Thrifting Adventure

May 28, 2011

I have some free time until my job starts in just over a week, so I’ve been enjoying a few weeks free from both school and work. Today I decided to go on a thrifting adventure. I’d heard that the local Salvation Army is pretty good in terms of vintage items, but I had not yet checked it out for myself. I finally ventured over there myself, and it did not disappoint.

I came away with these gorgeous vintage Evan-Picone dark purple Lattice Pumps made in Spain. A little internet research revealed they are from the 1980s, which is what I guessed. I found them for sale online in a different color for $42. My price? $4.50. I’m very excited to wear these in the future. I never thought I would thrift shoes, but these are in excellent condition.


Fun Detail or Too Much Trend?

February 18, 2011

My fashion style tends to lean toward classic pieces, but I do enjoy incorporating current trends into my wardrobe as well. I like to mix fun trendy pieces with the classics because they gives the classics an updated look. The use of the classic or traditional pieces, meanwhile, keeps the outfit from becoming too trendy.

One current trend I’ve been wanting to try out for a while now is the open weave tight. I received open weave tights as a Christmas gift, but never wore them until this week.

When I get something new that, in my mind, is “trendy,” I always feel a little self-conscious about wearing it for the first time. I’ve learned to get over that though because chances are no one else is noticing it or thinking about it as much as I am. I’m sure a lot of people experience this.

Sometimes even once you get over the fear of worrying about what others might think, you still feel somewhat uncomfortable with it–just because it’s something new. There are some tricks you can try to minimize your discomfort. I find for myself, once I get past that initial wearing, then I feel free to wear the item however I want in the future.

Anyway, to get to the point, this is how I was feeling about the open weave tights. They were something new to me, plus I was concerned about making sure they remained work appropriate.

As you can see, my solution was to pair the tights with a longer length dress and tall boots. This minimizes the amount of the tights actually visible. By doing this, the tights become a fun little detail, rather than overtly trendy. The longer skirt on the dress also keeps the outfit work appropriate. These tights would not work in a work setting with a shorter dress.

This outfit also blends trendy (open weave tights and tall boots) with a classic look (dress with a cardigan belted on top of it).

Overall, I was pretty pleased with this outfit. It’s one of my favorites that I’ve come up with in a while. I wore this on Wednesday–my long day. Dressing up on my most exhausting day of the week helps me get through it a little easier.

So what about you? Is your style trendy or classic? Do you ever feel self-conscious about trying new things? If so, how do you overcome that?


Finally A New Outfit Post!

December 11, 2010

I haven’t done an outfit post in months, but I was happy with this one I put together this afternoon, so I thought I should share.

I am so. close. to being done with this semester. I have four papers due this coming week. Two are completely finished, printed out, and ready to be turned in. The third I revised today and I’m waiting for others eyes to look over it before I print it out.

That leaves the final paper, which I’ve been trying to work on tonight. It’s supposed to be 15 pages. I know what I’m writing about. I’ve read all of my sources. I just made my outline. But I am still a little concerned over whether or not I can get 15 pages out of it. As soon as I finish with this post I am going to write the introduction and hopefully come up with a thesis. If I can get that done tonight, I will feel a lot better about the whole thing.

I’ve had Bones on tonight while working on my paper. It usually doesn’t distract me too much since I know it so well. However, tonight I probably shouldn’t have chosen “The Woman in Limbo.” It is distracting me. Love that episode!

I’ve been doing a lot of cooking and baking lately, and I have some pictures and recipes to share with you soon. 


Pops of Color

March 29, 2010

This is one of my absolute favorite outfits that I’ve worn recently.

Top-Ann Taylor

Skirt-JCrew

Necklace-vintage

Tights-Apt 9

Shoes-AE for Payless

Bag-Forever 21

Jacket-Banana Republic

I like the cut of the skirt and when paired with the button down top it is very flattering. I added colorful shoes, purse, and jacket to give the outfit more color and to make it spring-appropriate.

The top includes an attached belt, which I tied into a bow to give the back of the outfit a surprisingly feminine touch.


Uninspired

March 25, 2010

I usually try to space out my fashion posts because I don’t want this blog to be just about fashion. But I am not in a very creative mood today so it’s either fashion or nothing.

Dress-Gap

Cardigan-LOFT

Leggings & Belt-don’t remember

Necklace-vintage

Shoes-some Payless brand

I am not a huge fan of this outfit. I wanted to wear a dress, but I also wanted to be warm at work (our offices are in the basement so it gets chilly down there sometimes).  Oh well, they can’t all be winners. And taking pictures helps me to better realize what works and what does not.


Flower Power

March 24, 2010

I feel like the peasant top gives this outfit a ’70s vibe. I picked it up at a bargain a while ago, but I’ve only worn it this one time so far since, until recently, it’s been too cold to wear it.

Top-Daisy&Clover

Jacket & Jeans-LOFT

Shoes-xhilaration


Back on Track

March 22, 2010

Shirt-The Limited

Cardigan-willi smith

Skirt-jcrew

Tights-Apt 9

Shoes-American Eagle for Payless

Necklace-vintage

I know I’ve fallen down on the job, blogging-wise, over the past week or so. It’s been a combination of being extremely busy during the day and tired at night, plus now I think I am fighting something off.

I am trying to get back on track though. I worked this morning so I decided to spend this afternoon getting caught up on blogs and news and hopefully I can get some reading done tonight between Chuck and Castle.

My work schedule this work is very AM-centric, so I’m hoping for some productive afternoon. We’ll see.


Dressy Casual

March 12, 2010

Shirt&Vest-The Limited

Skirt-Banana Republic

Tights-Apt 9

Shoes-Lower East Side

Necklace-vintage

This is the outfit I wore when I visited a grad school a few weeks ago. There was no dress code for that evening, but I wanted to look nice without being too dressed up. As it turned out, I was one of the most dressed up people there and the only person wearing a skirt. I’ve gotten used to being more dressed up than other people. I quite like that. I firmly believe that you must dress how you want to be perceived.

Anyway, this outfit, and the one I wore the next day (which I do not have pictures of), is what I like to call “dressy casual.” It is dressier than most people’s definition of casual (which people usually think means jeans and tshirts–something that I actually saw people wear to interview at a grad school because we were told we didn’t have to dress up), but it is also more casual than most people’s definition of dressy (i.e. a suit). I try to find a happy medium in my outfits, especially when I go into a situation where I am not exactly sure what is appropriate attire. Hence, dressy casual.

For this particular outfit, the button down blouse, sweater vest, and gold necklace give the outfit a dressy feel, but the denim skirt tones it down a bit. The next day, when I had my actual interview for the program, I wore black dress pants, a sweater, and a scarf. As I mentioned above, we were told not to dress up, which I took to mean we didn’t need to wear suits. So several people wore jeans, but there was no way I was going into an interview without dressing up. I went for a look that was put-together, but not overly fancy.


Little Black Dress

March 10, 2010

Dress-Talbots

Cardigan-willi smith

Bracelets-vintage

Shoes-Predictions

I’ve been wearing this purple cardigan a lot. I love it! I have another outfit coming up soon for you where I wear it again.

I also absolutely adore this black dress. It reminds me of the style of many of Stacy London’s dresses. I wish I had thought to take a picture of it without the sweater. I am sure I will get a chance to do that eventually though. I look forward to wearing it without a sweater when it gets warmer out.

In local weather news, today’s high is supposed to be 55. I really hope we reach that. I am so ready for some warmer temps!


Make It Work

March 8, 2010

Sweater-Old Navy

Shirt-NY&Co

Skirt-Banana Republic

Tights-Apt 9

Shoes-AE

Necklace-vintage

Belt-who knows

The day I wore this I had planned to wear the blouse buttoned up, but when I put it on I realized it was a size too big. So I decided to belt it and wear it as a jacket instead. I quite like the way it turned out, especially with this necklace. The necklace actually has three chains, but the third one hung down too far for this outfit so I tucked it in.


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