Houndstooth and Harlequin

Today I've paired houndstooth with harlequin:

And, frankly, I'm surprised it took me this long to put these two together.

The houndstooth blouse (thrifted Jones New York, similar) is a natural fit with the harlequin sweater vest (thrifted vintage JG Hook, similar).  Thank goodness I found these two hanging out together in my closet or this may never have happened:

Can you imagine??!!

Really though, though, those two did the hard work. I just added a midi skirt (thrifted vintage, similar), tights (Spanx Tight End Tights) and ankle boots (Nine West "Darsy").  Oh, and my new favorite tiger diadem necklace (Hive and Honey via Piperlime):

It's not my fault it goes with everything.

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Eye of the Tiger, Foot of the Leopard

Is there a rule about mixing your big cats?  I mean, if I'm wearing a tiger tee can I pair it with a leopard shoe? Or is this look a fashion faux pas?

 

Hah!  I'm just kidding; this outfit is clearly a great idea.  I say the more big cats the better!  I figure if I'm going to be a cat lady, I may as well be a big cat lady.

Really though, I love this combination of the tiger tee (Bobeau via Nordstrom) with the tweedy blazer (thrifted vintage, similar) and the ankle zip skinnies (Banana Republic).  And I think the leopard flats (Nine West, similar) and tiered chevron necklace (Hive & Honey via Piperlime) are the perfect finishing touches.

I mean, could I have used a bracelet?  Sure, but I'm still pretty darned happy with it as is:

 Also, lest you think when I say "eye of the tiger" I am referring to Katy Perry, let me disabuse you of that notion right here and now.  Below is what I'm referring to when I say "eye of the tiger," you young whippersnappers:

Yes, that song is amazing, thank you for noticing.

Happy Monday, All!

Gracey

Amazing, Fabulous, Perfect

I received this amazing, fabulous, perfect skirt as a gift from the amazing, fabulous, perfect Dawn at Suitcase Vignettes and, more recently, the Etsy shop, Tea Stained Lace:

It is one of the coolest vintage pieces I've ever seen, much less had the pleasure to own and I can't thank Dawn enough for sending it my way.

Here is a close up of the print on the skirt:

I have no idea what is being portrayed on this skirt, but I love the dark and moody colors and the little bits of red.  

Little bits of red that I picked up with my shiny red belt:

Seriously.  Love.

Happy Friday, All!

Gracey

Hot Pink Camp & A Mocha Midi

I don't know that I would have thought to pair this hot pink camp shirt with this mocha midi skirt if they hadn't been on the same migratory path through my closet.  But, they were and I liked the way they looked grazing on the plains together so here they are:

Blouse, skirt & belt: thrifted vintage, Hive & Honey flats via Piperlime

I also added black accessories, including my vintage sweater clip pins:

One day I'll probably wear this piece to hold a sweater together.  Probably.

Happy Thursday, Everyone!

Gracey

How I Wear My Floral: With Stripes & A Little Shine

Today I am participating in the How I Wear My: Floral Challenge with Everything Just So and The Rich Life (on a Budget).

So, how do I wear my floral?  With stripes, a toucan and a bit of bling:

I started my look with my colorful floral skirt.  Which in turn started as a double-breasted, thrifted dress;  I hacked off the bodice to "make" it a skirt.  I then added a striped 3/4-sleeve tee (J Crew Factory Store) and ankle strap flats (Hive and Honey via Piperlime).  I finished off the look with a vintage toucan pin (gifted) and a vintage rhinestone bracelet.  Because sometimes a girl just wants a little shine:

And a tropical bird brooch.  Of course.

To see how others wear their floral, please to visit Jill (at Everything Just So) and Adrienne (The Rich Life (on a Budget)).

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

Shop the Look
Similar floral skirt
Similar striped shirt
Similar ankle-strap flats (round toe or almond toe)
Similar vintage brooch

** Disclosure: Actions taken from the hyperlinks in this blog post may yield commission/compensation for the writer. Please see the Disclosure tab for more details.

SIA: Coral and Cobalt

I have been on a roll this month.  I participated for the first time in Two Birds� Inspiration Monday earlier this month.  And now I�m participating in Style Imitating Art.  I�m rather proud of myself.  But, enough about me.  Let's talk about art and style.

Here is the art:

Image from David Weisner's "Flotsam"

And here is my style:

I love the combination of coral (salmon? carp?) with the bright blue so I paired my coral polka dot blouse (handmade vintage) with my cobalt midi skirt (vintage via Goodwill).  I also added some pops of black (I heard it's the latest trend) with my belt (via Goodwill), necklace (Old Navy) & ankle strap flats (Hive & Honey via Piperlime).  

Yep, you guessed it: POCKETS!!!!

I�d like to thank Jess of Animated Cardigan for hosting; you can see the other participants on her site. 

And I�d like to give a shout out to my boobs for distorting some of the dots into goldfish-like shapes; I appreciate your help with this challenge, Ladies.

Happy Tuesday, All!

Gracey

P.S. This is an illustration from the book, Flotsam, by David Wiesner.  His books are amazing and if you haven�t read them, I strongly suggest you do, even if you think you might be too old for picture books.

Pops of Black

During the cooler months, I like to alleviate the more muted tones that are prevalent during fall and winter with pops of color.  And then, the other day, I got to thinking about black.  It's not fair that black doesn't get to "pop." I mean, what did black ever do to people that it remains pop-less?  Sure, it figured heavily in a very deadly and unpopular plague, but that was ages ago.  Black has totally gotten it's act together lately and, in my opinion, deserves to pop.

So, today, I wore pink and blue, with pops of black:

It's my new thing.  Well, one of my new things.  The other two are fruit (see yesterday's post) and big cats (you know, leopards, lions and such).  But, I digress.  I like black as an accent.  I think this outfit is more interesting with black as the neutral instead of brown or nude:

 I think it works in part because the blue striped shirt (vintage via Vintage by the Pound) and the skirt (thrifted) are mid-tones and not pastels.  Black with pastels could be a bit jarring.  Okay, you caught me; it's actually probably fine, I just don't like pastels.  But, black shoes (Hive and Honey via Piperlime), a black belt (thrifted via Goodwill) and black jewelry with mid-tones, I can definitely do.

Especially when the jewelry is all funky and stuff:

I think it's supposed to be a sweater clip, but they're pins, not clips and I don't wear sweater clips, so I just treated it like a brooch and wore it pinned to my blouse.  Because that's just how I roll.  That's right, pops of black and misuse of sweater clip/pin/things; I am a rebel without a cause.

Except, of course, the cause of thrifting.  This entire outfit, except for the shoes and the bracelet, was purchased second-hand, so I'm linked up to Coffee and Cardigans for Thrifter Thursday.  And I'm also linked up to IFB Project #95: Show Us Your Stripes.  Because, today, I am a linking fool.  So, I guess then maybe my cause is linking? 

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey 

Black, White and Brown

I know the combination of black, white and brown doesn't seem very springlike, but I think this outfit is actually almost summery even:

I love a  stripe pretty much any time of year, but they definitely say summer to me.  And black and white is classic.  I paired today's black and white striped tee (Old Navy) with a full, brown skirt (vintage, thrifted via Goodwill).  I also added a wide black belt (JC Penney) and my ankle strap flats (Hive & Honey via Piperlime).

See?  Practically summery:

Just like our weather.  It's been gorgeous here all week and it looks like it will continue through the weekend.  So excited!

Happy Friday, All!  Have a wonderful weekend!

Gracey

The World�s Tallest Third Grader

Today I am dressed like the world�s tallest third grader:

I didn�t do it on purpose (I like to think I�d never infantilize myself on purpose).  It�s just that the shirt (vintage via Goodwill) and pants (Target) happened to be next to each other on my laundry chair (the chair that holds the overflow of clean laundry from my laundry basket) so I threw them on this morning. 

But I like it.  Yes, I would have worn this as a third grader but I�m not embarrassed to be wearing it now.  It�s bright and happy and cozy and involves my favorite pants, ankle-strap flats (Hive & Honey via Piperlime) and a neon necklace (Target).  

 

I tell you what, Friends; third graders might be on to something.

Happy Thursday, All!

Gracey

Shop the Look:

Exact Target cords

Similar plaid shirt (plus, standard)

Ankle strap flats

Neon yellow necklace

** Disclosure: Actions taken from the hyperlinks in this blog post may yield commission/compensation for the writer. Please see the Disclosure tab for more details.

Inspired By: The Braided Bandit

The other day, Hannah of The Braided Bandit wore an adorable combination of a cropped plaid jacket and a floral blouse.  See?  Adorable!

At the time I didn�t think I�d be able to recreate the look because I didn�t think I had the right pieces.  Happily, I was wrong:

As I was poking through my closet this morning, I found this gifted floral shirt (thanks, Mom!) and a cropped plaid jacket (vintage via Goodwill) of my own!  I paired my floral and plaid with skinny jeans (Old Navy) and black flats (Hive & Honey via Piperlime).  And I also added a black statement necklace, vintage bracelet (via Red Fox Vintage) and my new black & gold stud earrings that I won from Sarah at Just Take a Bow and bonnilu.

Thank you, Hannah, for the inspiration!  And thank you, Sarah and bonnilu for the awesome earrings!  And thank you, my Dearest Reader Friends, for visiting!

Happy Friday, Everyone!

Gracey

I Like Bright Pants and I Cannot Lie

Like these:

These cords (Merona, Target) come in other, less insanely bright colors, but as soon as I saw them, I knew I was going to get the flame orange pair.  My head tried to argue that a navy or tan pair would be more versatile and therefore more practical, but my heart yelled �practical clothes are for sissies� and grabbed this pair.

And, really, they�ve turned out to be more versatile than I�d first thought.  So far, I�ve worn them with bright blue and houndstooth (here) and today I�m wearing them with peach (thrifted sweater) and black (thrifted Brooks Brothers silk tie and Hive and Honey flats).  If that�s not versatility, I don�t know what is.  Of course, the best part is not that I am able to wear these pants with multiple outfits, but that they�re outfits I love.  Which is why, Dearest Reader Friends, I like bright pants and don�t bother to lie about it.

Happy Friday, All!  Have a wonderful weekend!

Gracey