Thanksgiving Casual

Hope you all have had a lovely Thanksgiving!

Being the most casual of the fall/winter holiday season, I kept my Thanksgiving look simple with jeans and a cardigan.

Sweater:  LOFT Petites (Available here)
Blouse:  LOFT Petites (Available here)

Jeans:  The Limited (No longer available on-line)
Boots:  Fergalicious by Fergie (Available here)

The tuxedo bib-front tank and gold threads on the cardigan add just the slightest festive feel to my outfit.

The gold snaps on the jeans and gold jewelry accentuate the gold in the sweater and help bring the look together.

Necklaces:  The Limited and Target (Available in silver here and available here)Bracelets:  The Limited and New York & Company (Available here and here)

Purse:  Target (Available in navy here)

And, I love a pop of color like this deep green satchel.

Do you dress up for Thanksgiving or go casual?

Happy Thanksgiving again, and happy Hanukkah to all my Jewish readers!!  

Fall 2013 Fashion Trends: Lingerie-Inspired Clothing

Today's glimpse into fall fashion actually incorporates five major fall trends. 

Skirt:  The Limited (old)
Peplum top:  Ann Taylor Petites (Available here)

Lingerie-inspired clothing was a huge trend on fall runways, and I love this trend because I have always loved corsets and bustier-style tops, especially when worn with tuxedos.

Jacket:  Forever21+ (Available in pink here)

Tuxedos and new, ingenious takes on the tuxedo continue to be popular this fall, as does leather, real or faux.  Peplums remained a strong trend on fall runways (More on the leather and peplum trends coming soon).

Surprisingly, pink, in just about every shade, is also a major color trend this fall.  

Ring:  Earthbound Trading Company (Available in stores)
Handcuff bracelet:  The Limited
Earrings:  Target (Available in stores)

Clutch:  Target
Heels:  Prabal Gurung for Target

 From the runway:

Nina Ricci Fall 2013 Lingerie-Inspired Look
Source:  Huffingtonpost.com

Nina Ricci Fall 2013 look
Source:  Style.com

My favorite lingerie-inspired looks came from Nina Ricci, but silky pajama dressing was also a big trend.

Louis Vuitton Fall 2013 look
Source:  Style.com

Bracelet (left hand):  The Limited

Today's outfit incorporates the lingerie trend through the bustier top, the corset-like seams on the pencil skirt and the lace-up booties.  I love that each piece is a nod to lingerie without being overly frilly.

Would you wear the lingerie trend?

For this skirt in another look, see here.

For this tuxedo blazer in other looks, see here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

Source:  SaintLouisFashionWeek.com

P.S.  The Official list of nominees for the St. Louis Fashion Blog Awards is in, and I'm nominated in three categories!  Thank you to all of you who nominated me!

You can vote at http://www.saintlouisfashionweek.com/bloggers/st-louis-fashion-blogger-awards/ for People's Choice Awards winners in each category!  

Please take a look at the nominees, and if you think I'm the best in my categories, I'd appreciate your vote!

Vote once a day through September 16th.  

Meet the bloggers of St. Louis Fashion Week here.  Many of them are nominated!  It's always great to discover new blogs.

Skirt Week: Drama Queen

Hi everyone!  Today kicks off Skirt Week, and I'm super excited about this first look.

Skirt: The Limited (Available here)
Clutch:  Jason Wu for Target (Available on eBay here)

Tank:  Torrid (Available here)

I fell in love with this skirt from The Limited the second I saw it and just knew I had to make it mine!  The mini with sheer overlay is a clever and sexy way to show off the legs while still having some coverage.

Shoes:  Target

I hear a lot of petites say that they can't wear maxi skirts because they are too long.  Well, this one was definitely too long, but hemming is generally one of the easiest and least expensive tailoring options.  At 4'9", I have virtually all of my pants and skirts hemmed, even petites sizes.

I had both layers of the skirt hemmed to get the right fit, and I couldn't be happier with the result.

Jade ring:  Vintage (Similar here)

I have some ideas for how to style this skirt for early fall, but after playing dress up for a bit, I came up with this dramatic summer evening look.

I love how these separates create the look of a dress. 

The bold beaded chainlink necklace adds to the drama and really works with this simple color palette and easy, flowy pieces.

Necklace:  Target

Do you like the trend of sheer maxi skirts layered over minis?

For this top in another look, see here.

Ballerina Fantasies

I have always loved ballerina-inspired fashion.  For years, there wasn't a wrap sweater that I could resist.  I love the color palette of ballet clothes - soft mints and pinks mixed with blacks, greys, and ivories.

Tulle skirt:  Custom-made

Blazer:  Forever 21+ (Available here)

I've been obsessed with tulle skirts ever since Sex and the City.  I am in LOVE with the mint tulle dress and cream jacket Carrie wears in Paris during the final episode.  

Source:  Loyola Looks

Tank:  Old Navy Petites (Similar here)
Amethyst necklace:  Target

This skirt was custom-made for me, and I just love it!  I can't wait to style this skirt in a variety of ways.  I imagine it with cute flats and a chambray shirt (if I can ever find one that fits across the girls).  I also imagine wearing it very literally with a wrap sweater. 

Today, I dressed the look up with a cropped tuxedo blazer and stiletto lace-up heels.

Shoes:  Prabal Gurung for Target (No longer available; may be available)
Clutch:  Jason Wu for Target (Available on ebay here)

I'm taking a trip to New York soon, and I was planning on saving this look for my own Carrie moment, but I couldn't resist sharing it with you sooner!!

Ring:  Torrid
Bracelet:  The Limited

Bow earrings:  The Limited (Similar here)

Do you like tulle skirts or other ballet-inspired fashion?

Red Pants, White Jacket

Hope you all had a great Monday!

Pants:  The Limited (Available here)
Blazer:  The Limited

Today, I played with color blocking, mixing red pants with a black bow blouse and white jacket.  

Blouse:  Old Navy
Shoes:  Target (old)

I like the simplicity of this look, which also allowed for distinctive accessories like arrow bangles and a polka dot clutch.

Bangles:  Forever 21 (No longer available on-line; may be available in stores)

Necklace:  The Limited (Available )
Clutch:  The Limited (Available here)
Stud earrings:  The Limited (Available here)

If you're dealing with Winter Storm Rocky, stay safe and stay warm!!!

Holiday Dressing

Stumped with what to wear for the holiday season's gatherings and festivities?

I love holiday fashion!  I would happily wear glitter, rhinestones, velvet, and lace almost every day of the week, especially when it's cold outside.

Here's a gathering of some of the outfits I've worn so far that would be perfect for holiday parties or gatherings.

Don't like all my black?  You could easily substitute red, burgundy, emerald, silver, gold, sapphire, or winter white in places where I'm wearing black.

Happy Holidays!!!

Winter Sparkle

Casual Festive

Velvet Ingenue

Tuxedo Styling

Channeling Chanel

Birthday Suit

I Vote for Sequins, Velvet, and Tweed

Party Time! Excellent!!!

Workaday Elegance

Tunic Time!

Hi everyone!  On this fair Tuesday, I paired my new green and grey printed tunic with a grey blazer and what have become a recent obsession - black skinny pants.  I really love this pair with the faux leather tuxedo stripe.

Blouse: Target (Available here)Blazer:  The Limited (Available here)

I recently got this tunic from Target, and I can't wait to style it in different ways.  It's a little hard to see in the picture, but I belted this top to shorten the top for work.  The tunic actually hits me just above the knee.  I think it will look great worn loose with leggings and boots.  I'm also thinking that it would be great with some grey, teal, or white skinny jeans or pants.

Purse:  Target (Available here)
Earrings:  Handmade

"Pisces" ring:  H&M
Turquoise ring:  Purchased at local jewelry show

For more on fall's leather trend, see here.
To see this blazer in other looks, see here and here. 
For more looks with the pants, see here, here, here, here, and here.

Pants: The Limited (No longer available online.  See them here)
Heels:  Target (old)

Winter Sparkle

It feels weird giving this post the title "Winter Sparkle" as we had a high in the 70s today!  Crazy!

Today's outfit was consistent with the season, if not the weather.

Cardigan:  LOFT (Available here)
Blouse:  LOFT (no longer available on-line)

Loving the luxe look of velvet, I paired my burgundy velvet pants with my rhinestone collar cardigan.

Pants:  The Limited (Available here)
Heels:  Target

The look feels "holiday" - the pants and color palette remind me a bit of Santa's suit.  The white top and rhinestone collar make me think of snow and snowflakes.

Bow earrings (Available in-store at Target)

This outfit would work well for a casual holiday party.  In fact, I may wear something similar to this for Christmas as we don't get very dressed up for holidays in my family.

Bow ring:  The Limited (old)

I do think that the flowy, lightweight top was a poor choice with velvet.  Next time, I would pick a more substantial fabric for a more consistent look.

Purse:  New York & Company (Similar here)

Do you add more sparkle to your look during the holidays?