Ivory Pleated Midi for April

Hello, welcome, and thanks so much for stopping by!

Today, I am riffing on a post I did two weeks ago,

(Black and White with a Splash of Red), for styling inspiration

Like the previous post, today's post features a tunic

  I don't wear tunics very often,

 and am debating consigning this one

There's nothing wrong with it,

 except it is an awkward length for me,

 and a lot of fabric if I wanted to tuck it in

Are you a tunic loving girl?

 They look great on some body types,

 especially with slim pants

Anyway, here's my try at resuscitation

My previous tunic try was over a short skirt

This week, I am trying a soft blue and white,

semi-sheer, geometric print top,

with a longer midi skirt in ivory

 It is a fun skirt, with a pleated net overskirt- 

a long over long outfit

I have noticed that all shades of blue

 are trending this spring,

from the more typical soft pastels of the season,

to the super bright and bold cobalt-

I love the blues 💙🩵, and wear them all!

How about you, do you wear blue,

or have a favorite shades of this popular color? 

Carrying one of my favorite small bags,

 This one is two-toned, in a muted peach and blush combination

 There are loops on the sides to attach a longer strap,

that came with it,

so it can also be worn crossbody

I chose delicate silver toned jewelry

 to go with the light and airy style of this outfit

 A chain link bracelet with a rhinestone heart shaped charm,

 a hammered collar necklace,

 and vintage 1950s clip on earrings

I purchased this pair of ivory mesh sling backs

 at the end of the season last summer,

so I didn't have much opportunity to wear them  

I did not pack them up as I normally would,

 because I wanted to have them ready early this spring

 to experiment with styling them 

Honestly, I have found that I am

not too fond of this mesh shoe trend,

 as it seems to lose it's shape easily

These are cute and comfortable,

but I don't know how they will hold up

We will see-live and learn!

  

Some delicate spring color

This tree is in a neighbor's garden-

the giant magnolia blossoms are so gorgeous and fragrant!

Hope you have a lovely week!

 

Bright Blue for Spring

 

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog today!

Everyone has their own personal wardrobe staples, 

and one of mine is a knee length fit and flare dress

This dress has been seen on the blog 

numerous times before,

 styled and layered in different ways

What are your personal wardrobe staples?

Today, I am wearing the blue, green, black and white

 floral printed fit and flare dress,

with a bright blue, elbow length,

 puff sleeve blouse layered underneath

Blues of all shades are trending this spring,

bright and deep cobalts, as well as the typical pastels

The blouse is collarless, and has pretty smocked sleeve trim 

For this styling,I added a dark grey reptile embossed belt

to the dress

Carrying a favorite little bag of mine

 It is a hard case handle bag, 

with a photograph of two playful hound dogs on both sides

 It adds such a fun and whimsical touch to so many outfits!

For jewelry I chose a silver tone chain link bracelet 

with a rhinestone heart charm,

 and a pair of 1950's vintage clip earrings

 The stylized shape of the earrings

 remind me of angel wings

This curved triangular shape was very popular in the 50s,

 in a lot of different motifs like leaves and flowers 

Suede bags and shoes

 are very much in fashion now,

even through the spring

 These black suede, low wedge heel

sling back peep toes are well over 10 years old-

 What comes around goes around again and again!

 These have held up really well, 

although admittedly, they don't get a lot of wear

Here is another styling of my wardrobe staple dress, 

over a semi sheer ivory blouse in this wear from spring 2020

Notice I am carrying the same bag!

It's tulip season!

🌷🌷🌷

 I hope you have the opportunity 

to enjoy these beautiful, blooms

Thanks for joining me,

hope you have a great week!

Black and White with a Splash of Red

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog today!

It can be tricky to dress for spring

  April, as well as March,

 are considered bridge months where I live,

 anything goes weather wise,

☔️🌦️💨🌨️☀️🌧️

and we have had it all this season!

Today, I chose classic black and white,

 as you can hardly go wrong with this combination-

it is appropriate for any season

Do you like wearing the high contrast

 combination of black and white?

It's an occasional pairing for me,

I usually go for some color,

but black and white can be very chic,

and you know, Cloud Dancer for 2026

 

I put this outfit together as a challenge to myself,

with items that I rarely wear

 I want to see if I can breathe new life into these pieces,

or if it is time for them to go

 The outfit feels a little out of my comfort zone, 

but we'll see how I feel about it, after wearing it today

 The top is a soft white long sleeve tunic,

 trimmed in black on the collar, cuffs, and button placket

I rarely wear tunics,

  they usually just don't work for me,

 but I could try tucking this one in for another wear,

as it is not bulky

 Wearing the blouse with a textured,

 black and white scuba fabric skirt

 Scuba fabric is suitable for most seasons,

 except I avoid it in the summer,

 because it tends to be quite thick and warm

You can't really see it well in this photo, but the skirt is black

with a raised white honeycomb texture design

BTW, these are hot house sunflowers from the market,

it will be months before they bloom in this part of the country

It seems like overnight though, the nurseries and plant shops 

are full of flowers of all types to be planted,

and baskets of flowers of every imaginable color and type 

are suddenly everywhere! 

My patent leather handle bag

 is a vintage piece from the 1960s

 It makes a real color statement,

 in bright cherry red,

 with a red and gold curved handle

 Patent leather has made a major revival

 in shoes and bags over the past few years

 It's the perfect time for me to pull out

 this fun piece from the past!

 I chose a mix of old and new jewelry

 to complement this clean lined, modern look

The two current pieces are the bold gold tone buckle bracelet,

 and the geometric V pattern collar necklace

The fabulous oversized clip earrings are vintage,

 and very unusual

The two 3-D open wavy square pieces

 are intertwined and connected together

 I purchased these on Etsy, and even though I carefully measured the size against other earrings I own,

 I was surprised when I received them,

 they are quite a bit larger and bolder than I pictured them

 I still love them, though 

 Here are a few more patent leather accessories in black,

 to add more interest, if not color, to the outfit

A wide black belt and hairband

Black and tan slides sandals with gold tone heels

to finish the look 

It is unusual for me to wear sandals

 this early in the season

  I usually don't even have them unpacked, yet

 I left these out at the end of last summer,

because I barely wore them,

 and thought the colors might be better suited

 to early fall outfits

 But I didn't chose them in the fall, either

 So I'll see how well they work for spring

 I modified these from black, tan and reptile print 

 gladiator sandals. I paid quite a bit for them,

and since I haven't worn them for a long time,

 I thought it would be worth a try to change them up

So I operated on them, and cut off the gladiator strap 

It worked out pretty well!

Here are the sandals in their original form,

in an outfit from early fall, 2019

As Jodie from a Touch of Style says,

 be the boss of your clothes!

We'll see how this modification works out,

 because I really don't think I would wear these sandals

 as gladiators anymore

Hope you enjoy your week!

 

 

Coral and Floral for Spring

Hello, and welcome to my blog

It's April at last

🌧️=🌼🪻🌸!

Easter season is my signal

that it is time to switch out my wardrobe

to my spring and summer clothes,

 little by little, one box at a time

So out come the corals and florals!

During the past few years,

I have been keeping more things out year round,

as I find myself relying on layers for all seasons

Coral is becoming one of my favorite colors

 to wear year round

The color looks especially nice

 with other bright colors and neutrals like white

An added perk of shades of this color

 is that they look good on almost everyone!

Do you have any coral in your wardrobe?

Today, I am wearing a coral color blazer,

 with an ivory blouse layered underneath

 My skirt has a dark background,

 with a popping coral floral print,

 that has green and white in the mix, as well

 This style of flared skirt has had a resurgence, 

and has been very popular over the past two years

 The triangular inserts for extra fullness are called godets

and add even more flare to skirts and dresses when added

 Naturally, I took an immediate liking to this style,

and have added a few of this style of skirt to my wardrobe

I am taking advantage of their popularity

 while there are more available to purchase

 

This skirt is made of rayon

 Since rayon is such a soft and drape-able fabric 

   it is not too overwhelmingly full,

until you twirl!

Even though this heart-shaped bag is off-white,

 it stays out all seasons

It adds a touch of whimsy and lightness

to just about any outfit 

For jewelry with this transitional look,

 I am wearing my gold tone initial necklace,

  an open design cuff bracelet,

 and white enamel half daisy earrings,

 with yellow pave rhinestone centers

Black low heel Mary Jane slides

 with grommet and bow details

to finish the outfit

Below is a photo from when I first purchased this blazer,

 way back in spring 2020

Hope everyone is enjoying their spring!

 

Easter Season

Hello, and thanks for stopping by my blog today

Wishing you all a very happy Easter season!

🌼🐣🌼

This year I am going for 

a little change in this Easter season outfit

 Normally it is full on florals and pastels

 to welcome the new season

 Today, I decided on a bit of an atypical dress

 It is a batik like print of bright pinks and purples

The dress is sleeveless,

so I am wearing a white peplum jacket/topper

 with elbow length puff sleeves

 Things are warming up,

 but not quite warm enough for a sleeveless dress, yet

The jacket has lots of nice details,

including a square neckline and princess seams

Also a wide waist sash that can be tied

into a big bow 🎀 

With April is just around the corner,

 and I can hardly believe that spring is finally here- 

and it is actually starting to feel like spring!

 The temperature is warming up,

 and at last the daffodils have bloomed

Our whole neighborhood has come to life with yellow flowers

 It definitely lifts my spirits

How about you,

does the weather effect your mood?

I can't imagine living in a climate with a constant cloud cover-

but I guess you find ways to adapt

Dopamine dressing maybe?

For accessories, I decided to go with

 an ivory embossed fold over clutch

 This season, many women

 are probably realizing 

that white is not just white, as with all other colors

 There are so many shades!

With Cloud Dancer as the color of the year

 this fact has become very apparent to me   

I think I will just be trying for blending 

I am really ready for my summer accessories,

 so today I chose a 1950's vintage necklace

 of white flowers and painted leaves

 Each flower has a rhinestone center

The gold tone open cuff bracelet,

 and hoop earrings are current

I long age nixed the

 "no white shoes until after Memorial Day" rule

 Wearing off white woven ankle strap

low heels to finish the outfit

From 2022, a more typical full on floral for Easter! 

Some garden color, at last!

Hope everyone has a lovely holiday!

 

Our Wedding Anniversary

 Hello, and thanks for stopping by

my blog today!

 In celebration of our wedding anniversary, which was March 18, Roger and I decided to get out our wedding clothes, 

and take some pictures of us in them now,

for fun and memories 

Our outfits were relatively simple for a wedding,

 as the ceremony was held on the beautiful beach at

 Cane Garden Bay, on the British Virgin Island of Tortola

My dress is not of the time, (1997) but is vintage,

from the late 30s or early 40's

    I  don't think it was meant to be a wedding dress

 I guess it could have been, during the war years

 Most likely, it was first worn by a young woman

 to a very special party or occasion,

 or possibly to her coming out celebration

Of course, I would love to be temporarily transported back

 to all of the previous times this dress was worn,

to learn all about it's previous life

before it came into my hands

I purchased it at an estate sale and at the time,

 had no idea it would become my wedding dress

Below, Roger is in light neutral colors in cotton and linen

It was hotter than usual for March in Tortola

A tie would have been suffocating,

and we certainly didn't want the groom

 to be passed out in a faint, 

so we left it behind

Boxy oversize cuts in general,

 as well as pleated trousers were in fashion 

at the time, and are pretty classic

 His look has come in and out of style several times 1997,

and if he wore it on the street today,

 no one would know it is nearly 30 years old

 

 I love all of the attention to detail and feminine touches,

and the overall modesty of my sweet dress 

It is made of ivory color rayon taffeta,

 which is an amazingly durable fabric

 Everything had to be carefully washed by hand

 after we got home, due to the hem of the dress and long veil 

literally being doused in salt sea water

Thankfully, everything came out

 looking as well as it did before

Hitched after six years of dating

(I had very cold feet, but made the right decision, at last!)

If you are married, did you wear

 a traditional wedding dress?

Do you have it packed away for sentimental reasons or have you sold or given it away, I wonder?

 

Recently, I watched a British reality TV show

 called Second Chance Dress

The premise is that a broker brings together previous brides

 who want to sell their wedding dresses,

 with brides-to-be who want to purchase

 a previously owned dress

 I am fascinated by this show,

 but I don't think I could ever part with my dress,

 it has so many lovely memories

My original hat and veil are pictured at the bottom of the post

They proved to be too cumbersome for this indoor photo

Here is the stand-in headpiece and veil

For jewelry I am wearing a 1950s vintage necklace

 of pink heart shapes, and a three strand creamy colored

pearl bracelet from the 1940's 

Also, current pink pave flower shaped post earrings 

Another accessory is this metallic gold bow belt

Neither of us kept track of our wedding shoes, though 

 Substituting a nude suede slip-on with a double tuxedo bow

 My original veil has three stepped layers of tulle

 and a long train

  I modified it by attaching it to a vintage 

1940's ivory straw cartwheel hat

  It was so much fun to play with on the breezy beach,

 it made some very fun photos

Hope you enjoyed our re-creation,

a few film pictures are at the bottom of the March 2024 post 

titled "Wedding Anniversary", if you are interested

in seeing them

 Have a good week!