2-22-2026 MY WEEK: good pairings

the catholics around the world started lent this week - and this is the first year i actually feel motivated to develop better habits. mainly focusing on no snacks and sweets, no takeout and fast food, abstaining from meat on fridays (some people in croatia fully fast with bread and water only - sib and i have been entertaining this challenge), no shopping, just full body cleanse. while this time of year is to focus on the spiritual when we "give up" something, i want to add trying to develop a more positive mindset like i mentioned in my new year's resolution. 

i love this time of year, it feels more like a resolution because spring is around the corner, and life just seems brighter and more exciting anyways. it's like a buffer for ending q1 - a recap and revamp. 

in other style news, i recently preordered the book almost reckless by designer amy smilovic of tibi. i own a set by tibi, and i regularly follow her substack publications - the creative pragmatist. i like her fashion philosophy, and her inviting us into the mind of a designer and stylist. with the book, i got a t shirt as a gift:

simple, cute, and not an obnoxious slogan. here's how i plan to style this top in the spring time:

this week's looks

a new challenge comes from substack - my newest fave social media platform. i follow taylor dedeaux who popularized good pairings - a moodboard based on two (or more) refreshing color pairings (or patterns) in aesthetic photos or lookbooks. i tried finding these "good pairings" in my closet, while also trying not to look like a jester or traffic cone.

monday's good pairing: a tomato red meets pistachio green. i opted for a brighter, vibrant red in beret and boots, and my green was closer to a lime shade. these were the shades i own. styled with the newest jeans and bouse i bought over the weekend, and paired with a stack of necklaces, moto jacket and sunnies.

monday night's walk, good pairing consisted of another bright red choice, paired with sky blue. i chose my trusty bomber jacket and vlajternativa tote with red details, and a dusty blue nirvana sweatshirt. 

tuesday for work i wore shades of red and pink. many references were made: a good pairing reference for valentine's day and a bratz reference. lace v-neck top with red and pink floral motifs, calvin klein denim skirt, red bomber jacket, red flats, 2 toned coach bag

tuesday night's good pairing was worth fawning over. while i don't have doe-pattern items, i chose a warm, tan blouse, paired with pale pink shoes and bag. 

wednesday's work look - a combination of red, blue, and green. striped t shirt with red, yellow, green, double denim, red flats, tote with green details, blue sunglasses. another double reference - this one is a slight recreation of a high school fit.

wednesday evening we went to ash wednesday and i combined bright red (sweater, bag, some jewelry, shoes) with camel brown (coat, corduroy pants). 

i wasn't so sure for the shade of purple/magenta in thursday's good pairing so i opted for pink. white shirt, striped jeans, blue sunnies, pink coat, pumas and bag.

friday's good pairing was awfully similar to monday's with a darker shade of red, more burgundy-like. i took slight inspo from the back-to-school bratz i used to own. borrowed sib's super pale pink turtleneck, wore my ripped skinny jeans (my first ever pair i bought in croatia when i was a teen), plaid coach bag, loafer flats, fringe poncho in burgundy. i was called pocahontas, little red riding hood, and pippi longstocking at work. nicknames aside, i very much love this poncho, the layering, and i always like nagging sib to make braids for me.

i was bummed i didn't have time for sib to take a photo of saturday's good pairing. i wore a y2k top sib discarded, with armani collezioni bootcut jeans, and armani tote with green handles. the yellow raincoat had a navy lining which peeked during grocery haul. not added were navy eiffel tower earrings (which i have to long into indyx still).

sunday's good pairing for church emphasized mint - so i wore the diane von furstenburg sweater vest in a pale shade of blue-ish, as close as mint can get in my closet. paired with some jewelry with a hint of mint, and a van gogh painting tote. 

to wrap up a week of good pairings, the final one was a color combo dear to me, with a twist - brown + blue + yellow. chose a leopard print top and ripped bellbottom jeans, ugg slippers, yellow raincoat, van gogh tote for the pop of blue, some yellow/gold and brown jewelry, and earmuffs as it was snowing again.

what am i looking forward to next week?

i have a conference in columbus for work, so i already feel the pressure of getting my end-of-month stuff done in only three days, since 2 will be spent down in columbus. i am really just looking forward to nicer weather for some walks.