In the same Like Twice order, I also happened to put a couple cooler weather toppers in my cart. *cough* Once again, I can afford to keep them both, and I love them, but would like forum feedback re: fit/if they match my style/wouldn't be duplicates in my closet before committing. In cooler months, I mainly wear either full skirts + body con knit tops or body con skinnies + woven tops, so I showed one of each silhouette, as I'd like these to work with either (I have a couple jackets that only work over skinnies and thus get less wear). I wore bulky socks with the skirt to 'stand in' for my usual sturdy footwear.

First up is a J Crew navy blue cotton velvet blazer. It's fully lined (and has the most adorable little ruffle on the lining), has two pockets and little turn back cuffs, and seems like good quality. Since the closure is just a hook and eye, I could move both about 1/2" in to make it a full 1" smaller in the waist for more definition, so the outer edges of the blazer would touch when closed. At first I thought I should hold my arms straight out so you could judge fit, but then that seemed ridiculous so in the rest I just stood like I normally would. I wore a dark charcoal sweater over the skirt, which I realized in the pics was a mistake for fit judging, so I've made the skirt photos much lighter. Shown closed and open. I do not currently have any navy blue blazers/indoor jacket toppers, and it's one of my main neutrals. I do have 2 other velvet blazers, both of which have peplums and are more romantic in style.

Next up is a Banana Republic wool/cashmere blazer. It's also fully lined, and the wool is so delicious. I just finished Alison Weir's fabulous group biography The Wives of Henry VIII, which might be biasing me in favour of the Elizabethan ruff of a collar. Pretty sure it's only meant to be worn closed, but I showed it open over the jeans in case I was wrong. I don't have any dressy/business-ish jackets at the moment that I'd be comfortable wearing to a daytime event. My only current grey wool blazer is a medium/medium-dark colour and can't be worn with skirts/dresses. I also don't have any cool weather jackets/blazers that are this light of a colour. I do have 2 other wool blazers (one a taupe, one a taupe & navy pattern) that can be worn over skirts/dresses. I want to make sure this dove/pearly grey is flattering on me (not too bright or warm) so I included a couple close ups that are mainly lit by natural light. (I have my wool skirts packed away at the moment, so I put this over my heaviest cotton skirt; I'm not sure these colours are the best together so don't worry about that.)

Don't judge how much I like the jackets by my facial expressions: I got very little sleep last night (hours of thunderstorms & a dog allowed to sleep in the bed who shakes/pants uncontrollably in fear during said storms is not a recipe for a enthusiastic photo model). And forgive the messy hair please; I wanted to see what it would do after being braided for a couple days, and now I know.

Wardrobe function question: in my current climate, I can wear blazers about 4, maybe 5, months out of the year. If I move to a more northerly climate, I imagine that number probably would remain pretty much the same, unless I layered them under heavy winter coats. I currently have 7 blazers (3 wool, 2 velvet, 1 velveteen, 1 corduroy; 1 taupe, 2 medium grey, 1 burgundy, 1 taupe/navy, 2 brown; 6 work with skirts/dresses and trousers/1 is trousers only) and wore them all this past fall/winter. I'm not a wardrobe minimalist, and enjoy having each of my favourite items in each of my favourite colours (navy & grey are certainly perennial favourites around here). Is 9 blazers too many? These would certainly complete my blazer collection, so I wouldn't be adding any more.

Fitting questions: do they fit in the shoulders? Is the waist defined enough to work w full skirts? Do the necklines flatter me (enough)? Am I correct that the grey jacket should only be worn closed?

Style Questions: do they fit into my general style (for those who know it)? For those who don't, think folksy gamine with romantic, vintage touches (those k/r posts make me wish I had 1 succinct, consistent style descriptor).

Once again, sorry about the photo overload. I just can't think of a less photo-intensive way to display everything.