Black Button Up

I know it has been a bit since my last fashion post, but I like how much personality and energy the lifestyle posts here and there add to the blog. Although, I do wish my iPhone photography skills were better for the sake of most of my lifestyle blog posts, my less-than-great iPhone pictures from a night out with my friends could not be a more accurate depiction of my life, which is the kind of authenticity I value on my blog. However, as much as I love my lifestyle posts, I get extremely giddy about fashion posts. I just love to share my style and latest finds. Regardless of if I have created a very involved look or something simple that plays on the classics, I have so much fun on my photoshoots and curating the looks, which is why I am so excited to be sharing another fashion post with you this week!

There is something so classy and chic about a button up. However, I have recently been finding myself wondering if it’s called a button up or a button down. I honestly never knew the difference, and they both sound right to me. I only started to question it after a guy I went on a date with a while back corrected me. It was very warm for an October night, and he was commenting on how hot he was. I said that part of it might be because he was wearing a tight button up, but he corrected me, insisting it was a button down. Aside from the petty correction, it got me wondering what the difference was or if there even was a distinction, for they both sound correct to my ear. Regardless, I love a good button up/down (and will be using them interchangeably in this post because unlike my date, I am not going to get hung up on the distinction). Whatever we want to call it, the black button up is a fashion item that is so simple, you can’t get it wrong. This Something Navy one is absolutely perfect! I snagged it at the Nordstrom Anniversary Sale (along with my white pants from this post a few weeks ago), and was thrilled with my find. The lady who rang me up at the check out counter even mentioned how I picked a good one. What makes this particular button up so great is how it is very thin and sheer, but the fabric is still dark enough where you don’t have to wear a tank top, especially because the placement of the pockets add a little extra coverage. Usually, I wear a lacier bra with this shirt to at least make it look intentional with the sheer top, but I might be thinking a little too hard on that one because I doubt anyone notices. 

This week’s look is definitely on the simpler side, but I think that is what makes it so versatile. With all the chilly weather, it is perfect with ripped jeans and sneakers for holiday shopping around town or a relaxed movie night with your friends while drinking mulled wine. Because of it’s simplicity, you can also dress this top up with nice jewelry and a heel or boots for date night or a more casual holiday party. While I wear my white button down very often (and I’ll be sure to write about that some day), I never thought about adding a black button up to my closet. I’m not sure why, but it just never quite crossed my mind, even though it is such a closet staple. You can tuck it into skirts or jeans, and make it work effortlessly regardless of the season, especially with the thin fabric. I actually wore this top plenty during the summer at night! It was perfect for catching a movie in with a pair of ripped jeans of espadrilles.

Backtracking onto the topic of the holidays, how excited is everyone about seeing all the holiday decorations up? The holidays are not my favorite time of the year, but I definitely enjoy them. I cannot get enough of the lights on houses and trees throughout the city. Christmas gets stressful the older you get, but putting ornaments on the tree and decorating cookies will always be my favorite holiday activities. I am very adamant about not setting up for Christmas until after Thanksgiving has had its time in the spotlight. The weekend after Thanksgiving, I put up the two Christmas trees for my apartment. The one in the living room is a small tabletop tree that was my primary Christmas tree growing up. When I moved into the apartment, I made sure to get a pretty set of gold and silver metallic ornaments for it and a pretty white tree skirt. This year’s big surprise was that the entire tree actually lit up! Last year, I plugged it in to find that only half of the tree lit up. I am not entirely sure what happened this year, but I bent one of the branches to hang an ornament, and the bottom half of the tree turned on instantly. I was overjoyed to think that I probably salvaged my childhood Christmas tree. The even smaller Christmas tree I keep in my bedroom is also from home, but this one is personal in a different way than the one in the living room. I started keeping a teeny tiny tree in my bedroom in high school because I love to turn all the lights off, except for the Christmas tree. It just brings such a pretty glow to the room. For the tree in my room, my mom sent me some of the ornaments we usually put on the tree at home in addition to the star we always put on top of the tree. It is nice to have something from home in my college apartment, and I am starting to add to my personal collection of ornaments. The most recent additions are a giant Minnie Mouse bow from my day at Disneyland with my cousins and a Chippendale merman from Hawaii wearing bunny ears (yes, it is just as kitschy as it sounds, and that is exactly why I love it).

Now that finals are finally over, I have been spending a lot of my break here in LA traipsing around the city, running miscellaneous errands. It feels so good to not have anything hanging over my head, except for my holiday shopping. I know most people do their holiday shopping online nowadays. Amazon just makes it too easy! Personally, I prefer to do my shopping in person. It just feels so gratifying to have spent your day holiday shopping and have found something for every person in your life. I have been very successful so far this year. I already found gifts for my friends and roommates. The only people I have left to shop for are family members, which should be fairly easy. I contemplated doing a holiday gift guide on the blog, but finals really held me captive and take all my time. Perhaps I’ll do this next year after I graduate! Either way, I am definitely getting caught up in the holiday spirit, and I am having a lot of fun with it. 

xx

Emily