Hello "60"! Growing up in the 70's.

To spend time celebrating me is outside of my comfort zone, but one thing I am learning from the Lord, and from really listening to other people is that I am valuable and I have something to give back to the world. Many of you have reached out to me over the years and some of you are regular supporters of this blog and I appreciate all of you. When you have felt invisible most of your life it is hard to get outside of that box and start thinking differently, but I want to think in a way that is accurate to who I am in God’s eyes, and He has called me, Beloved, so it’s time I start acting like it.

My birthday is January 7th, and this year I turned 60. Wow! For six decades God has given me the grace and strength to walk this planet and He has also drawn me closer and closer to Him, showing me more than ever how important it is to be in His word and in fellowship with others who walk in His ways.

My faith is the spring board to everything I do, but the last few years as I have been dealing with illness and the stress and fatigue that comes with it, I have really not been walking and doing with excellence, and I truly believe that is what God wants from us. That doesn’t mean we don’t screw up, get tired or fall of the wagon once in a while, but when we start to use difficulty as a crutch to not show up or to let things slide, then we need to do some self examination.

Once again, I am evaluating where I want this little blog to go and you know what? I am happy to let it keep going the direction its going, but with just a little more effort and planning. This month I just want to celebrate me and the person God has formed me into, so my outfits are going to revolve around that theme.

Today’s look is celebratory. My spouse got us tickets to go to an Abba cover band on Sunday evening. This is not the outfit I wore, but since Abba was big in the 70’s, I thought it would be fun to build an outfit from my memories of that decade. While I was born in the 60’s, it is the 70’s that had the most influence on my clothing, my music and my memories.

The decade of the 70’s saw great changes in the world of music, fashion, and government. With the death of Elvis Presley in 1977, and the official split up of the Beatles in 1974, the music industry continued to look for bands and beats that appealed to people buying albums and listening to the radio. Along with hard rockers like Aerosmith, Alice Cooper, Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath, the Rolling Stones carried over from the 60’s and soft rock like the Eagles and Fleetwood Mac appealed to a maturing generation. In addition, disco splashed onto the scene in the form of Abba, the Bee Gees, KC and the Sunshine Band, and others. Rock also took an angry turn in the form of punk with names like the Sex Pistols, the Ramones and the Runaways.

While the United States, much to its’ citizen’s dismay, had troupes fighting in Vietnam, our country pulled out in 1973, leaving South Vietnam to be assimilated into the Communist control of North Vietnam. War found a new front in the form of nuclear threats and posturing between capitalist West and communist East. Did you have to do “bomb” drills in school? I remember doing them when I was in early elementary school, where the alarm would go off and we would have to get under our desks. Things have changed. Now our kids and grandkids just have to worry about school shooters! Ugh!

Fashion continued to influence the world and everyone was looking to music and Hollywood to determine what we would be wearing. Pant legs got wide with wide leg flares and bell bottoms. Clothes were bright, colorful and printed with flowers, animals and our favorite brands and bands. Clothes were made to show movement, and sass. Vests and jackets were often trimed with fringe, and dresses and tops donned crocheted embellishments. Turtleneck sweaters replaced button down shirts under sports jackets, and monochrome sweater outfits with slouchy boots were seen regularly in the work place. Jewelry was bold, and layered.

It has been fun to look back at this decade I grew up in. Of course my outfit might not be exact to some of the trends and styles of the time but I thought each piece gave a shout out to some of the fashion vibes of those years. My kimono was a gift from my younger daughter for my birthday a couple of years ago when she and her sister did a spa day for me at her apartment. That was fun. I think the kimono has that 70’s feel with its bright colors and the peacocks going up the one side in the back.

My wide leg flares, the turtleneck, and the boots were all similar to things I remember people wearing. The pants would have been more likely worn with platform shoes, but I don’t have any of those anymore.

What do you think of this outfit? Does it remind you of the 70’s? What fashion trends do you remember from the 70’s? I’d love to hear your thoughts.

I hope you enjoyed this post.

Pantone Autumn/Winter 2022 - New York Palette: Rose Violet, Caramel Cafe, and Polar Night

As I continue the Pantone Autumn/Winter color series, I want to remind you my graphics are interpretations of the colors and do not match exactly. I have provided links to the Pantone website and the colors, so you can see what they actually look like. This week’s colors are a combination of a bright pinky purple, an earthy caramel brown and a deep navy. My Rose Violet is definitely too purple. If you click on the link you can see it really is more of a Fuchsia pink than purple. I don’t know why I thought my kimono was the right color. Oh well, I still think it makes for a bright, interesting outfit, even if the colors aren’t exact.

I received this beautiful silk robe from my younger daughter when she and her sister gave me my spa day for my birthday this past January. I really only wear robes in the winter when it is cold, so I thought this pretty piece deserved to be showcased.

Style Tip: Think outside the box when it comes to your clothing pieces. A bathrobe might suddenly be the perfect topper for a holiday party, or your cute checked pj pants might be a great addition to your casual Friday work wear routine.

I was having a hard time smiling when I took these pictures. I still feel tired and the dreary weather wasn’t helping my sinus headache. My hair is a bit fly away too. Oh well, you don’t follow me so that I’ll show you fake pictures and phony smiles. This is the real me, so thanks for loving me anyway! Ha, ha.

My Polar Night tee is an older Christopher and Banks piece. I like to have multiple solid colored tees in short sleeve and long sleeve versions strictly for the purpose of layering, either under pieces like this or just for added warmth under a pullover sweater.

You’ve seen these Stitch Star patchwork jeans on the blog before. I think they worked well for the Caramel Cafe color. The last two times I combined them with red. See the red sweater, and the red knit vest. I think they work well with the purple and with the navy colors.

Style Tip: Don’t be afraid to try new color combinations. You might find you like something even better than your regular go to choices, plus it makes you feel almost a bit daring stepping outside your comfort zone.

I kept my accessories simple. I liked the contrast of the navy tee with the pale purple necklace. I also chose my thrifted silver cross body bag.

I thought the navy SO ankle boots were a compatible choice with the navy tee, but a pair of caramel or cognac colored books would have worked too and the similar color would elongate the leg.

What do you think of these colors? Would you wear a kimono like this anywhere but the house? I’d love to hear your thoughts. I’m including a few shopping links. Enjoy shopping and remember these are affiliate links brought to you at no added cost. If you click on a link I get a few cents. I appreciate all your clicks.

I hope you are having a wonderful October. We have had some beautiful days and the leaves have been just gorgeous. I will not be posting next week as we are taking a few days away with our family, but look for more posts on the blog the following week and as usual I will be posting regularly on Instagram and Facebook.

Have a great weekend!

Having Fun with Layers - Light Weight Kimono

I am sure most of us have one or two kimonos in our closets. Typically, we only pull out these light weight pieces when the weather warms up enough that we can show them off over our spring or summer outfits. Kimonos are really more of an accessory than they are an actually clothing item. They are meant to accentuate or be the focal point of an outfit, much like a statement necklace or a scarf. For this reason, I thought it would be fun to show how we can use a kimono while it is still cold, by using it in the same manner, but over an outfit with heavier layering pieces.

This kimono was a clearance find at Kohl’s a few summers ago. It is actually a bit small for me, but since I don’t have to worry about closing the front, I just let it hang open, almost more like an open front cardi or vest. You can see the pretty floral detail, but what you can’t see is that there is also a spattering of light yellow here and there in the pattern. That is why I wore it over the bright yellow sweater.

I love this pretty yellow, St. John’s Bay, cable knit sweater that I got at JC Penney over a year ago. Cable knit sweaters are definitely a staple in my cold weather wardrobe. They are comfortable and can be worn along or with a collared shirt sticking out as an additional layer.

You’ve seen these Gloria Vanderbilt jeans on the blog many times and I swear by this particular pair of white jeans. So far I can still fit into them, which is a good thing, because a heavy weight pair of white jeans, that don’t show through are hard to come by. Ha ha.

I didn’t really need to add a whole lot to my look since the kimono does the bulk of the work. I added some black beads, both at the neck and on my wrist. I also opted for gray Impo ankle boots, and a thrifted Evan-Picone bag. Like my blush New York and Co. bag, this gray piece serves as both a tote, a crossbody and a clutch.

I hope this post will inspire you to pull out that kimono in your closet and give it some love.

I’m including a few shopping links for you to look over. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Have a great evening.

Kickin' It with Kimonos - Looks like Sunflowers

I came across another Ohio blogger, recently on instagram named Shannon Solt. She inspired me to check out Hirzel Farms and their sunflower fields. Since she did a fashion post in front of the pretty blooms, I thought that would be a great idea and texted my daughter about getting some pictures in before the heavy seeded sunflower heads started to droop. Being the practical minded person that I am, I wanted to come up with an outfit where I would be able to get more than one blog post. I finally decided on using one piece styled three different ways.

The piece I chose to revolve all three outfits around is this Massini chambray dress that I found on the clearance rack at Target. I have styled this on the blog before as seen with a denim vest.

It was a bright day, but with plenty of fluffy clouds flying over, so the sun would shine and then it would go behind a cloud. This can be a problem for taking pictures, but I thought my daughter did a great job. We both prefer shade or clouds for pictures.

I found this fabulous kimono, or in actuality a ruana, at maurices. I love the color combination and once again it is a floral print. You can see in these pictures the sunflowers are already getting heavy with seeds. This was about two weeks ago and now they are completely brown and drooping so their heads face the ground. At this point each individual stalk can be cut. Once further dried the seeds can be harvested, or the stalks can be left outside and the seeds become food for all sorts of critters.

Doesn’t it look like the flowers are bowing to me as I walk by? Ha, ha.

I would have had a yellow pendant necklace if i hadn’t forgotten it at home. Ha, ha. The joys of taking pictures somewhere other than home. I can’t just run back into the house if I forgot something. Anyway, there is plenty of activity going on in the kimono and in the back ground, so it is probably okay that I don’t have a necklace on.

I did have this bracelet for another outfit, so I threw that on. I really like the little owl charm.

If you have been following for a while, you know I love these SO ballerina flats. They are comfortable, light weight and so easy to slip on and off. They tend to mold to your foot, so don’t slip off when I am walking.

I’ve used this light blue bag on the blog before too. Unfortunately, in this picture the bag is backwards and you can’t see the pretty gold zipper and blue tassels on the front. I really need to pay more attention to the details.

Here is a fun black and white photo for you. I love the contrast of grays, whites and blacks in this picture.

What do you think of this outfit? Do you own a chambray dress, or a fit and flare dress like this? Do you like to wear bell sleeves? I’d love to hear your thoughts

I’m including a few shopping links. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

Kickin' It with Kimonos - Multi-colored Floral

As you have figured out by now, I have a number of kimonos. The one thing they seem to have in common is they all have prints. Kimonos really are more of an accessory to an outfit, as opposed to a cardigan or blazer, which serve, not only to pull an outfit together, but as a layer of warmth in the cooler weather. Most kimonos and ruanas are very light weight and are meant to be used much as you would use a statement necklace or scarf. They are meant to make your outfit more fun and noticeable.

This next kimono I am going to show you is a LuLaRoe piece and once again adds an element of flirty and feminine to an otherwise casual, tomboyish outfit.

I got this thrifted Nike tee on a recent thrift run. I usually don’t buy brand tees like this. I have no affinity for sports wear branding. I am sure if I were more into sports, then I might feel differently. However, I have always thought that Nike’s slogan, “Just do it,” was something we all could identify with. I mean which one of us hasn’t wished we could do better, be better, eat better, exercise more and so on. Typically I don’t like to go around with this type of slogan across my chest. Not because I am worried about people looking at my chest. I highly doubt a tee shirt like this is going to invoke a drool worthy response from a man. Ha, ha. My feeling is more along the lines that I don’t want to advertise something I have to live up to. Seriously! Yes, I want to be a writer: just do it! Yes, I want to eat better: just do it! Yes, I want to exercise more: just do it. I feel as though I am a walking billboard for a chorus of condemnation. Do any of y’all get what I am saying?

That being said, maybe I need to have these types of messages make an appearance more regularly, not only in my wardrobe, but in the things I read, watch and listen too. Maybe, if I added a bit more of this spice of encouragement to my life, I would be more likely to succeed at those aforementioned desires. What are your thoughts? How do you encourage yourself to do the things that are difficult? Especially when life is so busy and chaotic?

Let me also add in here I know my tee is extremely wrinkled. Ha, ha. I should have gotten it out further ahead of time and let it hang in the bathroom. My daughter keeps telling me I need to get a steamer. Maybe I’ll suggest that on my Christmas list.

This is our first grand puppy, Beatrice. We call her Bea, Sweet Bea, Sweetie Bea and an odd assortment of other endearing terms. She is a mastiff mix. My daughter actually sent in a sample for DNA testing to Embark, to see what breeds Beatrice has in her lineage. The main breed was Cane Corso, which is an Italian breed of mastiff, but she also has Dog de Bordeaux, which is a French breed of mastiff, Neapolitan, which is another Italian mastiff and Bull Mastiff, along with a few other odds and ends. We were trying to get her to turn around, but she wasn’t having anything to do with it.

My yellow, Talbots, crop pants are a thrift find. I have styled these on the blog before. You can see it with a white tee and light gray blazer, and with a pink button up and open weave vest,

This little yellow cross body bag is starting to show some wear, especially since it was second hand when I got it. Paying a little extra for real leather trim or a real leather bag is definitely worth it as they will last longer. I think this one is going to go in the donation box. I do like the color, but I am not lacking purses, so I’ll find a suitable substitute.

Even my cute beaded, fringe bracelet is showing some wear. I will either trim the tassel or just remove it entirely.

Here again are my Naya black suede oxfords. I really like these shoes and they are great for fall and winter.

You’ve got to have a few fun photos. In the second shot my daughter was trying to get me to show the asymmetrical line of the kimono, but my mind went towards Dracula’s cape. Ha, ha. Always the ham, I am!

What do you think of this outfit? Is this a little too outside the box? Do you stay away from writing on tees? I’d love to hear your thoughts, so be sure to leave a little love in the comments. I appreciate all your support.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

I’m including a few shopping links. Enjoy! These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Kickin' It with Kimonos - Yellow Floral

It seems that floral is a very popular pattern for kimonos. I am not sure it that is because most of us use our kimonos during the warmer months as a way to level up an otherwise, “normal” outfit like a pair of jeans or shorts or if I just am more naturally drawn to the floral prints in my purchases. Today’s kimono is a shorter style, but once again is covered with a floral print, although this time a bit more tropical.

I was on the verge of getting rid of this pretty yellow kimono. It is a brand called TruSelf and I think I got it at Walmart a few years ago. I am not real thrilled about the length of this piece. If the hemline was more asymmetrical, I think I might like it better, but for the sake of trying something different I kept it.

One of the bloggers I have followed since becoming a blogger is Jodie at Jodie’s Touch of Style. Jodie is such a warm, friendly lady, and an actual person. She isn’t at all fake, and I love that about her. Most of the fashion bloggers I follow are real women, who have their own sets of struggles and difficulties, but they are trying, just like me, to accept themselves and this process called aging. Jodie featured a post on a different way to wear your kimonos and that is where I learned this trick of tying the front to give the kimono a different look. You can see Jodie’s original post on how to make kimonos look more fitted here.

I tied mine differently than Jodie did in her post, but it still serves the same function, to make the kimono more fitted, rather than boxy. Here’s what it looks like tied up.

My light blue tee is a thrifted Sonoma piece. I love graphic tees and a great place to find them are thrift stores. Whether you like band tees, place tees or just random word tees, you can find plenty of different graphics second hand. Be sure to check out the men’s section as well. I found a few tees that were perfect for my younger daughter.

My pin striped skirt is reminiscent of the old time railroad engineers’ caps. this was a recent online purchase from Christopher and Banks. I was looking for another pencil type skirt with a little different look than just plain denim. This works perfectly. I am looking forward to cooler weather and styling this skirt with some tights and ankle boots.

Since the chunky sneaker look is trendy with skirts and dresses right now, I knew I could add my bright blue thrifted Keds and be spot on. My other accessories consisted of my thrifted Jaclyn Smith bag, a navy flower pendant necklace from Christopher and Banks and a simple beaded navy bracelet.

Do you have a kimono in your closet that you are not sure how to wear? I hope these little posts are offering you some inspiration. Sometimes we only need a new way of looking at something to give us a whole new set of ideas for styling outfits with clothes already in our closets.

I hope you week is off to a great start.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

Have fun looking over the shopping links below. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Kickin' It with Kimonos - Orange Floral

Today’s look involves some bold print mixing, but why not? It is fun to think outside the box when it comes to building an outfit and one way to do that is to mix prints. This might not appeal to you, because it is a little busy, but there is something about this I really like. I think it might be that this outfit has a bit of a bohemian vibe. The colors do lean a little bit more towards fall, but seeing as we are now in the month of August, I think it is a great transitional look.

This chevron print dress is Sonoma brand. I just loved the colors of this thrifted piece and knew I had to bring it home with me when I found it. You can see how I styled this same piece with a pair of crop pants in one of my previous Pantone series.

I am not sure what I was doing with my mouth, be these sorts of pictures have been pretty typical throughout my whole photographic career. Ha, ha.

I ordered this orange floral ruana from a boutique retailer called Glamour Farms. I used to follow several bloggers who featured a number of their pieces and I thought they were cute. This ruana was on clearance and I loved the color and the pattern. Unfortunately when I got it, the seams they put at the sides to make it more secure and have sleeves, made the piece too small. I just removed a few inches of stitching and now it is perfect.

The above picture also gives you a closer look at the thrifted necklace and my beaded bracelets. I thought this necklace was a very unique blend of brassy metallics and wooden beads.

My thinking is, a good boho outfit always should include some fringe, thus this thrifted bag. This is a very simple hand crafted piece, but I just love the fringy layers and it definitely appeals to my inner hippy. You can see this bag with two other boho looks on the blog: medallion print skirt and denim outfit.

I have had these Montego Bay Club sandals for ages. I used to wear them quite a bit, but more recently I haven’t really been wearing sandals as much. I’m glad I thought of these, however, and I think they work just right for this outfit. What do you think?

What did you think of this outfit? Would you do a print mix like this? Why or why not? I’d love to hear your thoughts, so be sure to leave me some love in the comments. I appreciate all your insights and ideas.

I’m including a few shopping links. These are affiliate links. Every time you click on a link, I get a few cents. Every penny counts. All opinions are my own.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

Transitional Spring Outfit

Spring time in my area is a carousel ride of fluctuating temperatures and weather which makes getting dressed any given morning like playing the lottery. The best way I have found to adapt to these changeable days is to think layers. As opposed to winter layering that is full of heavy long sleeved tees and bulky sweaters, spring layering is more about lighter layers. Fabrics like cotton or cotton polyester blends are ideal for light layers and still give you mobility while keeping you warm.

Today’s outfit was what I wore on Saturday for our Easter celebration. I wanted something casual and comfortable, but still flexible enough to cook a big dinner and do all the clean up afterwards. I also wanted layers that would be warm, but not so warm I would be peeling them off when the oven was on cooking the turkey.

Transitional dressing usually means you are moving from one season to another and you are in between one wardrobe and another. The move from winter to spring in my area is usually still chilly and even downright cold. Rain, snow showers and wind are common place during the months of March, April and once in a rare while into May. Many people who have a capsule type wardrobe can have all of their clothes in their closet at one time. For those of us who are clothes horses, we need to move out the winter wardrobe and move in the summer wardrobe. I usually don’t do this until the weather is consistently above 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Cold weather clothes spend much more time in my closet than my warm weather clothes, unfortunately. Ha ha.

In this outfit I am wearing two lightweight cotton long sleeve tees. The striped tee you can see is a.n.a. brand and was a purchase this past fall from JC Penney. They had a good sale on long sleeve tees and I bought a few. Underneath the striped tee is along sleeve thrifted light pink tee which is Old Navy brand.

My pretty floral kimono is David & Young brand and a DSW clearance find. Don’t be afraid to look at the accessory sections at different stores. You never know what you might find. The thing that drew me to this piece was the print, the colors and the tassels.

My jeans are Rock & Republic from Kohl’s. I have several pairs of these and love all of them. These are more stretchy and like jeggings rather than jeans. My other pairs are regular denim.

Once again, my chunky burgundy necklace is making an appearance. I love the way it looks with this outfit and I also love the print mix of this outfit. Stripes and florals are one of the easiest and most popular print mixes.

I thought these Spirit ankle boots were a good choice for this look. They are comfortable and yet stylish with a faux suede finish and low heel.

This Massini saddle bag was purchased from clearance at Meijer a while back. I’ve styled this with an outfit before on the blog. You can see that post here.

I hope you enjoyed this outfit. What do you wear to transition from winter to spring? Are you still wearing layers where you are, or is it warm? I’d love to hear from you, so be sure to leave a comment below.

I hope you all are well and managing to stay healthy and mentally sound, which isn’t easy to do in these times we are in. I have good days and bad days, but we all need to give ourselves grace. These are difficult times, so set small goals and try to get outside.

I’m including a few shopping links. These are affiliate links, but all opinions are my own. Thanks for stopping by the blog.

Outfit Inspiration - Monochrome Look with a Kimono

As I have mentioned on other occasions, the inspiration for my fashion posts, comes from all different areas. A lot of times it comes from a picture in a magazine, or an add I get in the mail. I have a notebook where I keep the pages from these magazines and catalogues, of outfits I’d like to try to mimic. Today’s outfit was inspired by a JC Penney add from last fall.

In the add, the model featured a rust colored tee, rust colored corduroys and a kimono with a beautiful fall pattern full of those colors like rust, teal and burgundy. I have numerous kimonos, which I am always lamenting I don’t wear enough for how pretty they are. Kimonos, ruanas, ponchos or capes can all be such beautiful statement pieces, so why not make that statement piece the focal point of the outfit.

Since we are well into winter, I decided to use a more wintery colored kimono. This is truly a great piece for all year round, but since I decided to make the monochrome part of the outfit black, it seemed perfect to top the dark under layers with a piece full of bright tropical pink. This kimono was thrifted and is Massini brand. Before I had any kimonos, I never really saw what the draw was, but now I am sold. This beauty was one of the first ones I bought.

I know my black pieces do not match exactly and while that would drive some people nutty, I figure the kimono is getting the main attention in this outfit, so it didn’t matter as much. The thrifted black skinny jeans are Mossimo brand and the back cable knit turtleneck sweater was from Kohl’s a number of years ago and is Croft and Barrow brand.

My black, slouch, Massini, boots are also a Kohl’s purchase, but a clearance find. I had been looking for a pair of these soft, faux suede boots to wear with skirts and dresses. I have a wider calf, so quite often I cannot get these softer types of pieces. They are usually made thinner to stay up, otherwise we’d have panty hose ankles like our grandmas use to have, but with our boots.

With my recent walking activity while employed seasonally by Kohl’s my legs got much more tone and I lost a few pounds. Now I can wear these boots over skinny jeans, as long as the material isn’t too bulky.

I styled these same boots and the black turtleneck in my 20 Days of Christmas series back in 2018. You can see how I used those two pieces with a slip dress here.

For my accessories I went with silver, black and gold. These days there is no worry over mixing our metals. I enjoy pendant necklaces and reach for these longer pieces more often than my short ones. This one has a number of charms dangling from the end of the chain.

You can also see the layers of bracelets I threw on my arm. Most of these are cheap stretchy beaded types, but I don’t think we have to pay tons of money to have interesting and unique pieces in our jewelry boxes.

This bag was another thrift store find. It is Libby Edelman brand and is genuine leather. The leather is soft and supple and I love the wide guitar like strap and the riveting. My hubby thinks i have two many purses, which is true, but how can you pass up a winner like this one? I also love the bright reddish pink color.

What do you think of this outfit formula? What inspires the outfits you wear? Inspiration can come from all sorts of places, including bloggers you follow, other people’s Pinterest pages and like I found, even pictures in an add or catalog. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below. I appreciate each one of you.

Photo credit Rebecca Trumbull.

I’m including a few shopping links. These are affiliate links. All opinions are my own.

Is it a Kimono or a Ruana? Week 3

If you are new to my blog or to this series, I am looking at the difference between a kimono and a ruana. You can see the definition of each as I explained it here in last week's post. This week's outfit revolves around a more traditional kimono. The first post in this series featured an outfit with a short kimono. You can see that post here. Front and center this week is a longer kimono, which to me, seems more traditional to what I think a kimono is supposed to look like as far as shape and length. 

This kimono is thrifted Massini brand. Since the kimono has a lot going on with its vivid floral print, I decided to go with a more monochrome outfit underneath. 

This gray, embellished tank is Croft and Barrow and was thrifted. The pants are Falls Creek and a recent clearance purchase from Meijer. Once again, I like the idea of print mixing stripes and floral. This time the stripes are vertical rather than horizontal and worn on the bottom rather than the top. 

No outfit is complete without a few accessories. I added a silver necklace and a couple of unique bracelets. Since the tank has the beaded embellishment I went for a simple, understated necklace. 

I have also fallen in love with the color yellow and I couldn't resist adding the bright sunflower feel of this thrifted Elle bag to the berry and gray mix. Do you think it works?

I decided on my gray oxfords instead of sandals, which makes this a work approved outfit. We can't wear open toed shoes at the bookstore. Although, I'll tell you even a shoe like this will not keep your foot from getting injured when you drop a 1st Semester Nursing package on it. Ha, ha. 

Here is a back view of the kimono. The hem line is higher in the front and lower in the back. 

What do you think of this outfit? Do you have a kimono hanging in your closet? If not, I'm sharing a few pretty ones that I found in my shopping section. I also shared how you might put them together with pants and a top. These are just suggestions. These are affiliate links. If you click on a link I get a few pennies. If you purchase something through my links, I might get a small commission. All opinions are my own. 

I hope you enjoyed today's post. I'd love to hear from you. You can also see what I am wearing on a daily basis by checking out my Instagram account. I try to post on there at least three or four days a week. 

Have a great week everyone.