Dressing for Evening

Our new church runs a k-8 school and this past weekend they had their charity gala and auction. I can't say no to an excuse to get dressed up for a night out so off we went! We didn't want to lug around the big fancy camera all night so you'll have to excuse these iPhone photos.

I decided to go with the 1920s feel of my new do and try another 20s inspired look. I didn't have any 20s inspired evening attire so I pulled out this 50s dress, which is my favorite. It kind of feels like a robe de style with the fuller skirt and hip accent. Plus, I've shrunk a bit so the waist is now a bit big on me.

Add on a string of pearls and people automatically think roaring twenties. I did draw the line at the crazy fringe dress.

 I spent a lot of time on Pinterest trying to figure out what to do with my hair. I also raided my accessory stash nut no luck. So I went with a simple sparkley bobby pin. A bob is a lot like a pixie in that it goes with everything.

 I got tons of compliments all night! Everybody was dressed nicely but vintage has a way of standing out. I also wore gloves for most of the evening but we snapped these between courses at dinner and I forgot to put them back on! *facepalm*

 Part of the evening involved a silent and live auction. The bidding on most items went pretty high so we didn't bid on anything but there was a cruise raffle we entered. Alas, we didn't win that either!

We still had quite a fun evening and hope to attend next year as well!

P.S. I also wore this dress to a charity gala in Ohio. Check it out here.

Wardrobe Architect: Week 1

Moving has been way more life changing that I ever thought it would be (and I think there will be more changes over this year as we get to know our new home town). When life changes, the wardrobe needs to adapt to keep up. Thus the great closet clean out. Emileigh of Flashback Summer is also overhauling her wardrobe and she mentioned the Colette Pattern's Wardrobe Architect series which started in January 2014. I read through it last winter as it was going along but didn't pay much attention because I loved my wardrobe.

But now my wardrobe needs some work so I've decided to chronicle my journey through the Wardrobe Architect series and see where I end up! There are currently 14 week projects in the series and I'm planning on doing one a week as they were publish. I'm usually an over achiever and would try to do a bunch at once but I really want to take my time and let my style ideas marinate so I can come up with a great niche style that really works for my new life.

Week 1 is about exploring seven areas of your life that affect your personal style. The goal is to look at your life and your style and help you find something that works for you rather than chasing the latest (or in my case, old) trends.

Awkward high school Stephanie (=nerd) with some friends and our AP Physics project.

History-

Growing up, I went to a private school with uniforms from grades 5-8 which definitely put me behind in the fashion department. I was definitely awkward in high school and focused on comfort over style most of the time. Comfort I could wrangle but fashion seemed a bit out of my reach. I was in college when I discovered vintage and I haven't really looked back, until now.

My life is changing. I graduated school just over a year ago and entered the work world so my wardrobe definitely needs some updating in the professionalism department. At 25 going on 26, I'm also looking for a classic wardrobe that will be able to transition into my 30s (which I know isn't old but definitely shouldn't look like 21 either!).

My best friend from high school and I at my wedding rehearsal. Also, this is the longest my hair has ever, ever been.

Philosophy-

I try to not talk about religion too much on the blog (because I know you are all here for the pretty pretties) but I'm a rather conservative Christian. Modesty is very important to me because of my faith. I've found that it can be hard to dress modestly when you are as curvy as me because either things fit too well and show everything off or they don't fit well and there's awkward gaping and underwear hanging out of the back of my pants.

Making an effort with some early sewing projects.

Culture-

I didn't grow up with "fashionable" parents or relatives around. As the oldest, I didn't even have an older sister to look up to. I also heavily invested in the "nerd" identity which doesn't really put an emphasis on fashion. Finally, in my senior year of high school, I tried to be more fashionable but I didn't really figure it out. I just looked like I got dressed with the lights on rather than in the dark.

A newly wed look and trying to be classy at 20.

 Community-

My husband has very different tastes in style than I do. He personally dresses almost completely in neutrals and avoids colors. He also loves the hippy drippy peasant type skirt and blouse with long flowing hair look. (So never going to happen.) While I don't want to dress just for him, I would like to keep some of his preferences in mind. I also feel like full on vintage all the time can keep people at arms length because it is intimidating. Now, a more extroverted person wouldn't have a problem with that but little old introverted me would rather have people come to me rather than me go to them.

Gardening and my idea of garden wear. Maybe you'll be distracted by the carrots and forget I'm digging in the dirt in this outfit.

Activities-

I have three birds so wash and wear items are key in my wardrobe. Poop galore! I now live near the beach and walking the beach is one of my favorite activities. Beach wear is going to be key in my new wardrobe. Working in a professional field also means I need to dress like it. Things are more competitive down here so I need to step up my game especially being so young. I also have come to realize that flats are perfect for an active lifestyle no matter how much I love heals. So I'm on the look out for more cute flats.

Walking the beach over dressed.

Location-

New location, new climate, new wardrobe.  I definitely need to stock up on light weight options for mid-summer heat and humidity. What I wasn't expecting was the insane levels of a.c. most public buildings have even in the winter! Brrrr! So I need great layering pieces that I can easily lose when I go outside. I also want to keep my pale complexion, so things that cover me from the sun are a plus.

Trying to be fashionable because a button down and a vest say cool and sophisticated.

Body-

I am super curvey and it's hard to find ready to wear that fits my curvy figure. I purchase mostly separates because it's much easier to fit when I can have one size on top and another on the bottom. I prefer styles that accentuate my waist but I've been more open to at least trying on other styles lately. Modern "fashionable" shapes look horrible on me. Skinny legs accentuate big hips and loose flowy tops make my waist look thick. This is one of the things that drew me to vintage in the first place.

How do your history, philosophy, culture, community, activities, location and body affect your style?

Less is More: In my Closet

I posted back in January that my motto for this year is "Less is More" and I've been trying to work towards this goal. I've been doing some research into minimalism and started following some minimalist blogs to get some ideas. I doubt I'll ever be a true minimalist because I like stuff but it's been really encouraging me to think about what I have and if it adds value to my life or if it is just taking up space. Trying to buy less also helps too!

So today was the day I finally decided to tackle my closet! I did some reading on the Project 333 blog and one thing I found there was a link to this article which had great tips to declutter your closet as well as other rooms around the house. The article suggested taking all of the clothes out of your closet and sort them into piles-I love it, I don't love it but I still want to keep it for some reason, donate and trash. So I pulled all of the clothes out of my closet and found this:

Oh dear! I do not need this much clothes! And this isn't even everything. Winter clothes were packed up in two boxes in the bedroom. Evening wear was in the guest bedroom closet with the costumes. Outwear was in the hall closet. And there were even a couple of things laying around the sewing room for one reason or another. Plus, I had a stash of things I was thinking of letting go already but hadn't had the guts to say goodbye yet.

So I did a really quick first sort. Alas, the biggest pile was the I don't love it but I still want to keep it for some reason pile. Why did I still want to keep all of this stuff? So I pulled that pile back on the bed and sorted by type of garment and went through it again. It was hard to let go of a lot of me-mades but I'm tired of so much clutter in my life. If it's not working for me, it had to go. Sort, sort, sort. Bye, bye, bye.

Here's the final donate pile. I've been feeling lately that my wardrobe needs a bit of a shift. I still love vintage but especially for work, I really need some nice modern pieces so out went lots vintage me-mades that I didn't absolutely love. I tried to be a bit conservative with the donate pile because a) I've only been in Florida two months so I'm not sure how the rest of the year will make me want to shape my wardrobe and b) I'm sure I'm going to wake up one day and really miss my vintage so I kept more than the in the moment purging Stephanie really wanted to keep.

And, seriously, I'd rather have just a few pieces that I love that I wear all the time rather than a mountain of things I'm meh about that get worn once or twice a year because I have so many things.

Three garbage bags full of stuff to go to Goodwill! Eeep! I also threw a few purses in there but shoes, hats, and accessories didn't even get touched!

Then I got to load all of the keep stuff back into the closet. And I had space for everything! My fall/spring weight jackets got upgraded from the hall closet to the actual closet. Florida appropriate winter clothes got hung up and the in case we visit Ohio in the winter clothes were boxed up and stored in the back of the closet.

This rack contains my more modern work appropriate pieces. Plus, check out all of those empty hangers in the back! Yay!

 Straight in the back are my more casual vintage dresses. Fancy things are still in the other closet because a lot of them have significant sentimental value and I was tired by this point.

On the other side, my hubby has the top rack so I put all of my vintage blouses, skirts and pants.

Ahhh. My closet feels so much nicer now! It's going to be much easier getting ready for work and other functions because everything is sorted by style rather than type of garment. The closet clean out has also brought some gaps to my attention so I'll be working to fill those up and also replace a few things that are getting sort of sad looking.

The Hats of Downton Abbey Season 5

It's been a while since I did a good Downton Abbey post. So it's about time for one! I've warmed considerably towards 20s fashions lately. And I adore hats so hat's it is today.

I've always adored the cute 20s close fitting cloche hats. I think that they are flattering on just about anyone.

Plus they tend to be rather easy to find in modern reproductions. You can always retrim a store bought hat to look more period or to match your outfit.

And, of course, a bob goes perfectly with a cloche!

Don't have short hair? Never fear! Plenty of ladies faked the fashionably bob by pulling their hair into a low bun at the back of the neck. Wear with or without fingerwaves for a smashing 20s look!

While wool cloches were rather popular, straw ones are perfect for summer.

Don't be afraid of fabulous trims! A multicolored ribbon on a neutral colored hat will go with so many outfits.

 Neutrals like black or dark red will go with many different outfits. The idea of a pop of color is not new.

Go with a matching hat for a classically put together look too!

Do you have a favorite hat from season 5?

Trying new things

You all know that I have been growing my pixie out for about 9 months or so. And this week, I was finally ready to go to the salon and have a professional do something to it. It was getting rather crazy with all of the unequally growing out bits so out came the scissors!

Snip! Snip! If you follow on Instagram, you've already seen this but I got a lot of length chopped off of the back.

I have always, always wanted a 1920s flapper bob and now I have one! I almost cut my hair into on the last time I grew out a pixie but I chickened out. I'm so glad I went for it this time because I love it.

 As for the outfit, I don't exactly have a lot of 20s appropriate pieces in my wardrobe so I just threw this together from what I had. The sweater is one from Ann Taylor that I hardly ever wear because white sweaters and crazy birds flying around tend not to end well. But it's long enough to look 20s when not tucked in. And the skirt is one I made from a 50s pattern but it's pretty basic. And for the extra pow factor- American Duchess 23 Skidoos.

I was actually quite happy with how this look turned out. I have avoided the 20s so far because it's ideal body shape is about as opposite from mine as you can get. And while I will say other decades are more flattering, I didn't feel fat in this outfit at all. I rather feel like a 20s lady golfer, actually! Just need some clubs.

I'm still getting used to the shorter length, but I love it! I had a bob all through out high school and I've always kind of wanted to go back to that. But that super critical *youmustbeaperfectvintagefashionblogger* voice would always whine "But then you can't do pin curls!" and so I resisted. 

But now I get to shut that voice up and say I can rock it! This do looks surprisingly good with modern clothes and I'm sure will be just darling with 40s and 50s styles too.

I don't have any current plans to actively add 20s pieces to my wardrobe but who knows. I'm trying not to be so plan oriented with fashion and just let it be fun for a while. And this is the second fun new look I've tried this year along with the 40s suit.

Right now, I'm having fun with the new do and enjoying the short hair lifestyle again! Plus I can't wait to play around with some 20s make up for day and evening.

 Have you ever tried a fun and crazy hair do before? Is there one you've been dying to try but haven't had the courage to?

Classic Red and Blue

One of the great things about suits is that they are so versatile! So, here's my 40s "suit" another way.

I actually made this skirt to wear with my Wearing History Ruthie blouse. I have a lot of navy blue neutrals in the bottoms half of my wardrobe. So I needed something to wear with a blue top!

And I guess blue could go with anything, but it looks awesome with red.

I'm finding that layers in Florida are key. Cool in the morning and warm in the afternoon. Cold in the shadows but warm in the sun. Warm outside but frigidly air conditioned inside.

I've actually been wearing my Ruthie blouse a lot since I got it. It is so comfortable! Lauren really hit it out of the park with the fabric choice here. So soft!

It's blousey yet still fitted enough to show off a waist. Plus I can move in the sleeves!

It's a blouse you can live in. There are some things in my closet that I'll wear for photos or a specific outing but then want to take of and put on comfy clothes when I get home. Not with this blouse.

On the other had, it looks so classic! Pair it with pearls and a cute shoe and I can wear it to work. It's just an amazing basic for my wardrobe.

I hope there are other colors of this blouse available in the future because I would totally by another (or three!).

 Do you have a favorite basic piece in your wardrobe?

40s Fashion Calendar: January

If you haven't noticed, the theme for this week is something along the lines of oh, wait, it's February already? Guess I should post the rest of my January things!! So here's my January 40s Fashion Calendar entry.

Last week, the hubby and I took an impromptu day trip to St. Augustine, FL. I had just finished my crafting adventures for the January project so I decided to wear them out.

The January project involved making two faux flower brooches-one for your winter coat and one for your purse. It was chilly but not cold enough for a winter jacket so I just wore my pin with my "suit".

We were also supposed to accessorize with a pair of gloves. While it would have been easy to go with a safe neutral or even a green pair, I decided to coordinate with the lavender flowers in my brooch and go with a light purple pair.

And I wore my green hat! I adore the fact that this outfit is basically red and green but does not read Christmas at all! I guess it's all of the pretty flowers.

I was a bit nervous about this brooch making. I'm not usually good with anything that is "crafty" in nature. Sewing yes, crafty no. But it turned out really great!

But it turned out really great! And this outfit turned out amazing! I seriously doubt I would have put it together on my own but it was so much fun.

Since I don't own an actual suit, I don't usually go for the suit look but this turned out great. The sweater and skirt don't quite match in color and that's something that normally drives me bonkers but once I actually put the outfit on, you really can't tell. And it didn't bother me at all the entire day.

I didn't have a cloth purse to pin the second brooch on but I just pinned it to the decorative tassel and called it a day.

I got tons of compliments on my outfit! And it made me remember how much I adore wearing gloves and a hat. Accessories are so important to an outfit.

All of the pieces I'm wearing are solid basics but the interest is in the accessories and combinations of colors. 

 Are you participating in the 40s Fashion Calendar? What's your favorite attention grabbing accessory?