Summer Festival Fashion: Crop Top + High Waisted Denim Shorts

DivaNY mint green one sleeve crop top (c/o) // DivaNY high waisted distressed denim cutoff shorts (c/o) //

Forever 21 white floral headband // Forever 21 sparkly gold and brown sandals //

H&M and Forever 21 gold bracelets //

Photograph: self; tripod and remote

2 days til Lolla!! This was the first outfit I put together for Comfest, the summer city festival in Columbus, but unfortunately we were rained out (6/29/13). I always feel awkward baring my midriff, so the combination of crop top + high waisted bottoms creates a compromise. Styling tip: wearing a high waisted skirt or shorts that covers your belly button will make you look more modest and covered up even when you're showing off alllll the legs. This is about as Daisy Duke as I'm ever going to get, guys.

My obsession with mint green is becoming pretty obscene at this point, but I couldn't turn away from this unique "Jekyll and Hyde" crop top with one long sleeve and the other side is like a tank top. How sick is that? I've been wanting a pair of denim cutoffs with more coverage and it fit perfectly as a size medium until I threw it in the wash a few times after an unfortunate accident with coffee. This pairing I picked out from DivaNY.com as a second outfit to style (first one was the batman dress!). Throwing on a white flower crown adds in the perfect infusion of hippie/Coachella/festival as a finishing touch.

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Sequined Tank + Peplum Skirt

Old Navy blue sequined tank top // Forever 21 peplum bow skirt //

Merona faux calfhair leopard print flats // Forever 21 black preppy varsity cardigan //

Photography: Angela O.

This outfit was from nearly a year ago (8/22/2012) - boy time flies! Today was spent lounging by the pool with friends, trying to get a tan on a partly mostly cloudy Ohio day: the ultimate do-absolutely-nothing Sunday Funday activity. Last night after an a cappella event, we invented a new game involving footballs and frisbees at the same time and it was one of those perfect memorable hot summer nights.

There's a brick wall with graffiti near my place that says "COLONS!" and I thought it was hilarious since I'm in a gastroenterology clinic during the school year and had my best friend help me take photos using it as a backdrop. There's a tongue-in-cheek contrast to the uptown girliness of my outfit and the urban decay of the wall. This was back when I tried to look cute for class ... before I succumbed to the merry-go-round rotation of professional "biz caj," scrubs, or bum clothes. To the second year of med school starting soon and another chance to dress up even on off-duty days.

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A Little Rumi

Thrifted Forever 21 cashmere baseball sweatshirt // H&M A-line khaki green skirt //

Mossimo grey suede ankle boots // Gifted black leather crossbody purse //

Revlon Moondrops lipstick in Orange Flip + Revlon Colorburst lipstick in Soft Nude (underneath) //

Urban Outfitters gold midi rings // Rag-o-Rama tortoiseshell sunglasses //

Photography: self; tripod and remote

Besides eating and movie-watching, recently I've been crunch-timing at research to prepare for Lollapalooza in less than a week (!!!) Been experimenting with a different hair part lately to try to look older/something different than what I've been doing for the past decade. This relaxed weekender outfit reminds me of Rumi Neely. I threw on this soft cashmere-ish sweatshirt with the baseball tee design - perfect for cozying up on a drizzly summer Saturday. To balance out the loose tomboy top, I wore one of my favourite flare skirts for a fitted girly contrast. For an extra bright orange lip, I layered nude lipstick underneath. Recently, I've been drawn to dainty jewelry. These infinity/knotted midi rings from UO actually fit me like normal rings, so I'm terribly grateful for this trend. Ankle booties and a crossbody and out the door we go, towards Goodwill, local consignment shops, BBQ, Wolverine.

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Summer Work Uniform: Lace Colorblock

H&M cobalt blue lace detail top // Forever 21 burgundy lace pencil skirt //

Pitaya yellow faux patent leather skinny belt // Merona faux calf hair leopard print flats //

Photography: self; tripod and remote

Happy Tuesday! Though I was a public school kid growing up, I quite admired the look of uniforms. Since college, I've developed my own personal formula for a no-brainer uniform. By now you know my year-round go-to is a top+skirt combo, always tucked in and usually belted, often mistaken for a dress. It'd be nice to have this many dresses, eh? This morning I grabbed two lace pieces and added a yellow belt to make it into a primary color palette for clinic. Props to the women who can strut in clinic for 10 hours in 5 inch heels and not complain a peep, but a few inches of vertical help aren't worth the toe-squishing for me (and my patients are kiddos so I'm usually taller ... usually).

New concept: take < 10 pictures and magically blogging the way out of my outfit backlog become less of a dreaded, harrowing task. Apparently everyone has figured this out years ago but obstinately, I keep snapping away for different poses to fulfill my OCDish-ness. From now on I hope to streamline this process so that even during my busiest weeks I can still update. Last week: swooned by crooning Bruno Mars in concert, painting a night skyline while munching on cupcakes, chasing giant butterflies through the conservatory greenhouse, attempting to birdwatch, spontaneous dinosaur origami making, getting lost in a 32-room bookstore, David Sedaris, Pacific Rim, buffalo chicken grilled cheese. Have a great rest of the week and stay cool in this heat!

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'Murica! | 4th of July Sequins

Forever21 black and gold sequin skirt // Forever 21 American flag headband //

H&M mesh sweetheart neckline bodycon dress // Forever 21 gold sparkly strappy sandals //
H&M and Forever 21 gold bracelets //

Photography: JJ

Before the calendar starts tearing pages out of itself and it's suddenly the 24th of July, here's what I wore for a sunny Fourth of July in Pitt. Though this almost-all black outfit turned out to be a stifling hot getup for the summer holiday, the way the sequins reflect light made up for the dark colours - they give off a blinding shimmer with each little movement and remind me of fireworks in the night sky. The interesting sequins are black on the top and gold on the bottom so you can run your hand through them to make the skirt more gold or more black. My headband was the centerpiece that shamelessly screamed "MURICAAA!!!"

JJ and I set about exploring downtown, where we normally don't venture. In the park there was a giant fountain where people dipped their legs in to cool off, frisbee-catching pups, BMX-riding kids, pogo stick tricks and all kinds of entertainment. Riding the subway made me nostalgic for St. Louis and the 4th of July celebration we attended a few years back. At every turn that day we seemed to have the best luck and found seats right in front of the firework display. A long, long weekend of fun and adventures accomplished, back to researchin' and happy hourin' (repeat).

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