GET ME DRESSED / FT. ESBY APPAREL

romper: esby apparel / jesus sandals: amazon (they're actually called that?)

Last month in Austin I got to meet Stephanie Beard, owner and designer of esby apparel. It was such a treat. I got to see and feel her gorgeous pieces, try them ALL on, and bring a few home to show off to my readers. I even made a friend out of the deal! 

I'd been hoping to show off her amazing stuff for weeks, ever since since I got back from South By, but then we moved house, life got REALLY weird, family came into town, and my Internet went bust. But! I'm here! Here I am! Better late than early! And here is that post finally, featuring two  of my favorite looks from the current line at esby apparel. 

this bag is an old one from madewell and it is amazing

First is this ROMPERRRRR. 

Hold up -- after culling my wardrobe again (KonMari Take Two! THIS TIME IT WILL WORK!), and now that the entirety of my wardrobe fills only half a standard closet, don't you find it FULLY FASCINATING that I somehow managed to keep onto FOUR WHOLE ROMPERS?? 

All of which sport WIDE-LEGGED SILHOUETTES!

Well, I do. #easilyimpressedwithmyself

Okay but wait -- how do you feel about wide-legged silhouettes? Now that I have you here?

Personally, having grown up the daughter of Julie Lovin, I knew off the bat that this wide-legged deal was going to be my Def Jam. I remember my mom wearing so much of this silhouette when I was a kid that for sentimental reasons alone I knew I would have to love this trend a very stupid amount. 

And, it turns out, I do!

What I don't love at the moment are my current white wall prospects. So disappointing. Grass! Shadows! Ugh! 

Anyway. I tried.

Alexandra took these next wide-legged photos for me just the other day. Thanks, Alex!

clogs: nina z / pants: esby apparel / top: fruit of the loom 

Here is the thing: My poor waist has played second fiddle in fashion to every other body part that I've owned for years. I used to watch period films featuring cinched waists and tight bodices and just feel so sorry for my midsection for being born in THE wrong decade. Until now! There she is! Hi, waist! I hadn't forgotten about you! 

Stephanie makes these high-waisted wide-legged trousers in just about every neutral color a neutral-phile could ever desire and I'm not going to lie to you, they make me feel leggy and waist-y and a little bit like an extra from Out of Africa. 

See also: GRANDPA PANTS! 

Well anyway, my white wall-ing needs some work. Don't I look awkward? But don't I also look like I'm enjoying it? ;)

GET ME DRESSED / AND GET HER TO COLLEGE

jeans: kut, shirt: levi's, flats: sseko designs, tote: sseko designs, bracelet: austin (similar here),

awesome attitude: yo mama

So lemme tell you a thing about a thing. 

I've been going through my closet lately. ('Show me a woman who blah blah blah . . . ' you've read my book already, right?? ;) While I was in there the other day I noticed my denim jumpsuits. Like errant children, those denim jumpsuits. I own two; they're awfully sweet. Lately they've shared an equal amount of their mother's neglect. The poor dears.

So I said, 'I'm sorry jumpers!' (Do you ever feel the need to apologize to your clothes?) And then made the appropriate decisions.

The problem with the first is that it looks so similar to a combination of denim + jeans that I already wear all of the time. And the second of the two, well, I love her madly, but she is OUT THERE. Best suited for places where it's normal to see other people walking around in frumpy bubbles made of clothing while still feeling fabulous, maybe. 

And so they were rendered redundant. Such a sad story!

the first went out to consignment, the second to our storage unit, in case you needed to know. 

(i'm holding out hope for you, bubble romper! good luck in our storage unit, it's chilly!) 

(these are the shirt and jeans in question, should you wish to cast scorn.) 

But what I REALLY came here to tell you is, did you know epiphanic is an actual word? When you have an epiphany, that means your situation was epiphanic.

Epiphanous: Not a word. And why not?

GET ME DRESSED / WHITES FOR SPRING

i look way cooler in this photo than i will ever actually be in this lifetime

Hey-oh Spring! 

Lemme ask you a question. Do you believe in seasonal wardrobes? I do. I really do. I'd even go so far as to have a testimony of them. That's what this post is. Just so you know what you're jumping into.

a few new-to-me spring pieces for 2016

When I was 10 and starting the fifth grade, my mom took me back-to-school shopping at the local Mervyn's. (Oh, Mervyn's! Do we remember Mervyn's?) I will remember until I die those pieces we picked out that day under the hot Arizona sun, and the way a Mervyn's smells inside, and the squeaky sheen of patent leather shoes, because you always get a new pair of patent leather church shoes before school starts, there is no other way. 

We came home with a pair of forest green pants, a pair of burgundy pants, a forest green turtleneck, a burgundy turtleneck -- are we sensing a theme here? -- and then a patchwork vest in . . . yes, in forest green and burgundy red. Those five pieces represented to me the coolest girl wardrobe in the fifth grade ever, and I could not wait to start wearing them.

Of course, school starts up in August in Arizona and so I didn't really have a use for those clothes until well into November. Even if it had gotten freakishly cold in September, conscience would dictate that I could not wear my deep autumn colors until it was fully well and good the deep autumn. 

And so I waited. 

And pined. 

And yearned!

And then I wore the snot out of them from late October until late February, at which point those colors no longer felt right, and I had to switch over to my springtime rotation. Pinks, blues, you know. Easter egg colors.

Living with a personal code of wardrobe ethics is exhausting sometimes! And so limiting!

(Please tell me you are into taking this topic as equally jokingly deathly non-seriously as me, otherwise it'll spoil the fun.)

 

Well, I peaked at age 10, probably. It's okay. And since then, though my beliefs are the same, I no longer like those Easter egg colors for spring. (I am a Deep Winter, pastels look like consumption on me.) Instead, every March, I just want to wear white. Beige, cream, off-white, true-white, white-white. It feels refreshing and light and like just the right match for a sometimes-iffy spring sun. 

It's terribly impractical of me and of course that only adds to the fun. The other day I got out of the car with the crumbs of an entire Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie all over the seat my pants. But you know what, I won't let that hold me back. Life is a playground for the impractical! 

Here are a few favorite springtime looks to demonstrate the versatility and sheer shiny diamond-ness that shopping secondhand and wearing only white can provide.  In whites! 

Here it comes!

LOOK ONE / 

Also wearing: vintage Levi's and tan Bensimons. 

LOOK TWO /

A million years ago I hosted a braiding party at Lilla P in the Meatpacking District and there was this woman who stopped in that I will never forget. She was wearing super baggy khakis, leather oxfords, a gauzy white linen top, and not a stitch of make up, and I haven't been able to forget her. She carried a leather bag that was so soft it was legitimately like touching butter. Yeah, I asked if I could touch it, and it totally weirded her out. 

Anyway she was dressed like a Jedi except it all came off so amazingly chic. HOW!? In the back of my mind I've been on the lookout for a similar pair of khakis ever since, and while I haven't nailed the saggy baggy front-pleat pegged-leg rolled ankle of it just yet, these J. Brand khakis I found on thredUP are definitely doing the trick. A white Rag & Bone button up thermal from thredUp instead of linen, hi it's not that warm here yet. 

LOOK THREE /

Playing with proportions! As a short person I'm not used to going baggy top AND bottom, but trying new things are the spice of life! Aren't I brave? ;) 

Obviously each of these outfits is screaming to be smeared with chocolate, and the minute I get the last of my winter clothes in the basement it is SO going to snow. 

Bring it on. :)

GET ME DRESSED / I STOPPED KEEPING TRACK

tee, coat, jeans, shoes, bag

This is an ode to the kind of men's v-neck shirts you can buy in six packs at the grocery store. 

I call it: 

DEAREST DUDEMAN TEE SHIRTS /

dearest dudeman tee shirts

by natalie holbrook

dearest dudeman tee shirts

unfortunately, i have stained two of you already

with mysterious substances 

that i am guessing are watermelon

but, dearest dudeman tee shirts

fortunately, you cost next to nothing

and i can always get more of you

the next time i am at the walmart needing some milk

which is also when i pick up more yarn

almost without thinking about it

which is also why i own

mysteriously

more than four skeins 

of the same ugly off-white color 

that i thought was a good idea at the time

four times

a thought which has yet

to be proven

true

even

once

dearest dudeman tee shirts

you come in a bag, 

and you come taped together

and you peel the tape off

and i always wonder why

and you really only look best the day after a washing

but who is too lazy to prewash a shirt?

the kind of girl who is too lazy to buy shirts that do not come in plastic bags

to begin with

and that girl

would

be

me

-fin

Instant classic.

DRESS ME LIKE ONE OF YOUR FRENCH GIRLS

above: covert ops documentation, and my attempt at replicating sans lint brush

All Titanic references aside, I promised I would return + report on the sartorial situation over in France and I am here to fulfill! A WHOLE YEAR LATER! (Up next I'm scouring the Internet for what all's available to pull this look off with.) (clunkiest sentence ever?) This is a post I have been equally excited + stumped about writing. Because on the one hand, IS THIS NOT THE MOST FUN THING TO TALK ABOUT EVER!? And because on the other hand, I'm well aware of the danger of sounding like a complete idiot France fan-girl here. But do not worry! This is a risk I am willing to take. Oh yes! Here, allow me to sacrifice myself on this altar of willing-to-be-silliness, all in the name of fashion, beauty, and of appearing, like, really super cool and junk. I'll take the heat, you waltz off looking real French, okay?

So now here she is, your quintessential French girl in Paris according to my eyeballs and my iPhone, both of whom are terribly reliable sources, I assure you. (I also utilized my powers of Pinterest to provide a few visual aids.) (I know, isn't this thrilling?)

via

BASKETS/

First of all let me make this much clear: No other footwear is allowed on your feet. Only "baskets." Baskets is the preferred term for sneakers over there. Aren't you getting smart from this post? Nobody wears anything else, I'm not even exaggerating. The guys, the girls, in sneakers. Sneakers sneakers sneakers, no socks, thank you. And pants cropped to show off your slender ankles (jealous).

You know, we called them tennis shoes where I grew up in Arizona. The first time I used that term in Connecticut when I moved there in middle school, the all kids looked at me like I was speaking . . . well, French. So it's baskets, like basketball. I'm assuming. Not a huge reach. 

I saw a lot of Stans, Bens, Jordans, Keds, Persols, Jacks, Pumas, Chucks (mostly on the teens), New Balance, Nikes (many Nikes), and just one Reebok but it was the Reebok to end all Reeboks because it was the exact Reebok I had when I was eleven and I remember thinking they were my favorite shoes ever because it felt like I was walking in marshmallows. 

All of these baskets I saw looked fully worn + loved + trashed. So go find a mud puddle? I'm just kidding. 

TOPS/

Granted it was winter-y out, but the chunky sweater reigned supreme as most popular option. I also saw oversized men's white button ups, slouchy baseball tees, and crew neck tees. Your color options go black, white, tan, gray, brown, or, if you're feeling really exciting, navy. 

Give these a try.

via

BOTTOMS /

Aside from your classic skinny jeans, the denim look skewed a lot bit mom jeans, to be honest. Baggy, lighter wash, cropped. I also saw more than a couple khakis, also worn cuffed + baggy. Pleated fronts. Final vestiges of #normcore perhaps? Pretty much anything pants-wise goes so long as it looks like it's prepared for a flood.

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SPRING COATS/
Cocoon-y, menswear-y, wool-y, oversized. Not that it matters, hashtag is it summer yet?

via

SCARVES/

Oui oui, there was definitely a scarf situation going on over there, a situation that I don't fully understand, I'll admit. As an experiment one afternoon I paid attention to nothing but scarves for a good chunk of time, and I have to tell you, it's just, scarves. Errwhrre. The men seemed to sport shorter, chunkier scarves looped together like this (thanks, George), while the women went more pashmina / cashmere / linen / cotton in all kinds of draping methods, in solid colors mostly. And by "colors" I mean varying shades of navy and brown. :)

Okay sorry, two more hot guys in scarves. Sorry. Carry on.

 via

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via

HAIR/

Appropriate hair styles seemed to come parted down the center, visibly unbrushed, messy as the day is long. Often pulled to the back à la half pony up there. I saw one set of bangs, and only two short cuts above the shoulder. Take from that what you will. 

I kid you not none of this hair had seen a brush in days, it was awesome. 

(As for whether or not said hair is washed terribly frequently, well, I didn't ask to sniff anyone's head so your guess is as good as mine ;). 

via

FACES/
Bushy brows. NO MAKE UP. Like, how do these women walk around all day without their eyelashes on? I can't freaking go to the grocery store feeling like a full human without my eyelashes on. Geez.

GET ME DRESSED | END OF SUMMER

Is it warm where you are? It is fully not warm where we are. It is freezing here already. If 70 counts as freezing. (Does it?) My instagram is a veritable autumn leaf salad right now. Summer it is not. Heat up the soup, bake up the biscuits, pass me the slippers. 

I was putting away the last of the summer the other day and telling myself it was a bummer that it was over, but it's not really, it's not too bad at all. I mean, it is a bummer. I'm all for loving the season you're in but summer has started edging out the fall for me on my favorites list. But. The sun still gets warm in the afternoons. THE WAY THIS PLACE SMELLS IN THE FALL IS OUTRAGEOUS, and I'd forgotten the gorgeous pleasure of fifteen minutes outside in a reclining chair bundled up in a sweater while the sun does it's best to warm the inside of your eyelids, and you fall asleep twice without really meaning to while the kid draws hopscotch squares with the sidewalk chalk. It could be worse. I'm not mad atcha.

Anyway. Three of my favorite outfits from the end of summer are below. For posterity! And also  for the affiliate links. winksmile winksmile ;) ;) You never know. 

aaand GO!

LOOK ONE /

LOOK TWO /

LOOK THREE /

GET HUCK DRESSED

a little bit of old-fashioned americana, all from schoola, to get both of us through the late summer / early autumn hump :) 

My philosophy on getting boys dressed is this: Two parts basic to one part flashy. 

For example.  One pair of good, slim-cut skinny jeans (often from the girl's section-- stores still aren't getting that boys need more than baggy pants anymore?), one part basic tee or long-sleeved thermal, one part flashy shirt worn on top that'll keep my kid warm while also adding that tiny element of "pretty flyyyy for a white guy."

Brandon's philosophy on getting boys dressed is this: ALL OF THE FUN THINGS, ALL OF THE TIME, ALL AT ONCE.

It's always a kick in the pants for me to see how one set of clothes can skew so differently depending on who is the one putting two and two together. Huck's favorite colors on Huck are "all of dem!" and Brandon's favorite colors on Huck are pink and purple and orange, and I'm over here trying to keep things at least mildly classic by stocking the blues and browns and wondering how did it happen that *I'm* the conservative one when it comes to getting Huck dressed?? I count myself a pretty lucky girl in that way, though. It's always more fun to be the brakes in an operation when the two crazies gunning the gas have such a fun sensibility about things. Especially when you're the one accustomed to being the speed demon, otherwise. 

As such, whenever I'm picking out clothes, I keep in the back of my mind that fully half of the time these clothes that I select will be used + abused by the male two thirds of the house, leading to chuckles + smiles from strangers in the parking lot at the Walmart when they see my kid bound out of the Jeep ready to take on the world like a clashing patterned superhero in all the colors of the rainbow on the days my boys are in charge of the morning routine. 

Similarly, it is important to document the times on those rare days when the items in questions are used responsibly, as Mom intended, to further the betterment of mankind as a whole.  :) As such, here we have Huck in his Schoola, styled by to me. He's a pretty handsome little turkey.

This year Huck is growing like a weed, it seems he wakes up a full inch taller than the day before nearly every single morning. It's miraculous and exciting and bittersweet. More and more pairs of pants are becoming high waters on him on the daily. It's a good time to outfit a kid in items from Schoola, a shop that sells gently loved items of kids + women's clothing, with every purchase helping to fund programs in schools across the country. Huck gets taller, I have somewhere to send his pieces that are outgrown but not outworn, more schools get money, Huck's closet gets replenished on the cheap with anything we could ever dream up along any inch of the basic-to-flashy spectrum. And if Huck only gets three wears out of a thing before it's already too small, so much the better! We send it back in a Schoola donation bag (request one here), pick out something new, and feel good knowing we've made it possible for one more student to enjoy a music or art class as part of their daily school curriculum. 

(You can read more about our new Idaho lifestyle and how we use Schoola this fall here!)

That's pretty cool.

And anyway. Congratulations to me on being prudent for once in my life!

The end.

This post was sponsored by Schoola. Ongoing collaborations like these make me feel happier than a clam in the sea with a strong wifi signal.