Sweating Bullets with Butterfly Wings

Know what they call lace-up boots with a skirt in Orange County?

... a rookie mistake.

I tried to change up the shorts-tank-sandals routine a little and feel more dressed-up. Result: profuse calf sweat. NO ES BUENO.

Tank top: Diesel (Las Vegas outlet)

Pleated denim skirt: London Jean (thrifted)

Lace-up boots: Report (thrifted)

The Diesel tank top is thick material and double-layered too, so it was also not an ideal garment in the heat. Even my summer clothes are summer-in-San-Francisco clothes. I last wore this tank top with denim too, looking back on it!

I love the purple flowers & butterfly or feathers design on this shirt. I got a close-up of the silver speckles that cover it, but it wasn't easy. All clothes on the floor now exist for lounging. Ahem:

AHEM:

Your blog is now about me.
Australian terrier mutts are a greater market share blah blah shareholder value maximization.
... what, you didn't get the memo?

My transformation into one of those people that anthropomorphizes and shares endlessly about their pets is complete. How did this happen? I remember being cool-headed and reasonable about this in the beginning.

I used to wear boots with skirts and dresses all the time without thinking about it. Well, I wear boots with everything. Something about a good solid pair of chunky boots fills me with comfort and outfit confidence.

It wasn't until moving away for several months and visiting the SF Bay Area that I realized it's totally A Thing there. Every gal does it! Sometimes we need to get some distance from ourselves in order to see more clearly. (:

Down here, not so much of a thing. And now, as I swab out the shafts of my Report boots, I know why.

The Duck Stops Here

  You know I've owned this cardigan for months and only realized there was a duck on it this week? Alternate titles for this blog post include Duck & Cover, What the Actual Duck, and Augh This Ducking Cardigan.

  I just thought it was a cool asymmetrical pattern! I was not incorrect, but my pattern recognition skills clearly need work.

Migrating Mallard cardigan: Rosie Neira (thrifted)

Belt: eBay (available here)

Jeans: ZARA basic (thrifted)

Sleigh Boots: Report (thrifted)

Excellent Photoshopping over ugly flowerpot: ME

  Gets better: I grew up on a lake. I've been feeding mallards like this my whole life.

  While the Internet has been going on about pumpkin spice boots cooler weather fall blah blah, I have been enjoying San Francisco summer, and desperately gripping the warm, sunny weather with my little blacksmith hands. All the talk got me thinking, though: I have been doing this "outfits" thing for less than a year, now. I have no idea what is going to be Aya style (stAyale?) for fall. What do I even own?

  So I tried this outfit, which I think was kind of based on this idea from Once Upon a Zipper, a website for a consignment store in Nashville, Tennessee. I like the looks the employees put together!

...Then I overheated after an hour and changed. :D This cardigan is warm!

  This cardigan is also the closest to "animal print" I've got. If animal prints are your thing, you should check out How I Wear My: Animal Print at Everything Just So and The Rich Life (on a budget) tomorrow.

  's right, not a zebra, giraffe, or orangutan in my closet, just the occasional dragon and this duck. I have a bustier with what might be blue leopard. Maybe. Evidently I do not do animal prints. Or neon. Or patterns. Or pumps. Or flats. Or capris. Or bright colors. Or open-toed boots. Or wedges with that weird straw/dock rope material looped around the sides. Or anything yellow. I am, however, trying out cardigans and sweaters after a mere 27-year hiatus. I'm sure my adventurous personal style is an inspiration to all.

  How long does a shirt have to be before it's considered a 'tunic'? Thought this one might, but now I think it stops too short and just points directly at my crotch. Too much skinny-jean-squeezed-thigh showing. Clearly this will take some work. But in the meantime, I'm going to be in sundresses and my one pair of embarrassingly holey denim shorts for as long as I can.

  What do you not do in your own wardrobe? Anything you've tried after a long time that you never thought you would?