My Anthropologie Fall Preview Wishlist

It's that time of year again: Anthropologie put out their fall home preview, and I want it all. So many beautiful items!

1. This pillow is gorgeous, and they have similar ones in other colors. I love the attention to detail!
2. I would love to put a big bouquet of daisies in the pink one. What about you?
3. Cotton balls stored in these containers probably have the best, most luxurious life and probably somehow actually make your skin more beautiful.
4. I'm telling ya — this chair BELONGS in my living room.
5. I have a few monogram mugs from Anthro, and I really like this new series.
6. Hedgehog measuring cups: Absolutely unnecessary and completely necessary, all at the same time.
7. Decorative knobs are one of the easiest and most affordable ways to make boring 'ole furniture into  wow-that's-great!
8. I'm still partial to phone cases from Rifle Paper Company, but if I chose to convert anytime soon, I love this alternative.
9. This vase is so unique. Fun!

Do you have any pre-fall shopping lists? Good thing for me I don't actually live *near* an Anthropologie because I'm pretty sure I'd be bankrupt if I did!

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What I'm Wearing White Now

Guys. Monday was Labor Day. Yesterday, I wore white jeans. Nobody cared.

I proudly and confidently marched to my closet because I knew what pants I was going to wear (and that never happens), and then I had a small moment of insecurity while I debated how to make the outfit look a little summery and a little fall-y; but mostly, I was feeling like a real rule-breaker. Give me a Harley and a studded collar, folks, 'cause I'm wearing white after Labor Day! But still, nobody cared. Not one person commented on how rebel-without-a-cause I dressed on September 2nd. 

Everybody knows this ancient fashion faux-pas, but then Vogue and Marie Claire and everyone are all "10 Ways to Wear White after Labor Day!" So, how and why did "no white post-Labor Day" become a thing, and then not a thing? Labor Day has been around for a long time, and so has this societal rule. L-Day was declared an official holiday in 1894, but the first two were celebrated on Tuesdays. Can you imagine that? It seems like a bad idea to have a national holiday on a Tuesday because if you don't tack a day off to the end of the weekend, there's just this awkward day in the middle of the week to sit around and eat ice cream or watch The Hills or something. Right? I'm not really sure what they were thinking.

There are several theories on how this whole "no white" thing became a thing. One theory is that back in the day, before Google existed and random girls like me had blogs, the NY-based fashion magazines influenced much of what was worn. Since whites are impractical for a wet fall and winter (nobody wants an accidental 'wet jeans' contest), they were reserved for summer wear only. Another theory involves the snooty society people in the late 1800s and early 1900s: High society was ruled by the mega rich socialites, until more and more people started becoming well-to-do, and started dressing that way. To create a societal divide between old money and new money, the theory is that the "old money" socialites made up a bunch of silly rules to distinguish those who were "in the know" from others who were just dressing the part. I favor this theory because it sounds like Mean Girls, so it's most likely true. 

Now, the "no white" rule is defunct, and maybe that indicates that our society is a little less snooty? I'd like to think so. I think the most important thing to learn from Labor Day is to dress for the season. Pleasepleaseplease don't be the girl who wears Uggs in the summer. Don't wear rain boots if it's going to sprinkle in the morning and then sun for the rest of the day. You can wear white in the dead of winter if you want (winter whites, amirite?) but don't dress like you're about to go yachting (Sperry's and all) in January because you will make everyone jealous and increase their winter-induced depression. You'd probably be cold, too.

So, the moral of the story is this: It's not 1894 anymore, so you can wear white if you want to. White now, even. 

Outfit details: Jeans - F21, Striped top - Urban Outfitters, Sweater - F21, Purse - Longchamp.

Photography by Nick Warnock.

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Best Friends 4th Ever

Happy 4th of July, friends!

I'm usually very anti-wearing-patriotic-colors on the Fourth of July. This year I decided to stop being an American Scrooge, and I got into the spirit. What can I say, I'm feeling thankful for the good ole USA.

I'm going to a wedding tonight in Kansas City… The couple is going to be wed, white and blue (hahahahahahah I know, I know). Sooooo that means I got to visit my best friend, Kalee! We've been having the best time.

Kalee got married in January, and this is my first time visiting Kansas City since Kalee and Sfen have been married and living in their new house! (Not pictured: Sfen). But he's here, and we're all having fun.

Last night, we ate at Green Room Burgers, and ohmygoodness, they were SO good. Kalee's burger had goat cheese, sweet pickles, avocado, and bacon, and I had some pretty bad order envy when it got to the table. This morning, we hung out around the house for a bit, made chocolate chip pancakes, and went out for coffee. We've been catching up and taking it easy, and it's been perfect. In a couple hours, Kalee and Sfen are having friends over for dinner and fireworks.

Happy birthday, 'Merica! Luv u lots.

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Oh, Crop!

A crop top (also cropped top, belly shirt, half shirt, midriff shirt, midriff top, tummy top, short shirt, and cutoff shirt) is a T-shirt or blouse with the lower part cut off, showing off some of the abdomen. 

Thanks to Wikipedia for this wonderful definition of a crop top. Where would we be without Wiki?

Well, like it or not, the '90s are back! Short tops have been cropping up all over stores (I'm hilarious, I know), and they are being shown with ev-er-y-thing. Crop tops and jeans, crop tops and A-line skirts, crop tops and maxi skirts, crop tops and high-waisted shorts. You name it, you can probably wear it with a crop top.

In the "dress code" section of my middle school student handbook, there was a clause that explicitly stated "no exposed midriffs." I went to middle school in the early 2000's, right after the '90s crop top craze, and I remember thinking "ew, why would anybody even want to expose their midriff? Also, why is midriff such a weird word?"

Well, now it's 2014, and I've got answers. Midriff seems like it should be a compound word, right? Mid drift? Like, "my mid is so exposed that I'm catching this drift of wind." Turns out I was… well, kinda right.

According to Wikipedia, "'Midriff' is an old term in the English language, coming into use before 1000 AD. In Old English it was written as "midhrif", with the old word "hrif" literally meaning stomach; in Middle English it was "mydryf". The word fell into obsolescence after the 18th century, until it was revived in 1941 by the fashion industry partly to avoid use of the word 'belly' which many women considered undesirable in reference to their bodies, as it has connotations of obesity." Interesting, huh? Ya learn something new every day.

My personal recommendation when playing with proportions is that you don't go overboard one way or another. So if you're wearing a super short crop, don't wear it with itty-itty-bitty shorts. You don't want to look like you're in a bikini unless you're--y'know--at a pool.

My second recommendation is to be considerate about where you wear this trend. Your boss probably doesn't want to see your bare midriff or (gasp) exposed belly button when you walk into his office. If you currently attend Jarrett Middle School, the handbook likely still says "no exposed midriffs" because it may not have been updated since the 90's. I also wouldn't recommend wearing a crop top to any sort of church function because duh. And you could wear a crop top to the mall if you want, but the AC is always so cold there, so maybe it would be better if you wore a sweater over it…

But in any and all other cases: Rock the crop, guys.

Photos by my talented friend, Nick Warnock, edited by me. To see more of his edits from this shoot, hop on over to warnockandsons.com.

Outfit details: Crop top//Forever 21. Black jeans//Forever 21. Brown beaded bracelets//Vintage.

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Things I Heart

Happy Valentine's Day! Here are a few things that have me tickled pink this week.

My new "I-mean-business" shoes.

My favorite chai latte in town. Full disclosure: This is not a chai latte. It is a mocha.

Candy Hearts. And #rejectedcandyhearts, if you're on Twitter.

And pizza. Okay, so I dropped the "heart" theme, (insert cardiovascular joke here) but how could I list things I like without mentioning pizza?

<3 Ana

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