If I'm not going to be dressed in costume, then the next best celebratory outfit would be to wear orange and black on Halloween. Hope you have a good one!

As the temperatures drop every year, I patiently wait for that one last Indian summer day. Yesterday was that day. Low 50s in the morning creeped up to high 70s by the afternoon. Here's to one last hurrah to summer dresses before I put them away until next year.

Earlier in the month, I wore an even more casual version of today's outfit using a lot of the same pieces in the same color scheme. Comparing the two, I think I preferred the previous outfit in real life; today's is one of those that looked better in my head.

I called it. When DH saw me wear this trench cape for the first time, he suddenly stopped talking mid-sentence and gave me his patented WTF look. What, don't you like my Ugly Betty poncho? Then he started laughing... then went back to looking incredulous. He joked that he felt like that baby watching his mom blow her nose -- not looking cute, but alternating back-and-forth between facial expressions.

If given the choice between hand washing or dry cleaning clothes, I usually opt for the latter due to laziness. The one time I decided to be pro-active, I shrunk my shirt. Face palms. The gray tee I'm wearing in today's outfit is pre-blunder, and though it's hard to tell, the fit is loose and tunic-like. It was perfect. After I hand washed the viscose top per the care label, I realized it shrunk about two sizes. Wtf. I was pissed off and walked around muttering to myself for two days before finally calming down. Curiosity led me to search Google for the possibility of unshrinking clothing. I found and thought this set of instructions looked promising so decided to give it a try... and it worked! I successfully unshrunked my top. I can now look back and laugh at how ridiculous I was being to be so mad during those two days.

Today's outfit is inspired by Giovanna Battaglia's cute dress (or is it a coat?) with a little black bow. I've swapped out my trench coat's belt before and really liked how a new belt can transform an outfit. For today's look, I used a black sash from an old dress. The sash was too long, so I had to double up when tying the bow... and the result was sort of messy. I definitely had a better-looking version in my head. Ahh well, it was a fun experiment.

Sale alert: Take 25% off at Shopbop's F&F event through the end of tonight 10/16 with code FAMILY25.

Closet favorites include:
- Clu Too ruffled sweatshirt - $81.00 w/code (TTS - I'm wearing sz XS / outfits: here)
- Elizabeth and James Windrose ring - $71.25 w/code (one of my favorite pieces of jewelry ever; wear it with practically all outfits)
- Blank Denim spray-on jeans - $66 w/code (I sized up to 26 / outfits: here, here, here)
- Blank Denim vegan leather skinny pants - $73.50 w/code (I sized up to 26 / outfits: here, here, here)

Other picks: $81 Stateside knotted back dress (love the back), $223.50 Kate Spade Avalon cross body bag (a great alternative to my Chanel camellia WOC), $258.75 DVF New Jeanne Two wrap dress (classic dress in a classic print).

Also:
- Vince Little Boy tee - $45.00 at Nordstrom (no code needed) + Saks w/code FRNFAM (Went up 2 sizes to M for better fit across my broad-ish shoulders and longer length / outfits: here)

Happy shopping!

It recently occurred to me that in the six months that I've owned this dress shirt, I've yet to wear it as it's intended to be worn, all buttoned up for work. I've worn it casually, as a cardigan substitute, and for extra layering purposes. Well, no longer! For today's outfit, I added a black vest and blue suede pumps so it's not simply the typical dress shirt and pants combo.

PS - Can I gush over these Ann Taylor ponte skinny ankle pants real quick? I love LOFT jeans but never have quite the same luck with AT pants for some reason even though they're sister brands. The length is perfect and hits me right at the ankles. Yes, there is bunching around the knees, but no creasing anywhere else! With most pants, I usually look like a wrinkled mess around the thighs after a full day of sitting at work. Also, no butt sagging either. I'm loving the thick, stretchy knit material. There's a side zipper and the pants are dry clean only. For reference, I'm wearing size 00, my usual AT size.

I suppose you can say I'm channeling either Waldo or the Hamburglar today. I seem to always associate shirts with wide stripes with those two characters. I can understand Waldo because I loved those Where's Waldo? picture books growing up. But the Hamburglar? I didn't even know of his existence until seeing friends in Halloween costumes a couple of years back.

I feel like the top half of today's outfit works, but the bottom half...? I should've grabbed my gray purse instead of the white one. As for the shoes, I thought pink boat shoes were too matchy-matchy and didn't think any other pairs I owned worked as well as the red loafers (which isn't saying much if I'm second-guessing myself.) Perhaps simple low-top white sneakers or beige espadrilles? I shall mentally Photoshop in the replacement shoes.

Another one of my outerwear purchases from over the summer is the Stella McCartney trench cape coat (no longer available). I've loved it ever since spotting Anh and Wendy's camel versions from years past.

I'm wearing size IT 40, but really should've gone down to a 38 so it's more "fitted" like on the model (an oxymoron since it is a loose-fitting style.) From certain angles, it does look like there are too much fabric, and I certainly sometimes felt that way as well depending on how I "drape" the fabric. I keep changing my mind about taking the cape to the tailors because I just don't know if it's worth it. Ideally, I'd like the sleeves to be shortened to bracelet length and maybe slim the sides a bit to get rid of excess fabric. I also wonder if the cape needs to be shortened by 1-2". Any thoughts? Am I just over-thinking this?
This was my first experience with the Stella McCartney brand and I'm underwhelmed. I should've stopped lumping amazing quality, $$$, and a "brand name" together long ago... I suppose the markup is still a hard pill to swallow. I was surprised to find the cape to be unlined on the inside and with loose threading in multiple places. The more I wear the cape, the more I find myself starting to come around to the lack of lining because of how easily the fabric moves and drapes. I suppose it would be unsightly to see lining peeking through? Then again, the pockets are visible in the first photo above.

Capes are very trendy this upcoming cold-weather season, but I think they're something only girls would like. DH hasn't seen me wear my cape yet, but I can already picture his WTF-face and liken me to wearing a garbage bag due to its bagginess. Girls on the other hand, I feel like can appreciate capes more. One of my female coworkers complimented me on my cape the first time I wore it to work. I then started effusing about how it's like I'm all wrapped up in a cozy blanket. Can you tell we've commiserated over the cold office one too many times.

I stumbled across a great "look for less" option in Rebecca Minkoff's Pierre cape coat. This cape is the closest I've seen as a dupe for Stella's (believe me, I've done my share of window shopping trying to hunt one down.) There are a few noticeable differences: RM's lack the shoulder epaulettes, has more buttons, and looks to have "real" sleeves which might make for a sleeker silhouette by cutting down on excess fabric. This cape retails for $498 and comes in two colors:
1) blush [photo left below] - available at Shopbop
2) noble green [photo right below] - available at Nordstrom, NM, Cusp, RM

When I was in London earlier this year, I inquired about trench cape re-releases because the camel and pink versions were from two different seasons. The SA at the Stella boutique said she doesn't know about this particular cape style, but capes in general are usually available every winter season. I don't know if the waiting game is worth it since RM's is such a great dupe. If I hadn't already gotten my hands on Stella's, I would snatch up RM's in a heartbeat. Patience is not always my strongest virtue.

In the last week or so, temperatures in the mornings have cooled considerably. I've already reached for my stash of jackets and am just starting in on my pile of sweaters. I can now officially welcome fall with open arms.
I showed DH the photo above and said I really liked how my face and hair looked, especially since the sunset glow hides that bald spot of mine on the right side of my head (lol). He said, Yeah I like it, too. You look more... womanly. Insert one raised eyebrow emoji. What else would I look like?! Err... girly?

What I'm looking forward to this weekend: baseball and more baseball -- both the Orioles and Nationals are in the playoffs! One can dream that they'll meet one another in the World Series, right?

Happy Friday!

I dragged DH into the city over the weekend for a day date. With a Google map printout in hand, we played tourists like the locals we weren't. We started off with a late lunch at someplace new and an old favorite (iced chai tea latte never disappoints.) Then we walked it off by strolling through semi-famous and not-so-famous landmarks alike. I'm so glad we were able to enjoy the most perfect weather outside.