What to Wear - Photography Edition

Some exciting news over here on my end!  My dear friend, Kelly (who also happens to be my boyfriend's sister) is an incredibly talented natural light photographer in Western Pennsylvania.  She keeps us all up-to-date on her most recent shoots by writing a blog and including her favorite shots from recent sessions.  Kelly asked me to be a guest blogger on her site to help give her clients some ideas about how to dress for their shoots.  In my first post, I walked through outfits for a family of four - and why it works.  Check out her site and if you live in the W. Pennsylvania area, hire this girl!

Brrrrr!

Well, my landlord turned the heat on, finally!  Thank goodness... it was a cool 40 degrees outside this morning... which brings me to the point of today's post:  Winter Outerwear.  I think a lot of people don't give a lot of thought to their winter coats/hats/gloves, but a winter coat is one mighty important piece of the wardrobe for two reasons: a) you wear it every single day for at least 3 months (4-5 for those of you in the northern part of the country!) b) if you buy a well-constructed coat, you will have it for at least 2 years (and this can save you money, rather than purchasing a new coat each year because your old one was crap). 

I'll take you through a few coats that I love and why:

Scroll Coat from J.Crew ($275).

Do I need to even explain why I love this coat?  Ahhh, the drama.  This coat is a beautiful color - great for the drab months of winter - like I said in my previous post, nothing like a bright color to pick you up and wisk you away from the drab feelings that come from a cold winter and pale face.  The scroll detail is really nice, too.  This coat is really beautiful, if you can get over the $275 investment, I think you'd be able to enjoy this coat for at least a few years.

Belted Wool Coat from Old Navy in Chinchilla, $69.50

For those of you in a warmer climate, I like this shorter, belted jacket with 3/4 length sleeves.  I think this coat is so chic and definitely looks more expensive than $69.50 from Old Navy.  It's also versatile in that it would look just as sharp with some skinnies and a pair of flats as it would with trousers and a pointed-toe shoe for work.

Betsey Johnson Quilted Pillow Collar, in brown, $126.65, Bluefly.com

Okay, okay.  I know some of you live in places that get really cold in the Winter.  I can understand the necessity of a down jacket for those negative wind chill days - BUT, don't let your body look like a lumpy mess if you're going to do the fluffy jacket.  This choice is great because it comes with a belt to give you a waist while still doing the intended duties of keeping you warm - and it has a really cute collar to boot!

Laundry by Shelli Segal 'Dahlia" Coat, $191.25 (Bluefly.com)

This is a more classic belted, wool trench but it has fabulous details.  The layered collar is really pretty and different, and the "float away from the body" bottom of the coat is perfect for a woman with a pear shape.  The tie-waist accentuates the skinniest part of you and then the bottom of the coat floats away from the body rather than hugging and bringing attention to the larger parts that we aren't as comfortable with.  I also really like this dark red color.. a good contrast to a lot of the bright red coats we see in the winter.

Wool Blend Funnel Neck in Blink Pink,  $89.50, Oldnavy.com

Saw this in-person at Old Navy the other day - can't believe how cute it is!  This coat felt well-made and warm.  I also really like this color - I know it's a tad overwhelming, but pair this with a silver/grey pashmina to tone it down a bit and I think it is really sharp.  The coat also comes in a heather gray (which I thought was a bit of a snooze).  I love the look of the internal belt that peeks out the front to tie, but when I tried this on, it did cinch the waist a little bit less than I would have liked, because the belt is on the inside.  However, for $90, the style and color of this coat really can't be beat.

 I think a belted coat is usually the way to go.  It helps give you a shape through layers of long johns, sweaters, and big thick coats.  Gap and Bluefly are having sales on their outerwear for the rest of the day, so go see what great deals you can find!

Thrifty Thursday continues ....

Let's face it, a LOT of men don't know how to dress.  It's the sad, but honest truth.  I don't blame them, there isn't a lot of variety out there to get them excited about dressing themselves from day to day.  I wouldn't claim to know a lot about mens clothing, but I can say from experience, guys love to be comfortable in their clothing. So today, I present to you a comfortable (and luckily, pretty darn stylish!) outfit for the guys in our lives. 

I like this jacket because it looks comfortable but still has nice details that add some style to it.  I also dig the grey color, but it also comes in an olive green and a black, on sale for $39.50 at Old Navy.

Jersey Lined Military Jacket in Pavement

I can say that I am totally jealous of the shoe choices for men... mostly because none of them look painful.  I really like this Onitsuka Tiger sneaker from Piperlime.com.  It has a sort of retro feel to it, and I love the preppy colors.  It's not a super good bargain at $65, but it's definitely cheaper than a lot of sneakers out there for guys.

Onitsuka Tiger Ultimate 81 in White, metallic, navy and yellow

I  like this bright white tee to contrast with the dark jacket and also bring out the bright white in the shoes.   It's a heavier weight cotton tee and it's only $12!

Sueded crew neck tee in Bright White

It can be quite a challenge for men to find a good pair of jeans, and I find that a lot of them can't justify spending $200 on the perfect pair...(oops, I have made this justification one too many times!)... so for the men, we're going back to the basics - LEVI'S!  Macy's is having a sale on some of their Levi's Brand jeans, and they honestly look just as good as the $100 jeans from other stores.  This pair is on sale for $36.99.

Levi's 527 Boot Cut in Rigid Broken

Hopefully the man in your life can find a way to fit this into his weekend casual wardrobe.  A little bit of style and a lot of comfort!

Thrifty Thursday

Hi All! Yesterday, I mentioned the great sales that many stores are having right now.  Unfortunately, some of those sale prices still are a little high for a lot of our pocketbooks.  I'm going to start positing a wallet friendly outfit on Thursdays - but the same rules still apply: all outfits will be readily available via internet or most shopping malls near you (but don't forget to factor in the cost of shipping if you are going to order online).

 For this outfit, I pulled together pieces from Target and Forever 21.  The total cost for the outfit below is a little over $55... for an ENTIRE outfit! 

This adorable pair of shoes is from Target for $19.99.  A small price to pay for such a cute shoe!  There were multiple reviews on Target.com that stated that this little number looks even better in person - they seem to have been selling this shoe for a while now, so get them before they sell out!

Sheryl Floral Print Ballet Flats - Gold

I love these tanks from Forever 21.  I own a few of them already.  At $2.5, what a steal... I wold pick one up in every color for layering.

Fab Solid V-Neck Cami in Cococa

This sweater from Target looks so comfortable, i guess the name Cocoon sweater says it all - and it's on sale right now for $15!  Wear it open for a more relaxed look, or cinch it with a belt. 

Mossimo® Black: Long Sleeve Cocoon Sweater - Polar Bear

Pair this with a straight leg jean from Forever 21 for $19.80... and there you have it!  Cute girl-on-the-go outfit.  I like putting skinny jeans with flats so that your pant doesn't drag on the ground and so you can show off the flat.....However, if you have a pair of straight leg jeans that don't drag on the ground when you walk, they would look great with the flat, too.

Stretch Denim Skinny Jean in Dark Denim

Cute outfits can be found almost anywhere, it just usually takes a little more patience to find the bargains.  Try to find pieces that seem well constructed, because they are out there - even at the less-expensive retailers!

**** Update:  I had a reader ask what type of belt I would suggest if you wanted to cinch the sweater at the waist.  In this case I would go with a skinnier, "dainty" type belt, so not to overwhelm the delicateness of the shoe.  I found this awesome belt on J.Crew and it's on sale for 14.50!  I like both the Redwood color and the Pale gold color - both would complement the shoe nicely.

Superskinny Patent Leather Belt in Redwood and Pale Gold

***Another update!  Apparently only if your feet are TINY can you enjoy the beautiful Target flats above.   One of my readers asked for any other ideas for something similar to the flat above since she really liked it, but can't find her size.  Unfortunately, flats this pretty don't come with a $20 price tag very usually... so we can go one of two ways with our other options.  A) Expensive but pretty .... on the left from J.Crew Patterned Classic Ballet Flat in Washed Shell - $90 smackers... pretty high for a little ballet flat, but reaaaally cute! From Charles David, the shoe on the left has a dainty bow like the target shoe, and this shoe looks a little more substantial -  Serenade in Blush from Zappos.com for $64.95

B) Cheap but don't look much like the ones I showed originally... which is probably more important to those of you looking for thrifty, yet cute finds: 

Both of these are from target - On the left, Madalena in Berry - I loooove this color and the suede makes this shoe look a lot more expensive that $20.  On the right - Valda in Cognac.  The ruffle is really pretty and something you don't see too often for $24.99.