Ah, Paris. In her own Barbie-like way, she has summed it up perfectly. Life is too short! If we have to get up each morning and head to our little cube and stare at a computer screen each and every day, we may as well look FANTASTIC while doing it! And make it fun. I would bet that if you make an effort to dress creatively each day, you will reap the benefits: people will notice, they will throw compliments your way, and you will have more fun and confidence. Try it for a week and see what happens.
Start with a frilly blouse under layers that are already in your closet, or a colored shoe with that gray dress you never wear (because you think gray is so boring). Check out the Jil Sander cream dress with orange shoes at the left for a great example of this look. These items don’t have to be one hit wonders. You should look for pieces that will take you to work, but that could be paired with jeans or cardigans for the weekend.
To aid you in this effort, I have found a few inspiration pieces that can punch up a simple black suit or typical work outfit. These items will work with dressy as well as casual outfits, as long as you mix them correctly. The striped blouse with the ruffle down the front would look great with jeans tucked into tall boots. Throw on a long cardigan sweater and you are looking tall, classy, and cool. If you are into a more feminine print, check out the black and white floral print top from Velvet by Graham & Spencer. You can find this blouse on piperlime.com for $141. It may sound like a splurge, but this top will be a staple in your outfit lineup, and will take you from day to night with ease. Don’t forget your red shoes!!
An unexpected pop of color will always make an outfit more interesting. Try this pink skirt from J Crew (on sale!) with a gray or camel colored top for an elegant look. J Crew also has a cashmere shell in gray that would work perfectly. And every girl should own at least one piece of cashmere. It is cool enough to start wearing in early fall and feels fabulously luxurious.
On the days where you just don’t have the fashion inspiration to come up with that perfect outfit, become armed with a one-piece wonder. A simple jacket can put the finishing touch on your look and create instant chic. Take a look at the bright blue trench coat from The Limited. This color looks great on all skin tones and will work over most outfits.
Use accent pieces as fillers for all of the gray, black, and brown that is already in your closet. You will punch up your wardrobe and give it some new life with just a couple of pieces. Much less pain to the wallet than buying a new fall wardrobe! Let me know if you have great pieces like this that you’d like to share.
As much as I love, love, love shoes and can always find a pair that I can’t live without, these are not the days for having thousands of shoes. These are the days of simplifying and enjoying small pleasures. I have found a few items for under $100 that will definitely make you feel luxurious and pampered. Use these to get you through the next few months while the economy makes a comeback!
First, a little sparkle. Try this bracelet from J. Crew, to be worn with anything from jeans to silk. Put on this bauble and you will be given instant glamour! And for $60, this bracelet will be a timeless piece you can wear for years to come.
Next, a little shine. Also from the J. Crew website, although you can find Essie nail polish everywhere, this red color will give a pop to your nails and a finish to your look. Not the most accurate of nail painter? Take your polish to a nearby salon and they will paint them for you. The polish is $8.
Finally, a little luxury. Until you have splurged on high quality lingerie, you probably don’t think it’s worth the money. Use these days of non-spending to buy yourself a nice piece of lingerie. The organic bamboo cotton bra lined camisole from TurningLife.com ($46) might just become a staple in your lingerie drawer. Bamboo is an incredibly soft, breathable fabric. You will want to wear these under everything.
Tough times call for well-thought out purchases. Use these ideas as inspiration to find your little piece of sparkle, luxury, or shine. Happy shopping!!
Ha! I had to laugh when I read this quote from Jennifer Aniston. There are many days when I want to walk out of the house in my workout shorts and flip flops, and there are some days that I do walk out of the house in workout shorts and flip flops (and sunglasses and a big hat). Looking put together every day is not nearly effortless. It takes planning, organization and creativity. There are some days (especially lately) when style is not necessarily a top priority. These days, we are more concerned with getting to work early enough and staying late enough so that we can keep our jobs. How sad!!
However, if you are willing to set aside a few hours to go through your closet and reconfigure how your clothes are organized, I guarantee you will breathe new life into your wardrobe. You will also make it easier to put outfits together each day, getting you to work even earlier (Yaaay...) Take a baby step: hang all of your pants next to each other in the closet; then hang your skirts side-by-side; are you getting the picture? Once you have organized things in this way, you can take a blouse off the rack and hold it over your pants and skirts until you get a match that you like.
Too easy? Ok, smarty. Take out a skirt, a pair of pants and a few different tops. Try to make a week’s worth of outfits with those pieces. You can use any accessories and shoes that you like to change things up each day. How did you do? Give me some comments about your experience!
I'm working on the 10 items you need in your closet and will post it soon, I promise!!
Dave has a good point. I think a lot of people denounce anything they may consider fashionable because they are not thin enough, or don’t have whatever characteristics they consider modelesque, because obviously only models can wear designer clothes. But we are not talking designer clothes here, we are talking clothes that fit you. They don’t have to have designer labels or price tags, although there is nothing wrong with having a few of these pieces when you find something that works.
My rule of thumb is to only splurge on high quality items that are classic, timeless, key pieces in your wardrobe. These are items that will last you many years and that you can mix and match with plenty of clothes in your existing wardrobe. Think of black pants, white blouses, and any type of neutral (navy, browns, greys, etc.)
There will be the rare occasion when you discover a fabulous item that doesn’t necessarily fall into one of these categories. As you become more comfortable in your style, you will begin to veer out of your norm and take a few risks. This is when fashion starts to get really fun! But you still need to be sure that the fabulous piece you find is one that you will wear at least 5 times a year. Or make up your own number, but imagine where you will wear the item. If you can’t think of an appropriate circumstance, I would advise against the purchase. On the other hand, if it is not necessarily the most practical of clothing, but you feel FANTASTIC when you have it on, take it home!
