Coasting Through

Jacket - Gap, Dress - Banana Republic, Shoes - Lucky c/o ModCloth

 Over the holiday weekend, the boyfriend and I decided at the last minute to take a trip up to the coast for a little mini vacation. There's just something about taking a drive up the coast that makes me want to throw on a jean jacket, big sunglasses, and a glamorous head scarf like an old Hollywood movie star. But road trips are always a bit tricky because you want to be comfortable, yet chic. This nautical looking striped jersey dress with a cute little tie belt from Banana Republic turned out to be the perfect choice. It made me feel ready for the sand and waves, but it was as comfortable as pajamas. So I just added the big sunglasses and jean jacket and then opted for a bright orange scarf to give the outfit a pop of color.

We spent the day walking around town, eating a steaming bowl of delicious clam chowder at the wharf, doing a little sightseeing and shopping, grabbing homemade warm chocolate chip cookies at a sweets shop, and of course stopping for pictures in the gorgeous weather. It made me remember my trips to the coast when I was a kid and how much I loved them. I also spent some time playing around with the different film filters on my Iphone camera apps.

One last thing I wanted to share with you is a little tip I have for quick overnight trips. I hate packing too much on short vacations, so I like to come up with ways to transition my daytime pieces to nighttime without a lot of extra luggage. This jersey dress was perfect because it already came with a belt (but you can always add a belt of your own if you want to do this trick with a dress of your own), so I just liberally untucked the dress under the belt to make it a shorter, tunic length, added skinny jeans and some funky platforms and I was ready for dinner date-night! Who says all girls overpack? Besides, packing less clothes left me with room enough in my bag for some SHOPPING and that is something I always have to be prepared for. Hope everyone had a great Memorial Day!