vintage – Page 8 – L'ensemble du jour

March 28, 2018 – Hire Me Please (OOTD #256)

Published on April 9, 2018 by lensembledujour2 Comments

Can you believe it was warm enough last week for me to wear a skirt with just my bare legs exposed?

Me neither — because today, like the day before it and the day before that, it is snowing. It’s April, and it’s snowing. It’s April, and I’m still wearing my heavy winter coat, two sweaters, and boots.

Forgive me for going on so much about the weather recently, but I’m just in awe of the fact that the winter sticks around for so long in this part of the Midwest. It almost makes me miss the South. At least, I miss the flowers we usually get around this time in Kentucky — I don’t know if I also miss the humidity that came with the flowers.

Still trying to get a job, annoyingly. I’ve had a few interviews, but nothing’s come of them yet. The fact that I can’t start work for another month, that I’ll have to take off two weeks in the middle of the summer to go to Nepal, and that I can only work for two-three months in the first place really doesn’t seem to impress any potential employers.

What on earth happened in the last 20 years that made it so a college kid can’t get a full time job at the mall for the summer flipping burgers or folding clothes? I’m finding those bitter Tumblr posts about being a broke Millennial (though I’m definitely more of a Gen Z person) more and more relatable. Seriously — all of my friends who are also looking for summer employment (you know…all three of them who aren’t from Notre Dame and rich) are coming across the same issue I am.

It’s enough to make me want to drop the history major and switch to something more job-friendly like engineering or business. I keep seeing all of these cool internships for business and science and engineering students — but of course, I am not one of those. The issue there, of course, is that those don’t interest me, and what does interest me — law — doesn’t seem to have any interest in undergraduate students who haven’t gotten into law school yet.

Ho, hum. Hopefully, my employment chances will go up each year as I get older and get closer to completing my $200,000 degree.

That’s it for today. Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at Notre Dame! 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: Vintage (thrift)

Sweater: Ralph Lauren (thrift)

March 26, 2018 – Neon Pink (OOTD #254)

Published on April 6, 2018 by lensembledujour5 Comments

Favorite hobby: writing these blogs under my notes class during boring lectures.

In my Philo class, there’s very little to do in class, especially when my professor gets going on a tangent. He’s an intelligent guy, but he likes to hear himself talk, and I don’t really.

It’s great, because I get to appear like I’m engaged and taking close notes, when in actuality, I’m only half paying attention and instead getting some other (still important) work done.

I’ve been developing a really nasty cold lately, which I’m kind of bitter about because I thought for certain I was done with being sick for this school year. I pretty much avoided falling ill all winter, and I figured that meant that I had successfully dodged the bullet. I was mistaken, as my cough and stuffy nose prove.

I was also wrong about thinking the winter was over — it’s never over in South Bend. Here we are in April (well, I’m writing and publishing this in April. The outfit here is from March), and just yesterday, it snowed. I love the snow, but I’m over it.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life here at Notre Dame. 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: Hollister

Jacket: Vintage (thrift)

March 21, 2018 – Insert Joke About Being Hot Here (OOTD #251)

Published on April 3, 2018April 4, 2018 by lensembledujour2 Comments

Meilin’s adventures in exploring the art building at night continue!

At this point, I’m just heading out to Riley every night that I don’t get my pictures done earlier in the day — in fact, I’ll probably do the same today, as I didn’t get my pictures done at lunch like usual on Tuesday. It’s basically my second home.

The longer I spend in Riley, the more I come across unusual settings that make for interesting backgrounds, like this yellow paint cabinet. I loved both the bright color, and the “Flammable” text printed on it — figured it would make for some funny Instagram captions.

The summer job/internship search is in full swing, just as it was in April of last year. If you look back far enough in the archives of this blog, you’ll see my discussions of interviewing and trying to get hired last summer. You’ll also see that the job I ended up working last summer was really not any fun and a terrible fit for me, so I’m trying to avoid that by getting on the whole application thing earlier.

Honestly though, I’m realizing I probably could have been even earlier. Getting a job is hard, especially when you’re just an unexperienced college kid like me who can only work for a few months.

Worst case scenario, I’m sure I can get a part time job maybe at a local restaurant. It’s not really what I want to do, and it doesn’t really contribute at all to my resume, but it makes money, and that’s what’s important. I’m jealous though of my friends who are able to study abroad or work academically or professionally-relevant unpaid internships over the summer.

Anyway, pray for me, wish me luck, whatever you want to do to send me some good will as I try to procure some summer employment.

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you in the next one with more updates on my life at Notre Dame! 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: Vintage (thrifted)

Shirt: Thrifted

Jeans: Abercrombie

Boots: Ralph Lauren

February 8, 2018 – Dad Plaid (OOTD #222)

Published on February 14, 2018August 16, 2019 by lensembledujour2 Comments

This is some rad plaid.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Be_dbAAng8C/

I got this plaid, dad-like jacket from a local vintage shop back home in Lexington, and it’s been in fairly heavy rotation ever since. Or, at least, heavier ratio than I would have expected when I first purchased it – I figured I’d wear it every once in a while, but it’s really grown on me. It’s super easy to style because its pattern makes it look fancy without the need for me to layer a ton of stuff on top of it.

This particular outfit was borne out of another one of my “oh-no-I-just-woke-up-and-it’s-ten-minutes-before-my-exam-begins-and-the-building-is-a-fifteen-minute-walk-away” moments.

View this post on Instagram

this reeks of some kind of tumblr aesthetic wannabe art hipster and i don’t know if that’s a good thing or not

A post shared by Meilin || L'ensemble du jour (@lensembledujour) on Mar 3, 2018 at 7:26am PST

Those moments occur much more than I would like.

Anyway, in moments like this, pieces like the plaid dad jacket come in handy.

View this post on Instagram

I frequently pose in front of fake animal skulls, what, don’t you?

A post shared by Meilin || L'ensemble du jour (@lensembledujour) on Feb 17, 2018 at 8:21pm PST

Like I said, its bombastic pattern makes it super easy to style, so I’m able to throw an outfit together around it really quickly in order to make it out the door on time. Since the plaid pattern is so loud, everything else has to be very simple and plain, and I don’t have to think too hard about what to pair with it. A plain sweater, plain pants, and plain shoes, and I can go.

You’ll also notice that this outfit, like yesterday’s, follows my basic everyday outfit formula – jacket, sweater/shirt, skinny pants (in this case leggings), and an accessory. It’s formulaic, but the formula works.

And when you’re faced with the decision to either be late to your exam or opt for a formulaic outfit (and very little makeup, you might also notice), you take the formula.

Also, can we just talk about this background? I’m in the art room again (my typical Thursday photographer friend was out of town), and I have no idea what this installation is. It was brand new when I got in there, so I assume some class is using it, but for what? I don’t know, but I figured it’d make for an interesting composition.

Thanks for reading, and 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: vintage (thrifted)

Sweater: Aeropostale

February 3, 2018 – Rose Gold (OOTD #218)

Published on February 8, 2018 by lensembledujour5 Comments

I don’t believe I’ve ever shown my dorm room on here.

Well…tada! Here it is: plain white walls, some command hooks, a radiator, and that’s all.

No, of course, my room is significantly more decorated than that – we’ve got four people living in here together. This white wall is probably the emptiest and cleanest part of the entire quad.

These shots were done in the middle of middle of the night with my phone set up against a bean bag, much like I did with these shots in an empty art room when I was unable to find anyone to do pictures for me one day.

Why did I feel the need to do these pictures at such an odd hour? It all has to do with that little faint hint of pink color in my hair. That’s the result of the Clairol Color Crave Hair Makeup that was sent to me by Influenster to review.

So it was late at night on Friday, and I had the room to myself. After I finished my homework for the evening (well…my homework’s really never finished – I just eventually give up on it or pass out from exhaustion), I decided to get to work testing my product and writing my review.

I fixed my hair all nice and pretty, did my makeup, and took some selfies for my review. And then I thought – why stop there? Might as well get some OOTD photos out of this too. It’s not often that I take the time to make up my face, so when I do, I need photographic evidence to prove it actually happened, you know?

By now, it was pretty late at night – too late to reasonably ask someone to do my pictures for me. But thankfully, there was this beautifully plain white wall in my room, so I set up my phone camera and my Apple watch’s remote photo-taking features, and I had at it.

So that’s the story of the outfit I wore and photographed in the middle of the night just so that the makeup and hair look I had put together didn’t go to waste. Was it more effort than it was worth? …maybe. But at least I got a funny story to write about in this blog post.

Shirt: Vintage (thrifted)

Jacket: Vintage (thrifted)

Pants: The LOFT

February 1, 2018 – For The Love of February (OOTD #216)

Published on February 6, 2018 by lensembledujour1 Comment

Did you know? February is actually my favorite month.

I know a lot of people aren’t a fan of it – it’s normally pretty grey, cold, and in some parts, snowy. There’s also not really much to get excited for, save for maybe Valentine’s Day, which, as holidays go, is about as applicable to me as as Hanukkah. It’s nice to observe from a cultural standpoint, but I don’t necessarily participate in the festivities, you know?

I think it has to do with the way that February has always been a month that’s heavy in snow days – not that I get any of those now now that I’m in the Chicago area, where several feet of snow is just an average Tuesday. I wonder what it would take for Notre Dame to cancel classes for the weather? I feel like even in the event of a blizzard, they’d have us trudging through the ice and winds unless Mary herself descended from the heavens and told Father Jenkins to let us stay in.

I heard a horror story once of some time in the early 2000’s when, upon students’ return from winter break, the windchill was 40 below on campus. If that happens while I’m here, I think I may have to reconsider the winter’s status as my favorite season.

As for February though, I feel like no one else tends to really favor (or even like) it, so it’s in need of some love. Plus, by proclaiming it as my favorite month, I get to tell people about the time my junior year of high school that I only went to school for one week the entire month of February because Kentucky didn’t know how to handle #snowpocalypse2016.

Notre Dame’s excessive snowfall hasn’t yet hampered my love of the stuff, though. It helps that I swear it actually makes things feel warmer here. And when it’s 0 degrees Fahrenheit when you wake up for your 9:30AM, you take anything you can that’ll act as a buffer to the horrific winds.

jacket: vintage (thrifted)

jeans: American Eagle

top: Forever21

January 29, 2018 – Art Student Aesthetic (OOTD #213)

Published on February 1, 2018February 1, 2018 by lensembledujour1 Comment

I guess I can finally consider myself an “art student.”

I never expected to be able to say that, actually – I thought for certain I was going to be done with art classes after high school.

Not done with art entirely, but certainly done with formal lessons in art a part of graded classes. I always figured I would continue it as a hobby on the side, but I was pretty burnt out by the end of high school of staying up late every night, struggling to compete the numerous art classes I was never able to take the time to develop as much as I would have liked to anyway.

But then it turned out that I missed it. I had hoped Notre Dame would at least have some sort of art club, but for whatever reason, we don’t. The visual arts don’t really have a very strong presence here, which I can kind of understand, given we’re not an art school, but they’re so nonexistent it’s a little bizarre.

They do have a very small art and design department, which, now that I’m attempting to minor in studio art, I suppose I’ve joined. I’m in a beginning drawing class right now, which, while not particularly creatively challenging, is still nice to break up some of my more writing-based academic courses.

So here’s my best attempt at embodying my newfound art student identity – plaid pants, baseball shirt, my “tattoo artist” jacket, and of course, my boyish pixie cut. It’s not the sort of look that would make it onto a “preppy fashion” Pinterest board, but I think it’s interesting nonetheless.

Shirt: Zumiez

Jacket: Vintage (thrifted)

Pants: The LOFT

January 16, 2018 – Golden Hour at the Golden Dome (OOTD #203)

Published on January 19, 2018August 14, 2019 by lensembledujour3 Comments

Okay, so I’m technically not standing at or near the Dome here, but whatever.

As much as I appreciate the Dome for being iconic and a huge staple of campus and what the outside world imagines when they think of us, it’s kind-of weird taking photos in front of it, you know? It makes you look like an outsider to your own school, even though I’m definitely a student here and I literal pass Main Building (super creative name, right? Our big famous building with the iconic golden dome atop it is literally just called “main building”) every day.

Instead, I take photos in front of boring locations like South Dining Hall or my own dorm building because I literally have no where else to go and it’s totally not at all awkward when people pass me posing in the middle of the sidewalk on their way to get food.

This lighting though? Amirite?

Last semester, I found myself usually forcing very kindly requesting that my friends take pictures for this blog after lunch every day, with some exceptions when I had to beg someone to take time out of their probably busy schedule and meet me somewhere to do them. This semester, or at least this semester as it’s played out so far, has turned out that I’m meeting people for dinner more often than lunch, meaning my photos have got to be done before sunset.

Today’s shots were taken pretty much literally at sunset – golden hour. It’s a little more orangey than I typically go for, but beggars can’t be choosers, so I take whatever I can get. Regardless, I do rather like the peachy, glow effect. It reminds me of the warmth of the sun that I haven’t seen since I left Kentucky and came back to the frozen cornfields of Indiana.

Jacket: vintage

Sweater: thrifted

Jeans: Abercrombie

Scarf: the LOFT

January 7, 2018 – Average Teen at the Mall (OOTD #196)

Published on January 10, 2018 by lensembledujour3 Comments

The mall used to be one of my favorite places in the world.

Maybe it sort of was for every middle school girl – you know, when you’re in that phase when you’re just starting to shop for yourself, so getting to pick out clothes and put together your own outfits is a whole new experience? I distinctly remember getting really excited when my mother would agree to take me to the St. Matthew’s mall in Louisville because it was one of the only places to have both a Forever21 and a Hollister, which back then were my two favorite stores.

While malls aren’t as cool and interesting as they used to be for me, I do still rather like to shop. I find, now, that I tend to buy fewer things at a time – as a kid, I could go on a mall shopping spree and come out with five complete new outfits, but now, I tend to only buy a few things at a time.

Uh…minimalist living, I guess?

Alright, so not really – I love my excessive possessions and consumerist lifestyle as much as any American – but I do think I’m getting a touch better. Before I went to college, I actually went through my closet and got rid of a ton of stuff, which was something I hadn’t done for a while.

In fairness, I do believe I wear most of my clothes, even if they don’t get worn often. Take, for example this jacket – it was my dad’s originally, but he handed it down to me, meaning it’s huge and barely fits and I probably should have let him just give it to Goodwill. Regardless, I really liked the oversized look, and even though I have to roll up the sleeves like eight times and can’t move my arms normally when I wear it, I still choose wear it sometimes. I would just hate to get caught in a situation where I had an outfit that just needed an oversized denim jacket and I had given it away because I didn’t wear it often, you know?

…and that’s why I will perpetually live in clutter and disarray!

Jacket: thrifted

Sweater: thrifted

November 29, 2017 – Have A Look At This (OOTD #171)

Published on December 5, 2017February 12, 2018 by lensembledujourLeave a comment

I adore glasses.

I think it has something to do with how, when I was a kid, I didn’t need them – and of course, since I didn’t need them, I wanted them. There was just something so cool and stately about how my parents and other adults looked when they had their glasses on – even the most basic pair could make a person look intelligent and cultured.

Sadly (or perhaps gladly…) I had perfect vision up until a few years ago, when I started having issues reading for long periods of time and seeing street signs at a distance. A trip to the optometrist, and I got my very first pair of glasses at age 16 – a feat that I was fairly proud of. I don’t need to wear them all the time, and occasionally, I do wear contacts, but I’ll often wear my glasses even when I don’t ned them just for the sake of fashion. So, given my love of eyewear, I was more than happy to to help Warby Parker announce their new Resort ‘17 collection of frames. I was drawn to the rich acetates paired with hints of glimmering metal, supported by temples so lean they practically float. A glinting and elegant metal inlay is visible to onlookers only from certain angles— like a coat with a luxurious for-your-eyes-only lining.

I was so inspired, I came up with an outfit to go along with it – something I thought would complement the vintage but luxurious feel of the new Warby Parker collection. I did my best to replicate the aesthetic and tone of the glasses with this skirt and top set I got over Thanksgiving Break in a local vintage shop. It’s admittedly not the comfiest outfit I’ve ever worn – the scratchy 70s polyester wasn’t exactly breathable – but I loved the look of it so much I couldn’t help it. It was one of those things where I saw it in the store and I just had to have it – you know? I’m a pretty picky person. That doesn’t often happen.

If you’re interested in giving the new Warby Parker collection a look, you can try it out for free with their free Home Try-On program! Select any five frames that you like, and they’ll ship them to you for free to test for five days. If you find one you like, you can purchase it when you’re ready, but if not, you can ship them back for free after you trial is up. No commitments, and no trips to the eyeglasses store necessary.