Worn: Final Days Of Summer

It could be easy to complain about the brutally hot day forcasted for today, but I know it's summer's last gasp. The air -- and more importantly our apartment -- has finally cooled a bit, especially in the mornings and evenings and I'm so happy. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a nice cool weekend so I can finally finish unpacking.

Another upside of this suddenly cooler weather? I can wear one of my favorite combinations: Shorts and a sweater or sweatshirt. I don't know what makes it so cozy, but there's just something about wearing the layers up top and having your legs free. The best.

Get the look: Sweater, shorts, & jewelry: vintage and/or thrifted, Birkenstock sandals

Worn: '90s Floral

I am welcoming September with open arms. Ready for this heat to just end once and for all. I know I already said it, but this summer has been a weird one, long and drawn out, and I feel as if a new season, one with slightly cooler days, is what I need right now. This past weekend was wonderful and much needed, but it's about that time when you start to hear the collective cry of "is it fall yet?", and this year, I'm right there with 'em adding my voice to the chorus. I'm ready to stop sweating. I need to get out of this funk.

Mostly, I'm excited for cooler days so Chris and I can actually do some real, live, hiking. Not these relatively tame walkabouts we've been doing (which I've enjoyed, don't get me wrong). I've been compiling a hefty list of trails I'd like to do, and hiking is just better when done under a canopy of fall foliage.

This outfit was assembled out of pure necessity. It was above 90 degrees on Sunday, we had to run up to South Street, and this was the breeziest thing I could find. Also, Birkenstocks with everything because I just can't handle anything else right now.

Get the look: Dress: Thrifted (similar) // Bag: Omnia Vintage (c/o - similar) // Sunglasses: Thrifted (similar) // Birkenstock 'Arizona' // Necklace: F21 (similar) // Bra: Aeropostale (c/o - similar) // Rings: Vintage & from a West Virginia truck stop.

Weekend Diary: So Long Summer

Can you cram an entire summer into four days? Pretty much yes. And that's exactly what we did. I was lucky enough to have Friday off from work, so we kicked off our miserably hot, long weekend early with a trek through the John Heinz at Tinicum Nature Preserve, which was gorgeous and full of birds, as promised. Saturday morning we left early and spent the day hiking through the fields and exploring ruins at Valley Forge, and today we finally relented to the heat and went to the beach.

Despite entering the weekend with absolutely zero plans, we had a really, really great time, and I have to say our timing for Ocean City was perfect. We were driving in when everyone else was leaving, which meant a nearly empty boardwalk and low-key crowds on the shore. Sometimes playing it by ear is precisely what you need to do.

See ya summer.

Franklin Flea & Me

This summer has most definitely been a strange one, there's plenty of new but at the same time, it's been largely devoid of our usual activities. Most of my summer clothes are untouched, passed over for what's easy and what's not still in boxes -- tee shirts, cut-offs, Birkenstocks -- and every now and then I catch myself thinking of an activity (thrift shopping!) only to realize I haven't had a chance to do it in months! It's a strange time. But, life is finally starting to feel at least somewhat back to normal, or we're at least feeling a little more settled.

Flea markets are usually high on our summer to-do list, I love waking up super early, grabbing a coffee for the road, and roaming around misty, muddy fields looking for treasure. I'm sure we'll have plenty of that this fall, but it was nice to take in the Franklin Flea a couple of weeks back in the city. Definitely a more curated flea market than what you'd typically expect, but that's not such a bad thing sometimes. Even better, we could walk there. A novelty that still hasn't worn off. Chris and I roamed around and chatted with vendors, I found an amazing skirt for fall, and we both took full advantage of the food trucks. I love sifting through the ephemera and detritus of decades-past, the weird cast-offs that are considered antiques or collectables now, but at the time were looked upon with disdain (Sexology, anyone?). What's considered kitsch now was once just someones secret past-time, or bad art, or truck stop tee shirt.What strikes me is that these items have lasted decades, sometimes centuries. So much of what we bring into our homes and closets today is made with a shelf life -- I write this as yet another iPhone is in the process of biting the proverbial dust. I can't help but wonder: In the world of fast fashion and accessible everything, what will the ephemera from our generation be? Who knows, this could be total bullshit and exactly what someone in the '50s thought about those pulp paperbacks. I guess we'll see.

This has been my go-to dress this summer for when I want to look like I tried, but still want comfort. It's just so easy to wear. I could say the same for these shoes. The heel is the perfect height to look a little more fancy than flip flops, but still be just as easy to walk in. I'm all about lower heels and flats right now, and I can't wait to start incorporating boots back into my wardrobe as soon as the weather cools off slightly.

Get the look: Dress: ModCloth (on sale!) // Sandals: Seychelles (also on sale!) c/o // Bag: Vintage Coach (similar) // Sunglasses: TjMaxx (similar) // Chain bracelet: Thrifted // Metal cuff: Studebaker Metals

Weekend Diary: Cape Cod

The first weekend in August was our first weekend in our new place, while we would have been happy to be homebodies for two days, instead we loaded up the car and drove north to my grandparent’s house on Cape Cod. Bigger and better things. We had a party to get to. The drive itself was such a welcome change from what we'd become accustomed to. No real planning ahead, no worries about the havoc a 14 hour drive would wreak on our bank account, because now “home” (in its many, many senses) is only a few short hours away. No longer the all-day drive it once was. THIS, this is what I missed!

So we very happily woke up at 5am, packed up the car, and drove to Cape Cod to celebrate my grandparent’s 60th wedding anniversary. They renew their vows every 10 years, and it’s hard to believe 2004 – when we celebrated in Ireland - was that long ago. But it was. Time flies. It felt so good to be back on the Cape and good to be back around family, some of whom I haven’t seen since our wedding. We spent Saturday at the party they threw, and spent the majority of Sunday on the beach. It was a sleepy and sunburned drive home. But a drive that didn't take 14 hours. And for that I am thankful.