Tag: ootd

October 3, 2018 – We All Fall Down (OOTD #386)

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It doesn’t get much more fall than this.

Fall in the Midwest is actually quite lovely — it’s everything I always wanted fall to be when I lived in the South, when all we got were a few cool days usually followed by an intense heat wave that would turn all the leaves brown instead of orange. Meanwhile, winter in the South (or at least, the part of the South I’m from) is preferable to the winters we get here South Bend, but thankfully, I have winter break to go home and keep away from the perpetual snowstorm that is December-January in Northern Indiana.

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just some dead stuff on the ground

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Fall in South Bend usually means taking as many pictures with trees as possible. It’s not like there’re necessarily that many other interesting things to use as backgrounds — and we all know (or at least, I know) I use certain locations a little more than I probably should.

I live in a boring place, what can I say? I love my school, but it feels small at times — which is a pretty far cry from when I began here, and it felt massive. I suppose I’ve just gotten taller, or something.

Speaking of looking taller, I wrote a blog the other day about my preferred pose to make my legs look longer. There are some prime examples of that pose here in this post, especially the very first one at the top. I don’t pretend to be anything that my five foot tall-self (except for when I’m pretending to be a five foot one), but I do like to play with the perspective of different shots in order to find the most flattering angle. I may look like a 12 year-old boy in person, but I don’t need to in my pictures.

Just kidding. 12 year-old boys are probably taller than me.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Checkered top: J. Crew

Sweater: Forever21

Shorts: Forever21

Glasses: Discountglasses.com

October 1, 2018 – Recipe for Style (OOTD #385)

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Shhh…I know it’s a corny title. Just hear me out.

I’ve mentioned before that I have a formula for fashion on days when I don’t want to be creative with my outfits. The days where I roll out of bed 10 minutes before class starts, the days where I feel sick, or the days I’m just too lazy to come up with anything better — I come back to this outfit formula.

Here’s what it is: pair one (1) pair of fitted pants or leggings with one (1) loose-fitting top, such as a sweater. Top with one (1) jacket and two (2) simple black booties.

The silhouette is flattering, I don’t have to worry about shaving my legs, and I always know I’ll look fashionable — even if not innovative. It’s basic, but classic, and it works.

With this particular outfit, I even added a belt. That’s the thing with the formula — it also lends itself well to accessorizing. Jewelry, scarves, belts all look good because the silhouette of the outfit itself is so simple.

I’d recommend come up with their own outfit formula for days when they don’t feel like getting dressed up. It doesn’t have to be my formula, but it’s got to be something you’re comfortable with throwing together on those days when you can’t be bothered to stand in front of your closet contemplating what to wear. The worst is when you’re on a time crunch, and none of the pieces you’re combing seem to look good together. That’s where a formula comes in.

When back when I was a middle schooler, I had a formula. Back then, it was a floral skirt, a lacy camisole, and a cardigan, preferably from Hollister or Abercrombie. Sometimes I’d also wear Uggs and put my hair in a Snooki bump. It was a look.

The point? Being formulaic isn’t always bad, as long as you do it in moderation.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: Thrifted

Top: Forever21

Pants: Banana Republic

September 29, 2018 – Washing Machine Queen (OOTD #384)

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This may be the most discordant collection of locations I’ve ever included in a blog.

First up, we’ve got some photos from the laundry room. That’s right: I posed with a washing machine for my fashion blog.

I’ve seen some Instagrammers get some really cool shots in laundromats, so I thought I’d give it a shot. Turns out, the laundry room in my dorm has some really flattering lighting. Who’d have thought?

Fun fact: the washing machine I’m sitting on here was actually running while I was doing these photos, meaning it was vibrating underneath me as I sat on it. That was a little weird. I’ve never had my fashion photograph backgrounds vibrate before.

After the washing machine photos, I have a few with this blue gate by the architecture building. How did I wind up at a blue gate by the architecture building? I saw it as I happened to go by, and I thought it’d make for a good background. I don’t know. Sometimes you just gotta jump on the good backgrounds, even if you’ve already gotten pictures for the day.

What’s next? Well, it was game day, so it was on to the game. I was a little concerned that I hadn’t gotten any game-related photos in my game outfit, so I decided to get even more photos outside of the stadium. Did I need them? No. Did I get them anyway?

Well…yes.

The moral of the story is that there was no point to me getting so many photos today because I wasn’t able to use them all, and I now I have a lot of photos on my phone that  I don’t know what to do with. As much as I like getting varied backgrounds for my OOTD pics, sometimes, the varied backgrounds don’t connect. And that makes for a rather disjointed blog post.

But on the plus side, I found two cool locations — the laundry room and the blue gate by the architecture building — that could potentially make for good backgrounds for future blog posts. So I suppose it wasn’t a total waste.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: Chaps (thrifted)

Top: Notre Dame bookstore

Pants: vinage (thrifted)

September 28, 2018 – Overdress (in a T-Shirt) [OOTD #383]

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I love this shirt.

It says “Overdress” in huge bold letters, but get this — it’s a t-shirt. T-shirts aren’t dressy. You can’t be overdressed in a t-shirt. In fact, you’re more likely to be underdressed.

But it’s the silly irony of a shirt that proclaims the importance of overdressing while simultaneously being an inherently casual piece that I so love. I don’t know if anyone else loves it. I don’t know if people who see me wearing it think that it’s funny that a t-shirt would say “Overdress” or if they just think it’s stupid. I like it though.

You know what else I like? (This transition, which I seem to use a lot on this blog?)

Fridays. Interestingly, this outfit from September 28 was also a Friday, the same day as the one that I’m publishing it on a month later on November 2. I don’t know if I like Fridays enough to screen print it it on a t-shirt (or write an 2011 annoying song about it), but maybe enough to name a restaurant after it with really good chicken wings.

IMG_6728

On Fridays, I only have one class, which is only 50 minutes long and which meets late enough in the morning, allowing me to sleep in. Today, I had an exam, which was a little unfortunate, but after that, the rest of the day is free for relaxing and being a boring potato of a human being. Maybe I’ll do some work. No Friday night is complete without it.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: Lilly Pulitzer (thrifted)

Top: Forever21

Pants: 

September 26, 2018 – Oktoberfest (OOTD #382)

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I know close to nothing about Oktoberfest — I’ve never been to one in Germany, I’ve never been to one in the US, and I’ve never even done a basic Google search to figure out what it is.

But with all of the things I don’t know about Oktoberfest, I do know that women’s traditional dresses kinda look like this for it. Or at least, that’s what my roommate compared my outfit to when I came out that morning.

I was actually going for more of a vintage 60s look, but I guess traditional German villager works too.

I’m so far behind with these blogs, I’m afraid I don’t have any Halloween content to give you today, even though it’s Halloween the day I’m posting this. I hope a September Oktoberfest outfit will suffice. Don’t worry — the Halloween content is coming. It just might not being coming until like…Christmas.

If anyone has advice on how to make sure that festive content is posted at the appropriate time, I would love to hear it. I don’t like to force myself to write blogs the day I take pictures for them, so I couldn’t probably get the Halloween outfit blog out on Halloween day, but it does feel silly if it comes a month late. Should I post the Halloween content on Halloween even if it messes with the chronological order of the other blogs?

I mean, ideally I guess I’d just keep up with my daily blogs and not wind up a month behind…but…life happens, you know? Sometimes it’s Halloween and you’re writing about an unintentional Oktoberfest outfit you wore in September.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

White blouse: The LOFT

Red top: Express (thrifted)

Skirt: Abercrombie

September 24, 2018 – Beginnings, Ends, and Instagram Posts (OOTD #381)

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I can’t believe it’s 2018 and I’m just now learning how to link an Instagram post to a blog.

I guess I’m just a little basic for a blogger. I write some words, I add some pictures, I throw in some links. In that sense, I’m not very advanced. It’s not like this is my full-time job —  I can’t necessarily take the time to learn all the SEO and marketing strategies that would get me onto the coveted first page Google spot.

I’ve carved out my tiny corner of the Internet, my few bytes of space, and I guess there’s a small group of people who like to visit me here. Half of those views are probably my mom. The other half might be me viewing from mobile. In other words, I have a very loyal fanbase.

I don’t know if I’ll ever find fame or fortune on the Internet, but I suppose that’s what college is for. So I can not find fame or fortune in the real world, all while spending $70k a year for it.

It’s funny for me to think, but when I began this blog, I never imagined continuing it into college. I didn’t really imagine anything for it — I’d just heard suggestions for years that I should start a fashion blog, and eventually, I decided to go for it. Somehow, though, when I began this thing spring semester of my senior year of high school, I figured I’d get bored of it and give on it before my freshman year even began. Now, it seems all of my blog posts revolve around college life and my exciting adventures at Notre Dame (read: exploring weird buildings at night and complaining about the weather).

How much longer will it go? I don’t know. I remember back in middle school, there was this makeup blog I used to follow super closely, Nouveau Cheap. The blogger, Giana, had a pretty decent following. I’m not certain how big her blog was,  but I know she would always have a ton of comments on her posts. One day, Giana just stopped posting, with very little indication why. She still hasn’t broken the silence — she just left.

I know everything comes to an end eventually, and I’ll quite possibly move on from this blog one day, but it’s hard to conceptualize. It’s a far cry from when I began here, when I could conceptualize the end, but not the continuation.

Anyway, I don’t know how I got to talking about this from Instagram posts. Hope everyone out there’s having a good day, and happy almost Halloween!

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: Thrifted

Top: The LOFT (thrifted)

Pants: Thrifted

September 20, 2018 – Stairway to Heaven (OOTD #380)

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The Main Building at Notre Dame = Heaven, right? So naturally, this is the Stairway to Heaven.

Actually, fun fact — popular lore at Notre Dame dictates that if you walk up the front steps of Notre Dame’s Main Building (the one with the golden dome)  as an undergraduate, you won’t graduate in four years. However, these aren’t the front steps — they’re part of a smaller side staircase. My degree is safe, at least for now.

The other bit of popular superstition is that you can’t walk on the grass of God Quad, or else you’ll fail your freshman Theology class — joke’s on them though, because I definitely stepped on the grass of God Quad many times, and I still got an A in that class. I am in a second Theo course now, though, so I’m definitely not going to continue to test my luck. Joke’s on me now.

The days are getting shorter, and I’m finding it more and more beneficial to try to get my photos in in the afternoon rather than the evening. The afternoon sun can be a bit harsh, as you can see here, but the evening sun is dying earlier and earlier. On nights where I can’t get anyone to do pictures for me until 7:00pm at night, that proves to be quite the problem.

I’ve said this before, I’ll say it again — I look forward to the day when I can live with a friend whom I can rely on to do pictures for me. My roommates are awesome this year, don’t get me wrong, but asking someone to go out of their way to take pictures of me just seems wrong.

I usually catch people by asking them to get a meal with me first. Then, when they can’t run, I ask them to do pictures for me really quick. Works every time.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Top: Forever21

Skirt: Forever21

September 19, 2018 – Sock Feet (OOTD #379)

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It is no secret at this point that I am a sock person.

Not only did I once write a whole blog post about how I thought a pair of socks made an entire outfit work, but I am also one of those weird people who wears socks to bed. And at just about all times of the day. Basically, unless it’s summer and I have sandals on, I probably have socks on too.

I usually don’t go for thigh high socks and shorts because I think it looks a little too stripper-ish, but like…I had a jacket on here? So it was more conservative?

How does that work anyway? I technically have more clothes on with the socks than I would have without the socks, but the socks make the whole outfit look more sexual. Whoever decided socks were sexy is dumb. I just want to wear my socks without being judged.

All the more reason to wear the socks, though, right? It’s time to #FreeTheSocks from their reputation.

At any rate, I think the world needs more people who wear socks. I’ve seen the feet of kids in the library who think they can take their shoes off without anyone noticing. They are wrong — people notice, and no one thinks your bare feet are cool.

Plus, in socks, you can slide around the house on the hardwood! What else could you want from your fashion choices?

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Jacket: Hollister

Shorts: Hollister

Socks: Target

Top: Thrifted

September 18, 2018 – Hawaiian Vacation Witch (OOTD #378)

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Get ready, because this is my spookiest Halloween costume!

What? You’re telling me this isn’t in any way spooky or costume-like?

Yeah, I guess you’re probably right. This is just me in a Hawaiian shirt and a black sunhat. Not spooky. But maybe 21st century witches just aren’t spooky like we think of them. That’s probably how they disguise themselves.

You know what is spooky, though?

Asking people to take pictures for my blog. In fact, it’s so spooky, I didn’t even ask anyone to do them for me for this outfit, I just did them myself.

I didn’t buy my Apple Watch so that I could take pictures — in fact, I didn’t even know that it could do that until spring of this year– but I am so glad that it does. Seriously, the remote feature on my watch that connects to my phone has been one of the single most useful features.

Maybe that’s the kind of witchcraft I do — I can take pictures on my phone without actually touching my phone. Break out the pitchforks and the Puritan Bibles and put me on trial already.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Top: thrifted

Skirt: Zara

Hat: Forever21

September 17, 2018 – Transition Fashion (OOTD #377)

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It feels weird tagging this with “fall” when it looks so much like a summer outfit.

I guess the colors are kind-of fall. Otherwise though, my bare shoulders and bare legs give away how warm it was.

South Bend weather is weird — it goes from boiling hot to freezing cold within a few days, and then back again. I don’t mind, actually, except for the fact that the sudden transition dries my skin out really badly. It’s just a little weird trying to figure out how to dress.

The sudden transitions are excellent for making the leaves change colors, though, or so I’ve heard. I don’t understand the science behind it, but apparently, warm days and cold nights make for beautiful fall colors.

This is my favorite time of year in South Bend. The summers are too humid, the winters are too long, and the springs are too short, but the falls are legitimately amazing. For all of the times I’ve complained about the Midwest — the accents, the wind, the miles and miles of cornfields — I do love the autumn season.

That’s about it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at home at Notre Dame. Don’t forget to check me out on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Bloglovin, Twitter, and Tumblr! For business inquiries, shoot me an email at lensembledujour@gmail.com!

Top: Target

Skirt: Target