Water lilies in a fountain at the Dixon Gallery and Gardens in Memphis yesterday. After Mass, the Artgirl and I went to lunch with my mother, then to the Dixon to see a really fascinating exhibit of 20th-century Southern art (Walter Inglis Anderson, Romare Bearden, Thomas Hart Benton, and Memphis artists Carroll Cloar and Burton Callicott among them), but also to walk around the gardens. It was a nice interval before leaving for the airport, for a long evening of flight delays. Nothing too bad, and we made our connections handily (though I was afraid we wouldn't), but we got home around 1 a.m. and didn't go to bed until 2.
Today looks like this:
To be fair, much of the weekend in Memphis also looked pretty much like this (albeit with Memphis scenery, not this scenery). But yesterday afternoon, once the lunchtime storms had blown through, was beautiful in the gardens:
I can't remember whether I mentioned it here last week or not, but that Emily Dickinson piece I was working on all spring is up at National Review. It's paywalled, but if you haven't read your two free articles this month, you should be able to access it. If by some chance you have already read two articles for free this month --- well, before the week is out it'll be a new month, so you can read it then.
While I'm thinking about it, I do periodically update my literary website (in fact, I just did so). Here's the page of links and news for 2024, in case you'd like the whole rundown.
In a lot of ways it's been a quiet year, at least on paper---years when books come out often do look quiet, as I'm discovering, because you're focusing energy on the book going through the press, and not on getting new work out there (or even writing new work, though I'm always working on something). You haven't yet arrived at the burst of reviews and mentions that accompany the book's release, though advance review copies do generate a little buzz beforehand.
And then years when you're writing some regular thing also look like not a lot, because you're not publishing here, there, and everywhere --- just focusing on this one project (e.g., a Substack newsletter about poetry). I actually publish two to three fairly substantive little essays every week, but all in the same place and basically self-published, although having a co-writer means that there is some mutual editing going on (usually). So it can look like not a lot, even when it is. For that matter, writing a novel can mean going to ground for a long time, not generating much else . . . which is to say that if I were not generating all this other stuff, possibly the novel projects (multiple ones, yes, that's right) would move forward in a more timely manner. Or possibly not. Who can say?
Anyway, it's good to be home. I was glad to climb into my own bed last night --- or this morning, as the case may be (and it was). And now it's nice to be up, drinking much-needed coffee, pondering the day in the quiet of my own office, not responsible for being anyone's gratifying houseguest . . .
And now to think about more trivial things. That is: clothing, as I have said many times before, is never trivial, but on a scale of magnitudes, the subject of clothing never going to be as magnitudinous as, say, an entire ars poetica, or a Key to All Mythologies, or whatever. Be that as it may, the non-magnitudinous subject of clothing is the real subject of this blog, so you know that sooner or later, in every post, our thoughts are going to turn in that direction.
Yesterday I posted images of the dress I was wearing, but not of the cardigan I subsequently added for Mass, lunch out in an air-conditioned space, and the plane home last night. It's not my warmest or most breathable cardigan, being made of rayon, but it was fine, and I really liked the look:
Here, just to be different and edgy, I'm doing something with my hair. I did also take a more straightforward photo, which maybe shows shapes and proportions a little better, though it's always hard to get a good angle in these shots where I don't have a full-length mirror:
I really liked the silvery blue of this old cardigan (bought in 2005 or 2006 at the now-defunct Steinmart in Memphis) against my relatively bright teal dress. The cardigan's cropped shape adds something, too, to any dress: it's great with fit-and-flare dresses like my Leilas, but it also makes a good silhouette with swing dresses. Short-waisted women everywhere should really be wishing for the all-out return of the shrug/cropped cardigan, because where this one hits is perfect --- high enough on the torso not to set its horizontal line at the hips, but to draw the eye up.
And even though the shape is in fact a little boxy, the whole presentation isn't, because of how short the cardigan is. Its hemline is high enough to suggest a waist, even if you haven't got much of one, and just generally hint that your body has a shape instead of presenting you as a big ole rectangle (which, granted, is a shape, and some female bodies have that shape naturally, but most of us prefer to present a more fluid silhouette than that).
So once again, I'm glad I didn't sell or donate this cardigan. Yes, I'd totally prefer a natural-fiber version of same, but until I find it, this cardigan is the one. I have to admit, the sheeny knit adds instant polish to any outfit, too. My linen-blend J.Jill duster cardigans both have some rayon content, and the effect is the same. Immediate elevation. I guess silk or bamboo or tencel in a knit would impart the same texture, and that would be nice, but for the moment, these are the things I have, and it makes sense to keep wearing them.
Meanwhile, speaking of wearing things I have (both things I have had, and things I now have):
*Wool& Fiona (M) in Teal, bought November 2022, last worn July 1, in Norway
*Secondhand Stegmann leather clogs, bought last week, worn for the first time today
So, this is very basic. I'm wearing my clothes, not really styling them. But I did make a shoe choice: these clogs I bought secondhand for $13 last week. They arrived Thursday, after I'd left for Memphis, so this is their first outing.
I like them a lot. The leather is soft and beautiful. The insoles are leather, too, which feels really nice. Stegmann seems to have moved from cork soles to rubber soles made to look like cork, which maybe is less optimal from the mold-to-your-feet standpoint, but is better for inclement weather than I had anticipated. I won't worry about these shoes in the rain the way I worry about my Birks.
I'd given myself the loophole in my summer no-buy to have my eye out for fall/winter shoes, as well as tights. I might still keep an eye open for a good deal on tall brown boots, but these clogs really fill a spot in my transitional-weather wardrobe. As you see, I can wear them perfectly well with bare legs, but they're a nice alternative to open-toed sandals, good for that seasonal shift where I want not to look like summertime anymore, but the weather hasn't gotten the memo. Then I think they'll do well with tights once the weather does turn colder. When it's cold I mostly wear boots, but I like having alternatives, too.
I am also still (perpetually) on the lookout for the perfect pair of winter Mary Janes, but I'm glad to have these clogs. They have nice toe room, but the profile is a little slimmer and sleeker than Birkenstocks. The light tan will look nice with pretty much everything in my closet, with higher or lower degrees of contrast but no exact matches, which of course is preferable.
I also received my Snag Tights order --- again, a loophole in my no-buy, because I've learned that if you wait till fall to order your fall tights, your choices will be a lot more limited than if you order in the middle of the summer. I got some chocolate brown and "blood red" super-opaque tights, which feel very soft and substantial. I haven't tried them on yet, but I anticipate wearing them a good deal --- I like the idea of red legs in the cold weather.
I also got a pair of footless ribbed cashmere tights in black, because that's the only color their cashmere tights come in, and I think I'm going to like them a lot. I'd totally wear them with these clogs, for example: the contrast of black with this light tan would be really nice. I don't like black as a default color to wear with other colors --- it's honestly sort of boring, just because it is so much a default --- but not having had any black tights or leggings in years, I figure I'll enjoy them as an alternative. And the cashmere will be warm and soft when it's cold.
It will be cold again, though it's hard to believe it right now. BUT today's high here is only 80F, quite pleasant. The sun is trying to come out now, so I imagine it's going to feel warmer than 80F, with the humidity, but still, that's quite a mild temperature for the end of July, and I will accept it with gratitude. I'll be grateful in retrospect later this week when it's 96F . . .
Finally, I didn't get around to making an outfit plan yesterday. My brain is a bit fuzzy after all the plane travel and the late night, but here's what I'm thinking, given the weather forecast:
*Today's outfit: Fiona + clogs
*Wool& Audrey (possibly with Trades of Hope kimono if I go to Mass tomorrow) and clogs
*Wool& Marine Blue Maggie with clogs, kimono if I wear this to daily Mass
*Wool& Brooklyn in Pacific with Birks or clogs
*Garnet Hill green maxi skirt with pink merino Eileen Fisher tank --- pink merino cardigan if I wear this to daily Mass (pink on pink on green sounds fun)
*Flax purple linen skirt with pink linen tee OR cropped blue WoolX tee (if I don't like the shape of the pink linen tee with that skirt, or the bulk of the hemline buttons if I tuck it in)
*Sunday Mass: floral pinafore dress with tank and champagne-colored longline linen-blend cardigan, and maybe Birk Papillio wedges (or else Crocs)
I really enjoyed my travel capsule of this last weekend --- the Not Perfect Linen dresses performed so well, with just a spritz of water to help the wrinkles fall out. I'm going to let them rest this week, I think, but of course I could always sub one in if that's what I feel like wearing. No Plan Set In Stone.
OK, to walk and work.
PS:
The clogs pass the dog-walk test: comfortable the whole way and pretty impervious to wet grass.
Also:
I don't know that I totally adore this silhouette, but I love the fresh spring green of my thrifted tencel button shirt against my teal dress. I was chilly in the house, and there the shirt was on the drying rack, so I put it in.
Grooving on (basically) my palette ---
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--- and the way things in this color family work together. I think the shirt is fluid enough, being tencel, not to swamp my waist-defining dress too much, and the added vertical line is kind of nice. Thinking about summer-into-fall combinations, and then actual fall (when it's not that cool) combinations . . . so much to look forward enjoying, just in my own closet.
LATER:
Thought you might be interested in some color comparisons among my Snag tights, since I've just gotten a new order.
Here, for example, in natural light on the marble top of my bureau, are my last-year's Red Velvet merino tights on the left, and my brand-new super-opaque Blood Red tights on the right.
Snag has a number of reds, which is good, because there's no such thing as just plain red. Reds can skew orange or brown or purple --- or, as in the case of Red Velvet, both brown and purple. These merino tights are a real burgundy, not at all what you'd think of as a true red (though again, what does that even mean?).
Last year I wore Red Velvet in some interesting combinations. I like it with teals, for example, which might surprise you, but really, it looks nice. It reads very burgundy in that combination, just a different kind of dark neutral leg which I found quite pleasing with Pacific, too. I also wore them with my brown NPL Leila dress, and with my floral pinafore, which was a particularly nice combination, the burgundy tights just striking a darker pink note with the floral pattern. AND I think I wore them at least once with my Cinnamon Rose Leila dress, again to strike a darker pink note in kind of the same register, with the brown undertone of the tights color speaking to the earthy undertone of the pink linen dress. If I had a dress in Wool&'s Plum color, I'd probably wear these tights with it, because they do look kind of plummy, too. They are a very chameleon color.
See how bright and un-brown the Blood Red tights are by comparison? They're definitely not burgundy. Weirdly, though, I think of them as kind of a pinky red (even though I've just been arguing for burgundy as dark pink) --- which is to say that they're not at all an orange, or brick, red. I guess this is what I would think of as a true red, even though the other tights aren't at all a fake red.
What will I wear them with? Well, probably whatever else I wear on Christmas Day, for a start. But also . . . well, definitely my NPL Smock dress, for a little hit of brightness with the steely gray-blue. I could get away with them, strangely enough, in combination with the same floral pinafore with which I've worn my Red Velvet tights --- again to pick up, in a darker, more intense way, the reddish pinks in the pattern. All the teal dresses. Pacific Brooklyn. Marine-Blue Maggie. Probably not either of the Leila dresses. Probably not my Wisteria Willow.
Okay, so here, beside the others, is the pair of brown tights I also ordered (Hot Cocoa? Hot Chocolate? I can never remember these names correctly):
Like the Blood Red tights, and unlike the Red Velvet tights, these are a very unambiguous color. They are brown. This is a darker brown than I would be inclined to wear near my face most of the time (though I do have a dark-brown suede pea coat that I want to wear more this fall and winter), but I think I'll actually wear these a lot:
-with my brown Leila dress for a tonal look
-with my Cinnamon Rose Leila dress, to pick up the earthiness
-with my floral pinafore
-with really pretty much any of my Wool& dresses except my Black Heather Audrey. I like this brown a lot next to my Beetroot Brooklyn, for example. I know it will also look good with teals and blues and greens.
As I might have said above, I really love the feel of these super-opaque tights. I wish these colors had come in merino (or vice versa), but Snag's microfiber tights are very soft and comfortable, and as many boxes as the company checks for sustainability, good practices, and so on, I can deal with microfiber. And I like the thickness and softness of these super-opaques even more than I like the regular opaques (I now also wish that more colors came in this knit/weight, because it's great).
As for what shoes go with these tights . . .
Well, I wear my brown Tari boots with pretty much everything (and will also wear them with my black footless tights --- the only color shoe I would not wear with black tights is black, though I might consent to wear my very-dark-gray Birk Melrose boots with these).
I don't think I'd wear my graphite-gray Melrose boots with brown tights --- but I could be wrong about that. I'd definitely wear them with the Blood Red, and do wear them with Red Velvet.
My other major winter shoes are my Birkenstock Papillio wedges, which are a very orange tan. I have worn them with the Red Velvet tights and liked that combo better than I thought I would, but I sort of wish I had some more dark-brown or burgundy winter shoes (that I like --- I am reselling my Birk Madeiras) to wear with anything pink-toned. I sort of shy away from wearing those shoes with my Beetroot Brooklyn, because that just seems like a magenta-orange collision that might be some people's vibe, but really isn't mine. Of course, I think my imagination magnifies the orange-ness of these shoes, and that most people would just see them as tan/neutral --- but nothing is ever really neutral, as in a non-color. Clear silicone boots would be completely neutral, maybe. Or glass slippers.
And then I have these new-to-me Stegmann clogs, which are a less orange tan, more like camel. I could see wearing any of these tights with these clogs, happily --- they are one version of a brown shoe that will go with these pinks, purples, and reds, providing contrast but not clash.
I should probably pull out all my blue and green tights next and do a post on that spectrum of colors --- from navy to shades of teal to sage to a dark forest-ish green --- and what I wear them with. Maybe tomorrow. With August looming, I have fall on the brain, even though we won't actually have anything like autumnal weather on any consistent basis for another three or four months. I love the ease of summer dressing, but it's fun to think about layers and combinations, all the things you can do in the fall, winter, and early spring.
(I mean, honestly, I wear gray and navy tights a LOT in the cold weather. I'm not always super creative with colors, and sometimes I don't love the results when I am creative. But tights are relatively cheap and a fun way to add interest to an outfit, and I'm glad that Snag tights no longer take a month to arrive on my doorstep).
Also, it's interesting to refer to that color chart above. No, Blood Red is not on that palette. But that doesn't mean it won't work as an accent color with colors that are on that palette. I am also gratified by the validation of my choice to wear brown sometimes. It's not not a "cool" or "summer" color, and I like having the flexibility to build outfits with it.
ALSO:
I did mend the hole in my navy merino tights, so they'll be good to go when the time comes. I haven't, so far, had to mend microfiber tights, and I don't know how successfully I could do that, but I'd certainly try. Given how throwaway tights can be, I'm really gratified to be still wearing every pair of Snag tights I've bought since the fall of 2021, when I placed my first order with them. In tights years, three years seems like a lot.
Yes, some of my merino tights have thinned in the crotch and upper thighs, but I'm not going to stop wearing them because of that. Nobody can see it. People complain about the quality sometimes, but for the price, I don't know what they expect. Mine have certainly been perfectly wearable, even with what seem to me like predictable flaws, given how cheap they are. Anyway. Thought that was worth saying. Clearly I still think they're worth what I pay for them, and I'm glad to have some new pairs to look forward to between now and, realistically, November.