Printed Perfect

Blouse: Reformation (other styles here)

Printed Shorts: Angel Biba (LF stores)

Lucite Heeled Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell

Necklace & Leather Bracelet: Jenny Bird

Black Studded Clutch: Monserat De Lucca (other styles here)

Rings: Torchlight Jewelry (other styles here) & Vintage

Make some noise with powerful prints like these black & white, lace trimmed printed shorts from LF stores! There's nothing like spicing up a simple outfit with the perfect printed focal piece! When I style a statement piece like this, I try to stick with basics for the rest of my look. I paired my shorts with a simple mustard yellow silk blouse from Reformation, and finished off the look with some strappy heeled sandals and an oversized clutch.

The key to this outfit is making sure the proportions were right in order to really pull the whole look together. I generally like to pair long sleeves with short shorts and short sleeves with pants because I'm naturally a creature of balance, which I blame on the fact that I'm a Libra haha. Too much of anything isn't good and showing off too much skin is usually no exception...the exception being it's acceptable in my book when the temps have been reaching upwards of 110 degrees everyday! (Currently breaking my own rule of thumb as I'm writing this! lol)

Keepin' Kool in a Kimono

Kimono: Tylie Malibu (similar here)

Bikini: One Teaspoon (bottoms on sale from $165 to $60 here)

Wrap Watch: La Mer Collections (here)

I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing Labor Day weekend! I spent mine listening and dancing along to Jack Johnson at the Santa Barbara Bowl for his From Here to Now to You Tour, having movie nights with the family, and lounging poolside with my man once he returned home from Washington. I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend my free time with some of my favorite people. I really just can't wait for my hectic schedule to finally calm down! There's just one more HUGE event left this summer...my best friend's wedding! This weekend can't come soon enough!

Cream of the Crop (Top)

Crop Top: Fairground 'Astra Crop Top' in Dali Lama Print - Revolve Clothing (here)

Silk Trousers: Olive & Oak - Nordstrom

Heels: Jeffrey Campbell 'Hough' (here)

Bracelets: DIY Swarovski Crystal bracelet & Vintage Bone Cuff

Ring: CC Skye 'Fools Gold' Ring (here)

Short body-con dresses are obviously sexy but silk trousers can be sexy too if you style wisely! Since the weather has warmed up significantly, I no longer have to bundle up with huge coats or leather jackets to go out. Instead, I opted for a printed crop top and some silk trousers for a girls' night out this weekend. I chose a sleeveless crop top as the focal piece of my outfit to keep things young and fun. I also kept the rest of the outfit fairly simple to balance out the busy printed top. 

Styling Tip: When going out for fancy drinks at a restaurant or bar, I personally like to choose either to expose my legs OR my arms for a sleeker and chicer ensemble. I leave the shorter skirts and dresses for the more wild and crazy parties.

Even though we "sprang forward" with daylight savings, I feel like it's 3 hours later than it actually is. I can't help feeling this way after the weekend that I just had. The last 4 days pretty much consisted of nothing but drinking, hiking, and swimming with some work squeezed in here and there. I am so exhausted that I was ready to pass out at 7pm today but then I realized that I hadn't worked out, eaten, or blogged yet. Now that that's all done....Good night, world!!!

Wrap It Up

Milo (my pup) and I took a mini roadtrip up to beautiful Santa Barbara and visited some of my friends that were too in love with SB to leave. They decided to stay put after graduation, which means a free couch to crash on whenever I feel the urge to make a last minute trip up like this lol. We took a trip down memory lane while we admired the magical sunset and picnicked on the beach like the good ol' days.

It's really crazy to think how quickly time passes by. Six whole years ago when my parents and Milo dropped me off at UCSB, we picnicked at this exact spot of Goleta Beach. Oh the memories!!!

Turban: Vintage

Sweater: Millau (LF Stores)

Jeans: CarMar (LF Stores)

Booties: Sam Edelman (here)

Necklace: Forever 21

 

Fluorescent Efflorescence

These Elliatt 'Efflorescent' pants are crazy cool...literally! They're silky smooth and super light weight, which totally helps me get through these last few official days of summer.

Honestly as a Californian, I'm probably going to stretch my summer wardrobe til mid-October lol. This is one of the many perks of living in Southern California! I could probably get away with wearing shorts almost year-round! And I only say 'almost' because anything below 65 degrees Fahrenheit is freezing to me! I'd get so cold that I'd actually wear a snow jacket on a daily basis at work because the air conditioning was too cold for me to handle! Hahaha

Anyway, I paired my pants with a stretchy skintight textured tank top and silver accessories. I paired these pants with this top and added a belt to accentuate my waist...otherwise these pants would swallow me whole. They're cut and draped in a way that widens your hips, so I contrasted that with my tight tank top. 

For additional tips on styling printed pants, check out one of my prior posts: Don't Be Such A Pansy. 

Printed Pants: Elliatt 'Efflorescent' pant (here)

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell 'Encase' Heeled Sandal (here)

Tank Top: Vintage

 Belt: Vintage

Clutch: Vintage

Necklaces: Vanessa Mooney (here)

Capped It Off

Eddie and I capped off our Labor Day weekend by throwing a BBQ get together for a bunch of high school buddies. We decided to grill our usual go-to favorite...carne asada because you can never really go wrong with some carne asada, guacamole, chips, and salsa! We spent the day playing Cards Against Humanity (which is like an inappropriate version of Apples to Apples lol), eating and drinking, swimming, hot tubbing, and eating some more. It was the perfect ending to a perfect weekend with my love.

I wore the newest addition to my closet...this amazing One Teaspoon blazer (thanks to my amazingly generous aunt). I am so obsessed with it!!! The colors, the prints, the cut...it's all just so so so gorgeous! I've only had it for a few days but I know I'm going to be prancing around town in this piece quite often! It's just such a versatile piece that can either be dressed up or down. I decided to keep my look pretty casual for the BBQ with a simple white silk tank top, cutoff denim shorts, the blazer, and some beige colored peep-toe booties. I guess the heels and the silk weren't the most casual but it was meant to be a laid back look. 

I capped off my outfit with a leather baseball cap, which has been a favorite accessory of mine lately. Not only does it just look cute with everything, it also provides shade for my face. It's a total win win for me. Below are some tips for buying and wearing this leather cap trend.

Tips:

1) Buy a solid colored leather cap because they're easy to incorporate into any outfit. They add an instant touch of chicness and sleekness to any look. Note: I personally like solid accessories because I'm not really a pro at mixing prints. But if you are, by all means go crazy with printed and embellished caps!

2) You can style it with something feminine like a short dress or miniskirt to contrast the sweetness with some edge. 

3) You can cap off your casual t-shirt and jeans and instantly create a chic look. I personally like to add heels to most of my outfits (unless I'm running around all day) so when my clothes are more casual, I counter it with lots of accessories like layers of jewelry and heels.

Leather Cap: Urban Outfitters

Palm Tree Printed Blazer: One Teaspoon 'November Rain' (here)

Silk Tank Top: The T Refinery (Planet Blue)

Shorts: CarMar (LF Stores)

Peep-Toe Booties: Dolce Vita 'Niven' (here)

Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney (here and here) and Luv AJ (here)

Necklace: Vanessa Mooney (here)

My first plate of food...out of like 5 hahaha

Typical Natasha...Stuffing my face with food. 

Don't bother me...I'm eating, Eddie!

As the night went on, more and more old friends stopped by for pool/jacuzzi time! Notice how they're all guys?! Lol.