Legally Charming Style

It's now October and I've been waiting for this month for a little while. Why? Because I desperately love wearing sweaters. I know, I'm weird. But sweaters are comfy and soft and it's a socially acceptable way to wear something akin to a blanket outside of my house.

Here in Baltimore, it's still not really sweater weather...but it dropped below 70 this weekend, which means that I was wearing a sweater all weekend long. Because as a Southern expatriate now living (slightly) farther north, I felt totally justified in doing so.

Saturday was a study day/type this blog entry/sit at school on Facebook when I have a test on Tuesday day. But mostly studying. I promise. (Sort of. The lighting in this building is so good, I can't ever resist taking like 20 selfies. It's a disease, I tell you.)

You don't know this about me...but I was a very sassy kid.

A sassy, smart and funny little girl with a whole lot of style. I mean, A WHOLE LOT. Seven to ten year old me wore the crap out of some cute stuff.

I mean, check out the adorbs.


But then that girl became a pre-teen, and then, even worse...a teenager. (Oh, the horror.) For some girls, those teen years were the time that they became more themselves and blossomed into the young people they were supposed to be. For me, that was when I retreated back into myself. Sure, at home and with a select few, I was a fun-loving and "sweet" daughter and friend. But I wasn't sassy anymore. I started wearing jeans and tees pretty much every day. I let my hair do whatever it wanted or, as my mom always said, I liked to "scrape it off my face" into a ponytail. I did theater, but I was never myself: I only wanted to stand out when I was playing someone else.


I can't say any one reason why I became this way. I got picked on, sure, but it wasn't anything over the top. I had a hard time dealing with some things that were going on...but who didn't have a rough time? I can say with honestythat at that time in my life, I struggled with depression under the surface. The fake bravado I displayed to my parents and close friends was a facade. I felt a little like a crumbled cookie on the inside: still good, but in pieces. And my wardrobe was an outer expression of that inner crumbly feeling. I lacked the confidence to let myself be noticed.

So what happened to get you to this girl you see today?

Well, first this girl got a best friend.


Best friends are wonderful people, but they ca't MAKE you do anything. What my best friend did for me was to acknowledge the person I really was: sweet, sure; but also sarcastic, intelligent, fun and yes, very sassy. She didn't let me hide myself from her. I don't know if that was what she was trying to do, but that's exactly what she did. Because of her encouragement, I started to blossom. (That and an immense number of lectures she gave me about fashion sense).

Second, this girl started talking.

WELCOME TO THE NEW LEGALLY CHARMING STYLE!! *throws confetti*

Well hello!

Welcome back to the blog!

This post is long overdue, but it took me a while to figure out what exactly I wanted to write about. I mean, I've worn some pretty cute stuff lately, don't get me wrong, but none of it was really clicking in the inspiration center. And then I started looking back at my fashion posts and realized something.

I have a "go-getter" color.

The "go-getter" color, in my mind, is the one color that you wear and feel the most yourself. The color that makes you feel happy, radiant, and as though you can go out and kick the world's ass if necessary. For some people, this is the stereotypical power color: red. For Elle Woods, it was pink.

But for me, it's yellow. I find that yellow is that snap to make me have a better day. I get a lot of compliments in yellow. I've worn yellow on some of my really good days (the day I got an academic award), in really good pictures (the day I took pretty much my best self-portrait ever), and days when I need to feel motivated (studying at home).

I haven't always been a subscriber to the power of yellow, but for me, it's become a necessary staple to a good wardrobe. It looks good in all seasons (a classmate of mine was just commenting she saw a girl rock a yellow purse with fall neutrals); it makes you pay attention to the person wearing it. I'm a bit reluctant to the spotlight, but in yellow I feel like I can do anything. I can get that A and the job. It is a reflection of my happy nature; it's also there to remind me of that happy nature when life feels like it's going to total shit. It may only be a color, but it does powerful things.









What's YOUR "go-getter" color?

I've been a regular on the #styleme challenges on Instagram of late; unfortunately, I have been none too present on my own blog and getting posts up. The challenge of only having Internet when I can make the trek up to school/am not carrying 60 books on my back so I can also haul my laptop has been a pretty big one. I think I've got an answer, so I should be blogging more regularly. (I feel like I keep saying that...)

ANYWAY.

Last Thursday's challenge for #stylemeseptember was a good one: vintage vixen. Personally, I've always loved vintage clothing, and the styles of women who came before (particularly the 40's and 50's). I always used to fantasize about dressing like Audrey Hepburn circa Roman Holiday every day of the week. My personal style has evolved and become a bit more modern (mostly), but I have a special place in my heart for vintage. (And I definitely still pine for the day when I can find a true vintage dress).

Wednesday night found me digging through my closet to find something both vintage AND weather-appropriate. Baltimore has been scorching lately--hotter than it's been all summer, I swear!--and that put out my favorite boots I got from my mom AND long sleeves. So that brought me to a piece I was just about to give away--a light blue, short-sleeve top I got at a vintage shop in Austin a few years ago. Since it's still hot as blazes, and I wanted to layer up top, I threw on my beloved Forever 21 mini skirt (the one that's so mini it barely covers my butt...you're welcome, Baltimore! lol)...


Then, I added accessories, including my recently acquired Target scarf...



And finally, a jacket (since the law building, in polar opposite to its surroundings, is somewhere around Antarctica degrees right now)...





And the perfect formula was made. A little vintage flair made modern-cool to fit my personality perfectly.

I enjoyed class in the afternoon with a little iced pumpkin spice latte, and since my arm party was 2/3 new bracelets I got over the weekend, and my nails were newly painted for fall, I decided to take a desk selfie (with like 50 other people around, because that's how I roll).




And a little shoe show-offer since I wasn't done with taking pictures of this outfit!

Comfy walking shoes=total must.

Like my miniskirt, this outfit was, in short, fun. I love a little bit of subtle color and pattern mixing.The colors in the scarf actually ended up pulling the whole thing together, but it wouldn't have even happened if it hadn't been for the top--The Little Vintage Engine That Could.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend--I'll be back later this week!

xoxo

Carisa