Instagram Review

I am going to be out of town visiting my mom for her 92nd birthday, so for today's post, I thought I would forego my usual Outfit Inspiration post and just show you some of the outfits from my Instagram feed. Now that I have a smart phone, and have been taught how to post pics and so on, I am enjoying the ease of throwing on an outfit and quickly posting it to IG. The thing I like about Insta is that it allows you to see a more realistic view of how I dress. 

The outfits I post on my blog, are ones that I would wear, given the opportunity, but often real life gets in the way and I find it easier to just throw on a pair of skinny jeans and a pretty top in order to chase my grandson around, go grocery shopping, do laundry and so on. The following are just a few of those everyday outfits that I frequently reach for. 

Plaid Dress with Skinnies

Striped Tee with Embroidered Chinos

Yellow Ankle Pants with Multi-print Tee

Eyelet Top with Skinnies

White Ankle Pants with Floral Kimono

Distressed Crop Jeans with Multi-print Top

These are just a few of the outfits you'll see in my Instagram feed. Do you like this post? Do you follow me on Instagram? I'm still a work in progress and I appreciate all of you who have subscribed to my blog. If you read my posts, but haven't subscribed just fill in the info in the subsciption box and I'll put you on my email list. I only email once a week, because I know how full our in boxes can get. You can follow me on Instagram and I am also working on putting more things on my Pinterest boards so check those out as well. 

Have a great weekend!

Pantone Spring 2018 - Spring Crocus, Almost Mauve and Little Boy Blue

This is already week four of my Pantone Spring 2018 series. You can check out the previous weeks' posts by clicking on the links: Week 1, Week 2, and Week 3. This week I am featuring the colors: Spring Crocus, Almost Mauve and Little Boy Blue.

Since my daughter and I have to arrange time to get together for photos, we often shoot as many outfits as we can fit in at a time. If you follow me regularly you already know these pictures were all shot on a wintery day. Not very spring like, but then spring is taking its sweet time to make an appearance this year, so I guess this is appropriate. 

I found this Chaps maxi skirt on the clearance rack at Kohl's back in January. When I began looking for pieces for this Pantone series, I thought the flowers on the skirt were a good representation of both Spring Crocus and Almost Mauve. 

My NY & Co tee is also Almost Mauve. I tucked the tee in to give more definition to my waist and topped it with an H & M Harbor Mist cardigan. Pantone has included four classic foundational colors with their palette this year, which serve as a great way to keep an outfit from getting too overwhelmed with color.

I decided to add the Little Boy Blue color as a bright pop against the floral back ground. It makes me think of a sunny blue spring sky. The crossbody bag is Rosetti brand. My SO flats are also blue and probably a tad bit closer to the actual Little Boy Blue color. 

For jewelry I wore a necklace and bracelet with light blue colored beads and silver embellishments. 

Here are a couple of pictures of me being cold! Ha, ha. Don't I make the goofiest faces? I have always thought I could mimic Lucille Ball and some of her funniest looks. Sound like a future blog post.

The things we do for the blog! Ha, ha. This was the last picture we took outside that day, so the next three weeks you'll see indoor pictures. We had had enough. 

I hope you enjoyed this look at three more of the Pantone Spring 2018 colors. Which one do you like the most? I really love Spring Crocus, but Almost Mauve makes a great neutral that can be paired with almost any color. Little Boy Blue will be great color for the transition from spring into summer. 

I've included a few shopping links. These are affiliate links, which means I get a few cents if you click on a link. I really don't make any money on this blog, but your clicks will add up, so that maybe in the future I will. I appreciate all your support. All opinions are my own. 

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull. Make up by Rachel Christensen

Monday linking up with Catherine of Not Dressed as Lamb. Tuesday linking up with Jess of Elegantly Dressed and Stylish and Shelbee of Shelbee on the Edge

Layers of Fun: Bedrock

Since it is still winter in the midwest, I thought it would be beneficial to start our fashion walk with layers. I am a layer fanatic and I will give my daughters Rebecca and Rachel the credit for teaching me about layering and all things fashion. What is more fun that being able to wear as many of your clothes as you can at one time, and still look fashionable?

In today's post we'll start with the under layer or what I call the bedrock. This is your foundational layer. This layer should lay close to your skin. This will include your underwear. Now what sort of underwear you wear is entirely up to you. This blog is meant to help you feel comfortable and fashionable in things you are already used to wearing. If you wear cotton panties, by all means keep wearing them. If you wear a thong, you go girl! There are so many options out there and you are in charge of you. In addition to your underwear you can also consider hose, tights or leggings as well as slips and shape wear part of the bedrock. 

Photo Credit: Rebecca Trumbull

After we have all our under layers on, we can think about actual clothing. I usually wear a tank top, but any type of cami or even a thin tee shirt will do. What you wear, might be determined by how you wear it. If you are layering a button up blouse over a long sleeve tee and want to coordinate the pattern on the blouse with the color of your tee then you might be wearing a crew neck. Maybe you are looking for simple practicality and just want to be warm, then a cami or tank top that doesn't show is appropriate.

Photo Credit: Rebecca Trumbull

The real trick to the bedrock is layers without bulk. If your under layer is too thick or covered in buttons or embroidery, etc. the over layers may look wrinkly, or, God forbid, make you look heavier. So always think layers without lumps. Think of layer cake. A beautiful cake will have frosting free of crumbs or blobs of unnecessary decoration. As we dress, we want to appear smooth, light and beautiful.

Obviously layering is not for everyone. I am a post menopausal woman and while I still have micro hot flashes I was one of the fortunate women who flew through the change easily; that's not true for everyone. My mother-in-law was thrown into menopause after having a hysterectomy and likens her hot flashes to panic attacks with your skin on fire. During that stage of her life she would not be found in the amount of layers I am used to wearing in the winter. If you are in the throes of the change then layering can be as simple as a short sleeve blouse under a cardigan. That way, when you are flashing you can take the cardi off and still look polished. No sweat! (Pardon my unforgivable pun!)

Next week we'll explore Middle Earth!