SUMMER PLANS + SEERSUCKER STRIPES

My summer bucket list reads as follows:

I’m not going to check in on work emails when it’s a sunny Sunday afternoon and I’m lying out in the park.

I’m not going to let it throw me off course if we stay out for just one more cold drink on a hot night and I end up skipping a workout the next morning.

I’m not going to care if I don’t always have a new outfit to post here because I have plentyyy of cute dresses already in my closet (this one included).

I’m not going to stress about spending weekends finishing up the last of our apartment projects by any set deadline, and run off to the lake house any chance I get instead.

I’m not going to compare myself to what anyone else is doing – whether that be having a baby this summer or island hopping off the coast of Greece, and instead feel content with everything I’ve got going on.

You get the point. Less worry, more in the moment, at ease, enjoyment.

And if you’re thinking – ugh, sounds nice but no one is that relaxed in reality.. what a charmed life. Know that last summer I was in such a rough spot I spent weeks, maybe months, not truly enjoying a single aspect of summer. There have been summers where I was so stressed about work and life that I spent sunny Saturday mornings in an anxiety-ridden frenzy in our old, dark apartment. So this hasn’t come easy.

Adam and I are in a sort of funny position this summer as so many around us are having babies this year (no less than 6 couples we know either had a baby this spring or are due by the fall!) and as I watch their lives dramatically change – I feel myself almost giddy with the incredible freedom of our own lives. This summer we’re going to drink margaritas and dance in the streets and go on midnight swims in the lake and sleep in late and get too much sun and anything else we damn well please. Call it selfish if you will. But I hear a lot of new parents say they wish they had reveled in this stage more. So that’s exactly what I intend to do. No aspirational list of do’s. Just a vague list of dont’s.

And while I’m having all of the aforementioned fun, I’ll likely be in simple outfits like this one. A seersucker dress, comfortable sandals (sold-out now, sorry! But they’ve got lots of other super cute options) and a cheap pair of sunglasses. Ready for you summer!

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SPRING STAPLES UNDER $150

The Steele Maiden: Spring Staples Under $150

Oh hi there! It’s been awhile. But since it finally feels like Winter may be done, I figured it was as good a time as any to pop on and share a few easy (and affordable) options to update your Spring wardrobe. I’m eyeing those tortoise hoops, side button denim dress (just $60) and white straw bag as a way to update my own closet this season. All pieces that feel very right now but also super versatile and like I’ll get a ton of wear out of them all Spring/Summer long.

And while it may still not be quite warm enough in New York for sleeveless dresses, it is warm enough for a chic striped blazer, straight leg jeans and neutral accessories. A simple outfit (as pictured above) that I wore nearly exactly this time 2 years ago and I still repeat often. Fingers crossed for 70 degree days around the corner.

The Steele Maiden: Spring Staples Under $150

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The Steele Maiden: Spring Staples Under $150

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PALM PRINT MINIDRESS

Summer style: palm print minidress and lace-up espadrilles

I originally picked up this palm print minidress for my girls’ trip to New Orleans a few weeks back (that travel guide is still coming soon I promise!) because it felt like just the thing for a Jazz Brunch and wander through the Garden District. And also because it’s lightweight and breezy for that famous Nola heat. But with temps reaching the mid-nineties in New York this week I figured it was time to break it back out.

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FOURTH OF JULY STYLE: MADEWELL DENIM SHORTS AND STRIPES

Fourth of July Outfit Idea - Madewell denim shorts and stripes

How is it that it’s already almost the Fourth of July?!? The month of June has been flying past me, so this weekend Adam and I snuck away to the lake house and for a couple of blissful days, time practically stood still. And for the short lived time that I put on anything besides a bathing suit – this is what I wore. Which would be perfect for the upcoming weekend’s festivities.

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ROCKAWAY BEACH: WHITE DENIM AND STRIPES

Memorial Day Weekend white jeans and Anthropologie striped sweater

Since spring didn’t exactly feel like spring here in New York, the fact that Memorial Day is this upcoming weekend comes as a bit of a shock. But since it promises three day weekends, warmer temperatures and the clothes that go with it.. I’m all in.

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