Sixties Mod Look in Black and White

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog today!

March is drawing to a close

 and I am dreaming of a vacation!

Spring has arrived, 

as far as the calendar is concerned anyway, 

but where I live it is still quite soggy and cool-

not very inspiring at all 🌧

Inspiration for the flowers to grow, at least!

🌺🌼🌷

So for today's outfit, I decided a bold graphic print

 and some bright, cheerful color were in order

to lift my spirits

I hope you enjoy my Mod sixties look,

 and this little trip back in time!

If you've visited my blog before,

 you probably couldn't miss the fact 

that I am a fan of vintage and retro style

 I rarely wear a full on vintage look,

 but I love to see that, too

How about you,

are you a fan of vintage and retro pieces and looks?

I am seeing more and more,

as second hand shopping rapidly

rises in popularity 

There is so much current fashion today 

that recycles elements from the sixties as well,

and all of the previous decades, really

So many possibilities for creating your own style

and signature look!

 I like to mix a vintage or retro-look piece or two

 into my outfits, occasionally

 I think it is a fun way to liven up a look

 and make it unique and my own

Today's outfit has a clear stamp of the 1960s on it,

although the only pieces actually from the sixties era

 are two pieces of my jewelry

I am wearing a white collared, 

short sleeve blouse under a shift dress,

with a swirling black and white print

 Wild psychedelic patterns were so typical of the sixties

Also dresses, skirts, pants and jeans emphasizing the hips,

 and de-emphasizing the waist were in style

 Hello hip hugger jeans-

I know not many women are fans

or would be keen on the idea of those being revived!

  

Patent leather and vinyl were really big in the sixties too, 

 like that of my wide black belt

 Patent leather finishes are really seeing a resurgence

 in fashion currently in some great shoes and bags

Last summer I bought a pair of white

 patent leather Mary Jane sling backs

 I will be wearing later in the season-so good!

For today, this red handle bag by Bally is a prized 

one in my collection, it is a timeless, classic style

 

For jewelry I chose a gold tone wrap hinged bracelet

 and sixties gold tone clip-on earrings

Both mimic the swirling drop print of my dress

The double sided apple necklace is one of

  my favorite pieces also from the sixties era

 It is so cute and clever!

 One side is a red enameled apple,

 with a lady bug in residence,

 and a green stem of tiny rhinestones

The flip side is a cut apple

 with rhinestone and purple enamel painted seeds

My shoes are new, (last year)

but this style has such a sixties look to it

 Cherry red Mary Jane sling backs

 with super pointed toes and kitten heels

I hope you enjoyed this little trip into the past,

 and it gives you some fresh inspiration

 for your own individual looks!

I have been giving my closet a good spring clean this season

I do not delete items from my wardrobe often,

and hold on to things until I am very sure

 I cannot re-invent them, and will not be sorry I purged

I keep a box to consign or donate

and consign once in the spring and once in the fall

The items that go in there stay until the next season,

to make sure I have definitely given up on them

I have been know to retrieve 

things from "the box" from time to time,

when something new comes into the closet

to make them viable again

Today, and through the season

I will be featuring a deleted item here,

at the end of my post,

along with one of the ways I have worn it in the past

as a farewell

My first item in this purge series

 is a chiffon aqua, black and white extended sleeve blouse

I have worn it numerous times in different ways,

 and I think it's time to give someone else

a chance to get creative with it

 It is still in perfect condition,

 and I hope someone new loves it the way I have

I think this photo is the first time I wore it

 in the spring of 2017!

Hope you all enjoyed this post

and have a great week!

 

 

Bright Royal Blue for our Wedding Anniversary

 

Hello and welcome!

 Thanks so much for stopping by my blog today

The outfit in this post is special,

 because I am wearing it in commemoration 

our wedding anniversary

 On March 18th, Roger and I celebrated 28 years of marriage

Hard to believe this many years have flown by, but it's true!

I wish I could go back and do it all over again,

 from our very first meeting

If you are interested in hearing a little about our wedding

 and some pictures from it,

 I talk about it in the post 

titled "Wedding Anniversary" from last year

Also, there is a little bit about our serendipitous meeting

 in my post titled "New Year's Eve", on December 31st, 2023,

Do you have any first date,

 wedding or anniversary stories to share?

Outfit details

The yolk and sleeves of this dress are so pretty

 and really make the dress special!

They are made of semi sheer lace,

 with lots of overlapping 3-D fabric flowers

  from the neckline to the bottom of the sleeve. Each flower is attached with a bead in the center in the same color as the dress and the petals

 

I love the pretty details! 

I'm carrying a blingy little red leather bag

 from the 80's, with multicolor rhinestones riveted to the flap

It has a strap tucked inside

 and can be worn crossbody as well

For jewelry I chose some silver tone bobbles

 that seemed right for the dress

 A multi layer spiral wrap bracelet with spheres all around,

 like planets in orbit, and teardrop shaped earrings

Some special shoes, too!

 I think these are really adorable in bright multicolor fabric

 with a beaded buckle decoration

I took a chance and ordered these,

 and usually this brand is a good fit for me,

 but cute as they are, they are not terribly comfortable,

 even though the heel is quite low

Roger's neck tie blends really well in reds, blues and grey

Here's to spending many more happy years together!

🎉💖🥂🎊

Hope everyone has a wonderful week!

Geometric Wrap Dress for St Paddy's!

Top 'o the day to you, and thanks for stopping by my blog!

St. Patrick's week is the perfect time

 to go all out with the color green!

You probably will not have any problem

 finding some green in your wardrobe for the occasion,

 since so many shades of green 

have been super popular during the last few years,

especially Kelly green

Do you be wearing green for St. Patrick's Day?

I love to dress for a theme, 

and St. Patrick's Day is a fun day to celebrate

(even though I am not Irish)

 Today I chose a geometric print midi dress

 with Kelly green in the mix, 

along with navy blue and white

This dress came out last spring,

 in a collaboration between Diane von Furstenberg and Target

 I am a fan of DVF, 

the brand does some great prints, especially geometrics,

 and frequently uses bright, vivid colors

  I have a few of her vintage pieces in my wardrobe, 

 so I was keen to see if anything in this collection suited me

 I f you don't know, Diane von Furstenberg was famous

 for designing and popularizing

 her wrap style jersey knit dresses in the 1970's

  These wrap style dresses have been classics ever since

Wrap dresses and tops are universally flattering,

 and one of my favorite styles to wear

Especially in a dress-one and done!

Layering a black camisole underneath this one,

 as it is quite low cut

This version does not hold a candle

 to the gorgeous silk knit wrap DVF dresses from the 70s,

 but for the Target price point, I like it

My Kelly green embossed handbag was a natural choice

 

Bold and shiny gold tone jewelry

 to go with the spirit of the striking geometric 

 of the dress's print

Wearing a wide chain collar necklace, hinged bar bracelet

 and loop design hoop earrings

Also accessorizing with a  wide pleated

 Kelley green headband, not pictured here

Biege and black toe cap,

 block heel sling backs to finish the look

Here is an outfit from a St. Patrick's day past,

six years ago, in 2019

And some St. Paddy's Day treats,

green, of corse!

Hope everyone has a fun day and a great week!

 

Sky Blue Dress

Hello and welcome!

Thanks for stopping by my blog 

The weather is such an integral part of outfit planning

 and getting dressed, especially just now  

What to wear in March can present quite a dilemma

in my part of the country- 

 this can be quite a contrary time of year! 

Just about every type of weather condition is possible

 Expect wind, rain and wildly fluctuating temperatures

 before it finally settles into spring 

Today I chose this dress in an optimistic shade of sky blue-

 hoping for blue skies 🤞, if the forecast can be trusted 

I am so glad daylight savings time has begun,

for one more hour of daylight, and possible sunshine!

 

 This dress is a modified shirt waist style with long sleeves, 

a button front placket bodice, and elasticized waist

 And it has a deep flounce at the hem-

I love a flippy skirt!

It shares some of the design features of another shirt dress

  I wore on the blog a few weeks ago

but with some distinct variations

It looks like all of the shirt dresses come out

of my closet during the bridge season!

I have seen a lot of similar styles in the shops, lately

This dress is a lovely soft and silky fabric

The one thing I don't love about it is the elastic waist

Sometimes these work for me, but sometimes not so much

 I am high waisted, and many times the elastic

 rides up my rib cage to my natural waist line

  I would rather forgo the elastic and

put a belt where I want it

A shirt dress is a great versatile option, thought,

if you find one that you love

Although this dress is not sheer or thin, 

it came with a matching

 camisole style slip dress underneath

 It adds an extra layer of warmth if needed, 

or the dress can be worn alone

 The slip is not attached, so you can leave it out

with no worries

Are you a fan of shirt dresses?

   

Carrying a fun vinyl clutch

 with irregular roundish shapes allover,

 in tan and white on a black background

For jewelry, I chose some bright, bold gold tone pieces

The necklace was a splurge purchase by Kate Spade,

 from a few years ago

 I just love the whimsical, overlapping, reticulated pieces-

flowers or leaves? I'm not sure but I like the organic shapes

It is a large statement piece

 and I have not worn it as much as I thought I would

 It seems a bit too heavy for summer months,

and not quite right for many of my winter outfits

 I guess it is a spring and fall transitional piece like the dress!

I plan to work it into my outfits a little more often now,

as bold neck ware is trending, in necklaces and scarves 

Also wearing an asymmetrical hinged bracelet,

 and leaf motif earrings

For shoes I chose my black and beige half d'Orsay sling back spectators with block heels

Here is another wear of this dress 

during the winter to spring transition months,

in April of last year 

You can see the matching slip dress underneath,

and the matching sash belt that came with the dress

in this photo

Finally starting to see some springtime flowers!

Hope everyone has a great week!

Orange and Pink Chains

Hello and welcome-

thanks so much for stopping by my blog!

With the arrival of the month of March,

 the winds are blowing

 and the weather is still quite wintery here in Maryland

  I am mentally well over winter though,

 and anticipating the arrival of spring and warmer weather

March is a transitional bridge month here,

probably were you live, too

 Even though layers are still necessary,

 I like to start lightening up my colors

in anticipation of spring!

How about you, are you ready for the change?

For this tailored outfit I started with a white base-

a ribbed short sleeve tee and

 classic straight winter white trousers

 On top, I layered a fun pink and orange

 chain design long sleeve shirt

For a little bit more color

 I am carrying a magenta clutch bag

to tie in with the colors in the shirt 

 I chose silver tone jewelry

 because I have a chain-link cuff bracelet

  that I thought would be perfect with this outfit

Also wearing silver tone teardrop earrings

 and a curved hinged collar necklace

A few more accessories to elevate this simple outfit

A bright pink skinny belt and taupe topknot headband

For shoes, taupe patent Mary Jane 

kitten heel sling backs

I love this style with the multiple buckled straps

They will be ok going from house to car,

 but for spending any time outside

 I will have to change to something

 to keep my feet a little warmer!

 Looking forward to wearing these more in the spring

Here is another tailored, layered menswear look

 from a previous bridge season, fall 2023

 This photo is from a post titled

 "Incorporating Pink into You Fall Wardrobe"

During the summer to autumn

 and winter to spring bridge seasons

a lot of the same layering techniques can be used

Early crocuses are starting bloom in the garden!

And the daffodils are starting to pop their heads up-

Yea-color!

🌷🌼🌺

 I hope you all have a good week!