FashionCollocations

Monday, April 15, 2024

Shirt Dresses in Disguise

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog!

This week, during the tricky transitional weather

that the month of April brings,

(currently just 50 degrees, with 20 mph winds),

I am styling two shirt dresses,

both with a bit of a twist in their design

Both dresses are shirtwaist style but not exactly to the letter,

meaning not just men's dress shirt look-a-likes

Are you a fan of the shirtdress?

I find it very versatile,

and it works for many occasions

My first outfit is a subtle royal and navy blue

vertical stripe in a substantial cotton fabric

The dress buttons all the way down the front with shiny gold buttons

It has some pretty, feminine details that I like-

puffed sleeve caps and a deep ruffled hem

My little bag has a curious story behind it

Perfect as it is for me, and a great match for the shoes I am wearing,

I returned it to T J Maxx, where I purchased it

I had examined the purse and opened it in the store,

and the only thing a noticed slightly unusual

was that the tag was not the original

It had been put back on, as if maybe it had come off

and was rather clumsily re-fastened

No problem I thought, tag come off, these things happen

When I got the bag home and looked it over more carefully,

I unzipped the inner pocket, and to my surprise,

I found a ring of three keys and a signed jewelry receipt

from a state half way across the country!

I returned the bag and it's contents

and hopefully T J Maxx was able to get the contents back to the owner

I would love to know what the story is behind this,

my imagination is conjuring up all kinds of possibilities!

Anyway, for jewelry I chose gold tone 3-D flower shaped earrings

and a mixed metal three bar slider bracelet

A bright pink sash belt and braided hair band

to add some contrasting color

Wearing two tone tan block heel Maryjane slides to finish the outfit

I wore the dress in my second outfit back in the early fall

in a post about transitioning to fall with shirtwaist dresses

It is light tan and has a utilitarian look,

with two flapped chest pockets

This dress veers from the typical shirtwaist style

with it's swishy, full skirt

Back in the fall, I wore a matching short sleeve top under the dress

I am restyling it today as a transitional piece into spring,

with a coral cropped cardigan layered over top

Wearing a fun beaded multi color striped hair band

and simple bright silver tone jewelry

Square stud earrings and hinged bar bracelet

Carrying an ivory satchel bag with buckle details

and I belted the outfit with a taupe braided belt

Two tone reptile print loafers to complete the outfit

The tulips started popping up in the garden last week. Love!

I bring a few in the house everyday,

because the area deer love to munch on them

and I feel like every morning I could open the blinds

to a sea of just stems!

Hope everyone enjoys their week!

Monday, April 8, 2024

Well Suited

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog!

The suiting trend has been a very popular one,

really picking up stream during the past fall and winter season

The spring arrivals are showing a lot of suiting pieces too,

in softer colors, prints and denim as well

I am glad to see this classic and timeless look

staying in the spotlight with lots of variations,

so everyone can participate if they choose!

Are you a fan of the suiting trend?

This week I have an outfit with a matching suit

I talked about the suiting trend last month

in a post called Trail Blazer, where I styled unmatched suiting pieces

I wore a solid short jacket

with a printed midi length skirt for one of those outfits,

and a color block look with a longer blazer

and a short skirt for the other one

For this post, I choose a two piece matching

jacket and ankle cropped trousers

Well, this looks like a matching suit, but it was not purchased together

or even from the same brand or shop

I am amazed that the pieces could pass for a matched set!

They were bought as separates

to go with different items in my wardrobe

At the time, I thought these two pieces would be

too close in color to look right together,

but to far apart to look like a suit

So this extra outfit is a nice surprise!

Wearing a mauve tab sleeve long blazer worn over an ivory

silk sleeveless button front blouse with mauve ankle cropped trousers

The pants have a vertical stripe down the the outside of the leg

It could be interpreted as a tuxedo stripe or an leisure wear stripe-

a clever detail to dress them up or down

For jewelry I chose a cuff bracelet with oval natural fossil stones,

silver tone disc earrings and a very special handmade beaded necklace

I purchased this three strand necklace from a pop-up shop,

where all of the items in the shop were handmade by the owner

The beads are different shades of Peruvian mountain opals

Carrying my 60's look curved handle bag

Wearing nude pointed toe sling backs to complete the outfit

Roger and I harmonizing in muted shades of blue, grey and mauve

His solar system necktie has mauve in the planetary print

Here is another wearing of this jacket, last spring

We are finally getting some happy spring color in the garden-

the first Daffodils!

Hope everyone enjoys their week!

Monday, April 1, 2024

Lady Jackets and Cardigans

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog,

and I hope everyone had a nice Easter break!

The lady jacket and lady cardigan

reemerged to the fashion forefront this past fall and winter season

This style is continuing to trend for spring and summer as well

I am glad to see it have staying power, as it is such a classic

This week, I thought I would rummage around in my closet

and pull out one of each, a jacket and a cardigan

from previous seasons to style for spring

This cropped, boxy silhouette never really goes out of fashion-

CoCo Chanel and Jackie O are icons forever!

Are you a fan of the lady jacket and cardigan?

I have seen a lot of women wearing them lately

There are so many variations in the shops now

While they are so popular and readily available,

you might find one that really suits you!

The ones I am wearing in this post are from previous seasons,

but I also purchased a bright pink lady cardigan this season,

That I wore in last week's post

For my first outfit I am wearing

a Kelly green, navy blue and white tweed jacket with four flap pockets

(that actually hold things)

This shade of green, and similar ones

have come back around to be big fashion colors in the past few years,

especially this year, as Pantone named "Mint"

one of their colors of the year

This year's "mint" looks quiet different

from the minty colors of past years

Pantone's swatch looks very much like Kelly green to me

I am wearing this jacket over a white ribbed mock neck top,

and paired with a navy blue button front skirt

Carrying a Kelly green reptile embossed bag in a classic style

For jewelry, I chose a gold tone cuff with green stones all around,

my chunky chain initial necklace,

and 60's vintage double entwined circle earrings

Navy and white polka dot scarf in my hair

to add a little fun and whimsy

Navy suede horse bit detail, block heel loafers

seemed just right to finish this timeless look

Next is a black and white knitted soft and lofty wool sweater jacket

It reads grey in the photo, but the yarn is knitted in a pattern that is reminiscent of tweed

It is open in the front, and piped all around in black satin

Worn over a bright royal blue faux wrap dress

Carrying a red patent leather 1960's vintage bag

It features a unique metal handle in gold tone and red

Wearing bright, bold gold tone jewelry

to complement the simple lines of this outfit

Wide chain necklace and the same entwined circle clip on earrings

as the first outfit

A few more accessories:

Black leather gold buckle belt

and a red scarf in my hair

Grey faux suede, cross strap, block heels

to finish the look

I have this shoe in taupe, and have gotten a lot of use from them so,

I recently purchased the same pair in grey thinking it would be

a nice alternative to black

I haven't worn them much yet, but we'll see!

Outfit with a lady jacket from spring 2021

Hope everyone has a good week!

Monday, March 25, 2024

Easter

Hello, thanks for stopping by my blog

Easter is just around the corner,

and I hope you have a very happy one if you celebrate,

or a happy celebration of the coming of spring!

Easter comes early this year

and the warm weather has not yet gotten the message

that it's time for all the florals

to come out of the closet!

Although it is too chilly to switch out my wardrobe for spring,

I have gotten out a few things in the spirit of the season

For Easter, I am wearing this very full skirted fit and flare dress

with a big, bold and colorful floral print

of peach, blue, black and white with green foliage

The dress is sleeveless,

so I am layering an ivory color soft, fuzzy textured

tie front cardigan over it

The sweater is current, but so Y2K inspired!

I picked out all the fancy, sparkly silver tone jewelry

to go with the outfit

Rhinestone bow collar necklace, chain link bracelet

with a rhinestone heart charm, and pearl drop earrings

I have not used this silver metallic clutch much lately,

but since metallics are a big trend this year,

I will have to put it in rotation more often

Silver shoes, too

I have been seeing them everywhere,

worn with every style imaginable,

from super casual to dressy

Roger is in the spirit of the holiday too,

with a pink and blue striped tie,

and dark blue trousers that match his tie

and the blue in the print of my dress

Pink and sky blue and navy blue

Easter 2019 in a few of my favorite things:

A wrap style dress in pastel pink, with rosebuds AND ruffles!

(FYI, don't try to trim your own bangs the day before a holiday)

I have gotten a little better at it now,

thanks to consulting YouTube videos

Flower of the season

Sweet Easter treats

decorated with a rainbow of brightly colored bunnies

Hope you all enjoy the holiday and your week!

Monday, March 18, 2024

Wedding Anniversary

Hello and thanks for visiting my blog

On March 18th, Roger and I celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary!

I can hardly believe that it has been so long,

the years slip by so quickly

I am very fortunate to have found such a wonderful partner in life

For the occasion, I worn a bright pink cropped lady cardigan,

over a teal blue dress with a pleated skirt

The dress is an oldie but goody classic, chosen many times over the past ten years

Carrying a rectangular metallic silver clutch

and wearing some shiny, blingy, silver tone jewelry

A festive tiered wrap bracelet decorated with orb shaped baubbles,

and a very special pair of 1950's vintage earrings

The earrings have a giant glass center stone encircled by smaller rhinestones

Metallic block heel sling backs in metallic "gilver"

complete the outfit

Roger likes to play along,

so for the occasion, we dressed to match, of course!

He crafted this facsimile of a giant diamond engagement ring

and re-proposed to me back on our 25th anniversary

This gesture was so sweet and heartfelt

Since I didn't post it back then, we put it in today's photo

We were married on the British Virgin Island of Tortola

It was an absolutely breathtaking destination,

and we spent two very memorable weeks there

for our wedding and honeymoon

Here are a few photos from that day, 27 years ago

taken after the ceremony

They are pretty grainy, as they were taken with a film point and shoot camera

Hope you enjoyed this little trip down memory lane

and have a good week!

Fashion Collocations