Happy Fall! This week I tried to channel some Fall colors despite the 90 degree temps in Colorado.
What I wore, what I read: Sept 17-21
Tag: ootd
One fancy buy for Fall: A leather jacket
I’ve been on the hunt for a good leather jacket for several years now. Yes, years. And in that time, I’ve owned 2 jackets that were almost perfect, but not quite–both because I was trying to jump the gun when I saw them on sale. Anyway, this time, I decided to decide on exactly what I wanted in a leather jacket (minimal hardware, that cool waterfall effect on the front) and then wait until I found THE ONE.
Continue reading “One fancy buy for Fall: A leather jacket”End of August Outfits
End of August outfits
My choices for the Summer 10×10
The Summer 10×10 starts Friday, so I’ve picked my 10 items of clothing out to get ready to make my outfits. Here are my picks (some not pictured):
-4 tops (boho, knit tank, tie t-shirt: all thrifted, and chambray: J Crew investment)
-3 bottoms (linen pants, white midi skirt: thrifted, jean cut offs: here)
-1 dress (here, on sale for $40)
-2 pairs of shoes (converse, sandals thrifted)
No black clothes!
I tried to pick lighter colors this time around and gave myself the challenge to pick no black clothes. Black is my go-to neutral color and I’m trying to move toward tan and white in the summer.
On my agenda
My 10×10 this time consists of nothing but dissertation writing and social time. I need outfits that are appropriate for field work (I am doing qualitative research in a casual, but masculine, environment–I usually opt for muted colors and pants in that situation), but that’s my only constraint. I tried to pick fun items to remind me to go outside, downtown, and away from my laptop in general.
The other challenge of my 10×10 is that it’s so hot that all clothes seem like bad options. I picked linen and other soft, breezy items for that purpose.
That’s my 10×10 kick off–see you on Friday with the first outfit.
What is a 10×10 Challenge and why is it useful as a grad student or busy person?
The Summer 10×10 challenge is fast-approaching (start date: July 27th) and while my Instagram is abuzz with participants, I would like to make a quick invite to grad students/academics out there. A 10×10 is a 10-day challenge where you pick 10 items of clothes and remix them into 10 days of outfits. (More on that here!). I’ve completed 4 challenges now and I think they’re a great opportunity for grad students in particular! Here’s why:
What I’m packing for a summer conference
Professionalism is hard enough without it being 90 degrees with 80% humidity, but that’s exactly what I’m facing next week at a Nashville conference I’m attending. Here’s what I’m packing and what’s on the agenda:
How I buy Madewell items for less
I’ll keep it brief: Madewell is my favorite store. Almost every item I see makes me do grabby hands and say “I want to go to there.” But, Madewell is also a little too expensive for my life. Here are some ways I find it cheaper and on sale.
1) 30% off clearance
At the end of every season, Madewell does a week or so where you can take an extra 30% off clearance items–this is standard for so many retailers, but Madewell keeps the sale rare enough that I actually jump on it when I get the email. And it’s happening right now. Here are my current picks:
Surviving wedding season on a grad school budget
Oh wedding season..that joyful time when you remember that you’ve spent an entire decade on your PhD while some of your friends have gotten jobs, houses, and, yes, found their for-life person. I am (mostly) at peace with this, especially because there is cake and wine. However, prepping for weddings can be a daunting task, especially if you’re tapped for the bridal party, which can cost over $1000! So, my first piece of advice as a grad student is that you communicate what you can afford to spend, before committing to being in a wedding party (this article spells out more of your rights and is totally fantastic).
But, besides that, how do you minimize money spent on wedding apparel? Here are some of the tips I’ve gathered to survive wedding season.
Le Tote is (maybe) the answer to my over shopping habit
An unsponsored review of a service that sends you clothing for rent
Power outfits for defending, pt. 2
I’m so excited to say I passed my prospectus defense yesterday–I wrote 100 pages about what my dissertation will be about (1/3rd of the length of the full product!) and had to defend that before collecting data. Here’s what I wore…
Defenses are really weird. The build up is big and then the let down can be…like nothing even happened. As one committee member likes to remind me, a defense is just another meeting for professors. Fair, but it also DETERMINES MY ENTIRE FATE so yeah it’s a little scary.
This defense was also downright weird–we talked for 1.5 hours and then were running out of time, so everyone was just like “yeah, good meeting!” and left…but usually at the end of a defense in our dept committee members meet without the student and then announce to you if you’ve passed or not…and they just…didn’t do that?? So I left the room like “ok! that’s over!” and then got half way down the hall before I was like “wait did I pass?” I spent the next 2 hours on an emotional rollercoaster about that before my advising meeting, where I asked my advisor, who replied “yes, wasn’t it obvious?”
Um, no. I am in grad school. Validate me always. Thanks.
So with that flood of relief, I promptly changed outfits and went out looking for wine and a patio.
All in all, a fine day. Weird, but better than the time the department lost my comprehensive exam answers. But that’s a story for another time. To anyone else defending as the semester ends: good luck! 😀