I am fed up with the air conditioning at work. It's so cold in my office that I was forced to wear a sweater to work today:
A sweater! At the end of June! I know!
Because, apparently, once the air goes on at work, they can't (won't?) adjust it. So, on days like today when it was neither warm enough nor humid enough to justify blasting the air conditioner, they do it anyway. So, in order to survive my Arctic office, I've learned that summer sweaters are not only a real thing, but a sometimes necessary thing.
I paired today's summer sweater with diamond-print pants and leopard flats:
Crap, but white is hard to photograph. Well, trust me, those are black diamonds on my pants, not gray blobs.
And trust me that a sweater was more than called for today:
It's Fiesta!! At least that's what Pantone says. And I'm not going to argue because calling this sweater Fiesta (!) makes this outfit sound more interesting than it probably is.
Which isn't to say it's boring. The combination of fiesta (!) and olive is a fairly interesting one. And the non-matching-but-totally-going scarf is fun:
But, it's mostly the sweater:
Sweater: LOFT Scarf: secondhand (similar) Pants: Gap Shoes: Steve Madden 'Eleanorr' Flats
As you can see, I didn't quite make it to Annie Hall-levels of androgyny. But my look is definitely borrowed from the boys; I paired the shoes with an oversized sweater & frayed jeans. I'll definitely wear the shoes in the future with skirts and tights, but, today, I wanted to pay homage to their awesome manliness.
So manly. So cute.
Happy Friday, All! Don't forget to enter my giveaway!
I like to think of these flame-colored cords as my fall pants:
Because, as you can see, they are perfect for fall.
Can you wear flaming orange cords outside of fall? Sure, I guess you could. If for some reason you liked wearing fall pants in spring, you certainly could do that.
I like to pair my flame-colored fall pants with blue. One, because there is very little I won't pair with blue. And, two, because that color combination reminds me of the blue skies and orange leaves of fall.
Today I paired them with blue leopard; because blue leopard is awesome:
Especially with flame-colored cords:
Happy Monday, All! Or, I should say Happy Visible Monday because I'm finally linking up with Patti!
Cardigan: ModCloth Pants: Kohls Dress: Target Shoes: Old Navy
I mean, it has all the elements I love. It has leopard, it has mustard, it has pointy toes, and it has a vintage piece:
I think it's a sweater clip, but they're pins so who knows?
But, even with all that good stuff, I'm just not sure it's enough. I suspect this problem is with the proportions. I think the idea is there, but the dress is slightly too long. Or, maybe the pants are slightly too short. Or, maybe, just maybe, the shoes are slightly too flat.
I don't know which maybe is the culprit; perhaps the problem is that they all add up into one big maybe. And that's too bad, because I actually really liked this outfit. Being as it has all of the stuff I like in one place and all:
But, looking at the photos, I see it's just not quite right. Instead of a yes, it's just a maybe. Oh, well. It happens.
What about you, Reader Friends? Have you worn any maybes lately?
The other day I was invited by Credit Card Insider to participate in their "Splurge vs. Save" campaign, and, as saving is a cause near and dear to my thrifty heart, I agreed!
My most recent "save" happens to be my lovely speckled Steve Madden flats:
I love these shoes, but, did you know that this pair wasn't my first choice? No, my first choice was a beautiful 3.1 Phillip Lim D'Orsay pair. That pair? $355.00. I also liked the loafer offering, but they were even more expensive!
Now, I don't know about you, but for me, dropping $350 on a pair of flats is definitely a splurge. Enter Steve Madden and the Piperlime sale section:
Left: 3.1 Phillip Lim "Devon" Flats Right: 3.1 Phillip Lim "Page" Loafers
Bottom: Steve Madden "Vyperr" via Piperlime
That's right, I found my flats for a mere fraction of the price of the 3.1 Phillip Lim flats! And I couldn't be happier with my "save"!
What about you, Reader Friends? Have you found any good "saves" recently?
Which is why many of you have already seen my new, adorably speckled shoes on Instagram. For those who aren't following me on Instagram (you should, you know), here they are:
Steve Madden "Vyperr" flats via Piperlime
These shoes are so fun. And versatile; you can have a Cruella De Vil moment in them, a Jackson Pollock moment, or a tiny cow moment.
Or, you know, you can just wear them with rolled jeans and a vintage top:
In spite of being about a whorehouse, a lot of clothes are worn in Under The Poppy. And although I wasn't very fond of this book, I thought the author was very descriptive and therefore the book is pretty inspirational in terms of outfit ideas.
Albeit strange outfit ideas. My first look inspired by this book was inspired by lovers' eye brooches. My second is inspired by a group of eligible young bachelors who want to appear less eligible so they purposefully dress against fashion. For example, one wears "scarlet breeches and a swallowtail coat striped so violently black-and-white that it dazzles the eye, paired with a bouffant tie of vile green." While another wears an outfit "black and severe as a parson's though with trousers so tight and frock coat so excessive - lapels drooping like lily petals, coattails that nearly graze the ground - his is the most extreme costume of all."
I decided to wear an outfit based on a mix of these two looks:
I kept the muted tone of the second look, with skinny black pants and a black jacket, but added some polka dots and a bouffant tie in honor of the first look. The polka dot dress also serves my attempt to get the feel of an excessive frock coat.
Basically, I was trying for a mix of proportions and patterns I wouldn't usually wear but after I put this on, I realized I would totally wear this outside the confines of this challenge:
I mean, it combines layers and leopard and polka dots and black and navy blue. And a lady tie! Those are all things I like to combine in my outfits anyway. Granted, not usually all at once, but, as far as I'm concerned, this works.
And now it's your turn. If you were inspired by a book you read last month, please link up below.
Yes, I know it's Tuesday, but a girl does what she can. I also had to do what I could with this inspiration photo because, as it turns out, I had basically none of the necessary pieces!
Here is the inspiration photo for my look:
It's Olivia Palermo. As I've mentioned before, I'm not sure what she's famous for, but she seems stylish and has nice, shiny hair, so that's something. I also really like her outfit. Unfortunately, I had nothing in my closet that even remotely resembles what Ms. Palermo is wearing.
See? Not even close. But, I tried. Instead of a tweedy, pink topper, I wore tweedy green (thrifted). And instead of fun, colorful heels, I wore fun, colorful flats (Coconuts). And my jeans (Old Navy) are only slightly distressed as opposed to full-on I Don't Give A F*ck distressed. But, I think we can all agree that I nailed the white shirt. Yay, me!
I have to admit I'm jealous of those bloggers who spend their winter months in adorable flats and stylish pumps. It's rare that I get to wear anything but boots from October through March, what with all the lovely Oregon sunshine (it's really rain, they just try to make it sound good). But, today, it didn't rain and it wasn't freezing cold, so I finally got to wear flats:
And, of course, I reached for my leopard flats. They're one of my favorite pairs because they're leopard, they're comfortable and they're snug enough for bike riding:
Note to those of you who want to bike commute, flats are good, but only if they fit snugly. I lost one of mine in an intersection once and it was horrible. I had to watch as cars drove over it and then dash out, in a single shoe, to get it. True story. Luckily, it wasn't hit, but trust me, snug flats are better than loose.
Is there a rule about mixing your big cats? I mean, if I'm wearing a tiger tee can I pair it with a leopard shoe? Or is this look a fashion faux pas?
Hah! I'm just kidding; this outfit is clearly a great idea. I say the more big cats the better! I figure if I'm going to be a cat lady, I may as well be a big cat lady.
Really though, I love this combination of the tiger tee (Bobeau via Nordstrom) with the tweedy blazer (thrifted vintage, similar) and the ankle zip skinnies (Banana Republic). And I think the leopard flats (Nine West, similar) and tiered chevron necklace (Hive & Honey via Piperlime) are the perfect finishing touches.
I mean, could I have used a bracelet? Sure, but I'm still pretty darned happy with it as is:
Also, lest you think when I say "eye of the tiger" I am referring to Katy Perry, let me disabuse you of that notion right here and now. Below is what I'm referring to when I say "eye of the tiger," you young whippersnappers:
Yes, that song is amazing, thank you for noticing.
