My current love affair... and my estranged ex - YouLookFab Forum

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My current love affair... and my estranged ex

shiny

Veteran

... cognac, and it's cousin, camel. I can't get enough! We were estranged for oh so many years. No longer. Plays so well with cranberry red... which had all but disappeared from the stores for so long. And also with leopard, which had just started to bore me a bit, except when partnered with blush this past spring.

Unfortunately it feels like I'm cheating on old reliable Grey. But I'm thinking bonus points if I can get the two to play together nicely.

What's your current love affair?

Meanwhile, my estranged ex.. is not Grey. My ex is ankle pants. I'm sorry. I tried, I really did. It looks fresh on others. Just not on me. I cannot help shake this view that it shortens my legs too much, or that I'm wearing a shrunken outfit (especially when paired with any top that has sleeves shorter than long sleeve). MAYBE it is because I just can't seem to find any pointy toed shoes that work for my fussy feet. Lucky for me: even ankle length pants in petites, are pretty much full length for me already. On this trend, I am just saying no.

What's your current estranged ex?

Dressing

20 replies

Latest reply was from

Anonymous

I'm right there with you Shiny! Have always loved camel, caramel, cognac, bordeaux (I would now like a glass of wine please) , leopard, blush , all the colours you name, but have not had much new in my closet in those colours in many years now . I have been loyal to grey for awhile now, but am getting bored with him and looking at my ex (caramel) a little too fondly lately.

Sorry though, I still love a cropped pant and always will. It's that inner Audrey Hepburn in me just dying to burst out. I hate full length pants now and feel weird and frumpy with fabric around my ankles. I know this is ridiculous and I clearly need an intervention. Now , how do we get your grey to play well with your cognac? It can be done, and i think cranberry is the brighter colour to tie the two together with intent.

Am I rambling?

Susie

Veteran

Ankle pants aren't an ex for me because I've always known that they are just not my type so I never even gave them a shot. I only have about an inch on you, shiny, so I too don't need any leg shortening.

shiny

Veteran

Not rambling at all... and don't apologize about loving cropped pants! I love them too.. on others. I just can't get it to work on me. Something just seems off, I am sure it's my missing 2-4 inches. And pointy toed shoes that I can't wear. I wore those all the time in my 20s (80s and early 90s) ... and have the bunions to show for them.

I like your idea of grey + cognac + cranberry!! Cognac for me is very tricky to wear near my face-- it can be done, but it has to be just the right shade. Easier on the bottom. Navy top + cognac slacks does not seem like much of a stretch. B&W top plus cognac slacks also seems totally doable. It's not that far from grey + cognac, I just need to wrap my head around it...

Suz

(website)

Veteran

My current love affair is...plaid. I'm mad for tartan. MAD!

I guess it only stands to reason, since plaid was one of my first loves...we go back a very long time, at least since I was five or six. In my early teens, we rekindled the affair. Ah, happy memories...my first year of high school, and those fabulous pants!!

We met again when I hit my twenties and found the moody forest green tartans, which added a whole new depth to our relationship. Truly, it's amazing how well he has worn over the years, despite that whole grunge thing, which, I admit, made me tire of him for a long, long time. In fact, I even wondered if we'd ever see eye to eye again....

Yet I never completely banished him. I always kept a piece or two tucked here or there. And almost every day I got to enjoy him on Mr. Suz, who is as loyal a partner as they come.

Meanwhile, I'm over polka dots. I'm just not feeling that circular shape these days. Give me my lines and angles. I still have one polka dot sweater -- but I was ready to kick it out until I realized how well it would harmonize with -- you guessed it -- a new plaid shirt!!

Jjsloane

Veteran

I've always loved caramel (it matches my hair). Glad to have some fine company. I've decided my fall palette is caramel/cognac and navy/ink blue. Love!
I am sorry for grey as I used to look forward to it so in fall and winter. I do like some grey with camel so maybe there is a little fling I could have??

shiny

Veteran

Jjsloane, I am not sure if caramel matches my hair or if I unwittingly decided to match it recently. Would love for Angie to do a blog post on grey + cognac sometime this fall.

Suz - you crack me up! Plaid flannel shirts remind me of my first love as well, as does cranberry (I can close my eyes and remember the cranberry velour top I was wearing when I first met him). Tartan of course reminds me of my DH too, since he's a Scot. However with my blessing he used my tartan scarf, given to me when we married, to keep his dad's urn warm when it was buried this year. I can always get another one.

fathenry

Veteran

Hmm, I still love ankle pants, they have been an absolute staple for me. I do wear them with pointed toe shoes though. I am going to be sad when the weather cools down and I actually have to wear full length pants again!

My recently estranged ex is my skinny jeans. Since I replaced them with my white boyfriends I no longer feel the love! Don't know what I am going to do for fall though!

rabbit

Veteran

ha! the romance and breakups of clothing.

I'm a bit over leggings, even though I generally find them so incredible comfortable in the winter, I'll probably keep wearing them. I'm tired of the whole 'is this tunic long enough' thing, and also the fleece lined ones abrade and pill far too easily.

I'm also hearing the siren song of plaid, deep dark (oxblood? almost eggplant?) red, and also pattern. I'm set for solids, but pattern mixing, and interesting prints are engaging me more and more. I love how they work to add visual interest on both the macro (whole outfit) and micro (individual item) level.

jennifer

Veteran

Hmmm.. I LOVE hats and have a fair size collection ( around 20-30ish?) and I seem to be off the boater and picture hat styles and am in love with newsboy caps and fedoras. Berets get worn in the coldest weather too but other styles seem to languish in their boxes. Poor things.

Anonymous

Ooh, I may join you with cognac and grey. How about grey sweater, white jeans and cognac belt and booties? Oh and why not add a cranberry clutch too.

As for an ex.. for me, I think it's possibly wide leg trousers. I adore them but they don't suit my mostly at home life as they need to be worn long and with higher heels so they just bug me when dragging on the floor with house slippers on. Time to realise that they just become orphans.

Traci

Veteran

Oh yes! I love cognac with a light or medium grey heather, and also camel with charcoal. This is one of my favorite color combos. It looks nice with metallic accents too, like pewter shoes or a silver belt.

April

Veteran

Estranged Exes:
-- ruffles
-- necklaces
-- dresses

Hmm. All girly things. Does that mean I'm dressing more like a boy these days? Probably.

Gigi

Veteran

Fun thread! My new love affair is with cognac too. In fact, it looks like cognac is playing the field, eh?

My ex is cranberry! Last year I couldn't get enough cranberry...skirts, tops, even a pair of shoes. This year, I'm like, hmmph.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Oh, that cognac, he really gets around!!

Gigi, I still love cranberry....I will hug him for you.

Aziraphale

Veteran

Ankle pants are full-length on me, too! It's one of the few perks of being a shortie.

I wear ankle pants with caution. I know what you mean -- it's tricky when you're small. I find it hard to get the proportions right. The hem of the pants has to be at the sweet spot, and this seems to vary depending on the shoes I'm wearing. A little heel helps. But even so, full-length pants are always more leg-lengthening on me.

Thumbs up for cognac and camel. Such lovely colours!

UmmLila (Lisa)

Veteran

I had eliminated almost all brown items (light and dark) from my wardrobe, other than some leopard accessories and a DVF camel sweater with lace appliqué. I found it too difficult to match with my other pieces, most of which are in the cool shades (blues, pinks, grays, purples, black).

But I may allow it to return, if it plays well with others. I got a taupe/tan leather jacket and boots last spring and was pleased with how flattering the color was. And I just picked up a leopard belt, a cognac belt and some flats.

Nebraskim

Veteran

I'm trying hard to break up with black, or at least not see so much of him. He's so boring. I wish I could be friends with camel but he makes me look dead; he is my soul-sucking color. I've never been friends with ankle pant; I don't even try to play with him. It's not him, it's me. (Said in best George Costanza voice.)

DocP

My new love is an old one - burgundy. For years it was a mainstay, then disappeared. It cambe back last summer in the form of a leather jacket. This year, there are even more options. I'm looking to replace some well cared for but ancient shoes.

Travelgal Nicole

Veteran

Forest Green used to be one of my favourite colours and I'm happy I am back in love with it. Its probably more of an evergreen colour now but I love it paired with black and grey.

I wore too many camel coloured items in the 90s. I may need to skip out on it this time around but I am very attracted to cognac. Just not sure it fits in my wardrobe.

Anonymous

I am enthusiastically embracing plaid after a long separation, not sure about another ex yet...dark red. I want to play around with cognac and camel and see what develops.
My current ex, like Suz, is polkadots. The passion has cooled. Another ex may be straight jeans or any wide pant. I am more likely to reach for a skinny boyfriend.