Lisa, I actually love the top on you, both the fit, and the color. But I am not a fan of pairing it with the color of the pants. I think dark denim would be fantastic and you could go from there for the colors of your shoes and bag. Oh my goodness that bag! I am not even going to look at the price. I am going to turn around and forget I even saw it. Lol!

Aww, that's too bad they make you feel that way. I thought they looked fabulous and modern and quite refined for a chunky sandal, if you know what I mean. Would you consider giving it a few wears for your eye to adjust before deciding you've made a mistake? I'm sure you had a good reason for buying white....

And hoo boy, I know the feeling of over buying and not getting to returns....that is one of the main reasons I shop Winners so much -- I hate packaging things up and shlepping them off to the post office...

I’ve worn them to work 3 times now . I wear them with thin nylon voluminous cargo/ parachute pants that at least look like I styled it all intentionally , if a little kooky

Lisa, no great suggestions to add as you've gotten so many ... but I do love this shirt on you! Not to enable, but I often find when there's a particular piece missing to make an outfit (i.e. dark brown sandals in this case), it's often a piece that ends up being extremely versatile and fills a hole elsewhere too. Possible this would be the case for you? If so, it may be worth the purchase. If not and it's truly just for this one item, then the outfit lab might be a necessary evil!

I think the new shirt is working good with the jeans here and the tan(beige) shoes, especially with the new highlighted hair. You do have to adjust your eyes to new colors and print on yourself, so give it some more time and experiments.
Ref hair, it may be the actual changes that are more uplifting us from a longer rut which wears us in the end -and not so much exactly the color itself?
Going uni dark from lighter blonde was really striking and acted very daring, youthful and refreshing- but think the new highights can serve somehow the same purpose- it's now another fab change up-but, to kill 2 animals the same time, I would keep highlights at minimum or asymmetrical spotted and the base as dark as you went the first time(level 6) this provides a bigger more lively contrast on your face.

Well, I would love for you to be able to salvage the purchase and feel good about wearing them, but in the end, you're the only one who can judge what is right for you.

I hope you find ways to enjoy the top, too, cuz it's very cute.

I think the Sorel sandals are probably the same style...they felt exaggerated on me, too, for the first season and then I got used to them. They work best with a voluminous bottom of some kind, to my eye -- either a wide dress/ skirt, wide leg pants or crops. Or maybe parachutes but I have not worn them with those because my parachute pants are winter weight.

The mustard bag may be exactly the same, too!

I am not criticizing the care with which you select the bag/ shoe complement. Far from it! I am in awe of it all. It is something I have yet to get a handle on in my new suburban world where I am on bike a lot. I need some different kinds of bags -- maybe very small crossbodies into which I can pop matching or complementary fabric / nylon shopping bags or something. I have been giving this some thought but have not identified exactly what I might like or figured out whether it would in fact look stylish.

I like what Helena said a lot. Sometimes when I buy a piece that doesn't seem to work and I need complements, the added complements turn into workhorses. Not always, of course, but if they make sense without the entire wardrobe, it can be a way to evolve one's style.

I also like what Brooklyn said about a neutral for you tan, cognac, or beige sandal -- leg lengthening, easy peasy when you don't know what else to put on. Silver and pewter sandals and shoes function this way for me quite a lot even though my legs (except in silver jeans) are not silver! The contrast value is similar.

Suz - different bag but same colour ( mine’s a hobo) Here are my sandals : called Kinetic Impact . And I agree that they “ need “ a voluminous bottom of some sort . And yes again to Helena’s comment about these extra pieces becoming workhorses . I know I can get a LOT of use out of a brown sandal and bag . Jaut hadn’t planned for it this summer ….but I can always pivot

I haven’t read the above advice but my first thought was pops of color-lipstick/bag/shoes. Any or more than one. I am no sure enough of your non-black clothes to be specific but I hope this helps. I don’t think you need to invest in all new stuff to make it better.