Ensemble: Stripes, Pearls, Moto & Fringe

Stripes InspirationThis ensemble was inspired by an outfit I saw on Pinterest. Since I’m wearing my pearls again, I’m especially interested in this easy-to-pull-together combination. In fact, I’m sure I’ve worn a version of it before. It combines modern classics with trendier pieces. In fact, you’ll probably be able to shop your closet for most of the components. 

The components of the ensemble:

Jeans: Choose any style of jeans in black, blue or grey denim. The wearer in the photo is wearing boyfriend jeans, but feel free to wear skinnies, cropped straight legs, culottes, flares, boot cuts, clamdiggers, shorts or straight legs. Or wear a denim skirt if that’s more your style 

Striped Top: Choose a T-shirt or pullover in black, navy or grey and white stripes. Of course, you can choose any colour in the stripes, but the classic combination in neutrals does look sharp. A white or cream stripe also picks up the colour of white pearls. That said, a grey striped top picks up the colour of grey pearls. 

Moto Jacket: Choose a black, grey, ink or white moto jacket. A denim jacket in black or white is also fab. If you’re not into moto jackets, choose any style of black, grey or white topper that works with the outfit. Feel free to layer a coat over the entire outfit if it’s cold.  

Pearls: Make a statement with baubles! Add a pearl necklace in a chunky style because pearls look more playful and trendy when they are oversized or clustered. If chunky pearls aren’t your cup of tea, stick to a classic strand with small beads. Or choose pearl earrings or a pearl bracelet if necklaces aren’t your thing. 

Footwear: Add any style of fashionable sneaker, boot, pump, loafer, flatform or platform that works with the outfit. Keep the colour black, white, cream, metallic or red. 

Handbag: A red handbag with fringe creates a fun juxtaposition, but you can choose any red or  fringed bag. And if that doesn’t work, choose a bag that completes the outfit your way. Add extra jewellery, eyewear, headgear, hosiery and watch as desired. 

stripes-denim@2x

I can put the look together right away with what’s in my wardrobe, and here are the exact pieces.  There might be a denim skirt in the mix soon too.

Link Love: Maternity Wear Trends

The Business of Fashion investigates if rental businesses can fix the maternity fashion market.

The Guardian reports on a different maternity wear trend: “Savvy brands are creating ‘investment’ pieces designed to live long beyond pregnancy — and be worn by people who are not pregnant at all.”

This roundup introduces us to five brands that offer a modern approach to maternity dressing.

Fab Links from Our Members

Deb enjoyed this New York Times article about “The New Abnormal Normal“, but is now wondering if stirrup pants are really coming back.

Sally shares ways to style your wraps and scarves. Angie likes the Sporty Luxe version at the end best.

Beth found this Threadbase article on T-shirts very interesting. It goes into how various T-shirts change with wear and over the course of many washing and drying cycles.

Annagybe informs us that Dolce & Gabbana is making luxury hijabs.

On the heels of last week’s link about Canada Goose becoming a luxury item, La Belle Demimondaine wanted to share this piece about how wearing one of their jackets could make you a target.

Trend: Flared Cropped Jeans

According to Net-a-Porter, flared cropped jeans are THE jeans of the season and seasons to come. I agree, and suggest adding them to your wardrobe in black or blue denim if you’re a trendy jeans gal and wear jeans very frequently. Many of my clients will be adding flared cropped jeans to their denim capsules if they haven’t done so already. 

Flared cropped jeans fall into two camps — straight crops and flared crops. Straight cropped jeans are more sleek through the leg and flare out less dramatically above the ankle. Cropped flared jeans on the other hand, are wider through the leg and create more of a flared bell shape on the hem above the ankle. 

Examples of Straight Cropped Jeans

These are generally easier to style and create a more streamlined look. They are also less leg shortening and emphasize the hip and thigh less. Personally, I much prefer them to the more flared version on my narrow calves and ankles. They are less dramatic but more lengthening to my eye. 

Examples of Flared Cropped Jeans

Cropped jeans that are more flared at the hem above the ankle are more dramatic than the straights, but tend to be more leg shortening. That’s because the horizontal line of the exaggerated flare is more pronounced, drawing the eye sideways instead of up and down. Flared cropped jeans can also exaggerate the size of the thighs and hips, although this is not always the case. Cropped jeans with a wider flare tend to work well on a larger calf and ankle, and on a long leg line.

I have a pair of crops that are more flared at the hem. I simply offset their leg shortening effect by wearing a column of colour. I wear high-contrast tops and footwear with the cropped straights because their silhouette is more elongating. 

Cropped jeans need to be cropped at least two inches above the ankle bone so that they look intentional, and not like your jeans are too short. Some of my jeans are cropped three inches above my ankle. 

Cropped jeans also need to be paired with the right footwear. Here are some troubleshooting tips. I LOVE cropped flared jeans, so much so that they have become a wardrobe essential. But I’m very particular about how they should be styled to look “just flattering enough”. Your figure flattering priorities might be different to mine, but I like to “close the gap” by wearing high-shaft booties, ankle strap footwear (the strap has to be above the ankle), or high-vamped flats and heels that are tonal to the jeans. 

I’ve found that cropped flared jeans did a marvelous job of changing the landscape of my wardrobe. I began adding them to my style last year and now have many pairs in blue denim. I will be adding a few pairs in white denim since we can wear this style of denim year round. I’ve also hacked an old pair of white skinnies and black skinnies to see if that worked. It worked well enough, but the hacked silhouette isn’t quite as fab as the real deal.

Roundups

Simpler Items

This week's list of top picks list is about basic pieces.

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Assorted Items

Items for Summer, both in and out of air conditioning.

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Casual Summer Vibes

This week's top picks are good for a casual Summer vibe.

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Summery Earth Tones

These items are for those who like to wear casual earth tones in warm and hot weather.

Read More

Hints of Spring

Some tried-and-tested winning items to refresh your style for Spring.

Read More

Dressier Items

An assortment of dressier top picks might be just what the doctor ordered.

Read More

Weekly Roundup: Striped Tops & Blue Shoes

Modern classic striped T-shirts and pullovers are one thing, but striped tops in non-classic cuts and interesting styles are quite another. Here’s a small selection with an assortment of blue shoes. Of course, many of the shoe styles come in other colours too. 

You can also see the items alongside my descriptions on the collection page.

Outstanding Outfit Bloggers

Eclectic Elegance in Bergamo

Valeria Arizzi (34) lives in Bergamo, Italy, and documents her outfits over at Coco et La vie en rose. She enjoys sporting colour and neutrals, and does pattern well. Our 5’4″ blogger is an eclectic dresser who wears it all, from girly, fashion-forward and playful to rock chic, boho, dramatic, retro and sporty luxe. 

“Since I started blogging I have become more daring in styling my outfits and I’m enjoying experimenting with new fashion trends. However, I like to think that I’ve stayed true to an idea of understated elegance no matter what I’m wearing.”

Valeria Arizzi - 1

A cosy Fall outfit in a soothing soft colour palette. Valeria’s lightweight wool coat with asymmetric zipper is the star of the show. The large florals are dramatic, while the shades of brown, oatmeal, marsala and burgundy create a romantic vibe. The faux fur collar adds retro appeal and textural interest. So does the boho hobo bag that matches the colours and pattern of the coat brilliantly. Cream leggings tucked into two-toned ankle boots are the perfect low-contrast backdrop for the statement topper. Valeria finishes off the look with big sunnies and vibrant poppy red lipstick.

Valeria Arizzi - 2

For this elegant Modern Classic look, Valeria has tucked a diagonal sleeved blouse into a crisp pleated linen skirt. Keeping the top and bottom in the same colour palette makes it easier to pattern mix items. And with the vertical feather pattern on the blouse it’s almost as if our blogger is pattern mixing two kinds of stripes. Fun! Ankle strapped footwear can create a horizontally cutting line, but here the tucked top and shorter skirt lengthen the leg line. Valeria’s stone shopper bag echoes the colours of the hybrid espadrilles with their sky-high heel and dainty leather straps. A wide bracelet with pretty pearls is the accessory of choice.

Valeria Arizzi - 3

Valeria Arizzi - 3

Hot weather Sporty Luxe with pretty lace and big sneakers. The lace detailing on the sleeveless Summer frock runs in two different directions, giving it the appearance of a two-piece dress. The curved high-low hemline and see-through effect adds structure to the midi length, which works well with the sci-fi metallic high-top sneakers. The footwear dresses down the look and gives it a playful urban vibe. Notice how the sequins are picked up in Valeria’s bag. Two dainty necklaces complement the square neckline of the dress. Our blogger’s pastel floral patterned bag is the romantic finishing touch.

Valeria Arizzi - 4

Valeria is wearing a fringed blanket scarf as a poncho. Pairing the big scarf with midi culottes, and buckled ankle boots with peek-a-boo socks makes for a fashion-forward look that is just flattering enough. Opting for shades of grey all over prevents the dramatic volume on volume from overwhelming our blogger’s frame. The heeled footwear and crisp pleat on the culottes structure the look. The buckles on the booties add edge, the black patent leather adds polish. A small boxy light grey bag with patterned inlay completes the outfit.

“My Winter staples right now are culottes and turtlenecks. Culottes and ankle-length trousers are a super hot trend that make your outfit instantly cool. You can style them differently depending on the occasion. Turtlenecks are a staple in my Winter wardrobe: I’ve always found them terribly charming and they comply with my stay-glam-without-catching-pneumonia concept.”

Valeria Arizzi - 5

Hollywood glamour paired with retro flair. From the wide-brimmed hat and faux fur stole to the chic skirt and double ankle strap pumps, doesn’t this outfit scream 1940s elegance. Valeria knows her way around a good colour combination! Here she’s paired a dusty rose blouse in a soft material with a marsala stole and dramatic light mauve hat. All of the colours are cleverly repeated in the beautiful floral pattern on the elegant midi skirt. Tucking the blouse and sporting low-contrast nude patent pumps elongates the leg line. A dramatic dark red lip and strong penciled eyebrows fit the mood of the outfit to a T.

Valeria Arizzi - 6

Valeria Arizzi - 6

A casual Rock Chick outfit with plenty of attention to detail. Valeria combines a light blue button-down tunic shirt with black faux leather leggings and block-heeled black booties. The curved high-low hemline on the voluminous tunic creates flattering proportions with the leggings. I love how Valeria has popped the collar and casually draped the long animal print scarf around it. Her cropped leather jacket tempers the tunic’s volume. The edges are adorned with silver chains and white pearls. Quite the statement piece! Finally, the rust suede bag complements the brown in the scarf and adds a Boho Chic touch.

I can’t wait to hear what you think of Valeria’s wonderful eclectic style. You can browse the rest of her outfits on her blog, or find out what inspires her on Pinterest.