ruffle it

top: the shopaholic, dress: ruche

One of my favorite things to do is bizarrely layer blouses over and under my dresses. 

This sheer blouse kind of spoke to me on Friday when I was choosing my work ensemble. I've often layered lace tops over my dresses (confession: doing that right now), and definitely cozy sweaters. But I don't own a lot of sheer blouses. I hate to say it, but I find them pretty inconvenient. 

I love the idea of sheer. Especially sheer sleeves, and lacey things. But I'm not a fan of the required camisole, because bra straps are obnoxious. And strapless bras are even worse. And no-bra is just dangerous. These are real issues of the clothes-wearing woman.

I usually go for the typical tank top underneath something see-through, but it always manages to look tacky to me. It's very hard for me to find sheer tops that I really like. The necessary undergarment is always distracting.

Enter the sheer + dress combo.

There are always solutions. I really love adding items to my closet that can be used for many purposes, and this top is definitely one of them. Tucked into a skirt, paired with skinny jeans, layered over a dress.
And the fact that it's navy is a huge plus. Navy is one of the most amazing remixing colors. It used to be a fairly limited color, but now that people have opened up to the navy + brown (which I adore) and navy + black combos, the possibilities are endless.

living in sunshine

Top (on ebay): Anthropologie, Skirt (remixed): LOFT, 
Earrings (remixed): Ruche, Booties: Urbanog, Ring (similar): Ebay

It's amazing how working in a space of sunshiney natural light can quite literally illuminate you.
Your soul, your well-being, your general happiness.
It seems like a small thing, but there's a certain power to the sun that gives me a whole new respect for like...coal miners. And Alaskans. And subway workers. And sunshine-less people, like me, up until last month.

My office used to be a windowless closet that sapped me of my energy and it was such a huge surprise to me when I moved into the new building and sat staring out my window for hours, feeling like -- I'm alive. 
I felt a renewed sense of self, like I could do anything, go anywhere. I felt productive and excited.
There's a new heartbeat to this building, and I can feel it!
There are terraces and windows galore, so much light and activity and newness.

It has been really easy for me to get used to, but I will try my best not to take it for granted. 

It makes me realize what a difference joy can make in the midst of the daily grind. Having pride in your work and feeling like you're a part of something special.

Where do you find your joy? 

It's a conscious effort, but it shouldn't be easily shaken. I hope I'm always able to find joy in my work, whatever it may be. Whether it's becoming an author like I sometimes (always) dream about, or working at a cafe. 

All I know right now is that I hope there's sunshine there.

a little bit of purple, a little bit of sparkle

Dress (remixed)(similar, similar): Ruche

Day 17: This outfit was one of those providential combinations that happens when two things happen to stand out to you when you're browsing your closet.
Most of the time I randomly pick out a dress, and throw the additional pieces and accessories together later on. This time, I went to the very back of my closet and pulled out this old cardigan -- I've had it for years. It was a gift from my cousin, and I had to be somewhere between 10-12 years old. I thought it was the most amazing cardigan ever created. It was bejeweled! And I mean, it was the 90s for heaven's sake. I was wearing glittery lip gloss when she gave it to me. (Ok, fine, I was probably wearing glitter lotion, too.) How much better could it get?
I went through many phases of trying to decide whether to keep it or not -- was it okay to be bejeweled? Is it in? Is it out again? Who knows.
As I pulled it out, this Aztec print dress was hanging on my closet door, and the two met and decided to get along. I had nothing to do with it.

Then, crazy on top of crazier, I noticed a hint of purple in the Aztec pattern that I had never noticed before. I felt a sudden jubilance, because I have a very sad collection of very few scarves (meaning, like, 10 or 12 which is most definitely a #firstworldproblem) and I didn't think any of them would match this pattern-happy ensemble.
Luckily for us, that little bit of purple saved the day.

Day 18: I'm sneakily including this outfit as well, because a.) I need to catch up on Frocktober posts and b.) it's a frumpy day/after dark photoshoot.
I try to always get a few outfits shots before dark, but this particular day was a busy one, and I had to work late while my husband went to a few meetings that evening. It was a messy bun day where all I wanted to wear was pajamas, so I settled for one of my oldest, softest dresses and my cozy polka dot sweater from Francesca's.