red stripes = a new neutral?

     It was an out-and-out gloomy day on Tuesday -- rainy and overcast. The night before, we had some of the loudest thunder I had ever heard in my life. I spent the day wearing socks and drinking hot tea while I did class work. Then, I went to work, and it was quite a day. On Tuesdays we have the biggest group of students staying for the afterschool program: about 60 first graders. Add in the fact that we were down a teacher and had to rejigger the schedule at the last minute; that the kids were bouncing off the walls from the rain and from indoor recess; and that I managed to lock myself out of the classroom and had to squeeze my last set of students into my friend's class. Good times, right?? :)

Striped boatneck top, Ann Taylor (previously loved by mom)

Joseph A. cardigan (Macys)

      So even though I didn't have the most cheerful of days, I was dressed cheerfully, and that counts for something. I get excited about chilly weather because it lets me double up on the long-sleeved tops. I've always wanted to pair the crazy scribbles on this cardigan with some straight-edge stripes. On a warmer, drier day I plan to pair the cardigan with my black-and-white striped skirt for more pattern-mixing fun.