Blue Green

I was trying to figure out if these pants are blue or green:

And then I realized that the answer is "yes."


So, I paired them with some blue and some green and some blue green:

Shirt: Gap  Blazer: LOFT (this year's version)
Pants: LOFT  Scarf: gifted (similar)  Boots: Ivanka Trump (similar)

Because what else would you wear with yes-colored pants?


Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

Floral and Chambray

This may be my ideal Spring outfit:

Wrinkled-but-still-cute vintage dress?  Check.

Chambray blazer?  Check.

Caramel-colored boots?  Check.


Also, not for nothing, but I think this chambray blazer may be my wardrobe's jean jacket:

By which I mean the piece I will throw over any- and everything all season long.  I can't do regular denim jackets.  They make me look like a box.  And not like a cute little jewelry box with a ballerina inside.  No.  Like a denim box that a refrigerator was shipped in that now makes an awesome fort.  That kind of box.


But, the chambray blazer?  This I can do:

Blazer: LOFT (this season's version)
Dress: thrifted vintage (similar)  Boots: Enzo Angiolini "Colston"

Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

That Tapestry Dress

Now that it's gotten colder here in Western PA, I find myself wanting to wear this tapestry dress all the time:

I want to wear it layered under things.  And over things.  And, as is the case with today's look, both over and under things:

I just love the bright print on the black background:

And I love how warm it is.  It's a heavy, woven fabric, like, well, a tapestry.  Or, I guess, upholstery.



I don't think I'll be calling it my "upholstery dress" because it just doesn't sound as fancy:

Dress: eShakti (similar)  Top: LOFT  Blazer: thrifted Pendleton (similar) 
Earrings: Macy's  Tights: SPANX  Boots: Franco Sarto "Eminent"

Make no mistake, though, I would gladly take a side chair or some throw pillows in this fabric.


Happy Monday, All!

Gracey

Blue Silk Blazer

The blue of this silk blazer is simply the best:

And I love how it looks paired with white jeans for spring:

Also, I totally recognize that I'm wearing a lot of black, white and blue lately.  But, blue is both my signature color and my Kryptonite, as I am powerless to resist it.


Especially pretty blue in the form of a silk blazer like this one:

Blazer: thrifted  Tee: LOFT (similar)
Jeans: Old Navy Sweetheart  Shoes: Old Navy (save, fair to middlin', splurge)

I'm only human after all (at least so far as you know).


Happy Friday, All!

Gracey

Black, White and Bright

Most everyone agrees that black and white are a classic combination.  But, to my eye, black pants and a white blazer can read less "classic style" and more "classic waiter."  To avoid being asked for water refills, I added some navy and a bright scarf to my look:

And, it seems to have worked; not a single person asked me for today's specials.



As is often the case with my outfits, the scarf is the best thing about this look:

It's vintage, silk Vena and it is, of course, thrifted.  I couldn't resist the colors or the mix of graphic patterns.



The navy shirt though; I'm not sure that was necessary:

You can hardly tell it's navy and I'm skeptical that it's bringing anything to the outfit.  I think a black shirt would probably have been fine.  Huh, I wonder if I thought this was a black shirt?  Hell, probably.


Oh, and although you can't tell from the above photos, I am also wearing shoes:

Blazer: Banana Republic (similar)  Pants: LOFT
Top: Gap (similar)  Scarf: vintage Vena  Shoes: DSW (similar pump) (similar flat)

Cap toe wedge pumps, to be exact.  Remember when cap toes were all the rage?  Are they no longer?  Do we care?  I have to say, I don't think I do.  How about you?


Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

Literary Stylings #16: Hidden

As I said last week, Hidden, by Paul Jaskunas, was really the only book I read last month that I liked:

As it's entirely too cold to be running about in a wet nightie sans undercrackers, I decided to base my look not on the cover, but on a passage from the book.

I recall we had a cold November.  There were snow flurries, and the flakes were a reminder of a secret the world was trying to tell me about myself.  The colder it became, the more I wanted to feel beautiful.  I bought pleated skirts, snug dresses, tights, and open-neck blouses.  I wore jewelry and perfume to sustain myself.

And here is my outfit:

As you can see, my skirt has a few pleats in it and I paired it with tights and an open-neck blouse.  I'm also wearing both jewelry and perfume:

Earrings: Moorea Seal   Necklace: c/o Onecklace

Although the above passage inspired my look, I can't really relate to it.  Here the cold just makes me want to wear more and more layers.  I don't care if I feel beautiful or not, I'm all about feeling warm.  However, I do think this is an important passage in the book because I'm not sure she, the main character, Maggie Duke, is telling the truth.  I think she wanted to feel beautiful, but not because of the cold.

This book is very interesting because you never really know what the truth is.  In it, Maggie is attacked and nearly killed and her identification of her attacker based on her memories from that night get him sent to jail.  But, then you find out that perhaps her memories of that night are not, in fact, true and maybe he didn't do.  Maggie goes back through her memories of the time leading up to the attack as well as the attack itself and as she does so, you start to doubt her a little bit.  Not just about the attack, but about everything.

You never really do find out what happened to Maggie that night, or rather, the author provides a couple of different options.  It all depends on if you believe Maggie or not and you're definitely given reason not to.  Just as you're given reason not to believe the other characters in the book.

Again, this really was an interesting book and a good mystery.  And, as an added bonus, it produced an outfit I like:

Blouse: LOFT  Skirt: thrifted vintage  Blazer: Gap (similar)
Tights: SPANX  Booties: Splendid

Win-win.

And now, it's your turn.  Are you winning with your literary-inspired looks from last month's reads?  If so, don't forget to link up below!

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Romper? Romper.

I do not honestly believe that adding a blazer to something automatically makes that something work-appropriate.  For example, a blazer with cut-offs and Chucks is NOT work-appropriate.  It's just not (okay, maybe it is for you; I don't know your life).  However, not believing something doesn't mean I won't try it, because why not, right?

No, I'm not wearing a blazer and cut-offs.  I'm wearing a blazer and a romper.  Romper?  Romper.

Romper: thrifted vintage   Blazer: Banana Republic  Boots: Nine West

Is it office appropriate?  Probably not.  But, no one said anything so either I got away with one or they thought I was wearing a ridiculously short dress.

It's not though; it's a vintage romper:

And because I will, apparently, just wear whatever this summer, I wore it to work.  With a blazer.  You know, for added professionalism and all.

Oh, right.  That's not actually a thing.

Well, this happened anyway:

And, except for having to get fully undressed to pee, it was pretty comfortable!  I mean, I'm not saying I'm going to run around in rompers all summer, but I'm not saying I'm not either.

Happy Friday, All!

Gracey

Get the Look

Similar polka dot romper

Similar white jacket (tall option here)

Similar flat boots

Similar belt

Professor of Equestrian Sciences

So, this outfit sort of looks like something a Professor of Equestrian Sciences might wear for the last class before winter break:

In other words, it doesn't look like spring.  But, in my defense, it doesn't feel like spring in Oregon right now either.  It is cold, it is wet and layers are definitely necessary.  Are Christmas-y layers necessary?  Probably not, but they're happening anyway, aren't they?

The answer is yes, yes they are.

Actually, I think it's just the blouse that throws this look into Christmas territory.  At least that's what my sister says; she swears it's covered in snowflakes.  But, it's not; they're little flowers:

Not the most spring-like flowers, but flowers all the same.  So, at least I'm a seasonally appropriate Professor of Equestrian Sciences.

And, I'm also a participant in The Citizen Rosebud's #SECONDHANDFIRST Link Party.  The entire top half of my outfit, the professorial half, if you will, is thrifted.  The jacket, the blouse, the lady-tie and the lion pin, are all from secondhand shops.

To see what thrifted goodies others are wearing, please do stop by Citizen Rosebud.  And if you're a second-hand shopper, make sure you link up too!

And have a happy Friday, All!

Gracey

Coral, Coral, Coral

I really love myself some coral.  Obviously:

Coral yesterday, coral today.  Coral, coral, coral.

I also, apparently, really love the combination of those pants with those shoes.  Heh.  Well, what can I say, I can’t be creative all the time.  Or, even most of the time, if I’m honest.

But, I digress.  I was talking about my apparent obsession with coral.  In spite of what it looks like, I'm not actually obsessed with coral.  But it is one of my favorite colors and I do wear it quite a bit.  I especially like this particular coral (blouse via Old Navy) and peach (vintage blazer via Goodwill) color combination.  Worn today with dark skinny jeans (Banana Republic), a barely seen leopard belt (v. old) and cap toe wedges (bandolino via DSW).  Oh, and a long necklace (thrifted via Goodwill).

And, because at least two items in this look are thrifted, I’m linking up to Thrifter Thursday over at Coffee and Cardigans.  I’m pretty proud of myself for remembering to do this as I’ve forgotten for weeks.

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

Shop the Look:
Similar single-pocket blouse
Similar peach blazer (up to size 16)
Exact Banana Republic skinnies (tall up to size 16)
Similar long necklace
Similar leopard belt

** Disclosure: Actions taken from the hyperlinks in this blog post may yield commission/compensation for the writer. Please see the Disclosure tab for more details.
 

I Blame Madonna

 

Okay, I realize that some of you make look at today's outfit and say "Sweet baby Jesus, Gracey, more blue?  If I wanted to see this much blue, I'd go stare at the ocean."  To which I say, firstly, that if you have an ocean in staring distance, go have yourself a good stare; it's good for you.

Secondly, I blame Madonna.  After I uploaded that video yesterday I had to watch it a couple of times because 80s Madonna is a national treasure.  And then, of course, the song was stuck in my head and as a result I couldn’t think past the color blue when getting dressed this morning. 

Still blue.  Still true (sure, why not?).  This time in the form of a thrifted silk blazer (via Salvation Army).  But, this time with a printed maxi dress (eight sixty via Nordstrom Rack) and some boots (Gap) to mix it up.  So, you see, this is nothing like what I wore yesterday.  Additionally, these aren't the droids you're looking for.

And that, folks, is how you pretend you didn’t accidentally repeat the same color palette two days in a row.   Smoke and mirrors and Jedi mind tricks.  Works every time.

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

Watercolor and White

This weekend I received a gorgeous watercolor-print scarf from FRAAS:

It is the Mystical Waters scarf, in turquoise, and it’s great.  It’s actually pretty big (40 x 72 inches) and can be used as a wrap, but isn’t too bulky when tied as a scarf, which is how I wore it today:

I wanted to keep the focus on the scarf, so I kept the rest of the outfit neutral, pairing it with a gray tee (Target), trouser jeans (Banana Republic) and a white blazer (Banana Republic).  I also added a clear belt (v. old, Old Navy) and platform booties (Nine West via TJ Maxx).

I think the scarf adds just the right amount of color, texture and interest to the look.  It’s definitely a piece I can see myself wearing all spring and summer. 

If you’d like a FRAAS scarf of your own for the upcoming season, this particular scarf (Style 623949) can be ordered by calling 212-575-0191.  And other scarves are available at fraas.com and amazon.com.

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Shop the Look:

Similar trouser jeans (available in Tall)

Gray Target tee

Similar white blazer (available in Tall)

Similar clear belt

** Disclosure: Actions taken from the hyperlinks in this blog post may yield commission/compensation for the writer. Please see the Disclosure tab for more details.

Tulips and Diamonds

The other day on You Look Fab, Angie posited that the popularity of prints and patterns was on the wane and asked if the “pattern party” were over for us.  I said that I thought so, that I was buying fewer prints lately.  But, I realized that I’m just buying fewer clothes in general (an unhappy side effect of my Nosh Opping Expedition) and that I still love prints as much as ever.

What made me come to that realization?  This outfit:

I think that if I were over prints, I’d have just paired a plain black blazer with this tulip print dress (handmade, thrifted via Better Bargains aka The Sticky Thrift Store).  But, instead, I paired my tulips with a vintage, diamond print blazer (Anne Klein via Salvation Army) because, given the option, I’m almost always going to choose to mix prints over pairing a print and a solid.  I did add some solid tights (Spanx via Nordstrom) and booties (Nine West “Darsy) though.  And I added my Eye of Sauron belt (vintage via Goodwill) because, well, what else would one wear with tulips and diamonds?  

So, yes, it appears that I am still firmly Team Prints and Patterns.  But, what about you, Reader Friends?  Are you over prints or still on board?  Or, were you never on board?

Happy Tuesday, All!

Oh, yeah, even though today is Tuesday, I wore this yesterday and felt quite visible so I’m linking up to Patti’s Visible Monday over at Not Dead Yet Style.  Better late than never, right?

Gracey

Basic Blue and an Animal Print Shoe

Mostly because I like rhyming:

And pattern mixing.  Which I guess means this look isn’t really basic blue: 

But, honestly, in spite of the mixed print blouse (Banana Republic) paired with the polka dot blazer (Pendleton “Country Sophisticates, thrifted) and the animal print shoes (80%20 via Piperlime) this feels like a very basic outfit to me.  I mean, it's just jeans (Banana Republic), blouse and blazer, but it doesn't feel boring.  

Thank goodness for pattern-mixing.

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey