Petite Fashion Challenge #17

Candy Colorized

This month's challenge is hosted by SewPetiteGal.

The challenge:

“Take a bowl full of colorful candies (M&Ms, Jolly Ranchers, jelly beans, etc.), close your eyes, and draw 2-3 pieces.  Now use those colors (+ a neutral of your choosing) to form the basis for your ensemble.”

The candy:

I am more of a chocolate girl so I had to stock up on candy for this challenge and was happy to renew my Jelly Belly fever. 

For chances of bolder color I chose different Jelly Belly bags and Skittles before picking one candy from each container.

The random selection:

The challenge was to draw 2-3 candy pieces to mix with a neutral of your choice with extra cool points if you did a DIY element. I chose 4 candies plus a neutral, so brace yourself...

The color comparison:

Check out the candies with the colors they inspired:

 

The outfit:

...Tadaa! I think that describing my outfit would make it seem crazier than it looks. 

Does your work wardrobe reflect that the world is full of color? 

Depending on the work environment and dress code, I could definitely see myself wearing an outfit like this to work beyond Easter office attire. Why? The silhouette works. If you imagine this look in a grayscale, you can see the shapes are office appropriate.

The neutral:

Yes, I went with a cobalt blue as my neutral shade. Usually a navy is more of a neutral but with this rainbow outfit I think a cooler shade of blue might just draw more attention. Although adding this blue to my already colorful outfit might seem like overkill, I think it works!

Passion tea lemonade, yum!

Outfit details:

Amrita Singh necklace, J Crew dress, J Crew flats

Chanel purse, Mango sweater, Hermès twilly, Rolex

Some ways to wear a twilly scarf: 

as a bow on your head or tied on your wrist:

alone as a belt:

A single one as a belt and a second tied as a bow:

I love that this dress has pockets!! The fit got a little loose throughout the day so I am not happy about the fit in these pictures. Still, thank you for letting me share. ♥

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Dress in a lawyerly fashion

Le Smoking is the original "borrowed from the boys" look, created by Yves Saint Laurent in 1966.

These timeless tuxedos were exclusively worn by men with power until YSL came along. These have fallen out of favor daily wear even amongst the crème de la crème. Still, I think an attorney should not leave all the 3-piece suits or tuxedos for defendants... of course we ought to leave all of the polyester ones alone for the pimps.

I was a girl scout so I believe in always being prepared. As a teen, my "being prepared" motto covered having a nail repair kit in my purse (you never know when impromptu rock climbing or intensive shopping might chip your nail). Now I manipulate this motto into sartorial splendor: a lady must shop for clothes for occasions that may come up. Besides, if you buy it the occasion will come a la Field of Dreams.

Source: snapwidget.com via Fashion on Pinterest

   

I have heard that some law students go through their first year of law school without a suit. I think lawsuits--err, suits are just as important as laptops. Budget a quality suit into your loans. My first suggestion is Theory suiting. The quality is good, they offer free tailoring, and the cuts are classic. It is not at all that I am against cheaper clothing, as long as it is cheaper in price--not quality. I shop with longevity in mind so quality and classic looks are important to me. I will splurge on designer items but I definitely love well made affordable pieces and will not buy something just because it is designer if it is made of low quality. 

Have you bought a designer item that did not live up to your expected quality? 

  

Classic cap toe pumps

I came into law school ready to suit up at a moment's notice. I was 14 when I got my first suit because I was working in a professional environment. Since I was less than 100 pounds and just 5 feet tall, I had to get all my work clothes tailored. The fit of my professional attire looked so much better than my velour sweatsuits and made me feel so polished and grown up that I was immediately hooked. So it is hard for me to imagine not having even one suit in my wardrobe.

When did (or will) you get your first suit? 

See what this little charmer is wearing? The look is not only timeless but ageless too! 

A quality navy suit was a smart splurge for me because the pieces are versatile for work and casual attire, the color goes well with my natural or (spray) tanned skin, and the look is timeless. I feel the same way about all of the pieces in my look here. 

Outfit details:

YSL Le Smoking

Haute Hippie blouse

Banana Republic tank

Chanel heels

Rolex watch

Hermes Birkin

(Check out my other suit related posts: The interview suit, Get ready to suit up, Case: clothes; Bebe tweed suiting review, Keep it a boardroom not a bored room.

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Springing forward

Dear lovely readers, I am two weeks and a few finals short of graduation so I have been away more than usual. Thanks for sticking around! I have lots to catch up on here.

 Reminder, tomorrow is the last day to enter my giveaway. Enter here. 

Since I live in an apartment while I build my dream home, in my mind and live vicariously through Real Housewives of BH & NJ, I do not have space to keep my full wardrobe accessible. So, my big seasonal cleanings, wherein I swap in my seasonal appropriate clothes from storage, are also closet purges. I have to make myself part with items to justify new purchases. If I let my closet overflow I lose track of what I own and wear less items.

I wish I had a closet managing system a la Cher in Clueless! Will swivel be an app for that?

 How do you keep track of your wardrobe? 

I separate my clothes into categories of things to sell/consign, donate, fix, or toss.

I try to stay away from impulse purchases but they sometimes sneak in! I mitigate my loss by selling or consigning. Most career clothes cannot fetch near original value so I donate them to non-profits. I place aside some trendy or boring items for DIY projects. All else is trashed.

I also challenge myself to move things out of my closet by emptying my shopping bags and filling them with things they replace in my closet. I am more happy to part when I see the direct exchange.

My most recent purge

The following is a non-exhaustive list of places where you can donate career clothing. Also consider donating to your local battered women’s shelters.

• Dress for Success
• Career Gear
• The Career Wardrobe
• Wardrobe for Opportunity
• Free the Girls! <-- Donate bras to give former sex slaves jobs!

 Do you have other suggestions? 

The one item that never gets packed away and I cannot imagine parting with is my two tone submariner rolex. I wear it almost daily because it is a good contrast against an ultra feminine outfit and plays well with dressed down looks too. It is a costly investment but does not lose value quickly and is a good family heirloom. ;) 

Here's an instagram pic of my favorite any season go to!

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Fitting room fun with Madmen style

Review of Banana Republic's Spring 2012 Mad Men collection & sprinkles of J Crew

If you follow me on instagram you know I previewed this fit review post.

I'm obsessed with this pink color but unfortunately not with the cut and fit of this dress. 

Despite the petite sizing, this dress swallows me, making it more prom dress than work attire. Aside from the taffeta, the bow and princess shape (that hides cleavage making it good as business cocktail attire) does not a 'Betty' make on me.
               
Like last time (here) I think this dress is more fit for a bride's maid. Some alterations (like making the straps thinner or dropping the neck lower) could make this dress a great date night dress. The cost of alterations would be worth it for this 100% silk dress that is fully lined and reasonably priced at $150.

Here I am pulling at the extra material

If you liked the similar one from the last capsule collection but found it too big, this one (here) may be worth the try. The fit is smaller than last time (see here) but the length is still much longer than intended.
      
A better fit from this limited collection:

This dress can be also worn without the included sash belt. I am sorry that I was too excited about the polka dots to snap a picture without the belt. This stone wash color serves as a great canvas for silk scarves (as I've shown here, here, and here). The length of this dress is also much better than the one above.

These pants are a little on the absurdly tight side, especially to pull off as work attire for my body shape. I could have tried the 2P but I do not care for the length of these and they reminded me of the J Crew ones that I found more comfortable. If the fit were right, the color could be styled to be appropriate for some work environments. The key is to make this your only statement piece by pairing them with neutral tops and blazers: think creams, grays, and whites. Although a dark blue may be a tempting color blocking contrast, you likely need to keep that for your weekend looks. -If you are in the legal field, such a stark contrast draws too much (unprofessional) attention.

The flamingo pose

Pink "majesty" cigarette pants (here)

Size reference: 0P

     

Compare with JCrew:

 J Crew café capri (here)

Size reference 00 (instead of petite to keep this length)

J Crew minnie pant (here)  

Size reference: 00
Shoes: J Crew Valentina pumps (here)

Do you plan on wearing spring trends to work?

I hope this review is helpful to you. For you ladies who are on the thinner side, I suggest checking out Banana Republic's cigarette pants. I found the fit tighter than the usual equivalent size at BR. I heard that the collection is only being sold online and in stores until March 20th and although I find it hard to believe that they will pull unsold items from the shelves instead of leaving them to be sold, this likely means that once a size is sold out it will be hard to locate them again.

Personally, I took to the colors and fit at J Crew more. I am also interested in similar Ann Taylor ones (here and here).

By the way, you get 25% off of Banana Republic online through March 5th with purchase of $100+ with code BRMARCH25. 

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