Oh and I forgot to mention my Gap Sexy BF jeans. I couldn't make up my mind (typical) on the size, so I bought two - my size and my "plus one." I wear them all weekend long, I have to be pried out of them come Monday morning!

What an interesting and fun thread! I was thinking to do a recap of this year so far as we are already half way through this year. Here are my unexpected wardrobe workhorses, that I have really enjoyed buying.
Pic 1 is the white belt from target (thanks to merwoman) I have been wearing it with everything. Also, this top from GAP has served me really well through spring and now with our cold summer.
Pic 2,3 & 4 show the ever famous cons. They go well with the white belt and get worn at least twice every week.
Pic 4 is the striped topper from BR and as you all know is very versatile piece.
These are my favourites but so far everything I have bought, I have really enjoyed wearing because I am putting a lot of thought into my clothes shopping this year.

As it is cool and damp here now, it has been my thrifted black suede booties- they go with everything.
Also like Angie, a black animal bomber jacket, and a silver-grey belt too.

Hm, good question, Suz!

I knew my Camerons would be favorites, since I'd had BF jeans last year. Ditto on my Equipment cat shirt... Let's see...

• My brown acetate trench. I chose it thinking of travel, but it turned out to be a wonderful weight for everyday S/S in California. I can wear it in the morning and night and pack it away into my purse when it's hot.
• My olive long vest. $8 at a thrift store, and thought of as a gamble. Now it's my favorite "completer" piece at work because it adds structure and interest without being too warm.
• My bodycon Nicole Miller galaxy dress. Bought for $20 figuring it'd made a good party dress, but when it's de-bombshelled it is super comfy to move around in at work.
• My off-white Camerons. I knew I liked the fit, but the color was a risk. Now it is 100% tried and true!

Suz, I love your cat blouse too!

White jeans (seem to be on everyone's list)
Blush crepe blazer
Nude/pink oxfords
Navy sloan BR cropped pants
Kenneth Jay Lane butterfly necklace

Love this thread!

A Cath Kidson bag that my sister brought back from England for me. It is accompanying me everywhere this spring.

Definitely my pink blazer. Who knew there were so many ways to wear pink?

Suz, I am inspired by your style & gracefulness! you always look so good in the photos too! This is a great thread, its very interesting to see the similarities and why certain items are favs across the board.....

After years of wearing black leather jackets, I am now loving a little more color!

• -Ivory leather moto
  it has been almost in daily rotation for the last few weeks. I never considered a white leather before ylf, thinking it created too little contrast with my hair (blond)

• - Ink blue moto. first wear today. its been sitting for a few months. Blue has always been my favorite color. It is super soft & a little more unexpected than black. (i'm not on team wear just yet.....)
• - Magenta Nike Frees "sassy sneakers" to me. I have never been a sneaker fan, and have had to look at more soft footwear for foot issues lately. They are a great fun bit of color to boot!
• Taupe Boutique 9 Booties. These are low + buckles & RATE. very soft leather & were an Angie pick ages ago. The taupe color has become a great workhorse for me & now since they are nearly shot I am searching now for a good replacement.....

I have been keeping a spreadsheet of how many times I wear everything (for clothing and shoes) since April so it was easy for me to look in it to determine what are my workhorses this spring. Here is where surprise comes: I don't have many clear winners! Looks like I wear most of my stuff pretty equally.
However some of them a bit more often than others:
- white leather moto jacket
- yellow Gap blazer
- SE python booties
- David Tate animal print booties
- Page straight jeans and BF jeans
- slouchy micro-check trousers

I also wear my wide belts a lot - snake, leopard prints and white studded one.
Also I did not have a chance to wear a lot of summer stuff yet because our summer is lost somewhere...

Oh, Sveta, I know....summer has been lost somewhere in another hemisphere...or galaxy. i would have put my leather jacket on the list, too, but I have stopped wearing it for now. It was in heavy rotation from the day I bought it until three weeks ago.

Rebekah, thank you for the kind compliments, and of course I have to love the great taste of any woman who wears taupe booties and ink blue and bone leather jackets!

Lyn, high-five!! Your pink jacket is like my fuchsia jacket. It is positively shocking (har har) how well a bright pink can work in a girl's wardrobe! So flattering, too.

Gaylene, I love that bag, and no wonder you are using it a lot. It adds just the right punch of levity, plus it is a great size.

Lyn, thank you - -and I hear you on black booties. I could actually still be wearing mine, too, but I insisted to myself that I was putting them away and that was that!

Rae, there was a reason for your long trench search last year, I think. On some deep level you knew that the right one would be a complete winner for you. And now you have it. Also, I completely identify with the love for Nicole Miller dresses after my big sheath success. I will be scouring ebay for those and for more Camerons. I never did buy the white ones - I am nervous about ebaying to Canada. But maybe I should bite the bullet and join the ebay club.

Mona, you look sensational in each and every one of these! I love the Cons on you. They are so fab with the white belt. And the leaf sweater and shirt are so fresh on you. Not to mention the BR sweater. I've still been wearing mine, too. Will it never warm up? Yet it's also great to get so much wear from spring pieces.

Nicole, that necklace is stunning on you. And yes, it seems a lot of us are in love with white jeans this year. It's funny because I even thought of dyeing mine in the fall! So glad I didn't.

Karie, we are all in love with our BFs, it seems!

Rambling Ann, I'd love to see that hat.

What a great thread! As for me, my first thought goes to shoes and my most worn shoes this summer (it is definitely summer already here) are my bone peep toe loafers, my Anyi Lu wedges, and my black and white pointy toe flats. I have not worn sandals yet. A surprise workhorse is this zara top I bought http://www.zara.com/il/en/woma.....28059.html in light blue. It is polyester but somehow does not make me too hot and cleans so easily. I am sure there are others but I will have to think about it.

Oooh! Love that top, Shevia. And your shoes are all deservedly favourites!

Sadly, my Dansko Veda's are #1 by a huge margin, simply because I have 6 shifts a week in uniform and they are my most oft worn pair for work. Next up is probably my BF jeans. The Cameron's because I can wear them to work, but the Vigoss have my heart and I wear them whenever I can outside of work.

My impulsive and initially regretted sleeveless fur jacket. I really lashed out, for me and I thought I had blundered big time but I have come to love it now. I think, of course, it was learning how. To we a r it and, thanks to you guys, feeling I wasn't we airing a Nanna piece as a laggard to the trend. Somewhat shallow- but I love it. PS it's not vegan, it's vermin- thanks to all the Brits here and the introduction of the bunny to Australia. What a stroke of Imperial fashion forethought they had.

Sveta: keep it coming. I love your uncluttered inspiration!

My surprise workhorses are my blush jeans which are now a neutral. The color is new to me and therefore fresh.

Love this thread, Suz. You are doing such a fabulous job of building a marvelous, well curated wardrobe!
My surprising workhorses?

White Cons (who knew?)
BF jeans and shorts
White jeans and white jean shorts
Belts and faux tucking
Cobalt ponte jacket
Printed, Georgette blouses
Midi, ponte pencils

I've been focusing on interesting, super casual Summer outfits. I can count on the Cons and the BF's to carry a look. The cool weather has kept me in pants longer than usual, but that's fine by me! I love Spring/Fall weather!

Tomorrow is the annual family day at the amusement park. It's definitely challenging to look good while standing in line and riding roller coasters (I get special Mom points for this, don't I?).

Oh wow - LOVE all of the pics of everybody's workhorses on this thread! So much fun to look at - and definitely everyone seems to have easily identified their high-happiness factor wardrobe items!
I've got a few - and just for reference - we haven't had any summer weather here - unless you count upper 60's - so, I'm not really wearing many of my summer clothes yet - but here are my spring surprising favorites!
1.) Olive green oversized military style vest. Yep, olive green - sooooooo not my color! But, I wear it over blue, teal, turquoise, pink - and it looks great - and is a great light cover-up for me. Bought it at Fashion 21 - that's another reason that it is such a surprise to me!
2.) Ivory slouchy skinny Paige jeans - LOVE. The thread on the seams and detailing is taupe - and it works perfect with my color-scheme. I can wear them with both heeled shoes and even flats - and don't feel dumpy-frumpy!
3.) White (OMG!) jeans - T.R. Boyfriend Vintage Camerons - distressed and baggy. Never thought that I would like white jeans - but, I love these (got them on eBay - brand new with tags and for a quarter of the price of what they retail for.)
4. Neon pink GAP sweater - stretches out everytime I wear it, but the color makes me sooooo happy - and I wear it with blue denim, gray, and white on the bottom.
5. White linen blazer that I discovered hanging in the back of my closet. Bought it several years ago (can't remember where) and never wore it - not once. This spring I've worn it probably 5 times a week as a topper.
6. Light gray AE slouchy skinnies - soft and comfy and spring-looking.
7. Black w/gray stripes jersey pencil skirt from Target. I wear with structured blouses or a slouchy sweatshirt and my black ankle boots. Never thought I would enjoy wearing this skirt so much, but it really fits my style!

So, looking at my list - its obvious that I live in jeans most of the time. Three different pair are on this list - and I could easily add another one to the list. In my climate I can wear jeans almost year round, except for a few weeks in September, so they are practical, as well as stylish!

Very fun thread Suz!

YLF Suz.

For summer my printed French Connection pants were bought on a whim & worn at least twice a week into autumn.

My SE snakeskin booties & my silver booties - they both go with everything & lift every outfit. I seem to rotate these two pairs most days.

My white belt & jeans - pre YLF but I didn't wear them much until I found you all

Caro, high five!! My Petty booties were definitely on my most worn list from January (when I got them) to the end of April!

Marley, I love your list and I think I need a pair of those Paige slouchy skinnies! May PM you for details! You and Rae can high-five each other over the olive vest thing! And don't you just love finding something in your closet that suddenly works?

Beth Ann, welcome to the white jeans, Cons, and cobalt-love club!! And yes, you definitely get point for doing the rides in whatever you wear!

Joy, you and blush are a match made in heaven. And it must remind you of Japan, too.

Archer, you are a hoot!

Mo -- high five on the Camerons and yay for the Danskos~

Thanks for indulging my question everybody!

My $10 dark blue flats from Ardene! Due to crappy cool and rainy weather, this is the first spring in years that I actually feel the need for a transitional shoe. I now wish I had made the time to find oxfords, but I didn't. Meanwhile, my $180, well-thought-out, hopefully workhorse walking sandals from NAOT are just coming out to play for the first time today.
I never really got into ballet flats before. They don't usually fit me well, so I'm loathe to buy a 'real' pair. The other factor is figuring out how to wear them, thanks to ylf - sockless and with my jeans either rolled up, or long enough for some scrunch!.

Well I've come back to this thread twice today in order to finish reading all of the comments. It's so great to see what every one is loving so far this season.

First Suz, let me say that you look fantastic in every single outfit. Angie is not exaggerating when she says you have your style nailed! You provide endless inspiration for me, and everyone else I'm sure!

I'm surprised that I've been wearing my sequinned and gem encrusted sandals so much. They are cheapies, and could skew a bit tacky, but I bought them because they were so comfortable. They are by far the lightest sandal I have and the easiest to slip on so i have to restrain myself from wearing them every. single. day. (esp.with outfits that are ALGO).

I hope I'm allowed to chime in a day late. It's so inspiring to see what everyone's go to items have been, especially as we go into winter down here in NZ. And I can confirm where summer has been hiding for so long - for ages and ages it was here!

My summer workhorse was a cheap and colorful maxi dress I bought on a whim because I felt like wearing something floaty. It was far too casual to wear anywhere other than the beach or home, but since we sent most of the time in those two places it was often the thing I reached for. Even though it was much more boho than I usually wear, it just made me feel feminine, a bit surfy and salt-tousled.

Now that it's colder here I have rediscovered blue jeans. It was all coloured jeans here last season and I didn't realize how much I missed jeans until nothing in my wardrobe seemed to work anymore. I actually sighed with relief when I got a pair of skinniest and straights. I've lived in them and tan boots (they bookend my hair) ever since.

So far I'm a white jeans convert, too! And I have been surprised at how many times I have worn my turquoise jeans, although I really should have bought a smaller size. I also have had a lot of use out of a black maxi dress I bought on a whim, my ancient black jean jacket which has gone into and out of retirement multiple times, and the black sandals I bought at K-Mart earlier this year.

Unfortunately the sandals make my feet a bit stinky but they are extremely comfortable and required no breaking in at all, so I'm willing to overlook the stinkiness for now. I've been looking for sandals that I can actually walk in without blisters or heel pain for many years

New purchases at the beginning of the season that are workhorses already:
-Gap sexy bootcut jean, I purchased a mid wash and a dark wash pair and I am constantly reaching for the mid wash pair.
-Cobalt straight leg jeans, I purchased these for a birthday party and I've been wearing them at least once a week since. They have replaced my green jeans from last year, which I also still have, but I keep reaching for the cobalt instead.
-Cable ribbed 3/4 sleeve sweater, I picked up two a white and a light grey and I can't wash and wear them fast enough on our cooler days.

Items from last year that are still going strong:
-Denim jacket, I got over my denim on denim fear and now I sport this jacket often with my bootcut jeans.
-Tan short boots, since I've been wearing bootcut jeans more often lately, these have become workhorses, I've even been wearing them on rainy days because I like them so much right now.

New purchases already collecting dust:
-Red knit blazer, for some reason I'm just not layering as often right now.
-White open cardigan, again just not layering right now. I keep reaching for a pullover on cooler days instead.
-Black trouser shorts, I'm not sure what I was thinking, with my white legs and casual style, these are not working for me. I keep reaching for denim shorts instead.