constant photo taking because they usually look confused and awkward when I whip out my Canon in the middle of a restaurant and start taking pictures of my coffee. Which is funny, you know, since we teenagers have no problem taking photos with our phones to post to our Snapchat stories – but pull out a real camera, and *Heath Ledger voice* everybody loses their minds!

To relieve Jane of her embarrassment (and also to get to a spot with better lighting), I scooted over to an empty table a few feet away to snap my photos for my Saturday Musings post today.

I dunno, there's just something really cute about a nice flatlay with some sparkly things, coffee, and a plain white background, and it makes for a really lovely Instagram post to break up all the OOTD photos. It makes the uncomfortable stares in public places all worth it.

Plus, since I suffer no embarrassment anymore from public photo taking, it's funny to watch my friends cringe and look like they don't know what to do when I start arranging all of my accessories on a table and snapping pictures.

Anyway, that’s it for today! Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com.

July 30, 2017 – Yay Adoption (OOTD #78)

Published on August 4, 2017 by lensembledujour12 Comments

Odd title, I know, but I mean it – yay for adoption!

On Sunday, my parents and I went out for lunch in celebration of Gotcha Day – the day my parents "got" me from China.

I don't believe I've mentioned this before, but I was adopted from Hunan, China when I was a few months old. I mean, I guess you probably could've figured that – it is a white dude who's in my Father's Day photos - but I haven't discussed it formally. Not that I personally think there's much to discuss; it's not like I remember anything about China or my birth parents, and I've always considered myself much more American than Chinese, or even Chinese-American.

So in general, my adopted-ness plays very little role in my everyday life. The exception of course is Gotcha Day, my family's little celebration of, basically, the fact that we are a family. We usually go out to eat, and my parents get me a little gift; it's not unlike a mini birthday party. My grandmother sometimes joins us too. It's just a nice little way for us to bond, and of course, a nice little excuse for us to eat out.

This year, we ate out at Bella Notte, one of my favorite restaurants in all of Lexington. I adore Italian, and this is probably the best Italian I've ever had outside of Little Italy in New York. Everything tastes so fresh and flavorful, the décor is stylish and charming, and I don't even feel badly about eating the pasta with heavy cream sauce – it's that good. My dad and I always get the family-size Penne Gorgonzola to share, and we can nearly finish it off.

After lunch, we went out and did some shopping for my dorm room. There wasn't a lot we could get, since I haven't seen my room yet and don't really know how much space I've got, but I did pick out some nice sheets and a duvet cover. I'll have to do a Saturday Musings + Coffee post about it sometime and show it all off to you guys; I'm definitely excited about it all!

I know this is kind of a short post, but I think I'm going to end it here. Thanks again to my parents for being super cool and also making it so that I didn't spend the rest of my life in a Chinese orphanage!

I’ll see you in the next one! Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Top: Unknown (thrifted)

Pants: The LOFT

Scarf: American Eagle

July 29, 2017 – Anything For a Good Photo (OOTD #77)

Published on August 3, 2017 by lensembledujour12 Comments

You know, I only spent about 10 minutes at this farmer's market today.

My mother and I were on our way to Starbucks when we passed this dinky little farmer's market/nursery, and we had a few extra minutes so we decided to stop in.

It was cute, but there wasn't much going on – some plants, organic groceries, random homemade crafts. They had some natural Amish butter, which looked good, but it was like $12 for a pound, and I am much too poor for that.

The truth is, I didn't actually buy anything there, or really, even hang around for very long. But from the cute photos I got, you might think I spent hours marveling at the plants and sniffing the fresh tomatoes or whatever, but nope. Got my pictures and then went.

Writing for a fashion blog is weird that way – it's your goal to present the best version of your life so that people will marvel at you and think you're super cool, but your photos aren't necessarily a fair representation of a normal day. In the case of these farmer's market photos, I thought it'd be cute to look like I had a charming farmer's market outing, even though I really didn't and actually spent most of my day sitting in my dining room. Is that insincere?

I suppose not, because I'm disclosing it here. Besides, the farmer's market made for a really adorable background to my outfit photos, and my Instagram could use more of those.

In other news, I really love this scarf thing I'm wearing here. I say "scarf thing" – I have no clue what it would qualify as. It's thin like a scarf, but it wraps like a shawl and just generally gives me 2012 dystopian Hunger Games Catching Fire vibes . It makes any outfit instantly more edgy, like this Urban Outfitters dress that I bought 2 years ago before the shift dress was super trendy and had oversaturated the mall fashion boutiques. Still like it though, especially its pattern.

Looks like that’s it for today, so I’ll see you in the next one! Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Dress: Urban Outfitters

Scarf thing: Altar'd State

July 28, 2017 – Liebster Award (And Also OOTD #76)

Published on August 2, 2017August 2, 2017 by lensembledujourLeave a comment

Fun fact: when I first typed “Liebster” here, it autocorrected to “lobster.”

I’d take a lobster award though, if it meant getting to eat some lobster. That stuff’s tasty.

So here it is, my first blogging award for L’ensemble du jour! I was nominated by the lovely Anya W, of Anya’s Journey, and the fabulous Joanna, of Jersey Fabulous. Being relatively new to the blogging sphere, I wasn’t really sure what a “Liebster” award could possibly mean, so I consulted the all-knowing Google and discovered that “liebster” has German origins and means something along the lines of “kindest” or “sweetheart.” Apparently, it’s a pretty common award, not unlike a chain email, that circulates among us bloggers often.In addition, I’ve also got an OOTD post for you, so we’re hitting two birds with one stone.

THE RULES OF THE LIEBSTER AWARD

Thank the blogger who nominated you.
Answer the 11 questions the blogger asked you
Nominate at least 5 bloggers, but no more than 11 who deserve the award
Tell those bloggers you nominated them
Create 11 original questions for the nominees to answer.

MY 11 QUESTIONS FROM ANYA’S JOURNEY

Where are you from?

I was born in Hunan, China, but I was adopted by American parents when I was just 8 months old. I feel kind of badly; sometimes Chinese people will ask me about living in China, or try to speak to me in Mandarin – you know, as a way to connect – and I always have to tell them I really don’t remember anything about my life there.

What made you start your blog?

It came out of a desire to document all of my outfits. I used to keep a little photo album on my phone of all the different outfits I’d wear in a week to school, and one day, my dad suggested that I take the fashion photos I was already taking and share them online…and here we are.

How would you describe yourself in a few words?

Introspective, pretentious, happily self-depricating

What’s your favourite dessert?

To be honest, I’m not much of a dessert person – I’d much rather just eat seconds of whatever meal I was having! But I do rather have a soft spot for good ice cream, particularly buttermilk flavor.

If you could choose anywhere in the world to live, where would it be?

New York City, no question.

What’s your current favourite TV show?

You’re gonna laugh, but I’m kinda loving the new My Little Pony series. I grew up with the pandering, early 2000s versions, so it’s nice to see that they’ve updated the franchise to be more modern and mature.

What’s a goal you wish to achieve in the next few years?

Graduate from college with some good friends and good grades.

What’s your favourite makeup product?

Hm…probably my Skin79 Super+ Hot Pink BB Cream. I’ve been using this product for 5 years – since I was 13 – and I keep coming back to it. It can be built from light to medium coverage without ever looking cakey and can even be stippled in concentrated areas to make a concealer. I love this thing, so much so that I’ve pretty much stopped wearing foundation.

What are 3 things that have made you happy today?

I picked flowers and put them in a little mason jar, my skin looked nice, and I did some doodling at work.

What’s one of your biggest pet peeves?

When people play videos or games in public and don’t silence their phones or use earbuds

Are you a morning person or a night owl?

Night owl. I’m most productive at 2AM, when everyone is asleep and it’s nice and quiet.

MY NOMINEES

I nominate anyone reading this who would like to participate in this award! If you do choose to answer the questions I’ve posed, please link to me, lensembledujour.wordpress.com, so I can read your answers!

Here are a few blogs that I have been loving

MY 11 QUESTIONS TO THE NOMINEES

What do you like best about blogging?
What’s your favorite article of clothing in your wardrobe?
What’s your favorite song, and what memories do you associate with it?
Where all have you traveled in the world? What’s been your favorite place to visit?
What’s the last thing you ate? Was it any good?
What’s the last concert you went to? Or, if you haven’t been to a concert, who would you most like to see?
Coffee or tea?
What’s your favorite school subject?
What’s your favorite word?
What’s your family’s heritage?
Have you got any pets? If so, what are their names? If not, would you like any?

Top: HotTopic

Pants: The LOFT

Headband: Altar’d State

Choker: Madewell

July 26, 2017 – Modeling For The Powell Spring/Summer 2017 Collection (OOTD #75)

Published on August 1, 2017January 8, 2020 by lensembledujour4 Comments

Yes, after years of waiting for my big break, countless headshots, and strict diets, I’ve finally landed my first serious modeling gig for a professional designer.

That…that’s sarcasm if you can’t tell. Sorry, I probably could’ve kept that joke running for longer, but it was so ridiculous that I felt uncomfortable, lol. The real story is that I’ve got a friend, Terence, who just this summer has picked up sewing as a hobby. He texted me and asked if I would be willing to be the model for what he was making, so how could I refuse?

If I’m not mistaken, I think this skirt is the second complete piece Terence has made, and while I don’t really know anything about sewing or technique, I must say, it’s pretty impressive. Certainly better than anything I could’ve made! I can do buttons and maybe mend torn seams, but that’s about the extent of my ability.

It was actually originally going to be a dress, but he unfortunately, he ran out of time trying to complete it. See, he really wanted me to wear it out for a show we were going to see in Cincinnati, but by the time Wednesday rolled around, all he had done was the skirt and some of the parts of the top. The judges on Project Runway might not have been impressed with his time management skills, but regardless, he managed to “make it work” (*prays for someone to laugh at that Tim Gunn joke*) by simply sewing and pinning the skirt until it was wearable on its own.

As for the styling of the outfit, that was actually a lot to do with Terence too. I brought several tops and jackets over while he was still sewing so we could figure out what would work best, and he chose this black dragon scale top out of all of the other pieces. And to be honest? I think he made the perfect decision.

The skirt is flowy and feminine, with this exquisite if slightly flashy pattern, so it contrasts nicely with the harsh, utilitarian look of the top. I call it my dragon slayer shirt, usually pairing it with similarly post-apocolytic-styled pieces , but it occurred to me as I was looking through my closet for something to complement the skirt that perhaps it could work as a juxtaposition piece as well. Terence evidently agreed, and we wound up with outfit consisting of a bright, tropical skirt, a dark, edgy top, and a belt with the sole purpose of hiding the pins holding the pleats together – perhaps one of the most interesting combinations I’ve ever worn.

And the whole outfit was a huge hit at our show! I got plenty of compliments on it (both the top and the skirt, sometimes together and sometimes individually), and with every comment, I was able to point to Terence and say “Actually, my friend here made it!” I think he was really pleased with the attention his work got – he’s not really the type of guy who likes the limelight, but he’s also hardly shy to some flattery.

Shirt: Unknown (gifted)

Skirt: Terence Powell