Thursday Moda #124: Skirtmas in July Collaboration, Day 8: Colorful Pencil Skirts.

"There is BEAUTY all around us!! There is GREATNESS offered by Mother Nature every day!! There is a perfect 75° SUNNY DAY after a thunderstormy, rainy day!! There are THINGS & PEOPLE to be Thankful for every moment of each day!! There is a WONDERFUL DAY OFF tucked in between two 10-hour days of work!! There are SMILES hiding behind the headaches from the previous night when you couldn't fall asleep!! ...And this Tuesday evening captured through this mini album (some of these photos were taken less than 5 minutes ago) reminds me of all of the above. My Monday was hectic but I killed it on a Tuesday, in 5-inch heels nevertheless... and tomorrow is hump day, so keep on living and loving life because there are REASONS to do so every day!! 😍💖👍" I posted those words on my latest Instagram post where I added a snipped/10 photo collage of some of our photos from Tuesday night July 17th - the same evening today's photos and outfits were worn to, downtown Milford, Michigan who just happens to be one of my most favorite towns nearby. Living in the Metropolitan Detroit has its perks because we are surrounded by many cute towns and some cities which have lovely down-towns with plenty to do+see, eat+drink, walk+play, etc, etc. I meant every single word of that Instagram post and those words came from the heart after a busy Monday+Tuesday. Heck my Wednesday was even busier, I was at work for a total of 12 hours (with the exception of 1.5 hours time off I took when I picked up Vivian from school and dropped her home). But my point is that no matter how busy, tired, hectic, stressful and angry your day may be, there are a multitude of reasons for you to smile! Trust me!

It is also Day 8th (4 more posts to go!!) of the #skirtmasinjuly series I am doing with my lovely+stylish friend ELSIE. It is all about Summery Pencil Skirts today - a workhorse in your professional wardrobe for the warmer months, in my opinion. So far in our #skirtmasinjuly collaboration series we have covered: Day 1 - Ruffle Wrap Midi Skirts; Day 2 - Faux Suede Mini Wrap Skirts; Day 3 - Identical Button-Front Striped Midi Skirt with Pockets (by Who What Wear); Day 4 - Identical Black Eyelet Button-Front Midi Skirts (by Mossimo from Target); Day 5 - Mini Skirts for the weekend where I did a Super Casual Friday Look and a dressier Sunday Brunch, Shower or Night-Out Look; Day 6 - Denim Mini Skirts for the Weekend and Day 7 (which was also our Tuesday Skirt Linkup day) - the Crane Midi Skirt for Sunday Best.

For the 8th day of this skirt series as I mentioned we are styling Colorful Pencil Skirts. I chose a Patterned Skirt in Cream+Coral. The pattern is an abstract floral print and the skirt is by The Limited (purchased it just a few weeks before they closed their stores). Gorgeous Elsie is featuring a Bright Neon Pencil Skirt between a lime and a lemon color. I love that her super-colorful rainbow shell also picks up the citrusy shade of the skirt and the Fun Earrings Match perfectly. Elsie's super bright and colorful outfit paired with pumps is suited for a more polished and dressy office while my outfit paired with classic ballet flats is definitely more business casual. Originally, I was going to show a second outfit today featuring a Neon Pink Skirt and that outfit was a lot dressier too but I have a ton of photos and stuff to cover in today's post and it is already overwhelming.

OUR  MOMMY+DAUGHTER  EVENING  DOWNTOWN  MILFORD,  MICHIGAN.

Lately you have seen a lot of Real Life posts and Mommy+Me OOTDs taken from our afternoons and evenings out. Because Summer is about enjoying the sun and warm air, visiting cute places, walking a lot, enjoying the sunshine etc. Even in the last Thursday Moda, Vivian and I came together to post about our beautiful evening down-town Northville. Then, on the weekend when I shared my Denim Mini we posted about our Friday Night downtown South Lyon. I don't have a free evening every day and even if I did I cannot go out daily but I try at least for twice a week. We still have many cute down-towns to visit and I plan on taking the opportunity to do so between now and mid October, because Michigan is truly breathtaking in the Fall. A little bit more about Milford: it is adorable. It has some of the best restaurants too. A few boutiques selling unique items. But Vivian and I particularly love the waterfall and the unique fountain with the metallic bird on top. Besides the gorgeous pots of purple flowers, you will see many paths of white hydrangea running down Main Street. There is also a cool brewery, a fire stove pizza restaurant and a cool new cafe that makes French-pressed coffees and you can choose the beans of your liking. Every restaurant is privately-owned and they all offer large menus of delicious dishes and a variety of drinks too. We sat down for appetizers at "Palate", you might have seen it all on my Insta Stories.

HOW  TO  STYLE  A  COLORFUL  PENCIL  SKIRT  FOR  THE  SUMMER.

I chose a Colorful Patterned Pencil Skirt as you saw and the print is floral but it is very muted because it is like an abstract floral and there are only two colors: ivory or cream and coral. This is such a nice skirt, fully-lined and it fits me perfectly. I decided to do some subtle pattern-mixing by pairing it with a Classic White+Black Striped Scoop Neck Tee. It is a little dressier tee with ruched sleeves. It is by White House Black Market, I have had it for over 7 years and it has washed so nicely. Once again I am wearing a couple of Colorful Beaded Bracelets which I paired with a Neon Yellow Spring Bracelet. My Pearl Crispin Earrings by Francesca's, the Circle Sturdy Straw Bag c/o a Local Boutique and those Perfectly-Nude Patent Leather Skinny Bow Ballet Flats were perfect for a simple, put-together, stylish and classic Business Casual Office Look. Also I got a fresh hair color, it is like an Ombre between dark brown and black, oh and I did some big loose curls on the ends - loved my hair the other night. Vivian is wearing the opposite of me: a Floral Top and a Striped Skirt (such an adorable skirt, I want it in my size). She pattern-mixed beautifully too and I love her Red Suede Pom Pom Sandals too. My tip in styling a Colorful Pencil Skirt for the Summer is to pair it with another color. Pay attention to similar colors or look at the color wheel. You can always do white or cream on top too but think outside the box and go for some bold color-blocking which you probably can't do much of in the colder months.

 

For reference, my skirt is a size 2 and the tee is a Small.

Last week over 100 Summer Outfits were linked, lots of skirts and dresses. In honor of Skirts' month I chose my most favorite skirt looks but even a couple of dresses for good measure, plus everyone knows I love dresses (even more so than skirts). A few of these ladies showed skirts like what Elsie and I have suggested: mini skirts, ruffled wrap skirts, a colorful pencil skirt or a skirt with a little bit of fringe (like the 2 I shared last weekend). I love all of the outfits below, head to toe.

Lizzie is her usual girly self in the prettiest asymmetric fuchsia wrap skirt and fun lace top. She posted about 'How to Balance Blogging' and it was such a nice read!

Melissa's peek-a-boo chambray dress paired with a fun fedora was such a fun Summer look. This 'Stripe Cut Out Dress' shares so many trends in one dress.

But look at that amazing black pencil skirt with fun fringe pockets that Yvonne shared. She made that stunning skirt the 'Most Powerful Asset' of her outfit and paired it with red - my most favorite color!

Laura you were certainly not 'Stumped' in how you styled your millennial pink little lace skirt. The floral top was perfection with it!

In the prettiest mustard midi sundress, Rachel taught us how to 'Get More for Your Buck'. We cann all use tips on budgeting.

Last but not least, Fonda is sophisticated in 'Summer Work Wear' where all the vibrant green shines through!

Also besides the linkup you can follow us along with the #skirtmasinjuly hashtag on Instagram. 

...And speaking of Vivian, today she is exactly 5 and a half years old, my little baby who is a little girl now. Happy half birthday my gorgeous doll!!

An InLinkz Link-up