My Back to School Shopping Wishlist

Today’s blog post is being published a little later than usual because my parents and I were out late last night partying—clearly, “partying” and “parents” naturally go in the same sentence. In reality, we spent the night at a socially distanced dinner with our good family friends, which was an absolute blast, and we stayed much later than I expected, laughing and telling stories about the weirdest teachers we had in middle school… So I just couldn’t bring myself to write and pre-schedule today’s blog post at 1 in the morning last night. BUT with school starting and the change of the seasons, I wanted to share with you all what I’ve been craving lately in terms of possible additions to my closet. With Labor Day just around the corner, I’m hoping to nab some of these pieces during a sale!

I originally had a completely different blog post planned for today, but for various reasons, I decided to postpone it in my blogging schedule, which meant I didn’t have a post idea (or pictures) for today’s post. And for whatever reason, I was experiencing the worst writer’s block ever yesterday! I was so painfully uninspired, and even though I constantly keep a list of blog post ideas, nothing sounded interesting or like something that would be useful to YOU, my audience. And even worse, I sat in my closet for—I kid you not—an HOUR trying to decide on an outfit. I’ve never been the type of person who feels like she “has nothing to wear”, but yesterday, I just didn’t like anything in my closet and, worst of all, I didn’t feel confident in anything. Ugh.

Which brings me to today’s post. If you read “My Style Dilemma” from a few weeks ago, you may recall that I’m currently going through a style ‘crisis’ (dramatic) in which I feel like I’ve been dressing too old for my age, which is part of why I’ve been feeling less than confident in my own clothes recently. But then I realized—I still really love a lot of pieces in my closet, but I just need a few “younger” items with which to pair them in order to spice up my outfits a little bit. A few new pieces can go a long way!

I also realized my closet has a lot of fun statement items—printed skirts, patterned blouses, etc.—but I don’t have a lot of basics, which has been making it hard for me lately to mix and match pieces. So without further ado, here are a few items I’d like to add to my wardrobe in order to make the most of what I already own and to gain back some confidence from my closet:

• Black denim shorts and cutoff distressed denim shorts—I realized that my shorts collection is really lacking, and understandably so, since well-fitting shorts are particularly difficult to find. I’m just so picky about the length!

• Blue denim skirt and a white denim skirt—I’d love to add some denim skirts to my wardrobe. So often I’m in my closet, putting together an outfit, only to realize how cute something would look with a denim skirt.

• High-waisted jeans—I only have three pairs of jeans, and they’re all basically the same cut and wash. With so many fun types of denim on the market right now, I’d love to expand my jean collection, starting with some high-waisted pairs. I have a handful of crop tops that I basically never wear because I don’t want to show too much mid-drift, but some high-waisted jeans would fix that problem right up.

• Solid tanks and tees—I think the majority of my closet is some kind of print, making it very difficult to mix and match a lot of things. I really need some good, solid-colored tanks and tight-fitting tees to multiply the amount of outfits I can create with the pieces I already own.

• Belts! I’ve never realized just how important belts are to an outfit until now. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to put together an outfit only to realize it looks silly (or is too big) without a belt. I only have two good brown belts, which as you can imagine, don’t go with everything.

• A good strapless bra—Impossible to find? Maybe. Necessary? Absolutely.

• White sandals and a pair of espadrilles—Much like the belt or denim skirt situation, I have tried to create so many outfits only to realize the only shoes they’d look good with are espadrille sandals or white sandals. Obviously a sign that I should get a pair of each!

• Sneakers—Lastly, I really want to add some cute sneakers to my collection. I have this pair of blush quilted sneakers, but they don’t go with everything. Not only is the sneaker trend super cute, but it’s also just as functional!

Hopefully I can find some good deals to snag some of these items in the coming weeks, as I’ve been feeling more frugal than usual lately and especially unwilling to spend money. And while most of these pieces sound like summer items (which will hopefully mean better sales now that the season is ending), I know I would wear most of these pieces into the fall and even beyond, making them worth the purchase.

As for today’s outfit, I just threw on this simple heart dress for our dinner last night. Yes, the little dots are actually hearts! I did a fun side braid and threw on a bit of mascara to boost my confidence, and off we went for an awesome summer night.

What styles have you been craving lately? And do you plan on taking advantage of Labor Day sales or doing back to school shopping? Thanks so much for stopping by today, and have a great Monday!

 

Miles of smiles,

Grace

 

Outfit Details:

Black Dotted Dress: Hand-me-down, last worn here // Black Wavy Sandals: Macy’s, $28, last worn here // Yellow Purse: Charming Charlie, $15, last worn here // Polka Dot Sunglasses: Unknown, $15, last worn here

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