All Aboard the Denim Train

Summer is almost over! Well, not in the weather sense, but in the sense that productivity will finally return to our normal routines and the excuse of "But it's summer!!!!" will not be used when we're just too lazy to complete any task. This new feeling of efficacy and being motivated to actually do something has allowed me to return to my blog (It's been more than two weeks!!! I'm not even on vacation!!) and also return to a fabric that I will always come running back to when my ideas are depleted due to the hot, draining sun. You guessed it: denim!! I called this the magic fabric a year ago, which I still claim to be true 365 days later. I've taken a break from it due to all the other wonderful fabrics out there: corduroy! Wool! Jacquard! Velvet! I didn't want to make any fabrics feel left out, obviously. But there comes a time when the familiar is good, when we need to revisit what we love to remind ourselves that it will always be there for us when we're feeling down. Denim is my pint of ice cream after a breakup, my best friend to talk to after a rough day. And that breakup is summer. I still blame everything less than decent in my life on this season.

I call what you're about to see in the next few seconds "denim two ways," like that thing chef's do when they make a dish like seared Ahi tuna with a tuna salad as an appetizer and they call it "tuna two ways." I've been watching too much Chopped.

Dress by Anthropologie (or try this dress from Topshop). Shorts by Gap (or try a similar pair from Mango). Shoes by Urban Outfitters. Bucket bag by J. Crew (similar here).

In this first denim scenario I wanted to wear a ~fancy~ piece but didn't want to actually look fancy for a casual evening downtown, so I let denim save the day. I've sort of attempted the shorts + dress look here but my "dress" wasn't really a dress, so here's round two. And instead of pairing cut-offs with a mini, I opted for a midi to make the trend look even more dramatic. I'm serious this time. The trick to this take on denim is to only show a peek of denim, maybe even a touch of tummy, to de-sophisticate the dress. I buttoned one of my favorite dresses (that actually belongs to my mother) only halfway, leaving the bottom open to show off the goods (which are either my legs or the denim. you decide.) It's like a reverse mullet: business in the back, party in the front. Someone following me would never know that my legs are actually bare on the other side. I guess I like to reserve a lot to the imagination. I slid into my slides, not solely because they would help the outfit but because they're literally glued to my feet (it's summer!!!). And that's it for denim 1st way, or the way that involves almost little to no denim. The next way is on the opposite side of the spectrum.

Jumpsuit by Madewell (similar here). Neck scarf by Urban Outfitters.

I've taken a complete 180 and went from little denim to ALL denim. The first example was the whipped cream + cherry on top of the ice cream, but this is the whole gallon of your favorite flavor (chocolate chip cookie dough, please). I've been searching for a piece that requires nothing but said piece and that is also 100% denim, and I've found it! This one from Madewell came with a chambray belt to tie around the waist which I switched for my favorite floral scarf (but it's on my neck instead!) that also seems to be glued to my body just like the slides. Here I actually strived to be ~fancy~, unlike the above look, which is why denim has felt so magical to me all these years. Add denim to be more casual, or wear it to be the opposite. I felt fancy enough to add a red lip, and I'm not even in Paris anymore. 

Maybe I'll go for denim three ways next time and try the perfect amount of the fabric to be, well, in between fancy and casual. Like the Goldilocks of denim.

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