Monday 18 May 2015

Corporate Style: Monochrome Office Wear - Neutral Layering

Two monochrome work wear outfits! One on purpose, one accidental. Neither of which I'd wear again without changing the outfits in some way, but that's the point of style challenges - they push you to try something different. I'm enjoying the Fox in Flats May instagram style challenge. I'm playing along every day on instagram, and just behind a bit with blogging everything I'm wearing.

What I wore:

Mixed print shirt layered under LBD sleeveless black dress autumn office wear outfit

Rebecca Minkoff Soft Grey MAB mini MAM satchel bag with black dress
Dress: Jeanswest tucked ponte black dress
ShirtJeanswest 'Ruby' mixed print shirt
Belt: old silver studded belt
Shoes: Wittner 'Bloomy' black heels
BagRebecca Minkoff MAB mini in soft grey

Why I wore it:

The style dare for the day was 'monochromatic' and I thought this little black dress would be perfect with this shirt layered underneath. I didn't actually try the outfit on the night before, I just thought the pieces would work well together and set it aside to wear. It wasn't until the morning that I realised this shirt is not the best to wear under the dress. It doesn't have a collared neck and it's just polyester, so it was slipping and sliding under the dress and just not sitting nicely at all - you can see a bit of it at the shoulders in the picture. It was a lovely idea, and I've enjoyed layering things under this dress before, but this was just not the best shirt to try layering under this dress.

The belt was something I added at the last minute for a bit of interest and to try (unsuccessfully) to keep the shirt in place through the day. It's so old I am sure I wore it in high school! I just turned the buckle round to the back so that the studs were at the front. No-one commented on my back to front belt thankfully, but I did feel a little worried someone would notice and ask why the buckle was at the back of my dress!


Last worn: black dress, printed shirt, black heels, Rebecca Minkoff MAM bag.

Other ways to wearlittle black dress with red jacket and accessories, printed shirt with burgundy jeans and ankle boots, ankle strap heels with pencil skirts, Rebecca Minkoff MAM with wrap dresses for work.









What I wore:

Neutral outfit with rouille rust orange Balenciaga bold bright work bag

Balenciaga classic RH work in 2006 Rouille rust orange
Jacket: Zara cream jersey blazer (new-to-me purchase)
NecklaceTai gold alphabet necklace
Top: vintage print top from The Thrifty Kitten
BeltAsos skinny pale yellow belt
Skirt: vintage pencil skirt from The Thrifty Kitten
Shoes: Wittner 'Mimi' heels in mushroom
BagBalenciaga classic work in 2006 Rouille

Why I wore it:

This was an accidental monochrome outfit! Another neutral one. I had been wanting to wear this vintage set again after having fond memories of the last time I wore the pieces together. I also wanted to wear my new-to-me blazer that I found on ebay. It's the same as my black blazer, only cream. The beigey-brown outfit seemed like a good backdrop for my bright bag.

The style dare for the dare was 'bold bag' and this is my brightest and biggest bag, perfect to meet the challenge. I actually listed this bag in my ebay wardrobe clear out, thinking it would sell quickly as it's in great shape for a chevere Balenciaga. I hadn't worn it since I was pregnant so figured I should let it go. But since it didn't sell, I'm just going to keep it :) I was most likely going to replace it with another Balenciaga anyway, ha!

I think I would have liked this outfit more with a different jacket. I really liked the look of vintage printed skirt suit set together last time I wore it, but this time around I was wishing I'd gone for something different, I think it was all just a bit too dull together, even with the bold bag.


Last worn: vintage print top, yellow beltvintage print skirt, brown heels, Balenciaga rouille work. First time I've worn the blazer as it is a new purchase.

Other ways to wear: belted printed top, printed pencil skirt with a bright top, brown heels with tights and a printed dress, orange bag with a black dress.





Linking up with Styled Up, Style To Inspire, Bless Your Heart, Mix It Monday, More Pieces of Me, On the Daily Express, Real Mom StyleElegantly Dressed and Stylish, Reasons To Dress, Confident Twosday, Wardrobe Wednesday, What I Wore to Work today.



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Friday 15 May 2015

Casual Autumn Outfits: Layering With Blue Printed Scarves

With the autumn weather starting to settle in it can get a little chilly in the mornings. I'm enjoying it, as I get to wear some of my bigger scarves that are just too warm to wear in spring/summer. Below are two casual stay at home mum style outfits with some big cosy printed scarves.


What I wore:

Marc By Marc Jacobs turquoise stargazer scarf purple tank stripe maxi skirt converse RM MAM

Rebecca Minkoff Minkette grey MAM bag with striped skirt blue purple tank and scarf
TankJeanswest Jenni basic singlet in Royal Lilac purple
Skirt: Target black and white striped maxi skirt
ShoesConverse Chuck Taylor All Star low in black
BagRebecca Minkoff MAB mini in soft grey

Why I wore it:

I wasn't too sure what the weather would end up like on this day. I didn't have much to do after a busy morning, so just wanted to be comfortable. Maxi skirt and Converse is always a good idea, and I went with the tank and the scarf as I thought it might warm up later. It ended up being a really warm day so I didn't need the scarf when I was outside in the afternoon. Was good to have it in the morning and evening though.

First couple of times I wore this scarf I wore it with red, so I thought I'd try a different colour this time and went with purple. I really liked this colour combination too. I've been trying to break out of my little rut of pairing everything colourful with something grey, and being slightly more adventurous with colour.


Last worn: Marc By Marc Jacobs Stargazer scarfpurple tank, stripe maxi skirt, Converse, Rebecca Minkoff grey MAM.

Other ways to wear: blue printed scarf and red dresspurple tank and printed shorts, Converse and dress for spring, Rebecca Minkoff MAM with wrap dresses for the office, striped maxi skirt and grey tee.








What I wore:

SAHM Style: blue leopard print scarf white shirt Jeanswest prima denim skinny jeans SAHM Style
Scarf: Cotton On animal print scarf in blue
TopJeanswest Elise longline emroidered shirt coconut blue
JeansJeanswest Bindi skinny 7/8 jeans in indigo luxe

Why I wore it:

This was taken a couple of days after the outfit above, when Brisbane had a taste of the wild weather that had badly affected Sydney. I'd made sure to get organised and run all my errands earlier in the week so I had nothing to do but stay at home and snuggle with baby T. The scarf was needed as I was still recovering from my cold and had completely lost my voice. Poor baby had to make do with me reading and singing to him in a whisper!

The white shirt wouldn't normally be my first choice for a day at home with baby, but it was the first day of the Fox in Flats instagram style challenge for May, and the prompt for the day was to wear a white shirt (as it was white shirt day for OCRF). No bag or shoes as I literally stayed in the house all day listening to the rain with baby T and Cooper.

DH was one of the lucky ones, as he had been sent off-site for the day he didn't have to battle through the crazy traffic and flooded roads to get home and he got home a little earlier than usual. I know there were a lot of people in Brisbane who didn't make it home until really late that evening, and some not until the next day! We had a nice quiet evening at home, until we got a knock on the door from our neighbour as DH's car was about to be swept away!

The streets around us started flooding really quickly. I've never seen anything like it, not even in the big floods of 2011. Thankfully our house was on high enough ground that it became part of a little island, DH managed to move his car away from the flood waters, and by the next morning the water was gone. Seeing the water creeping up our driveway was a really scary sight though. We definitely weren't prepared for something that bad, we were lucky to all be together and have all our home comforts (and power and water) to just wait it out. Shows how important it is to get to know your neighbours too, if we hadn't had that knock on the door we wouldn't have known until it was too late, the flood waters would have submerged the car if it stayed where it was. Thankful for our neighbours looking out for us!


Last worn: blue leopard print scarf, embroidered shirt, prima denim skinny jeans.

Other ways to wear: print mixing with striped top and leopard print scarf, shirt, shorts and ankle boots, colourful prints and skinny jeans.





Linking up with Passion For Fashion, Casual Friday, Fashion Friday, Fab Favourites, Feature Friday, Mix It Up, The Ultimate Rabbit Hole, Friday Favourites, Shoe and Tell, Let It Shine today.



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Wednesday 13 May 2015

Corporate Style: Colourful With French Connection Printed Dresses and Scarves

After I finished doing the two instagram style challenges at once, I was looking forward to not dressing for a theme. I wanted to wear some of my office wear that I hadn't worn in a long time, my printed French Connection dresses. The weather was a little cooler, so I layered up and added some scarves.

What I wore:

turquoise pashmina printed FCUK sheath dress tweed blazer ankle boots

Rebecca Minkoff soft grey MAM MAB mini Bag with orange and turqouise
Scarf: Cotton On turquoise pashmina
DressFrench Connection 'Fast Rhonda' dress in black/caramel
ShoesAcne pistol boots in "skin"
Bracelets: the usual plus JORD black Fieldcrest wood watch (C/O)
BagRebecca Minkoff MAB mini in soft grey

Why I wore it:

I had decided in advance I wanted to wear this dress again, but as it's gotten a little cooler since then I had to add some layers. I thought that the print mixing with the dress and the blazer was a bit different, but looked okay, so I laid this out to wear the next day. As I woke up a little under the weather and I wanted to be cosy, at the last minute I added a scarf. Went with this plain one as I thought it was a nice colour with the orange in the dress, and I didn't want to add a third print to the mix.

I have three of these Cotton On pashminas. (Cotton On had them for $5 with any purchase for a while). I have a white one, a fuchsia pink one and this turquoise one. I can find the last time I wore the white one and the pink one, but not the last time I wore this one. I wonder if I really haven't worn it in the 3 years I've been blogging, or if I just tagged it incorrectly so I can't find it in my archives! No real reason why I haven't worn it more often, it's a great colour and being a nice basic scarf it will work with a lot of prints. I re-discovered it during my wardrobe detox, expect to see it again!

I've had this dress for years, even before the blog. It's been a year and a half since I last wore it though! It's definitely one of those office-only pieces in my wardrobe, and with it being so slim fitting I didn't get a chance to wear it during my pregnancy. I worried it showed off the developing baby bump in the first trimester, and by the second trimester, when I had stopped hiding the pregnancy at work, I couldn't even zip it up. It's good to be back wearing it again now, even if it does fit a little snugger around my belly than it did pre-baby ;)


Last worn: tweed blazer, French Connection sheath dress, orange wool jumperAcne Pistol boots, Rebecca Minkoff grey MAM bag. First time I've worn this scarf on the blog.

Other ways to wear: tweed blazer with printed top for travel, dark floral print dress in summerpistol boots with denim shorts, Rebecca Minkoff grey MAM with wrap dresses and a baby bump.









What I wore:

Orange Monochrome Outfit: Pashmina, wool jumper, printed dress nude heels

Rebecca Minkoff MAB mini MAM in soft grey
Jumper: vintage David Jones orange wool knit jumper from AWLQ vintage sale
DressFrench Connection 'Woodblock wonder' panache dress in white/geranium rose
Shoes: Wittner 'Lumen' heel in patent leather
Bracelets: the usual plus JORD black Fieldcrest wood watch (C/O)
BagRebecca Minkoff MAB mini in soft grey

Why I wore it:

This printed dress isn't as snug a fit as the one above, so I did get away with wearing it to the office in the first trimester, using the print to distract from the tiny little baby bump. I didn't wear this dress on my maternity leave either, I like this dress and it's definitely more forgiving than the one above, I could have fit into it earlier, but I'm happy to have it as an office-only piece as well.

Again, I had made up my mind that I wanted to wear this dress before I got sick. I was determined to still make it work though! I've worn this dress with a jumper over the top before, so thought that was the best way to go to keep my chest warm, instead of adding a coat and having to fiddle with lots of buttons. I added the scarf as yet another layer as I was beginning to lose my voice and wanted to keep my neck warm.

Beth pointed out on instagram that it was a very Queensland look - layered up on top but bare legs! I didn't think it was that cold in the morning to need to cover up my legs, but by the end of the day I was wishing I'd worn tights or pants. It was really chilly in the evening on the way home from work, as the stormy and wet weather started to set in.


Last worn: feather print pashmina, orange wool jumper, French Connection orange print dress, nude patent heels, Rebecca Minkoff MAM bag (above).

Other ways to wear: feather print pashmina with polka dot dress, wool jumper with skinny jeansorange print dress in summer, nude heels with a monochrome blue outfitgrey handbag with a neutral outfit in the third trimester.






Linking up with Whatcha Wearing, What I Wore, WIW, Style Me Weekly, Get Your Pretty On, Oh Hey Girl, Trendy Wednesday, The Wednesday Pants, Thursday Fashion Files, Throwback Thursday, Look What I Got, What I Wore to Work, Fun Fashion Friday today.




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