Recent Acquisitions

So I went shopping.

By shopping I mean I took one of my smaller paychecks to the clearance section of Target.

The clearance section of... Anywhere is a treasure trove for me. Searching through the racks and finding those little jems and then seeing the price tag? VICTORY!!!!!

So here's my bounty from my last Target adventure:

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Dress Is More: Striped Dress

Picked this little number up at Target the other day- and its already my new go-to dress. I paired it with my Madewells and green socks for maximum comfort. It's so soft and warm... I'm basically wearing a sweatshirt and tricking everyone into thinking its real clothes.

Who said looking good has to be uncomfortable?

Never Ending Story Pt II: The Goods.

Remember that time I started sorting my clothes? I know it's been a while, but I promise I didn't forget.

Well I completed Step 1, which was getting rid of the pieces I don't wear or don't like anymore (which was a much smaller pile than I was expecting). With that phase finished, packing went much faster. Now that I'm unpacking, I'm starting Step 2. Step 2 is going through and assessing what I have going on.

So here's a brief overview of the closet:


TOPS

Looking at all my tops lined up, I have come to a conclusion: I'm not allowed to get any more cream or white button downs. Especially if they're sheer. To be fair, I wear all of them, but there is a limit.
I also noticed that I have pretty much all solid colors. A color locked or small scale pattern will sneak in there once in a while, or maybe some beading, but my tops are dominated by solid colors. The cut of my tops is fairly uniform: either button downs, semi-fitted t shirts, trapeze tops or camisoles. That's it.



OUTERWEAR

My jackets are kind of dull, really; either leather jackets (of which I have many like my boots,) or blazers. I have a grays, black and a red one. Boom.

I also have two vests, a black leather one and a fishing vest from my uncle. It sounds a little odd, but it looks awesome with everything and is so cozy.

I have a problem with buying orange and oatmeal sweaters. I just keep wearing and loving them; is that so wrong? They tend to be finer knits with some drape or cardigans. The chunky knits I have are few and far between. There's my Paris sweater from my cousin which I wear like a coat and my gold metallic sweater, the ultimate statement neutral. That sounds backwards, but just trust me on this one.


BOTTOMS

I hate jeans shopping, so when I find a pair I like, I just stick to that and don't deviate. As a result, all my pants are either from Old Navy or Uniqlo. My favorite cut is straight/ skinny, and I like some color; I have dark denim, gray, yellow, green, black and purple. S I've got some interest going on there.

As for skirts, I tend to go patterned on these guys. Looking at them all together, I tend to go with warm colors ranging from tans to reds with a black skirt thrown in for good measure.


DRESSES

I have a couple. this is actually the most diverse part of my closet. Most of them are plain, but I have a few ikat print and floral dresses. Color-wise, I have the whole spectrum: creams into pinks to reds all the way through to purples, browns and blacks. Even the cuts are diverse. Some full skirts, some straight cuts, fitted and draped, thin straps and long sleeves.











So that's what I'm working with. I have a lot of good base pieces, but a lot of it, but feels a little...stale. Or too much like college. Im not sure which; maybe its both. Either way I'm dissatisfied with my closet as a whole.

I think what I need to do next is look at my inspirations again and figure out my favorite pieces. I might even pack away my non-favorites for a few months and see if I forget about them or miss them. Although I love most of my closet, it lacks focus and a cohesive quality that would make it more functional and pleasing.

Now that I've looked at everything together, I'm ready for the next step: deciding what I love about my clothes and what I'm missing to take this pile of garments and turn it into a wardrobe.

I think I've got some more sorting to do...

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Dress Is More: Denim and Leather

I love a denim dress. I especially love this Gap denim dress from the Mama Cravens. It has a cute collar, a pleated bib front, and big pockets. It also has these little rolled sleeves and a nice, easy fit. This time, I layered it with my leather vest to toughen it up a bit. Finishing touch was my ankle boots. The textures and colors worked great together and I'm a HUGE believer in mixing soft and hard elements. it always ends in a balanced, quirky outfit like this one. Plus, I was so, so comfortable in this weird summer weather.  Which is always a win.

Wish List: End Of Summer Dresses

It's that time of year when the dresses turn from floaty gauzy numbers to more structured, deeply colored dresses; Just as the leaves turn, so does my wardrobe! I popped by my favorite websites to see how the transition is coming. Much to my excitement and chagrin of my thin wallet, there were many many fantastic dresses out there that were neither too summery, nor too autumnal. Check it out!

anthropologie

free people

mod cloth 

mod cloth

Dress is More: Teal Maxi

This is one of my favorite impulse buys. I found it at Forever 21 while in line to check out. I didn't think I was much of a maxi dress person at the time, but there was something about this one. Now it's one of my go-to dresses; it was even my graduation dress. So I guess it goes to show that going with your gut is usually right (when it comes to clothes, at least.) I wore it on the plane ride home with a little gray cardi and my Frye harness boots. Needless to say, I looked awesome.
Or at least I think I did.

The Never Ending Story: Defining My Personal Style.

some ridiculously cool ladies

My least favorite thing to do? Describe myself. I find it tedious, embarrassing and insanely difficult. It also makes me feel like I'm a walking contradiction, like I'm pulled in so many directions. I consider myself a loud person,, yet I'm drawn to simple clothes in muted colors. I love guilty nail polishes and cutesy aprons, yet I have my androgynous short hair and a meriad of menswear inspired shoes. So what the hell is my style?

more ladies who are way too cool for me

Since I'm moving, (in case you haven't heard, I am), I'm using this as an opportunity to put my art history skills to work and analyst my current wardrobe, isolate the soul-defining pieces and maybe even give my style it's own name.

Like preppy-boho-chic.
Or French-saucy-retro.
Or Ralph.

Maybe I'll call my style Ralph.

Either way, I want to pear down my wardrobe so it's only filled with pieces I truly love, pieces that speak to my deepest inner self. I also want to make sure that my wardrobe works as a cohesively as possible. What's the point of having clothes if you can't put them together? That's like having the makings for a sandwich and no bread. It's a sad delema that ends in no sandwich.

(i won't call my style ralph.) 

In order to make my clothes sandwich as delicious as possible, I'm going to need a game plan. Whenever I jump into things willy-nilly, it usually ends up with me staring at the beginnings of a project until I slowly push it off the side of the bed or table and sidle out of the room. Then I leave the pile for Future Katie to deal with. (side note: Future Katie never appreciates this). So here's how I've broken it down:

Step 1 is going through everything and identifying the must-haves, the cant-let-go-ofs, and the meh's.

Step 2 is analyzing the first two piles and figuring out what they have in common and how they talk to each other.

Step 3 is making outfits and combinations to find the holes.

Now that I have my game plan, let's do this!

ruh row...

Hopefully it will all become clear sooner than later...

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Dress is More: Purple Maxi

Outfit time!

I am obsessed with this purple maxi dress. It fits so well. I added a brown leather belt on the hips, straw hat and retro sunglasses from the Brooklyn flea and embraced the hot weather, choosing to be dewy (read: NOT sweaty. Definitely NOT a euphemism for sweaty.) Perfect for a lazy casual brunch, wouldn't you say?

dress, forever 21; sunglasses, brooklyn flea; hat, angela & william