Tag: wardrobe

What to Wear: Week 2 Update

You might have noticed that it has been a long time since my Week 1 Update of What to Wear. No, there has not been some kind of glitch in the space-time continuum. I just haven’t been using my cards every week. But I did last week, hence the update.

Wait, cards? What are you talking about, Sarah? If you are a relatively new reader of Sarah’s Real Life, or you just need a refresher, see this post, where I break down one of the ways I decide what to wear every day. To me, great style is not just about picking out the trendiest new items; it’s about how you put different pieces together. And when you have a ton of clothes and accessories and shoes like I do, sometimes it’s hard to know where to start.

The items on my card for the week were:

  • Wooden bead necklace
  • Cropped jacket/blazer
  • Patterned cardigan
  • Yellow hair bow
  • Yellow pleated skirt

Check it out! These pics should all look familiar if you’ve been reading the past week…20120730-113554.jpg

My little card definitely came in handy this week! The wooden bead necklace was the perfect thing to add to my tourist ensemble and spice up my plain navy tee. The jacket was something I hadn’t worn in forever and was contemplating tossing, but once I wore it I realized I just had to embrace its costume-like quality and have fun with it! This silky cardigan was perfect over a dress for an evening out in Chicago. The yellow bow – I always forget I bought this little guy! – is a fun addition to any outfit. And I’m glad I challenged myself to fit this yellow skirt into a work-friendly outfit.

So…how do you decide what to wear? Leave me a comment! And if you want to be in the loop for future style adventures, use the links in the main menu (above) to follow me on Bloglovin’ or Twitter!

Everyone Loves a Style Makeover

I don’t normally ambush people like in “What Not to Wear,” but if someone asks me for style help, let’s just say I nearly pee my pants with excitement. As I mentioned earlier this week, I’m in South Carolina visiting my in-laws, and my mother-in-law Cindy said she wanted my help cleaning out her closet and shopping. Well…twist my arm.

Cindy is an excellent candidate for a style makeover because (a) she actually wants help, (b) she already has lots of cute clothes, and (c) she loves to shop.

You might be wondering what Cindy even needed my help for. Well, Cindy’s problem is that she’s still hanging on to some less than attractive garments that for some strange reason she thinks it’s OK to still wear. And as for the cute stuff she already has, she doesn’t always do the best job at styling it. You see, Cindy comes from what I like to call the Matchy Match Generation. She thinks that the way to make a cute outfit is to pick a couple colors that look good together and make everything you wear one of those colors.

For example, in the picture below, Cindy styled the outfit on the left. While the print mixing was a great fashion-forward choice, notice that she picked a yellow belt, yellow earrings, and yellow shoes. Please make it stop. I restyled her (picture on the right) with bronze sandals, some silver accessories, and a pop of turquoise in her bracelet. She said the turquoise made her nervous – let’s try not to make fun of her; she’s new at this.

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I had a great time going through Cindy’s closet and saying things like “are you in middle school?” and “are you a Florida retiree?” She would respond with excuses like “well it’s really soft,” and then I would say “I don’t care” and throw it dramatically on the floor. I don’t mess around.

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Below is the pile of clothes for Goodwill. The picture doesn’t do it justice – it was huge! And yes, that is a velour paisley blazer on top. Now you understand why I was needed.

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Then of course we had to do some shopping for some stylish and age-appropriate clothes. Cindy shopped like a champ. She ended up with 3 skirts, 2 tees, a blouse, a tank, 3 pairs of shoes, a summer scarf, a necklace, a bracelet, a clutch, and a belt.

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That night we went out to dinner and I dressed Cindy in a new outfit. Doesn’t she look beautiful?!

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