I try to “practice what I post” on this blog. I try to be honest and not yammer about what I’m doing when I’m not actually doing it. Especially about fashion. Not that I would ordinarily be dishonest, but with fashion posts there is always the temptation of posting outfit photos that never actually make it out the door. One of my closet goals this year was to wear what I own. To try to get every piece in my closet out and about at least once in the season. So, in the furtherance of both those goals, let’s see how I’m stacking up so far this summer. Full disclosure is the order of the day.
I’ve not worn skirts much this summer, but this black linen dress from Color Me Cotton has been out twice. I wore it to have dinner with a friend the other night. I wrapped an old sweater from Banana Republic around my neck in case it got cool. And it did, so I was glad to have it. I’ve had this sweater halfway to the donations bag so many times, and I always put it back in my drawer. You never know when you’ll need a simple black sweater, even if it’s only to drape across your shoulders.
I’m happy that I’m getting so much wear out of these black hoops which I bought in Paris in 2015. I love them.
Black and white is a favourite summer look for me. I’ve been getting a lot of wear out of my Frame “Le High Straight” jeans this summer. They are the perfect length for me, the straight leg makes a change from my skinny jeans, and the high waist is really comfortable. I’ve worn them a few times with my loafers and my black Vince tee, including shopping with my sister.
My black Rag and Bone Simone pants have been out a few times too. Simone pants are great because they are high-waisted, and the fabric is comfortably stretchy, yet sturdy enough to smooth lots of bumps and bubbles. Like “Spanks” in a pant, but better. On this day I wore them with my black Vince tee, and my new Theory white jacket. I tried them with my brown sandals, and brown accessories, including these brown jumbo hoop earrings from Magpie jewellry which I love.
Vince tee, Frame Le High Straight jeans, Stuart Weitzman loafers 
Theory jacket, Vince tee, Rag and Bone Simone pants, Aldo sandals.
My DIY shorts have been a success. I’ve worn them to appointments, when we had guests for a casual supper, and on numerous trips to the library and the grocery store. I’ve washed them a couple of times and they are nicely, but not wildly, frayed now.
ALC tee, NYDJ DIY shorts, Stan Smith Adidas 
Frame tee, NYDJ DIY shorts, Michael Kors sandals
These white mini-boot cut, cropped jeans from Frame were an impulse buy that I haven’t regretted. I’m not big on impulse buying. But as long as the object of the impulse fits with one’s closet goals… well, that’s okay then. I’ve worn these cropped jeans with this Tory Burch tunic and my old, old, old Dr. Scholl’s clogs, circa 1977. I can’t bear to throw these babies out for sentimental reasons. Plus they’re blue and go with my tunic. However, after wearing them to run errands that afternoon, they’ve been relegated back to the closet again, to be worn only around the yard or the campsite. How did we ever stand these things? They are painful. The next time I wore these jeans I wore my black Michael Kors sandals instead.
I bought the red and white checked shirt with the rolled sleeves, below, on sale at Gap early in the summer. It’s not great quality, but makes a nice change from tees for running into town, or for summer travel. It looks good, I think, with my white Frame jeans rolled up, and my red Earth brand loafers. I wore this outfit to run errands in the village.
My yellow linen pants from Theory have been worn… finally. Phew. I was afraid I’d chicken out and never wear them. I wore this outfit to meet Krista for our dinner, fashion chat, and photo session, and I felt great when I left the house. But by the end of the evening after schlepping all over the Byward Market in the heat, and sitting in the restaurant for two hours… I felt a bit more rumpled that I would have liked. A lot more rumpled, to be honest. In fact, when Krista and I headed out of the restaurant, I gasped when I glanced down at my pants. “I feel like I’m in my pyjamas,” I groaned. Linen wearing is not for the faint of heart, people.
Gap shirt, Frame Le High Straight jeans, Earth loafers, Eric Javits bag. 
Theory jacket, Vince tee, Theory pants, Eric Javits bag, Stan Smith Adidas.
The outfit below, is one of my favourite outfits so far this summer. I’m happy that I’ve revived my old linen jacket from Max Mara. On this day I wore it with my Frame straight-leg white jeans, the gold and cream striped tee from Theory which I bought his year, and my brown Aldo sandals. I bought my woven bracelet from a street vendor in Buenos Aires in 2017, and my thin gold hoops from Magpie Jewellry. My Eric Javits straw bag has been a staple this summer. It was definitely a splurge. But considering I bought my last straw bag back in the nineties, I’m pretty sure I will have it long enough to justify the cost. It’s big, but really light. Much lighter than my old Michael Kors one, which I passed on to my sister.
I wore this outfit on a day trip to the village of Ashton, about 35 km from Manotick. My friend Erica and her family have moved there, and I’d never seen their new place. So we toured their house and then decamped to the old Ashton Pub (famous in the Ottawa area) for a lingering lunch on the banks of the Jock River.
My checked Rag and Bone Simone pants have been really handy to have this summer. They are actually fall weight, but look like summer pants. I’m so happy I had the hem let down that extra inch. I wore them with my Michael Kors sandals, and my black Vince tee to a movie and dinner one night.
And I’ve pulled them on with my sneakers and this Eileen Fisher tee shirt a couple of times. On this day I was off for coffee and a catch up with my friend and former colleague, Marina. I have several plain white tee shirts, and I keep them pressed and ready in my closet for last minute wearing on days like this. When I was still working I used to iron a selection of pieces on Sunday night, pants and blouses and tees. Then they’d be fresh and ready to grab in the morning when I had less time. I hated to feel that I needed to dash down to the laundry room to iron something at the last moment, or be forced to wear something that I just wasn’t “feelin'” that morning. Is that anal, do you think?
I wore my Moncler bomber jacket a few times early in the summer when it was cooler. With these Paige Hoxton ankle jeans, one of my white tees, and my sneakers, it was an easy rush off to physio outfit, like on this morning.
And that’s about it for outfits that have made it past the front door so far this summer. At least since the twenty-first of June. Except for my cycling or walking the trail ensembles. Ha. Trust me, you don’t need to see those outfits. My wardrobe has been culled and edited, curated and capsuled to within an inch of its life. Everything fits me, and I love each and every piece. But still I struggle to wear everything at least once a season. Especially during a summer when we’ve been doing a lot of lolling and not much of anything that requires me to dress presentably.
But, you know, I think that’s okay. So what if I haven’t worn my old Burberry denim skirt yet this summer. I wore it quite a few times last summer, when I wasn’t confined to barracks due to the shingles, of course. I don’t plan to get rid of that skirt any time soon. It keeps getting reinvented. Same for my ALC striped midi-skirt. I haven’t worn it enough this year. I still haven’t worn my Rag and Bone navy dress with my sneakers like I planned. And I never did find a top or a sweater that injected some colour into my everyday wear.
If you recall back in the spring I planned to buy something bright, maybe a red or yellow or orange suit, I thought. Instead I came home with yellow pants and a white blazer. But that Theory white “Eco-Crunch” jacket was a great purchase. I love it, and it works with so many things in my closet. I can’t see a red or orange jacket being as versatile. Maybe I’m just suffering from colour envy. I love the red Eileen Fisher top of Krista’s which was featured in my blog post last week. And then there’s Sue/Une Femme’s latest foray into colour. Her little red blouse in this post is great.
Still, mustn’t grumble. One can’t always find what one is looking for. I’m sure there will be many lovely, colourful tops in my summer fashion future. Besides, there’s all that gorgeous burgundy in my fall wardrobe just waiting for me when we come back from down east at the end of August.
So you see, even with my very small closet, I have trouble wearing what I own. I thought it was interesting that in our discussion about how much we love clothes a couple of weeks ago, Krista and I both moaned a bit about the small size of our closets. Maybe that was the cause of all our culling and making of lists? The fact that we have tiny closets and can’t fit in a ton of clothes? Nah. We both know we do it for the sense of order and the love of organizing. When things are all neat and tidy, lists made and crossed off, everything put away, I am happy.
In the interest of full disclosure… I’m anal that way. But you already knew that.
Now my good friends, what do you have to say about what you’ve been wearing this summer? And what you haven’t. Remember… full disclosure. We won’t judge you. Quite the contrary.
P.S. Also in the interest of full disclosure. I’ve recently decided to monetise my blog a bit further. I already use “affiliate links” in my book posts, and I’ve decided to do the same with fashion posts. So I’ll be including links to the pieces I write about, and if you want to purchase them for yourself, I will receive a commission. I’m part of the collective called Shop Style, which is itself affiliated with numerous retailers. Lots of other bloggers I trust have used that program; in fact, Lisa of the blog Privilege recommended it to me.
Not all the pieces I write about will be available to buy, as you can imagine. I’m pretty sure that Burberry doesn’t carry my denim skirt from 2008 anymore. Ha. But interestingly there are a few resale sites that work with Shop Style, and I found my navy Rag and Bone dress on it… at way below what I paid for it back in 2016. I thought that was pretty cool. So, I will be providing links to pieces that are still available. I don’t plan to feature pieces I don’t own, or with which I have no experience. And my fashion posts will continue to be about the conversation more than anything else. As I’ve said many times, to quote Linda Grant, we’ll still be “thinking aloud about clothes.”
I’ve included affiliate links to my pieces in the photo captions above, but I’ll include them here as well: Theory cream and gold striped tee, Theory white jacket, Theory yellow linen pants. Vince white tee, Vince black tee. Eileen Fisher tee. Gap red and white shirt. Moncler bomber jacket. Frame le High Straight white jeans. Paige Hoxton ankle jeans. Rag and Bone black Simone pant. Eric Javits tote bag. Stan Smith Adidas. Earth red loafers.
Linking up this week with: Visible Monday, #IwillwearwhatIlike, #ShareAllLinkup,Thursday Favourite Things, Fabulous Friday.
36 thoughts on “Summer So Far: OOTD Report”
You look great in all those outfits Sue . Very stylish in a casual way . After years of trousers I’ve had a skirt year this year & have really enjoyed the twist to my wardrobe . No summery floaty skirts but a few flared or pleated midi skirts in heavy cotton or linen mixes . Neutral colours & no patterns so I think they’ll go into autumn or light winter perhaps with thick tights . With our climate I rarely need clothes for very hot weather but recently we had one day of 34 degrees & I was mafted ( as we say in Yorkshire ) I ended up in a strappy nightie . Looked OK , felt cooler & I don’t think the folk next door realised . They’re young so probably just think I’m going batty .
It’s always good to have a strappy nightie on hand for those mafted days:) And good for you for “repurposing” that nightie. Although that did make me laugh. After writing that post, I kind of wish we weren’t going away this upcoming week. I have so many outfits that I want to wear and I can’t pack them.
Your outfits are wonderfully stylish. Must admit, I haven’t felt particularly stylish this summer, but it has been so bloody hot that it doesn’t make one feel anything but limp after 5 minutes outdoors–and the clothes go limp, too. Yes, linen, I am talking about you. But once you get that hot, you really don’t care what your linen looks like just as long as you don’t fall over with heat exhaustion. Looking forward to cooler temps.
Thanks, Mary. The heat kept me away from the city and in old shorts and tank tops this summer. I’m with you. I can’t be bothered going downtown, or anywhere that requires me to look decent, when it’s too hot.
These are all great outfits and they look wonderful on you. I do love the freshness of a straw tote in the summertime. It seems to go with everything and is wonderfully practical. I especially like you in that black linen dress and I also love the black stripe pants. And good for you on monetizing. God knows, a blog is a ton of work and a certain amount of out-of-pocket expense. You go girl!
Thanks, DA. My plan is to reimburse myself for my hosting fees and the cost of setting up on this new platform, without changing the tone and purpose of my posts. Lisa at Privilege told me about Shop Style, and I’ve long admired her blog as being not primarily about selling, so I’ll give it a try.
I’m honored to have given you advice. I am all for well-done monetization, it’s perfectly reasonable to be compensated for the work of making all those shopping links available!
You look so stylish, and so you.
Thanks, Lisa. I meant to e-mail you and tell you I finally took your advice.
A lovely series of outfits and congratulations for taking most clothing items from the wardrobe for an outing. Many delightful combinations with my favourite being the one in the fourth last photo. Your Max Mara jacket is beautiful and the Theory tee and that gorgeous tote make it sing. I’ve been loving black and white lately as well but as it’s winter here it’s been a warm black and white jumper with jeans and a black and white stripe linen tee with a black cardigan and black jeans.
I’m so pleased that my hanging onto that jacket has been justified. Black and white is such an easy combination, plus I have my favourite tee in both black and white.
I just discovered your blog this summer and am enjoying your posts. I like the style of all your outfits. They are totally in my own style zone. I have an over abundance of clothes and a very small closet, so any culling tips are welcome. It’s all because I hang on to stuff that is quality and that I love, but then like to stay current and modern for my job as an event planner. But, suddenly I face retirement in the next couple of years and have to put on the brakes with the buying and be more selective and shop my closet. You did that so well in this post. This summer I have tried to wear white pants once a week. With the AC I have not worn as many plain tees , but more long sleeves. So trying to reach into the closet for some old favorite shirts that are years old. Also trying to get my dresses in rotation and that leads to banishing those with a poor fit on this suddenly post menopausal changing body. And I can’t stop buying loafers. Love your fashion sensibility! Sorry for the Saturday morning ramble from the northeast coast of Ohio.
Thanks, Jeanne. I stopped buying business wear about three years before I retired. I had lots of jackets, enough to see me out. So I bought only things that I knew I’d wear in retirement. I wrote several posts a few years back on morphing my wardrobe. Pairing dressy jackets with jeans, getting rid of the stuff I knew I would not need. I gave a lot away to my younger colleagues, teachers who were just starting out and needed a business wardrobe. We had a “shop my closet” party that was so much fun.
P.S. Saturday morning rambles are the best!
P.P.S. I corrected the autocorrect edits you mentioned in your second comment.
I’m in the process of doing a closet evaluation right now. Some things I wore to death last year, have barely seen the light of day…
Me too. But the pieces I haven’t worn much, if at all, will stay in my closet for another season, for when I’m in the mood for them.
LOVE the checked pants.
Yellow pants – eh. I don’t do yellow anyway, it’s not in my palette. They’re okay but if they don’t make your heart sing – and they wrinkle – I’d relegate them to charity.
I probably should. But not ready to do that yet. If we go south next winter, I’ll probably regret giving them away.
I decided I wasn’t going to buy anything this summer, I have recycled long linen maxi skirts in bright colours that I bought 7 or 8 years ago from Mark and Spencer. I loved the colour, loved the shape, the length and how they float when I walk. I have worn them with linen tops in contrasting colours, also old from Marks and Spencer, and felt cool and fresh. One of the advantages of living in Canada but shopping in England! My husband has commented on all the “new” outfits I’ve been wearing! Normally, I choose to wear a neutral with a bright colour, but have embraced clashing colours this year, all worn with white canvas plimsolls, and a straw tote. At the end of the summer, I will pack everything away in those shrink wrap bags, and pop them under my bed. I am very conscious of how I need to reinvent and recycle clothes rather than chuck them out. I look after the things I have and realize after this year that old things can look new if you pair them with different tops and accessories. My husband still doesn’t believe that I haven’t gone out and purchased a whole new wardrobe!
Good for you, Geri. I love to pull out old things and reinvent them too.
Wow and wow! You look great and glad the hem worked on those pants. I have been shopping the Nordstrom sale and have a few pairs of premium denim, Rag and Bone and AG jeans and trying to decide if I want to splurge and when I see you looking so amazing, it is making me think I will. I also tried a pair of Joe’s jeans and the Rag and Bone are so great, the Joe’s are no longer in consideration. I am over an hour from a Nordstrom so schlepping up there is not quick and easy. I agree on not having to wear clothes every season, sometimes it stays cool in MN. We have had a 160 degree temperature difference in 6 months, so I have a way too large wardrobe. Oh, I bought a pair of the Blondo boots the lower heel ones as I rarely wore any boots other than thick snow boots last winter. I was sad when I packed my tall leather boots and booties away for summer as they are so pretty, but it was so cold and snowy and then rainy, they weren’t practical. We are headed to Banff and Lake Louise in September. My husband has never been.
My walking buddy and I were talking about jeans as “investment pieces” the other day. We figured if we are going to wear jeans so much now that we’re retired, we’ll buy the ones that look great on us instead of penny pinching for a lesser pair. Of course, we all have our ceiling, the maximum amount we’re comfortable paying. But I find as I get older, my ceiling keeps going up. Ha.
Sue, what differences do you find between premium jeans and moderately priced ones ( Gap/Banana Republic)? Thanks!
I haven’t worn Gap jeans in years. I became fed up with the fit…. or lack thereof. I’ve never worn Banana Republic jeans, although I have tried their pants. Too short in the leg and too big in the butt. I also had no luck finding jeans to fit me at J Crew. It’s not so much the idea of “premium jeans’ a it is the idea that I want something that fits me. And when I discovered Paige and then Frame jeans, they felt as if they were made for me. So I don’t mind paying a premium for that.
You look fabulous in all these outfits. I love how you put, in essence, quite simple pieces together and make them sing. My kind of dressing although I don’t do it as well as you. I love linen in the summer as it is so comfortable to wear in the heat and I don’t care about the wrinkles. As usual I have recycled many old pieces with just one or 2 new pieces added in.
Thanks, Christy. I’m trying to learn to love linen. Those linen pants are so cool, I’m hoping I will get used to the wrinkles.
I like that Max Mara jacket very much. In my dream world where I have a long waist, I would love to wear that with a wide brown leather belt, channeling my inner Diane Keaton. This year I yearn for a wide black patent belt for the autumn. No idea why. I cannot imagine it looking brilliant except on my dream me. She’s bloody great, that one.
That safari jacket would look great with a wide belt. Just not on me. My apple shape does not love belts.
I think I’m where you were last summer. A foot problem has kept me home for three months so my late spring purchases are still sitting in my closet. It’s been mostly jeans and tee shirts, and this was going to be the summer I tried dresses and bought two lovely ones on sale! How did you manage not to be cranky and bored?
I didn’t manage it, Lynn. I was totally cranky and bored. I remember sitting on the deck and doing a lot of reading, when I wasn’t on my face on the floor with a cold compress on my back and side where the shingles rash was the most painful. And when I finally got out of the house I was so excited to be wearing real clothes again, it felt like I had a whole new wardrobe. Hang in there, my friend. And dream of wearing those new dresses. 🙂
Love your summer style, especially the black and white. I have quite a bit of linen in my summer wardrobe. I don’t mind the creases as I just want something cool to wear. My strategy is not to iron items but rather to wash and air dry because after 10 minutes of wear there are creases anyway and they look worse if parts are badly wrinkled from sitting And other areas are neatly pressed. Plus I hate ironing so I don’t do it!
I never thought that ironing might make the wrinkly bits look even worse.
Great summer looks! I also love a good black and white combo and have my white jeans and black tees on rotation this year. Bought a white linen top with metallic trim on the V-neck and have worn that quite a bit, too. Like you, I’m not a fan of the wrinkles, but it’s been so hot I decided to ignore them for now. And I resurrected a pair of pants I didn’t wear last year to go with. They were called spring yellow when I bought them, but they’re really the pale yellow/green of baby leaves, and I really like them. (I must confess that they fit poorly last summer and I’ve managed to drop a few pounds this year making them much more comfortable again.) 🙂 So hurrah for keeping things at least one more season for future use. So glad I didn’t take them to Good Will.
Good for you for hanging onto those. I say we should never be too hasty to give things away.
I like your outfits,especially the dress (because you wear dresses not so often) and you look great. Linen clothes tend to be wrinkled and I think our attitude to them ,beside preferences (I love linen,and now,at Adriatic,wear linen dresses for the beach-sometimes without ironing :-)),depends of the temperature,climate and surroundings-it is not the same wearing linen dresses (in the city -so, ironed this time) or trousers, when it’s very hot or when is colder,earlier in the season or linen in cold climate :-)-you simply like wrinkles less
I love your MM jacket (as expected!) and must say that I’m not a fan of “if you didn’t wear it for a year,give it away”…sometimes weather conditions,cicumstances or something else dictates the choice for the season,and sometimes,at once,one gets an inspiration for a dormant piece of clothes and it is just perfect,no?
Dottoressa
I’m learning to love my wrinkles… even on my pants. Ha.
I’m anal in the same ways that you are! Organizing and writing lists are in my DNA. Like you, I also have a small closet. Sadly, there are a lot of things in it that haven’t been worn this summer, not because I didn’t want to wear them, but because we really haven’t had summer in Alberta this year! It’s been depressingly cold and wet, completely unlike most of our hot, sunny summers. While I’ve been yearning to wear summer clothes, I’ve mostly been wearing the few all-season items that stay in my closet year round and, believe me, I’m getting very bored with the limited choices!
Bright side will be that next summer it will feel like a whole new wardrobe.
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