On new jobs and girls of the woods

This is the outfit I plan on wearing tomorrow for the first day of my new job. I'm going to be the House Manager for a local nonprofit community theater. At 26 years old, I already feel so much pressure to have a capital-C Career, but I think for now, this part-time position--in addition to my dance teaching job--feels right. I'm just happy to be working for a really fantastic arts organization.

In an Instagram post, Kater from all this happiness described her outfit as "girl of the woods goes to the mall," and I feel like that's the direction I'm headed in these days. Cable knit sweaters, well-worn boots, oversized button-downs, and lots of rich, earthy colors.

Outfit details:
Thrifted sweater (borrowed from my sister)
Vintage velvet skirt purchased at a church rummage sale
Bass Outlet boots
Vintage Paris souvenir bracelet purchased at a yard sale
1920's barkcloth tote via Demure Folk

Star-studded

This dress--a 1940's rayon number with star-shaped studs--is one of my favorite estate sale purchases. Something about the shape, especially paired with slightly ugly, chunky sandals, looks really modern to me. It came from a house that felt damp the moment I walked through the door. Most of the other dresses were literally rotten, but this one only had a few spots of rust on the studs and a little surface dirt.

It's starting to feel more like Fall here in Pittsburgh, especially with morning temperatures in the 40's. Dance classes are in full swing, and my muscles are screaming, so I tried to take it easy today, icing my ankle, sipping hot chocolate, and indulging in some terrible daytime television.

Outfit details:
1940's dress purchased at an estate sale
Coach belt
Madewell heels

Summertime

The blog world already seems to be gearing up for Fall, but it's definitely still hot and humid here in Pittsburgh. In honor of late summer's hazy days, here's a photo I bought at an estate sale a few weeks ago. That dive looks equal parts terrifying and exhilarating, kind of like life after graduate school.

Romero at Phipps

I've been sitting on these photos for a while now, because I couldn't decide whether or not I liked them. (I'm trying to get away from the whole look-down-and-away moody blogger pose. In my defense, it was really bright outside?) But this type of outfit--a printed cotton 50's skirt paired with one of my Madewell tees--was pretty much my uniform for the last semester of grad school. Summer already feels over to me, since dance classes start up again on Friday, and I wanted to post this outfit before I'd completely moved on.

I wore this to go see Phipps Conservatory's corpse flower, named "Romero" after the director of the 1968 zombie flick Night of the Living Dead, which was filmed near Pittsburgh. Corpse flowers only bloom once every 6-10 years for 24-48 hours, and for 12 of those hours, they emit a strong odor that resembles rotting flesh (hence the name). Romero bloomed on August 20th, and I hustled over to Phipps right around opening time the following morning. It's a pretty strange-looking plant--like a 6-foot-tall prehistoric peace lily--and I'm glad I was able to catch it while it was blooming. There were also several families there when I went, and it made me irrationally happy watching little kids run around with their noses pinched, dramatically complaining about the smell!

Outfit details:
Madewell tee
Vintage 50's skirt via Very Vintage Store
H&M flats