Work From Home: Iced In

When I left work yesterday afternoon, the ice was already building up. By this morning it looked like my driveway was made of snow - until, of course, you  made the terrible mistake of actually trying to leave. The whole thing was one large sheet of ice, and our front steps alone were a perilous journey.

My boss at my new job had mentioned yesterday that we might need to work from home, and that's what ended up happening. Since I had designated today as a Blog Post Outfit Day, and I'm still desperately trying to ensure no one knows how often I wear pajama pants when in my house, I went ahead and pulled something together.

Here is what I love about L.L. Bean's cable-knit sweaters - they are the most comfortable thing in the entire sweater world. They're thick, heavier-knit with New England winters in mind. I only own this single one, but that's only because in a place where I only wear a sweater like this maybe two or four times per winter I would feel kind of ridiculous with any more than that.

It doesn't mean I won't buy more later, mind you; just that I will have to get over feeling ridiculous first.

Cable-knit sweaters aren't particularly flattering on people like me - with a larger chest and a longer torso, I hit two Fashion Sins right off the bat. The hem hits along one of the widest parts of me, and much of the heavy cable design is focused on one of the other, um, larger parts of me.

I totally don't care.

When home watching training videos, working on assignments, and generally discovering where everything goes from here, I'm going to prioritize warmth first. There is nothing warmer than an L.L. Bean Sweater.

Well, let me rephrase that.

There is nothing warmer than thick SmartWool socks... but the sweater comes in a close second.

Outfit Details:
Sweater: L.L. Bean Coveside sweater, available in a few other colors
Jeans: Old Navy, here
Socks: SmartWool Saturnsphere
Boots: L.L. Bean, here
Turquoise undertank: Walmart or something? I don't know.

It's Kind of Like Style - An Introduction

There aren't a lot of style bloggers out there who embrace frumpiness. Everyone's competing to be the skinniest, to wear the highest, spike-iest heels, to have on the teeniest pants and cropped sweaters, to wear cardigans in July for 'fall preview' and strappy tank tops in March as they 'gear up for summer'. There are those expertly draped in vintage, all swooshy skirts and perfect sweater-sets, nipped-in waists and 50's prints.

But how many bloggers are there out in the world who embrace the fact that they don't like skirts unless they're wearing bike shorts underneath, for whom men's clothing is a lifesaver in a world of shirts that aren't long enough in the women's section? How many bloggers are there who blatantly stare at women in stiletto heels trying to figure out how they don't all clomp around like horses, who aren't much for skin showing, and have no idea what they'd do with a ruffle if one was presented to them?

I say... not enough.

I've decided to add myself to the list of personal style bloggers out there in the world, but with one caveat; you're not going to see me showing off anything I wouldn't actually wear out in the world, because I'm going to be doing exactly that - showing you exactly what I wear, good and bad, whether it's stylish or not. If a Yoga Pants Day falls on a day I plan to post? Well, get ready to learn all about them yoga pants.

I'm 28 going on 29, married, a new-ish mother to a baby who just turned six months old, and I'm about to start a new job. It seemed as good a time as any to challenge myself to really start watching my outfits, to see what I can do to get myself to work a little harder on being presentable.

I'm still going to be wearing bike shorts under all my skirts.

If you just accept that, we'll all be better off.

Not interested in outfits? Head over to Stress and Stars, my personal blog. There you'll see my actual life, cute photos of the baby, my pets, and any other random bits that come to mind. This space is going to be just for outfits, just to catalog what I'm wearing and to try to challenge myself to be a little more creative and up my game a little as I enter a new profession and start staring down 30, realizing I can't dress like a college student anymore.

A little bit more about me:

- I have been a tomboy my entire life. I was always more interested in playing in mud puddles and climbing trees than I was in wearing skirts or ruffly socks. I'm the third and last kid in my family, which means I spent most my childhood waving my arms around for attention.

- I am a trained artist, although it's become a hobby and not a profession. Thanks, College Degree!

- I have a dog and two cats, so while I'll do my best to lint-roll, at a certain point we just have to accept that I live in the House that Pet Hair Built.

- I live on coffee.

- I'm not particularly rollin' in the dough, so this blog will be as much as exercise in trying to make better use of the clothing I already own as it will be showcasing anything new that comes into my possession. I spend most of my clothing-money on our baby right now (what is it about giving birth that suddenly turns you into someone who can't leave the store without onesies, sippycups, or parenting books?) but I am still hoping this year will be a good year to revamp and work on embracing my tomboy style and discovering a way to, um, actually have style.

- The hair does what it wants. Critique the hair to your heart's content; it won't do you any good. I've tried changing it. It makes its own choices.

I'll start posting outfits beginning on Saturday. Expect a lot of selfies to start off with until I can get the hang of things. Beginning in March, I'll be joining up with Budgeting Bloggers and will be giving out my monthly clothing budget, how I did, what I bought, things like that. Don't expect to see lots of purchases right off the bat. This job shift will mean I will need to invest in a more quality wardrobe, but it also means we'll be able to sock more away in savings and that's what my focus is going to be. 

One thing that's always bothered me about bloggers is that style bloggers often become shopping bloggers- with no discernable personal style, just buying up whatever item or trend is "in", leading all of them to look exactly alike.

While I'm all up for outfit interpretation and taking on trends in your own way, don't expect to me looking exactly like the newest "Wear Now, Wear Later" outfit in InStyle. You can expect to see a lot of men's sweaters here. And probably way too much discussion on why I hate most shirts made for women.

So, hi! Feel free to leave me comments, talk to me about my outfits, give critiques, advice, or just chat about style/fashion related stuff with me here. I do ask you keep off the body-snark; while it's my goal to get myself back into better health this year, I'm not particularly worried about weight loss and will delete any comment about my appearance that I don't like. So nyah.

Basically, don't be a dick. 

As long as you can follow that one rule, we are going to get along just fine.