Well, it's official - winter isn't just coming, it's here. Although it was mostly gone by the time I took these photos, it snowed fairly heavily a couple of days ago, and I don't think anyone here was totally prepared for it. It's disappointing that we didn't get much fall this year, but it's not like I can really go argue with the weather, so I guess I have to roll with it.

As with most things, though, there is a silver lining - getting to bust out some of my winter gear that I've been waiting for a chance to wear. Namely, this hat.

I bought this this summer when Brian and I went to a music festival in Davenport, Iowa, and promptly forgot about it. I found it again when I was going through my hat boxes recently, and I'm pretty happy now that I had the foresight to snap it up. It is the perfect winter hat for me. Not only is it pretty and stylish, it actually keeps me warm! I don't know if this is a common style that I just haven't encountered before or if it's fairly unusual (any vintage hat experts want to weigh in?), but now that I've worn it for a couple of days I want one in every color.

There are some cool parts of Chicago that I don't visit often, and Hyde Park, on the South Side, is one of them. I had some business down there this weekend, so it was quite a treat to head down early to visit the campus of the University of Chicago. Much of it was built in the late 1800s/early 1900s, and there are some beautiful examples of neo-Gothic architecture that, sort of coincidentally, seem to work very nicely with the sort of medieval headgear I was sporting. Like, is there a way I could sport a wimple (or wimple adjacent hat) more often? Because I kind of feel like it's working for me.

Wearing a 50s inspired look at the University of Chicago in Hyde Park.

I was feeling kind of extra so I took a little video, mostly to show off this skirt in motion. It's a recent purchase from Uniqlo, and I'm pretty thrilled with it. I've been wanting a quilted skirt for a while now but I haven't been able to find the right one, so I was pleased, not to mention surprised, to see that they had nice, reasonably priced version. It's got a great shape and swing to it, and I may have to order it in another color.

Hat: Vintage, 50s
Skirt: Uniqlo (available in olive or navy)
Coat: Thrifted, 70s-80s
Shoes: Asos
Cardigan (as top): 50s