How I wore it: Christmas shopping, round 1

Folks, we're officially under the two-week mark for Christmas and I CAN'T WAIT. In just thirteen days, I'll be allowed to touch my crimson Fryes again! [Don't worry, I'm all about giving, too - Mr. Boots is getting such a good present that he reacted like a hyperactive puppy when he got a hint as to what it could be]

While, actually, we're on the subject of giving, let me just segue nicely to tell y'all that yesterday my husband and I did our first round of Christmas shopping for members of my family. My father, brother, and niece are all taken care of. We need to order some stuff for my mom and figure something out for my sister-in-law and make a choice for my mother-in-law, but we're in pretty good shape. Yay! Anyway, because we knew we were going to be out spending money all day yesterday, we watched the temperature with eagle eyes. Fortunately, we're in a bit of a warm spell right now (highs in the mid 40s yesterday!), so I decided to celebrate by not wearing pants:

Apologies for the hair: I didn't notice it was so messy till the photos were snapped

I'm in shock about a couple of things from this outfit. A) Can you believe that I haven't worn this dress in about a month? I honestly think the last time was Halloween. I mean, over the summer and last year at work I wore that dress at least once a week, if not twice (in the summer). But in completing-dissertation phase, the dresses sit quietly in the closet. B) Why did I never think of layering this top under this dress? I could've forsworn my constant cardigan and looked cute with an ersatz long-sleeved dress and no one would've been the wiser! C) This is the first time I've ever tied the bow from the dress' sash on the front (barely visible because of my black on black) and I'm really glad I tried that. I lost a bit of the nice natural pleating that the dress boasts, but I also didn't feel as if I had a huge knot in the small of my back every time I sat down. 

To put it simply? This dress was a winner for me. Coupled with colorful tights and comfy tall boots, I was very happy with my Saturday choices. 

Because I was wearing colorful tights, I decided to give in to my matchy-matchy instincts and wear turquoise jewelry [I don't have any jewelry in teal that I know of]. Behold! 

Exciting and not too obvious... which means there's something missing. Hmmm, what could I do to punch this up, especially since my wool coat is grey? I know! A bright scarf!

How 'bout them colors? This scarf was hand-knit for me by a good friend from grad school. I love that it incorporates turquoise (the reason I wore it with the earrings and tights), orange, white, purple, reds, etc. in bright, contrasting colors for a loud, non-subtle effect. It was just the accessory I needed to punch up my outfit while wearing a coat over it. 

The rest of the day was spent in a state of febrile excitement. We decided to finally use a cocktail recipe book we'd received years ago, so we bought some liquor and started mixing some tropical drinks. Because we were so tired, though, we ended up falling asleep of the TV (sense a theme?) with barely our second drink started. I forced myself awake to watch "SNL" a few hours later to see Paul McCartney and then I dragged us both to bed. 

Um, do you think we need to get out more?

Multicolored scarf: Gift from friend

Black dress: Gap, remixed

Black shirt (under dress): H&M, remixed

Teal tights: Gap, remixed (?)

Boots: Madden by Steve Madden, remixed

Turquoise earrings: Banana Republic, remixed

"Turquoise" ring: Accessorize on Ermou Street, Athens, remixed

Turquoise pendant + chain: gift from Argentina from my uncle