Art & Decor

This post is for anyone who is trying to introduce color into her wardrobe, or for anyone who has ever stood in her closet thinking: "I have nothing to wear," which really translates to: "I am tired of wearing the same old outfits."
If you are tired of wearing the same shirt, jacket, and pants together, but aren't sure how to mix things up and have them look good, I suggest that you stop staring at your closet and take a fresh look at the world around you. Do you have a favorite room in your house? in a friends house? at a local business or cafe? Do you have a favorite artist or painting? If you like the color combinations in a room or in a painting, chances are you will like them in an outfit.
This is the main entrance to my house. Since my body isn't as big as this room, I don't know that I would ever put together an outfit featuring yellow, blue, turquoise, purple AND white, but pretty much any two or three together would work for me.

 

Two of my favorite artists are George Rodrigue and Laurel Burch. Part of why I love their work so much is their use of color--I like it bold. Rodrigue would not be surprised that my yellow necklace looks great with my cobalt shirt, and he probably wouldn't even be afraid of my fuchsia and cobalt outfit. Even if your tastes run to less bold artists, you can still look to your favorite paintings for outfit inspiration. Chances are you will even get a lesson about adding a pop of color to a softer or more neutral outfit.

 

 

This George Rodrigue painting is featured on a calendar I bought myself for my birthday. The blue dog looks as good with his green buddy as my blue shirts do with a green necklace. I could get a lot of outfit inspiration from just this one painting, but I now have 12 to inspire me! If you have a favorite artist and can find a calendar featuring their work, it will probably be just as useful to you as any fashion magazine.



Color Blocks

 

My favorite color combo of the season: fuchsia and cobalt. It's bold, but it works, especially with neutral shoes....

Fashion Disaster!

A few months ago I bought this ruffled front top from Ross. I washed it in cold water like I was supposed to and hung it to dry. The ruffles still managed to shrink up so that the shiny material behind them showed through. Since you can't take things back to Ross after you have washed them, I figured this was about to become a brand new grease rag for my husband. Instead, I hung it in the back of the closet to think about it for a day or two. After studying my other ruffled tops, one of which featured every other ruffle in lace, I decided to add lace to this one to fix it. One trip to Hobby Lobby later, I had some nice long eyelet and a roll of melty fabric tape. Turns out that the tape doesn't work, and I had to have my neighbor sew the eyelet on, but now my "fashion disaster" is a unique top that I plan to wear this fall with a white cardigan. Sometimes, a little creativity and a little help from a friend can rescue you!

Fashion Vocabulary

I like to read fashion blogs and watch fashion v-logs on youtube, but lately I have noticed a few things that bother me. It's all because I was an English teacher in a former life. I appreciate precise and accurate language. So some things make me chuckle or get under my skin:

Wear: You do not "wear" a bag or purse. You carry a bag or purse. Unless it is raining and you are forced to use your bag as a hat of course.

Maxi: I do not like the term maxi for dresses and skirts. I'm old fashioned. To me, maxi means only one thing, and it's not pleasant. I'll stick to ankle-length, thank you very much.

Styling: When did we stop styling our hair and start styling our jeans? I have to admit, I don't mind this as much since it is accurate verbage.

Contrasting: Yellow and blue are not contrasting colors. No matter how much you may want it to be otherwise, orange is on the opposite side of the color wheel from blue. I don't want to dress like a Denver Bronco either, but I'm not making an excuse for sticking with primary colors.

Chromaphobe: This is a word I made up to describe my friends who are afraid to wear color or paint a room anything other than off white.

Saintsy: Not to be confused with saintly, this word describes anything that is black and gold and features fleur de lis. I need this word where I live.

Good Design

If I ever win the lottery, I will replace a majority of my wardrobe with Eskandar's clothing--though not this season's because I am not loving the colors as much as previous season's. I love Eskandar's flowing, feminine take on women's fashion. It's a timeless style that is flattering on women of all ages. The clothes look like they could easily be dresses up or down for work, special occasions, or daily wear...and it is one that is easily imitated with wide leg pants and drape-front cardigans.

When I am out shopping, I often look for clothing with the same shapes and cuts in less expensive brands or at discount stores like Ross. As fads come and go, this is sometimes easier and sometimes more difficult. Still, it's always fun to have an expensive inspiration look to aspire to. Who is your favorite designer?


http://www.eskandar.com/flash.htm

It's in the Bag

Some women have more than one purse. They like to change their purse to go with their outfits. I personally don't have the time or the patience to think about this sort of detail. I need a purse that pretty much goes with everything. Now, a lot of women in the same situation just get a big black bag and are done with it, but I am willing to bet that these women do not get as many compliments on their bags as I do on mine. Heck, I'm willing to bet that most women don't get as many compliments on their Coach bags as I do on this one.
If you are only going to have one bag, it's important to choose one that either matches or coordinates with the majority of your outfits. This one works great for me since I am almost always wearing something that is turquoise, cobalt, purple, or fuchsia. The bag should also reflect your personality. I love cats, and I love art, so buying a Laurel Burch bag was a no brainer for me--buying it in three of my favorite colors was pretty much as good as a chocolate chip cookie. Not everyone wants a bag this bold, but next time you have to replace that big black bag, think about getting a color that suits your whole wardrobe even if it is something simple like taupe or gray.

The back up bag: I can't imagine anything this won't work with--in my wardrobe anyway! I found this on sale at Burke's Outlet and picked it up for the sad day when my blue cat bag gives up the ghost.
 

But the Camera Steals My Soul....

In my whole life, I have only ever had one photo taken of me that I actually like, and I happen to be up-side-down in it. It is said that we don't like to look at photos of ourselves because we are used to seeing ourselves only in mirrors, which show us an image that is opposite of what we see in photos, and that even though we appear to be mostly symmetrical, we actually are all slightly off, causing us to be unfamiliar with the true, non-mirror image of ourselves that we see in photos. Plus, we all know that cameras add ten pounds.
According to some Native Americans, each time your photo is taken, it steals part of your soul. I feel like that sometimes when I am taking a photo for this blog. It's like taking a piece of myself and putting it out there for the whole world to judge and possibly discard or ignore. I generally take 20 or 30 photos of each outfit that I share in order to find just one that I think is decent, and I always look at them and say, "Am I really that short?" Worse yet, is having someone else take my photo. Totally uncomfortable. I can stand in front of 50 or 100 students and give a lecture, but put a camera in the back of the room, and I fall all to pieces. I have to give credit where credit is due. In this case, models are tougher than me.

Then again, there is something to be said for a really great photographer. I personally think that all women should hunt one down during their lives and have a really amazing photo of themselves taken to share with family and friends. It may cost a small fortune, but it is well worth it just for the boost it will give your self-esteem. Mine makes me look like Ophelia, and I loved it so much, I actually had a great big one printed for myself. (It's currently hanging in my dining room.) I like to look at me looking good. Yup, I'm goofy like that. Of course, it helps that I share the photo with my husband looking handsome. Then again, that rat photographs well pretty much all of the time.


Courtesy of Nicole Renee Photography LLC, Marinette WI