3 Tips for Rocking Business Casual

3 Tips for Rocking Business Casual

When people learn that I do personal styling, they sometimes think that I must be judging what they're wearing. And it's not true that I'm judging it, but I am always noticing what women around me wear. And sometimes, the outfits are just so damn good that I take mental notes to share with you what I'm seeing. Here are three ways that I've noticed women of all ages around me just rocking business casual. 

Bye-bye, navy cardigans and beige pencil skirts. Hello, personality! 

Left/Right.

Don't shy away from color. With black pants, the above left would be a bit of a sleeper, but those pants! Those pants! And her hair, of course, but I can't buy that. The pants, though, I can help you out there. Once you've got your basic black pants, try something brighter and just sub it into outfits where you'd normally wear black pants or even jeans. Jcrew has some great bright wools (in talls, too) this season, and Asos has brights in crepe and curve sizes, too.

Start with a great dress. What could be simpler than putting on a great dress with a classic shape? The obvious key here is to not wear anything too revealing. The not-as-obvious is to go for statement dresses. I think we can all default to neutrals because we think they're more wearable, but a printed dress can be worn a lot of different ways-and you can start to build your own personal style. I love Modcloth's dresses. 

 

Left/Right.

Wear a midi length skirt with something edgier like low boots or strappy shoes. The rest of the look should be really covered up (long sleeves, high neck) and then BAM! Fun shoes. I'd need to add tights underneath, but a midi length is really forgiving of all kinds of warm layers you might need to add. If you're looking for a neutral, wear-with-everything work appropriate knee length boot, these are incredible. If you live somewhere warmer or tend to switch into flats at work, I love this yellow. 

And I wrote about it before, but you have to check out this tumblr. Every time I look at it, I choose more fun outfits for at least the next few days! 

Fanciful Dresses for Whimsical Events

Fanciful Dresses for Whimsical Events

Free People

Every so often, I get really excited about the dresses that a store has or that are out for a particular season. This is it! I'm excited. Today's dresses have me wishing that someone would invite me to a whimsical party-in a barn, at a library, on the steps of City Hall, or even a fall baby shower. 

I imagine each of them pulling off two styles: each could be worn "dressy" with quirky heels and a short bolero jacket or with booties, tights, and a felt Panama hat. Any dress that automatically brings to mind two styles is one worth buying if you ask me! And, of course, during this season's last warm days, you could wear these with sandals and a jean jacket. 

Left: Asos Curve Shift in Lace, Right, Asos Wrap Back Dress

How to Stay Warm with Lean Layers for Fall

How to Stay Warm with Lean Layers for Fall

Come winter, I'm fine with bulkier layers. A girl's gotta stay warm, right? However, this time of year I'm still mourning the loss of warm weather, and I'm just not ready for wool. However, as previously mentioned, my office is freezing, and I need to be warm! So, I had a great idea: I'm focusing on lean layers that still pack on the heat. It's almost like taking lean meat and rubbing spice all over it before grilling it. Hmm...sorry. Maybe I need some more dinner! 

Wear a thick sweater over a long, lean dress and pants.

I went to the Leesburg outlets here in Northern Virginia the other day to put my plan into action. I was on a mission to add long, lean layers to my closet in place of the light shirts I typically layer with. This fall, I decided that they just aren't going to cut it. My office is too cold! My apologies in advance for the changing room selfies. Here's how I showed up (gotta love my unicorn nails still done from the party, right?)

This is an American Eagle cardigan, and I'm going to wash it by hand and as little as possible, frankly. I love the print but don't expect the quality to hold up for very long. It's fairly thick, but it flows away from my body so much that I could layer on a thicker, long top underneath. The bottom layer is this long dress/tunic thing from Target. With my high waisted Old Navy jeans, I felt nice and tucked in around the middle. When I got too hot shopping, I could still wear the whole outfit minus the sweater. And yes, those are my good-for-my-back Danskos.

Treat a Light Sweater Like a T-Shirt

At Banana Republic Outlet, I found several light sweaters that I've decided to wear in place of the cotton button downs and long-sleeved t-shirts that I typically pull out around this time of year.  These sweaters are warmer, but they're still light enough to layer up. I imagine wearing them under blazers for long, lean layers. I love the look of a sweater poking out on the arms, longer than the rolled-up arms of a blazer. I also liked these pants from Banana in a size down from here to avoid that bunching.

Match Similar Weights and Colors

Here, I put together a thicker sweater with a thicker jacket. However, the jacket is lined so it doesn't pull on the sweater, and the cut of the sweater is narrow enough that it works. Frankly, this sweater isn't typically one I'd wear to work since it was quite close to my body (ie my chest was too prominent), but with the idea of using it as a layering piece, it suddenly became the perfect thing.

And yes, I wanted the sweater to be longer below. You don't have to do that if it's not your style, but it's absolutely fine for the two not to "match up" in length.

Happy layering!

Personal Shopping at Macy's

Personal Shopping at Macy's

Recently I took a client for a personal shopping session at the mall. She preferred not to have her picture posted here, but I snapped some pictures that I wanted to share with you all because they're such great jackets and dresses! 

And, as always, I don't get paid to share specific products with you so yes, you can look these up on Macy's website, but also keep your eyes out for similar styles wherever you shop.

Cute Winter Jackets

What I loved about these was their high collars for cold weather, there structures shoulders to flatter the waist, and their funky details like big buttons or zippers.

Up Close and Personal in the Target Dressing Room

Up Close and Personal in the Target Dressing Room

Normally I save my dressing room shots for Instagram, but I took so damn many this time that I thought you might be interested in what I found! I laughed because I showed up in black and white and tried on almost exclusively black and black & white. Know what you love, I guess?

The Good

This banded bottom dress is a tricky one, but I ultimately decided that it was a great thing to have. Here you see it styled as I would rarely-if ever-wear it. Maybe for a date night with some sexy boots or heels because, as you can see in the rear view mirror, it is a booty dress/sweatshirt thingee.

It has some odd arm panels, but don't pay those any mind.

The great thing about this comfy layer is that it will provide nice butt coverage for skinny jeans or leggings, and it is soft and cozy. Also, I love the draping it does! 

I loved how long these sweater leggings or tights were, but they were very flimsy material. The ones I tried on already had a hole in the waist. H&M has similar sweater tights for cheaper.

The OK

Ok so these next two dresses show how much I truly love and trust you all. I'm not pregnant (and not fixated on it, clearly!), but I have always been a bit squishier around the middle than I like to show off. Yes, I sometimes wear control top tights, Spanx, or at least a slip. But, these two dresses weren't flattering, and I wanted them to be easy, pull-on-in-the-morning, wear for work dresses. And they weren't going to be that for me.

This sweater dress gave me pause and made me consider my personal ban on sweater dresses. However, I did not buy it for the same reason that I never buy them: they show every lump. This goes back to my same feeling that I don't want to wear Spanx under a comfortable dress. However, if you are lump free or more at peace with your lumps, then this is a soft dress with a great pattern. Wear it alone, over tights, or with a long cardigan or blazer over it.

This dress was a pretty blue that doesn't show up in the horrible Target lighting, and I love that it had sleeves. However, it hit me at an awkward spot-just at the hips. If you have a shorter torso, then I think you'd love this dress.

The Bad

As you can see by my Kardashian face and the booty shot in the behind mirror, this was not a winner for me. If you really want to show off your curves or build up some curviness if you're on the less curvy side, you might love this peplum dress. I felt ridiculous in it.

This black top was a nice length but the split side went up so high that you'd have to wear another top under it, which I found annoying. The pants looked great in theory but were more suited to a smaller butt.

Oh, and I woke showed up like this. You know, in case you were wondering.

Oh-and Clog Watch 2014 continues. Yes, I'm still wearing them. Yes, my back is getting better, and no, I'm not a clog convert. But if you love Danskos and/or you need major arch support, these Tamara clogs are some of the most stylish options I've seen.