How has it been two weeks already? It's time for another edition of Real Outfit Roundup. Every two weeks, or thereabouts, I share the outfits I wore in real life along with a brief explanation of the look and links to shop exact or similar pieces.
Summer is well and truly underway, even though according to the calendar, we've still got another week before it's officially here. Tell that to Mother Nature. She's been giving us triple digit feels-like temps and afternoon showers for weeks now.
So far this summer, we've been to the lake and our local water park. We've eaten at several of our favorite local restaurants that we don't normally get to experience during the school year because they're only open for lunch during the week. We've made snow cones, had a Jaws movie marathon, and gone to the theater to see Lilo and Stitch.
I've got two weeks of outfits for you, including two swimsuits, the best water shoes I've ever worn, and my new favorite coverup. I've also got two outfit evolutions, which I hardly ever do because I usually don't have time to photograph every step of that process.
Let's dive in!
Sizing info: I'm 5'2" and weigh about 140 lbs. I usually wear size 6 or s/m in clothes and size 7 in shoes.
This coverup is so good, y'all. It's a good length, has great breathability, and is really soft. I wore this on our trip to the lake for the day. We even stopped at a store to get snacks on the way up, and I did not feel self-conscious going in dressed like this. I will say that when I first got this out of the bag it was shipped in, the smell was awful, but it was gone after one wash.
My flip flops are from Target, and I'm pleasantly surprised by the quality. I'm not the biggest fan of the minimalist flip flop trend, or flip flops in general, but I have to admit that these look pretty nice. They're certainly a step up from rubber flops. I'm not really used to wearing shoes that go between my toes, so that took a little bit to get used to, but once I grew accustomed to that again, they were pretty comfortable.
This swimsuit does not look like the picture on the product page at all. It's supposed to be green - hunter green bottoms and a sea green top - but as you can see in this picture, it's more like shades of turquoise. It's still pretty and very flattering on, but I just wanted to warn you that the colors might be true matches.
Anyway, the high-waisted bottoms are perfect. They are exactly the right rise for me, which is rare. The sides are adjustable with drawstring pulls, which means you can decide how much cheek you want to show or not show. I had no issues with these rolling or getting saggy, even when wet. I wish I'd gotten a picture of the back so you could see the strap details. It does have a tie back, but even if it comes untied you don't have to worry about flashing everyone.
The next day, we drove up to a neighboring town to eat at one of our favorite locally-owned restaurants. I wore a pretty dress that I've recently learned is a designer dupe, but although I took pictures this particular day, I didn't take one of my outfit. Go figure.
The day after, we activated our season passes to our local water park. It was such a fun day. We rented one of the pool-side cabanas so we would have shade, took a cooler full of gatorades and snacks, and stayed for most of the day. We did the wave pool and all but one of the slides.
Because I knew we'd be doing the slides and were planning to stay all day, I wanted to limit my sun exposure as much as possible, so I wore my new one piece. It is so flattering. I like that it's not super low cut or too cheeky. The back straps are so interesting, too. The bright, floral print is so much fun. I only had issues with it riding up on one of the slides...but honestly, that one went so fast I barely had time to blink before I was at the bottom, so I can't even be mad about it.
I didn't wear this for a long time. I'm pretty sure I just threw it on to go grab supper somewhere, and I'm pretty sure we went to Walmart to get some after-sun lotion.
The next day was just a lazy day at home. After two days on the water and in the sun, we needed a rest day. That said, I did need to run to the Dollar Store to grab a few things, so I threw on shorts, a t-shirt, and flip flops.
To be quite honest, I usually don't put a lot of thought into shorts and t-shirt outfits. I was gone for 15 minutes tops, so I really saw no point in putting much effort into what I was wearing. Plus, it was really freaking hot out. Then, I remembered that I wanted a picture to document the outfit and realized that it was an opportunity to show how to "dress up" shorts and a t-shirt.
Upgrading a shorts and a t-shirt outfit really isn't all that difficult. The big changes I made to the outfit were tucking in my t-shirt to create clean lines, adding a belt to accentuate my waist, and swapping out my flip flops for more structured sandals. Easy peasy.
These are the first pair of denim shorts I've bought for myself in several years. I like that the current trend is for looser, more a-line styles, which means I'm more likely to be able to find shorts that the legs don't strangle my thighs. These ones are the Levi Strauss Signature vintage a-line shorts. I wear a size 6 in Levi's jeans but an 8 in shorts (I don't get it either), and the 8 fits perfectly.
Flash forward two days to Friday. We took my car to get an oil change and ate at one of our favorite local diners, then we decided to drive down to eat barbecue in a nearby town. We had a bit of a misadventure on our way back home with a flat tire. I actually took this picture while we were pulled over getting it changed. There wasn't much I could do to help, but we couldn't stay in the truck while it was jacked up.
Anyway, these flowy shorts are my newest obsession. I wrote all about my love for them here, so I won't wax poetic about them now. These ones are made of layered chiffon so that they look like a skirt but have all the ease and convenience of shorts...because they are shorts. Before you start thinking that means it's got to be a skort, think again. They are not a skirt with shorts underneath. They are simply shorts with multiple layers arranged in a way to mimic a skirt. So perfect.
Anyway, I've been waiting for the right opportunity to wear this new baby tee, and it was a really happy coincidence that it was a perfect match to the blue in the shorts' floral pattern. This tee is so dang soft and stretchy. I own it in four colors; that's how good it is. It's slightly cropped, which makes it perfect for high-waisted styles, which these shorts are.
I felt like I needed some definition to break things up, so I added this stretchy neutral straw belt. It was the perfect compliment. It came in a pack of four, so it was a good deal.
I don't remember all the things we did this day outside of eating dinner at a street taco place. If you follow me on Instagram, you might remember the reel I posted.
Anyway, this dress is several years old. I think I got it at Cato, but I can't remember and cut the tag out long ago because it was irritating. I wear it on its own quite a bit, but I really like the nostalgia of layering it over a t-shirt.
This is the white version of the blue baby tee I shared earlier in this post. These really are perfect for layering. The bottom has a band around it to help keep it in place, so you don't have to worry about bunching or rolling.
These are the same white sandals I've been sharing since last summer. They're still available online in all sizes; just remember to size up half since the straps don't have any give in them and are pretty snug, even on my narrow feet.
This is another pair of those flowy shorts. They're the same brand as the ones I shared earlier in the post. This is the "white leaf" print. They're a beautiful, bright navy blue. I was really feeling a loose outfit for the day, which is honestly unlike me, but even though I wanted a breezier look, I still wanted it feel structured and not sloppy. So I went with this cropped tank, which is the perfect length for the high waist of the shorts. The two hems flirted with each other without showing more than a sliver of skin. It's also not see-through, which is a huge plus, but it is thin enough to not be hot.
When I came across these shorts in Target, I really couldn't resist them. They are such a fun summer print. The fruit-and-veggie motif is definitely on trend right now. As you can see, these are incredibly short...and I even sized up to a large -- I wanted to make sure I had plenty of leg room. They do have a drawstring waist, so they were not in danger of falling off.
On Sunday, we ran a few errands around town, then hung out around the house. We grilled burgers and hot dogs for supper, and I think this is the day we started watching all the Jaws movies. Alexis, surprisingly, really got into them.
Skip ahead to Tuesday. Monday we just hung out at home, and while I did get dressed, I didn't take a picture of my outfit. Anyway, on Tuesday Alexis and I headed to the movies to watch the live-action Lilo and Stitch. The animated movie was a pretty big deal when I was in high school, and I was excited to see what Disney did with this version. We both enjoyed it.
This is my final pair of flowy shorts for this roundup, but you can absolutely expect to see them all again and again. This pair is the "purple yellow floral" print. I decided to go with my favorite outfit combination and pair them with a graphic tee.
Sadly, this exact one is no longer available. It's truly become a staple in my wardrobe the last couple of months...and it was a really good match for these shorts. In fact, when Alexis and I went to lunch after the movie, one of the workers randomly complimented my outfit, which made me feel really nice.
My bag was in my Amazon Summer Must Haves post last month. I don't regret buying it for myself, but I will warn you that it has absolutely no structure to it at all. As in, if you sit it on the floor, it ends up looking like a puddle of crochet around whatever it's holding for you.
I wasn't sure how I wanted to style these, so I played around with my options. I landed on this Just Peachy shirt that I've had for awhile. It felt a bit unexpected since it's not an exact color match but also appropriate because of the theme of the shorts. I fully tucked it because that's what we're doing these days.
I wasn't sure about which shoes I wanted, but then I remembered that I had finally caved and bought these red Mary Jane flats that I'd been waiting to go on sale (fyi, they never did). They are a woven pattern like my beloved brown ones but with a clear inner layer that keeps dirt out, which is brilliant. Just an FYI, these are the same style as the white eyelet ones that y'all have been loving for awhile now and that are still available in most sizes.
I actually really love the way these look with this outfit...but I also knew we were going to be out and about for a bit and didn't want to break them in that way.
So I swapped them out for my tried-and-true espadrille sandals. I waffled back and forth on buying these so hard, y'all, but I'm really glad I decided to give them a shot. They have filled a hole in my summer shoes that I didn't realize was there.
Sadly, they're starting to sell out, which isn't all that surprising. They really are that comfortable and go with pretty much everything. They also come in a reddish brown color, which is currently on sale and available in most sizes.
The last thing I did was throw a headband in my hair because it was having a moment and needed something to halfway tame it.
One of the trends that I've been seeing everywhere are these tie-front tops, and well, I just haven't jumped on board. But then I saw this cute matching set, that I'm obviously not wearing as a set here, and decided it was a good way to give the trend a shot without spending a ton of money. I'm not big into matching sets, and it was too hot for pants anyway, so I decided to pair it with my new Levi shorts.
First of all, the quality of the vest (and the matching pants) is just meh. The material isn't very thick so it's not super structured. I did try the top on its own without anything underneath it, and I just was not comfortable; it was so loose and there was so little material, I was worried I'd be unintentionally showing things I don't want people to see!
So I decided to get creative. I tried a few different solid-colored tops underneath the vest without much success and had almost decided to ditch it altogether when I decided to try a more neutral approach. This is another of those baby tees, this time in a pale green that's almost khaki. It was a nice complement for the other colors in the vest without taking away from the pretty floral pattern.
I really wanted a belt but the ties on the vest were too long for that to work without being really awkward so I sucked it up and went without. I finished the look with my espadrilles to keep the neutral vibe going.
As much as I like the outfit, I felt a bit self-conscious when we were out and about. I felt overdressed, which is ridiculous since I was wearing denim shorts, but it was just one of those days where I was uncomfortable in my skin. It happens sometimes. I actually ended up losing the vest and changing my sandals for my Adidas sneakers to go grab dinner because it was raining.
Which brings us to Friday. It was a pretty low-key day, and I wanted to be comfortable. We went out to grab some lunch and did some stuff around the house; I didn't even put on makeup.
This t-shirt is really soft. It says the color is "army green" but it feels brighter than that me, like more of an emerald. I decided to go with a monochrome look and pulled out my green striped linen shorts from last summer. They were an impulse buy that I have not regretted once.
I finished the look out with my almost-worn-out knock-off Birks that I got on a whim at Walmart several years ago. I never anticipated how much I would wear these things. I'm going to need a new pair soon actually.
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