2016 Wardrobe Wins and Fashion Fails

I was thinking about what I bought last year that I really wore and enjoyed and came up with these Wardrobe Wins:
1. My most important piece of jewelry besides my wedding ring -- my Finley Fitbit bracelet. I ordered it from Amazon for $20 because I hated the ugly plastic band that came with the tracker. Now I get my 10K steps almost every day along with lots of compliments on the "bracelet."
2. J. Crew linen 3/4 sleeve boatneck top. I have this in 3 colors, and wore them at least once a week all through the hot Georgia summer.
3. Dr. Scholl's Saraleah booties. Mod and fun, and I don't rush to take them off the minute I got home. These were an Angie pick and they're a fussy-foot win for sure.
4. Another Angie pick -- a Halogen jacquard sweatshirt that is dressy enough for work or even a Christmas party but feels like, well, a sweatshirt.
5. The Athleta Aspire ankle pants I wore for hours on end at my son's baseball tournaments this summer and fall. Cool and indestructible and so much more presentable than shorts (at least on me).
6. I wear this Uniqlo fluffy fleece coat more than any other piece of outerwear I own, for walking the dogs in the morning and for shivering on the bleachers during the middle school baseball season (it starts in February).

As for the Fails, I have purged them already so no pictures. But they include:
1. A dropped-shoulder, loose-fitting wool sweater from Madewell that was a lot cuter on the rack than it was on me. The bronze color was lovely, but made me look ill. And dropped shoulders are not the best idea if you have swimmer's shoulders and wear a 34D bra.
2. A knit navy blazer from Lily Pulitzer. I thought the knit fabric would make it work for me, but I'm just not a navy blazer person.
3. A long-sleeve, wrap-style navy jumpsuit. It was thrifted, but still -- what was I thinking? I wear a 10P in tops and a 4 in pants so it didn't really fit anywhere.
4. Tunic-length knit tops from Anthropologie and J. Jill. I realized that any top longer than hip-length just isn't flattering on me.

Anyone else want to share their wins/fails from 2016?

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7 years ago

Jeanie

Veteran

Great summary! love your wins. I love those Dr. Scholl booties. They look chic and comfy which is a hard combo to find. That Unifqlo coat looks so comfy and stylish too! I saw a pic of myself in a tunic length sweater and was appalled. I also realized that it doesn't work for me. I am large chested and need waist definition.

I am trying to embrace my work from home casual life and so my wins are my more dressy casual pieces. I am very happy with my black Nike tennis shoes which are very streamlined and have become my "dressy tennis shoes". I get compliments whenever I wear them much to my surprise...because they are tennis shoes!

Sisi

Beautiful and practical pieces ! I like them . I can understand why they became Wins. I would like to share my 2016 wins and fails, but I have not started yet to take pictures of my clothes. Anyway my wins are more or less like yours: comfortable, simple but interesting pieces that take me everywhere. Fails are all those "What was I thinking?" items: things that do not suit my body/lifestyle/climate !

Summer

I love your winning pieces, Sylvie, and good for you for ditching the fails.
I'm right with you on the dropped shoulder subject. Supposedly, they are good for broad shoulders, but they certainly never look right on mine.

I didn't buy very much last year, but I've been pleased with all my purchases.

RobinF

I really like all of these, I think we have similar taste! Those Dr. Scholls booties - love! I am now searching around online to see if I can find some. How do they fit? I often like boots a little big for some wiggle room but not too big.

cindysmith

Your wins are great! And don't feel bad about the fails, especially the jumpsuit. I've done things like that before. I'm currently having a jumpsuit taken apart into pants (and top of it can be salvaged) because I just don't want to have to get completely undressed to go pee, yet here I am with a jumpsuit trying to figure out what to do with it LOL

Suz

(website)

Terrific summary of your wins! I really like all of them on you and for you -- the black and white is terrific with your hair. That coat looks so cozy! Also, I'm another devotee of the boatneck linen top from J. Crew. I now have it in 5 colours! I find it really easy to wear and surprisingly cool.
My body type is very different, too, (small bust) so that should be good information for others -- it flatters a number of people.

Oh, and long tops? I feel exactly the same way. They just don't flatter me. Sigh.

texstyle

Great overview - the bracelet is ingenious! Love the mod booties and the pants...everything looks like a win on you. Thank you for sharing as it is very helpful to read the logic behind your wins/fails.

sylvie55

Active Member

RobinF, I am usually between a 7.5 and 8 in shoes and I went with the 8s in the Saraleah booties. They fit perfectly (if I don't wear thick socks with them).

Thanks for the kind words all! I do see that I'm gravitating toward high-contrast looks in black and white. Suz, I think you're right that it's because it matches my hair.

JAileen

The mod boots are super cute! And the bracelet! So pretty and ingenious.

I remember when my son was little and played soccer, they started the season so early that sometimes it would be snowing. A friend's son played baseball and she mentioned how long the games were. I was so thankful my son didn't go out for it, even though I love baseball.

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