I titled this post what to wear on days out with kids, but honestly this was my staple stay at home mum style for any days with the boys over summer. Shorts, tanks and kimonos. Perfection!
Despite the heat, I had to wear closed in shoes, so I went with my trusty Converse. I don't like wearing closed in shoes on hot days, but those were the rules! We surprised the boys with a trip to the local model railway club, Brisbane Bayside Steam Railway Society. It had been a tough few weeks so I thought a day out was a nice idea.
I've included the video below, the model railway society have a track set up at a park (1900 Wynnum Road) and you can ride on miniature versions of trains. For my train mad boys, it was perfect. We went around a few times, trying out the different trains. So much fun for them. There's a little model race track setup for remote control cars too so we spent some time there before heading away to get lunch.
I knew I'd need a bit of physical sunblock too for being out in the sun, so I added this white kimono over the top of my printed tank and denim shorts. With the gold in the tank, the rose gold filigree heart necklace seemed like a good accessory, as well as the 'harvest gold' / mustard micro Regan bag.
While I did take the Converse off as soon as I got home, the rest of the outfit stayed on. I wore it to film a couple YouTube videos while hubby occupied the boys.
Since I liked the outfit above so much, recreated it again with the same kimono, but different tank and shorts. And different shoes! Havaianas are much better suited to the hot Queensland weather! Swapped the micro Regan bag for my silver mini MAC bag too.
We had a few things to do on this day. I took the boys to a messy play day at playgroup in the morning, then we had the doctors in the afternoon. Not quite as much fun as the day out on the miniature railway, but the boys always enjoy playgroup, especially if it's a messy play day!
Unlike the outfit above, I expected to be holding squirming kids on my lap at least some point in the doctor's waiting room, so I went with a more kid friendly necklace! My boys are passed the teething stage but I still like these silicone teething necklaces as they are safe for them to play with and tug on and I know they won't break them!
Printed tanks and denim shorts are a comfortable stay at home mum outfit for me in the warmer weather. If you need to add a little physical sunblock, try adding a plain kimono. It's breezy fabric won't overheat you, even on a warm day. The beauty of a printed tank outfit is that just by swapping one tank for another, you change the whole outfit by just changing the print you're wearing. A good way to keep your outfits feeling fresh and new without buying anything extra.
This summer has definitely been the summer of shorts, but I haven't completely forgotten my maxi skirts! The classic combo of a printed maxi skirt and grey tee makes an easy, comfortable outfit that's perfect for running around with the kids.
I was surprised to find I hadn't worn this tee and navy striped maxi skirt together before! I thought it was what I wore last time we went to hospital, but it was a different tee I wore then. This very similar outfit was worn again to the same hospital, but a day stay this time. I shared some pics on Twitter and my Instagram stories, as one of the boys had his first surgery.
There are a few times in adulthood I have a little panic to myself that "I'm not grown up enough for this", and having to comfort my child through an operation was one of those times. Thankfully, it was just a short day stay. The operation went well, and apart from being a little woozy afterwards, it was a smooth recovery.
I wasn't sure if I needed closed in shoes for the operating room, I forgot to ask with all the other questions I had, so I went with Converse just in case, even if I did take them off as soon as we got home. I picked comfortable clothes for all the sitting around waiting I was going to have to do, and my big Louis Vuitton neverfull to carry snacks and things to amuse me as I waited, with everything else in the baby bag. I've tried the neverfull as a baby bag before, as you can see in the video below, but I'm not a fan so it meant carrying two bags with me. Easy when I had the stroller to throw everything on.
It was a difficult day, made just a little easier by having a fuss-free outfit I was ready to face anything in. I'm just hoping to have no further days of hospital style!
Onto happier days! I wore this the weekend before operation day. We'd planned a day out but after taking these photos and our morning walk, the rain showers started to we decided to stay home instead, after running a quick errand. In the end I think a quiet day was just what was needed as operation week was crazy.
Very similar outfit formula to the one above, with a more voluminous printed maxi skirt and a slouchier grey tee. This was a lovely outfit for a humid day, nice loose layers. The only thing I didn't like so much was that the hem of my skirt got wet quickly when the rain started. I really need to get this skirt properly tailored. I'm currently doing the well-known petite girl hack of wearing it higher on my waist and rolling the waistband to keep it in place. It's definitely proven it's a keeper in my wardrobe, so I need to get it tailored to be just the right length.
Again I was wearing my Louis Vuitton neverfull tote, although this time around it had a lot less stuffed into it. That's the beauty of the neverfull, it always looks good no matter if you carry a little or a lot.
With a printed maxi skirt (or any printed piece in your wardrobe) pairing it with a grey tee is an easy outfit formula to follow that's guaranteed to look good. If grey tees aren't your thing, you could substitute with a similar neutral like black or white. I'm just such a fan of grey v-neck tees, they are what I reach for most often when wearing prints.
Maxi dresses are such an easy summer option for me. I tend to wear any and all kinds of accessories with them too. While they are perfect with sandals, they look just as good with Converse, and with a Louis Vuitton speedy bandouliere instead of a smaller cross body bag.
What I wore:
Necklace: Nibbly Bits Feather pendant in peach (C/O)
I wanted something light and airy to wear for a planned morning out at the markets, but when it was cooler and cloudy in the morning I thought I'd add some Converse instead of my havaianas, as it was predicted to rain. By the time we got to the markets though, we realised our mistake. The humidity was so bad and closed in shoes were definitely not needed. I was glad I'd forgotten to grab my denim jacket on the way out the door!
We managed to have a speedy browse before Cooper decided he'd had enough of the heat and we reatreated home again. Somehow still managing to pick up bags of treats and things for Cooper before we left, ha! He's such a spoiled little pup.
The Converse helped meet the style challenge for the day on Instagram, as did the dress itself. I picked the speedy as it's damier ebene and waterproof if the predicted rain did happen. It's also just the right size to carry the water bottles for the boys and my own essentials, as we left the baby bag and stroller in the car as we walked around.
I was excited to wear my new Christmas necklace with this dress - the neckline is just right for it! I was thrilled to unwrap this (and a bunch of other things!) from my bestie on Christmas, she always has such great taste and I adore everything she sends for the boys and I.
Wore this for a day that was just as hot as the one I wore the floral dress for above - but it was more bearable with sandals this time! Midway through our busy morning I got a few messages from Beth at Almost Posh. I'd found out from Insta stories she was staying nearby on holiday, so we quickly setup a quick coffee catch-up for that afternoon. After a bit of lunch with hubby and a little Jeanswest sale shopping to spend one of my Christmas gift cards, we met-up for a drink and chat. Beth is one of those bloggers I admire so it was nice to chat and pick her brain about Instagram, blogging and the juggle of a blog, work and motherhood.
How You Can Wear It: Maxi dresses are perfect to combat the summer heat. A pretty printed one makes accessorising simple and not really required. You can think outside the box and wear a maxi dress with Converse too, you don't have to stick with simple sandals. Although sandals are a great choice in the heat! Any cross body bag looks great too, from a large LV speedy to a small clutch.
My blog friend Ruth does these 5x5 style challenges on Instagram. Another blog friend, Eileen and I started talking with her about it and thought it would be fun to participate. We decided to do an international style challenge a couple of weeks ago near the end of November.
The rules: 5 pieces of clothing to create 5 outfits over 5 days, with a black and burgundy colour scheme. Accessories like shoes, necklaces, scarves, handbags, outerwear, can be added as needed and don't count as one of the 5 pieces.
Who took part: Ruth @ruthyannie, Eileen @eileensed and myself, @awayfromblue. Ruth did this over autumn in the cold weather, and Eileen had to dress a growing baby bump too! I have so much admiration for them both!
This is going to be a bit of a long post as I share with you what we wore over 5 days! I hope you'll get a lot of outfit inspiration from it though, and discover some new ways you can rewear pieces you already own.
My Capsule Wardrobe
After a few last minute swaps and changes, these are the 5 pieces I came up with for the challenge.
black drawstring waist maxi skirt
black denim shorts
burgundy jersey dress
black, burgundy and cream shirt dress
burgundy slouchy tee
My choices were limited by the colour scheme which helped me make decisions about what to pick as my 5 pieces. The last time I did a capsule, it was my third trimester capsule wardrobe and the growing bump helped limit my options there too! I did have to go into the office for one day which made me pick the shirt dress, even if the print is more red than burgundy. I figured it was close enough!
The main worry I had was around structuring the pieces I wore to allow me to have them washed and ironed ready for the next wear With two messy toddlers it was highly unlikely I was going to be able to wear things twice in a row without washing them! In the end I came up with 6 outfit ideas so that if something wasn't ready in time, I'd have a fall back option.
For the first day of the challenge I went with a classic tee and maxi skirt combo. When I'd first started planning outfits and pieces for the challenge I'd went with a different burgundy tee, and changed my mind and swapped it for this tee instead. I didn't like the way this one sat with the maxi skirt though, I was a bit frustrated with it both tucked and untucked and wasn't as comfortable with this outfit as I could have been. Easy outfit for playgroup though.
This was as 'formal' as my outfits got during the challenge, the majority of them were casual outfits. I had to go into the office, so picked this shirt dress to fit in with the business casual dress code. I found myself fussing with this outfit too during the day though, the dress seemed to ride up a lot and I was constantly tugging it back down. I much prefer wearing this dress as a kimono, or layering it up with tights in winter.
I knew with the darker black and red print on the dress (it's a geometric print although it looks like polka dots in the pics!) that this Marc Jacobs bag would work perfectly with it. This bag doesn't get worn as often as it did when I first got it, but it's still a nice choice for work. It's been tagged in 62 posts on the blog and most of the time it featured in both outfits of the posts, so you can see it was worn a lot in the past! Such a unique colour too, a deep purple-y brown.
The simplest of all my challenge outfits, and also the most popular. I wore this to work from home and attend a specialist appointment with baby boy in the afternoon. With the burgundy star print dress, I added black through my accessories, with the same ankle boots I'd worn the day before and another little worn bag, my Mimco button bag.
This was actually my first expensive bag purchase, despite how little I wear it now I'm never going to let it go. I spent months thinking about it and saving for it and picking out the perfect colour combo I wanted and I still remember the excitement of going to the store to pick it up! Very treasured even if not frequently worn now. I think I bought it in 2007 at the height of the button bag trend, still looks great. Sadly it's discontinued, the closest thing is the Mimco Turnlock bag that's around $200 more expensive than the button bag was 10 or so years ago, or to go to ebay for the classic style.
An incredibly busy day called for a comfortable and casual outfit, and the first wearing of the last of my 5 pieces, my black denim shorts. Added the comfy slouchy burgundy tee and the printed dress was worn as a kimono. Converse were a practical choice for a busy day, and the mustard yellow bag was a fun touch of colour with the black and burgundy.
Baby boy had some more tests at the hospital in the morning, so I had the day off. With my mother in law available to watch the boys, as it was a day I normally work, I made the most of it and she looked after them both once the testing was done so I could gt a rare child free afternoon to go Christmas shopping. And I shopped up a storm, getting the majority of the things remaining on my Christmas present list!
For my fifth and final outfit with my 5 pieces, I wore my denim shorts again and the lovely burgundy dress as a top. I added turquoise accessories with the necklace and Rebecca Minkoff mini MAC bag for an extra touch of colour. I've won dresses as tops before, it's a nice way to wear something a little differently. The extra dress fabric wasn't too bulky although it was a bit of a pain tucking it in to the shorts every time I went to the bathroom! I had considered doubling up on the dresses and wearing the shift dress as a kimono over this again, but despite how little time I spent with the boys the day before it still got messy and had to have a wash. That was the hardest part of this challenge - making sure everything was washed and ironed in time to wear again!
This was a nice outfit to finish the challenge on, I ran around with the boys completing a few errands.
Hope you enjoyed seeing the different outfits we were able to create for the challenge. While it was a fun challenge for me, I was looking forward to getting back into my regular wardrobe at the end of it! Especially after buying lots of new pieces that month that I was eager to wear.
Thanks so much to Ruth and Eileen for inviting me to take part - if you don't already, you should follow them on Instagram!
