When outfits are better in theory

Nanette Lepore dress

Testament Cardigan

Streets Ahead belt

Steven by Steve Madden pumps

I wore this the other week thinking the drapey cardigan would help to make less billowy a too-large dress. But when I looked at the outfit photos afterwards I realized this particular outfit idea was a lot better in theory than in practice. All day the dress (which is a very light silk) shifted, occasionally exposing my slip. And the cardigan was too drapey to behave underneath the slightly-too-large belt without more bulk. Lesson learned!

Black and Gold (OOT)Day

J. Crew factory rosette cardigan in Dijon (similar in black here)

Eggplant 3/4 sleeve top from Loft

Saks Fifth Avenue skirt (via the Off Fifth) (similar here, here, and here)

Steven by Steve Madden Intyce boots

Marc by Marc Jacobs Softy Max Tote

Necklaces from Banana Republic and Yesterday's Best

Sometimes it is hard not to sartorially manifest years of fandom and enthusiasm for Pittsburgh's sports teams. Although I'm not currently comfortable being as boisterous as in years previous (due to the misogynist behaviors exhibited by the Steelers' current quarterback), I find myself more comfortable than most pairing black with gold. For me it has rarely evoked bumblebees or Blind Melon videos. For as long as I can recall it has embodied sports fandom. And last Monday I unthinkingly wore black and gold together yet again. It has been more challenging than I anticipated to suppress my Steeler fandom so long as they continue to have Ben at the helm. But until the ownership makes clear to me that they take seriously women's safety and the real harms caused from misogynist entitlement, they cannot take this particular woman fan for granted.

Earth Shattering PSA: Polish your boots! (duh!)

I was gradually reorganizing my closets (and weeding things into keep, donate, and sell piles), when I came upon unopened Kiwi shoe polish I bought on clearance from Target last year.

I forgot that I bought it with the intention of polishing my black Steven Intyce boots (that fit my calves) before I put them away for the summer. When I pulled out the boots, they were dusty (even though I stored them in a dustbag) and showed significant signs of last year's wear. Pittsburgh weather is hard on shoes and I am especially hard on boots. My clumsiness resulted in more than a few scratches.

I put down some newspaper, wiped off dirt and dust with a babywipe, and started polishing away! Here's a photo with one tip done (on the bottom):

Although the single use polish was for a regular, non-boot pair of shoes, it was ample polish for two coats on the entire pair of boots.

The polish restored their shine and hopefully I will remember to do this regularly, to protect the leather and extend the life of my favorite relatively-affordable, leather, wider-calf circumference boots! It's such an easy fix, I can't believe I forgot to do it last year!