Worth the Cold Toes

So, I apologize for my extended absence for the last week or so.  I went back to Oregon, and while the trip wasn't especially sudden, I also didn't bother to plan anything for the blog while I was gone, so, yeah.  Sorry about that.


But, I'm back now, and I'm wearing cute pants:

I'm also wearing sandals so my toes were cold most of the morning.  But, the weather got into the 70s this afternoon so my tootsies were just fine.


And thank goodness too because I love these sandals with these pants:

Sweater: LOFT (similar)  Blouse: LOFT (similar)
Pants: LOFT  Sandals: Steve Madden (similar)

This outfit is totally worth the cold toes.


Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

No Nonsense, Well, Maybe Just a Little

But, not with the tights.  No, these tights were given to me by No Nonsense, and they are living up to their name:

The skirt, on the other hand, is straight up full of nonsense.  The darn thing insists on spinning around on my waist like it's being paid to do so.  Seriously, that front pocket seems to think it's a side pocket and is trying it's darnedest to get back home.

But, enough of the silly skirt.  Let's talk about these tights:

I'm not kidding folks, they are fantastic.

Now, this particular pair, while fabulously patterned, isn't especially thick, but for Fall, or mild winters, these are perfect.  Also perfect?  The fit.  I'd never tried No Nonsense tights because I tend to shy away from tights that have combined sizes, like L/XL, because I've found they're more on the "L" side than on the "XL" side and I am the opposite.  But, these tights fit beautifully.  They're long enough for my legs and didn't sag at all during the day.  They also didn't pinch my thighs, which is good because my thighs hate being pinched.

If your thighs also hate being pinched, I highly recommend No Nonsense tights.  Because, having No Nonsense on your legs gives you more time to deal with the nonsense of your skirt:

Nonsense Skirt: LOFT  Sweater: Woolovers (get 10% off with that link)
Tights: No Nonsense  Boots: Franco Sarto "Eminent"

And that takes a lot of energy.

Happy Wednesday, All!

Gracey

Stripes and Layers

I pulled out my fall/winter clothes last weekend and that's always fun because I find things I forgot that I even owned.  Like this dress:

It's a sort of shapeless cut and so not the most flattering to my figure, but layering a jacket over it helps that issue:

Dress: Old Navy (similar)  Jacket: LOFT (similar)
Scarf: LOFT (similar)  Boots: Born (similar) 

At least that's what they say.

Also, in case you're curious, no, my scarf doesn't match my dress:

But, it goes.  And, as we all know, that's all that matters.

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

One Cowl to Rule Them All

Last year for my birthday, I bought a Skipjack Cowl from Victory Garden Yarn.  This year for my birthday, I bought a Snowdrop Cowl from Victory Garden Yarn:

And it is the best cowl ever.  One cowl to rule them all, if you will.  Or, heck, even if you won't.  Because I will.  But, you should.  Because this is a great scarf.


I wanted to get something more suited for the Pennsylvania winter this time around and this cowl is perfect for layering over cozy sweaters:

Cowl: Victory Garden Yarn  Sweater: Free People
Leggings: Macy's  Boots: Michael Michael Kors (similar)

I ordered the scarf in the charcoal and garnet combination, but Victory Garden Yarn offers 25 color choices and you can order the cowl in any combination of any two colors.


But, I really, really recommend pairing garnet with charcoal; it's fabulous:

Earrings: Modcloth

And perfect for winter without being drab:

Perfect.


Happy Monday, All!

Gracey

The Leather Look

I am not wearing this today:

I wore this while I was still in Oregon and still had my very most favorite photographer friend Ferge to take my pictures.


No, today, I am sitting home watching the Pennsylvania weather decide if it wants to rain or snow.  Oh, goody, it's decided on snow.


But, that's enough talk about the weather.  Let's talk about the outfit:

Leggings: Long Tall Sally  Sweater: Free People  Boots: Splendid (similar)

I usually shy away from "leather look" leggings for a couple of reasons.  And both of those reasons are my thighs.  They like to stretch these types of leggings so far that the "leather" appears to crack.  But, these leggings, from Long Tall Sally, have so far proven to be resistant to my thighs' shenanigans.


Now, the sweater is not a "tall" sweater but you wouldn't know it to look at it:

Free People sweater via Nordstrom

Most over-sized sweaters are just "sized" on me, but this one is well and truly over-sized.  I can't imagine it on a less tall person; it must be a dress!


To lighten up my gloomy-but-cozy look, I added citron earrings:

Kate Spade New York earrings via Nordstrom

Because nothing cheers up a look like some neon citron.


Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Good News and Bad News

I have good news and bad news about today's outfit:

The bad news is that it makes me look like a 1960s NFL linebacker out for a night on the town.  Seriously, Dick Butkus ain't got nothing on those shoulders.

The good news is that this coat, while making me seem even wider than I am, is crazy warm, has great colors and goes fabulously with my new Born Pretty wrist watch:

When Born Pretty contacted me about trying one of their women's watches, I was pretty excited.  I'd been looking at wrap-style watches for awhile and this one comes in several colors so I was able to find one I really like:

My only issue is that it took me forever to get it on, but that's more of an issue with my terrible hand-eye coordination than with the watch.  The watch itself is pretty great; I especially like muted tone of the studs and the face.

To see more Born Pretty watches and accessories, you can visit their website here.  They have a huge selection of standard watches, pocket watches, bracelet watches and LED watches, including several delightfully futuristic styles.  And, if you find one you like, you can get 10% off by using the code GRACEYPC10:

So, the watch is definitely a keeper, but I'm seriously torn about the jacket.  Warm or not, I'm not sure it's doing me any favors.  What do you think, Reader Friends?  Should the jacket stay or go?

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

Literary Stylings #7 - Case Files

I didn't have time (I forgot) to list the books I read for this month's Literary Stylings Link Party, but one of them was Case Histories, by Kate Atkinson:

Case Histories is the book that I chose to base today's outfit on.  Specifically, my outfit is a recreation of an outfit worn to a funeral:

As you can see, it starts of quite funereal.

And then it goes all to heck:

Dress: eShakti (same fabric, different cut)  Tights: DKNY (similar)  Boots: Nine West Darsy

Needless to say, the all-to-heck part is my favorite part of this look.  Partially because bright red legs remind me of red-legged birds, like the red-legged honeycreeper, and partially because in the book, the way the outfit is written about makes me laugh.  The woman wearing the completely inappropriate bright red tights to a funeral notices a man noticing her tights and thinks he's looking at her bright red legs because he's into her.  But, the man is like "what the eff?  Who wears bright red tights to a funeral?!!"  And, in the book the moment is even better because it's summer and she's wearing bright red woolen tights.  It's pretty great.

And, really, the book in general, is pretty great.  It's dark, but it's well done and I plan on reading more Kate Atkinson in the future.  I think this book is the first in a series, so I think I'm going to try to hunt down the next one.

And now it's your turn.  If you read a book in December or January and it inspired an outfit, I'd love to see it.   You can link up here:



I can't wait to see what everyone comes up with!

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Shiny Casual Friday

I don't wear a lot of hats.  I have, what I believe, is an oddly shaped head with a large circumference and a bit of a point on top.  I am basically a phrenologists dream.  But, when I was contacted about trying a winter hat from the Dorfman Pacific Scala Collezione line, I thought I'd give it a shot.

And you guys?  I'm so glad I did; this hat is adorable:

It's boiled wool, so it's warm, but not itchy and it seems to fit my round, pointy head quite well.  As you can see, I chose charcoal, but this particular hat, the Cadet, comes in several colors, including black, burgundy, olive and camel:

I paired the hat with an embellished sweatshirt (LOFT), cuffed jeans (Lucky) and leopard flats (Nine West, similar) to recreate a look I found on Pinterest.  Here is the Pinspiration look:

Image via Pinterest

And here is my look:

Pretty darned close, I'd say.

Even if it's not, I finally did a look I pinned, so I get to link up to H&K Style Journey for their Pinned It and Did It series.  Yay me!

Happy Friday, All!

Gracey

Tight and Moody

This look is both tighter and moodier than I usually go:

Although, I think it really only seems tight to me because my boobs are in one of their bigger iterations right now and the shirt is both high-necked and stripe-y.  Also, I ate some donuts before I took these photos.  Note to self, tight stripes and donuts are not your friend. 

As for the color palette, it is moody, maybe a little grungy even, but I like the mix of the purple striped tee (Rebecca Beeson via bluefly) and the leopard skinnies (Old Navy Rock Star).  I also added a black cardigan (Old Navy) and charcoal boots (Gap) because when your outfit is feeling moody, it’s best to just go with it. 

Happy Friday, Everyone!  Have a fabulous weekend!

Gracey

Textural Interest

One of the more difficult things for me is working different textures into an outfit.  As with most things, the textures that appeal most to me are not subtle.  I don’t just want texture, I want TEXTURE.  I want big, chunky sweaters and fur and the odd feather or seven.

Unfortunately, when you get into the bolder textures, they can add bulk to an outfit.  This can be problematic for everyone, but we larger women, especially, are told to stick to sleek knits for their slimming effect.  God forbid we look bigger than we are, or even our actual size; the oft preached goal is to appear smaller. 

Well, as I often do, I’ve thrown that rule aside.  This time in favor of some texture:

But, I’m not a complete fashion heathen, so I’ve tried to compromise.  My delightfully fuzzy vest (Design History) has a fairly slim cut and so adds texture without adding too much bulk.  The sheer blouse (Liberty Loves via Nordstrom Rack) under the vest and the slim cut of the skirt (vintage via Goodwill) also add texture without bulk.  I added a bit of leather with the boots (Born Crown “Sosie” via Nordstrom) and metal with the cuff (thrifted via Goodwill), all of which combine to create textural interest. 

 

At least that’s what I’m going with.

Happy Thursday, Everyone!  And Happy Valentine’s Day!

Gracey

Mocha, Charcoal and Plaid

One of the looks I knew for certain I’d try this fall and winter was black with brown.  And then, the other day, my charcoal sweater ended up next to my brown skirt and I realized that I also needed to try gray with brown.  So, I did:

Specifically what I did was to pair that charcoal sweater (Tulle) with a mocha-colored midi-skirt (vintage, thrifted).  I added gray and black herringbone tights (HUE), black shooties (BC Shoes) and my plaid infinity scarf (DIY’d).

And I’m glad I tried it, because I liked it.  I think the look would have worked just as well with a black sweater, but I think the charcoal with the mocha is a little bit more unexpected.  And I think the plaid scarf was a little unexpected as well.  Well, maybe not on me as I wear this thing constantly, but in general terms of clothing combinations, I’m totally cutting edge.

Happy Wednesday, Everyone!  Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Gracey