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WIWs: A Bunch of Blahs

Neel

Veteran

If you remember I had written a post on my style rut couple of weeks back. I also said I was wearing a lot more outfits than I was posting. Today I recreated some of the outfits I felt blah in. Because it only makes sense I do so in order to figure out why I felt less than fab in them. So here we go!

#1 - I always feel like I am in frumpville when I wear this pale blue skirt. Worn for a day of running errands with the DSs.

#2 - Because I was so disappointed with my outfit the previous day, I wore the skirt again the next day with a higher contrast top. Does this work? I did feel better in this. Worn again for a day of errands with kids.

#3 - Worn for brunch with family. I disliked the bunching of the top at the belt. The grinning was annoying me even more.

#4 - One of the better outfits worn to meet a few of my girlfriends. I was happier in this outfit.

#5 - Worn for a movie afternoon with the kids. Too dark for summer I guess. Oh well!

#6 - This one doesn't come under the style rut days. Worn on DH's birthday morning for some mall walking and fun with the kids.

Headless pics are the ones recreated this morning. I didn't want to inflict my make up free face on you all :D.

Open to all suggestions and comments. So please feel free :). Thank you for looking as always! x

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33 replies

Latest reply was from In My Joi

Deborah

Veteran

We need to talk ;). I am seeing things quite differently to you Neel. I think each of these is quite fab! And I don't fib:). I like #1 a lot and prefer it to #2. It looks modern and elegant. I might swap out the shoes in 1 for the shoes in #2 tho. The other outfits are all stellar in my books. Are you maybe feeling a little style fatigued? I get that now and then and I could be wearing a Chanel suit and still think it wasn't good enough lol.

Sal

Veteran

Mmmm, I think you are being very hard on yourself.
I love 1 3 4 and 6 the most.......in my mind they are awesome and I would not change a thing.....but if the bunchy top is annoying you maybe it would be best with different shorts or pants. Like Deborah I find 1 a very modern crisp look.

Anonymous

I agree. I think you look fabulous!!! So put together.

cheryle (Dianthus)

(website)

Veteran

I think your issue with the skirt could be the sheer and solid are the same length. That is the only possible issue I saw with any of your outfits. I think they are all great. I hadn't noticed but you have a great bag collection and use them well with your outfits. I particularly love #3, 4, and 6,

Neel

Veteran

Thank you for your responses and inputs Deborah, Kiwigal and Sterling. I am glad the outfits look better in the pics :). But in reality they were a bit fussy probably why I felt frumpy. And I had a period of ridiculous hair and icky skin days too. And surprise surprise they coincided with the frump days. It could have been a general life frump, I guess.

Traci

Veteran

Echoing the others. I quite like these looks, Neel. The biggest difference I noticed between #6 and the rest was its simplicity. That stood out to me before I even read your descriptions. I especially liked #1 and #3. When I look at them side by side w/ #6, I notice they have much more going on in the way of pattern and ornamentation. Are you feeling pulled towards particularly unfussy looks lately?

Neel

Veteran

Ha! Dianthus! Fantastic observation! :). I think you just solved my mysterious pale blue skirt woe! The skirt by itself has longer lining and less sheer ... 2/3 I would guess. The skirt is very high waisted and tucking is not an option. Hence in the pics they look like equally proportioned. And could be the reason why I feel out of sorts every time I wear it. A shorter top might solve this issue! Thank you!!!

viva

Veteran

If you had described the skirt to me -- baby blue lace -- I might have expected a frump factor. But seeing it on you, I am sold on it. I really love it in outfit 1 -- I agree with Deb; it's very elegant with that clean white top.

You have such wonderful style. But we all have those days where we don't feel great. To me, it's not showing here.

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Neel, you would look elegant and chic in a paper bag. But here are my thoughts:

I love #1 in theory but agree with Dianthus that you may be stumped by the proportions problem posed (PPP!!!) by the equal length of sheer vs. covered in that very cool skirt. It those were just a bit different I think it would feel less boxy. However, it's lovely with the top.

#3 looks fantastic, but I hear you on fuss factor and the grinning. These bother me, too, in the wearing, so it's not necessarily about looks, but about how you felt.

You have identified your own problem with #5 -- it's not the outfit, it's the season -- although hey -- have you considered pairing that dark red with some light blue a la Angie? It probably wouldn't work with the skirt in #1, but heck, no harm playing in the closet!

Love #6. It's super fab.

You have superb style and natural grace and charm. I hope the bad hair and skin days are behind you for now and you are back in the style groove.

ginasgoinpostal

Member

Love your sense of style. Love that you are willing to change it up even if it wasn't intended that way at purchase time. Sometimes the best outfits are made at home instead of at the rack!

Windchime

Veteran

That light blue skirt is lovely, Neel! I, too, thought of Angie's recent blogpost when I saw pic#1 and I wonder if you would like it better with a bit of dark red used somewhere in the outfit to ground it? Like others, though, I love the boxy white shirt but see what you mean about the proportions (we sure learn a lot here on YLF!)
I admire your footwear and bag choices. They add to your outfits every time.

Also echoing others that you have a marvelous sense of style and look so poised and graceful in your photos! I always enjoy seeing your WIW's.

Neel

Veteran

Traci - Hmmm ... I do seem to be attracted to minimal outfits lately. Definitely food for thought.

Viva - Thank you for the outfit love

Suz - As always a very detailed and thoughtful reply :). Thank you for your very generous compliments too. I will surely play with this top with some of skinny light blue jeans. Not sure why I didn't think of it on that day! I am glad to report I am back with better hair days ^_^

Windchime and Ginasgoinpostal Thank you for chiming in!

Thank you once again for your responses everyone! You all are genius in identifying problem areas

Anonymous

I wouldn't have remotely described any of these outfits as frumpy! At all.

About the lace skirt, I love the color and the delicateness of the lace and think the straight shape works really well for you. But I do see what others do about the lining being tricky because it pretty visibly stops halfway through. Not sure if this would work, but I wonder if you could get the lining replaced with one that goes all the way down? Possibly in something that contrasts enough with the blue to make the detail of the lace stand out like it does in the sheer part.

As for #5, I'm hardly one to see any problem with burgundy and black together in summer. But, if you want a little more lightness, I like the idea of combining the top with light blue. I love the top, by the way. The shape and pleating kind of remind me of a '20s-style dress, especially with the little rosette.

It's a shame about the grinning on the top in #3, because it's so pretty. But that does sound annoying.

rute

Veteran

blah???
It's interesting how we perceive things..
You look amazing, trendy, chic fashionable. Love 1 and 2!

Jaime

(website)

Veteran

I also see nothing remotely blah here Neel! I love the light blue skirt, but a longer lining might make you love it too. #3,4 and 6 are all gorgeous. I think you are just not feeling the style of the burgundy top and it may seem dark to you next to the other tops. I like Suz's idea of trying it with the light blue skirt! Really you look fab!

jackiec

Veteran

I smiled as I opened your post, Neel, because I was thinking a "blah" day for you is a stellar day for some of us

Really, I think you look wonderful. What really strikes me is how you amp up each and every outfit with your fab shoe & bag choices.

I prefer #1 over #2 because of that crisp, white top. Isn't that the skirt that your DH bought for you? I don't really notice the grinning in #3, but if you don't feel fab.... The red/black combo is one that I've also done this summer. Feels a bit fall-ish, but what the heck. Your black & white outfit looks fresh, as does your jeans & grey T! I can't find fault anywhere. I think you must have just been having off-days, because you look great, as usual

Angie

(website)

Fashion Stylist

I also think you look amazing and chic - and the furthest thing from blah.

Here are some suggestions though:

#1 and #2 - have the skirt tapered at the side seams towards the hem to negate the frump-factor you feel wearing it.

Stick to wearing lighter colours and high contrasting dark colours in Summer because they make you happy.

texstyle

(website)

Veteran

What Deborah said.

columbine(erin)

Veteran

Wow, you look stunning. Not what I was expecting at all. Since you like high contrast, if I am understanding correctly, have you tried a bright yellow with the skirt, or dark red? I remember an Angie outfit post with I think a yellow lacy skirt and blue top. It was gorgeous.

Zibbets

Veteran

I see absolutely no blah nor frump here. You look polished, fresh and fun in every one of these.

Angie's suggestion to taper the skirt is intriguing. I do think that would make it fit "younger," although I would not call it frumpy as it is. Another idea could be to shorten it by one panel, leaving two sheer at the bottom, instead of three. I agree that the near-exact half/half opaque and sheer makes it look a little bit blocky.

I feel the same way when I wear black and red in the summer. This looks good, but it does look like a cool weather outfit. Your white bag might lighten it up nicely.

Neel

Veteran

Wow. Thank you so much everyone for all your inputs.

Aubergine - I did think of extending the lining. But the fabbers voted against it the last time when I asked them. Many were of the opinion that it could become frumpy. So it stayed that way.

Rute - Thank you for the confidence boost ^_^

Shevia - I surely would try the top with pale blue and report back. I do like the top. Just not in that combo I guess! I wonder if I would have liked it more with a black pencil skirt instead.

Jackiec - You are too sweet and kind :). And yes, that skirt was bought by DH. Hence my desperate attempts to style it!

Angie - I will give this skirt one more whirl with a shorter cropped top. I did a quick search on Google and found a few styled outfits (attached). The skirt does look gorgeous on these ladies. Not just me! If it doesn't work, I would go the tapering and probably also the shortening route like Zibbets suggested for the skirt to look more proportionate with longer tops.

Texstyle - Thank you for chiming in!

Columbine - I have tried that combo (citron and pale blue like Angie) but I didn't like it! Although the fabbers voted *fab*!

Zibbets - I think shortening the skirt by one panel will be a good thing. Hmmm ... Will give it some more thought before I take the skirt to the tailor.

P.S. No help that all the inspo pics have cropped tops with bare midriff.

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columbine(erin)

Veteran

I bet you did look fab in citron and blue. I hope you can get it tailored and make it more wearable.

LAR101

Echoing Traci's suspicions about your being personally 'pulled toward simplicity' as your source for the first two outfits not being your favorites... and when others are giving you so many compliments. I also am drawn to simplicity. My impressions is that the skirt is delicate in color and in its lace pattern, and has a soft material with a classic soft look and so the high constrast stripes and modern vibe of the other pieces in outfit #2 don't match a love for simplicity and unity. However many people are successfully pulling off an eclectic look and I really like how the different blues are repeated thru the pieces. In outfit #1, I might experiment with a lighter, softer color bag, perhaps the one in #3, to see if I prefered unity.
Finally, I would like to echo the compliments about the overall success of all your outfits, espcially #5 & #6.

LAR101

Just saw your post with pics. It's not you; it's the styling. All those outfits are unified with simple short light color top (matching light blue, cream or white) and nude or light colored shoes. Maybe this is just an orphan.

LAR101

And tiny shoulder bag or clutch. Nothing big for the delicate skirt.

doubleh

Veteran

Blah-wha?! I guess one fabber's blah is another's aspiration.

Gracie

Veteran

No blah and no frump in these photos. I prefer 1 to 2, and perhaps with white or off-white sandals and bag? Let the beautiful skirt texture be the star. The red/black outfit is beautiful but you're right, a bit dark for summer wear. I think I'd like 4 without the necklace, again to let the studs on the shoes and bag shine – Maybe long earrings instead?

rachylou

Veteran

Interesting about the blue skirt. I think of your style has having a fairly strong feminine component, Neel. And the blue skirt should be feminine because of the laciness. But it's more classic actually - probably because of the boxiness, which Angie has suggested altering to a taper.

I am wondering, for the sake of the exercise, if a more fitted top and heels would make the skirt "punchier."

Aida

Veteran

Angie said just what I was thinking, that the skirt in #1/2 needs a bit of tapering and you'd be set. #3 just needs a belt to hide both bunching and grinning (LOVE that top, gorgeous). #4 looks great as-is, so I'm going to guess it was life frump getting you down on that one. I like Suz's suggestion of adding some light blue to #5, and perhaps try rolling up the pants a little higher so there is more skin between pant and shoe strap. Of course it will be great for fall as-is. Great casual outfit in #6 ^^

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