ikat you.

Happy Monday, everyone! This weekend was exactly what the doctor ordered...{cv} and I finally had a time to relax. We spent Friday night at home--unpacking from the last two weeks of traveling. On Saturday, I woke up to clean our apartment from head to toe in preparation for a visit from one of my dearest childhood friends, {js}. He made his way up to Providence from Brooklyn, where he is in med school. After picking him up from the MegaBus, we headed straight for Newport to give him a taste of summer in New England. With a fabulous dinner in our bellies, we headed back toward Providence for another quiet evening of wine and memories. 

We woke up for Sunday brunch before having to drop {js} back at the bus stop. {cv} and I ran a few errands {why, oh, why does Nordstrom have a private sale?} before grabbing some tilapia at Whole Foods for dinner. {It was our first attempt at fish--and boy, we'll be making it again!} Over the weekend, I even managed to page through a couple of magazines which gave me the idea for this post!

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The J.Crew shorts {seen in the top left} mark my first "ikat" purchase. I'm so excited to start wearing them. I just hadn't found an ikat piece that fit my taste until I spotted these J.Crew beauties. I love the splash of color and the happy vibe an ikat pattern provides, don't you?

After reading a few magazines mentioning the "Aztec" trend on the docket for fall, it got me 

thinking about how to cut down on the trendy nature of prints from season to season.

To me, style is all about finding pieces you love {that can last a few seasons} and continuously incorporating them with other items which already exist in your closet. Those J.Crew shorts can 

be paired with a chambray shirt I bought last summer at the outlets and with an ever trusty pair 

of leather sandals I've had for years. 

The popularity of certain patterns may ebb and flow--but honestly, if you love what 

you're wearing, does it really matter if you're sporting ikat or Aztec? I think not.

Do you combat trendiness in your wardrobe or do you embrace it? 

My philosophy? When I want to add a piece of "now" without breaking the bank,

I hit up Forever21. When I want to add a piece of "forever", I do my homework and

spend a few more pennies to have something I'll wear more often and wear for years.

Many thanks to the 60+ lovely ladies who dreamed with me last Friday...your posts get better 

week after week! {I'm already itching for Friday!} Have a phenomenal Monday! xoxo {av}