What I Wore Recently: September 2026

This journey into what I wore in September shows the full gamut of weather this time of year in Maryland. Sundresses with sunscreen, sweaters with jeans, the same dress worn one week with sandals and another with a jacket and closed-toe shoes.

Hey, I got this in before the end of October! Anyone who is or has been parent to a high school senior planning on attending college knows September and October are jam-packed. Good thing everything needs to be submitted by November 1st… and then a waiting game (and the occasional application to scholarships).

Four Objects sent me this dress and I am a fan. Made in the USA from deadstock washable silk/lyocell blend. It has a drawstring waist that cinches on each side instead of in the front. You can play with the strings, wrapping them, tying them in front or back. I just tied them on each side to let them hang like fringe. I got the size L and find it is very generously sized; I could have gone down a size.

The shoes are very old Rockport, the bag is old Talbots, the earrings MIRU, and this outfit was quite comfortable on an extremely humid day with occasional drizzle. This is the kind of dress I could see styled with a fitted turtleneck and boots, maybe a wide belt covering the drawstrings.

I think the first time I showed the Rockport shoes was back in 2021 when I styled an Alexis for Target shirtdress. The Talbots bag I got back in 2022; you can see it in this post where I share what I wore in July 2022.

On this day, I know I had a lot of appointments and was doing a lot of running around. The vest is from LOFT, the jeans are the Ruti Barrel 2.0, the sandals are FitFlop, the bag is Lo & Sons, the hoops are MIRU, and the glasses are Warby Parker.

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I really need to finally do my review of this Lo & Sons bag. I've started it… but fall and a high school senior and all. But the bag has really impressed me. Holds a lot, has held up beautifully, and I love how it can customize from crossbody to shoulderbag to handbag to even belt bag. My hope is to get the post done before the end of the month!

My Girl Scouts troop hosts the annual Pet Show at our town's Labor Day festival. This was our last year since they're graduating, and the last event their previous leader ran. I participated as a chaperone and photographer.

I wore a vintage Girl Scouts shirt I found on Etsy with old J. Crew cutoff denim shorts and my Adidas Superstar sneakers. And yep, the same MIRU hoops. MIRU (FKA Maison Miru) is not cheap, but the quality is stellar especially for anyone who has sensitive ears.

Since I am only a troop leader for a year, it doesn't make sense to get a leader vest and all the regalia. I own a Girl Scouts polo shirt, the troop shirt, and then got this tee. Though I must admit, I did some perusing on eBay and scored myself some vintage Girl Scouts leader fashion designed in the late 60s by Stella Sloat. I was trying to score some of the uniforms designed by Halston, but couldn't find my size. I have no idea when I will wear these… Halloween? But I just couldn't resist!

The next day of Labor Day, I wore an old Lands' End sundress with my STAUD x Birkenstock Arizona sandals and Lands' End tote. Yes, this is the same sundress I wore to Rehoboth Beach in August. I got it last summer and it continues to be a favorite!

The sunglasses are the Wayfarer Ease from Ray-Ban. I have loved the look of Wayfarers for years but they never looked right on me. Not sure what is different about the Ease but I am a fan!

Monday, actual Labor Day, I wore a t-shirt promoting my town with Ruti barrel jeans and an Onward Together baseball cap and those same MIRU Cloud Hoops. The tote is Lands' End, the sandals are Teva. I bought the sandals thinking they were a good replacement for my favorite travel sandals. They are not. They slide around, they are heavier, they gave me blisters. No idea why Teva discontinued the Hurricane Drift.

This is me with Tonya Sweat, an independent running for County Executive for Prince George's County. Like many residents in my county, I am dissatisfied with the current CE and she is running unopposed. I will be writing in Tonya Sweat on my ballot at the general election. If you are local, consider visiting Sweat's website and this article to learn more about her.

And here is later at the Labor Day festival with my sister and the music group Griefcat. You may recognize them from the viral hits about Virginia's flag or how they already took off their bra. They played at the festival and were so good!

I loved the look of this M.M.LaFleur dress but feared I was too short for it. I finally decided to give it a try and am so glad I did! I love this dress and the L fits great. Here I'm wearing it with an old slouchy leather tote, a Jenny Bird pendant necklace, FitFlop sandals, Astor & Orion earrings, and Warby Parker glasses.

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The tote is Isabella Fiore; I got it in 2014 on MYHABIT (previously I said RueLaLa but my archives state otherwise). Here is me carrying the tote in 2014, and here I am carrying it again in 2019. Some things just keeping coming back in style!

Had a doctor's appointment and was in a rush. Grabbed my SPANX hot coral kickflare stretch twill pants with a blue Rochelle Behrens shirt, my Hyer Goods Ring bag, STAUD Birkenstocks, and Lizzie Fortunato hoops and loved the result. In fact, at the grocery store after a woman stopped me to say I brought her joy with my outfit!

These are the same pants I wore in August with a pink shirtdress as a duster, the same pants in this capsule wardrobe.

I went kayaking with a friend. We had been discussing how we both love to kayak and she owned a tandem inflatable kayak so we made a paddling date. I wore an Athleta shirt with matching shorts, and a thrifted bandana around my neck to wipe my brow when needed. My hat is old from Peloton, and I made a “Croakies” for my sunglasses with the cord I use to connect my LOOP earplugs.

The next day, my community had its quarterly clothing swap and I dropped off a large Hulken of clothes, then went to a fabric recycling station to drop off old bedding, and then stopped by little free libraries in town to donate some books.

After, my sister and I went to lunch. The pants are Ruti (sold out, they're linen), the t-shirt is very old… I originally got it at Nordstrom almost a decade ago. The scarf as a belt is old from LOFT, the necklace is Heaven Mayhem, the earrings MIRU, the bag Gap.

The following day, I was a guest on Seen & Heard, a podcast series by Perry. I knew Perry's signature color was pink and decided to dress the part with an old Marimekko silk tee, LOFT pants, a Quince belt, Jenny Bird necklace, and Adidas Tokyo sneakers. I think I got this Marimekko tee back in 2021!

Stay tuned, my episode of the podcast with Dr. Harita Raja will be coming out next month! You can listen to the podcast on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

I got the Gap denim tote and decided to decorate it; this is how it's currently embellished. The scarf is old from Ann Taylor; I used it because it's machine washable and fun colors. The crab is Lands' End (old but they still have cute bag charms), the olives are Baublebar, the heart is Route One Apparel, the lips are from the old DVF x Target collab. The Eff It pin I got on Etsy a while ago but found it still for sale.

I went out to dinner in Georgetown with friends. I wore Quince straight jeans, my Reiss “Lorna” sweater, Camper flats, and took my Gap denim tote. Necklaces are Heaven Mayhem and old M.M.LaFleur, earrings MIRU, glasses are Prada (a style only sold at Lens Crafters).

Had a coffee meeting and then a lunch meeting. Wore a Universal Standard breton and Universal Standard faux suede skirt with Camper flats and my Gap denim tote. The necklace is from Baublebar.

That weekend, went for a hike and then to harvest from my husband's community garden plot. The vest and tee are from Chicos, the leggings are Wool&, the waterproof hiking boots are KIZIK, the faux leather baseball cap is Target and I got it back in 2021 when we went to Fire Island and there was a hurricane.

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Had errands, met a friend for coffee and ended up taking her to an appointment. Wearing the same Ruti barrel jeans you've already seen twice this month, a Quince cotton cableknit sweater, FitFlop shoes, a Polo Ralph Lauren baseball cap, and my Gap denim tote. Same Heaven Mayhem necklace, same MIRU hoops.

It was my husband's birthday at the end of the month and we took him out to dinner. Wearing the same M.M.LaFleur dress at the top of the post, with the same Jenny Bird pendant. However, I made it more fall with my Adidas Tokyo sneakers and this Ruti denim jacket. And this time, the earrings are… you guessed it, MIRU.

They are these puffy disc hoops which have strangers asking about them. My current favorite earring stack is these, then my seconds are these hoops, and my third is these hoops. All the other piercings in my ear (conch, helix, and forward helix) are all these. I've had sensitivity to surgical steel, and these being surgical-grade titanium have not caused issue, even with the 14K bonding.

A jam-packed but good month! I am writing this and it truly feels like fall in Maryland. I'm wearing a cotton shakerknit sweater from Tommy Bahama with my Ruti On the Loose pants and a pair of cozy socks. Though in Maryland, it could be 80 and humid tomorrow!