By the Sea | Outfit

I literally bled for these photos. So, I can pretty much now say this blog has cost me blood, sweat, and tears.

And okay, maybe I am being dramatic but I did not misuse “literally.” I wouldn’t do that to you. In attempting to get a shot of myself sitting on a log by the sea, I didn’t look where I was going and my hip scraped against a branch that somehow tore up my skin without ripping my circle skirt at all. There really was blood, but not enough to soak through anything, thankfully.

And I mean, it was totally worth it. Despite being in the shade by the water, I was sweating like a dog on the 4th of July, I had sand everywhere, and there was blood. And not to mention, most of the beach is rocky and many of the rocks are covered in barnacles, or they hide crabs, and I was barefoot the whole time.

Count this a fault on my part for somehow not realizing that this beach park, which is generally called the Tacoma Narrows Lookout park (or something like that), was… not a paved lookout type park but an actual beach. I don’t know why I didn’t realize that but… um… I didn’t. We will blame lack of sleep.

And walking on a stony beach doesn’t really bother me, but after an hour or so of traversing the beach and the rocks and then this little session of photo-taking, my feet were ready for a break.

Coming to the beach on a warm, sunny day brought up so much nostalgia for me. I have always loved the ocean and the beach; nearly every vacation as a child was to some beach-bound area, many times all of us stuffing into the same house with many cousins, adventuring through small downs and quaint streets, eating too much saltwater taffy and playing in the sand until we had it in every crevice in an almost permanent layer of grit.

I love those memories, and the more recent ones of honeymooning in the tropical balminess of Hawaii three years ago. I somehow never thought I would want to go to such a popular honeymoon place (I want to be different! was my mental cry), but it was the perfect place to be in December.

This gingham circle skirt feels like the perfect beach-day skirt; it’s so full and flowing and easy. And yes, it kind of looks like a tablecloth. It acts like one, too; the fabric is water-repellent and I’ve spilled quite a few things on it that came right off!

The more I wear my circle skirts (see the others here, here, and here) the more I am realizing that I’m just not quite as happy with the other silhouettes I have. Anything that doesn’t flow and can’t twirl, I’m not as interested in. So keep an eye out because I may do another closet clean out and add some more skirts and dresses to my closet shop!

My  next sewing mission is to make a circle skirt DRESS out of this gorgeous fabric I found at Goodwill; it’s a peachy pink color with big white flowers on it, and a very 60’s vibe to the design. I would love a vintage-inspired dress, but um… I hate using patterns, so I need to figure out how to make one without completely messing it up. I mean, I do have nine yards of this fabric, but bodices scare me. We’ll see how it goes.

Top, Target | shoes and (vintage) brooch, thrifted | skirt, handmade (Owl and the Boy Apparel)

And it wouldn’t be a circle skirt post without a good twirl. Is it silly to say I’ve been practicing twirls a lot lately? I do this weird thing with my face and hands a lot, so I’ve been teaching myself not to purse my lips in concentration, and not to lift my hands up oddly. It’s… well, let’s just say it took about 10 shots to get one good one.

😉

Happy Monday!

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