forever21 – Page 19 – L'ensemble du jour

July 21, 2017 – Let’s Do The Time Warp Again (OOTD #72)

Published on July 27, 2017 by lensembledujour3 Comments

As promised from yesterday's blog, here's the blog post for Friday the 21st, posted a day after the blog for Saturday the 22nd due to technical difficulties and writer idiocy.
More on that here.
On Friday, my dad and I went out hiking to Red River Gorge, a beautiful canyon system in Central KY. We both got the day off from work and made it into something of a father-daughter thing. Actually, we'd initially planned on doing a canoeing trip on the Kentucky River, but that had to be canceled and rescheduled as there hadn't been enough rain in the week prior for the water levels to be high enough.
Hiking's pretty cool though, so no complaints from me there. I will always prefer to hike in the fall (pretty leaves, cooler temperatures, yada yada), but I admit, it wasn't bad at all. We left the house at like, 7:30 in the morning and got to the trails by 9 or 10, so it hadn't gotten blisteringly hot yet, and it was a cloudy day, so we didn't really have to deal with the sun beating down on us. Plus, for extra protection, we opted for a trail that was down in the canyon and surrounded by trees, so it was nice and shady.
My family and I went hiking a lot when I was a kid – Cumberland Falls, Red River Gorge, Gatlinburg – if it's in the Midwest/Southeast near Kentucky, I've probably been there. I used to absolutely hate it though – the bugs, the heat, the physical exertion – it wasn't really my style. I guess it's still not quite my style, as I still hate bugs and heat, but I do have a greater appreciation for the natural environment you get to experience when you hike.
Our trail led us to something called Whittleton Arch, a nice little rock formation about a mile and a half from the road. I, of course, took immediately to climbing it and posing on top of the rocks, letting my dad get some cool photos like this:
For real though, I like hanging out with my dad, and I wish I got to do it more. He's a pretty cool dude, and I'm not just saying that because he has the patience to take a decent chunk of the photos for this stupid blog, including the ones from this trip. I'll miss him when I go off to college, and that's what made our time together hiking so nice.

Want to read more about my Red River Gorge adventure, and how it affected my fashion choices for the next day? Part 2 of the epic saga is already up here!

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!

Jacket: Adidas (thrifted)

Top: Forever21

Shorts: Target

July 19, 2017 – My Archenemy, Poor Lighting (OOTD #69)

Published on July 24, 2017 by lensembledujour7 Comments

You know, apart from the cockroach in the Atlanta airport.

I didn't get off of work until 6 today, so it was probably 7:30 until I actually got around to getting the pictures of my outfit, meaning the natural lighting by that time was not quite ideal.

When I'm at home, one of my favorite locations to take photos is in front of my garage door, since it makes for a plain, stark background that my outfit can pop against. It's also excellent because the afternoon sun hits that part of my house in a really flattering way between about 3:00pm and 5:30pm – but not so much by the time 7:30 rolls around.

At 7:30, the sun is beginning to set, making for more direct lighting. Now, that's usually good thing, except that there's a tree in front of my house, so direct sunlight means that the tree casts odd shadows in front of the garage door. Depending on the day, those shadows can either be very interesting, or, in the case of today, just a little awkward.

But that's what happens when you dedicate yourself to taking photos of your outfit everyday! Sometimes you get lovely lighting, fun backgrounds, and a good photographer, and sometimes the lighting is off, the background is boring, and your photographer is whatever random person walking down the street looks like they'd be willing to take a picture or two of you (not the case today – it was my father, who is arguably the best photographer I've ever had for this website!)

As for today's outfit, I think I picked it out about two minutes before I had to rush out the door to get to work. Work outfits always have to put practicality first, since I can be on my feet for a pretty long time, so there was no artistic layering or 6-inch heels going on here – just a simple pair of pattered pants and a plain top. My hair's in a bun because it's been an embarrassingly long time since I last washed it, and, as the updo very clearly allows you to see, an even longer time since I did my roots, ha!

Top: Forever21

Necklace: J. Crew

Pants: Ann Taylor LOFT

July 8, 2017 – Unconventional Pride Outfit (OOTD #62)

Published on July 10, 2017September 5, 2019 by lensembledujour1 Comment

London: Day 4

We told ourselves we were going to give ourselves a “relaxed” day today – it wasn’t. Now, that doesn’t mean it wasn’t still fun – but relaxing? You could probably cross that off the list of descriptive words.

We began by heading over to Waltham Abbey, a small, historic town just about 15 minutes away from Broxbourne. Amanda and I agreed, it was one neat little area. The oldest towns in America are only a couple hundred years old because, of course, our country is also only a couple hundred years old, but this, this just made Jamestown and Plymouth look like children. The church has been around since 1030 (or so the Wikipedia article says), and every building in town oozes with antiquity.

After walking around a bit there, we were dropped off at the station to catch a train into London….only to find out after Sue drove away that the Waltham Abbey station was closed. It was whatever, we were able to walk over to another one that was open, but it was 20 minutes of stress in my life I didn’t need.

We had originally wanted to go back to Oxford Street today, but, as we found out, the Pride Festival was going on in that area, so it was closed. That didn’t phase us though – we decided to go to Pride then, instead.

Since we didn’t know we’d be going, we didn’t have any rainbow attire, so we might’ve looked kind of out of place, but it was so packed and crowded, I doubt anyone was paying attention since the number one priority for most people was just to stay standing. I’m used to crowds, and I don’t mind them, but this was bad. There were moments I couldn’t move, I was so smushed up against other people. I’m sure they had really tight security, given everything that’s gone on in London in the least year, but it was an excellent place for a terrorist attack.

We got a few photos and decided to get out of there quickly.

After that, we hit up Buckingham Palace. We didn’t get to see the inside or anything, but the outside was enough. It was stately – beautiful, grand, and kind-of cold. I’m glad we saw it – it’s arguably one of the most British things in all of England, and as a tourist, it was fun to see – but it’s not like a museum you got to walk around. We got our photos, and within 20 minutes, we were done.

In my opinion – the best kind of tourist site!

Last on the agenda was to get some food and drink at a pub. We opted for this old one called The Camel, which, let me tell you, had the most delicious chicken pie I’ve ever tasted. I also bought a pint of ale, which I managed to get through maybe 3/4 of. The more I drank, the more I liked it – or, rather, tolerated it. I’m not an ale person, apparently.

That’s it for today! 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!

Shirt: Forever21

Bralette: Aerie

Pants: the LOFT

July 3, 2017 – [insert all-black attire proverb here] (OOTD #57)

Published on July 5, 2017 by lensembledujour8 Comments

All black everything? Black like my soul? There are so many choices – all so cliché, yet all so relatable.

Black is such a comfortable, easy-to-wear color; I almost have to stop myself from wearing it so often for fear of coming off as goth. Nothing wrong with goth, of course – but as I’ve said before, I don’t like to pigeon-hole myself into a single style.

But yeah, if I were to choose a style to go with 100% of the time, goth might be one of them. My Chemical Romance was a favorite band of mine my sophomore year. Still is a favorite band of mine, actually…

Anyway, today’s outfit – I like to think of it as pseudo-nu-goth, not unlike my “not quite” pastel grunge look from a month ago. I absolutely adore the look of a true nu-goth – the fishnet stockings, layered chokers, elegant but intimidating makeup, and of course, black everything – but the fact of the matter is, I simply don’t have the pieces to do a full Pinterest-worthy nu-goth outfit. So in the absence of the proper pieces, I like to innovate. I’ve got a black circle skirt on here – simple enough – and a black sweater with some interesting cutouts at the shoulder and detailing on the neckline. Throw in a layered choker, and I’ve got something that, while not perfect, achieves the look I want without me having to spend a fortune on pieces I can’t wear in other outfits.

Sadly though, my fabulous pseudo-nu-goth outfit was seen by very few today. I spent most of my time at home, as my biggest concern today was packing – I haven’t done anything yet, and I leave for London tomorrow. Ah well, I packed for New York the night before – I can pack for London the same way!

Tomorrow I’m headed off to London! Sorry, I just had to repeat that to myself because I can scarcely believe it. I’m so excited, yet also a bit stressed. I’ve only flown by myself once before, and it wasn’t international. I actually have flown internationally before, but it was years ago, when I visited China in third grade. And I had my parents with me that time to tell me what to do.

I’ll leave you with this charming photo of my room, mid-packing session. It looks like a hurricane hit it, and yet, it’s just me. It’s kind of bad, but a large part of packing is putting together and laying out the outfits, and for me, that’s a very messy process.

Sweater: Francesca’s

Skirt: Forever21

July 30, 2017 – Lime Yours (OOTD #56)

Published on July 1, 2017 by lensembledujour10 Comments

Yeah…okay, I didn’t come up with that pun.

If you stole my phone right now and checked my Google search history, you would find “lime puns” among the first results.

Look, it’s hard work trying to come up with clever blog posts every day!

The truth is, I don’t even like limes as a fruit. They’re sour and kind-of bitter, and limeade will forever be second place to lemonade in my heart. But what limes lack in tasty flavor they make up for in a beautiful, rich color that absolutely everyone can wear.

I’ll admit, when I first saw this shirt in Banana Republic, I was hesitant. It reminded me of pea soup, which isn’t really my favorite, and I didn’t see it being a flattering color on me. Still, I decided to try it on, and I was pleasantly surprised to find it looked lovely on my skin – and I’m convinced it looks just as lovely on every skin tone.

If you’ll remember, this pea-lime color was quite trendy a few years back, and it hasn’t really gone out of style since. Why? Because, like I said, I believe just about everyone can wear it. For instance, my skin tone ranges from a deep tan in the summer to a pale beige in the winter, and I have no problem wearing it regardless of season. It’s vibrant but won’t overwhelm pale alabaster skin and saturated enough to not wash out dark chocolate skin; it’s a universal pleaser.

My point – I just really like this color.

The rest of the outfit is pretty simple – just some leggings, black boots, a necklace, and my favorite black sun hat. Some days are like that though, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

In other news, I’ll be leaving the country in a few days! Only two more shifts of work to make it through and then I’m free. I haven’t even begun to pack – I’ve been so bad with the procrastination. Ah well, maybe it’ll be like the time I flew to New York and I didn’t finish packing until about four hours before I left. That was an interesting time.

Shirt: Banana Republic

Necklace: Forever21

June 29, 2017 – Like An Onion (OOTD #55)

Published on June 30, 2017 by lensembledujour19 Comments

Good layering is the key to any good outfit.

For real, I put so much value on being able to create interesting layers in my clothing that I sometimes ignore the fact that it’s too freaking hot to be wearing a jacket and just do it anyway.

With layers, you create intrigue because there’s a hint of mystery as to what’s beneath the jacket/scarf/sweater/whatever. It’s must like choosing to make your subject in a picture go off the page – you can’t see everything, so you’re naturally drawn in look closer at what is there.

Granted, you can still have a good outfit without layers – it simply requires that the pieces themselves be intelligent enough designs that they are fascinating to look at. And often, that costs more money. And, since I don’t have a lot of that, I usually prefer to rely upon layers to carry my outfits rather than the design of the clothes.

(That does also mean that when I do see a piece of clothing that has an interesting design – one that “speaks” to me, you could say – I’m eager to snatch it up, especially if it’s a good price).

Today’s outfit is probably my go-to for the fall. Or the winter. Or even the summer or spring, because let’s be honest – I almost never pay attention to the weather when I’m making up my outfits. A jacket, a flowy top, skinny pants, a necklace or scarf, and my favorite pair of boots – you can bet that on pretty much any day I’m too lazy to come up with a more unique outfit and/or shave, I’ll be wearing some variation of this.

Everyone needs their safety outfit, and this is mine. It’s particularly good for days when I want to wear leggings because it relies upon the contrast between the oversized clothes on the upper half of my body and the form-fitting clothes on my lower half.

Do you have a go-to outfit? Leave me a comment below and let me know what you wear when you feel like you have nothing to wear!

Jacket: Forever21

Pants: Abercrombie

Shirt: Altar’d State

June 26, 2017 – A Blog Is Never Late, Nor Is It Early (OOTD #52)

Published on June 27, 2017 by lensembledujour16 Comments

…it arrives precisely when it means to.

Welp, I suck, and I missed out on posting yesterday. I did still get the photos – don’t you worry – but I didn’t get a chance to sit down and actually type out the corresponding blog post.

Ah well, it happens.

In my defense, my reasoning for not getting around to posting a blog is fairly solid. I worked 2-6, and after I got off, I went out immediately to meet with a friend who was visiting from South Carolina. She was probably one of the first friends that I made when I first moved here in seventh grade – in fact, she was probably the first person to invite me, the “new kid,” to do anything with her. I still have the old diary entry where I wrote about how excited I was that someone from my new school had finally invited me to hang out – lol!

Anyway, Kirstie moved our sophomore year, but she still comes to Kentucky to visit us sometimes. So after work, I met up with her and two of her other old friends – Zach and Adrian – for pizza, and we chatted and did some catching up. It’s funny – the three of us who still live in Kentucky don’t necessarily belong to the same crowd while in school, but we always manage to get along really well when Kirstie invites us all to hang out.

Over pizza, Kirstie was discussing my hair (I dyed it blonde about a year after she moved, so she hadn’t seen it in person before!), and Adrian, who had been relatively quiet otherwise, suddenly interjected “So do you think I could go blonde?”

At first, we all think he’s joking – Adrian, this big mixed-race football player dude, wants to go blonde? But he’s serious. And he wants me to do it.

So, flashfoward two hours, and I’m standing in Adrian’s bathroom, rubber gloves on, mixing up a batch of L’Oreal Quick Blue bleach that we got from Sally Beauty Supply about 15 minutes before they closed while Kirstie and Zach cheer me on. It’s hot, the chemicals are burning my eyeballs, and I’m terrified I’ll mess up and ruin his beautiful caramel curls, but there’s no backing out now.

And you know what? It turned out okay. Not perfect, mind you – I started running out of bleach towards the back of his head, so it’s definitely lighter in the front than in the back (call it ombré, maybe?), but I think I did okay for a person who has only ever bleached her own hair before. Plus, Adrian liked it (or at least he acted like he did!), so that’s all that really matters.

Summer 2017 has been an adventure to say the least.

In other news, one week, and I’ll be on the plane to London! I’m so excited to be going – and I’m positive at least half of my excitement can be attributed to not having to work for basically two weeks. The other half is probably because there are so many wonderful Instagram opportunities and beautiful backgrounds for my OOTD posts!

Shirt: Forever21

Sweater: Altar’d State

June 21, 2017 – It’s the Summer Solstice, and I’m Dressed For Fall (OOTD #49)

Published on June 21, 2017June 22, 2017 by lensembledujour20 Comments

I’d be lying if I told you I liked summer.

Granted, I like certain aspects of summer – being off school, wearing shorts, eating ice cream – summer’s not a terrible season at all. Like any season, it has its merits and its faults. But for me, living in the hot and humid state of Kentucky, the faults outweigh the merits.

I can stand heat. I don’t mind when it gets into the upper 80s (don’t mind, I say, as in can tolerate – not like), but when it’s in the upper 80s and has a humidity of over about 40%, that’s when I draw the line. When the humidity hits in Kentucky, all those pleasant aspects of summer – the sunny skies, the warm air, the bright colors – melt into a hot, unpleasant, sticky mess that no one wants to out be in, especially me.

So naturally, today, being the summer solstice and the first day of summer, I decided to break out my fall jacket, scarf, turtleneck, jeans, and boots. Sensible, right?

Actually, my reasoning for dressing this way wasn’t purely vanity (though I’m sure that does play a part – as I’ve mentioned many times before, I don’t like to let the weather determine how I’m going to dress…mostly); I had work today, and it’s just easier to wear pants than a dress or skirt. Plus there’s the shaving…there are plenty of reasons where pants can be a good choice in summer.

And the turtleneck? It’s actually very lightweight and thin – if I’m not careful, you might even see my bra through it. So for modesty (and yes, fashion) I threw a light blazer on top. And what outfit could be complete without a scarf to tie it together – literally and figuratively?

So at first glance, this may seem like a fall outfit, totally impractical for summer heat, but it was actually quite comfortable. I stayed modest, stylish, and best of all, kept the blazing sun off my skin.

…or maybe I’m lying to myself and every time I stepped outside today, I felt like I was cooking in an oven, but I’m too stubborn to change. You can take your pick of explanations 😉

Pants: J. Crew

Shirt: Forever21

Jacket: Kohl’s

Shoes: Steve Madden

June 13, 2017 – Is This a Sweater, a Jacket, or a Blouse? (OOTD #42)

Published on June 13, 2017June 13, 2017 by lensembledujour3 Comments

No, really – I mean that question.

I got this lovely jacket/blouse/sweater thing at Francesca’s the other day, but I really have no idea what it is. It’s open in the front, like a sweater or jacket, with a little tie to close it, but the fabric is a sheer cotton like a blouse.

That makes wearing it an interesting experience, because when I was picking out what to wear this morning, I really wasn’t sure how to style it. Obviously, I knew I had to wear something underneath for modesty, but otherwise, it was open to interpretation. That actually made for a rather fun experience creating my outfit because I wasn’t bound by what the “proper” thing to wear was – I could be more creative.

So in the end, I opted for a pale pink top for under my sweater/jacket/blouse thing that pulled from the colors from some of the colorful embroidery, and then same plain black leggings on bottom since I was working today. A rather simple ensemble, I’ll admit, but one made all the more interesting because of the unusual jacket/sweater/blouse element.

I don’t know, what do you think? It’s definitely different outfit; I love pieces that challenge me to think of new and interesting ways to wear my clothes. I think next time I wear this particular piece, I’ll want to wear it in a completely different way, because that’s what makes fashion fun to me – the ability to change up your look every day.

Also, you might’ve noticed – I’m wearing my aviators today instead of my usual Ray Bans. I took the dog for a walk last night, and for the life of me, I haven’t been able to find them since. Ah well, I know they’re in the house somewhere – I’ll find them eventually.

Blouse/sweater/jacket thing: Francesca’s

Shirt: Forever21

Boots: Steve Madden

Sunglasses: Fossil

May 29, 2017 – Memorial Day Fashion (OOTD #31)

Published on May 29, 2017May 30, 2017 by lensembledujour15 Comments

Happy Memorial Day my friends!

Of course, Memorial Day is a holiday we Americans take to honor the men and women who have served in the military. Granted, that’s not what the majority of the people do on Memorial Day – it’s become a day for shopping good sales at the mall and holding barbecues for friends. Personally, I fall more into that majority category, who takes this holiday off as a shopping opportunity, as I don’t know anyone close to me who has served, but I do think it is an important day for our country to recognize.

Today, my family and I hit the Kentucky Horse Park to check out a vintage market they were holding. It was pretty cool! There were plenty of vendors with some really cool products (and plenty of cute clothes), and I would definitely go again next year. There was this really adorable pink taffeta dress from the 50s that I really liked, but sadly, it had what looked like moth holes in it, so I had to pass. It was only $15 too!

Oh well.

Being at the Horse Park, I got some nice photos with the horses that were out and about. I live in Kentucky, so I see horses A TON (like seriously, you can barely drive anywhere without seeing some horses out grazing in a field), but I don’t necessarily get to go up and touch them, as (obviously) they’re someone else’s property and you don’t know how friendly they are.

These horses at the Horse Park were very friendly though, and quite happy to be petted and stroked. I am always so stricken by how large and beautiful horses are up close.

It’s Memorial Day, so obviously, I had to do the red, white and blue thing for my outfit – very stereotypically American, I guess, but in the best way possible. I’ve had these shorts for years, and I always love to wear them on patriotic holidays because I think the pattern resembles little stars. My shirt is much newer – actually, I just got it a few months ago at a vintage shop! It came with a matching midi skirt, so together, they look like a swing dress, but I also enjoy wearing them separate. All in all, I definitely got a vintage vibe from today’s oufit – though perhaps a little less than my outfit from last Friday!

Thanks for reading! I’ll see you in the next one!

Shirt: Vintage

Shorts: Forever21

And 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
Also, as promised, here’s a really ugly picture of me from the 5K! I did it with my friend Amanda – we definitely weren’t the fastest ones there, but we did okay. And it was a lot of fun!