Bright Stripes

Most of my closet is dominated by solid colors. I have a few floral patterns here and there. Then, there's a ton of stripes. I don't know hy I'm so fascinated by stripes. I like simple prints, but I also want simplicity to make a big impact. Contrasting stripes do the trick.

But I'm also taken by contrasts that are less subtle. There's something about yellow and gray. Yellow is flashy and playful, and gray is sophisticated without being stuffy. When blended together, the contrast is noticeable yet subtle, as if both tones are a bit washed out (but in a good way). It's nice to have something that's noticeable without being showy.

I have a cute, thin sweater with stripes in gray and an orange-yellow, but that yellow just doesn't resonate with me quite like the bright yellow of this t-shirt I found at Forever 21 last week. I paired it with a subtle-colored shrug and shorts and colorful accessories today. I haven't worn a retro-inspired outfit for a while, and the big holiday weekend seemed like the perfect time for it.

[Sunglasses from A. J. Wright, Forever 21 t-shirt, Mike & Chris shrug, American Eagle shorts, thrifted Olay bag, thrifted electric-blue pumps]

I haven't worn these sunglasses for a while, and I'm happy to have rediscovered them. I bought them from the most unlikely place--A.J. Wright. There was one that was relatively-newly opened in my hometown, so I decided to check it out. The home goods were passable, but I was not impressed with the clothing selection. However, I found these retro-looking sunglasses for $5. These are pretty good for being budget sunglasses--the metal frames were sturdy, the wintermint-green shade was perfectly swanky, and the little white dots all around were just the perfect embellishments.

Hope you all enjoyed your long weekend. It'll be hard to get back to work tomorrow, but it felt good to finally have a long weekend off.