I love when a very “put-together” outfit is also really comfortable. This silky top is nice and supple, the blazer is stretchy soft knit, and these lace-up booties are one of my favorite pairs of shoes. Actually, the least comfortable part of my outfit is also the most casual – the jeans. I’m much more of a skirt or dress person (probably because I don’t have any jeans currently that I love).
Do you have any tricks for staying super comfy while still looking polished?
Hahaha! I was using self-timer continuous shoot and I didn’t realize the camera was still taking pictures…until this moment.
blazer: secondhand New York and Company top: secondhand Mango jeans: secondhand Banana Republic shoes: secondhand Miss Sixty
I saw a bow belt similar to this once, and I’ve been resolved to make one ever since. I really like the way it turned out, and I think it may be one of my favorite DIYs to date. Here’s how you can make your own!
SUPPLIES:
strip of suede 1 1/2″ wide x 8″ long
strip of suede 1 1/4″ wide x measurement of your waist plus 2 inches long
strip of suede 1/4″ wide x 12″ long (you’re going to cut off most of this length so it doesn’t have to be exact. It’s just nice to have room to work with)
note: I bought a 1 1/2″ x 42″ strip of suede at Hobby Lobby and it was enough to create all the strips above. I didn’t have any room for error, though, as it was JUST enough.)
exacto/utility knife
sharp scissors
snaps + attacher (find at a craft or sewing store…or yard sale)
tacky glue
velcro
INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Cut your suede into the strip sizes listed above. Be sure to carefully measure your waist (don’t pull the tape measure to tight unless you want the belt to suffocate you). The piece of suede that wraps around your waist should be 2 inches longer than your measurement so you’ll be able to overlap and snap it.
2. Cut a slit on one end of the long strip (the piece that goes around your waist) with an exact/utility knife. Be careful! The suede is thick and it may be difficult. I just went over the same spot with the knife several times until it cut all the way through. The slit should be large enough so both ends of you skinny strip of suede will fit through it. Pull both ends of the skinny strip of suede through the hole creating a loop (see image below).
3. Grab your 8 inch piece of suede. This will be the bow. Pinch it in half at the center. Now pinch the edges back upward creating an accordion fold (see image below).
4. Dap a bit of tacky glue between the folds if you want to be extra sure the shape holds. While holding the folds you created to keep it from coming apart, slip the bow through the loop you created in step 2 and pull the loose ends of the loop to tighten it around the bow. Once that loop is pulled tight, your folds should hold securely.
5. taper the edges of the strip you’re making the bow with. Dab some glue on the tapered ends. Fold them under and glue them to the belt strip. You now have a pretty little bow!
6. Now comes the kinda tricky part – attaching the snap. If you get a tool like this, it should have instructions with it on how to attach snaps, and that’s really gong to do a better job explaining it than I could here. It requires a little muscle to get the tool to punch through the thick suede. Make sure the pieces of the snap that attach into one another are facing the correct direction when you attach them. So on the bow end, the snappy part should face INWARD and on the other end, the snappy part should be facing OUTWARD. See below pictures to see where I placed the snaps.
7. Trim the loose ends of the suede strip that you made the loop with and glue them down. I used paperclips to hold them in place until the glue dried.
8. Lastly, since the snap is little far back on the bow end, I added some velcro to hold the bow down when I wear it. These velcro strips already had adhesive on them, but tacky glue would work, too. This is actually really strong velcro, so I probably could have just used it instead of the snap. So if you don’t feel like attempting the snaps, you could easily just use some strong velcro.
Enjoy your new belt! I really love it and I can’t wait to wear it! Please let me know if you have any questions of if anything needs some clarification.
I’m still thawing as I type this…it’s really cold and windy outside!
Have I ever told you how much I adore Minnetonka moccasins? I lived in my skimmers in college, but these thunderbirds definitely get the most use now. I also have some fringe booties, which I’ve featured in a few outfits (see here and here). I was lucky enough to find two of my three pairs in brand new condition at consignment stores. Buuuuut, Minnetonkas are one thing I’d be willing to splurge on new if I had the need. If I had to choose one shoe to live in the rest of my life they’d probably be some comfy, reliable moccasins.
top: secondhand Silence + Noise
dress: secondhand Tiana B.
tight: Target
shoes: secondhand Minnetonka
necklace: gift from friend
All of the colors from Pantone’s spring 2013 color report are pretty, so I wanted to feature more than just the color of the year, emerald. This week, I made an inspiration collage for monaco blue. Monaco blue is like a mix between navy and cobalt. I like it because like navy, it’s really versatile, but like cobalt, it’s vibrant. Here are some pictures of the lovely color I gathered from around the web. Click the collage for a larger view.
I love this color paired with orange, green, cobalt, camel, or just white. I also really like how it looks with black and white patterns (see striped tee and polka dotted shorts above).
I plan to do collages for more of the spring 2013 colors in coming weeks. Take a look at them here and let me know in the comments if there’s one of those colors in particular you’d like me to feature. I’d love your input!
So the three days of rain finally turned to snow, then the sun came out. I’m excited that I FINALLY got to see some snow this winter (I miss going to school in the mountains). It didn’t last long, but it was still pretty. Instead of weekend links, here are some pictures I snapped this morning of our quickly melting snow.
So just pretend these pictures are supposed to look “vintage.”
It has been raining non-stop all week. I looked it up on NOAA, and we’ve received somewhere around 3 inches of rain since Monday. I was out of town all day yesterday (eating sushi with a partially numb mouth, among other things), but I was still planning on taking pictures in my living room with daylight coming in through our big window. I ended up not getting home until after dark, then I had a two hour Google+ hangout with some of my college friends. I took these pictures at 11:30pm in my dark living room with the shutter speed set for super low light. After applying a few photoshop filters, I just gave up with it. You can see my outfit, and that’s really what matters.
Let me give you a quick tour! All of those trophies behind me on the piano are my sister’s clarinet and piano awards. The painting my grandma did of my mom when she was young.
I bought this sweater and shirt on the same shopping trip, but I never really intended to wear them together. As I was trying to figure out how to wear the sweater, though, I realized I like the way they look together. Next time you’re feeling uninspired about what to wear, try pairing some things that you never considered wearing together before. You might just end up loving it.
sweater: secondhand Old Navy top: secondhand J. Crew jeans: secondhand New York and Company socks: REI boots: secondhand Nine West hat: secondhand Gap earrings: new via Your Stuff Consignment Boutique
There are “Thrifting Tips” articles all around the blogosphere – I know because I’ve read may of them. But being someone who has been shopping secondhand my whole life, I figure it might be helpful to contribute my own thoughts. So here they are…Maggie’s 8 secondhand shopping tips:
Stay in the know. Subscribe to your favorite consignment and thrift stores’ Facebook pages, texts, Twitter accounts, emails, rewards programs, etc. Stores that are social media savvy will post pictures of new and desirable items to their Facebook/Twitter (recently, a store I follow on Facebook posted some amazing leather combat boots in my size. Unfortunately, I was out of town so by time I was back they had sold. I’m still bummed about that). It’s a great way to be the first to know about great items…and for me, a great motivator to go shopping too much. Emails are a great way to keep in the know about events and sales, and many emails contain coupons. There are all sorts of reward programs. Some stores have punch cards (get a stamp for every $10 spent, for example, and when the card is full you get 20% off) and some stores have VIP programs where members get special deals and discounts.
Go often. The great thing about secondhand stores is that the inventory is always changing. It’s worth a look as often as you can go. Stop in quickly once a week or every other week to see what’s new. That’s how you snag the amazing leather boots or the designer dress in your color.
Either go with some specific needs or go completely open minded.Completely opposite mindsets, I know. But there really are two ways I shop. I either go planning to spend two hours in the store trying on EVERYTHING I like and buy $100 worth…or I go thinking, “I need some jeans and a nice skirt. I’m JUST going to look at jeans and skirts,” and I just buy what I need. How you choose to shop depends on your time and your budget. If you go often, then you can probably go open-minded without needing two hours per visit because you’ll just be checking out what’s new since your last visit. Another reason going often is a good idea.
Learn your favorite stores. There are a few stores in my area I consistently go to, and there are many secondhand stores I never go to. After visiting them all, I just stuck to the ones I like – the ones I know I can always find stuff that fits my style, have prices I can afford, and are neat and attractive. Visit all your local secondhand stores a couple times and figure out the ones that you like. Also, always check out consignment and thrift stores when you travel – it’s one of my favorite things to do. It’s interesting to see how style varies from place to place, and I always find something unique.
Go for the gold and be picky about the fool’s gold. I.E., learn to recognize quality and be picky about things of lesser quality. For example, if I find a J. Crew cashmere sweater that fits me perfectly, for $15, I’m definitely buying it. BUT, if I find a Target brand top (or some other cheap, for lack of a better word, brand), I’ll only buy it if it’s really cute, still in great condition, and super cheap because I know it’s not going to last as long as something high quality.
Get familiar with the jeans that fit.I used to go in a store, grab every pair of nice jeans in my size, try them on, and only get one pair. Now I have a nice little mental list of the brands and correlating sizes that work on me (Gap and J. Crew are my main trusty, always-fit brands, but there are 3 or 4 others that often fit me well, so I always try those on too). Knowing this will help you filter through the overwhelming amount of jeans that many stores have and make shopping for them a little less onerous. Another little tip – always look at the jeans. At least for me, finding PERFECT jeans is very very rare, so I always make time to breeze through the jeans isle.
Look at all sizes in tops.So yes, I’m normally a small, medium, 4 or 6 in tops, but I have a few extra smalls and a few larges that I love. I would have never found them if I didn’t look at all tops in every size. Of course, this takes a little more time, but if you have the time it’s worth it. I’ve also found many misplaced items – a small mixed in with the extra larges, perhaps – so you never know what a shopper might have quickly stuck in the wrong place to get it off their hands. Some stores are better than others about keeping their racks neat.
Don’t ignore the items that look ugly on the hanger.As I said earlier, be open-minded. I often grab saggy-baggy or oddly shaped tops or dresses, only to try them on and love them. The human body is not shaped like…a clothing hanger, so don’t assume it will be ugly on you.
I hope these tips are helpful for you! Do you have any tips for secondhand shopping?
I recently pulled a couple blazers out of the dark depths of my closet hoping that by making them visible I’d wear them more often. To motivate myself even more, I made this inspiration collage with images from around the web of blazer-wearing done stylishly. A summary of the ideas I pulled from the images follows, as well as links to the sources. Click on the collage for a larger view.
Wear it with a maxi skirt for a casual yet comfy look. Wear it with an above-the-knee a line skirt for a more girly, fun look.
Make a really stand-out blazer stand out even more by wearing it with a neutral one-color outfit (like black).
Dress it down. Wear it with a screen print tee and sneakers. Try some rough denim. Have at least one more polished piece though, such as a skirt or some nice loafers, to keep the outfit from looking frumpy.
Be bold with a textured blazer (velvet, wool). Wear it with fun florals, fringe, and layered on accessories.
Keep the outfit simple and wear stand-out shoes (like those metallic oxfords).
Wear a bold necklace. Bonus points if you also wear a bold pattern.
Pair the blazer with more casual trousers, like chinos.Heels will keep it looking sophisticated.
One great thing about blazers is that most consignment and thrift stores have plenty of them, so you should be able to find one that fits your body and taste if you ever need one. If you can get your hands on the latest issue of Real Simple Magazine, there’s an article in it about how to determine if a blazer fits you properly.
Do you have any tips for wearing a blazer – perhaps a way you like to wear them that’s not listed above?
The weather this weekend was unseasonably warm. Yesterday we actually had a record-tying high (74˚F). Though I typically like the weather to stay appropriate to the season (I have yet to see snow this year), I did enjoy our brief warm spell. This is what I wore on Saturday. I love this dress – it’s so fabulously twirly!
Check out Madewell’s latest “looks we love” gallery for some outfit inspiration.
Have a great weekend! It’s supposed to be unusually warm where I am, so I’m looking forward to spending a little time outside (sanding and refinishing a small wooden box). Do you have any exciting plans for the weekend?
