Shop My Closet: Summer Essentials

In August my husband is taking me to Europe in celebration of our 10 year anniversary (June 16th)! I’ve been focusing on getting pieces I would want to pack for our 9-day trip to see Rome, Paris, and London. I have to admit I’m most excited about Paris- THE fashion capital of the world. As I finalize my summer capsule, I want to share my most recent purchases. These will be the core of my wardrobe from June to September. I also wanted to post these items while they are still available and some are even on sale!

This season I found great pieces at GAP and WHO WHAT WEAR (Target). I really like the WHO WHAT WEAR line at Target and appreciate that they have plus sizes available for my curvy sisters! I almost always try something on from their line when I hit the store.

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TOPS: White Tank: Boden| Striped Button Down, here: Mine: Target | Grey Muscle Tank: Madewell |Not pictured: Black ruffle tank: Target

BOTTOMS: Cropped Wide Leg Pants: Ann Taylor | Soft Spun Wrap Skirt: GAP | Green “Blakely” capri pants by Liverpool: Stitch Fix, similar in “pure cashmere (color)”.

DRESSES: Green Jersey Dress: H&M | Striped Linen Dress: GAP | Soft Spun Navy T-Shirt Dress: GAP

TOPS: White Tank: Boden| Striped Button Down: (Mine) Target | Grey Muscle Tank: Madewell| Black ruffle tank: Target

These are my basic tops that I mix and match with all my bottoms. My striped button down from Target is similar to the one pictured above. It’s been hard exercising self-control to limit myself to purchasing tops I can also tuck into a skirt. I bought this cute black tank at Target and then returned it.  In the summer our temps average between mid-80-90’s so I don’t wear my jeans as much and need my tops to be versatile.

I like Boden’s quality for tees and buy one or two every spring/summer. Follow the washing instructions carefully – “line dry only” pieces will shrink substantially in the dryer!

I also have these two tops from Nordstroms: black and white tee striped pocket tee (sold out) and a black twist front tee.

BOTTOMS: Cropped Wide Leg Pants: Ann Taylor | Soft Spun Wrap Skirt: GAP | Green “Blakely” capri pants by Liverpool: Stitch Fix, similar in “pure cashmere (color)”.

I’m receiving the cropped pants in the mail today! I also like these flare cropped jeans style by Ann Taylor, which I plan to try if the wide leg cropped pants don’t work out. I also LOVE this tulip skirt by GAP on sale for $29.99. I purchased this A-line button-front denim skirt (not shown) at Target. (The model is 5.9 and I’m 5.4 so the skirt hits A LOT lower on me.)

I also wear two skirts from H&M (2016) that I’ll get one more season out of. My plum “satin” midi (available in”natural white” – love it) and my leaf print drawstring midi (available in black – a great basic style!) I love that the midi length is in because it’s so feminine and modest!

DRESSES: Green Jersey Dress: H&M | Striped Linen Dress: GAP | Soft Spun Navy T-Shirt Dress: GAP

My ULTIMATE favorite dress of this season is my vertical stripe linen piece by GAP! On sale for $42! This is the first linen piece I’ve owned. This will be going with me to Europe for sure. When trying it on, you need to play around to make sure it’s gathered in the front and back (instead of at your hips) under the belt or else it will make your hips look wide. I also like how the model is styling it with a half bow. Best of all it has pockets! This dress seemed to run large so I sized down to a petite XS instead of a petite S.

I received two compliments the day I wore the green dress and I’ve seen other moms around town (at Target) wearing my navy Gap T-Shirt dress – also on sale for $42 in different colors! (I like the length, it falls just a couple of inches above my knees).

I hope you’ve enjoyed seeing my summer essentials for 2017. I’ll be posting outfits using many of these pieces when I do my 10X10 Summer Challenge coming up next month!