Ok, I apologize in advance for the poor lighting, when I took outfit photos before work it was raining. And when I got home to finish the photos it was after dark. Oh and as a side note, I only pulled one item out of the boutique for this challenge. (I'm still documenting the DH Closet Challenge over at my blog).
Here we go! It's a long one, enjoy!
Home Decor-Home
#1-Our home is what DH and I refer to as "traditional minimalists with a twist." Traditional because when we remodeled I used the natural element in our living room, the red brick fireplace as the stepping stone for traditional home decor.
#2-The twist comes from the little elements that visitors tend not to notice. Our furbaby was peeking at me from the right and a marble dog is on the slate of the fireplace in photo #1. In photo #2, there is a 2 1/2 foot tall eagle and a T-Rex head on the top of the bookcase.
#3-Another twist in the dining room, a meditating cat on the buffet.
#4-The kitchen is my favorite room and best showcases all three elements of our home decor style. The traditional is from the colors and soft curves to the cabinets, handles, and furniture in the room. The minimal is the lack of clutter throughout the home (although when I cook it's usually a marathon session on the weekend and that countertop is fully used!)
#5-Another view of the kitchen. Again not much clutter on the countertop when I am not cooking.
#6-The best view of the kitchen, it shows the twist. Instead of a breakfast nook, we have an ornate fabric covered chair and a secretary desk in the kitchen. The dining room table is used everyday anyway, and in easy reach, so we saw no need to create another eating spot in the kitchen. Often a fabric chair is a decorative piece, however, because it is in the kitchen, the fabric chair is used everyday, someone is always talking to me while I cook.
So where is the outfit?
Home Decor-Outfit
#7-This outfit has all three elements in it. Minimal, from no extra accessories. Traditional, because it's just a t-shirt and blue jeans. The twist is that the jeans are boyfriend jeans, which is a newer style jean, and the sandals are nude, both of these have only become in style in recent years (at least I think!) The camo t is an earthy color, and the sandals and jeans are softer colors, which are a nod to the soft earthy colors used in my home.
Home Decor-Optional
#8-This butterfly clock would go perfectly in our home. It has the colors and style that work, and it has little details to it, such as the carving in the frame.
Home Decor-Optional Outfit
#9-Of course I had to reach for my butterfly t-shirt. And I paired it with my yellow trousers to maintain a softer vibe to the look. Brown sandals ground the outfit with an earthy feel. And as with my home, it's the details that you never see in my outfit photos that are the star of the look.
#10-All three pieces of jewelry are from Wakatobi/Indonesia and very closely mimic the butterfly in the clock. (I don't know why the picture keeps uploading sideways)
Art-In the Home
#11-This purple iris hangs on the wall in the office. My grandmother's house had purple iris's and this reminds me of them and her. Again we have ornate detailing in the frame along with curves in the design, traditional elements. And soft colors.
Art-In the Home Outfit
#12-This dress does not have earthy colors, but it does have soft colors and the blue reminds me of the iris. Also, the pattern gives the dress a lot of detail, just as the frame for the iris had detail from a pattern.
Art-Optional
#13-The Mona Lisa is one of those pieces of art that you simply have to see in person. I pulled this photo off the web, because mine was uploading sideways. As with my home, it has earthy colors. And her smile (sort of smile?) is the twist, you don't know what she is thinking.
Art-Optional Outfit
#14-The green jacket reminds me of her dress. The dark t-shirt is a nod to the dark colors in the picture. And the light jeans and booties echo the lighter shades in the picture. And once again, a piece of jewelry that from a distance you cannot really tell what it is, is a twist element.
#15-A close up of the necklace, it's a sheer butterfly, of course!
Person In My Life-Sister
#16-My younger sister is 16 years younger than me, with darker skin tone, hair and eyes. She is fearless, light hearted, and has a knack for making life exciting. I am more cautious, serious, and not as exciting. We are a true yin and yang. I currently work behind a desk for a medical marketing company and she currently works on a lobster boat (yes you read that correctly and yes she is the only girl on the boat) while attending college.
Person In My Life-Sister Outfit
#17-My sister adores skinny jeans, lots of black, and her sneakers. We both like the NJ Devils, so the t-shirt was easy. The white skinny jeans are a nod to her love of skinny jeans and I know she has a white pair of them. I do not have black sneakers, but the black shoes with buckle straps are a nod to her black footwear and the metallic belt in her photo.
Person-Optional
#18-Angelina Jolie is my favorite celebrity. I adore her style, she always looks put together, and has a consistent uniform. Black, nude shoes, and Louis Vuitton bags are often found in her casual/street style outfits.
#19-Another Angelina casual outfit. Again black top, trousers, and nude wedges. I think it's another Louis Vuitton bag but I am not sure.
Person-Optional Outfit
#20-The black top has details on it that I'll show a close up of in the next photo. The black trousers are the only item I took out of the boutique for this challenge. The nude flats are a nod to her nude wedges. And I do own a Louis Vuitton bag, although I rarely use it right now, which is a shame really.
#21-A close up of the top. I really think this outfit closely resembles Angelina's looks, but I don't feel like 'me.'
Bonus-Optional Outfit My Way
#22-I've enjoyed this challenge so much, I added one extra outfit. I used Angelina's formula but added elements that felt more me. I stuck with all one color (navy for me which I think may be softer on me than black?) and in place of trouses which I rarely wear, I used jeans, which I wear very often. And I swapped out the nude flats for natural boots to keep a light color on the feet. I meant to grab the Louis Vuitton bag again but forgot when I snapped the photo.
Reflections
1. My current fashion sense is only half way in line with what inspires me. It appears I am naturally drawn to earthy tones, and softer contrasts for my home and art preferences. Only a portion of my wardrobe reflects this. The other portion is full of strong contrasts and bright colors, which make me happy, but have been feeling less like 'me' lately. I couldn't figure out why before, but now I'm thinking it may be because when I wear black and white, while that is classic, it is a very storng contrast and perhaps a softer contrast would work better for my features? Maybe white with grey, or black with brown, hmm...
2. My style changed the most when I tried to mimic my sister and Angelina. Originally I thought it was because they both wear lots of black, but then I realized, for them, black is not a strong contrast on them. But black on me is!
3. My two big takeaways were:
a) I am naturally drawn to earthy tones, but more importantly to softer contrasts. When I want to sport a bold color that's fine, I just need to pair a less bold color with it instead of another bold color. At my blog I've been doing a mini challenge, and it's all bold colors. I've been mulling over why I haven't been loving my outfits and now I think I figured it out!
b) I adore wardrobe capsules, minimal sized wardrobes, and uniform dressing and I've been trying to do this for ages. But my inspiration has always been celebrities like Angelina Jolie or Jennifer Aniston, designers such as Karl Langerfeld, or Parisian wardorbes. All of these have a core set of colors, styles and outfits that they use. But the focus is usually colors of black, grey, etc, colors that are not necessarily the most flattering on me. I've been purchasing more of these colors and wondering why my wardrobe isn't working for me. If I can figure out what the core colors are for me, I may be able to build my wardrobe accordingly.
This was an excellent challenge. Thank you Sarahthewhite so much for your creativity, I learned a lot from this exercise!
