008: My Summer Vacation Outfits
A special outfit roundup from my trip to London and Paris, featuring my MVPs.
Welcome to In the Clouds, where I share what I've been consuming and what I find inspiring.
This month I decided to try something new and collect and share my outfits from my vacation as an exercise in self expression and because I wanted to go Polyvore mode.
In July, I was in London for a week for my boyfriend’s brother’s wedding and we extended the trip to go to Paris for a week afterwards. It was all lovely and filled with family time—I ate a lot of pastries, took in the sights, walked so much, saw a lot of beautiful things, ate amazing food, and now I am very happy to be home.
I am a serial overpacker and this trip didn’t make it any easier, having to pack for a wedding and two cities with wildly different weather. It was a great opportunity to not be upset with myself with overpacking tbh.
Main Packing Categories
Comfy shoes
Reliable basics (white tees and versatile tanks)
Big (comfy) pants
Layers (a couple button downs, a sweater, a blazer, and a scarf)
A couple of fun statement items to dress up my basics)
The Outfits
Sight seeing day + some family events: I loved this outfit and it proved very versatile with the weather and various activities we had going on that day. I think the combo of the oversized pleated pants with an oversized tee helped me look put together with or without the blazer.
COS oversized tee—COS green oversized button down—Jil Sander Men’s Wool Blazer from my brother—COS pleated pants—COS Grinchy socks—Salomon XT-6s—J Crew Scrunchie
Rainy sight seeing day + pub welcome dinner: This was the day I discovered I could be cold and sweaty at the same time, hence the sweater over the shoulders. I wasn’t my comfiest that day since I kept taking my layers on and off but it proved practical and got the job done.
Uniqlo button down—Buck Mason twill pants (PSA Buck Mason has a 365 day return policy)—Jil Sander blazer—Quince oversized cotton sweater—Paris Review hat—Salomon XT-6s
Wedding day!: The wedding was at a botanic garden so I took a risk with the patterned dress which falls outside of my comfort zone for wedding attire, but I loooooved the way it looked. My strap broke almost immediately from stepping on my dress but it was kindly and swiftly fixed by Julie, my boyfriend’s incredibly crafty sister. Because of this, I kept the shawl on the whole time and ended up liking the look more with it than without.
Staud Florence dress—Quince cashmere linen scarf—ASOS low heel sandals
Post wedding Sunday Roast brunch + shopping + dinner: Another case of needing to look put together throughout the course of the day for family events and dinners, so I kept it simple wearing flats to look a little more feminine and discovered I can dress casual outfits up with the shawl. I like the way these Everlane flats look but they require a lot of upkeep (I got them last fall and already had to repair a rip and get them resoled) but for now they’re cute and reliable. They might be dethroned by the Camper flats I bought in London.
Buck Mason white tee—Quince cashmere linen scarf—Banana Republic giant khakis—Jil Sander Blazer—Everlane glove flats
Vintage shopping and a show: This was our most relaxed day in London and I didn’t have to be quite as practical as my previous days, so I got a little all-black fit off with this old Zara dress I mostly wear as a skirt now with an asymmetric top over it and paired with the Salomons for sporty contrast.
Zara tier dress—Zara asymmetric top—Jil Sander Blazer—Salomon XT-6s—J Crew Scrunchie
Paris museum day: Weather was finally warmer and I got to wear my new skirt for the first time. In my overpacking I packed two pairs of sneakers and I stand by it!!! It was a long trip and it was so nice to be able to switch up comfy shoes to give my lil feet a break. Only now in photos I see the whites of my shirt and skirt don’t match, c’est la vie.
Black tank—Uniqlo button down—Calvin Klein poplin skirt—New Balance 327s—J Crew Scrunchie
Dinner at Clamato: We went to buzzy seafood restaurant Clamato, where I had one of the best micheladas of my life and it really just made me wish I was in Mexico City lol (I had octopus with corn nuts and lobster with chamoy…). I bought myself these Silk Laundry pants for my bday (influenced by Magasin’s Laura Reilly) and they’re one of my fave items to wear when I wanna feel fancy and free.
Zara asymmetric top—Silk Laundry bias cut pants—Camper Casi Myra flats
Some highlights from Clamato:
The blueberry cake was topped with spruce??!!! It tasted like Christmas morning and I think about it still.
Versailles Day: Spent a warm sunny day exploring the palace of Versailles and then had a very leisurely lunch. Scrunchie proving to be a major player at this point to level up a
boringsimple outfit.Everlane ribbed white tee—COS denim shorts—J Crew Scrunchie—Salomon XT-6s
Shopping + bopping day in Les Marais: Kept it breezy and casual and wore my Camper flats all day.
Buck Mason white tee—Ann Mashburn cashmere cardigan—COS pleated pants—COS Grinchy socks—Camper Casi Myra flats—J Crew Scrunchie
Dinner at Double Dragon: I bought an incredible pair of pants at Deeya, a store featuring emerging designers from India. Everything was beautiful and I wanted all of it. The photo doesn’t do justice to how wide these pants are and I love that they look like a modern mariachi pant. I also considered not getting them, buying trim, and adding it to a pair of Uniqlo pants I already own…
Paloma Wool surrealist mesh top—Naushad Ali pants—Tevas because the pants are a little too long and they were my only shoes tall enough
Montmartre + flea market shopping: I really phoned it in with the outfit this day, I think all the walking was starting to wear me down. Relied on a classic all black fit.
Olddddd American Apparel black jersey tee—Buck Mason twill pants—New Balance 327s
Luxemburg gardens + more sightseeing: Bought this dress right before the trip because I felt I wasn’t bringing enough clothes (lol) and it proved to be a great summer staple—comfy and breathable, five stars!!
Uniqlo dress—Levi’s belt—New Balance 327s
MVPs
An oversized scrunchie, a shawl, Camper flats (great for walking), TWO pairs of sneakers for maximum comfort, and having an array of big pants available.
Honorable Mention
Carrying a little travel deodorant in my bag—a great excuse to hit up the amazing pharmacies in Paris. Shoutout to my sweaty girls!
Takeaways
Having a ~travel capsule wardrobe~ made me realize I don’t wear a lot of thrifted clothing anymore, and I have resorted to wearing more basics with pops of color via accessories, especially in the summer. I would like to incorporate more secondhand clothing for texture and interest to make getting dressed a little more fun.
I also learned I don’t stress getting dressed during a trip when I bring almost only basics and staples (Harling Ross shares some helpful tips here) and I was grateful to have purchased too many white tees this year for this very reason. I think it’s important to invest in the clothes you know you’ll wear, assemble your MVPs, and then wear the heck out of them. Eventually you end up finding new and interesting ways to wear them.
If you’re still reading, thank you so much. I’ll send you off with some more pics.
See you next time. On the first Monday of the month, you can expect Asset Library and on the third Monday of the month you can expect In the Clouds in your inboxes.
Haven't heard of Deeya! What a find! Thanks for sharing!!