Category Archives: STYLE

Buffalo Plaid

I’ve been seeing a lot of “buffalo plaid” lately…have you noticed the trend? Buffalo plaid is basically just a large scale gingham, traditionally in red and black and most of the time made of flannel. I personally like it because it’s plaid but simpler, so it’s easy to pair with other patterns and textures, but it’s still bold on it’s own. It also just screams COZY! I think it should be a staple in everyone’s (men’s and women’s) fall/winter wardrobe. I guess I don’t technically own any buffalo plaid, but I do have a red and black flannel shirt that’s pretty close…close enough until I can snag something at a consignment store. I’ve gathered some of my favorite stylings of this trend here, along with some tips on how to wear it (without looking like a lumberjack)!

1. Add some personality.

Pair it with leather, wear it over your favorite graphic tee. Think about some of your favorite things to wear, and try it with buffalo plaid. buffaloplaid5

2. Pair it with a pattern.

I LOVE the way buffalo plaid looks with leopard print. Here, it’s worn with leopard shoes, but also consider a belt or a scarf. Wearing it with another plaid is an idea I never thought of. Here, J. Crew stylists paired it with a smaller scale plaid, also in red, so the two patterns would compliment each other rather than conflict. It also looks great with simple stripes (what doesn’t?). I love the yellow plaid in that bottom picture! buffaloplaid2

3. Class it up.

Add a sophisticated, classy touch to your buffalo plaid by wearing it with a blazer and some pointed toe heels. Keep classy and casual balanced by wearing it with jeans. buffaloplaid4

4. Forgo the plaid shirt.

Try going for a skirt instead. Both short and long are lovely. The second outfit is by designer Leandro Dominguez. I discovered this designer just through browsing Pinterest. You should have a look through his present and past season lookbooks – beautiful clothing and great outfit inspiration! buffaloplaid3

5. Accessorize.

Buffalo plaid accessories add a nice pop to an outfit. Scarves, hats, shoes, purses…plenty of options. buffaloplaid1

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Schoolgirl Lumberjack

Saturday, it was nearly 90 degrees outside, so I was stupid and wore a flannel shirt. Today it’s super windy, so, of course, I wore a skirt that’s definitely a bad choice for a windy day. Also, I stepped outside without my jacket before I realized I definitely needed the jacket. It was quite chilly. I obviously need to check the weather before I get dressed.

I wore this top/skirt combo earlier this summer, and some friends decided that I was dressed like a schoolgirl lumberjack, or something of that nature. Not sure if that was meant to be a compliment or not, but I’m okay with it. oct8

Top: secondhand Urban Threads. This shirt is a cropped top. I can really only wear it with this skirt unless I want to expose my midriff, and I don’t. But I really like it….even though it gets limited use.

Skirt: Target. This skirt hits at my natural waistline and falls to right above my knees. I love pleated skirts, though this one was probably more trouble than it’s worth. I bought in a small…was too little…exchanged for a medium…was too big. So I cut off about an inch of fabric from the side of the skirt where the seam is and sewed it back together. I’m sure you can guess that altering a stretchy knit pleated fabric like this isn’t easy, but I succeeded. And I confess, I’m proud of that achievement.

Jacket: secondhand Gap. My ole trusty denim jacket that I’ve had forever.

Shoes: secondhand Minnetonka. My ole trusty moccasins. One of four pairs of Minnetonkas in my closet, and I still want more.

Bracelet: Covent Garden, London. I studied abroad in London in 2010, and I loved going to Covent Garden just to wander by myself. It was close to where I was living and was a great way to escape my study abroad group and be “alone.” The tube made me nervous, so I wan’t willing to venture off by myself unless it was within walking distance.

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Fall Textures

When you want to dress for fall, but the weather is a bit too hot, here’s what you do: wear tweed shorts (the kind you’d wear in cooler weather with tights), a thin scarf, and cute booties. fall textures

Top: secondhand. This top is a sheer lace fabric. I wear it with a nude camisole underneath.I like this combo of textures – the lace with the tweed. I was inspired by this photo.

Shorts: secondhand silence + noise. These are my winter shorts. I’ve never been a huge fan of the shorts-with-tights trend, but these converted me. They are obviously made for that. They’re a higher rise, hitting just below my natural waistline, which I love. They’re also a looser fit.

Boots: secondhand Minnetonka. Can I wear my Minnetonkas all the time? I own three pairs: these, the thunderbirds, and the skimmers.

Belt: secondhand. This is a double wrap belt.

Scarf and bracelet: secondhand. I like the pop of orange these pieces add to the outfit!

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Cobalt and Yellow

The first week of October is greeting us with summer weather, so I figured I might as well get a bit more use out of my summer clothes before they go into hiding for the winter. Thus, the dress.

cobalt and yellow

Cardigan: secondhand Gap. I love cobalt and yellow together, so I paired this yellow striped sweater with my pretty blue dress. It has 3/4 length sleeves and it’s a thin cotton fabric, so it’s not too warm for the summer weather…plus, I’m inside most of the day.

Dress: secondhand Cato. This dress is about knee-length at the shortest spots and mid-calf at the longest. I love the handkerchief hem with my western boots!

Boots: secondhand Steve Madden. Wearing the summery dress with boots makes it a bit more fall-appropriate.

Jewelry: secondhand. I love this multi-strand colorful bracelet. It probably gets more use than any other bracelets I own. It’s so bold!

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Outfit Collages

I’ve decided I’m going to try out a new approach to this blog. I find that I’m really unmotivated to take pictures of myself everyday…that’s really my only excuse for not posting as of late. I love putting together outfits and I love sharing them, I just don’t love taking pictures of myself.

So I’ve started building up a photo inventory of my closet. Rather than “modeling” my outfits, I’m going to put together collages similar to what users on Polyvore put together…except I’ll be using images of my own clothes.

I realize this is really different from what the typical fashion blogger does. I also realize this means you aren’t seeing how the outfit looks on a real person. But everyone is a different shape and size anyway, and a certain style shirt or skirt or dress may look totally different on you than it does on me. I’m sharing to offer inspiration, and hopefully these pictures will still offer that. I’ll always explain the pieces and their fit in a description along with the photo so you can get a better idea of how the outfit actually looks when assembled.

So to kick off this new approach, here’s the outfit I wore today:

red and blue casual

Top: secondhand Forever 21. This tee has a loose and relaxed fit. It’s the type of thing I’d normally belt. Since I knew I’d be wearing my jacket all day anyway, I decided to go without a belt.

Jeans: secondhand J. Crew. I loooove these black straight-leg jeans. They’re just the right length on me and not too snug, so they’re still work-appropriate.

Jacket: secondhand Gap. I’ve been living in this denim jacket lately. I’ve had it since middle school, but I’m pretty sure it’s gotten more use over the past month than it ever has before. I typically roll the sleeves to keep them out of my way.

Shoes: secondhand Aerie. This is the first time I’ve worn these. They’re super cozy…and they remind me of the TARDIS.

Earrings: secondhand. They mimic the color and patterns in my shirt. Perfect.

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End of Summer Outfit

end of summer outfit
I feel like I spent most of my summer wearing a t-shirt dress, leggings, and Toms. Since I babysat three days a week for most of July and some of June and August, that was my wardrobe. Playing with three kids who treat me like a jungle gym requires clothing that stretches easily and doesn’t have any buttons/zippers/embellishments that may injure (me). I had fun with them, but I’m happy I’m able to utilize the rest of my wardrobe again. Being that there are only a few weeks left of summer, I figured I should get a few last wears out of my sleeveless tops and shorts.

end of summer outfit end of summer outfit
I really like this top, but I’ve only worn it once (last summer). It’s kind of busy–with the flowers and beads and pleating–so I’m never really sure what to wear it with. These simple railroad stripe shorts were my solution…a bit more exciting than denim, but simple enough to not look crazy.

top: secondhand Ric Rac (Anthropologie)
shorts: secondhand Gap
shoes: secondhand Two Lips
earrings: borrowed from mom (indefinitely)

end of summer outfit

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Fall Wish List

I’m SO excited for fall weather. It’ll be nice when I don’t have to remove layers when I go outside (because a normal indoor temperature is cold to me). I’m noticing a trend amongst the outfits I’ve been pinning lately . They’re all pretty classic looks–simple pieces with timeless shapes and patterns, lots of layering, rich neutral colors. Combining sophisticated and casual, classy and laid-back. My summer wardrobe is colorful and a bit funky, so I guess I’m just ready for some change. Of course, I still love unique, fun pieces, like these loafers, for instance. But I think sticking with mostly simple, classic pieces and adding just one or two unique items will really make those items shine. Here are some things I’ve discovered recently that, if I had a bottomless wallet, I’d probably snatch up. I guess I’ll just have to look for similar items in consignment stores…the best way to go!

fall_wishlist

Any trends or items you’re eying for fall?

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Growing Out a Pixie Cut

I’m getting my hair cut tomorrow. Just my bangs! No, I’m not going back to the pixie. Admittedly, I have been tempted many times over the past year. Particularly when I was at the NARTS conference this summer and there was a girl there, approximately the same size as me, same hair color, similar face shape, same name even…with an adorable pixie cut. But no, I’m ready for long locks again.

Anyway, since I’m thinking about hair (Well, I’m not really thinking about hair. Or I wasn’t. But now I am. Beside the point…) I thought I’d share my hair journey. The word journey makes it sound like such a dramatic ordeal, but if you’ve ever attempted to grow out a super short pixie cut, I’m sure you understand it’s tough to make it through. I had more than my fair share of awkward or simply terrible hair days. I’ve made it, though! My hair is nowhere near the length I want it to be yet, but it’s no longer what I consider ‘short.’ Hooray!

Here is a timeline of the many stages of my hair growing out. The first picture is about a year and nine months ago. The next one (pictures go left to right, top to bottom) is from July 2012. So from there, this shows my hair over the past year. The last picture (in color) was just a few weeks ago.

growing out a pixie cut

I’ve learned so much about my hair through this process. That sounds kind of odd, but it’s true. I’m more familiar with my hair’s natural texture and how to work with it. I’m more aware of what cuts and styles work well on me, without having to use blow dryers, hair straighteners, curling irons, and/or styling products.

I think having gone through this, I’m a little more fearless when it comes to what I’m willing to do with my hair. Hair grows, and nothing I do is necessarily permanent. I’ll likely never dye it purple, but I’ll probably go short again one day.

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Be Silent

burnt sienna outfit
I don’t know how I’ve never noticed that this top and dress work so well together. Well I’ve finally discovered the combo, and I’m sure this won’t be the last time I wear it. I love colors like tomato red, burnt sienna, rust–very autumnal colors. Which is awesome…because autumn is approaching. Excitement!

Also, check out those clouds…beautiful! :D

burnt sienna outfit burnt sienna outfit

I really don’t have much to say today, apart from the above comments about my outfit. A lot on my mind, yet not much to say. But sometimes not saying much is nice. I’ve been doing a lot of “saying” lately, with interviews and such, so today I’ll just let my WordPress SEO plugin fuss at me for not having at least 300 words in my post.

Says the introvert.

“How wonderful it is, to be silent with someone.” – Kurt Tucholsky

burnt sienna outfit

dress: secondhand New Directions
top: secondhand Check & Stripe
boots: secondhand Steve Madden
hat: vintage via Etsy
belt: secondhand
earrings: borrowed from mom

burnt sienna outfit

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White on Labor Day

peplum1

Happy Labor Day! I figured I should probably post this outfit before the holiday ends, since some people may actually follow that “no white after Labor Day” rule. According to most fashion sources, though, winter white is a big trend on the runway for fall 2013. I see no reason to eliminate a neutral from my wardrobe for two entire seasons, so white is totally acceptable after Labor Day in my book.

peplum2 peplum3 peplum4

Have you heard the news? My hair is finally long enough to wear in a sort-of-ponytail-like updo! It’s been over two years since my hair was long enough for that. I’ve never really been one to wear my hair up, even back when I was sixteen and had crazy long hair But…sometimes my hair doesn’t cooperate. When I was sixteen, I normally straightened my hair (or all but the ends), but now I prefer not to do that, so putting it up is my solution for uncooperative hair. I’m excited to let my hair get as long as it was then, but with more knowledge on how to cut and style curly hair (Need some tips? Elizabeth of Delightfully Tacky has some great tips and tutorials). I was going to let my bangs grow out, too, but I’ve pretty much decided I want to have them cut again. I think they make crazy long hair look a bit more groomed and refined…just my opinion. Anyway, enough about hair. Here are my outfit details:

top: secondhand a.n.a
jeans: secondhand Delia’s
shoes: secondhand Cole Haan
earrings: borrowed from mom
bracelet: free gift from NARTS conference

peplum5

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  • Hey! I'm Maggie, a graphic designer, crafter, devoted secondhand shopper, Doctor Who fanatic, and dog-lover. Stick around and explore!


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