Frugal Fashion Friday - Transition Pieces

My favorite wardrobe pieces are those that can be worn during multiple seasons. I have a floral skirt that you've seen a few different ways. I wear it in the spring and summer with light tops and sandals and in the fall with tights and sweaters. As the stores and online retailers clear out their summer merchandise you can take advantage of the discounts and snag items to wear now and into the fall. Here are just a few picks.



Printed Shift Dress - ASOS

 

A floral dress can be a versatile piece in summer and in fall, throw on a jacket (like the one below) and some pumps and you're ready for work. Dress it down by adding sneakers and a denim jacket.

 



Speckle Moto Jacket - Piperlime

 

I love tweed jackets! In a mid-weight, they are seasonless. It's also a timeless piece. I wear my tweed jackets with dresses and skirts, as well as with jeans and t-shirt.

 



DOCKLAND Sneakers in Gold - Asos

Slip on sneakers are an on trend item right now. In a color like this gold metallic, you can wear them now with shorts or a cute floral dress. You can also wear them into the fall and winter with warm socks, jeans and a sweater.

 

 

NYDJ Marilyn Straight Leg Jeans - Amazon

 

The old fashion rule of no white after Labor Day no longer applies. A cute tank and sandals can help you close out the summer in these jeans. Add a tweed jacket and swap out your sandals for some sneakers or ankle boots and you're ready for fall.



 

Linen Midi Skirt - ASOS

The length of a midi skirt makes it the perfect fall transition piece. It works in the summer with a tank or short sleeve top and you can wear it on cooler days with a sweater or a cute jacket.

 Do you have favorite transition pieces?

I'm Obsessed Thank You Very Much - Oversized Clutches

I own quite a few smaller clutches, small vintage bags, and I have a collection of Whiting and Davis evening bags. However, when I am going out for a night to show or dinner, most times I reach for my larger clutches. The bag has to be big enough to hold my iPhone, my glasses, money, lipstick, and a few other items. My larger cell phone and the need for glasses has pushed me to need a larger evening bag. Because of this, I've become obsessed with finding interesting oversized clutches.

1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7

A great bag can be a perfect compliment to your outfit. The selections above give me some dress up and down options for my outfits. I especially love the berry clutch at the top, from Asos. The color is just what I've been looking for in an oversized clutch.

One Dress Three Ways - ModCloth Rainy Day Rendezvous Dress

There are a few absolutes in my fashion world. I love companies that sell the same item in many sizes (XS - 3X). I love good quality for a good price and I love pieces that can be worn many ways. This dress from ModCloth, fits that bill. It comes in sizes, XS - 4X! Bonus that the shape will be flattering on all body types. At $114.99, a dress that you can wear many ways and many seasons has a great price per wear. Did I mention that it's machine washable!? Yay for no dry cleaning! I'd wear this dress on the weekends, for a date night and to work. It could go anywhere. Just change up your extras and accessories and your set.

Changing up the mood of this dress is all about what you add to it. It's such a pretty beginning and would be beautiful on it's own. Unfortunately, right now we are in the throws of winter and I'm thinking cold weather and knew I had to layer. Later this spring and summer, I picture this dress with some strappy sandals.

 

For the weekend I'd make the dress more casual by adding a great leather jacket, some flat loafers and a cross body bad that would be great for errands and shopping. Then I'd add a watch and funky skull bracelet, just to couteract the feminine flowers and some fun earrings.

For date night or a night out with friends, you could add a pretty lace jacket, a fancy clutch, statement making jewelry and pretty blue heels. Play up the feminine qualities of the dress. I'm loving that this clutch mimics the flowers on the dress.

For work you can make this pretty dress professional by adding a cardigan. I decided to layer it under the dress instead of over. A versatile bag will let you go from work day to happy hour. These navy wedges are pretty but comfortable and classic jewelry adds a sophisticated but professional touch.

ModCloth has so many fantastic dresses, in lots of styles and sizes, including plus sizes. There is something for everyone.




NOTE: The opinions expressed here are my own. I've been a huge ModCloth fan for a long time. This post is part of ModCloth's Uniquely You campaign. I was not provided compensation for this post but it is part of a contest.

Inspiration - Summer Maxi Skirt Style

I love and wear my maxi skirts year round.  For me, it's so easy to layer them with shirts and sweaters and my favorite look, with a leather jacket, for winter.  Summer should be a no brainer but many times I stumble on how I want to wear them. I did some searching and found lots of great style.  I love how these ladies have styled their maxi skirts for the warmer months.

They are great inspiration for my summer options. I especially love the outfits in the upper middle, upper right, and center right.  A gauzy tank or shirt may be on my wish list soon and I'll definitely be adding my panama hat to my maxi outfits. There is a fine line between fashionable and sloppy, when styling a maxi.  Proportion is key.  If your maxi has volume, you need to pair it with a top that fits you well. If you opt for baggy, you can end up looking like a bag lady.  Opt for a close fitting t-shirt or a well tailored button up shirt. A thin belt adds polish and definition, without adding bulk.

How do you wear your maxi skirt?

Spring 2013 Trends - Florals

Lovely and amazing Nel of Girls of Plenty, invited me and four other curvy bloggers to take part in a little project where we show spring trends for ladies who wear plus sized fashion.  I loved the idea and said I'd definitely take part.  Sadly, with my nutty work week and other demands, last week I only managed to post a couple of pictures on Instagram.  So here it is my take on the floral trend.  When I first read this trend for the week my first thought was of Miranda Priestly. I love "The Devil Wears Prada". Every time I catch it on late night TV, I can't help myself.  In one scent editor brings up florals in a meeting about stories for the spring issue Miranda says (as she rolls her eyes)...

Florals? For spring? Ground breaking.

- Miranda Priestly "The Devil Wears Prada"

I have to say that I agree with Miranda. Florals for spring aren't new or ground breaking.  Usually I don't go for lots of florals.  In my closet right now I have four floral patterned items and my closet is big.  I have one blouse, a skirt, and two pairs of floral pants.  And until last summer I only had the blouse and skirt.  I fell in love with floral and printed pants and I can't stop wearing them. I got home from work so late that I didn't have time to take proper outside pics. Please excuse the low light.

Shirt/Jacket - Talbots (no longer available), T-Shirt - Target (no longer available), Belt - Talbots Outlet, Pants - Talbots Outlet, Shoes - Talbots (no longer available), Rings - Charming Charlie and Engagement Ring, Bracelets - c/o Kristin Biggs of Stella & Dot and gift, Watch - Armitron (gift)

I love pairing pretty, girly pieces with tougher pieces (but you already know that).  Toughening up these floral pants and pointy bow shoes with the cargo, shirt jacket just felt right.  It is a fun outfit to wear and really easy too.  

Check out the other ladies and their take on the floral trend:

Curvy CEO

Girls of Plenty

Grown and Curvy Woman

Heart, Print & Style

Society of Curves

I'm Obesessed Thank You Very Much - Floral Pants

I decided to dip into my budget for next month and sprung for a pair of floral pants.  I couldn't stand it anymore.  I'd been obsessing over them and lusting after every pair that I saw.  I hope the ones I ordered will look great and fit.

The pants I ordered from Asos.  They are now out of stock.

I loved the pants I spied on my friend Alison of Wardrobe Oxygen.  I waited too long and they were no longer available in my size.  Finding chic floral pants in plus sizes, that don't look like something a grandma would wear is a challenge.  It's long been a mantra that plus size women shouldn't wear large prints on their larger areas.  Well you know I'm a rule breaker and thanks to retailers like Talbots and Asos there have been some good options but they are few and far between.  I'm so happy I snapped up these pants (even though they are crops).  Ankle pants were my first choice but I could get them.  These were on sale at Asos for $35 so I grabbed them.  Asos also has free shipping both ways. Hopefully, they'll fit but if they don't, I can easily return them.  Keep your fingers crossed.

Here are some of my favorite fashion girls and the way they are wearing floral pants.


Blair Eadie of Atlantic Pacific wearing DVF pants. Love the combination of stripes with the white jacket and fantastic shoes.

photo credit: Atlantic Pacific

Olivia Palermo and Blair Eadie in Top Shop pants, worn two different ways. The jacket on Olivia paired with the leopard pumps are to die for.  Blair added a cheetah top and a leather jacket. Fantastic!

photo credits: unknown and Atlantic Pacific

Allie of Wardrobe Oxygen wearing Talbots pants two ways. I always love Allie's easy style.  The chambray of one outfit and the stripes of the other make these outfits look totally different.
 

photo credit: Wardrobe Oxygen

Of course I'm hoping for some great styling options with my floral pants.  I have all of the elements to make lots of fun outfits.

Floral Pants

Virtual Shopping - Talbots

There are two qualities I love in a store, quality merchandise at a reasonable price and items that come in all sizes (petite to plus).  There is nothing worse than finding a great item and then discovering that it doesn't come in your size.  I hate that!  Those two qualities are the main reasons I LOVE Talbots.  They have beautiful clothing at reasonable prices.  Sometimes, like this past weekend, you can find amazing bargains.  Like the skirt and top I got for 75% off.  I only paid $25 for both items!!

Easy Vintage

Inspired by my new shoes and the fedora I wore much of the week during my vacation, I created this modern vintage look. It's easy for anyone to create. You can use any vintage look or floral dress. Then just add some masculine touches, oxfords, a fedora, and a men's look watch. Top it off with some pearls or a long necklace, like the Opera Pearl Necklace from JewelMint.

The oxfords I got on vacation, have recently been reduced to $76 on the Bass website.  These are the Bass Loves Rachel Antonoff Odette oxford in cream.

The bodice on the dress I found on asos.com is fantastic. The print is very vintage. This dress is available in plus sizes but they also have some great options in other sizes. I've also found some adorable floral print dresses at Old Navy.

The fedora from Hot Topic is only $9.98! The classic Timex was found on Amazon.com for just $25.

Other than being a quick, easy outfit, the beauty of this look is that it's also modern and doesn't look like a costume. Do you love vintage? What's your favorite look?

Easy Vintage by Real Girl Runway featuring empire waist dresses