inspiration Monday: layers of pretty

The inspiration: Emmy Rossum

My take:

"Pacific" lace tee, Hollister

embellished camisole, Charlotte Russe

denim skirt, Old Navy

bracelets: gifted, DIY, HauteLook

            I was forced to get creative because a) I don't own a denim jacket (although I've been eyeing the ones on sale at Macy's!) b) I don't own a bright bag and c) I don't own a lace dress.  
     Lace and delicate sparklies in the same outfit - hmm, am I turning into a girly-girl? This is the camisole I wore under my wedding dress, and I was inspired to use it as an underlayer here. I usually wear this top buttoned, but I unbuttoned it to let the beads and sparklies peep through. Yay for real buttons with real button loops vs. the fake buttons I find so irksome on many items of clothing.

      For some reason this outfit feels really beachy to me - I think it's the light blue of the camisole.

         I haven't ever seen anyone wear a camisole under  her wedding dress, but I decided that I'd be more comfortable with one, as my wedding dress had a low neckline. When I started hunting for the camisole I expected that I'd end up with something classically pretty, made out of ivory silk with lace edging, the kind of thing you'd find at Neiman Marcus or Nordstrom's. But on a whim I popped into a Charlotte Russe store (not a store I usually frequent) and this looked perfect. I had a large round sequin pop off when I first tried it on with my dress, but other than that the beading has stayed in place, although it doesn't appear to be securely stitched.

Random wedding photo! 

Photo by Nicole Seu of Studio 3511

       Two more ways I've worn this lace top:

                                                     houndstooth             red, lace, and blue

        I'm linking up with two birds - click here to see the other interpretations of the inspiration!

Try-it-out Tuesday: houndstooth and lace

"Pacific" lace tee, Hollister

Halogen skirt, Nordstrom Rack, gift

White House Black Market blazer, thrifted

leggings, Macy's

belt, Old Navy

Dr. Scholls Allycats booties, HauteLook  

        Pattern mixing is still a mystery to me, but I find that sticking to black and white helps me look more cool vs. circus escapee. (Speaking of pattern mixing, Cori of La Vie Petite gave some great tips here.) It was pouring and chilly the day I put this together, so I started with the leggings and boots since that's not something I can wear year-round.

      

       I wore this lace top for last week's Try-it-out Tuesday, and I'll be doing a lot more remixing for February and March, as I've signed up for a two-month shopping ban with Tanvi. I am excited about maximizing what I already own, getting creative, and saving some $$ in the process.

Try-it-out Tuesday: lace {at last}

JJ Basics cardigan, hand-me-down

Hollister "Pacific" lace tee, $15.90  (here)

denim pencil skirt, Old Navy

necklace, Forever 21

      Let it be officially noted that I usually dread entering stores like Hollister and Abercrombie & Fitch. The overwhelming miasma of perfume/cologne, the dim lighting, the weird store layout so there's dead ends everywhere you go, the masses of tourists dropping $200 at a time on piles of logo tees ... ugh. 

     But, I did brave the store to get the Mr. two buttondowns, one of which I gave him for Christmas. They were too small, so I headed back into the store to return them. Since I had to squeeze past the tourists anyways, I decided to take a look at the sale section. And lo and behold, there were two cute tops in the sale section. I've been wanting something with lace for a long time, so I was excited to find this.

 

Deep thoughts? Or wondering how much candy I ate today?

     While I love both denim and pencil skirts, I have hardly worn this skirt. When I bought it, I was concerned that it was too fitted in the back for work (because who wants a bunch of fourth-graders ogling their rear? Not me.) But I decided to take a few side shots to see how it looked, and I think that while you can see my shape, it's not distracting (ha!) or inappropriate.

 

  One thing I don't like about this top is that it has a ruffle at the front hem. But I do like that its cut accommodates layering a very light cap-sleeve tee underneath (below).

 Stem turquoise tee, Nordstrom Rack

Beach by INC linen shorts, Macy's

 

That dratted ruffle in the front

     Do you have a lot of lace in your closet? (I'll confess that I've always found lace itchy and thus avoided it, but this top is comfy).  And how would you style this top?