Back to School Shopping

I start my new job in 11 days and I'm pretty excited about it. Really nervous, but excited. One of the fun parts about getting a new job is my need for some new clothes. The official uniform of a geologist typically includes cargo pants or acid washed jeans, a t-shirt and flannel button-down, hiking or combat boots, and some sort of Indiana Jones type hat. Bonus points for a Canadian tuxedo (no offense Canadian friends). That uniform works whether you're in the field, lecturing to a room of 100 undergrads, or presenting at an international meeting of professional scientists. I'm not super trendy or anything, but that sort of look has never been my style. 

Since I'm teaching at a community college and not at a university with a full-scale geology department, I don't think that uniform is appropriate. Which is awesome for me. I'm so excited that I finally need to buy some real "adult" clothes. (Actually, I bought most of my new tops from Forever 21 - don't tell on me.)

I really hate shopping. I love buying things, but I hate shopping. Online shopping is the greatest thing ever. My body is kind of weird - my bust, waist, and hips are each a different size - so it can be hard to find clothes that fit. When I shop online, I usually wait until there is a free shipping deal so that I don't need to waste a lot of money if I end up returning things. Also, I always check Retail Me Not for other coupon codes. 

Luckily, all but one of the tops I ordered from Forever 21 fit really well! I had free shipping and it will probably only cost me about $2-3 dollars to return the one shirt I didn't like. For about $70, I got 4 nice blouse type shirts and 2 tanks to wear underneath them. I bought a dress from Forever 21 and was really pleased with the quality, so I'm hopeful that these will last at least through the semester.

I lurve the two blouses on the top. They fit really well and they make me look like I know how to put an outfit together, which I really don't (too many years in "the uniform"). The bottom right is actually a really pretty pale green color. I'm thinking about buying it in the peach color as well. I'm a big fan of buying an item in multiple colors when I find something that fits well.

I also bought some pants from Old Navy (more free shipping and 20% off!). The khakis are the Diva Boot Cut pants and they actually look really good in real life. The photo above makes them look kind of frumpy, but really they're nice and fitted and look great with heels. The blue ones are the Flirt pants and I don't think they work for me. There's a lot of extra room in the crotch area and since I don't have a dick, it doesn't really look good. I'm going to try to exchange them for blue Divas, but they don't have my size right now.

I got these lovelies from Zappos. If you've never purchased shoes from Zappos, I suggest that you go do it immediately. Free shipping, free returns, ALL THE SHOES in one place. I already have a pair of black pumps and tons of flats so unfortunately I don't think I "need" anymore shoes for now. Or maybe I need some new boots...

And finally, I bought my very own fucking laser pointer. It even has a clicker so you can change the slides on your Power Point! I feel like I'm a real teacher now. It was only $7, but hopefully it will last through December at least.

So. Now that I got the important things out of the way, I should probably get back to preparing my lectures!