Weekend Style Inspiration--Blog Love Edition

If you're anything like me, you're always on the hunt for new and interesting style bloggers. So if you need some style inspiration this weekend, look no further than some of my new favorite bloggers:

equestrian sailor, originally uploaded by the gleam of rose tea.

Hillary's outfit blog kills me (in a good way) on a daily basis. I love her clean-cut, pared-down style, her amazing hair and her sweet expressions in photos. Plus, she has a pair of bean boots--what's not to love?

blog's birthday, originally uploaded by Marissa_06.

Marissa at chaos kontrolowany has such laid-back, effortless style. And I love the details like little bows, plaid, and cozy knit scarves.

My obsession with ellenitza's style is no secret. She is a master at mixing interesting colors and patterns in approachable ways and I love the proportions of her ensembles. If there's any blogger with whom I'd like to trade closets, it's her.

2-11-10 When the circus boots come to town, originally uploaded by futurelint.

Futurelint has the COOLEST closet and the most daring eye for interesting combinations. She has so many unique thrifted and vintage pieces and her posts are always so funny and relaxed. And to top it all off, she found me an amazing skirt on ebay which nearly replicates the wool skirt I was envying last week.

Do you have any new blogs you just LOVE? Leave a comment!

Recycling

Works Cited
black dress: urban outfitters
beige henley thing: target
sweater: urban outfitters
black belt: j crew (on sale for $11!)
tights: leggs
maryjanes: dansko

I am in such a rush this morning that I basically recycled this outfit from last week, switching out boots for my maryjanes and chambray for more a grown-up cream-colored top (sort of a henley but still kind of dressy). It took five seconds and I didn't have to second guess how it would look--phew!--though I'm sorry it's maybe boring for you all :)
Do you recycle outfits often?

GIVEAWAY: olive & a necklace!

Sweet readers, I'm so excited to announce this giveaway from olive & a, an amazing etsy shop filled with the most intricate and beautiful designs. Heather has kindly offered one lucky reader a necklace of her choice. I love these yo-yo necklaces for spring--I would wear one with a plain white tee and a high-waisted skirt (oh spring, please come soon!).

How to enter:
1. Be a follower of this blog. Visit olive & a. Leave a comment here.
2. For an extra chance to win, leave a separate comment about how you'd wear the necklace. With a strapless dress? Against a creamy wool sweater? Over a turtleneck for the last days of winter?

Giveaway closes at the end of the day on Wednesday March 3.

And go check out Heather's blog while you're at it--she has the most impeccable and beautiful taste!

Good luck! xoxo.

Trading Up

Works Cited:
black turtleneck: anthropologie
gray skirt: trade via ana
magenta (!) tights: we love colors
boots: j crew
striped hat: borrowed from boyfriend

Holy color, my legs are cheerful today! The length of this skirt plus the hue of these tights made me feel like a beacon of color and brightness amid a wash of brown and black around campus. This outfit (okay, mostly the tights) definitely garnered a few stares today, but it was in the good name of bringing color to the doldrums of winter (and holy cow, it's cold today! I would've frozen half to death if not for the last-minute loan of Christopher's striped hat).



The skirt is a recent trade with Ana of Toil & Trouble, to whom I sent a dress from my shop. I love the cut and the cute buttons (and the color, of course)! But I have to admit, it was a little short when I sat down. I know Christopher doesn't mind the length, but I might resign this to the shop after a few more wears and hope it finds a slightly shorter owner.

Shabby Apple Dress Review

Update: Shabby Apple is offering my readers a 10% discount with the following code: Nearwear10off. Make sure you capitalize the "n." And evidently this morning I am no longer a nerd, but a near...:)

Works Cited
turquoise dress: courtesy of shabby apple
black belt: urban outfitters
bluegray tights: target
black boots: j crew

Shabby Apple recently sent over their 90 WPM dress for me to review and I have to say, I've never had an easier job. The dress is gorgeous and the fit is incredibly flattering--it is such a great surprise to wear something thoughtfully designed for women's real bodies. Being a little bit of a conservative dresser, I found the cut and length of the dress just right and I love the sweet bow at the neck.



I'm thinking next time I'll belt a cardigan or v-neck sweater over it and let the bow flop out.



Okay, enough gushing. Turquoise is a sort of exciting color for me (though evidently it is the color for spring) so I had a bit of trouble figuring out what to wear with this. I think in the spring, I'll pair it with my beige J. Crew belt and some light brown sandals. This time, I went with my trusty black and these great blue-gray tights which add some neutral depth to the color palette. But I did, for a second, think about wearing magenta tights with it (what has gotten into me?!). What do you think? Color overkill?

I Covet You, Pretty Striped Skirt

It's been a while since I posted an "I Covet You," mostly because admitting my desire for an article of clothing on the internet has strangely made me unable to resist buying it. But this skirt--holy cow!--I bookmarked it and have returned to it at least a dozen times.
Wouldn't those stripes look so cute with some navy tights and a turtleneck for the end of winter, and with a sweet button-up blouse and maryjanes for spring?
Oh heavens, I wish I had a million more dollars in my bank account!

Deviance

Works Cited
chambray shirt: old navy
navy tank: j crew outlet
gray wool skirt: thrifted, hemmed by me
navy tights: loft
brogues: steve madden
belt: mommed

Yes, I'm wearing a denim shirt while teaching. Take that, rules! And I feel great about today's bizarre-o outfit. This chambray shirt, despite being an XS, is completely huge, and I wanted a sleeker look with this skirt, so I criss-crossed it and tucked it into the skirt. This rad double-length belt was my mother's in the 70's and is long enough to wear with slacks or at the waist.



I happen to love the combination of blue and brown in varying shades, and this outfit is both easy and has interesting details (my beloved brogues, vintage belt, strange shirt tucking-in), so I feel especially ready to conquer the day (and, as it happens, Frankenstein).



P.S. I added a few new things to the shop last night, so go check it out. I'm doing a big closet-cleaning-out for spring, so expect to see some new stuff in there soon. xoxo.

A Not-Quite-Right Outfit

Works Cited
gray dress: h&m
white button-up: forever 21
navy cardigan: mommed
belt: mommed
tights: leggs
maryjanes: dansko

As a dutiful fashion blogger, I feel it my obligation to report (some) outfits even when I'm not crazy about them. Like this one. I like the top half; I like the bottom half; I don't like the halves together. I wanted a skinny black belt (which I don't own) or some camel-colored boots (which I don't own) or a fitted black sweater (which I don't own). Sigh! It's so difficult planning an outfit around the pieces you don't have. But I figured: everyone has her off days when it comes to getting dressed, and I might as well show you one of mine.

To be honest, it's a not-quite-right morning, too. I'm out of milk, my papers aren't graded, only one of my photos came out looking halfway okay. Let's hope two hours of vigorous discussion on Keats's "Ode on a Grecian Urn" start to turn this day around!

Skirt Envy

Confession: I have been lusting over this photo at the Sartorialist for the past day, scheming about how to recreate her awesome look. I love her bright green tights and that amazing striped skirt (not to mention her mischievous smirk and huge hooded coat). So I tried (emphasis on try) to recreate it.

Works Cited
blue button-up: thrifted
navy sweater: mommed
gray skirt: american apparel
belt: mommed
green tights: gap
socks: target
boots: indigo
locket (hard to see, but it's there!): from the camp lost and found

I broke out my not-so-oft worn green tights, my blue button-up and my gold locket to match what I could. Sadly, what this ensemble lacks is the centerpiece of hers--that rad striped skirt. If anyone has seen a striped skirt like this, LET ME KNOW! I am dying for one like it...but it might take a few hunts through the goodwill. Even though this copycat rendition is imperfect, it gave me some great ideas about how to wear my green tights, and about matching a heavier-weight button-up with my flouncier skirts. I am enjoying the tail-end of winter, because I know I'll miss my thick tights and wool and millions of layers come spring (even if I won't miss clumsily falling on the ice, a runny nose, and frostbitten fingers).

Slow Learner

Works Cited
striped tee: gap
floral skirt: shade
belt: j crew
tights: hue
boots: j crew
scarf: online someplace

I'm a little late to the pattern mixing party, but I'm giving it a shot anyway. Pretty safe in a range of grays and blues, but I'm pleased with it! Mixed patterns isn't what I think of as my style but I love the subtlety (read: boring-ness) of these two patterns together. What do you think? What other patterns would you mix a floral skirt with??

Copying Myself

Works Cited
gray tee: urban outfitters
gray sweater: valentine's gift from mom (j crew)
belt: mommed
scarf: bought in SF
skirt: american apparel
tights: we love colors
socks: target
boots: indigo

I shamelessly copied this outfit from myself (don't you ever do that?). I loved the color palette of this ensemble I put together a few weeks ago and wanted to try a different iteration of it. I started with the orange and dark red and then built various grays and browns on top of it.


Worn first in Winter Color.



Not too shabby, huh? I am a master imitator, if you ask me. Yes, I am wearing the we love colors tights again (so sue me), and yes, I like them better than Hue tights (which are also terrific). The waistband is more comfortable, and the color is more saturated than Hue tights. Plus I think they're a little thicker. That being said, the blue-gray pair of Hue tights I have just may be the most awesome color ever.



Sneakily, I'm hiding my other passion underneath my outer layers--I'm wearing a bunch of my backpacking clothes--my smartwool socks in my boots and a patagonia performance long-sleeved shirt under my gray tee and sweater. Walking around my department (or vogue-ing on this blog), no one would know that I am a lifelong avid backpacker and hiker. Today, what is figuratively hidden about me is literally hidden in my layers. You never know what people might be hiding under their clothes, I guess...

Color Me In Love

Works Cited
cord skirt: thrifted
white tee: jeremy's
pink tank (underneath): old navy
sweater: on loan from my sister
belt: old navy (circa a million years ago)
tights: we love colors
boots: ll bean (who else?)
ring: shopkim

Look, I know we're all getting sick of winter (and the extra two inches of snow we got last night didn't exactly help), but facing the cold this morning is a little easier because I have new tights to wear (eeee!). After all the talk on What I Wore about we love colors tights, I finally decided to fill the maroon-colored hole in my tights collection and I bought myself a pair (okay, two).



I can say that the rumors are true--these are the best tights I've ever put on. Warm, thick, and the color is amazing. So today, in all their pink-ish post-Valentine's day glory, I'm breaking out the tights with my trusty Bean boots (I don't know how I'd make it through snowy days without them now). Now I am hoping I win the giveaway on Healthy and Homemade and get to buy myself another pair!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Via.

sweet readers,

be mine.

xoxo.

tania

Weekend Style Inspiration

aneducation37, originally uploaded by Alessandra Ogeda.

A post inspired by the most beautiful movie, An Education (I also posted about it here).

A sweet tutorial to make a skirt with heart pockets (only catch: it is for those of us under 3 feet tall...).

Valentine's bracelets.

Not that I need another, but I love this black dress.

Myedit on the good, bad, and ugly of blogging. So true!

If you aren't reading ellenitza, you should be. Look at this pattern mixing--the woman is genius!

Too bad I didn't see this amazing scarf wrap on Spoils of Wear before I wrote my scarf post--color me in love!

Hope you have a great weekend and a Valentine's day with hugs and kisses from those you love best!
xoxo.

Seeing Red

Works Cited
red skirt: thrifted
patterned button-up: h&m
brown sweater: j crew (via jeremy's)
belt: mommed
tights: ann taylor loft
brogues: steve madden

Because I loved the way the asymmetrical sweater worked yesterday, I decided to try it again today to give the illusion of a higher-waisted skirt. Wrapping the sweater is pretty easy--you take the left side about a third of the way up, pull it all the way to the right and then do the same on the other side. Today I pinned it with a safety pin underneath, because cotton tends to slip more easily (yesterday's wool sweater easily stayed snug). Then wrap a belt, tightly, around the middle of the sweater, just where you wrapped it.



Ta da!

Now that the snow has melted off just a little bit and the roads are clear, I'm going to brave riding my bicycle to school again, but I have to admit that I'm lingering over my coffee to delay the inevitable freeze outside.



Oh, and look! I opened a shop. Um, there's not much in it for now, but I plan to change that this weekend. I regularly donate items I definitely won't wear again to Goodwill, but the shop will have things that languish in my closet--I can't give them away but I'm not good at wearing them. So stop by if you like and steal some of my vanilla style (I'm selling it well, right?).

Modified Schoolteacher

Works Cited
chambray shirt: old navy
beloved grandpa sweater: urban outfitters
black dress: urban outfitters
belt: mommed
scarf: bought on streets in SF
argyle socks: target
boots: indigo

Today's outfit is proof that the difference between ordinary and interesting is in the smaller details. Last night, I thought that my chambray shirt layered under this black tank dress would be the makings of a terrific outfit, but when I put it on this morning, I looked like my third grade teacher, Mrs. Baxter. The outfit had no shape and no color, so thank goodness for some pretty extras, like my favorite sweater and belt. Wrapping the sweater asymmetrically to give it more shape and belting it tightly led me to this:



And a bright scarf in a contrasting color added the pop that I needed to my normal grandmother color palette.



And having a handsome boyfriend with a talent for photography and sincere compliments doesn't hurt either.

Busy Bee

Works Cited
gray skirt: thrifted (as yet, unhemmed)
black tights: leggs
black boots: j crew
black tee: old navy sale
teal sweater: banana republic
tan belt: j crew

Busiest day ever! I haven't an hour free for the next nine, so this post will be short. I picked up this great black tee for $5 at Old Navy recently and I love the embellished neckline.



Otherwise today was about comfort and staying warm (the wind chill is in the negatives...again) while I rush from meeting to presentation to office hours to class. I'm loving the gray twin of my red wool skirt. While I've been meaning to take it to get hemmed a couple inches, today I'm glad for the extra coverage, because it is very brrrrrrr outside.

Snow Day

Works Cited
mint cords: j. crew (for $18)
navy turtleneck: j. crew
chambray button-up: old navy
belt: h&m
duck boots: ll bean, of course

While happy with my outfit today in theory and in person, I was not so pleased with these photos, where the brightness of the snow washed out the colors of many of the pictures and where my usually ingenious layering made me look about 15 pounds heavier than normal. In my head, I imagined myself as a leggy J. Crew model with the neck of a giraffe who could wear several layers and a turtleneck and still look tiny. In reality, I am a real girl and look like I stuffed a pillow under my shirt today.

Sigh. You win some, you lose some. On the win side is the snow! We got about 8 inches last night, which was a wonderful surprise this morning. On the lose side is trekking all the way to the middle school to mentor before realizing that public schools have a snow day. And still having to go to campus for classes.

Neutral Flowers

Works Cited
skirt: shade clothing
scarf: h&m
pink tee: j crew
gray sweater: j crew
camel coat: via jeremy's
mary-janes: dansko

I'm not one who often goes for patterns, but I fell in love with this skirt from Shade when I saw Elaine wearing it last week (can you tell, I heart clothed much?). And tada! the black and white version arrived in my mailbox over the weekend. Shade clothing, if you're reading, I heart you, too!

And here: its debut. For the cold, I added a wool sweater and my wool coat, which kept me toasty on an extremely frosty day.