A Tale of Two Closets: Tropical Looks

Summer has finally arrived here in NYC, and with it warm weather, so we’ve been breaking out some of our favorite Summer staple looks that have been collecting dust in our closets. Since we also happen to be heading to LA and Palm Springs next week, we thought what better way to greet Summer (andddd pick out our outfits for the trip!) than to share another glimpse into our closets, with our favorite tropical inspired looks??

If you missed our first “A Tale of Two Closets” post, we’re going to explain where we find inspiration, and how we chose the outfits we did! PLUS we’re telling you where everything is from at the end of this post! P.S. If you want to read the first post, you can find it here. Let’s get into today’s outfits!!!

Pssttt…if you followed along on Insta Stories with Kyle’s hat chronicles, you’ll know that his old straw hat tragically took a swim in the river, and if you look at the photo above, you’ll see he has a replacement (my straw hat) that also looks like it wants to follow suite. RIP hat, you served many a days of shading Kyle’s eyes from the sun. No hats were lost in the making of this photo.

Sam: When it comes to tropical outfits, I feel like I have too many to choose from! Tropical inspiration for me comes from bold colors that pop, florals, and recently, vintage Hawaiian dresses. I also try to pay attention to the fabric being used, since it is summer and it can get awfully hot in the city. Things made of linen or cotton, and that feel lightweight are what I tend to stick to, so that my clothes don’t literally stick to ME! Vacation outfits should be fun and adventurous, and when I chose my outfit for this post, I wanted to pick my favorite Mara Hoffman two-piece from my closet. I loveee a good matching two-piece, in my opinion they serve the same vibe looks-wise of a jumpsuit or romper without the hassle of having to take the whole thing off to use the bathroom (I know those of you that have worn a jumpsuit totally know what I mean).

I went with what seems like is everyone’s, including my own, favorite color lately, cobalt blue! I have been wearing cobalt non-stop since the weather got warmer and I really feel like it’s making a comeback this year. Kyle picked out his shorts first, and if you haven’t noticed we like to match our outfits. Not in the Shining twins kind of way, but in a way where we complement each other. Ha! The fabric of the set is linen, which is perfect for a hot day in warm weather or by the poolside in Palm Springs. I chose yellow pom pom earrings and yellow sandals to complement the blue and topped it off with a super fun, floral headscarf to give the outfit that resort vibe. I bought this set on sale last year after lusting after it for the whole season. The ease of the top is my favorite part, and to my 5’3″ surprise, the pants actually hit me at the right length! It’s very rare for me to find a wide-legged pant that actually fits, but it feels really great when I do! Hmm…I think that’s it, now onto Kyle’s turn!

Kyle: My turn! If you didn’t know, I’m originally from Florida, so tropical and sunny looks are sort of my bread and butter. Buuuuut, ever since I met this lovely lady up above, my sunshine inspired wardrobe has definitely gone up a step or ten. For my inspiration, I tend to look at what Cole Sprouse is wearing, or what Jon Hamm wore in Mad Men when he was in LA. When it comes to finding the best patterns and outfits, you need to have Sam find the best pieces for you to choose from. I do love vintage resort wear though, whether it be Miami, Honolulu or Venice Beach. I think the shirts Sam finds for me are definitely influenced by those more retro looks. The only thing I really know about the fashion part of this is a type of collar, known as a camp collar, which is a collar that lays flat on the sides instead of being buttoned to the neck, which you can see below. I absolutely love this type of collar because I think it screams “cool as heck” when you wear it. Right?

Enough about my inspiration though, let’s dig into the look itself. Compared to my last look, it’s a little less involved, but that’s how a summer outfit should be. Thrown together quickly and not made of wool. My shirt is a  a modern day “Hawaiian” shirt, which really just refers to the print saying Aloha. It has that amazing camp collar, that helps keep you cool, looking and feeling, on a hot summer day. My shorts are a bit shorter than what everyone normally wears, but that’s because I love showing a little leg. Just kidding. Now, let’s talk about the shoes, which is all I really know about. I LOVE chukkas. They are also known as desert boots, which literally means they are my favorite type of shoe because: 1. I want to live in the desert and 2. I love boots.  I topped it all off with a nice woven straw hat(RIP to my OG straw hat), and clubmaster shades, which are the only pair of  sunglasses I can wear without looking like I have no eyebrows.

The deep blue color of my shorts felt like the perfect way for Sam to match me with her outfit, plus it’s like being in water without having to get wet. I also decided to tuck in the front of this shirt, because I’ve seen Sam do it and wondered “What’s the big deal?” But then I saw it on Queer Eye and knew I had to step it up to their level. It makes me feel classy, while still being able to be lazy. It’s called a “French Tuck” which may or may not be a real name.

It wouldn’t be a tropical post if we didn’t have at least one palm tree too, right? Since we aren’t in Palm Springs yet, we decided we had to bring our own palm tree, now we just need some sand and it’s a perfect beach scene. I still can’t believe how well we matched our outfits, since each piece is bought from completely different stores! Hope you’re enjoying these fashion posts, we love figuring out topics and challenging ourselves to style our clothing in new, exciting ways, so if you have any suggestions for any other occasions you want to see us address, let us know below!

On me (Sam):

Two-Piece (Mara Hoffman last season) // Sunglasses // Headscarf (Old H&M) // Earrings // Shoes

On Kyle:

Hat // Sunglasses (Old RayBan) // Shirt // Shorts // Shoes