Labor Day Fabrics and Flavors

Dress: Sugar Thrillz, Dolls Kill; Skirt: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Shoes: Jessica Simpson Collection, Amazon

Bag: Francesca's

Tank: Rebellious One, Macy's; Skirt: Arizona Jeans, JCPenney

Tomato girl summer going out hot.

Bag: Universal Thread, Target

Corn and crustaceans.

Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's; Jeans: Wild Fable, Target

Blue for You Necklace

Bag: Amerileather, Zulily

Filler schmiller. 

Because a felt boat's always a good idea.

Labor Day means red, white, and blue -- and one last BBQ.  So I donned my polka dot frock and enjoyed festive fare with my family.  The best thing on the table?  My mom's tomato pie.  Probably because it was bursting with, not only tomatoes and cheese, but mayonnaise and sour cream.  So, hearty enough for the hardest-working laborer, not to mention decadence in a dish.

As for Charlotte, she focused on the fruit, as per usual.  I've never seen anyone get so excited about oranges and blueberries. Watching her glee is my favorite thing.

Still, she'd better not get any ideas about me baking a pie.

Problematic Summer Wardrobe

Dress: Betsey Johnson, Zulily

Pancakes should always be served with whipped cream.

Bag: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Bow: Art Class, Target

Bag: Francesca's

Sweatshirt: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Skirt: On 34th, Macy's

Dress: ModCloth

Bag: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Shoes: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Oversized Anchor Necklace

Sweet suburban skyline sans storefronts.

Bag: Isaac Mizrahi, Marshalls

Headband: INC, Macy's

You know that I dread the end of summer and refuse to acknowledge it until October.  Well, samesies this year.  So until then, I'm going to keep on trucking sailing with my unseasonal summer ensembles.  And I'm going to keep reading beach books, too.  Like Ali Hazelwood's Problematic Summer Romance.  

This one is about a twenty-three-year-old, award-winning physicist named Maya and her "inappropriate" crush on her brother's thirty-eight-year-old, biotech billionaire bestie, Conor.  Maya may be a genius, but, like Halsey, she's "bad at love."  Yet (also like Halsey), you can't blame her for trying -- especially during her brother's wedding week in lemon-scented Sicily.  Less STEM, ahem, coded than Hazelwood's previous romcoms, Problematic Summer Romance is more easy breezy.  Because even eggheads sometimes leave the lab to play the field -- and the fool -- like the rest of us.  Smart and snappy, it's rife with pop culture references, all of which enhance Maya's journey.  So, just what you want from a summer romance -- and a book about one.   

That said, my own (sartorial, not relationship) problems have only begun.  

By which I mean brights, bare legs, and produce prints in the face of flannel and pumpkin spice. 

Also, white shoes after Labor Day.  

Staycation Nation: Pool Jewels and Polka Dots

Dress: Macy's

Bag: On 34th, Macy's

Totally Turquoise Necklace

Top and skirt: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Bag: The Shoppes at the Asbury

Flowers Capelli, ULTA

Shoes: Chinese Laundry, Zulily

Fruit Loot Necklace

There's a new Progressive commercial about vacations, maybe you've seen it.  The hook is how so few of us ever get time to recharge.  Flo jokes that this harried woman needs a vacation, and the woman responds by saying things like, oh, you mean when I'm driving to work and a song I like comes on the radio?  And Flo's like, no, a vacation, when you go away and take pictures and whatever.  And the woman says, oh, never had one.  To which Flo admits, me neither.

I can relate -- and I'm sure lots of you can too.  Especially because my version of a vacay is dressing like I'm going on one.  So I was excited to haul out my old palm-and-pineapple heels and new bathing beauties bag.  Fancy bags for everyday use, it seems, are having a moment.  Which I love because it jives with my every-fit's-a-celebration philosophy.  That's why this little piece of the pool is such a jewel to me.

And why, even when I can't get out of town, I relax and go with the Flo.

Zero Hour and Not So Fresh Flowers

Top: ELLE, Kohl's

Skirt: ModCloth; Shoes: Christian Siriano for Payless

Bag: Kelly & Katie, DSW

Skirt: Trixxi, Kohl's

Shoes: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Top: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Box: Michaels

Bag: Betsey Johnson, Amazon

Dress: LC Lauren Conrad, Kohl's

Bag: Target

Sunglasses: Party City

Shoes: Mix No. 6, DSW

Necklace: Ella & Elly, Zulily

Fake and unseasonal and not even new, these are the flowers that I have for you.  This garden garb has been growing in my to-be-posted folder since spring.  That's why you see a school bus in the first pic.  So I figured I'd better post it before school starts up again.

Because the only thing worse than missing the bus is missing a bus-y bloom print. 🚌💐