Thrifting Queen

So if you've followed my other thread about the floral moto vs. the leather moto (http://youlookfab.com/welookfa.....loral-moto) you'll know that I've decided to pass on both jackets at this time.

This got me thinking about fulfilling my love of florals and the blazer I thrifted last summer. I still have it and am wondering if this still looks current/stylish? Do I already have *MY* floral blazer? or should I keep looking for something a little less "loud"? FWIW, this blazer was deemed fab last year when I introduced it.

Head to toe black outfits can be harsh but black is my favourite colour to wear and will always be a staple in my wardrobe. So in order to make an all black outfit look interesting and not "flat", I need to add texture.

Today's outfit started with a tweed knit skirt I bought at Cleo Petite before Christmas and haven't worn. It was actually a bit tight when I bought it and then became tighter (darned shortbread cookies!) but thanks to Lean Eating, when I tried it on last night, it fit beautifully. I paired the knit skirt with my sleek and drapey side tie boat neck top to add softness and volume to the shorter and slimmer fitting skirt. Then I added my black large polka dot hose for even more texture and visual interest. My one shot of colour is my blue/purple suede booties.

My accessories consist of my black/white handbag, silver ring and a vintage grey/silver bangle....and of course, a swipe of red lipstick!

I'm happy in this outfit and although some consider black to be an easy, bordering on lazy, colour choice, I still think it can have "oomph".

So what do you think? Boring black? or interesting black? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

BTW - camera is doing funny things to the shine of the shirt on my chest. I promise you that my breasts do not look like car headlights IRL!

And Gain thinks every outfit needs a shot of orange!

Top & skirt: Cleo Petite
Tights: Hue
Boots: Aerosole
Handbag & bangle: thrifted

So Kristin and I hatched a plan yesterday at work to go today on our lunch hour and try on both the Danier Leather black & white moto and the Club Monaco floral moto, have Kristin take pictures and me to post them for comparison purposes. We had such a blast and felt rather silly taking pics in the two stores but it was an interesting exercise.

First up is the Danier Leather moto - I adore the graphic style of this moto with its crisp combination of black and white. I like that neither the collar nor the cuffs are white, which I think makes it easier to keep clean and pristine looking between professional cleanings. The leather is soft and supple. In all of the pictures with the jacket undone, I have tucked the sleeves in as they are too long. There is a zipper on the bottom 4 inches of the sleeve which of course Danier can re-do for my shorter arms, keeping zipper and all. It is a size medium. I can just do it up but would not likely wear it zippered anyway. The shoulders fit well and the waist is in the right spot for me. I think the length is good with trousers but it could be too long to wear with dresses. There was not a large to try on for comparison but I do know that the Danier Leather jackets in large are always too big in the shoulders for me. FWIW my black leather blazer is the same size and just barely does up as well.

Secondly, the Club Monaco floral moto: I fell hard for the beautiful unexpected colouring of the floral pattern on this jacket. I like that it is not a literal interpretation of floral and that it is in shades of grey and cream. The fabric was light and felt wonderful to the touch, but was not delicate. I liked the cropped length and thought that where it hit me on the high hip/waist was fairly flattering. I also found the colours to work really well with my salt-n-pepper hair. The sleeves were shockingly just the right length - no shortening required. This is a medium and is no where near being able to do up. It is also quite tight in the shoulders and upper arms and that is with just a tank underneath. I would definitely need a large in this jacket, which the store did not have for me to try on. Based on their sizing, I'm doubtful that even a large would zip up, but it would be better.

A little bit about the service: Danier was stellar as usual and the SA's though it was cool that we were taking pics for a fashion community website and there were no problems that we were not buying today.

Club Monaco was the complete opposite. The SA was unhelpful and borderline rude. I felt uncomfortable asking if they had a large after searching the rack and finding none. I felt that I had no right to be in the store as a heavier woman and clearly didn't fit their demographic.

So...over to you...does one of these stand out above the other? Do you like the leather jacket or the floral jacket for me? Or do neither work and I should move on?

I have had this Nygard silk-blend cardigan for probably close to 5 years. It was a favourite of mine that I wore a ton - I love the soft drape, the purples and yellow in the abstract pattern, and the overall fit. But I haven't worn it much in the last 1-2 years and wasn't sure if it still deserved a place in my wardrobe. When I popped it on in this combination, I fell in love with it again - it's staying!

I popped the cardigan over top of a dark purple tank, tucked into my L&T black slouchy trousers, and then added a simple black leather belt with a gunmetal buckle. Somehow adding this old cardigan to the new silhouette of the slouchy trousers made it feel modern again. The cardigan is almost slouchy in its own right with its soft drape and I like the combination.

Jewelry is my silver wedding band and my newly thrifted black and silver watch. Truth be told, this is a men's watch and probably a little too large for my wrist, but I don't care - lol! Footwear is my black wedge booties and my handbag is my black/cream leather one.

I'm really happy in this combination and enjoying trying some of my older beloved items in new ways.

What do you think? Does this cardigan have some life in it yet? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Cardigan: Nygard
Tank: Gap
Trousers: Lord & Taylor
Booties: Blow Fish
Handbag: Danier Leather (thrifted)
Watch: Calvin Klein (thrifted)

About two weeks ago, I had commented on one of Amy's stunning outfits that she was making me reconsidering layering a white shirt under a sweater and she promptly challenged me give it a go. So today is the day.

I started with my simple navy trousers and then added my white button down. On top of the shirt, I added my navy sparkly sweater. The hi-lo hemline of the sweater allows just a bit of the white shirt to peek out in the front, which I really like. I've added my python booties for a touch of lightness to bookend the shirt and my cobalt/yellow snakeskin clutch for a bit more texture and colour.

Happiness scale? Too high to count! I'm surprised at how much I like the stiffer shirt as I thought I was kind of done with them....hmmmm....food for thought. Thank you Amy for pushing me to give this a try.

What do you think? Does this kind of look work for me? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Trousers: NJP Petite
Shirt: Jessica (Sears brand)
Sweater: Laura Petite
Boots: Sam Edelman
Clutch: Trouve

P.S. Gain wants to know if I'm done taking my pics yet as he is sure he's going to starve if I don't hurry and feed him!

Now I feel like wearing a dress AFTER the dress challenge is done - lol!

Started today's outfit with my black and white graphic print Maggy London faux wrap dress. I then decided to up the contrast quotient and paired it with my cobalt VC jacket. I realize the necklines compete a little bit here but I actually kind of like how the dress collar peeks out.

I added nude micro fishnets and my Doc Martens Marcie boots for some urban footwear. I've added my black/cream leather handbag and jewelry is just my silver wedding ring.

What do you think? Does the jacket work with this dress? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Jacket: Vince Camuto
Dress: Maggy London
Fish nets: Hue
Boots: Doc Martens
Handbag: Danier Leather (thrifted)

In my defence, my BFF wanted to go. At least I didn't initiate it - lol!

But I found a few fabulous pieces and don't feel bad about picking them up at all. Below to show you are my "finds":

- beautiful cream/red/charcoal poppy design scarf (great for taking my winter clothes into spring)

- a soft silk blend Gap voluminous tee (perfect bright colour and good to add to my casual capsule). Should also work well for partial tucking.

- Kut from the Kloth straight/bootcut jeans with the exact perfect hem and fantastic fit (again, great to add to my casual capsule)

- lovely large and simple silver Calvin Klein watch with black leather croc strap - doesn't even need a new battery!

- black and cream polka dot rubber boots - I will feel so fashionable when gardening in these!

Please don't be angry with me Angie :) I thought these were all great items, perfectly wearable, suits my style, fit perfectly and add to my casual capsule.

As soon as I put this outfit together, I thought of Ceit and it totally made me smile!

I started the outfit with my grey skinnies that I recently purchased. I sized up on these to get a slouchy look and I'm really happy with the fit. On me, they aren't true skinnies and that's what I like about them - nothing restrictive or overly revealing. They need to be hemmed but I haven't gotten around to it and was eager to wear them anyway.

I've paired the jeans with my new Esprit sweater in black and grey. It has a fab silver strip down the front, slightly off center that I adore. The wide boat neck I think works for me. I did a faux tuck showing my black leather belt with gunmetal buckle.

For footwear, I've got on my Doc Marcie boots to add to the Ceit-ness and then for a touch of ladylike, I'm using my grey snakeskin clutch. And of course when I head out the door, I will pop on my bright citron puffer.

So what do you think of my tonal outfit? Does it work on me? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Sweater: Esprit
Jeans: Jessica Simpson
Boots: Doc Martens
Belt: Danier Leather
Clutch: Sondra Roberts (thrifted)
Puffer: Esprit

I have quite a bit of running around today (indoors and outdoors) so I'm afraid no dress for me. But an interesting discovery has popped up this week with the dress challenge - I am not reaching for my dresses as much as I used to. It appears these days, I prefer trousers. Now maybe that's due to the warmth factor, but it will be interesting to see as Spring rolls around, if that's still the case.

So today's outfit started with my tweed-ish trousers (waving to trouser twin Sveta). I decided to add a colourful and graphic sweater so popped on my turquoise/cream/citron argyle pull over. To pull out the cream in the tweed and the sweater a bit more, I've added my python booties. Plus they are super comfortable for a day on the go. My handbag is my black/cream leather one. A simple outfit but happiness factor is extremely high.

I did briefly wonder if my cream leather handbag would work with this - curious, do you think a cream handbag is too spring-ish to pull out in the dead of winter?

What do you think? Do you prefer me in trousers or dresses? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Sweater: St. John's Bay (thrifted)
Trousers: Jessica (Sears brand)
Booties: Sam Edelman
Handbag: Danier Leather (thrifted)

Today I'm participating in both the dress and the scarf challenge. Today's outfit started with my black sheath dress. If I could wear this dress every day, I probably would. Love it so! I've topped the dress with my cropped denim jacket and then added this beautiful blue and gold scarf that Anne had sent me as my Secret Santa. I love this scarf because it reminds me of Van Gogh's Starring Night, my husband's favourite painting.

I've added my large polka dot tights and knee high black leather boots and my navy vintage handbag to complete the outfit.

What do you think? Everything working well together? As always, all comments/suggestions welcome.

Jacket: Brody Jeans (thrifted)
Dress: Banana Republic
Tights: Hue
Boots: Blondo
Handbag: vintage
Scarf: gift