Simple in stripes

I kept it simple again today with stripes, remixing previous combos with this drop-waisted striped dress (seen here with my other denim jacket and here with these berry flats).

There’s subtle pleating in the front of this drop-waisted striped dress, which has a mixture of chevron and horizontal stripes.

Details:  Striped dress:  Kohl’s, gift-carded last spring  /  Denim jacket:  Old Navy, gift-carded last fall  /  Flats:  Payless, last spring  /  Bead necklace:  Made by my husband, old

Am I the only one feeling an early ’90s vibe with this outfit? Like I’m Janeane Garofalo’s sister or something. Oh my goodness, I’m the missing link in Reality Bites!

Link ups:  Friday’s Five  /  Casual Fridays  /  Fashion Informant Fridays  /  Stripe Style Linkup

Related articles:

• Coral pleats (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)
• Stripes, Stripes, Stripes (magentachic.com)
• Blue stripes + florals (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)
• The French Influence is Spot On (savoo.co.uk)

Coral pleats

Spring is here, and the sun is shining, so I couldn’t resist the temptation of unveiling my new pleated skirt! I recently was the lucky winner of a Florence Adams gift card via the Sisters in the City style blog (woo-hoo!). And this coral pleated skirt was one of the items I chose (the other being this jet statement necklace, last seen here). It was hard to narrow down the color of the skirt, as there are so many options; I had originally wanted red, but it wasn’t in my size. And I don’t have much coral in my wardrobe, so I just went with it!

This pleated skirt was made for twirling! I love the drop waist detail, which is quite flattering, and the skirt material has a nice drape and weight to it. The pictures make the color look more pink, but it’s definitely on the coral side in real life.

Details:  Pleated skirt:  c/o Florence Adams giveaway  /  Sheer floral top:  Fall fashion swap  /  Denim jacket:  Kohls, old  /  Turquoise wedges:  Payless, old  /  Gold hoops:  Birthday gift from mother-in-law, last summer  /  Cross pendant necklace:  My mom’s

My husband helped narrow down my shoe choice today. I often like to pull out different shoe/belt/jewelry options and ask Sam to make the final pick. He went for the fun retro-inspired turquoise wedges — the other finalists were my bronze flats, pewter metallic wedges, and my denim wedges.

And this sheer floral blouse — last seen here, layered over stripes — is quickly becoming another closet MVP. Its floral pattern includes touches of both turquoise and coral (so I am color-coordinating my turquoise wedges, Mom, just to put your mind at ease ).

And, of course, I had to slip in a cheesy pose! You’re welcome.

Link ups:  WIWW  /   Wardrobe Wednesday  /  Get Your Pretty On   /  Dress for the Day You Want  /  Whatever Works Wednesday  /  Random Wednesdays  /  What We Wore, Read & Made Wednesdays  /  Whatever Whenever Wednesday

Related articles

• Peach and Pleats (theautumnissue.com)
• An Outfit You Can Actually Wear: Pleated Knee Length Skirt (beso.com)
• Summer Lovin (magate32.wordpress.com)

Red + blue + grey

Next to red-white-and-blue, red-blue-and-grey is a color combo pretty near the top of my go-to faves. Here’s more evidence:

I haven’t yet featured this sheer navy top on this blog since I picked it up at the fall fashion swap. I love the subtlety of the polka dotted pattern and silver scalloped embroidery.

Details: Red ankle pants:  Macy’s, gift-carded in February  /  Navy top:  Fall fashion swap  /  Denim jacket:  Kohl’s, old  /  Grey tank top:  Target, old  /  Grey flats:  DKNY via Macy’s, Fall 2011  /  Pearl cluster earrings:  Old Navy, gift-carded in winter

Wheee, it’s so much fun posing for pics in full view of the construction crew working on the new apartment building across the street!

I parted my hair in the middle today and rope-braided each side while my hair was still damp. I got lots of compliments on it throughout the day, including from a couple of students, which always makes me feel good. And wow! was my hair curly at the end of the workday when I took out the braids. No pics of that coiffured craziness — believe me, you’re welcome.

Link ups:  WIWW  /   Wardrobe Wednesday  /  Get Your Pretty On   /  Dress for the Day You Want  /  Whatever Works Wednesday  /  Random Wednesdays  /  What We Wore, Read & Made Wednesdays  /  Whatever Whenever Wednesday

Related articles

• Blame it on the rain (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)
• How She’d Wear It with Style and Cheek – Winter Florals (theladyandthebeard.com)
• A Denim Jacket will take you anywhere… (clickshopbuy.wordpress.com)
• Captain Ms. America (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)

Inspiration Monday: Orange + white

This week’s “Inspiration Monday” challenge is from one of my faves, Olivia Palermo. I wore this look last Friday, but I can’t really count a dress-and-tights combo as a “casual Friday” look. But gingham always retains that certain “casual” air, right?

Inspiration:

Inspiration Monday — March 11, 2013 — Olivia Palermo

Interpretation:

My mother’s vintage dress got another outing this week, and even though I layered on a shirt and denim jacket, the top of the dress finally got a chance to prove that it is, indeed, a dress!

Details:  Vintage dress:  My mom’s from the ’60s  /  Gingham camp shirt:  Old Navy, gift-carded last spring  /  Denim jacket:  Old Navy, gift-carded this fall  /  Tights:  American Apparel, last winter  /  Flats:  Payless, last spring  /  Stone pendant:  Gift from my husband, bought on a trip to Turkey, 1998

Link ups:  Inspiration Monday  /  Monday Mingle   /  YOLOmondays  /  Monday Bloom Link-Up  /  Style Sessions  /  Real Girl Style  /  Copycat Linkup

Related articles

• Denim: A Riveting Debate (debenhams.com)
• The Formula: Denim Jacket’s (fashiongrail.com)
• Colorblocked inspiration (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)
• Never too late to discover Gingham style (debenhams.com)

Colorblocked inspiration

For a special “high tea” last Sunday with friends, I culled inspiration from Cori @ La Vie Petite for a casual, colorblocked look – and got to practice my alliteration skills at the same time.  I also plan to recycle this look for work this week, but might switch out the vintage white dress (masquerading once again as a skirt) for my tan pencil skirt (seen here).

And on this sunny day in Portland, I had the idea to stop by this tiny park in our neighborhood. This is a photo-heavy post, because I had lots of fun with the playground equipment!

This vintage dress was my mom’s, and I love the waffle-cone texture of the fabric.

Details:  Vintage dress:  My mom’s from the ’60s  /  Purple long-sleeved t-shirt:  Gap?, old  /  Denim jacket:  Kohl’s, old  /  Tights:  American Apparel, last winter  /  Bronze flats:  K-mart, eons ago  /  Jane Austen pendant:  JASNA event, last spring  /  Pearl cluster earrings:  Old Navy, gift-carded this past winter

And Sam did catch me channeling my childlike joy at being in a park on a gloriously sunny day!

First up, leaning off the monkey bars ladder…

… and jumping off the stairs to the slide…

… and then leaping like a(n awkward) ballerina…

and finally, skipping (to my own tune, naturally).

You’re welcome.

Link ups:  WIWW  /   Wardrobe Wednesday  /  Random Wednesday  /  What We Wore, Read, and Made Wednesdays  /  Whatever Whenever Wednesday  /  Copy Cat Closet  /  Diaries of a Bargainista  /  Hello Spring Link-Up Party  /  Fresh Fashionista Style Linkup  /  Copycat Linkup

Related articles:

• Get The Look: Regina Hall’s Colorblock Mini Dress (styleblazer.com)
• How To Color Block With Whites (madamenoire.com)
• Your Nail Art Project For The Weekend: These Colorblock Nails (shefinds.com)
• A dress for all seasons (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)
• Polka dot mixer (librarianforlifestyle.wordpress.com)