Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year.
The morning of the first September was crisp and golden as an apple…―J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
These are the juicy, delicious, crisp days…
…of end-of-summer,
of beginning-of-fall,
of childhood,
of parenthood.
Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only.
Fashion is in the sky, in the street,
fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.
-Coco Chanel
So, two things you should be aware of:
1) I am secretly (maybe not so secretly anymore) way into fashion and design. I love beautiful things, the play of color and the drape of fabric. Sadly, I lack the visual ability to create something from an idea, which I think is why I gravitate to photography— framing the beautiful where others might not see it.
2) I pretty much live in athletic wear, especially now that I’ve lost weight. It’s all I currently own that fits.
As a result, I’ve been trying to stretch my clothing budget by buying clothes that can pull double duty as gym/running wear and school meeting/grocery shopping/going out into public wear. Super bonus points if it looks good!
I do buy organic or recycled content when I can; barring that, I go for clothing that’s nice and sturdy and won’t lose its shape from many, many washings, a practice I think is just as eco-friendly (although I’d love to see a study that measures that).
My love at the moment is my Palm Beach Athletic Wear, which are my go-to pieces whenever they’re clean. This is fashion that fits my life.
Remember when workout clothes were old, faded t-shirts you wouldn’t wear anywhere else and baggy sweats?
This is my favorite running outfit right now.
No joke, I had to pick Jeff up from the car dealership last week and since I was going to run soon after, I changed into this first. He got into the car and was all, “What are you all dressed up for?” Yes, that’s how much of a bum I usually am.
I don’t ever buy anything white; I don’t think it’s flattering on me, and I don’t own anything short. But I tell you what, I feel pretty good in my white running skirt. I don’t care for those thin, loose running shorts, I prefer skintight for less chafiness; as short as this skirt is, it still feels way more modest than what I was wearing before.
The top has a fancy “tuxedo” back which wears well as a tank top (and yes, dressier than most of what I own). It’s on the thicker side and holds you in well.
These are grey capri pants from Palm Beach Athletic Wear (the top is from the Gap and decades old). Also great for the non-chafiness. Good, solid construction, comfy waistband and dang, they make me look skinny, huh?
NOTE: this run sucked. It was drizzling when I started and then the sun came out and it was just humid and disgusting. I was pretty miserable until I got home and chased the kids around to get them to feel how sweaty my stomach was; that always makes me feel better.
Please to ignore the blurriness of photo— Cassidy more attentive to The Electric Company than to my fashion blogging needs.
Can you love a sports bra? I freaking love this one. I wish it was socially acceptable to just walk around in so people could see how badass it is. I am not a fan of brightly colored sports bras, so I love that this one is BLACK but still different. Just because it serves a practical function doesn’t mean it has to be boring.
I super pink puffy heart this photo, taken hiking at Fort Delaware with the kids.
They were sold out of Union hats so I had to play Confederate.
Another black tank top. I probably own 30 black tank tops in varying degrees of dressiness/fadedness (some are older than my oldest son, who will be 15 in November) so I’m pretty sensitive to the small variances in cut and fabric that make them different from each other (I’m sure I could ID each one in the dark by touch alone). I wouldn’t normally opt for the skinnier straps like this, but coupled with the length, rib size, fabric thickness, scoopneck and racerback it’s really flattering. It’s a perfect storm of tankitude.
I wear it a lot. I’m like a walking PB athletic wear billboard.
I will admit, when these clothes first arrived I was worried they were too small, too young, too close-fitting. It’s just because I’m so used to wearing boyish things, loosely fitting, and that’s a long-standing body-confidence issue. Wearing clothes that actually fit is sort of crazy liberating.
Which is to say: if you think these are too tight or too young for me… don’t tell me 🙂 Keep it under your hat!
Kristen, the owner, handpicks every item they carry to ensure it meets these standards. She’s also super nice. Plus, FREE USPS SHIPPING with any size order is pretty sweet.
That’s pretty much the Holy Grail, right? If you like the way you look in your workout gear, you’re more likely to wear it. And once I have it on, there’s no excuse in my mind to no work out, even if it’s just for a little while.
Palm Beach Athletic Wear is holding a Flash Sale at the moment with some good deals that I’m planning to take advantage of.
And, tonight on the Twitters I’m co-hosting a chat for FitFluential about fitness fashion with Kristen of Palm Beach Athletic Wear. We’ll be discussing what we wear to workout in, what brands we like, what works and what doesn’t. A bonus discount code will be revealed during the hour, so come join us! 9pm EST, hashtag #PBAthleticwear, more info here.
In case you want specifics, here’s what I’ve got:
…and my wish list 🙂
Birthday in October!
I don’t want to get to the end of my life
and find that I lived just the length of it.I want to have lived the width of it as well.
–Diane Ackerman
This came in the mail yesterday.
Again, it may be something every orthodontist does (and I was secretly hoping it was going to be before & after closeups, or even better x-rays) but now that the honeymoon period has worn off, it was a nice reminder of how grateful I am to be able to learn to smile.
The best thing, after the whole straight teeth/nice smile business, about getting the braces off is being able to really brush and floss my teeth. I hated how hard it was to effectively brush and floss with a mouth full of metal. It was hard enough before, when my teeth were all crammed together and standing at odd angles; I was inevitably tearing up my gums and worrying about gum disease. (Because as carefully as I brushed, I was all too aware that it wasn’t enough: flossing is the #1 most important thing for dental health.) It was just another thing to add to my long list of things to be super self-conscious about.
So now, I revel in the oral hygiene. I really do. Don’t make fun.
My latest ally in the war on mouth bacteria? The Complete Care Water Flosser system from WaterPik.
HOW I WISH I HAD THIS WHEN I HAD THE BRACES ON. The water flosser would have been so much more better (in probably 1/5 the time) at getting between my teeth and around the brace boxes. And the Sonic Toothbrush— 159% more effective than manual brushing— gives my teeth that “just stepped out of a dentist cleaning” feel. Combine the two and it’s like the best way to start and end my day. A simple, everyday luxury and victory.
It’s such an easy way to be better— a well-maintained mouth has benefits for the rest of your body. By keeping up with good oral hygiene, you stand to live a longer and healthier life, reducing your chances or severity of:
Cass has been using the Water Flosser for Kids (up to 3x as effective as flossing and 1000x more fun!) and she asks if it’s time to go brush and floss now. This is a kid that normally has to be dragged to the bathroom and supervised to make sure she isn’t just in there reading when she’s supposed to brush. I am not exaggerating when I say this thing has made the back-to-school bedtime routine about 30 gazillion times easier; my setting an example and the memory of the cavities she recently had filled (she has very tight back teeth) probably doesn’t hurt either.
(She and her father may or may not have water flosser duels while flossing. I may or may not have issues with this, but hey, it’s only water and at least they’re flossing!)
Double prizesCoupons are available for both Flosser systems!
Click here for a printable $10 off coupon for the Water Flosser for Kids.
$10 off coupon for the Complete Care system available here.
SO. I know you’re wondering:
What am I gonna do with the extra years I get from my new & improved healthy mouth?
I’ve been thinking about that after running a Twitter chat about goal-setting this week (for FitFluential). What do I want to make sure I’ve done to live the width of my life? The things I know I’m capable of doing if pushed, even if the person doing the pushing winds up being me?
What am I working towards? How will I convince myself to keep soldiering on with running, strength training? To buy that bike, sign up for swimming lessons? (I actually looked up times & costs for swim lessons this session at the Y— there was nothing available that fit my schedule, but this is the first time I’ve ever gotten as far as checking. That’s progress.)
There are personal and writing goals too, of course. But this is…
With my added, healthy time I want to:
Basically, I want to go out and do all those things I’ve always said I’d do someday… like getting braces.
Disclosure: I received Waterpik flossers in exchange for this post. All opinions are entirely my own.