OOTD: How to Wear a T-Shirt

I always think about posting some of my outfits--and then never do. So here I'll begin with more of a conversation than an image. The topic: t-shirts. After I started developing my style, I also started avoiding t-shirts. I reached for nylon or lace blouses (or just dresses) instead. But after a while, contrary to my intended style, I started buying t-shirts again. 

Sometimes I'd go into the Disney store and I couldn't resist because the shirts look nice there. Or I would get one from The Hillywood Show to support their newest parody. However it happened, the t-shirts started piling up and yet I still wasn't wearing them much. I wear them when I'm just at home, but then it seems a shame not to wear shirts that I like outside of the house. So I sometimes have to sit down and figure out how I can wear these shirts and still maintain my style. 

Because a t-shirt and jeans would be easy--but that's just not my style. If I'm going on a hike, I'll wear that--but even then I won't want to wear a shirt with print on it because I feel like it'll disrupt the natural setting. The other "easy" way to wear a t-shirt is to pair it with a skirt--but that isn't easy for me.

If a t-shirt doesn't have a good cut (fitted, women's style cut, that is), I feel like I look twelve years old when I pair it with a skirt. Like I'm a schoolgirl in my uniform. Or if the shirt doesn't go completely with the skirt (because a good skirt is, after all, kind of hard to find and so it isn't as if I have piles of skirts), then it looks like the outfit is the mediocre work of a twelve year old who doesn't have much to work with. (I certainly don't mean to bash twelve year olds here--I'm just saying that, as someone in my mid-twenties who is still mistaken for a sixteen year old, I try and avoid outfits that I think make me look younger.) 

I had just been having another conversation on this topic, so I guess I felt inspired to try out the t-shirts again. Actually, I felt like wearing this skirt and thought I would try and see if any t-shirts would go with it. The wonderful thing about this skirt is that it's from Banana Republic's petite line--so the fit is great. And the shirt is the Jane Eyre design from Out of Print; it has a nice open shape to the neckline and the sleeves are fitted enough that they don't stick out. So as far as fit goes, these two pieces work well together. For color, the skirt is black and white and the shirt is white with black, some blue and purple, and just a bit of red. So mostly the color is white with just some accents--that works for me. I added black shoes to keep the neutral look and put on a green hat to match my green glasses. The necklace is pearls with some green and purple stones to bring all the colors together in one long strand. 

I know the early morning light coming in from the window puts a lot of glare on the outfit, but I think you can still get a sense from the picture of my way to wear a t-shirt. Good fit, not too much color contrast, and paired with some more feminine items like pearls. This was actually my outfit from Friday, not today; I wore it to go to Phoenix to stop by the mall and a couple of other spots. A casual day.