What remains when the hours pass

 Striped sweater: Ralph Lauren; Floral blouse: LOFT;

Wool pants: J. McLaughlin, salvaged from Aunt P.;

Pocket watch (as necklace): Waltham; 

Stone bracelet: gift from Marilou; Jade & cougar bracelets: 

Finder's Keepers store, vintage; Boots: Target.

On Saturday, when almost everyone in town was at the big basketball game, I had some time to explore my alma mater's campus and take photos by one of my favorite buildings, the chapel. The weather was relatively nice, though super windy, so I took the opportunity to take more pictures than I normally would in a really open public area. I also tried some more pattern-mixing with my new LOFT blouse and sweater -- for whatever reason, the stripes from this sweater really lend themselves well to experimentation. I also tried some skinny pants, which I've never done before, and I love this wool variety that I got from Jeremiah's aunt. This silhouette is much different from what I usually go for, but I really like it.

Some of my other blog features are going to start this week! I've decided I want to start sharing more of things I like -- some inspiration pieces, movie reviews, etc. but almost all of it will be style-related.

Anyways, today's a snow day throughout most of northeast Georgia, so I'm going to go out and play for awhile ...

Tailgating style

I've mentioned before that football season has hit Athens, and with it comes multiple parties and tailgates to attend every weekend. I didn't grow up in college football culture, and certainly haven't picked up the taste or zeal for obsessing over it like a lot of my friends and family, but I have grown fond of one of the more unspoken traditions: dressing up in red and black for game day.

 This year I feel a little bit different in how I want to present myself on these Saturdays, and I think my want for experimentation has to do with blogging. Dressing up for game days usually means wearing casual sundresses. And in years past, I would subdue my sartorial whims and just throw on a Target sundress like many others, and while that's fine and conducive to the messiness of eating barbeque or playing tackle football, it didn't really reflect the way I wanted to dress. I think part of it was a self-consciousness of showing my true self and style to friends and family -- not wanting to appear prissy, or overly-dressed or eccentric. I don't want to be that wallflower anymore who's too shy to wear what she wants.

With this seasonal resolution in mind, I've been taking stock of possible items to remix these fall Saturdays. I'm putting a little scrapbook of all things red, black and white here to jog my creativity:

Are you a sports fan, and are your sartorial decisions important on game day? What do you think of the dressing up tradition at some schools? What combinations would you be interested in seeing?

Twilight in a small town

Friday afternoon/ night

Dress: Ann Taylor Loft;

Shoes: Zigi Soho;

Bag: thrifted;

Bracelet: Finder's Keepers.
How I've worn the dress: here.

 

Saturday

Dress: Maggy London;

Trench: Banana Republic, gift;

Shoes: Naturalizers.
How I've worn the dress: here.

And I'm back, albeit very tried but pretty happy. This weekend was just what I needed -- time with friends in a city I love. 

I was so glad I got to see the Twilight Criterium this year for many reasons. My friends are graduating from college in two weeks and are going off to various graduate schools and cities around the country, so this is one of the last few times we had to hang out in the town where we all met. It wasn't as big a deal when J and I graduated last year because we ended up moving an hour away, and we took for granted all the times we'd get to see our friends; now that they're leaving, it's a little more poignant than it was this time last year.

I was determined to make this Criterium memorable, with lots of friends and spending almost all weekend outside. I didn't take as many photos as I thought I would, mainly because I was having too much fun to document it all. Friday was blissful: Jeremiah and I spent most of the afternoon walking around downtown, shopping, eating at Doc Chey's and meeting up with our friends Amanda, Susie and Cleveland; we also spent some time at Little Italy's and a few bars downtown. Saturday started out a bit dreadful, because the weather was so disgusting: 100 percent rain for most of the day. We got some lunch at Barberito's with Amanda, did some shopping and got back in time to the house before some serious downpours.We met up with J's sister Rachel because it was her birthday weekend, and we ate some yummy dinner at RuSan's, this awesome Japanese place. Afterward, the rest of the night was a wet, windy blur: J, our friends and I watched the races as it rained, and spent some time indoors catching up over drinks and food.
There's nothing like standing in a downpour with your friends and sharing stories all weekend to make everyone feel closer to each other. It was such a great couple of days, and just what I needed.

Some more photos: