A few weeks ago, I stumbled upon these dotted brown shorts from Madewell on Nordstrom, and was completely smitten (see my review here). I’ve been inspired by the idea of capsule wardrobes lately and have been trying hard to buy less things, and only buying things that go with several other pieces in my closet. To be honest, when I purchased these shorts, I had nothing to wear them with in my closet, but I was so in love with the color and pattern, I couldn’t help myself.
So I purchased the shorts and began a hunt for the perfect top to wear them with. To keep in line with the idea of a capsule wardrobe, I wanted something that would go with more than just these shorts. I was on the hunt for something easy, casual, not too tight, not too loose, and in a cream color. After weeks of scouring, I decided on a top from American Eagle, called the AE Contrast Cropped Tank Top, in the “natural white” color.
I originally ordered this top in my usual AE size, XXS. Considering I’ve owned multiple AE tops and dresses all in size XXS, I was surprised to find that I did not like the fit of the XXS on me. The top pictured above is a size small, and fits the way I was hoping the XXS would – not too long, not too short, not too tight, not too loose.
Technically, the top did fit. For reference, I am 4’11”, with a 24″ waist. The XXS wasn’t skin tight, but was more figure hugging than the small you see above. The hem of the XXS hit right above my hip bone, which might be fine for some, but I was really looking for a top that covered the top 1 to 2 inches of my shorts.
There is butterscotch stitching around the neck and arm holes, which ties in nicely with brown shorts like this one, or denim shorts in any shade. The hem is a raw, unfinished hem, which adds an interesting touch to the top.
I’m currently liking the look of this outfit with my black Sam Edelman flip flops, but you could also pair an outfit like this with brown sandals, like my Birkenstock Arizona sandals (see my review here).
Do you make sure an item goes with multiple things in your closet before purchasing, or do you shop on a whim? Let me know in the comments down below!
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Thanks for reading!