Black Pants for Work: High-Waisted Trousers

I've featured this suit on the blog before here and here, but it really is one of my favorites.  

Pants:  The Limited (old)
Blazer:  The Limited (old)

Blouse:  The Limited (Available here)

As much as I enjoy skinny pants and jeans, I love the elegance that wide leg trousers have.  Wide leg trousers are making a major comeback for spring, and I'm hoping to find another pair.  The high waist and tie belt add a little flair.

I've featured this suit in vintage-inspired looks before, but today I took the suit in a more contemporary direction with a modern dot print blouse, gold horn necklaces, and open-toe booties.

Boots:  Target (Available here)

Clutch:  Vintage

The red clutch adds a fun pop of color.

Necklaces:  The Limited and Target (Available here)

Are you a fan of wide leg trousers?

For these pants in other looks, see here and here.
For this blouse in another look, see here.

Playful Patterns

Hi everyone, and happy Friday!!!

Dress:  LOFT

I hope today's look puts a smile on your face because it certainly does mine! 

As most of you probably know by now, black and white is my favorite color combo and I love mixed prints.

Cardigan:  Torrid

Shoes:  Target (old)

The fit and flare shape of the dress and red peep-toe heels lend the look a retro vibe.

I only wore this outfit long enough for pictures, but I would definitely wear it to a bridal or baby shower or for another fun or festive occasion.

Clutch:  The Limited

And because joy is so often found in play...

Have a great weekend everyone!!  :-D

For this dress in another look, see here.

Kiss and Tell

I just wanted to extend a big thank you (and cyber-kiss) to everyone who voted for me for the St. Louis Fashion Blog Awards.  I'm so honored to be nominated and am excited to hear the results tonight at the awards presentation!

Blouse:  The Limited (Available here)
Pants:  The Limited (Similar here)

Blazer:  The Limited (Similar here)
Clutch:  Vintage

My almost daily bombardment of requests for your vote is over.  Asking for your vote everyday was not always an easy thing to do.  Doing so felt obnoxious, self-serving, and needy, qualities I generally dislike, and I certainly hope no one was put off by my frequent reminders.

At the same time, I have learned some very important lessons over the last year or so:

1)  You don't usually get what you want unless you ask for it.

2)  People aren't inclined to believe in you and help you work towards your goals if you don't  first show that you believe in yourself.

3)  You have to be your biggest cheerleader.

Heels:  Target (Available in other colors here)

Bold, gutsy, self-assured people often get further in life.  It is not because those people have more education, are more attractive, or are smarter.  It's that those people create excitement in others.  They make people stand up and take notice. 

The daring to show your self to the world is not an innate quality.  While it may naturally come easier for some than others, I definitely believe it's possible to develop these characteristics through affirmative efforts.

I'm s.l...o....w....l.......y learning to become one of those people, but it is a daily conscious process for me to remember to put myself out there and to garner the courage to actually do it. 

Women are often socialized in this culture to not take up a lot of "space", to put others' needs and wants before their own, and to not ask for or demand too much from others.  

Through a lot of reflection on my life, I realize that I was taught these lessons in many ways, lessons that cripple many women from realizing their full personal and social potential.

Asking for what you want, saying "Hey, I'm out here, and I'm fabulous...Notice me" feels "ballsy" because it IS.  So many of us, women particularly, have been taught that doing this is arrogant, selfish, and needy.  

It is not.  

Bracelet:  The Limited

We all have something unique to contribute, and it's in recognizing our own potential and uniqueness that we make ourselves useful to others.  Asking others to take notice of us in a direct way shows confidence.  It shows that we believe in ourselves and the skills, talents, and ideas that we can contribute.  It makes people remember your name and makes them WANT to take a chance on you!

Do you ask for what you want?  Do you like kiss/lip prints?

Dress Week: Mixing Decades

Happy Saturday, everyone!

We have been having a lot of 90+ degree days lately.  This season, I am forcing myself to dress for the season and rid myself of the constant need for cardigans and blazers, at least when I'm not at work in my chilly office.

Tunic:  Forever 21+ (Available here)

In the past, I would have thrown a cardigan over this look, even in the height of a balmy Midwestern summer.

Today's look has a modern appeal but references the 1920s and 1940s.  

I am completely inspired by the 1920s.  The decade was such an amazing period of progress and change for women's political and social rights in this country.  With the social changes came a change in fashion.  I really can't get enough of 1920s fashion - so beautiful and interesting.  The dropped waist of this dress and bead necklace is a subtle nod to the flapper era.

With World War II in full swing, the 1940s also brought about a lot of change for women as women were told it was their patriotic duties to join the paid labor force and support the war efforts.  This decade led to war-time rationing, and the fashion of that decade also reflected those changes.  These color blocked bow heels give reference to 1940s fashion.

Necklace:  The Limited (old)
Clutch:  Target

Shoes:  eBay (Available here)
Bow earrings:  The Limited (Similar here)

Mixing fashion from two decades that brought such major change for women feels modern, fun, and just a little bit quirky!

Ring:  LOFT

Do you like wearing vintage or vintage-inspired fashion?  What fashion periods do you find inspiring?

For this tunic/dress in another look, see here

Shake N' Shimmy

Hope you've all had a great weekend. Today marks the end of Black and White week!

Shorts: New York & Company (Available here) Blazer: The Limited (Similar here)

I finish this week off with a summer evening shorts look.  The outfit features geometric print shorts and my fun fringe top.  I'm usually not a very big fan of shorts, but I fell in love with the bold print of these.

Fringe top:  Ann Taylor Petites
Clutch:  Vintage

I added neon pink and red accessories to finish off the look and to add some fun pops of color.

Shoes:  Target (Available here)

Hope you all enjoyed some of my favorite black and white looks this week!  I'll be back soon with lots of color!!

Necklace (worn as bracelet):  The Limited

To see this top styled differently, see here, here, and here.

For more on spring's black and white trend, see here.
For more on spring's shorts trend, see here.

For more on the history of fringe, see here.

Leather and Lace

For today's look, I paired a black faux leather skirt with a lace and faux leather top.  

Blouse:  Forever 21+ (Available here)
Skirt:  The Limited (Available here)

I love wearing leather and lace - such a great mix of hard and soft.  

Shoes:  eBay (Available here)

Tank:  Old Navy Petites (Similar here)

Such a mix of fabrics could easily translate to a bad 80s combo, but the more modest and modern shapes of this outfit feel spot-on to me.

Clutch:  Target (Available in stores)

This look combines two of spring's major trends - graphic black and white and leather.

For more on the black and white trend for spring, see here and here.

For this skirt in another look, see here.
For this blouse in another look, see here.

Casual Monday!

Jeans:  Torrid (Available here)
Blouse:  The Limited (Sold out on-line; may be available in some stores)

Today is the St. Louis Cardinals' season home opener, so we had a casual day at my job.

I decided to wear my new stiletto skinny jeans from Torrid and mixed them with a red and navy printed top.  The ankle-zip jeans are just a tad too long, but I'm hoping they'll shrink up a bit.  

Blazer:  The Limited
Tote:  The Limited

I was hunting for for a pair of distressed jeans, but I couldn't find any that I liked.  Most factory-distressed jeans are overdone, in my opinion.  I am planning on giving these a DIY-distressing job but decided to wear them today before they get too casual for work.

Necklace:  Vintage Judith Leiber
Clutch:  Vintage 1980s

For work, I added a red blazer to dress the look up a bit and to show support for the Redbirds.

I'm not much of a professional sports fan, but I decided to take the opportunity for another day of casual at work.

Heels:  Target (old)

Hope you all had a great day!!

Do you like sports?

To see this top in other looks, see here, here, and here. 

Feminine Suiting

Whenever I think I've dressed a little too casually for work (see yesterday's outfit), I often purposefully choose something more formal to wear the next day.

Pants:  The Limited (old)
Blouse:  The Limited (old) (Similar here and here)

Today, I chose my black high-waisted pants and paired them with a polkadot bow-front blouse.

Blazer:  The Limited (Similar here)
Belt:  The Limited

I love the retro vibe of the look. It's classic, but in an interesting way as it has a 1940s vibe.

I paired the outfit with a peplum blazer for work since it was chilly today.

Earrings: The Limited (Available here)
Purse:  The Limited (old)

Today's look isn't too different than one I previously posted (see here).  I had originally planned on wearing a red blazer, but I just felt like this one worked better.  

Shoes:  Target (old)

Sometimes it can easy to get stuck in certain outfit pairings, but if it ain't broke, why fix it, right?

Keep or Return?

Dress:  Torrid (Available here)

Clutch:  The Limited

I bought this dress at Torrid not too long ago, but I'm pretty sure that I am going to return it.  

Necklace:  Target (No longer available on-line; see here)

Shoes:  Target (Available in other colors here)

I love the retro shape of it, but I'm not sure I'm in totally in love with this floral print.  I'm also not sure the strapless fit works for me in this particular dress.  If I keep it, I would get it hemmed an inch or two to fit right above or at the knee rather than below the knee.

Bracelets:  Express; Target

I had fun taking pics in this dress, but I just don't see it as being a mainstay in my wardrobe.

What do you think - keep or return?

Neutral sophistication

Today, I paired my paperbag-waist trousers and peplum blazer with a striped shell for a look that felt a little vintage, a little modern.

High-waist paperbag trousers:  The Limited (old) (Similar here)
Peplum blazer:  The Limited (old) (Similar here)

The high-waist wide leg trousers and peplum have a 1940s feel, but with the peplum being such a major trend the last year or so, the outfit also feels very modern.

Tank:  LOFT
Earrings:  The Limited

Vintage jade ring:  gift (Similar here)
Vintage jade bracelet:  gift (Similar here)

Wide leg trousers can be tricky on curvy petite frames.  I tend to err on the side of hemming wide leg pants slightly too long to create the longest line possible.
 
I paired the outfit with vintage statement jewelry and a faux croc bag to finish the retro modern look.

Purse:  Express (Similar here)
Shoes:  Target (old)

Do you like pairing vintage and modern styles?

Anchors Away

Hope you all had a great day!  Unfortunately, I'm feeling under the weather today, so my pics are a bit limited.
I paired my burgundy velvet pants with a striped tank and anchor cardigan for a fun nautical theme look.

I usually reserve nautical prints and themes for spring and summer, but I loved the mix of colors of this outfit.  The layers and fabrics were enough to keep me warm this chilly day. 

Cardigan:  Torrid (Similar here)
Tank:  Old Navy Petites
Pants:  The Limited (Available here)

Purse:  The Limited (Available here)
Boots:  Payless (old)
Anchor earrings:  Gift (Similar here)

Would you wear an anchor print?  How would you style this cardigan?