What I Wore Sunday, Entry 11

Check out Fine Linen and Purple for more Sunday church outfits! This week is hosted by the awesome Mandi of Messy Wife. 

Dress: Calvin Klein, sweater: Ann Taylor, wedges: Dolce Vita via TJ Maxx,
necklace: Forever 21, purse: Relic (thrifted)

This dress represents my effort to participate in this fall's black/white/colorblocking trend. When I bought it the Southern Baron's reaction was "Cruella de Vil?" And so I had to give him a little seminar on women's fashion. He educates me about menswear, though, so it's a two way street.

I do really like the dress' swingy skirt and flattering shape. I was very excited to discover an outlet store called Annie Sez near our apartment, and even more excited when I spied this dress on the clearance rack. It's the first big item I've bought in north Jersey, so I'll probably always associate it with our newlywed months here. Now that I think about it, I'm wearing representations of many different phases of my life: the purse was a thrifting find near my Brooklyn office, the shoes are from a TJ Maxx expedition in Manhattan, I got the sweater in Delaware on a grad school study break, and the necklace hearkens back to my VSC days in St. Louis. Material culture nerd that I am, all this historical context pleases me.

Christmas decorations are up in all the public spaces, but the weather this weekend is ironically warm. Southern Baron has been hunkered down grading, so after church I puttered around makin' groceries and embarking on a epic chicken pot pie project. In case you were wondering, making pie crust in a Cuisinart is gloriously easy. We're also tidying up the apartment because my brother-in-law is stopping tomorrow on his way home from a business trip!

What I Wore Sunday, Entry 10

Linking up with the lovely ladies at Fine Linen and Purple for another WIWS!

Do you other working ladies ever get dressy outfit fatigue? Don't get me wrong, I love me some dresses. After a week of thinking up daily professional outfits, though, I'm so excited finally to wear jeans. By the time Sunday morning rolls around, I usually end up staring at my closet thinking "Unnnh, I guess I should wear a skirt?" How you do make Sunday look special but not feel like a re-run of the work week? 

Jacket: Target (thrifted), skirt: Dress Barn, tank: Anne Taylor Loft,

pumps: Bandolino (hand-me-down from auntie), earrings: gift from another auntie

Because of the jacket, this week's outfit ended up more corporate-looking than I planned. You can't see it, but I also wearing a black cardigan underneath. I've started to feel like this skirt is too cutesy/summery for work, so it is in my workday rotation less. Maybe I'm just bored with it - I bought it for my godson's baptism, and he's now in the 3rd grade! 

The Southern Baron and I aim to get involved in our new parish or die trying. Today was our third time getting asked to bring up the gifts, so that's a good sign! I also put a ministry sign-up sheet in the collection basket. I hope to start being a lector again, and I'm curious about the Habitat for Humanity and St. Vincent de Paul ministries. 

After Mass we spent another afternoon enjoying the brisk weather and fall colors. I'd been envying people's gorgeous shots of Central Park on Instagram, but then I realized our neighborhood is just as pretty. 

See, isn't New Jersey gorgeous?

If you don't think so I'll punch ya in tha face.