By the Seashore

As inspired by all things nautical:

1. I actually don't own a striped bateau top as of yet (I know, I'm so ashamed of myself) but I am beyond head over heels for this one by Cardigan New York, which was featured in a photo shoot on A Cup of Jo. It looks so gorgeous (and French!) with the red lipstick.

2. I adore the detail on these anchor earrings from Catbird. I rarely wear earrings and when I do, they're usually studs, but this pair is just so pretty and the fossil ivory, unexpected and quirky.

3. I already bought/have worn/won't stop wearing the black and beige pair of Marais flats, and now I'm hankering after the blue. A straight guy complimented them. A straight and very attractive guy. If that's not a good reason to buy a new pair of shoes, I don't know what is.

[photo cred to Our Edge via We Heart It]

Homeward Bound

Cue the most hectic day ever: I have a French oral exam in the morning, a quick lunch with a friend at noon, and then my flight to New York in the afternoon. I'm hoping that I'll be too busy to realize that the next time I fly home from Chicago, I won't be coming back. O'Hare, you've caused me a lot, A LOT of grief these past four years, but you actually have a way better selection of food than LaGuardia does. So I'll miss you and your consistent two- to three-hour delays. A little bit.

Cue typical college-senior meltdown.

[photo cred to Brian Doben for Chicago Magazine]

The Palest Pink

Good things to come in the next few weeks of spring:

1. Rising temperatures that call for wispy, light dresses in the most delicate colors.

2. Longer days, late sunsets, and even later nights.

3. Playing outside in the grass...

4. ...barefoot!

5. Wearing pretty shoes without having to worry about stepping in slush (or worse, on ice).

6. Mango iced tea and lemonade.

7. Not having to find somewhere to stash my coat when I go out.

This weekend, I caught up with old friends, went to a party at the Museum of Contemporary Art, and worked on my final papers. It was lovely, with the exception of Saturday night — I had trouble breathing and almost went to the hospital. By the time I woke up the next morning, though, I was breathing normally and had received phone calls, texts, and photos of cheap champagne that my best friend had sent me from New Orleans to cheer me up. I'm going to the doctor when I go home (home! La la la my favorite word ever) on Tuesday, just to be safe. How was your weekend?

[photo cred, clockwise from top left, to 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6, 2-6 via Linda's Pinterest]

Say Yes...

...yes to fresh fruit with breakfast.

Yes to grown-up messenger bags.

Yes to First Friday at Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art.

Yes to bundles of posies.

Yes to long, invigorating runs...

...and to taking hot showers afterwards.

Yes to inspirational commencement speeches.

Yes to smiling for no reason as you walk down the street on a sunny morning.

[photo cred to 1 via Musings in Femininity and Ashley Greer Colbourne via Oh Joy!]

Violet Crush

Here's a color combination that I absolutely adore in theory, but am far too nervous to try in real life: all shades of purple (from violet to grape to a pale, almost periwinkle hue) with orange. I have a pretty Emilio Pucci scarf with both colors, but I feel like that's cheating because... it's Emilio Pucci. He could have taken a color wheel, smashed it to bits, melted it, and still have come up with a gorgeous pattern. But tell me, what are your thoughts about mixing up color? Are you feeling the purple and orange?

[photo cred, clockwise, to 1 via Patterson Maker, 2 via Le Fashion Chic, 3 and 4 via Ashley Breckel's pinboard]

Alexander Wang's Soho Store

If I could have a shopping spree with one designer, it would probably be Alexander Wang (come on, he has an entire line dedicated to t-shirts!). The aesthetic of his designs is everything I look for in clothing: slouchy, black, and requiring little to no effort. And now, he's found another way to pluck my heartstrings: a fur hammock, which hangs lazily (and luxuriously) in Wang's new store in Soho. 

I want to spend hours in the store, trying on his clothes and napping in that hammock. I kind of want to take it home with me... in addition to those sunglasses, of course. And boots. I'm loving the store itself, too — the clean black and white palette is appropriately minimal, but offers so much by way of textures, like leather, fur, and marble. You can read more about Alexander Wang's new store here.

[photo cred to Kirstin Luce for the New York Times]

White, Black, & Caramel

How awesome is that model's hair?! From this angle, it looks like the lovechild of the short Freja Beha Erichsen crop and a ladylike chignon, and I just cannot get enough of it. I'd wax poetic about it a little more, but I'm currently up to my ears in papers and essays and short stories. On the bright side, all of this work is worth the excuse to stay in and curl up with a cup of tea and Adele's new album. I love this time of year; there's all of the coziness of winter, but with the hope that breezy days are just around the corner. Here's to a lovely March!

[photo cred, clockwise from top to Tommy Ton via Style.com, 2, 3, 4]