Belt It Out

Maxi Dress: Black Swan "Silver Soul Maxi Dress" here

Heels: Jeffrey Campbell "Hough" 

Belt: Express

Necklace: Vanessa Mooney

Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney & Luv AJ

Clutch: Vintage

In my opinion, belts can almost always upgrade an outfit! This skinny black leather belt really completed my whole look! Before I accessorized and added the belt, this dress looked like a massively oversized and colorful potato sack...which did NOTHING for my figure. But by adding the belt, I instantly appeared thinner and taller.  Because it accentuated my waist and broke up my upper and lower body, my waist appeared smaller and my legs appeared longer. Try out this quick and easy tip and see what a huge difference it can make for you too! 

See how unflattering this dress is on these gorgeous models when styled without a belt: here!!!!

June Bloom

Silk Dress: Parker "Cara" Dress (here)

Shoes: Dolce Vita "Elka" Heeled Sandals (here)

Purse: Sequoia Paris Leather Crossbody Bag (similar here)

All Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney

Because I wore this fun, flirty, & feminine silk Parker dress to brunch in Pasadena, you never would have guessed that I spent the rest of the day helping my boyfriend in the garage.  We mounted new tired on his truck and did a few other things here and there. No big deal...I'm just a total badass haha. I'm sure Eddie would beg to differ, but I'll let myself think I'm more of a helper than a hassle.

A Peasant Surprise

Leather Jacket: DOMA Leather (here)

Cashmere Sweater: Enza Costa (here)

Maxi Skirt: Daniel Rainn (Nordstrom here)

Booties: Sam Edelman (here)

Versatility is key to a successful wardrobe. It's important to me that I'm able to wear most of my clothes year round (but that's only possible because I live in Southern California where the weather is typically beautiful all year long). I usually try to buy pieces that can be worn simply as is and then creatively layered for the chillier months. That way I can get the most bang for my buck! I mean...if you're going to spend a pretty penny on something, you should be able to wear it more than once a year!

I love to get creative and restyle my spring/summer pieces for fall/winter. And I find that maxi skirts are surprisingly perfect transitional pieces in my closet. 

This Daniel Rainn maxi already doubles as a dress so it really is the ultimate versatile piece! During the summers, I'd pull up the skirt to my chest over my bikini and simply belt it for a casual day by the pool or at the beach. For the cooler months, I style it as a skirt with a light cashmere sweater, a leather jacket, and some little booties. If it was colder, I probably would have thrown on some fleece-lined tights for an extra layer of warmth. 

Farfalle

If you still think that bow ties are just for boys, you're wrong! Over the past couple years, bow ties have been making a huge comeback in fashion...especially for women. But this trend is slowly drifting away again. I refuse to let a good thing go so I make it a point to work some bow ties into my outfits every once in awhile.

Since I went through a phase of DIY bow tie making, I just have too many bow ties to not wear. I classed up this outfit with my floral print bow in order to add a touch of femininity to my tailored look. 

Bow ties may be borrowed from the boys but they're oh so right for the girls! So help me bring it back in style, ladies & gents! 

Styling Tip: You can do as I did and add a bow tie to a tailored piece such as trousers or a blazer for a sleek and chic ensemble. For a girlier look, try tucking a blouse into a skirt and accessorizing with a statement bow tie.

Silk Tank: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue here)

Cardigan: Maggie Ward (Saks Fifth Avenue)

Trousers: Geren Ford (here)

Heels: Jeffrey Campbell 'Solitaire' (here)

Floral Bow Tie: DIY by me

Flow(er)

Although it's almost been a week since my birthday, I am STILL celebrating! It turns out that I'm kind of celebrating this whole month of October with trips to Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, the Grand Canyon, and Portland!

In addition to these trips, I bought myself an old lady gift...an outdoor grill for my relatively new home (so be ready for some BBQ fun, friends)! After assembling that monster, I had Papa Pleng grill up some ribeye steaks for my actual birthday dinner with the family. 

Then the following night was spent with some of my friends out in the NoHo Art District at Pitfite Pizza and Brickyard Pub for a casual night of pizza, beer, and darts. This totally felt like a mini UCSB reunion with everyone back together again like the good ol' college days! 

The night was just a casual night out with friends, so I decided to wear something pretty simple. I belted a flowy vintage maxi dress, threw on a DOMA leather jacket over it, and paired them with some UGG heeled sandals. 

Leather Jacket: DOMA Leather Jackets (here)

Dress: Vintage

Shoes: UGG 'Luella' Heeled Sandals (here)

Necklace: Chan Luu

Belt: Vintage

 

Birthday Brunch

I kept my outfit simple and classy when my parents took me out for brunch this weekend as part of my 24th birthday celebration. We spent some quality family time together while sipping on my favorite thing brunches have to offer...bottomless mimosas! I've probably had the equivalent of 2 bottles of champagne on my own over this entire weekend but it's okay cause it's my birthday and I can do what I want hahaha. Bottomless mimosas at brunch, mimosas every single morning at home, and binging on mimosas and red velvet ice cream with my bestie in bed after hitting up some bars. More post from my birthday to come so stay tuned!

Thank you all so much for wishing me a happy birthday on Friday! I had an amazing weekend with my family and friends and I'll be sure to try and live life to the fullest and make being 24 kick butt! Have a happy Monday, everyone!!!

Floral Print Shorts: Ted Baker London 'Gleeso' in Rosebug Print (here)

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell 'Switch-2 Nude' (here) 

Coral Necklace: Vintage

Bracelets: Vanessa Mooney (here) and Vintage

Ring: CC Skye "Fools Gold Ring' (here)

Fluorescent Efflorescence

These Elliatt 'Efflorescent' pants are crazy cool...literally! They're silky smooth and super light weight, which totally helps me get through these last few official days of summer.

Honestly as a Californian, I'm probably going to stretch my summer wardrobe til mid-October lol. This is one of the many perks of living in Southern California! I could probably get away with wearing shorts almost year-round! And I only say 'almost' because anything below 65 degrees Fahrenheit is freezing to me! I'd get so cold that I'd actually wear a snow jacket on a daily basis at work because the air conditioning was too cold for me to handle! Hahaha

Anyway, I paired my pants with a stretchy skintight textured tank top and silver accessories. I paired these pants with this top and added a belt to accentuate my waist...otherwise these pants would swallow me whole. They're cut and draped in a way that widens your hips, so I contrasted that with my tight tank top. 

For additional tips on styling printed pants, check out one of my prior posts: Don't Be Such A Pansy. 

Printed Pants: Elliatt 'Efflorescent' pant (here)

Shoes: Jeffrey Campbell 'Encase' Heeled Sandal (here)

Tank Top: Vintage

 Belt: Vintage

Clutch: Vintage

Necklaces: Vanessa Mooney (here)