Yesterday I just wanted something easy, so I fell back on my favourite outfit formula: round necked top tucked into flared skirt. I was still not feeling terribly well, so I picked this skirt because it manages to look fitted and stay sitting at my waist but actually has a good inch of ease so it's not at all binding and is thus perfectly comfortable. And the top is mainly knit so also very forgiving. This outfit ticks all of my happiness boxes: the blue-green colour of the blouse and the cool grey of the skirt, the extra details around the yoke and sleeves, which include both functional buttons (! who doesn't love buttons?) and a textural interest in the eyelet, and emotionally significance thanks to the jewelry. The pearl necklace was a gift from my dad (he used to travel for work and sometimes he'd come home from his international trips with jewelry for me, my sister, and my mom, and it was always jewelry I loved): pearls have always been my favourite gem and with this colour combination they remind me of oceans and mermaids. The bracelet I bought myself in Guanajuato, a beautiful little town in central Mexico that was a center of silver mining in the 16th and 17th centuries. I'm also wearing my snake ring from Etsy (http://www.etsy.com/listing/73528773/snake-ring), which I love to pieces. I wore my socks all day, as I almost always do: I treat my wool socks as slippers and wear the thinner ones in the summer and the thicker ones the rest of the time. I've always had cold feet, but I hated cotton socks, so when I tried on my first pair of smartwools last year it was a revelation. I became a sock convert overnight!

I went for my walk early in the morning, so it was a bit chilly (mid 60s F/17-18 C), and I took full advantage of that to wear more fall-like clothes. The tights are super thin but I though they added a fun pattern touch to a solid outfit, especially since the polka dots were only visible for a few inches. The boots, Rieker Sybille, were my birthday gift from my mom this year, in anticipation of my move up north in 2014: luckily they were on sale! My birthday's in April, which is too warm for boots here, so this has been my first chance to wear them outside of the house. I love them: they're super comfortable (lined in wool too) and a fascinating grey-brown colour.

The jacket was my major fall purchase: it's cotton velvet lined in the silk which makes it so delicious to wear and the smocking at the waist and shorter length lets it work well with my skirts. I'd been thinking about my wardrobe hole of skirt-cooperative jackets (none of my other ones come in enough at the waist so I end up looking quite voluminous) and when I saw this on ebay I decided it was worth spending the last of my thrifting 2013 budget on (I allot $22 a month, and this cost almost all of November's and December's budget), because I wouldn't be able to find anything at Goodwill that I loved more. It's a bit more romantic than I think I would have gone for even a year ago, but lately I've been drawn to that style a bit more. Anyway, I'm so glad I exercised 'quality over quantity' and splurged, because when it arrived I loved it even more than I expected. It's by Elevenses and seems fairly common on ebay if anyone's interested: the quality is very good imo. Finally, I added a cowl I 'made' from a giant men's cashmere sweater I thrifted last fall. It was a turtleneck, so I just ran it through the washer & dryer until it felted just enough to not unravel, then cut it a straight line across from armpit to armpit, stretched the cut edge until it rolled, and slung the tube around my neck. Easiest diy ever. I used the leftover turtleneck and yoke to make a matching slouchy beanie but it wasn't cool enough for a hat.

Anyway, my happiness factor was through the roof for both the indoor and outdoor versions. A good reminder that while playing with new silhouettes and combinations is fun, there's nothing like returning to the tried and true. Comments, observations, and suggestions for improvement always welcome!