academichic

Sources:

• Tunic Shirt: Edme & Esyllte via clothing swap
• Shirt (under): Banana Republic
• Belt: BR Outlet
• Skinnies: Anne Taylor LOFT
• Shoes: Dolce Vita via endless.com
• Necklace: Accessorize (gift)

Endnotes:
Nothing too exciting about this outfit other than the fact that I nabbed this great tunic shirt at the clothing swap I had recently. I have been having major problems getting excited to get dressed this week since it has been raining and in the 40s and 50s every day. Oh yeah, did I mention that it’s MID-MAY!!!!!!!!!! Needless to say, I’m going bonkers and am absolutely fed up with freezing in my classroom, so after my valiant attempt at spring tights last week, I’ve thrown in the towel on skirts in favor of pants until I see some serious sunshine.

My verdict is still out on this outfit, but in theory it was great. The loose tunic top, stretchy comfort of Anne Taylor ponte pants, and my new Dolce Vita flats! How cozy? How comfy? How not tight on my tumtum! Alas, the tunic seems a little too flowy (it is a size 12, but you can’t be too picky when it’s swapped/free!) and the belt I added to tame things just wasn’t sitting right on my torso no matter where I put it for some reason. I tried using a skinnier belt that was colorful, a looser belt that sat low, and a wide stretchy belt to pull it all in, but nothing worked. This was totally one of those outfits that left my room in a shambles because I had pulled EVERYTHING out of my closet to try to make it work. Oh well, you win some, you lose some.

Any ideas on how to make this tunic work in my wardrobe before it get’s put back in the swap-pile?

L.

Sources:

Button down – ON, thrifted
Cardigan – thrifted
Belt – thrifted
Tank top – BE Maternity, via Target
Skinnies – ON Maternity
Boots – Banana Republic
Elephant pendant – had since childhood
Bag – Vintage Sears bag, $1 garage sale find

Endnotes:

Does this outfit look familiar? Well, if it doesn’t, let me just remind you of where you might have seen it last. I loved how E. took one of the looks she created with the items from Banana Republic’s Spring line and recreated it with garments from her own wardrobe. It got me wondering whether I could do the same. I figured that this look should be pretty easy to recreate seeing as how it’s composed of mostly pretty basic wardrobe pieces. So my plan was to go in my closet and look for…

A dark button down or tunic, dark skinny jeans, a brown leather belt, dark flats or dark boots, and a bright yellow bag. This last item wasn’t going to be a challenge for me since I already own the perfect bright yellow vintage bag, but if you were looking to recreate this look, I’d say that any bright color bag should do. The idea is to bring in that pop of color with an unexpected tote or purse.

As you can tell from the snow on the ground and from the fact that it’s snowing in these pictures, it’s nowhere near Spring where I live, so I opted for black boots over the dark flats and I also picked up a black cardigan for that extra warmth. And here is my version with items from my closet and slightly more winterized than the BR Spring line iteration…

What do you think? I think it worked out perfectly for a casual Saturday outfit and I’m excited to retry this look come Spring without the cardigan, the sleeves rolled up, and a lightweight pair of flats.

On a related note – I’m wearing my newly thrifted belt, which I am just loving, and am offering you this item as a clue to what this week’s theme is going to be… Yup, you guessed it! It was only a matter of time before we did a Belts Week here at academichic, right? Hope you enjoy the rest of the posts to come on this topic! S.

5 August 2010, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Flutter Tank – J Crew
• Black Pencil Skirt – Banana Republic
• Black Pumps – DSW
• Necklace – made from a gifted earring

Endnotes:

I don’t know if the color of this top is exactly a neutral – its a kind of putty color that sometimes looks olive. J Crew calls it “mink.”  I’m a sucker for all the lovely shades of grey J Crew has invented but “mink” is less than helpful as a color description.  But, I’m using it as a neutral and considering this a mix of black and brown.  I wore this top with navy last time, but I think the black makes the “mink” look so much richer.

The top came with a thin waist-creating tie which I removed for this iteration. I tucked the base of the top into my high-waisted skirt and let the flutters drape over the top.  I think it makes this otherwise sweat detail a little more dramatic, even edgy.  I usually think of mixed neutrals as creating a generally soft look or sometimes a very polished professional look, but in this third stab at the color wheel challenge, I wanted to push my use of neutrals into a new kind of look.   I think “edgy mink” is definitely new for me!

9 July 2010, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Leaf pendant: c/o Vintage Threadz
• Top: Banana Republic Factory
• Belt: from another dress
• Skirt: ages old, from Ross
• Bracelet: gift from Anna
• Turquoise pumps: Steve Madden, gift from MIL

End Notes:

Today I got to do one of my favorite things: teach a class with A.! We had a “focus” day on Manet’s infamous painting Olympia and talked through — and demonstrated — a range of methodologies that have been applied to this well-known work. The fact that you can approach a single work of art in so many different ways is one of those nerdy delights that cements my certainty that I am an art historian at heart.

Turquoise Steve Madden Ulltra Pumps, originally uploaded by academichic.

A not-quite-as-nerdy delight? Pairing these bright turquoise pumps with an otherwise neutral outfit. All hail, the pop of color heel. Since I wasn’t going to be by baby e. in this outfit, I decided to accessorize a little more than I have lately, using blue green and green jewelry to tie the outfit together a bit more. And, oh yes, I’m pattern mixing my florals in the top and the bracelet. It’s wild, really.

Bracelet, originally uploaded by academichic.

I’ve been flipping through old outfits, imagining what they might look like with a turquoise shoe and getting excited about the possibilities. I think it might be time to return to the color wheel for another round…

9 July 2010, originally uploaded by academichic.

25 August 2009 – Shifty, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Black shirt dress – Old Navy
• Brown leather belt – Gap Outlet
• Brown wedges – thrifted

End Notes:

Our recent recommendations on accessorizing a black shift dress made me all nostalgic for my little black wool shift dress. I love the silhouette of a great-fitting shift, and it’s a look that I missed while pregnant. Sadly, that wool LBD is not at all conducive to breastfeeding, nor does it hold up well to spit up, meaning that it will be relegated to storage for a little while longer. But, that doesn’t mean that the, er, spirit of the shift dress need be absent.

This morning I pulled out this slim shirt dress from my pre-preggers storage bin and buttoned it on with hopeful anticipation. And let me be honest. What you see in the photograph is the result of some thoughtful finagling, namely, wearing a black nursing cami underneath, leaving the top three buttons undone to accommodate my new breastfeeding bosom, and moving the waist of the dress up to hide my remaining baby bumpage by adding a wide belt.

Shifty Eyed, originally uploaded by academichic.

It sounds very complicated when I type it all out like that, but in reality it took only a few minutes of tweaking and slipping on a new-to-me pair of wedges to make me see something akin to my pre-preggers style (and body) in the mirror…just altered to meet the demands of my new life. Is it strange that I get a little creative adrenaline rush from my wardrobe trompe-l’œil?

Thrifted Wedges, originally uploaded by academichic.

10 July 2009, originally uploaded by academichic.

Sources:

• Brown ruffle top – J.Crew
• Embroidered skirt – Talbots, borrowed from mom
• Pink cami – BR, remixed
• Black wedges – Connie, thrifted, remixed
• Purse – Garage sale, remixed
• Coral earrings – gift from dad

Endnotes:

After yesterday’s more clean-cut preppy look, I needed a good dose of floral and whimsy in my outfit today. So I borrowed this beautifully embroidered skirt from my mom and build an outfit around it.

To allow the skirt to shine as the centerpiece, I completed the look with a variety of neutrals. Now I’m well aware that many a fashion critic will argue that black and brown do not belong together, but I beg to differ. I subscribe to the Stacy and Clinton school of thought, which states that neutrals are neutrals because they go with everything, including each other. Thus, I have no problem with wearing a brown top and brown purse with black shoes.

What about you? How closely do you follow that old adage of not mixing black and brown? S.