Monday, January 20, 2025

Bold Kimono Wrap Top for some Winter Color

Hello and welcome!
So glad you stopped by my blog today


On a gray January day,
 I decided to be bold and try a style
 that I rarely ever wear-the kimono



Kimonos of all types
 have been enjoying great popularity
 for the past decade-that is some staying power!
Many women love the exquisite detailing
and endless versatility of this type of garment
How about you, are you a kimono girl?
From what I understand,
 kimonos are not nearly as accessible to purchase,
nor as popular in the UK and Western Europe 
 Has anyone across the pond noticed that?
 Kimonos are really always in fashion
  because they are a key component in the wardrobe
of women with a boho or dramatic aesthetic
 I have seen some very beautiful kimonos
  Some hand dyed in the most fabulous luxurious fabrics,
and in many colors, patterns and textures
 Many feature amazing details
 like intricate lace and embroidery
Kimono's almost always have dropped or dolman sleeves,
which is the reason I don't usually wear this style
 It is a difficult one for me since I have narrow shoulders,
but I admired them so much on other women 

I decided to give this one a try
because of the distracting and camouflaging print
  I love the colorful, oversize graphic design,
 and the contrasting border print on the sleeves and hem
 Also, it has a wrap tie waist to give it shape
Wearing this special kimono top
 with a black wool knit midi skirt 

The sleeves!


All of my accessories are bold, 
to hold there own with the kimono print and style
Carrying my bright royal blue convertible clutch
 with the cross body chain strap tucked inside


I chose a three strand bracelet of black and gray faux pearls
and am wearing large, vintage 1950s
 silver tone wreath or starburst earrings


 Gray fabric pointed toe mules
with wide straps and buckle detail to finish the outfit



Roger is joining me today,
and chose a bright royal blue button down
 and black trousers-
 it's fun that he enjoys matching my outfit when possible


A bright blue, black and white outfit from the past-
winter 2021
The bright blue rib knit cardigan is from the early aughts


Hope you all enjoy your week!






 

Monday, January 13, 2025

Windowpane Check Jacket in Winter

Hello and thanks for stopping by my blog!

It's the middle of winter and cold, colder or coldest
 almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere 
Lucky you, if you are basking in the sun
in a warm climate, right now!
Are you a lover of cold weather?
I know some people are, 
and a ski vacation just about now sounds great⛷!
I think I would rather linger by the fire 

 So this week I thought I would style
 a favorite formula of mine for the season,
a jacket over a dress
Wearing a plum colored A-line dress and an ivory and grey windowpane check blazer, both in winter weights 



Yesterday I was fastinated by a YouTube video
 about the various micro trends that have sprung up recently
 A style called office core, 
or corpcore is one of them 
It seems my favorite classic style
 happens to be trending now!


Carrying a much loved vintage 1960s black leather bag
I love the minimalist style and curved handles



A few simple accessories and jewelry with this look
 A black braided hair band, silver tone teardrop earrings,
 and a wide vintage 1950s silver tone
 expandable cuff bracelet


A little bright color is needed!
I chose a tassel motive printed scarf around my neck,
in shades of pink, plum and light blue


Black suede block heel sling backs to finish the outfit
I will not be walking far outside in these today-cold feet! 


Here is a similar outfit from January, 2020
A jacket over a dress is a go to option for me



Stay warm whatever your style,
 and hope you enjoy your week!






 

Monday, January 6, 2025

Happy New Year!

Hello, and welcome to my blog!

Thanks so much for stopping by
for my first post of the new year!

Roger and I would both like to wish each and every one of you

 a very happy, healthy and successful 2025 🥳 

We raise a toast to all of you!


On New Year's Eve, I wore a two-piece outfit 
An ivory monochrome sweater and skirt-
a palette cleanser for a clean slate to begin 2025!
The sweater is a lovely soft cashmere
 in a longer length that I wore with 
  an all over sequin skirt with a lace under layer
 




Carrying a purse in one of my favorite motifs
   ðŸ’– heart shape in blush pink💖


For the special occasion,
 I tried a new necklace and scarf idea
entwined together around my neck
 I have seen different variations of this on the internet,
and on a few of your blogs,
 and I think it's a really pretty and clever idea
I chose a pearl necklace and a scarf
tied in a bow, 🎀
but there are so many ways
 to combine different types of necklaces
and other ways to tie the scarf, as well,
for different looks


I chose shimmery silver tone jewelry
for the occasion 
A wavy organic asymmetrical cuff bracelet
 and textured hoop earrings


 I picked these neutral light tan block heel sling back pumps
because they are not too dressy-
   since the skirt has a lot of bling factor 
Also, they are comfortable and not too high for dancing!


Roger looks dashing,
 wearing a subtly plaid royal blue and black suit


Still smiling, although 
2024 was a very challenging year for us
A kiss for luck, from my handsome prince,
 hoping for a better year to follow!


Hope you all had a lovely New Year's eve celebration 
and have plans for a great 2025!






Tuesday, December 17, 2024

Christmas


Hello and happy holidays to all!
Thanks for taking time out to visit my blog

This festive time of year goes by in a blur of activity
It's so much fun, but also very hectic
Remember to take time out for yourself to keep life in balance
 It's always a bit of a challenge for me during this time of year

In the spirit of the season, I've got my red on, of course!
This is an old favorite dress
 that has been in my wardrobe for over six years
 It is a sleeveless fit and flare classic,
 and can be worn during all seasons
with a little imaginative layering
I have worn it for special occasions all year round
 in different ways
 I love the giant abstract print,
 and the super full and flouncy skirt!
For this time of year, I am wearing the dress
 with an ivory cropped cardigan layered over it
 that has interesting toggle button closures



 
The bracelet I am wearing is very special to me,
 because it was a gift from my mother-in-law
She bought it on her post graduate
 trip to Europe in the 1950's,
 when she was in her 20s
 I know she had many cherished memories
 about her experiences on that once in a lifetime
  holiday abroad, through Europe with here best friends
 How exciting it must have been, and what memories
 she made wearing this bracelet!
I choose the 1950s vintage red collar necklace,
but later took it off,
 because I but decided it was a little too much!


Here are some more accessories,
 because now is the time to put on the glitz, right?
Wearing an ivory folded fabric headband,
 gold tone circle earrings,
 and another cherished piece of vintage 1950's jewelry
 This sweet little gold tone running dear brooch
 was a gift to me from Roger 
We bought it while on a Thanksgiving trip to Pennsylvania 
years ago, at an antique shop 


For a bag, I chose this 1960's tan embossed hard shell one 
 It has a twisted metallic cord strap of gold, silver and bronze
that can be worn as a shoulder strap or tucked inside
so it can be used as a clutch


For shoes, I choose cherry red pointed toe
 slingback Mary Janes-perfect for the holidays!


That's my Roger standing under the Kissing ball-
he is quite a ham for the camera!



Matching my dress in a festive bright red sweater vest



Some colorful Christmas cookies from the bakery- 
umm, they are not going to last long in our house!



Hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful holiday season!
I am taking a little holiday break, and will be back
 on Monday, Jan 6th with my new year's outfit
I hope you will join me!

This turned out to be a "break" in more ways than one!
My computer died just before Christmas
 Fortunately, it was repairable,
but required a whole new logic board. Yikes! 
The crash was instant and completely unexpected
All is well now, though 🙂










 

Monday, December 9, 2024

Fun and Festive Holiday Outfit



Hello and welcome!
Thanks so much for stopping by my blog
during this busy holiday season

For this week's post I decided to style an outfit
 in the "other" Christmas color-green 💚
I thought I would give green a little love for this post,
 since red is so prominent right now
 There are so many beautiful shades of red in the stores
 for the holidays, but not much green
 
I am wearing a deep forest green floral print dress
 with a flounce hem, and short puff sleeves
The print is bright pink with golden yellow leaves
 These colors seem Christmasy and festive to me
and too dark to wear in the spring and summer,
which is probably when this dress was intended to be worn 
The weight of the fabric seems too heavy 
for the warm months, as well
 A bit of an odd one, but I think now is a good time to wear it!
Worn under a bright pink lady style cropped cardigan
with the waist sash that came with the dress as a neck tie 



Christmas green and pink-why not?






Carrying a bright pink handle bag
The chain strap is adjustable to be
 shoulder or crossbody length, as well


Accessorizing with gold tone leaf motif
 vintage clip on earrings from the 50s,
 and a gold tone twist bangle bracelet 



To finish the outfit, I'm wearing comfortable block heel two tone Mary Jane slides


Table decor is complements of Mother Nature!


Christmas tree?
No, fancy cauliflower that the market only sells 
During the holidays!


I hope everyone is enjoying a lovely holiday season!




 

Monday, December 2, 2024

December is a Month of Festivities!



Hello, welcome to my blog and thanks for stopping by

December is such a fun month of the year!
It speeds by in a whirlwind of
festive events, parties and get togethers,
 for everyone to enjoy during the holiday season
You know what this means-

  there are lots of opportunities to get dressed up
👗💎🎀💃👡
 Our fanciest, bling-iest clothes can come out of the closet
Not that they can't come out at 
any time of the year, but December is great
for wearing them all together!  
Do you like the prospect of
 getting dressed up for special occasions?
I sure do!

For this week's outfit, I chose a comfortable but festive outfit
  to celebrate my December 1st birthday!
The satin jacket makes this outfit special
 It is a cropped style in the currently trending
 wine or burgundy color,
 perfect for wearing with high waisted pants and skirts
 It could also be worn over a dress
 A jacket like this is such a versatile separate,
 plus the color is practically a neutral
Pieces like this are nice for special occasions,
 because the fabric dresses up the outfit
 and the jacket can be worn in so many different ways 
An easy way to go if you have different 
events with some of the same guests in attendance
I am wearing the jacket today with a chiffon
 wine, magenta and purple 
geometric print blouse underneath,
 and tailored black straight leg trousers
 



Adding a little more bright color and bling
 with my magenta bow motif chain strap bag



For jewelry I've chosen some shiny gold tone pieces
 A collar necklace of small curved rectangles
 (chiclets) all the way around,
bar earrings and a bar hinged bracelet


Black pointed toe low wedge heel tassel loafers
 to finish the look


Here's a picture of Roger and I
Roger is matching one of his whimsical
 Dr. Seuss ties to my jacket
He has collected a lot of really fun ties over the years,
 and always manages to come up with one
 that will coordinate with my outfit!



Here is a close up of the tie-
it is a conversation piece, for sure!


Hope everyone is having a lovely December
Enjoy a piece of my confetti 
birthday cake!